Cheon So-seon (1)
Crunch!
The man’s skull shattered in the grip of the woman’s thick hands.
Everyone watched in horror, paralyzed by fear. They had all survived hellish training, but witnessing a comrade’s head being crushed was a nightmare beyond imagination.
“Say it again. What was that?”
The voice, sharp and biting, was completely at odds with her usual demeanor. It belonged to Heuk-seok.
Her robust figure remained unchanged, but the friendly face was gone, replaced by a chilling coldness that made her even more terrifying.
She grabbed another man by the collar and lifted him effortlessly. The men, who had barely survived, were the returning members of the Ma Clan.
“Please, spare us!”
“I don’t understand. How could you fail?”
“Please, have mercy!”
Thud! Crunch!
With a single blow from Heuk-seok, the man’s chest caved in, and he collapsed to the ground.
“That’s not what I wanted to hear.”
The men of the Ma Clan bowed their heads in unison, cowed by her fierce presence.
She was furious. She had managed to hold her temper when the Gwanghyeol Mutong Army was wiped out, as some losses were expected against such formidable opponents.
But the death of the Ma Clan leader and the near-total annihilation of their forces was a serious issue. There was no avoiding the organization’s wrath.
Moreover, the thought of that infuriating Baek-seok rejoicing over this news made her blood boil.
The dozen or so members of the Ma Clan kept their heads bowed, barely daring to breathe.
“So, what about the enemy’s casualties?”
No one dared to answer, fearing that speaking up might cost them their lives.
“Useless fools! Can’t even answer a simple question! Why should I keep you alive?”
Her hand moved to the iron disc hanging at her waist. One of the men quickly spoke up.
“Their losses were minimal.”
“What?”
Heuk-seok was taken aback. She had assumed that at least the Mengho Group would have been wiped out. She thought Ma Bong-gi would have barely escaped with injuries. That was the best-case scenario she had considered. Under normal circumstances, the Ma Clan leader and fifty of his men should have been more than enough to kill Ma Bong-gi.
“Ma Bong-gi’s martial arts were extraordinary. And the Mengho Group fought back with Hyunhyeonjin, leaving us helpless.”
From the perspective of the fleeing Ma Clan members, exaggerating the enemy’s prowess was their only option.
“If it was Hyunhyeonjin, then it must have been led by Gal Sa-ryang. Still, that alone shouldn’t have been enough to stop you. Did Ma Bong-gi have some hidden trump card?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“By now, he must have met with the Namhyeon Escort Agency.”
”…Yes.”
Heuk-seok was more troubled and fearful of ‘him’ than the Ma Clan’s failure.
Ma Bong-gi was supposed to be dead, and a new plan was to be executed at the Namhyeon Escort Agency starting tomorrow. But everything had gone awry.
She drew the iron disc. Its sharp edge gleamed menacingly.
The Ma Clan warriors trembled, fearing it might be hurled at them.
Whirrrrr.
The iron disc spun through the air, flying over their heads and far into the distance.
Screeeeeeech.
With a piercing metallic sound, the disc circled back, returning much faster than it had gone, sweeping through the men.
Slash!
Thud! Thud-thud-thud! Thud!
The remaining men were sliced apart by the iron disc, all meeting their end.
“You’d have been better off all dying together.”
Her eyes were cold and unfeeling.
The iron disc, which had been hovering in the air, flew back into her thick hand as if drawn by a magnet. The sharp, rapidly spinning object came to a gentle stop in her grasp.
One of her subordinates, who had been watching from the side, swallowed hard. He had seen her kill with the iron disc more than once, but each time, the sight sent chills down his spine.
Fortunately, after the massacre, she seemed to have calmed down a bit.
“Where is Pyeon-no now?”
“He’s currently…”
At that moment, a voice rang out, loud and clear.
“Right here, you wretched woman.”
The voice came from a tree branch a short distance away.
An elderly man, short but sturdy, stood at the end of the branch. The thin branch didn’t even bend under his weight, a testament to the old man’s incredible martial prowess. A whip was coiled around his waist.
Heuk-seok smiled at him.
“Have you taken up spying as a hobby in your old age?”
“Watch your mouth.”
“You startled me by sneaking up without a sound.”
“You vile woman. Does it feel good to kill your own comrades like that?”
Heuk-seok’s gaze deepened as she looked at Pyeon-no.
“You should worry about yourself first. Everyone’s dying left and right.”
Pyeon-no frowned. But she was right. The Gwanghyeol Mutong Army and the Ma Clan were formidable opponents. Their consecutive failures were truly unexpected.
But what really irked Pyeon-no was something else.
“I heard Go-no is dead?”
The Gwanghyeol Mutong Army and the Ma Clan were tough, but they could be dealt with. Go-no, however, was a different story. He was a truly formidable opponent.
Heuk-seok nodded seriously.
“Unless he’s set up house with a charming woman like me, Go-no is already dead. So, make your choice. Settle down with me, or seek revenge.”
“Crazy woman.”
Pyeon-no leapt from the branch, disappearing in an instant.
“Let’s go.”
Heuk-seok took off, her robust body moving swiftly like a fish in water.
“Where have you come from?”
The gatekeeper of the escort agency bowed to us, and we were on high alert, ready for an ambush. We expected hidden weapons to fly at us, but it was the gatekeeper who seemed more worried.
After all, a dozen warriors, reeking of blood, were glaring at him with tense expressions.
Surprisingly, the Namhyeon Escort Agency was operating as usual. Despite the nearby branch of the Martial Alliance being wiped out, they seemed unaware of any disturbance.
“We’re here to see the head of the agency.”
At Gal Sa-ryang’s words, the gatekeeper asked again.
“Who should I say is calling?”
“Tell them we’re from the Martial Alliance.”
The gatekeeper flinched. His reaction made it clear that he had no idea about our visit.
“Understood. Please wait a moment.”
Leaving us at the gate, he went inside. Normally, guests would be shown to a reception room while the head of the agency was informed, but he seemed to sense that we were not ordinary visitors.
A moment later, a middle-aged man, who appeared to be the head of the agency, emerged.
“Please, follow me.”
He led us inside.
The escort agency was bustling with activity. In the large training yard, workers and porters were loading goods onto carts and wagons, while the agency’s guards and escorts moved about busily.
Instead of taking us to the main building where the head of the agency would typically be, he led us to a separate annex in the rear garden.
In a small reception room of the annex, a man was waiting for us.
To our surprise, it was the same man who had been playing Go alone when we met Gwangwol Group’s leader, Ju Cheol-ryong. The man, with skin as white as jade and strikingly handsome features, greeted Ma Bong-gi with a smile.
“Welcome, Lord of the Martial Alliance. It’s an honor to meet the esteemed leader of the Martial Alliance. I am Cheon So-seon.”
Ma Bong-gi stood there, momentarily stunned, realizing that the person he had been so eager to meet was the man standing before him.
“Is it really you?”
“Yes, it’s me.”
Ma Bong-gi was taken aback by how young he was.
Cheon So-seon continued his introductions, recognizing Gal Sa-ryang next.
“I’ve heard of your reputation, Gal Sa-ryang. It’s an honor to finally meet you.”
He also recognized Im Joong-tae, the leader of the Mengho Group, and, surprisingly, even acknowledged me.
“You must be Byeok, the newly promoted strategist. I’ve heard of your remarkable talents at such a young age. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Please, have a seat.”
Ma Bong-gi and Gal Sa-ryang sat across from him.
I stood behind Gal Sa-ryang, while Im Joong-tae and the Mengho Group warriors surrounded us. Despite our vigilance, there was no one on Cheon So-seon’s side.
I observed Cheon So-seon closely.
First, he was incredibly handsome. In all my past lives, I had never seen a man as striking as him. His skin was fair and flawless, his body lean with long limbs. His demeanor was calm, and his eyes were filled with confidence.
Surprisingly, I couldn’t gauge Cheon So-seon’s exact martial prowess.
This meant that his skills were at least on par with mine, if not superior.
How could someone so young be so powerful?
“Was your journey here comfortable?”
Cheon So-seon spoke as if the attacks by the demonic cult had nothing to do with him.
Ma Bong-gi’s expression was troubled. Sensing that things might escalate, Gal Sa-ryang intervened.
“We arrived without any issues.”
“Ha ha, that’s good to hear.”
They exchanged a few pleasantries about the scenery of Zhejiang.
Eventually, Ma Bong-gi couldn’t contain his emotions any longer.
“Is it really you?”
His words were cold, freezing the atmosphere.
Cheon So-seon quietly met Ma Bong-gi’s gaze. His deep eyes revealed nothing of his thoughts. Despite the rude question, Cheon So-seon answered politely.
“Yes, it’s me.”
“Is it really you?”
“Yes, it is.”
I understood the underlying meaning of the question.
Are you really the one behind all this?
That was the core of the inquiry.
“A young guy like you?”
Ma Bong-gi couldn’t believe it. In all the times he had imagined the mastermind behind everything, not once had he pictured someone so young.
Cheon So-seon claimed it was him, but my conclusion was clear.
He’s not the one.
Cheon So-seon was undoubtedly someone with an unfathomable depth of talent. But he wasn’t the one. Based on what only I knew, even Chil-ho had been groomed in an elite organization since childhood. This was a group that had been preparing for at least ten to twenty years, maybe even longer. Unless Cheon So-seon had been preparing since he was a kid, the age just didn’t match up.
Cheon So-seon calmly asked Ma Bong-gi, “Did the leader want to see me?”
Ma Bong-gi was at a loss for words, his mind clouded with anger.
Sure, he could sense the man’s extraordinary presence. Cheon So-seon was a master recognized by everyone here. But for Ma Bong-gi, the issue wasn’t the man’s skill.
It was the fact that someone so young, someone who looked almost like a girl, was pulling his strings that infuriated him to no end.
If there was someone else behind Cheon So-seon, that was infuriating too. Sending such a young person in their place was an insult. Ma Bong-gi was on the verge of exploding.
“Are you satisfied now?”
Ma Bong-gi still said nothing.
I thought this moment perfectly encapsulated who Ma Bong-gi was.
He was a staunch authoritarian.
If an elderly man with a head full of white hair had appeared, he would have had plenty to say by now.
Why choose me as the leader? What do you want?
But he couldn’t shake off his anger. His pride was wounded, and he didn’t know how to handle it.
The fact that someone was manipulating and mocking him was what mattered, not the age of the person doing it.
In Ma Bong-gi’s mind, young people were meant to be used by him, so being outmaneuvered by them was a disgrace.
Meanwhile, Cheon So-seon saw through it all with piercing eyes.
I sighed inwardly.
Oh, Ma Bong-gi, Ma Bong-gi. He’s younger than you, but he’s someone you can’t handle.
Cheon So-seon smiled and said, “You must be tired from the journey. Let’s rest for today and talk tomorrow.”
“That sounds wise.”
Gal Sa-ryang agreed, sensing that if the conversation continued, Ma Bong-gi might do something rash.
We all stood up together.
The man who had guided us earlier returned to lead us to our quarters.
Cheon So-seon remained alone in the guest hall after everyone had left.
A figure dressed entirely in black, Heuk-seok, entered. Uncharacteristically, she seemed tense.
“Weren’t we supposed to receive a report on how Ma Bong-gi died here?”
His question was calm, but his gaze was icy.
“I’m sorry.”
Heuk-seok bowed her head without offering any excuses. She feared nothing in the world except for two things: the elder and the man standing before her.
“Sorry doesn’t seem to cut it.”
Though he spoke as if commenting on someone else’s affairs, Heuk-seok trembled. She knew well that just as she had cut down Ma Beon without warning, Cheon So-seon was more than capable of doing the same.
“Ma Bong-gi’s skills were beyond what we anticipated.”
“Or perhaps your skills were below my expectations?”
Cheon So-seon shifted his gaze to the window, staring out.
“When one thing goes wrong, everything tends to unravel.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Well, we need to untangle this mess. Ma Cheol-gun is on his way here. What do you plan to do about him?”
“Ma Bong-gi will be dealt with tonight. While some details will change, the plan will proceed without a hitch.”
Cheon So-seon nodded.
“That’s how it should be. If Ma Bong-gi is still around by morning…”
Cheon So-seon gave Heuk-seok a meaningful look.
“White might win without counting the moves.”