That Demonic Cultist was Bow Ghost. I had no idea why Bow Ghost was wearing a Demonic Cultist’s mask, but of that much I was certain.

—Child of the Azure Moon Sect.

The voice reaching me right now wasn’t the issue. What mattered was grasping something more fundamental than that.

The Death King’s presence was different at the root.

What I felt from her was something deeper and more distant than what the Death King carried. Under normal circumstances, I might not have noticed it. Was the problem simply that I had happened to notice?

Or—

Was I myself the problem?

—I know you can hear me.

—Or perhaps...

My eyes trembled at the voice.

—Should I say I know you can see me?

Hssssss.

The shadow moved. Did she know?

Because the Heavenly Demon moved?

The Heavenly Demon had checked both the Death King and Bow Ghost. But saying that was what tipped her off felt off.

...No. Forget that.

I had known the moment I saw Bow Ghost.

I simply recognized her.

There was nothing ordinary about her. Even behind that unreadable mask, I could tell. The spiritual presence Bow Ghost carried was anything but normal.

Which means...

There was no longer any need to keep feeling around in the dark.

Ignoring the voice in my ears, I reached out.

Creeeak.

I grabbed the wavering eyeball hanging in front of me. Then I clenched my hand and crushed it.

Crack-!!

The eyeball scattered into mist. A laugh brushed past my ear.

—Haha.

Bow Ghost laughed, as if something about this amused her to no end. My brow furrowed.

—How interesting.

There was unmistakable curiosity in her voice.

—To think the child who became that man’s inheritor would possess such precious eyes...

—So you were the one who removed what I placed on that child.

She was talking about Yu Yul. I was the one who had removed the thing that burst from his shadow. It seemed Bow Ghost had only just realized that.

So what was I supposed to do now?

There was no need to think long about it.

—Yes.

—Hm?

I answered. In the same way she had.

It had been a while, so I stumbled a little, but it wasn’t especially difficult.

—It was me.

I answered her openly. There was no reason to keep hiding it now.

If they had already noticed, then that was the end of it.

And I no longer felt any need to hide it anyway.

—Are you Bow Ghost?

—Haha.

She laughed at my question.

—Should I say you’re quick to catch on... No. Perhaps you saw me.

—Yes. I saw you. You weren’t trying to hide in the first place.

—That is true.

If Bow Ghost had truly wanted to hide, she could have. From what I could tell, she had more than enough power for that.

So the fact that she had not meant only one thing.

She had no intention of hiding.

And more than that—

She wanted me to see.

She had clearly wanted to show herself to me.

—This is interesting. I’d like to speak with you a little longer.

—...

—If you want to do that now, go ahead. Is that what you want?

A threat didn’t get much more blatant than that. In the middle of a situation like this, she was asking to talk? Ridiculous.

—Later.

—A good choice. I’ll come see you tonight.

—...

That was a chilling thing to hear. Of all things, she had to say she’d come at night.

Tch.

I narrowed my eyes and gripped the sword at my waist.

Vmmmm.

I was trying to calm the Divine Sword, which had started trembling like mad again.

What is wrong with you?

If it was angry, it could at least come out and say it. Why was it making a fuss like this instead?

The problem is...

Did Bow Ghost know the Heavenly Demon was inside this Divine Sword? And if she did, how would she react?

While I was still thinking about Bow Ghost—

“That is my intention. I will give what I can give, and do what I can do. I only ask that you accept the condition.”

The Young Cult Leader was still speaking.

“What we desire is a meeting. That is what the world desires as well. There is no need to keep preserving this distorted peace.”

“It was your side that created that distortion.”

“No. That is not correct.”

The Young Cult Leader denied it.

“It was created by the former Sky.”

“Hah!”

At that, Thousand-Mile Divine Eye let out a dry laugh.

“Have you already forgotten the attack on Henan?”

“As I already explained, that was the work of those from the Sky-Crushing Palace—”

The discussion wasn’t going anywhere. Just as I was starting to feel stifled by it—

“Then let us do this.”

The Young Cult Leader smiled brightly as he spoke.

“In the first place, should this not be decided by the current representative of the talks?”

“...Representative?”

“Yes. That is why this seat was created, is it not?”

The Young Cult Leader’s gaze turned to me. The moment I met those red eyes, my own narrowed on their own.

Representative? Ah, right.

That was me. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

I had forgotten I was here as the orthodox faction’s representative. Probably because Thousand-Mile Divine Eye and Divine Spear were both present.

“You’ve said nothing at all. Isn’t it about time you spoke?”

“...I didn’t think this was a situation where my opinion mattered.”

“It matters. We are talking about the words of the great Moon Hero, after all.”

Moon Hero, my ass. What exactly was I supposed to do with a title that heavy?

Thinking that, I looked around—and for some reason, everyone really was staring at me. What was with those looks?

“What is it? Do you really want my answer that badly?”

Why were they all looking at me like that? The pressure of it made my head spin.

“Do you have something to say?”

Even Thousand-Mile Divine Eye said it, and I faltered.

Right. So they were really handing me the right to speak here.

In a situation like this.

I wet my lips. What exactly was I supposed to say?

Talks with the Demonic Cult.

It was strange enough that they wanted them at all. The conditions they had put forward were strange too.

I don’t know how important that thing is.

But judging by Divine Spear and Thousand-Mile ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) Divine Eye’s reactions, I understood that it was something extremely valuable. Otherwise neither of them would be acting like this.

Right. In the first place, the only reason this meeting is still being held is because of what that bastard said.

The condition he had offered.

That was what was keeping this entire meeting alive.

So.

My answer was needed to decide whether this meeting should go any further?

What a joke.

How was I supposed to decide something like that? Even while thinking that, my mind kept turning.

For someone as sharp as Thousand-Mile Divine Eye to be unable to give a clean answer.

And then there was Divine Spear’s reaction.

And the Young Cult Leader’s bizarre confidence.

He even said he’d stake his own neck and enter himself.

What was his intention? Talks between the Demonic Cult and the orthodox faction? There was no way that was what he truly wanted.

If he were that kind of man...

He wouldn’t be walking around wrapped in evil qi.

Which meant I could safely assume his stated intent was fake.

Then—

What scheme is he plotting?

What he had said about the Heavenly Demon’s corpse mattered too. There was a good chance the Sky-Crushing Palace he claimed to have dealt with was tied to those heretics.

They had taken the corpse?

They’re going to try something revolting with it.

I had no idea what, but just looking at the matter made it obvious it wouldn’t be anything good.

So.

“...Then.”

At times like this, there was only one card to play.

“Take one more day to think about it. Even if we keep talking right now, I don’t think an answer is going to come out.”

At my words, the Young Cult Leader’s brow twitched.

“You’re not going to start hacking at each other right now, are you?”

“...”

One day.

The proposals had already all been laid out. What we needed now was time to decide.

At that, the Young Cult Leader shrugged.

“I have no objection.”

“...”

Thousand-Mile Divine Eye didn’t bother hiding that he disliked what I had said, but—

“Enough. We’re done here.”

Divine Spear rose to his feet, as if accepting my answer.

One day.

I had bought us that much more time.

*****

After the Demonic Cultists moved off to their respective quarters, I headed for Thousand-Mile Divine Eye’s office.

“What did it look like to you?”

That was the first thing he asked the moment I arrived, and I gave him an awkward smile.

“Well. It looked strange.”

Strange. That was the right word.

“I can see the Demonic Cult’s intent is muddy, but I can’t tell what truth is buried inside it.”

“The problem begins with letting them in at all. The Alliance Leader cannot possibly fail to know that.”

Thousand-Mile Divine Eye was thinking along the same lines I was.

But—

His revulsion is far stronger than mine.

He had lived through the Orthodox-Demonic War himself. He was the hero who had seen with his own eyes and stood against the bloodbath the Heavenly Demon unleashed.

And now, in a situation like this, talks with the Demonic Cult? Of course it would be absurd to him.

“I have no idea what they’re thinking.”

“How do you feel about it, Strategist?”

At my question, Thousand-Mile Divine Eye’s eyes turned cold.

“If someone offers me his neck with his own hands, then the proper thing is to cut it off. Especially when the opportunity is this good.”

“...”

That was true. It was a perfect opportunity. The Young Cult Leader had shoved his own neck forward. The apparent head of the enemy had done it of his own will.

But—

“That is exactly why it’s strange. There is no way they don’t know that.”

There was some method by which he believed he could survive even after stepping into enemy territory. That much was obvious to both Thousand-Mile Divine Eye and me. The difference between us was probably just one thing.

Whether he knows about Bow Ghost or not.

That was likely the gap.

Though I don’t know whether the Young Cult Leader would use Bow Ghost like that.

As I saw it, the biggest variable here was Bow Ghost. I had no idea how far her existence would affect this.

And the Death King is here too.

That old man wasn’t much of a threat. In terms of force, maybe. But as far as spiritual energy went, he wasn’t even worth paying attention to.

...The other one is the real problem.

I thought of Bow Ghost.

What is she?

The danger she gave off was more direct, more instinctive. I rubbed my arm at the unpleasantness of the spiritual energy itself. She felt less like a human being than something that ought to be called a spirit-form manifestation.

“I said we would wait and watch for one more day, but I’m not sure that will mean much.”

“...And yet you still agreed to it. If the Alliance Leader has spoken his mind and you still didn’t reject it, doesn’t that mean this is something even you have to think through?”

“...”

Thousand-Mile Divine Eye gave a silent sign of agreement.

“Was the condition really that tempting?”

“I won’t deny it. If what he said is true, then yes. It is a highly tempting offer.”

“Even in a situation like this?”

“Yes.”

Impressive. It seemed there really was a reason the Young Cult Leader could act so confidently.

Then—

“What do you think?”

Thousand-Mile Divine Eye turned the question on me.

“...Whether we should accept it or not?”

“Yes.”

“I can’t really feel just how tempting that condition is, but...”

I thought it over. Whether we could afford to accept that walking time bomb.

Whether there was any gain in doing so.

And once I had followed that line of thought—

“I think we should accept it for now.”

“Why?”

“Because rather than leave the enemy outside and stay uneasy, it’s better to bring them inside and watch them there. And.”

I looked out the window.

“...If they’re going to pull something either way, whether we keep them outside or not, then it’s better to deal with it from the inside. I’d like to think we’re at least capable of that much.”

“...”

At my answer, Thousand-Mile Divine Eye’s gaze deepened.

Seeing that, I lowered my head.

“It’s late, so I’ll go now.”

Instead of answering, Thousand-Mile Divine Eye flicked his hand. Taking that as dismissal, I turned and left.

*****

I returned to my quarters. The air at night felt dark and cold.

“...”

There was more to think about after speaking with Thousand-Mile Divine Eye.

But I had no time to think about any of it.

“You’ve come.”

Because something far more serious was waiting for me.

On the wooden porch outside the quarters, someone was sitting there.

No—more precisely, it would have been more accurate to say no one was there.

Because in truth, that was exactly what it was.

...Hm.

I narrowed my eyes at the translucent woman before me.

A master among the beings beyond heaven. An outsider from the North Sea. The woman called the greatest beauty under heaven.

Bow Ghost had come to meet me in spirit form.