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Chapter : 24
The meeting of the Central Council held in the Alliance Hall came to an end.
Partway through, the Zhuge family suggested that—unless it was the Martial Commander himself—there was no real reason for the Five Dragon Unit to wait until the Nangong family young lady’s betrothal ceremony was finished, and proposed that they depart first. However, Moyong Yunhwan rejected the idea.
The Five Dragon Unit was not only responsible for supporting the Guardian Corps but also for escorting supplies departing from the Martial Alliance…
In any case, the supplies needed time to be prepared, and it would be difficult for the Five Dragon Unit alone to guard such a large shipment—that explanation was added.
Then someone complained, asking whether it was really necessary to hold a betrothal ceremony during such a chaotic time.
It was ridiculous that people who were busy doing whatever they pleased were nitpicking a young girl’s ceremony, so someone pointed out several questionable behaviors by other factions and suggested they exercise restraint as well. After that, the complaints quickly died down.
“Pathetic bunch.”
Moyong Yunhwan muttered irritably as he left the Alliance Hall. He spotted Tak Musung disappearing off alone and frowned.
“Where’s he going now?”
“When Sung-ah hurries like that, there are only two reasons.”
Someone he wants to kill—or something related to Yeonhwa.
“It’s already a problem if there’s someone to kill inside the Martial Alliance, but if he’s losing his head over that girl in his current state, that’s a real disaster.”
“He’ll be heading to the Hubei–Jiangxi front soon anyway. Once he gets there, there’ll be plenty of targets to vent his anger on, so he’ll calm down. Hwan-ah, you pushed him to go there for that very reason, didn’t you?”
“For that to work, the girl’s betrothal ceremony has to finish safely first.”
“What are you worried about? There’s not much time left. Both you and I are keeping an eye on things—nothing will happen.”
“…Yeah.”
Moyong Yunhwan answered and pressed his temples as if he had a headache.
* * *
Swaaak!
Yu Geonmyeong was participating in the entire White Tiger Unit’s training at the training grounds attached to the White Tiger Hall. Ever since earlier, he’d been in a foul mood because of the unpleasant stares directed at him.
Feels like something’s going to happen.
Maybe it was because he’d been on edge due to a bad premonition—
“Huh?”
With a forced groan, a shadow suddenly lunged at him from behind, but he dodged swiftly.
Crash!
One of the White Tiger members fell flat where Yu Geonmyeong had been standing.
He didn’t even have time to check who it was.
He leaned his upper body back, focusing on the sword coming straight at him from another direction.
Swoosh!
The blade stabbed through where his chest had been and withdrew.
Before it left his field of vision, Yu Geonmyeong knocked it aside.
Clang!
Straightening up naturally, he saw his opponent had dropped their sword and immediately rushed in.
Thud! Thud!
His kicks and punches were relentless.
Other White Tiger members rushed over and pulled them apart.
While the attacker’s face and body were battered beyond recognition, Yu Geonmyeong was barely disheveled.
Even so, unsatisfied, he tried to keep kicking.
“Geonmyeong! Stop! You need to hold back!”
Yu Geonmyeong had a good reputation and many allies, so most of the White Tiger members sided with him.
The ones who had ambushed him sneered, apparently provoked further.
“My mistake—I almost left a scar on that precious face of yours and ruined your betrothal ceremony!”
“Yeah, no matter how annoying it is watching you strut around acting superior, that kind of accident wouldn’t do, right?”
Yu Geonmyeong frowned at their nonsense—then realized their faces seemed familiar.
“You… you’re Oh Mingi from the Yangryuk Merchant Guild, right? The one who clung to my young lady in front of her last time, relying on Young Master Nangong, until you got kicked out?”
The other one had been in a similar situation—just as pathetic.
Oh Mingi shouted angrily.
“When did I ever do that! Young Master Nangong encouraged me—I was only trying to greet the young lady!”
Most people present had witnessed the incident, so no one believed him.
“Stop talking nonsense. Don’t ever look at my young lady like that again. Don’t even think about saying a word to her.”
Yu Geonmyeong radiated raw killing intent.
His possessive attitude toward the woman known as the Martial Alliance’s young lady—openly claiming her as his—seemed to infuriate Oh Mingi, who lunged forward again.
“Your young lady? What a joke. How is she yours? She’s the Three Spirits’ young lady. Even if she’s like a little sister to you, doesn’t it feel weird supporting her that much? One of the Three Spirits—maybe all three—who knows who she’s been sleeping with?”
Even as he spoke, Oh Mingi realized he’d gone too far.
That insult wasn’t just directed at Nangong Yeonhwa—it also damaged the dignity and honor of the Three Spirits.
Silence fell over the area.
Yu Geonmyeong, frozen stiff, was about to charge forward to fight to the death—
Crunch!
Crack—crunch!
With a horrifying sound, Oh Mingi’s body collapsed.
Only when his bones shattered one by one and his limbs convulsed as he coughed up blood did the White Tiger members react in shock.
Only then did they realize someone had appeared and was completely destroying him.
“Ah…!”
No one dared to call out the man’s name.
The man burning like gray ash was too fierce, too terrifying.
If anyone called him, it felt like the violence raining down on Oh Mingi might suddenly change direction—toward them instead.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
In the silent space where even breathing seemed hushed, the sounds of flesh and bone being crushed continued for a while.
Finally, biting his lip, Yu Geonmyeong stepped forward.
“Please stop!”
Tak Musung glanced at him—but instead of stopping, he lifted his foot and kicked Oh Mingi’s head viciously.
Crack!
With a sound like a watermelon shattering, Oh Mingi’s body bounced into the air and fell.
He didn’t move again.
The White Tiger members felt chills. A Martial Commander who could crush someone like Oh Mingi with a single finger was using the crudest form of violence imaginable—proof of just how enraged he was.
“Stop? Why… should I?”
Tak Musung spoke to Yu Geonmyeong, his voice low and heavy with danger.
Yu Geonmyeong endured the oppressive pressure closing around him and replied,
“If you kill Oh Mingi here, her name will spread even more with ugly rumors. Right now, it would be less noisy if I handled it.”
“You judged the situation that calmly—even after hearing those words?”
“Absolutely not! I was going to formally challenge him to a life-or-death duel and make him pay for tarnishing her honor!”
Of course, challenging him and killing him might have happened at the same time…
But at least that would have given some justification—unlike suddenly appearing, striking first, and showing no intention of dealing with the aftermath.
Tak Musung, however, disagreed.
“You heard that—and still had time to weigh your options?”
He turned his attention away from Oh Mingi and walked toward Yu Geonmyeong.
“Uh…!”
The White Tiger members around Yu Geonmyeong retreated in terror.
Still, some who were worried about him stayed, though they looked ready to wet themselves.
Yu Geonmyeong shook his head at his friends and gestured for them to move far away from the training grounds.
They nodded reluctantly and backed off, constantly glancing over their shoulders.
Tak Musung stopped right in front of him.
Though Tak Musung was nearly six and a half feet tall and Yu Geonmyeong was just over six, the difference wasn’t huge.
But Tak Musung possessed the perfect physique of an exceptional man.
Even without displaying martial aura, he carried an overwhelming presence.
In contrast, Yu Geonmyeong—just newly grown into adulthood—still had a slender, unfinished frame.
Just standing face to face made their difference seem obvious.
Yet despite appearances, the tension between them was evenly balanced.
It didn’t feel like only one person controlled the situation.
“The fact that you could leave room for hesitation regarding that child… proves she shouldn’t be entrusted to you.”
“Why are you the one judging that? That’s something Yeonhwa should decide!”
Tak Musung reached out and grabbed Yu Geonmyeong by the throat.
“You talk well. It’s easy to say whatever she wants to hear under the excuse of ‘for her sake.’”
Yu Geonmyeong grabbed Tak Musung’s arm with both hands, struggling to pry it off.
Tak Musung’s hand didn’t budge as he lifted him into the air.
Yu Geonmyeong kicked toward him midair.
Tak Musung deflected the attack with a flick of his hand and entangled his legs.
Rotating his left arm, he released the collar with his right and struck Yu Geonmyeong’s chest with a palm.
Boom!
Yu Geonmyeong’s body slammed violently into the ground, bouncing several times before coming to a stop.
