Chapter 43, Could You Get Lost?
Un Daeryong was deeply depressed.
He had lost half his subordinates and gained nothing.
He should never have allowed himself to be dragged around by those youngsters in the first place.
To deal with people like Hwancheonma and Ma Gi, they needed elders from the Martial Alliance at the same level.
Only then would it have been a battle worth attempting.
Instead, his subordinates had been sacrificed while trying to hold back peak masters.
He could not even complain to anyone.
He had to take responsibility for everything.
It was not the punishment that frightened him.
He had lost half the subordinates who had shared both hardship and joy with him.
He might even become a laughingstock now.
The only excuse he had was that their opponents had been the famous Hwancheonma and Ma Gi.
At least that provided the smallest comfort.
Jaha understood Un Daeryong's feelings better than anyone.
At first, he had planned to ignore him.
Then he realized it might be useful to offer some proper comfort now if he ever wanted Un Daeryong's help during a future crisis.
The moment that thought appeared, Jaha acted.
"Commander Un."
Un Daeryong had been staring blankly at the bodies of his subordinates.
At Jaha's call, he stood up.
"What is it?"
"If not for Commander Un, every one of us here would have died to Hwancheonma or Ma Gi. The reason we're alive is because of you and the Vermilion Bird Unit."
The surrounding Vermilion Bird Unit warriors looked deeply moved.
Not a single person had offered words of comfort for their sacrifice until now.
Yet one of the people who had contributed the most during the battle was acknowledging their sacrifice and pain.
They felt a sense of connection with him.
"What does that matter? I lost half my men."
Jaha spoke with as much concern as he could place into his voice.
"Once you return to the Martial Alliance, you'll definitely be investigated over this."
"That's probably true. I might be demoted, or I might even have to leave the Alliance."
Jaha strengthened his voice.
"That's why I'm saying this. If you need someone to testify about this incident, call me. I'll explain everything that happened here. I'll explain how the fighting started and how it ended. I'll testify that Commander Un did nothing wrong and actually accomplished a great achievement. However, as you know, my background isn't impressive, so they may not believe me. If that happens, Senior Goeui over there will also testify."
Hearing his own name suddenly mentioned, Goeui stared at Jaha with wide eyes.
However, he did not object.
For now, he decided to watch what Jaha intended to do.
Jaha then looked toward Namgung Cheol.
"Namgung Cheol, will you testify for Commander Un too?"
Namgung Cheol nodded.
"Of course. We're alive because of Commander Un and the Vermilion Bird Unit. I'll testify too."
Jaha glanced past Dang Jong and Paeng Umyeong.
"With this many witnesses, the Martial Alliance shouldn't impeach Commander Un. They may even reward him for his achievement. Hall Master Songrim will provide a detailed report about this battle."
When Jaha turned his head toward Songrim, Songrim flinched before nodding.
"Of course. I also risked my life in this battle. Once the Inspection Hall receives the full report, Commander Un should be cleared of blame. He may even receive a reward for merit."
"Receiving a reward after losing my subordinates would be shameless. Simply being allowed to remain beside those who survived would already be enough for me."
Un Daeryong looked at Jaha differently.
Jaha was deliberately naming each person and receiving their agreement one by one.
Un Daeryong had begun paying attention to Jaha during his battle with Western Monster Saeng Goryang.
Since then, he had already realized that the young man was unusual.
For the first time in a long while, Un Daeryong felt consideration from another person.
The heaviness pressing against his chest eased slightly.
"Hall Master Songrim will also report the achievements of the surviving Vermilion Bird Unit warriors and those who died, ensuring that their sacrifices are not forgotten."
Songrim nodded as though it was naturally his responsibility.
"That's right. Of course."
Namgung Cheol listened before speaking.
"I'm only a Young Family Head, so I can't make an absolute promise. But I will make sure my family arranges compensation for those who were sacrificed. That's the minimum courtesy I can offer the Vermilion Bird Unit members who died because of us."
Namgung Cheol had changed greatly through this battle, even if Dang Jong and Paeng Umyeong had not.
Perhaps it was because he had nearly died.
After stepping across the boundary between life and death, the depth of Namgung Cheol's thinking had changed.
And it had changed in a good direction.
Dang Jong and Paeng Umyeong remained silent.
They looked at each other as if wondering whether they were also expected to compensate the dead.
Jaha noticed and spoke indirectly.
"If word spreads through the martial world that the Namgung Family compensated the families of fallen Vermilion Bird Unit warriors, the Namgung Family's reputation will rise even higher. People will say it is a family that understands honor and righteousness."
Namgung Cheol smiled.
"I consider it only natural compensation, but thank you for saying that."
Namgung Cheol understood that Jaha had spoken like this to force Dang Jong and Paeng Umyeong to respond.
Apparently feeling the pressure, Paeng Umyeong looked toward Zhuge Yuyeon.
She understood why he was looking at her, smiled, and nodded.
"The Paeng Family also received a great favor during this incident, so we'll provide sufficient compensation. Commander Un, please send the list of dead and injured warriors to my family."
Un Daeryong respectfully cupped his fists toward Paeng Umyeong and Namgung Cheol.
"I, Un Daeryong, deeply thank both young masters for your consideration."
Now Dang Jong could no longer remain silent.
"Our Tang Family will also provide proper compensation. I'll personally make sure it happens."
Jaha smiled.
"That's more like the Tang Family. Everyone in the world knows the Sichuan Tang Clan repays kindness tenfold and grudges a hundredfold."
Dang Jong glared at Jaha.
However, he soon withdrew his gaze.
"That's right. My family always repays kindness."
As the Vermilion Bird Unit collected the bodies and prepared to leave, Jaha realized it was time to separate from Deung Hwahong.
Jaha approached her first.
"I'm glad things ended well."
Deung Hwahong nodded.
"It's thanks to you, Brother Byeok. Without you, how could we ever have escaped Hwancheonma or Ma Gi?"
"That's right. I did contribute quite a lot."
Jaha accidentally let his true thoughts escape and chuckled.
However, Deung Hwahong accepted his words naturally.
"Brother Byeok really is different from other people."
"Miss Deung is also different from other people. So be careful."
Deung Hwahong stared at him after hearing that.
"So you really did know who I am."
"What do you mean?"
"Hehehe. Don't pretend you don't know. It's written all over your face."
Jaha continued pretending ignorance.
Deung Hwahong did not press further.
Instead, she said something unexpected.
"We'll meet again."
"Will we really have a reason to?"
Jaha believed there was little chance they would ever meet again.
Deung Hwahong was a descendant of the Three Masters and the successor responsible for maintaining the ultimate formation of the Nineteen Forbidden Demon Region.
The Martial Alliance would never simply leave her alone.
After this kidnapping incident, they would become even more careful about protecting her.
Naturally, someone with Byeok Ho's status would have no chance to see her again.
"No. We'll meet again."
Deung Hwahong spoke with absolute certainty and smiled softly.
"Before you enter the Martial Alliance, you should wear a face veil."
Even now, every time she smiled, an almost dangerous charm flowed from her.
Jaha gave her an almost cold farewell and turned away.
Deung Hwahong continued watching him for a long time.
"Even the cold attitude is charming."
In truth, Deung Hwahong had not paid much attention to Jaha at first because he came from a countryside martial school.
Even after he stopped Shinbi's attack and reached the Benevolence Manor, she assumed that a man called Wang Gyeong had played the larger role.
She had been unconscious during most of the journey and had not witnessed Jaha's actions herself.
Later, however, she heard the entire story from Wang Gyeong.
From that moment, she began seeing Jaha differently.
The reason was simple.
She had learned the Water Thunder Formation from her late father, but even she had never believed it could truly be installed in actual circumstances.
It required extremely precise timing and terrain.
She heard that Jaha had also attracted insects and controlled wolves.
But those things were less interesting to Deung Hwahong than the fact that Jaha was a formation master.
Perhaps that was natural because the Deung Family descended from one of the Three Masters.
Then Jaha identified the Shi Formation she had personally installed.
At that moment, she had honestly felt chills.
Later, when Jaha trapped Hwancheonma and Ma Gi inside a bizarre formation she had never even heard of, her entire body had trembled.
For the first time in her life, Deung Hwahong understood what people meant by feeling a thrill.
She found herself strongly attracted to Jaha.
She had always been confident that when it came to formations, even the head of the Zhuge Family could not easily surpass her.
Then someone appeared and shattered that pride completely.
There was no way she could avoid being interested.
"What a strange man. And strangely attractive too."
Deung Hwahong's eyes remained fixed on Jaha's back.
Before leaving, Namgung Cheol found Jaha.
"We've decided to follow your advice. Instead of returning home, we'll continue toward the Shandong Ak Family. After thinking about it carefully, returning home would cause more harm than benefit. Thank you for helping us make that decision."
Jaha looked at Namgung Cheol and smiled faintly.
"I'm glad my words helped."
Namgung Cheol continued.
"And when the Jade Talent Gathering is held, I'll invite you. Bring everyone from your martial school."
"I appreciate the invitation, but my master has no interest in fame or profit, so I can't promise we'll attend."
"It will help you greatly. All the finest young talents from the martial families gather at the Jade Talent Gathering. Even simply watching the martial matches there can bring enormous enlightenment."
Namgung Cheol was trying to be considerate in his own way.
When Jaha had first met him, he had been unbelievably arrogant.
Now he had changed considerably.
Even the way he looked at people was already different.
From now on, the paths of these three will probably separate greatly. Their positions and status will eventually become completely different.
Jaha believed Namgung Cheol, who had matured fastest, would surpass Dang Jong and Paeng Umyeong and begin standing out among them.
"Byeok Ho, if anything happens, contact me. If it's something involving you, I'll drop everything and come immediately. Before you're my friend, you're the man who saved my life."
Jaha smiled.
Inside, he thought,
Fine. If that's how you feel, I'll make sure to squeeze everything useful out of you someday.
Despite those thoughts, humble words flowed smoothly from Jaha's mouth.
"Don't feel so burdened. Talking about debts of life between friends is embarrassing."
Namgung Cheol stared at the completely calm Jaha in fascination.
If Jaha were greedy, he would probably have asked for money first.
And if he had truly considered becoming friends with Namgung Cheol some incredible honor, he should have been moved enough to cry.
Instead, this countryside martial school friend wore an expression saying it was nothing special.
Namgung Cheol found that genuinely strange.
For a moment, he subtly tested whether Jaha secretly wanted something.
He could not find any sign of it.
Jaha did not even seem especially grateful when Namgung Cheol offered him an invitation to the Jade Talent Gathering.
It was obvious from his eyes.
If anything, Jaha looked slightly annoyed by the entire conversation.
That left Namgung Cheol speechless.
For a moment, he wondered if deciding to become friends with someone from a countryside martial school had been too hasty.
Then he erased the thought.
There may come a day when this friend becomes far more famous than any of us here.
He had realized it when Goeui fought Go Deung for Jaha's sake.
Goeui was famous for remaining neutral between righteous and unorthodox factions and almost never interfering with other people's affairs or matters of the martial world.
Yet he had risked his life for Jaha.
Namgung Cheol felt like praising himself for making the right choice.
"Don't forget that I'm your friend."
Jaha looked at Namgung Cheol, who spoke as if being his friend was some great honor.
"A friend is just a friend. Stop speaking as though I'm supposed to benefit greatly from it. It's irritating."
Back when Jaha had been Demon Cult Leader, he would have considered someone like Namgung Cheol no more important than dirt beneath his fingernails.
That was why Namgung Cheol's repeated emphasis on their friendship was beginning to irritate him.
Namgung Cheol burst out laughing.
"Hahahahaha! Fine, fine. I misspoke. Don't be angry."
Paeng Umyeong quietly watched Namgung Cheol and Jaha laughing together.
"Brother Umyeong, I think you should take this opportunity to become friendly with that person called Byeok Ho too."
Zhuge Yuyeon finally spoke because she could no longer bear watching.
To Zhuge Yuyeon, Namgung Cheol looked both clever and wise.
Jaha was clearly someone who would become prominent in the martial world.
Namgung Cheol's decision to make someone like that his friend before anyone else reminded her why the Namgung Family held the leading position among the great martial families.
"No thanks. I have my dignity. I don't understand why Brother Namgung is treating some countryside martial school disciple like a close friend."
Paeng Umyeong possessed stronger pride than almost anyone.
He disliked seeing Namgung Cheol become close to Jaha.
Zhuge Yuyeon sighed inwardly.
It seems the Paeng Family still lacks what it needs to surpass the Namgung Family.
Zhuge Yuyeon secretly envied Namgung Cheol for forming a connection with someone like Jaha.
Then a strange light appeared in her eyes.
If it were my older sister, she could probably make that man one of her own people.
Zhuge Yuyeon's brilliant mind began turning from that moment.
