Novel Return of Mount Hua Sect Chapter 953
“Strong....”
Namgung bit his lip until it almost tore.
“Stay strong. Just a little... Just a bit longer...”
He knew. He was desperately channeling his internal strength, gripping the hand that kept slipping away as if it would break... But no matter how hard he tried, he already understood that he couldn’t save him.
It’s not even his first time.
It’s not even the first time he has seen this damned situation.
Blood had dried and the man’s hand, which had turned dark red, trembled and came towards his face.
“So...gaju....”
“Yes, Jin. You just have to stay strong a little more. If you stay strong a little longer, support will come! Then we can return to Namgung! Just until then... hold on...”
Namgung Dowi’s face contorted gruesomely.
He knew he shouldn’t, but he couldn’t help but distort his face.
It was a blatant lie. Both the speaker and the listener knew it. They knew how absurd this lie was.
However, Namgung Dowi desperately repeated that blatant lie. Because there was nothing else he could do.
“So...Soga...ju-nim....”
“Namgung Jin....”
“By, by all mean... Survive....”
“....”
Namgung Dowi’s hand trembled.
It is time for him to get used to it. Countless have passed away in his arms. But he never got used to it. The chilling sensation of warmth and strength slipping away from the hand he held was as agonizing as the first time, every time.
“Na- Namgung... I wished to see.... For one last time....”
Namgung Jin’s pupils, who were struggling to keep speaking, loosened. At the same moment, the strength slipped away from the hand that Namgung Dowi was holding.
“Namgung Jin!”
“Namgung Jin! You punk!”
Angry shouts erupted from those who were witnessing his last moments. A voice filled with curses, mixed with sobs and unable to handle the rising anger.
But Namgung Dowi just bowed his head and buried his forehead in the chest of Namgung Jin, whose blood had dried.
‘I must not cry.’
Blood, thick and sticky, flowed over his torn lips. However, although Namgung Dowi could shed blood for Namgung Jin, he could not shed tears.
For if showed tears, everyone would crumble.
With eyes bloodshot, Namgung Dowi clenched his fist as if he would tear the ground apart.
Couldn’t he have been saved?
Was there really no way to save him?
If only he had received proper treatment from a physician in time, he wouldn’t have died. No, if he had managed to secure just one of those Yeongdan that were scattered all over the place in his family, maybe, just maybe, he could have saved a few.
But there is nothing here.
Physician, who will treat them, and Yeongdan, who will prolong their lives.
The only thing that exists is a desolate land, a dreadful river that flows carelessly. And....
Namgung Dowi raised his head with eyes full of resentment. Then he glared at the ship of Evil Tyrant Alliance surrounding the island and the Righteous Sects who observing the scene as if they were merely watching a fire across the river.
“Ugh...”
The real target of his venomous gaze might not have been the Evil Tyrant Alliance, but the Ten Great Sects standing beyond them.
He knew.
All this was done by Namgung Family. It was unjust to shift the blame for the countless deaths onto others. The responsibility for those deaths rested solely on the shoulders of Namgung Family.
But nevertheless....
Ppudeuk.
Namgung Dowi gritted his teeth.
If only they hadn’t shouted and cried out, he wouldn’t have resented them. If they hadn’t proudly proclaimed about defending Jungwon and their upholding of Chivalrousness, he might have let it be.
But... where is the Chivalrousness they so loudly proclaimed?
What are they doing while those who fought for the commoners and got injured are dying on this cold land?
“Ugh...”
At that moment, there was a sound that grabbed the attention of Namgung Dowi. It was the groan of another person struggling with injuries.
Namgung Dowi took a long breath through his cracked lips. Then, slowly reaching out his hand, he closed Namgung Jin’s eyes and stood up.
Without a word, he looked down at Namgung Jin and then spoke with a parched voice.
“Collect the bodies.”
“...Sogaju-nim.”
“I know what you feel. But there are still those who are not well. If we have time to mourn the dead, we should use it to save the living.”
Who wouldn’t be filled with rage at those words?
However, none of the warriors of Namgung Family, whose eyes were red with rage, refuted.
These people are drowning in grief and dying day by day. Those who can’t control their anger as they tend to the wounded. The smell of rotten blood and the stench of death (??(屍臭)). And the overwhelming odor of despair.
Namgung Dowi did not stop walking.
‘This is foolish.’
He knew.
‘There might be no gains. The situation might only worsen.’
He knew that, too.
‘So why?’
The reason was too simple. He couldn’t just sit here waiting for death to come. He had a responsibility to protect those around him.
Because he was Sogaju of Namgung Family.
His steps became faster and faster. And so, the place where he finally arrived was in front of Namgung Hwang, who seemed to have aged a decade in just a short time.
Namgung Dowi looked quietly at Namgung Hwang.
Namgung Hwang, who had exhausted all his energy from channeling his internal strength into the injured, closed his eyes with his back against the rock broken by bombardment. His face was heavy with deep regret and the weight of his responsibilities.
The suffocating weight of responsibility.
Sensing a presence, Namgung Hwang slowly opened his eyes and looked over Namgung Dowi.
“...What’s the matter?”
Namgung Dowi stared at Namgung Hwang without saying a word. The eyes of father and son intertwined in the air.
“You told me before, didn’t you?”
“...What did I say?”
“If you put your mind to it, Gaju-nim can escape from this island.”
Namgung Hwang shook his head.
“I will not leave.”
A self-deprecating smile hung on his lips.
“Where could I, Gaju of Namgung Family, abandon them? I will share fate with them here. And... cough.”
After a dry cough, he twisted the corner of his mouth.
“I don’t know then, but it’s too much now.”
“Alone, yes.”
Namgung Hwang slightly raised his head to look at Namgung Dowi.
“...What are you trying to say?”
Namgung Dowi, who finally made up his mind, stared at Namgung Dowi as if glaring.
“Alone it may be impossible for you, but if you combine your strength with the elders, you could manage to send at least one person off this island.”
“....Dowi?”
“Jang Ilso may belong to the Evil Sects, but he is not one to break his word. He has something he’s aiming for too, so even if we attempt an escape, he may stop the escape but won’t attack the island in retaliation. In other words...”
Namgung Dowi continued as if chewing it out.
“It’s worth trying to send at least one person out.”
“....”
“Please send me out, Gaju-nim.”
His eyes were burning with determination and anger at the same time.
“Even if it costs that life, save me and get me to the mainland.”
Namgung Hwang, who turned pale, silently observed his son.
There comes a time when a father faces the moment when his child stands at the same level as him. And right now, Namgung Hwang felt precisely what that emotion was.
Therefore, he didn’t ask.
What he planned to do, why it had to be Namgung Dowi and not him.
Such things were meaningless.
“...What’s the price?”
That was the only thing he was curious about.
“As you say, every elder, including me, has to risk our life. What is the price for giving up our lives at the last moment when we must protect everyone’s lives for just one more moment?”
Determination stood firm in the eyes of Namgung Dowi. Something currently absent in Namgung Hwang.
“Hope.”
“....”
“Is that not enough?”
Namgung Hwang, who had brief silence, grinned.
“Is that?”
“....”
Namgung Hwang slowly rose up. His eyes also began to bloom. A childlike determination in the eyes of his already grown son.
“...It is enough.”
His hand firmly gripped Namgung Dowi’s shoulder.