Chapter 34 - Act 5. Iron Sun Thunder Sect (4)

The novice disciples headed straight for the administrative office. U Jeol, who was in charge, was just about to close up. He looked indifferently at the crowd of novices descending on him.

"Office hours end at the start of the Rooster Hour (*5 p.m.). Why have you all come swarming over? Is this a rebellion?"

Unable to tell whether he was joking, the novices broke into cold sweats and exchanged wary looks. Their gazes naturally settled on Yise, who stepped forward.

For some reason, he kept feeling as though he was being made their representative—

"... We heard one of our fellow disciples died, so we came to find out what happened. If you wouldn't mind, Senior, could you let us see the details?"

"Is this the first death among your cohort?"

"Yes."

"Come in."

Without further comment, U Jeol released the barrier he had set over the office.

"That one."

On the noticeboard he indicated were the words: "Mission Failed—Assigned Disciple Deceased (Disappearance of Soul Binding Confirmed)."

As Yise read the mission, his gaze began to waver.

- Hunt the juvenile Deathwind Black Tiger (Level 8) sighted near Aegul County

It was the very mission he had given up two days ago, after asking to take two at once and receiving U Jeol's lesson in division. Yeom Bo had picked up the mission Yise had relinquished. And now he was dead.

Logically, it wasn't his fault. Unless he monopolized the missions, someone else would have taken it first, and there was no guarantee the outcome would have changed. Yet somehow that logic failed to reach his heart.

His fingers rested heavily on the noticeboard, then fell away.

"Since you're all here, a related mission has been posted. Take a look before you go."

U Jeol's words pulled Yise from his thoughts. A new mission had been added to the board.

「Mission Reassignment—Follow-up Measures Regarding a Novice Disciple's Death. Recover the remains of the disciple presumed deceased and determine the cause of death and the killer's identity. A four-person team is mandatory. Risk Level: Unassigned. Reward: 30 spirit stones, 50 contribution points.」

The mission had changed from killing the Deathwind Black Tiger to recovering the body and identifying the cause of death and the killer.

"Normally, missions with an unassigned Risk Level are handled by the main mountain. Still, any novices who wish to volunteer will have priority. You have until tomorrow. Gather your volunteers and come back."

It was a gesture of consideration: those who had known the deceased would be given the first chance to recover his remains, if they had the courage. But taking over a mission that had already claimed a life was no easy choice. Nearly forty novices had gathered inside the office and outside its doors, yet none moved at U Jeol's words.

After a stretch of silence, Yise stepped forward.

"I'll take it."

U Jeol glanced at him, his expression suggesting that this boy was quick to decide no matter the circumstances. Then he added evenly,

"This mission requires a team of four. Fill the remaining places."

No sooner had he spoken than Pi Garam laid a hand on Yise's shoulder.

"Count me in."

"That's a surprise. I heard you hardly take any missions."

"An aspiring covert operative is only half-useful before the fifth star. Still, I think I need to go this time. Yeom Bo was a fellow disciple from my hometown."

A fellow disciple from his hometown. Yise acknowledged him, then looked around for other volunteers. His eyes met Seol Ryeong's. She stood with her fists clenched, looking like a deer struck by a hunter's arrow.

"Don't go. Not on this mission. I've got a bad feeling. I just did a divination, and I saw deadly misfortune hanging over you."

"Would you at least ask people's permission before reading their fortunes?"

Seol Ryeong refused to yield to his grumbling.

"You don't see heaven's secrets because you want to. You simply see them."

"They say a half-baked shaman is the death of you."

"What? Have you ever seen a half-baked shaman this talent—"

"If you're that worried, come with us. If you can see deadly misfortune, you can help us avoid it. Being such a talented half-baked shaman."

"..."

Seol Ryeong fell abruptly silent. The curious trust in his voice left her feeling strange. It annoyed her, yet she couldn't entirely dislike it. By the time she realized he was turning her own divination against her to persuade her, it was too late.

"... Fine. I'll go. Happy?"

In the end, she agreed to join.

With the familiar group assembling, three pairs of eyes naturally turned toward Hae Unchan.

"What do you say? Shall we get the old team together?"

"Sorry. I've already accepted a mission that leaves tomorrow."

He looked genuinely disappointed. Yise replied, "Can't be helped," and turned to the other disciples. But no one volunteered. Instead, they busied themselves avoiding his gaze or edging away. The team already looked quite dependable, yet the weight of their first death seemed to have become a fear that crushed them.

Understandably so. While studying accounts of past novice deaths, they had read of a mission that drew disciples in one after another as they kept attempting it again, ultimately claiming more than a dozen lives.

"I'll go."

The unfamiliar voice drew all three pairs of eyes. Short red hair, red eyes. A face Yise knew, though they weren't close.

Seol Ryeong's face tightened almost imperceptibly when she saw who had volunteered. Her expression gave Yise an inexplicably uneasy feeling, and he asked quietly,

"What?"

"That one's a little short on social skills."

It hardly seemed a reason worth worrying about. Yise turned back.

"I can hear you, you know. I'm Hong Wonseo. My specialty is healing."

A shoo-in from Hall Master Hong Mihui's Flame Blossom Hong family, and a promising talent who had placed third in the entrance examination.

"Thank you."

"There's no need to thank me. As a rule, a healer should accompany any mission involving the recovery of remains. That's how we ensure the deceased's body can be recovered intact."

"I didn't know that."

"I'm not much for camaraderie or love of humanity, but this is the first thing a healer learns. Having no one step forward wounds my pride a little."

There were no wasted words, and every action radiated confidence. Yise had taken note of those solid fundamentals during the entrance examination, too. His instincts told him this would be a dependable teammate.

* * *

"Our destination is Aegul County. It's a medium-sized city about two days east, toward the Ulta Mountains."

On the day of their departure, Yise gave a brief overview of the situation and what they knew. They would get more accurate details from Daemudo's outer affiliates in Aegul County anyway. Still, he had spoken the destination aloud because the place they were heading meant a great deal to him.

Aegul County. The city whose jurisdiction included Subu Village, his childhood home. A little farther east, and one could even reach Gwisu Temple. The longing that welled up at the mere sound of its name was almost a reflex.

The party traveled in silence. Most of them knew one another, but there was one unfamiliar member among them. Neither Yise nor Pi Garam was inclined to strike up a conversation, either. In the end, Seol Ryeong could no longer bear the awkwardness and spoke first.

Hong Wonseo. Not someone she particularly liked, but a member of Hall Master Hong Mihui's family all the same.

'It can't hurt to get along.'

With that thought, she casually made an overture.

"Hall Master Hong Mihui is Daemudo's best ritual-implement artisan. So why are you a healer instead of a shaman?"

Hong Wonseo answered with a look that suggested this was utter nonsense.

"Medicine has been the Hall Master's primary field for three hundred years. If you don't know what you're talking about, please don't pretend you do."

"..."

A chill settled over them. The air seemed sharp enough to pierce their lungs. Was this what it meant to wage war with tongues instead of blades?

Yise and Pi Garam exchanged anxious looks, then quickened their pace, pretending they hadn't heard.

After that bladeless battle, the team continued in silence. At least it meant they traveled faster than expected.

Yise volunteered to take the entire night watch alone. Missing a day's sleep hardly troubled him, and his Dokkaebi Senses made his body ideally suited to keeping watch. For some reason, he also wanted to feel the night breeze.

"You look miserable."

Pi Garam approached, apparently having woken up. Yise poked through the dying fire and handed him a sweet potato.

A breeze passed through the silence. Pi Garam spoke first.

"About Yeom Bo. Honestly, we weren't close. We came from the same hometown, but I only met him after coming here."

"..."

"Still, I thought it would be better to send him home. Maybe it's none of my business."

Rather than respond to that, Yise changed the subject.

"That was a mission I was going to take."

"Was it?"

"It was near my hometown, and it was something I could have handled. I keep wondering whether things would have turned out differently."

"You're making trouble for yourself worrying about that."

"I am. Really, it has nothing to do with me. But everyone keeps pushing me into being this cohort's representative, and now I'm thinking things like this. It's pointless."

Pi Garam turned to look at him. Yise continued, his eyes on the sky.

"Either way, we'll make sure he's avenged."

Pi Garam paused, then spoke quietly.

"Avenged, not recovered. Watching you, I've noticed you always insist on paying things back. Whatever they are."

"Do I? He was just one of many fellow disciples."

Even if you weren't close, living shoulder to shoulder made a face familiar and fostered a measure of affection. That was precisely the sort of relationship Yise had with Yeom Bo.

"It's a habit you mostly see in people who've lost a great deal. Ah, forgive me if I've overstepped."

Instead of answering, Yise closed his eyes. On the path of Daemudo, death was inescapable. More of his fellow disciples would die. Perhaps even those beside him.

Accept that fact, but never grow numb to it. That much resolve should suffice.

He had wondered why his feelings were so tangled. It seemed he had been mourning without even realizing it.

Dawn was breaking. Yise rose to his feet.

Perhaps it was the ill-omened words of Seol Ryeong, that half-baked shaman, but this journey left him strangely uneasy. Viewed another way, though, it would be a valuable experience.

Warrior, covert operative, shaman, healer. By chance, they had assembled an ideal team with all four aspired specialties represented. He had heard that formal missions—particularly battles the main mountain could not afford to lose—called for teams with at least one member of each specialty.

Now that they were here, they would complete this mission flawlessly and return.

Gazing at the faint light of dawn, Yise savored the scent of home for the first time in so long.