The Holy Stream League and Shin Hohyeol.

They agree with this matter?

For a moment, I doubted my ears, wondering if I had misheard Man Do’s words. The two groups, not anyone else, were places that could never join hands with the Righteous Sect even if they wanted to.

In the first place, they gnashed their teeth and showed hostility just because I was marrying Hyuk Dojin, but now they were taking the side of the Murim Alliance, which could be considered the headquarters of the Righteous Sect.

It was something that couldn’t happen. However, recalling Shin Hohyeol’s raised voice when he visited me this morning, maybe it wasn’t something that absolutely couldn’t happen.

‘Did he say responsibility?’

If that was his intention when he said that, it was certainly a result that could be properly humiliated. It meant they had the confidence to avoid the situation with their own justification, even though they would also suffer damage.

I rested my chin, organized my thoughts for a moment, glanced at Man Do, and spoke softly.

“What did the Cult Leader say?”

“He gave no indication. If the Murim Alliance Leader didn’t personally come here, we also have no reason for the Cult Leader to directly take action. Therefore, it’s difficult to expect anything from the Cult Leader.”

Man Do slowly let out a sigh. Suddenly, the dark shadow that fell on his face seemed to carry the weight of a hundred years. Even Man Do, the Vice Cult Leader, was having a headache with the current situation.

If it was the impression of the Demon Cult that I knew, I thought power was the law and the authority to dominate everything.

However, when I actually stayed here, even for Man Do, this place was not all about power. Complex power relations and interests were entangled like a spider’s web.

Man Do held the position of Vice Cult Leader there, but looking at the current situation, I could definitely feel that his position was ambiguous.

I stared intently at Man Do, who had his eyes tightly closed, overcoming his fatigue, and suddenly thought about how Hyuk Dojin would solve this situation. What would he have done?

“Everyone seems to have gone senile, constantly disrupting meetings and conversations, causing a bottleneck and preventing things from progressing. I want to just ignore them and tell them to go back, but I can’t do that because I’m afraid they might make some strange deal with the Righteous Sect if I lose my temper and let go.”

“But wouldn’t it be okay to just drag out the time aimlessly?”

Man Do slowly shook his head.

“We also have something we want, so that’s also a problem. But we can’t respond to their demands to get what we want… If we continue like this, I’m afraid it will only make things difficult for the Young Cult Leader, so I can’t let go either.”

“Huh? Why Dojin? Is there a reason for someone who isn’t even here to be in a difficult position?”

“When we first planned the matter with the Righteous Sect, the person who led the situation at the forefront was the Young Cult Leader. So, because of that, the Righteous Sect was able to cross the main gate of the Demon Cult for the first time in history. In this situation, if their absurd demands are accepted, the damage will surely fall entirely on the Young Cult Leader.”

“It seems a bit forced. What did Dojin do wrong there…?”

I let out a hollow laugh in disbelief, but I already knew that their actions and words were definitely not acceptable on a rational level.

‘Is it a priority to squeeze out the internal boil rather than the external enemy?’

I could see anew how much of an annoying existence I was to them. It was remarkable that they were trying to harm Hyuk Dojin by doing such absurd things. But on the other hand, I was also puzzled.

Why were they trying to harm Hyuk Dojin, not me?

They didn’t hate Hyuk Dojin, but they were annoyed by my existence. If they wanted to drive me away, they had to either harm me or create a situation where I had no choice but to leave this place. But why Hyuk Dojin?

I just felt that the current situation was complicated.

* * *

Namgoong Danghwi was a greedy person. Even when he took over as the head of the clan, he was very upset by the fact that he wasn’t the Murim Alliance Leader despite his own abilities.

Even though he knew his younger brother had better skills than him, he demanded to be the Murim Alliance Leader just because his age was higher.

Knowing his personality and greed, his grandfather thought he wasn’t even fit to be the head of the Namgoong clan, but because of the eyes of the outside world, he had no choice but to put him in that position.

The Murim Alliance Leader, Namgoong Baek, was one of the only eight known masters of the Flowering Realm in the current Central Plains and was treated as having the foremost skills among them, known as the Three Emperors.

That’s why Namgoong Baek chose him as the representative of the delegation, but that wasn’t the decisive reason.

“Have you arrived?”

After finishing his early morning meal, Namgoong Danghwi looked at his disciple entering his room and spoke bluntly.

He scanned Namgoong Seolbyeok, the disciple of the Alliance Leader, with indifferent eyes. He had always been dissatisfied with Namgoong Seolbyeok, who looked weak at a glance.

Historically, the Namgoong clan had shown achievements in both swordsmanship and energy techniques. Hundreds of years ago, both sides were clearly developed, but in the end, they rarely dealt with energy techniques, and martial arts using swords became the mainstream.

Both the clan leader Namgoong Danghwi and the Alliance Leader Namgoong Baek were excellent swordsmen, and the other late-stage disciples also showed prominence in swordsmanship.

However, Namgoong Baek, whom Namgoong Danghwi took as his disciple, showed prominence in using his brain rather than swords and even showed signs of reviving the rarely used energy techniques.

But Namgoong Baek regretted Namgoong Seolbyeok’s talent. When he accepted him as his disciple, Namgoong Seolbyeok was more skilled in handling swords than other late-stage disciples and showed excellent results.

That’s why he accepted him as his disciple, but at some point, he became absorbed in energy techniques and neglected swordsmanship. Namgoong Danghwi told Namgoong Baek to immediately expel such a disciple, but Namgoong Baek just laughed, saying he would understand his intentions someday.

Namgoong Danghwi quietly looked at him and spoke quietly.

“When is today’s meeting?”

“It is scheduled to start soon at 11 am to 1 pm.”

“…I’m tired of it.”

He let out a slow sigh, sat down, and leaned back leisurely. It had already been three days since he crossed the main gate of the Demon Cult, which no one had ever crossed before. All he had done since coming here was make absurd demands in the meeting room.

How long do I have to stay here? Namgoong Danghwi glanced at Namgoong Seolbyeok with a displeased face, then spoke in a calm voice.

“Is there still no communication from the Alliance Leader?”

“He just said to wait…”

“That word ‘wait’ again!!”

Namgoong Danghwi widened his eyes at Namgoong Seolbyeok’s answer. Namgoong Seolbyeok, who looked weak, bowed his head calmly without blinking an eye even at his shout.

Namgoong Danghwi glared at his disciple and spewed out the anger that had built up.

“How long do I have to keep hearing the word ‘wait’?! Was the only reason your teacher sent me here to make these absurd demands, waste time, and enjoy wandering around?”

“…”

“Do you want me to speak frankly? Wasn’t the reason for coming here not just to retrieve the lost martial arts books, but to kill the Moyong clan’s wench who hasn’t even shown her face despite us coming here? Huh? Was I wrong?”

“Please calm down. It’s dangerous to speak those words out loud now.”

“Hah. You’re saying truly unacceptable words.”

Namgoong Danghwi got up from his seat and approached him. Although he hadn’t held the position long enough for his hair to turn white, he was someone who had grown up under the previous clan leaders and had grown for the sake of the clan leader. It was very irritating for him to be swayed by Namgoong Baek’s words.

Namgoong Seolbyeok looked up at Namgoong Danghwi, who was approaching closer. He was a huge man, almost half a head taller. Namgoong Danghwi frowned and spoke softly.

“How many people do you think wish for that wench to not die here?”

“…”

“The Moyong clan wants the wench to die so they can use the money they received without guilt, and the Demon Cult would also be displeased that the daughter of the Righteous Sect has risen above their heads. Then, what about the Murim Alliance?”

He let out a bitter smile.

“What was the reason the Murim Alliance knew about the deal between the Moyong clan and the Demon Cult but didn’t stop it and instead urged them to hurry the wedding?”

“…It was because they thought Miss Moyong Sowol would die young, so they intended to pressure the Demon Cult by taking advantage of that.”

Namgoong Seolbyeok continued in a calm tone.

“That’s why they actively encouraged the marriage, but no matter how much time passed, Miss Moyong Sowol, who was expected to die young, didn’t die, and instead, upon hearing the news that the Demon Cult was trying to treat her, they tried to kill her directly.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Namgoong Danghwi let out a chuckle and stepped back. He took out an outer garment from the hanger on the wall and put it on, constantly opening his mouth.

“No matter how much the Righteous Sect preaches about justice, the means to achieve their goals are no different from the Demon Cult. There is no evil or good in that. But are you saying that they keep going around in circles, unable to kill the prey right in front of them because they’re being mindful of something? Even the Demon Cult is cooperating!”

“As I told you, it’s because the Vice Cult Leader, Man Do, is still here. And if the work we’re trying to do is revealed while handling the matter, it could give the Demon Cult an excuse and make it difficult for us to avoid public criticism.”

“In the end, it means we’re fools who can’t even eat what we want because we’re being mindful of others.”

Namgoong Danghwi turned his body. Namgoong Seolbyeok followed behind him as he was about to leave the room and opened his mouth again.

“We haven’t fully grasped the Demon Cult’s intentions yet. They may try to kill Miss Moyong Sowol and frame us for the crime. Considering all of that…”

“Do you know this?”

A calm voice interrupted Namgoong Seolbyeok’s words.

Namgoong Danghwi spoke in a cold tone, his lips full of mockery.

“Considering and weighing such things is something only foolish fellows like you do.”

“…”

“Useless half-wit. Go and tell the Alliance Leader. I will handle the matters here myself.”

“Clan Leader.”

Namgoong Seolbyeok hurriedly chased after his back as he left the room and headed to the meeting room.

What the hell is he trying to do? Namgoong Seolbyeok tried to dissuade Namgoong Danghwi, who had a hasty personality, hoping he wouldn’t do anything strange, but unfortunately, even if he tried to stop him, he wasn’t someone who could be stopped.

Namgoong Danghwi opened the door to the meeting room. Inside, the group of delegates and the faces of the Demon Cult were already seated.

The two empty seats at the head of the table were for himself and the Vice Cult Leader, Man Do.

As Namgoong Danghwi entered, the masters from the Righteous Sect stood up and greeted him.

“You’ve arrived.”

Namgoong Danghwi lightly accepted their greetings, swaggered over to the head of the table, sat down, and spoke bluntly to Shin Hohyeol.

“The Vice Cult Leader is late today.”

“He will be here soon.”

As soon as his words ended, the door that was about to close opened again, and Man Do appeared. This time, the people from the Demon Cult stood up from their seats and gave him a polite greeting. Man Do smiled, accepted their greetings, and slowly walked towards the head of the table.

Namgoong Danghwi lightly greeted him with his eyes. Man Do also accepted the greeting and approached the head of the table.

However, unlike yesterday, Man Do didn’t sit down. Namgoong Danghwi looked at Man Do, wondering what was going on, and spoke in a puzzled voice.

“Aren’t you going to sit?”

“Today, someone higher than me will come, so shouldn’t we leave it empty?”

“Someone higher?”

As Namgoong Danghwi frowned at Man Do’s words, the closed door opened once more, and numerous martial artists entered, filling the room.

At their appearance, everyone from the Righteous Sect and the Demon Cult stood up from their seats and murmured, and the one who appeared leading the numerous people through the open door was a member of the Hyuk family they had been looking for.

“Am I a little late?”

It was Moyong Sowol.