Chapter 736: You Must Also Know How to Steal Hearts

TL: FoodieMonster007

"It's not me!" the man denied sharply as he recoiled, but protesting was futile. The face in the drawing mirrored his own perfectly.

Geom Mugeuk's gaze drifted back to the sketch. "You know, when I first saw you, my first thought was that I needed to find whoever drew this and give them a special reward. Maybe even a vacation."

"No, you've misunderstood!" The man stomped his feet frantically in indignation. When the trio's expressions remained unchanged, he pounded his chest in raw frustration, tears welling in his eyes. "It's not me! The world is full of people who look alike, isn't it? I have to get back and save my younger sister. Please, you have to let me go!"

His performance was so convincing that most would feel as if they truly were making a mistake.

However, Geom Mugeuk was unmoved. He pointed to a line of text beneath the drawing. "Oh my, look here. I seem to have missed something when I was reading your information. It says you're a good actor and skilled at deceiving others, doesn't it?"

It was written there, plain as day.

"Didn't you see when you searched me? I didn't have anything like a treasure map."

"I know. You already burned it, so it's now all in your head, right? Your memory is probably excellent, and I'd wager you have an even greater talent for memorizing maps."

"That's not true! Why are you doing this to me?"

"Why?" Geom Mugeuk grinned. "Because it's you."

He jabbed the man twice in the side.

POKE! POKE!

The effect was immediate.

PWOOOSH!

Air rushed into the man's body, and his small, boyish frame expanded until he stood before them as an ordinary man.

Geom Mugeuk's pokes had been playful, but their purpose was anything but. The man's Bone Contraction Art had been broken, forcing him back to his original form. "Nice to meet you, Tae Su!"

This man was Tae Su, son of the Great Thief Tae Gon. The shock of being recognized was eclipsed only by the astonishment that his Bone Contraction Art had been broken in an instant.

His surprise didn't end there.

The old man and the woman accompanying the youth didn't even seem particularly startled by his transformation. Their composure remained unshaken even when his true form was revealed.

"Give me some water," the Blood Heaven Blade Demon said.

Geom Mugeuk set down his leather pack and produced a bamboo flask. "You need to drink plenty of water for your skin to improve. Now that it's gotten better, you have to maintain it."

BOOM!

In that single, explosive instant, Tae Su launched himself forward. His martial arts were average, but he prided himself on his movement arts, believing them faster than anyone's. He vanished from the spot in a flash. One leap carried him more than 60 meters. A second leap doubled that distance to 150 meters. By the time he landed from his third, he expected to be nothing more than a memory.

Just who are those people to know my identity so precisely!

As he landed from his third leap, though, a silent gasp escaped him.

"……"

His eyes flew wide. The trio were standing right in front of him.

Geom Mugeuk was still calmly handing the bamboo flask to the Blood Heaven Blade Demon, who uncorked it and took a drink as if nothing had happened.

How on earth?

For a moment, he wondered if he was dreaming, or perhaps seeing an illusion, but this was no time to ponder such things.

BOOM!

He kicked off the ground again, moving with every ounce of speed he could muster.

And when he stopped, the three of them were there once more.

"Give me some water, too," the Flower Sword Supreme said, holding out her hand.

Geom Mugeuk produced another flask for her. Their actions continued as if he had never run at all.

Tae Su stood there in a daze. A dizzying sensation washed over him. He felt as if they remained fixed in place in front of the cave, and it was the world itself that kept shifting around them, but that wasn't it.

He had clearly fled using his movement arts, and this was a different place entirely. They hadn't chased him. They had simply arrived first and were continuing what they had been doing.

Just how fast are they? The young one is even carrying that large leather pack!?

That wasn't his only question.

How did they know I would run in this direction?

Geom Mugeuk returned the flask to the leather pack and slung it back over his shoulder.

"W-What… are you people?" Tae Su stammered, his voice trembling as if he had seen a ghost.

The youngest of the ghosts smiled and walked toward him.

"People get sensitive for no reason when they're hungry, don't they?"

With a casual wave of his hand, Geom Mugeuk suppressed Tae Su's inner arts.

"Stop running around. Let's eat first."

A campfire blazed in a forest far from the Cave of Ten Thousand Paths.

While Geom Mugeuk prepared their meal, Tae Su sat with his inner arts suppressed, watching every move.

This has to be a prelude to torture. They wouldn't just stop for a meal at a time like this. They've probably mixed a truth serum into the food. Or maybe it's poison, something they'll use as a threat. They can't just force-feed me, because I might try to kill myself or become so defiant I'd rather die than talk… so this is their plan! To make me eat it willingly!

Who on earth are these people? I've never heard of three masters like this in the murim. With such a unique combination, rumors would have been unavoidable.

Geom Mugeuk began to stir-fry vegetables and mushrooms, adding salt and a secret seasoning. After finishing the cooking with skillful speed, he divided the stir-fried mushrooms into four bowls and brought one to Tae Su.

"Here, eat," Geom Mugeuk said, untying one of the thief's hands so he could eat by himself.

"I'm not hungry."

"Eat now. Don't complain that you're hungry later."

Geom Mugeuk placed the bowl in front of Tae Su and walked back to his leather pack. From it, he took out something wrapped in paper. When he unfolded the paper, it revealed a patch of moss.

A distinctive scent wafted over, and Tae Su stiffened.

This smell… could it be? Immortal Stalactite Moss?

Geom Mugeuk divided the moss, placing portions only on his own bowl and those of the two Demon Supremes. "It's too tasteless to eat on its own, but it should be fine like this."

Tae Su's eyes widened. That was also true. Immortal Stalactite Moss was famously bland.

No way. Is it real? It can't be. No matter what, they wouldn't just mix Immortal Stalactite Moss into a mushroom dish, would they?

Still, its appearance and smell were unmistakable. As a thief, he had studied countless miracle herbs.

No, that's impossible. Immortal Stalactite Moss is a legendary herb. It can't be, and there's no way the three of them would share something so precious. Oh, I get it now! They're trying to bait me.

He was certain it was bait. If the three of them ate it while pretending it was the real thing, he might be tempted to eat his food as well.

The moss must be a fake, laced with poison or a truth serum, and they've probably already taken the antidote.

Geom Mugeuk looked at him, picked up the moss from his own bowl, and offered it. "Want some of this?"

Just as I thought. This is playing out exactly as I predicted, Tae Su sneered inwardly, shaking his head. "I'm fine."

Geom Mugeuk feigned surprise. "You're quite something to refuse this. You'll be kicking yourself in regret later."

Tae Su scoffed. The Immortal Stalactite Moss couldn't be real. If it were, they would never offer to share it.

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon compared the moss in his bowl with the others and commented, "Mine seems to be the largest portion."

His bowl did indeed have the most.

"You're mistaken," Geom Mugeuk replied.

"……" Of course, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon knew Geom Mugeuk had given him the most.

The Flower Sword Supreme, sitting opposite, gestured with her eyes for him to accept it and eat. "Just eat it."

"I never thought I'd be eating something this precious with mushrooms," the Blood Heaven Blade Demon remarked.

"As they say, anything that goes in your mouth should be eaten deliciously for it to be good for the body, right?"

The three of them began to eat.

"This is tastier than I thought," the Flower Sword Supreme said, satisfied.

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon nodded in agreement, and just like that, they ate all of the Immortal Stalactite Moss.

After finishing their meal, they sat down without a word and began to circulate their qi. When they were done, the light in their eyes had deepened. The moss was known to restore vitality and grant a long, healthy life.

"You look even younger than before you ate," the Flower Sword Supreme observed.

"Really?" Geom Mugeuk drew his sword, holding it up like a mirror. "I can't really tell."

There was, however, a definite difference. The two miracle herbs they had consumed were a great help to Geom Mugeuk, but they were an even greater boon to the Blood Heaven Blade Demon and the Flower Sword Supreme.

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon gazed quietly at his own reflection in his dao's polished blade. Suddenly, he uttered words he may never have spoken in his entire life, "This is fun."

The Flower Sword Supreme stared at him in shock. She, more than anyone, knew he was not a man for such sentiments, and she understood the profound weight those two words carried.

What would the Young Cult Leader say in response?

Geom Mugeuk's answer was simple.

"I'm having fun too."

The Flower Sword Supreme did not say it aloud, but she too was enjoying herself. It was a joy she had not felt in a very long time.

Watching the three of them, Tae Su felt a strange emotion stir within him.

What is with these people?

They acted as if they had truly eaten Immortal Stalactite Moss, and now they were paying him no mind at all.

Tae Su cautiously asked Geom Mugeuk, "What are you going to do with me now?"

Geom Mugeuk replied without hesitation, "We're going to find the Grave of Swords together."

Who decided that? Tae Su was inwardly dumbfounded, but he maintained his act and denied it to the very end. "You've truly misunderstood. I was only there by chance. I was training to find my way in that complex cave and practicing my Bone Contraction Art."

Geom Mugeuk smiled and pulled the sketch from his robes again. "You have no idea how much effort from how many people went into getting this single piece of paper into my hands, do you? This information is imbued with the hard work of dozens of people who have dedicated their lives to one thing. People who are many times smarter than you or I."

The two Demon Supremes listened, thinking to themselves that while everything Geom Mugeuk said was true, there was one exception.

They're not smarter than you.

That was why they were secretly curious to see how Geom Mugeuk would uncover the location of the treasure map.

"In this situation, flat-out denial is the worst of the worst strategies," Geom Mugeuk continued. "It just makes your opponent look down on you, thinking, 'Ah, this guy only uses pathetic methods.' You're not that kind of guy, are you? It says right here that you're not."

Tae Su stared at Geom Mugeuk for a long moment before finally changing his strategy. He realized that blind insistence would not work.

"You're right," he conceded. "I have the map memorized. Not just the location of the treasure, but the way to enter through the real entrance, not the fake one, and how to avoid the traps inside. I'm the only one in this world who knows."

That was only half true. In his life before returning, Geom Mugeuk had been inside the Grave of Swords. He hadn't gone there for treasure, however, so he did not know its interior well. He had gone to meet one person.

Geom Mugeuk stared at Tae Su without a word.

Tae Su tensed his stomach and met the gaze, refusing to look away. He felt a strange emotion emanating from the clear eyes fixed upon him.

Why is he looking at me like that?

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon, watching the two, sent a telepathic message to the Flower Sword Supreme. [If we just beat him up, he'd spill everything.]

The Flower Sword Supreme added her own thoughts. [Or cut off his fingers, one by one.]

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon replied with a strange smile. [The Young Cult Leader doesn't know you're the type to say things like this, does he?]

[This is just between the two of us.]

A slightly pleased smile touched the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's lips at her words.

Anyway, Geom Mugeuk did not beat up Tae Su, nor did he cut off his fingers.

SSRRNG!

Instead, he drew the Black Demon Sword. "Right, a place like the Grave of Swords might be better off remaining a secret of the murim forever."

He swiftly raised the blade.

SHWIIIIK!

With no hesitation, Geom Mugeuk brought the sword down in a swift arc aimed directly at Tae Su's neck.

"Wait!" Tae Su shouted.

The sword stopped perilously close to his neck, its edge just grazing his skin.

DRIP…

A trickle of blood dribbled from the slight cut.

Tae Su's eyes went wide with a mixture of fear and surprise. This crazy bastard really tried to kill me.

"If you kill me, you'll die too."

"Why would I?"

"You know who my father is, don't you? He's Tae Gon, the greatest thief of his generation. If I die, my father will surely take revenge. There's no one he can't find and no place he can't infiltrate. He'll slip into your chambers silently while you sleep. It'll be useless no matter how deep you hide."

The corners of the listening Demon Supremes' mouths turned up. They wondered how this thief's expression would change if he knew where that 'place' was.

Geom Mugeuk met the threat with one of his own. "Then I guess I'll just have to take care of your father first."

Tae Su was startled for a moment but quickly feigned composure. "You'll never find my father's whereabouts."

"Right, it won't be easy, but it's not impossible either. First, I'll spread a rumor that Tae Gon is the one who has the treasure map to the Grave of Swords. Countless people will rush to find your father." Geom Mugeuk held up the sketch. "I'll use my information network to find out everything about him. I'll even get a similar sketch of his face and circulate it all over the Central Plains."

"!"

"Then when your father, angered by all this, comes looking for you, I can easily take care of him."

Geom Mugeuk's threat was specific and detailed, and it landed its mark. When Tae Su could offer no rebuttal, he withdrew the sword.

"Didn't I tell you to eat? Your head isn't working because you're hungry, so you resort to such clumsy threats. This isn't the time for threats. It's the time to make a deal. You should be asking me what I'll give you if you tell me the location of the treasure."

After a moment of thought, Tae Su asked, "What will you give me?"

"That depends on what's there."

"How can I trust that you'll let me live once we get there?"

Geom Mugeuk chuckled. "I believe that a man who dreams of becoming the greatest thief of his generation shouldn't only know how to steal objects."

Tae Su flinched. The words struck him with the force of a physical blow, for they were the exact words his father so often told him, repeated without a single letter changed.

"To become the greatest thief, you must also know how to steal hearts."

"!"

A look of pure shock flashed across Tae Su's face.

Is it a coincidence?

However, it was no coincidence. In his life before returning, Geom Mugeuk had heard those words directly from Tae Gon himself. The person he had met all those years ago in the Grave of Swords was none other than Tae Su's father.

"So," Geom Mugeuk said, "try to steal my heart on the way there."