Jin Pae-cheon expressed his firm intention to attend.
Geom Mugeuk spoke feebly with a bewildered expression.
"I will also invite the Alliance Leader to this meeting."
Geom Mugeuk remained faithful to his act until the very end.
At this result, Jin Ha-ryeong was beyond surprised; she was in awe.
Although she had played a big part in achieving this outcome, she never imagined it would really turn out this way.
‘In the end, it all went according to his plan.’
What if this man were an enemy? Could my brother or I ever hope to stand against him?
She once again keenly felt the vague fear she had experienced before.
In any case, a successful plan was a successful plan.
The Martial Alliance Leader’s visit to the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect had now become a reality.
Jin Ha-ryeong returned from being at the forefront of the three-person operation to being the Martial Alliance Leader's granddaughter.
"How will you guarantee the Alliance Leader’s safety?"
It was the Martial Alliance Leader’s procession; of course, more than one or two peerless masters would follow.
But since they were the ones who invited him, the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect was responsible for his safety.
"The Main Sect will take responsibility. How could we be negligent after inviting such an esteemed guest?"
"Who will protect him from you?"
Geom Mugeuk laughed, thinking it was a joke.
But Jin Ha-ryeong was serious.
"Promise me that you will protect him, that you'll take responsibility to ensure nothing happens."
Her eyes said it all. ‘You know it too, don’t you? I did all of this because I trust you.’
She trusted Geom Mugeuk more than the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect.
She truly did.
After all, she had gone into this prepared to be kicked out and left standing in the rain before the gates of the Demon Sect.
Geom Mugeuk gazed into her eyes and answered, "I promise."
Only after feeling the sincerity in his clear, deep eyes did Jin Ha-ryeong finally feel relieved.
‘Grandfather, I’m sorry for deceiving you. But I believe this is the right thing to do.’
She believed Geom Mugeuk’s words that they could prevent a war.
And that this choice would ultimately be for her grandfather’s sake.
Geom Mugeuk spoke politely to Jin Pae-cheon.
"I will speak with the Main Sect’s Grand Strategist to coordinate the schedule. Thank you for making such a momentous decision."
The thought of the three of them meeting brought the image of Baek Ja-gang to Jin Pae-cheon’s mind.
‘Come to think of it, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen him.’
Although he considered him a cut below Geom Woojin, he knew well that Baek Ja-gang was no ordinary man.
A single worry naturally arose.
"But if the Unorthodox Alliance Leader hears that I am going, won't he change his mind?"
"I will have to go and tell him myself."
"You're going in person?"
"I can’t convey such an important change of plans through a dispatch."
This was a matter of seating the Martial Alliance Leader and the Unorthodox Alliance Leader before the Demon Sect's headquarters.
If necessary, he would have to go back and forth ten times, even a hundred times.
Geom Mugeuk bowed politely in farewell.
"Then I will take my leave now. I shall see you at the tavern in front of the Main Sect."
"Alright. Let's see just what your Demonic Path is like."
Jin Pae-cheon sent Jin Ha-gun and Jin Ha-ryeong out with Geom Mugeuk to see him off.
Left alone, Jin Pae-cheon spoke into the empty air.
"The Grand Strategist is going to scold me."
Then, a deep male voice was heard from the empty air.
"Do you truly think the Demon Cult Master will kill the Unorthodox Alliance Leader?"
"I don't know. How could I know what's in his heart? The Geom Woojin I saw a decade ago was not the type to resort to such petty tricks. But how am I to know what kind of man he has become now that the rivers and mountains have changed?"
Jin Pae-cheon slowly walked to the window and looked outside.
He could see Geom Mugeuk, Jin Ha-gun, and Jin Ha-ryeong standing side by side in front of the Alliance Leader’s Hall.
There were several reasons for his decision to attend this meeting.
Part of it was worry that the Demon Sect and the Unorthodox Alliance might join hands and pull some trick, and part of it was curiosity about that young martial artist, Geom Mugeuk.
How on earth did he manage to drag the not-so-easygoing Baek Ja-gang all the way to the Demon Sect?
Moreover, he was already aware that Jin Ha-gun and Jin Ha-ryeong felt a great affinity for Geom Mugeuk, and he thought he needed to take a closer look at the man himself.
But if those were the only reasons, he wouldn't have made the decision without consulting his Grand Strategist.
The biggest reason Jin Pae-cheon decided he must go was this.
He felt the time had come to meet the Heavenly Demon, Geom Woojin, once more.
When they met in the past, Jin Pae-cheon had read the ambition for the Unification of the Martial World in Geom Woojin and had suspected that he might one day start a war.
That was why he had devoted all his strength to protecting the Righteous Path.
Now, before he grew any older, he felt he had to confirm it.
‘If he still has those eyes.’
I cannot let those eyes look upon Jin Ha-gun.
They are eyes my grandson cannot handle.
As soon as he left the Alliance Leader’s Hall, Jin Ha-gun let out a sigh.
"Why are you sighing? You should be cheering for joy."
Jin Ha-gun ignored Geom Mugeuk as if he hadn't heard him and spoke to his sister.
"We might have just put the Alliance Leader in danger with our own hands."
It felt like waking up in the morning after getting caught up in the excitement and partying all night.
He always got this feeling when he was with Geom Mugeuk.
"Aren't you worried?"
Jin Ha-ryeong, on the other hand, was calm.
"Worried about what?"
"That we might have been tricked by him."
At that, Geom Mugeuk cut in.
"Please, have such conversations via telepathic message!"
But ignoring even that, Jin Ha-gun and Jin Ha-ryeong continued their conversation.
"He could have deceived us."
"Right?"
"It might be a conspiracy to harm Grandfather and the Unorthodox Alliance Leader in one fell swoop."
"But you don't look worried at all."
"Because you're worrying enough for the both of us. If not, I probably wouldn’t be able to sleep starting today. In that sense, thank you for being born first."
Shaking his head as if she was unbelievable, Jin Ha-gun glanced at Geom Mugeuk.
Geom Mugeuk was looking up at the sky.
"How is the sky when you look up from in front of the Martial Alliance's Alliance Leader’s Hall?"
"It's the same. The sky is the sky, whether you see it from here or there. That's why I have no desire for this place."
These words held Geom Mugeuk's true feelings.
Whenever he had a chance, he kept telling them.
That he wasn't greedy.
So they shouldn't doubt him.
Again, and again.
He would keep saying it, even if it was tedious.
Doubt was inevitable, but being tedious was a choice.
"Still, it's better seeing it with you two."
Jin Ha-gun recalled the look in Geom Mugeuk’s eyes when he had looked at him earlier.
That provocative gaze that urged him to cross the line drawn in his heart.
‘I crossed it, just as you intended.
And it turned out just as you intended.’
That's why he kept making jokes like this.
"Is your plan to kill us all complete now?"
A faint smile formed on Geom Mugeuk's lips as he continued to gaze at the sky.
"I said the same thing to the Unorthodox Alliance Leader in a similar situation. That's not my way. My way is to send a duel invitation. Let's have a match, and the loser gracefully backs down. I’m not the type to weave conspiracies just to take something…."
Geom Mugeuk didn't finish his sentence.
Looking back at his pre-regression self, these words would fit.
I have no affection for people or the world.
Perhaps that was why he was the way he was now.
Because of the regret and longing for that empty life he lived solely for revenge, a life where he assigned no meaning to people, the world, or even himself.
Having seen the very end of loneliness, he now intended to go to the very end in the opposite direction.
Even if a greater regret awaited him, he would walk that path willingly.
"I prefer to have fun. I like the second-floor seat at the Flowing Wine Tavern more than sitting on that high Grand Advisor's seat."
Now, both Jin Ha-gun and Jin Ha-ryeong believed these words.
That was why they had conspired together today.
Before leaving, Geom Mugeuk said to the two of them.
"Do you know why I was able to proceed with this so confidently?"
"Why is that?"
"Because I trust my father. Because I believe he won't let any situation I create turn into the worst-case scenario. So, if you can't trust me, trust your Alliance Leader."
"!"
Geom Mugeuk gave the two a light fist-and-palm salute.
"I won't forget the help you gave me this time. And please, be sure to come to the Main Sect together."
Even if she were ordered not to come, Jin Ha-ryeong was determined to follow, even if she had to hide in the luggage compartment of a carriage.
Because she really wanted to visit the Flowing Wine Tavern.
That was why this parting felt so regrettable.
"Are you going back to the Divine Sect?"
"No. I said I'm going to the Unorthodox Alliance."
"Ah, right. You live such a busy life."
The moment Geom Mugeuk smiled faintly, he flashed and vanished before their eyes.
Just as when he arrived, he disappeared like smoke.
"Does he have to leave just like that?"
For a long while, Jin Ha-ryeong stood there, staring at the spot where Geom Mugeuk had disappeared.
‘I miss him already.’
As Jin Ha-ryeong said, it was indeed a busy life.
For he had rushed nonstop, skimping on sleep, all the way to the Unorthodox Alliance headquarters.
He was certainly getting plenty of practice with his Swift Step.
Geom Mugeuk first stopped by the inn that Bi Sa-in frequented.
He was there again today, having a meal.
—Eating noodles so often will make you gain weight.
Bi Sa-in’s chopsticks paused at the incoming telepathic message.
A smile reflexively formed on his lips at the only voice in the world that would nag the Young Alliance Leader of the Unorthodox Alliance about being a picky eater.
As always, he could see Geom Mugeuk's figure in the alley across the street.
—What brings you here? I expected to see you at your tavern.
—Something urgent has come up that I must report to the Alliance Leader.
—Then why don’t you go and report to him yourself?
—So disloyal! You have to be there with me.
—Isn’t it because it takes too long to get to the Alliance Leader without me?
Waiting, standing by, getting permission.
He had to pass through all sorts of security checkpoints to finally reach the Alliance Leader’s Hall.
It was the same at the Martial Alliance.
In that sense, Jin Ha-gun and Bi Sa-in were shortcuts to the Alliance Leader’s Hall.
—You noticed?
Geom Mugeuk’s laughter rang through the telepathic message.
Of course, he knew that wasn't the real reason.
He knew that Mugeuk always came to find him first to place him at the center of things.
—What is it?
—Listen to it with the Alliance Leader.
—How much are you planning to surprise people this time?
—It's not like that.
—I understand.
Geom Mugeuk stopped Bi Sa-in as he was about to get up.
—Finish your meal slowly before you get up.
—How can I eat when you’re over there waiting?
—All the more reason to eat well.
Isn't a martial artist powered by his meals? Just you wait, see if I get up without eating.
Just you try to tell me what huge trouble you've caused, see if I get up without eating.
Bi Sa-in shot up and exclaimed, "Did you cause trouble?"
Geom Mugeuk was at the Alliance Leader’s Hall with Bi Sa-in.
"So, you're saying the Martial Alliance Leader has also decided to come to this meeting?"
"Yes, that is correct."
"Things have gotten bigger."
"You can just think of it as gaining another drinking companion."
"And that drinking companion is Jin Pae-cheon."
The Unorthodox Alliance Leader, Baek Ja-gang, disliked Geom Woojin, but he disliked Jin Pae-cheon even more.
"The three of us who despise each other are gathering?"
What was supposed to be a private drinking session between two people had turned into a three-party meeting of the Righteous, Demonic, and Unorthodox Sects.
Since he had become the Unorthodox Alliance Leader, the three of them had never once met in the same place.
"Was this your plan all along?"
"No. At first, I only intended for my father and you, Alliance Leader, to meet. But I changed my mind along the way."
"Because it was easier to invite the Martial Alliance Leader than to ask for his understanding?"
"That was part of it, but a more important reason arose."
"What reason?"
After a brief pause, Geom Mugeuk spoke.
"I had a thought that if not for this opportunity, the three of you might never have the chance to meet together in this era."
"!"
Seeing as the hair on his arms didn't stand on end, Geom Mugeuk was telling the truth.
"What's wrong with not meeting?"
"Looking back later, I think I would feel regret. That the three who dominated an era never once gathered in the same place."
Come to think of it, Baek Ja-gang realized he had never deeply considered a three-party meeting.
He had always believed that the next time they met would be the day one of them died.
Listening silently from the side, a thought suddenly occurred to Bi Sa-in.
‘Is that why you rush to me like this, whenever you have a chance to see me?’
In that respect, they didn't have to worry about the three of them not being able to see each other in their era.
That Geom Mugeuk would call them to meet at every opportunity.
"Did you come just to tell me this?"
"This meeting began thanks to you, Alliance Leader. Of course I had to come and tell you in person."
"What if I say no? What if I say I refuse because that old man from the Martial Alliance is insufferable?"
"I would still have to try to persuade you. Whatever you desire, just say the word. I will take responsibility and make it happen."
What did he desire?
What he desired was to raise Bi Sa-in to be even more splendid than the Geom Mugeuk before him.
And to fill Geom Woojin's arrogant eyes with envy.
"I'll attend. See you at the tavern."
Geom Mugeuk beamed and paid his respects.
"Thank you so much for your understanding. As expected, you are a man of action, Alliance Leader."
As Geom Mugeuk bowed politely and turned to leave, Baek Ja-gang asked one last question.
"What is the ultimate goal you hope to achieve with this meeting?"
Geom Mugeuk turned back to him and said.
"Here with Sa-in, and with Branch Master Jin of the Martial Alliance. It's quite fun when the three of us get together."
Listening, Bi Sa-in's lips twitched.
Shouldn't you ask us whether it's fun or not?
He wanted to make such a witty remark but couldn't bring himself to say it in front of the Unorthodox Alliance Leader.
"Wouldn't it be fun if the three of you gathered as well? My goal is to make this meeting an enjoyable one."
"An enjoyable meeting? We'd be lucky if the atmosphere isn't deadly."
"That would be fun in its own way."
Baek Ja-gang warned of one danger.
"You said those who targeted us this time have hidden forces behind them, right?"
"That is correct."
"What will you do if they target this opportunity?"
Geom Mugeuk answered calmly, "It will be fine."
"How can you be so sure?"
"I was able to stop them all when I was alone, but this time, the three of you will be together, won't you?"
A strange smile played on Baek Ja-gang's lips.
‘For now, I must be satisfied with being second place in raising a son.’
Those words also represented Baek Ja-gang’s determination to at least make his successor triumph over the successor of the Martial Alliance.
Unaware of the meaning behind his master's fiery gaze directed at him, Bi Sa-in was.
"Then I will see you on that day."
Bi Sa-in followed Geom Mugeuk out to see him off.
"You really aren't worried."
"Why should I be worried? Now that the three of them have given their permission, the matter is out of my hands."
Geom Mugeuk did not waver, even under a gaze that seemed to ask if he wasn't being too brazen.
"Let us live in our own martial world."
When he first heard those words, they felt as vague as clouds, but now, he could feel a little substance to them.
The idea that there was a martial world for their younger generation.
"There's the matter of escorts, and it will take some time to coordinate the schedule. What will you do until then?"
"I'll play with the Demon Sovereigns during the day and train at night. That's how I'll spend my time. Don't you dare stop me from having fun!"
"Must be nice. You have people to have fun with."
"Don't you have five more people to have fun with than I do?"
"!"
For a moment, Bi Sa-in was startled.
Five more than the Eight Demon Sovereigns would be thirteen, surely meaning the Thirteen Wolves of the Unorthodox Path.
Bi Sa-in had never once thought of 'having fun' with the Thirteen Wolves of the Unorthodox Path.
"Well then, see you later."
In a flash, Geom Mugeuk became a dot in the distant sky and disappeared.
Under the sky where he had vanished, the Thirteen Wolves stood at a distance.
A thought suddenly occurred to him.
Geom Mugeuk must have started with the Demon Sovereigns from this state as well.
No, the Thirteen Wolves at least had loyalty.
Geom Mugeuk must have befriended the Demon Sovereigns from a much more difficult and awkward state than this.
Yes, if I'm going to imitate him, I should do it properly.
"Today, set aside your escort duties. Let's buy some wine and go have fun somewhere with a nice view. We can catch up on old stories. Oh, is there anyone among you who can dance?"
As startled gazes focused on him, Bi Sa-in looked up at the sky.
"The weather is too nice to have fun alone."