Chapter 35

## Chapter 35. How did you end up here?

"What the hell is that kid doing?"

The guy who was commanding the ronin and climbing up shouted when he saw me.

It was the guy who had been hit by the old man and flown away.

He reeked of drugs, his eyes were bloodshot, and he raised his sword at me.

"Hey, you don't seriously think you can take us on by yourself, do you?"

"Why not? Why can't I?"

"Crazy bastard. Can't you see the numbers? If you leave now, I'll pretend I didn't see you. Get lost."

"No, I don't want to."

I smiled and walked towards the ronin with a light step.

Feeling something unsettling from my calm demeanor, the drug addict began to try to coax me.

"You must be pretty confident in your skills... But can you handle these numbers? Don't waste your blood; why don't you join us and get a share?"

"..."

"Hey? You came here to get a sword from that old man, didn't you? You don't need to beg; just kill him and take it."

"Wow, it's been a while since I've seen such a bold piece of trash."

The drug addict grinned, revealing his yellowed teeth at my exclamation.

"Hehe. We're all at the bottom of the barrel, right? Even if that old man dies here, no one will come looking for his body, will they?"

At the same time, he moved his hand, ordering the ronin to surround me.

Now I was completely surrounded.

Thinking he had the upper hand, the drug addict sneered.

"Change your mind before it's too late. Come on, you look young. Do you really want to end up like this?"

"Hmm..."

I pretended to think, looking around at the ronin who had surrounded me.

Then I was disappointed.

'There's not a single decent one among them.'

The ronin's faces, illuminated by the torches, were all red, yellow, or black.

Their swords were all trembling, and their bodies looked heavy.

Even the ones who had walked for a long time were breathing heavily.

I felt my energy drain.

"Well, a sane person wouldn't get involved in something like this."

Even among the ronin who live rough lives, there are certain rules.

According to Bok Manchun, the ronin who cause trouble in the ronin market are treated like trash even by other ronin.

In other words, the ronin gathered here are all of poor quality.

"Tsk tsk. Trash that has spent their lives harming others. I'll send you all to your deaths today."

I lowered the sword I received from the old man and walked into the gaps between the enemies.

Whish!

The ronin in front of me, who was suddenly attacked, opened his eyes wide in fear.

"Ah!"

A sword that was hastily raised to aim at my shoulder.

But before its trajectory even began, my sword had already drawn a red line across the opponent's neck.

Splat!

"Gurk...!"

The ronin, whose neck was cut by about two inches, tried to cover the wound with his hands.

But there was no way to stop the blood that had already started to gush out.

The light in the ronin's eyes dimmed.

Thud!

I kicked the staggering ronin and pushed him into another, using the gap to cut down the other surprised enemies.

Swish! Swish!

In an instant, I cut two more heads.

Completely severing a human head is a waste of strength.

Cutting the carotid artery by just two inches is enough to kill someone.

Moreover, an enemy struggling in fear of death is a hindrance to other enemies but an excellent shield for me.

I used this to mock the encirclement and killed three more.

"Damn! Get out of the way, you brat!"

"Die alone if you're going to die!"

Rough curses flew from all sides.

The encirclement quickly lost its meaning, and some of them even started fighting each other.

'There's no need to use my inner strength against these guys.'

My body, trained in the Rok Lim Shil Pal Style, was full of power.

I dodged the spears and swords flying from both sides and leaped into the air.

Whirl!

I spun my body, kicked the weapons of the enemies with both feet, and swung my sword behind me like a cat.

Swish!

The face of the ronin who was about to attack from behind was split in two.

After landing, I pulled the sword out of the dead ronin.

My expressionless face was reflected in the blade given by the old man.

'This is a much better sword than I thought.'

Even though I had added rotational force in the air and used sufficient strength, it's not something that can be done without inner strength to cut a human skull.

And it felt so light.

"Die!"

"…You guys don't even know the basics of an ambush."

I sighed softly, lowered my body to dodge the attack, and swept the ground with my leg.

Two ronin with weak legs tripped and fell.

Thud! Thud!

After stabbing each of their hearts once, I stood up, and a mace grazed my face, smashing the face of one of the ronin who had just fallen.

Crunch!

I inserted my sword into the chain part of the mace, pulling the guy holding it towards me.

I broke his neck with a strike to the throat and turned my body, pulling the sword out of the chain.

"Hey? Why aren't you attacking?"

"…"

As the number of ronin I killed quickly surpassed seven, they began to step back.

"Monster…"

"Just to kill one old man!"

"I just wanted to earn some money for drinks…"

They had gathered to make a little money.

There was no camaraderie among them, and no desperate reason to kill me.

"I'm out."

"Me too…"

One by one, they started to back away and then scattered in all directions.

It was a sight to behold.

'Should I chase them all and kill them?'

A sudden urge to kill arose, but I decided against it, as chasing them in the mountains at night would be tiring.

"Still, you can't just leave."

I threw the sword at the drug addict, who was the instigator of this but was the first to run away.

Thud!

The drug addict, with the sword embedded in his back, made a strange sound and fell to the ground.

I walked over to him and pulled the sword out of his back.

Then I turned and walked towards the tent where the old man and Bok Manchun were waiting, and they were staring at me with their mouths wide open.

"Otherwise, bugs might get in."

At my words, Bok Manchun closed his mouth with a "Hup!" and muttered.

"Master… I knew you had martial arts skills, but… you're a hidden expert…"

"Now, the plan to ambush me in a secluded place should be scrapped, right?"

At my words, Bok Manchun exaggeratedly flinched.

"No, how did you know that? I was planning to do it tomorrow, but I'm glad you found out today."

While exchanging some light-hearted banter with Bok Manchun, the old man approached me.

I asked with a subtle hint of expectation.

"How was it?"

"…It seems my eye for swords is outdated. I couldn't even recognize such a fine sword."

Knowing that this was the highest praise the old man could give, a bright smile spread across my face.

"Too kind of you."

"Not at all."

"Actually, I know. I was just being modest."

"…Hmph. You're an unpredictable person. How can you be like this at your age…?"

There was something the old man, with his master's eye, could never see.

It was the experience I had accumulated in my past life.

I, too, was a master in my field, so I could understand his confusion.

"…I've seen many experts in my life, and I've seen several stronger than you. But I've never seen anyone move like you just did. The movements you just showed could easily be called a martial art."

"Thanks to my good teachers."

I had learned the best external martial art created by the Rok Lim Tou Wang.

Moreover, I had studied the martial arts of four absolute experts for a long time and practiced them repeatedly in my body to teach them.

'Now, I can finally start to show what I learned back then, bit by bit.'

At that moment, the old man narrowed his eyes and asked.

"One question… Did you deliberately not use your inner strength in the fight just now? Or can't you use it?"

Even though he couldn't see my true strength, the old man's eye was indeed sharp.

Bok Manchun, who had been listening, asked in disbelief.

"Excuse me? Did Master not use inner strength just now? You were cutting heads in half…"

"The sword you're holding is one I made. If it wasn't my sword, it would be difficult to cut through a person's bones without inner strength, but with my sword, it's possible to cut a person in half with just martial art techniques. You just did that."

"Wow…"

Bok Manchun's mouth dropped open at the old man's words, which seemed more like self-praise than a compliment to me.

The old man asked me with a serious, almost desperate look.

"Answer me. Young man, can you not use inner strength?"

"Is this an important question for you?"

"Yes."

"My inner strength…."

I instinctively realized this was a question related to the 'commission' and that this was the moment to give a good answer.

My gaze was directed at the box Bok Manchun was carrying.

Inside was the Seven-Leaf Grass.

If consumed, it could elevate the achievement of the Reversing Heaven Art by one level.

"I'll say I'm not using it yet."

"…."

After a moment of silence, the old man spoke.

"I apologize for retracting my earlier words… Are you interested in my commission?"

I smiled broadly and answered.

"Of course."

* * *

"My commission is to kill a person."

Inside the old man's tent, various weapons were neatly arranged in a certain order.

The three of us sat at a small table in the center, facing each other.

"An assassination… Who is the target?"

Bok Manchun's one eye gleamed sharply.

He seemed to be trying to gauge how dangerous this was.

The level of danger varies greatly depending on who the target is.

The old man spoke with a somewhat pained expression.

"I can't tell you who it is until we go to kill him together. I'm looking for someone to kill him as soon as possible."

"Together?"

"Yes. I must see him die with my own eyes."

"…."

"If you kill him, I'll use all my power to make the weapon you desire."

The old man said that much and then firmly closed his mouth.

It was a clear indication that he wouldn't say any more.

"Hmm…."

Bok Manchun scratched his chin, looking troubled.

I looked at the old man's stern face for a moment, then turned to Bok Manchun.

"Director Bok. I need you to leave for a moment."

"Master, this isn't a decision to be made lightly…."

"I'm not asking, I'm telling you."

"…Understood."

Bok Manchun got up, looking worried, even as he left the tent.

After Bok Manchun's footsteps faded away, I spoke in a low voice.

"I have a question."

"I've already told you everything I can."

"Not about the target, but another question."

"…Ask. I'll answer if I can."

The moment the old man relaxed his guard, I struck at his complacency.

"How did you end up here?"

"…What do you mean?"

I spoke clearly so he could understand.

"How did the head of the Wei family, one of the eight major families of the Blood Sect, end up here?"

At that moment, the old man lunged at me like lightning, aiming for my throat.