Chapter 207 - I Intend to Return His Respect

When I entered the Wicked Laughing Demon's room, I saw the long line drawn across the wall. He sat with his back to it, looking at the opposite wall.

“I definitely prefer the color of this wall.”

At my joke, the Wicked Laughing Demon turned toward me. Our eyes met through the holes in his mask. Who would have thought I would see delight at my arrival in those eyes?

Though we communicated only through the looks in his eyes behind the mask, the understanding we shared ran deeper than with anyone else.

“You've changed your mask.”

“You noticed at once, Second Young Master, just as I expected.”

The reason for the change was unexpected.

“Blue Face made several masks and brought them to me. As he handed them over, he told me he wanted to live a new life now. He said he was going to Pretty Heart.”

Blue Face had finally accepted the position of First Team Leader of the Ghost Shadow Squad.

“So did you cut off his arm?”

He had once said he would sooner cut off an arm before sending Blue Face away than simply let him go.

“I didn't.”

“Why not?”

“Didn't you insist I tell you before cutting it off? But you were away from the Cult, so I couldn't do it.”

How could that have been the real reason? He had let Blue Face go so he could live the life he wanted.

Well done, Laughing Demon. If things had continued as they were, Blue Face would never have become a Demon Supreme and would have lived unhappily into old age.

“You're admirable.”

“Do you really think so?”

“Yes. I sincerely do.”

“Now that you've praised me like that, I suppose I can't cut his arm off in the future, either.”

His eyes were smiling behind the mask. At least with me, he was the Laughing Demon, not the Wicked Demon.

“I heard you left the Cult with the Fist Demon.”

“I went out to slack off and came back as his disciple.”

At the news that I had become the Fist Demon's disciple, he sprang to his feet.

“Then you'll be even better at fighting now!”

He had no interest in whether the Fist Demon was my master. What excited him was that I had grown stronger.

“Yes, I've grown a little stronger!”

He was also the person I felt most comfortable saying such things to. Just as Father and the Fist Demon had traveled together in their youth, so it was with the Wicked Laughing Demon and me.

“Laughing Demon, I have a favor to ask.”

Inwardly, I was nervous. How would he take my request?

“I want to kill Yelü Han of the Unorthodox Alliance. To do that, I need Father's permission. Please persuade him.”

The Wicked Laughing Demon answered without hesitation.

“I will.”

He asked nothing—neither why I had to kill the man nor how I intended to do it.

His attitude, as though he would have agreed to anything I asked, made emotion well up inside me.

The one person in this world who would grant my request simply because it was mine.

I was happy. It had been so long since I had felt such pure joy. I was so happy I wanted to jump up and down.

“Thank you. Truly.”

Even though I understood the other Demon Supremes' refusals, some corner of my heart must have felt hurt. Why else would I feel this good?

I hadn't expected you to agree so readily.

I almost said it, but stopped. Somehow, no words seemed capable of expressing my gratitude.

Instead, I expressed it another way.

“If I get permission, please help me then, too.”

Come on, Laughing Demon. Let's go fight another glorious battle together. That's all I can do for you. And... thank you, truly.

Seeing the fervor in my eyes, the Wicked Laughing Demon laughed happily.

“Gladly.”

And the more dangerous our battle, the more it would set his blood boiling.

“Who has agreed so far?”

“You're the only one who has explicitly promised to persuade Father.”

“Am I number one?”

“Yes. You're the first.”

Neither the Blood Heaven Saber Demon nor the Fist Demon had actually said they would persuade him yet. Of course, the Blood Heaven Saber Demon would step forward. So would the Fist Demon. That made three Demon Supremes whose help I could count on.

“That makes me oddly happy.”

“Thank you for being my first.”

I looked at the long line drawn across the opposite wall. His gaze followed mine.

I hope you keep that wall for a long time.

I didn't say that, either. Even without words, I knew he felt the same.

When I became the Heavenly Demon, I intended to take that wall out and hang it in Heavenly Demon Hall.

* * *

When I went to see the Fist Demon, he was standing beneath the cliff.

I stood beside him. Had the cliff begun to look different to him now that he had returned from our journey?

“The Wicked Laughing Demon said he would speak up for me.”

The Fist Demon looked at me in surprise.

“The Laughing Demon did?”

He seemed surprised that it was the Wicked Laughing Demon, of all people.

“Are you two close?”

“We are.”

“He's not an easy man to befriend.”

“By that standard, are you any easier, Master?”

I looked up at the cliff and continued.

“You're trying to bring this cliff down with a single blow.”

His gaze followed mine up the cliff. But the wall we were looking at now was not this cliff. It was a far higher, more solid wall.

“The cult leader won't allow this. Saving those young people may matter to you, but it means nothing to him. To be frank, I feel the same. The other Demon Supremes likely do, too.”

I understood Father and the Demon Supremes. That was who they had always been. Even the changes they had shown so far were enough to make them seem like different people.

Yet I kept striving for change because I believed that only by changing ourselves could we change our martial arts—and our fate. If I simply passed everything by as I had in my previous life...

That person doesn't matter to me. This has nothing to do with me. If I lived my life passing everything by with those excuses, as I had before my regression... I feared we would once again be swept away by Hwa Mugi when he appeared like fate itself.

Just as you cannot bring this cliff down unless you change as a person, Master.

“As we discussed on the snowy mountain, the cult leader dreams of unifying Murim. If you kill Yelü Han, you'll introduce a variable into his grand design. He won't readily give permission.”

“Then all the more reason to introduce that variable. I fully intend to stop Father from unifying Murim, whatever else happens.”

I was resolute, and the Fist Demon silently studied my stubbornness.

“Will you persuade Father for me, Master?”

He pondered one last time. Why wouldn't he, too, wish to avoid a clash with Father? No, precisely because he was the Fist Demon, that desire would be strongest of all.

At last, he nodded.

“I will.”

“Thank you, Master.”

This is why I chose you as my master. Because you're a man who won't back down, even when it's hard.

Though I hadn't received an answer from the Blood Heaven Saber Demon, I would not visit him again to confirm it. I was certain he would help me.

And my certainty proved well founded. The first person to go see Father was the Blood Heaven Saber Demon.

* * *

The Blood Heaven Saber Demon walked along the Path of Blood and stopped below the grand chair.

“It has been a long time.”

In response to his respectful greeting, the Heavenly Demon, Geom Ujin, said,

“Are you firing the opening shot?”

Geom Ujin had already guessed why he had come.

“What can I do? A young man wants to accomplish something great. The least this old man can do is lend his voice.”

“When a young fool is about to recklessly cause trouble, shouldn't we elders stop him?”

“Indeed. Looking back on our youth, we were terribly immature. Yet when you think about it, were we ever as passionate as we were then?”

“Have you no passion now?”

“If these remnants of a fire count as passion, then I do.”

Their exchange was calm, but Heavenly Demon Hall was filled with tension.

Geom Ujin rose from the grand chair and slowly descended the steps.

“Shall we take a walk?”

“Gladly.”

Geom Ujin walked down the Path of Blood with the Blood Heaven Saber Demon and left the hall. Together, they strolled through its forecourt.

“He asked me right there, in the middle of the main training ground, to permit him to kill Yelü Han. It wasn't a request. It was a declaration.”

In a somewhat more relaxed tone, the Blood Heaven Saber Demon asked,

“Children are a curse, aren't they?”

A smile that Geom Mugeuk never got to see appeared on Geom Ujin's lips.

“You ought to experience it yourself. What a shame.”

“That is the one respect in which I'm happier than you, my lord. Don't say such things, even in jest.”

There had been a time when the two of them spoke even more freely than this. Had he known the years would pass so quickly, he would have spent more time with the cult leader. The Blood Heaven Saber Demon felt a fresh pang of regret. What had he done with all that time?

“I might have expected it of the other Demon Supremes, but I never imagined you would become so taken with him. What do you like so much about him that he won you over?”

“I've asked myself that many times, but this is the only answer I can give you. Your son has a peculiar charm.”

“A peculiar charm.”

This time, the Blood Heaven Saber Demon spoke.

“Have you not felt it? I would think you have, too.”

“I called it cheap sentimentality—the sort that gets you killed.”

Geom Ujin did not mention that his description had since changed from cheap sentimentality to innocent sentimentality.

“I've become utterly taken with that cheap sentimentality.”

A faint smile appeared on the Blood Heaven Saber Demon's lips as well. Though he had come on a sensitive and important matter, he enjoyed this conversation after so long.

“My lord, why not let him win just this once?”

At the gently offered suggestion, Geom Ujin firmly shook his head.

“When Bi Sain becomes leader of the Unorthodox Alliance, Yelü Han will remain a source of trouble for them for years to come. The current leader may even dispose of him before he dies. We have no reason to eliminate him ourselves.”

“But Bi Sain would owe the Second Young Master a great debt for this. We stand to gain as much as we lose.”

“Those of the unorthodox path hold on to grudges, not gratitude.”

“But the Second Young Master will remember. He will remember that his father made a great concession for him.”

With his hands clasped behind his back, Geom Ujin silently gazed across the grounds of the Divine Cult of the Heavenly Demon. The Blood Heaven Saber Demon pressed no further. He had said all he needed to say.

Just then, someone appeared.

It was the Fist Demon, on his way to Heavenly Demon Hall.

“Have you decided to wear me down in successive bouts?”

The Blood Heaven Saber Demon smiled at Geom Ujin's joke.

“I wonder how that big fist was won over.”

Meanwhile, the Fist Demon reached them.

“Have you been well?”

After respectfully greeting Geom Ujin, he greeted the Blood Heaven Saber Demon as well.

“You arrived before me.”

“I thought you would come, too. Oh, and congratulations on taking the Second Young Master as your disciple.”

Geom Ujin interjected.

“Is that cause for congratulations? Condolences would be more fitting.”

The Fist Demon's eyes met Geom Ujin's. Their gazes held a deep trust that only the two of them could feel. That was why this meeting was difficult for the Fist Demon. Fortunately, the Blood Heaven Saber's Demon's presence kept the atmosphere from growing too grave.

“I can more or less guess why you've come. Let's launch a joint attack.”

“I'm not sure a joint attack is a wise choice. The stronger his opponent, the stronger he becomes.”

With an expression that said, And yet you know that!, Geom Ujin asked the Fist Demon,

“Why did he win you over?”

“After spending my whole life never slacking off, I suppose finally doing so made me lose my mind.”

Geom Ujin was not satisfied with that answer.

“Tell me the real reason.”

The Fist Demon thought for a moment, then honestly revealed his feelings. His answer was unexpected.

“I suppose I've been lonely all this time.”

Both Geom Ujin and the Blood Heaven Saber Demon were stunned. They had never imagined hearing the Fist Demon say he was lonely.

“On the final stretch home, we raced using our lightness arts. He was so fast I couldn't catch him. Do you know what I thought as I trudged along alone? I was bored. For the first time in my life, I felt bored.”

Looking at Geom Ujin, he added,

“I suppose that's why he won me over.”

Their eyes met. The Fist Demon cautiously voiced what he had been thinking about all the way here.

“He is my first disciple, and as his master, I want to be of help to him. That is why I've come to commit this impertinence. I apologize, my lord.”

He bowed respectfully in apology. His loyalty to the Heavenly Demon was beyond comparison with any other Demon Supreme's, and Geom Ujin offered no rebuke.

Then Geom Ujin's gaze shifted past the Fist Demon's shoulder.

“Even if I can somehow understand you two, I cannot understand that man at all.”

A man approached them. Wearing a white mask, he was the Wicked Laughing Demon.

He respectfully greeted the Heavenly Demon, then exchanged greetings with the Blood Heaven Saber Demon and the Fist Demon.

Then he said something wholly unexpected.

“I was number one, but you two have cut in front of me.”

They could hardly understand why he had stepped forward in the first place, and now he was even making jokes?

The Blood Heaven Saber Demon spoke for all three men who had arrived before him.

“I suppose getting involved with the Second Young Master drives us all mad like this.”

Geom Ujin asked the Wicked Laughing Demon,

“What on earth is your reason?”

At that question, the Wicked Laughing Demon recalled the moment when the young man had held up his slipping mask. That alone was enough.

Had anyone else asked, he would not have answered. But because it was Geom Ujin, he replied,

“The Second Young Master knows what respect means.”

Not only Geom Ujin, but the Blood Heaven Saber Demon and the Fist Demon were startled. Respect, from the Wicked Laughing Demon's mouth? Since when had he concerned himself with respect?

All three could sense it. The respect the Wicked Demon spoke of was not ordinary etiquette, but something more fundamental: respect for another human being.

“I intend to return the respect the Second Young Master has shown me.”

The Wicked Laughing Demon turned away and removed his mask. He put on a new one he had brought inside his robes, then slowly turned back.

It was not the pure white mask he had worn until now. It was a chilling mask of a grinning evil spirit. Its red-painted eyes were long, narrow slits like a ghost's, and its blood-red mouth curved up to the ears in a smile. This was the Undying Ghost Mask, which the Wicked Laughing Demon wore when going to war.

“Please grant the Second Young Master's request.”

The Wicked Laughing Demon had come here as though marching onto a battlefield. He was prepared for the Heavenly Demon's wrath, prepared even to lose his favor. He had come here today ready to die.

As though to say that persuading the cult leader demanded at least this much, his eyes blazed behind the mask more fiercely than ever.

“This is my first and last request of you.”