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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Teottry
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In the private room of Jegal Biying, the deputy commander of the Flying Dragon Unit at the Martial Alliance headquarters,
“Hmph…”
a shadowy figure, who had been lounging in the darkness, sat up as Biying entered, looking pleased.
The figure that emerged was someone who shouldn’t have been in the Martial Alliance headquarters.
The Ninth Elder of the Sun Moon Holy Cult, who had attacked the Jegal Family estate to kidnap Gwahae and had vanished without a trace.
Xuan Hu, with a fox-like grin, greeted him warmly.
“You look happy~ Did something good happen?”
“Ah~ I just saw a good friend after a long time.”
And Biying casually accepted the greeting from the enemy who had threatened his family, as if he were an old acquaintance.
“A good friend… even though you’re the one who sent those evil cultists after your good friend.”
At Xuan Hu’s teasing words, Biying simply shrugged and leaned back in his chair,
“Well, Sima Bu isn’t someone who would be defeated by those Blood Sect riffraff.”
as Jegal Biying, the Fifth Elder of the Sun Moon Holy Cult and a member of the Jegal Family, he laughed off his comrade’s words.
As Jegal Liang had suspected, there was a traitor within the family,
and it was none other than the head’s second son, Jegal Biying.
“And we have to separate business from pleasure.”
“Haha! That’s true. One of the Four Evils of the martial world is coming to the Martial Alliance headquarters, after all.”
For the Sun Moon Holy Cult, who had spies planted throughout the Martial Alliance headquarters, the Sima Family’s influence was a variable that needed to be assessed.
So, they had sent the Blood Sect as cannon fodder to test their strength.
“Anyway, let’s lay low for a while. Our forces in the family were wiped out in the last attack.”
“Ah… I’m sorry about that.”
He had opened the gates for them, but…
the operation had failed, and even the Sun Moon Holy Cult spies who had been lying in wait had been wiped out. Xuan Hu lowered his gaze, avoiding his eyes, and…
“It’s fine, I wasn’t exposed. And Jegal Liang… that monster… that secret technique…”
Biying’s eyes narrowed as he recalled the martial art he had spied on that day.
“…it’s amazing that he was forced to use the Heavenly Mystery Divine Movement.”
After the death of Jegal Liang Era, the founder of the Jegal Family’s martial arts,
the technique had only existed in theory, so he had no idea what it was like, but seeing it in person,
Biying’s eyes, which could read the heavens, flickered with complex emotions.
He had a clue as to what kind of martial art it was.
The operation had failed, but he had gained something, so it wasn’t a complete loss for him personally.
“Hmm~ that’s a relief. But are you really sure?”
“About what?”
Xuan Hu looked at Biying with a sly yet curious expression.
“Depending on the situation, you might have to become enemies with the Sima Family and kill your friend. Are you okay with that?”
“I don’t care.”
Xuan Hu’s eyes widened at the cold, clear answer.
“Oh ho~ you’re colder than I thought.”
“It’s a bit complicated.”
But he sighed and added an explanation.
“Sima Bu is a good guy, a good friend. But…”
Biying’s sad eyes looked at the portrait of Sima Hwa he had taken from his pocket.
“…sometimes I hate him.”
Why did Sima Hwa have to die? She wasn’t a child who would die from a plague. She shouldn’t have died like that.
Why did she leave the Jegal Family? Why did she go to see Sima Bu?
Why couldn’t I stop her, why couldn’t I protect her?
Hwa is dead… Sima Bu, why are you still shamelessly alive?
“……”
Logically, he knew it wasn’t Sima Bu’s fault. It wasn’t anyone’s fault.
But it was painful.
It was natural for family members to resemble each other, but seeing the Sima Family’s characteristic amber eyes reminded him of Hwa. He couldn’t forget.
“The strong have everything, and the weak dream of revenge.”
He hated his own weakness, his inability to protect Hwa, to have her.
“A Mongolian proverb.”
He nodded at Xuan Hu’s words.
“It’s a saying I like.”
Since the day he heard that the woman he loved had died, all that remained in his empty heart was a growing hatred and a craving for power.
“I don’t care about family, friends, or the demonic sect. I’ll use anything I can to become stronger.”
His friendship with Sima Bu was real, but his resentment over his deceased first love was greater.
Was this the result of a twisted love?
Xuan Hu looked at Biying, who had brazenly declared that he would even use the demonic sect he belonged to, and smiled faintly, his face resembling a fox.
“Love that twisted is a curse.”
And he calmly stated the facts.
“And even if it was your first love, carrying around a portrait of a young girl and talking about betraying everyone because you can’t get over her is quite pathetic.”
“hmm…”
Biying stood up without a word.
And he gave his comrade, who had been defeated by an aspiring martial artist and had cried and begged for his life, and whom he had saved and hidden, a knuckle sandwich for his impertinent words.
“Shut up!”
“Yelp-! Yelp-!?”
A mournful fox’s cry echoed through Biying’s office.
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The princess of the North Sea Ice Palace, a beautiful girl with snow-white hair.
“Heehee~ Sima Mancheon! I’m here!”
Xue Yuehua had come to see Xiaoshao and Mancheon, but…
“H-eek-! What’s going on?!”
she let out a shrill scream, like a frightened baby seal, at the sight of the two girls facing each other, exuding a menacing aura.
Gwahae and Yeonhwa.
The girl who had been given a name and the girl who had made a vow.
One man, two girls, fire and water.
They glared at each other, two incompatible beings.
“He’s my brother.”
Yeonhwa was taller, so she was looking down, but
“He’s my Mancheon.”
Gwahae retorted without hesitation, her spirit undiminished.
Yeonhwa’s face grew colder.
Though they were different, they had one thing in common: they were unwilling to back down when it came to Mancheon.
For some reason, the temperature around them began to rise.
“Hmph… it’s so sad and cute, seeing you struggle for a treasure you can’t have.”
Her eyes still not smiling, Yeonhwa offered a leisurely, fake smile, a sneer on her lips, but…
“Jegal Liang said that weak dogs bark the loudest.”
she was easily countered again.
“Let me say it again.”
Gwahae closed the distance without hesitation, her chest pushing against Yeonhwa’s.
“You…!!”
Her blue eyes flashed, revealing her sharp, dragon-like teeth.
“Mancheon is mine.”
No other words were needed. It was a simple fact.
“This is why I feel sorry for you.”
Yeonhwa’s eyes turned red at the absurd logic, and she looked down at her opponent.
“No matter what you say.”
Yeonhwa’s cold expression softened.
She had momentarily shown an unsightly side of herself at the sight of another woman involved with Mancheon, but…
she glanced at her beloved brother, smiled, and revealed the confidence of a legitimate wife.
“My brother and I are already in love.”
It was the kind of pure, incestuous love between siblings that Zoroastrianism highly valued.
“huh…?!”
At the shocking statement, Gwahae’s eyes, which had been brazenly displaying her possessiveness, wavered.
Gwahae wasn’t the only one.
“Young Master… Sima…? That’s a lie, right…?”
Xiaoshao, who had been watching the situation from the sidelines because of her disguise as a boy, turned pale.
“How could he… with his own sister…”
Jegal Yan, who had stayed behind to help Gwahae, covered her mouth with her hand.
“Sima Mancheon… more like Sima Deviant.”
“Hmm… I thought they were unusually close, but I never thought they would have gone that far.”
Yuehua and Jang Sam, who had been watching, also chimed in.
“Ugh- what a true bastard!”
And as if it was time for a meal, Wang Meiyang, the little master who had come looking for her disciple, also glared at Mancheon with cold eyes.
“You’re expelled.”
Of course, Mancheon was also shocked by Yeonhwa’s statement.
Even if she was his stepsister, he was suddenly a deviant bastard who had slept with his own sister. He was dumbfounded.
‘Eh… me and Yeonhwa…?’
It would be a lie to say he had never been attracted to Yeonhwa, but she was still his sister.
And to say they were in love… did Yeonhwa have romantic feelings for him?
No, she was his dad adopted daughter now, but she was originally his uncle’s daughter, and in some cultures, marriage between cousins was acceptable, but…
He met Yeonhwa’s red eyes, which were filled with both confidence and anxiety.
Honestly, he wasn’t repulsed by Yeonhwa’s feelings, but it was sudden. It was complicated.
“Is… it true…?”
Anyway, the important thing now was what he would say to Gwahae, who was asking for confirmation with a trembling voice.
‘Mancheon, remember.’
He suddenly remembered the words of Muk-gang, who had taught him the importance of responsibility.
‘For those who dare to ride on the back of a dragon, there are only two possible outcomes: to fall to their death, unable to handle the dragon’s power, or to tame the dragon by grabbing its horns and become a hero.’
It seemed it was time to become a hero.
He walked towards Gwahae, who was exuding a calm yet explosive, violent aura, leaning on his staff without hesitation.
‘Are you ready to be broken, Ta?’
‘Taegu~ Taegu~ Tatagu!’ (Of course, Man!)
Gwahae and Yeonhwa were both the most precious beings in the world to him.
And he was greedy. He couldn’t give up either of them.
He looked into her beautiful blue eyes, reminiscent of the morning sea, and steeled his resolve.
He had unintentionally seduced her, so he had to take responsibility.
It was time for some tender loving care.
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What he isnt dense