Early morning.
After eating a hearty breakfast, the members of the Iron Dragon Corps began emerging onto the training ground one by one.
It was time for their usual training.
Each member trudged toward the training ground with an enormous weapon resting on his shoulder.
They walked like wounded men.
Many were still limping, their bodies not yet recovered from the Great Battle.
The fact that they had been beaten nearly to death for two straight days did not help either.
“Hey, you lot. Line up over here.”
A short man called out to several boys hurrying along behind the Iron Dragon Corps.
Unlike the others, they carried no weapons.
There were five of them.
“Yes.”
The five stood before the man.
They were in an open space at one edge of the training ground.
He was a small man.
He wore a green long robe and had a white beard resembling a goat’s.
He looked like a toad.
“Do you know who I am?”
While the others hesitated, Number 32 immediately stepped forward.
“You’re an internal affairs officer.”
“Oh….”
The toad-like man grinned as though impressed.
Number 32 had heard enough from Number 92 to recognize the clothing and characteristics of an internal affairs officer.
‘His penis….’
Numbers 48 and 87 looked toward the man’s groin.
Their bodies involuntarily flinched.
‘Is it still there?’
Thanks to Number 32 running his mouth in the past, they could not help looking.
In any case, none of the five were in normal condition.
Their bodies were wrapped all over in bandages.
The day after the Great Battle, even the Golden Dragon Corps members had been beaten badly, so there had been no training.
But taking another day off would only provoke the Sect Leader’s anger.
Thus, training resumed on the second day.
There was no way their bodies could have recovered in merely two days.
“Oh? Look at this one. I thought there were nothing but idiots here, but I suppose one of you has had his skull cracked a little less than the others.
“You. Can you read?”
His eyes suddenly sparkled.
He looked expectant.
“I know 32.”
His own number.
“Bah. I knew it. Of course there wouldn’t be anyone who can read among a pack of fools like you.”
When would he ever get a junior?
Was finding a successor among these idiots even realistic?
It had been twenty years since he became an internal affairs officer.
Not a single corps member had become one during that time.
‘If they could at least read a little, I could teach them somehow…. I miss that boy from before.’
One day, while wandering idly around the sect, he discovered that the dust had completely disappeared from the books kept inside the Iron Dragon Hall.
‘Who was it? Who cleaned this up?’
He searched for the person who had organized the shelves.
It was Number 92.
The boy had been reading the books and had even organized them.
‘How delighted I was back then. I thought I could finally stop being the youngest after all these years.’
It had been such a shame.
After twenty whole years, a child who could read had finally appeared.
And despite never being taught, the boy had been remarkably intelligent.
‘Yes. Just rise to the Silver Dragon Corps. The moment you do, I’ll bring you over.’
He could not take a member directly from the Iron Dragon Corps.
The minimum requirement was the Silver Dragon Corps.
And then the boy died….
It had felt as though the world had collapsed.
Why had they ever set the minimum qualification for an internal affairs officer at the Silver Dragon Corps?
‘We don’t even go into battle. There’s no fighting involved, so why the hell are only Silver Dragon Corps members or higher eligible? Damn this Ascending Dragon Sect.’
The toad-like man was Woo Bang, an internal affairs officer of the Ascending Dragon Sect.
He was a literate man.
And one of the few people in the Ascending Dragon Sect who actually handled practical affairs.
He mainly served the Sect Leader and elders, taking care of their errands and paperwork.
One might wonder what paperwork an unorthodox organization could possibly need, but there were quite a few documents that had to be exchanged with Hegemon Fortress.
The same went for the Ascending Dragon Sect’s financial accounts.
Including the Non-Dragon Hall, the sect housed more than two hundred people.
Not everything could be handled through rough guesswork.
That was why internal affairs officers existed.
‘The ones who make it to the Silver Dragon Corps already have skulls too thick to teach…. And among all these bastards, not one can read…. Damn boars.’
Woo Bang lamented the state of the world.
But there was another child who could read.
Number 48.
He did not know many characters yet, but as long as they were not particularly difficult, he could read them fairly smoothly.
Woo Bang simply did not know it.
In front of Woo Bang stood an old desk piled high with dozens of books.
“All right, all right. Come forward one at a time. I’ll give you your names.”
Names?
Hwang In-gwang had beaten them so often while calling them nameless bastards.
At last, they were going to receive names.
“Hmm… You’re Number 22?”
The first to be called was Number 22.
He had entered the Iron Dragon Corps three months before Number 48.
Woo Bang confirmed that he was Number 22, then searched through the stack of books beside him.
He pulled one out and opened it.
“You’re nineteen.”
Whatever was written inside, the book apparently recorded when Number 22 had entered the Ascending Dragon Sect.
But that was not his date of birth.
It was the date he had first entered the sect.
‘Does it say where he came from too?’
Number 48’s eyes briefly lit up.
But his hopes quickly vanished.
That was all.
Woo Bang gave no further information.
Not his date of birth.
Not even the exact date he entered the Ascending Dragon Sect.
Woo Bang did not mention any of it.
It did not matter anyway.
The Non-Dragon Corps had been replenished through abnormal means such as kidnapping and buying children, so nobody had cared about their birthdays in the first place.
‘Tch. It wasn’t like this in the past. There used to be quite a few people who came here wanting to join the Ascending Dragon Sect.’
Woo Bang chewed his lip.
Before Hegemon Fortress rose to power.
When the Ascending Dragon Sect had been the hegemon of this region, quite a few young disciples had joined.
Voluntarily, at that.
Most were orphans or wanderers with nowhere else to go.
At least this place fed them.
They simply did not know they would probably die soon after beginning martial arts training.
But after the Ascending Dragon Sect became subordinate to Hegemon Fortress, that stream of recruits stopped completely.
Hegemon Fortress monopolized every business right and paid its subordinate sects according to their battlefield achievements.
As a result, the presence of those subordinate sects within the region steadily faded.
With no one hearing about them, no one came looking for them either.
Besides, if someone was going to join a sect, why would he choose the Ascending Dragon Sect instead of Hegemon Fortress?
Even if one had to live as a servant, was it not better to serve in a great household?
Thus, the greatest problem became securing manpower.
Even before becoming subordinate to Hegemon Fortress, they had occasionally filled shortages by kidnapping or purchasing children.
Afterward, however, they began kidnapping them in earnest.
After all, the Ascending Dragon Sect needed children if it was going to continue existing.
It was not something the Golden Dragon Corps handled.
There were only rumors of some secret organization operating beneath the elders.
“Am I nineteen?”
Number 22 asked curiously.
“Don’t ask anything else. It’s annoying. Let’s see… Do you want a two-character name or a three-character one?”
“Two characters, please.”
At Number 22’s answer, Woo Bang rummaged through a box beside him and pulled out two small slips of paper.
There seemed to be hundreds of such slips inside the mysterious box.
“The character Myeong and the character Bae….”
“From today onward, your name is Myeong Bae.”
Woo Bang handed the two slips of paper to Number 22, now Myeong Bae.
“Is it a good name?”
“Hoho. You fool. What matters in a name is not the characters themselves, but what kind of person you become. Become a good man, and your name will become a good name as well.”
Woo Bang deliberately said something profound.
In truth, he simply could not be bothered explaining every name individually.
“At least study enough to write your own name.”
“Yes. Understood.”
Myeong Bae tilted his head as he stepped aside.
Until now, he had only ever been called by a number and had not heard many different names before.
He had received a name after reaching the Iron Dragon Corps, but….
He probably would not have many chances to use it.
At least not here in the Ascending Dragon Sect.
Of course, people died so frequently before passing the Iron Dragon Corps that there often was no need to give them names at all.
Perhaps only the Reaper needed them.
He would have to write their names into his ledger of the dead.
After Myeong Bae stepped away, Number 65 stood before Woo Bang.
The process repeated itself.
Number 65 was seventeen.
His name became Jang Gang-woo.
Number 32 was given a name as well.
He was sixteen.
Yoo Hwan-geun.
“What are you doing? Why aren’t you leaving?”
Now Yoo Hwan-geun, Number 32 lingered awkwardly before Woo Bang.
“Um… Internal Affairs Officer.”
“What is it?”
“Could you tell me how old Number 92 was?”
“Was he your friend?”
“Yes.”
Number 92….
Woo Bang sighed deeply in regret.
The boy he could have brought into internal affairs.
He had not been someone who should have died like that….
Come to think of it, how old had he been?
Woo Bang himself became curious.
He searched through the stack and pulled out one book.
“Oh, here it is. Hmm… seventeen.”
‘Seventeen? I see. He really was older than me….’
“Thank you, Internal Affairs Officer.”
Yoo Hwan-geun bowed and stepped back.
His normally mocking personality had become noticeably calmer.
Number 92’s death had probably affected him greatly.
They had joined at the same time and had always been together.
Now it was Number 87’s turn.
Woo Bang tilted his head when he reached him.
“Hmm… You are….”
Woo Bang tapped his fingers against the desk.
It was difficult to estimate Number 87’s exact age.
He had not entered the Ascending Dragon Sect as an infant.
He had been sold to the sect after he was already fairly grown.
There was no record whatsoever of his age before that.
Nor did Number 87 remember how old he had been at the time.
The boy was somewhat slow.
After thinking for a long while, Woo Bang finally spoke as though he had made a decision.
“Let’s choose your name first. How many characters?”
“Tw-Two ch-ch-characters. I c-c-can’t d-do th-three….”
“Enough. Two characters.”
Woo Bang irritably drew two slips of paper.
“Bong Gyu…. That’s your name.”
“Hehe… U-Understood.”
Number 87, now Bong Gyu, stepped back.
Number 48 came forward.
Woo Bang picked up one of the books from the tall stack and opened it.
“You’re sixteen.”
Woo Bang looked at Number 48, then called to Bong Gyu standing behind him.
“You always run around with this one, don’t you? You can be sixteen too.”
“Y-Y-Yes.”
Just like that, Bong Gyu became sixteen years old.
“Do you want two characters or three?”
“Three, please.”
“Let’s see.”
Woo Bang plunged his hand into the box and stirred it around.
Then he drew three pieces of paper.
“Hmm… the character Cheon, the character Ja, and the character Gwang…. What kind of combination is this? Cheon Ja-gwang? Ja Cheon-gwang?”
“I’ll take Ja Cheon-gwang.”
When Woo Bang hesitated, Number 48 answered first.
He liked “Ja Cheon-gwang” better than “Cheon Ja-gwang.”
“You like that one? Do as you please. From today onward, you are Ja Cheon-gwang.”
For as long as he could remember, he had been Number 48.
His friends called him Four-Eight.
Only now had he received a name fit for a human being.
‘I don’t really feel anything. I thought I’d be happy once I got a name.’
Other than feeling slightly strange, it meant little to him.
Then again, names were hardly important within the Ascending Dragon Sect.
They were rarely even used.
Of course, people died so frequently through the Iron Dragon Corps that names were often unnecessary.
Perhaps the Reaper would need one.
He had a ledger to fill out, after all.
“Um, Internal Affairs Officer.”
“What?”
“Can you tell me where I came from?”
“…….”
Woo Bang raised his eyes at the unusual question.
No one had ever asked him something like that before.
“Return to your place.”
It was clearly written in the book.
But Woo Bang refused to say it.
If he told the boy where he had been brought from, he might try to find his hometown.
All the effort spent indoctrinating him since the Non-Dragon Corps, teaching him that this was the place where he belonged, might vanish in an instant.
“Yes….”
Number 48, now Ja Cheon-gwang, returned to his place with a disappointed expression.
“Hehe. B-Bong Gyu. B-Bong Gyu.”
Bong Gyu seemed rather pleased with his new name.
“If you’re all finished, go over there. There’s something else for you.”
Something else?
Well, receiving things was probably good.
The five boys rushed together toward the other side.
***
Length: five feet.
Hilt: one foot.
Width: one foot.
Weight: one hundred geun.
Those were the specifications of the Ascending Dragon Sect’s signature weapons.
There were swords and sabers.
The Ascending Dragon Sect’s martial arts did not care which one a person used.
That alone showed just how little foundation its martial arts possessed.
The Ascending Dragon Sect fought by relying on enormous inner arts and crushing its opponents beneath heavy weapons.
For that, a weight of a hundred geun was necessary.
An ordinary sword weighed only one or two geun.
These were brutish weapons a hundred times heavier.
“Pick whichever one you want.”
Hu Eon, who guarded the armory, spoke indifferently.
They were all basically the same, so he meant they could simply take anything.
“Is there any difference?”
“Of course. One edge makes it a saber. Two edges make it a sword. Pick whichever.”
How could a man be so careless about his work?
Looking closer, the condition of the weapons was appalling as well.
‘The ones those orthodox bastards carry cut flesh just from brushing against it…. Is this even a sword? Or is it a club?’
None of the edges were sharp.
‘Come to think of it, the Golden Dragon Corps weapons were blunt too. Are they supposed to be like this?’
Of course not.
Originally, the edges were supposed to be sharpened properly.
But sharpening them was work too.
Grinding such enormous, heavy weapons against a whetstone would take more than an entire day.
And even after sharpening them, the edge would quickly be ruined again.
“U-Ugh…. S-Slippery.”
Even Bong Gyu complained.
The weapons had been coated heavily in grease to prevent rust, making them slide through their hands.
From the slightly savory smell, they seemed to have been smeared all over with lard.
Beef tallow was expensive, after all.
“I’ll take this one.”
Ja Cheon-gwang chose a saber.
One side was flat, so it looked convenient to rest on his shoulder.
During marches, the Golden Dragon Corps and Silver Dragon Corps members who carried sabers often rested their weapons across their shoulders.
He thought it looked rather impressive.
On the other hand, even if the edge was blunt, carrying a sword on your shoulder….
Hurt.
There was no other reason.
Ja Cheon-gwang tightened his grip around the saber’s hilt.
The sensation of metal tingled through his palm.
It felt completely different from the wooden sword he had used in the Non-Dragon Corps.
Not bad.
But.
“Hup….”
The hand holding the saber trembled violently.
How difficult would it be to lift a hundred-geun lump of iron while holding it at one end?
Without inner arts, it would have been unthinkable.
‘What? I lifted one before. I don’t think it was this hard….’
Ja Cheon-gwang had held those absurd weapons twice before.
During the Great Battle, when he grabbed a fallen weapon and used it to shield his body.
And when he carried the weapons of the dead back to the Ascending Dragon Sect.
The first time, he had grabbed one unconsciously in the urgency of battle.
His instincts had allowed him to lift it.
The second time, he had held it by the body of the weapon.
‘M-My arm feels like it’s going to come out of its socket. How the hell am I supposed to lift this?’
Beads of sweat formed across his forehead.
“Bwahahaha! You little bastards are adorable. Bwahahaha!”
Hu Eon burst into loud laughter.
This was the bored man’s favorite moment.
Handing out weapons for the first time.
The children always reacted like this.
Watching them panic was surprisingly entertaining.
“What are you doing? If you’ve all chosen, run to the training ground. Your seniors are already swinging their swords.”
The Iron Dragon Corps members were already swinging those absurdly massive weapons on the training ground.
They looked fairly proficient.
Apparently, they had grown accustomed to them.
‘Tch. I’ll be able to swing mine soon too. But they’re going to beat me again, aren’t they?’
The five headed for the training ground.
No.
Dragging their weapons behind them, they moved so slowly they were practically crawling.
At last, their proper swordsmanship and inner arts training began.
And….
Ja Cheon-gwang learned.
That what happened back then….
Had not been a dream.