Deployment-3
The commander of the Martial Alliance's Shadow Unit Eighth Squad, Hyu Jasung, clenched his teeth in unbearable rage.
"Dogs and pigs? How dare he…."
Those who obeyed the higher-ups' orders without judging right from wrong—that was the Shadow Unit. And no insult could have cut more precisely.
He almost wondered if that man had known and deliberately mocked him.
How long had it taken him to numb himself, to bury his self-loathing deep enough to keep carrying out missions without feeling anything?
And yet, with just a few words from a single Flying Dragon Division soldier, that wound had been ripped open again.
Grinding his fury for a long moment, Hyu Jasung finally let out a hollow laugh.
Yes, the man was right.
He was nothing more than a dog, a pig.
But what could he do?
If he could not escape that fate, the only choice was to be the most loyal dog possible.
Hyu Jasung gave the order to his men.
"Summon the Seventh and Eighth Squads at once. We have about thirty Flying Dragon soldiers trying to leave the frontline. We'll annihilate them."
"Yes, Commander!"
In the end, he decided to handle them according to his emotions.
If he had to be a dog, then at least he could dispose of the eyesores as he pleased.
The Shadow Unit had the authority to kill any warrior attempting to leave the frontline and report it afterward, so there was nothing to restrain him.
Thinking of it as a fitting price for reopening his wound, Hyu Jasung grinned cruelly.
***
Jeon Sanggu, commander of the Shadow Unit's Seventh Squad, ran like a shadow with his men through the forest, shouting,
"Hurry! We have to reach the ambush site before them!"
"Yes, Commander!"
It had been a long time since Jeon Sanggu had felt his heart pound like this.
At last, a chance to kill.
In recent days, his sector had yielded no targets, and the monotony had weighed on him.
But suddenly, an opportunity to slaughter thirty men? There was no way he would miss it.
If possible, he wanted to kill them all himself.
Jeon Sanggu enjoyed killing.
Without that thrill to break the tedium of life in the Shadow Unit, he thought he could not have endured.
Of course, at first, he had felt some resistance to murdering orthodox warriors.
But humans are creatures of adaptation.
Now he had discarded guilt entirely, able to savor killing purely for its own sake.
And he was not alone; many others in the Shadow Unit had grown to enjoy it the same way.
As they raced through the woods like wind, a lone figure suddenly appeared ahead.
Clad in black uniform, wide bamboo hat pulled low—exactly the garb of the Shadow Unit.
Seeing this, Jeon Sanggu shouted to his squad,
"Stop! Everyone halt for a moment!"
He landed first before the black-clad figure.
"Are you from the Eighth Squad?!"
But the man only lifted his hat slightly, revealing his face, and instead asked Jeon Sanggu,
"You are Jeon Sanggu, commander of the Seventh Squad?"
Recognizing him, Jeon Sanggu was startled.
"You—you're Commander Sak Muhun of the Fourth Squad?! Why are you here?"
That was when screams erupted behind him.
"Gaaah!"
"Urk!"
"Kuuhk!"
Whirling around in shock, he saw three men and women who had sprung from hiding, butchering his squad.
They had lain in ambush.
"Who the hell are you?!"
He drew his sword, about to rush them—
—when suddenly, a blade pierced clean through his back, the tip jutting from his chest.
"Guhhh!"
He couldn't understand.
Turning his head, he saw the face of Sak Muhun.
Why… why would he—?
"Why…?"
That unfinished question was his last. By the time Jeon Sanggu collapsed, Sak Muhun had already withdrawn his sword and lunged toward another soldier.
"C-Commander?!"
Second-in-command Lee Ho, himself a master of the pinnacle realm, swung his sword in a desperate defense.
But to match blades with Sak Muhun, acknowledged as the strongest in the entire Shadow Unit, was impossible.
Clang! Clash!
Just a few exchanges and his blade was knocked aside, beyond his control. His chest was left wide open, and Sak Muhun's sword swept across like air itself.
Shaaak!
So swift and natural a slash it brought no pain—only the sight of his chest splitting and blood gushing a beat later.
"Guaahhh!"
While Lee Ho fell, another pinnacle-level warrior, Yi Ho, found himself unable even to glance at his dying commander.
Because a man with steel claws strapped to his hands was charging him like an unstoppable beast.
Seol Pung.
Three of Yi Ho's men were shredded in passing, their blood spraying like they had been caught in a storm.
"Graaaah!"
"Uwaah!"
"Aaagh!"
Though Seol Pung was not especially large, to Yi Ho's eyes he seemed a giant tiger pouncing upon him.
Overwhelmed by sheer ferocity, Yi Ho forced out a shout, thrusting his sword forward.
"Yaaaahhh!"
Whoosh!
A golden sword-aura speared the air like a lance.
A desperate, all-out thrust—straight for Seol Pung's head.
But just before it struck, Seol Pung roared, swinging down with tiger-like claws.
"Haahh!"
Kaaaang!
"Wha—?!"
The tremendous force knocked his blade aside. Yi Ho had no power to resist it.
And at the same instant, four crimson claws raked across.
That dazzling scarlet aura was the last thing Yi Ho ever saw.
Slaaash!
***
Seonu Jin, hiding with Hae Cheongyeon and Seol Pung, struck first in the ambush, killing two.
By now, his concealment technique from the Thousand-Kill Secret Art had reached a formidable level. Even Shadow Unit warriors sensed nothing until his sword emerged from the darkness to draw a line—and their lives ended.
Slash!
"!"
"!"
He immediately leapt with Hae Cheongyeon and Seol Pung toward more enemies.
Unfolding the wings of the Heavenly Responding Flight of the Thirteen Swords of Seon Woo, his dazzling form left his foe flustered, their blade flailing wildly.
Clash! Clash!
Then, from the wings' core, a single beam pierced his chest.
Thrust!
"Ghhk?!"
It was the One Moment, One Kill of the Four-Day Sword Art—an instantaneous thrust so swift the man couldn't even react.
Satisfied with the seamless flow between the Thirteen Swords and the Four-Day Sword, Seonu Jin grinned.
Having slain a third foe, he glanced around to see Hae Cheongyeon finish another with the Holy Net Sword Art.
Meanwhile, Seol Pung had cut down four, and Sak Muhun three including the squad commander.
At that point, there was no need for Seonu Jin or Hae Cheongyeon to move further.
As he shook blood from his sword, he remarked,
"Too easy. It feels almost hollow."
"That's because it was an ambush. And it was only possible because Brother Sak was with us. Without him, it wouldn't have been so simple."
"Hah, true enough."
Seonu Jin smiled in satisfaction at Sak Muhun, who had just dispatched his foes.
They owed him greatly.
Before leaving for the Alliance, Sword Saint Hae Unbaek had entrusted his unnamed disciple, Sak Muhun, with Hae Cheongyeon's secret protection.
Sak Muhun had readily agreed, and thus their squad now boasted four pinnacle-realm masters—including two with over seventy years of inner strength. That made them less a single squad than a near core force of the Flying Dragon Division itself.
It was thanks to Sak Muhun they had found the Hao Clan branch in Seonwi with such ease.
And this time, after Seonu Jin provoked the Shadow Unit, Sak Muhun had shadowed them to discover their intentions.
The best outcome Seonu Jin had hoped for was that they would report to the Alliance and leave them be.
'If only they'd chosen that….'
He could even have understood if they returned later to persuade them again—that would have shown they at least tried to avoid bloodshed.
The worst case, in his mind, had been that they decided to kill them outright.
'But to think they chose an even worse option….'
For Sak Muhun had discovered their decision:
They hadn't even bothered to report to the Alliance.
They had simply chosen, on their own, to kill them.
Which meant—now there was no need to hold back.
In fact, the Shadow Unit's failure to report back to the Alliance had made things easier for them.
So Seol Pung, Seonu Jin, and Hae Cheongyeon moved together with Sak Muhun.
They already knew the Shadow Unit had planned to attack in three squads, and which directions the others would be approaching from. There was no need to wait any longer.
The result was what now lay before them.
The Seventh Squad of the Shadow Unit had been crushed, broken apart piece by piece by an ambush.
When the head of Yi Ho, Seventh Squad's pinnacle expert, was split into five fragments beneath Seol Pung's Tiger Claw Strike, Sak Muhun spoke.
"Just clean up the bodies quickly, and let's move. I'd hoped we could destroy all three squads one by one, but time won't allow it."
Yet despite the ease of the battle, Sak Muhun's face was dark.
It weighed on him to have slain those who had once shared his own fate.
At his heavy expression, the others exchanged glances. Seol Pung spoke for them.
"Brother Sak, if this weighs on you, we can take care of the rest ourselves."
"That's right, Brother Sak. You don't have to push yourself."
"Yes, you've already done more than enough by uncovering their plans for us."
But Sak Muhun only gave a bitter smile and shook his head.
"No, it isn't that. It's just… I think I understand why they made this choice. There are quite a few in the Shadow Unit who, after killing long enough, eventually begin to enjoy it. Most of the ones who attack without even reporting first are exactly those sorts."
He let out a deep sigh, then continued.
"Isn't it absurd? Those who joined the Martial Alliance seeking righteousness and justice, becoming men who find pleasure in killing the innocent? And yet those same men are later absorbed into the Alliance's official martial corps."
Speaking as though in lament, he then shook his head and forced a smile.
"But this is no time to be rambling. Come, let's go."
At that, Hae Cheongyeon said firmly,
"It can change."
"Hm?"
At his puzzled look, she met his eyes with conviction.
"Trust in Father, brother. What's already been done can't be undone, but he'll make sure it never repeats again. And you—you'll have a hand in that too."
Her unwavering words left Sak Muhun gazing at her with conflicted eyes before he finally smiled and nodded.
"Yes. I, too, trust in Master."
***
The Shadow Unit's Eighth Squad commander, Hyu Jasung, frowned as he lay hidden in the brush.
Ahead, he could see their targets approaching the ambush point.
And yet the Seventh Squad had still not arrived.
Jeon Sanggu wasn't the sort to fall behind in such matters.
It was strange.
Then Yang Wondang, commander of the Ninth Squad, sent him a voice transmission.
— What do you want to do? Should we just do it ourselves?
Hyu Jasung looked over their targets again.
Twenty-five in total. Three had broken off since he first counted them. Even so, against his own two squads' twenty-two, they were far from an easy opponent.
Especially with the Flying Dragon Division's commander, the "Fiend Blade Hermit" Man Jongrim, who possessed more than eighty years of inner strength.
If things went poorly, his side could suffer losses.
On their side, there were four pinnacle experts—two in the Eighth Squad, two in the Ninth.
If the Seventh Squad, with three more pinnacle masters, had arrived, they would have had seven in total, and there'd be nothing to worry about.
After a moment's consideration, Hyu Jasung decided to pass up this chance.
Better to risk nothing now, wait until they joined with the Seventh Squad, and strike again.
— We'll let them pass this time. We'll regroup with the Seventh Squad and strike at the next opportunity. Tell the Ninth to maintain the Ghost Breath Concealment and let them pass.
— Understood.
Hyu Jasung relayed the order to his own squad as well.
Concealed, he waited for Man Jongrim's party to pass.
He had no fear of being discovered.
They had mastered the Assassin's Hidden Breath of Pyunbok Hyolsal Jo Usun—near perfect stealth.
Not attacking, simply staying hidden, the chance of being noticed was next to nothing—unless someone was crazy enough to leap out.
Yes, unless someone actually did that.
And then, it happened.
As Man Jongrim's group passed their hiding place, a Shadow Unit warrior suddenly shouted aloud.
"Attack!"
And then he charged.
Shocked, Hyu Jasung roared,
"You fool?!"
It wasn't one of his own men—so it must have been a Ninth Squad warrior who hadn't gotten the order.
But there was no time to dwell on it.
Clang!
"Who goes there?!"
The charging warrior's sword was blocked like lightning by one of the Flying Dragon men—Bi Sa-yeong.
"What?!"
"Ambush!"
Startled, the Flying Dragon soldiers drew weapons, forming defenses. In the confusion, several Shadow Unit warriors had already rushed out in support of the first attacker.
Clang! Clang!
"They're assassins!"
"Be on guard!"
Now exposed, the ambushers faltered, realizing they'd blundered into chaos.
Grinding his teeth, Hyu Jasung shouted,
"Attack! Hit them all at once, then withdraw immediately!"
He leapt like a shadow, hurling throwing knives at Man Jongrim.
Whirr!
Even in that desperate moment, he knew Man Jongrim had to be pinned down.
But Man Jongrim, already vigilant, parried the blades with ease.
Clash! Clash!
Their swords crossed an instant later.
Clang!
Even as Hyu Jasung pressed him, other Shadow Unit warriors rushed in to throw weapons—
—when suddenly, three figures descended upon them from behind like wraiths.
"Haaahp!"
Thrust!
"Ghhhk?!"
Seol Pung.
His Tiger Claw Strike pierced the neck of Yang Wondang, the Ninth Squad commander, in one blow.
A perfect ambush from the rear.
And he wasn't alone.
From the other flank, Seonu Jin's Thirteen Swords of Seon Woo spread dazzling wings, sweeping through two Shadow Unit warriors.
Whooosh!
"Urgh?!"
"What—what is this?!"
The great wings of light scattered into countless sword-shadows, shredding them.
Slash!
"Gaaaahhh!"
"Uwaaahhh!"
It was Seonu Jin's favorite sequence—Heavenly Responding Flight flowing seamlessly into Heavenly Piercing Wing.
At his side, Hae Cheongyeon's Holy Net Sword Art flared.
Her blade, trading artistry for sheer speed, flashed like a meteor, spearing two men through the back before they could react.
Ssst!
"Gaaahhh!"
"Urrrk!"
They hadn't even sensed her approach—her fastest thrust, Meteor Stab.
Still dueling Man Jongrim, Hyu Jasung was shaken.
With enemies collapsing from behind, his squad was falling apart.
Two more cut down by Je Won-yeong's spear. Another felled by Do Mugon, First Squad's commander.
Panic closed in on him.
At this rate, they'd be annihilated.
"Retreat! Withdraw at once!"
He flung his remaining blades at Man Jongrim, then hurled himself into the woods.
Whirr!
Clang!
"Where do you think you're going?!"
Man Jongrim parried and moved to pursue—
But someone shouted.
"Don't chase them, Commander!"
"What?!"
That voice made Man Jongrim hesitate.
And in that moment, Hyu Jasung vanished into the forest with all his might. He didn't know why they'd told Man Jongrim not to give chase—but it was fortune for him.
When he finally glanced back, only eight men had managed to escape with him.
Eight, including himself.
Out of two squads.
It was absurd.