Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 286

The Shadow War (7)

Three days later.

‘Alright, let’s rest here today.’

The group, which had departed the previous evening, had reached the banks of the Yangtze River.

As they were unpacking and resting, Gi Woo-Hee approached Muk Bi.

‘Um…’

‘Yes?’

‘How should I address you?’

Muk Bi blinked.

‘M-me?’

‘Yes.’

‘Ah, I am Muk Bi, a vice-commander of the Myulsa Army [a fictional military group].’

‘Then, I’ll call you Vice-Commander Muk.’

‘Ah, yes.’

‘It’s not that, Vice-Commander Muk. Your internal injuries aren’t completely healed, are they?’

‘There’s a little bit left, but…’

‘It’s not a little bit.’

‘Yes?’

Gi Woo-Hee spoke with a somewhat stern face.

‘Vice-Commander Muk, you possess incredible martial prowess. From what I can see, it seems you are training by combining two different internal energy cultivation methods, am I correct?’

Surprise flickered across Muk Bi’s face.

‘That’s right. How did you know?’

‘I’ve treated thousands of patients for over ten years. Many of them were martial artists. I can tell most things at a glance.’

‘Ah!’

Muk Bi looked at her with renewed admiration.

Gi Woo-Hee shook her head.

‘That’s not the issue right now. Looking at the flow of external energy occasionally emanating from you, it seems you’ve treated the internal damage with good internal injury medicine. But even though it looks like you’ve recovered on the surface, the burden on your heart must have become quite severe.’

‘Yes, yes?!’

‘May I take your pulse?’

Muk Bi involuntarily looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong.

Yeon Ho-Jeong nodded without even turning his gaze.

‘Ah, yes. Here…’

Gi Woo-Hee, having taken Muk Bi’s pulse, sighed.

‘I thought so.’

‘Is it very bad?’

‘Isn’t the foundation of Vice-Commander Muk’s martial arts based on dynamic power?’

‘Y-yes, that’s right.’

‘You must have trained rigorously since childhood. But that’s the problem. Through unimaginable training, the density of your muscles has improved remarkably, and your cardiopulmonary capacity has also surpassed that of a normal human, but the problem is that your heart is overdeveloped compared to other organs.’

‘Gasp!’

‘Still, it’s fortunate that the balance of your internal organs is being maintained to some extent due to another internal energy cultivation method. If it weren’t for that method, you might not have been in mortal danger, but you would have suffered for several years.’

Muk Bi’s eyes wavered.

The other internal energy cultivation method she was referring to was the Hongcheon Technique that Yeon Ho-Jeong had taught him. Although it wasn’t one of the most renowned internal energy cultivation methods in the martial world, there was no better method than the Hongcheon Technique for controlling Qi [life force or energy] and internal energy.

It was thanks to that Hongcheon Technique that the balance of his internal organs was being maintained. It was truly a stroke of good fortune.

‘It’s something that often happens to people who have constantly overworked their bodies since childhood to improve their physical abilities. Since the heart is also an organ made of large muscles, the heart muscle also overdevelops, causing major problems.’

‘I see…’

‘When you cultivate internal energy, the internal organs automatically balance themselves, so it’s rare to find such cases among internal energy masters. But it seems that Vice-Commander Muk’s focus on dynamic power-based methods has prevented this balance from being achieved.’

‘It’s not a big problem, is it?’

Gi Woo-Hee smiled.

It was a smile that reassured the patient. Just seeing that smile, one would think she was a natural-born physician.

‘Of course not. As I said, your internal energy itself is so great that you wouldn’t be in mortal danger even if you continued like this. And you also have the benefit of another internal energy cultivation method. However, it seems that you were too hasty this time, and you treated your internal injuries too quickly.’

Gi Woo-Hee took out a case of needles from her pouch.

‘I’ll give you some acupuncture for a while. Your body might feel sluggish or numb for about an hour, but after that, it will improve on its own.’

‘Ah… thank you.’

‘It’s nothing. You’ve already done me a great favor by bringing me here safely.’

Thus, Muk Bi received treatment from Gi Woo-Hee.

Watching the two of them, Moyong Gun asked Yeon Ho-Jeong.

‘What happened?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘I heard you had a talk with Physician Gi. Didn’t you say you’d tell me the details later? But looking at it now, it seems she’s turned to our side.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong shook his head.

‘Not yet.’

‘Hmm?’

‘She asked for a few days to think.’

Moyong Gun’s eyes deepened.

‘And you accepted that offer?’

‘Yes.’

Moyong Gun, who had been quietly watching Yeon Ho-Jeong, smiled for a moment.

‘You’ve held back well.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong snorted.

‘I didn’t hold back. It’s just that, as you said, it seems she has her own reasons. I’d like to smash her head in right now, but there’s no need to do that in this situation.’

‘Yes, that’s why I said you held back well.’

‘She has to make a decision by today anyway. I said I’d wait until midnight.’

Moyong Gun nodded.

‘I don’t want anything more than that either. And it shouldn’t be that way.’

‘Hmph.’

‘It might be a bit embarrassing to say, but you are an exceptional person in every aspect. However, I thought that if you were just a little more cautious, you could soar much higher than you are now.’

‘……’

‘I hope that you will be someone who can endure in the necessary moments in the future.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong chuckled.

‘Thank you. It’s not much of a reward, but I’ll give you a gift as well.’

Moyong Gun smiled.

‘You’re saying not to hesitate at the crucial moment, aren’t you?’

‘……Can you read my mind now?’

‘I’ve heard it so much from you that it’s become ingrained in me. But you’re right. We shouldn’t hesitate at important moments.’

‘Good to know.’

‘And…’

Moyong Gun’s eyes deepened.

‘It’s not the right time to say this, but thinking about it, it doesn’t seem like something I need to set the mood for, so I’ll just say it.’

‘Hmm?’

‘About the Martial Alliance Leader.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes flashed.

Moyong Gun continued calmly.

‘After you told me about ‘their’ identities, I thought about it alone. Do I really have the qualifications to become the Martial Alliance Leader?’

‘You do.’

‘Haha, thank you for saying that.’

Moyong Gun looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong with clear eyes.

‘I still find the position of Martial Alliance Leader too burdensome. I don’t think I have the ability to do it.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong shook his head.

‘If that’s what you’re going to say, then that’s enough. You can keep thinking that way, but there’s nothing we can do about it right now.’

‘Are you going to keep persuading this older brother?’

‘I’ve told you before, haven’t I? That I’m going to make it happen.’

‘Even if I don’t want to?’

‘……’

‘Even if I say I will never sit in the position of Martial Alliance Leader?’

‘……Yes.’

‘Why? You’re someone who respects the free will of others, aren’t you?’

Yeon Ho-Jeong smiled.

That smile, which seemed somewhat bitter yet cold, made Moyong Gun’s heart ache.

‘If it’s not you, the Central Plains will be engulfed in flames.’

‘……’

‘Even when an absolute threat approaches, people’s free will should be respected. But… there are exceptions.’

Moyong Gun sighed.

‘I’ve always wondered. What is it about me that makes you want to put me in the position of Alliance Leader?’

‘The person.’

‘……?’

‘Looking at the person, Moyong Gun, himself.’

‘Look here, Yeon Ho-Jeong.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong shook his head.

‘We’re on a mission. Let’s stop here for now. Let’s talk about the rest when we return to the Alliance.’

‘……Alright, let’s do that.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong turned his head.

There, Gang Ryang was standing with a blank expression.

‘Hey, you idiot. Why are you standing there blankly?’

‘Ahem! I can’t help it. One person is getting treatment, and the other is having a serious conversation, so I have nothing to do, you know?’

‘This guy, he doesn’t even know the value of time. You should be swinging your sword even for a little bit of time, instead of just standing around? This won’t do.’

‘Ugh! More training?!’

‘I won’t draw blood, so don’t worry.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong took Gang Ryang into the nearby forest.

Watching the two disappear into the distance, Moyong Gun sighed.

‘Yeon Ho-Jeong. Sometimes, your blind faith is a burden.’

Moyong Gun genuinely liked Yeon Ho-Jeong.

It wasn’t because Yeon Ho-Jeong was exceptional, nor was it because of any particular event. It was he himself who had suggested they become sworn brothers without even knowing much about Yeon Ho-Jeong in the first place.

You could say that the process and the result were reversed. But Moyong Gun thought that such things were meaningless. In any case, Yeon Ho-Jeong was his one and only sworn brother.

However, sometimes it was a burden.

No, to be more honest, he felt a bit resentful.

Yeon Ho-Jeong was clearly hiding something from him. And he still hadn’t told him about it.

He knew it wasn’t because he didn’t trust him. But when he pushed forward with things that were difficult for him to accept, he sometimes felt resentful.

Moyong Gun looked up at the sky.

The setting sun, the red sky intertwined with the cold night air, was incredibly beautiful.

‘……Still, I will wait. Even if the day comes when you betray me, I will never betray you.’

That night, at midnight.

‘Where’s Muk Bi?’

‘He’s fine. If he takes care of himself a little bit, the balance of his internal organs will be perfectly aligned before long.’

‘That’s a relief.’

Thud!

The Yangtze River was vast.

Looking down from the sky, its width could not be compared to the sea, but at least from the ground, the Yangtze River was large enough to be reminiscent of the sea.

Especially so on a night filled with starlight.

‘So.’

Thump.

Yeon Ho-Jeong, having placed the Mad Dragon Axe on the ground, spoke in a calm voice.

‘Have you made a decision?’

Gi Woo-Hee smiled and nodded.

‘Yes. I’ve made a decision.’

Whatever decision she had made, she seemed relieved just by looking at her expression. At least, she didn’t seem to have any regrets about her decision.

Yeon Ho-Jeong silently looked at Gi Woo-Hee.

Gi Woo-Hee closed her eyes.

‘I’ve hated the behavior of the organization I belong to since I was young. And I knew that they were wrong, that they shouldn’t be doing that.’

‘……’

‘But even then, and even now, I feel the same way. You might think I’m indecisive, but I… the Cult…’

It was then.

‘Shhh.’

‘……?’

‘Quiet.’

‘Yes?’

Yeon Ho-Jeong sharply scanned his surroundings.

It wasn’t just him.

Swoosh. Swoosh.

Moyong Gun, who had been leaning against a tree with his eyes closed, reached for his Tangma Greatsword. Muk Bi, who had been sitting and circulating his energy, was also touching the quiver on his waist.

The same was true for Gang Ryang. Although he didn’t yet have the same sharp senses as them, he was slowly beginning to read the atmosphere of the battlefield.

Yeon Ho-Jeong spoke calmly.

‘Gi Woo-Hee.’

It was the first time he had called her by her full name. And Gi Woo-Hee didn’t even realize it.

‘Yes, yes?’

‘I hope you learn something from this fight.’

In an instant, Yeon Ho-Jeong grabbed her by the collar and threw her towards Gang Ryang.

‘Gasp!’

Yeon Ho-Jeong shouted to Gang Ryang, who had caught Gi Woo-Hee.

‘Don’t let them take her!’

It was then.

Boom! Boom!

Hundreds of black-clad figures burst from the surface of the Yangtze River and charged towards the group.