The Unbalanced Scale

‘Is that really the strength of a single human being……?’

Not a single drop of rain was falling, yet lightning bolts struck down one after another. He felt a sense of awe toward that destructive spectacle. If Baek Geon-ha had been born in ancient times, he surely would have been worshipped as a god.

‘Ah, well, the Heavenly Demon is worshipped as a god within the Cult.’

For the first time, he understood them. He felt he finally knew why the Demonic Cult forced the successors to compete against each other to sift out the strongest.

Certain talents simply overwhelm people. How great is an athlete who wins a gold medal through sheer dedication, or a painter who creates a masterpiece that moves the soul?

Perhaps talent in martial arts was the same. Seol Ah-heon never imagined he would find himself admiring someone who was attacking with the intent to kill. It felt wrong to feel this way, yet he couldn’t tear his eyes away from Baek Geon-ha.

“Aaaargh!”

Tak Se-ryeong, his thigh pierced, stumbled. He quickly regained his balance, but that split-second opening was fatal.

Baek Geon-ha’s sword sliced through his other leg. The powerful Sword Qi tore through his protective energy and bit into the muscle. Finally, Tak Se-ryeong was forced to drop to one knee.

‘Is the match over?’

Seol Ah-heon swallowed hard. He knew better than to let his guard down easily. Tak Se-ryeong could still turn the tables, but…….

‘He needs to finish this surely before that happens.’

He shook his head violently at the thought that had crossed his mind. What on earth was he thinking! The only way to “finish this surely” was to kill Tak Se-ryeong. No matter how much of a villain the man was, wishing for someone’s death went against his values.

Fortunately, Baek Geon-ha did not kill Tak Se-ryeong. He could have ended his life right then and there if he wanted to, but he settled for incapacitating him. He handled him like a hunted beast.

‘Anyway, I guess it’s settled……?’

The moment he breathed a sigh of relief, Baek Geon-ha turned his head. It was exactly in the direction where Seol Ah-heon was hiding.

Their eyes met.

Even though the surroundings were so dark, and even though Baek Geon-ha’s eyes were a deep black, they appeared exceptionally clear. Furthermore, his face was still flushed with the lingering excitement of battle.

“Hic.”

Facing that predatory look, the strength drained from his limbs. Seol Ah-heon slumped to the ground.

Hic, hic. The hiccups wouldn’t stop. He was terrified that he might end up like Tak Se-ryeong. It was an irrational fear, but the problem was that it wasn’t unrealistic.

Baek Geon-ha spoke.

“I’m changing the ‘guide’.”

His tone was soft, unbefitting the situation. Gaining a bit of courage from this, Seol Ah-heon peeked his head out from behind the rock.

‘Guide…….’

That specific word weighed on his mind. “Guide”—that was the role Baek Geon-ha had assigned to him. Even though he had never actually found a path.

“Are you certain?”

Mu Il-young emerged from the shadows, holding the Mad-Blood Demonic Sword.

“It doesn’t even require certainty.”

“However, Young Leader.”

Surprisingly, Mu Il-young didn’t follow the order immediately. Instead of punishing his overstepping subordinate, Baek Geon-ha reached out his hand. Mu Il-young silently handed over the Mad-Blood Demonic Sword.

“Young Leader.”

“What is it.”

“May I offer an opinion?”

“Speak. Though I won’t follow it.”

“Would it not be more beneficial to proceed as planned?”

Baek Geon-ha burst into a short, incredulous laugh.

“Il-young, since when have you seen me stick to a plan? Plans are for fools who can’t recognize the right moment. I am different.”

“But Tak Se-ryeong is…….”

“He’s a man who has to die anyway. What difference does it make if he dies today or tomorrow? And besides.”

Once more, Baek Geon-ha turned his head toward Seol Ah-heon. This eye contact was no accident. Baek Geon-ha stared directly at Seol Ah-heon and curled his lips into a smile.

“I think that one over there will be more useful.”

“…….”

He had finally been recognized as valuable, so why did his heart feel like it was being constricted by ice?

Baek Geon-ha raised the Mad-Blood Demonic Sword.

Tak Se-ryeong, pinned under his foot, squirmed. He seemed to be shouting something, but strangely, no sound came out. Seol Ah-heon surmised that Baek Geon-ha had erected a sound-blocking barrier.

Then, Baek Geon-ha swung the Mad-Blood Demonic Sword.

With a speed that seemed capable of slicing through fog, the sword plunged into Tak Se-ryeong’s heart. No sound was heard, but Seol Ah-heon fell into the illusion that he had heard a final death rattle.

‘He killed Tak Se-ryeong……!’

It wasn’t his first time witnessing a murder. He had seen countless killings tonight alone. But Tak Se-ryeong’s death felt far more terrifying.

The younger brother of the Second Young Lord, the second son of the Tak family—one of the Six Demonic Families. He was a person of noble status that even a Young Leader shouldn’t easily touch. Moreover, judging by the battle just now, he was by no means weak.

Yet even such a man was helplessly suppressed by Baek Geon-ha and slaughtered like livestock.

‘What have I been doing all this time to a person like that…….’

Seol Ah-heon trembled like an aspen tree. But the horrifying events didn’t end there.

The Mad-Blood Demonic Sword, embedded in Tak Se-ryeong’s heart, began to emit a faint light. The light was so dim that it wouldn’t have been noticeable if it weren’t the middle of the night, yet it was gradually growing brighter.

In contrast, Tak Se-ryeong’s body began to shrivel. It looked as if his life force was being sucked out by the sword.

“Hic……!”

An unrealistic sight that made him doubt his own eyes. Yet it was an undeniable reality. Even at this very moment, Tak Se-ryeong’s body was fading away as if it were being weathered by time.

Tak Se-ryeong turned into white bones in an instant. Even those bones scattered like a handful of ash. A death that didn’t even leave behind remains—it was beyond the word “miserable.”

“A success, then.”

“Congratulations.”

“Haha, yes. Even I didn’t expect to succeed on the first try.”

Baek Geon-ha raised the sword and inspected it from various angles. A sharp, chilling blue aura flowed from the blade. It was a complete transformation from the battered, old sword they had first found.

Finally, sheathing the sword, Baek Geon-ha began to walk away. His attitude suggested that since his business was finished, he was going back.

Seol Ah-heon couldn’t afford to be left behind. He gripped the rock and forced himself to stand. While hurrying to catch up with Baek Geon-ha, he stepped on something squishy.

“Ugh.”

Looking down, it was the hand of a dead assassin. Seol Ah-heon hurriedly pulled his foot away.

He walked, avoiding the corpses scattered here and there. When he finally caught up to Baek Geon-ha’s side, the man looked back at him.

“You hid quite well.”

“……I’m sorry.”

There was no further rebuke.

Baek Geon-ha walked in silence. While following him quietly, Seol Ah-heon’s scattered wits slowly returned. His brain, regaining its normal functioning, deduced a certain hypothesis.

If that hypothesis was correct, then he…….

“Young Leader, may I ask one thing?”

Seol Ah-heon opened his mouth, braving his fear. He felt he needed to confirm it.

“What is it.”

“About this ‘guide’…….”

“A sword that regains its power by drinking blood. Isn’t it interesting?”

“…….”

The hypothesis was correct.

Feeding blood to the Mad-Blood Demonic Sword was the final step of the unsealing process. According to the “plan” Mu Il-young mentioned, he was supposed to have been the sacrifice.

That was the “guide.” The role of leading a blood-crazed sword onto the path of slaughter.

‘You brought me here just to sacrifice me.’

It was too late to be shocked. Baek Geon-ha had been trying to kill him all along, and if he hadn’t been useful, the man would have drawn his sword long ago.

Even so, Seol Ah-heon felt dizzy. He thought his life would at least be spared until the Soul-Freezing Pill was finished, but that wasn’t the case…….

‘Horrifying.’

Recalling Tak Se-ryeong’s final moments made his hair stand on end. Wasn’t that almost his own end?

Moreover, it was too early to feel safe. Now that Baek Geon-ha held the Mad-Blood Demonic Sword, it wouldn’t be strange for history to repeat itself at any moment.

He had already disliked Baek Geon-ha, but now he felt a literal shiver of revulsion. He hoped a cruel bastard like that would be struck by divine punishment.

“…….”

Baek Geon-ha let out a low groan. It was so faint he might have missed it, but the surroundings were silent.

Did the curse take effect that quickly? Seol Ah-heon asked, half-surprised and half-suspicious.

“Is something wrong?”

“It’s because of you.”

Baek Geon-ha glared at Seol Ah-heon. The look in his eyes, glimpsed through his tousled hair, was truly poisonous.

“B-but even if I didn’t hide and fought alongside you, I would have only been in the way…….”

“Who said I needed your help?”

“…….”

“If only I had the Soul-Freezing Pill, this wouldn’t be happening.”

After snapping coldly, Baek Geon-ha strode ahead. For a moment, Seol Ah-heon wondered if the man had suffered internal injuries from the battle, but looking at his pace, he seemed perfectly fine.

Seol Ah-heon apologized, hiding his inward annoyance.

“I was wrong about that…….”

“Indeed, you were. If I had the Soul-Freezing Pill, I wouldn’t be lacking in Yin energy.”

“…….”

“You asked me before. Whether I use the Yin-Harvesting Yang-Nourishing Art.”

“That’s…….”

It wasn’t a topic he was happy to revisit. Yet Baek Geon-ha, who had reacted so sensitively as if the art itself were a taboo, started talking about it first for some reason.

“It is as you said. I perform the art periodically. Do you know why?”

“I don’t, and you don’t have to tell me.”

“The balance of Yin and Yang in this body has been broken.”

Ah…….

Seol Ah-heon let out an internal sigh. He had ended up hearing it—Baek Geon-ha’s secret.

‘I told you that you don’t have to tell me!’

Before, he hadn’t known it was such a critical secret, but now he did. The information Baek Geon-ha was revealing now was something not even described in The Legend of Mount Hua.