After fighting their first real battle in the Dabae Mountain Range, the Evil-Smiting Corps, under Yeon Hojeong’s guidance, headed for Mount Tianzhong in southern Henan.

On the way to Mount Tianzhong, Yeon Hojeong didn’t go down into a single county town. He insisted on mountain paths only, and kept using movement arts until someone was too exhausted to go on.

On the third day of running through the mountains like that, Mookbi asked,

“Is there some reason we’re sticking to these winding mountain trails? It feels like we’re going way out of our way.”

“There is,” he said.

“What is it?”

“Because we have to eliminate contact with anyone other than us.”

There were still many who hadn’t shaken off the shock of their first real battle.

Nothing was better for calming their hearts and bringing them closer together than simply living side by side.

Yeon Hojeong didn’t stop there.

Whenever they rested, he would chat with people in the unit about this and that.

They all pretended otherwise, but quite a few of them were quietly intimidated by the way he had crushed the dark-path killers.

He drew a clear line between himself in battle and himself in everyday life. And he used many conversations and moments of empathy to help them accept both sides of him naturally.

His efforts bore fruit faster than expected.

After about five days, not a single martial artist in the Evil-Smiting Corps was left who either feared or dismissed Yeon Hojeong.

He was strong. But he was also surprisingly playful, and somehow still carried himself like an adult.

It was a side of Yeon Hojeong’s nature that had never had a chance to show as the Dark Emperor.

Conversations with his family, living in the Yeon household, and the trust he’d placed in himself—all of it had changed Yeon Hojeong from the inside out.

The Yeon Hojeong who had lived only in blood and fire as the Dark Emperor had, at long last, returned as the true eldest son of the Yeon Clan.

A few more days passed like that, until the Evil-Smiting Corps entered the eastern edge of Mount Tianzhong.

“Commander.”

“What?”

Dongho hesitated.

He had only just escaped the shock of his first kill. He hadn’t fully recovered his old lively self yet. Still, his nature was his nature—if he was curious, he had to ask.

“So who’s our next enemy?”

“I don’t know yet.”

“Sir?”

“Deputy Ga will contact us separately. Until then, we don’t engage anyone.”

“Th-then where are we heading?”

“I told you, Mount Tianzhong. We’re almost there.”

“I thought we had enemies on Mount Tianzhong. You mean we don’t?”

“Of course not.”

“Then what are we doing there?”

Dongho’s question was everyone’s question. The entire Evil-Smiting Corps turned curious eyes on Yeon Hojeong.

He held up three fingers.

“Three months.”

“Sir?”

“For three months, I’m going to push your real-combat sense as high as it will go.”

“...!”

“Getting the Evil-Smiting Corps to move as one comes after that. Up to now, we’ve been traveling easy. From here on, we need to shape you into usable fighting strength.”

Yeon Hojeong grinned, full of confidence.

“So? You all ready to become real people of the rivers and lakes?”

There was no answer. But their eyes were burning like flames.

Their backgrounds, their skills, their dreams were all different, but they shared one goal.

To temper the martial arts they’d learned until they held up in the rivers and lakes.

“If you’re ready, let’s get started. I’ll say this ahead of time—it’s going to be brutal for the next three months.”

*****

The snow that had once fallen in thick sheets and the wind that had cut like blades were slowly disappearing.

One month, then two, then three passed.

The wind that froze you to the bone became a warm spring breeze, and riding that spring breeze were not savage snowflakes, but flower petals brushing the air.

“Wow.”

Je Gal Ahyeon couldn’t help but exclaim as she looked at the mountains in the distance, beautifully tinged with color.

“It’s lovely, really lovely. Don’t you think?”

“It is,” Paeng Manho replied.

“How’s spring in Hebei?”

“Not quite this crisp. The weather there kind of makes you feel like you’re about to start coughing, I guess.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Well, it’s better than winter anyway. Winter’s really cold.”

“I’ve never been up to Hebei even once. I’ll have to visit sometime. You’d better buy me something good to eat if I go.”

“Sure. When my brother and I pass through Hubei with you, I’ll count on you.”

“Don’t worry about it, big bear.”

“...”

“What?”

“Could you not call me ‘big bear’?”

“Anyone can see you’re a bear.”

“Then can I call you a fox?”

“And why not?”

Her easy acceptance left him the one at a loss for words.

Paeng Manho snorted.

“That’s cute. A fox and a bear? Sounds like characters out of one of those old tales my grandfather told me when I was little, doesn’t it?”

“No idea.”

“Come on, you know. The crafty fox that tricks the bear...”

“I don’t recall our family being relaxed enough that I could sit on grandfather’s knee and listen to old stories.”

“That’s strange. And here I thought the Je Gal Clan, repository of all knowledge, would at least tell you those.”

“I finished the Thousand Character Classic at five and went straight into the Four Books and Three Classics. I didn’t have time to get hooked on old tales.”

“Creepy. Isn’t that a little too cold-blooded?”

“That was then. It’s not like that anymore.”

Her expression now was nothing but fresh and bright.

Paeng Manho shook his head.

“Joon’s probably dying right about now.”

“He’s probably in the thick of Young Clan Lord training. Serves him right, that bastard.”

He couldn’t see what there was to envy about Young Clan Lord training for her to say “serves him right.”

Je Gal Ahyeon definitely had her quirks. She was as quick on the uptake as you’d expect from a daughter of the Je Gal Clan and knew a great deal, but she didn’t seem to care much for power or grand ambitions.

Well, I’m not that different, I guess.

His twin brother Paeng Daeho was a textbook heroic type. He, by contrast, was closer to a misfit who hated troublesome things and just wanted to live free.

Paeng Manho suddenly thought of Yeon Hojeong.

I hope it’s fun.

The figure he’d met at the late-generation experts’ gathering had left an unforgettable impression.

He didn’t know about anything else, but there was one thing he wanted from Yeon Hojeong.

Joy.

That joy might take the form of wild exuberance or chilling menace. But for some reason, he was sure that if he roamed the rivers and lakes with him, he’d never be bored.

“Anyway, Sis, I think we should probably pick up the pace.”

“Hm?”

“It’s already past noon.”

“Ahem! Run, big bear!”

“Stop calling me big bear!”

FWOOOOSH!

Their movement arts were quite fast.

In a single rush they passed the village outskirts and entered Mount Tianzhong, making their way toward the rendezvous point.

But it was hard to pinpoint the exact spot. Thick foliage and masses of blossoms blocked their view.

Paeng Manho clicked his tongue.

“This is ridiculous. Why pick a place like this for the meeting spot...?”

“Over there.”

“Ma’am?”

“Over there, big bear. Can’t you see?”

“What’s there to see? It’s completely blocked off. Anyone can tell that’s not it.”

“Hopeless. Just ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) follow me. Big sis will teach you something.”

“Uh? Uh? You’re really going? That seriously doesn’t look right. Are we really going?”

Following behind Je Gal Ahyeon almost without thinking, Paeng Manho’s eyes suddenly bulged.

Wh-what the...?

The tangled trees were all twisted together however they liked, but there, the air flowed just a little.

Je Gal Ahyeon pointed a finger at one of the trunks.

“If we’d come up from below we’d have spotted it sooner. Shame. Big bear, let’s cut all that.”

“Ma’am? Ah! Yes, ma’am!”

WHOOM.

Drawing the heavy greatsaber from his back, Paeng Manho swung it in a powerful single stroke.

PAPAPAPAK!

A fierce blade wind tore through the air in a line, ripping the thick trunks apart and sending them flying.

Je Gal Ahyeon let out a whistle.

“Strong, strong. That strength is at least good for something.”

Wordlessly, Paeng Manho rolled up his sleeve and flexed his arm. Muscle swelled like a mountain peak and gleamed in the sunlight.

Her verdict was merciless.

“Disgusting.”

“...”

“Let’s go in.”

“Yes, fox.”

“You can call me a fox, that’s fine, but I’d like you to still say ‘big sis.’”

“Yes, fox.”

“One of these days I’m going to stick you in a formation and keep you there three days...”

“After you, big sis.”

“Good boy.”

The two of them slipped in between the tree trunks.

They’d bickered like they were just fooling around, but inside, Paeng Manho was honestly in awe of Je Gal Ahyeon’s eye.

How did she see that?

Once they passed through the cramped passage that felt like a narrow cave, a wide clearing appeared about thirty feet ahead.

It was a clearing of striking beauty, but not a place where the wind could easily gather.

With no wind riding through, the movement of the air itself was minimal. Naturally, that made it difficult to sense the flow of qi that rode those currents as well.

She sees the world in a completely different way. You don’t get this kind of thing without looking at everything three-dimensionally.

Those trained eyes would be useful for far more than just finding a path quickly.

They’d be a great help in building strategies and tactics that used terrain and topography, and even in predicting an enemy’s movements or forming formations.

To Paeng Manho, it was another world entirely—this world as seen by a military strategist.

“Anyway, looks like they’re not here yet.”

“They’ll be here soon.”

“Because it’s almost time, sure...”

“That’s not why.”

Je Gal Ahyeon looked toward the eastern peak.

A small smile touched her lips.

“They’ve hit the exact meeting time.”

“Ma’am?”

Just then—

...!

Paeng Manho’s face stiffened.

What on earth...?

Far off at the edge of the eastern peak, a thick haze of dust began to rise.

And just when he thought the dust was growing noticeably larger—

PAPAPAPAK! KRRRACK! THUD!

From the ridge line down, trees standing in a line began collapsing one after another.

It only looked slow because they were watching from far away. In reality, they had to be falling at a terrifying speed. Every time a deafening boom shook the ground, three or four trees either snapped or shattered.

And a short while later—

“...Huh.”

VUUUUM!

The closer the dust cloud came, the more—

The air in the once-still clearing began to churn violently.

The strength of the wind changed. Because of someone exploding toward them, the air in the clearing grew hot.

At last, they could make out the figure running in the lead.

Je Gal Ahyeon smiled, and Paeng Manho’s eyes went as wide as lanterns.

“Talk about over the top.”

FWOOOOMP!

Now they could hear even the sharp pop of the air bursting every time his toes pushed off the ground.

The one closing in at incredible speed was a young man with a scholar’s face in clothes worn nearly to rags. Even while carrying an enormous axe on his shoulder, his speed was like the wind.

THUMP!

With one last stomp, Yeon Hojeong came to a stop about thirty feet in front of the two of them.

Je Gal Ahyeon raised a hand.

“You know, nobody would’ve yelled at you if you’d just come quietly. What’s the rush...”

SHSSH.

Just then, a woman descended from high in the sky.

Her clothes were nearly as dirty as Yeon Hojeong’s, but her uniquely strong yet gentle movements gave off an astonishingly mysterious air.

SHFF!

Mookbi, who glided down with ease, landed two steps in front of Yeon Hojeong.

“You got faster.”

“Are you really the one to talk? You set out long after me and still came in ahead? You’re insane.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Yeon Hojeong lifted a hand toward Je Gal Ahyeon.

“Hey. Long time no see.”

“...Huh? Oh, yeah. Long time!”

“Look at that skin. Are you putting on powder now?”

Je Gal Ahyeon let out a snort of laughter.

“My skin’s always been porcelain, I’ll have you know.”

“Yeah, right.”

Just as she was about to fire back, he waved her down.

“Hang on a bit. The kids are about to get here.”

Almost before he finished speaking, about fifty men and women appeared.

Je Gal Ahyeon and Paeng Manho watched them with curious eyes, and then their expressions twisted into disbelief.

“Uwaaaaah!”

“M-my back! My back is broken!”

“Khak! Huff, huff!”

“I-I’m done... I don’t want to live—no, I mean I don’t want to do this anymore.”

“Gghrrrk...”

Every last one of the men and women staggering into the clearing collapsed where they stood. They didn’t look like they had the strength to lift a finger.

Je Gal Ahyeon was at a loss for words.

In a cautious whisper, Paeng Manho asked,

“Did you maybe recruit all the Evil-Smiting Corps warriors out of the Beggars’ Union?”