Chapter 86

Chapter 85. Intrusion (2)

"Where's the Captain?"

Swoosh.

The Lieutenant approached Yorim and asked.

The Captain had disappeared from sight.

He had suddenly rushed to the guard post and then leaped somewhere.

This was not part of the original plan.

"He seems to have moved on his own."

"Why? What about the plan?"

"Well... I don't know."

Yorim shook his head and raised his palms.

The Lieutenant looked again in the direction the Captain had disappeared.

Suddenly, Seohui had turned a corner and was almost dozens of feet away in the blink of an eye.

It didn't feel right. What if he was discovered?

"Well, there must be a reason, right?"

Rustle.

Jipseong, who had approached from the side, spoke.

He glanced around to see if there were any guard warriors nearby and then continued in a low tone.

"If he's moving differently from the plan, it might be because... he found a way to get there faster and safer."

"..."

"..."

No one answered.

It was extremely difficult for one person to infiltrate the enemy's territory and successfully carry out an assassination.

Even if Seohui had mastered some incredible martial arts, he should have at least given some indication to the remaining team members.

If he succeeded in the assassination but the other members were left without any instructions, they could be put in danger or make other mistakes that would lead to the mission's failure.

Everyone was silent, thinking about this.

"Maybe he saw something. Like Baiyang Qian moving to his residence."

"..."

The only calm voice came from Eummuji.

The team leaders turned their gazes to him.

Eummuji, a new figure who had recently started speaking more casually with them, was leaning against the roof.

"What do you mean?"

Yongjin asked directly, and Eummuji shrugged and answered casually.

"Well, it's obvious, isn't it? We know it's better to move in a group, but does the Captain not know that?"

"..."

"..."

Everyone silently agreed, though they didn't express it.

What an assassin needs is not formidable martial arts, but endless patience and self-restraint.

And patience and restraint crumble helplessly in the face of time.

An assassination mission becomes harder the longer it takes.

"Well, he's not a machine."

For example, if Seohui had entered Baiyang Qian's residence and hidden there according to the original plan, unpredictable events would still occur.

Suddenly, the target, Baiyang Qian, might change his mind and come back after a drink.

Or he might come back after a meal, or even stay at a brothel and return the next day, leading to the mission's failure.

Thinking that this might have been the case was a reasonable question.

Still.

"Then, why didn't he say anything? He found the target and moved alone, but why didn't he even say that?"

Nod, nod.

Everyone agreed with the Lieutenant's question.

Of course, Eummuji said,

"How would I know? If I could explain it now... it wouldn't be a problem, right?"

The answer to the question was surprisingly simple.

"Would the Captain have rushed so urgently if he hadn't seen something?"

"..."

It was a straightforward question.

* * *

Thud. Clunk.

Seohui leaped over the main gate and entered another courtyard.

Whoosh.

With a hum, time slowed to an extreme degree.

He could instinctively sense the appearance of the enemy.

'This time, there are three!'

One by one, the presence of the warriors was revealed in Seohui's field of vision.

First, someone was seen opening a door from the right side building.

Next, someone was seen opening the main gate slightly to the front.

And above, one person turned his gaze from the guard post to here.

The simulation in front of him identified all three as danger points.

And as if on cue, the illusions appeared.

Whish—

Four shadow figures appeared.

Three of them rushed to the person opening the sliding door on the right side.

When he opened the door and came out, they quickly covered his mouth and twisted his neck.

Then they pushed him to one side of the ground, the same action for all three.

After that, the three figures' movements diverged completely.

One.

Stepped on the eaves and moved to another building's roof, leaping behind the figures passing through the main gate.

Two.

Leaned against the wall corner and waited, then immediately attacked when the guards approached.

Three.

Ignored the figures and ran along the building wall.

None of them went straight.

This was because a warrior from the guard post could see them.

'The last one...'

Seohui's gaze fell on the last remaining illusion.

The last shadow, unlike the other three, turned around and walked leisurely. As a result, he was discovered first by the person opening the door from the side building.

Before his puzzled gaze could clear, he encountered the men entering through the main gate.

That was the end.

<Choose one of the options below.>

▶ Remove the person opening the door on the right and then climb to the roof.

▷ Remove the person opening the door on the right and then ambush when the opportunity arises.

▷ Remove the person opening the door on the right and then dash to the main gate, avoiding the guards' line of sight.

▷ Turn around and walk leisurely, then counterattack.

'I'll take my chances here!'

Seohui didn't hesitate.

Even though the simulation wasn't complete and he didn't know how to get out of this situation, he still had to try.

In a much riskier way than a safer one.

<You have chosen 'Turn around and walk leisurely, then counterattack.'>

Seohui chose the fourth option.

The illusion then performed the same action, turning around and walking leisurely.

"Hmm...?"

Creak.

Sure enough, the person opening the door from the side building saw Seohui first.

Regardless, Seohui deliberately walked a few steps leisurely, and then,

"Hey, hold it."

"Stop. Who are you?"

The warriors called out from behind.

Just as Seohui was about to answer, his eyes widened.

"?!?"

The person in the side building had turned his gaze elsewhere.

At that moment, Seohui had a sudden intuition.

This was his chance.

Thwack!

He immediately leaped, severing the neck of the man nearby.

Swish!

Before his body hit the ground, he covered the mouth of the second man and stabbed him in the chest.

Thud. Thud.

He quickly eliminated the two warriors.

But the slight noise must have been heard.

"Ah!"

The person in the side building turned to look at Seohui.

His face was filled with shock, his eyes widening and his mouth about to open.

Whirr! Thud!

He was knocked down.

Seohui had thrown his sword like a projectile, piercing the man's chest.

<Time has decreased. -2 seconds>

'Ah! Time!'

Seohui saw the remaining time as he tried to retrieve his sword.

32... 31...

<Estimated time: 25 seconds>

The estimated time and remaining time matched exactly.

'If I just get past this gate...'

Just as he was about to relax,

Whoosh!

Time suddenly slowed again.

'Enemy? Someone is there!'

A blurry shadow was projected beyond the main gate.

There were two of them.

High-level experts who could hear the slight noise from earlier.

His current position was right next to Baiyang Qian's residence.

So, beyond the gate, there might be bodyguards protecting him.

Rustle.

The simulation reacted again.

Three illusions appeared.

First.

He climbed over the main gate and ambushed the enemies as he came down.

But the enemies didn't die immediately.

A few exchanges with the two warriors, and he managed to kill one.

<Time exceeded>

The illusion didn't disappear completely, but it failed.

Second.

He waited next to the slowly opening gate, and when one person entered, he ambushed and successfully knocked him down.

But he was pushed back a few times by the remaining person. While regaining the upper hand and subduing him,

<Time exceeded>

'Damn it.'

The last one remained. This time, it was an ambush through the open gate.

But the resistance was even stronger.

The two warriors, who were already prepared, attacked simultaneously. After a few exchanges, one of the warriors fell,

and time stopped.

<Time exceeded>

All the illusions ended with time exceeding.

And then,

<Choose one of the options below.>

▶ I'll handle it myself.

The only remaining choice.

'What a ridiculous...?'

Seohui was stunned but roughly understood the meaning.

The simulation couldn't find a specific method.

It meant that with Seohui's current martial arts and skills, there was no way to handle it.

Since all methods led to failure, it was telling him to handle it himself.

Swish.

'What should I do?'

The time stop was released. Seohui headed towards the wide-open main gate.

There were two warriors behind it, the strongest he had encountered so far.

'What should I do?'

In an instant, numerous martial arts techniques flashed through his mind.

Secret and capable of ambushing the enemy.

But all of them were based on the premise of fighting.

Suddenly, a face flashed in Seohui's mind.

The person he had just killed.

"Hey, what are you doing behind the gate?"

So, instead of ambushing, Seohui called out.

"!"

"!"

The two warriors who appeared at the gate widened their eyes.

Of course, they would be surprised.

Seohui was using a disguise technique to look like the person he had just killed.

"A while ago, there was an intruder..."

Swoosh.

The taller of the two warriors sheathed his sword and asked. Seohui smiled.

"There was."

Whoosh!

He immediately stabbed the man's throat and rushed towards the other.

Whirr!

"Huh?!"

The opponent tried to resist, but it was too late.

A moment's hesitation. It gave Seohui the perfect opportunity.

Smack! Thud!

He struck the abdomen and jaw, then twisted the neck with both hands.

Crack! Thud. Thud.

The two warriors fell.

<Time has decreased by 8 seconds.>

And the words appeared.

Seohui pulled his sword from the fallen warrior and moved them to one side.

Following the red line, he leaped directly.

10... 9...

And now, he no longer needed time.

As he crawled under the eaves and onto the beam, a message appeared as if waiting for him.

[Infiltration successful.]

[Time attack mission completed.]

[One Third Eye granted to Seohui.]

'Huff... huff...'

The numbers appearing before his eyes and the incomprehensible 'Third Eye' item.

But Seohui didn't have time to rejoice.

Creak.

A figure was seen entering through the door.

'Baiyang Qian...!'

And the messages continued to appear.

[Calculating the time Seohui will be given.]

'Location of fallen enemies, patrol routes of guards, shift change times of specific guards, numbers...'

[Analyzing...◇]

Time continued to flow.

Meanwhile, Baiyang Qian sat cross-legged on what looked like a cushion.

As expected, he was about to meditate.

After a bit more time passed,

[Analysis complete]

Time: 212 seconds.

<In 212 seconds, the Changlong Gate warriors will detect the intruder.>

<Seohui must defeat Baiyang Qian within 212 seconds.>

'212 seconds!'

Finally, the information window appeared before Seohui's eyes.

And the situation began to make sense.

300 seconds.

He had to reach Baiyang Qian's residence within that time to successfully infiltrate.

The reason was his movement. Baiyang Qian had moved to his residence faster than originally planned.

And in the process, the warriors who had been killed by Seohui and his subordinates.

The time it took for their bodies to be discovered was exactly 212 seconds.

'Time is running out. I need to attack quickly.'

Seohui quickly changed his combat style.

Combat Style <Turn-based>

As if waiting for this, the target's abilities were revealed.

And he doubted his own eyes again.

[State Summary, Status Summary]

Baiyang Qian [Changlong Gate Master]

Health: 9,330,000 / 9,990,000

Internal Energy: 9,220,000 / 9,990,000

Realm: Supreme

Combat Power: 12,220,000

'What kind of combat power... over ten million?'

The enemy was stronger than expected.

Still, Seohui had no choice.

This fight.

Now that he had come this far, he had to win somehow.