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Chapter 191
The very first thing they did was take Ma Cheon away under the pretense that they could cure his terminal illness—an illness that had left him waiting only for death.
Despite having a more gifted constitution than anyone else, the mere idea that his dying younger brother could be saved made both Cheon Ryeong and Hwa Ryeong cling to hope.
Not knowing it was actually a human experiment involving biological enhancement.
The Council of Elders implanted some artifact they had obtained during an expedition into Ma Cheon's body.
As a result, Ma Cheon became a slaughtering weapon, crazed by blood, unable to distinguish between friend and foe, obeying only the Council’s orders.
Hwa Ryeong despaired over losing even her brother, but Cheon Ryeong continued to believe the lie—that Ma Cheon could regain consciousness, and that if he just kept obeying the Elders, his brother could be cured completely.
“At first, it was just a simple mission. But I later realized that what seemed like a trivial task was actually something filthy and horrifying behind the scenes.”
Yeah, those kinds of missions exist.
They look harmless on the surface, but they end up snowballing into something terrible.
Naturally, unlike Cheon Ryeong, who had lost all rational thought over Ma Cheon's potential recovery, Hwa Ryeong quickly realized things were going wrong.
So, she searched for someone who could help the siblings.
But the Council of Elders had her dancing in the palm of their hand the whole time.
“I never told my brother, but I’ve had good instincts since I was a child. Under the pretext of performing enhancement procedures on our bodies, they implanted something inside both me and my brother.”
Ah.
So if they don’t obey, it causes internal pain?
If that thing is still inside them, then neither of them can be truly free.
I briefly closed my eyes and opened them again.
Then, as spirit mana and elemental mana infused my sight, I looked inside her.
It wasn’t perfectly clear, but I could see something sticky with mana attached to her heart.
“Ah. I can see it.”
Surprised by the violet glow flickering in my eyes, Hwa Ryeong took a step back.
“Y-you can see it, my lord?”
“Not in detail, but I can see a clump of sticky mana.”
That must be why they can’t defy the Council’s orders.
But this doesn’t look like something that can be removed easily.
“And how exactly do you expect me to help? How do you know whether I’m capable of removing that thing or not?”
“You are one with extraordinary skill in handling internal energy. In other words, even with a lack of innate energy, you can make up for it with pure talent and artistry.”
Ah.
So that’s why she sought someone with talent?
“What’s implanted inside me and my brother can only be affected by internal energy from those among the young who possess especially high aptitude in internal energy. It’s an extremely rare kind of parasite.”
True, the aura of the young is different from that of seasoned warriors.
The conditions she put forth would indeed be hard for most people to meet.
“But that alone won’t be enough, so I offer you this in exchange.”
She took out a small wooden box from within her wide sleeve and showed it to me.
Inside was a small pill.
“This… is this perhaps the famed elixir from the Eastern Continent?”
“It is a miraculous elixir created from an energy pill obtained after hundreds of years of devotion from one of the most esteemed spiritual beasts in the East. My father spent years crafting it—it’s a Great Heavenly Pill. Only two such elixirs have ever been made in the entire history of our clan.”
At that level, it’s practically priceless.
She carefully handed it over to me.
“Great Heavenly Pill drastically increases one's sensitivity to internal energy.”
Which, in other words, means that if someone talented consumes it, the effects could amplify exponentially, allowing them to surpass their current level in an instant.
Naturally, consuming such an elixir would also grant immense aura.
For those who refine their martial power, this item would be worth more than gold.
“Please, I beg you. Only you can save me and my brother…”
At this point, I was genuinely curious.
“Why haven’t you done it yourself? Aren’t you both mid-level Experts?”
Mid-level Expert.
That level alone is beyond imagination.
Even if they’re older than me, they’re still young.
“With my abilities, it’s impossible.”
She needed someone even more talented than themselves—someone who could oppose the forces of her clan and Coral, someone who was their enemy.
Damn, what a ridiculously hard person to find.
“If this still isn’t enough... I will even offer myself as your concub—”
BOOM!
Luna’s fist shot out like lightning and smashed a nearby object.
“Flirt with Leon one more time and you're dead. Seriously. Just dead.”
“Hhic!”
Startled, Hwa Ryeong flinched and backed away, but I fell into thought.
So she wants to feed me this elixir, and then have me remove the thing stuck to their hearts.
And after that, she wants me to accept their defection to Bata as well.
It’s a decent plan, but there are gaps all over the place.
And I wasn’t the only one who noticed.
Melissa also asked with a wary expression.
“After telling us all this, how exactly did you plan to temporarily escape their control? It usually takes quite some time to remove something like that—even if you have the elixir.”
“If you found a safe way to escape, I planned to reestablish contact by entering your household under the guise of becoming your concubine.”
At her words, Luna crushed the apple in her hand without a second’s hesitation, and Hwa Ryeong flinched again under the pressure.
Even so, she didn’t stop speaking.
“And my brother was going to leave temporarily as my guardian under that pretense.”
While not formally married, it’s not uncommon in the East for someone to take in a concubine first and formally wed later.
They were going to buy time like that, then use that opening to remove the thing suppressing them and defect.
At this point, Sichuan was already a place with nothing left for them to protect.
“Then what about Ma Cheon? You know he’s already dead, but your brother still believes he’s alive, right?”
Isn’t that the very reason Cheon Ryeong is still following the Council?
“Cheon’s body is strong, but I’ve watched it for a long time. As his sister, I’ve figured out a way to destroy his body. It’s something I shouldn’t do, but I can’t let his corpse be desecrated any longer.”
So his remains won’t be used any further by those people.
Her plan was simple.
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By providing us this information, she hoped we’d delay our schedule and give Bata time to send reinforcements.
Once Bata’s forces arrived, the Council wouldn’t be able to act recklessly.
Time was on our side.
On their side, they had to wait—at least officially.
Even if they had two sword masters, they were still called strategic weapons, not invincible beings.
After that, if things went well here—
She’d return under the excuse of searching for something belonging to the Sichuan Clan.
But that was just her plan—it didn’t align with mine.
“We’re proceeding with the rift exploration. Let them do as they please.”
“What?! What do you mean…?”
“And as for your proposal, I’ll put it on hold for now.”
Simply allowing the two siblings to defect wouldn’t solve the problem.
I stood up from my seat, stepped out of the tent, and activated the communication artifact.
“Your Highness, I have something to report.”
– Ah, Lord Leon. I’ve been waiting to hear from you. How did it go?
Although I’d been given full authority, I still had to report since war was imminent.
* * *
Everything that happened here, the developments to come, and even Hwa Ryeong’s proposal—
After reporting everything, there was a silence from the other side of the artifact.
“If you give the order, I’ll respond accordingly.”
– Coral has already finished preparations for war with Bata. I’ve received reports that Coral’s troops are moving toward the border. No matter how this ends... war is inevitable.
“What shall we do?”
– How far can you go?
In response to her question, I calmly answered with the truth.
[Recovery of the memory of the Sixth Hall is prepared…]
‘Ah, hold on, I’m in the middle of a conversation. Just because my body’s fine doesn’t mean it’s easy—every time I recover a memory, it feels like my lifespan gets slashed.’
Recovering a memory was a good call, but rushing into it blindly was not.
Despite my words, the Librarian’s message continued to appear.
[Your information access authority has been upgraded. As such, future memories of the Halls will no longer be linear—you now have a wider selection to choose from.]
[Your information authority will increase little by little each time you deal with the Red Moon.]
That’s good news.
No need to receive memories like it’s a random gacha pull anymore—if I have options, I can choose what’s necessary.
“So, what’s available right now?”
[The Hall of Spirits.]
“Pass.”
That power wasn’t needed at the moment.
“My top priority is to follow my sister’s opinion, but the Cascadia family has always been loyal to the royal house of Bata. If you give the command, I’ll flip the table for you.”
Eventually, it seemed the princess of Bata made her decision, and her voice came through.
– Avoiding war is the best outcome.
“That’s true.”
– But if they come at us with any kind of pretext and insist on war... then we will be ready. Lord, please don’t retreat unless it’s to avoid injury. Especially, we must do everything we can to prevent them from getting their hands on the Dragon Knights.
If that’s your will.
It seemed Princess Bata would accept the siblings’ defection.
– From now on, do as you see fit.
The best kind of request had been granted.
After finishing the communication, I returned to the tent and spoke to Luna.
“What about Hwa Ryeong?”
“She left. Said staying away too long would raise suspicion.”
“Fair enough.”
“Honestly, those two siblings... they remind me a bit of us.”
“You think so?”
I’d thought the same.
They weren’t evil by nature.
Two people left behind in their family, while their relatives fed on the family’s power.
The only difference between them and us was whether we had power or not.
Looking at it now, maybe they were just the unlucky members of the Cascadia family.
Maybe that’s why I felt a bit more concerned.
“Once the exploration starts, they plan to control the rift and activate penalties.”
“Of course.”
But I had no intention of letting them do that.
If penalties were the problem, then all I had to do was block the entrance so nothing could happen in the first place.
Besides, it looked like the dungeon could still be conquered with just five of us, including Melissa.
“Also, they clearly intend to eliminate anyone who might notice problems occurring from the outside.”
“That’s your job to handle, right?”
“It’s not hard.”
Then we’re good.
They think Luna and I are both going into the dungeon.
But that would just be a waste of firepower.
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