By Zephyria 
Countless stars fell, caught in the schemes of demons and defeated one by one. Looking back now, their lives were truly a waste. If only I had known how to gather them and teach them to attack as one, they could have lived for at least a few more years.
After the War of Righteousness and Evil ended, the Martial Arts Alliance, preoccupied with worrying about how much influence their respective sects or noble families could wield, failed to gather the chivalrous heroes in time. As a result, those chivalrous heroes all rose as zombies.
I couldn’t just stand by and watch. I felt that someone had to give them a peaceful send-off.
“I sought out and gathered those who wished to stop him, those who wanted to kill the Thousand-Faced Devil.”
The severed heads of my familiar older cousins and aunts never returned to the main family. During those days consumed by revenge, some memories were broken off in fragments. Only the terrified faces of those around me, who treated me like a madman, occasionally surfaced.
“Some I knew, others I didn’t… but we moved together, of one heart and one mind. We all had bloodshot eyes, searching for him. By chance, we gathered only a handful of ignorant fools, so we endured every hardship…”
I gathered those in the same predicament as me and searched for the Thousand-Faced Devil’s lair, wandering all over the Central Plains. Finding his traces was not easy. We discovered several caves presumed to be his lair, but we only managed to defeat some of his disciples.
Three years passed like that. Then, one day, Jang Mu-hyeon, the Number One Sword of Wudang, emerged from his long seclusion. The entire continent buzzed with his declaration to engage in a Life and Death Duel with the Demonic Cult Leader for the title of Number One Under Heaven. The Demonic Cult Leader did not refuse. He had to be the strongest in this land for his bloodline’s actions to gain legitimacy.
Wudang was already ranked among the highest of the Nine Sects. The eyes of the Martial World converged. The entire Central Plains stirred with the hope that the end of this horrific War of Righteousness and Evil could finally be seen. Martial artists, eager to witness the birth of the Number One Under Heaven up close, crowded in.
We stood in a circle around two masters, set upon a desolate land where only the traces of a former village remained.
There were two martial artists of Hwagyeong. They were individuals whose single sword strike could overturn the land and summon lightning. If they fought in the mountains, the mountains would crumble; if they fought in a river, the river would dry up. The assembled heroes, watching from a distance, stirred with anticipation, predicting each other’s victory.
“Then, by a sheer stroke of luck, we found him.”
Jang Mu-hyeon descended from the sky. The man, having reached the noble realm where he could tread on air like an Immortal, possessed a youthful appearance that belied his age. His rare face, which I hadn’t even seen when visiting the Martial Arts Alliance multiple times, wore a gentle smile.
Jang Mu-hyeon spoke unbelievable words.
He said that if we returned to the north of the border, to the Demonic Cult’s stronghold, even now, he would forgive our past sins.
After three years since this world was turned upside down, he, who had only just begun his heavy journey, dared to speak of forgiveness. He spoke those words, fully aware of how many had died and fallen below. The Heavenly Demon heard his words as a provocation and laughed, but in that moment, I simply couldn’t… I couldn’t help but resent Jang Mu-hyeon.
So, I took the people I had been traveling with and searched for the Thousand-Faced Devil.
“Among tens of thousands of people, there was one surrounded by hundreds of zombies. Before our leader could behead the opposing leader, I immediately charged towards him.”
“…”
“I cut down all the zombies present and first severed the limbs of the one presumed to be the Thousand-Faced Devil. Just as I had killed hundreds of zombies, as I had done hundreds or thousands of times before…”
As I drew my sword, the others also drew their weapons. The unspoken peace between the Orthodox Sect martial artists and the Demonic Cult grunts was shattered. It was an all-out war, with tens of thousands of martial artists clashing. Watching the scene of flesh being sliced and bones being crushed, the guilt I had swallowed gnawed at me once more.
The sound of the Number One Sword of Wudang and the Heavenly Demon’s swords clashing was as thunderous as the heavens, but those clashing below, making sounds like breaking plates, were no less desperate.
Ruben held my hand tightly. Thanks to him, I could stop my fingertips from trembling. I smiled wryly and clasped the child’s hand back.
What a beautiful hand. What use were fingers with thick joints and calluses on the palm? The back of his hands, which I had diligently applied holy oil to and cherished, were so soft they felt like they would melt with just a few strokes. It was clear he had been raised delicately. He was not someone a wretch like me dared to touch.
“Before he died, I realized he had bitten down on a Thunderclap Bomb… an Explosive Artifact, to activate it. Having no more attachment to life, I stomped on his head and crushed it. And when I opened my eyes…”
Despite that, I pulled Ruben’s hand. Ruben obediently placed his fingertips on my lips. The child’s scent, beyond memory, erased the coppery smell of blood that pricked my nose.
This wasn’t what I originally intended to say. I swallowed a sigh and continued speaking.
“…So, if the one I killed was indeed the Thousand-Faced Devil, then I must have died on the same day, at the same time as him.”
Was that truly his soul, that filth the God of Oasis had chosen and cast north of the Yuil Mountains? If so, I had to kill him again. It was right that I, not anyone else, should finish him.
Ruben remained still for a moment, then asked again.
“Was the Thousand-Faced Devil a Sword Master?”
“No. He was someone who used wicked arts… in Sierren’s terms, he was closer to a black magician. He carried things like Thunderclap Bombs, and I suffered significant harm from him in a single blow, so it’s fair to say he was powerless without zombies.”
“…Really?”
“Yes. However… since most Central Plains people have a Dantian, he could probably use mind methods to accumulate mana in his body, even if it was explosive. If so…”
“Ah.”
Ruben gasped in surprise. I tried to hold it in, but a sigh escaped me. The gods of this land made a mistake. If you pile all the filth in one place, it only becomes more polluted. They should have crushed and distributed it properly beforehand.
I had spent the last three years wandering the Yuil Mountains and the Shatun Desert, accumulating immense internal energy.
If the Thousand-Faced Devil crossed over to this land at the same time as me, how much internal energy would he have accumulated north of the Yuil Mountains?
Furthermore, that wasn’t the only problem.
“If he taught the Demonic Cult’s Mind Arts to the monsters, just as I spread the Hip-Circlet among my comrades, it could become even more problematic.”
“…Monsters can do that?”
“I heard the Demonic Cult’s Mind Arts use cruder, more violent methods. Some suck the blood of others to gain internal energy, and some raise their internal energy by devouring children. Since it’s a mind method that turns even former humans into monsters, it could likely make monsters even more monstrous.”
I worried about Ruben’s overly serious expression. I kissed the tips of his fingers with a soft sound, and only then did the child smile. He collapsed onto me, leaning against my chest. I gently stroked his warm body and whispered.
“If things go wrong…”
“If they go wrong?”
“I’ll have to pester the Sun God to give up a few more fruits.”
“…What?”
The child, who had been laughing for a while, whispered sweetly into my ear.
“Yes. If all else fails… I’ll gift you a Mana Stone mine. You can have it.”
His teasing words made me laugh too.
Unable to sleep, I fiddled with my hands for a bit, then summoned Ranunculus, whom I had entrusted with a task.
I sent two Ranunculuses to Felix. One was to deliver Ruben’s message to Hugh Benson, as previously arranged, and the other was to carry my apology to Marianne.
To Duke Widrow, I sent word that I would be staying in Yulan for a while and would contact him again after meeting everyone in Felix. I also requested that he dissect the living monster variants, not the zombies, to check for traces of mana crystals in their lower abdomen.
I sent no news to the capital. I figured they would contact me if they needed me. I didn’t know how long Prince Richard I would remain detained, but I could only hope he would be safe.
❖ ❖ ❖
The next day. It was the morning of the seventh day since arriving in Yulan.
Ivan Bikoff and Rubel’s predictions were half right and half wrong.
The First Princess and Second Prince of Yulan had indeed invited us for a luncheon, but they refused the suggestion of sailing on the sea. They disliked boats, disliked ports, and even disliked meeting briefly at a suitable tourist spot for a greeting. They insisted we come to the Royal Castle immediately, sending servants to urge us since early morning.
The First Princess was now seventeen years old. No matter how I thought about it, this was not the attitude a grown man should display when arranging a meeting with a prince from another country. Both Ruben and I, who had been preparing to go out since early morning, were dumbfounded.
Ruben asked again.
“Did they not understand the implication of my unofficial visit to Yulan?”
“No. When I said entering the Royal Castle might be difficult, they replied that it didn’t matter if it was a fake identity, as long as we came. And they added this.”
“Added what?”
“…They asked if we weren’t curious about the Divine object, and if not, there was no need to come.”
“…”
I wondered what the Third and Fourth Princes had said and how they had conveyed it. My hurried actions were indeed conspicuous, so I had nothing more to say. Ruben didn’t hesitate for long. He draped a shawl over my shoulders, preparing me to leave, and nodded.
“Tell them we will go now. There must be a reason they are summoning us so urgently. We will offer our help and ask for the Divine object in return.”
“Yes.”
“Instead, tell them a luncheon is unnecessary. A simple tea time will suffice; please provide a reception room where we can talk face-to-face.”
Ivan Bikoff, without a hint of hesitation, took out two items resembling identification plaques from his chest and handed them to me. They were Identification Plaques, made under the names of Ivan Bikoff and Sienna Bikoff. As I checked the names on the plaques, Ivan added an explanation for me.
“If anywhere, the Royal Castle requires an Identification Plaque to enter. Sienna and I will wait outside, so it would be best if only the two of you go.”
“Mm.”
“If you need anything from me, please tell me, and since Mikael is with you, you won’t need any other escort, will you?”
“…That’s right.”
“I will deliver the tea time invitation as soon as I receive it. They seemed quite urgent, so you should be able to go this afternoon.”