Disciple of The Three Kings [EN]: Chapter 26

The Three Kings’ Disciple (27)

026

“The Black Market King.”

Lee Rowoon recalled his meeting with the Black Market King.

In the past, he, who had been close to a high ranker, couldn’t even dare to look at the king of the underworld.

‘The Black Market.’

They were a group that resided in the darkness of Asia, doing anything for money.

There was a reason why people said that if you had money to pay, you could go to the Black Market for anything—stolen goods, information, whatever you wanted.

Yet, their martial prowess was unknown.

It was just assumed that they were powerful because of what they controlled, and that those who had something to protect also needed the power to protect it.

But now he knew.

‘They were pretty good.’

Their martial prowess seemed to be greater than he had thought.

Club Irene.

When Kim Eun-tae saw Lee Rowoon deploy his Qi Membrane [a protective energy field], he thought it was just to block out the noise.

‘They were all members of the Black Market.’

Everyone in that club were masters at the peak level or higher.

Even the hidden masters mixed among them.

What was even more frightening was that they looked like ordinary people, and they were all young.

It was hard to grasp their level.

‘Reverse Aging Technique and Youth Preservation Technique, huh?’

In the world of the hidden, age was power.

As they accumulated inner energy, they naturally grew stronger with age.

The masters of the Black Market seemed to be acting young to deceive the eyes of the hidden world’s inhabitants.

‘It’s better to be underestimated, you get more out of it.’

Kim Eun-tae, the branch manager of the Black Market who was with him, was also an S-class ranker at the Hwagyung level [a high level of martial arts mastery], yet he hadn’t grasped anything.

It seemed that it would be difficult for anyone other than himself to grasp that.

‘I heard that the Gangha Guild was able to disguise itself as a player guild with the help of the Black Market.’

It seemed that their special techniques made that possible.

A martial group whose identity was never revealed.

Naturally, it was impossible to even imagine their scale.

But what was most impressive was the man called the Black Market King.

A handsome man who looked to be in his early to mid-twenties.

The man who introduced himself as the Black Market King.

Smirk.

He was stronger than anyone Lee Rowoon had seen since his return.

A powerful being whose level even the current Lee Rowoon couldn’t be sure of.

If he were to fight that guy now, he couldn’t even dare to guarantee his victory.

But the important thing was.

“That’s a stand-in.”

The possibility of him being the real Black Market King was low.

‘Was it dangerous?’

The current Blood Cult could never handle the Black Market.

Yet, Lee Rowoon had returned, leaked his information to the Black Market, and boldly revealed himself as the Blood Demon, arranging a meeting with the Black Market King.

It could have been an irreversible danger.

But he was certain.

‘They’ve been helping the Blood Cult from the shadows since the past.’

Even though the Blood Cult had paid them a fair price, it was an absurd calculation considering the Black Market’s circumstances.

Moreover, they had never sold information about the Blood Cult to anyone.

That was something that wasn’t possible, no matter how much the hidden world’s inhabitants valued favors.

‘So I thought the Black Market might belong to the Blood Cult, but…’

He had dismissed the possibility after seeing the state of the Blood King’s Castle.

The Black Market was supporting the Blood Cult for a reason that even the Blood Cult didn’t know.

“It’s become clear.”

The identity of the Black Market that had been floating around since the past.

‘The Haomun.’

It meant those who were in the lowest and dirtiest places.

In the world of the hidden, they were the ones who were taboo and looked down upon.

It was said to be a name created by those who worked in the dark underground.

But Lee Rowoon knew.

‘The Heavenly Demon Sect and the Blood Demon Sect, those are important too, but…’

His martial arts master’s voice came to mind.

‘Remember the Haomun.’

The name of those who were low and dirty wasn’t because they were of low status and did low work, as the hidden world’s inhabitants thought.

“The Betrayers.”

It was a term for those who had betrayed the god they revered and had fallen to the bottom.

* * *

“So…”

Lee Rowoon was smiling in disbelief.

[Eunha Guild]

It was the new external force of the Blood Cult, located outside the world.

Kang Eunha, who couldn’t hide her surprised face, was standing in front of Lee Rowoon.

The reason was right before his eyes.

“Why are you here?”

A handsome man in a suit.

Even the dark circles caused by fatigue couldn’t hide his beauty.

He was a man with a beauty that would create countless followers if he debuted in the entertainment industry right away.

“Haha! The investment has been decided!”

“What?”

“The Blood Cult is seeking change! A new Blood Demon! As an investor, it’s only natural…”

Smirk.

“To invest in a place with great growth potential. So, the investment has been decided. We are currently coordinating with Guild Leader Kang Eunha here…”

“So,”

Lee Rowoon interrupted the man.

“The Black Market…”

“Ah! I’m late with my introduction.”

The man quickly reached out and handed over a business card.

“I’m Ha Semin, assigned as the investment manager for the Black Market’s Eunha Guild. It’s an honor to meet the great Blood Demon again.”

Lee Rowoon looked at the business card and then at Kang Eunha.

Sparkle, sparkle.

Seeing Kang Eunha’s eyes shining brightly, he let out a hollow laugh.

Kang Eunha, of course, and no one else, thought that this man was the Black Market King.

They just thought that after the Blood Demon visited the Black Market and talked, things went well, and the Black Market would make a large investment in the Blood Cult.

That was all they knew.

“B, Blood Demon-nim.”

Kang Eunha quickly approached Lee Rowoon, deployed a Qi Membrane, and whispered.

“The investment conditions… are unbelievably good.”

Kang Eunha’s voice was trembling uncontrollably.

“Honestly… it’s so good that I suspect it’s a scam, but I’ve checked the investment contract several times.”

Kang Eunha was someone who had been interested in the outside world and had studied various things since she was trapped in the Blood King’s Castle.

Moreover, Kang Hachul led the Gangha Group, so she had a lot of interest in management.

That was why Lee Rowoon had entrusted her with full authority over the outside world.

“There’s absolutely no problem. I can’t believe it! What kind of people are the Black Market!”

Kang Eunha was trembling.

“As expected of the Blood Demon-nim… With this, we wouldn’t have had to sell the Gangha Group… !”

Lee Rowoon pushed away Kang Eunha’s forehead, which was about to bump into his face, with his index finger.

“S, sorry…”

Only then did Kang Eunha realize her mistake, and her face turned bright red.

But it wasn’t strange.

What was the current state of the Blood Cult?

‘It’s ruined.’

Completely.

Lee Rowoon had become the new Blood Demon, and Kang Eunha was doing her best to revive the Blood King’s Castle, but there were limits.

They had to hide the identity of the Blood Cult and expand while avoiding attention as much as possible.

Of course, with Kang Eunha’s skills, she would eventually recover her power if left alone, but it would take time.

The Black Market’s investment would absolutely shorten that time.

‘Wealth.’

The numbers written on the investment contract he had glanced at seemed unreal.

‘But the most important thing is something else.’

If he were to list what the current Blood Cult lacked the most, he could list hundreds of things, but the most urgent were three.

‘Martial prowess.’

Because they had been cooped up in the Blood King’s Castle, the martial prowess of the Blood Cult members was low.

It was the best they could do, but the hidden world’s inhabitants, who had integrated into the world, were creating peak-level masters and even Hwagyung-level masters.

Their martial prowess was so low that it couldn’t even be compared to them.

But this part would be quickly supplemented with the Blood Demon Art.

The other two.

‘Wealth.’

According to the Black Market’s investment contract, this was also not a concern for the time being.

Lastly.

‘Information.’

The Blood Cult only had Gangha and Naengho as forces outside the world.

There was no way they could run a proper information organization.

They didn’t even have enough money to eat and die, so how could they run an information organization that was like a money-eating hippo?

The Blood Cult had relied on the Black Market’s information until now.

But what would happen if information was dependent on someone else?

‘The quality is terrible, and the acquisition speed is also slow.’

The Black Market’s investment was like solving those two problems at once.

“Blood Demon-nim.”

Kang Eunha said, grabbing Lee Rowoon’s hands tightly with even brighter eyes.

“If the Blood Demon-nim allows it…”

“First.”

Lee Rowoon ignored Kang Eunha and spoke to Ha Semin.

“Let’s talk.”

“Of course.”

* * *

“What’s your scheme?”

Lee Rowoon said, leaning comfortably on the sofa.

His eyes narrowed as if he were about to fall asleep.

“Scheme? I just saw the potential.”

“Well, I can understand that. What I mean is…”

Swoosh.

Lee Rowoon straightened his posture, his eyes fixed on Ha Semin.

“You’re going to stay here yourself?”

The cold glint in his eyes seemed to lower the temperature in the room.

“Does the guy called the Black Market King have nothing better to do?”

He knew that the Black Market would start to directly interfere with the Blood Cult in some way.

They would have a great interest in the existence of Lee Rowoon and the new Blood Demon.

Among them, the method of investment was also a method frequently used by the Black Market.

‘Because they can look inside well.’

So, even a huge investment wouldn’t be strange.

They were said to be like printing money, so they would have more than enough money.

What Lee Rowoon was concerned about was that the Black Market King himself had moved, not another route.

To Lee Rowoon’s question.

“Yes.”

Ha Semin said, sitting casually on one side of the sofa.

“Organizations with established systems run well even if you don’t do anything.”

“How envious.”

“Anyway, I don’t have to move more than a few times a year.”

So.

Why was such a person here?

“I think the Blood Demon-nim understands what kind of people we are.”

“I know.”

Lee Rowoon said in a languid voice.

“Those who are overly obsessed with new information, those who will do anything to satisfy their curiosity.”

“That’s correct. So, does that answer your question?”

Ha Semin said with a smile.

“As the Blood Demon-nim said, you have many secrets. I just want to see them with my own eyes from the side.”

“What I mean is…”

Lee Rowoon said, sounding annoyed.

“It’s not your intention…”

Tap, tap, Lee Rowoon said, poking the air with his index finger.

“Did your superiors order you to do this?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Ha Semin’s playful face remained the same, but there was a strange aura around his mouth.

“Have you forgotten who I am? I’m called the Black Market King. Above me…”

“Well, there might be an emperor or something. Anyway, I didn’t expect you to move like this from the start.”

To attach the Black Market King directly, huh?

‘Does that mean they’ve already predicted the possibility to some extent?’

Well.

“It’s not bad. It’s good to have a capable guy around. You know, right? How ruined the Blood King’s Castle is.”

“Yes. Don’t worry. As long as I’m involved, the Blood King’s Castle will make remarkable progress.”

Pfft.

Lee Rowoon and Ha Semin looked at each other and smiled.

“The authority of the Darknet has already been granted.”

“Hmm?”

“You don’t know exactly what the Darknet is, do you?”

Lee Rowoon nodded without hesitation.

He had only heard rumors about the Darknet.

In the past, Lee Rowoon was not in a position to reach it.

“Actually, it’s just a term created by ignorant people, close to a conspiracy theory.”

“So, the Darknet doesn’t exist?”

“No. There is information shared only among special people. But it’s more accurate to say that they share information.”

Ha Semin said.

“The Secret Society.”

“…”

“Originally, it refers to the qualification to participate in that place. But, it would be a burden for both us and them for the Blood Demon to show up directly, so I will act as an agent for the time being. I will inform you immediately if you need any information.”

Lee Rowoon nodded.

He needed the Darknet to get the necessary information directly without going through the Black Market.

‘It would be better if the Black Market King is directly involved.’

Whether it’s the Darknet or directly, they can still play tricks in the middle.

It’s easier to grasp if you see it directly.

“So, about that.”

Ha Semin said, looking directly into Lee Rowoon’s eyes.

“I will give you the answer to the first of the three things you mentioned.”

What Lee Rowoon had needed.

“I’ve found a mage.”