Book 25 Chapter 17
Trembling Jang Hong
—The wave called regret, surging like a tide
“Ah, I shouldn’t have accepted…”
Jang Hong sighed.
“Why did I do it…”
Regret surged like a tide.
“This isn’t right… I didn’t mean for this to happen… Kuaaaak!”
Jang Hong regretted his decision to hastily accept Biryuyeon’s words. Why did I do it? Was I crazy for a moment? Yes, I must have been crazy. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have taken on something like this so readily.
“Should I just go back now? Can I say I can’t do it?”
It was all Biryuyeon’s fault from the start. You know how it is, when a good person does something good, it doesn’t stand out much, but when a bad person does something good, it’s very noticeable. This was one of those cases. That guy, who is usually stiff and lives in his own arrogance, bowed his head and asked for a favor, making him look so commendable.
Isn’t it normal to bow your head when you ask for something? But to be pleased because he did the normal thing normally, something must have gone terribly wrong. So, without deeply contemplating its content, I accepted. And so I ended up here. Jang Hong was so scared he wanted to die. He wanted to tuck his tail and run away immediately. But what is this thing called a man’s pride… Even while sweating cold sweat, he was able to take one step forward after another. It was too late for regret, but it was already too late.
Biryuyeon’s request was simple.
“I need someone who knows about Macheon Pavilion in detail. Especially if they have a high position. I saw that Uncle Jang seems to know that Seventh Unit Captain lady well? I’d like your help with that person. Please.”
“Uh, uh, uh!”
How could I have accepted such an absurd request? Wasn’t I digging my own grave? By the time I came to my senses, I had already nodded.
“Wait, wait! Can’t I take it back? That was a mistake. If I do that, I’ll die!”
Biryuyeon’s reaction to that was as follows:
“It’s okay, everyone dies once.”
“Hey! Today will be my memorial service day. Don’t talk like it’s someone else’s business. The person concerned is right in front of you!”
“If they set up the memorial table next year, I’ll eat the food.”
“What, you’ll just eat it and that’s it!”
“Isn’t it enough that I’ll eat it? That’s how you can build virtue in the underworld.”
His words were no longer effective. Faced with the threat that if he continued to refuse, he would be bound hand and foot and handed over to the Seventh Unit, Jang Hong had no choice but to comply. How cruel must reality be to be satisfied? He lamented the cruel reality, but nothing came back.
Next time, don’t be fooled, next time!
Yes, he swore that if there was a next time, he would never be fooled again.
But after meeting her, would there even be a next time for him?
He couldn’t be sure.
***
Seokryuha, the swordswoman and unit leader of Macheon Thirteen Units, Seventh Unit, entered a state of alert upon spotting a suspicious person approaching her unit.
‘Who is it?’
He had a face that looked quite old, and judging by his attire, which did not display unit affiliation, he was clearly an outsider. With such an old face, he didn’t seem to be part of the Cheonmu Academy delegation. However, his complexion was so pale, as if he were suffering from a severe illness, and his hands and feet trembled anxiously like an opium addict, making him quite suspicious.
‘And his face looks strangely familiar…’
Placing her hand on her sword, Seokryuha called out,
“Hold on, mister! Stop right there!”
Startled, he froze and turned his head towards Seokryuha. His face was as shocked as if he had seen a grim reaper, but upon seeing her face, he let out a sigh of relief, as if he was reassured. This made him even more suspicious.
“What brings you to our Blood Phoenix Unit, mister?”
Seokryuha asked with some caution. Seeing him up close, she was certain his face was familiar. It felt like she had seen him before, for a very bad reason, but she couldn’t quite recall. It was a subtle feeling, as if she had tried so hard to forget something incredibly unpleasant that she had forgotten the person involved as well.
“I am not a suspicious person, and you are even less so. I am Jang Hong, one of the delegates from Cheonmu Academy.”
“From Cheonmu Academy? You look old, are you perhaps Master Mu, the leader?”
“Ah, no. Master Mu, absolutely not. I am merely a mere scholar.”
“But your facial age…”
“Can we stop talking about faces and age, young lady?”
As Jang Hong, whose sore spot had been touched, raised his voice, Seokryuha finally stopped pressing.
“Is Elder Yeomdo doing well?”
It was a rather abrupt question, and Jang Hong suddenly wondered why this young lady was asking it. However, it was the man’s private life, so he couldn’t ask directly.
“Ah, of course, he’s as vigorous as a volcano in full activity. But why do you ask…?”
“Ah, no. I was just curious.”
Seokryuha replied, blushing slightly.
‘Why, why, why is she blushing? Why is she blushing, making me uneasy? What on earth happened? Could it be… No way! You’re the real bright red mister!! Is there a ranking among misters? I can’t accept that!’
Misters are all misters. Whether it’s a miss or a mister, it’s no longer about male and female, it’s about a third and fourth gender. It’s not an individual creature but a sentient being that is like a collective consciousness. Therefore, attempting to judge or assign individuality to a mister as an individual creature was a trivial act. Discrimination within the world of misters was unacceptable. So, feeling discriminated against, he felt extremely unhappy.
“I, who am absolutely not a mister, have come to meet someone, young lady!”
Jang Hong said with a laugh, suppressing his strange sense of irritation. But it was a forced laugh. His rather anxious and uneasy inner state could not be easily hidden by a fake smile.
“Who have you come to meet, mister?”
I said I’m not a mister, this young lady! However, Jang Hong’s opinion was easily dismissed.
“I believe there is a person named Ok Yukyeong, the Blood Jade Fairy, here.”
He was careful to call her the Blood Jade Fairy, lest he incur wrath by calling her Blood Rakshasa.
“Yes, she is our Captain.”
There was a tone of respect in Seokryuha’s voice as she replied.
“Young lady, could you send a message? I, your young oppa, not an old mister, will wait here.”
Seokryuha hesitated for a moment. Could she really trust this… mister? This mister whose claims of not being a mister were completely untrustworthy? However, the hesitation didn’t last long. After all, he was a guest of the Captain. It wouldn’t be right for her to refuse. Seokryuha finally replied with a smile,
“Please wait a moment, mister!”
If Jang Hong had realized that he was the very person who had buried his face in Ok Yukyeong’s deep and ample cleavage just a while ago in the hallway, she probably wouldn’t have let him go. However, at the time, Jang Hong was so busy hiding his face from Ok Yukyeong’s gaze, turning his head this way and that, that Seokryuha, who was following at a slight distance, had not been able to accurately grasp his appearance. This averted trouble.
After sending the message and opening the door to the captain’s office, Ok Yukyeong was seen putting on the red ‘Blood Scale Armor’ on her upper body. Blood Scale Armor was a sacred artifact possessed by Ok Yukyeong, an armor with special functions, and donning it meant being fully armed and entering combat readiness.
“Ryuha? I’m busy right now.”
A sharp tension could be felt from Ok Yukyeong. It seemed to be due to an urgent dispatch she had just received from a member of the Twelfth Unit. It was undoubtedly related to the urgent alarm that had rung for the first time in years.
‘Judging by her uniform, is she going to the Captains’ meeting?’
So she asked.
“Are you attending the Captains’ meeting?”
“Yes, it’s a ‘Daechigup’ too.”
The letter Ok Yukyeong had received earlier was laid out conspicuously on the right side of the desk.
“I didn’t know that, I should have been attending to you… I’m sorry, Captain.”
“It’s okay. I have hands too, I can do this much alone. Don’t worry about it. A Vice-Captain’s job is to assist the Captain, not to clean up after the Captain, right? We’re not the Sixth Unit. I’m also the Captain of the Seventh Unit, not the Sixth Unit.”
The Vice-Captain of the Sixth Unit, Jang So-ok, who was considered the most pitiful Vice-Captain among the Macheon Thirteen Units, briefly came to mind and then disappeared from Seokryuha’s thoughts. Compared to him, she was a remarkably blessed Vice-Captain.
“Anyway, it doesn’t seem like a time to receive other guests. I’ll tell him to go back.”
“Hmm, a guest has arrived?”
“Yes, it’s nothing special. A person named Jang Hong, who looks like an old man, came and requested an interview, but tell that old man to go back… now that he’s busy…”
At that moment, Ok Yukyeong, who was putting on leather bracers on her forearms, stopped abruptly.
“Wh-what did you just say?”
Seokryuha bowed her waist and apologized.
“I’m sorry for disturbing you. I’ll tell him to leave immediately.”
“No, the name. His name.”
She asked, pressing him.
“Jang Hong…”
As her superior’s face turned terrifyingly ghost-like, Seokryuha’s voice naturally became smaller, as if she had made a big mistake.
“I will meet him. Guide him!”
Her voice was laced with an icy coldness.
“But the ‘Daechigup’ letter…”
‘Daechigup’ meant gathering at the Supreme Commander’s office within two ‘igak’ (30 minutes). There was no time for other tasks. However, Ok Yukyeong’s will was as firm as a rock.
“I said I will meet him!”
“What happened, Miss? Did she agree to meet me?”
As Seokryuha, who had gone to deliver the message, returned, Jang Hong asked as if he had been waiting.
“Please follow me.”
At Seokryuha’s words, Jang Hong’s eyes widened.
“D-did she really say she’d meet me?”
“The Captain is waiting for you.”
Then she turned around and walked away with large strides. It was an attitude that said, ‘Follow if you can.’
“Wait, wait a moment.”
Jang Hong quickened his pace, afraid of losing her. She passed through the main building of the Seventh Unit and along the corridor to the right.
“Ah, aren’t we meeting inside?”
“……”
Seokryuha didn’t reply. After a moment, she turned right and then turned left again. There, a small winter gate appeared. Above the gate were the two characters ‘Yeonmu (Training)’ and on the right was a plaque that read ‘Captain’s Exclusive’. It seemed to be a private training ground exclusively for the Captain.
“Here it is.”
Seokryuha disappeared inside the gate first. Jang Hong, left behind, hesitated for a moment due to his indecision. Then, he tightly shut his eyes and entered the gate. However, he lacked the courage to open his eyes and kept them shut for a long time. Each moment felt like an eternity. It was then that he heard voices.
“You, stay here and prevent other members from coming in!”
It was a voice he could never forget.
Jang Hong opened his eyes, which he had tightly shut. In the center of the training ground stood Ok Yukyeong, wearing a red combat uniform and with a sword at her left hip, in a confident stance. Their eyes met in the air.
The heavy silence that descended in the room made Seokryuha feel so suffocated that she could barely breathe. Ok Yukyeong and Jang Hong had not spoken a single word since their eyes met. She couldn’t presume to step forward when the Captain remained silent. However, she felt uncomfortable in body and mind just by being next to them. What on earth was happening? Seokryuha furtively glanced at Ok Yukyeong’s profile. Ok Yukyeong wore a face she had never seen before.
Yes.
She looked like an ordinary woman, not one of the twelve captains of the Macheon Thirteen Units. Obvious turmoil was mixed with anger within her. If this complex emotion could be summarized in a single word, it might be called ‘resentment’.
“How dare you come here, you have guts! Did you come looking to die?”
From the first word, Ok Yukyeong’s speech was chilling.
Seokryuha, who was listening, was startled. Ok Yukyeong spoke to the old man named Jang Hong as if she had known him for a long time. Furthermore, the content was not ordinary. What on earth was about to happen? Was it okay for her to be here? Seokryuha suddenly felt incredibly uncomfortable in this situation.
“No… that is to say…”
Even Jang Hong, who was usually smooth-talking, seemed to have difficulty speaking. After all, he had nothing to say even if he had a hundred mouths. Still, he had come this far, grumbling, so he had to state his purpose. But when he actually faced her, his words wouldn’t come out. With great effort, he summoned his courage and opened his mouth.
“I need help.”
Jang Hong’s voice was barely audible.
“Help? Did you just say help?”
Ok Yukyeong seemed to be speechless with disbelief. Jang Hong fully understood her feelings. It was a crazy act even to him, so how would she see it? She must have thought him incredibly shameless. But he couldn’t back down now.
“Y-yes. I need someone who knows Macheon Pavilion well.”
“Surely you didn’t cause the emergency alarm that rang earlier, did you?”
She questioned him with a sharp tone. Even if it was a guess, her intuition was sharp.
“No… that is to say…”
“Yes or no? Just answer that.”
“Y-yes.”
Jang Hong answered absentmindedly.
“Haa… With what kind of guts did you commit such an absurd act? Do you want to die? Well, seeing as you came here to meet me, you must want to die.”
“Miss Na Yerim was kidnapped. While trying to rescue her…”
*Crack.*
“Are you telling me you’re in front of me to save another woman!”
She exploded. Her shouting words were honed like sharp blades. The cold air emanating from her entire body intensified, freezing the surrounding air. Perhaps because of that energy, Jang Hong’s complexion turned rapidly pale.
“No… that’s not it… It’s a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding!”
“A misunderstanding? Take that flimsy excuse to this sword, you scoundrel!”
*Clang!*
Ok Yukyeong, the Blood Rakshasa, drew her sword, emitting red sword energy.
“Ugh!”
With a startled cry, Jang Hong quickly retreated.
‘That old man is still alive?’
Seokryuha was quite surprised to see that.
Jang Hong had dodged the Blood Jade Fairy’s ultimate technique, ‘Blood Phoenix Strike,’ which had been unleashed unconsciously.
‘This old man, he’s quite skilled despite his appearance. Who would have thought such hidden skill would be in someone who looks like that…’
Indeed, one shouldn’t judge people by their appearance alone. Though being an old man was still a fact.
“I’m sure I’ve seen him somewhere before…”
It felt like Ok Yukyeong had flown into such a rage like this not long ago.
“Ah!”
At that moment, everything that was hazy became clear. And she realized.
“Ah! It’s that lecherous old man!”
Flames flared in Seokryuha’s eyes.
“Oh, you’re going to dodge shamelessly?”
“No, this was purely instinctual…”
“Is it because of that instinct that you chase after young ladies?”
“It’s a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding. I’m not chasing her, I’m trying to rescue her after she was kidnapped.”
“All men are the same. They lose their minds if a woman is just pretty! Die!”
*Rattle!*
Once again, Ok Yukyeong’s sword, scattering red petals, lunged towards Jang Hong’s entire body.
Blood Phoenix Sword Dance
Second Move
Double Phoenix Splendor
The attack, fierce like two vipers rather than two bees, rained down on Jang Hong.
Jang Hong was barely able to dodge.
“It really is a misunderstanding! Please believe me!”
As he dodged the sharp sword tips that buzzed like a swarm of bees, Jang Hong shouted.
“You want me to believe you now?”
Ok Yukyeong retorted, as if she had never heard such nonsense in her life.
“You, who I couldn’t tell if you were alive or dead for seven years and four months?”
Jang Hong’s complexion darkened.
“No, that is to say…”
With so much being hit upon, Jang Hong’s words trailed off.
“None of that matters! There’s only one thing you can do for me.”
“And what is that?”
“Die here today!”
*Shwing!*
Once again, Ok Yukyeong’s sword, making a buzzing sound like a swarm of angry hornets, scattered sword energy.
Macheon Thirteen Units, Seventh Unit, also known as the Blood Phoenix Unit, housed a beautiful but fierce red queen bee. That queen bee’s name was Ok Yukyeong, the Blood Jade Fairy, a woman called Blood Rakshasa among students. Her sword technique was called ‘Blood Phoenix Sword.’ The name came from the sound it made, like a swarm of bees flying around when she unleashed her moves. And now, a fierce blood phoenix, seeking blood, was flying with a buzzing, terrifying sound.
Blood Phoenix Sword Dance
Secret Art
Dense Bee Stinger
A technique that combined a fierce cry with a sharp thrust, it disturbed the opponent’s mind with sound and then stabbed with the sword during the opening. The three holes pierced at the tip of Ok Yukyeong’s beloved sword, ‘Red Phoenix,’ were devices to further amplify this sound.
Jang Hong dodged, dodged, and dodged again. His footwork was so peculiar that he narrowly avoided attacks that seemed like they would be fatal. Sometimes, what seemed like a cut turned out to be an illusion. It was as if he were using illusion magic. But dodging seemed to be his limit. He hadn’t been able to mount a proper counterattack yet.
“Why aren’t you counterattacking? Are you looking down on me?”
*Buzz buzz buzz!*
Ok Yukyeong shouted sharply, not slowing the speed of her sword.
“…I can’t attack you… I can’t hurt you.”
“Hmph, you can’t hurt me? Liar!”
“I, I’m serious.”
Jang Hong replied with a flustered voice. Then Ok Yukyeong shouted fiercely,
“Is it okay if I only hurt your body? What about hurting my heart? Is that not hurting?”
Her voice, laden with suppressed resentment, contained the anger of past years.
“Th-that…”
Jang Hong’s pupils trembled violently. The agitation in his heart was revealed through his body. He wanted to say something, but his mouth was sealed as if glued. The glue of guilt sealed his mouth and tongue.
“Why did you disappear in front of me that day? Why?”
Ok Yukyeong’s mouth opened with difficulty. She had been shouting ferociously just moments ago, but now she sounded almost pathetic. She was also confused.
“……”
Regarding that matter, Jang Hong had nothing to say even with a hundred mouths.
“Do you know how long I waited for you to return? I waited for three days and three nights at the doorstep. In the pouring rain… crying… But you never returned. Why did you do that? Why! And why are you appearing in front of me now! I’ve forgotten everything, I’ve finally sorted everything out, why!”
“……”
Jang Hong, who remained silent, became even darker in expression.
“Do you know how long I waited?”
But even after two years and three years passed, Jang Hong didn’t show up.
“I wanted to come back too.”
“Are you saying such nonsense? You, who had no news for seven years and four months!”
*Swish! Flash!*
Once again, red sword light filled the space. It was a strike imbued with resentment for every second.
“I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry.”
Jang Hong seemed like a person who knew only how to say sorry.
“If you’re sorry, shut up and die!”
*Thud!*
The hidden thrust of the Blood Phoenix Sword technique, ‘Dark Needle,’ pierced Jang Hong’s shoulder.
*Drip, drip!*
Drops of blood fell to the ground.
“Why… why… didn’t you dodge?”
Ok Yukyeong’s hand holding Red Phoenix trembled violently, as did her voice. She hadn’t expected Jang Hong to fall for such a shallow attack. Because, in the past, she had never once defeated Jang Hong.
“I was a coward…”