The night was darker than most.
Mist rolled off the forest floor like a restless beast, curling around the trees in coils of pale silver. The flickering campfire offered little warmth, and yet laughter bubbled around it.
"Yeon snores like a boulder rolling down a mountain," Ma-Rok muttered, trying to puff air into a cup of lukewarm broth.
"He does not snore," So-Ri said indignantly.
"He absolutely does," Yul-Rin added, sipping her tea. "But only when he's at peace. Which, let's face it, is rare."
Sun-Ho smiled faintly, poking the fire with a stick. The journey so far had been equal parts treacherous and absurd—secret meetings, mysterious allies, ambushes by hidden sects. And now, their group had become something like a roaming circus of martial talents.
Master Jang leaned against a tree, arms crossed. "Let the boy snore. I'd rather hear him making noise than bottling it all inside."
The crackle-pop of the fire broke the silence.
Whrrr-sshhhh. A wind whispered through the camp.
Sun-Ho stared into the flames.
It had been three days since their clash with the hidden sect. Three days since the Elementless Sovereign's name began spreading like wildfire. Three days since that chilling line:
> "You're not the only one who returned."
Sun-Ho had pretended to brush it off. But deep inside, his past stirred.
---
Earlier that day.
Sun-Ho adjusted the inner straps of his travel robes as the group descended into a mist-veiled valley.
"So…" Ma-Rok began, glancing over his shoulder. "Are we going to talk about the fact that half the Murim now believes there's some mythic masked warrior leading rebel forces?"
Sun-Ho replied without looking. "We could. But what's the fun in that?"
"Right," Yul-Rin chimed in, mock-serious. "And clearly none of us recognize his voice or absurd timing."
So-Ri smirked. "It's the mask. It has magical stupidity repellent."
Sun-Ho rubbed his forehead. "If we keep mocking me, I'll make Ji-Mun our ambassador of diplomacy."
"Wait—" Ji-Mun's eyes widened. "I am still here, you know!"
Master Jang chuckled from the rear. "You said the humble should lead. So let the terrifying guide him… from the shadows."
Sun-Ho's smile faltered. That phrasing. Did he know?
But the old man simply strolled ahead, humming.
---
They entered a secluded village nestled in the gorge. At a glance, it looked abandoned. A closer inspection revealed people hiding—shutters drawn, shops closed, guards gone.
A child peeked from behind a cart. Yul-Rin crouched and waved. "Hello there. Is something wrong?"
The child whispered, "We're not supposed to talk to strangers. The men with black ropes said so."
So-Ri frowned. "Black ropes?"
The moment was broken by a shriek. CRACK! A wooden beam splintered from the watchtower as two men in rope-wrapped uniforms stepped out, sneering.
One of them spat. "Get lost, outsiders. This village owes us tribute. You'll regret interfering."
Sun-Ho's brows rose. Perfect. A moral dilemma with an audience. He cracked his neck.
Kwak.
"Yul-Rin, Ma-Rok," he said casually. "Help me 'negotiate.'"
They descended on the thugs like a hurricane of sarcastic violence.
THUD. WHAP. KLONG.
Ma-Rok launched a body slam that shattered the earth beneath one of them.
Boom!
Yul-Rin laced her needles with a mild paralysis poison and stuck three in the neck of the other.
"Tribute received," she said dryly.
So-Ri added, "By the wind, you two could be a cute couple if you weren't so deadly."
They both turned crimson.
"You're not wrong," Master Jang mumbled.
---
By sunset, the village had offered them food, thanks, and rumors.
"Bandits have been growing bolder," a village elder whispered. "They say a clan in the east—one of the five greats—has begun moving in secret. Recruiting, raiding, even hiring assassins."
Sun-Ho's fingers tightened around his cup. So it begins.
Ji-Mun leaned over. "They're preparing for a war, aren't they?"
"Yes," Sun-Ho replied. "And we'll be at the center of it."
Master Jang said nothing. He simply looked to the sky.
---
That evening, as twilight softened the trees into silhouettes, Yul-Rin clapped her hands. "Let's play the honesty game. Everyone gets one question. You must answer."
"Must?" Ji-Mun raised an eyebrow. "That sounds like tyranny."
"No—this is diplomacy with stakes," she shot back, grinning.
"Fine," Ma-Rok grunted. "I go first. Yul-Rin—if you had to marry someone from the party, who would it be?"
Yul-Rin froze. "That's an ambush!"
"You said one question. Must answer." Ji-Mun grinned wickedly.
"...Ma-Rok," she mumbled, cheeks pink.
Silence. Then So-Ri burst out laughing.
"What?" Yul-Rin snapped. "He's… reliable."
Ma-Rok blinked. "I'll take that as a compliment."
Ji-Mun leaned forward. "My turn. Sun-Ho… why are you really on this journey?"
The firelight danced in Sun-Ho's eyes. He paused. "I want to fix what should never have broken. And I can't do that from a throne."
Master Jang, watching from the side, gave a single approving nod.
Then Yeon stirred, rolled over, and snorted loudly.
GRONK—Pffffft.
Everyone laughed again. Even the fire seemed to breathe easier.
---
That night, Sun-Ho wandered from the fire, walking down a slope toward a brook. So-Ri followed.
He didn't turn. "You shouldn't be here."
She stepped beside him anyway. "You shouldn't be alone."
They watched the stars flicker above.
"Sometimes… I feel like I've already fought this battle once," he murmured. "Like I already saw Murim crumble under the weight of unchecked power."
So-Ri looked at him, a soft seriousness in her voice. "Then let's be the ones to stop it this time."
He turned to her, eyes glinting with something old and unresolved. "Even if it burns again?"
She smiled faintly. "Especially then."
A soft wind blew between them.
Wheee.
Sun-Ho exhaled. "Alright. Tomorrow… we start building the rebellion for real."
Behind them, Yeon stirred in his sleep, twitching. Yul-Rin giggled. "There it is. The snore of a peaceful beast."
GRRRrrkhhhh.
Everyone laughed. Even Master Jang.
But far above, in a fortress etched into the mountain, a man sat in silence, eyes reflecting the firelight.
He turned to a kneeling shadow. "Find the Sovereign. And if possible—bring me the one they call Baek Sun-Ho."
---
End of Chapter 33