The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 364

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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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The Heavenly Supreme Has Died – Episode 364
League Leader candidate.
I cursed at those words.
Cheon Rijin-an’s expression turned bewildered at the crude language that spilled from my lips.
“Now you’re even swearing in front of me.”
“…My apologies. It just slipped out.”
The words “League Leader candidate” twisted my insides.
I’d heard them before when speaking with Shin Chang, but I still wasn’t accustomed to them.
‘I probably never will be.’
It was simply absurd.
“Could you please stop saying that?”
“Stop saying what?”
“The words ‘League Leader candidate.'”
“What else would I call a League Leader candidate but a League Leader candidate?”
“Can I curse again?”
“Go ahead.”
“…”
That expression was far more terrifying than any prohibition.
So I couldn’t do it, and instead had to exhale a weary sigh.
“…Surely no one actually sees me that way anyway.”
League Leader candidate.
The reason I came to be called this was simple.
I’d heard it mentioned when speaking with Shin Chang as well.
An unexpected turn of events had occurred as he prepared for retirement.
The League Leader was preparing to step down.
When the official announcement was made, chaos swept through the Martial Arts Alliance.
Among the many upheavals, the greatest change was this:
‘…Who would become the next League Leader.’
After Shin Chang stepped down, the question was who would ascend to the position of League Leader.
Originally, if Shin Chang had faced death in his current state, they would have hastily conducted a vote to select a new League Leader, but since Shin Chang is still alive, they could prepare for the next candidate more peacefully, and the upper echelon of the Alliance had already selected several candidates to elevate to the position.
The problem was.
“…Why am I even included in that?”
I was among them.
Moreover, as someone directly recommended by Shin Chang himself.
“Are you insane…?”
It was absurd. What kind of ridiculous situation was this?
I hadn’t even reached adulthood yet. I had neither the standing nor the strength to mingle among those elderly men and women.
And suddenly I’m supposed to be included? No one would ever believe such nonsense…
“Why would I be included in that?”
“Why would I go there?”
Surprisingly, it was real. Damn it all.
There were currently five candidates being considered for League Leader.
Among them, there were an overwhelming number of formidable individuals whose mere titles inspired awe.
It made sense, of course. We were talking about the Martial Arts Alliance—the very center of the orthodox sects.
Selecting someone to stand at the apex of such an organization meant the candidates themselves had to be extraordinary figures.
‘…I’m going to lose my mind.’
And I was somehow counted among them?
It was something no one would believe, no matter who heard it.
Naturally, there was considerable talk about this within the Martial Arts Alliance itself.
‘Was it right for Wol-hyeop to be elevated as a candidate?’
‘No matter how much of a hero he is…. Nominating that young friend as a League Leader candidate is rather….’
‘Shin Chang must have made a mistake.’
‘Regarding this matter….’
All manner of comments circulated. Some even filed formal protests directly with the Alliance.
‘I don’t want to do this either.’
Who said I wanted this? I was dying of indignation.
I had no desire to be entangled in such a bothersome affair.
“Besides, there’s no chance I’ll be selected anyway. It’s not beneficial for the Alliance either, is it?”
“That does seem to be the case.”
“But then why….”
“I don’t know.”
“Pardon?”
“The League Leader’s… or rather, Shin Chang’s intentions—I don’t know them either. He doesn’t seem inclined to explain.”
Cheon Rijin-an’s gaze fell upon the letter before him, yet his words were directed at me.
“My thoughts don’t differ from yours. It’s hardly a favorable situation, and anyone can see it makes no sense.”
“Then….”
“However, now that Shin Chang has exercised his authority, there’s no way to object to this matter.”
“…Authority?”
“Yes. Shin Chang used his authority as League Leader.”
“What authority is that?”
I’d never heard of such a thing. Did something like that exist? I glanced sideways at Yoo Cheon-gil.
Yoo Cheon-gil avoided my gaze. That man clearly knew something.
“The authority to directly choose the next League Leader.”
“…Such a thing exists?”
“It does. That’s how Shin Chang was able to ascend to the League Leader position.”
“…!”
Upon hearing this, I looked at Yoo Cheon-gil once more. His expression was quite different from when he’d avoided my gaze before.
‘The reason Shin Chang rose to the League Leader position.’
I’d wondered if it was simply because he was a Celestial Demon.
‘…Now that I think about it.’
Shin Chang’s background posed a significant problem. Had I not known, it would have been different. But upon learning the truth, I realized he occupied a position where ascending to League Leader would be extraordinarily difficult.
‘Regardless of other matters, the Jeokga issue was substantial.’
The internal affairs of Jeokga, which had harbored dreams of rebellion.
The Martial Arts Alliance learned of this and sought to purge them, which is when Yoo Cheon-gil stepped forward.
In that process, Shin Chang’s eyes were gouged out, and through that sacrifice, he managed to survive.
‘Thanks to that, fewer complications arose, it’s true.’
Yet the sins of Jeokga did not simply vanish.
They claimed to have erased the information.
‘But there would be those who remember.’
Those individuals were likely to be core members of the Alliance. Which meant.
‘As long as filth clung to his background.’
And if that filth was something that had once raised its hand against the Alliance.
‘…the number of scenarios where Shin Chang could become League Leader becomes infinitesimally small.’
Whether he was a Celestial Demon.
Regardless of how formidable he had been or what merit he had accumulated on the battlefield.
That and this were separate matters entirely.
‘Because that’s simply how the world works.’
People may forget everything else, but they never forget rebellion.
So not every hero could sit in that position.
‘…Did the Old Man break through all of that and place Shin Chang in the seat?’
Using the authority of the League Leader.
“…Is that authority truly so potent?”
“Indeed. That’s precisely why you’re among the candidates.”
“….”
He had a point.
‘Come to think of it.’
Being nominated as a candidate itself was a tremendous force.
But if there was one thing that came to mind.
“So it’s not enough power to actually install someone as League Leader?”
“….”
Cheon Rijin-an did not answer this time.
Silence was affirmation.
‘Thank goodness.’
He could place someone among the candidates, but he couldn’t transfer the League Leader position itself.
‘He can grant influence and justification, but that’s where it ends.’
It was good in a sense, but also ambiguous.
‘In any case, I’ve already been added to the candidate pool….’
That damned old man, Shin Chang.
‘…When he explained things to me, he acted as though he knew nothing.’
So it turned out he was the one who nominated me as a candidate?
“I’m at a loss for words… Are you truly accepting this?”
“Accept it? Of course not. As I said before, I merely respect the League Leader’s authority.”
“I see. If this were something acceptable, it would have been done long ago.”
There would have been no need for my name to surface as a candidate in the first place.
“So in the end, I must remain a candidate… But what I wish to ask is this.”
Being nominated as a candidate? Fine. It’s all fine, but—
“Surely I have the right to refuse, do I not?”
I don’t want to become League Leader. I don’t want to be nominated as a candidate either. Don’t I have the right to decline?
Of course I should.
“You don’t wish to become League Leader?”
“Correct.”
Is that even a question worth asking?
“Why? Every martial artist of the righteous faction dreams of such a position.”
The position of League Leader? How wonderful it must be.
For everyone except me, that is.
“A position assumed without qualification would be unbearably heavy—I can see that as clearly as fire. An ill-fitting garment only becomes a burden.”
I needed to stop overstepping and simply live.
I’m already overstepping enough as it is. Any further would be dangerous.
“Besides, even if I’m nominated as a candidate, I won’t actually become League Leader.”
As Cheonri Jinan said, the position of League Leader isn’t some prize to be claimed, and being a candidate doesn’t automatically make one League Leader.
“So I don’t understand. What does Shin Chang truly want…?”
The intentions of the current League Leader who pushed me forward as a candidate.
I wanted to know that.
‘He hasn’t shown his face in days…’
The very person who nominated me as a candidate was nowhere to be seen.
‘His excuse about being busy doesn’t seem entirely false.’
Yet it wasn’t the whole truth either.
Rustle.
The sound of pages turning reaches my ears.
“What do you want?”
Jegal Jin spoke casually, his words flowing with the sound.
“You’re playing ignorant. But you must know.”
“…”
“You already know. The League Leader must have told you.”
At his continued words, I shifted my gaze. Yoo Cheon-gil comes into view.
He was looking down at me with those soft blue eyes.
Yes.
Those words are correct.
‘I do know.’
There’s no need to discern his intentions.
Shin Chang had said something to me.
It was this:
‘A meeting with the Demonic Cult.’
A letter sent by the Demonic Cult.
That was the intention behind the message they sent, expressing their desire to hold talks with the Orthodox Faction for a meeting.
‘He said he wanted to send me as a representative.’
Bearing the title of League Leader candidate, he asked me to go there as the representative of the Orthodox Faction.
‘…Was I nominated as a candidate for that reason?’
If that was the answer, then it was indeed absurd.
“Don’t you think the very phrase ‘meeting with the Demonic Cult’ doesn’t make sense?”
A meeting with the Demonic Cult?
With the ones who reduced Hannam to this state? It sounds like complete nonsense to me.
I had read the letter, but my thoughts remained unchanged.
‘That…’
Why had Shin Chang accepted it?
“Did the Scholar also agree to this? That doesn’t seem possible….”
“You continue to misunderstand something.”
“Pardon?”
“My agreement or disagreement holds no meaning. This is the Martial Arts Alliance.”
Just as I was thinking how obvious that statement was.
“The Martial Arts Alliance follows the will of the League Leader.”
“…!”
“Even if it were a hollow belief and a twisted course of action. We honor that will.”
The atmosphere had changed.
Those eyes watching me even as he read the letter. The heavy sense of duty contained in that withered frame pressed down upon my shoulders.
‘…The weight of the soul.’
The soul that Cheon Rijin-an carried felt far too heavy.
So I asked.
“…Even if the League Leader were to start a war?”
I was curious where his will came from.
Whoosh.
At my words, Cheon Rijin-an unfolds his fan to conceal his face. Only his sharp eyes remained clearly visible.
“If the League Leader’s justice lies in that.”
“….”
A man more rational than anyone else was strangely blind in this regard.
Peculiarly so.
“…So I must simply go out there as a candidate as ordered. Is that what you’re saying?”
“That is not so. If your will is truly set against it, I would not force you.”
“Ah….”
That was a relief to hear. Yes, I needed to have a choice. It wouldn’t make sense otherwise.
“Then I won’t….”
“Instead.”
Cheon Rijin-an cut off my words, pointing at me with his fan as he spoke.
“Bring me someone to take your place.”
“…What?”
Someone to take my place? I frowned at his sudden demand.
“…Take my place, you say?”
“Location: Western Region. Gender: male. A martial artist with the epithet….”
Whoosh. Crack-!
Cheon Rijin-an’s fan struck the table with a sharp blow.
“Paewang. Bring him to me in the name of the Sword Saint.”
“…!”
Paewang.
A name I had heard somewhere before.

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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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