Chapter- 38 (Abandoned Disciple of Heavenly Demon)

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Episode 38: Encounter (2)

‘Kang Mu-hwi.’

Jin Myeong could immediately recall the young man’s name as soon as he saw it. It had so, because that young man was the main character of this story.

‘He looks similar to the cover.’

Moreover, the youth was speaking in a voice clearly meant to be overheard.

“Why are you staring?”

“It’s nothing.”

Shin Ye-hyang looked puzzled expression as she looked Jin Myeong, whose body had momentarily frozen. She then turned her head towards the young man Jin Myeong was examining.

‘Is he strong enough to make Young Master Jin nervous?’

‘He didn’t look that strong, though. He is slightly stronger than his other age, but he is still inferior compared to the Heavenly Demon Sect’s disciples.’

‘His skill level appears similar to Kunlun Haksu. Then, why did he make Young Master Jin so nervous?’

“Is there something I’m not noticing?” Shin Ye-hyang finally couldn’t help but ask.

“He’s not particularly strong. Not yet, anyway.”

“Right now? But why are you nervous?”

‘Because everything that happens from now on will revolves around Kang Mu-hwi, and the flow of events will only favour him.’

‘I may be strong now, but it’s as if a law of world will assist Kang Mu-hwi, ensuring he becomes strong enough to eventually defeat all the masters.’

‘No matter how carefully I fight, I am bound to make a fatal mistake and lose my life, which is why I’m nervous.’

“Yes, I am nervous. Is there a problem?”

“…….”

Shin Ye-hyang had observed Jin Myeong closely. He was someone who had never lost his composure even when facing Mok Ja-gyeong, the Gongdong Twin Elders, or the Cloud Dragon Sword.

Instead, his constant goading had only made his opponents furious and unable to properly their skills.

‘I don’t think that person is very strong. In fact, it seemed as if Jin Myeong could kill him right away if he wanted to.’

‘Did he say, that person wasn’t strong right now?’

‘He’s implying that this person is not strong right now. In other words, this person will become stronger later.’

‘That was a confident tone as if he was sure of it.’

“Then how about killing him now?”

Jin Myeong stared at Shin Ye-hyang quietly. Startled by his gaze, she quickly turned her head and looked back at Kang Mu-hwi.

“If he can interfere with our sect in the future, why not killing him? I think it would be easy to kill him right now.”

‘That’s right. If I could kill him, I would have.’

But the main character, Kang Mu-hwi, had a destiny to fulfil. Ultimately, there are core issues only the protagonist can resolve.

‘I don’t know if other people can do that.’

There are things that cannot be solved without Kang Mu-hwi.

Jin Myeong had thought that even if he gained all of Kang Mu-hwi’s connections and lucky encounters and became stronger, he still wouldn’t be able to solve the core issues, even by becoming stronger.

‘Wait, that’s not right. If I become strong enough, I might be able to solve it. But it was impossible to kill the protagonist based on something so uncertain.’

“I really don’t know why Young Master Jin is acting like this.”

Shin Ye-hyang’s voice felt even colder.

She must have felt disappointed seeing Jin Myeong tense up at the sight of Kang Mu-hwi, who wasn’t particularly strong.

Jin Myeong himself couldn’t figure out why he was like this.

‘Is it simply the protagonist effect?’

‘To progress a story, protagonist is necessary for the story to progress. In fact, he hadn’t even reached the first major arc of the novel yet.’

‘That’s why I felt some unknown power was stopping me from killing Kang Mu-hwi.’

“Hey, are you free for a moment?”

A voice came to Jin Myeong’s ears as he was lost in thought. It was the same voice that had been clearly engraved in his ears just a moment ago.

Kang Mu-hwi finally approached the two of them.

“What’s going on?”

Shin Ye-hyang asked Kang Mu-hwi. When his eyes met with her, he scratched his cheek with his face flushed.

“It’s amazing to meet such a great expert like you in a place like this.”

Kang Mu-hwi had eyes like a boy falling in love for the first time. But Shin Ye-hyang barely glanced at him, clearly uninterested.

“Oh, sorry. I’m late in introducing myself. My name is Kang Mu-hwi.”

Jin Myeong forced himself to remain calm upon hearing Kang Mu-hwi’s name spoken aloud.

Jin Myeong cut in, “So, why did you deliberately talk to me?”

Kang Mu-hwi looked at Jin Myeong, who was asking the question, and then quickly turned his head.

It was as if Jin Myeong wasn’t even worth talking to.

‘What’s that?’

Jin Myeong frowned at that sight. He never thought that Kang Mu-hwi would ignore him.

‘Is that the main character’s personality? It seems a little different.’

Of course, Kang Mu-hwi had many relationships with women.

There were more than five women who were entangled with him, all of whom he took as wives, save for the one who had died.

‘The women in the novel tended not to reject others easily, but…’

However, Kang Mu-hwi wasn’t the type to only favour women and disdain men. In fact, he got along well with his male colleagues in the Orthodox Alliance.

“If you’re not going to answer, why did you come?” Jin Myeong pressed.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I never thought some subordinate would ask me a question.”

“…….”

Shin Ye-hyang sighed as she watched Kang Mu-hwi blurt out the words.

“Young Master Jin is not a subordinate.”

“Is that so? Of course, I thought that might be possible since you were eating together.”

‘But why did he call me a subordinate? Could it be that this guy felt something too?’

Just as Jin Myeong felt something strange from Kang Mu-hwi, he thought Kang Mu-hwi might also feel something similar from him.

Jin Myeong thought that perhaps because he knew Kang Mu-hwi’s true identity from the novel, he felt different to the protagonist than other people.

“But I don’t understand why you are with such a weak person.”

Kang Moo-hwi looked utterly perplexed. Jin Myeong felt a sense of familiarity with that contemptuous gaze.

It was probably a look he had rarely experienced before, since returning from his training.

‘Was this guy always like this?’

Jin Myeong sighed as he looked at Kang Mu-hwi, who was regarding him with nothing but contempt.

“Huh. Young lady, who on earth is this guy that he’s being so cocky?”

“I think you are more arrogant.”

Shin Ye-hyang’s voice became low. At that voice, Kang Mu-hwi looked at her with a puzzled expression.

But Shin Ye-hyang put the money on the table and stood up as if she had nothing more to say. And Jin Myeong also got up from his seat and left the establishment together.

“Are you really nervous around someone like that?” Shin Ye-hyang asked once they were outside.

“…….”

‘He made such a casually arrogant remark without properly assessing his opponent’s skill,’ Jin Myeong couldn’t help but be surprised at Kang Mu-hwi’s behaviour.

‘In the novel, Kang Mu-hwi wasn’t that kind of personality.’

According to novel, Kang Mu-hwi had personality that is typical of the Orthodox Alliance.

He had a cautious personality, brimming with chivalry but never look down on others. He wasn’t a very interesting person.

But he was never the type of person to ignore others like that.

‘Could it be that he is like this, because this isn’t a novel?’

Up until now, Jin Myeong thought he was completely inside the novel he had read.

Although some characters didn’t appear in the original text, most of the main figures were straight out of the novel.

‘Moreover, didn’t I even get stumble upon the fated encounter that appeared in the novel?’

‘Is this different from the novels I know?’

‘It was true in the novel. However, novels and reality may be slightly different. Anyway, the past was now the present, and things were different from the novel.’

‘Then is the protagonist’s personality originally like that? He is still very young. It will be a few more years before the first part of the novel begins.’

‘What caused the protagonist’s personality to change? Or maybe he just suddenly became arrogant.’

‘If this isn’t really a novel…’

That thought suddenly occurred to Jin Myeong: the truth is that this world may not be a novel.

It made him wonder if perhaps someone from this world was born in modern times and wrote the novel.

‘It’s not like it’s completely impossible.’

There have even been cases of people being reincarnated into novels, but there is no law that says people who lived here cannot be reincarnated into modern times.

If that’s true, then it makes sense that Kang Mu-hwi originally had that kind of personality, but was portrayed as perfect in the novel.

In the end, it was understandable that author glorified Kang Mu-hwi, who was a hero.

‘Well, it’s all just predictions anyway. It didn’t matter what of his assumotions was true.’

“What are you thinking about?” Shin Ye-hyang asked.

“No. Just some random thoughts.”

Jin Myeong looked down at his hands quietly.

‘Oddly, I’m not nervous at all anymore.’

Clearly, just a moment ago, Jin Myeong’s body was trembling involuntarily as he watched Kang Mu-hwi.

He started feeling nervous from the moment he heard the name Kang Mu-hwi.

He thought that no matter how hard he tried, he would never be able to defeat Kang Mu-hwi, the main character of this story.

But Kang Mu-hwi was clearly different from the protagonist he had read about in novel.

‘Still, I have to avoid getting involved with that guy as much as possible.’

‘I didn’t want to think about Kang Mu-hwi anymore. I just wanted to avoid getting involved with him. While quickly building up my strength.’

“Oh, you’re here?”

When Jin Myeong and Shin Ye-hyang entered The Cloud Escort Agency, a messenger who was waiting for them approached them.

“His Excellency is looking for the two of you.”

They could tell that the person who found them was not Go Guk-ju.

‘Is he finally making his move?’

About ten days have passed since they arrived in Shaanxi.

And during those ten days, all the scattered young disciples of the Heavenly Demon Sect arrived at The Cloud Escort Agency.

Without leaving out a single one.

And now, as if they were planning to make a move. Neung Byeok-mun, the Commander of Shadow Demon Unit, finally called them.

“Are you here?”

As they headed to the main hall under the guidance of the messenger, Neung Byeok-mun was waiting for them.

Not only the Neung Byeok-mun but also the disciples of Heavenly Demon Sect were present.

“I’m sure you know why I called you.”

Neung Byeok-mun pointed to a spot on the map spread out on the table.

“This place. We will go here,” he stated. The place he was pointing to was Hanam, right next to Seomseo.

“What on earth is there?” one of the disciples asked.

“There is nothing,” Neung Byeok-mun replied flatly, then continued, “if you thought there was some treasure sleeping there, you were mistaken. There was no such thing in Hanam.”

But Commander Neung’s expression remained firm.

“Are you saying we’re going to attack the convoy now?”

To Jang Hoo’s question, Neung-byeok-mun nodded resolutely.

“We will act as thieves.”

The Sect Disciples were frowning as if they didn’t like the idea.

“Did that convoy start from Hanam? If so, then it has nothing to do with Shaolin, right?”

Bi Yeong asked a question as if she was curious.

Hanam is the realm of Shaolin. And the things that many of Shaolin’s lay disciples often handled intelligence and border reconnaissance there.

Even as member of the Heavenly Demon Sect, getting involved with Shaolin was bound to be uncomfortable.

“Are you afraid of Shaolin, Master?” Yeong Soso challenged.

At Young Soso’s words, Gye Bu-il smiled and puffed out his chest, “if you’re that scared, this brother can protect you.”

“This is why I call you stupid.”

Yeong Soso clicked her tongue and shook her head and adding, “if we touch Shaolin, then Orthodox Alliance may get involved.”

To that extent, Shaolin’s status in the Orthodox Alliance could not be underestimated.

If the Orthodox Alliance moves, the headquarters of the Heavenly Demon Sect will also move.

In the end, their small actions could spark a war of attrition.

“Isn’t that a bit of a leap in thinking?”

“You should always think of the worst. You are too optimistic about everything.”

“I guess Soso is all pessimistic.”

Suddenly, Young Soso and Gye Bu-il looked at each other and growled. Others couldn’t hide their interest as they watched it.

“Let’s save the fighting until after the meeting,” Commander Neung interjected, “it’s not Shaolin anyway.”

“We aren’t after The Shaolin; we are going after the Mount Hua Sect.”

The disciple thought for a moment that they would easily complete the mission when they heard that it wasn’t Shaolin, but then the atmosphere became heavy again when they heard that it was the Mount Hua Sect.

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