Chapter 99 - Hellish Regular Exam, The 'Third' Gate (2)

"I really can't help but be amazed."

Maeng Ju-won burst into admiration while looking at the report on Zhuge Somyeong's office desk.

"..."

Zhuge Somyeong was curious.

Why was it that while most people in the Mantong Bureau were so incredibly busy they couldn't pay attention to anything else, that bastard was slacking off every single time he saw him?

"Chief Strategist. Have you seen this?"

The document Maeng Ju-won held out was a report sent up from the branch holding the Third Gate. Naturally, he hadn't reviewed it yet.

Zhuge Somyeong considered scolding him but shook his head instead.

The fact that the guy was messing around meant he had already done more than his own share of the work.

"What is it?"

"It's a report sent up from the Murim Alliance Southern Peak Branch."

Figures.

For a while now, that guy Maeng Ju-won hadn't been able to turn off his constant interest in Jin Sowoon.

"Is it about Jin Sowoon again?"

"No, it's not. It's a report regarding the incident that occurred on the Puyang Plains."

"Didn't the Cheonmok Pavilion already report on that?"

"It's about the truth behind the incident. Are you not interested?"

"... Bring it here."

Zhuge Somyeong put down the documents he was processing and jumped up from his seat. Was this a report that should have come up this quickly?

The Southern Peak Branch Chief was someone with connections to the Orthodox Council. If it was an important report, he would send it through the Orthodox Council rather than the Mantong Bureau.

He had thought they would only be able to grasp the truth behind the incident after a Murim Alliance investigation team was dispatched, but the report had already arrived.

"As expected, there was a culprit."

"A culprit?"

Zhuge Somyeong, receiving the report from Maeng Ju-won, quickly read through it.

The date and time of the incident, a brief background, and a detailed explanation of the situation that occurred during the actual event—it was a report the likes of which he hadn't seen recently.

"They say a lady named Namgung Seonhwa drafted the report."

If it was Namgung Seonhwa, that made sense. The format of reports used within the Namgung Clan would also be similar to the Murim Alliance's.

"Sorcery utilizing darkness?"

However, the following contents were hard to easily believe.

"Wouldn't this mean our predictions were correct?"

"Hmm..."

He couldn't believe everything based solely on the report. Such absurd stories could often be the result of Dream Soul Incense or hallucinatory symptoms.

"If you look at the end of the report, it says they will send evidence via messenger."

A bizarre corpse with black, hard skin like animal hide and a sword extending from its palm.

It wasn't easy to imagine just by reading the text.

Zhuge Somyeong, who was reading the report, tilted his head.

"But they're sending this evidence to the Mantong Bureau?"

If this were real, and if it were that important, there was no way the Southern Peak Branch Chief would just pass up this opportunity.

If he delivered the evidence he secured to the Mantong Bureau through the Orthodox Council, he could bolster his own status as well as the power of the Orthodox Council.

"Hah, is the sun going to rise in the west?"

It was almost enough to make him suspect they had all taken drugs collectively.

At that moment, Maeng Ju-won shook his head.

"That's not it, Chief Strategist."

"What?"

"If you look closely, doesn't it say our Sowoon offered ten taels of gold?"

He had also let out a chuckle at that part.

The Southern Peak Branch Chief bastard had been dealt a blow by Jin Sowoon.

On the other hand, the act of inserting money into a crucial matter of the Murim Alliance didn't look very good.

"Look carefully. Didn't he say to use the ten taels of gold for the dead and injured from the Puyang Plains?"

"Yes."

"Isn't that all a measure meant for our Mantong Bureau?"

"..."

Zhuge Somyeong stared at Maeng Ju-won as if looking at a drunken man making a scene.

"Ten taels of gold isn't money the Southern Peak Branch Chief can spend privately, is it?"

"Right."

"Then the branch will have to spend the gold at the branch level, and to do that, wouldn't they have to submit a proper report?"

"..."

"If it were me, I would have done exactly this so the information wouldn't leak halfway. Just like Sowoon."

It sounded plausible, but somehow it felt like the interpretation was better than the dream itself.

Anyway, since they were receiving the evidence directly, they could further accelerate their investigation into the culprit.

Truly, the things changing because of Jin Sowoon were more than just one or two.

"Chief Strategist. This doesn't seem to be the time. How about we just bring our Sowoon into the Mantong Bureau?"

The way Maeng Ju-won spoke showed he was genuinely anxious. It was a side of him he had never shown while working.

"What if he gets hurt in the head from suffering at the hands of those ignorant brutes at the Third Gate? And what about after the Third Gate? Will our Sowoon really be okay in that living hell...?"

"Hey."

"Yes? ... Ah! I've done all my work. On top of that, I've also pre-handled tasks you haven't even mentioned yet, Chief Strategist."

"..."

Striking first, Maeng Ju-won smiled brightly as he looked at Zhuge Somyeong.

Zhuge Somyeong tilted his head with a thuggish demeanor.

"Your attitude is incredibly insolent."

"Excuse me?"

* * *

"Brother! I knew you'd come."

Jin Sowoon's group met a familiar face upon entering the Murim Alliance Southern Peak Branch.

"Jaehwa?"

"Yes! It's me, Brother!"

Moyong Jaehwa approached excitedly, as if he had just reunited with a lost brother.

Next, perhaps having grown close while staying at the Taiyi Sect, he also exchanged greetings with The Geum-eun-dong Brothers.

"Hey, do you not see us?"

Startled by Seong Moran's delinquent tone, Moyong Jaehwa spun around.

"Gasp! Sister Moran, Sister Seonhwa?"

"He's lost his discipline just because we haven't seen him for a while."

Namgung Seonhwa and Seong Moran also seemed to be acquainted with Moyong Jaehwa as they teased him, leaving him flustered.

"Um... But."

Moyong Jaehwa carefully spoke while checking the two ladies' expressions.

"Did the two of you fail to pass the First Gate and the Second Gate?"

"Huh?"

"What are you talking about?"

At the two's counter-questions, Moyong Jaehwa looked even more surprised.

"Then are you here to take the Third Gate exam?"

"Of course. What do you take this sister for?"

"Jaehwa, I'm not that weak."

The two spoke as if it were obvious. Moyong Jaehwa's face looked even more dumbfounded.

"Looking like that?"

"..."

The standard exam's Third Gate was decided through a duel format.

Those who had passed the First Gate and the Second Gate would gather, select an opponent to duel, and only the victor would be handed the Third Gate token.

People with enough skill to pass the First Gate and Second Gate had to duel as if facing mortal enemies, yet Namgung Seonhwa and Seong Moran looked exactly like people out on a picnic, which was why he asked.

"W-What do you mean? Jaehwa, this is how I usually look."

"Yes? What do you..."

"Even when you trained with me, I looked like this. Don't you remember?"

Namgung Seonhwa, who rarely lost her smile, had her lips trembling slightly. She approached Moyong Jaehwa and lightly placed a hand on his arm.

At the sudden, overwhelming pain, Moyong Jaehwa let out a scream.

"Aargh!"

"Oh my? What's wrong? Were you hurt somewhere in the First Gate and Second Gate?"

Feeling the pain of his flesh being ripped away, Moyong Jaehwa looked at Namgung Seonhwa with fearful eyes.

"Hey! Do you want to die?"

At that moment, thunder rang out inside Moyong Jaehwa's head.

The one who sent the sound transmission was none other than Seong Moran.

"If you look that surprised, doesn't it make it too obvious?"

Moyong Jaehwa hurriedly bowed his head.

"If you say anything useless, you're getting this."

Seong Moran made a throat-slitting gesture with her thumb from behind Jin Sowoon.

Moyong Jaehwa couldn't understand in the slightest why this was happening, but he thought changing the subject took priority for now.

"B-Brother, you're here to register, right?"

"Huh? Yeah. But why are you sweating so much?"

"Ah, haha. T-That's probably because I met so many welcome faces after such a long time."

The opponent for the Third Gate was decided in a format where those who arrived first selected from those who arrived later. Because of that, Jin Sowoon's group had diligently hurried their steps since morning.

"For that to be the case, a lot of people are already here."

"There were people who came and waited since the day before."

Just as Moyong Jaehwa said, warriors from various sects were clustered together all over the Southern Peak Branch's grand training ground.

Some smaller groups had only three or four people, while larger ones had hundreds gathered together.

"The first to arrive was the Shaolin Sect."

Nearly twenty people with smooth, shaven heads were examining those entering the training ground one by one.

They were searching for suitable opponents.

"What about you? Have you decided?"

"I haven't found a proper person yet either, so I'm waiting."

Seong Moran lightly smacked Moyong Jaehwa on the head.

"Don't nitpick over things like that and just fight anyone. It's all the same anyway."

"Sister, that's why you always... Ah, never mind. Anyway, you know well that the Third Gate requires a fiercer battle of wits than ever before, right?"

"But isn't that the Wudang Sect over there?"

The martial robes of those gathered in front of the registration desk universally bore the white clouds symbolizing the Wudang Sect.

"Wudang usually went to Shaanxi Province a lot. What's going on?"

"That's what I'm saying. Even without them, the competition in Hubei Province is always fierce because of the Shaolin Sect, but now Wudang has joined in too."

There were a total of five people who appeared to be examinees. Their quality looked different from the other examinees.

"Oh? Have they already chosen their opponents?"

"That's strange. It's still the first day, so not all the examinees have even arrived yet."

The Wudang Sect disciples began to leave the grand training ground in unison.

"Young Master Jin, Young Master Jin!"

Seong Moran hurriedly called out to Jin Sowoon.

"What is it?"

"Lower your eyes."

"Excuse me?"

"Your eyes look a bit rebellious, Young Master Jin, so you might touch Wudang's nerves."

"..."

"For the Third Gate, fighting someone weaker than yourself is absolutely the best."

"..."

At that moment, the young man standing at the very front of the Wudang Sect abruptly stopped walking and looked at Jin Sowoon's group.

Startled by their sudden action, Geumpyo and Moyong Jaehwa, who had been staring at them blankly, jumped in surprise.

"W-What is it?"

"Are they trying to come back in?"

"Could they be acquainted with Sister Namgung Seonhwa or Sister Seong Moran?"

Geumpyo looked at the two women, but they merely shook their heads slightly.

The young man, who had approached near Jin Sowoon's group, looked around before fixing his gaze on Jin Sowoon.

"You must be Jin Sowoon."

"..."

"I am Hyeonsu of Wudang."

Jin Sowoon was also in a situation where he had absolutely no idea why Hyeonsu of Wudang was suddenly calling him.

"I am Hyeonjeong's senior brother."

"Is that so?"

When Jin Sowoon replied apathetically, Hyeonsu's eyebrows twitched slightly.

"Hyeonjeong moved out with Yeon Umun of Mount Hua, saying he would catch you."

Along with Hyeonsu, the other examinees who appeared to be his junior brothers quietly approached his side.

They were all radiating a momentum akin to dragons.

"Yet I have lost contact with my junior brother, and you have arrived here."

"And?"

Hyeonsu's eyebrows twitched once more.

"... I wish to know what happened."

Jin Sowoon tilted his head and asked.

"Were you not taught that you must show courtesy when you want something from someone?"

The faces of the Wudang Sect disciples, including Hyeonsu, hardened stiffly.

"Did you think the other party would answer with goodwill even when you spit out informal speech the very first time you meet?"

"... Hyeonjeong is like a blood brother to me."

"Then you should have asked more politely. How could you so rudely ask about the whereabouts of a guy who came to kill me?"

With every word Jin Sowoon spoke, The Geum-eun-dong Brothers stealthily distanced themselves from his side.

Namgung Seonhwa and Seong Moran also stealthily backed away, seemingly unable to adapt at all. On the other hand, only Moyong Jaehwa moved closer to fill the empty space.

"We can't communicate."

At Hyeonsu's sigh, the other disciples glared fiercely.

However, they didn't exactly resort to violence like the people outside the branch.

"In the end, you will have no choice but to speak."

With those final words, the Wudang Sect disciples, including Hyeonsu, left the grand training ground.

Seong Moran, who had been tense, let out a long sigh.

"Seriously, what is wrong with you? I told you just a moment ago. Are you that itching for a fight?"

"No. In fact, I don't want to fight."

"Then why are you acting like this?"

"If I don't act like this, won't they treat my junior siblings and the Taiyi Sect disciples this way in the future? If so, it's better that I fight instead."

"..."

At Jin Sowoon's words, Seong Moran looked at him with a strange gleam in her eyes.

"Now, let's hurry up and register."

"Y-Yes."

The area in front of the registration desk was quiet.

Not many examinees had arrived at the branch yet, and there were also cases where they intentionally delayed their registration time to engage in a fierce battle of wits.

After Jin Sowoon's group all finished registering, Jin Sowoon spoke to the scholar member.

"I will select my opponent after seeing the people who come in."

"Hmm?"

The scholar member flipped through the documents and shook his head.

"The opponents for the Taiyi Sect examinees have all already been decided."

"Excuse me?"

"I mean there are people who already registered and left the moment you entered the branch."

"What do you... We just..."

Eunho couldn't finish his sentence.

"Who is it?"

At Jin Sowoon's question, the scholar member turned the document around and showed it to Jin Sowoon's group.

"What is this..."