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Chapter 367. Invisible Undercurrent (7)
If asked to describe my connection with Geum Tae-jong from my previous life, there was nothing but one-sided memories, as was usually the case.
Whether that could even be called a connection was doubtful.
I'd simply seen his name once on the list of those killed in the Sichuan Blood Calamity.
And it wasn't as though a new connection had formed in this changed present, either.
He and I were nothing more than distant acquaintances.
Ёnú m̄ а̇
So to retrace my connection with him, I had to sift through the fragments of memory.
The first memory was when I'd flung my Entry Token to the ground at the Academy gates.
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Geum Tae-jong, watching the scene, had grumbled.
[What's his deal? Why's he showing off like that?]
The second was when I appeared at the entrance banquet wearing the ceremonial robe embroidered with the word "Top Scorer."
[What an eyesore.]
Е̇ num̈ӑ
The third was the smoldering glare he'd fixed me with when I returned from Sichuan.
[Show-off.]
The fourth was when I'd pulled the students out of the Jegal Clan's mystic gate formation.
That time, unlike before, he'd walked up close for the first time and muttered.
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[......You're going to get yourself killed at this rate.]
The fifth.
Е nûm а́ . іd̊
[The commander isn't supposed to be out front......]
Was the closest he'd ever been.
That guy, who'd always glared at me with a rigid face, smiled at me for the first time and said.
[......I'm going to rest for a bit. Can't be too tired if I want to drink later.]
The first time I ever saw him smile—and it was as he lay dying. What a joke.
"......"
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That's why I couldn't understand it.
We'd never been close to begin with.
No—hadn't he disliked me in the first place?
And yet.
[Hey, from now on...... don't step up like that. The Unit Leader is an important person, s......o......]
He'd taken a sword meant for me.
Е̇ n̂.uḿа́.і̂d̆
The satisfied smile on his face as he died was a question I simply couldn't resolve.
"......And so, our One Learning Sect intends to use this occasion to......"
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The One Learning Sect Leader's rambling barely registered.
All I could see was Geum Tae-seon's face—still pouty, lips jutting out.
"Young Hero Jin? Young Hero Jin?"
Realizing I'd been lost in thought, Song Ju-saeng furrowed his brow.
Е n uṁ ӓ . і̄ d̂
"Are you listening to me?"
His eyes tilted upward at an angle.
Since he'd been keeping his head bowed while trying to look at me, it created an odd posture.
Which told me the humble attitude this man was putting on wasn't sincere.
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In my previous life, around this time, the One Learning Sect had risen to claim a seat among the One Hundred Eight Peaks after crushing a local rising power called Heavenly Eye Manor and greatly expanding its territory.
The cause had been Heavenly Eye Manor's secret practice of sorcery.
W̃ е b̂nо v̈ еl̇ Ěn̊ú m̂ а.
In later years, the One Learning Sect grew so powerful in both reputation and territory that there was even an incident where some raving old man was beaten to death by thugs near the Murim Alliance for badmouthing them.
I studied Song Ju-saeng, who still held his head in that slight bow.
Perhaps it was precisely because he was clever enough to drag the families of his sect's fallen members here and subtly pressure for recognition of their deaths that he'd been able to grow the One Learning Sect to that extent.
"......"
I sifted through the fragments of memory and reviewed what he'd been saying. Then I nodded.
"Of course. The One Learning Sect's contributions have been clearly documented in the report. So you needn't worry."
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Only then did Song Ju-saeng's expression smooth out.
"That's a relief. You might say it's meaningless to weigh achievements in a situation like this, but for the deaths to have meaning......"
I cut him off.
I understood his position well enough, but that didn't make anyone else's death any lighter.
"Sect Leader. Why don't we save that conversation for another time?"
When I glanced toward Geum Tae-jong's family as I spoke, he nodded as though he understood.
Е̊ num̆ а
No—he seized on it as though it worked perfectly in his favor.
"Tae-jong's family has been stuck here for weeks because of that very issue, unable to go home. If the achievement goes unrecognized......"
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Geum Tae-seon weighed on my mind.
Did people think a child didn't understand the ways of the world simply because she was young?
She might not grasp it at the time, but the faint residue of memory would become a wound later.
I offered the answer that would shut his mouth.
Ě ň_um̃ а. ĭ d̊
"Understood. I'll submit a supplementary report, so please don't worry."
"Oh! Thank you. Now the family's grievance can finally be resolved."
Song Ju-saeng headed toward where his sect's people were gathered.
Those who'd been whispering quietly among themselves seemed unable to suppress their mirth, their shoulders shaking.
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The child still wore a sulky face at not being able to see her brother, and the middle-aged couple standing behind her kept their heads bowed—whether from fear or resentment, I couldn't tell.
Whether what the One Learning Sect Leader wanted was what that family wanted, too—I never got to confirm.
W̊ e ḃ n̊o v ël En u̇ ṁ а̄
My fists clenched tight without my realizing.
"I don't think I can keep that promise."
I approached Geum Tae-seon and spoke, but the child didn't move, staring off somewhere.
"I'm sorry."
I left those quiet words behind and walked away.
***
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The first investigation team dispatched to the Black Forest returned.
In their hands were several items that appeared to be enemy weapons, along with the remains of some of the students.
The bereaved families who'd been staying at the Murim Alliance for weeks broke down in wails upon confronting the remains.
Those who'd been clinging to one last hope received a definitive verdict of death the moment they identified the remains.
Even so, the families who received remains were the fortunate ones.
"Our son......! Was our son not among them?"
Е n̊ù ṁa
"Where is Beom-gwon?!! He definitely went with them!"
The majority of the bereaved families received no remains at all.
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"There were extensive traces of Bone-Melting Powder."
The families who'd found nothing were not told about the Bone-Melting Powder, and they clung once more to the faint hope that their loved ones might still be alive somewhere.
Between those who'd faced the remains and those who hadn't—which side was luckier was impossible to say.
The funeral was held regardless.
Ẽ ñ u̇ m̊ а̄ .і d̈
The possibility of survivors was acknowledged, but the ceremony couldn't be delayed indefinitely, so it proceeded as scheduled.
The students donned their officer's uniforms several months ahead of time.
They'd longed so deeply for those Murim Alliance officer's robes, yet not a single person looked elated wearing them.
The funeral was conducted in the Grand Training Ground, where coffins—some containing bodies, others empty—were laid out side by side.
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Though most of the students had recovered from their injuries, pained sobs still escaped them.
And those sobs rippled outward to the bereaved families and sect brothers watching the ceremony.
W_е̂ b̊ n̄ оv̂ е l̈ Е_n u mа̌
It was the grandest funeral ever held, and mourners from across the nation flooded into the Murim Alliance.
"Today, we shall remember those who gave their lives for the peace of the martial world. Their deaths will nourish the pages of history, leaving an enduring legacy, and serve as a firm cornerstone for the next generation and the one after......"
Every speaker praised the fallen students as "heroes," but not a single family member looked moved.
They simply couldn't hide their grief at the confirmation that they would never see their loved ones again.
And so the funeral concluded.
The students who'd died in the Black Forest were registered as Murim Alliance members—and before the ink on those records had even dried, they were registered as honored contributors.
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***
Through the Hao Gate, I reserved the Pine Blossom Pavilion, one of the three great drinking halls of Wuhan.
The promise I'd made to buy drinks after the operation was finally being honored, months late.
"Senior Brother, why did you choose the Pine Blossom Pavilion? Should I book somewhere quieter instead?"
"I thought it'd be too quiet otherwise."
"Ah......"
Е n ū m̀.а
As I arrived first at the Pine Blossom Pavilion and nursed my drink, members of the Life-or-Death Unit began trickling in.
"The Unit Leader must've steeled himself for this one, huh?"
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"You sure you can handle it? You're not going to ditch us later and run, are you? Heh heh."
"Come on, no way...... a guy who didn't run in the Black Forest wouldn't run from a bar tab."
"You clearly don't know that money's scarier than people."
The halfhearted jokes told me it hadn't been a bad choice.
Е̃ numа̄
But as more and more people gathered, the number of those quietly nursing their cups in silence grew too.
From the third through the fifth floors, Life-or-Death Unit members gradually filled the seats, yet it remained quiet.
At least the noise drifting from the first, second, and sixth floors filled our silence.
And thankfully, as people began adding a remark here and there in response to that noise, the quiet faded naturally.
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"Where are you planning to apply?"
Someone thinking about the future.
Еnū m̂ а . í d̆
"You remember her, right? The brewer Yang's second daughter. I want to confess my feelings, but...... what should I do?"
Someone seeking advice on personal matters.
"Unnie, is that powder on your face?"
And those chatting about the trivial stuff of daily life.
For once, utterly ordinary conversation flowed in an utterly ordinary way.
"Come to think of it, Wang Ju-bal saved up money specifically to come here. What a waste."
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"......"
Then, as casually as anything, the name of someone who'd died slipped into conversation.
The person who'd spoken it and those who'd heard it both realized in that moment what they'd been trying to forget—shoulders sagging in unison.
No, they'd never truly forgotten. They'd merely been averting their eyes.
Just as a heavy silence threatened to crush the air of the drinking hall—
The person sitting across the table let out a wry laugh and picked up the thread.
Еnù ḿ å
"You're telling me. He could've been drinking for free like this."
Then the person beside them chimed in.
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"Idiot. Hated the Unit Leader so much, and now he's missed his chance to bleed his wallet dry!"
"What an idiot. That's just like him. Heh heh."
They began throwing out curses for no reason at all, gulping down their drinks faster.
And so the stories about the dead began.
W̄ е b n о ve l Eṅu̇m̌ а̀
"Yang Jin-geuk kept saying he'd apply to the Azure Dragon Pavilion, but that was a pipe dream, wasn't it?"
"Ha, with those grades? He'd have been lucky to get into the White Wolf Pavilion. Otherwise, he'd have been shipped off to a branch office. Kahahaha!"
"Like you're any different—your grades are barely scraping by, aren't they? If it doesn't work out, just apply to the Armory."
"Oh! Now there's an idea! But hey, do they even take people with no skills, you dumb bastard??"
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Stories they hadn't been able to tell anywhere else poured out like a burst dam.
The fact that they could no longer share a future with those who'd departed painted an unconscious layer of sorrow over everyone, and the gaping absence of friends—once taken for granted in their daily lives—brought an enormous sense of loss.
Е̌n ũ m̃а́.іd̆
Those who'd been pretending to be fine finally crumbled, using their cups as an excuse.
"That guy's pride was always so damn stro—...... guh......"
Tearful sobs broke out at tables across the hall.
Even those who'd been chiding others for crying on a good day had moisture welling in their own eyes.
These people, who'd never been given the time to honestly release their emotions, kept downing drink after drink—sweet or bitter, they couldn't tell.
At last, they drank freely.
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And just like that, the rowdy drinking session turned back into a memorial.
After a long while had passed.
After even the tears had begun to subside, someone called out to me.
"Unit Leader, say a few words!"
"Me?"
"Who else? The host should speak—you want some random guy to do it?"
W̊eb̄n̊ о v е l̆ Ě n̆ ū m а
"......Sounds more like you want to do it yourself."
"Tch, you caught me."
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Laughter erupted around us at the absurdity, and the one who'd spoken sat back down with his face beet red.
I was about to let the moment pass naturally, but...... every student's gaze began converging on me.
The crying quieted, the chatter died down, and even the students who'd been partying on the upper floors poked their heads out to look this way.
......What is this?
Ẽ nu m̄а̊. i d̄
"Hoo."
I stood up, resigned.
Just as I was about to say something offhand—
"......"
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Geum Tae-jong stepping in front of me flashed through my mind.
"......Our comrades died without warning."
Ӗ_n uḿӑ
Not just Geum Tae-jong. The deaths of other students began surfacing too.
"They died senselessly......"
The students murmured.
These words might spark yet another controversy.
Following the students, the deaths of the Sojeong Squad members from my past life rose in my mind as well.
"No matter what meaning the Murim Alliance assigns to their deaths, no death is better than being alive."
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The deaths of Taeul Sect members, the deaths of Alliance soldiers—they all surfaced.
As if a floodgate had opened, the horrific memories of my previous life surged and surged again.
"Perhaps we can't know how many more deaths will befall us."
I recalled the words I'd spoken on a day like this in my past life. The words I'd shared with my squad.
"There will certainly be more battles than any of us expect, and our lives will be threatened time and again."
Words that, befitting plain-spoken fools, carried not a single embellishment.
Е̌ n.u_m̆ а̇ . і̌ d
"We'll witness many unexpected deaths. The days of grief will go on and on."
And yet those words had offered such comfort and such relief.
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"So...... so......"
I spoke them aloud in this life.
"Let's survive. Desperately."
Hoping they'd bring these people the same comfort they'd once brought me.
Е nū m а
"For ourselves...... and for those who cherish us."
I prayed fervently that they wouldn't break easily in the face of the desperate future to come.
"Let's survive."
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