So Seung-ji chased after them as they walked slowly. Yeong-ji followed behind, trying to stop So Seung-ji, but he shook off her arm and strode forward.
“…I should go with you too.”
“B, Brother?!”
Jin Geum-ryeon looked at So Seung-ji with a puzzled expression, then turned his head towards Ak Mujin. Ak Mujin also looked back at Jin Geum-ryeon, his face bewildered and embarrassed.
Jin Geum-ryeon, who had maintained a relaxed attitude throughout, frowned and stared at So Seung-ji again.
“Why?”
“Because I don’t know what you’re going to do!”
Even if Jin Geum-ryeon did something, could So Seung-ji really stop him? No, could he even be a match for him? Ak Mujin thought so, but seeing So Seung-ji trembling slightly as he tried to hold onto Jin Geum-ryeon, he couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.
“…What a buzzkill, after all this time.”
Jin Geum-ryeon muttered to himself, glanced at So Seung-ji, then lightly turned and started walking. He could have left So Seung-ji in a near-death state and gone on his way, but it seemed Jin Geum-ryeon had no intention of doing so.
“I won’t stop you if you want to follow.”
“……!”
So Seung-ji watched Jin Geum-ryeon walk away, then hurriedly followed him. Yeong-ji also seemed to think that something terrible would happen if she left them alone, so she bowed politely to Ak Mujin and followed So Seung-ji.
Before they knew it, their group was arranged with Ak Mujin and Jin Geum-ryeon, Cheong-aeng at the very front, followed by So Seung-ji and Yeong-ji.
Ak Mujin had a feeling that things wouldn’t be so easy.
*
Hunan, where the Martial Alliance had its base, had many inns due to the high volume of traffic. However, due to the crowds, the rooms in each inn were packed, so Ak Mujin was unable to enjoy the luxury of having a room to himself this time either. He could only be grateful that there were two beds.
Jin Geum-ryeon paid for their and Cheong-aeng’s rooms and went up the stairs with the clerk, while So Seung-ji was talking with Yeong-ji because there was only one room left in the inn. In any case, Jin Geum-ryeon had allowed So Seung-ji to follow them, but he didn’t need to show him the favor of letting him share a room with them, so it was none of his business how they slept.
Ak Mujin and Jin Geum-ryeon unpacked their luggage and were leaning back on their respective beds when they heard the voice of the young lady they had seen during the day from outside the room.
“Um… Ryeon-ah. Can I talk to you for a moment?”
It was Yeong-ji. After saying that, she waited quietly, without urging him or raising her voice.
“Is it okay if I let her in for a moment?”
“Do so.”
Faithfully, Jin Geum-ryeon asked Ak Mujin for permission before opening the door. Yeong-ji stood there hesitantly, looking up at him.
Ak Mujin thought she had a cute face. Although it hadn’t been mentioned before, Yeong-ji was also one of those who had fallen for Jin Geum-ryeon. But now she was just taking care of So Seung-ji, so he felt sorry for her.
“Why don’t we talk outside?”
“Do it here.”
Yeong-ji glanced around a bit, then cautiously made a suggestion to Jin Geum-ryeon, but Jin Geum-ryeon didn’t seem to want to talk to her for long. Eventually, Yeong-ji leaned slightly and looked inside. Ak Mujin was sitting on the bed inside.
She was a little reluctant to go into a room with two men, but she thought she had to say what she had to say, so she steeled her resolve and nodded.
“I’m sorry to bother you while you were resting, Sir.”
“Not at all. Don’t mind me and make yourself comfortable.”
She bowed to Ak Mujin and sat down at the table as Jin Geum-ryeon guided her. She must have already heard from So Seung-ji that he was a Demonic Cultist, but her attitude was still attentive and kind to Ak Mujin. It was an unexpected attitude, but Ak Mujin was pleased and gave a small smile.
Jin Geum-ryeon considerately left the room door wide open and came inside.
Yeong-ji placed her hands on the table and fidgeted with her fingernails, glancing at Jin Geum-ryeon, who was sitting across from her.
“Are you really going to do that?”
“As I said before, I don’t know how the situation will change, so it’s hard for me to say.”
“I see….”
Yeong-ji lowered her head with a dejected expression, then looked up at Jin Geum-ryeon again. Jin Geum-ryeon patiently looked back at her, listening quietly to what she had to say.
“You wouldn’t know because we haven’t seen each other for three years. You don’t know how hard Brother So worked to establish himself in the Martial Alliance….”
Yeong-ji trailed off and sighed softly.
“Honestly, I didn’t see you properly back then, but I was very shocked when I found out that you had done that and left. I felt that way, so how must Brother So, who was watching from the sidelines, have felt?”
Her voice was calm, but it seemed to be trembling slightly. Yeong-ji cleared her throat and continued.
“Besides, because he was friends with you, the people inside treated him very harshly. Once, he went on patrol with the Martial Alliance members and accidentally ran into some Demonic Cultists, but they left Brother So, who was injured, behind. And no one even took responsibility for it.”
Ak Mujin tried not to listen to the story, but it wasn’t like they were outside the room, and the words spoken inside the room went straight into his ears and head.
It seemed that So Seung-ji’s situation was as he had guessed. If Jin Geum-ryeon had done such a thing and left, even if he hadn’t killed anyone, those who had been seriously injured by Jin Geum-ryeon would have harbored resentment towards So Seung-ji, who was his friend. It was a pity for So Seung-ji.
Yeong-ji gave a bitter smile.
“You know, Brother So always wanted to join the Martial Alliance. So… how about not taking revenge? I won’t tell you to apologize to the Martial Alliance. Just, if you stay quiet, the rumors will eventually die down….”
Her voice was very cautious, as if she didn’t want to upset Jin Geum-ryeon in the slightest. At that point, Ak Mujin couldn’t help but watch what Jin Geum-ryeon would answer.
Jin Geum-ryeon blinked once and looked at her.
“Jia, you can say that because you weren’t there at the time. I understand.”
A low, calm voice echoed through the room. Somehow, he didn’t seem to be able to give Yeong-ji the answer she wanted. Jin Geum-ryeon continued.
“I always thought Brother So would be on my side too.”
He now turned his eyes away from Yeong-ji and looked out the door. There was nothing outside the door.
“But back then, there was no one by my side.”
Jin Geum-ryeon spoke in a light tone, but Ak Mujin could feel a deep sense of loneliness in his voice.
Ak Mujin, who roughly knew what had happened between the people, thought that if the Martial Alliance Lord at the time had framed Jin Geum-ryeon as an informant of the Demonic Cult in order to slander him, everyone would have agreed with him and helped him out of fear of the Martial Alliance Lord. It was inevitable that Jin Geum-ryeon, who had never been treated well by any of the orthodox sects he had met since he came down from the mountain, would have exploded there.
If So Seung-ji, whom he believed to be his best friend, wasn’t on his side at that moment… Ak Mujin once again felt that he had made Jin Geum-ryeon lonely.
“Anyway, I don’t want things to get out of hand either. I can’t say that I won’t take revenge at all, but I won’t be moving right away.”
Yeong-ji seemed to sit there blankly for a moment after hearing those words, then finally smiled and spoke.
“Thank you, Ryeon. Thank you so much. I’ll tell Brother So about you too. Please forgive Brother’s rudeness today.”
Unable to hide her delighted expression, she staggered to her feet. Seeing this, Jin Geum-ryeon immediately stood up to support her, but Yeong-ji shook her head and left their room.
“Then, rest well.”
A few light footsteps echoed down the hallway, and now only Ak Mujin and Jin Geum-ryeon were left in the room. Jin Geum-ryeon stared at the door Yeong-ji had left through for a long time.
Ak Mujin quietly watched his back, then slowly opened his mouth.
“…You spoke as if you were going to break the Martial Alliance’s signboard right away. Was that a lie?”
“…….”
Jin Geum-ryeon silently closed the door and came back, leaning against the table with his thighs. His hands were clasped together and lightly placed on one thigh. He looked down at his feet and seemed to think for a moment, then smiled at Ak Mujin.
“To be honest, at first, if you were willing to chase after me because of my revenge, I was just going to pretend to do so.”
In other words, Jin Geum-ryeon had made the sound of taking revenge on the spur of the moment, and he didn’t actually intend to strike the Martial Alliance. As Ak Mujin had thought from the beginning, if Jin Geum-ryeon, who held the position of Evil Cult Lord, tried to confront the Martial Alliance, it would become a clash between huge forces. It would be a war within a war.
It was quite fortunate that Jin Geum-ryeon had no intention of doing so, but Ak Mujin’s heart grew heavy at the words that followed.
“But after seeing Brother So earlier, I really wanted to wage war.”
Jin Geum-ryeon muttered with his eyes lowered. A lonely expression settled on his face.
“Back then… I felt like I was the only one left in the world because I thought you weren’t there either.”
After saying that, Jin Geum-ryeon laughed self-deprecatingly as if he himself was dumbfounded. Then he raised his head and looked at Ak Mujin.
“It’s strange, isn’t it? It’s not like you ever volunteered to be on my side.”