A Heavy Heart

At that moment, a pale wisp of mist drifted through the air before me, like a mirage, blending seamlessly into the camp. It was one of Sasha Felix’s abilities—mist transformation.

The mist swiftly swept through the entire camp, halting at the central tent I had mentioned. Moments later, Sasha Felix emerged from above the tent.

“Aside from the presence I sensed below, there’s nothing unusual, Clan Lord.”

”…We’re going in.”

I gave the order to proceed. Doubt still lingered in a corner of my mind, but another thought crossed my mind—perhaps the vagrants had simply fled.

‘This might not be their only hideout… but it seemed like a place where at least a hundred could have lived.’

As I gauged the camp’s scale, I slowly walked inside. Despite three thorough checks, nothing seemed amiss, so I decided to start with the central tent where I sensed movement. Faint groans were already seeping out from within.

“Shall we lift it?”

Upon reaching the central tent, Sasha Felix gripped the fabric tightly and asked. The execution team members also raised their weapons, ready. As the low hum of incantations filled the air, I nodded.

“Lift it.”

With a whoosh, the tent was pulled back, and the thick scent of blood hit us all at once.

“Ugh… ugh…”

“Ahh… ahhh…”

‘Prisoners.’

Inside the tent, four individuals were bound to the supporting pillars, their bodies stripped bare and tightly restrained, emitting weak groans. A quick check with my third eye confirmed they were members of the Moonlight Clan, as expected.

A wave of exhaustion washed over me. My suspicions had been confirmed.

Woo Jung-min examined the prisoners closely before turning to me.

“Clan Lord, these people are…”

“They’re prisoners. It seems the vagrants have fled.”

“What? They fled?”

“They didn’t kill or take them, just left them with minor injuries. It’s a common tactic to buy time while we rescue and treat the prisoners.”

Woo Jung-min looked at me, bewildered, but I was just as surprised. I had expected them to attack, given our small number of nine, but they chose to flee instead.

I considered pursuing them, but the scattered footprints in all directions suggested it was better to abandon the chase.

After soothing my bitter mouth, I sheathed my sword and addressed the only priest among the execution team.

“Let’s free them first. User Park Da-som, please start the healing incantations.”

“Yes, Clan Lord. I’ll begin right away.”

Park Da-som responded obediently and approached the prisoners with a gentle demeanor.

Once I confirmed the prisoners were being freed and Park Da-som was chanting the healing spells, I headed toward a large rock near the valley. With the plan to crush the vagrants thwarted, I decided to rest for now.

“Su-hyun, I found footprints scattered in all directions. Could it be a trap to encircle us?”

As I sat on the rock and took out a cigarette, a languid voice reached me. I looked up to see Go Yeon-ju, arms crossed, scanning the surroundings sharply.

I shook my head and took out a cigarette from my pocket.

“I’ve already set up maximum mana detection around the valley. But I can’t sense any trace of the vagrants.”

“That’s true. But they might have gone far and could return, or they might be hiding. I’ll take Woo Jung-min and Sun Yu-un to scout the area.”

It was a reasonable suggestion. I granted Go Yeon-ju’s request with a warning to be cautious, and she disappeared into the forest with the two men like the wind.

“Sigh…”

As I quietly smoked, I pondered why the vagrants had fled.

The initial encounter with the reconnaissance team was significant. Although the team was wiped out, they likely managed to send a message to their base during the skirmish. Realizing we were a mercenary execution squad, the vagrants chose to flee.

‘Perhaps… the impact of that battle still lingers.’

This wasn’t the first time the vagrants had fled. It was the third, to be precise.

In the past, with nine execution team members, I had crushed a group of vagrants, including a leader, totaling 87. The story spread across the northern continent, and since then, vagrants have been avoiding clashes with our clan.

‘This is becoming troublesome…’

I flicked the spent cigarette away and watched the execution team members patrolling the camp.

The mercenary execution squad was composed of carefully selected clan members. But that didn’t mean they were the elite of the mercenaries. I had set three conditions for selecting execution team members, and only those who met them were chosen.

The first was, of course, skill.

In battles against vagrants, where anything goes, skill was paramount. Those lacking it were a liability and were excluded from the selection.

The second was a lack of hesitation.

This condition was broad, encompassing everything from not hesitating to kill to ensuring results against vagrants, regardless of the means. As long as the target was a vagrant, any action was permissible.

The third was a deep-seated grudge against vagrants.

Unlike the previous conditions, this was a sufficient condition. Users with a deep grudge against vagrants were deemed to align with the group’s purpose.

“Oh, Jung-min?”

“Ah… Hye-soo.”

It was then that I heard the voices of a man and a woman. Snapping out of my thoughts, I looked up to see Won Hye-soo and Woo Jung-min hesitating as they faced each other. They must have run into each other on their way to me.

“You go first.”

”…Excuse me.”

They exchanged glances briefly before Woo Jung-min stepped back, allowing Won Hye-soo to approach me.

“Clan Lord, we’ve identified the prisoners. Three men and one woman. They were part of the execution squad for the Moonlight Clan, representing the eastern city of Eden.”

“How are they?”

“They’re not in life-threatening condition, but their mana circuits are destroyed. The woman seems to be in severe mental shock.”

”…I see. Since their lives aren’t in danger, we’ll take them to the city.”

Throughout our conversation, Won Hye-soo’s face remained expressionless. But at the end, I noticed her clenching her fist tightly.

She then extended her clenched hand toward me. Reflexively, I reached out, and a communication crystal with an icy glow dropped into my palm.

“And there’s a message from the main branch. User Jung Ha-yeon has something urgent to report to you.”

“Understood.”

With that, Won Hye-soo turned toward the direction of the prisoners. Watching her walk away, I turned my attention to Woo Jung-min, who was quietly observing her.

As I fiddled with the crystal, Woo Jung-min finally looked away and sighed deeply.

”…Do you regret it?”

“What? Regret what?”

“Do you regret her being part of the execution team?”

“Oh… no. I respect Hye-soo’s decision. Even if there are some issues…”

Woo Jung-min gave a bitter smile and continued quietly.

“Since she started working as an execution team member, she’s been less tormented. I hope that through this ongoing revenge, Hye-soo’s heavy heart will eventually find peace.”

Find peace? I shook my head immediately.

“I don’t know, User Woo Jung-min. You should think carefully. As we saw when she encountered the reconnaissance team, she took pleasure in dismembering the vagrants. If this continues, her heavy heart might not find peace but instead head in a darker direction.”

”…I’ll keep an eye on her.”

“If you wish, we can remove her from the team after this mission.”

Woo Jung-min nodded quietly. Though he said it was fine, a shadow of darkness lingered on his face.

A year ago, Won Hye-soo had miraculously regained her senses. I don’t know what triggered it, but one day she just snapped back to reality.

For Woo Jung-min, it should have been a joyous occasion, but he couldn’t be happy. With all her memories returned, Won Hye-soo was tormented for months. She ignored the child she once adored and spent her days in tears.

It was only when she learned that Woo Jung-min was part of the execution team that she regained her composure. With eyes burning with vengeance, she came to me, asking to join the team.

Initially, I refused, citing her lack of skill.

But a woman’s determination for revenge is not to be underestimated. Won Hye-soo trained relentlessly, rapidly improving her user stats.

With Woo Jung-min’s support, she requested to join the team again, and thus, she became an execution team member.

“Well… I don’t really mind.”

As an execution squad member, there wasn’t much to criticize about Won Hyesoo’s actions, so I decided to leave it as an issue between the two of them.

Woo Jungmin, with a bitter expression, seemed lost in thought before speaking up.

“Oh, Clan Lord. A message from the Shadow Queen. She says, as you suspected, there’s no sign of the vagrants. Still, just in case, she’s checking other areas and will return in five minutes.”

“Understood.”

“And… um… shouldn’t you take the call?”

“Haha, I was just about to.”

Prioritizing the report, I brushed it off with a light laugh and picked up the communication crystal Won Hyesoo handed me. The cold light of the crystal reflected Ha Yeon’s face.

“Ha Yeon? I heard you have something urgent to report.”

(Suhyeon… something terrible has happened.)

The abrupt news caught me off guard, but I quickly composed myself. Coming from Ha Yeon, it was definitely not something trivial.

“Go ahead.”

(Actually…)

As Ha Yeon continued, her explanation left me stunned.

“What did you say? Hyun and Hangyeol went into the Dragon’s Sleeping Ridge? And Hyun is missing?”

(They took on a caravan’s request…)

“How could this happen? I clearly said I had no intention of exploring the Dragon’s Sleeping Ridge! I told you not to take any related requests!”

(…I’m sorry. I should have been more forceful in stopping them.)

Seeing Ha Yeon close her eyes tightly, I was at a loss for words. Woo Jungmin, realizing the gravity of the situation, dashed off, likely to gather Go Yeonju and Seon Yuwon.

I bit my lip, quickly organizing my thoughts.

Now wasn’t the time to shout about why they went. The priority was to understand the situation and rescue the two as soon as possible.

I forced myself to keep my voice steady.

“What about Hangyeol?”

(He returned, but… he’s in a strange state.)

“Does he spend half the day sleeping and seem dazed when awake?”

(…Yes? Th-that’s right.)

“Is his body cold, and is his heartbeat weakening over time?”

(H-how do you know…)

“Damn it.”

I cursed under my breath and stood up, looking around. The execution squad members, now silent, stared at me with wide eyes.

“User Ha Yeon, I’ll ask about this later. You haven’t sent any other clan members for a rescue yet, have you?”

(No. Everyone’s on standby except those on assignments.)

“That’s a relief. I’ll return to the base immediately. Call back all members on assignments, especially Vivian and An Sol.”

(I’ll have everything ready before you arrive.)

With Ha Yeon’s response, I ended the call. As I looked up, Nam Da-eun approached cautiously, grabbing my arm.

“Oppa… what’s going on?”

”…Hyun and Hangyeol’s lives are in danger.”

“What?”

“I’ll explain later. We need to return immediately. Prepare everyone for a quick departure.”

Nam Da-eun, though visibly shocked, quickly ran to alert the execution squad members.

I, too, began preparing to leave, my mind on the Dragon’s Sleeping Ridge.

The Dragon’s Sleeping Ridge.

A place that had become the graveyard of countless clans and users during the first round of challenges.

‘That place…’

Though it was eventually stabilized, the conquest itself had failed.