novelraw Chapter 139 : Chapter 139
Chapter 139 : Chapter 139
Chapter 139 Treason (2)
Jaun, who had visited Prince Yeomseong's manor and delivered the confidential documents tightly bound in cloth to a Hao Gate member disguised as a member of the Moyong Merchant Group, turned his steps back toward the Imperial Palace.
Since the schedule for the treason had been moved up, it was practically impossible to inform the Emperor of the current situation in the meantime. Therefore, after much deliberation, Jaun decided to utilize the moment when the forces led by the Emperor and Prince Yeomseong clashed.
'...As long as I'm posing as Thousand Households Commander Ma, I can intervene in the situation directly. As such, it's best to shake their plan itself and make it fail.'
The documents handed to the Hao Gate member contained all of these thoughts of Jaun's.
'Since it's an event the Emperor is participating in, security is bound to be tight. I have to prepare under the assumption that I can't receive help from the outside.'
Jaun, who had quickly returned to the Imperial Palace, headed for the training ground of the 13th Army.
The one thousand Embroidered Uniform Guard members under his command. They were the forces he could utilize immediately, and he thought that if he could use them well, he would be able to deal a significant blow to their plan.
As the training ground came into view, Jaun paused for a moment and slowly caught his breath.
'These are the men who were always with Thousand Households Commander Ma. The best way to reduce the risk of being caught is to say as little as possible...'
Although he had received information about the 13th Army of the Embroidered Uniform Guard from So-hyang before infiltrating, there was bound to be a huge gap between reading about it and actually facing them.
With a tense expression, Jaun took a final deep breath before entering the training ground.
'Right now, it's known to the outside that Thousand Households Commander Ma has been left with mental aftereffects from his injuries. If any problems arise, I'll just have to make good use of this story.'
Having made up his mind, Jaun entered the training ground of the Embroidered Uniform Guard with a firm expression.
As soon as he entered the training ground, a blast of hot air and sharply refined energy poured out.
'The martial arts of the Imperial Court are certainly a little different in nature from those of the Murim.'
Jaun looked around once and slowly nodded his head.
The unique energy of the Imperial Army's martial arts, which he had felt while meticulously examining Thousand Households Commander Ma's energy, was clearly felt here as well.
Those who were tasked with protecting someone even at the cost of their own lives.
Unlike other martial arts, their martial arts were thoroughly focused on defense and were designed to exert explosive power in an instant.
"Tahap!"
"Haat!"
From all directions, along with shouts, spear blades cut through the air. Jaun looked around at the Embroidered Uniform Guard members and quietly spread his senses.
'At least one-fifth of them possess blood qi.'
Jaun looked at the Embroidered Uniform Guard members and memorized the faces of those who possessed blood qi.
'He said he delivered the final verse of the Red Blood Art, and the concentration of their blood qi is indeed a level higher than the ones I saw in the north.'
As he was watching the Embroidered Uniform Guard members training in various ways, someone ran quickly toward Jaun.
"Greetings to the Thousand Households Commander."
The martial artist who had greeted him with a disciplined posture looked at Jaun and grinned.
'...This is Hundred Households Commander Gwak Jong-do.'
He was the Hundred Households Commander of the 13th Army of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and served as Thousand Households Commander Ma's right-hand man. Due to a deep scar on his right cheek, he had a strange smile where only the left corner of his mouth was slightly raised.
Jaun patted Gwak Jong-do on the shoulder.
"Seeing you makes me feel like I'm back."
"Hehe. I feel the same. Oh, don't even mention it. I was so surprised when I first heard that the Commander was injured. It's truly a relief to see you again safely."
Gwak Jong-do bowed his waist and greeted him once more, then slowly raised his head.
"However... I feel like you've become a different person in the meantime?"
Jaun's body flinched for a moment at Gwak Jong-do's words as he looked him up and down.
"The aura you're exuding has completely changed. This... it feels like I'm meeting a General."
Gwak Jong-do, who had a wide grin, stuck close to Jaun's side.
"...I suppose it feels that way because you are soon to become a General."
Gwak Jong-do, who was chuckling and lightly nudged Jaun's side with his elbow, lowered his head slightly.
Jaun gave an awkward smile and inwardly let out a small sigh of relief.
"Let's move for now, Commander. Everyone has been waiting for you."
A trace of blood qi could also be felt from the body of Gwak Jong-do, who was walking ahead. At that, Jaun shrugged his shoulders once and slowly followed behind Gwak Jong-do.
"13th Army, all raise spears!"
─ CLANG!
The moment Jaun appeared, one thousand Embroidered Uniform Guard members raised their spears in unison.
A silver wave created by a thousand spear blades reflecting the light covered the sky.
After looking at the scene for a moment, Jaun passed through the forest of spear blades and walked toward the platform in the center.
The Embroidered Uniform Guard members, who had carefully turned their bodies to open a path for Jaun, all lowered their spears as soon as Jaun reached the platform.
Jaun walked up to the platform with steady steps and looked down at the martial artists of the Embroidered Uniform Guard with a firm expression.
As Jaun took a deep breath and gestured to the Hundred Households Commanders, the Hundred Households Commanders spread their energy and created an energy barrier around them.
Jaun, who slowly turned his head in the quiet silence and looked at each of the Embroidered Uniform Guard members, opened his mouth.
"During this subjugation, forty-six honorable martial artists of the 13th Army lost their lives."
The martial artists who were about to cheer for Thousand Households Commander Ma's return paused at those words and straightened their posture.
"They did their best, but in the end, they passed away in a distant foreign land. I, who barely managed to escape with my body, was able to see the moment their lives were cut short with my own two eyes."
Jaun's low voice filled the training ground.
"Their eyes were burning brightly even as they faced death. In their eyes, which had done their best until the very end... there was not a single point of regret. They were truly the eyes of the Embroidered Uniform Guard."
Jaun, who bit his lip with a reddened face, raised his sleeve and forcefully wiped his dry eyes.
"We are the proud Embroidered Uniform Guard who must complete our given mission no matter what, even when our own lives are in danger. Those who have gone before us proved that they were members of the Embroidered Uniform Guard even as they were dying. Are you all prepared to face the same end as them?"
"Chung!"
In response to Jaun's passionate question, one thousand martial artists answered simultaneously with a loud shout.
"...I hope that everyone in this place, including myself, will face the same honorable end as them."
The soldiers, hearing Jaun's trembling voice, unknowingly gripped their spears tightly.
"Two days from now, a great ordeal will come to us. An unprecedentedly massive wave will shake the Imperial Court, and we will be standing in the middle of it. A period of great chaos that we have never experienced before is coming."
Jaun began to make eye contact with each of the Embroidered Uniform Guard members.
"It will be extremely chaotic, but you will only look at me and follow my orders, just as you have always done. If you do so, the moment the wave subsides, the honor of being the 1st Army of the Embroidered Uniform Guard will rest on our shoulders."
Jaun's voice, filled with internal energy, strongly shook the hearts of the martial artists.
"It is my shortcoming and my fault that we had to send off forty-six of our comrades first. I will make bone-crushing efforts in the remaining time so that such a thing does not happen again. I will protect you with my life. Let us face the wave with an honorable appearance until the end, and finally win and meet again. That is all."
Jaun's voice remained in the air, leaving a great resonance. The eyes of the martial artists looking at Jaun as he came down from the platform were filled with trust and respect.
Jaun passed in front of the martial artists, whose morale was high from his speech, and placed his hand on the shoulder of each one.
'If I've done this much, they'll surely follow my orders without any foolishness.'
Jaun once again glanced at the Embroidered Uniform Guard members who held blood qi in their bodies.
'Trust me and follow me well until the end. I will push you, who have extended your hands to the Blood Arts with eyes blinded by greed, into the very heart of hell.'
For a moment, a cold light flowed from Jaun's eyes and then disappeared without a trace.
According to the information from the Hao Gate, they were the ones who had most strongly insisted on the northern subjugation and had been the most enthusiastic in order to obtain even a little more Blood Immortal Pills.
As a result, at least ten tribes had fallen at their hands.
Jaun had no intention of letting those who had not only extended their hands to the Blood Arts but had also ruthlessly trampled on the lives of others for their own gain live.
After finishing his speech, Gwak Jong-do quickly stuck to Jaun's back as he headed toward the entrance of the training ground with a firm expression.
"...Commander. That was a truly, truly moving speech. I will also do my best until the end!"
Jaun, who had patted the shoulder of Gwak Jong-do, who was full of enthusiasm, headed for the entrance of the training ground again.
'...Yes, go ahead and do your best. In the end, it will be Avici Hell, though.'
Leaving Gwak Jong-do behind, Jaun, who had reached the entrance of the training camp, turned his body in the direction of the command headquarters barracks.
'First, I've confirmed that I can move the 13th Army as I wish... I'll have to think a little more about how to use the remaining men.'
Just as Jaun was about to take a step toward the command headquarters barracks, a small pebble rolled to his feet.
'...Hmm?'
That pebble contained a thick blood qi that could by no means be ignored.
Jaun slowly turned his head and looked at the place where the pebble had come from. Then, a soldier who was standing at the edge of the 13th Army met Jaun's eyes and began to walk toward him.
'A man who possesses a considerable amount of blood qi. To think he could conceal such a large amount of blood qi... so perfectly.'
Unlike the other Embroidered Uniform Guard members who had scattered throughout the training ground, the soldier who had thrown the pebble walked straight toward the entrance of the training ground where Jaun was.
The moment the soldier, who had been standing and watching him, bowed his waist toward Jaun.
[One ilgak later. The small mountain behind the training ground. The usual place.]
A short telepathic message entered Jaun's mind.
Jaun, who had glanced at the back of the soldier who had left only those words and exited the training ground, tilted his head and slowly followed him.
***
The small mountain behind the training ground was not high, but it was full of trees and was good for hiding oneself.
Jaun, who had slowly climbed the mountain, following the thick blood qi, confirmed a small cave and slowed down.
As Jaun approached the front of the cave, the soldier he had seen earlier emerged from the bushes next to the cave.
The soldier, who had cautiously looked around, asked Jaun.
"What on earth... happened in the north?"
A sharp light was contained in the soldier's eyes. In an instant, Jaun, who felt the shimmering blood qi from the soldier's body, slowly nodded his head.
'A man who possesses this much blood qi... Is he a pawn of the Blood Demon?'
Considering the time he had invested in the Imperial Court, it was understandable that such spies were planted throughout the Imperial Court.
However, this person's level of martial arts was too high to be just a simple spy.
'What kind of relationship did he have with Thousand Households Commander Ma? This is something I haven't heard from the Hao Gate.'
Jaun was lost in thought for a moment and then slowly opened his mouth.
"I was ambushed and seriously injured."
"...Do you think that makes sense? The Thousand Households Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and to top it off, he was ambushed and seriously injured while on a grassland subjugation?"
The soldier slowly walked forward and gritted his teeth.
"Thanks to that, not even one-tenth of the expected amount of Blood Immortal Pills has been completed. Even in this situation, Prince Yeomseong is trying to force the grand plan... Lord Blood Demon has expressed great concern about the unreasonable progress."
As Jaun did not give any particular answer, the soldier frowned slightly and continued to speak.
"Tell me exactly what happened in the north. Otherwise, the position promised to you will by no means be safe."
At the soldier's urging, Jaun, who had slightly raised his eyebrows, let out a sigh and met his eyes.
"The one who ambushed us was a person of the Central Plains. And only one person. Fifty Embroidered Uniform Guard members were annihilated by that one person. I was seriously injured."
"...One person from the Central Plains?"
The soldier frowned and took a few more steps closer to Jaun.
"What on earth do you mean by that? If he was able to take down you and fifty Embroidered Uniform Guard members alone, that means he is at least a martial artist close to the transcendental peak realm. You encountered such a master in the north?"
"Yes. Moreover, that person... was using demonic energy."
At Jaun's words, the soldier's body froze on the spot.
"...Demonic energy?"
"Yes, demonic energy."
Jaun looked at the soldier with a calm expression.