The Ruler of Darkness

Jung-ah unfolded the bundle she had brought.

What she took out from it was a thick winter coat belonging to Yeon So-Hyeon.

She approached her master and respectfully draped the coat over him.

“The weather is still cold.”

“…Thank you.”

Although Yeon So-Hyeon was stained with a large amount of blood, still dripping, Jung-ah appeared completely unfazed.

The flowing blood gradually turned into black ash and scattered.

The remaining debris of a woman was also led by pale hands into the darkness.

It was a strange and terrifying spectacle, but Se-ah didn’t avert her eyes from any of it.

“You must have questions, don’t you?”

Pushing many questions aside, Se-ah asked what she wanted to know the most.

“…Why did you reveal your true identity to me?”

“I don’t remember explicitly revealing it.”

Yeon So-Hyeon spoke cheekily, but Se-ah didn’t bite.

“But you didn’t hide it either.”

“…True.”

Yeon So-Hyeon, who had briefly closed his eyes, nodded slowly.

“Indeed.”

For someone who always seemed impassive, he appeared to have some concerns.

Se-ah found this side of him unfamiliar.

“…I’ll need many people moving forward.”

Se-ah licked her dry lips.

“Are you speaking as the eldest heir of the Luoyang Sword House, or as the Sovereign of Dark Heavens?”

“If the objectives of the Grand young master and the Sovereign of Dark Heavens align, then they might as well be considered as one.”

His response was instantaneous.

“What kind of people do you need?”

Yeon So-Hyeon looked at her.

His eyes were clear, without a trace of deceit.

Almost discordant with his appearance just moments before.

“…People who won’t break, who won’t change. People willing to sacrifice everything.”

Se-ah paused for a moment, organizing the conversation.

“Do you think I’m that kind of person?”

“Yes.”

His voice was decisive, as if he had judged her to be so.

“How can you be so sure? Do you trust your judgment that much? To reveal potentially damaging secrets to someone you’ve known for only a few days?”

Though she seemed confrontational, Yeon So-Hyeon didn’t react.

Instead, he smiled and answered.

“Luoyang’s Spring.”

“…!”

Se-ah was at a loss for words.

It was a name she had never dreamt would come out of his mouth.

And the next moment, she felt a surge of overwhelming anxiety.

As if reading her thoughts, Yeon So-Hyeon spoke first.

“You don’t have to worry. The Sword House doesn’t know of your existence yet.”

Se-ah’s complexion, which had paled, regained some color.

“How… How do you know that name?”

Yeon So-Hyeon shrugged.

“You haven’t given me an answer yet.”

Se-ah pondered.

Mountain of corpses and sea of blood in the demonic netherworld, in realms beyond human reach unfolds.

Was she prepared to walk the path Yeon So-Hyeon was taking?

“I am…”

Just as she was about to respond, Yeon So-Hyeon turned away.

“Let’s save the rest for later. I’m hungry; I need to go get some late-night snacks.”

As if she had expected this, Jung-ah bowed respectfully.

“This humble servant has already prepared something, so you just need to heat it up to enjoy your meal.”

A genuinely surprised expression crossed Yeon So-Hyeon’s face.

“…Impressive.”

“Your praise is too generous.”

He shook his head in denial, then proceeded to tread away lightly.

“Just a moment…!”

Yeon So-Hyeon’s voice interrupted Se-ah’s words.

“Think carefully. This is the last chance I can offer you.”

“….”

Jung-ah directed her gaze towards her sister, greeted her, and then followed her master.

She then watched as the two disappeared into the far end of the cave.

Se-ah asked herself,

Am I prepared?

“Your Highness-!”

From far away, the sound of her subordinates calling for her echoed.

Yet, her feet remained as if nailed to the ground, not moving for a while.

***

Deep into the night.

Yeon So-Hyeon sat atop the highest roof of the Crescent Moon Pavilion estate.

From this hillside estate, the enormous and bustling entertainment district of Luoyang across the flatlands below.

With an inscrutable expression on his face, his gaze fixed at the city that never sleeps.

Without turning around, he opened his mouth, “I didn’t expect you to find me so soon.”

The one who climbed the ladder to the roof was Se-ah.

Carefully stepping on the roof tiles, she stood beside him.

“Luoyang remains the same, despite the chaos we’ve been through.”

The view was beautiful from a distance.

It seemed as though the sounds of people singing in a drunken state and the melodies played by the courtesans could be heard all the way here.

“Such a massive city, Luoyang is.”

She then sat next to him.

“The Black Bone Faction was a real nuisance.”

Her hair was disheveled by the wind.

She tied her hair with a string.

“Keeping their growth in check alone was exhausting.”

Her demeanor and her tone seemed much more relaxed than before.

“Hmm.”

“But this city is full of problems. To the extent that a gang like Black Bone Faction is hardly an issue.”

Her shoulders slightly shivered in the biting winter wind that blew from the hill.

“I was, we were always outnumbered.”

It wasn’t just the cold that made her words seem frail.

However, Yeon So-Hyeon covered her with the winter coat he had been wearing.

“……Thank you.”

Pulling the collar of the coat around her, she asked Yeon So-Hyeon,

“How much do you know about our organization, the Spring of Luoyang?”

“Not much.”

Yeon So-Hyeon briefly added,

“A secret society of well-intentioned people in Luoyang who want to do good?”

Se-ah smiled at his sarcastic expression.

“People who couldn’t endure, people who couldn’t bear it.”

“From what I hear, they don’t seem like particularly pleasant friends.”

Se-ah burst into laughter.

“We do try to be pleasant in our own way.”

Her laughter soon turned into a bitter smile.

“At first, we gathered just to fix minor injustices.”

“But you soon realized that to fix those minor injustices, you’d have to tackle bigger ones.”

“That’s right.”

“And to tackle those bigger injustices, even larger ones would have to be resolved.”

She looked into the distant landscape.

The city of Luoyang stretched as far as the eye could see.

“To save those who are starving, simply sharing food is not enough. Ultimately, we have to eliminate those who are making them starve.”

“But if we eliminate them…”

“Another will take their place. And we can’t get rid of that position.”

Yeon So-Hyeon coldly smiled.

“Because that ‘position’ is part of the system that constitutes this society.”

Se-ah looked at Yeon So-Hyeon with surprised eyes.

“You know it well.”

Yeon So-Hyeon chuckled.

“Who do you think reformed the welfare agencies of Luoyang? Created the welfare system?”

Her eyes widened.

“So it was you who did it! I thought…”

“Correct. It was done in my mother’s name. In reality, my mother did put in a lot of effort.”

However, the entire design was the work of a young Yeon So-Hyeon.

“But now, it has become all empty, only its name remained.”

Se-ah looked at him with a bitter gaze.

“So that’s why? You became the ruler of darkness to punish those ruining your mother’s city?”

Yeon So-Hyeon snickered.

He stood up and looked down at the city.

The wind fiercely picked up, but his body did not flinch.

“I’ve simply decided to take responsibility for all that I’ve neglected until now.”

His eyes became fierce.

“It doesn’t matter what form I take. Whether it’s swordless Yeon So-Hyeon, or philanthropic Yeon So-Hyeon, or ruler of darkness.”

His aura seemed to split the howling wind.

“As long as I’ve decided to fulfill my duty, everyone with responsibility must face theirs.”

His voice carried the sound of rumbling iron.

“Whether it’s a mere gang in Luoyang’s back streets, or a big shot in the underworld, or a high-ranking government official, or the leader of a great sect…

A blue flame flickered in his eyes.

“Even if it’s the Emperor who stands above all!”

The powerless had to exploit those even more powerless than them to survive.

Those who had lived with emptiness and hunger had to seize places where others could nourish themselves.

Because that was all the strong had permitted them.

Everything else belonged to the strong.

A world dominated by the law of the jungle.

A world where the strong monopolize everything.

A world where nothing can be changed because the opponent is strong.

A world where it is natural for the weak to be robbed of everything.

A world where it is right for nothing to be given to the weak.

If that’s their ‘natural law,’ their world, then I will gladly accept it.”

He was ready.

He was a celestial demon, the scion of the ‘Dark Heavens Scripture’ and the Sovereign of Dark Heavens, and was himself the world’s strongest ruler.

He would deliver an inevitable hammer blow to them through their own logic.

“In that case…”

Se-ah stood up from her seat.

Despite the fierce wind, she maintained her balance.

She drew the fine sword she had prepared for self-defense.

And then, she knelt before Yeon So-Hyeon.

“I’ve heard this is a long-standing tradition in the Sword House.”

She held the sword upside down and extended the hilt to him.

Yeon So-Hyeon silently looked at the hilt.

Se-ah looked at Yeon So-Hyeon and spoke.

“This sword now belongs to you.”

Yeon So-Hyeon said nothing and stared at her for a long time.

“…Won’t you regret it?”

Se-ah looked up at him with an infinitely sincere gaze.

“I may have only one eye left, but I’m not so lacking that I don’t know who truly deserves my service.”

“In that case…”

Se-ah accepted Yeon So-Hyeon’s words.

“Even if it’s the demonic realm where mountains of corpses and rivers of blood lie in the underworld.”

No more words were needed.

Yeon So-Hyeon accepted her sword.

However, for some reason, he didn’t grasp the hilt, but awkwardly held onto the scabbard.

“Your sword has been accepted by me, Yeon So-Hyeon, the Grand young master of the Luoyang Sword House, and the Sovereign of Dark Heavens.”

The ritual was complete.

After her family’s downfall, she had to fend for herself in the slums.

It had taken her barely a decade to become the leader of Crescent Moon Pavilion, a mid-tier intelligence organization.

She had gained the name “Iron Blood”, earning both respect and fear from those around her.

And now,

She had found her lord.

Se-ah, who had been silently sitting with her eyes closed, got up.

“Come to think of it…”

She burst into a soft laugh upon seeing Yeon So-Hyeon awkwardly holding the sword.

“I am the first person to witness, you, Swordless master, holding a sword.”

Yeon So-Hyeon snickered.

“The first one who did this ritual was actually your younger sister.”

“…What?!”

In Luoyang, where winter had yet to end, a cold wind blew. However, for some reason, she didn’t feel cold.

From now on, those who would have to worry about the cold were different.

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