“If you want success, go to the Martial Alliance.”

Such was the rumor that spread across the Central Plains.

And it wasn’t particularly wrong.

The Martial Alliance.

An organization that had existed in the Central Plains for countless years.

It was composed of the Five Great Clans, known as the pillars of the land, the Nine Great Sects, and the Twelve Great Trading Unions.

It was the totality and center of the righteous factions.

So even before, its value was immense.

But forty years ago, when the righteous factions triumphed in the War between Righteous and Demonic, the Alliance’s position became even more solid.

If you wished to establish a trading union in the Central Plains, you had to go through the Martial Alliance.

If you wanted to act as a martial artist belonging to the righteous path, you had to obtain a license from the Martial Alliance.

Otherwise, you would be branded as part of the heretical paths and live a life of being hunted.

Absolute authority and absolute force.

That was the power the Martial Alliance now held. And so, if one wanted to succeed in the Central Plains, one had to enter the Alliance by any means.

It was not a false saying.

Yes.

That was why I ended up in this pitiful state.

“Goddamn ridiculous.”

With my head wrapped tightly in bandages, I spat curses.

Even the slightest movement made the wounds throb and sting.

“The Lust Demon? The Lust Demon?? Goddamn it all.”

But more than the pain, what gnawed at me was the endless frustration.

“Stop moving. You’ll faint again.”

My senior, Yoo Hyungin, sighed as he spoke.

“You said you didn’t even have money for medicine. What are you going to do then?”

“The branch covers medical costs, doesn’t it?”

“If you get hurt again, they’ll say it’s your own problem and won’t give you a thing.”

“...This is absolute bullshit.”

It only made me angrier because it was true.

And still, I couldn’t stop fuming.

It had been a day since the capture of Jang So Cheol, the Lust Demon—an arrest operation that I alone had not known about.

“Can you believe this? They say it was an operation. Then why ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) the hell was I the only one not told? Have they lost their minds?”

“Well... maybe to prepare you for danger without you knowing...”

“Prepare me? I was the one most in danger!”

“That’s true. But the operation succeeded, didn’t it?”

Yoo Hyungin nodded, and I glared at him, fire in my eyes.

“Senior. Whose side are you on?”

“The Martial Alliance’s. I can’t take the side of a junior, can I...”

“That’s true. If I were you, I wouldn’t take my side either.”

“....”

It was something I couldn’t deny.

“That real estate broker Jang... so that bastard was the Lust Demon?”

We had rushed in as soon as we got the report that someone was causing a disturbance at the tavern. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

And that maniac turned out to be the Lust Demon...!

And not even an ordinary martial artist at that.

Jang was from the heretical path.

The Heretical Path (Sapa).

Also called the Black Path.

That was what the Alliance called those who learned martial arts without reporting them, without approval.

Most of them stood in defiance against the Martial Alliance, and the majority of them were no different from villains.

And the Lust Demons?

There were more than a few called Lust Demons across the Central Plains, but ten out of ten were lunatics. Cross them the wrong way, and you could end up dead.

“If it was a sting, they could’ve at least told me—! What if I had ended up with a sword in my throat?”

“If we had told you, would you have gone?”

“Of course not! Do I look insane to you?”

“....”

Exactly. If I had known he was the Lust Demon, I would never have gone.

But then—

“I shouldn’t have been sent at all. Senior, look at me. Do I look like someone who could even win against a tavern boy?”

“...Why do you say you’re weak with such pride?”

“Senior. Knowing your place is how you survive. That’s the law of the world.”

Lust Demon or not, the man was a second-rate martial artist. And me? Barely third-rate, if that. How was I supposed to win against someone like him?

That damned commander. I hope he drops dead.

Grinding my teeth, I thought of the root of all this.

Maybe it was coincidence that the Lust Demon had hidden himself nearby. Sure. Even demons needed sleep and food.

But—

Why the hell send me?

And without even telling me his identity.

They claimed it was to distract him and allow for easier approach.

What kind of bullshit excuse is that.

It wasn’t even funny.

And sending me in alone? What if I had died?

The worst part was that, despite everything, the Lust Demon had been captured. Which meant that no matter how much I complained, it was meaningless.

Results were everything. That was the policy of the Martial Alliance, and the will of the world.

Clicking my tongue in frustration, I muttered:

“Damn it. All of this is because I’m just a goddamn connections hire.”

“Connections hire? What’s that?”

“It means... someone shoved in here through family ties.”

“....”

Yoo Hyungin said nothing, and that silence meant agreement.

Goddamn rotten world.

I clicked my tongue again.

Yes.

I was a connections hire.

Shoved into the Martial Alliance through my father’s influence.

If not for that, someone like me would never have even set foot inside.

The only question was—

How the hell did he even manage it?

Our household was ruined, destroyed. How could he have pushed me into the Alliance at all?

But one day, my father had simply told me: “Go to the Martial Alliance.”

And so I went.

“...Damn it all.”

But life in the Alliance was anything but smooth.

“Doesn’t matter the world—being treated like a nepotism case always sucks.”

As I sighed, Yoo Hyungin interjected:

“That’s not entirely true. Others—”

“Ah, let me clarify.” I cut him off.

“Being a connections hire with no backing at all—that’s what really sucks.”

“...True enough.”

“Senior, don’t nod like that as if it’s profound. It hurts.”

So what if I had memories of a past life? They weren’t helping me at all.

Instead of memories, they could’ve at least given me talent.

I was hopeless at martial arts, not particularly smart either.

Sure, as the son of a martial family I had gathered enough energy in my dantian to call myself barely third-rate. But that was all.

I couldn’t walk proudly anywhere.

And entering the Alliance in such a pathetic state meant no one saw me as worth anything.

Not the commander of my unit, not my seniors—every last one of them was eager to chew me up.

Only Yoo Hyungin treated me like a person.

“Senior, be honest with me.”

“...?”

“You hang out with me because you’re an outcast too, right?”

“...Outcast?”

“It means being shunned. Left out.”

“....”

He didn’t answer, but that silence was as good as yes.

And yet other connections hires get by just fine.

I frowned as I thought of a certain young man who had joined later than me.

The very one who had subdued the Lust Demon yesterday.

“Yeon So Cheon...”

That was his name.

Another connections hire, shoved in by a clan from Anhui.

A youth the commander himself bent over backwards for.

Not only did he possess the ability to easily suppress a second-rate martial artist like the Lust Demon—

There was something unsettling about him.

The reason everyone tiptoed around this newcomer was simple.

Was his backing really that powerful?

Yeon So Cheon had joined the Alliance with that much skill, yet still carried a letter of recommendation from another great clan.

The name of the clan was not revealed, but everyone suspected the same.

One of the Five Great Clans that formed the Martial Alliance.

The rulers of Anhui, known as the Sword of Anhui.

Namgung.

The Namgung Clan of Anhui.

That, everyone thought, was Yeon So Cheon’s backing.

And that was why even the commander deferred to him.

No matter who you were, if your backing was Namgung, it changed everything.

But was it really Namgung?

There was no certainty.

Only suspicion.

Why would the Namgung Clan back such a youth?

Rumors said Yeon So Cheon was Namgung’s hidden child.

Even if not...

The fact that someone who could have entered without a sponsor had still brought one—that alone was enough to make him suspicious.

Take me, for example.

No backing, no ability, and this is where I ended up.

If I had ability, at least I wouldn’t be ignored.

“Damn it.”

Frowning from anger made my head pound again.

It felt like the wound would reopen.

****

It was long past the change of shift before the next guard finally arrived.

Goddamn it, not just once or twice—what the hell are they pulling.

Looking at the time, it was obvious it was intentional again.

If nothing else, I have to get stronger. Even if just out of spite.

Would effort make it possible? Maybe not. But I had to try something.

With that thought, I headed to one of the branch’s buildings.

The training hall, provided for Alliance members. It was also the space I used every dawn to train.

During the day, the bullying was too severe to use it. But at dawn, with no one around, I could.

No one else was insane enough to train right after night watch.

At least, until seven nights ago.

—Whoosh.

Damn.

As I approached, the sound reached my ears.

Again?

Since seven nights ago, someone else had started using the training hall at dawn.

The lights inside were lit.

As I neared, I peeked inside.

Whoosh—whoosh—!

As expected, someone was swinging a sword inside.

Fast, precise, delicate.

Even someone like me, who knew nothing of martial arts, could see the beauty of the swordplay.

I almost let out a gasp, but stifled it.

Getting noticed would be troublesome.

The young man, focused solely on his sword, was none other than Yeon So Cheon.

Another connections hire.

I let out a sigh.

If you’re done, go sleep. Why train so damn hard?

Ever since he joined, he had been using the training hall like this.

His night watch shift was the very first—right before mine. Which meant he came straight here from duty and had been training ever since.

A handsome face, the talent to subdue a second-rate martial artist, and the diligence to train without pause.

Perfect. Too perfect.

...The more I think about it, the more unfair it feels.

With him here, he should have been the youngest. Yet why was I still stuck with second watch?

Normally, the youngest took second or near-last watch. But he had been assigned first shift the moment he joined, and then hogged the training hall.

Goddamn it.

So much for hoping tonight would be different.

No luck.

I could have shared the hall, but I didn’t want to train alongside him.

Not with my head still aching.

In that case—

I’ll just run some laps outside and call it a night.

Forget martial training. I’d jog around the grounds a few times and leave.

I turned away—

“...Ah... no... not like that. Not like that...”

Huh?

A voice.

From outside the hall, at the window.

Someone was pressed against it.

And they were huge.

So huge my eyes widened in disbelief.

So big it was hard to believe it was human.