When the Black Moon Rises - Chapter 84
Chapter 84
"Father, seeing how these men dared to disguise themselves as the Mystic Ruler's guards, there might be more such individuals among your subordinates."
"No, that's—"
"This appears to be their mark. We must immediately check if other Ju clan warriors bear this symbol!"
"Indeed. To think they dared infiltrate as the Mystic Ruler's guards. Their cunning is extraordinary. Just as they targeted the Young Lord today, who knows when they might turn against the Mystic Ruler next. The Mystic Ruler's safety is paramount in the Mystic Realm—we must root them out immediately!"
Baek Manyong concurred with uncharacteristically brief words.
An enraged Ju Kyunghyun ordered the Ju clan warriors guarding the hunting grounds: "Listen! From now on, no one leaves these hunting grounds! There are those who dared threaten the Mystic Ruler's safety within!"
'No, these fools. These mad fools!'
The old man's face turned red and blue as he watched the situation unfold.
That mark was his sign of ownership—indicating those who had been carefully cultivated over time, thoroughly brainwashed with poison, and could be completely trusted.
The Young Lord, who had ordered the hunting grounds sealed with a contorted face, shouted impatiently at his still motionless father.
"Father! Start by investigating all hundred Mystic Ruler's guard warriors here! How dare they infiltrate disguised as the Mystic Ruler's guards. This is unacceptable!"
The old man's entire body trembled with the desire to tear his son's mouth apart just to make him stop talking.
But how could those warriors sent to Ju Sehwa's house bear that mark?
He had specifically sent men without the mark in case they were caught. How was this possible?
Baek Giha's lips curved upward sinisterly as he watched this exchange.
The clear voice that had seemed to pull at his arm still rang vivid in his ears.
"When this is done, we'll need to mark them too. Help me with that. Wind carving will be more precise than using a blade."
It wasn't difficult for Baek Giha to guess how Sehwa had known about that mark.
She was the Young Lord's betrothed and the daughter of the Ju clan's Senior Elder.
Those with absolute loyalty who would neither yield to threats nor respond to persuasion must have tortured her.
During those five years she was imprisoned in that secret room. By these very Mystic Ruler's guards.
The thought made Baek Giha's blood boil.
While investigating Sehwa's whereabouts, Baek Giha had learned everything about them.
These men, brainwashed and controlled by the Mystic Ruler through poison, seemed to take out their frustrations at being completely leashed elsewhere. Their methods were said to be unspeakably cruel.
'In the hands of such men, for five years...'
His nails dug into his palms as he clenched his fists with all his might.
His palms grew damp as blood welled up.
"Father! If we give them time, they might escape with some excuse. You must investigate right now!"
"The Young Lord of the Ju clan is most astute. Indeed! Such matters require swift resolution. Though I am merely the Chancellor of the Baek clan, I humbly request that those who dared threaten the Mystic Ruler's safety be executed immediately as an example. We must set a precedent so that no one else dares harbor such treasonous thoughts!"
"The Baek Chancellor speaks true. Father, why do you hesitate? My neck nearly fell today—are you worried only about the Ju clan members being shocked by the brutal sight?"
"Fortunately, we brought the entire Baek cavalry unit, though by chance. We gladly offer our warriors to assist with this matter!"
As Baek Manyong repeatedly interjected at Baek Giha's signal, the old man's fury grew stronger.
'What am I to do about this? Of all times, today with a hundred men...'
The old man ground his teeth.
Because Baek Giha said he was bringing all fifty-two Baek clan warriors to the hunting grounds, he had brought a hundred of his most loyal warriors who would lay down their lives for him.
They all bore the mark—and now they want him to punish them all?
How much time and effort had gone into brainwashing them to this extent?
Moreover, this was wartime.
In a situation where the six clans' alliance might launch a surprise attack on the Ju clan at any moment, they want him to kill a hundred warriors he had personally trained?
But now that there was talk of the Baek clan being attacked as well, this wasn't something he could brush aside by saying he would look into it separately.
'What should I do...'
As the old man's silence lengthened, doubt began creeping into the onlookers' gazes.
Why was the Mystic Ruler, who valued his safety so dearly, hesitating like this?
Feeling the pressure of those gazes, the Mystic Ruler finally managed to speak.
However, no matter how great the pressure, he couldn't bring himself to utter words that would result in losing all hundred men in an instant.
He absolutely could not.
"While I too understand the gravity of the situation, many gathered here seem already shocked by the attack on the Ju clan's Young Lord. It doesn't seem right to shed more blood here. So for now—"
"What are you saying, Mystic Ruler! Even our Baek clan was attacked, yet instead of helping us end our fear by uncovering these men's backers now, you would give them time? This is absolutely unacceptable!"
"But my son is badly injured too, so this man needs treatment—"
"No, Father! How could my wellbeing be more important than the Mystic Ruler's safety? Please don't worry about me!"
"..."
The old man, clenching his jaw so hard it might break, forced himself to speak gently.
"Why are you so short-sighted? As the Ju clan's Young Lord, you should consider the clan members gathered here without me having to mention it. Would you show them another brutal sight?"
"Father, you are too kind. But don't worry. The Ju clan members are not so weak, and what matters most to the Ju family is the safety of our leader, the Mystic Ruler. For this matter alone, please don't consider us—think only of your own safety."
'This, this bastard.'
If not for that body of his, he would have torn that mouth apart first right here.
The old man's body trembled.
Meanwhile, Ju Myoungyoon, who had been averting his gaze from this exchange with downcast eyes, quietly stood up.
He took out a spirit orb from his sleeve. It was his spirit orb prepared for compensation.
Walking slowly, he lifted Cheonryeong's body, which had been growing cold beside the Young Lord, and placed the spirit orb in his mouth.
Then he deeply cut his wrist with his fingernail and let the red blood drip into Cheonryeong's mouth.
Even just that brought some color back to the corpse-like face.
After laying Cheonryeong down and covering him with his own robe, Ju Myoungyoon spoke quietly.
"Mystic Ruler. As the Young Lord says, this is not a matter to take lightly. Though I don't understand why you hesitate so long, those men clearly pose a problem. Since they are not Ju clan warriors, they must be dealt with here immediately."
"No. I need to look into this further—"
"Without ulterior motives, why would these guards bring back even the men who attacked the Young Lord alive, yet fail to rescue my daughter?"
Ju Myoungyoon's voice was low and rough as he continued speaking with his gaze lowered.
"It's natural that the Mystic Ruler's guards should prioritize the safety of the Mystic Ruler and Young Lord above all. However, they also have a duty to care for Ju clan members as you do."
Ju Myoungyoon's numb face gradually grew flushed.
"Yet despite such a major incident, they returned without even searching for the Ju clan's daughter, ignoring her entirely. That behavior makes no sense."
"Myoungyoon. That—"
"Unless, Mystic Ruler, did you order those guards that my daughter need not be found?"
"!"
Ju Myoungyoon's intense gaze rose to meet the Mystic Ruler's.
At this look he had never seen before from this upright Elder, the old man unconsciously took a step back.
"Since it seems no one cares about my daughter, I must go to those woods to search for her now. But Mystic Ruler, please reveal why those guards brought the attackers back so intact, as the Young Lord said."
That's when it happened.
A small voice emerged from the hunting grounds.
"Father. I'm here..."
A startled Ju Myoungyoon jumped up.
"Sehwa!"
Dressed in red, she was leaning weakly against a horse as if barely hanging on.
Ju Myoungyoon rushed over and lifted his daughter into his arms.
"What's wrong? Did those attackers target you too?"
"No. But those woods are full of traps and poison. My spiritual power was disrupted and my body paralyzed—I couldn't move until just now."
"What?! Traps and poison?! Are you—are you alright now?!"
"Yes. When I heard the signal flare, I realized this wasn't just about me but that everyone was in trouble, so I hurried back."
Sehwa climbed down from Ju Myoungyoon's arms and staggered toward the old man.
Those watching clicked their tongues or held their breath at the pitiful sight as she weakly fell to her knees.
"Mystic Ruler, please investigate those woods. Vicious poisons and traps were scattered along every path we took. Fortunately, I collapsed soon after entering, but had I gone deeper into the woods, I might not have returned alive."
Sehwa kowtowed before the Mystic Ruler, asking how such a terrible thing could happen in the heart of the Ju clan, in the Mystic Ruler's hunting grounds.
"These cannot have been traps meant for a mere Ju clan member like me. They must have been meant to harm the Young Lord."
She added that the safety of the Mystic Ruler and Young Lord must be protected above all else by everyone in the Ju clan.
So for the Young Lord's future safety, this matter must be made clear, she pleaded.
"Aren't the Mystic Ruler and Young Lord most important? So no one in the Ju clan could criticize or fault the Mystic Ruler for lacking mercy, no matter what you do here."
Sehwa's violet eyes turned directly toward the Mystic Ruler as they caught the sunlight.
"Isn't that right?"
The vast hunting grounds were now so quiet that a falling needle could be heard.
All attention and gazes from those filling the hunting grounds were focused on the old man.
"..."
Separate from his overwhelming urge to strike down this young thing who had become the source of all trouble.
The old man's lips trembled.
His eyes closed once in despair.
He sensed he could no longer resist, even though a hundred of his subordinates' lives were at stake.
'This is wrong. This can only be done here.'
"..."
As the old man's head seemed to move slightly up and down, Ju Kyunghyun's face lit up first.
"A wise decision, Father!"
The old man, hiding his clenched fist in his sleeve, added:
"But I still believe we cannot kill them all here. We will identify those with the mark, but we need to find out who's behind this, so we'll execute only the most problematic ones here and the rest—"
"Mystic Ruler, don't you only need their mouths to discover who's behind this?"
Sehwa's voice cut in.
"Ha, isn't it enough to just keep that girl alive? Why do you want to keep all their limbs intact? I could cut them off right now if you just give the order."
"Don't be ridiculous. With so many people, we need to share. I'll take that white right arm, so let's each take one."
"I just bought a new saw, didn't I? After drawing out the poison to restore consciousness, how loudly will they scream when I saw through that thigh?"
The vile laughter that had filled that secret room was still vivid.
"So for those we cannot kill immediately, cut off all their limbs here to ensure they cannot escape."
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