Book 24 Chapter 1

Beitou and Eunmyeong

Dongzheng Lake is so wide and expansive that it's hard to tell if it's really a lake or an ocean, prompting people to dip their fingers in and taste the water. Not many people knew that in the basement of the Temple of Heaven, located on an island jutting out of the middle of the lake, there was a dark, dreary, and secret place where people didn't want to be seen.

But the one who sat in it lurked in the deep, dark shadows, looking down on everything in the Great Hall with the palm of his hand. He ruled, commanded, and manipulated, and all who knew him feared him as he sat in the darkness of the North Seat, watching over the world. He was a ghost, a survivor of a bloodbath a hundred years ago, a survivor of countless deaths. For the past hundred years, he had sat behind that dark curtain inscribed with the words Doom, waiting for the time to come. He was as immovable as a rock, but all who knew him were his eyes, ears, hands, and feet, moving without ceasing. The young man in black, currently bowing respectfully to the south side of the black curtain, was one of them. He was a little more special than the others. This was the same black-clad student, Eunmyeong, who had sat in the reception area one day, asking a woman named Youngling all sorts of questions about the entrance exam for the Heavenly Palace.

It had been two hours since he had entered the space and knelt respectfully to wait, but still no word had come from beyond the veil. If so, he could only wait as long as it took for the words to come. To speak first was something he was not yet allowed to do. The darkness seemed to imprison his mind and body. It was always hard to breathe in this place.

"How well are you prepared?"

Finally, the silence was broken, and a voice spoke from beyond the curtain. As usual, it was a cold voice, devoid of any emotion. Only someone with a frozen soul could have a voice like that, Eunmyeong thought, and she wondered if her own soul was just as frozen.

There was no trace of flesh and blood in the voice. The question allowed for only one answer.

"Yes, it's going well."

Eun Myung replied in a polite tone.

"It's not going to be a disaster, is it?"

Eunmyeong's breath caught in her throat as she heard the gentle but commanding voice. It was an unforgiving voice.

"He will be silenced forever."

Mistakes were no longer tolerated here; he had made too many. Any more mistakes were dangerous.

"Did I mention that he is now called the Seven Deadly Sins? His mouth must never be opened, never."

The presence beyond the darkness emphasized it.

"Are you sure this is the same man who disappeared nine years ago?"

"It must be."

A shiver ran down Eun-myung's spine at the mention of the verification. She had thought that the time would come when she would have to face him. But she never thought she'd meet him here, in this place, in this way. But she'd never have to see him face to face. It was her job to eliminate him before that happened. With the right tools.

"What has he seen, what does he know, that he is holding back so much?"

It was a question he wouldn't normally have dared to ask. His feelings were complicated. He thought he'd already cut off all emotions, but apparently there were still some lingering.

"Don't try to know. You're not ready to know it yet. You just need to be ready."

Do not ask why. Questioning is not something you are allowed to do now, the voice said. Eun-myung folded the question, which rose like the morning mist on Dongjing Lake, and buried it deep in her heart.

"The serving is already done."

And then he added one more thing.

"Seventy-seven, he will not be the last winner of this contest."

"Was 'it' really that good?"

The being from beyond the darkness asked.

"What do you mean?"

Eunmyeong asked.

"That bitch, the one you picked up from the volcano."

Eunmyeong's body flinched for a moment.

"Of course it's worth it."

Eun Myung replied, suppressing a shudder.

"You believe me?"

Even if she didn't say "what" she believed in, Eun-myung knew what it was.

"I'm counting on it."

Then a harsh sneer came from beyond the veil.

"The world will always betray your expectations, especially your faith. If you trust a puppet, are you sure you won't regret it?"

"You're out of your mind," he chided. Eun-myung bit her lip slightly, and then replied.

"I believe it."

His voice nearly cracked. Cold sweat trickled down his damp back.

"A tool is a tool is a tool. You haven't forgotten that, have you?"

"Sure."

"That's it."

The being behind the curtain was silent for a moment after hearing the assuring reply.

"I heard that if you participate in this one, you might end up fighting a girl named Na Yerin?"

"How do you do that?"

It wasn't something the man on the other side of the veil would care about.

"There's no risk, right?"

"None."

Eunmyeong replied firmly.

"You're distracted by association with her, and I hope your faith is not just your mere expectation."

"Well, that's not……."

But the being behind the curtain cut him off, as if he had nothing more to say.

"You haven't forgotten the oath you made then, have you?"

A heavy voice jogged my memory.

"How could I forget that oath?"

It was impossible to forget, and he had decided then and there to kill her again. It would be a memory he would have to live with for the rest of his life. It would be unforgivable, and he would hate himself to no end if she ever found out. It didn't matter, though, because she would probably never know.

"You're going to send me to the mountain of dreams, do you know what that means?"

"I know."

"It means to die and be reborn."

"Please allow."

"……OK. I'll allow it. But swear to me one thing."

"What is it?"

"That you will use this newborn child as a thorough tool. It is the only way to save the wench you have brought with you."

If that's the only way to go, try…….

"I promise."

"If he comes here, I'll give him his first assignment."

"You mean yourself?"

"Yes. Are you unhappy?"

"Oh, no, I'll follow orders."

The questions and answers we had exchanged replayed in my mind. Now it was time for the first assignment.

"I'm not going to blabber on about it anymore. Instead, prove to me that she is completely under your control."

"How do you mean, tell me how?"

It was clear that he had already thought of how to do that.

"Your horse is absolutely loyal, so it wouldn't hurt to test it. Besides, it's always good to remove any clues that might jog his memory."

Here's how we tested it

"If he meets a girl named Na Yerin."

Eun-myung shuddered, knowing what was coming next.

"Kill it."

* * *

The iron gate closed with a heavy clang behind him. Eunmyeong stepped out of the clinging darkness and stood in the light again, but the chill still lingered in his body. He grimaced as he looked up into the blinding sunlight of the sky.

"I had no idea you were so close, is that your sanctuary or your escape? I would like to know what you know…… General."

He thought of the man who had once been one of his idols. But the memory had already faded, and he couldn't even recognize the face.

"But He won't allow it, and I must remove what you know before it falls into the wrong hands, and that means your annihilation, and the man tasked with that task is……."

Eunmyeong muttered to herself. The emotions she had frozen cold were trying to break free.

"I hope you find your tools useful."

His voice was still ringing in my ears.

"……How cruel of Him to command that the memory of one should obliterate the memory of another."

The implications weighed heavily on his mind.

"One or the other is bound to go away."

But he knew full well that he would follow orders, that he too was a tool, and that he would be much happier if he didn't know.