Im Sobaek arrived at the rear garden and took a deep breath.
“The night air is nice.”
I also breathed in the night air deeply. It was a cool evening, perfect for a walk. We passed through the rear garden and followed a narrow path, as if heading toward the mountain behind.
At this depth, they must have excavated the mountain to create the hollow.
Soon, we reached a dead-end wall covered in vines, and there, Im Sobaek casually lifted the sword at his waist and pushed it into a specific section.
The vine-covered wall shifted and moved aside, revealing a narrow space just wide enough to enter.
As we stepped into the vault, the sll of dust pricked my nose—it was quite dark inside.
Im Sobaek pulled a rope next to the door, and a rectangular stone window opened above, allowing moonlight to creep into the vault. It was my first ti seeing even a window made of stone.
In any case, it seed to have been designed for ventilation.
Im Sobaek, too, seed to be back in the vault after a long while, as he carefully looked around the floor and surroundings.
The first impression of the Murim Alliance’s secret archive was surprisingly like a miscellaneous goods store.
There were Buddha statues, unidentified sculptures, ancient artworks, musical instrunts, and antiques whose purpose was unclear. Even weapons were gathered in one section.
It felt less like a classified vault and more like an ordinary storage room.
Looking at an old sculpture, I spoke.
“...Why is sothing like this here?”
“Probably spoils of war. It’s old, so even I don’t know for sure. But as we fought various factions and ca across items with artistic rit, so were sold off, while others were stored here one by one. That likely reflects the tastes of past Alliance Leaders. The truly old ones have no records, but at so point, the recording began. Look underneath.”
As Im Sobaek said, I looked beneath the sculpture and found a brief description attached.
I suddenly checked the floor where the moonlight hit.
If no one had entered for a long ti, I expected clumps of dust to be rolling around, but perhaps soone cleaned the place occasionally—there was no visible dust or hair.
I then heard the sound of flowing water and looked ahead to see a shallow channel dug out, where water trickled along.
I asked Im Sobaek,
“Is this for fire prevention?”
“Probably.”
The channel seed to divide the zones of the archive. After crossing it, the floor changed to wood—like a hallway where one ought to remove their shoes. The planks creaked with every step.
From here, it was a library.
The walls to the left and right were covered in books.
What kind of books could there be this many of? Most were old and dusty, with many bearing sothing like reign years.
Was this sothing like the chronicle of the Murim Alliance?
I walked in further and noticed odd, stair-like structures scattered around. Judging by their shape, they were ant both as steps and as seats to sit and read. Of course, they also functioned as ladders to reach the upper bookshelves.
Im Sobaek looked toward one section of the library and spoke to .
“This part was hard to read.”
“What is it?”
“They're books recording real past atrocities. A record of evil, you could say. People before the ti of Confucius were especially brutal. Events that aren't even treated as history are still preserved here. No one rembers them now, and no one keeps such records anymore. They've likely been forgotten. Seems like human nature was far crueler than what we believe today.”
“Hmm.”
“I heard that the Murim Alliance was created and destroyed repeatedly over ti, but the first versions were basically death squads that killed those who committed mass murder or were brutally evil—beings who should never have existed.”
“A death squad... then I suppose the first Alliance was quite small.”
“Probably. Just a few top warriors from different sects banding together. Anyway, reading the books here long enough will make you disgusted with humanity itself. I sotis think this section should be destroyed... but I haven't decided yet. I wonder if such a decision on my part would be too arrogant.”
I looked at Im Sobaek.
“Just how cruel were the people of old?”
“Far worse than you imagine. Killing in duels with swords almost seems romantic by comparison. There were many Demonic cultivators who would kill indiscriminately—n, won, the elderly, children—for the sake of martial progress.”
As I listened to Im Sobaek, I found myself stopping in front of a collection of martial arts books.
I stood still, silently staring at the countless manuals, and Im Sobaek walked over and said,
“Old martial arts contain many strange things. So can’t be practiced anymore. Their breathing thods are completely different, or they’re more like sorcery than martial arts. So who still possesses and practices the most of these kinds of techniques?”
I looked at him.
“The Demonic Cult.”
“That’s right. One of our goals is to make sure such forbidden martial paths—those that cross the moral line—disappear from the world. Though, that’s a goal of mine, not necessarily one shared by the entire Alliance.”
“It’s the Alliance Leader’s duty, then.”
Im Sobaek nodded.
“But if we destroy these records right away, it becos difficult to counter the Demonic factions. It makes us uneasy. We have to understand the enemy, after all. In the end, we can only store them in a vault like this. That’s why this library you’re looking at holds more ancient demonic techniques and extinct arts than orthodox ones.”
“If you an martial growth through transgressive thods...”
“Try guessing.”
“Sothing like... gaining energy through killing or slaughter?”
“Correct. And once such thods spread, there will always be soone who tries them.”
“Why don’t they ever disappear, I wonder?”
Im Sobaek looked at .
“I don’t know. Like light and darkness, maybe they’re destined to coexist. Or maybe the thod to erase them is wrong. Perhaps we just need more ti. Even if the form of killing changes, it might never truly vanish. Still, it’s our job to prepare for it.”
I confird with my own eyes the existence of this Murim Alliance vault, which contained demonic techniques kept not because they couldn’t be destroyed, but because they might be useful when facing the Demonic path.
Perhaps this place was even higher in authority than the library managed by the scholars. The level of security was certainly different, and it held the arts of factions the Alliance had exterminated.
I couldn’t help but ask sothing I had wanted to know.
“...Who is in charge of this place?”
Im Sobaek didn’t answer right away, so I looked at him, and he asked back,
“In charge?”
“Yes. Even if just soone for cleaning...”
“There’s a director and a deputy director. They must manage the inventory and check the overall preservation status of the vault, so we can’t entrust it to just anyone. I, too, was in charge before becoming Alliance Leader.”
“I see.”
Only then did I realize who the vault’s managers were. Im Sobaek saw the look on my face and asked,
“You figured it out?”
I nodded.
“Yes. The Chief Strategist Gongsun Shim and the Strategist Gongsun Wol must be the director and deputy. After all, the people who know the Alliance’s secrets best after the Alliance Leader would be the strategists.”
Coincidentally, the two were also master and disciple.
Im Sobaek acknowledged this calmly.
“That’s right. Moreover...”
He began to say sothing, then closed his mouth. I imdiately sealed mine and listened closely.
“....”
After taking a few breaths, I heard footsteps from outside.
A single person.
The slow but approaching steps grew louder, and then a voice ca from the vault’s entrance.
“...Alliance Leader, are you here?”
Im Sobaek answered,
“I’m here.”
I watched Im Sobaek’s expression—how he spoke without switching to casual speech.
The footsteps entered, now echoing on the wooden floor, and then a man I had never seen before appeared and looked at both of us.
He looked too healthy to be called an old ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) man. But most of his hair was white, with streaks of black still visible.
“So you had company.”
Im Sobaek nodded and introduced .
“You’ve probably heard of him. This is Hao Clan Leader Yi Zaha.”
And then he introduced the man to .
“Chief Strategist Gongsun Shim.”
I cupped my fist to Gongsun Shim.
“Junior Yi Zaha greets the Chief Strategist.”
Gongsun Shim returned the gesture and said,
“It’s an honor, Clan Leader.”
He slowly looked around the vault and spoke.
“This vault is off-limits to outsiders. I assu the Clan Leader has decided to join the Alliance?”
Im Sobaek replied,
“Not quite.”
Gongsun Shim looked mildly surprised.
“Oh, not yet? If the Alliance Leader trusts you, I have no reason to object. But I’ll still record your entry on the log. It’s no different from managing the vault’s inventory, so please understand.”
Im Sobaek nodded.
“He wished to see it, so I brought him. We’ll be leaving shortly.”
Gongsun Shim waved a hand.
“Take your ti. If the Alliance Leader permits, you may even borrow a book or two. Just let us know afterward what you’ve taken.”
This ti, I answered.
“These are valuable texts. I couldn’t possibly take them out. I’ll just look around.”
Gongsun Shim nodded and pointed to one side.
“That area contains records difficult to read. They can disrupt your cultivation or cause deviation if read carelessly, so please be cautious. I should be the one guiding esteed guests... but since you’re with the Alliance Leader, it would be rude to intrude. I’ll take my leave, Alliance Leader.”
As Im Sobaek nodded, Gongsun Shim looked at .
“Clan Leader, until next ti.”
I bowed again with proper form.
“Chief Strategist, take care.”
“Yes, then.”
Gongsun Shim slowly turned and walked away. Naturally, I watched his retreat carefully. His back was straight, shoulders level, and his gait remained steady until he disappeared.
As I kept my eyes on Gongsun Shim’s retreating figure...
Im Sobaek, as if having arranged the eting on purpose, studied my expression and spoke.
“Clan Leader, sit down.”
“Yes.”
I sat on one of the steps, and Im Sobaek sat a bit farther away. As we listened to the receding footsteps, we made small talk.
“I first ca here before becoming Alliance Leader.”
“Oh, so it wasn’t restricted only to Alliance Leaders?”
“Of course not. The forr Alliance Leader brought in. There were many precious manuals and fine weapons, but I wasn’t interested. So I asked: ‘Alliance Leader, why did you bring here?’ And he just laughed for a while. Had quite a foul mouth too—cursed out while laughing. Said others begged to co in, and wondered why I didn’t want to.”
I nodded occasionally, listening to Im Sobaek.
“...At the ti, he hadn’t recovered his martial arts. He must have been frustrated, but he didn’t show it. He was a strong person by nature.”
“That must’ve been after he was badly injured.”
“Yes. While looking around, he pulled out a book and handed it to , told to read it. Then he picked one for himself, sat on a step, and quietly read. I sat on the floor and read the one he gave .”
Sohow, I thought I understood the forr Alliance Leader’s intent.
Im Sobaek continued with a reminiscent look.
“...It was a record of evil. A record of slaughter, really. Even had illustrations. It was hard to read. There was one particularly horrifying drawing, and as I looked at it, tears started falling without realizing. I looked at the Alliance Leader, wondering why the old man had made read sothing like that... and closed the book. Then he closed his own, gave a look I’d never seen before, and said this.”
I nodded.
Im Sobaek spoke in a neutral tone.
“Sobaek, you must take up the mantle of Alliance Leader.”
He sighed and looked around the vault.
“...At the ti, I thought it was utter bullshit. Damn it all, I should’ve refused back then.”
I couldn’t help laughing at his tone.
Im Sobaek said,
“What’s so funny, you brat? I’m being serious.”
“You really had no interest in becoming Alliance Leader.”
“None.”
“There must’ve been a reason.”
Im Sobaek replied,
“Zaha, an Alliance Leader is no longer human. I knew that already. You can’t cry when you want to. You often have to suppress your laughter. Even when you receive word that your subordinates have died, you must still carry out your duties for the day. You either have to be shaless or utterly unbreakable. I was neither. I watched the previous Alliance Leader suffer, and I didn’t want that for myself. I just wanted to go back to my hotown one day... and live peacefully, like a man who made it in life.”
“Yes.”
“When you beco Alliance Leader, you must give up even such simple dreams and emotions. If you rely on alcohol, you beco a drunk. If you succumb to anger, you beco a tyrant. If you fixate on wealth, you end up using the Alliance to enrich yourself. The Alliance Leader must only be the Alliance Leader—but that’s no easy task. If you marry and start a family, you need to increase your guards... And when you guard against everything, all that remains is the life of the Alliance Leader. Do I look happy to you?”
“....”
For a mont, I lost my focus and failed to keep track of how far Gongsun Shim’s footsteps had gone. I even suspected he might have deliberately stifled his steps and breath to stay nearby, and the thought left breathless.
Still, to answer Im Sobaek’s question, I could only shake my head.
“Alliance Leader, what happiness is there for a martial artist? Getting drunk now and then is enough.”
Maybe it was a ridiculous answer, but it made Im Sobaek finally laugh too.
“Is that so.”
“Yes.”
Im Sobaek asked like a drunk village elder,
“Zaha, what about you? Are you happy with your life?”
“Being alive is more than enough. It’s not bad.”
Im Sobaek smiled faintly.
Of course, throughout our entire idle chatter, not once did we ntion Gongsun Shim.
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