The Ruler of Darkness

Luoyang Sword House, Supreme Council Meeting.

The information stopped flowing after the Eldest Young Master entered the Gongsun Clan.

“…”

“…”

And since then, the new male and female committee members also fell silent.

“Perhaps you’ll feel it now?”

The chairman spoke.

“Since ancient times, the Eldest Young Master’s abilities and the achievements accomplished with those abilities have existed somewhere between the main house’s incomplete records and individuals’ mutable memories.”

The new male and female committee members couldn’t find any words to respond and merely drew sharp breaths.

“…I wonder if even they, facing the Eldest Young Master, have realized it?”

They weren’t facing ‘Yeon So-hyeon, the Eldest Young Master of the Luoyang Sword House.’

Their opponent was ‘that Yeon So-hyeon,’ who also happened to be the Eldest Young Master of the Luoyang Sword House.

***

2nd Young Master’s Faction, Elder’s Lounge.

An elder tried to put out the cigarette he was smoking, but the crystal ashtray was already full.

“…”

He brought over a wide porcelain vase that had been elegantly decorating the lounge and stubbed out the cigarette.

Although no additional information had come in for some time, none of them were waiting for information anymore.

“…We must admit it now.”

Elder Ahn muttered with a displeased expression.

“What we were facing was ‘the most terrifying warrior.'”

Any elder of the Luoyang Sword House, whether they had learned martial arts or not, would know that phrase.

“There’s no point in speculating further now…”

At another elder’s words, an elder from the Foreign Bureau removed the pipe from his mouth and slowly nodded.

“…We have no way of guessing or verifying what kind of conversation the Eldest Young Master is having with the former clan heads of the Sixteen Clans.”

It felt like diving deep in a lake on a moonless night.

“We can’t even predict how many more clans the Eldest Young Master will visit.”

“…At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised even if the Eldest Young Master makes the rounds of all sixteen clans.”

Though the tone was joking, no one laughed.

“Hmph.”

When he ran out of folding fans in his possession, Elder Hahu, who had been smoking from a box he had brought from his office, opened his mouth.

“To begin with, what we needed to respond to the Eldest Young Master’s move this time wasn’t scholars.”

It was the scholars who had shown excellent performance in the previous Inner Court incident and the Family Head’s Seal incident.

The reason those scholars had shown a particularly lacking performance this time was that the game the Eldest Young Master had set up from the start wasn’t in their field of expertise.

“…For the Eldest Young Master, renowned for his scheming, to pull out such an unexpected card. Hmph.”

In the end, an elder couldn’t help but blurt out the question that had been circulating among them without finding an answer.

“Just what kind of skill does the Eldest Young Master possess to even make deals that pique the interest of the Sixteen Clans and build relationships with them?”

“…And all while in seclusion at that.”

The elder who had made a joking remark earlier and received no response made another humorous comment.

“Could it be that, as the old rumors go, he read the celestial signs and informed them in advance of the ill omens that would befall their clans?”

This time, everyone let out a chuckle.

“Or perhaps with that scheming of his, he subtly hinted to those who were clan heads at the time, when he was two or three years old, about ways to gain the Emperor’s favor.”

As he took it a step further, everyone responded with stifled laughter.

It was a moment when the desolate atmosphere was temporarily refreshed.

“Perhaps…”

This time, thinking it was Elder Hahu’s turn to joke, everyone turned to him.

“Perhaps we should assume that the rumors we heard about the Eldest Young Master in the past are true.”

Those who initially had expressions of not knowing which part to laugh at saw Elder Hahu’s endlessly serious face and waved their hands one by one.

“No, that’s just absurd…”

“Elder Hahu, do you even know how many outlandish and preposterous rumors there are about the Eldest Young Master’s childhood?”

“Rumors like he wrote a medical text at the age of two, developed agricultural methods at the age of three, and whatnot?”

Elder Ahn, who had been listening to the conversation until then, spoke up.

“But you know…”

Everyone’s gaze turned to him.

“Wasn’t the notion that the Eldest Young Master possessed the wisdom of divine foresight originally just a rumor too?”

Puzzlement appeared on the other elders’ faces.

“What are you talking about…?”

“How is that a rumor…?”

The elder who was speaking stopped, his expression stiffening.

The other elders also sensed something strange and fell silent.

“Indeed…”

Elder Hahu’s brow twitched.

“That’s right. The talk of the Eldest Young Master’s scheming was originally a rumor too…”

At those words, the elders’ faces grew confused.

“No, everyone knew about the Eldest Young Master’s scheming…”

Elder Hahu cut him off.

“No. That’s not it.”

“But it was only recently that the Eldest Young Master utilized Elder Yeom as a mediator and stirred up the Elder’s Hall…”

“There was also the Inner Court incident, wasn’t there?”

Elder Hahu frowned.

“I’m talking about before that. Before that!”

He slammed the armrest.

“How did everyone know from even before that the Eldest Young Master, who had been in seclusion for nearly a decade, had extraordinary scheming, called divine foresight?! Even before the Eldest Young Master triggered the Inner Court incident!”

Only then did the elders’ expressions turn blank.

“Just why and on what basis did we ‘believe’ the Eldest Young Master was such an outstanding schemer?!”

An elder spoke with difficulty.

“Those who have been in the main house for a long time have probably heard a rumor or two about the Eldest Young Master in the past…”

“Rumors with any basis?”

“…”

Elder Ahn removed his glasses.

“…Strange. It’s strange.”

He raised his eyes and gazed far out the window.

“There’s definitely something we still don’t know here.”

Among the top echelon of this Luoyang Sword House, just who were the ones who didn’t merely believe the rumors, but actually knew the truth?

Everything appeared hazy in his vision without his glasses.

***

Luoyang Sword House, Elder’s Hall.

What awaited the elders who came out after finishing the closed-door Elder’s Assembly was talk about the Eldest Young Master Yeon So-hyeon’s movements.

Each elder, without even leaving the front of the Elder’s Hall, was hearing that information from their close aides.

It was the same for the elders from the 3rd Young Master’s faction who had attended the Elder’s Assembly.

“Oh my. The Sixteen Clans…?”

“Movements we couldn’t even imagine.”

The first to leave the group of colleagues who were listening to the information for a moment was the former Hallmaster of the Jeomchangpa, his face stiffening.

“Elder, sir! Please wait a moment!”

The one who called out to him was one of the warriors who had brought the information.

“…What business do you have with me?”

“The proctor of the Emei Sect wishes to see you, sir.”

“Is that so? Tell another elder to go in my stead.”

He swiftly turned and strode away.

The one who grabbed him was a fellow elder who had attended the Elder’s Assembly together.

“Wasn’t the matter regarding the proctor assigned to you, Hallmaster?”

At those words, the former Hallmaster sighed.

“I merely took the lead at the first meeting because I had ties with the proctor in the past. I had no choice.”

He waved his hand.

“Now that sufficient communication has been established between us, it doesn’t matter who takes over from here.”

He heard voices calling him from behind, but the former Hallmaster ignored them and walked away with long strides.

He roughly rubbed the back of his neck, which had gotten goosebumps for some reason after hearing about the Eldest Young Master’s first move.

‘You think I’ll get deeply involved in a game where that fiendish bastard is running amok?!’

It was when he was crossing an intersection, avoiding the carriages.

“Wait a moment, please!”

Thinking someone was calling him, the former Hallmaster turned around, and a question arose in his eyes.

“You are…?”

***

A warehouse district within the Luoyang Sword House.

“We can have a conversation here without prying eyes. So…”

The former Hallmaster spoke those words and gazed at the other party with narrowed eyes.

“Start by telling me where you heard about the ‘gathering.'”

The other party, ‘Elder Son’ from the 2nd Young Master’s faction, sent him a brief voice transmission.

It was a voice transmission about the source of the information.

“…Hmm.”

The former Hallmaster let out a short hum.

“Well, we can’t exactly refuse the duck’s foot here.”

He leaned against the cold wall of the warehouse.

“What are you curious about?”

Elder Son hesitated for a moment before finally opening his mouth.

“…May I hear the reason why the former Hallmaster left that ‘gathering’?”

The former Hallmaster, having finished thinking for a moment, gave a twisted smile.

“…So you were the one who had been dealing with the Eldest Young Master from the 2nd Young Master’s side all this time.”

Elder Son silently affirmed.

“I suppose you’ve started to have doubts about that fellow called the Eldest Young Master?”

Instead, Elder Son threw a question back at him.

“…Does the former Hallmaster believe the Eldest Young Master had no choice but to hand over the Family Head’s Seal to the committee members?”

This time, it was the former Hallmaster who closed his mouth.

And that silence was also a sufficient answer for Elder Son.

“…The thing called the ‘gathering.'”

After a moment, the former Hallmaster spoke with a sigh.

“It’s a secret organization that transcends factions, carrying out machinations to diminish the Eldest Young Master’s influence, which we didn’t know when it would return, just like now.”

“I’ve heard a considerable number of elders from our 2nd Young Master’s faction, the 3rd Young Master’s faction, and even the neutral faction are part of it.”

The former Hallmaster readily nodded.

“That’s right. But among them, I was the only one who somewhat properly understood the Eldest Young Master’s dangerousness.”

“…What kind of experience did the former Hallmaster have?”

The former Hallmaster scoffed at Elder Son, who had asked such a question.

“Did you expect me to share old stories that might become weaknesses to an elder from a hostile faction?”

“…”

He stepped away from the wall and headed toward the warehouse exit.

“I’ll tell you one last thing.”

Without looking back, he spoke while grasping the warehouse door handle.

“It would be safer to believe all the rumors about the Eldest Young Master are entirely true than to believe some exaggerated parts are false.”

He cackled as he opened the door and left.

“Though I’ll probably be treated as a madman for saying this.”

He left, and the door closed.

“…”

After gazing at the door for a moment, Elder Son looked up at the high ceiling of the warehouse.

“Safer to believe all the rumors…?”

***

In the past, Luoyang Sword House.

“How did you send the letters?”

The father asked with a stern face.

“Just in case, I followed the security guidelines I learned and sent the letters anonymously.”

“Then how did you receive the invitations?”

“I received them through the confidential reporting system of the Foreign Bureau and Inner Bureau, as per the security guidelines.”

Only then did the father’s face soften a bit.

“…Well done.”

After closing his eyes for a moment, contemplating something, the father spoke.

“…From now on, when exchanging letters not only with those old monsters but with any significant figures, use my name or an alias.”

“…Yes. I will keep that in mind.”

“That’s not all.”

The father looked down at young Yeon So-hyeon.

Those bright, clear eyes, the spitting image of his mother, seemed to hold no fear of the world’s senseless cruelty and irrationality.

“From now on, until you become an adult, you must not directly carry out any of your undertakings in your own name.”

“…”

For young Yeon So-hyeon, who seemed somewhat dissatisfied, the father chose his words to provide an additional explanation.

“So…”

Young Yeon So-hyeon spoke first.

“It’s because Madam Guyang and Madam Namgung have given birth to boys, isn’t it?”

“…”

How could this child be so precocious?

Unlike the innocence he displayed outwardly, had he already grasped even the dark aspects of the world?

The father swallowed a sigh inwardly.

“…That’s right.”

Young Yeon So-hyeon continued.

“It’s because Mother and I don’t have a maternal clan to offer us protection, isn’t it?”

“…You are correct about that as well.”

It was because the Luoyang Sword House didn’t have a family law stipulating that the firstborn son would inherit the clan.

“This father is often away from the clan due to issues in Jiangnan. So…”

Young Yeon So-hyeon smiled bitterly.

“…I’ve heard that excessive jealousy can drive people to commit unimaginable acts.”

What should he say?

What would be good to say?

The father, who had been gritting his teeth, sat down in front of his son, meeting his gaze at eye level.

“…I’ve said it countless times, but the next clan head of this clan is you, So-hyeon.”

The father faced young Yeon So-hyeon.

“So until you learn how to protect yourself without wielding a sword, endure it until then.”

Young Yeon So-hyeon nodded.

“Yes, Father.”

Gently grasping his son’s shoulders with both hands and touching foreheads, the father spoke.

“…Forgive this sinful father of yours.”

Young Yeon So-hyeon merely smiled, comforting his father.

“Inner Court Chief!”

“At your command.”

The Inner Court Chief, who had been waiting like a shadow, knelt down.

“You heard, right?”

“Yes, from now on, there will be no unnecessary mentions of the Eldest Young Master’s name.”

That was when Yeon So-hyeon was four years old.

After that, rumors occasionally circulated in the Luoyang Sword House about the Eldest Young Master’s unbelievably impressive achievements, but they quickly faded away.

At least after the Bloody History, there were those in the uppermost echelons who partially remembered the events of that time.

Through these individuals, the notion that the Eldest Young Master’s scheming reached the heavens spread with persuasiveness and secrecy.

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