novelraw Chapter 50
Chapter 50
Chapter 50
『 Translator – Divinity 』
‘It seems the leadership of the So Demonic Clan ordered him killed, but others intercepted and spirited him away.’
Only then could Cheon Ha-seong piece together the truth.
He could only find it fascinating that such secrets were hidden, layer upon layer, within the So Demonic Clan.
‘So that man is So Yu-yang's child too?’
As he was having that thought, the two people's conversation resumed.
“Now is not the time to be preoccupied with evading responsibility. You must speak accurately about what you have done, so that this mother can also think of a way to overcome it!”
“Can you even do it if you try? Don't be swayed by what that lowly bastard says, and just do as this son commands! It is already almost accomplished. How long can the Cult Leader pretend not to know? The atmosphere among the followers is already changing.”
As the conversation continued, Cheon Ha-seong became certain that it was not their doing that the copies of the Heaven-Shattering Will Art had been intentionally made incorrectly and distributed.
‘Then does that mean someone else was involved?’
He stayed there a little longer, but it seemed almost everything he needed to know had come out, and after that, only a heated argument between the two continued. Thinking it was no time to be listening to such sounds when every moment was critical, Cheon Ha-seong skillfully slipped out of the place.
As he did so, it felt like his Stealth Technique was gradually improving, and he had the thought that he should tell Seo Hyo-eun what he had realized.
‘At this rate, I'm going to become better than Head Instructor Seo. Our Head Instructor Seo's only pride and joy is her Stealth Technique; what will I do if I become good at that too?’
While having such thoughts, a smile automatically flickered on Cheon Ha-seong's lips. It was a change that had occurred after he met Seo Hyo-eun. To think of someone and smile without even realizing it.
Before he met Seo Hyo-eun, he had never even thought such a thing was possible, but come to think of it, his life had changed so much after meeting her.
‘I have to focus now, Cheon Ha-seong. Something much bigger than you think might be happening.’
Cheon Ha-seong nodded his head, having that thought.
It was not difficult to guess by whose will this had started. The beginning was perhaps the Second and Third Demonic Marquises. If Cheok Gyo-woon hadn't met him at the Martial Arts Academy, the Fourth Demonic Marquis would have joined them in that matter as well.
However, the fact that the Fourth Demonic Marquis had been able to leave their alliance by a chance opportunity could only be called the Demonic God's care. This was true looking at the Fourth Demonic Marquis individually, but even more so looking at the Divine Cult as a whole. If all three Marquises had joined forces, with the three prestigious Demonic Clans at their backs, and tried to pressure the Cult Leader…
He didn't even want to dare imagine what would have happened then.
Only after growing close to the Cult Leader did Cheon Ha-seong realize that his power was not as absolute as he had thought. Until now, he had thought that the Cult Leader of the Divine Cult would wield absolute power, but that was not the case.
Ruling and leading tens of thousands of followers was by no means a task one could do alone, and that was the case no matter how strong one's individual martial prowess was.
In any case, although others had started it, it seemed another person was digging into it and skillfully using the atmosphere. If that was truly the case, then this was by no means a problem that could be overlooked.
‘If that's true, then maybe the Second Demonic Marquis and the So Demonic Clan are not a big deal.’
What was making Cheon Ha-seong's mind even more complicated was the commentary written on the Pattra Leaves. He still hadn't found a single clue as to who had hidden that commentary inside the wall of the Martial Arts Academy.
While having all sorts of thoughts, he had arrived at the Cult Leader's Hall before he knew it.
“Son-in-law, I feel like I'm seeing you quite often today.”
“That I am, Cult Leader.”
“Right. I do like you very much, son-in-law, but since you bring such tremendous news every time you come, I think it would be alright if I stopped seeing you for a while.”
“But you must hear this.”
In any case, even if the Cult Leader didn't want to listen, Cheon Ha-seong had no choice but to speak.
“Cult Leader, please do not be surprised. So Jeon, the adopted son of the Second Demonic Marquis, had a twin brother. And it seemed that many of the recent incidents were planned by that very twin.”
Until he heard those words, the Cult Leader was confident he would not be surprised. Having experienced so many surprising things recently, he had been fairly certain that there was almost nothing left that could surprise him.
However, that was truly something he had never imagined, and his mouth fell wide open.
“What… is that supposed to mean?”
Cheon Ha-seong wore a triumphant expression as if to say, 'What did I tell you?'
“No, son-in-law. Is surprising me something to be so proud of? Shouldn't you be hoping for a day to pass peacefully without such things?”
“That is true. But since it has already happened, I wanted to let you know even a little bit faster.”
Then, he quickly told him what had happened in the meantime.
“But the strange thing is, it seemed that neither the Second Demonic Marquis nor So Jeon knew that copies had been distributed at the Martial Arts Academy. It seems someone else was behind that incident. Isn't that strange? I had thought that the people who destroyed the wall and erased the mnemonic verses of the Heaven-Shattering Will Art were the ones who did it.”
“It truly is a strange thing. If your words are right, son-in-law, then doesn't it mean that someone took advantage of the incident caused by the Second Demonic Marquis and seized the opportunity? That person is even more vicious than the Second Demonic Marquis. But what could that person have gained by doing so? Was there anyone among this batch of candidates who would have been a particular threat?”
After asking that, the Cult Leader realized that Cheon Ha-seong was the perfect person to answer that question.
If not for Cheon Ha-seong, who could have answered that question right away?
Cheon Ha-seong also thought he should think about it first, and recalled the candidates of the current batch.
However, no matter how much he thought, the only person worth paying special attention to was Cheok Gyo-woon.
“I can hardly think of anyone other than Cheok Gyo-woon… How about I bring Cheok here, Cult Leader?”
“Right. This matter is not something to be taken lightly. And it feels to me as if the Demonic God is continuously looking after us. Doesn't a new path form just when it seems we've reached a dead end? The person who finds that path is you each time, son-in-law, and wasn't it the Demonic God who sent you to me?”
Cheon Ha-seong was moved to be able to hear such words.
“I am not such an amazing person, but I will strive not to disappoint your expectations, Cult Leader.”
“I know. Hurry and go bring him. In the meantime, I too must organize my thoughts.”
Cheon Ha-seong immediately left his presence and looked for Cheok Gyo-woon.
***
That day was the most frantic one for Cheok Gyo-woon. He mobilized his family's martial artists to find the candidates of the Martial Arts Academy and collect the copies. By doing so, he collected an incomparably larger number of copies than anyone else.
In the process, he did not forget to have his family's martial artists warn the candidates to never attempt the mnemonic verses that were in the copies.
Although it was the family's martial artists who did the actual work, his energy was completely drained from paying attention and directing the operation.
Trudging towards the Fourth Demonic Marquis's Residence in a state of complete exhaustion, Cheok Gyo-woon thought that he had rarely passed this way peacefully these days.
‘He usually appears suddenly when I'm walking around here… Surely not this time, right?’
As he thought that, he glanced around, and knowing there was no one there, Cheok Gyo-woon let out a chuckle by himself.
‘No way. It's not like he's just waiting for me to appear.’
However, just as he was about to take a step, Cheon Ha-seong appeared in front of him. He definitely hadn't been there when he had glanced around just a moment ago; he had no idea where he had come from.
“Head Instructor Cheon! When on earth did you get here?”
However, his voice scattered in the wind. It was because Cheon Ha-seong, as if he had no time to explain everything on the spot, grabbed Cheok Gyo-woon's arm and performed his lightness skill.
Cheok Gyo-woon felt a sense of déjà vu. Something like this had happened before. As he was having that thought, he came to his senses and found he was in front of the Cult Leader's Hall, and a little later, he was standing before the Cult Leader.
“Cult Leader…”
Before, it had been so difficult to meet the Cult Leader even once, but these days, it felt like he was seeing him too often. Although he had thought it was important to imprint himself upon the Cult Leader, wasn't this too frequent?
Feeling so burdened, it suddenly felt as if his stomach were churning.
However, the Cult Leader paid no mind to what Cheok Gyo-woon was thinking and began his questions.
“Among the new batch that entered the Martial Arts Academy this time, is there any candidate who requires special attention?”
At the sudden question, Cheok Gyo-woon couldn't even grasp what he was supposed to say. In the end, Cheon Ha-seong had to step in.
Cheon Ha-seong connected the existence of So Ga-woon and the story of the copies and gave an extremely short summary.
“At first, I thought the distribution of the copies was the So Demonic Clan acting in desperation, but he said that neither the Second Demonic Marquis nor So Ga-woon knew about it. If that is the case, then we must assume that someone else used the incident they caused to try and sacrifice the candidates of the Martial Arts Academy.”
For a martial artist to fall into Qi Deviation meant to be put in a pain greater than death.
It was to the point where one couldn't understand just how bad one's feelings had to be to plot such a thing.
Cheok Gyo-woon was greatly shocked by Cheon Ha-seong's words, but he was not even given time to be surprised.
“I know you must be surprised, but be surprised later; for now, we must think quickly about the candidates. Among the candidates, is there anyone who would particularly incur someone's grudge?
A person who could pull something like this off would definitely not be an ordinary person. And they would have had to be able to use something similar to a Soul Bewitchment Art against the Principal and the Head Instructors, and the number of people within our cult who could do such a thing against so many people can be counted on one hand.”
As he was speaking, Cheon Ha-seong looked at the Cult Leader, wondering why he hadn't thought of that first. The Cult Leader was having the same thought.
If there weren't many people in the Divine Cult who could do that to the Principal and the Head Instructors, it seemed they could just investigate them.
Just then, Cheok Gyo-woon spoke in a small voice.
“It's not as if everyone reveals all of their martial arts and skills, so I think it would be difficult to find out that way. In our family alone, there are masters who have not revealed their skills. People who normally tend the gardens or sweep the grounds are sometimes the ones who subdue assassins with frightening skill when they infiltrate the family.”