Hoyo-seong's face hardened. However, there was no sign of fear or worry. It was surprising how he showed no fear even with a blade resting on his shoulder.
"I didn't expect things to turn out like this."
"Predictable developments are never fun."
"I don't know if it's fun, but it's certainly surprising."
"Whatever you're thinking, it's none of my business."
Hoyo-seong sighed.
"Let's hear the reason. Why are you doing this all of a sudden?"
"Isn't that what I should be asking?"
"Pardon?"
"I don't know the method or the reason. But you didn't come to me out of mere curiosity or goodwill."
Seoryang's eyes sank deeply.
"Why did you seek me out?"
A vague emergency signaled by his sixth sense. When he first faced him, the sixth sense that rang an alarm in the corner of his mind now pricked his head like a dagger.
Eventually, he couldn't even focus properly on the conversation. His vigilance towards the opponent grew, and he concentrated all his attention solely on Hoyo-seong's eyes and reactions.
No more. He didn't know how he felt it or why he felt that way, but he couldn't walk alongside someone he felt was dangerous.
"Is it that you felt something strange, so you're threatening me to find out what it is?"
"No."
"Then?"
"Drawing the sword isn't just a threat."
"......"
"If necessary, I'm thinking of taking your head."
Hoyo-seong's lips curled up.
"You're saying you'll take the head of the General Commander within the school? No matter how much you're the Third Young Master, you won't get away with it."
"It's fine. I can just pretend to be a bandit."
"Ah? Are you planning to claim you didn't know I was the General Commander?"
"If the time comes when I have to, I'll do it."
Seoryang's face was serious. And Hoyo-seong immediately recognized that seriousness.
The sneer on Hoyo-seong's face gradually turned expressionless.
"Sheathe your sword. This situation could be treated as treason."
"Whether I die now or later, whether I die this way or that way, people die anyway."
"I'll count to three."
"One last question."
Chiiing!
A faint demonic energy was infused into the sword. Though the demonic energy was slight, it was filled with firm determination. If Seoryang didn't give a proper answer to this question, he would genuinely take Hoyo-seong's head.
Knowing this, cold sweat slowly formed on Hoyo-seong's neck.
"Why did you seek me out?"
"......"
"Let me warn you in advance, if you mention mere curiosity again, you'll die."
Hoyo-seong, who had been staring at Seoryang with a hardened face, sighed.
"How did you know?"
"If you hear a question, you should answer it. It's not a good habit to ask back. And I clearly said it was the last time."
"I'll tell you, so please let me know. How did you know I had other intentions?"
Seoryang frowned.
"I don't know, it's just a feeling."
"A feeling? You guessed it with a feeling?"
"I'm quite good with my intuition. And I've already realized that the world doesn't run on logic alone. So when reason and emotion clash, I usually follow the latter. At least then, I don't regret it."
"......That's something."
It's a reason that makes one laugh involuntarily. Hoyo-seong, who was chuckling, suddenly recalled a conversation with someone.
- You've never seen my abilities, yet you want to make me the General Commander? Why?
- Does the reason matter?
- It matters. At least to me.
- Let's just say it's intuition.
- You're saying you want to make me the General Commander because you feel it's okay? What is that? No matter how I think about it, it doesn't make sense.
- When you handle the school's affairs in the future, keep one thing in mind.
- You've already decided to make me.
- The world doesn't run on logic. It's a common mistake made by smart people like you.
- .......
- Develop your intuition.
- Intuition......
- Logic derives answers for the moment, but intuition presents the answer sheet for the future. True wisdom comes from there.
Upon hearing those words, Hoyo-seong bowed to 'him.' It was a bow he hadn't even given when facing the prince, but he couldn't help but bow to him. Unlike the prince, who only gave orders, he imparted teachings to him.
Hoyo-seong smacked his lips.
"Curiosity leads to imagination, and imagination brings to mind countless answer sheets."
"......"
"I wanted to know what the real answer was among those countless answer sheets."
"So you wanted to test me?"
"When I want to know an answer I don't know, I have to throw the test paper to someone else. They might be able to solve it."
"What kind of test did you want to conduct?"
"Nothing grand. I just wanted to take you to Cheonmabyeongchang."
"Hmm?"
"I have a way to get the Third Young Master into Cheonmabyeongchang."
"And?"
"I was going to let you in and observe."
Seoryang's eyes sharpened.
"It wouldn't have been mere observation."
"If you showed an interesting side, I was going to claim I didn't have such a method."
In other words, it meant that he could later treat him as someone who trespassed without permission after personally letting him into Cheonmabyeongchang.
He didn't know how that was possible, but it was certain that Hoyo-seong had the brains and power to do so.
If such a situation actually occurred, Seoryang would be subject to criminal punishment without exception. At that time, regardless of being the disciple of the cult leader, he would have to serve a sentence. No, he might even have to rot in prison for life. Trespassing into a secret domain without permission is a grave crime among grave crimes.
Seoryang, who had been quietly watching Hoyo-seong, withdrew his sword.
"To be honest, you're a really nasty person."
Hoyo-seong grinned. He sensed that the wariness towards him had significantly diminished from the opponent's changed tone.
"I hear that often. Sometimes I even hear people call me a lunatic."
"Who are the bold ones saying that?"
"The people of our school are quite bold. They can't say it openly, but they whisper behind my back. Didn't the Third Young Master even draw his sword?"
"You've been keeping it all in."
"Please say I have a good memory. What can I do if I can't forget?"
Seoryang snorted.
"Anyway, it was quite an interesting meeting. Let's go our separate ways now."
"Huh? You're leaving?"
"Why?"
"Aren't you going to Cheonmabyeongchang? What about the drink with me?"
Seoryang was dumbfounded.
"Are you suggesting we have a sweet drink together with someone who was planning to send me to prison out of curiosity? As I said before, I don't need to go to Cheonmabyeongchang."
"You promised."
"What promise?"
"You promised to have a drink with me in exchange for letting you into Cheonmabyeongchang."
"I said I don't need it."
Hoyo-seong's expression noticeably turned sullen.
"I thought you were someone who kept promises."
"I didn't know the General Commander was such a cunning person."
"I stayed up several nights finishing my work for today."
"Do I have any reason to acknowledge that?"
"Yes."
"What is it?"
"Didn't you send a bodyguard to Hwanhee Wonju?"
"......"
"You already guessed my intention, but you sent him anyway, not to find out something from Hwanhee Wonju, but to warn her, didn't you? To be careful with her words in the future."
Seoryang's eyes wavered.
Hoyo-seong smiled.
"Because of that, I've been branded as an untrustworthy person by Hwanhee Wonju. How will you take responsibility?"
Impressive.
Seoryang was genuinely impressed by the opponent's keen insight. It was surprising that he figured out who he sent Madongpil to, but it was truly remarkable that he immediately grasped the intention behind it.
"Then you shouldn't have messed with me."
"Who would have known it would turn out like this."
Aside from that brilliance, he's a shameless person.
Seoryang sighed.
"Alright. Since things have come to this, let's have a drink."
"An excellent choice."
"Before that, we'll stop by Cheonmabyeongchang."
"Ah, of course. Half a shichen should be enough, right? I'll tell the kids to set the table in advance......"
"What are you talking about?"
"Pardon?"
Seoryang looked at Hoyo-seong with eyes that seemed to wonder how such a naive person could exist.
Hoyo-seong's face immediately turned awkward.
"Why are you looking at me like that? Is one shichen not enough for you?"
"You said you'd let me into Cheonmabyeongchang."
"I did, didn't I?"
"You clearly said you'd let me in 'once,' not to bring back 'one sword.'"
"......!"
"If I want to look around and take a few swords, it'll take half a day, not half a shichen."
Hoyo-seong's mouth dropped open.
Seoryang spoke with a face full of annoyance.
"Let's go quickly. And if you're going to tell the kids to set the table, tell them to bring out three or four boiled duck dishes. It's been so delicious lately."
"No, Young Master......"
"For your information, I like things plain. If it's too salty or has a strong flavor, I won't eat it."
Seoryang, having said what he wanted, walked away with a carefree stride.
Hoyo-seong, who was staring blankly at his lighthearted back, burst into laughter.
"How long has it been since I've been hit in the back of the head like this?"
Though they said they'd drink heavily, Seoryang only emptied a couple of bottles before getting up. It was to get accustomed to the weapons he brought from the armory.
Seoryang, who packed various things into a large bundle big enough for a person to fit in, was heading back.
Hoyo-seong, watching his back with eyes slightly clouded by alcohol, gradually turned serious.
"You never know until you meet someone... So Wonju was right."
He's someone who can't be explained with just a few words. Though anyone might be like that, Seoryang had something special.
"I can't quite grasp him."
Among ordinary people, marriage talks start once they pass fifteen, and by their mid-twenties, they usually have a family and a stable life.
But the martial world is different. Assuming one has outstanding talent, the mid-twenties is merely the age to start standing out as a newcomer.
It's generally considered that one reaches their peak after forty in the martial world.
Thus, Seoryang is a rookie. That's the normal view.
However, the Seoryang he saw today was by no means a rookie.
"He seems lighthearted at first glance, but that's not lightness at all. In the words he casually throws out, you can glimpse his own perspective on the world."
Hoyo-seong's eyes sparkled.
"It's as if an old warrior who has experienced all sorts of trials and tribulations has been reborn in the body of a young man."
It's been almost seven or eight years since they met privately.
But Hoyo-seong knew how Seoryang had lived during that time. As the General Commander, it was natural for him to understand the personalities and martial arts of the cult leader's disciples.
If he had lived as cruelly and ambitiously as he knew, he could never have shown such a side. Seoryang's personality wasn't like that from the start.
'There's something.'
After deep contemplation, Hoyo-seong sighed.
"Well, since he even entered and exited Panmajeong, there's no reason to doubt."
At least he's not someone who would harm the cult. That's probably why the cult leader left the Third Young Master alone.
'But......'
Hoyo-seong looked up at the sky.
Countless stars were scattered across the dark sky, twinkling.
"Interesting. What kind of wind will the Third Young Master, who has discarded the past and transformed, bring?"
Will it be the cold wind of winter, the fragrant spring breeze, or the bloody wind?
"Hey."
"Yes, Commander."
"Send a message to Mashin Palace."
Hoyo-seong's eyes shone.
"Tell the cult leader I'll visit him tomorrow morning."