Chapter 692: Aren't You All Just That Foolish?

TL: FoodieMonster007

Ahn Hupyeong waited until after they had bid farewell to the Thousand Flower Palace Chairwoman and stepped outside. He then brought up the words he had been saving.

"Come on, let's go to my place for a drink."

He had endured the insincere exchange with the Thousand Flower Palace Chairwoman for the sole purpose of saying this to Lee Ahn.

He had already sent word ahead for fine liquor and dishes to be prepared. If he also called for musicians to play some atmospheric music, there was no way she could refuse.

Ahn Hupyeong naturally assumed Lee Ahn would agree. He had introduced her to the judge, so he figured she would want to get on his good side, even if only a little.

"Let's do it next time."

Lee Ahn's refusal was flat and direct.

"If you don't like alcohol, then how about some tea?"

"Next time."

Ahn Hupyeong was flustered. No woman had ever rejected him so openly. With any other woman, he would have exploded in anger, but he held back this time.

His opponent was a martial artist, and his genuine attraction to her made him want to leave a good impression.

As he stood there wondering how to react, Lee Ahn approached him. A pleasant scent wafted from her as she drew near.

He also loved that she was whispering so only he could hear.

"When we meet next time, please tell me the real reason you held the competition. I can't stand being curious."

After she spoke, Lee Ahn gave a slight bow and walked away. Geom Mugeuk followed right behind her.

That bastard! That guy I want to beat the hell out of!

Unwarranted sparks of anger flew toward the innocent Geom Mugeuk. The fire vanished from sight before it could even ignite, leaving only Sa Chu with him.

Sa Chu was standing blankly, his gaze fixed on the reception hall.

Wondering what he was staring at, Ahn Hupyeong looked as well. The Faceless Warriors were looking their way from a window.

"Why? Did you lend them money or something?"

The dazed Sa Chu finally snapped back to his senses.

"No, sir."

"Then why are you looking at them like that?"

In truth, Sa Chu was recalling the earlier situation in the courtyard. When he had woken up, one of the Faceless Warriors had extended a hand to him. He felt as if he would die if he did not take it, so he grabbed the hand and let it pull him up.

Now I've truly joined hands with them.

If he had previously kept his mouth shut out of fear, he now felt like he was on their side. This came with the added feeling that he had to protect the secret even more fiercely.

"What's with you lately? Are you excited because you saw a pretty woman for the first time in a while?"

"No, sir."

He wished that were the case. Right now, Sa Chu had no interest in women. As the only one who knew they had killed Teacher Yong, he was in the middle of a silent, life-or-death struggle.

"But where are you going?"

"To my father."

Judging by the atmosphere, Ahn Hupyeong was about to go to the Chief and demand answers about why he had held the competition. He was doing all of this just so he could tell Lee Ahn the reason. He was truly acting like a man crazy for a woman.

"You can't. The Chief's fiery wrath will fall upon you!"

When Sa Chu blocked his path, Ahn Hupyeong yelled.

"Are you crazy?"

Sa Chu hastily stepped aside. This was definitely not his usual behavior.

"What's with you? Since when did you ever worry about me?"

That was true. He had always just followed Ahn Hupyeong and protected him. No matter what Ahn Hupyeong did or what nonsense he spouted, he had simply been a bodyguard.

However, he now found himself getting involved in Ahn Hupyeong's affairs without realizing it. He had never been the protagonist in his own life, but for some reason, he felt compelled to keep stepping forward.

"I'm sorry."

And so, Ahn Hupyeong went to the main hall where his father was.

Contrary to Sa Chu's worries, Ahn Cheongwang did not become that angry.

"Were you that curious about it?"

Ahn Hupyeong was inwardly flustered by his father's calm question. He had expected his father to yell angrily, asking if he had not been told it was none of his business. He had come fully prepared to face his fiery wrath.

"Yes, I heard you changed the judge at the last minute."

Ahn Cheongwang answered calmly.

"There were circumstances."

Ahn Cheongwang had an inkling as to why his son was so interested in this matter.

"It's not what you're thinking, so don't worry about it needlessly."

The father he knew was not someone who would ever say such things. He would have already been shouting, asking why he was asking again when he had been told it was none of his business. He had even come prepared to be struck.

Then, he thought, he would have something to tell her. I tried this hard for you, he would say. He was enjoying this pure feeling, one he had not experienced in a long time, or perhaps ever.

However, his father was treating him with a bewildering calmness.

"I'll tell you the rest of the story later."

Ahn Hupyeong was moved by his father's gentle gaze. His father had never treated him with such kind words before. He had always considered him pathetic.

For this moment, at least, he forgot about Lee Ahn. It was okay even though he had not gotten the words to tell her.

"Thank you for telling me."

Ahn Hupyeong bowed politely and went outside.

As Ahn Cheongwang watched his son's retreating back, the gentle expression vanished from his face.

He backed down so easily just because my attitude softened? He was moved so easily? A sigh escaped him as he looked at his son, who wore his heart so openly on his sleeve.

Just then, a woman's voice came from behind him.

"A man in love can't hide his true feelings."

The person who had appeared without a sound was Cha Yiran.

Ahn Cheongwang looked at her with a calm gaze.

"The same goes for you."

When he learned that the Young Cult Leader had intervened, he had cursed her, calling her a crazy bitch. He had since calmed his heart.

"You can't hide the fact that you're hiding something from me. What are you so engrossed in?"

Instead of answering, Cha Yiran smiled and asked a question.

"Do you regret joining hands with me?"

Not really. One night, he had woken from his sleep to find her looking down at him. If she had wanted to kill him, he would already be dead. Looking down at him, she had said this.

[If you refuse my offer, I'll go to the Black Heaven Sect.]

The Black Heaven Sect was the largest and strongest of the sects in Anhui. Ahn Cheongwang had built the Mythical Sect into a great power, but he could not defeat the Black Heaven Sect.

He could not win. No matter how hard he tried, he could never match the leader of the Black Heaven Sect. He felt the difference in their innate abilities and capacity. The leader of the Black Heaven Sect was a wall, an unbreakable wall.

To her words, Ahn Cheongwang had replied.

[Don't go.]

The woman's proposal was truly astonishing. It was to hold a world number one beauty pageant at the Mythical Sect, invite the Evil Alliance Chairman, and then eliminate the Evil Alliance Chairman and frame the leader of the Black Heaven Sect for the crime.

He accepted the proposal without much deliberation. He had lived his life by any means necessary. It was his dream to crush the Black Heaven Sect and become the number one among the unorthodox sects in Anhui, and eventually, the number one unorthodox faction of all.

Above all, if he refused, this woman would go to the Black Heaven Sect and make the same offer. No, she probably would not have gone. She must have come because she knew he would accept. She must have come because she smelled the scent of the ambition he had nurtured for so long.

"Don't touch the Young Cult Leader."

"You accepted the job of killing the Evil Alliance Chairman, so what are you afraid of?"

At first glance, he had thought the intervention of the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult might actually be a good thing. People would think the Demonic Cult was involved in the death of the Evil Alliance Chairman. In that chaos, the fact that he had helped would be buried forever.

Except for one scenario. What if the Young Cult Leader died?

Would the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult really let those involved go? Would an order not come down to kill everyone involved, guilty or not? The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult he knew would certainly do so. They would try to annihilate the Mythical Sect for the sole reason of having hosted the competition.

"Killing the Young Cult Leader is absolutely out of the question."

"I won't kill him."

"Absolutely not!"

At his repeated protests, Cha Yiran left a deliberately mischievous remark and vanished before his eyes.

"You keep saying that, and it makes me really want to kill him, you know?"

Cha Yiran stood alone in a field under a brightly shining moon. The grass swayed in the wind, seeming as if it were breathing.

Parting that breath, a man walked toward her from the distance.

He was a man dressed to the nines. He wore expensive clothes and accessories, and even carried a folding fan with a painting of a beautiful woman on it.

Moreover, he wore thick, stark white makeup on his face that was so excessive it felt almost self-deprecating. Because of it, the man's face could not be seen clearly. The man swayed his fan gently as he walked toward her.

"It's been a while, my friend."

Cha Yiran showed a surprised expression at the man's greeting.

"I didn't expect you to bring it yourself."

"I said I'd bring it. I thought I'd see your face."

The man's name was Hwa Domyeong. The two, who seemed like they would not get along at all, had a relationship like friends. Surprisingly, they communicated well. Perhaps that was why Cha Yiran's expression was more relaxed than usual.

"You didn't come to see me. You came to see the Young Cult Leader, didn't you?"

Hwa Domyeong readily admitted it.

"An event this interesting is hard to come by in a lifetime. Are you really going to kill the Young Cult Leader too?"

Indeed, Ahn Cheongwang's premonition was correct. Her words about not killing the Young Cult Leader were a lie.

"The Evil Alliance Chairman and the Young Cult Leader. It'll be tough to handle on your own, won't it?"

"It's an order that was given knowing that, isn't it?"

"That sounds as if I was the one who gave the order."

"You could have at least tried to stop it."

Hwa Domyeong fanned himself rapidly, as if feigning ignorance.

"As you know, things are complicated on our end too."

Cha Yiran's expression showed she had little interest in understanding.

"You've met the Young Cult Leader, haven't you?"

When she nodded, Hwa Domyeong asked quickly.

"How was he? Is he really as amazing as the rumors say?"

"If you're curious, go meet him yourself."

"I'm not curious enough to risk my life. I'm just here as an errand boy and a spectator."

"So there is someone you're afraid of."

Then Hwa Domyeong mentioned an unexpected person.

"You haven't heard the story, have you? When Ak Gunhak returned…"

When he, the Sword King, was mentioned, Cha Yiran's eyes glinted slightly.

Among all her allies, the only person Cha Yiran felt any fondness for was Ak Gunhak. She always emphasized that it was not a romantic feeling, but a fondness for him as a martial artist and as a person.

And the only person who knew this fact was Hwa Domyeong.

"The higher-ups interrogated him. They asked, 'Why did you return without killing the Young Cult Leader?' Do you know what he said in response?"

"What did he say?"

"He said this."

He cleared his throat and imitated Ak Gunhak's words.

"I wasn't the one who spared him. The Young Cult Leader spared me."

At those words, Cha Yiran's eyes widened.

"That can't be."

She wore an expression of utter disbelief. The idea of the Ak Gunhak she knew losing to someone was unimaginable.

"Right, with his skills, there's no way he lost to the Young Cult Leader. But he really said that. I was there."

Cha Yiran thought of the Young Cult Leader. She had not yet had a proper conversation with Geom Mugeuk, so she did not know what kind of person he was. She knew he was strong, but still. He was the one who spared the Ak Gunhak? It was unbelievable.

"There must have been some circumstances."

"That's not the only surprising thing."

At least for Cha Yiran, what came next was even more shocking news.

"Ak Gunhak declared right then and there that he was leaving the organization. It was really something. He said that since he brought the Secret Box, his debt was fully repaid."

Cha Yiran's expression shifted through several emotions. The first thought that came to mind was simple.

"That's just like him."

First, she understood his decision.

"If even he leaves, only trash like us will be left."

Then, she reproached herself.

"The higher-ups wouldn't have allowed it, would they?"

Then, she felt doubt. Hwa Domyeong silently watched as her emotions changed quickly and complexly, which was unusual for her. It was a moment that reconfirmed Ak Gunhak was the only person who could shake her.

"Why do you think that? Do you think we're foolish enough to make an enemy of Ak Gunhak?"

Cha Yiran then nodded.

"You all are just that foolish, aren't you?"

At her words, Hwa Domyeong laughed out loud.

However, Cha Yiran did not laugh. If Ak Gunhak left safely, it would be a problem because she would miss him. If the organization held him back, that would also be a problem. Perhaps an order would even come down for her to kill him.

Hwa Domyeong took something out from his robes.

"Still, we're not complete fools. We finally managed to create this."

What he took out was a small box.

"Is this how we turn the tables?"

He asked, holding the box out to Cha Yiran.

"Are you confident?"

"And if I'm not?"

"I'll do it for you."

Beneath the thick makeup, Hwa Domyeong's gaze turned cold. The feeling he gave off now was completely different from when he was gently swaying his fan.

Cha Yiran quietly took the box.

"If you came to watch, then just watch. The Young Cult Leader will die by my hand."

"If you say so, then I'm sure it will happen."

Hwa Domyeong said as he turned away.

"I'll enjoy the show!"

Hwa Domyeong walked away with a swish, smiling and fanning himself.

Watching his retreating back in the distance, Cha Yiran slowly opened the box. Inside was a single red bead.