The Legend of Red Cloud - Chapter 63

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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 63. A New Operation
“Why should we?”
“If you’re going to be uncooperative like that, I’ll report you to Rim Ju!”
It was meant as a threat, but the situation didn’t favor him.
“Came and went, you idiot.”
“What?”
“I said came and went. That head of yours.”
In that instant, he remembered the last time someone had come speaking of heads.
“Wait—surely not when you came before!”
“That’s right. Slipped in as a recruit, believe it or not. Though thanks to that, we did catch one of your spies.”
To be honest, catching wasn’t quite the word.
Gunma Rim Ju had simply taken her along when he left.
Because of that matter, only the daughter of the Je Gal Se Family—the one married to Yi Hwa Geom—ended up as a duck egg in the Nakdong River.
“And nothing happened? No trace?”
“Nothing. He just left.”
Ja Jeon Geom Wang was not the only one shocked by the exchange.
No one had known that Gunma Rim Ju had infiltrated and then slipped away.
The leader and vice leader of the Cheol Hyeol Maeng, even Tae Geuk Geom Wang himself, had all kept silent about it.
Because of that silence, even as Tae Geuk Geom Wang saw Yi Hwan’s eyes widen, he said nothing.
It was an indirect way of saying he had no intention of explaining.
After all, if that matter came to light, several people would be implicated.
Though there was an accomplice operating under the alias Ga Ji Hoon with credible witnesses, this was no small affair—it was Gunma Rim Ju’s infiltration of the Maeng Ui Dan itself.
Yi Hwan, as the final decision-maker, could not come away unscathed, nor could Haeng Sa Gak who failed to catch the spy, nor Chamyeong Gak who authorized the employment.
But that was not all.
Yi Hwa Geom, who had vouched for him, was the son-in-law of the Je Gal Se Family.
Which meant he himself was implicated as a spy.
The moment that thought crystallized, Yi Hwan’s startled eyes found Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s.
Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s head nodded gently in acknowledgment.
“Right. That man Yi Hwa Geom—Gunma Rim Ju didn’t make him disappear. He took him. The cover’s blown either way.”
Unaware of this, Yi Hwan had been sending dozens of operation teams into dangerous territory, launching a full search for the missing Yi Hwa Geom.
Apart from the absurdity of it, if word got out, it would be utter humiliation.
For the Maeng Ui Dan. For the Je Gal Se Family.
So silence was the only path forward.
When Yi Hwan seemed to grasp the full weight of the situation, Tae Geuk Geom Wang turned his gaze from him to Ja Jeon Geom Wang.
“The fact that you’ve come here saying such things tells me you haven’t heard a word.”
“That is… well…”
Ja Jeon Geom Wang stammered, unable to answer properly. Tae Geuk Geom Wang spoke.
“So spare me the clumsy threats.”
“Then you won’t grant my request?”
Ja Jeon Geom Wang’s voice had risen. Tae Geuk Geom Wang countered quietly.
“A request, you say?”
“Ahem! Well yes, a request. I’ve come all the way to the Maeng Ui Dan, haven’t I?”
Ja Jeon Geom Wang’s voice dropped at once, and Tae Geuk Geom Wang smiled faintly.
“Honestly, I can’t make a promise. But at least I’ll give you advance warning—I won’t refuse your request.”
Though the words said he couldn’t promise, advance warning that he wouldn’t refuse amounted to saying he would grant it.
Ja Jeon Geom Wang glanced back at Yi Hwan, understanding Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s position all too well.
“That’s all I could ask for.”
“Then go. My grandson has much he wants to ask you as well.”
At Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s words, Ja Jeon Geom Wang bowed and vanished from sight.
With Ja Jeon Geom Wang gone, Yi Hwan finally spoke.
“How could you make such a promise…”
“In a land where we’re divided into factions, killing and dying—I shouldn’t say this. But he’s still my oldest friend. I didn’t want to kill him by my own hand.”
At Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s words, Yi Hwan found himself with nothing more to say.
***
The search operation for Yi Hwa Geom continued.
There was no justifiable reason to scale it back or end it.
Even when the Je Gal Se Family sent search parties to the Maeng Ui Dan, Yi Hwan said nothing.
A single careless word could become the spark for endless complications.
Time passed in this manner until the ceremony for the new leadership of the Maeng Ui Dan was held.
Amid the farewells of the Maeng Ui Dan members, Yi Hwan departed, and Tae Geuk Geom Wang formally took office as the new leader.
Tae Geuk Geom Wang had been staying with the Maeng Ui Dan long enough that no one found him unfamiliar.
Moreover, Tae Geuk Geom Wang had decided to retain the existing command structure personnel, including Gong Chan, so there was scarcely any change.
The staff officers who conceived operations and drafted execution plans remained the same, as did the adjutants under them, which made the continuity all the more seamless.
It was in this context that a raid operation was assigned once more to the Heuk Ya Dae.
This was less a carefully planned operation than a retaliatory strike.
Not long before, a single unit of the Jeok Tu Cho from the enemy had been conducting Scout Activity when they were caught by the Hyeol Gwi Dae and suffered near-total annihilation.
A single unit of the Jeok Tu Cho numbered a hundred soldiers at full strength.
Fewer than ten of them returned intact.
Even counting those who limped back wounded, the total fell short of thirty—a loss so staggering that its magnitude needed no elaboration.
“Our analysis suggests the attackers were the Mil Gwi.”
“The Mil Gwi?”
“Yes. The same Mil Gwi who suffered considerable losses during the celebrated horse escort operation appear to have recovered their strength.”
“Then what befell the Jeok Tu Cho was…?”
Gong Chan answered Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s question.
“It appears to be a retaliatory strike in response to that same operation.”
Revenge following revenge following revenge—an endless chain, but there was no helping it.
“Damnable as it is, we can hardly let it stand. You mean to commit the entire Heuk Ya Dae to this?”
“We propose to deploy one unit of the Heuk Ya Dae—a hundred soldiers—and one unit of the Baek Ui Dae—another hundred. Two hundred total.”
At Gong Chan’s reply, Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s gaze passed over Yeo Jeong, who sat as the senior staff officer of the command council, and came to rest on Yong Hyeon, who held the position of Baek Ui Dae commander.
“Do the Baek Ui Ryeon friends consent to the command council’s operation?”
Yeo Jeong and Yong Hyeon both nodded.
“Yes. We consent.”
“Good. Then I authorize the operation. Make it a proper vengeance—thorough.”
“Yes, Lord.”
Once Tae Geuk Geom Wang received Gong Chan’s acknowledgment and rose from his seat, the practical discussion among the staff officers commenced.
Stepping outside the conference chamber, Tae Geuk Geom Wang gazed up at the sky.
The heavens stretched above him too high and too clear—a sight at odds with having just drafted plans to snuff out countless lives.
“Is life truly nothing but suffering…?”
Deep anguish resonated in Tae Geuk Geom Wang’s voice.
***
The operation order from the command council came down to the Jeok Sa Jo just as they were finishing their midday meal and preparing to begin group training.
It was an operation order that had come down for the first time in nearly a month.
<Before the main force advances, conduct Scout Activity to identify and eliminate enemy Ambushes.>
The operation map included with the order depicted the central region of the Saja Plain, including Hwan Do.
It was the middle ground between the Maeng Ui Dan and the Hyeol Gwi Dae, where the fiercest fighting had raged and the bloodiest battles had been waged.
“Get ready. We move immediately.”
At Ryu’s command, the Jeok Sa Jo soldiers sprang into purposeful motion.
But this time, unlike before, they did not pack their gear heavily.
Hwangbo Jang Seong noticed this and asked.
“Why aren’t we bringing tents and auxiliary equipment?”
“Ah! Because of the open ground. If we pitch a tent on open plains, we’re basically saying ‘We’re here.'”
Dong Pil’s answer prompted Paeng Gyeong to cut in.
“So we’re going with nothing but what we wear?”
“Not quite—we need to prepare for No Bak.”
“No Bak?”
“Literally, sleeping on the roadside.”
“Sleeping rough, you mean?”
“A bit different from that. You have to dig into the earth, and you need cloth to cover yourself. Ah, it’s too complicated to explain in words—just follow me and gather what I do.”
Following Dong Pil’s instructions, Hwangbo Jang Seong and the five others began gathering supplies after him.
The volume was significantly less than before, though the variety of items looked similar.
And each of them remembered to pack Dried Rations.
Once all their equipment was gathered, the Jeok Sa Jo departed their base.
This time too, they filed no departure report.
Paeng Gyeong questioned this.
“We don’t need to file a report?”
“We don’t.”
As Dong Pil gave this answer, he watched Ryu walking ahead at a distance.
The five younger soldiers caught on that the reason lay with Ryu, and a transmission from Jang Min Soo reached them.
-The captain hates it when we report numbers going out and numbers coming back. The count is never the same.
It means some of us don’t make it home alive.
The five men’s faces darkened at once.
The memory of what had happened at Saja Guan came flooding back.
They had truly thought they were going to die that day.
There was no guarantee such a thing wouldn’t happen again.
The closer they drew to enemy territory, the more their tension climbed.
Jeok Sa glanced back to check on the five men, but said nothing.
He could see Jang Min Soo pressed close beside them, working to ease their nerves with casual talk.
Jang Min Soo was more attentive than he appeared.
Perhaps because he’d been an officer in the Geumui Wei, he looked after people well and was quite skilled at fostering harmony among his teammates.
It made sense that Jeok Sa, as captain of the Jeok Sa Jo, had chosen him.
Dong Pil approached the five men as they walked, listening to Jang Min Soo speak.
“How about we make a wager?”
“What kind of wager, sir?”
Dong Pil answered Hwangbo Jang Seong’s question.
“Carrying bags.”
Smiles bloomed on everyone’s faces at that.
They remembered how, at Saja Guan before, Dong Pil alone had shouldered all of his teammates’ bags.
“Rock, paper, scissors?”
“Of course.”
Jang Min Soo asked in response to Dong Pil’s answer.
“What will you throw?”
“Me? A man throws rock.”
In that instant, Jwa Ryang, who had been walking ahead, raised his hand beyond Dong Pil’s line of sight and threw scissors.
The gesture that followed signaled everyone but Dong Pil to throw scissors as well.
Though no one understood why Jwa Ryang wanted them to throw scissors when Dong Pil said he’d throw rock, the five subordinates decided to do as Jwa Ryang commanded.
Jwa Ryang terrified them more than Dong Pil did.
Soon everyone, including Jeok Sa who had been walking ahead, gathered around.
“Rock, paper, scissors!”
Everyone threw scissors, just as Jwa Ryang had instructed.
Only Dong Pil, who had intended to throw rock, had thrown paper.
“Damn it! I lost again!”
Jwa Ryang spoke to Dong Pil, who erupted in anger.
“Look… you fool. I wanted you to win, so I signaled everyone to throw scissors. See? Everyone threw scissors.”
Dong Pil had no choice but to swallow his anger at Jwa Ryang’s words.
He had shot himself in the foot.
Jeok Sa approached him and, with an expressionless face, removed his own bag and handed it over.
That was the beginning.
After that, with Yi Song and Jwa Ryang leading the way, Dong Pil ended up shouldering everyone’s bags, even Yim’s.
Groaning under eleven bags, Dong Pil trudged along behind the group.
Hwangbo Jang Seong, catching sight of the struggling Dong Pil, asked Jang Min Soo.
“I saw before that Dong Pil was taking the lead, but can he do that like this?”
“In the mountains or forests, yes, but on flat ground Jwa Ryang takes point.”
“That works?”
“Dong Pil’s senses are sharper, but Jwa Ryang’s eyes are better. On flat ground, keen eyes are everything.”
The five men nodded at Jang Min Soo’s explanation, and Dong Pil’s grumbling voice reached their ears.
“Everything. Can’t see anything like this.”
Wondering what he meant, they looked back, and Jang Min Soo explained.
“He’s talking about people using Concealment. There are occasionally ones our eyes can’t detect.”
“Isn’t that a problem then?”
Jang Min Soo laughed softly at Hwangbo Jang Seong’s worried question.
“But our captain’s right here. I’ve never seen Concealment he couldn’t detect.”
Even Dong Pil said nothing at that, only pouting slightly.
Those who heard understood it as tacit agreement and smiled with relief.
It was just before the Jeok Sa Jo entered Hwan Do.
Jeok Sa’s raised hand suddenly brought all movement in the Jeok Sa Jo to a halt.

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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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