Chapter 360: The Young Alliance Chairman Is Bewitched

TL: FoodieMonster007

"It's a trap."

Bi Sayin's expression grew cold. Hyeok Sagun angered him more than the Hellish Dual Swords who had tried to kill him.

"Hyeok Sagun set this trap to lure you in and kill you."

Geom Mugeuk thought Bi Sayin was mostly correct but wrong about one thing.

"It's a trap, yes, but it's probably not meant to kill me. In this situation, they wouldn't try to make an enemy of our Cult. Right now, they're hell-bent on killing you."

The Brawling King is a smart man, and Hyeok Sagun works for him. Their intelligence makes some things easy to predict. At the very least, this was not a scheme to kill him.

"They probably intend to send me back to our Cult."

Their plan was to separate him from Bi Sayin, then kill Bi Sayin.

"You'll meet the Chairman even though you know that?"

"I must."

"The Chairman won't like you."

Bi Sayin's expression darkened. He already worried how the Chairman would react to this incident. Now, Hyeok Sagun, the man who served the Chairman, was the traitor.

He must have driven an irreversible wedge between me and the Chairman.

What could Hyeok Sagun have said about him? He did not even want to think about it.

However, Geom Mugeuk speculated differently.

"He wouldn't have done that."

Geom Mugeuk anticipated something Bi Sayin had not considered.

"On the contrary, he would've pretended to be on your side all along. He would've sided with you, claiming you were with me to dig up information."

The sentence jolted Bi Sayin. He blinked, unsure what Geom Mugeuk meant.

"That way, when you call him a traitor, it'll backfire perfectly."

The words hit Bi Sayin hard.

"So he'll distrust me instead."

"He'll think the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult bewitched you and that you're framing the Head Strategist."

A chill ran down Bi Sayin's spine. Hearing it laid out, it sounded very likely. The thoughts of clever people always surpassed his own.

"Sometimes, praise can be a more powerful tool for sowing discord."

Geom Mugeuk's words impressed not only Bi Sayin but also the Evil Eccentric, who listened nearby.

A truly fearsome man has become the Young Cult Leader.

Even the current Heavenly Demon possesses talent ranked among the best of all his predecessors. Could that Heavenly Demon have shown such insight at a young age? He was certain he could not.

"What do you plan to do?"

"I have to meet the Evil Alliance Chairman. I'm the only one who knows Hyeok Sagun joined a clandestine power. My testimony is the only evidence. If I can't persuade the Chairman, your life and your position as Young Alliance Chairman will be in jeopardy."

He had barely survived, only for another crisis to arrive.

Geom Mugeuk asked Bi Sayin.

"Can you send a messenger pigeon to the Chairman without Hyeok Sagun knowing?"

Bi Sayin thought for a moment, then mentioned one person.

"I can send it through First Wolf."

He was the person he could trust the most.

"You can't get caught."

"You can trust him."

Geom Mugeuk immediately wrote two messages for the pigeons.

One was a reply to the message that had just arrived from the Evil Alliance. It stated that he would personally visit the Evil Alliance Headquarters to meet the Evil Alliance Chairman.

He gave that message to a subordinate at the safehouse and told him to send it to the Evil Alliance.

The other message was to be delivered secretly to the Chairman.

"This messenger pigeon must be delivered to the Chairman without Hyeok Sagun knowing."

"What did you write here?"

"I asked to meet him alone, outside the Evil Alliance. I wrote that I'll kill you if he doesn't meet me."

"You, really!"

"It's a joke, a joke."

"Don't say things like that, even as a joke. If you jest with the Chairman like you do with me, you could get killed."

"I'll keep that in mind."

That would not happen, but if he failed to handle this properly, the Chairman would not believe him. The Chairman would try to send him back to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult to separate him from Bi Sayin. That would make Bi Sayin's situation very difficult.

"Do you have a plan?"

Geom Mugeuk shook his head at Bi Sayin's worried question.

"I'm going to start thinking about it now."

Bi Sayin was about to ask what he meant but suddenly realized something.

If it were me, I'd still be agonizing over whether to meet the Chairman or not.

But Geom Mugeuk had already decided to meet him and was now planning his next move. That was why Bi Sayin kept trusting him. It felt like Geom Mugeuk already had a complete plan.

Geom Mugeuk approached the bed.

"Are you okay?"

Bi Sayin could tell Geom Mugeuk was not asking about his injured body. He was asking if his heart was okay amid the chaos.

What would have happened if it weren't for Geom Mugeuk? Could I really have endured it? As a martial artist, as the successor of the Evil Alliance, I don't want to say such things, but.

I'm okay because you're here.

Bi Sayin could not say his inner thoughts aloud.

The Chairman might not believe it. He'll probably think I'm being deceived by you. He might even scold me for being a fool.

Anyone in the Evil Alliance would think that. They would not believe the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult approached him with good intentions. That was why this fight was so difficult.

Still, I won't doubt you.

As long as I doubt, I can't move forward. This doubt wouldn't be about Geom Mugeuk. It would become doubt in myself, self-reproach for failing to judge a person correctly.

That was why Bi Sayin could answer.

"I'm okay."

Of course, someone in the room was not okay.

The Evil Eccentric, who had been listening, interjected.

"I'm grateful you saved him, but don't forget I'm keeping an eye on you."

Normally, those were words Geom Mugeuk should have said to him. That he should take good care of Bi Sayin, that he was watching.

"Both of you should tend to your wounds. The time to fight again is coming."

Hyeok Sagun's expression was stiff as he walked toward the Chairman's Hall.

The Hellish Dual Swords' failure to kill Bi Sayin at the safehouse was unexpected.

So it's come to this.

If Bi Sayin had died at the safehouse, the Evil Alliance Chairman would have definitely suspected Geom Mugeuk. They were together until his death, so suspicion was unavoidable. The crisis with the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult would have escalated and soured relations, but he and Hwang Seokgyeong could have slipped away from the incident's aftermath.

Now, he had to make the Evil Alliance Chairman send Geom Mugeuk back to the Demonic Cult. The process would test his own loyalty.

Of course, he was confident. He would frame the incident as Bi Sayin falling for Geom Mugeuk's scheme.

Young Alliance Chairman, you're finished either way.

Before entering the Chairman's Hall, Hyeok Sagun paused in the hallway and looked at the steel wolves.

The idea that these wolves could stop intruders was just a legend. After all, the wolves just watched him come and go.

Hyeok Sagun thought he would get rid of these iron lumps first when the Brawling King became the new Chairman.

Hyeok Sagun entered the Chairman's Hall.

The Evil Alliance Chairman Baek Jagang stood with his hands clasped behind his back. He faced a window behind the grand master's chair that overlooked the Headquarters.

"The Young Cult Leader of the Divine Cult replied. He says he'll come to see you, Chairman."

Baek Jagang did not answer Hyeok Sagun's report.

"It seems the Young Alliance Chairman is with the Young Cult Leader."

A cold aura emanated from Baek Jagang.

"He's been doing useless things."

He had disliked the plan from the moment Bi Sayin sent word about feigning his death while with the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult. He never would have permitted it if Hyeok Sagun had not told him to trust the Young Alliance Chairman and leave it to him.

"Could it be?"

Hyeok Sagun guessed what worried the Evil Alliance Chairman.

"If the Young Alliance Chairman were dead, the Young Cult Leader wouldn't have dared to reply that he'd come see you, Chairman."

Baek Jagang nodded slowly, and Hyeok Sagun continued his report.

"The safehouse ambush is still under investigation. We're thoroughly investigating everyone who knew its location. We'll soon find out who leaked the information."

He planned to use this incident to eliminate his political rivals. He had already prepared fabricated evidence.

Baek Jagang showed no emotion, but he was furious.

A secret had been breached. Someone had tried to kill the Evil Alliance's Young Alliance Chairman. Someone had dared to draw a sword against the Evil Alliance.

The worse situation was this.

"What are the chances it was the Young Cult Leader's doing?"

If so, it meant Geom Mugeuk was using Bi Sayin.

"The Young Alliance Chairman is a brilliant man. He would never be so easily taken in by the Young Cult Leader."

Just as Geom Mugeuk predicted, Hyeok Sagun defended himself by pretending to trust Bi Sayin completely.

Baek Jagang interpreted Hyeok Sagun's behavior politically. The young Head Strategist was planning for the future, likely aiming to remain Head Strategist when Bi Sayin became Chairman.

"The Young Alliance Chairman must be using the Young Cult Leader to gain something."

"Not the other way around?"

After a brief pause, Hyeok Sagun said.

"Please trust the Young Alliance Chairman."

Bi Sayin would swing an axe to kill him, but he would only chop his own foot. He would be accusing a staunch supporter of being a traitor.

"You keep a close watch."

"Don't worry, Chairman. I'll take my leave now."

After Hyeok Sagun left, a hidden person reported.

"First Wolf requests an audience."

It was Ingung, the Evil Alliance Chairman's bodyguard Captain.

"First Wolf? Let him in."

"He requests a secret, private audience. No one else can know."

The situation took an unusual turn. Anyone else would have been suspicious, but Baek Jagang knew. He knew how deep First Wolf's loyalty to the Alliance ran.

"Bring him to the training grounds."

First Wolf entered the Evil Alliance Chairman's personal training grounds.

Outsiders could never enter this place without permission. Only Baek Jagang and Ingung, his bodyguard Captain, had access.

Baek Jagang wiped a steel training dummy with a cloth. It was not ordinary iron. It was forged with Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron, a special creation for the Evil Alliance Chairman that could not be cut by sword qi or enhanced sword qi.

Countless sword marks scarred its surface, from faint scratches to deep gashes.

Baek Jagang knew when and how each mark was made. He knew the technique used and the heart behind the blow.

The fact that he remembered every single one hinted at the depth of his training.

He could now cut the steel dummy down in a single blow, but he did not. He wanted to pass it down to Bi Sayin as it was.

"I greet you, Chairman."

"It's been a while. Have you been well?"

Baek Jagang greeted him warmly. He was a man who clearly distinguished between people he liked and disliked. He liked First Wolf.

"I heard you asked to see me alone?"

"Yes, the Young Alliance Chairman sent a messenger pigeon. He asked that it be delivered only to you, Chairman."

First Wolf was nervous. He knew a single misstep today could cost him the Evil Alliance Chairman's favor, and even his life.

"Does that mean I'm not to tell Strategist Hyeok?"

All messenger pigeons coming into the Alliance passed through the Head Strategist.

"He specifically said to deliver it without Strategist Hyeok's knowledge."

Baek Jagang's expression grew subtle. He had suspected it was about Hyeok Sagun when First Wolf requested a secret meeting.

"Did he give a reason?"

"No, he just said to be sure to deliver it to you, Chairman."

First Wolf took the messenger pigeon from his robes and presented it to the Chairman.

Baek Jagang read the message and was startled. First Wolf had never seen the Chairman so surprised.

Baek Jagang lifted his head and looked at First Wolf.

"Do you know what's written here? It says Strategist Hyeok is involved in this incident and was behind the safehouse attack. It says the Young Cult Leader will meet me in person to explain."

"!"

The unexpected words startled First Wolf. He never imagined the messenger pigeon contained such a message.

"Do you think so too?"

Baek Jagang watched First Wolf intently. First Wolf knew how well those small eyes could read a person's heart. The Chairman magically knew if someone was telling the truth or a lie.

Do I deny the words of the leader I serve, or do I deny the Head Strategist who serves the Evil Alliance Chairman?

"I believe that if a subordinate starts judging the one he serves, he can no longer protect him properly."

It was the best answer First Wolf could give.

Then Baek Jagang asked again.

"What kind of man is the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult, from what you've seen?"

He had evaded the question once, but he could not avoid it again.

First Wolf answered honestly.

"He was a remarkable person."

"Do you think the Young Alliance Chairman has been bewitched by him?"

First Wolf hesitated. He wanted to say no, but.

"Yes, the Young Alliance Chairman is bewitched."

He wanted to add something for Bi Sayin's sake but could not think of what to say. That the Young Cult Leader did not seem so bad? That he could be trusted since he saved Bi Sayin?

No. To the Evil Alliance Chairman he knew, such an answer would only do more harm than good.

"And I can understand why the Young Alliance Chairman was bewitched."

He had answered honestly. The Evil Alliance Chairman would make his own judgment.

"You may leave now."

First Wolf bowed politely and left. He was not sure if he had answered correctly or if he had harmed Bi Sayin.

After First Wolf departed, the Evil Alliance Chairman asked the empty air.

"What do you think?"

Ingung answered.

"There's a lot I don't understand. It would be best if you didn't meet him."

"Then should I inform Strategist Hyeok of this?"

Ingung could not answer easily. It was a matter of who he trusted more.

"I find it hard to believe Strategist Hyeok is a traitor."

That he tried to kill the Young Alliance Chairman? It was unbelievable. On the other hand, could the young Young Alliance Chairman be swayed by the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult? That was also hard to believe, but still, perhaps?

Baek Jagang, however, had not reached a conclusion. A strong, unusual light gleamed in his small eyes.

"Isn't that what's so curious? He asks to meet me, knowing I'd never believe him? What on earth is that bastard thinking?"

Having served the Evil Alliance Chairman for a long time, Ingung could tell Baek Jagang was already intrigued by Geom Mugeuk. He was thinking, 'Well, look at this one.' First Wolf's comment that he could understand the bewitchment had been the deciding factor.

If Baek Jagang had decided to meet him, then Ingung knew what he had to do.

"I'll set a new meeting place and send word."

They had to control the situation, not the other party.

Baek Jagang nodded silently and looked at the steel dummy.

The image of a person overlapped with the steel dummy. The Heavenly Demon, Geom Woojin, was the person who best suited the expressionless steel.

He was the person Baek Jagang acknowledged most and hated most. Above all, he hated those arrogant eyes that seemed to look down on people.

Let's see how well you've raised your son.