Chronicles of the Mad Demon - Chapter 272

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 272. Tangled Thread (3)
Creak.
A figure emerged from beyond the open door.
Jong Mu Seok did not lift his head.
Clang. Clang.
The iron chains binding his wrists and ankles fell away completely.
“Rise.”
Only then did Jong Mu Seok lift his head.
Young Ho Gyeong stood before him.
“Today is when we expose the Elder who committed corruption. You’ve lost track of time locked away in solitary confinement, haven’t you?”
“….”
“Can you stand?”
Jong Mu Seok’s lips twitched.
“Are you actually concerned about me, you wretched fool?”
“I’m only interested in the information that comes from your mouth.”
“…Arrogant bastard.”
Once Jong Mu Seok was certain Young Ho Gyeong would not release him, he abandoned even the minimum respect for him.
“As they say, fortune and misfortune are intertwined. You may find me laughable now, but one day you’ll share my fate. Or perhaps you’ll meet an even more wretched end, cast into the field as a corpse to rot.”
“What are you suggesting?”
“Crows and wild dogs will descend upon your body and leave nothing behind. Will your end truly differ from those criminals you’ve sent to their deaths? Not in the slightest. You will absolutely….”
“How pitiful.”
“What?!”
Young Ho Gyeong spoke without changing his expression.
“A person with such fragile mental fortitude that you can only maintain your sanity by cursing at others.”
“…!”
“A soulless being who cannot find answers within yourself and always seeks them from others. A social misfit who endlessly searches for your reason to exist through violence against others.”
“You, you bastard!”
“You truly are a pitiful person.”
Jong Mu Seok’s face drained of all color.
Even if he’d been cursed at and had his limbs torn from his body, it wouldn’t hurt like this.
And yet, even in this anguish, he felt the sincerity behind the words with piercing clarity. This damned junior genuinely pitied him, and that pity-laden speech carved into his chest far more sharply than any blade wielded by countless enemies.
“This bastard… how dare you….”
“Do you still believe someone will save you?”
“…?!”
“Will Elder Jeon Chil Sung save you? Or will someone from the Black Faction, who controls you like a puppet in the shadows, come to your rescue?”
“…!!”
Blood vessels bulged in Jong Mu Seok’s eyes.
‘How does he know?!’
Jeon Chil Sung was understandable—he belonged to the Blue Faction and had even visited recently.
But he never expected the words “Black Faction” to come from this man’s mouth.
“You don’t understand your own position. Right now, you are the Law Enforcement Hall’s greatest criminal, and there is no one who will pull you out of this mire. There are only those who wish to use you.”
“….”
“You are finished. Choices? There are none. If I must speak of choices at all, you have only two: a less miserable end or a more miserable one.”
Young Ho Gyeong shook his head.
“In some ways, I have lived much like you. I too sought the reason for my existence in others. The difference is that you maintained yourself through violence, while I did so through cowardice.”
“….”
“Now I seek the reason for my existence within myself. I was fortunate. But you were not.”
Jong Mu Seok, who had been glaring at Young Ho Gyeong with trembling eyes, spoke in a voice drained of all strength.
“Is there truly no path to survival for me?”
“You may preserve your life for now. But if you wish for a life in the Jianghu, a life as an ordinary person, then you would do well to abandon that hope.”
“….”
“Rise. If you lack the strength, the members will drag you out.”
Jong Mu Seok, gritting his teeth, slowly rose from his seat.
His body still possessed strength, yet his head spun and his neck felt stiff.
‘I am finished? Me, Jong Mu Seok?’
That could not be.
Surely I made a deal with Jeon Chil Sung. He said he could help me somehow. Though it took the form of a transaction, precisely because of that, Jeon Chil Sung would preserve my life.
But why then?
I cannot shake the feeling that I will never escape this place.
Is it because my resolve has weakened?
Or perhaps… did I know from the start that it was a lie, yet still wish to grasp at even a single thread of hope?
Young Ho Gyeong, who had been watching Jong Mu Seok intently, spoke as if tossing the words aside.
“Is that how you wish to live?”
“….”
“You destroyed the lives of countless innocent people with your own hands, yet you desire a peaceful existence for yourself, burdened with such guilt?”
“…Stop.”
Jong Mu Seok clenched his teeth.
“That’s enough. I don’t wish to speak with you any longer.”
His aura, once formidable, had crumbled.
In that brief moment, he seemed to have aged a decade. His body appeared utterly devoid of strength.
For someone as proud as Jong Mu Seok to show such a state was rare indeed. Young Ho Gyeong understood that his opponent had truly relinquished much.
“Go.”
As Young Ho Gyeong led the way, two members entered the Solitary Confinement Cell.
They did not escort Jong Mu Seok, but rather watched from behind to ensure he attempted nothing foolish.
Thus the four of them departed from the cell.
As they walked in silence, Young Ho Gyeong spoke without even turning his head.
“Yul Baek?”
“…You know everything.”
“Even if you free him, Jeon Chil Sung will not spare your life.”
“Stop.”
“But if you wish to prolong your miserable existence, there is another way.”
In that instant, Jong Mu Seok’s eyes widened.
“Are you proposing a deal with me now?”
“Deals are made between people who need something from each other. I need nothing from you.”
“Then why speak of alternatives at all?”
“Not for your sake, nor for mine. I propose this solely so that others like you do not emerge, for the future of the Martial Alliance. Of course….”
Young Ho Gyeong glanced back briefly.
“You are free to refuse the proposal. It matters little to me.”
“….”
“Consider it gratitude for providing the means by which I became what I am now.”
Was he mocking me to the very end, pretending to be superior?
Half a quarter hour ago, Jong Mu Seok would have said exactly that.
But he could not now. Though he despised admitting it, even he could see that Young Ho Gyeong was no longer the timid, incompetent figurehead of before.
As Jong Mu Seok began to contemplate, Young Ho Gyeong added one more thing.
“Let me tell you something intriguing.”
“…?”
“The moment you were confined to the Law Enforcement Hall, the masters under the Blue Faction’s Elder systematically eliminated all your connections and subordinates.”
“…!!”
Jong Mu Seok’s face twisted violently.
‘That son of a bitch Jeon Chil Sung!’
And yet the bastard had the audacity to speak of giving him a chance?
‘I knew how ruthless and merciless you were, but!’
And still he had brazenly come to him, inducing him to expose the corruption of other factions’ elders.
From Jong Mu Seok’s lips came a voice that had grown terrifyingly cold.
“Is that the truth?”
Young Ho Gyeong walked on without answering.
That very silence revealed the truth. To Jong Mu Seok’s eyes, Young Ho Gyeong seemed to want nothing at all.
He stopped.
Jong Mu Seok halted his steps.
“What do you want from me?”
He had asked this question before, hoping to hear that Young Ho Gyeong wanted something—anything—that might secure his release from this place.
But circumstances had changed now.
Jong Mu Seok was consumed not by the desire for survival, but by rage toward Jeon Chil Sung.
Young Ho Gyeong spoke curtly.
“If one opens a golden box only to find a single jewel inside, those who discover it will surely be disappointed.”
Jong Mu Seok’s lips trembled.
“Reveal everything I know?”
“Is there anything else you imagine I would want from you?”
“If I accept your proposal, what do I gain?”
“A less miserable end.”
“Answer me straight! What can you possibly offer me?!”
Young Ho Gyeong turned to look at Jong Mu Seok.
“Life imprisonment without parole.”
“…Is that all you have?”
“If you refuse my proposal, you would have faced the torments of Hell without even losing your mind, suffering until your final breath.”
“…!!”
“Your head would have been severed and displayed as a warning, while your corpse would have become carrion for the beasts dwelling in the wild mountains.”
It was a chilling statement.
Young Ho Gyeong gazed at Jong Mu Seok in silence before exhaling a long sigh.
“Everything I’ve said until now—that was the fate I desired for you.”
“What?”
“It seems the Alliance Leader may not be aware of this situation?”
“…?!”
“The Alliance Leader said this: while ruling through the severity of the Law Enforcement Hall is indeed the best course, has it not been the way of the Orthodox Sect to show mercy even to countless criminals of the past?”
Jong Mu Seok’s mouth fell slightly open.
“The Alliance Leader… is saying he will reduce my sentence?”
“If you testify to everything you know, he promises five years of imprisonment with your Internal Energy sealed.”
Jong Mu Seok was taken aback.
Five years of imprisonment could certainly be called lengthy, but compared to life imprisonment without parole, it was truly a tremendous reduction.
Most crucially, after those five years passed, he could be released and begin anew. There was hope for a new life.
“You’re saying the Alliance Leader truly promised this?!”
“I am.”
“Show me proof!”
Young Ho Gyeong let out a bitter smile.
“The Commander anticipated you would react this way.”
He withdrew a neatly folded document from his robes and handed it to Jong Mu Seok.
As Jong Mu Seok received and unfolded the document, his eyes trembled as though struck by an earthquake.
The document stated that if Jong Mu Seok testified to everything, his sentence would be reduced to five years of imprisonment. Moreover, at the bottom of the document was the Alliance Leader’s official seal.
‘It’s real!’
It was the Alliance Leader’s handwriting, and the seal that only the Alliance Leader could use was stamped upon it.
Young Ho Gyeong spoke matter-of-factly.
“Personally, I hope you live out your days as a puppet.”
“That would be fitting. Once I complete my imprisonment and leave, you’ll have to fear my blade from that moment forward.”
“That won’t happen. You cannot rejoin the Martial Alliance, and if by any chance you kill me, the new life you’ve regained will plunge into the abyss of Hell.”
“….”
“It is an ‘official’ order from the Alliance Leader. You cannot seek any revenge whatsoever. The moment you do, you will die a miserable death on charges equivalent to treason.”
Jong Mu Seok smiled bitterly.
The moment he abandoned everything, a rope as sturdy as heaven itself descended.
He no longer wished to think in complicated ways, nor could he afford to. His entire life hung on this single opportunity.
“Where should I make my confession?”
“The Law Enforcement Hall’s Inner Courtyard Plaza.”
“Lead the way.”
The mere prospect of living a new life transformed one’s demeanor.
Young Ho Gyeong moved forward with a bitter smile playing at his lips.
And he thought to himself: he would never live like Jong Mu Seok.
‘Better to die as a true warrior, cut down by the blade.’
What a hideously wretched existence it had been.
* * *
“The Law Enforcement Hall Plaza?”
“Indeed.”
“You’re going to make your move there?”
“Indeed.”
“Why? Jeon Chil Sung clearly….”
“Because of Yi Ja Gyun’s sudden actions. Moreover, Elder Jeon Chil Sung believes the Alliance Leader is watching his back.”
“…No, that’s not quite right. He’s not just believing his back is covered—this entire situation must be a test of the Alliance Leader himself.”
“Regardless, the matter will unfold.”
“You go back at once and relay my orders to the assassins under your command.”
Ya Hon was greatly startled by Moyong Bi’s words.
“Truly?”
“Test me. See whether I am truly worthy of your trust and allegiance.”
“….”
“There is no time. Go!”
Whoosh!
Ya Hon’s silhouette vanished.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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