Survival Guide for the Reincarnated - Chapter 383

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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 383
Chapter 1
Settling matters with Il-hwa proved straightforward.
Though she was deeply shaken to learn that the one who had commanded her all this time was an old friend of her deceased father, she seemed to understand to some degree.
Before departing for the Mixed Path Demon Flame Palace, Il-hwa, leaning on crutches, offered me the Embracing Fist salute.
“…Thank you for your grace, Great One.”
Honestly, I wanted to ask her something.
“Do you harbor no resentment?”
“….”
“Yok Mu-han was your father’s friend. He took his own life, and to speak plainly, that situation was no different from my intention.”
Il-hwa shook her head.
“…I know you’re a remarkable person.”
“….”
“A criminal like me cannot follow or surpass the thoughts of someone like you, but that doesn’t mean I have no path of my own.”
“Is that so.”
“I couldn’t find a clear target. I didn’t know why my family was killed, why the Bi Yeon Gak was annihilated, nothing. Resentment without direction was merely a lifeline I wanted to cling to, but that’s no longer the case.”
That was true. It was no longer the case.
“Zhuge Yeong-hyeon—now I only need to kill that one man. I have a clear reason now, and you’ve saved my life besides. To harbor resentment would be unbecoming of me as a person and as a martial artist.”
Having spoken thus, Il-hwa glanced briefly at Won Yang, who stood beside me.
There was no conversation. No Jeonum either.
Il-hwa offered the Embracing Fist salute once more.
To her, I offered a cryptic remark.
“Good news will reach you soon.”
“…For me?”
“Not just you, but all those similar to you.”
Il-hwa tilted her head in puzzlement but didn’t press further. She didn’t seem like she’d get an answer even if she asked.
And so Il-hwa departed.
With only Won Yang remaining beside me, she asked.
“What will you do now?”
The Hwan-myeong Group was indeed dangerous, but they had committed a fatal blunder.
It was hardly even accurate to call it a mistake. They could only move according to their creed.
This was typically called self-inflicted ruin, and by any measure, it was entirely their own problem.
There was nothing more for me to do.
Mak So-hong, consumed with fury, and the Yang Imperial Court would move, and the framed prince of the Jeokna Kingdom would move as well.
Secret organizations are dangerous only when hidden; once exposed like this, they’re far less threatening.
Above all, I had no time to dwell on the Hwan-myeong Group’s affairs.
I had already discovered who their superiors were, and through my previous life’s experience, I had intuitively grasped who the group leader was.
Doing more than this would be strange.
Now I had to attend to matters I had postponed.
“I’ll stop briefly at Yangryeong, then head directly to the Martial Alliance.”
Won Yang nodded.
The two then made their way to the stables within Geonkon Castle.
They were preparing to depart for Yang-ryeong, yet curiously, someone was already waiting for them there.
“Mak So-hong.”
“Great One Seol.”
Mak So-hong responded with a cupped fist salute, his bow far deeper than before.
He was a man who seemed different each time I saw him.
Thinking this, I asked him.
“Were you waiting?”
“Indeed, I was.”
Mak So-hong’s gaze was grave. He spoke.
“Thank you.”
Mak So-hong spoke once more, his voice solemn.
“I thank you sincerely, Great One Seol. Without you, I—no, the Yang Empire—would have stepped onto an irreversible path.”
The Hwan-myeong Group.
Had we fallen into their scheme, the Yang Empire would have crumbled of its own accord.
A war with the Jeokna Kingdom, and one without justification at that.
The very thought sent chills down Mak So-hong’s spine.
Mak So-hong stepped closer.
“Great One Seol, should you ever need assistance, speak the word.”
“”
“Whatever it may be, I shall rush to your aid at once.”
Mak So-hong’s eyes burned with intensity.
“Though I am but a military officer by origin and cannot rashly meddle in the affairs of the Murim,”
He clenched his fist tightly.
“Should you require it, I shall lead the Yang Imperial Army itself to your side.”
“”
“This is no mere words. It is a vow.”
Mak So-hong’s voice was resolute, yet unexpectedly, I shook my head.
“Such a thing should never come to pass.”
“…Why is that?”
“Elder Song could accomplish much by using me, who had proposed a political alliance.”
“”
“Yet he asked for only one thing—that the Yang Empire not fall. That was Elder Song’s foresight, and a rational judgment born from seeing a more distant future.”
“I see…”
“When the Murim and the Imperial Court become entangled, the outcome is never good. Do you not understand? Elder Song foresaw that whether now or in the future, the Imperial Court would become ensnared with other martial artists, bringing great calamity upon itself. His promise with me was preparation for that very moment.”
“…A sort of… using poison to counter poison, then.”
“Precisely. That is why, should I use you, Elder Song in the heavens would surely sigh in lament.”
“Ah…”
“Your heart is appreciated, yet regrettably, officials and martial artists should not become deeply entangled. This present distance is most fitting.”
“….”
“You have one task.”
Mak So-hong’s eyes shifted.
“Please speak, sir.”
“The Hwan-myeong Group.”
In that instant, killing intent bloomed in Mak So-hong’s gaze.
“Eradicate them completely. Root and branch.”
Mak So-hong assumed a solemn expression and offered the Embracing Fist salute.
“I shall do so. Great One.”
Finally, Seol Woon-hwi let out a hollow laugh.
I hadn’t wanted to say something like this in such a grave atmosphere.
“The title ‘Great One’ feels a bit burdensome.”
“Then… what form of address would suit you?”
“Can’t you just call me as you always have?”
“…That doesn’t seem right.”
Well then.
“Just call me Great One.”
Mak So-hong smiled, and Seol Woon-hwi smiled as well.
Thus Seol Woon-hwi and Won Yang boarded the carriage and headed toward Yang-ryeong.
* * *
Yang-ryeong Main Gate.
As the carriage arrived, a familiar landscape unfolded before us.
Yet something was different.
People had gathered before the main gate.
Namgung Won Yang looked toward Seol Woon-hwi.
“They look like an envoy group.”
Seol Woon-hwi also peered out the window.
The banners of the Ten Thousand Year Snow Palace were visible. To my eyes as well, they appeared to be an envoy group. Now that I thought about it, Seol Jung-cheon had said something like this.
That he would organize and send an envoy group.
This must be that envoy group.
I descended from the carriage.
In that moment.
“Youngest brother!”
A familiar voice reached my ears.
When I turned my head, a woman dressed in pristine white robes came rushing toward me.
Seol Yeon-hwa.
My elder sister and one of the Polar Descendants.
“It has been a long time, Elder Sister.”
“Indeed, it truly has been ages.”
Seol Yeon-hwa embraced Seol Woon-hwi warmly.
“…People are watching.”
“So what if they are? He’s my brother.”
Seol Yeon-hwa broke into a radiant smile.
She remained as carefree as ever.
Seol Yeon-hwa released Seol Woon-hwi and asked him a question.
“I’ve heard rumors about you—they say you’re quite remarkable?”
“They’re exaggerated.”
“Exaggerated? You’ve built the Heavenly Righteousness Alliance into one of the three great powers of the Central Plains, and yesterday you caught a spy at Geonkon Castle, no less?”
“That much is true.”
“Then there’s nothing exaggerated about it.”
Seol Yeon-hwa spoke to Seol Woon-hwi, who had fallen silent.
“You’re heading to the Martial Alliance now, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“I’m going too.”
…
“Don’t you remember what I said before? The Dragon Phoenix Gathering.”
Once, Seol Mu-ryun, the second among the Polar Descendants, had caused a grave incident.
While he hovered between life and death, Seol Woon-hwi had personally journeyed to the Ice Sea Region to save him, and in that moment, he had told Seol Yeon-hwa something.
If the time ever came to go to the Martial Alliance, he asked her to tell him then.
It was hardly a surprising fact, but whether it was the Martial Alliance or the Four Heaven Alliance, they were ultimately coalitions, and it was only natural that martial artists within them would form hierarchies among themselves.
Various tournaments were held as a means to this end, and excluding the minor ones, the Martial Alliance held two major tournaments.
The Sage Gathering and the Dragon Phoenix Gathering.
As far as Seol Woon-hwi knew, there were about four months remaining until the Dragon Phoenix Gathering would be held.
“Is the Dragon Phoenix Gathering being held now?”
“Yes. It was moved up.”
“I see.”
“The Training Ground repairs are finished, the Formation Methods are installed, and with the Murim being so chaotic, I thought it would be delayed further if anything, but it seems it was moved up instead.”
Seol Woon-hwi regarded Seol Yeon-hwa with a peculiar gaze.
“What? Should I not go?”
Seol Woon-hwi shook his head.
“You may go. Above all, the fact that you’ve come this way means Father has given his permission, so who am I to stop you?”
A promise was a promise.
Seol Woon-hwi turned his head. A tall, well-built man came into view.
He spoke.
“Lord Hyeon Seol-rin.”
Ha Baek-hyeon.
One of the Twelve Cold Spirits, the First.
“I am Ha Baek-hyeon, who has been entrusted with leading the Martial Alliance envoy delegation this time.”
Seol Woon-hwi offered a cupped fist salute.
Ha Baek-hyeon returned the salute.
Their gazes met.
The air grew subtly heavy.
Seol Woon-hwi walked up to Ha Baek-hyeon’s face.
“There’s quite a lot I wish to say.”
“….”
“You have nothing to say to me?”
Ha Baek-hyeon, who had been mulling over Seol Woon-hwi’s question, opened his mouth with firm resolve.
“I received orders only to guard Bing Seol-ryeong and Hyeon Seol-rin.”
“Guard, you say….”
The light in Seol Woon-hwi’s eyes shifted subtly as he regarded Ha Baek-hyeon.
“Can I trust you?”
“It is the Palace Lord’s command. As Il-ryeong of the Twelve Cold Spirits, I intend to honor that command.”
“….”
“Of course, I cannot defy it either.”
I could discern why my father had sent Ha Baek-hyeon here.
Much has changed from my previous life, so this man too might be different—see for yourself and judge.
Whether to make Ha Baek-hyeon one of my own, or to eliminate him.
That choice had been entrusted to me.
But this was not the end.
Seol Jung-cheon was no fool.
I gazed upward at the sky for a moment.
That was all there was to it.
“Senior Ha.”
“Yes.”
“I will place my trust in you for this matter.”
“….”
“Are you confident you won’t disappoint me?”
The surroundings fell silent.
Even Seol Yeon-hwa watched the two of them without speaking.
Ha Baek-hyeon slowly opened his mouth.
“I am confident.”
“Then it is settled.”
I extended my hand.
“Let us do well.”
Ha Baek-hyeon grasped that hand.
“Likewise.”
This was sufficient.
I released his hand.
“We have far to go. Prepare yourselves—we depart at once without delay.”
“Understood.”
Ha Baek-hyeon withdrew.
Seol Yeon-hwa, who had been watching his retreating figure, approached Seol Woon-hwi.
“Little brother.”
“Yes, Elder Sister.”
“There’s something I don’t know, isn’t there?”
“There is.”
“…And you’ll answer if I ask?”
“If you wish.”
Seol Yeon-hwa pondered for a moment, then shook her head.
“I’m not a genius like my youngest brother, so just tell me what I need to do.”
Seol Woon-hwi laughed.
“Understood.”
Seol Woon-hwi turned his gaze.
He could see Ju So-ah leaning her back against a tree in the corner.
She had her arms crossed, and something seemed to displease her.
Seol Woon-hwi approached her.
Ju So-ah spoke immediately.
“I’m a bit disappointed.”
“What do you mean?”
“Why aren’t you taking me with you?”
“Because I trust you.”
At the unexpected answer, Ju So-ah’s eyes widened.
She was so surprised that she even uncrossed her arms.

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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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