Swordless Demonic Path

Chapter 63 : A Wild Goose Is Seen in the Setting Sun

I have never regretted having the profession of an assassin. But since there were no orders, a sense of emptiness tormented me for a while.

Only after contemplating various things did Jin Sa-wol realize that the identity of that emptiness was the Demonic Cult.

"You will have to choose. Who I am, what kind of person I am. When you make that choice, let's see each other again."

I couldn't forget the sight of Dokgo Hye, who had said those words to me.

Her gaze, which contained her firm conviction, and her lips, which were firmly closed to overcome her fear even though they were full of it, remained in my mind.

Perhaps the moment I left the Demonic Cult, the moment I parted with Na Hyungi, I had chosen who I was.

-I will fight the Demonic Cult.

That is what I have to do.

Whoosh!

A cold wind blew through the dark bushes.

Although a leaf tickled my cheek, I had no time to feel it. What was important now was someone who was crouching in the forest on the opposite side.

The enemy who had appeared at the hour of the ox had not moved for nearly an hour.

He was definitely a cautious guy.

He had almost no breath. He was a guy who could endure for an hour with a single breath.

'No attack?'

If he were to aim for Namgung Ji, now was the most appropriate opportunity. But the enemy's intention did not seem to be murder.

When it was the hour of the tiger, from a distance, thump! thump! a drum sounded. It was a drum sound that was sounded once every hour to tell the time and to change the guard.

Rustle.

The crouching enemy moved along the dark wall in a northwesterly direction. He had left Namgung Ji's Sunokwon.

Swish!

Jin Sa-wol's figure also disappeared from the bushes. It was to chase the enemy.

Although a person was moving, there was almost no sound.

The man in black, who had crossed the wide road between the walls, jumped over the wall, and jumped over the roof, flew in a straight line and left the Namgung family.

There were no warriors guarding or patrolling where he passed.

The man in black, who had left the Namgung family, turned in a southerly direction.

Just then, the figure of the man in black increased to three and moved in different directions.

Rustle!

Jin Sa-wol, who had stood up from under the wall in the northwest direction of the Namgung family, took in the three people who were moving away with a hardened expression.

Because it was full of darkness, their figures were not noticeable. But Jin Sa-wol, who was used to the darkness, did not miss them and chased the man in black in the center.

'Amazing.'

He also moved, following the direction that the man in black had moved when he had left the Namgung family.

Since it was a shift change, there was no one where the man in black had passed at that time.

But that was only for a very short time. The guards filled the empty spots again.

The man in black had moved, following the gate of life that opened once every hour, in the time of a short play.

It was something that could not be done without knowing the Namgung family well.

Whoosh!

Jin Sa-wol, who had moved, chasing the man in black in the center among the three, grabbed a white cloth that was hanging on a clothesline, quickly wrapped his face, and then moved again.

Whoosh!

The man in black, as if he did not know that Jin Sa-wol was chasing him, jumped over several more walls, passed the main road, and jumped over the wall of the Nanchang branch of the Martial Alliance.

The place where the man in black had gone was a place with guest rooms, a two-story building. The man in black, who had arrived there, opened a window and entered the last room on the left.

Jin Sa-wol stood on the wall, observed the room where the man in black had entered, and then went up on a tall tree right next to it and sat down.

Perhaps it was because it had been a long time since he had done a stealth mission. The moment he sat on a branch, his foot moved and stepped on a fallen leaf on the tree.

Rustle.

The sound of the fallen leaf crumbling broke the silence.

It was a very small sound. But since it was a night where silence had descended, it was clearly heard in the ears of a master.

Shwaak! Ping!

Jin Sa-wol jumped up with a hardened expression at the sound of hidden weapons flying from the left and right, cutting through the wind.

Thwack-thwack!

Two throwing stars were embedded in a branch. They were silver hidden weapons that were similar in shape to a leaf.

Instinctively, he thought that they must be two of the three who had scattered when they had left the wall of the Namgung family.

They, who had headed for other places, had returned.

Whoosh!

Jin Sa-wol, who had fallen on the roof, hid in the darkness.

A dozen or so more throwing stars flew to the spot where he had landed.

Thwack-thwack-thwack! Clang! Clang!

Although the roof tiles broke and a sharp noise echoed, Jin Sa-wol's figure was not seen.

The two men in black who had thrown the hidden weapons also did not reveal themselves in the darkness.

Jin Sa-wol hid in a dark corner under the roof tiles.

As if a spider had spun its web and crawled in, Jin Sa-wol hid in a corner and observed his surroundings.

The enemies were hiding at a distance of over five zhang.

'Shadowless Hall.'

Jin Sa-wol thought of the Shadowless Hall of the Martial Alliance.

They were on a different level from the assassins of the Red Spider Sect. They were thoroughly trained people, and not even the sound of their breathing could be heard.

'It's tiring.'

If the opponents were skilled, dragging out the time was a loss.

If they didn't move, there was no telling when it would end.

Whoosh!

Jin Sa-wol revealed himself on the roof of a three-story building.

'Lure the enemy.'

Although using oneself as bait to grasp the enemy's movement was a bad move, if one were confident in one's skills, it could also be the best move.

Whoosh!

As the wind blew, the clouds cleared, and a large moon rose above Jin Sa-wol's head.

Three people were hiding in a triangular formation with the roof where Jin Sa-wol was standing at the center.

A formation that had surrounded Jin Sa-wol. The distance between each other was also constant, about seven zhang.

But they also could not move easily.

Meow!

In the deep of night, the sound of a cat's cry continued for a long time.

The masked man who was hiding in front of Jin Sa-wol frowned and shook his head.

The cat's cry was similar to a person's, so it was not at all cat-like.

But it was effective.

Thwack!

Jin Sa-wol's figure moved to the left.

Whoosh!

Jin Sa-wol, who had flown up, cutting through the air, narrowed the distance of seven zhang and extended his sword under the eaves.

Shwik!

A sharp sword wind flew first, before the sword had even reached, and cut under the eaves.

But before that, a black figure had flown back and thrown a throwing star at Jin Sa-wol.

Jin Sa-wol parried the flying throwing star with his sword and at the same time shot up to the roof.

As if they had been waiting, three swords flew towards him.

A dozen or so sword shadows extended from Jin Sa-wol, who had spun his body, and stabbed the three at the same time.

"Hmph!"

"Hmph!"

The two masked men on the left and right, as if they were surprised, twisted their bodies and flew back. But the masked man in front passed, stabbing his sword between Jin Sa-wol's sword shadows.

Whoosh! Thwack-thwack!

The figures of the two crossed at a fast speed and then moved away.

Jin Sa-wol, who had landed on the roof, turned his body.

There, he saw a woman with her long black hair fluttering, standing there. A large moon had risen above her head.

Jo Geom-ok was looking at Jin Sa-wol with an expressionless face. Although she had sword wounds on both her shoulders and legs, it seemed she did not feel the pain.

A drop of blood was flowing from the tip of the sword in her hand.

'Who is it?'

Jin Sa-wol had a sword wound on his right forearm. Although blood was flowing from there, there was no problem in moving.

In his left hand, he was holding a mask, which was what Jo Geom-ok had been wearing. He had taken it off when he had passed her.

Originally, he had aimed for the neck, but Jo Geom-ok's reaction was fast, so he could not strike the neck.

Jin Sa-wol threw the mask and held his sword. Just then, a loud bell sound echoed.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

"An intruder has appeared!"

"Wake everyone up!"

With a loud shout, thump-thump! the sound of footsteps vibrated greatly.

As numerous torches lit up the Nanchang branch, Jin Sa-wol frowned.

Although he had not entered the Nanchang branch, the warriors of the Nanchang branch were coming out to the street.

Jin Sa-wol had no choice but to get down from the roof and run down the street.

Jo Geom-ok also disappeared into the night sky.

* * *

Jin Sa-wol, who was standing in Namgung Ji's yard, roughly wrapped a cloth around the sword wound on his forearm. Since it was a scratch, there was no pain.

'She was Murong Bao's bodyguard.'

Although Jin Sa-wol did not know Jo Geom-ok's name, he knew her face. Since he knew her face, he now had to think of the next.

The way she had dodged his sword and dug in seemed to know no fear. It was a movement that was the opposite of how the other two masked men had dodged.

There was also blood on Jin Sa-wol's sword, which was Jo Geom-ok's blood.

"Where have you been, sneaking around like a night cat?"

Jin Sa-wol, who turned his head at the voice from behind, looked at Namgung Ji, who was visible beyond the half-open window.

She was resting her chin on the window.

"I got up to go to the bathroom, but you weren't there, so I waited. Where have you been?"

"A walk. The garden is large."

"Alone? That's a place you can't enter from the hour of the pig until morning."

"Here, Sunokwon."

"I've already gone around this garden twice."

Namgung Ji quietly looked at the face of Jin Sa-wol, who was standing with an indifferent expression.

"Young Master Jin, are you really a hunter?"

"That's right."

As Jin Sa-wol answered, Namgung Ji, as if she couldn't take it anymore, jumped out of the window.

She, who was wearing a sky-blue nightgown and only a long jangpo, tightened her clothes and approached Jin Sa-wol's side.

Since there was a head's difference between her and Jin Sa-wol, Jin Sa-wol lowered his head, and Namgung Ji raised her eyes.

"Shouldn't you have no secrets from me? As long as you've agreed to be my bodyguard, you are now my person."

"..."

"The security of the main family is not so lax that Young Master Jin can move around freely."

"There was an intruder."

At the words 'intruder', Namgung Ji's eyes widened.

"I don't know what purpose he had for coming here, but since it was an intruder, I thought I should chase him, so I did."

"Did you find out who it was?"

"No."

"Do I still look young? Or do I look like a clueless brat? The wound on that arm is a trace of a battle. Young Master Jin fought with the intruder."

Swish!

Namgung Ji extended her hand and tried to grab Jin Sa-wol's right arm.

Jin Sa-wol, who had instinctively tilted his shoulder, moved, sliding, and dodged her hand.

Namgung Ji said with a coy expression.

"I'm right, aren't I?"

When Namgung Ji asked, Jin Sa-wol answered, touching his right hand.

"I discovered an intruder and chased him, but I lost him. The intruder entered the Nanchang branch."

"If it's the Nanchang branch... the Martial Alliance?"

Namgung Ji clenched her fist, thinking of Murong Bao.

"Is it the subordinate of that effeminate, no, that unlucky guy from the Martial Alliance?"

"Huh? Who is that?"

"Murong Bao."

"Maybe so."

"What's the reason for coming here?"

"We'll know if we ask."

"Will he tell us obediently?"

Namgung Ji clenched and shook her fist as if she were in a bad mood whenever she thought of Murong Bao.

"That's not my job, but Ji-ah's, right? I'm a bodyguard."

At Jin Sa-wol's words, Namgung Ji bit her thumb.

* * *

Two men were sitting in a room where only one lamp was lit. They, who had been silent, stood up from their seats when they saw Jo Geom-ok enter the room.

Jo Geom-ok came in, wearing casual clothes, and sat in a chair.

"The guy?"

"He went into the Namgung family."

At the same time as the answer of the man on the left, the man on the right said.

"It seems he has been chasing us from the Namgung family."

"It seems he came?"

"He came."

The two men lowered their heads as if they were intimidated. Jo Geom-ok said.

"The job of watching Namgung Ji is over as of today. From now on, you guys find out about Jin Sa-wol. Find out what kind of guy he is and bring his past, thoroughly."

"Yes."

(End of Chapter)