“It’s Yoo Geonwoo.”

At his voice, Seo Woojin answered.

“Come in.”

Yoo Geonwoo entered — but no one inside the room spared him a glance. Every eye was fixed on Seo Woojin.

“Say that again. You think they have a method? How can you be certain?”

The anger in Woon Seorin’s voice was plain. Yoo Geonwoo quietly read the room and took an empty seat.

Even a quick look told him this was serious.

Seo Woojin, by contrast, was perfectly composed.

“That’s exactly my question. Why is everyone so certain they don’t have one? How can anyone be sure they’ll all give up?”

“Because——”

“There was no method to deal with the Crazed Fiend before, therefore there isn’t one now? Isn’t that being a little too complacent?”

Woon Seorin had been about to snap back — and found herself stopped cold.

She thought it over for a moment, brow creasing.

“The Cheon Clan has found a way to remove the Crazed Fiend? And that’s why they put forward this trial?”

Seo Woojin nodded.

“A trial where everyone fails. And if one person alone succeeds in the middle of all that — the impression it leaves would be immense. In a single moment, their candidate would be burned into the minds of every Dark Alliance warrior.”

“The method for dealing with the Crazed Fiend is simple enough. Lure him somewhere isolated, then overwhelm him with force. The reason that hasn’t been possible until now is that there was no way to lure him out quietly.”

Once she let the agitation settle, Woon Seorin’s sharp mind began to work in earnest.

He had only opened one possibility — but she was already sprinting toward the worst case.

“If you’re right, and they’ve obtained some kind of information — that would be information that can draw the Crazed Fiend out. Ah——!”

That kind of intelligence wasn’t something one came by easily. The personal history of a hero of the righteous path even less so. But if it had been obtained, then an organization with that level of reach had to be involved.

And the only faction in the Dark Alliance currently positioned to have reach like that——

“The Soaring Wind Cho Clan.”

Woon Seorin muttered it through gritted teeth.

It wasn’t as though she had never suspected them. When the intelligence about Seo Woojin leaving Hangzhou had leaked, they had been on her list. But there was no proof. No proof that they had sold information. And without proof, there was no grounds to apply pressure.

She shook her head sharply to clear it.

Now isn’t the time for the Cho Clan. If the Cheon Clan really has a plan, that’s a serious problem. This can’t be taken lightly.

The Woon Clan’s help was off the table. Which meant the Cho Clan’s intelligence was off the table too.

“There is a way.”

Woon Seorin’s thoughts were interrupted by Seo Woojin’s voice.

“As you said — dealing with the Crazed Fiend is simple. Lure him and subdue him.”

“As I also said — luring him quietly is impossible. Unless you have some piece of intelligence like what I described.”

“Luring him quietly is impossible. But luring him loudly — that’s not so difficult, is it?”

“What?”

Seo Woojin’s smile deepened.

When he and Song Biryeong had gone to observe the Crazed Fiend — he had heard it clearly.

What the old man called them.

“Demon folk. He called them demon folk. Then isn’t it straightforward to infer what that old man is fixated on?”

“Haah. You want to use demon folk to lure the Crazed Fiend out? You think we haven’t thought of that? I’m sorry to disappoint you — we sent him word that demon folk had appeared. He didn’t move an inch.”

Seo Woojin shook his head.

“Not sending word — what if he came to that conclusion himself, without anyone telling him?”

Woon Seorin had been about to dismiss it — and stopped.

“He perceives it himself? But then the surrounding area would become chaotic regardless. Even if the lure works, we wouldn’t be able to kill him. Not unless we’re looking to hand the Murim Alliance a justification.”

“Why would anyone kill a sick old man?”

At the casual remark, Woon Seorin’s brow pinched.

“Right. And since we don’t have the Woon Clan’s backing — even if we wanted to, we couldn’t. We don’t have the overwhelming force required. The problem remains the same. Do we have what it takes to handle him? Well? Do we?”

“I have something in mind.”

“Which is?”

“I apologize, but it’s difficult to explain in words.”

“When I agreed to share all information with you, there was an implicit understanding that your information would be shared in return, wasn’t there?”

Seo Woojin gave an awkward laugh.

“I understand that — but it genuinely is difficult to articulate. I’d need to explain my martial arts first……”

Woon Seorin exhaled deeply.

“Sending you into that danger with a method you’re not even certain about……”

“Which is exactly why I said the Four Black Dragons need to be involved.”

“……?”

“If things go truly wrong, the Four Black Dragons step in and pull me out. They may not be able to do anything to the old man — but they can get me out of there.”

The ease with which he said it.

The Crazed Fiend didn’t take lives — but he had left many crippled. The Four Black Dragons might not reach him in time. There was a very real chance Seo Woojin would be broken before they could intervene.

A plan that required absolute trust in Seo Woojin.

And yet — I can’t do nothing.

The possibility that the Cheon Clan had already found a way meant giving up wasn’t an option anymore.

Woon Seorin closed her eyes.

A long moment of silence.

Then her eyes opened.

No trace of uncertainty.

Once decided, failure was not a variable she entertained.

“I’ll put Cheongeum to work. First, we need rumors spreading near the Crazed Fiend.”

Her gaze moved to the Four Black Dragons.

“Sorry to ask so abruptly — but decide now. Who wants to play demon?”

At Woon Seorin’s forceful momentum——

Seo Woojin’s expression settled into quiet satisfaction.

Only the Four Black Dragons were left looking thoroughly bewildered.

The construction site, still very much mid-project.

A rumor had begun to circulate.

“Hey, did you hear?”

“Tch. Is this another demon folk story? Where do people even pick up this nonsense.”

Workers taking a break in the shade of a tree, having hauled materials through the heat. The lean man’s conspiratorial tone earned him a reproach from the bearded one — but the lean man pressed on regardless.

“Hold on now. This isn’t just nonsense. A demon — one that was locked up in the Murim Alliance’s dungeon decades ago — apparently escaped. And now the mad thing has slipped into Hangzhou.”

“Oh, come on. Do you know how far the Murim Alliance is from Hangzhou? You think the Murim Alliance can’t catch one escaped demon?”

“This one just doesn’t understand how the world works. The Murim Alliance let the demon slip out through their own mistake — of course they’d want to keep it quiet! They’re too busy managing the rumors to have time to chase him down!”

The bearded man let out a hollow laugh.

“So what exactly is this rumor floating around right now, then!”

“Tch. The Murim Alliance is scrambling to stop word from spreading — but they still need to catch the escaped demon, don’t they? So they’ve guided him toward Hangzhou and reached out to the Dark Alliance for cooperation. Which means the rumor currently going around didn’t come from the Murim Alliance at all — it came from the Dark Alliance’s end, you slow man!”

By this point, even the bearded man’s ears had perked up.

“Well, that’s serious then! They need to catch it quickly!”

“That’s what I’m saying. But it’s all talk and no action — no one’s actually seen anything yet. They say this demon kills people for sport.”

“Hey!! Break’s over, get moving!! We need everything moved before sundown!!”

The foreman’s shout cut them off.

“Damn it, can’t even watch a man rest in peace. Haah. Come on then.”

The two workers hauled themselves up and left.

Not far from where they had been sitting — the old man.

A light moved through the Crazed Fiend’s eyes.

Just for a moment.

Then the familiar vacant blur settled back in.

The shapeless rumor kept circulating.

And just before it reached its peak——

Something solid emerged.

“D-demon!! There’s a demon!!”

“What?! What?!”

A laborer on the construction site raised his voice.

Every head in the vicinity snapped toward him.

“A d-demon — it’s got a woman — it’s coming this way——”

His words never finished.

Because behind him, a massive shape had already appeared.

“Eeeeek——!”

“Wh-what do we……”

Ragged clothing. Blood stains in several places. Matted, wild hair, and between the strands — a pair of eyes that burned red.

The overwhelming presence froze the workers in place.

The demon had something slung over one shoulder — something wrapped in a sack. The sack was squirming and leaking muffled sounds.

The demon paid it no mind. Just grinned slowly.

Then launched itself into the air and disappeared in a direction.

“Wh-what was that……”

“Are we — are we safe?”

“What on earth is the Dark Alliance actually doing right now!!”

While the remaining workers poured out their relief and complaints——

Whooooooosh!

Something cut through the air past them in a gust of wind.

“Wh-what was that?”

“What just went by……?”

The workers were still milling around in confusion——

In front of the old crumbling house.

The spot that had never once been empty.

Was empty now.

“Damn it. Are we completely screwed?”

“Hey. Get word to the boss first — and anyone with fast legs, follow me.”

“Follow you? Are you insane?! That was a demon!”

“Idiot. You think we just let it go like that? We already lost the crazy old man — if Gok Taejun finds out, we’re done for. I’d rather die to the demon than die to him.”

A group of people who looked like they’d stepped straight out of a back alley were in the middle of a heated argument.

When they’d first received the assignment, they’d expected it to be simple. Nothing like this was supposed to happen. The shock had them rattled, and their thinking had slowed.

They needed to regroup. They needed to decide something.

Though “decide something” was a generous way to describe what was happening. Mostly they were finding someone to blame.

“We should have reported the moment the demon rumors started circulating, damn it! I should never have listened to you!”

“What?! You said I was right at the time! You said bothering the bosses over nothing would just make trouble for us!”

“I never said that, you——!”

It always went like this.

When the ones who should be making decisions instead dodged responsibility — the ones below them had no choice but to stay silent.

That was the ecology of the bottom rung, running entirely on the logic of force.

And it was why they were about to die.

“Pathetic little rats. There are quite a lot of you, aren’t there.”

An unfamiliar voice.

Every head snapped toward it.

“The White Dragon……?”

Someone murmured it.

At that, they all knew who they were looking at.

Or rather — there was no way they didn’t.

A man who had once existed at the same level as them.

But now stood far above.

A hateful, infuriating fact.

And right now — a disaster that had dropped directly in front of them.

“Why is the White Dragon……?”

“How does he know about this place——!”

This was the deepest part of the slums. Their own home territory. For him to find them this fast meant he had known about them from the start.

One of the men — the one who’d been leading the argument — broke into an ingratiating smile and bent at the waist.

“Hehe. What an honor it is to meet the famous White Dragon of the Black Dragon Guard. But might I ask what brings you to us……”

Shhring.

Yoo Geonwoo drew his sword first.

The smiles dropped off their faces.

“One of my personal principles is not working on days off. Another is not dirtying my sword on things that aren’t interesting.”

“What?”

“Fortunately, this time, both principles are worth breaking.”

The corner of his mouth curved up.

“Because dealing with you lot means watching the Cheon Clan brat and the Gok Clan brat make very satisfying expressions. Now doesn’t that sound entertaining?”

“Wh-what……?”

Shhhhhhhhhh.

With a desolate hiss——

The temperature in the space around them seemed to plummet.

“S-stop him——!!”

Whoosh! BOOOOOM!

At the shriek——

Catastrophe descended.

The Crazed Fiend moved as though possessed.

A heavy smell of blood in the air.

A familiar smell.

He had breathed it in more times than he could count.

The surroundings didn’t register. All that existed was the back of that demon fleeing in the distance.

He could close the gap in an instant if he wanted to.

He didn’t.

Demon folk never moved alone.

There would be others with him.

All demon folk had to be exterminated.

If he rushed in and some of them slipped away into hiding, things would be worse.

His mind wasn’t clear — but the Crazed Fiend moved on instinct, shaped that way by experience carved into his body over decades of fighting.

And so he followed.

How far had he gone?

Holding back the urge to tear them apart with his bare hands — he arrived.

Tianmu Mountain.

The Crazed Fiend scanned the surroundings, then turned his gaze on the demon who had stopped ahead.

The demon set down the sack and pulled the woman out from inside.

“Haah. I nearly died from the motion sickness.”

The demon’s wild, tangled hair was smoothed and tied neatly back.

And from behind it emerged a pair of clear, bright eyes.

“Don’t let your guard down.”

“You’re the one who should be nervous, handsome Young Lord.”

A tone that made them sound like allies.

Killing intent began to bleed slowly into the Crazed Fiend’s gaze.

“So the demon folk have been up to their tricks again. Yes. That’s exactly what your kind does. I’m sick of you. Kill and kill and still they keep coming.”

The depth of the Crazed Fiend’s hatred was palpable.

Even with his mind so far gone — the sheer relentless nature of that blind loathing was almost more unsettling than anything else.

Even Song Biryeong, who had been keeping her composure despite the crushing pressure, let out a quiet sound.

“Ugh. This is really going to be alright, isn’t it? You actually do have a plan? I hate to say it, but — we might not be able to get to you in time.”

The answer came from behind.

“It’s fine. Ah — I mean, yeah, it’s fine. If all else fails I’ll run for my life.”

Easy tone. Unhurried face.

Seo Woojin stepped slowly out of the darkness.

He came to stand before them and gave his instructions.

“So — you two, as planned.”

The two of them were still wearing expressions full of worry. But they moved without argument.

Whoosh!

They split in opposite directions and vanished into the thick undergrowth.

What was unexpected was that the Crazed Fiend — who had looked ready to come after them at any moment — stayed where he was.

“Child. Who are you? Were you taken by the demon folk?”

Even Seo Woojin, already braced to react to his movements, found himself caught off guard.

He had assumed the Crazed Fiend pursued only demon folk, blindly and without deviation.

So he really was one of the heroes who saved the Central Plains.

Seo Woojin’s lips curved into a faint smile.

He brought his hands together in a formal salute.

“Greetings to a senior. I’ve come here to beat you.”

Against Seo Woojin’s composed, unashamed expression——

The Crazed Fiend’s face showed nothing.

(End of Chapter 17)