Wings Are Not Heavy (1)
Cheon So-seon was playing the flute.
A beautiful melody flowed from it. How could someone so young convey such sorrowful emotions? Everyone was captivated by the masterful performance.
As the seemingly short yet lengthy performance concluded, applause erupted from the onlookers gathered around. It was a corner of the bustling marketplace.
“That was amazing!”
“You’re the best!”
“Please, play another!”
The women, in particular, seemed utterly enchanted.
With a gentle smile, Cheon So-seon left the scene, and the crowd dispersed reluctantly.
He entered a nearby teahouse, choosing a window seat on the first floor, and ordered a pot of tea.
As he sipped his tea, a woman approached his table.
It was Heuk-seok, who approached cautiously but did not sit down.
“Your playing is as impressive as ever.”
“I only play occasionally, so I haven’t improved much.”
“It was so moving, it brought tears to my eyes.”
“Because I killed Ma Bong-gi for you?”
Heuk-seok flinched at the sudden remark. Though she didn’t sense any hostility, she was terrified. Cheon So-seon had the skill to kill her, and what was more frightening was his unpredictable nature.
“I’m sorry for making you handle it personally. I’ve sent Ma Cheol-gun back as you instructed.”
Her voice trembled.
Cheon So-seon had warned her. Another failure would mean she would face the consequences. The implication was clear: she could be eliminated.
Cheon So-seon was a figure who enjoyed the full trust and support of the elders. In this organization, there was no future for those who fell out of his favor, no matter how important they were.
Fortunately, the deadly force that had been directed at Ma Bong-gi had not turned towards her.
“Please, have a seat.”
“Thank you.”
Cheon So-seon poured tea into her cup. Heuk-seok remained tense.
“You said you sent Pyeon-no, but he hasn’t returned?”
“Yes.”
Cheon So-seon tilted his head slightly.
“Then he’s dead. Surely, it wasn’t Ma Bong-gi again?”
“Absolutely not. Ma Bong-gi couldn’t have killed Pyeon-no. There must be someone helping him from the shadows.”
“An accomplice?”
“I believe the same person who killed Go-no is involved.”
Cheon So-seon sipped his tea slowly, savoring it.
“If they could kill Go-no, they could have killed Pyeon-no too.”
“Indeed.”
Cheon So-seon’s eyes narrowed as he identified a suspect.
“It must be Gal Sa-ryang.”
“I think so too. He must have brought a master with him.”
“Was there anyone among his group?”
“I don’t think so. You would have noticed.”
Cheon So-seon nodded.
The only person who stood out was Byeok Ri-dan, the most skilled after Ma Bong-gi. But even Byeok Ri-dan’s abilities were only what he had shown.
The two were evenly matched, so they couldn’t fully gauge each other’s true strength. Normally, martial artists of equal skill would recognize each other, but their level was so high that usual rules didn’t apply.
In any case, Cheon So-seon was confident that someone as young as Byeok Ri-dan couldn’t have deceived him.
“Find out who the accomplice is.”
“Understood.”
“Remember, although we avoided a complete defeat, the Black Demon is still dying.”
Heuk-seok stood up.
“They say the Great Demon never dies. It won’t.”
Cheon So-seon smiled faintly.
“Life isn’t like a game of Go.”
He had said something similar when he met Ju Cheol-ryong. That’s why he found Go uninteresting.
“In reality, unlike Go, even the Great Demon can die.”
Though she feared those pale fingers might reach for her, Heuk-seok walked out calmly.
We left Namhyeon Pyo-guk immediately.
Investigating Cheon So-seon or Namhyeon Pyo-guk’s involvement would have to wait. For now, we needed to return to the Martial Alliance.
We loaded Ma Bong-gi’s body into a carriage and left the Pyo-guk. Fortunately, no one tried to stop us.
Cheon So-seon had said to inform them that the Blood Heaven Demon Cult had begun its revenge.
In other words, their goal wasn’t to kill us. The purpose of this meeting was to kill Ma Bong-gi.
The revived Demon Cult had killed the leader of the Martial Alliance.
Once this news spread, the martial world would be thrown into chaos.
It meant only one thing.
War.
The martial world would once again be engulfed in war.
But if that’s the case, it’s strange. If the one behind Ma Bong-gi wanted war, why go through such a complicated process?
What exactly did they want?
One fortunate thing was that Cheon So-seon hadn’t discovered my true abilities or identity. In other words, his martial arts level wasn’t above mine. He was on par with me.
That means the person behind him is more skilled than I am. And there’s no guarantee there aren’t other masters besides them.
They will try to find out who killed the two elders. I must not reveal myself yet.
I need to become stronger. The enemies revealing themselves one by one are no joke.
On the way back, everyone remained silent.
One carriage carried Ma Bong-gi’s body, while another carried Gal Sa-ryang, me, and Ma Bong-gi’s woman.
Gal Sa-ryang and I couldn’t converse much because of the woman.
She didn’t say anything, but I could sense she wasn’t grieving. In fact, she seemed relieved and even happy about Ma Bong-gi’s death.
On the other hand, Im Joong-tae and the Mengho-dan warriors were somber. Although Ma Bong-gi wasn’t the leader they respected, their mission was to protect him. They had failed in that mission.
I wanted to tell them there was no need to be so heartbroken. Ma Bong-gi was far more wicked than they knew and not worth protecting.
There were no more ambushes.
The events we witnessed and experienced on our way back began to spread as rumors.
Rumors that the Demon Cult attacked a village, brutally killing people, and annihilated a branch of the Martial Alliance.
Most people couldn’t believe it.
We showed no reaction to the rumors.
Thus, we safely returned to the main base of the Martial Alliance in Wuhan.
We returned as secretly as we had left. The leader’s death had not yet been announced.
When I had died before, the announcement was delayed for a long time. This time, too, Ma Bong-gi’s death might only be announced after a new leader is chosen.
If my death was indeed their doing, they had already killed two leaders of the Martial Alliance. It was an unprecedented event since the Alliance’s founding.
In the leader’s chamber, Gwangwol-danju Ju Cheol-ryong waited alone.
He no longer hid his true nature.
Gal Sa-ryang knew Ju Cheol-ryong was connected to the forces behind this. Ju Cheol-ryong also knew that Gal Sa-ryang was aware. There was no need to hide anything anymore.
“This should never have happened.”
Gal Sa-ryang spoke reproachfully, and Ju Cheol-ryong responded defiantly.
“Ma Bong-gi was never fit to be a leader. Didn’t you oppose him for that very reason?”
“Then why did you support him?”
“Because there’s no rule that only perfect people can be leaders.”
“Your words don’t make sense.”
“I admit it. But killing the leader wasn’t my intention.”
“If you’re part of that organization, your intentions are the same.”
“Absolutely not!”
Ju Cheol-ryong retorted firmly.
“It’s entirely different. Can you say you share the same intentions as Ma Bong-gi just because you stayed with the Martial Alliance?”
Gal Sa-ryang couldn’t answer. He could argue and prove the two situations were completely different, but he chose not to.
These are the conversations that matter.
“Are you going to kill me too?”
To find out the other’s intentions and what comes next.
“If that were the plan, you would have died there with him.”
“Why spare me?”
“You’ll find out soon enough.”
Though he didn’t know the reason, he understood one thing. Ju Cheol-ryong wasn’t the one making decisions. Everything was determined by Cheon So-seon or the person behind him.
There was a reason they kept him alive. What did they plan to use him for?
When he first stayed with the Martial Alliance to avenge Cheon Hwa-jin, he never imagined such grand events awaited him.
“Who do you plan to make the next leader?”
Just then, the door burst open, and someone rushed into the leader’s chamber.
“Father!”
It was Ma Cheol-gun.
He flew through the air with his martial arts and landed in front of us.
“What is this nonsense about my father being dead?”
Ju Cheol-ryong spoke solemnly.
“The leader was killed by the Demon Cult.”
Ma Cheol-gun, who had been standing in shock, collapsed to the floor.
“Father!”
He trembled all over. It wasn’t just because Ma Bong-gi was dead. The words of the woman in the shadows had come true.
He had tried to warn his father of the danger, but he had already left the Alliance.
‘Even if I had come straight here, Father had already left secretly.’
He rationalized it to himself, but the truth was he hadn’t come immediately. He had a feeling this fact would haunt him for the rest of his life.
At the same time, his heart raced. He remembered the words spoken by the woman in the shadows.
“I’ll make you the leader of the Martial Alliance. As soon as possible.”
‘Me, the leader of the Martial Alliance?’
The thought alone made his heart feel like it would burst, and his whole body trembled.
Ma Cheol-gun stood with his head bowed, fists clenched tightly. He couldn’t let anyone see that his turmoil wasn’t just from anger and grief.
Ju Cheol-ryong’s gaze as he looked down at Ma Cheol-gun was peculiar. It wasn’t the look one gives a child who has lost a father. There was an inscrutable intent behind his eyes.
Gal Sa-ryang felt a twinge of suspicion.
“Could it be… Ma Cheol-gun?”
If that were the case…
It was as unexpected a choice as when they had backed Ma Bong-gi, perhaps even more so.
A crisis operations room was established within the Hall of Justice.
With the leader dead, Gal Sa-ryang, the chief military officer, once again took command of the Martial Alliance. Not long ago, he had been toiling under Sima Cheon, and now he held the reins of power once more.
Only a trusted few within the Hall of Justice were informed about the leader’s death. Those who heard were shocked.
The leader was dead, and the Demon Cult had risen again.
It was the worst crisis since the Hall of Justice was founded.
Of course, Gal Sa-ryang and I knew it wasn’t just the Demon Cult’s resurgence; there was a deeper conspiracy at play.
If Sima Cheon were the chief military officer now?
The chaos he would unleash would be unimaginable.
This also meant Gal Sa-ryang was in grave danger. They would see him as a thorn in their side. The fact that they hadn’t eliminated him suggested ulterior motives.
The absence of Ma Cheol-gun’s siblings was telling.
“It seems they’ve chosen Ma Cheol-gun as the next leader,” I said.
Gal Sa-ryang nodded, seemingly in agreement.
“Do they think he’s easy to manipulate because he’s young?”
“I don’t think that’s it.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because being young can also make him difficult to control. Besides, Ma Cheol-gun isn’t someone who can be easily manipulated. There are plenty of others who would be easier to use.”
Gal Sa-ryang nodded again, understanding. There were certainly older individuals who would sell their souls for a chance to lead the Martial Alliance.
“Moreover, many would think Ma Cheol-gun is too young to be the leader.”
It was a different matter from when I became the leader. At that time, I was the most renowned figure in the martial world.
But Ma Cheol-gun was different. How would they convince the martial world to accept him? The question circled back to the beginning.
“Then why choose Ma Cheol-gun?”
The answer to that question came partially with urgent news that afternoon.
A soldier rushed in to report to Gal Sa-ryang.
“The Demon Cult has attacked our main branch in Hengmen.”
“What?”
“Send the Guangyue Squad immediately!”
“Yes, sir!”
Shortly after, another soldier came in with a report.
“Before the Guangyue Squad could depart, the head of the Ma Clan has already set out with his followers.”
With that report, Gal Sa-ryang and I understood. The attack was meant to give Ma Cheol-gun a chance to earn merit.
After he racks up several victories against the Demon Cult, they would announce at a critical moment that he fought to avenge the leader. The fact that the leader was killed by demons would cloud everyone’s judgment. In such a situation, if Ju Cheol-ryong and other key figures in the Martial Alliance supported him, Ma Cheol-gun could ascend to leadership.
Someone had to lead the Martial Alliance and the righteous martial artists against the Demon Cult. No one would fit that role better than Ma Cheol-gun, who had taken up the sword for his father’s revenge.
I was deeply unsettled.
Regardless of their intentions, they were treating the Martial Alliance and the martial world as their playthings, sacrificing innocent lives for their goals.
If this is how they want to play, I must find a way to counter them.
I realized the time had come.
It was time for me to make Gal Sa-ryang my ally, rather than just being his.