HDCLSSRS Ch 6

Chapter 6 I Need to Get Out of Here. (6)

 

It was only natural.

The Demonic Sect was a group that operated under a single principle—fierce loyalty to the upper ranks. More precisely, they worshipped the absolute power of his father, the cult leader. But as his son, even Seong Muyeon held some degree of authority to give commands. Especially in such dangerous situations.

“Is there anyone among you who thinks, ‘I don’t want to sacrifice myself,’ or ‘My life is more important than saving the Seventh Young Master’?”

No one moved.

“Really, no one? It’s okay, speak up. We can’t have even the slightest discontent.”

“…Seventh Young Master, this is not the time. And please do not test our convictions. It’s an insult.”

“Ah, sorry.”

Seong Muyeon gave a bitter smile. This was the Demonic Sect. And this was also why he wanted to escape. Surrounded by lunatics who valued their own lives less than a fly’s, he felt like he was going insane too.

“Anyway, Baek Ryeoil won’t go back. He’ll chase me to the end. There’s no doubt about that, right?”

“Yes.”

“Baek Ryeoil is skilled in tracking. He’ll soon find the footprints we left behind. More precisely, the traces of Ilgwang and your Black Shadow Squad.”

“…No way.”

“Exactly. You’ll split up and move separately from here. Baek Ryeoil will think one of you has me and that’ll be enough to throw him off.”

“And during that time, the Seventh Young Master will move alone.”

Seong Muyeon nodded.

“I’ll blend in with the crowd. Highly skilled martial artists are easier to track down because their traces stand out. But someone like me, a commoner with no martial arts training, is harder to single out because there are too many like me without any distinguishing features.”

“I see, that makes sense.”

Ilgwang seemed to understand but soon added with concern.

“But it could be truly dangerous. You can’t even perform basic self-defense, can you? If you’re unlucky, you might lose your life to some back-alley thug.”

With a deeply regretful expression, he mercilessly struck Seong Muyeon with his words. Was he supposed to be grateful for that?

“W-Well, it’s still better odds than fighting Baek Ryeoil. And don’t worry. Haven’t you seen how I’ve outwitted Baek Ryeoil? I’ll survive somehow. Come find me later.”

“…Where will you go?”

Seong Muyeon’s face twisted sharply.

“What’s the point of telling you? What if one of you gets captured and tortured? Might as well hand them my head.”

“…Even if tortured, I’m confident I won’t talk.”

At Ilgwang’s words, the entire Black Shadow Squad nodded.

Seong Muyeon’s jaw dropped in exasperation.

“Ah, forget it! I’ll leave enough traces for you to find me. Or maybe I’ll come find you!”

Though he said that, Seong Muyeon fully intended to hide so thoroughly that no one could find him.

He snickered inwardly.

‘Got rid of Ilgwang and the Black Shadow Squad all at once!’

It was all thanks to Baek Ryeoil. As expected, the protagonist was the best.

“If you get caught by Baek Ryeoil, just throw yourself down and beg. That’s your only chance at survival. Got it?”

To that, Ilgwang responded with a sneer.

“I won’t do such a thing. I’d rather die than live on shamefully bowing to the righteous sect bastards. The Black Shadow Squad feels the same.”

“I don’t get it. Does pride save your life? Does it feed you? Why are you all so damn stubborn?”

“You’re the strange one, Seventh Young Master.”

“Ugh, fine. Do whatever you want. Just go already.”

Ilgwang and the Black Shadow Squad turned around. Then, a sudden thought struck Seong Muyeon and he shouted.

“Wait a second!”

“What is it?”

“Hand over everything you’ve got before you go.”

“…”

Seong Muyeon plundered all their usable items—money, food, medicinal herbs for emergency treatment, and more.

“We couldn’t bring what we stored in the carriage because of the hasty escape. This is all we have.”

They were high-level martial artists capable of taking care of themselves, so they handed it all over without complaint.

“This is plenty. I’ll contact you when things are safe. Take care.”

“Yes.”

Ilgwang and the Black Shadow Squad quickly scattered. Each in a different direction, though their destination was the same. The intent was to draw Baek Ryeoil’s attention away during their movement.

“……”

Left alone, Seong Muyeon stood in silence for a while.

And then—

“Ah, damn it!”

Once he was sure they were completely gone, he grabbed at his hair and thrashed.

“Damn this life! Can nothing ever go right?!”

He began tearing off his clothes.

“Seriously!”

Rip.

“You’re useless! All of you!”

Rip. Rip.

The expensive, high-quality silk garments lay scattered on the dirt. He stripped everything but his white underclothes. He also took off the neatly arranged hair ornaments.

Rustle.

His long hair tumbled down.

And it didn’t stop there. Seong Muyeon, panting, rolled around on the ground.

“Why the hell did it have to be Baek Ryeoil?!”

Like a child throwing a tantrum, Seong Muyeon thrashed until he suddenly stopped. Then he abruptly stood up with a calm face.

“Phew.”

By the time he was done, he looked unmistakably like a perfect beggar. His white underclothes were smeared with dirt and grass, now brown, and his hair stuck out wildly in all directions.

He had learned something from this journey. A noble young man with no means to protect himself wandering alone without an escort was practically committing suicide.

He had to save every coin for his life on the run. From now on, inns and carriages were luxuries.

He tucked away his jewelry safely in his sleeve. Lastly, he buried his eye-catching silk garments in the ground. The hair ornament, which could be sold for money, he kept.

“Alright. Let’s do this.”

With this, even that bastard Baek Ryeoil wouldn’t be able to find him.

His steps toward the village were light.

Baek Ryeoil sprinted through the forest.

‘It should be around here.’

Despite his blistering speed, he keenly tracked the faint traces flashing by.

Grit.

Baek Ryeoil ground his teeth.

‘How dare you… play games with me?’

A pale-faced nobleman appeared in his mind.

Most people have tendencies based on their nature. The sly ones reek of deception in their behavior, and the righteous never speak without meaning it.

But that man was unlike any person Baek Ryeoil had ever encountered.

‘He has a way of bewitching people with that ever-smiling face.’

Seong Muyeon.

The Seventh Young Master of the Demonic Sect.

Baek Ryeoil had first spotted him in Sichuan by pure chance.

He would sometimes escape his master’s gaze under the pretense of wandering the martial world. This time, Sichuan just happened to be the destination.

Drinking, eating greasy food, and beating up the occasional bad guy—this was Baek Ryeoil’s kind of martial journey.

But that day was different.

As usual, he was slumped in a street tavern, sipping cheap liquor. Expensive drinks were nice, but sometimes he craved the throat-burning sting of the cheap stuff.

Then a commotion erupted in the marketplace.

Baek Ryeoil quickly realized it wasn’t something he needed to get involved in, but the pale-faced man at the center of it inexplicably caught his attention.

‘Looking back, my instincts sensed something off about him.’

Unconsciously, he followed with his bottle in hand. But the man only appeared to be a frivolous young master out shopping.

However… as the sun lowered and the crowd thinned, Baek Ryeoil sensed the presence of the Black Shadow Squad. The black-clad shadow warriors reeked unmistakably of the Demonic Sect.

They were so focused on their mission that they didn’t even notice Baek Ryeoil had spotted them. And all their gazes had converged on that delicate-looking nobleman.

When back-alley thugs approached him, Baek Ryeoil instinctively flinched, almost springing forward—and nearly revealed himself to the Black Shadow Squad. It was an uncharacteristic slip-up.

He followed them to confirm their identity. The ruthless movements, the eerie secrecy about their origins—it was undoubtedly the Demonic Sect.

People generally show some kind of pattern. Baek Ryeoil believed he was good at picking up those subtle clues.

But it was hard to define what kind of person Seong Muyeon was. Even after observing him for days, all he felt was confusion.

Because of that, Baek Ryeoil lost focus.

‘Gunjasan poison… took me two days to detoxify. Damn it.’

And even then, it hadn’t been a full detox.

He wasn’t someone who would fall for cheap tricks. The poison was colorless and odorless, so there’d been no way to detect it—but he should’ve judged based on the other’s demeanor. Bad guys do bad things. You just don’t eat what bad guys offer.

But Seong Muyeon was different.

Sometimes he looked like a clueless young master tossing silver coins at street performers. Other times, he showed the classic Demonic Sect cruelty, not blinking even as someone died before him.

But he never ignored people in danger. His generally polite manner and ability to empathize with others set him apart from the other demonic sect members Baek Ryeoil had seen.

And there was one more thing that kept nagging at Baek Ryeoil’s mind.

‘…He could’ve killed me.’

But he didn’t. Why? Was he really just there to recuperate?

Whatever it was…

‘I won’t let him go.’