The assassins who were never supposed to fail had failed.
The fight of a martial artist and the fight of an assassin were different.
He had been confident that no matter how skilled a master was, they could not withstand a hidden blade.
Why could that hidden blade not pierce the belly of that grinning fool?
In any case, he had judged that being with that man was disadvantageous to him, so he had coldly ordered him to leave.
You think you know who sent the assassins?
This was bait he could not help but take.
“Who is it?”
Geom Mugeuk stared at him and said.
“It seems you're finally curious.”
Geum Ah-hyuk responded calmly.
“I believe this assassination mission is related to your grudges. That's why I'm not curious about the client. I'm trying to see what kind of person you are. How honest you are.”
For the person he tried to kill to be standing alive before him, it was not easy to be this shameless and confident.
Moreover, in a situation where the opponent's martial arts were overwhelming, it was proof that he had someone he trusted.
'This man meets his backer directly.'
Thus, Geom Mugeuk guessed the relationship with the backer from Geum Ah-hyuk's reaction.
“So, speak.”
Between the two, the second son, Geum Ah-jong, was under a misunderstanding.
'This cute little swindler, to think he'd stage his own act?'
Geum Ah-jong thought the assassins' intrusion last night was an act staged by Geom Mugeuk.
After all, how could assassins suddenly break into the Golden Dragon Clan, which had been perfectly fine for a lifetime?
He could not even imagine that his father or brother had called the assassins.
He thought he had the worst temper in the family, but it turned out he was the most naive.
'In any case, he succeeded in getting my brother's attention.'
Geum Ah-jong was curious how this swindler would manipulate his brother.
Geum Ah-hyuk pushed hard.
“If you don't want to talk, then leave. And don't ever look for me again.”
Geom Mugeuk smiled and said.
“I'm someone who wants to get close to the First Young Master. Can't you tell from how I came to greet you today?”
Geom Mugeuk sat at the guest table in the office.
“Ah, this kind of talk should be shared over a drink at a market tavern. You people may drink at expensive taverns or courtesan houses, but among the shabby street taverns, there are hidden gems like a treasure map.”
“I told you to leave if you're just going to talk nonsense!”
Geum Ah-hyuk glared at his younger brother.
It was a look that said, 'Get him out of here right now.'
'Ah, it seems this guy isn't easy for my brother to handle either.'
His brother had changed a lot recently.
He had not liked him to begin with, but these days, he even made him feel very awkward and strange.
“Don't push him so hard. He must have said that because he knows something.”
Just then, Geom Mugeuk suddenly said.
“You.”
A moment of silence flowed.
“The client is you.”
Geum Ah-hyuk never expected to be pointed out.
Especially not to his face like this.
Geum Ah-jong, who was listening, burst into laughter.
“What an interesting friend.”
But Geom Mugeuk and Geum Ah-hyuk did not laugh.
The laughter disappeared from Geum Ah-jong's face, who had been laughing out loud.
“What? You didn't mean that seriously, did you?”
Geom Mugeuk nodded.
The word 'crazy' escaped Geum Ah-jong's mouth.
“Why do you suspect me? Speak clearly. You are now accusing the First Young Master of the Golden Dragon Clan of hiring assassins.”
Geom Mugeuk stared at him.
His agitation was palpable in his trembling eyes.
No matter how hard he tried, it would not be easy to remain calm in this situation.
Just then, another shocking statement came from Geom Mugeuk.
“One of the assassins confessed it was you as he died.”
Geom Mugeuk lied without a single change in his expression.
On the other hand, at the word 'confession,' Geum Ah-hyuk was flustered.
The corners of his eyes twitched.
Watching this, Geum Ah-jong's heart sank.
His brother's eyes would twitch like that whenever he was hit with a bullseye or his lie was exposed.
It had been that way since they were young.
“If you heard such a thing, why are you telling me?”
To the calm question, Geom Mugeuk smiled and said.
“I believe our First Young Master was framed. Would the man who is to become the successor of the Golden Dragon Clan really do such a thing? I'm part of the Golden Dragon Clan now, so shouldn't I provide such information to the one who will inherit the clan?”
Geum Ah-hyuk said nothing.
As the conversation no longer continued, Geom Mugeuk rose from his seat.
“You must be busy, I've taken too much of your time. I'll be on my way for today.”
Before leaving, he added one more thing.
“Think carefully about who might have framed you.”
After leaving those words, Geom Mugeuk left the place first.
Geum Ah-jong looked at his brother.
Geum Ah-hyuk went to the window and did not even glance this way.
Right now, he was half-believing, half-doubting.
'Did he really hire assassins? No, right?'
If this was true, it was a golden opportunity to oust his brother from the position of successor.
But it was not all good.
'What if this madman decides to hire someone for me too?'
That night, in a small iron workshop, a middle-aged man was hammering a red-hot piece of iron on an anvil.
Clang! Claaang!
The hammering was light and powerful.
The shirtless man was thin and small, and it was puzzling how such powerful hammer strikes could come from his skinny, bony body.
Just then, Geum Ah-hyuk entered the place.
He quietly waited for the hammering to finish.
This man who was hammering would forgive anything else, but he was someone who absolutely could not tolerate being disturbed while working.
Clang!
With a long, echoing hammer strike, the man lifted his head and looked at Geum Ah-hyuk.
“You're here?”
“Elder, have you been well?”
The middle-aged man's name was Myeong Shin.
This was the man Geum Ah-hyuk had referred to as 'that person' to his father.
Geum Ah-hyuk genuinely respected Myeong Shin.
A strong and smart person, different from the ignorant martial artists.
It was good to be with him.
He learned about the Martial World, and he also learned about human affairs.
Especially when they were together, it gave him a sense of security that no one could kill him.
As they say, blood does not lie.
His father, Geum Cheonbang's pathological fear of martial artists had been passed down to his son, Geum Ah-hyuk.
“You seem to have gotten thinner. Please make sure to eat well.”
Right now, he looked like a common worker in an iron workshop, drenched in sweat, but if he were dressed in a scholar's robe and a white garment, holding a fan, he would look like the smartest person in the world.
He was, in fact, smart.
He sometimes made swords and daggers as a hobby, and his skill in it was also incredible.
“Did the assassination mission fail?”
“How did you know?”
Instead of answering, Myeong Shin just nodded once with an unreadable expression.
Geum Ah-hyuk had spent a large sum of money to place a contract with the Underworld Ledger for Myeong Shin's sake.
“Although it failed this time, I will protect you, Elder, even if I have to sell all my assets.”
His father would faint if he heard it, but it was Geum Ah-hyuk's sincere feeling.
Geum Ah-hyuk trusted and followed Myeong Shin like someone who had fallen into a cult.
After revealing his determination, Geum Ah-hyuk carefully brought up a topic.
“But there is one thing I find strange.”
“What is it?”
“He said an assassin confessed that I was the one who placed the contract as he was dying.”
“Who said that?”
“A man named Geom Yeon said so.”
At the name Geom Yeon, Myeong Shin fell silent for a moment.
The expression on his face was one Geum Ah-hyuk had never seen before.
It felt unfamiliar because of the inexplicable tension.
At this moment, he was feeling the same unfamiliar emotion towards Myeong Shin that his father had felt towards him.
“That's a lie. Assassins who go on a mission don't know who the client is.”
Geum Ah-hyuk made a 'that's what I thought' expression.
He had thought so himself.
“Then why would he lie to me?”
Myeong Shin looked at him.
His eyes seemed to say, 'You don't know?' but Geum Ah-hyuk could not tell.
Myeong Shin knew the answer.
“I have a guest to meet today, so you should head back now.”
A guest at this time of night? How could that be? He probably just did not want to see him after he failed the contract.
Geum Ah-hyuk was disappointed.
On a day like today, he wanted to stay with him a little longer.
With this anxious heart where something had not been resolved clearly, he would not be able to sleep at all.
“I will visit again.”
Geum Ah-hyuk bowed politely and turned around.
Then he turned back and said.
“Don't worry about this matter. I will handle it well.”
“I feel reassured.”
Myeong Shin gave a wide smile.
Just as Geum Ah-hyuk left, another person entered the place.
It was Geom Mugeuk, who had tailed Geum Ah-hyuk here.
He had circled around several times to guard against being followed, but how could he possibly escape Geom Mugeuk's eyes?
“I ask for your understanding for using a cheap trick to find you.”
“How can a method that accurately reads the opponent be called a cheap trick?”
If Geum Ah-hyuk had been there, he would have been truly hurt, but Myeong Shin spoke without revealing any particular emotion.
The two men's eyes met.
Geom Mugeuk could discern one fact from his gaze.
“You know who I am.”
A smile formed on Myeong Shin's lips.
“Indeed. Young Cult Master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect, Geom Mugeuk, welcome.”
He had not introduced himself, but Geom Mugeuk already had a guess as to who the other man was.
That was also because of this place.
Myeong Shin.
The right-hand man of the King of Assassins.
The number two assassin in the Martial World rankings.
He should have been the one to compete with the King of Assassins for the title of the greatest under heaven, but for some reason, he made the decision to become the King of Assassins' subordinate.
Nothing was known in the Martial World about the story between them.
There was only rampant speculation that perhaps Myeong Shin owed the King of Assassins his life.
But Geom Mugeuk knew the reason.
In his life before regression, the reason was revealed after Myeong Shin's death.
The person who killed Myeong Shin, who had been loyal to him his whole life, was the King of Assassins.
“You don't ask who I am?”
“Do assassins even have names? What number are you called by?”
Although it was a provocative statement, Myeong Shin maintained his composure.
When Geom Mugeuk realized at once that he was an assassin, a strange light flickered in his eyes.
Myeong Shin was an assassin of a kind Geom Mugeuk had never experienced before.
In fact, his aura was different from that of ordinary assassins.
Emotion could be felt in his aura.
Geom Mugeuk looked around at the objects hanging inside the iron workshop.
“Did you make all of these yourself?”
“That's right.”
“May I touch them?”
“As you wish.”
Myeong Shin had a special talent for crafting hidden weapons, and it was said that even the King of Assassins frequently used the hidden weapons he made.
The reason the King of Assassins liked his hidden weapons was not just because of their deadly power.
It was said that among the hidden weapons Myeong Shin made, there were many that were extraordinarily imaginative.
Unfortunately, the things hanging here were just ordinary daggers and swords.
As if to prove his skill was not to be underestimated, they were weapons with perfect balance.
“Do you sell them?”
“It's just something I do to pass the time, so I don't sell them.”
“What a shame. If you were selling, I was going to buy everything here.”
Myeong Shin gave a strange smile.
“Just as the rumors say.”
“What rumors have you heard about me?”
Myeong Shin slowly walked towards Geom Mugeuk.
The second-best killer in the Martial World was approaching.
Geom Mugeuk focused all his nerves and maintained his composure.
Gazing quietly at Geom Mugeuk, he said calmly.
“I'll have to forget all the rumors.”
It sounded like he intended to see for himself and judge, so Geom Mugeuk said with a disappointed expression.
“There must have been many good rumors. What a shame.”
The distance between the two men was close enough to be reached with a swing of a sword.
“It's surprising. That you didn't run away and showed yourself like this even though we're here.”
“On the contrary, I'm surprised. To leave you unattended like this.”
It was a statement that implied they could kill the Young Cult Master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect, who was traveling alone.
“My father is one to raise his children tough. He's the type to throw you off a cliff and tell you to figure out lightness arts on the way down.”
Myeong Shin responded to the joke with a laugh.
He was certainly at ease.
The ease that comes from strength and confidence.
“You must have expected that I would track Geum Ah-hyuk here, so why did you wait?”
Myeong Shin stared at Geom Mugeuk and said.
“I waited to tell you to leave.”
It was a threatening warning because of how calm it was.
“If you know me, you must also know who came with me this time. Do you think she would leave just because you say so? Go and tell her yourself.”
With a 'that would be difficult' expression, Myeong Shin tried to persuade him for the sake of persuading.
“You persuade her. Then nothing will happen.”
Of course, it was bound to fail.
“I'm still young, so a life where nothing happens is too boring.”
Myeong Shin, with a 'I knew it' expression, walked towards the opposite wall and said.
“We intend to resolve this matter with money.”
He grabbed a handle protruding from the wall next to the furnace.
“Do you know what this is?”
“What is it?”
“It's a device that orders all the assassins in the Martial World to be notified of something. The moment I pull it, my subordinates will all start spreading the news.”
“What news?”
Then, an unexpected remark came out.
“The news that a bounty is being placed on your head.”
Geom Mugeuk's gaze deepened.
“You'll have to put up a lot to make people want to kill the Young Cult Master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect.”
“So I put up a lot.”
A surprising amount came from Myeong Shin's lips.
“Ten million nyang.”
It was an amount that would surprise even Geom Mugeuk.
“The highest bounty in the history of the Martial World. It's an amount that would make people jump into hell to find the target, not because he's the Young Cult Master of the Demon Sect.”
Myeong Shin said with cold eyes.
“The moment I pull this, you'll be busy starting today. Will you still not leave?”
A tense atmosphere flowed between the two.
Geom Mugeuk slowly began to walk towards him.
Myeong Shin tensed at Geom Mugeuk's reaction.
“If you come any closer, I'll pull it.”
But as if daring him to pull it, Geom Mugeuk did not stop walking.
Finally, having reached Myeong Shin's side, Geom Mugeuk did something unexpected.
Geom Mugeuk also grabbed the handle that Myeong Shin was holding.
As a result, their hands overlapped.
It was a moment where a fierce battle could break out in an instant, but Myeong Shin just watched what Geom Mugeuk was doing.
Both of their actions and reactions were beyond common sense, but their behaviors were calm and serene.
Geom Mugeuk grinned at Myeong Shin, then pulled the handle with all his might.
Clank.
And then, the furnace door clanked open.
This handle was the device that opened that door.
“How did you know?”
Geom Mugeuk answered with a faint smile.
“Aren't you people at the Golden Dragon Clan for money? But would you really spend that much money just to kill me?”
Myeong Shin honestly revealed his admiration.
“Quite clever.”
“It must have been in my rumors. Not just clever, but brilliant, and not just brilliant, but a genius.”
Myeong Shin grinned.
“Genius Young Cult Master, let's meet again.”
The handle was not just a device to open the furnace.
Another device activated after a time lag.
Clank.
The floor where Myeong Shin was standing opened up, and he fell down.
At the same time, steel needles poured down onto the spot where Geom Mugeuk stood.
Shhhhwiiiiik!
Clang-clang-clang-clang-clang-clang-clang-clang!
By the time he drew his sword and deflected all the steel needles, Myeong Shin had already escaped.
For some reason, Geom Mugeuk did not give chase down the hole.
Instead, he shouted into the hole where he had disappeared.
“You don't look like you have even a thousand nyang, let alone ten million!”
It seemed as if Myeong Shin's laughter was echoing from deep within the hole.