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Chapter 4 …
The Raised Assassin
A vast estate where one pavilion stretched into another.
I opened my eyes in a small room deep within its grounds.
Still lying on the bed, I turned only my head, and a neatly organized room came into view.
Everything was arranged without a single unnecessary detail.
It was a quiet, restrained space that reflected the personality of the one who maintained it.
“So, I’ve finally arrived.”
The Jegal Family.
One of the Five Great Families that had engraved its name upon the martial world of the Central Plains for hundreds of years.
Ever since the Murim Alliance was founded, it had never once relinquished the position of Chief Strategist.
And now, I had become the adopted son of such a prestigious clan.
“If I’m the Second Madam’s son, that would make me the third.”
The Jegal Family’s bloodline, power structure, and inherited martial arts had already been organized in my mind. Combined with the knowledge from my previous life, I had spent the past two years thinking of nothing but this place.
Naturally, there was almost nothing I didn’t know.
“The Divine Strategist, Jegal…”
The current Family Head, Jegal Sang, was already regarded throughout the martial world as someone who had reached the pinnacle in both martial prowess and wisdom.
It would not be an exaggeration to call the present-day Jegal Family the most glorious it had ever been since its founding.
Even so…
“Everything has gone far too smoothly.”
Everyone gathered in the Council Hall a few days ago had accepted me without hesitation as a survivor of the Jin Family.
Even the Second Madam had stepped forward herself and presented the evidence she had prepared.
Since this body truly belonged to Jin Muyeon, the youngest son of the Jin Family, it was only natural.
Black Fate’s scheme had succeeded.
“I feel sorry for Jin Seoyeon, who became the Second Madam… but I will continue toward the Great Plan.”
Even if that path was nothing more than a road of bloody vengeance.
As another survivor of the Jin Family, if she ever learned the whole truth, her reaction would likely not be much different from mine.
However…
The Family Head’s gaze during the council meeting had been different.
“Jegal Sang still doesn’t trust me.”
He was the very person who had proposed accepting me as the Jegal Family’s adopted son.
Yet within his eyes lingered the desire to uncover something beyond the truth itself.
“Just like a Chief Strategist should be. He’s exactly as I remember.”
The iron-blooded strategist who held the true authority of the righteous martial world, surpassing even the Murim Alliance Leader, the man known as standing above ten thousand others.
Jegal Sang, Head of the Jegal Family.
“And another one of the masterminds behind the annihilation of the Jin Family.”
He…
…was an assassination target I would one day have to kill.
It had already been seven years since the name “Jegal Sang” was engraved into Black Fate’s assassination register.
Yet the Head of the Jegal Family still breathed freely.
To eliminate such a man…
The assassin they had raised had finally become his son.
A Raised Assassin.
That was the identity Black Fate had given me.
At least…
That had been their original intention.
“Black Fate’s plan was only half successful. Everything changed because I awoke inside Jin Muyeon’s body.”
As I raised my arm, countless small scars covered it.
The marks left upon a child’s body.
I had endured endless hardships, and at the end of those choices…
I was sent to the Jegal Family.
A being that could do nothing but pursue revenge.
“I endured those brutal years for this very moment.”
Pretending to obey Black Fate’s orders…
I had waited for today alone.
Suddenly, anger surged within me.
“Those damned bastards. Kidnapping children and using their families as bait to orchestrate all of this.”
Speaking of bait…
One incident came to mind.
The private sect where I had left traces of my existence had been completely wiped out.
In reality, I had not spent very long among those Black Path bastards.
Even that…
Had merely been another piece of the Great Plan.
The more I thought about it, the more I was disgusted by Black Fate’s meticulousness.
“For now… I’ll just have to deal with everything one step at a time.”
A thought suddenly crossed my mind.
“Jegal Muyeon…”
I had heard the name Muyeon for years.
Yet adding the surname Jegal still felt incredibly unfamiliar.
Within that single name…
Two sets of memories overlapped.
In the past, I had headed toward the Jegal Family in order to save the child.
Yet the only one who ultimately arrived here…
Was me, borrowing that child’s body.
As I continued thinking—
“Young Master.”
Another voice called out.
“It’s Hyeona. If you’re awake, may I come in for a moment?”
“Yes.”
The moment permission was given, the door slid open silently.
Standing outside was a girl who looked four or five years older than me.
She carried herself calmly.
Her footsteps were silent, and her gaze remained lowered.
A maid thoroughly disciplined in the restraint and etiquette unique to the Jegal Family.
She was Hyeona, the girl assigned exclusively to serve me.
“You’re awake quite early.”
“Yes.”
At my reply, Hyeona flinched slightly.
It had been the same reaction ever since the first day we met.
“…If you’ll wash up, I’ll prepare breakfast.”
“Very well.”
I slowly got out of bed and washed my face using the water Hyeona had brought.
While I did so, she stepped outside and quietly arranged a simple meal on the table.
When I finished washing, neatly folded clothes had already been placed before me.
Without saying a word, Hyeona helped me put them on.
Silk garments worthy of a young master of the Jegal Family wrapped comfortably around my arms.
“…”
Not a single word was exchanged.
Only the quiet rustling of clothing filled the room.
Several times, Hyeona’s hands paused.
But I pretended not to notice.
With a face that was both awkward and strangely familiar, I accepted the clothing.
Once everything was finished, I gave a small nod.
“Thank you.”
“Yes, Young Master. Your meal is ready. Please call if you need anything.”
“I will.”
Though her voice still carried the innocence of youth, Hyeona never truly relaxed before quietly leaving the room.
Soon, the sound of her footsteps faded into the distance.
“So she’s simply a shy child.”
She was young.
And this situation was unfamiliar.
Slowly, I walked toward the table and began eating.
It was the first warm breakfast I had ever received.
Meanwhile, after leaving the room, Hyeona finally exhaled deeply once she had stepped outside the pavilion.
“Huff… Huff… I thought I was going to suffocate.”
The Third Young Master’s face when she had first met him suddenly came back to her.
Eyes devoid of emotion.
Whenever she met those gray eyes, completely drained of light…
It felt as though her breath was being squeezed away.
As if he could wrap his hands around her throat at any moment.
And of all people…
She had been assigned to serve someone like him.
“Sigh… How did they end up adopting a child like that?”
She had already heard the rumors.
That he was the youngest survivor of the exterminated Jin Family.
That his aunt, the Second Madam Jin Seoyeon, had personally insisted on bringing him into the family.
“Children from prestigious families are usually either brilliant or arrogant…
…but the Third Young Master is different.”
He never spoke unnecessary words.
And it was difficult to believe that the heavy aura surrounding him belonged to a ten-year-old child.
Somehow…
He reminded her of the Head of the Jegal Family himself.
“They aren’t even related by blood…
…so how can they resemble each other so much?”
After muttering to herself, Hyeona shook her head vigorously.
She had an ominous feeling.
If she made even the slightest mistake…
She might witness the Third Young Master’s true face.
“I need to hurry. The Chief Steward said he’d be coming soon!”
Resolving herself, Hyeona hurried across the estate.
“Young Master, did you sleep well?”
I looked toward the man who had come to see me early that morning.
He had an ordinary appearance.
Heo Gyeongmun.
The Chief Steward responsible for every internal and external affair of the Jegal Family.
“He has the face of a kind man, yet he climbed to that position over countless members of the Jegal Family.”
The surname Heo suited him far less than the name Jegal.
That smile was nothing more than a mask.
Beneath it might lurk a sharp and relentless nature.
Even within the Jegal Family…
He was one of the people who deserved the greatest caution.
“I rested comfortably, thanks to you.”
The corners of Chief Steward Heo’s lips lifted slightly.
“Can such words truly come from a ten-year-old child?”
He had heard the boy had lived among the Black Path.
Yet there wasn’t the slightest trace of it.
Instead…
He was calm.
Orderly.
Like the perfectly raised child of a prestigious righteous sect.
“After enduring so many hardships… perhaps blood truly cannot lie.”
If he himself had gone through such things…
Could he have remained this upright?
The thought briefly crossed his mind.
Yet his suspicions did not disappear.
“It has already been three days since you entered the family, Young Master.”
“Has it already been that long?”
“Yes. In truth, opinions regarding your registration into the family were divided, so the process was delayed somewhat.”
“I see.”
A calm answer.
Not the slightest ripple crossed his face.
An ordinary child would have shown fear at the possibility of being driven away.
“Aren’t you anxious?”
“I still don’t fully understand what’s happening. I lived my life as an orphan and a nobody, and now I’m told I’m a survivor of the Jin Family… and even brought into the Jegal Family. It all feels like a dream.”
“Heh heh. From your perspective, that’s understandable.”
Chief Steward Heo smiled warmly again.
“To tell you the conclusion first…
The opinions were split exactly in half.”
“In half…?”
“Aside from the Family Head, the opinions of the family retainers were divided evenly.”
At this point…
It was time to show at least a little emotion.
Surprise.
Unease.
A child would naturally react that way.
I narrowed my brows slightly and revealed a trace of anxiety.
“Then… what will happen to me?”
Perhaps because it was the first genuine expression he had seen from me…
Chief Steward Heo spoke after a brief pause.
“Ahem. Therefore, the family council decided that they would observe you for some time before making a final decision.”
For a brief instant, I swallowed.
“What does… observing me mean?”
“Nothing particularly unusual. While it is certain that you are a survivor of the Jin Family, it has not yet been confirmed whether you are qualified to become a member of the Jegal Family.”
He wasn’t wrong.
I had entered the family as an adopted son.
Evaluating my qualifications was only natural.
“So you will receive education, and we will examine whether you possess the qualifications expected of a direct descendant.”
“So… I will be evaluated.”
So this was how things would proceed.
Fortunately…
I had already prepared for this.
Before I could continue, Chief Steward Heo added,
“Please don’t be too disappointed. Every successor of the family goes through this process. In other words… it also means you have already been acknowledged halfway.”
“Then… that is a relief.”
“If you complete the evaluation successfully, no one will be able to deny that you are a member of the Jegal Family.”
It was not uncommon for martial clans to adopt heirs.
In the end…
All I had to do was prove I deserved that place.
At that moment…
Chief Steward Heo’s gaze deepened.
It was the look of someone finally asking the question he had been carrying all this time.
“Young Master…
What do you wish to accomplish under the name of Jegal?”
There was meaning behind the question.
It was far too heavy a question to ask a child.
I met his gaze directly.
Without avoiding it.
Then quietly answered,
“What I need…
…is a place where I can survive.”
Those words came from the bottom of my heart.
Because that was exactly why I had come to the Jegal Family.
If I did not kill…
I would be killed.
That was the only choice left to me.
“A place where you can survive…”
Those were words only someone who had endured two bloody massacres could utter.
At those words…
Chief Steward Heo slowly closed his mouth.
And for a long while…
His heavy, unwavering gaze remained fixed on me,
As silence lingered between us.
