Chapter 139: A Terrifying Man (1)

I looked at Chu Il-hwan, who wore a pitiful expression that didn't suit him at all.

“…You seem to have been through a lot?”

Instead of answering with words, Chu Il-hwan just let out a deep, weary sigh with a look of complete exhaustion.

‘What the hell did you do to him, kid?’

To push that crazy instructor to this point, if you could call it impressive, it was definitely impressive.

‘Wait... I'm not going to get harassed too, am I?’

Since I just wanted to rest up in the medical hall, I hadn't bothered sending any communication to the Hyeokryeon Family either.

Feeling an ominous premonition that I'd be getting hassled by the kid after graduating from the Hall of the Demonic Way, I quickly came up with a little scheme.

‘I’ll just say the Hyeokryeon Family blocked my attempts to contact them.’

Right. It was the Hyeokryeon family who kept my arrival at headquarters secret in the first place, so they could handle the cleanup too.

As I thought about what would happen after graduation, I naturally found a contradiction.

"But wait, the only time you'd see Seon-ah again would be when she enters the Hall of the Demonic Way, right?"

The instructors of the Hall of the Demonic Way pretty much stayed holed up in this place all the time unless something special came up.

Even that bastard Yu Geuk's betrayal happened because his ambitions exploded from being stuck in that stuffy Hall life.

But Chu Il-hwan sighed at my question and replied.

"That's exactly why I'm asking. I'm worried about when that girl enters the Hall. Disciple Il-mok."

"...Is there a reason for you to fear her?"

This was the same Chu Il-hwan who had been itching to harass even me, a disciple of the Heavenly Demon who was practically a god in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

But he's scared of Seon-ah coming in as a student?

Chu Il-hwan gave an awkward smile that was so unlike him.

"If I get harassed by that girl, I'm afraid my heart demons will take over and I'll end up killing her."

"......."

As if aware of me looking at him like he is crazy, he added an excuse.

"Ahem. This whole incident actually helped me break through a barrier. My stay at the Pure Mind Hall allowed me to deal with my heart demon and Qi Deviation. But even someone like me doesn't have the confidence to endure that girl's harassment to the end. Ahem. Anyway, that's how it is. So please stop that girl. I don't want to kill her."

I wondered if this was some new kind of threat.

If you want to keep that girl alive, stop her from harassing me.

But what was even more ridiculous was—

“Weren’t you the one who kept throwing killing intent at me left and right?"

The fact that this man, the same guy who tried to kill me, a disciple of the Heavenly Demon, was now afraid of killing Seon-ah.

"My attacks on you were only because I fell into a trap."

"...I remember you doing that pretty often on other occasions, no?"

All those creepy moments when I mistook him for gay and thought my chastity was in danger. If those were all life-threatening situations, there had to be at least a dozen incidents.

When I pressed him on this, Chu Il-hwan answered boldly.

"Hahaha. What I did to you was just playing around. It was something I could easily handle. But with that girl, I feel like I'd genuinely develop murderous intent."

"......."

The words "you crazy bastard" circled around in my mouth, but I didn't bother saying them out loud.

I just thought I should probably grant Chu Il-hwan's request.

Not for his sake, though.

‘Poor Seon-ah. Tsk, tsk.’

After all, you avoid shit because it's dirty, not because you're scared of it.

***

Separate from the fact that Chu Il-hwan was a madman, for some reason, he didn’t bother my meditation.

‘Tch. This whole thing's got me so unsettled I can't sleep.’

It was just that I was too anxious to get any proper rest.

He claimed he'd broken through barriers and overcome most of the side effects during his stay at the Pure Mind Hall, but from my perspective as someone who’d nearly been killed by his rampage, I couldn't really trust that.

Still, it was definitely more comfortable than when Ma Do-young was the instructor in charge.

At least he wasn't constantly picking fights with me.

"Yaaaawn."

Even during martial arts training, when I was lazily swinging my sword around and yawning constantly, he didn't seem to care at all.

Though I wasn't sure why the trio forming a protective barrier around me was trembling like leaves.

After spending several days in this relatively peaceful routine, today all the trainees from both the Upper and Lower Classes were gathered in the training hall bright and early.

Chu Il-hwan stepped forward with an unusually stern expression and briefly explained the situation.

“You are all aware that an exam was scheduled for today. There was originally a different exam prepared, but due to a sudden change, today’s exam will be replaced with a sparring tournament.”

I could pretty much guess what was going on.

With all that chaos, they probably couldn't even prepare for the exam.

From the instructors' perspective, they would've been too busy with damage control to even think about test preparation.

And as soon as Chu Il-hwan finished his explanation, Dokgo Pae shot his hand up.

"Do we choose our own opponents for the matches? And do we only get one chance to fight?"

The one asking the question was already looking at me.

Tch.

Because of our agreement not to fight except during exams or when instructors ordered it, he was clearly itching to release all that pent-up frustration.

His excited face was creepy in so many ways, so I quickly turned my head away.

"Hm?"

That's when I finally noticed there was an unfamiliar face among the instructors.

A beautiful woman who looked slightly younger than Instructor Eun Ryeo, probably in her early thirties.

***

The woman who had taken over the doctrinal education instructor position in place of Instructor Jeong Gyu-seok was Xiao Hong.

As she scanned the disciples gathered in the training grounds, her eyes lit up when she spotted one in particular.

‘That disciple must be the Eighth Young Master I've only heard about.’

It wasn't just because of the rumors floating around that she was interested in Il-mok.

She recalled what had happened two days ago.

When the person she trusted and followed most after the Heavenly Demon, the master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, had summoned her.

"I greet the Chief of the Law Enforcement Hall."

"Come in, Deputy Commander Xiao."

The Chief of the Law Enforcement Hall, who usually wore a stern face befitting one who enforced the laws of the Cult, had greeted her with a particularly bright face that day.

"I have a mission to personally assign to you, which is why I called you here."

"If it's a mission from the Chief, I will carry it out with my life, whatever it may be."

The Chief smiled upon hearing her response.

"Hehehe, hearing you say that puts my mind at ease. Well then, you should prepare yourself starting today and head to the Hall of the Demonic Way tomorrow."

At those words, Xiao Hong almost flinched without realizing it.

"...By the Hall of the Demonic Way, do you mean I should become an instructor there?"

“Hohoho. You guessed it right. You are so quick-witted, I think I can rest easy.”

Unlike the satisfied Chief, Xiao Hong felt like her insides were churning.

It wasn't particularly difficult to guess.

The news that there was an opening for an instructor position at the Hall of the Demonic Way had already spread throughout the cult like wildfire.

The problem was the very fact that she was being sent to become a Hall instructor.

‘So this is how I'm being cast aside...’

The decades she'd spent serving in the Law Enforcement Hall and showing loyalty to the Chief felt meaningless.

As if sensing her misunderstanding, the Chief finally got to the most important point. “There is something you must accomplish when you go to the Hall of the Demonic Way as an instructor.”

“…What might that be?”

Xiao Hong asked while secretly sighing in relief.

There was a separate mission to carry out. That meant he wasn't sending her to the Hall to get rid of her.

But instead of discussing the mission, the Chief brought up something completely out of left field.

"Have you heard the rumors about the Eighth Young Master?"

"How could anyone in the cult not have heard rumors about the Eighth Young Master?"

"Hehehe. Then what do you think of the Eighth Young Master?"

After thinking briefly about the Chief's question, she answered.

“I thought the rumors might be exaggerated. If the rumors are true, I believe he would be a genius that could be counted on one hand even in the entire history of the Divine Cult.”

"From what I've been able to confirm through the information available to me, most of those rumors were true."

"......."

While Xiao Hong was momentarily speechless with surprise, the Chief dropped another bombshell.

"So think about this. What do you think would happen if that Eighth Young Master came to our Law Enforcement Hall after graduating from the Hall of the Demonic Way?"

"He would bring various changes to the Law Enforcement Hall and create countless achievements that would please the Heavenly Demon."

The Chief nodded and added.

"I don't know if you've heard of this in the rumors, but the Lord of Ten Thousand Demons described the Eighth Young Master like this: 'A child who will brighten the cult's future.' Even though there were seven disciples before the Eighth Young Master, the Supreme One had never used such an expression before. Do you understand what this means?"

"...I believe it means that if the Eighth Young Master joins the Law Enforcement Hall, the Supreme One's attention and affection will likely turn toward the Law Enforcement Hall."

"Exactly. Hahaha. Right now, only I and the Eldest Young Master have noticed this fact, but others will probably catch on before long. That's why I'm sending you to the Hall of the Demonic Way."

Only then did Xiao Hong fully understand what her mission was.

‘As expected of the Chief. If we approach the Eighth Young Master after he graduates from the Hall, there'll be too many competitors and variables. To prevent this, he wants to win him over while he's still in the Hall.’

And the person entrusted with that recruitment was her. As she was realizing the importance of her mission, the Chief spoke as if to reassure her.

"You don't need to worry about being transferred to the Hall of the Demonic Way. If you succeed in bringing the Eighth Young Master to the Law Enforcement Hall, I'll also have a better chance of moving up to a higher position. If I move up, I'll definitely take care of you."

"!!!"

Xiao Hong's eyes instantly lit up. She had grasped the Chief’s true intentions.

‘A position higher than the Chief of the Law Enforcement Hall! The Chief must be aiming for the next Cult Leader position!’

If she could recruit the Eighth Young Master and help the Chief become the next Cult Leader, she would receive tremendous rewards.

"I will definitely complete this mission even if it costs me my life!"

As she kneeled, the chief said with a satisfied expression.

“Huhuhu. I’m counting on you. This is a task that only you can do.”

While Xiao Hong was moved by the Chief's boundless trust, he said something completely out of the blue.

"The reason I'm sending you so urgently is because of this. Making the arrangements for you to be selected as an instructor was one problem, but more importantly, it took time to obtain some very crucial information."

"Very crucial information?"

"That's right."

The Chief nodded and shared the top-secret information he had barely managed to obtain by mobilizing every connection he had.

"According to the evaluations of the instructors and Hall Master Yeom Ga-hwi, the Eighth Young Master's talent is unparalleled, but he has one weakness. And you're the only one who can exploit that weakness."

"...What is this weakness?"

“They said he is fond of women.”

"......."

At this unexpected weakness, Xiao Hong was left speechless.

***

Recalling that day's events, she looked at Il-mok for a moment.

Whether by coincidence or because he sensed her gaze, Il-mok turned his head to look at her.

Naturally, the Chief's final words of advice came to mind.

—He may be fond of women, but he's still just a sixteen-year-old kid. Use the charms of a seductive woman to captivate the Eighth Young Master.

She, who had been prostrating on the floor, had almost responded to the Chief’s advice without thinking.

'The charms of a seductive woman. What is that?'

At thirty-two years old, she had spent her entire life focused only on martial arts and work.

Despite having the looks to be considered a beauty, and there had been men who had approached her from time to time, she had always coldly rejected them every single time.

In other words, she had reached thirty-two without any romantic experience whatsoever.

But she couldn't reveal this fact to the Chief.

‘This is a chance to achieve great merit! How can I throw away this opportunity!’

So after leaving the Law Enforcement Hall, she had sought advice from married acquaintances.

And now, at this very moment when she made eye contact with Il-mok for the first time.

‘They said first impressions are important, right? And that men are weak to a woman’s smiling face?’

Recalling the advice she'd heard the previous night, Xiao Hong smiled awkwardly.

"!?"

Il-mok's face naturally scrunched up when he met her creepy smile.

‘Goddammit. There was still an assassin left.’