Click.
The clear sound of the stopper being opened echoed through the sealed chamber.
Hiss.
Thick, pale smoke began to rise from the mouth of the flask, now devoid of its seal.
Gradually, the smoke started to take on a humanoid form.
It exuded a strong aura of ghostly and spiritual energy, indicating that it was indeed a spirit.
“So, who might you be, and why do you wish to meet someone as humble as I?”
As I mumbled the question, the ghostly figure’s features began to sharpen and a reply came.
There was something odd.
The ghost’s features seemed to stir up something vague but familiar in my memory.
Though it wouldn’t fully come to mind, it reminded me of someone… strongly.
“Big Brother!”
“…?”
Namgung Bin.
Once known as the Sword Dragon among the Nine Dragons.
He held a key position in the Alliance of Martial Arts, responsible for military affairs.
He was my colleague, whom I trusted above all others.
My younger brother.
My sworn enemy.
“Big Brother! Big Brother!”
That fellow, now approaching me with arms wide open.
Out of reflex, I swung a fist.
Crack!
I was both startled and overwhelmed by the sudden surge of killing intent.
“Cough!”
Since it wasn’t a punch aimed to truly kill, Namgung Bin only ended up being pushed back a few feet, colliding with the wall.
In doing so, Namgung Bin’s lower body fully emerged from the flask, revealing a misty tail instead of legs.
“You.”
With added force in my tone, Hong Ryun, leaning on my arm, glanced at me in surprise.
Not just her, but Yoo Huah, watching from behind, also wore an astonished expression.
“How can you, be here?”
Thud, Thud.
The root of all tragedies and malice.
A person I thought would have nothing more to do with me.
And yet, thinking of seeing him again stirred up killing intent within me.
“Answer me…!”
I gritted my teeth.
The one to stop me was Tang Sobaek, the only one who maintained her calm.
“Enough.”
She stepped between me, with my fists clenched, and the fallen, coughing Namgung Bin.
“Ugh… cough, cough…”
“Poison Flower, this is rightful vengeance. I’ll explain later, so just let go for now.”
“Hey… I know, okay. Namgung Bin was behind the frame, and that’s why I’m stopping you. Before you regret needlessly taking out your anger and later feel remorseful.”
“…What?”
“At least hear the man out first. You can’t resolve misunderstandings by hitting someone straight away.”
Since she’s aware of what Namgung Bin did to me, just why is she stopping me now?
What does she think I’ve misunderstood?
Come to think of it, Tang Sobaek had experience entering this scripture beforehand.
…She probably knows something I don’t.
“Hmm, Big Brother… though I’ve been here before, I truly understand your feelings, but please, hear me out for once…”
Namgung Bin took a breath and spoke.
Still fuming, I replied coldly.
“At one point, you said I was no longer your brother, so why this sudden pretense of being a brother now.”
“Big Brother! Though you may find it hard to believe, you must trust me completely! The person in the martial arts world now is not me!”
“Your sudden request for trust is hard to swallow, isn’t it? And then you spout nonsense like that?”
“Big Brother!”
“What, were you waiting for me to stop just so you could make such ridiculous claims? Poison Flower, you stopped me for this nonsense?”
Even though Tang Sobaek is my benefactor, my words came out harsh.
It’s because the emotions I harbor for Namgung Bin are filled with such strong spite.
“Ho ho, indeed, even attempting a conversation seems impossible. Well, not unreasonable.”
“…Senior?”
Just then, the old man watching from the side inserted with a gentle smile.
He seemed to be enjoying the present situation immensely.
“Still, don’t go too far. Even our Bin has a pretty unfair position, though not as much as you do.”
“Huh?”
“I vouch for it. This child is your ‘real’ younger brother. Not a single word he’s said is false.”
“…’Real’? What do you mean by that?”
“What do you think it means? The fellow currently active in the world is a fake.”
“…!”
A hard claim to accept.
A fake? What, a fake? What exactly is fake?
Hmm… Could it be like those Blood Cult members who killed the key figures in the Central Plains martial arts world, replacing them with their skin masks?
“Is it… really true?”
“As I’ve said, it is.”
“Umm….”
Now that I think about it, it was a bit odd.
Namgung Bin remained blindly loyal to me until the war ended.
No matter the depth of despair, he fully relied on me and never went against my will.
Even if the situation was more disadvantageous than beneficial.
He was also competent and extraordinary, always coming up with brilliant strategies and excelling in every encounter.
He had ambition, but not malice.
And then, after the war, Namgung Bin changed.
It wasn’t conspicuous. That’s why I didn’t notice and was deceived. Even among the few who never betrayed me across several instances, this was unexpected.
He wore a secret mask. Seeming to treat me well outwardly while plotting my downfall secretly.
Thinking back, it doesn’t quite add up.
Would the fellow who followed me so faithfully suddenly betray me once the war ended? Especially when all the power would have been handed over smoothly in peace anyway?
It’s a rather suspicious tale. If the elder’s words are true, it somewhat makes sense.
Suppose, hypothetically,
At the time the war ended, someone killed my younger brother Namgung Bin and put his skin mask on?
Even this point isn’t without contradiction.
If that was true, there’s no way I wouldn’t have felt the distinctive difference that comes with a skin mask.
Even if the Blood Cult made exceptionally good disguises, my sensitivity would not have been that dull.
Evidently, my own ruminations were fruitless.
“Can I really trust you?”
“Big Brother… I am truly wronged.”
“Unless you have a compelling story that can convince me…”
“For now, please, hear me out.”
However, it’s not a problem.
In front of me now is the person, or rather, soul that will untangle my confusion.
I can just ask, seek answers. If he and the elder or Tang Sobaek colluded to deceive me, punishing him later wouldn’t be too late.
“It was fourteen years ago… I was waking up as usual.”
Namgung Bin opened his mouth limply.
“Then… when I woke up and looked, I saw myself without a soul.”
“…”
“What could a soul-less me possibly do… There was… some strange soul residing inside me!”
“…”
As each word escaped his gaping lips,
I felt a shock incomparable to anything I’ve ever experienced.
*
Anhui.
Namgung Estate.
In a place that seems peaceful but isn’t,
Today too, a man was going over paperwork.
The man’s name is Namgung Bin. Currently.
“Seems like the trade factions are having a three-way battle… sigh, with how tight finances are, where can I find the funds to cover everything…”
His face was etched with worry.
Recently, he felt as if the world was always holding him back.
Especially that fateful meeting with Sal Seong.
Everything he intended to do got blocked and his power even got annihilated.
“Damn.”
It was still vivid in Namgung Bin’s memory.
What about Yoo Soeun?
“She won’t take the medicine I bring…”
She’s visibly withering day by day.
Dark circles under her eyes hinted at red alerts.
It was easy enough to turn her into an anti-martial artist just by slight persuasion, similar to how he acted with Sword Sage.
However, Namgung Bin had no reason to.
“Sigh… why does this sudden hostility arise? She merely distanced herself but never hated me to this extent.”
Yoo Soeun was a target he needed to conquer.
Even deprived of his masculinity, capturing her heart was still the primary goal of everything he’d done.
But when did it start?
Nowadays, the moment Yoo Soeun sees him, she gives him such an intense glare, ready to unsheathe her sword anytime.
Naturally, accepting tea or medicine was out of the question.
Worried about Yoo Soeun collapsing from malnutrition or other reasons, Namgung Bin was deeply troubled.
“Ah… it’s so frustrating.”
Namgung Bin sighed deeply.
This was a sigh of frustration.
The lack of progress in his endeavors was mentally exhausting.
However, considering all the efforts he’d put in, retreat was not an option.
Flap.
Just then, a pigeon flew through the window.
It was a carrier pigeon with a tiny scroll tied to its ankle.
Namgung Bin unhurriedly unraveled the scroll and read.
Inside, it was written:
– Esteemed Sir, I send this letter to urgently inform you of certain matters.
– Not long ago, Sword Saint Sal Seong visited our residence and claimed she’d met you.
– Well, it doesn’t matter too much anyway… However, she warned us to stop the work we were doing.
– She even threatened to kill the Emperor if we didn’t. Though it is indeed a grievous insult for her to dare threaten the Emperor, His Majesty’s life cannot be risked in this gamble.
– Still, retreating completely is out of the question. She warned us not to provoke Sword Sage personally. This essentially means official procedures should suffice to ‘sentence’ Sword Sage.
– Therefore, we’ve brainstormed this method. A trial. To reassess Sword Sage’s offenses through proper legal channels and witnesses. Though we have no actual reason to go to these lengths, I’m doing this as a favor to consider the money you paid me. Credit is the most crucial thing in this world, after all.
– So, the solution is to put him on trial. To reassess his crimes based on proper evidence and witnesses. How does that sound? It’s not directly attacking Sword Sage, but rather enforcing the country’s law.
– Though we shouldn’t interfere due to the principle of the inviolability of officials, the charges you placed on Sword Sage include tampering with the royal treasury.
– So, please gather the witnesses you created before. The sooner, the better.
That was the letter, but
Namgung Bin’s expression after reading it was far from pleasant.
‘What? All the witnesses were quietly disposed of already…’
Realization of his predicament swept through Namgung Bin’s mind.
His meticulous handling of the situation now seemed to choke him.
