Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 439

439. Knowing the Location

Though the members of Hwachin-chin were entertainers, their constant travels made them well-versed in various rumors.

They had to constantly assess which places were safe, which were dangerous, and where potential problems might lie, always seeking safe havens.

Naturally, they possessed a certain level of knowledge about the Murim [martial arts world] world, testing the waters as it were.

“The Demonic Cult and the Murim Alliance? Aren’t those incredibly huge organizations?”

“Why would they ask us to perform there?”

“Shh. Shh. Shh. Those people have very sharp ears. Shh.”

The members were whispering loudly enough for anyone, not just Murim people, to hear. Nangil, embarrassed, glanced back and forth between the self-proclaimed Murim Alliance elder and the Demonic Cult members.

The first thought that came to mind was, ‘Are they for real?’ followed by, ‘Whether they’re real or fake, isn’t this dangerous?’

If they were fake, they would be dangerous con artists with ulterior motives, and if they were real, they were dangerous simply because of who they were.

The Demonic Cult had a bad reputation even among those outside the Murim world, but the Murim Alliance was just as intimidating to those unfamiliar with its ways.

To receive such proposals from not one, but two factions, especially two that were known to be hostile to each other…

“Wouldn’t rejecting one side make us hated by the other?”

“Oh, how scary. I’d rather go with the Murim Alliance.”

“No, you fool. It’s not about choosing the Murim Alliance or the Demonic Cult, but deciding which you’re more afraid of being hated by.”

As time passed, even those who weren’t part of Hwachin-chin stealthily gathered around to watch.

By this point, the individuals involved, the Sword Elder of the Murim Alliance and Yeon Seung-kyung, the Chief of the Demonic Cult, were also in a bind.

They hadn’t come to fight each other. Each had come to invite Hwachin-chin, or more precisely, the blonde beauty, for their own reasons.

But because their rival faction had approached at the same time, the atmosphere had become tense.

Amidst all this, the blonde in question was calmly eating snacks, which annoyed both the Sword Elder and Yeon Seung-kyung.

However, unbeknownst to them, there was one more person whose heart was pounding because of this situation.

* * *

“Oh, what to do? That troupe called Hwachin-chin seems to be deeply involved with Murim people?”

The lord of the 11th Star, who had ordered Hwachin-chin’s name to be removed from the performance list after the deputy leader of the Goriburi Troupe complained about their symbolic dancer being taken away, said this.

The lord of the 11th Star glared at the Goriburi executives with eyes that seemed to say, ‘This is all your fault,’ as if he was getting angry just thinking about it.

That’s right. If those guys hadn’t come running, saying, ‘Hwachin-chin has no business ethics!’

Even though he was the one who made the decision, the lord of the 11th Star grumbled, feeling angry for no reason.

“You should have resolved such matters among yourselves!”

The lord of the 11th Star defended himself with absurd words, and then, wondering what to do, he instructed the chief manager.

“Bring me paper and a brush immediately.”

As the chief manager hurriedly brought paper and a brush, the lord entered a nearby building and began to write a letter.

The chief manager peeked out, wondering what the lord was thinking that he suddenly needed writing tools.

“Lord! This…!”

* * *

Nangil was at a loss when the sound of someone running over came from somewhere.

‘Who is it this time?’ People curiously watched the approaching person.

The person who appeared this time seemed to be a subordinate of the lord.

Nangil initially thought, ‘That’s a relief,’ but then he remembered that the lord had removed Hwachin-chin from the list and became nervous. ‘Are they coming to cause more trouble?’

“Who is the leader of Hwachin-chin here?”

“That’s me.”

“Ah, this. The lord has instructed me to give it to you.”

Nangil reached out and received the letter that the subordinate handed over.

“Huh?”

But what the lord had sent was…

“What is it, leader?”

“A recommendation… it seems.”

It was a recommendation letter.

“What?”

Hwanmae took the recommendation letter and examined it, and Rembrary also looked over her shoulder.

Meanwhile, Nangil saw the Murim Alliance people and the Demonic Cult members looking at each other uncomfortably, yet unable to take any specific action.

And after confirming exactly who they were glancing at, Nangil quietly called Rembrary.

“Rembrary.”

“Hmm? What is it?”

“It seems like you’re the one both sides want to invite the most. You decide where to go.”

“Huh? Is that alright?”

“Since our original plan went awry from the moment we came to the 11th Star anyway. But we’re gathering recommendation letters faster than expected. We’ve already collected two.”

Since everyone was gathered closely together, the Murim Alliance elder and the Demonic Cult members could hear Nangil’s proposal.

As they watched Rembrary look back and forth between the person who said they were from the Murim Alliance and the person who said they were from the Demonic Cult, they broke out of their standoff and took a step forward.

Just as they were about to start speaking over each other, Rembrary cut them off at an appropriate point.

“Then I’ll go to the one who’s more urgent. Murim Alliance. Demonic Cult. Why are you inviting us?”

The Sword Elder of the Murim Alliance, who had never spoken with Rembrary one-on-one, flinched slightly at the question.

Not because of the content of the words, but because of the unpleasant expression.

On the other hand, Yeon Seung-kyung, who had already dealt with Rembrary once, was not swayed by Rembrary’s tone and immediately stated the condition.

“Our Great Lord is suffering from insomnia.”

“Insomnia?”

Rembrary tilted his head, his tone implying, ‘Why are you calling us if he has insomnia?’

However, Yeon Seung-kyung continued calmly without being swayed.

“He can barely fall asleep for about an hour after listening to a song, but the conditions are too demanding. Since he got tired of the singer he had been listening to until recently, he hasn’t been satisfied with anyone’s singing.”

But before Rembrary could react to that, the Sword Elder of the Murim Alliance, who had hesitated for a moment earlier, interjected first.

“If the Great Lord is suffering from insomnia, he won’t be able to pursue his wicked ambitions, so that’s even better, Blonde Beauty.”

“My name is Rembrary.”

“Rem Fellow.”

“…….”

“Rem Fellow may not know, but it’s better to let the Demonic Cult folks suffer from insomnia like that. Otherwise, they’ll just torment people.”

Yeon Seung-kyung frowned and glared, but the Sword Elder didn’t budge, even though they were outnumbered.

At this, Yeon Seung-kyung scoffed, angered.

“So. What’s your reason for inviting this singer? We at least have a proper reason. What’s your reason? Just because they sing well?”

In fact, ‘because they sing well’ was reason enough to invite a troupe.

However, as the situation unfolded, the Sword Elder felt compelled to provide a special reason as well.

The problem was that she wasn’t inviting Rembrary because he sang well either.

She had invited him because she admired the power he exerted without lifting a finger and the kindness he showed in helping people without conditions.

Moreover, she was planning to recommend that he become a Murim warrior affiliated with the Murim Alliance once he was brought there, so there was no immediate reason to give.

As a smile of victory appeared on Yeon Seung-kyung’s face, the Sword Elder hesitated and lied.

“Our Alliance Leader is sick.”

“If they’re sick, they should call a doctor.”

“It’s good to play good music for sick people.”

“Isn’t it because there’s an elder who’s willing to sell even the Alliance Leader’s name if necessary, causing a headache?”

As sharp words began to fly back and forth between the Demonic Cult members and the Murim Alliance Elder, people nervously looked back and forth between the two groups.

Nangil took the recommendation letter from Hwanmae and carefully put it away, while looking at Rembrary with anxious eyes.

‘Should I have just chosen myself?’ He was worried that Rembrary might be in trouble because of the offer he had made, thinking he was being considerate.

At that moment, Rembrary, who had been standing still and looking back and forth between the two groups, opened his mouth, saying, “Let’s do this.”

“I’m looking for a group of people.”

‘A group?’

‘Isn’t Hwachin-chin his group?’

“Mulu, Sagamjae, Ardor, Hwasaja, Shin Joun. These five.”

Rembrary went on to describe the appearance of the five, then set a condition.

“If you find out the location of these people, let me know. I’ll go to the one who tells me first. Until then, I’ll be preparing to become an imperial troupe.”

* * *

In the end, both the Demonic Cult and the Sword Elder returned empty-handed.

If the Sword Elder hadn’t been confronting them, the Demonic Cult might have acted more aggressively, but being with her, the Demonic Cult members had no choice but to return as well.

As Hwachin-chin said they needed to collect three more recommendation letters to become an imperial troupe and left for another star, the Sword Elder felt regretful but went to the Alliance.

‘Those Demonic Cult bastards. They don’t seem to know that the singer is an incredible master yet. It wouldn’t be good if they found out…’

Returning to the Alliance, the Sword Elder unpacked her luggage, feeling troubled, and after reporting on her original mission there, she went to the cafeteria used by both executives and regular employees.

Some executives didn’t use the cafeteria because they were uncomfortable with everyone staring at them whenever they went, but she usually used the cafeteria when she was staying at the Alliance.

Because all sorts of information would roll in from all directions just by being there.

Today, she went to the cafeteria for the same purpose, taking a seat where she could hear the conversations well without being disturbed by others.

However, the rumor sweeping through the regular employees this time was a bit different from previous rumors.

“So, is the Alliance Leader’s illegitimate child completely gone?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t seen him at all these days.”

“But no one has seen him leave.”

“Has anyone seen him come in?”

“Someone said they saw the Alliance Leader chasing him out.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, so…”

The Sword Elder frowned. ‘What are they talking about?’

“But why does that person have a different surname from the Alliance Leader?”

“What’s the surname?”

“It was Sa. Sa Gamjae, I think. That’s what the name was.”

The Sword Elder listened, thinking, ‘What in the world is going on?’ and then paused at the name Sa Gamjae.

Recently, that name. She had heard it before. From that blonde singer named Rembrary.

‘That guy’s companion is the Alliance Leader’s illegitimate child?!’

The Sword Elder was flustered, wondering whether she should be surprised that they found him so quickly or that the Alliance Leader had an illegitimate child.

But soon, she stopped eating, got up from her seat, and ran to the Alliance Leader.

The Sword Elder went to the Alliance Leader’s room and urgently asked the bewildered Alliance Leader.

“Alliance Leader. Is your illegitimate child’s hair very black and his face very pale?”

The Alliance Leader frowned.

“Even though I said he’s not my illegitimate child!”

“Is it true or not? Tell me this first.”

“Did you come after hearing about Sa Gamjae, Sword Elder? It’s not true that he’s my illegitimate child, but his appearance matches what you said. But why?”

“I went to the 11th Star and saw a young, rising master, and that master was looking for him, saying he was his companion!”

At those words, the Alliance Leader, who had been huffing and puffing, widened his eyes.

“That grim reaper, Sa Gamjae, was also looking for his companions, saying he had lost them!”

“Oh, my!”

The Sword Elder smiled brightly, relieved. At this rate, it seemed like they could bring Rembrary here before the Demonic Cult took him.

“That’s good. The Demonic Cult is also after him. He said he would go to the side that finds his companions first, so we need to tell him this story quickly.”

“The Demonic Cult?”

The Murim Alliance Leader asked, puzzled by the sudden mention of the Demonic Cult, but the Sword Elder waved her hand, feeling rushed.

“I’ll tell you later.”

However, the Alliance Leader hurriedly followed her as she tried to leave and stopped her.

“Wait! Sa Gamjae is not here right now!”