The Ruler of Darkness

The voice of the Eldest Young Master welcomed Elder Yeom as he entered the office.

“Did you enjoy the meal?”

Elder Yeom, seated, met the Eldest Young Master’s gaze directly.

“It was excellent.”

“That’s delightful to hear. Our maids are indeed skilled.”

The Eldest Young Master, despite his friendly demeanor, was piercing Elder Yeom with a gaze sharp as a scalpel, as if intending to dissect and lay bare every detail about him.

Elder Yeom, unperturbed, bowed politely first.

“In the midst of everything, I failed to express my gratitude for your assistance with my mission.”

With a slight raise of his hand to accept the thanks, the Eldest Young Master asked,

“They were impressive.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, very much so.”

Their gazes intersected in mid-air.

“I see. In that case…”

Just as the Eldest Young Master was about to speak, Elder Yeom bowed once more.

“Which is why I regret to say, your kindness may no longer be of use to me.”

“What do you mean?”

Elder Yeom, still bowing, responded,

“It seems your goodwill will soon become redundant to me.”

“And that means…?”

Elder Yeom closed his eyes.

***

The moment he aligned with the Eldest Young Master’s power, his standing in the Council of Elders would vanish.

Even if he entrusted his daughter to the Eldest Young Master solely for treatment, it was akin to having a hostage taken.

Regardless of the facts, he would be considered part of the Eldest Young Master’s faction.

The only thing left was how much he could value himself, but given the power the Eldest Young Master had shown, even that seemed difficult now.

With his eyes closed, Elder Yeom recalled the voice he heard at the orphanage in Hodu Village.

‘I am merely a physician, a swordsman with no sword. And you? Can you be just a father to a child?’

He steeled his heart.

Elder Yeom opened his eyes and lifted his head, looking straight at the Eldest Young Master with a determined gaze.

The Eldest Young Master’s expression became intrigued by his resolve.

What decision had Elder Yeom made?

Then, Elder Yeom spoke.

“I think it’s time for me to retire from my position as an elder.”

***

A heavy silence fell.

The Eldest Young Master’s gaze on Elder Yeom almost seemed ablaze.

“….”

“….”

But Elder Yeom did not look away, facing the gaze as calmly as possible.

“Is that so?”

It was the Eldest Young Master who broke the silence.

Instead of replying, Elder Yeom asked the Eldest Young Master,

“I know it may be presumptuous, but may I have a drink?”

The Eldest Young Master took a bottle of liquor from beneath the desk.

He then fetched a freshly prepared teacup, poured the drink himself, and said,

“This liquor was brewed by my mother.”

Elder Yeom received the cup with a respectful manner.

“This is a priceless liquor. Thank you.”

He took a sip.

As the cup emptied, the Eldest Young Master refilled it, and Elder Yeom ended up drinking three cups in a row.

“This is the finest liquor I have ever tasted.”

The Eldest Young Master simply smiled in response, sitting quietly, waiting for Elder Yeom to speak again.

“Since before I came of age, I wielded a sword and tempered it with the blood of raiders in the frozen north.”

Feeling a slight buzz from the liquor, Elder Yeom’s gaze drifted to the distance.

“In my youth, I was obsessed with earning merits, and took pride in outpacing my peers. Thus, I became the youngest head in the history of the Luoyang Sword House.”

His tone was somber.

“But such childish thoughts faded quickly.”

The Eldest Young Master listened silently.

“The endless skirmishes unique to the north, warriors who never forget the grudges they inherit, battles that can never be concluded because there’s no stronghold to capture…!”

Elder Yeom’s large, thick hands began to tremble.

“…In the end, I was the only one who survived unscathed.”

He raised his newly filled cup high.

“If I die in battle, I will die for the glory of the Sword House, and if I survive, I will live in its honor!”

That was the motto of the now-defunct Luoyang Sword House’s Northern Combat Patrol Unit.

The resonant voice of a warrior echoed and then dispersed in the spacious office.

“The Sword Lord of Mount Hua was indeed a formidable opponent.”

With just a close of his eyes, Elder Yeom could vividly recall the sword strikes of that day, from the first move to the last.

“He was a rare genius who embodied the essence of the Mount Hua Sect.”

A sneer appeared on Elder Yeom’s lips as he reminisced about that day.

“I was certain I would be the one to fall.”

But the outcome was the opposite.

“It was the same during the Northern Wars.”

He revisited the grim records of the war.

“Our supply lines were long and fragile, always on the verge of being cut, and the vast front lines seemed impossible to maintain.”

The war dragged on. Conscript morale hit rock bottom. The army and the governor’s office were disjointed. The tribes within the autonomous regions behaved ambiguously, friend or foe unclear.

“But in the end, I survived and even emerged victorious.”

He laughed as if it was all some absurd joke.

“It was a victory marred by wounds, but surviving was enough, and the thought of everyone returning home was exhilarating.”

He drained the cup of liquor provided by Yeon So-hyeon and continued.

“However, returning home with such high spirits, I found that the estate had become another battlefield.”

This was because he was no longer just a warrior but an elder of the Luoyang Sword House.

“Well, I still persevered. It was enjoyable to see my men grow stronger, marry, and raise children.”

He chuckled softly.

“My close associates knew nothing but fighting, so I was practically blundering about on my own, and in the process, I even caused trouble for the Eldest Young Master, like some lowly steward.”

Another cup was emptied.

“But one day, I realized.”

His drunken gaze turned towards the Eldest Young Master.

“That my body longed for the battlefield, where blood and flesh flew.”

The Eldest Young Master felt the sincerity in Elder Yeom’s gaze.

“In life or death, I ultimately love nothing more than engaging with the reapers, wielding my sword in the fray.”

He emptied the last cup.

Not a drop of liquor remained in the bottle.

The Eldest Young Master asked,

“So, you wish to return to being a mere warrior?”

Elder Yeom nodded.

“Because that’s what I do best.”

Silence fell once again.

And then, a message flew to the Eldest Young Master.

‘…Everything he said is true, my lord.’

It was a message filled with the certainty of House Steward Jung-ah.

Elder Yeom bowed his head again.

“I am sorry. You have shown me kindness, but it turns out to be in vain…”

“…You lied.”

“Pardon?”

The Eldest Young Master leaned back in his chair, smiling.

“Perhaps it’s time to stop with the lies, Elder Yeom.”

Elder Yeom’s fists clenched tight.

“Are your words meant to be taken as an insult, Eldest Young Master?”

An urgent message came in from outside.

‘Everything Elder Yeom said was sincere, my lord.’

Jung-ah’s message felt urgent, as if she judged her own abilities inadequate, causing issues with the message delivery.

However, the message had reached the Eldest Young Master clearly.

He had simply chosen to ignore it.

“Perhaps ‘lie’ was too strong a word. However…”

The Eldest Young Master shrugged.

“At least I don’t believe the liquor from my mother was wasted.”

‘My lord!’

For a moment, Elder Yeom seemed frozen in place.

But then his mouth opened, and a thunderous shout erupted.

“Eldest Young Master-!!”

The ground shook, and the window panes burst out.

The marble floor rippled, and the massive columns vibrated.

True to the reputation of Luoyang Sword House’s leading warrior, his formidable energy swept through the office.

***

The first to react was the closest, the Life-Stealing Devil Sword.

The swords’ light flashed, and in an instant, the office door was blown open.

In a moment too quick for ordinary people to notice, he was already inside the office.

In his hands, he held a sword in each, with three swords floating in the air, all pointing at Elder Yeom.

The second to burst in was Jung-ah.

Golden radiance streamed from her eyes as she appeared, emitting an unprecedented aura of murderous intent.

The energy she pushed to its limit made the sword aimed at Elder Yeom gleam as if white-hot.

In a secluded garden of Wongak Pavilion, Yeom Baek-ha was sitting in a pavilion, stroking a white tiger with the form of a cat.

“I wonder if father is doing well?”

Thanks to the maids of Wongak Pavilion, the white tiger, well-fed with quality meat, agreed with a contented growl.

Even as she tried to calm her mind, her hands trembled slightly, and her face was pale.

Sensing something amiss, the white tiger looked up at her, but she just continued to stroke it.

Meanwhile, Elder Yeom’s chief warrior asked Wongak Pavilion’s maid, Yi-ryeong,

“…Do you have any medicine for digestion?”

Yi-ryeong widened her eyes in surprise and asked,

“Is it for the lady…?”

The chief warrior quickly shook his head.

“No, not the lady. I overate at lunch…”

Yi-ryeong was about to send the maids to fetch some medicine but sighed instead.

“What kind of warrior from the main house seeks medicine for just overeating?”

Irritated by the maid’s scoffing, the chief warrior retorted,

“All this is technically because of your master…!”

At that moment, the white tiger sprang up from Yeom Baek-ha’s lap, its fur bristling.

The chief warrior also jumped in surprise.

“Everyone, stay where you are!”

All eyes turned towards the direction of the office.

“…Could it be father?”

Yeom Baek-ha’s eyes flickered with anxiety.

Dust that had accumulated on the beams of the office slowly scattered, catching the sunlight and sparkling golden. Amidst this, dozens of swords flashed.

From the Life-Stealing Devil Sword, to Jung-ah, to Sam-ryeong, and even the maids, everyone’s swords were aimed at the towering figure of Elder Yeom.

“….”

Elder Yeom’s aura had softened, but no one sheathed their swords, and no one let down their guard.

Amidst the gleaming of dozens of swords and the intense gaze of numerous eyes upon him, Elder Yeom’s shoulders began to slowly shake.

A sound slowly emerged from his mouth.

“Ha, haha…”

And that sound soon turned into a hearty laugh.

After a long bout of laughter, Elder Yeom, disregarding the dozens of swords pointed at him, slumped into a chair.

He asked,

“How did you know, Eldest Young Master?”

The Eldest Young Master, who had been smiling leisurely, replied,

“It wasn’t that difficult.”

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