The sleep demon dragged me somewhere again.

I didn’t like the feeling of sinking into something—maybe a swamp, maybe water—but I didn’t open my eyes because I could sense there was a campfire nearby.

Even though I was asleep, I still felt sleep-deprived.

Maybe I wasn’t falling into deep sleep, drifting in and out of various dreams. Thoughts of killing the Number One of the Evil Path and thoughts of avenging Yoran tangled together.

When the boundary between dream and reality blurred, I found myself watching a man running furiously somewhere.

I felt bad for him.

Because I already knew he wouldn’t get what he wanted no matter how hard he ran.

Maybe it was because it was a dream?

Somehow, I could even relate to his thoughts as he ran, and at one point, it felt like I was running in his place like a messenger. I was anxious, and my light footwork felt slower than usual, my body floating awkwardly.

But it definitely wasn’t me.

Because dreams are always a mess.

The man, even as he ran, wondered if it might be better to return to the Sado Alliance and fight alongside them against the Demonic Cult. But since he couldn’t disobey orders, he arrived at the Martial Alliance and grabbed a passerby for help, only to be thrown straight into a dungeon.

Because he was a messenger from the Sado Alliance.

Could there be anything more absurd and unfair?

The man shouted, “How could you imprison a messenger?” only to be surrounded and beaten by the Martial Alliance members. He banged his hand on the iron bars of the prison and shouted at a younger man who approached.

“There’s no justice in this! What kind of law does this?”

The younger man glared at the ugly messenger and said,

“We don’t have the energy to help even villains. You have no shame.”

Maybe that word—villain—stuck with me too hard.

Before I knew it, the messenger locked in the cell had become me.

From the prison, I hurled curses at the Martial Alliance bastards. The guards couldn’t bear it and left one by one, and eventually a familiar-looking man came to visit me.

I could actually talk with this guy.

Some days he had more wrinkles on his face, some days he came bandaged up from injuries, and other days he looked so tired and depressed that he just sat in silence during the visit.

One day, he asked me,

“Why did you keep causing so many problems?”

I smashed my head against the bars before answering.

“None of your damn business.”

“The Martial Alliance isn’t a perfect organization either.”

“I know.”

“If anyone should understand me, it’s you.”

“Why would I?”

“Because I know the grief of losing comrades and subordinates. If only the noble houses had helped, if only someone supported the Martial Alliance, if only one more of the ambitious kings vying for the position of Alliance Leader had shown up... I could have saved both my men and the Alliance Leader. I cursed and resented them endlessly.”

“That’s because you cared too much about saving face. You should’ve cursed them out.”

“And that’s why I’m hated now, isn’t it? Anyway, I don’t think I’ll be able to come visit you anymore.”

“Why?”

The man who was once young now looked at me with a weary face.

“Because I became the Alliance Leader.”

“Oh, really? Congrats. Enjoy the suffering. Becoming the Martial Alliance Leader, that’s quite the achievement.”

Then Im Sobaek, now the Alliance Leader, glanced around, pulled out a key from his sleeve, and unlocked the prison door.

I stared at the open door in shock.

“What is this? Why are you letting me out?”

“It’s the Alliance Leader’s prerogative. Go.”

“Go where?”

Im Sobaek chuckled.

“How would I know where you’ll go?”

I glared at him and asked,

“Is this okay?”

“If conflict with the Demonic Cult breaks out, I’ll contact you. Whether or not you help is your choice.”

“Got it.”

“Hey, Sect Leader.”

“What?”

“Why do you keep speaking informally? You’re younger than me.”

“Are you my superior?”

Laughing, Im Sobaek grabbed my shoulder and pulled me out of the cell. As soon as I stepped out, I squinted—and woke up in the real world.

It felt like I’d been released from prison. It had been bright daylight in the dream, but now the night sky stretched above me.

I blinked a few times and sat up. I saw a campfire.

If it had been just the campfire, I wouldn’t have been surprised—but sitting around it were Sword Demon, the Drunk, the Lecher... and Im Sobaek.

“......”

Seeing someone from my dream the moment I opened my eyes didn’t help me feel any more awake.

Still half-asleep, I stared into the fire and muttered,

“What the hell is this? Is this a dream? What’s the Alliance Leader doing here?”

The Lecher answered.

“Quit sleep-talking and get some more rest.”

“Were we captured?”

“Captured? You lunatic, just go back to sleep.”

Right. The Four Great Villains aren’t so easy to catch. There were no Martial Alliance members around, so it was baffling how Im Sobaek had ended up on White Sand Island.

I stood and looked toward the lake.

Under the moonlight, five or six additional rafts had arrived. Seeing them cleared some of my drowsiness.

The Drunk explained the situation briefly.

“...They couldn’t get a proper boat, so they made rafts and came.”

“That’s... actually surprising.”

“Exactly.”

The Number One of the Evil Path had been controlling the ships, so even getting a small boat must’ve been difficult. So the Special Forces made rafts to reach White Sand Island.

Some Martial Alliance members were inspecting the Sado Alliance’s boats and seemed ready to depart. It looked like they would head to the mainland to bring back boatmen and then relocate the ships.

From now on, Im Sobaek would have to allocate the most personnel to establishing a branch in Dongho. It seemed like being Alliance Leader wouldn’t be easy.

Our eyes met briefly, but Im Sobaek didn’t say anything. Judging by the mood, he had already spoken at length with the Four Great Villains.

Apparently, Im Sobaek was the kind of Alliance Leader who could spare the effort even to help villains like us.

I had no idea what they’d been talking about, but once I woke up, all conversation had stopped.

“What were you guys talking about? Did I pass out or something?”

In my opinion, people of Jianghu shouldn’t sleep so deeply with their guard down. Maybe that’s why I was so sleepy—it was because I rarely ever let my guard down enough to sleep properly.

The Drunk said,

“Nothing much. We were just watching the fire.”

“Really?”

Im Sobaek spoke.

“I heard that the Number One of the Evil Path used to be a messenger of the former Sado Alliance.”

That helped me understand the earlier silence. The Four Great Villains must’ve shared what happened on White Sand Island, and Im Sobaek listened without much comment. Maybe his voice in the dream was what made him appear there.

He tilted his head.

“No matter how hard I think, I don’t remember such a request. Must’ve been during the previous Alliance Leader’s time. Or maybe I was away on an external mission.”

The Lecher asked,

“If it had been you, would you have helped?”

Im Sobaek shook his head.

“I couldn’t. The military council would’ve opposed it, I would’ve opposed it, and if we’d sent someone, the Demonic Cult and Sado Alliance could’ve joined forces to surround the Martial Alliance. There would’ve been no reason to agree. That deluded messenger somehow survived a long time on false hope. Hiding in Dongho and interfering with the Alliance every step of the way.”

We all nodded.

He continued.

“He probably amassed quite a fortune. Since he didn’t do anything here, I’ll make sure to recover his wealth. Since he built it by squeezing the people of Dongho, the money will go to them first. Then to those harmed by the Sado bastards. What’s left will go to the Sect Leader.”

I was about to speak informally to him like in the dream, but remembered this wasn’t a dream anymore.

“If the Martial Alliance supports us, I’ll split it with Master Yukhap, Sword Demon-senior, Mongrang, and myself.”

“It’ll still be a hefty sum. Do any of you have plans for it?”

When he looked at Sword Demon, the man shook his head.

Next, Im Sobaek looked at the Lecher.

“You’re not going to blow it on booze, are you?”

“Of course not, Alliance Leader. I’m going to become independent from my family.”

“You haven’t done that yet?”

“No.”

“A man over twenty should live on his own. Good thinking.”

Then he turned to the Drunk.

“Yukhap, you?”

The Drunk was about to answer when voices shouted from the departing boat.

“...Alliance Leader, we’ll be back!”

“We’ll bring food on the way back too!”

Im Sobaek turned and responded to them.

“Return safely.”

I waved at them too, without thinking much, but one of the Special Forces waved back at me deliberately.

“Sect Leader, we’ll be back!”

I burst into laughter and nodded.

“Take care.”

Even Im Sobaek and the others chuckled in disbelief. Im Sobaek, still smiling, said,

“Where were we? Ah, Yukhap.”

The Drunk replied,

“I don’t really have anything I want to do right now. I just think I need to keep getting stronger.”

“And after that?”

The simple question made the Drunk hesitate. But we said nothing until he finally answered.

“If I ever reach a high enough level... I’d like to restore the Yukhap Sect...”

Im Sobaek nodded.

“Then do it. I’ll support you.”

The Drunk looked bewildered.

“What do you mean by support?”

“Nothing much. Just send messengers now and then to check in.”

“Ah.”

Then Im Sobaek looked at the Lecher.

“What about you?”

“Huh?”

“Anything besides drinking and chasing women?”

The Lecher answered.

“I’d like a bigger house. Once I save up enough money.”

“Why? Your Mong family was rich, weren’t they?”

“They were, but my room was just a single space. I preferred being outside.”

“You’ll get enough money to build a proper house. Don’t waste it all on pleasure.”

“Yes.”

Im Sobaek looked at me.

“Our Sect Leader probably has too many places to spend money already, so I’m not worried.”

Then he turned to Sword Demon.

“And you?”

Sword Demon looked him in the eye and asked back,

“What about?”

“What would you do with a large amount of money?”

Sword Demon made a reluctant face and replied like someone forced to speak.

“Guess I’d buy some elixirs.”

Im Sobaek sighed.

“You guys really live without clear goals, huh.”

I didn’t get why he said that. We all had goals.

Suddenly, I asked something that came to mind.

“By the way, Alliance Leader-senior, why haven’t you gotten married?”

He looked at me and answered with a slightly softer tone than before.

“If you were me, would you?”

I shook my head.

He continued.

“The current Cult Leader’s father was killed by my teacher, the previous Alliance Leader. As a result, the previous Alliance Leader also died an untimely death. The Cult Leader has pride—he’ll want revenge one way or another. He’s already one of the Three Calamities feared across Jianghu, and he’s not the type to live in seclusion. The fact that he’s held back this long is a miracle. He must be cautious and meticulous.”

“What does that have to do with not marrying?”

Im Sobaek glanced at Sword Demon.

“...I heard most of the candidates were killed during the successor war.”

Sword Demon nodded.

“Yeah. He’s ruthless. And he wasn’t even the originally named heir.”

Im Sobaek nodded.

“I believe that if you want to teach a successor or have a child, you need to have someone to pass things on to. That’s just my personal belief. When the day comes that we can finally sleep peacefully on this island, you four should also find partners and get married.”

Sword Demon asked with a baffled face,

“Is that an order?”

He was clearly older than Im Sobaek, so hearing him use polite speech always felt strange.

Im Sobaek shook his head.

“I was talking to myself too.”

The Lecher cautiously asked,

“Isn’t it too late?”

Im Sobaek nodded.

“Yeah. If I’d married early, I’d have a son like you. I don’t know what sin I committed in my past life to deserve this hardship.”

“Is being Alliance Leader really that hard? I’m just curious.”

He looked at the Lecher.

“Wanna try it? I’ll retire.”

The Lecher replied, horrified.

“Me? There’d be a rebellion.”

“So you do know. Yukhap, what about you?”

The Drunk answered.

“I’m not fit for it.”

Im Sobaek nodded.

“True. Sword Demon, you?”

Sword Demon shook his head as if the question itself was absurd. Im Sobaek laughed and looked at me.

“How about our Haomun Sect Leader? Interested in the position?”

This was the most ridiculous question I’d ever heard in my life.

“Senior, there can’t be a job more boring than that.”

“Why? What makes you say that?”

“Can you hit your subordinates?”

“No, not with the dignity of the Alliance Leader. I used to hit them when I was a Pavilion Lord. I hit you a lot too. Challenged you to mock duels as an excuse.”

I pointed to the Lecher.

“What would you do if this guy were your subordinate?”

Im Sobaek looked at the Lecher.

“I’d drag him by the hair and beat him.”

That’s when we all burst into laughter. Im Sobaek chuckled along and glanced around White Sand Island.

“I should’ve been the one to kill the Sado bastard. You guys really went through hell.”

The Lecher replied,

“Not at all.”

Im Sobaek said to us,

“Strangely, I’ve been relying on you all a lot. I don’t have many subordinates right now, so even if we cross some lines, I’ll just smooth it over with my Alliance Leader authority. But be careful—there are still plenty of strong people in Jianghu.”

After joking around all night, he finally dropped a serious line.

I wished him well too.

“Senior, I hope you serve as Alliance Leader until your hair turns white, then retire safely and get married too.”

Whenever the conversation paused, we stared into the campfire. Watching the flickering flames, I thought about our future. I figured I’d never meet a normal beauty, so I made a spontaneous request.

“Senior.”

“Yeah?”

“If we all survive, introduce me to someone later.”

He asked,

“You serious?”

I nodded, and he nodded several times before replying,

“Got it. A normal woman won’t do.”

I didn’t press what he meant by “normal,” but I figured he was right.

If not even the Alliance Leader could pull it off, maybe it’d be better to just live alone again like in my past life.

Goddamn it...