10 - Attack

I left the ruined gate of the Heavenly Wind Martial Hall and immediately ran towards home.

With each step, I released a short burst of Internal Energy through the Bubbling Spring Point on my soles, propelling myself forward.

A speed unmatched by ordinary humans.

But my heart was filled with urgency.

I had wasted too much time dealing with that Jegon or whatever his name was.

His Internal Energy was extraordinary, so I had no choice but to talk him down to lower his guard.

Had those Dark Heaven Corps bastards already arrived? Had they harmed anyone in my family? No, don't think such bad thoughts.

I shook my head and quickened my pace.

Lord Guen's Family was a bit outside the city, but still within the same village. It wouldn't take too long.

An hour at most….

"It's taking too long!"

If only I had enough Internal Energy, I could have halved the time!

I had used a bit of Sword Energy while fighting that guy earlier, and half of my Internal Energy had vanished.

Even if I used up all the remaining Internal Energy to get there, I wouldn't be able to defeat the Dark Heaven Corps bastards.

I bit my lip, regretting that I hadn't pestered my Parents to buy me some elixirs, and ran towards home.

"W-who are you people? What is the meaning of this?"

Guen Won-pyeong, the head of Lord Guen's Family, a major landowner in Guen County and respected by the people, protectively shielded his trembling wife and children behind him, glaring at the mysterious intruders.

Several of the family's servants had already been killed by these men.

Determined not to let anyone else die, he stepped forward and demanded an explanation from the intruders.

But all he received was a low sneer.

"Heh heh heh. Lord Guen, who we are is not important. What is important is that this family is connected to traitors."

"T-traitors…! That can't be! I've lived in this village my whole life, how could we be involved in treason!"

Im Mu-hong, the vice-commander of the Dark Heaven Corps, smiled wryly at Won-pyeong's confident words.

"Do you perhaps know about the Heavenly Wind Martial Hall?"

"The, the Heavenly Wind Martial Hall…? That's…!"

How could he not know the name of the Martial Hall that his beloved youngest son had been attending for ten years?

But why that Martial Hall? Could it be?

Seeing Won-pyeong's face turn pale, Mu-hong nodded.

"Indeed. We have received intelligence that the Heavenly Wind Martial Hall is daring to train in the Demonic Art of that vile Demonic Sect."

"D-Demonic Sect…!"

The moment the words "Demonic Sect" came out, Won-pyeong's face turned as white as a sheet of paper.

Demonic Sect.

Originally named the Ming Sect, it had helped Hongwu Emperor establish the Ming Dynasty in the past, but was later purged on a large scale when it was revealed that they had committed cruel acts within the sect.

Even after hundreds of years, they had been purged by the Brocade-Clad Guard several times, but they had stubbornly survived, disturbing the country from the shadows.

That was the Demonic Sect.

Most of the people in this village didn't even know the "Demonic" in Demonic Sect, but a major landowner like him would hear various stories.

So he knew.

Those related to the Demonic Sect would be summarily executed, regardless of their status.

Especially if Jaseong had really been training in Demonic Art….

'Lord Guen's Family is finished.'

His head throbbed at the thought of the terrible future, when suddenly Mu-hong took something out of his pocket and threw it at Won-pyeong.

Won-pyeong caught it instinctively.

“…A book?”

Indeed.

What Mu-hong had thrown at Won-pyeong was an old book.

But the title written on the cover was ominous.

"Blood… Explosion… Art?"

An art to explode blood, what is this…?

Just as he was about to ask what it was, Mu-hong preempted him.

"Aha! So it wasn't the Heavenly Wind Martial Hall, but these Lord Guen's Family bastards who were the main culprits! Daring to keep the Demonic Art of the Demonic Sect!"

"W-wait a minute. What is this, you just…!"

Won-pyeong was dumbfounded and tried to argue, but Mu-hong interrupted him again, shouting.

"Daring to betray the Emperor's grace and collude with the Demonic Sect! That sin must be repaid with death!"

Won-pyeong's face turned grim as he finally realized Mu-hong's intention.

It was a conspiracy.

From the beginning, they had intended to kill everyone in Lord Guen's Family by any means possible.

'I should have had the children escape first…!'

It was too late to regret it.

Judging from the swift movements they had shown when killing the servants, they were all Martial Artists.

Even if the family members, who had not learned any Martial Arts, tried to escape now, they would be caught quickly.

He felt dizzy at the sudden crisis of annihilation.

'…It's a relief that you're not here, Seong-ah.'

He didn't know why, but the only consolation was that his youngest son, who had disappeared in the middle of the night, would survive.

Won-pyeong closed his eyes, watching the black-clad men slowly approaching them.

-Bang!

It was then that a loud noise suddenly rang out.

Won-pyeong opened his eyes in surprise.

And his youngest son, who had disappeared, came into his sight.

'Ah, no…!'

Despair washed over Won-pyeong's face.

"Haa… haa…!"

As I gasped for breath, I burst open the gate of the manor, and what I saw was a scene I didn't even want to imagine.

“…Uncle Kang. Nanny.”

The servants of Lord Guen's Family were lying dead, bleeding.

"Brother Jin-il, Granny Dal."

Seeing the people I had lived with in the same house for twenty years lying dead so tragically, my heart turned as cold as ice and flames rose in my head.

"H-how…!"

When I raised my head from the corpses of the servants, I saw my Parents, Older sister, and the surviving servants surrounded by the Dark Heaven Corps bastards in the distance.

"Why did you come back, you should have lived!"

My father roared with a distorted face.

It was so strange to see the man who always smiled so gently like that.

And behind him, my mother and Older sister were trying to hide.

My Older sister, who was usually so boisterous, had tears welling up in her big eyes, as if she had left her usual self somewhere.

The fear my family must have felt became fuel, and the flames in my head burned even more fiercely.

And one more thing.

"Are you the youngest son of this family? Ho, you've learned some Martial Arts, however shallow. You must be the one who trained in Demonic Art!"

The black-clad man started spouting nonsense as soon as he saw me.

That Lord Neung guy earlier called himself the commander, so is this guy the vice-commander?

-Clap!

As the vice-commander snapped his fingers, the four men who had been waiting behind the five men surrounding my family broke away and surrounded me.

"Seong-ah!"

My mother called my name with a mournful voice at this sight.

Seeing her tear-stained face, I couldn't take it anymore.

-Swish

The black-clad men looked at each other for a moment when they saw me draw my sword.

Then, they began to mock me with sneers on their faces.

"Oh my, a little kid shouldn't play with such dangerous things. Quickly, give it to this uncle, okay?"

"Hey hey. You can't just snatch it like that, can you? Here, take this. Buy some snacks with it. Hahaha-!"

A black-clad man burst into laughter, holding out a single iron coin.

I circulated the remaining Internal Energy in my body and approached the man like a flash, piercing his neck.

-Thwack!

"Cough…?"

I kicked the chest of the man who was coughing with the sword stuck in his neck and pulled out the sword.

Blood gushed out like a fountain from the neck where the sword had been pulled out.

"Huh?"

The remaining three men stared blankly at the scene.

Their faces showed that they didn't understand what had just happened.

I didn't have the luxury of waiting for them to come to their senses, so I immediately rushed at the man next to me.

-Swoosh!

When I rushed at him again, the man belatedly came to his senses and tried to do something, but it was too late.

Because my sword had already pierced his heart.

That made two.

"You bastard!"

The remaining two men, who had finally come to their senses after seeing two of their comrades die before their eyes, rushed at me simultaneously.

They raised their swords above their heads at the same time, as if they were twins.

In response, I simultaneously slashed the necks of the two men faster than they could bring their swords down.

"Cough!"

"Guh… cough?!"

Then, the two men dropped their swords and grabbed their necks with both hands.

Blood spurted out from between their fingers, no matter how hard they tried to stop it.

It was an irreversible wound.

They would probably slowly meet their deaths.

In that way, I had driven the four men who had surrounded me to their deaths in an instant.

“……”

Silence fell within the manor.

The Dark Heaven Corps bastards and the family members stared at me with disbelief.

"W-what is this…!"

In particular, the vice-commander stammered, his eyes showing that he couldn't believe the reality before him.

I slowly approached that vice-commander bastard.

"Y-you…! Stop him! Stop that guy right now!"

The vice-commander, who was stepping back, gave a desperate order as I approached.

At their superior's command, the remaining five men broke their formation and rushed at me.

What fools.

If they wanted to stop my movements, they should have taken my family hostage.

Of course, I would have killed them all before they could do that.

I rushed at the five men who were approaching me.

"Haaap!"

I ducked under the sword swung by the man in the front and passed him.

The man right behind him was completely flustered, probably not expecting me to push past the man in front and rush at him first.

I immediately plunged my sword into his abdomen and pulled it out as if tearing his side open.

"Aaaagh!"

Blood and entrails poured out of his side, and he screamed like a child.

Ha, you guys are supposed to be an assassination squad? Is this what Assassins are like?

I didn't expect anything like Concealed Sleep Technique, since I've seen and heard things.

But at least if you're an Assassin, shouldn't you at least pretend to suppress your screams?

These Assassins have no professional ethics.

Well, it doesn't matter now.

Because you're all going to die by my hand anyway.

Chapter 10