The march went smoothly. The heavy snow that had fallen during our last reconnaissance mission had melted long ago, and command set a pace that conserved as much of the troops’ strength as possible.
“At this rate, we’ll reach Jeongyang by tomorrow at the latest.”
I blinked at the oddly familiar man’s words.
“Who are you?”
Judging by his clothes, he wasn’t from the Jin Family of Taiyuan. Aside from the reconnaissance squad, most of the rear guard consisted of martial artists from the newly allied small and mid-sized sects, so that made sense.
“I’m Gwak Jun of the Samdo Sect. We met once before… We even shook hands.”
Gwak Jun of the Samdo Sect? It felt like I should remember him.
It wasn’t as if I’d shaken only one or two hands trying to raise my Fame.
He was probably one of them.
“Sorry. My memory isn’t very good.”
“I wasn’t expecting you to remember, honestly. Haha.”
Gwak Jun gave me a friendly smile and continued.
“To be honest, I was disappointed at first when I found out we’d been assigned to the rear guard.”
“Why?”
“Because there’d be fewer chances to distinguish ourselves. Isn’t this the perfect opportunity for an unknown grunt like me to make a name for himself?”
“Ah. Right.”
There were two possibilities in cases like this. Either he’d fought in so many battles that he’d developed nerves of steel, or he simply had no fear.
I raised my Qi Sense.
Ding.
System
Lv.40 Gwak Jun
Oh. He’s pretty good.
At Level 40, he was at least First Rate. He couldn’t exactly go around bragging that he was a master, but he was good enough to resent being stuck in the rear.
“Half of the enemy troops were recruited in a hurry. They’ve dragged in every kind of deadweight, and they must have force-marched to join the main force. They won’t stand a chance against the elites of the Jin Family of Taiyuan and the Samdo Sect.”
His argument sounded plausible enough.
If you leave out the part about the Samdo Sect being elite.
I nodded halfheartedly.
“I see.”
“And our Peak masters are superior to theirs. There’s the Lesser Family Head and Great Hero Wipeng, of course, but the fame of the Blade of Flowers has spread throughout the Central Plains, hasn’t it?”
The Blade of Flowers. It was the first time I’d heard the title, but I could guess who he meant.
The Jin Family of Taiyuan had three Peak masters. Excluding Jin Wikyung and Wipeng, only one person remained.
The Head Elder.
Was that old man really that strong?
Everything Gwak Jun said next was praise. Title after title, name after name of masters the Head Elder had cut down in his youth decades ago came spilling out.
“He was a hero born of the Great Faction War.”
A war hero from the past. Listening to Gwak Jun, he sounded like the noblest of chivalrous heroes—a man who loved justice and couldn’t stand to see injustice go unpunished…
Then why do I feel uneasy every time I see him?
Maybe it was because of my first impression, but I didn’t like the Head Elder.
That peculiar air of his. The strange gaze that seemed to bore straight through people. The fact that he had formed a political faction in opposition to Jin Wikyung.
Since then, however, the Head Elder had thrown his full support behind Jin Wikyung, allowing the Jin Family of Taiyuan to present a united front both inside and out.
Well, when an outside enemy invades, even family feuds have to stop.
The Head Elder was currently leading the vanguard alongside Jin Wikyung. If he truly was as skilled as the rumors claimed, tomorrow’s battle would be that much easier.
“Just thinking of Great Hero Blade of Flowers sweeping the battlefield tomorrow already has my heart racing.”
Gwak Jun shuddered like a man finally taking a piss after holding it for three days.
Does this bastard not know what tension is?
And where was he getting all this confidence that we were going to win?
“You sound certain we’ll win.”
“If we lose, we’ll be in big trouble.”
“Excuse me?”
Not big trouble. We’d be finished.
Judging by everything the Mount Heng Sword Sect had done so far, they would raze not only the Jin Family of Taiyuan but every small and mid-sized sect allied with us.
“What do you mean by—”
“I’m joking.”
This bastard’s a lunatic too.
As I stared at him in disbelief, Gwak Jun flashed me a grin.
“We’ll win. We will.”
The words rang with absolute conviction.
After Gwak Jun walked away, Hyuk Mujin came over and asked,
“Who was that?”
“Level 40.”
“What?”
“Just some guy overflowing with confidence.”
I didn’t like him for several reasons.
Well, it wasn’t as though I’d ever have to talk to him again.
Time passed quickly. On the second night of the march, we reached Honju, and Jin Wikyung gathered the command staff for a meeting. He held a small slip of paper in one hand.
“A letter from the Lower District Sect. The enemy reinforcements crossed Mount Otae two days ago.”
“Then…”
“They’re likely to join the main force around now, or sometime tomorrow.”
What?
I didn’t understand. If we had attacked the main force before the reinforcements joined them, the battle would have been much easier.
He must have something in mind.
Sure enough, Jin Wikyung continued.
“The enemy reinforcements are exhausted, and their food supplies are nearly gone. If we seize the advantageous ground at Jeongyang first tomorrow, the Sect Leader of the Mount Heng Sword Sect will face a choice. Retreat or clash with us.”
The next moment, Jin Wikyung looked at me.
“What choice do you think he’ll make?”
The sudden question caught me off guard, but the answer was obvious. If he were the kind of man to retreat at this point, he would have done so long ago.
“I think he’ll clash with us.”
They had nearly twice our numbers, and they weren’t behind us in Peak masters either. From the enemy’s perspective, the best option was to end the battle quickly and decisively.
“Exactly.”
Jin Wikyung smiled in satisfaction and traced a finger across the topographic map spread over the table.
“There are four routes the enemy can take into Jeongyang. But with their food situation as it is, they’ll choose the fastest one.”
His finger stopped on a place labeled Eight Spring Gorge. The Head Elder, who had been sitting quietly until then, spoke for the first time.
“Eight Spring Gorge. Jar-shaped, with a narrow, steep entrance. The mounted bandits will have to abandon their prized horses.”
“They’ll have to abandon their lives as well.”
“The enemy will fight with their lives on the line. This alone will not be enough.”
“I’ve hidden some hundred horn bows on the cliffs above the gorge.”
“Hoh.”
A stir ran through the tent. I stared at Jin Wikyung with my mouth open.
When the hell did he hide those there?
“Right after our victory at Honju. Thanks to a resourceful helper.”
Jin Wikyung looked straight at me as he spoke.
The Lower District Sect. Wolhwa.
She had been helping us constantly from places we couldn’t see. Of course, Jin Wikyung was impressive too, for putting together a plan this big.
That’s fucking cool.
A body like a human meat grinder and a brilliant mind to go with it. Suddenly I wanted to call him hyung.1
“Oh!”
“Lesser Family Head…!”
The tent grew hot beneath the burning gazes of all those rough-looking men.
Jin Wikyung swept his solemn gaze over everyone assembled.
“Let’s settle this.”
No one objected. The Head Elder was the first to rise and give Jin Wikyung a fist-in-palm salute.2
“By your command.”
That brought the meeting to an end. As I left the tent, a familiar voice pierced my ear.
“Do not forget what I told you yesterday.”
I stiffened for a moment, then gave a small nod.
At dawn, three hundred martial artists from the Jin Family of Taiyuan and one hundred fifty reinforcements from the small and mid-sized sects—four hundred fifty in all—departed for the gorge.
Even though this was goodbye, I never got to say it properly.
I climbed a hill and stared for a long time at the winding line of torches.
The next morning, Hyuk Mujin flinched when he saw me and stepped back.
“You startled me. What happened?”
“What?”
“What do you mean, what? You look like a walking corpse. Didn’t you sleep?”
“Nah. I slept a little.”
That was a lie. I hadn’t slept a wink. I had spent the entire night perched on a rock, staring at the System Window.
Eagerly awaiting the moment that had finally drawn near.
System
Achieve Fame 500 (497/500)
I never knew the number one could feel so precious.
In a voice that seemed to have aged overnight, I muttered,
“I’m going, I’m going, now I’m going home…”
“Now you’re even talking to yourself. Have you lost your mind?”
Hyuk Mujin clicked his tongue, then his eyes widened.
“What are those? I’ve never seen them before.”
“These?”
I pointed in turn at the old book and the small box resting on the rock.
“One’s a martial arts manual. The other’s an elixir.”
“Gasp. Really?”
I listlessly explained to the guy whose eyes were halfway out of their sockets.
“The manual contains a Supreme Peak martial art, and if you absorb the elixir properly, it’ll give you half a jiazi.3”
“What?”
“But if you take the elixir wrong, apparently you’ll burn to death. Want it?”
“Ah. Sure…”
Judging by his unimpressed face and the way his lips were sticking out a mile, he didn’t believe a damn word I was saying.
Well, if someone suddenly came at me with a Supreme Peak martial art and a thirty-year Fireball elixir, I’d assume it was a joke too.
“You really won’t eat it? It’s good stuff.”
“Oh, I’m fine. Learn plenty of that Supreme Peak martial art, and make sure you chew your elixir thoroughly.”
“I don’t need this kind of thing anymore.”
“Of course not. You’re the Hidden Dragon.”
Normally, I would have smacked him in the back of the head. Right now, I didn’t feel much of anything.
Is this how a short-timer sergeant feels?4
At the same time, I felt strangely wistful. Maybe it was an aftereffect of everything I’d been through. I had only been here for a little over a month, yet it felt as though a whole year had passed.
I began tracing back through my memories.
I first opened my eyes at Honghwaru.
That was where I met Wolhwa for the first time and realized I was trapped in this game. Even now, thinking about that moment gave me goose bumps.
I really thought I was going to lose my mind.
It had taken me three days just to decide to go to the Jin Family of Taiyuan. And the guy I met there was this one—Hyuk Mujin.
Smack!
“Argh! Why did you hit me?”
“Hmm. Just thinking about the old days.”
“What old days?”
“Nope. Not telling. Now hurry back.”
“What are you, some back-alley thug? Just because your martial arts are a bit stronger, you think you can bully people like this?”
As Hyuk Mujin threw a fit, everyone turned to look at us. Even the reconnaissance-squad members who had been watching from the sidelines joined in.
“What are you two talking about?”
“Dunno. The deputy captain must have done something wrong.”
“Hey, I didn’t do anything!”
“This is Murim. Being weak is a crime.”
“But should we really be acting like this?”
At someone’s words, silence fell for a moment.
“True. Waiting here is our mission, but…”
The tension and fear they had been suppressing with forced smiles rose to the surface. Even I, who would soon be returning to the real world, felt uneasy whenever Jin Wikyung’s face came to mind. How much worse must it be for these guys?
There was only one thing I could say.
“I trust my hyung.1”
Hyung.1
This time, I put my heart into the word.
Jin Wikyung had been my greatest source of strength in this place. Maybe I simply wanted to shake off that unease, even if only by saying it aloud.
The tension eased from everyone’s faces.
“We feel the same.”
Hyuk Mujin slipped in as well.
“I trust the Captain more.”
“Wow. Deputy Captain, you’re awfully quick to switch sides.”
“You little bastards. Is there anyone here who doesn’t owe the Captain their life?”
“Well, when you put it that way, what can we say?”
“I trust the Captain too. Honestly, I knew all along, even when you were pretending to be a thug. I thought, Ah, that man is the Hidden Dragon. I could tell right away.”
It felt strange.
Even dried squid gives up water if you squeeze it hard enough. Who knew I’d feel something like this toward NPCs in a game?
Well, honestly… it doesn’t feel bad.
Suddenly, I found myself wondering about Jin Wikyung, somewhere beyond those mountains. Had the battle started? If so, which side was winning?
And I wasn’t the only one thinking about it.
“By now, the battle must have started.”
It was Gwak Jun of the Samdo Sect. Unlike before, he was dressed in black martial robes.
Was that what he was wearing before?
When he noticed me looking, Gwak Jun shrugged.
“I like this sort of thing. It’s easy to move in, and even if a little blood splatters on it, no one can tell. You agree, don’t you?”
The last question wasn’t directed at us. It was meant for the Samdo Sect martial artists under his command. Every last one of them had changed into black, and they nodded without a word.
“Apparently they do.”
Gwak Jun smiled in satisfaction, then turned to me.
“Well, shall we set out too?”
What the fuck is this bastard talking about right now?
Footnotes
-
Hyung is a Korean term a man uses for an older brother or a close older man. ↩ ↩2 ↩3
-
A fist-in-palm salute is a traditional martial greeting used to show respect. ↩
-
A jiazi is a traditional sixty-year cycle; half a jiazi is thirty years. ↩
-
A conscript sergeant in the last stretch of mandatory service, coasting toward discharge. ↩
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