Chapter 859

“Pardon me, but may I say something?”

Jeong Hogun answered calmly as one of his subordinates rode beside him.

“If you think what you have to say is out of line, don’t say it in the first place.”

“Thousand Captain!”

The subordinate’s gaze was deeply troubled, his expression stiff.

He’d shared hardship with Jeong Hogun for more than ten years. Jeong Hogun already knew what he was going to say without hearing it.

“I can guess well enough how you feel. You’re unhappy with this situation.”

“Unhappy doesn’t begin to cover it. Are you really going to stand by and let those rogues carry on like this?”

The subordinate glared over his shoulder at the slowly moving carriage.

Laughter and conversation streamed through a window left slightly ajar. His expression hardened, as did those of the Embroidered Uniform Guard around him.

“It’s not too late. If you’ll just give the order…”

He let his voice trail off, but Jeong Hogun understood exactly what he meant.

“You want to start a bloodbath?”

“I understand your concerns, Thousand Captain. But we can’t just let a band of traitors who defy the Emperor’s supreme command go free.”

“And if we don’t leave them alone, are you confident you can bring that man down?”

“Well…”

The subordinate was suddenly at a loss for words.

Though he served in the military, he was a martial artist who had trained in martial arts himself. The thought of the man laughing and chatting inside the carriage right now made it hard to answer.

Jin Taekyung of the Jin Family of Taiyuan.

No—Jin Taekyung, the Blazing Flame Divine Dragon.

I’d heard he was still young, but I never imagined he’d be that strong.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard received reports from every corner of the land. But stories about the Blazing Flame Divine Dragon were so well known that the subordinate had heard plenty even without relying on their far-flung spies.

A descendant of a fallen martial family.

The heir to the Fire Gate Clan, passed down through a single successor for more than three hundred years.

The troublemaker nobody in Shanxi had failed to hear of had become a Divine Dragon in barely two years. Now he stood at the heart of the turbulent currents shaking Murim.

But there was only one reason Jin Taekyung had become so exceptional.

His martial might.

Everything had its limits, martial arts included. But Jin Taekyung had already soared far beyond them. It was no wonder he was called one of the Two Dragons alongside Cheongpung, the Huashan Divine Dragon, and hailed as a talent unseen in a thousand years.

Nor was it surprising that, after a long silence, Jeong Hogun’s subordinate answered:

“Much as I hate to admit it… as things stand, we’d have a hard time facing him.”

“If you know that, that’s enough.”

Jeong Hogun replied evenly. For the Embroidered Uniform Guard, who served the Emperor’s solemn command, it was a humiliating conclusion. But as a soldier, it was the right one.

A soldier had to be clear-eyed about victory and defeat. Let pride lead him to the wrong decision, and he would never win the battle.

Even so, there was one thing the Embroidered Uniform Guard could never do: submit or retreat before an opponent, no matter how powerful.

“I know how you feel. All of you.”

Jeong Hogun continued in a low voice.

“But the Emperor’s command was to escort His Highness Prince Shangshan to the Imperial Capital. As discreetly as possible, without causing the slightest disturbance.”

“……”

“If His Highness Prince Shangshan hadn’t ordered us to lower our swords, I would have fought them myself.”

Prince Shangshan Zhu Bao’s actions, however, had stunned every member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

This young prince of noble imperial blood had personally helped a rogue of the martial world to his feet. As if that weren’t enough, he’d asked the rogue to sign the silver token he carried.

“What’s done is done. This matter isn’t ours to decide. Don’t speak of it again.”

His voice allowed no argument. The subordinate pressed his lips together.

Jeong Hogun was right. Their duty was to escort Prince Shangshan to the Imperial Capital. Loyalty to the Son of Heaven was one thing; authority was another.

Jeong Hogun spoke again to the subordinate struggling to contain his displeasure. This time, he used Sound Transmission so that only the man could hear him.

—I have something for you to do.

The subordinate stared at him with wide eyes, then moved his lips.

—Give me your orders.

—Go to the Commander-in-Chief in the Imperial Capital. You, personally.

—To the Commander-in-Chief?

The Commander-in-Chief was the head of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Among the high-ranking officials packed into the Imperial Capital, where all manner of powerful figures gathered, the Commander-in-Chief of the Embroidered Uniform Guard held exceptional influence and authority. And his immense power came from one person alone.

—You mean…

The subordinate didn’t finish his sentence, but both men knew whose rank his words implied.

The Son of Heaven.

Ruler of this vast continent.

A giant seated on the throne, looking down upon countless officials and subjects.

The reason the Embroidered Uniform Guard existed, and the one to whom they pledged absolute loyalty.

So Jeong Hogun’s order to inform the Commander-in-Chief was no different from telling him to report directly to the Son of Heaven.

—Thousand Captain… what would you have me do?

—Leave at once. Go straight to the Commander-in-Chief and tell him this.

Jeong Hogun continued his Sound Transmission slowly.

—Just as you predicted, uninvited guests have interfered.

—…!

—Go. I won’t be going far.

The subordinate stared at Jeong Hogun, eyes wide with disbelief. Then a faint smile crossed his lips.

A prediction. He’d definitely called it a prediction.

Those two words were enough. His displeasure with his superior, who had seemed so unlike himself, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard’s wounded pride both vanished completely.

—Loyalty!

The subordinate gave a vigorous military salute he could not accompany with a shout, then rode off like the wind, moving as one with his horse.

Jeong Hogun watched him disappear and thought to himself:

Everything was in the palm of the Embroidered Uniform Guard—or rather, of His Imperial Majesty, the Son of Heaven.

Just as it always had been.

Senses were like vision.

Just as looking at what was in front of you didn’t erase the scenery around you, I took in every bit of information from all directions with my keen senses, even as I talked.

The small movements of birds bounding through the thick undergrowth.

The chill surrounding the Embroidered Uniform Guard as they encircled the carriage—as though escorting it. Or besieging it.

And…

The sound of a horse’s hooves rapidly fading into the distance.

“I’ve continued to hear news of you. Every time I hear another of those unbelievable tales of your exploits, my heart swells.”

“If you’re hyperventilating, that’s a little concerning. I happen to know a good physician. Why don’t you get a checkup while you’re at it, Your Highness?”

“I’m glad you’re concerned for me. But entrusting my health to a physician I don’t even know would go against imperial etiquette. Once we reach the Imperial Capital, there will be an Imperial Physician, so…”

“Then I guess there’s no choice. The Divine Physician is exhausted, too, so that’s probably for the best.”

“Wait. Who did you say?”

“The Divine Physician.”

“I’ll see him! I absolutely will!”

“What about imperial etiquette?”

“Rules are there to be broken.”

No matter how noble his blood, he was still a child.

I humored Prince Shangshan Zhu Bao as he chattered away, his face flushed, and sent a Sound Transmission to Hong Jin, whom I could see over the prince’s shoulder.

—They’ve sent someone off. But I really don’t think he’s a scout.

Hong Jin had learned martial arts, but hadn’t reached the Peak realm. Instead of answering with Sound Transmission, he nodded quietly, mindful of the Embroidered Uniform Guard surrounding the carriage.

—He must’ve gone to deliver a message. Any idea where?

Maybe he’d been reading fan wikis or something; while Zhu Bao rambled on about the Divine Physician, Hong Jin used a finger as a brush and wrote in the air.

The Imperial Capital.

It wasn’t good news, but I’d expected as much.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard had been created by the Great Nation’s Emperor to serve as his own hands and feet. Anything concerning Prince Shangshan Zhu Bao was certain to reach the Emperor’s ears.

The Imperial Capital, huh…

I liked peaches.¹

But in Murim, the Imperial Capital was the center of the world.

Or rather, that was what the Emperor’s position made it.

He ruled the people of this vast land. Wherever the Son of Heaven resided was the center of the world, the dragon’s den.

Though in this case, it’s a tiger’s den.

I’d never been to the Imperial Capital, but I’d heard about it often enough.

Enormous buildings that seemed to pierce the sky. Beautiful historic sites that made visitors gasp in awe. Wealth pouring in along its canals.

Add fertile land and abundant supplies, and it was a paradise on earth, second to none.

Except for one thing.

The million Imperial Guards protecting the Son of Heaven and the Imperial Capital.

Not ten thousand. Not a hundred thousand.

A million.

Even if I allowed for the usual exaggeration from the people of this continent and cut that figure in half, there’d still be an army of more than five hundred thousand lurking around Zhejiang Province, where the Imperial Capital stood.

That many… Fuck, I can’t even picture it.

I licked my parched lips without realizing it.

I really didn’t want to be acting like this, but I couldn’t shake the ominous feeling that had haunted me ever since Sichuan.

What if my suspicion is right, and the Emperor has some sort of relationship with Dark Heaven?

I didn’t need to think about the answer.

We’d be fucked. Simple as that.

The moment we entered the Imperial Capital, surrounded by layers upon layers of a million Imperial Guards, it would all be over.

If the Son of Heaven, who was as good as a living god, gave the order, countless blades would come flying at us from every direction. He wouldn’t even have to say much. He’d just point at us and say one thing:

“They’re dangerous traitors.”

“……”

Just imagining it made my knees go weak.

I’d fallen silent. Hyuk Mujin, huddled in a corner of the carriage, asked cautiously, “Why do you look like you’ve got a mouthful of shit?”

“…Mujin.”

“Yes, Captain.”

“You’re always so careful with your tone. Why is what you actually say so damn bold?”

“Because I’m the manliest of men. Hyuk Mujin, the Tenfold Man—man enough for ten men! That’s me.”

“……”

Is this guy actually insane?

I was silently cursing Hyuk Mujin with my eyes when Prince Shangshan Zhu Bao, who had stopped talking to listen to us, let out a quiet gasp.

“The Tenfold Man? An extraordinary title. Just what I’d expect from your subordinate.”

“……?”

“……?”

“It must be fate that we’ve met. You said your name was Hyuk Mujin, the Tenfold Man?”

Hyuk Mujin blinked, then hurriedly bowed his head.

“Y-Yes, Your Highness Prince Shangshan. But I’m sorry to say my title isn’t the Tenfold Man…”

“Here. Sign this.”

“Pardon?”

“No need to refuse, Hyuk Mujin, the Tenfold Man. This shall be an honor passed down through your family for generations.”

“……”

“……”

Hyuk Mujin took the bronze token Zhu Bao handed him and inscribed his new title on it.

Watching him, I thought:

What a fucking mess. Seriously.