Chapter 34

A blue glow hovered at the tip of An Bai’s sword before quickly dissipating. The masked men moved in synchronization with his stride.
If he tried to attack the one in front of him, the two masked figures on either side of him would extend their swords at odd angles to block him, while simultaneously slashing at him at angles that made it difficult for him to extend his sword.
Even as I summoned up the energy to unleash a flurry of slashes, one of the masked men’s eyes kept darting back to Sibby and Nanny.
He’s closing in on them and threatening them with his momentum, so they can’t move easily, but he’s ready to throw himself at them at any moment.
He would not behave like this if he had not come with a purpose.
“I see you take my sword as if it were familiar.”
A familiarity.
And yet, they don’t put any intent on the tip of their swords, but merely unfold their molds, so it’s clear they’re trying to hide their own swordsmanship.
“……There’s someone from the Southern Palace in the mix, I wonder if it’s the Southern Palace.”
If there is an absolute principle in Kang Ho’s physiology.
It is to become a master by mastering the powerful martial arts that unfolds within oneself through unremitting effort.
It is to become stronger and harder than anyone else, and to become a tree that cannot be shaken by any winds around it.
Weak Meat Diet.
Survival of the fittest.
Honor the strongest.
There are many stories behind these immutable laws, but An Bai was a man who took these words to heart
Good people don’t come, good people don’t go.
Those who have already come are not good.
No one approaches without a reason, and when they do, they come with something they want.
And those who approach are often the ones closest to you.
It was like this now.
No one but a member of the Southern Palace could have understood his sword so well, for it had been more than five years since he had laid down his sword in the great hall.
“Those who know …… my sword, or have studied me extensively. They know how to hide their swords.”
His eyes turned fierce. The cobblestones on the ground stirred with the momentum from his toes.
“That the Grand Duke would take such a path is known to few in the Southern Court. As soon as he leaves his family’s territory, he’ll be pounced upon.”
An Baek met the eyes of the strongest of the masked men,
“They don’t even realize they’re like fire moths.”
He quickly closed the distance. An Baek’s shadow flickered in front of the masked men and disappeared.
“Huh!”
“Uh, where did he go……!”
An Baek’s hand pushed through the panicked masked people and landed on the chest of the masked person who was facing him.
Kwang!
The masked man coughed up blood as he was sent flying backwards as fast as An Baek had crushed him. However, the masked man was no slouch either, spinning his body in midair and landing softly on the ground.
“Come to …….”
If they didn’t move quickly, they would be overwhelmed. Black Ho’s hands and feet were getting dizzy. It was probably because Kang Woo-moon was the least skilled of the group.
Dong-hwi was also struggling to keep his hands free while facing off against one of the masked men.
Moreover, they have one goal.
He was the one who refused to listen to them and scratched his head every day.
The one who looked like his favorite sister, his nephew, and the one and only Grand Duke of the Southern Palace.
Seeing the three masked figures shooting at him, An Baek raised his energy.
It was imperative that he shake off the three masked men who were on the verge of confronting him. He would bring his mace down on those who dared to stall and tell them who he faced.
The moment he made up his mind.
A flash!
The Grand Duke’s seat dazzled with a flash of light, and after a few swipes, the two masked men facing him fell backwards.
“……!”
“What…….”
The gazes of the masked men who had been facing An Baek unintentionally turned to that place, and that was their last thought in this life.
Immediately, the heads of the two masked men on the left and right floated up into the air, except for the one who bounced away.
“How dare you think otherwise of me.”
It was inevitable. Who would have thought that the Grand Duke’s skills would be on the rise.
An Baek had felt the glow of the Grand Duke’s position before. He’d felt it from his elder, Southern Palace Lady, and from the aura of Southern Palace Master Mu Baek, who had crossed swords with him many times.
An Bai could only laugh in vain.
“What a ridiculous bastard.”
Only three months after picking up the sword, he had become the undisputed winner of the sword tournament, and now, facing the top masters, he was able to display his skillful swordplay.
Whereas before, the sword tournament had been nothing more than a game, now he faced the sword with the fear that he could die at any moment.
An Baek thought.
Is there something I don’t understand?
If not, what kind of mindset makes him do this?
Now Anbaek wondered what drove him.
* * *
“I’m sorry. Did I miss it after all?”
I clicked my tongue and glared at my uncle.
“You were so smug, and then you missed the cause.”
“…….”
With his mouth clenched tightly shut, he was unmasking the other masked men, most of the attackers lying dead in front of the group.
“I don’t recognize any of these faces.”
“…….”
“It’s all because you missed one of them,” said the old man, ”and I don’t want you to fret, because you let the strongest one get away.”
Of course, we know that the uncle didn’t miss him on purpose, and that the masked man was just being clever.
The masked man had scattered quite a few memorizations in his bosom when he bounced off the uncle early on. If it had simply been directed at him, he would have been able to deflect it and catch the masked man in one fell swoop.
“…… Grand Duke, it’s all our fault. It’s because of us that An Daoguo was too busy to catch it.”
“We apologize.”
“We apologize…….”
The nannies and servants lowered their heads, as if they were unrecognizable, and the masked man, who had to chase after them, relentlessly sprinkled memorization on them, forcing the old man to stop his pursuit and protect the nannies and servants.
“I don’t blame you, so don’t take it personally.”
I knew that, but what made me so angry was.
“……If they are indeed related to the Southern Palace, as my uncle said.”
I thought of the walls of the Southern Palace, of Mr. Bai’s wife, and of my mother. I was afraid that the dissonance I had created would be directed at them.
I was concerned about that.
“Don’t worry.”
I said gruffly. At the same time, Anbaek’s shadow disappeared from the spot where he had been. The group let out a collective gasp at the sight of his empty spot.
I didn’t even feel a stir.
I shouldn’t have pushed him.
I thought to myself.
“Master ……’s eyes were a little wide.”
At Donghui’s words, I prayed for the memory of the masked man who fled.
Somehow, I felt like I had to.
* * *
Kwaang!
The person who flew away vomited up a bowl of blood and had to roll on the ground several times.
“Uh, how did…….”
“It’s unacceptable that I’m being cursed by him like this just because I missed you, it makes my insides turn inside out.”
Folding through space, An Baek stepped in front of the fallen masked man and stomped on his right thigh before he could struggle.
Kwazik.
The masked man let out a groan of pain as Ahn Baek’s swiftness snapped his bones, like breaking a small branch.
“I can’t eat without looking at your smug face.”
He broke his other thigh at the same time. To make him think nothing of running away.
“No.”
An Baek chewed on his lip as his bloodshot eyes stared at the masked man struggling against him.
Is it really the Southern Palace?
There were only a handful of people who could move at the moment.
Moreover, something like this happened after he finished his business with Mrs. Pang at the sword council. If it’s someone behind the scenes who is looking out for Mrs. Pang.
“……I hope you’re not him.”
If it is, Anbaek himself is about to reach out, wondering what to do.
Weddings!
I dare.
The gust of wind that spun around in the air knocked all of the rainbows away, and the seven men landed in front of the masked man at the same time.
“If you approach any further, you will pay with your life, even if you are an iron-blooded swordsman.”
“This …… is not fair.”
What is he so protective of?
An Baek felt he must know the secret.
“Come on.”
Thrumming, thrumming.
As he watched the seven men draw their swords one by one, An Baek gritted his teeth and bared his teeth. The hostility and outright malice directed at him was welcome.
The seven men lifted their bodies into the air as if they were one body, and crashed into An Bai.
Five years had passed since the iron-blooded An Bai had left the river and reappeared.
The tip of his sword, the blade.
It was the moment it found its color once again.
Kwah!
Seven sword powers and a single sword star clashed.
* * *
“Black Tiger.”
“Yes.”
“What kind of person is Eight Elder?”
“You mean ……the Eight Elders?”
Black Tiger straightened his dusty robes and opened his mouth to answer.
“The Eight Elders are bright in sari.”
“……Sari bright?”
“Yes. So…….”
“So?”
“He’s a human being who never lets things go against him, and never lets things go against him.”
I had no memory of the Elder Eight. I’m sure I thought I did.
But.
I had to bite my lower lip as I watched one of the Inyoung approach from behind the bodies of the fallen raiders.
“The blood of a lowly mother, how can talent be so insignificant.”
A voice echoed in his memory. In his past life, at the walls of the Southern Palace, he remembered an elderly man from the Southern Palace who had offered to teach him a lesson.
The man who had promised to do me a favor had watched in disappointment as I extended my sword. He shook his head and clucked his tongue as we wrestled for days and days, let alone a single day.
“It would be better for the Southern Palace if I were to return home from the battlefield, Fifth Duke. ”
A voice came from the figure in front of him.
“You’ll pay the penalty for me. Hehe. How easy you are to please. You are indeed a great man. Grand Duke.”
Han YinYing approached with an air of emptiness.
“……Eight Elders.”
“Black Tiger, did I tell you I’m bright in sari, I was right.”
Elder Eight, Namgungsoon.
His wry smile contrasted with the pale faces of his companions.
“The Iron Blood Sword City will not come.”
At the same time, the corners of his eyes drew arcs.