Chapter 980

Jin Mukyung’s wide-eyed expression was quite a sight.

Maybe that was because, in my memory, he was always so stiff and curt.

“Hey, you awake?”

I greeted him, glad to see him.

He was looking right at me, but the focus in his dazed eyes wavered.

“F-Father…”

Maybe he’d been unconscious for too long. His voice was so hoarse that the word faded before he could finish it.

Mukyung looked thoroughly confused. Beside me, Hyuk Mujin spoke up, worry plain on his face.

“Um, could there be something wrong with his head?”

“That’s strange. The Medicine King Hall Master examined him and said there wasn’t much to worry about.”

“Even monkeys fall from trees. The Medicine King Hall Master might be one of the best physicians in Shanxi Province, but he can still make a mistake. He’s getting on in years, too.”

“Hmm. You think so?”

“To be honest, I had a bad feeling about him. Isn’t he the old geezer who threatens to ram a giant needle into a patient’s Huiyin Acupoint¹ if they refuse treatment? Captain, don’t you remember when he pulled that on you while we were trading blows with the Mount Heng Sword Sect?”

Of course I remembered.

The Medicine King Hall Master had been terrifying when he’d announced he was going to perform a forced opening ceremony with a needle as thick as my forearm.

Still, for all his temper, he seemed to know his stuff.

I’d checked Mukyung myself several times, too.

There were limits to examining someone’s insides by channeling internal energy into them. Even taking that into account, though, his condition wasn’t all that serious.

Not for someone who’d just fought a Supreme Peak master a level above him.

“Go get the Medicine King Hall Master first. Oh, and if you can…”

“I’ll bring Great Hero Jeok too, if possible. Right?”

“Yeah.”

That kid was quick on the uptake. These days, he knew what I meant before I even finished saying it.

Hyuk Mujin gave a small bow and turned away. He was just about to take his first step when—

“Where… am I?”

His lips were cracked like drought-stricken fields. His voice came out in broken, hoarse bursts.

But it was too soon to relax.

His eyes were only beginning to focus again, so I cautiously waved my hand in front of them.

“Can you see this?”

“I can… see it. But where am I…?”

“Where do you think? The Jin Family of Taiyuan.”

“If that’s… the case…”

I could guess what he was trying to ask. Since he was struggling to get the words out, I gave him the answer he wanted most.

“We won.”

“Ah.”

“The nomads who were left surrendered to us completely, and everyone in the Murong Family was either killed or captured.”

“What about… the others?”

His questions kept coming, one after another. I pretended not to hear and ignored them.

I couldn’t tell him yet.

Not yet.

“I’ll tell you later.”

“What?”

“Look at you. Your eyes are still out of it. Tell me how many fingers I’m holding up.”

Mukyung knew better than anyone that he hadn’t fully come around. I held up three fingers, slipping the change of subject in while he frowned at me.

“Three.”

“Good. And now?”

“Five.”

He answered both without hesitation. His head seemed to be clearing.

But the most important final step remained.

With a grave expression, I took off my shoe and stuck out my toes.

“And now?”

Mukyung was quiet for a moment. Then he spoke, his voice astonishingly firm.

“Move your filthy foot before I kill you.”

“Hmm. Perfect. Feeling more like yourself now, patient?”

Mukyung let out a shallow sigh.

“Yeah, you son of a bitch.”

“Now, now. You can’t talk like that to your own brother. Spit while lying down, and it’ll land on your own face.”

I didn’t bother adding though in reality, I was an outsider with not a drop of their blood in me.

At least in the world I was living in now—Murim—the three sons of the Jin Family of Taiyuan had been born to the same parents.

But at that teasing remark, an odd swirl of emotion surfaced on Mukyung’s face for the briefest moment.

“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“None of your business. I just…”

Mukyung hesitated.

“I just had a strange dream.”

“A strange dream? A nightmare?”

“Not quite a nightmare… I don’t know. It was strange. That’s all.”

He still looked a little confused, but I shrugged it off.

Well, it happens. I have all kinds of dreams every time I pass out.

I was used to it.

No—maybe it was one of the chronic problems shared by Hunters and Murim people alike.

Keep coming close to death, and your state of mind is bound to change. That unease often comes out in dreams.

“So, how do you feel?”

“How do I feel…”

Mukyung tried to sit up too quickly and frowned.

“Broken bones. Three, from what I can tell.”

I nodded, satisfied. A patient who could feel the pain and assess his own condition was showing a good sign.

“Exactly. That matches the Medicine King Hall Master’s diagnosis.”

“My muscles hurt so much I can’t even move. It feels like someone tore every muscle in my body to shreds.”

“Of course you’re in pain. You fought like a maniac. Perfectly normal.”

“My internal injury… For some reason, it’s not as bad as I expected.”

I puffed out my chest, as if I’d been waiting for him to say that.

“I put in a little effort.”

“You did?”

“Yep. You can thank me.”

Mukyung stared at me for a while, then nodded.

“I see.”

“That’s it?”

“Yeah.”

“Hmm. Strange. People who were raised right usually say thank you in a situation like this.”

“…Didn’t you just say something about spitting while lying down?”

“Me? When?”

I put on an innocent, confused expression. Mukyung sighed softly.

“Thank you.”

“I don’t feel any sincerity.”

“Thank you. I mean it.”

“Hmm. Somehow it feels like I’m making you bow down and thank me.”

“…”

“Let’s call that practice. One more time, and mean it this time.”

Mukyung took a deep breath.

“I survived thanks to you. I’m truly grateful.”

I wanted to tease him some more, but the look in his eyes told me I’d better stop there. Hiding my disappointment, I patted his shoulder.

“Good. That’s more like it. I’ll pass along your thanks.”

“Even after all this time, you’re exactly the same… What? Pass them along? What do you mean?”

“It’s nothing. Don’t worry about it. Some people helped treat your internal injury, that’s all.”

“Helped? Who?”

“They’re here. The Fire King and the Bow Saint. They’re both pretty nice people.”

“…?”

“Oh, right. You passed out early, so you wouldn’t know. Somehow, they ended up coming with me.”

Mukyung had seen Jeok Cheongang while I was staying with the Jin Family of Taiyuan. But hearing that the Bow Saint was here, too, must have been a shock in his weakened state.

He struggled to steady his ragged breathing before forcing out his next words.

“The Bow Saint? The one I know?”

“Yeah.”

“The Bow Saint from the Great Faction War? The one who uses a bow?”

“Ah. I thought so too, but if you mess with that bow, it turns into a pair of blades. Kind of like a transforming robot. Pretty amazing the first time you see it.”

“A crippled old servant…?”

“No, not a disabled old servant. A transforming robot. Though you probably wouldn’t understand even if I explained it.”

As expected, Mukyung hadn’t understood a word. He gave me a flat look.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“Forget it. Let’s move on.”

“Fine. That’s probably for the best. So this crippled old servant you mentioned… No, the Bow Saint. You mean the one I know, one of the Three Saints?”

His words were starting to trip over themselves. I kindly nodded.

“Exactly.”

“……How did you even meet them?”

“At the Imperial Palace.”

“The Imperial Palace?”

“Yeah. The very same Imperial Palace everyone in the land knows about.”

“No, how did you get there?”

“It’s a long story, so I’ll give you the short version.”

Mukyung looked even more confused than when he’d first woken up. For his sake, I quickly organized the events in my brilliant mind and gave him a brief summary.

First: I went to the Imperial Palace and met the Emperor. It was a pretty scary place.

Second: We all pulled together and defeated the Eastern Heaven Demon Lord.

Third: Right afterward, I learned about the conspiracy surrounding Shanxi Province. The Emperor gave me an official post and even saw me off.

“…And that’s what happened. Got it?”

Hyuk Mujin, who’d listened to my clear and concise explanation, muttered under his breath.

“My diary from when I was six was more detailed than that.”

Mukyung, who’d stared blankly through the whole story, finally spoke.

“Are you actually insane?”

Hmm.

Ordinary people who couldn’t understand the thought process of a genius were everywhere.

In any case, after hearing the bare minimum, Jin Mukyung finally understood the situation and nodded.

“So those two treated my internal injury.”

“Right. They lived up to their reputations.”

“And you got thanked even though you did nothing.”

“Nothing? They’re my connections. I accepted your thanks on their behalf, as their representative.”

“Do you know something?”

“No. How would I? I haven’t said anything yet.”

“Sometimes, talking to you makes me feel like I’m losing my mind.”

“I’m a pretty cheerful guy. Ordinary people can’t always handle it.”

I flashed him a deliberately obnoxious grin. A bitter smile touched Mukyung’s lips.

“Is that all?”

“What?”

“I asked if that’s the only reason you’re pretending to be even cheerier than usual. Talking nonstop. Acting restless.”

I scratched the back of my head.

“Who knows? I’m not sure what you’re getting at.”

“It reminds me of two years ago. I came back to the family after a long time, and the hopeless good-for-nothing had become a completely different person.”

“…”

“The sudden change was strange, but deep down, I was a little happy. The youngest seemed to have been reborn as someone entirely new, and the more I got to know him, the more decent he seemed.”

Mukyung added, “At the very least, he wasn’t someone who’d laugh and chatter thoughtlessly while leaving behind the deaths and sacrifices of so many people.”

The corners of my mouth, which I’d forced upward, slackened.

Mukyung looked straight at me as my smile disappeared.

“You know you can’t avoid this any longer. So tell me the truth.”

The air grew heavy. My face, gone stiff, was reflected in his wavering eyes.

“Who was it, and how many people were sacrificed?”