In a quiet room, two people face each other alone.

"How did it go?"

At Cheonyeong's question, Baekta pouts with a sullen expression.

"Why aren't you saying anything?"

"Am I your subordinate?"

"What?"

"I'm not your subordinate, but you keep using a commanding tone."

Cheonyeong looks at him with narrowed eyes as he grumbles in displeasure, then laughs.

"Is it because I grabbed your neck?"

"No, it's not necessarily that..."

"So it is."

"Who said!"

"Seeing you get all worked up, it's certain."

"Me? When!"

"Continuously."

"This bastard..."

Baekta's face contorts in annoyance at Cheonyeong's grinning appearance.

"That's enough. You were the one who was wrong first."

"What did I do!"

"In front of so many people, you were talking about cunning tricks and the Flood Dragon. I get startled even in my sleep when I hear that 'cunning' thing."

"Th-that's because. It seemed like you wanted to look weak in front of the Taoist."

"What does looking weak have to do with the Flood Dragon?"

"..."

"It's because I consider you a friend that it ended with my neck. If it were someone else, I would have ripped their mouth open first."

"Tch!"

He's a punk who would do that and more.

Baekta pouted.

Grumble, grumble, mumble, mumble.

This isn't a rain-soaked beggar...

This punk has grown up a lot.

He used to be so grateful for me giving him all the credit for the achievements in Yunnan that he was about to offer me his liver and gallbladder.

I can't let him be.

This damn punk might forget his grace and change his attitude at any time.

I should engrave my grace on his bones this time.

So that just by looking at my face, he'll think of words like 'unforgettable gratitude' or 'repaying kindness even after death'.

"Hah, that's enough. That's enough. Just do it yourself."

"Huh?"

"If you don't like it, just quit."

"Quit?"

"Yeah. It doesn't matter to me whether those assassin punks are running wild or not. I just won't do a good deed, that's all."

"What do you mean by that?"

What do I mean? The hilt of the sword is in my hand.

"That's enough. Stop it. Since I've decided to look weak anyway, I can just give up and go down. What's so great about winning the Assembly of Elders?"

"Huh?"

"The secret manual of the Seventy-Two Faction Swords? I don't need some Taoist's stained sword style."

"Hey!"

"And what about fame? Do you think I can't make a name for myself in Sicheon if I don't perform well at the Blue Green Sect?"

Baekta hastily shook his head.

To suddenly say he won't do it. Just because I grumbled a little because I was upset, if you do that, it'll be very troublesome for me.

"Cheonyeong, why are you talking like that again? Weren't you the one who had a grudge against that assassin organization in the first place? Because you pitied the kidnapped children."

"What about it?"

"Huh?"

"Come to think of it, what do they have to do with the Tang Family's estate?"

"Uh-huh?"

"What's in it for me? And they don't have any particular grudge against me. It doesn't matter who dies at the Blue Green Sect. Ah, screw it, since we're talking about it, I should go down right now. Yongcheon! Pack your..."

"Ahem! Why is this friend like this again? Just because a person grumbled a little."

As Cheonyeong kicked his seat and stood up, Baekta hastily grabbed his sleeve.

"Let go."

"Were you this kind of person?"

"You know me well. I'm originally that kind of punk. Why else would I be a Flood Dragon?"

"..."

"The Beggars' Sect, being of the same Orthodox Faction, can take care of the Blue Green Sect's business. Damn it, I came up to the Taoist temple, even getting beaten up by some insignificant punks on purpose, just to make my friend the next leader and then the sect leader. How many clothes have been torn? How much did they all cost?"

At Cheonyeong's words, Baekta's grumbling completely disappeared.

In fact, there was something he hadn't told Cheonyeong.

The assassins who might have infiltrated the Blue Green Sect.

He had already confessed everything to the Sicheon Upper Branch Head, as well as his new master and guardian, Hyeolgu.

Don't worry.

If this Blue Green Sect matter is resolved well, he would become the next leader and then the sect leader, and he would serve them with respect for the rest of his life.

Hyeolgu, who was moved by those words, had even handed over all the operational rights to the Wild Cats.

But what if, before the work even properly began, Cheonyeong, who had taken on a heavy responsibility, just bailed out?

Wouldn't that be a disaster?

Preventing the murders that would happen at the Blue Green Sect was important, but what would he say to the two people who trusted him so implicitly?

For both of them, and for himself, this matter was very important.

"Cheonyeong, I was wrong. I momentarily forgot that you were doing this for me."

"Heung! You're kidding me. Your own success is more important than your friend."

"Uh-huh?"

He was startled.

H-how did he know?

Is this punk Cheonyeong practicing mind-reading or something?

Anyway, he's a damn punk.

What kind of thing did he even learn?

"No! It's not! How could my success be more important than you? That's absolutely not true."

"..."

"To this Baekta, the first is Tang Cheonyeong, and the second is the Tang Family's estate. Didn't I say it in Yunnan? I am the Tang Family's estate. How could I, who is an honorary member of the Tang Family's estate, so to speak, consider you lower than my own success?"

"You're talking nonsense."

"It's true!"

Baekta even thumps his chest and affirms.

"Hah, I really shouldn't be so soft-hearted... I'll be watching."

"Watch! You must watch! How I treat you from now on."

"Good. I'll trust you."

"Thank you."

"And from now on, if you say anything about the Flood Dragon to me."

"I'll rip my own mouth open."

"..."

"Leave the other punks to me too! Any son of a bitch who calls you a Flood Dragon! I'll step in before you do and crush their mouths!"

"Well, whatever."

As Cheonyeong smirks and sits down as if he can't win, Baekta sweeps his chest.

"So, what did you find out?"

"Ah! That?"

At Cheonyeong's words, Baekta answered cheerfully with a completely different expression than before.

"There was nothing."

"What?"

"I checked all nine paths, excluding the one you came through. But there was no punk with any peculiarities on their face."

"Nothing? Did you check properly?"

"Of course! I checked properly. Do you know how busy I was alone for the few days you were in the preliminaries? I released all the Wild Cats and had them monitor the entourages of all the participants in the preliminaries. The Wild Cats didn't even get to sleep properly."

"You've worked hard."

"Thank you for saying so. Is that all? I asked my Upper Branch elder to thoroughly investigate the families that participated this time. To see if anyone had died, or if any punk had suddenly shown unusual behavior."

"All one hundred families?"

"Of course! Of course. I'm a person who gets things done when I set my mind to it."

At Baekta's words, Cheonyeong tilted his head.

Do you even have that much authority?

Among the participants he had fought, there was a punk from Shaanxi Province. And didn't he say that the dead young master of the Hyeokseon Faction of Gansu had received a victory notice?

Just from what he knew, there were two regions besides Sicheon.

To investigate all of them, he would have to move the Upper Branches of each province.

That's ridiculous.

It's an impossible authority, even for a promising candidate for the next leader.

But what does it matter?

His own success was on the line, so he must have used some connections.

But one thing bothered Cheonyeong, and he mulled over Baekta's words.

"Hmph..."

"What? It's true, I tell you. You don't believe me?"

"No, it's not that."

"Huh? Then?"

"You said you monitored the entourages of the participants earlier, right?"

"Uh, I did."

"What about the participants?"

"I did look at them. But it's hard for the Wild Cats to get that close. The security is tight because they're worried about something happening to the participants."

"Well, that's true. Then there's no choice. We'll have to check when the main tournament starts."

"Yeah, and those guys might have done some investigation too."

"Those guys?"

"The Lee Family's Sword Dragon and his hangers-on."

"Ah!"

"The Lee Family's Sword Dragon passed the preliminaries early and went up to the Taoist temple."

"That punk would have. What about the other three?"

"All three were eliminated."

"All three?"

"They had bad luck with the matchups. They each met one of the so-called Twelve Dragons from the first match."

"Ah."

Cheonyeong immediately agreed.

Yes, those punks were at that level.

"Still, they all came up here. They don't have to leave right away just because they lost. They sent their attendants back and are staying at the Lee Family's lodging as observers."

"I see."

"What do you think? Should we go and see them? I know where their lodging is."

At Baekta's words, Cheonyeong sighs.

"Hah, sometimes I can't tell if you're really stupid or smart."

At Cheonyeong's sighing words, Baekta immediately pouted.

Am I that bad?

You damn punk, it's because you're so good that I look bad.

Just like a firefly next to a full moon doesn't stand out.

"Think a little. Think a little."

"..."

"We just came up to the Taoist temple. If we meet with our competitors and act friendly, what will the Blue Green Sect think?"

"Tch, you were so close in Gwanhyeon."

"That's because no one was paying attention to us then. It's different now. I went to the trouble of pretending to be weak to avoid suspicion, so there's no need to go to the Lee Family and arouse suspicion."

Who told you to pretend to be weak?

You did it yourself.

But that's them.

"Then what about me?"

"..."

"Is it okay for me to just come and see you? It's not strange at all? I'm a participant too."

"Hah, Myeongseon-ah."

"Why?"

"Did you forget whose recommendation I used to participate in the Assembly of Elders?"

"Ah! That's right."

At Cheonyeong's words, Baekta scratches his head and laughs.

To think this is a candidate for the next leader.

A punk who will become the sect leader in the future!

It seems the Beggars' Sect is also short on talent.

"Ah! But why did you try to look weak? To make your future opponents careless?"

"No way? Am I that cunning?"

Cunning. Anyone can see that...

"This Assembly of Elders, the Blue Green Sect's movements are a little strange."

"The Blue Green Sect's movements?"

"Yeah, they kept sending their disciples to observe the matches throughout the preliminaries. I think they're recording the details of the matches."

"Well, that's natural. They have to grasp the skills of the participants to some extent."

"No. It's not to that extent."

"Then?"

"I showed my skills for a very short time in the first match, and the very next day, they sent a first-generation disciple."

"A first-generation?"

"Yeah, he said his name was Okseon."

"What? Okseon?"

"You know him?"

"How could I not know Okseon of the Five Swords of the Pine Wind?"

"Huh?"

"He's one of the top-level masters among the first-generation swordsmen that the Blue Green Sect boasts of!"

"Is he that good?"

"Of course! He's on a different level from the likes of the Twelve Dragons. A different level."

"Hmm..."

At Baekta's words, Cheonyeong's eyes sparkle.

"If he's that good, then this is not something to be taken lightly."

"That's what I think too."

"Hmm, maybe..."

Baekta frowns deeply.

A guess based on the circumstances.

It seemed the punk with outstanding intuition was finally about to use his ability.

Cheonyeong swallowed dryly, thinking that Baekta might come to the same conclusion as the suspicion he had been harboring.

The Blue Green Sect.

A sect that proudly occupies a place in the Nine Factions and has built up history and tradition over generations.

It's impossible to think that they don't know what the Beggars' Sect knows.

Then does the Blue Green Sect also know?

That the assassins have come...

Otherwise, why would they try to observe the participants in such detail?

"That's right, that's it. I'm sure of it."

"What?"

As Cheonyeong looked at him with great curiosity, Baekta, who had come to a conclusion after a long thought, smiled and said.

"The Blue Green Sect..."

"The Blue Green Sect?"

"They've already made a winner."

"...Whaaat?"

At Baekta's words, which had come to a completely different conclusion from his own thoughts, the tense Cheonyeong deflated like a deflated ball.

What did the Blue Green Sect do?

Made a winner?

This punk, what do you take the great Blue Green Sect with its history and tradition for, to have such a suspicion!

And you're a candidate for the next leader of the prestigious Beggars' Sect?

(End of Chapter)