Chapter 23. Sword Demon Clan (4)
“Welcome, Great Hero.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Madam Hyeon.”
The woman named Hyeonri stared at me with nervous eyes.
Of course she was nervous.
The man introduced to her by the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's Princess had shown a rather terrible side of himself earlier today.
“Great Hero, I will ask directly.”
“What is your relationship with Princess Wolyeong?”
Hmm.
I could not exactly say we were secretly making a baby behind the Cult Leader's back.
“That is not something Madam needs to know.”
“Princess Wolyeong advised me to make you my guard.”
“She would not send a letter like that without wanting something from me.”
“If you do not tell me what that is, I will immediately report this matter to the Clan Head.”
A bold woman.
She was trembling with anxiety, yet she still tried not to lose control of the conversation.
I heard she had once been a courtesan who played instruments.
There was probably a reason someone of that background had survived inside the Sword Demon Clan.
Hyeonri was probably doubting everything in the world right now.
It was something she needed to do to survive.
Then there was no helping it.
I should respond with the truth from the very beginning.
“Lady Woo appears to be connected to the Black and White Demon Venerable's rebellion.”
“...Pardon?”
No matter how intelligent someone was, truly shocking information could freeze their thoughts.
Hyeonri became motionless, as though time had stopped.
If this was handled poorly, the entire Sword Demon Clan could face destruction.
“The Military Strategy Department sent me to investigate whether that suspicion is true.”
Technically, the Black Blood Unit belonged beneath the Military Strategy Department.
So this was not really a lie.
“However, I cannot approach Lady Woo directly.”
“That is why I need your cooperation.”
“Are you insane?”
“You want me to help destroy the Sword Demon Clan?!”
“The Cult does not want the complete destruction of the Sword Demon Clan.”
“If the Sword Demon Clan collapses, the defensive line toward Gansu will also collapse.”
“Removing Lady Woo and her supporters should be enough.”
Personally, I wanted to burn the entire Sword Demon Clan to the ground.
But that was probably not what the Cult Leader wanted.
Removing the family behind the Sword Demon's wife should be enough to discipline the Six Great Demonic Clans.
“Madam Hyeon.”
“As you saw today, I dislike pointless struggles for control.”
“Your relationship with Lady Woo is not good either, is it?”
“That is... correct...”
“Princess Wolyeong told me Lady Woo was similar to Empress Lü of the Han Dynasty.”
“If you wish to survive, you need to cooperate with me.”
“Surely you know what Empress Lü did to Consort Qi, one of Liu Bang's concubines.”
Hyeonri thought about it.
But not for long.
The Cult probably did not want the entire Sword Demon Clan destroyed either.
Hyeonri reached the same conclusion.
And if things continued this way, Lady Woo would eventually kill her anyway.
She had never truly possessed the option of refusing.
“There were rumors that Lady Woo began attending strange gatherings around two months before the Black and White Demon Venerable's rebellion.”
“And...”
“And?”
“Around the same time, the Clan Head began behaving strangely.”
She attended suspicious meetings, then the Sword Demon began acting strangely around the same time?
“Explain in detail.”
“The Clan Head originally had a terrible relationship with Lady Woo.”
“They were husband and wife in name only.”
“But after Lady Woo began attending those meetings, their relationship suddenly improved.”
“...Could they not simply have reconciled?”
Hyeonri firmly shook her head.
“He once told me directly that if he had a proper reason, he would drag her out by the hair and throw her from the clan, proper wife or not.”
“Then you are saying he changed overnight?”
“Yes.”
“Lady Woo must have learned some kind of evil technique from those gatherings.”
“There is no proof, so no one says it openly.”
“But everyone who knows the situation thinks the same.”
A man changed overnight?
It was probably not hypnosis.
I had heard that the heads of the Six Great Demonic Clans were martial artists comparable to the Ten Great Masters of the Central Plains.
Hypnotizing someone at that level was nearly impossible.
Then what had changed the Sword Demon?
Could it be... that?
Impossible.
Fewer than ten people under heaven should be capable of that technique.
But if my suspicion was correct...
“We need to investigate Lady Woo's residence.”
“Do you have some idea what this may be?”
“Yes.”
“If my suspicion is correct, traces of that technique should remain in Lady Woo's residence.”
Honestly, I hoped I was wrong.
If I was right, then a wife had done something unspeakably horrible to her husband.
“Madam Hyeon.”
“Please cooperate.”
“If you do, I will protect both you and your son until this matter is finished.”
“Understood.”
“However, there is one problem.”
“What is it?”
Hyeonri sighed.
“Earlier today, you defeated Phantom Cloud Sword Jong Mu far too one-sidedly.”
“It was a terrible sight, but with martial arts at that level, the other elders of the family will want you.”
“I see.”
“You are saying someone else will take me before Madam can select me as a guard.”
“Yes.”
“The elders who train the younger generation were already saying, ‘That man would be perfect as an instructor.’”
Hyeonri glared at me accusingly.
She clearly wanted to ask why a spy had drawn so much unnecessary attention.
Damn.
It was not as though I had wanted things to happen that way.
“Either way, we need to solve that problem before we can begin.”
“Do not worry about that.”
“I have a method.”
“What will you do?”
“If you are planning to hide your ability from now on, forget it.”
“Everyone already understands your true value.”
“Hide my ability?”
“No.”
“I should reveal even more.”
“Pardon?”
During the remaining examination, I would let everyone understand something clearly.
Eating me carelessly could cause severe indigestion.
“If you have a weak stomach, I recommend not watching tomorrow's examination.”
“What do you mean?”
“I warned you.”
The people of the Demonic Cult fundamentally respected strength.
Because of that, somewhat violent and cruel methods could even be viewed positively by certain people.
But everything had limits.
Cruelty that crossed too far beyond those limits would be avoided anywhere.
Good.
Tomorrow, perhaps I should return to the old days.
To the days before I met Master.
When I had been a little devil growing up in the slums.
The second examination was identical to the first.
A spar.
However, the opponents were not fellow applicants.
They were direct martial artists of the Sword Demon Clan.
This time, losing the spar did not mean failure.
In fact, enduring only five techniques from the direct warriors was enough to become an outside martial artist.
