I Ended Up Becoming The Heavenly Demon’s True Best Friend, Even Though He’s Shy Around Others

Chapter 64

When they checked after they had left, there were thirty gold tales.

Ya Socheong handed it to Pae Maling.

"I'll take you to a place where there are people from the sect, so go to the sect with them."

"Will you be okay alone, brother? They seemed like good people, but my father always said that nothing good comes from getting involved in the affairs of the imperial family... He said that people in high places only think of martial artists as tools or weapons."

"That's true, but it might be helpful to have a connection just in case. For the Nether Shadow Faction as well. Just as His Highness the Fifth Prince needs me, a time may come when I also need his help. Think about it if the Sect Leader decides to get rid of the Nether Shadow Faction. How can we resist, Maling?"

Pae Maling also eventually nodded.

It was just that no one was talking about it, but everyone must have known that such a thing was always possible.

Ya Socheong had been receiving the Sect Leader's attention until now, and in the process of dealing with Danli Cheon, he had even restored the honor of the Heavenly Demon Sect, so the Sect Leader's mood must have been soured once again by this.

"No matter what happens, I'm on your side until the end, brother. And I'll give this money to the Nether Shadow Faction."

"You've suffered too, so you can use some of it as you wish."

"Since it was a request from the Danli family, money will also come from the main family. I'll give it to the Nether Shadow Faction along with that. My money is your money, and your money is my money."

Why was the calculation like that?

But Pae Maling, whenever she had a chance, did not miss it and actively expressed how much she liked Ya Socheong.

"When you go back, you must devote yourself even more to your martial arts training. So that next time something like this happens, you can solve it on your own without looking for this brother. Do you understand?"

"Yes, brother."

Pae Maling said with a bright smile.

Although she was speaking cutely and playfully now, Ya Socheong also knew how frighteningly she would train in reality.

Pae Maling hardly spoke while she was going with Ya Socheong.

It seemed that she was trying to hold back her tears.

Knowing that Pae Maling was crying, Ya Socheong laughed.

"Maling, are you crying because you're parting with your brother?"

"That's not it. It's because your life is so pitiful, brother. I don't know why everyone won't leave you alone. If that's the case, you should have just been moderately good. Isn't it because you're so good that everyone is wary of you?"

"That's true. If I had known it would be like this, I would have just been moderately good."

When Ya Socheong said it playfully, Pae Maling burst into tears even more.

Ya Socheong was suddenly grateful that there was someone who would cry for him like this.

It wasn't even her own business.

Ya Socheong, while comforting Pae Maling, went with her and then sent her to the people of the sect.

Then he retraced his steps and returned alone.

Come to think of it, it was a funny thing.

Why did he have to worry about something like this?

A life of being kept in check by the Sect Leader.

That was a life that Ya Socheong had never imagined.

'The Nether Shadow Faction has become too big.'

Now, the martial prowess of each and every member of the Nether Shadow Faction was not at a level that could be looked down upon.

Even if the size of the organization was small, if the martial prowess of each and every member belonging to it was strong, that place could never be taken lightly, and the Nether Shadow Faction was bound to attract attention in every aspect.

He had not spared money and had obtained elixirs and weapons to make each person strong, and he had made them practice poison arts using poisonous creatures together.

They had received Yeon Cheongha's assassin arts and were also skilled in that, and since Yeon Cheongha was skilled in handling various weapons, the children had also learned and mastered them.

Since they had been training with good support in a good environment and had been continuously given opportunities to master them in real battles, there was no place as small and elite as the Nether Shadow Faction.

Ya Socheong himself had no desire to become the Sect Leader of the Heavenly Demon Sect.

But he thought that if he wanted to protect what he wanted to protect, he would have no choice but to rise to that position.

In the Heavenly Demon Sect, where the law of the jungle ruled, it was impossible to disobey the Sect Leader's order.

If he wanted to not follow that order, he had to become stronger than him and rise above him.

So that was the only choice.

If he had to stand in the highest position to protect the Nether Shadow Faction and not lose his junior brothers, Ya Socheong would gladly stand in that position.

* * *

The people guarding the main gate of the fifth prince's Yanwang Manor, seeing Ya Socheong approaching, first stopped him and then politely asked for his identity.

Ya Socheong said his name and that he had come because he had been told to come here.

At that, the person who recognized him said to wait a moment and then disappeared inside, and a little later, he returned with a few people.

Among the people who came out with him was the one who had come to see Ya Socheong before.

"I am Yejo, a guard of His Highness the Prince of Yan. Thank you for coming to see us again. His Highness is looking forward to meeting you."

When he, who would not have a low position within the Yanwang Manor, treated Ya Socheong with special care, the people around him also looked at Ya Socheong differently.

Yejo told Ya Socheong many things on the way.

It was that the fifth prince's maternal family had a connection with the Heavenly Demon Sect, and although it was not openly revealed, those who knew would know.

So the third prince's side had always tried to attack the fifth prince using that as a pretext, and as the problem of Danli Cheon grew, the fifth prince's worries had deepened.

Ya Socheong already knew that, but it seemed that he was thinking that he should let him hear it in more detail once more before he met the fifth prince, so he listened quietly.

Then, when he came to face the fifth prince, Ya Socheong bowed his head as he looked at the strong man who seemed to be in his mid-thirties.

The fifth prince welcomed Ya Socheong.

"Welcome. What should I call you?"

He had not prepared an answer for that, but he was the faction leader of the Nether Shadow Faction.

"I am the faction leader of the Nether Shadow Faction, so it would be good if you called me Faction Leader Ya."

"I see. I understand."

The fifth prince looked at Ya Socheong for a long time and had an admirable expression.

"Many loyal subjects have risked their lives to deal with Danli Cheon. That's why I knew how difficult it was to kill Danli Cheon. But you not only simply killed Danli Cheon, but you also made him come out in that place and deny his relationship with the Heavenly Demon Sect and even expose the third prince's affairs. I couldn't understand how such a thing could be possible."

"I was lucky."

"You were lucky..."

The fifth prince laughed and then nodded.

"I hope that this connection will not end in a fragmentary way. And in my opinion, a time will come when Faction Leader Ya will also need my help. What do you think?"

"If you say so, I can only be grateful."

Perhaps this connection could protect him and the children of the Nether Shadow Faction when he had to face the Sect Leader later.

"Faction Leader Ya, there is one thing I must say in advance. I do not know whether my connection with you will be a gain or a loss to you. I naturally hope that it will be a gain, but if I lose in the fight for the succession, those who helped me will all suffer a terrible fate."

Ya Socheong could not answer for a moment.

That was something that had to be decided very carefully.

"I will not set any conditions. It is because Faction Leader Ya first helped me without any conditions. Even if Faction Leader Ya had another reason and dealt with him, I will be grateful for what I have received from you and will repay it. If you do not want to reveal your relationship with me, I can also help you quietly from behind. That might be better."

"Then I will ask you to do so."

The fifth prince, as if he hadn't expected Ya Socheong to say that right away, looked at him blankly and then burst out laughing.

"Yes, then let's do that. If things go well later, I will look for Faction Leader Ya first."

In any case, from Ya Socheong's point of view, it seemed that it would be good for the fifth prince to do well.

"As you know, there are people from the sect in my family, so I often hear news about what's going on there. If it becomes difficult for Faction Leader Ya to endure among the four great families without a force, or if you need a place to hide for a while, I will let you come and stay at the detached palace then. We would be at ease if the reliable Faction Leader Ya were to come. The same goes for your subordinates."

"That would be a great help, Your Highness."

"Yes, that's not difficult, so you can do that as much as you want. Now we will be waiting for each other's news with anticipation."

His words implied many things.

* * *

When Ya Socheong returned, the Nether Shadow Faction was full of life.

The people who had not felt like they had eaten even when they had eaten and had had nothing to laugh about since he had left were now feeling alive.

"Senior Brother, you must tell us everything that happened from beginning to end without leaving anything out. Of course you did a very good job, but don't just finish it roughly at once; you must also tell us where you went, what you ate, and what people said when they saw you."

When the junior brothers sat around him and said that, Ya Socheong burst out laughing.

"What would people have to say about me? I just went around quietly with Maling."

"Hey, that can't be. Anyone who sees you would be able to tell at a glance that you are extraordinary. Are you saying that no one approached you?"

The junior brothers did not easily let go of their suspicion.

"It's just that this senior brother looks like that in your eyes."

But in the end, Ya Socheong, unable to overcome his junior brothers' persistence, had to tell them everything that had happened.

Although it was a request from the Danli family, there was nothing he couldn't tell his junior brothers.

It was a matter that anyone who requested something from him had to accept.

Since he did not want to have secrets between him and his junior brothers, he had set a policy that he would let his junior brothers know about the work he had taken on.

"Hic! So you're saying you had a chat with His Highness the Fifth Prince, Senior Brother?"

"Senior Brother is truly a great person. To have met His Highness the Prince. And if His Highness the Prince said such a thing, he must have seen you in a very good light."

"It seems so."

Ya Socheong did not deny that and laughed.

After talking for a long time, Ya Socheong looked at Pae Maseong.

He had been laughing with his junior brothers, but he had been concerned because his laughter did not seem completely bright.

When Ya Socheong gave a look, Pae Maseong stood up first.

"What happened while I was gone?"

When Ya Socheong asked, Pae Maseong sighed quietly.

"I don't know why things never stop happening around us."

It seemed that something had happened.

"Why? What is it?"

"There was someone I knew from the Heavenly Demon Force, and he came to see me."

Ya Socheong listened to his words silently.

(End of Chapter)