The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 58

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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 058
Time had passed.
Not much—precisely four days.
With so little time elapsed, I hadn’t accomplished much of consequence.
Most of my days were spent training or gathering information from various sources.
Even that alone had been honestly exhausting.
What Yoo Cheon-gil called “training” was mostly focused on building foundational physical strength.
He insisted that rather than waste time swinging a blade aimlessly, I should first develop the strength to even grip a sword properly.
So from dawn onward, I found myself climbing mountains, attempting to lift boulders, and enduring every manner of grueling labor.
I questioned him at one point—why resort to such crude methods? Wasn’t there something more efficient?
“A fool who can’t even stand properly already dreams of running? Get your head straight.”
Remarkably, I received a genuine scolding.
He told me to stop complaining and simply do as instructed.
The words were so undeniably true that I had nothing to say in return.
Especially since the one speaking them was the Heavenly Supreme himself—there was absolutely nothing more to argue.
So I truly shut my mouth and obeyed his commands without question.
“Hgh… Hah… Cough…”
After running for what felt like an eternity, I finally forced my legs to stop. My stamina had reached its limit.
I stood motionless, gazing upward at the sky.
My breathing was ragged enough to make me retch at any moment, yet looking at the vast expanse before me, I sensed a subtle improvement.
Dawn.
I watched the light gradually brightening, announcing the arrival of morning.
“Huh… Was it today?”
If memory served me correctly, it was.
Today was the day.
The day I was to depart for Sichuan to heal Manwol.

* * *
I finished my personal training and returned to my residence.
This was the most significant change among all the developments of the past few days.
I was no longer staying in the guest quarters I had originally used, but rather in the dormitory where Sowoldae’s members resided.
The door creaked open as I entered, and Do-hyeong was already inside.
“You’re awake.”
….
Instead of answering, Do-hyeong nodded his head.
Sowoldae’s residence had several rooms, and most of them operated on a two-person-per-room basis.
Naturally, Do-hyeong had been the youngest before I arrived.
With my arrival, I came to share a room with him.
After sharing a room with Do-hyeong for several days, I had come to understand a few things about him.
First.
‘He’s genuinely taciturn as hell.’
Do-hyeong barely spoke a word a day, if at all.
There were even days when he didn’t speak at all unless I initiated conversation first.
It didn’t seem like he disliked me or was deliberately silent out of spite.
‘It’s just his nature.’
He appeared to be someone inherently quiet by disposition.
And second.
‘…Damn, he’s sharp as a blade.’
Beyond his silence, the man himself was rigid and precisely structured in every way.
Even the way he folded his blankets—every corner aligned with meticulous exactness.
Do-hyeong did nothing carelessly.
Whether this precision had seeped into his training as well….
‘He wakes up far earlier than I do.’
I couldn’t pinpoint when it started, but Do-hyeong always rose before me.
When I rubbed my eyes awake at dawn, Do-hyeong’s bed was always empty.
He would go out and train, then train some more.
It seemed like he spent nearly every moment training, except for eating and sleeping.
Or did he?
‘Does he even sleep?’
He even went to bed later than I did.
He was truly a remarkable individual.
This time too, after washing up and changing clothes, Do-hyeong had finished his preparations long ago and sat in an upright posture.
There was only one reason he was doing this.
“…You’re welcome to go ahead and wait outside, if you’d like.”
“No.”
He was waiting for me to finish preparing.
Normally, he would have gone ahead.
Today was different from usual.
I had to head to Sichuan immediately, and before that, I needed to meet Wol Seon-geom first.
Do-hyeong was waiting for me for that reason. After all, I was the central figure in this.
That was truly burdensome.
Do-hyeong waiting for me without complaint as well.
‘And that one’s gaze too.’
The luminous gaze of the Guardian Spirit subtly watching me from behind Do-hyeong.
I deliberately ignored that stare and finished changing my clothes.
“Let’s go…”
At my words, Do-hyeong finally rose to his feet.

* * *
The moment I stepped outside the residence, gazes drew from all directions.
They were the Sowoldae martial artists standing by in the vicinity.
They were seniors in name, but it still felt awkward to call them that.
‘They’re all too busy avoiding me.’
When I look at them, they avert their eyes, and when I try to speak to them, they leave their spots.
At this point, it was unavoidable.
‘Am I being ostracized?’
It seemed I was being properly disliked.
I couldn’t say I didn’t understand.
‘…Because I acted that way.’
When Yoo Cheon-gil entered my body and crushed Seom Seong-gyeong.
My remarks and attitude at that time must have been the problem.
Even I thought it was tactless. Perhaps they saw me as some arrogant upstart boasting about being the Sword Saint’s successor?
As if to prove it, I felt them watching me with subtle displeasure.
However, just as I had overcome Seom Seong-gyeong, they likely refrained from provoking me because they knew I possessed real skill despite my presumption.
‘Hmm.’
I scratched the back of my neck.
Now that I think about it, such gazes don’t really bother me…
‘They’re quite something, aren’t they.’
I couldn’t quite understand the Sowoldae’s attitude.
‘If I were them, I’d do everything to get on my good side.’
If they sided with me, they’d do so without showing their true feelings, yet they deliberately displayed such an attitude.
‘Anyway.’
Was it because they were martial artists? It was something I simply couldn’t comprehend.
Then.
Whoosh.
Do-hyeong, who was walking beside me, suddenly patted my back.
What is this guy doing?
I stared at him, wondering why he looked so unsettling.
In Do-hyeong’s eyes, there lay an inexplicable sadness.
Only then did I realize it.
‘…He’s looking at me with pity?’
Unless I was a fool, I had to know that I was being mistreated by other Sowoldae members.
From that position, it seemed Do-hyeong was offering me comfort.
‘Ha.’
Though it was absurd, the fact that Do-hyeong was looking after me wasn’t a bad thing.
“…I’m… fine, senior.”
“….”
I forced a smile, making my expression as pitiful as possible to show I was okay, and Do-hyeong’s hand patting my head moved faster.
[…Tsk tsk tsk….]
Yoo Cheon-gil clicked his tongue repeatedly as if Do-hyeong himself was pitiful, but I ignored such things as always.
Ignoring those gazes, I headed toward Cheongwol Hall.
Upon arrival, several figures had already gathered ahead.
Those who appeared to be third-generation disciples were busily doing something.
A carriage sat in the courtyard.
They were stacking provisions neatly onto that cart.
I could tell at a glance.
‘That’s the carriage we’ll be riding in.’
That was the carriage that would take us all the way to Sichuan.
As I glanced over at it, someone approached me.
“Bang Disciple.”
“Ah.”
It was Cheon Euijin.
“Cheon….”
I paused as I was about to greet him warmly.
‘What’s this?’
Something seemed off about Cheon Euijin’s expression.
At first glance, it appeared normal, but I sensed something alien in it.
‘It’s dark?’
His expression seemed somehow darkened, as if he were struggling with something emotionally.
“I hope you’ve been well, senior?”
At Cheon Euijin’s greeting, Do-hyeong gave a small nod.
“It’s an honor to travel to Sichuan with you, senior.”
At the word “honor,” Do-hyeong let out a small cough. He seemed embarrassed.
Seeing that, I asked Cheon Euijin.
“Cheon Euijin, are you perhaps feeling unwell?”
“…What?”
At my words, Cheon Euijin hesitated.
“Ah, your expression didn’t look quite right, so I thought I’d check on you.”
“Ah, I see….”
Cheon Euijin laughed awkwardly upon hearing my words.
Even that smile seemed parched and hollow.
“…It’s probably just poor sleep from the tension, I suppose. Thank you for your concern. It’s nothing serious.”
“Mm.”
At least, that didn’t seem to be the case.
I could tell his words were a lie, but I had no desire to dig deeper into it.
“I see.”
I nodded appropriately. If that’s what he said, there was little point in pressing further.
“Then, shall we head inside?”
I led the two of them directly into Cheongwol Hall, where Wol Seon-geom awaited.

* * *
“We pay our respects to the Moonju.”
As always, a man with a cold demeanor greeted us in the room.
It was Wol Seon-geom, the Moonju of Cheonwol Gate.
He regarded us with those characteristically sharp eyes.
“Are you mentally prepared?”
“Yes.”
Do-hyeong answered on behalf of the group in response to Wol Seon-geom’s question.
At his reply, Wol Seon-geom gave a slight nod.
“This matter is of considerable importance to the sect.”
His voice carried considerable gravity as he continued.
“Especially since it must be treated with utmost secrecy, you must be particularly careful with your words.”
“We shall bear it in mind.”
Of course, we had recovered the Sword Saint’s cherished weapon.
And we were to journey to the Dang Clan to have it repaired.
This was treated as highly classified even within Cheonwol Gate.
Moving with only a select few was clearly intentional for that reason.
Sarak.
Wol Seon-geom placed a neatly folded letter bearing Cheonwol Gate’s seal and a wooden box wrapped in cloth upon the desk.
“This is a letter stamped with Cheonwol Gate’s seal. When you meet the Dang Clan Lord, you must deliver it without fail. Furthermore, you are forbidden from reading it until then.”
“Understood.”
“And this is—”
Wol Seon-geom looked at me as he lifted the wooden box.
The moment I saw it, I reached out my hands.
Thunk.
‘Wow, this is insane.’
I nearly dropped it the instant I grasped the wooden box. Even holding it with both hands, it was heavy.
Did that man really hold this with just one hand so effortlessly…?
“Deliver this along with the letter as well. You’ll handle it according to the Dang Clan’s wishes.”
“…Understood.”
I grasped the wooden box, carefully suppressing any sign of strain.
I didn’t need to be told what this contained.
‘Manwol.’
The Old Man’s cherished blade would be inside. As I was collecting the items.
“Then, be on your way.”
‘Huh?’
At Wol Seon-geom’s words, I slightly widened my eyes.
What? Is this really it?
I thought he’d say something more?
I waited just in case, but Wol Seon-geom was no longer looking in my direction.
‘What…? Is this really the end?’
The entire message truly ends like this?
No words of caution, nothing like that? Just… this?
‘He’s not even worried?’
No matter that the members heading out were determined by our wager, wouldn’t one normally be concerned about something this grave, something treated with such secrecy?
I had requested it, but honestly, I didn’t expect him to accept. Especially…
‘…Really just the three of us going?’
I never thought he’d send just the three of us—myself, Cheon Euijin, and Do-hyeong.
‘I thought he’d add someone more…’
My expectations were off.
While the two were my choice to go, I thought he’d assign one or two more people for the mission’s stability.
‘I can’t believe he’s actually sending us like this.’
It was difficult to discern Wol Seon-geom’s intention.
‘…Hmm.’
I studied him with narrowed eyes. Perhaps…?
‘Is it related to the Old Man’s affair after all?’
As I’d told Yoo Cheon-gil before, I suspected Wol Seon-geom was one of the suspects involved in the Sword Saint’s death.
Not a certainty, but I treated the probability as high.
‘What…?’
Even so, he didn’t seem like someone who would act in such a manner.
Then, was this his judgment that the mission wouldn’t be dangerous?
Given Sowoldae’s reputation, such an assessment might be possible…
‘Even so.’
Wasn’t this a bit reckless? That thought flashed through my mind.
“Is there anything else you need?”
Wol Seon-geom spoke to me.
Though phrased as a question, it truly meant I should leave quickly.
“No, that’s not it. I’ll make sure to return safely.”
“Very well.”
With his reply, Wol Seon-geom turned his gaze away from me.
Seeing that, I had to leave the room while concealing my reluctance.
Even then, I continued to feel an unsettling sense of doubt.

* * *
Stepping outside the residence, it appeared that the preparations from earlier were nearly complete.
All the provisions seemed to have been loaded onto the cart, and I could see a large carriage and two horses standing ready.
Quite spacious enough for three people to ride comfortably.
From the refined appearance, I could tell considerable care had been taken.
The problem was.
“Who’s supposed to drive that thing?”
Who would drive the carriage? From here to Sichuan, there was no way we could arrive in a day or two, so we’d need to drive for quite some time.
With three of us traveling, I was thinking we could just take turns driving.
“Pardon the intrusion.”
A small, elderly man bowed his head toward us from in front of the carriage.
“I am Chudong, and I’ve been assigned the role of coachman for this journey. It is my honor to serve such distinguished individuals.”
‘Ah.’
They had provided a coachman for the journey.
At least that’s one thing we won’t have to struggle with.
Thinking as much, I was about to greet the old man when.
[Huh?]
Upon confirming the old man named Chudong, Yoo Cheon-gil spoke.
[Isn’t that the Sword Emperor?]
—Freeze!
Hearing Yoo Cheon-gil’s words, my body went rigid.
…Pardon? Who did you say?

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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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