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The Sorcerer
He could see the Evil Alliance’s territory in the distance despite the dark of night. Unlike Dreimoor, no one was standing on guard. People seemed to come and go without needing to check their identity, but was it recklessness or confidence that allowed such things? Kim Bongpal thought it was the latter as he entered the Evil Alliance’s territory.
The most visible were the Moorim people. Kim Bongpal now knew how to distinguish between the Moorim and the Lupaine. The distinction was easy, actually. Those in Asian attire were from Moorim, and Western was from Lupaine. There were occasionally those who mixed their styles, but they were uncommon.
“Hmm.”
Kim Bongpal looked around and found a place to stay. He spent a short time in Dreimoor and left, but he couldn’t do that here. His goal was to find Seo Ha-yeon, and this was one of his candidates. But the downside was that the territory of the Evil Alliance wasn’t made up of just one city like Dreimoor, and this city was only the closest to Dreimoor.
“How much is it for a night?”
“It’s 10,000 M.”
“I’ll stay for three days.”
Kim Bongpal, who entered a fusion-style inn where the East and the West were moderately mixed, took out some Mana Stones and paid for a room. Come to think of it, it was a little funny to take out stones instead of money, but it was also quite comfortable. It was easy to figure out how much to pay by the mana inside them.
Anyway. Kim Bongpal, ordering a meal, sat down.
Puff-
“Phew.”
Smoking a cigarette while waiting for his meal, Kim Bongpal deliberately scattered his aura around him. It was meant to warn those weaklings who glanced at him and then exchanged eyes with each other when he entered the inn.
Johan not only handed Kim Bongpal his token but also gave him some advice after hearing about his search. According to what he said, although it was tied under one name, the Evil Alliance was a place where morality, law, and regulations didn’t exist. They valued survival of the fittest, which was advocated by their current leader.
In fact, the streets that Kim Bongpal saw on his way to the inn were also quite different from Dreimoor, which looked pretty neat for a city built by Black Wizards and Blood Mages. In other words, the Evil Alliance’s territory was full of cities for the true outlaw. Kim Bongpal knew he had to show his strength outwardly to ward off trouble.
But it was then.
“…Hmm?”
Kim Bongpal felt a slight surge of mana in his pocket. He took it out to see what it was.
“Oh, I forgot about this.”
It was the compass he got from the Blood Mages that pointed to Dreimoor when he smeared his blood on it. When he left Dreimoor and checked again, the compass pointed toward the Evil Alliance. It was where the mana came from just now.
No, mana? Looking at it closely, it was a bit different. Just like the black magic and the force of the Blood Mages, the vibes it gave off slightly differed from the mana used by Kim Bongpal. Strange.
Tap-
Kim Bongpal lifted his head as someone new entered the inn. Boy? Girl? It was difficult to determine their gender.
“Hmm. You don’t come to me; why are you in a place like this…huh?”
They looked around the inn as if searching for someone but couldn’t find them. Kim Bongpal noticed some unusual things about this person. First of all, their childlike voice and youthful appearance. And…pointy ears.
‘…Elf?’
No. He didn’t think so. There was no way an elf would give off such wicked vibes.
“Gasp!”
Those at the other tables inhaled. So, this person must be famous around here. But Kim Bongpal didn’t have time to pay attention to them. They were staring at Kim Bongpal, their eyes narrowed.
“…You. What the? Why do you have my compass? Did the kid send you? No, there’s no way he’d send someone in his place.”
“The kid?”
Kim Bongpal had an idea, but he wanted to confirm.
“Shi Wu-yuan, that kid.”
He knew it.
“…So you killed him, huh?”
“Gasp!”
“S-Sword Phantom!”
At those words, the Moorim people around Kim Bongpal freaked out. Sword Phantom?
Kim Bongpal frowned for a moment. However, this newcomer continued to speak, ignoring their reactions.
“You smell like that kid’s blood.”
What the fuck.
“Ha! Are there only jerks here?”
Kim Bongpal boosted his mana. This was an unusual opponent. Hence, Kim Bongpal would show his full strength from the start.
He’d been fighting for days, and after his battle with that Blood Master, his mana was thick with murderous intent.
“W-wait! I’m not trying to fight!”
“…What?”
“For now, relax! No, get your hands off that sword!”
…It was a disappointing reaction.
* * *
Then.
“You’re a Sorcerer?”
“Yes. Don’t you know my name? It’s Maya! Maya!”
The Sorcerer, who called herself Maya, nodded. He didn’t know how famous the name Maya was here, but even Kim Bongpal knew what sorcery was. According to the books from Dreimoor, it was a branch of magic that wasn’t much use in combat but boasted an unparalleled efficiency in other fields.
“And who are you? Shi Wu-yuan’s teacher? Something like that?”
“It’s not that kind of relationship. I didn’t teach him any, and weg. We just got to know each other when we were in Moorim. I did raise him when he was young, though.”
Raising him? It was an expression that made him realize that the person in front of him wasn’t human.
“But you don’t want to take revenge on me?”
“Revenge?”
“As you said earlier, I killed that bastard.”
Maya asked back.
“You think I’m going to get revenge because that kid’s dead? It’s not that I didn’t like him, but…are you supposed to be human?”
“…Never mind.”
She seemed to have no idea why he asked. Kim Bongpal felt a surge of irritation.
“You, don’t call him kid in front of me. Call him Shi Wu-yuan.”
“Huh? Well, yes. Okay.”
She nodded, saying that she would without any resistance. She was too easy to handle.
“And is this yours?”
“Yeah. I lent it to the ki- Shi Wu-yuan….”
“What is its function?”
Kim Bongpal asked, rolling the compass in his palm.
He had a rough idea since it pointed somewhere after he placed his blood on it. And assuming that it pointed to what the owner was looking for, there was only one thing Kim Bongpal was looking for here in the Shire. Now, he just needed certainty.
“It points to something you want, whether a person or a thing. Well, you said you’re a human, right? Looking at you now…revenge?”
“It’s the other way around. Anyway, you aren’t lying, right?”
Kim Bongpal’s guess was correct. However, the problem was whether he could trust this Sorcerer.
“It’s true! Maya’s compass is a famous magic tool all over the Shire!”
It was hard to believe, but there was no reason to tell such a useless lie.
“All right, I’ll trust you for now. Instead, as promised, find out exactly where this compass is pointing now.”
Kim Bongpal had already agreed to return the compass on the way back if he achieved his purpose and found Seo Hayeon. It would lose its usefulness after he found her, anyway, and it was better to seek help than fight with the compass’s original owner.
“You…are a strange human. You know you must keep your words to a Sorcerer, don’t you?”
“You are the one who needs to keep your word.”
Would he be cursed if he broke it? Even so, it would be more correct to keep the promise with Kim Bongpal. Whatever curse she might place on him, he wouldn’t end with a simple curse.
Swoosh!
Anyway, Maya, to whom Kim Bongpal handed the compass, evoked the strange energy from earlier. It was definitely a force different from mana.
“…I found it. Stretching northeast from here. The farthest edge of the world.”
“Where is it?”
“You aren’t from Moorim, are you? Don’t you know that? That is where the Celestial Demon Cult is located!”
Celestial Demon Cult, huh? With this, the two candidates were narrowed down to one. Kim Bongpal thought about Maya’s words, thinking he found bigger results than he expected today.
As Maya thought, Kim Bongpal wasn’t from Moorim. However, it wasn’t difficult to guess who he would find in the Celestial Demon Cult.
The Celestial Demon. As most Wuxia novels explained, there would be someone who could be called the strongest in this world.
‘How strong will he be?’
If that guy kidnapped the kid and didn’t want to let her go, he would fight. If so, would Kim Bongpal be able to kill the Celestial Demon?
He’d met several strong warriors after he entered the Shire. And none of them, including even the most suspicious Johan, seemed able to defeat him. However, it was impossible to conclude so in the Celestial Demon’s case. The weight of the name Celestial Demon and the Lords of Dreimoor wasn’t the same.
Maya soon broke Kim Bongpal’s pondering.
“Huh? What? Is the one you’re looking for a member of the Celestial Demon Cult?”
“What?”
“Hmmm. I thought it might be a kidnapping case, but it doesn’t seem like it, huh? She’s being treated pretty well, isn’t she?”
“…Can you see her?”
“Vaguely. Oh, by the way, only powerful Sorcerers like me can see that far.”
Perhaps to show off her magic skills, Maya pushed her flat chest forward. But Kim Bongpal glared at her.
“But you said she is being treated well? Tell me more.”
“How great is it…anyway, she’s eating good food and wearing good clothes.”
Although he couldn’t judge the current situation simply by the quality of the food and the clothes she was wearing, he was somewhat relieved.
Then Maya raised her head.
“Wait! Are you going to go to Celestial Demon Cult?”
“Yeah.”
“Through the Evil Alliance?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“No way.”
Maya looked at Kim Bongpal with a different, now serious gaze.
“Then you’ll die. Certainly.”
“Ha?”
“You don’t know? What kind of monster is here at Evil Alliance now?”
Monster? Before Kim Bongpal could question it, Maya said this.
“When the monster sees your body…I’m sure they’ll swallow you whole.”
It was the second time now someone had looked at his body and made a comment on it.
“No, can you win? Did you cross the wall? Nope. I don’t think so. But you seem to have crossed…what the hell is it?”
However, in this case, the person who spoke those words was a crazy person who wasn’t human.