Episode 68
: Roar!
A large fire broke out at the eastern gate of a large mountain lodge.
The thieves, who had been sleeping soundly, were startled and ran out of the dormitory.
“what!”
“It’s an attack!”
The thieves each picked up their weapons and ran out to the east gate, and looked puzzled when they found the monster trapped within the human barrier.
A six-foot-tall man wearing black military uniform.
Because he was wearing a fox mask, his face was unrecognizable.
In his right hand, he held a long sword whose body was stained black. Blood was flowing down the blade, as if he had cut down several people in that time.
“What a guy!”
“How dare you tell me where this is!”
Hocheon, the vice commander of the Black Wind Team, who belatedly joined the siege, slowly narrowed his brows.
‘I don’t know why I wore a mask.’
It is common for attackers to cover their faces to conceal their identity.
Even his subordinates must wear hoods and masks when going out on missions.
But none of them wear masks.
The reason was simple.
Because masks limit the wearer’s field of vision.
It goes without saying how much of a fatal loss the limitation of the senses is to the warrior.
‘Are you saying that he is a warrior who has achieved such a high level that he is not limited by his perspective?’
Hocheon’s eyes were alert.
Of course, even if a warrior had achieved a high level, there was no reason to wear a mask instead of a mask.
Is there any reason to voluntarily endure discomfort?
‘Or was there a need to give others distinctive characteristics?’
Hocheon shook his head and shook off his thoughts.
Now was the time to focus on defeating the raiders.
“What is the number of enemies?”
“There is only one person.”
“one person? Are your eyes knotholes?”
Hocheon, who was briefed on the situation by his subordinate, complained.
The immediate enemy may have been just one person, but it made no sense for a single individual to cause a fire of that scale.
‘They didn’t show up, but there’s probably someone there!’
Hocheon immediately kicked the ground.
By jumping up and down the left and right walls alternately, I was soon able to reach the burning roof of the watchtower.
‘also!’
He gritted his teeth.
The west gate was noisy.
It was a place where the kidnapped women were detained.
‘Seongdonghakseo (聲東擊西)!’
The unknown coriander that appeared in the east was nothing more than bait.
It was clear that the enemy’s main force was concentrated in the west.
‘What force sent them? The government would not have the capacity to form a punitive force because they were dealing with Japanese pirates. Could it be that the members of the Sixth Group, who lost contact with them some time ago, had a conflict with a large merchant group or a flagpole?’
The thoughts continued one after another.
He glanced down at the ground and muttered.
‘To sort out the confusion, it would be better for me to go to the west gate myself. There must be only a few enemies that have infiltrated the east gate... Wait.’
Hocheon’s eyebrows were bent into an inverted shape.
The monster who was supposed to be confined in the circle created by his subordinates was nowhere to be seen.
He urgently twisted his upper body and punched out.
Whoops!
The fist and the blade clashed and sparks flew.
The monster wearing the fox mask clicked his tongue as if he was disappointed.
‘When did we end up here?’
Hocheon felt a chill running down his back.
I didn’t feel the presence of the other person until he got close to me.
This was my first experience like this since I broke through the wall of climax.
puck!
The monster’s kick landed in the abdomen.
The new model, pushed by the shock, fell down the watchtower.
Hocheon gritted his teeth and straightened his posture in the air.
thud!
Fortunately, I was able to land on the ground with both feet, but the shock penetrated deep into my bones.
“Still, it seems like the leadership has some skills.”
The monster that fell after him sprayed bloody swordweed.
By now, Yeonsun would have been fighting alone with a triple-digit number of thieves.
A determined light appeared in Cheonwoo Dojang’s eyes.
He suddenly turned his head and went out the west gate, leaving behind the commotion of the living quarters.
So far, it has only been a preliminary battle.
After delivering the rescued women to the soldiers waiting at the rear, the subjugation operation would begin in earnest.
‘For now, let’s do what I can. Don’t let anyone dishonor the name of a recluse.’
* * *
I stepped on the head of the man who had fallen helplessly and looked back toward the west gate.
Just like the east gate, the fire was raging loudly.
It was a signal that the kidnapped women had been safely rescued.
‘It seems like it worked out well.’
By interrogating the captured magicians, he found out the headquarters of the Black Wind Company and asked the owner of the Hwayang Sangdan to expand his insufficient military power.
Guard warriors at the top.
And, in the name of Hwayang Sangdan, they are commissioned and hired by a large port agency.
Most of the messengers and guards were waiting for the signal to come up outside the mountain lodge.
A large-scale subjugation operation would soon begin.
‘I’m slowly getting tired.’
No matter how much I was, I couldn’t destroy a group of over 200 thieves alone.
Because your stamina and endurance will run out before then.
The situation was different from the previous time when he and Tang Xuyan attacked Meng Hucai.
Therefore, he found out the structure of the wild vegetables, established a strategy based on that, and supplemented the shortcomings with the help of people around him.
Sigh!
He plunged the sword into the abdomen of the man struggling beneath his feet.
The twitching body soon became limp.
I took a deep breath and looked around.
The appearance of the bandits, who were only aiming their weapons at a certain distance and not making any particular movements, came into view.
I swung my sword to shake off the blood and asked them, who were very frightened.
“Who will attack you next?”
As I took one step, everyone took a step back.
When I took another step, everyone took a step back again.
It was an interesting sight.
I let out a wild laugh and jumped up off the ground.
He then landed in the middle of the bandits’ camp and unleashed his Wolyeong sword.
The 19th herbivorous month (播月).
Sword energy spread out in all directions and swept the area.
About a dozen thieves were swept away and died without even being able to scream.
Wow!
The shouts from the warriors and the guard warriors outside the mountain lodge gradually got closer.
There was a look of bewilderment on the thieves’ faces.
Sigh!
I muttered lowly as I struck off the head of a thief.
“We will spare the lives of those who drop their weapons and surrender.”
I didn’t say it very loudly, but I put a lot of energy into my voice, so no one would have missed my warning.
“Anyone who resists will die.”
* * *
The subjugation of the Black Wind Army was successfully completed.
The bandits who resisted until the end also threw down their weapons and surrendered after cutting off the head of the chieftain.
There was some unrest in the middle.
This was because several women who could not be rescued because they were not in prison were taken as hostages.
Thanks to Tang Seo-yeon’s dragon poisoning technique, he was able to secure the women’s remains safely, but in the process, Dojang Cheon-woo suffered a stab wound to his side.
It turned out that one of the hostages was the sister of the child who had given him the request.
Fortunately, the injuries were not life-threatening.
I would be able to fully recover if I purified for about 15 days to a month.
The damage to our troops was not that great.
Although there were a few dead or injured people, it was nothing compared to the casualties of the bandits.
The few surviving thieves were handed over to the government office, and the rescued women were referred to the Bureau of Prisons so that they could go to their homes.
Hwayang Sangdan decided to provide support to those who have no place to return so that they can make a new start.
‘It cost more money than I thought.’
A considerable amount of money was spent on hiring messengers and bodyguards.
The goods secured from the mountain shed were going to be used to support the rescued women, so I had to bear the entire loss.
It wasn’t a big hit, but I couldn’t help but feel a bitter taste in my mouth.
Even though I thought it was an expense that had to be covered anyway, I found myself looking at Cheonwoo Dojang with a negative eye.
I muttered to myself as I looked down at Cheonwoo Dojang, who was lying on the bed and suffering.
‘I will abuse you so much that your body will break.’