“A conference with the Martial Alliance is indeed necessary.”
The Literary Wheel, Cha Pyeong-in, spoke.
“I agree with the Literary Wheel. Did the battle on the Chang'an Plains not come to a strangely lackluster end after beginning with such force?”
“It did.”
Wi So-baek had shaped the flow, while Jang Se-jin, his sworn younger brother, had pulled from the opposite side, so events had naturally been drawn toward that conclusion.
“As a result, not only the Martial Alliance but we as well are in danger of becoming laughingstocks. Yet there are practical obstacles to immediately going to war with the Martial Alliance again, and it seems impossible to restore the same degree of tension......”
The Law Wheel, Gi Yun-cheong, glanced up with his pale hazel eyes at the grand chair occupying the seat of honor.
“It would be best to bring the situation under control as soon as possible.”
His tone was gentle and soothing, but everyone who knew him understood.
They understood just how cruel the Law Wheel, Gi Yun-cheong, could be.
“......”
As Wi So-baek's silence lengthened, the Literary Wheel grew taut with nerves while the smile on the Law Wheel's lips turned even more radiant.
“Is there perhaps some reason that warrants consideration, Alliance Leader?”
The Law Wheel tilted his head as he asked, and Wi So-baek twisted one corner of his mouth upward.
“Of course not. We shall accept the Martial Alliance's proposal.”
The Literary Wheel and Law Wheel bowed deeply.
“Yes!”
“Arrange a reception for the Martial Alliance's envoy this evening. He has come all this way, so I ought to show my face at least once.”
“You... must not kill him, Alliance Leader.”
When the Literary Wheel spoke cautiously, Wi So-baek shrugged.
“He came as an envoy, did he not? I will treat him very well.”
In truth, Wi So-baek was almost excessively sincere.
“You are the Martial Alliance's Outer Hall Master?”
Wi So-baek spoke to the man bowing his head before him.
“...Yes.”
The sight of his thick flesh trembling was not especially pleasant, but what of it?
“Good. It must have been a difficult journey, so relax and enjoy yourself.”
Wi So-baek personally seated him at his right hand, then.
“Here, have a drink.”
Even looked after him.
“Pardon?”
“I hear you hail from the Janghyeong Sect?”
Even took an interest in him.
“Pardon? H-how did you... know? It is only a small or middling sect, not even one of the Martial Alliance's central factions......”
“Why should I not know something that is hardly a secret?”
When Wi So-baek tilted his head, Cho Myeong went deathly pale.
“That is not what I meant. It just... happens to be... true. Yes, of course. It is nothing of importance, hahaha. Hahaha......”
“Correct. Had you come from a useful clan or sect, they would hardly have sent you as an envoy to a place where you might die without honor.”
He even reminded the man of reality, as a superior should.
Then, when Cho Myeong looked ready to plant his forehead on the table.......
“There is no need to be ashamed. You rose to the position of Outer Hall Master with no one backing you and with such paltry martial arts. You must be reasonably skilled at catering to your superiors, but that is no bad thing.”
He even consoled him!
Yet after Wi So-baek had gone this far for the man, why was the bastard's complexion green as a rotten fleeceflower root someone had chewed and spat out?
Wi So-baek frowned and surveyed the Demon Alliance subordinates seated around the banquet hall.
His gaze plainly asked who had bullied Cho Myeong, leaving his subordinates dumbfounded.
Had they not been wondering what offense that unimpressive envoy had committed for their lord to torment him like a cat playing with a mouse?!
At last, just as the Literary Wheel, a man second to none when it came to speaking honestly, was about to intervene.
“Perhaps he is overwhelmed with emotion. They say such symptoms can appear when a person's feelings swell beyond what he can bear.”
The Law Wheel cut in.
“This?”
With his eyes, Wi So-baek indicated Cho Myeong, who now wheezed as if about to stop breathing when every gaze in the banquet hall fell upon him.
The Law Wheel nodded calmly.
“Of course. Surely a mere Outer Hall Master of the Martial Alliance would not believe there was some sinister design or scheme behind the kindness bestowed by the Alliance Leader and feel so uncomfortable?”
He met Cho Myeong's eyes, as though asking which explanation the man intended to support.
“O-of-of course... it is because I am happy... haha! When in my life have I ever... drunk wine poured by the Demon Alliance Leader and received such hospitality...? Sob. I am so moved that I have tears in my eyes.”
Cho Myeong pretended to rub his plump eyelids with the back of his hand, struggling to hide his expression.
“So he says, Alliance Leader.”
When the Law Wheel responded with artless innocence, Wi So-baek gave a nasal hum.
Ordinarily, he would have rebuked the man for playing some foolish trick, but this time he did not.
“I see. Then that is fortunate.”
Wi So-baek picked up a wine bottle, rose, and approached the Law Wheel, who sat a fair distance away, before holding it out.
Blinking his brown eyes, the Law Wheel looked uncharacteristically flustered as he extended his cup, and Wi So-baek filled it.
“I poured wine for a stranger, but I do not believe I have ever done the same for one of my own.”
“Not even for the Martial Wheel, whom you usually favor? Am I the first?”
His brown eyes widened guilelessly.
Wi So-baek had never seen such an expression on the Law Wheel's face.
Was that why?
A faint trace of laughter entered his voice.
“Consider it a reward. Looking back, Law Wheel, it seems your presence at least prevented a bitter wind from blowing through the banquet hall.”
“Ah......”
The Law Wheel lowered his gaze.
Though his martial arts were so profound that he wielded a sword of solid metal as if it weighed nothing, the Law Wheel's fingertips trembled slightly.
Thinking the cup in his hand far heavier than expected, the Law Wheel drained the wine in one gulp, and Wi So-baek moved on to pour wine for his subordinates in turn.
As he watched Wi So-baek make his way around the banquet hall, Cho Myeong thought.
‘There must be a reason he invited only me and left out all the other nobodies who came from the Martial Alliance... What could it be?’
Whatever it was, Cho Myeong feared he lacked the ability to grant it, leaving him restless.
‘Once I hear it, there will be no way out. Should I just run?’
But where would he go?
‘Mentioning my worthless sect must have been a warning not even to dream of relying on it, and pointing out my poor standing in the Martial Alliance plainly meant that he knows I am a card to be discarded and is telling me I had better remember my place.’
And that was not all.
‘Could mentioning even a hometown that has grown hazy in my own memory be anything but a threat that he will crush everyone I know if I flee anywhere at all? How meticulously he chokes the life out of a man!’
So the man's infamy as the Evil Fiend of the demonic path was no empty reputation!
Wi So-baek had never set a trap, yet Cho Myeong had leaped into one with both feet. As he suffered alone, he suddenly gasped in fright.
“Eek!”
Wi So-baek had abruptly turned to look at him.
“Come to think of it, I have neglected my guest so long that you must be disappointed.”
‘I am not, you demon!’
Cho Myeong screamed only in his mind and forced the corners of his mouth upward.
“The sight of the Alliance Leader cherishing his subordinates was so heartwarming... that I lost track of time... Ha. Ha......”
“You have a way with words. That tongue must have saved your life more than once.”
‘...F*ck, he calls that a compliment.’
No, it was a compliment, at least. Was it not?
Feeling even more frightened for some reason, Cho Myeong hid his tongue between his teeth as Wi So-baek spoke.
“Wait a little. I shall drink with you shortly.”
“Y-yes! I shall w-wait with great pleasure!”
Cho Myeong immediately answered, resolving to keep his true feelings at a distance for a while so that his precious lifeline would not be severed.
The wait was agonizing.
His throat parched, Cho Myeong drank several cups, and at last the host of the banquet returned to his side.
Even martial artists could become drunk when the wine was strong enough, and Cho Myeong's face had flushed red, whether from the strength of the drink or the turmoil in his mind.
The suffocating frustration had grown so terrible that by then, he wanted the man to hurry up and tell him what he wanted.
That was why.
“By the way.”
“Yes! Yes! Ask me anything!”
Cho Myeong was already prepared to hear anything.
“How is he? Is he well?”
There was only one person in the Martial Alliance whom the Demon Alliance Leader might mention without qualification as his equal.
“Do you m-mean the Alliance Leader?”
“Yes. Jang Se-jin, the Gentleman's Sword, whose uprightness and constancy are said to resemble the bearing of a true gentleman, who writes the principles of the world with a sword instead of a brush. The leader of your Martial Alliance.”
At that instant, a bolt of lightning struck Cho Myeong's mind.
‘He plans to win me over and use me as a spy!’
He knew it!
“I have useful informants of my own, but I am not interested in news they could learn. I wish to know the things one could hear only from Hall Master Cho's position, outside the central factions of the Martial Alliance coalition.”
‘A spy!’
“You must have some acquaintance with the Martial Alliance's Chief Administrator or Inner Hall Master, correct?”
‘A spy!’
“So, tell me.”
‘A sp......’
“The Martial Alliance is not populated solely by bald monks and worthless Daoist hacks, so ask them why they insist on feeding everyone vegetables and barley rice three meals a day.”
“A sp......?”
So shocked that he forgot his thoughts had burst out of his mouth, Cho Myeong gaped.
Wi So-baek ignored him and said what he had to say.
“And be sure to ask whether they preach leading by example and feed the Alliance Leader the same food as the Martial Alliance's direct warriors, while the senior masters and elders from the Five Great Clans and Nine Great Sects and One Gang hide in their own rooms and stuff themselves with the choicest dishes.”
“Um... A-Alliance Leader?”
“And why do all the Martial Alliance's cooks come from Beijing? Did they take bribes from the Peng Clan? They must discard the prejudice that all martial artists enjoy bland, mild food and believe it good for the body. Might the stimulating cuisine of Sichuan not offer them new enlightenment?”
“Ah......”
Cho Myeong's hanging jaw showed no sign of closing.
Wi So-baek rested his chin on his right hand and regarded the dumbstruck man.
He could not tell whether the fellow had lost his senses because the wine had been brewed strong enough to intoxicate even a martial artist.
Or because he did not understand Wi So-baek's words.
“You there.”
“Pardon? Yes!”
“Do you think I have failed to notice you acting like a fool all this time, answering only when it suits you and skirting everything else?”
“Gasp!”
Wi So-baek poured another cup for the startled Cho Myeong and spoke.
“Well, it is fine. The night is long, and we have plenty of time for conversation. By the time morning comes, you may be able to speak your mind openly.”
Unlike Wi So-baek, who spoke as though it were nothing, the situation was dire for Cho Myeong.
‘He wants me to do this until morning?’
Cho Myeong found himself wishing the demon would simply order him to become a spy, threaten him, or torment him.
But that demon would never do as Cho Myeong wished.
That demon meant to persist! To the bitter end! He was waiting for Cho Myeong to submit of his own accord!
And now, Cho Myeong seemed to have only one choice.
“I will do anything! Just give me the order!”
“Why say such a thing all of a sudden? Anyone listening might think I had threatened Hall Master Cho.”
“Y-you absolutely have not! I simply met you, Alliance Leader, and was so deeply moved that I began to think that if there is anything I can do, I should become a bridge between the Martial Alliance and Demon Alliance and contribute to the advancement of the murim!”
“A bridge.”
Wi So-baek murmured softly and bared his white teeth.
“Excellent. An excellent word.”
His face, which looked no older than his mid-twenties despite his being over thirty, brightened with such beauty that admiration naturally swept the room. But that feeling lasted only an instant.
The moment they reminded themselves who stood before them, their admiration subsided into chills.
That Martial Alliance envoy seemed to have misunderstood something, but that was not what mattered.
“Did you see, Law Wheel? Our Alliance Leader has often captivated and ruined people on a whim, but this is a first. He is acting strangely enough that even the Martial Wheel has tucked his tail between his legs and begun hovering anxiously around him, would you not agree?”
The Iron Cavalry Captain, who bore a long scar across his left eyelid, prodded the Law Wheel in the side with his elbow as he spoke. The Law Wheel looked down at his cup and answered.
“Yes. We appear to need confirmation.”
“Not just anyone but you, the Law Wheel, have attended the Alliance Leader all the way from the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. If you say so, it must be true.”
The Law Wheel nodded and raised his cup.
Though the wine rippled at exactly the same height, for some reason it seemed to weigh differently than before.