The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 195
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
The Heavenly Supreme Has Died – Episode 195
The first preliminary round had ended.
The rumors spread in an instant.
Woon-ryong had lost to me.
Throughout the entire match, he couldn’t land a single successful attack, and ultimately he was defeated.
Sword Empress’s match and the matches of several other disciples did receive interest and attention.
But in the end, they couldn’t compare to my match.
“Well, you see, this Protagonist…”
“The sword technique he used was so beautiful…”
“I saw it myself. It shone without need of any lamp.”
“Truly, just like the Sword Saint of old…”
Whether in the inns or on the streets, everyone spoke only of the match.
Listening to it all, my head was beginning to ache.
‘Ugh.’
Everywhere I went, it was all about me.
Even though I had fought several matches in a single day, the talk remained only of this one.
In fact.
‘By the end, even the matches between Heuk Taedo and Naelyong were forgotten.’
Heuk Taedo and Naelyong, both of the Seven Swords, had also fought, but their match ended in a single blow, finishing in an instant.
The impact was simple.
A sense of, well, that’s what you’d expect from Naelyong and Heuk Taedo.
Because of that, the first main round was filled entirely with talk of my match against Woon-ryong.
Tediously so.
“You don’t seem pleased?”
A voice came from beside me. Next to me sat Cheonhye-in, carefully eating her noodles.
I looked at her and asked with a sullen expression.
“…What do you mean?”
“Getting attention. It’s not so bad, is it?”
“Does it not seem bad to you?”
“There’s nothing actually bad about it.”
“From my perspective, it’s nothing but bad.”
As always, I didn’t particularly enjoy receiving attention. If anything, it was exhausting.
Suppressing a sigh, I spoke.
“The Heavenly Supreme fights tomorrow, right?”
“That’s right.”
Cheonhye-in answered with an indifferent expression. She had seemed to be wearing a mask at first, but now she didn’t even bother.
It had been like this ever since the day our match ended with us both covered in blood.
‘The second main round is tomorrow…’
All those who hadn’t fought today were scheduled to fight tomorrow.
The numbers had been reduced, but there were still quite a few remaining.
Perhaps that was the reason.
“Heavenly Supreme, are you alright…?”
“Hm? Ah, yes…. I’m fine.”
Cheon Euijin, who would participate in a martial arts competition tomorrow, clearly bore a tense expression.
Do-hyeong, who was competing on the same day, remained composed.
Dok-ryong showed no particular reaction. He seemed disinterested, perhaps?
Do-hyeong was always like that anyway, so that was understandable.
But Dok-ryong….
‘Is it because this isn’t his first time participating?’
It seemed likely, given that he would have experience with the Yongbong Conference.
‘Hmm.’
Could I rest tomorrow then? A faint sense of anticipation rose within me.
Since I’d already competed today, there was no need to exert myself further tomorrow.
‘Then, I should organize what needs to be done.’
I nodded and swallowed my food.
Then.
“Did you hear that?”
A voice reached me from the surroundings. Just as I was about to ignore it, wondering if it was about me again.
“An extraordinarily handsome man has appeared in the prefecture.”
An unexpected topic emerged.
A handsome man…?
“Ah, I heard. They say he’s so handsome he seems to glow. Was he really like that?”
“I caught only a glimpse, but… he was absurdly good-looking.”
“Well, a handsome man is just a handsome man. How much more handsome could he possibly be?”
“It was beyond that level, I’m telling you. Really, the moment you see him, admiration just escapes your lips….”
They were excitedly discussing nothing more than how handsome some man was.
I wondered what they could have possibly seen to make such a fuss.
While it seemed novel at first, I felt no particular excitement.
The reason was simple.
‘I’m used to it.’
It was a sight I’d grown far too accustomed to.
Since the people around me possessed remarkable faces, I’d seen this spectacle so many times it had become tiresome.
‘Just walking down the street is a disaster in itself.’
My father and brother drew the attention of everyone around them simply by strolling through the streets.
[He’s that handsome?]
I chuckled at Yoo Cheon-gil’s remark.
‘…He is handsome.’
I’ll admit what deserves admitting. Despite being a wretched man, he was handsome.
How handsome must he be that I once thought he’d never starve to death based on his face alone.
The one thing I’m grateful for is that man’s genes.
Unlike my past life, I was blessed with a handsome face in this one.
In that sense, such reactions were familiar territory in terms of experience.
‘So there are people like that here too.’
Hearing it even in Hanan felt oddly refreshing.
Who could it be?
‘How curious.’
I was briefly intrigued, but I dismissed the thought.
There was too much to recall for me to dwell on such trivial matters now.
Clack.
I set down the chopsticks I’d been holding.
‘…What is this, really?’
Simultaneously, I recalled what had happened during the day.
‘What was the Sword Empress’s intention?’
The words the Sword Empress had spoken to me earlier.
‘Will you be engaged to me?’
Just imagining it brought back that absurd conversation.
Faced with such an unexpected nonsensical proposal, I immediately rejected it.
I wasn’t insane, and there was no way I’d become engaged to the Sword Empress.
Without a moment’s hesitation, I spoke my refusal, and the Sword Empress simply widened her eyes slightly.
‘Is that so? I understand.’
With those words, she vanished without a trace.
‘…What? Didn’t she say there was another request?’
Setting aside the engagement talk, I thought she’d mentioned having another favor to ask.
It was strange that she simply left.
Could it be that the engagement proposal was truly the main point?
‘…Why would the Sword Empress want to be engaged to me?’
There seemed to be some circumstances behind it, but engagement was utterly unreasonable.
‘What is this really?’
Every woman I’d become entangled with recently had something odd about her.
Could what my grandmother said in my past life have been true?
That remark about how a normal woman could never become involved with me.
‘…Damn it.’
That would be quite troublesome.
I wanted to deny it, but the situations I encountered were all equally bizarre.
“Sigh….”
A sigh escaped me. I hadn’t expected to deal with such matters when I was already stretched thin with the martial tournament.
The Sword Empress, who had undergone the Reverse Heavenly Transformation, proposed engagement to me?
‘Wow. That’s quite a catchy title.’
It seemed like the kind of title that would sell well if published as a book.
‘What a mess.’
I scratched my head.
Something felt off about this situation.
When things get tangled like this, there’s only one choice.
‘Ugh. I have no idea.’
I’d just ignore it and fill my stomach.
I was eating with that thought in mind when—
“Pardon me for interrupting your meal.”
Someone approached and spoke to me.
Along with it, a foul stench hit my nose.
What is this terrible smell?
“Ugh.”
Cheonhye-in stepped back with a genuinely disgusted expression.
I turned my head in confusion, and my eyes fell upon disheveled hair and a slovenly appearance.
This face is….
“…Tugwolgaen?”
It was Tugwolgaen of Gaebangjoo, one of the Seven Beggars.
What was this bastard doing here all of a sudden?
He approached me with an exhausted expression and suddenly pulled something from his bosom.
It was a grimy letter.
“Delivery for you.”
“…A delivery?”
A delivery for me? From Tugwolgaen?
I stared at him, wondering what kind of situation this was.
“Ah, I’m so busy begging I could die. This damn… life. Ah, is this a damn life or what?”
“…?”
Tugwolgaen spouted nonsense and began laughing to himself.
Ah, that’s right.
‘This bastard is one of the Seven Beggars too.’
I’d momentarily forgotten that there isn’t a single sane person among the Seven Beggars.
“What? Not funny?”
Tugwolgaen asked, noticing I wasn’t laughing.
“…Did you just ask me to laugh?”
“Unless you think I’m insane and was just talking to myself?”
“….”
This bastard is insane.
I was certain of it.
But that aside.
“…So, you came to deliver a letter as one of the Seven Beggars?”
It didn’t quite make sense that one of the Seven Beggars would come to deliver a letter to me.
I understood why Gaebangjoo didn’t attend the Yongbong Conference since they had close ties with the Martial Arts Alliance.
Even so, Tugwolgaen is a recognized figure within the Gaebangjoo.
He might very well become the next Lord of the Clan.
And yet this man is running errands delivering letters? My skepticism must have shown on my face, because he wore an aggrieved expression.
“You think I want to be doing this? My damned master orders me around, so what choice do I have? When he says jump, I jump.”
‘A master…?’
If Tugwolgaen has a master….
“…You mean… Tabong sent you?”
Gaebangjoo Tabong.
The current Lord of the Gaebangjoo faction within the Gupaibang, and one of the absolute masters.
So Tugwolgaen had come under orders from such a lord.
“Why would the Lord…?”
“How should I know? I was planning to just lie around and beg today myself. But that old beggar… Well, he is a beggar, right? Hahaha.”
“….”
I let his nonsensical rambling pass.
First, I took the letter. It was quite filthy and I really didn’t want to touch it, but I forced myself to take it anyway.
Between the dust clinging to the letter, the seal of the Gaebangjoo was plainly visible.
I carefully unfolded it.
‘Who is this from?’
Who would send me a letter?
If it was on the Lord’s orders, I thought it might be from Tabong.
‘Huh?’
The letter wasn’t from Tabong.
Rather, it was from someone I knew all too well.
[Third brother. It’s your eldest brother. How have you been?]
“What is this guy doing.”
Surprisingly, the letter was from my older brother.
The eldest of the Bang Family and the acting clan lord.
A promising rogue who inherited not just his father’s face, but his personality as well.
‘This bastard sent a letter?’
I never imagined my brother would send a letter—not even my father.
And even more so.
‘…Tabong personally sent an errand?’
The fact that Tabong had entrusted this letter to Tugwolgaen to deliver was even more shocking.
What on earth was happening?
It was a series of incomprehensible situations.
[Your eldest brother is doing well. I hope you are too.]
The preamble was brief. Unlike Father.
For that, I was grateful.
[Oh, have you met the Second Son? You probably have. If you do, tell him to stop by home sometime.]
How did he know? He’d always been perceptive, even before.
He had such keen perception that he could remarkably discern whether a woman liked him or not, and he used that to his advantage.
That’s right.
This man was garbage too, no different from the rest.
Men who overestimated their looks to an excessive degree.
That was my father and my older brother.
‘Anyway, so what?’
So why had my brother sent this letter in the first place?
As I examined the letter with that question in mind.
[Then, be careful.]
“…Huh?”
The letter suddenly ended.
What?
“There’s nothing more…?”
I checked the back of the letter to see if anything else was written, but there was nothing like that.
“What is this?”
Is that really the end?
It ends with just a warning to be careful?
“…What….”
What kind of ridiculous situation was this?
I was utterly dumbfounded.
He used Tabong to send a letter just to say one thing—be careful?
‘What connection does my brother have?’
What could the Bang Family accomplish with their meager influence?
It was the same with Jegal Jin back then—truly a strange household.
‘What am I supposed to be careful about?’
What exactly was I supposed to be cautious of?
He asks about my recent circumstances and then tells me to be careful—it feels like the content disappeared in the middle.
As I stared blankly at the letter, unable to comprehend it.
“Protagonist.”
Once again, someone’s voice reached my ears.
‘What kind of day is this?’
I was exhausted to death, so why did people keep coming to find me?
I sighed and turned to look at the person.
“Oh.”
It was a familiar face again.
Someone I’d seen recently.
“…Daeju?”
The very person who had introduced himself as the Daeju of the Main Alliance.
And the reason he’d sought me out back then was certainly….
“The strategist is looking for you.”
“….”
That was it.
It happened this time too.
Damn it all.
‘…Why am I like this today?’
It felt like a day when my luck had completely abandoned me.
* * *
I found the main hall in the dead of night. It was the same place I’d come to during the day for sparring.
I never expected to enter it like this in the middle of the night.
And this time, it wasn’t even just the main hall.
‘Jegal Jin’s quarters….’
Jegal Jin’s quarters, prepared within the main hall. I’d been invited there.
Honestly, calling it an invitation was generous—it was practically coercion.
‘I had no right to refuse.’
If I couldn’t refuse, then it was coercion, plain and simple.
I moved forward with a visibly tense expression.
“Enter.”
At Daeju’s words, I stepped forward slowly.
It was a spacious and immaculate quarters.
I carefully crossed the wooden floor and approached the door.
And then.
“…Are you here?”
I spoke in the smallest voice possible.
I kept my voice so low, hoping he wouldn’t hear.
-Come in.
Unfortunately, the old man had remarkably keen ears.
How irritating.
I opened the door with my lips firmly pressed together.
“I… heard you called for me….”
I tried to meet Jegal Jin’s gaze immediately.
But inside, there was a guest sitting besides Jegal Jin.
A guest sitting there besides me—upon facing him, my body went rigid.
It couldn’t be helped.
“Oh.”
He was someone who absolutely should not be here.
Especially not in Jegal Jin’s quarters.
“Aha.”
An impossibly handsome man.
Undoubtedly, he was the most handsome person I knew.
“It’s been a long time!”
The man laughed upon seeing me.
“…No….”
I bit back a curse as I looked at the man and asked.
“…Why are you here, Father?”
A figure so devastatingly handsome that anyone, regardless of age, would be moved to admiration.
My father, no less.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————