When the Black Moon Rises - Chapter 176
Chapter 176
“Why? Did you not expect me?”
Ju Kyunghyun, wearing the aged Mystic Ruler's face, staggered forward.
His breath was ragged, as if he had exerted himself greatly on his way here. He looked so frail that he wouldn’t be able to take a single step without Cheonryeong’s support.
The Ju Clan members blinked, unable to comprehend the situation unfolding before them.
‘What happened to the Mystic Ruler?’
He had been old and frail, but he had still been healthy. And what had he just said?
‘Endangering my life and stealing everything from me?’
What was he talking about?
They couldn’t understand, yet they had their suspicions.
The Mystic Ruler wasn't someone who would step down willingly.
The official announcement had stated that he had decided to abdicate in favor of Ju Kyunghyun, who had completed his exuviation and was ready to lead a new era.
But those who had visited the residence with congratulatory gifts had quickly discovered the truth.
The sudden abdication announcement and the fact that the untransformed Young Lord was to inherit his position had puzzled them.
‘Was the Mystic Ruler in this state after his sudden abdication…?’
“This inauguration… is invalid! I never abdicated!”
“!”
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
The Mystic Ruler’s face flushed at their reaction.
‘What is he talking about? I am the Mystic Ruler! I made the decision myself!’
But what could he say? Could he tell them that he was the real Mystic Ruler and that the other one was a fake? How could he say that? It would cause even more trouble than being accused of usurpation.
‘I didn’t expect him to show up like this…’
The Mystic Ruler gritted his teeth, realizing he was trapped.
‘I should have killed him sooner… I could have found another way to transform… I should have torn his soul to shreds and banished him from the afterlife!’
“Second Corps Commander!” he shouted, and the Second Corps Commander hurriedly approached.
“The Mystic Ruler is having another episode! Take him back to the residence!”
“!”
“He lost his mind after failing to absorb a massive amount of Spirit Orbs! How dare you let him come all the way here in his condition?! Do you all want to die?! Escort him back!”
“Yes! Warriors, follow the Young Lord’s orders and escort the Mystic Ruler back to the residence!”
The old man, his hands trembling, looked at the Second Corps Commander.
The First, Second, and Third Corps Commanders only obeyed his father.
The fact that the Second Corps Commander was following the orders of the one in his son’s body meant that it really was his father inside.
‘Even the Second Corps Commander knows… then all three Commanders know about my current state…! This… this is normal for them!’
Ju Kyunghyun’s, currently inhabiting The Mystic Ruler’s body, nose burned.
He had known his body had been taken over, but he hadn’t believed it was his father.
Why hadn’t his father taught him anything?
Why hadn’t he even taught him swordsmanship, only physical training?
Why had he kept him from using his spiritual power properly, yet fed him so many Spirit Orbs?
Why had he been so obsessed with his transformation, with damaging his body?
He had only understood after hearing Sehwa's explanation, but even then, he hadn’t been able to believe it.
That it wasn’t his father.
That something else had taken over his body.
‘But it really is Father!’
His body trembled, his vision blurring.
How…?
He wanted to rage, to expose everything, but…
“How did you get hurt like this? Why don’t you take better care of yourself? Do you want your father to die from worry?”
The memory of his father, lifting him up with his large hands, his face full of concern, held him back.
‘If only…’
His father had always cherished him.
He had respected him so much.
‘If only you had told me… that you needed my body for the greater good… that you needed to switch bodies with me to live a little longer…’
Ju Kyunghyun bit his lip hard, his eyes stinging.
‘If only you had asked me to give you my body to restore the Ju Clan’s honor… If you had just told me that it was for your dream, the dream you always talked about, to become the Ju Clan’s Red Dragon and restore the clan’s glory…’
He was so focused on the man wearing his face, his father, that he didn't realize how he looked himself: his eyes bloodshot, his lips trembling, his jaw clenched.
He looked ready to usurp his father’s position.
Sensing the cold, sharp gazes of the others, the Mystic Ruler, no longer hesitating, roared, “What are you all doing?! The inauguration ceremony has already begun! I’m the Mystic Ruler! So obey my command! Take the former Mystic Ruler, who’s lost his mind, back to the residence!”
The warriors also hesitated, witnessing the unbelievable confrontation between father and son.
But in the end, they chose to obey the current authority and rushed towards the frail old man.
A hollow laugh escaped Ju Kyunghyun’s lips.
He had tried to understand.
But this…
His father discarding him without a single word of apology… this he couldn’t understand.
Rage, like a volcanic eruption, exploded within him.
His body trembled uncontrollably.
Biting his tongue hard to regain control, he roared at the man wearing his face, his father, “Lost his mind?! Insane?! How dare you call your own father insane while trying to usurp his position?! You shameless son of a bitch!”
He spat out blood, a piece of his tongue torn off, but he didn't even feel the pain.
“I tried to understand! I thought you did it for the Ju Clan! I would have forgiven you if you had just apologized! But this… this is your answer?!”
“I said, take the Mystic Ruler away!”
“There’s no need! I’ll go myself! But not now.”
The old man, his face contorted with rage, walked towards the warriors, supported by Cheonryeong, pushing them aside. He stumbled, his leg stiff and unresponsive.
The music in the hall had stopped.
The silence was so profound that they could hear a pin drop, everyone holding their breath.
All eyes were on the Mystic Ruler and the Young Lord.
Even the First Corps Commander, standing on the platform with the box, was watching them.
Sehwa didn't hesitate.
Without standing up, she pulled out a longbow and arrows from beneath her white robes.
She nocked three arrows at once and drew the string.
It took only a split second, but it was enough.
Twang—!!
A deafening roar, like thunder, echoed through the hall.
Whoosh!
Three arrows, flying like lightning, struck the wooden box, breaking the latch and opening the lid.
Before the box even hit the ground, she sent the Red Dragon’s Spirit Orb, now exposed, flying high into the air.
“!!!”
The Mystic Ruler's, who had been focused on his son, face paled.
He turned around and saw the Red Dragon’s Spirit Orb, its seal broken, rising into the air, its red aura shimmering.
‘No!!’
“Treason!”
Sehwa, standing up, shouted, her crimson eyes flashing, “The Young Lord has imprisoned his own father and is trying to usurp his position!”
The Ju Clan members gasped.
“He tortured his father, crippling him, and spread false rumors about him losing his mind to seize control of the clan!”
Sehwa turned to the Ju Clan members and raised her voice, “You all know how much the Mystic Ruler cherished his son. He valued his son's smallest scratches more than his own life.”
They remembered the former Mystic Rulers, who had always been devoted to their sons.
“And he’s here, asking for help, his body mangled! The Mystic Ruler, who cherished his son above all else! The Mystic Ruler, who would have given his son anything! How much he must have suffered, to be so disappointed and unforgiving!”
Her words struck a chord with them.
The Ju Clan elders began to stand up, one by one.
“So, I, Ju Sehwa…”
Sehwa nocked another three arrows, her gaze fixed on the Mystic Ruler, who was wearing Ju Kyunghyun’s face, “…will not allow you to become the Mystic Ruler.”
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