Ice Dragon of Namgung - Chapter 79

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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 79
Namgung Geom!
If you wish to save Namgung Min, come to Palgong Mountain alone.
If you do not come, or if you bring others with you, I will kill Namgung Min.
That was what the letter said.
No name was written on it to show who had sent it.
But reading the contents, one name sprang immediately to mind.
“Heuksalmunju!”
It had to be him.
“Heuksalmunju?”
Namgung Kwon, standing beside him, asked in bewilderment.
Namgung Geom showed the letter to Namgung Kwon.
As Namgung Kwon read it, his expression hardened.
“It’s a trap.”
Heuksalmunju was using Namgung Min’s life as bait to lure Namgung Geom to his death.
Going to Palgong Mountain alone would be courting death.
Any man of sense would see that plainly enough.
Namgung Geom understood this well.
And yet he could not simply ignore Namgung Min’s life.
“If I do not go, Namgung Min will die.”
Heuksalmunju’s threat to kill Namgung Min was no mere bluff.
He was perfectly capable of doing it.
“So you mean to go to Palgong Mountain alone?”
“Namgung Min was taken captive by Heuksalmunju because of me, and his life is in peril because of me.”
Namgung Min had done nothing wrong.
He had been abducted solely because of Namgung Geom.
“If I turn a blind eye to that for the sake of my own safety, who in the Namgung Clan would trust and follow me?”
Namgung Geom wished to become the Household Head of the Namgung Clan.
A Household Head must protect the warriors of his clan, even at the risk of his own life.
If he ignored Namgung Min and thought only of his own safety, what warrior would trust and follow him?
Setting such reasons aside, Namgung Geom could not allow Namgung Min to die.
He knew that if Namgung Min died because he had not gone to Palgong Mountain, the guilt would haunt him for the rest of his life.
“The warriors of the clan will not wish to see their crown prince fall into a trap and perish.”
But Namgung Geom would not yield, even to Namgung Kwon’s words.
“Since this trouble has arisen because of me, I will go and bring Min back.”
“Absolutely not. I apologize to the Branch Head, but the crown prince’s safety must take precedence over Namgung Min’s life.”
At Namgung Kwon’s words, Namgung Yeol’s eyes flickered with conflict.
“So you say it matters nothing to you if my son dies?”
“I do not deny the Branch Head’s feelings, but I cannot send the crown prince into a trap we can all see.”
“Then am I to simply stand by and watch my son die?”
How could Namgung Yeol not see that it was a trap?
He knew too that Namgung Geom would very likely perish if he went to Palgong Mountain.
For the sake of the Namgung Clan, it would be right to surrender Namgung Min and preserve Namgung Geom.
But Namgung Yeol was a father before he was a Branch Head.
He could not allow his son, Namgung Min, to die like this.
He wanted to save him, by any means.
Even if it meant Namgung Geom would be put in danger.
“There is no guarantee that if the crown prince goes, he will save the Branch Head’s son. Rather, it is likely that the crown prince too will come to ruin.”
Realistically, Namgung Geom had almost no chance of defeating Heuksalmunju alone.
If Namgung Geom went to Palgong Mountain, he would likely not survive.
And if Namgung Geom died, Namgung Min would not long survive either.
Heuksalmunju was not the sort to release Namgung Min gently once Namgung Geom had come.
Namgung Yeol found it difficult to speak.
He too knew well that Namgung Geom would struggle to survive against Heuksalmunju.
And he did not fail to see that if Namgung Geom died, Namgung Min would not live either.
If his own stubbornness led to Namgung Geom’s death, he would commit an unforgivable sin against the clan.
“There is no need for you both to quarrel. I have already made my decision to go to Palgong Mountain.”
“Have you already forgotten my words to prioritize your own safety above all else?”
Namgung Kwon rebuked Namgung Geom in an angry voice.
“Do not worry. I have no intention of dying in this lovely youth of mine.”
“Are you jesting now?”
“It’s no jest. I have confidence I’ll return alive.”
At Namgung Geom’s words, Namgung Kwon shook his head.
“How do you mean to return alive? Even if your Realm has ascended, it will be difficult to defeat Heuksalmunju alone.”
Namgung Geom’s expression grew laden with meaning at Namgung Kwon’s assessment.
“What if I possess a way to defeat Heuksalmunju?”
“I understand your desire to save Namgung Min, but you mustn’t cling to such groundless talk.”
Namgung Kwon did not believe Namgung Geom’s words.
He thought the young prince was merely bluffing out of his desperation to rescue his cousin.
“What makes Heuksalmunju formidable is his ambush tactics.”
“I’m well aware. Even if you possessed a method to see through Heuksalmunju’s Concealment Technique, you couldn’t employ it alone without vulnerability.”
Namgung Kwon had deduced that Namgung Geom possessed some secret method to penetrate Heuksalmunju’s Concealment Technique.
He also understood that deploying such a technique would leave him defenseless, requiring another’s protection.
Namgung Geom alone could not discover where Heuksalmunju was hidden.
He would lose his life before then.
“If I go alone, Heuksalmunju will likely abandon ambush tactics and engage me in direct combat instead.”
Namgung Kwon spoke as though the notion were absurd.
“You think Heuksalmunju would discard his advantage?”
“Still, as Sect Master of the Black Killing Sect, would he resort to ambushing a mere youth barely into adulthood?”
“That’s dangerously naive thinking. Heuksalmunju is an assassin before he is a martial artist. Assassins never concern themselves with honor.”
There was truth in that assertion.
Yet Namgung Geom’s thoughts ran otherwise.
“Even an assassin retains a martial artist’s pride.”
All the more so if he is a sect master.
“If I prick his pride, he will surely engage me in open combat.”
Namgung Geom spoke with certainty.
“And if he doesn’t?”
“Then I will simply block his ambush.”
When Namgung Geom spoke as if it were nothing, Namgung Kwon’s face twisted in disbelief.
“How do you propose to block his ambush?”
“As I advanced my Realm, I mastered a new technique. With that technique, I should be able to withstand one ambush.”
“What manner of technique can possibly block a single ambush?”
Namgung Kwon’s expression showed complete skepticism.
“It is a secret technique of the Bing-gong I have learned, and I cannot reveal its details.”
“Until I witness it with my own eyes, I cannot send you alone.”
Namgung Kwon spoke with unwavering resolve.
“I wish to become Household Head of the Namgung Clan.”
“What of it?”
“Because of me, a young boy was abducted and now faces mortal danger. How can I claim to protect the Namgung Clan as Household Head if I cannot even save one child?”
At Namgung Geom’s earnest words, Namgung Kwon’s eyes wavered.
Yet he was a man whose reason outweighed his emotions.
“Your compassion in cherishing each member of our household deserves praise, but if it puts your own life in peril, that is nothing but reckless folly.”
Namgung Geom gambling his life to save Namgung Min?
As the eldest grandson and a candidate for Household Head, it was profoundly irresponsible.
Should anything happen to Namgung Geom, the Namgung Clan’s future would be thrown into chaos.
No matter how precious Namgung Min’s life was, it could not be weighed against the clan’s future.
“The Branch Master speaks truth. It will not do for you to risk your life to save my son.”
Namgung Yeol, the Huinan Branch Head, spoke with grim determination.
At first, he had not hesitated to accept danger to Namgung Geom if it meant rescuing Namgung Min.
But seeing the young prince’s genuine desire to save his nephew, his heart had changed.
Namgung Geom wondered how to persuade these two men.
Then Namgung U, the deputy commander of the Changyong Sword Unit, entered urgently.
“Commander! A dispatch has arrived from headquarters.”
Namgung Geom examined the dispatch that Namgung U had brought.
A smile formed at the corners of his mouth as he read its contents.
“What if we do it this way instead?”
Namgung Geom conveyed his plan to the two men.
Hearing his explanation, both of them soon nodded in agreement.
* * *
Deep in the mountains of Palgong Mountain.
Namgung Min was bound tightly to a tree with rope.
Before him sat Heuksalmunju in a cross-legged posture.
“The Crown Prince will never let you go.”
Namgung Min shouted toward Heuksalmunju.
Despite being kidnapped and bound, his expression showed no trace of fear.
“Is that so? Do you really think the Crown Prince you’re waiting for will risk his life to come here? I doubt he’ll risk anything for the likes of you—he’ll be looking out for his own neck first.”
Heuksalmunju mocked Namgung Min as he spoke.
“The Crown Prince will definitely come to save me. And someone as cowardly as you could never defeat him.”
“Cowardly, you say?”
Heuksalmunju asked as if he found it absurd.
“If you had any confidence in facing the Crown Prince fairly, you wouldn’t have resorted to kidnapping me. That makes you a coward, doesn’t it?”
Heuksalmunju let out a hollow laugh at Namgung Min’s audacity.
“Do you know who I am, yet you dare wag your tongue so carelessly?”
“I don’t know who you are, but I know you’re not the equal of the Crown Prince.”
At Namgung Min’s reply, Heuksalmunju shook his head slowly.
“It seems you’re truly mad with a death wish.”
“Nice words won’t save my life anyway, so why would I flatter you?”
“True. You know it well. Once I deal with Namgung Geom, I’ll send you along with him.”
Heuksalmunju, as if he no longer wished to hear Namgung Min’s voice, unleashed a Chi Wind that sealed the acupoints around his mouth.
Namgung Min’s lips moved as if to speak, but no sound emerged from his sealed acupoints.
With Namgung Min’s mouth sealed, Heuksalmunju waited for Namgung Geom.
He pondered how best to kill Namgung Geom.
First, he needed to separate Namgung Kwon from Namgung Geom’s side.
If Namgung Kwon was present, the chance of failure was too high.
That was why he had kidnapped Namgung Min and sent the Crown Prince a letter.
He told him to come alone if he wanted to save Namgung Min.
Frankly, he had doubted whether Namgung Geom would risk coming here alone to rescue Namgung Min.
Namgung Geom would surely know that coming alone here meant death.
Though Namgung Min was the son of the Huinan Branch Head, he was hardly important enough for the Crown Prince to stake his life on.
But at the moment, there was no other way.
So Heuksalmunju had kidnapped Namgung Min with nothing to lose.
There was no risk for Heuksalmunju either way.
If Namgung Geom came alone, Heuksalmunju would kill him.
If Namgung Geom didn’t come or brought others with him, Heuksalmunju would kill Namgung Min and disappear.
Shrill!
Then a long whistle sounded from deep in the mountains.
In that instant, Heuksalmunju’s eyes gleamed.
That whistle was the signal that Namgung Geom had arrived.
And the fact that the whistle sounded only once meant Namgung Geom had come alone.
Heuksalmunju’s lips curved into a smile.
“I never thought he’d actually come alone.”
Youth made him reckless beyond measure.
And the price of that recklessness would be death.
Heuksalmunju looked at Namgung Min bound to the tree.
“Watch carefully! See how the Crown Prince you trust so much is about to die.”
Namgung Bing-ryong
Author |
Baek Wol-geom
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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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