Absolute Regression Chapter 425

425
Ian and Hanseol were in the ice palace.

There was a special reason for the two people’s visit to the ice palace today.

“I’m sorry for the inconvenience.”

The person Ian greeted politely was the Ice Palace Lord.

“The Lord has given strict orders that you must never leave the palace.”

“The young leader has already been there.”

When he left the palace, Geommu-geuk had already asked him to stay with Ian and Hanseol for a while and take care of them. If it were another enemy, he would have let Ian move along with him to gain experience.

But the Blood King was not like that. Even if Ian had become a great master of the Bicheon Sword, he would still have been in the Palace.

Ice Palace Princess didn’t think it was a burden at all. It was something related to the safety of her daughter and Ice Palace, and it was also a favor she asked because she trusted her.

However, there was a small struggle before the request was accepted.

– Aren’t you underestimating the Ice Palace?

It was as if he was telling himself to hide in the palace.

―If they were ordinary enemies, I would have left the North Sea and left them to the Princess. But these people are the ones who do not hesitate to use self-destructive attacks. They will have to make great sacrifices.

-Even so, since they are targeting the main palace, we have to deal with them.

Of course, there were many masters in the Ice Palace other than the Ice Palace Master. If they were to step forward, it would be a great help, but they would also have to make many sacrifices.

-They’re not enemies, they’re monsters. And we’re good at catching monsters.

This was the last persuasion that Geommugeuk added to the still hesitant Ice Palace Lord.

-Let the devil catch the monster.

How could I refuse when he humiliates himself by calling himself the devil? I was grateful, but I was still curious about one thing.

-Why are you trying to help us like this?

Because the enemy is a subordinate of firearms.

-Because I was treated to some good drinks.

The Ice Palace Lord, as requested by the Sword Dancer, ordered all the warriors around the residence of the drunkard to retreat. Since the Blood King was personally moving, he considered it an unnecessary sacrifice no matter who was guarding it.

Ice Palace Master, who was briefly recalling his conversation with Geommu-geuk, looked at Ian. Ian was standing by the window, looking outside.

She was a woman I was strangely attracted to from the moment I first saw her.

“You said your name was Ian?”

Ian, who was looking out the window, looked back at the Ice Palace Princess and answered politely.

“Yes, that’s right.”

“It seems like the young leader cares a lot about Janelle.”

“Because he was originally a very affectionate person.”

“He is a very affectionate leader of the Demonic Cult.”

“You are watching the birth of a new Cheonmasingyo.”

Ian said it as a joke, but the Ice Palace Master took it seriously. He was the one who restored his relationship with his daughter.

‘As time passes, you may recall today. You may remember seeing the Heavenly Horse when you were a junior sect leader.’

Hanseol asked Ian.

“What was the little leader like when he was young?”

The Ice Palace Lord looked at his daughter. It was the first time he had seen her take interest in someone. He had never been curious about others before. He was really having many new experiences thanks to the Sword Dance Theater.

Ian hesitated for a moment to answer Hanseol’s question.

He wasn’t like that originally. He was a good person, but he wasn’t this good.

That was until the day the Shinma Battle began, when the sword dance suddenly changed as if it had hatched from an egg.

From the moment I returned from my military service, the sword dance drama changed.

That day, Geommugeuk said this.

-I decided to live a different life starting today.

He really kept his word. The sword dance changed, and that change changed everyone around him. Himself, the demons, and the heavenly horse.

I told the two people what Geommugeuk had said that day.

“The Master said this. He doesn’t think that people change little by little. He thinks that when there is a certain trigger, they change completely.”

That’s why I tried to change myself. I tried to be an exception to the saying that people never change.

“I heard you’ve grown up and changed a lot.”

As he answered with a smile, something caught Ian’s eye.

Outside the window, far away, red smoke was rising. It felt ominous. It was definitely smoke sending a signal to someone.

“Oh! There’s smoke rising over there too.”

As if responding to the smoke like a beacon, another smoke began to rise in the opposite direction from afar.

* * *

“I’ll give you a raise next month.”

At the owner’s words, the maid smiled faintly in the kitchen. The maid was a person who couldn’t speak.

But getting this job was the greatest luck in the life of the owner of Bukyang Guesthouse. The food was delicious. He had no major complaints about the treatment. He didn’t make any fuss about quitting anytime soon. He just quietly cooked in the kitchen.

Then the guest said.

“Is there a fire? Look at the smoke over there.”

“Why is the smoke so red? If there was a fire, shouldn’t the smoke be black?”

It was at that time that the owner and his guests were looking at the smoke rising in the distance.

“Oh my, this is a surprise!”

The owner, who had been looking around absentmindedly, was startled. The waitress, who had come out without a trace, was looking at the smoke together with him. He had never left the kitchen during business hours.

“Looks like there’s a fire somewhere over there.”

The maid said to the owner.

“There was no fire.”

The owner and the guests were both surprised by the maid’s words. It was surprising that the maid had left the kitchen, but it was also the first time that he had said something like that.

“Did you know how to speak?”

When he opened his mouth, he felt like a completely different person than usual.

“This is the signal from the master calling us.”

“I?”

It was at that moment that I opened my eyes wide, wondering what on earth the owner was talking about.

Phew!

The maid’s hand pierced the owner’s heart.

“You don’t have to raise my salary.”

The guest who was with her ran away screaming. When the hostess waved her hand, the guest who was running away also fell down with his body torn and bleeding.

The maid looked down at the blood flowing from her hands and arms with a smile.

He took a deep breath, sniffed at the blood, and went outside with his hands dripping with blood.

As he recited the mantra, red smoke began to rise from the blood that fell from his hand to the floor.

It was a smoke that woke up someone else.

* * *

Chwima was sitting on the terrace in the yard drinking alcohol.

There were dozens of bottles of liquor around him, and a large vat. He was drinking with full intention.

It wasn’t the same alcohol. I was drinking dozens of different types of alcohol from the North Sea.

Chwima drank a glass of this wine and that wine. Each time, he evaluated the wine. This wine is good because it is light, this wine is good because it is strong, this wine is good because it is sweet, this wine is good because it is bitter.

Rather than evaluating all alcohol as bad for this reason, I evaluated it as good for this reason.

Then he looked up at the wall and asked.

“Would you like to have a drink together?”

When I arrived, a man was standing on the wall and looking this way.

The man was the Blood King. He was naked and wearing a red uniform. The thick smell of blood revealed who he was.

During my journey from outside to here, I was not disturbed at all. There was no guard. It means that they knew I was coming and were waiting for me.

Behind the Blood King, red smoke was rising from various places in the distance. The tension of the eve of war could be felt from the rising red smoke.

Chwima drank another glass.

“Come here and have a drink.”

The Blood King looked down at the horse without saying a word.

“If you don’t like it, then don’t say anything.”

Chwima drank his alcohol. Even while drinking, his gaze was focused on the Blood King.

Hot and cold.

Cold and hot.

Both of them had eyes that were both hot and cold.

The smell of alcohol and blood.

In this space where two people face each other, two primal scents that stimulate humans are mixed.

Although Chwima acted as if he wasn’t nervous at all, his body was reacting differently. Instinctively, his body tensed up and prepared for the opponent’s attack.

‘They came to kill me.’

The words of the swordsman were right. The mastermind was definitely going after him, and he came looking for him in person.

And today, the Blood King was not alone here.

A dozen or so warriors climbed up to the wall where the Blood King was standing. The person standing right next to the Blood King was none other than the Northern Blood Lord. Those who came with him were the Northern Blood Lord’s most beloved minions.

The Bukhyeolmunju asked Chwima.

“Where did you hide the extreme delay?”

Instead of answering, Chwima reprimanded him.

“Why is someone like the Lord of the North Blood Gate being dragged around by this dirty smell of blood?”

Although it was a word that touched his pride, Buk-hyeol-mun-ju pretended not to hear and asked again.

“I asked where the extreme delay was.”

Then, Chwima answered while drinking his wine.

“Why do you keep asking? Did you leave it to me?”

The Blood Lord of the North looked at the Blood King. After a while, the Blood King spoke in a soft and resonant voice.

“He is not a man who will speak obediently, kill him.”

The Blood King knew exactly who Chwima was. He seemed to be drinking alcohol and laughing, but that alcohol was as strong as his blood. He was definitely not an easy person.

The drunkard said to the Blood King.

“I have a question, can I ask it?”

The Blood King looked at the horse silently as if telling him to try something.

“That self-destruction ball you use, when you explode, does that red head explode too?”

It was a deliberate provocation. I thought he would show some emotion since he was in the presence of the Blood King. But the Blood King’s gaze did not change at all.

‘He’s calmer than he looks.’

Even Chwima felt this way about the Blood King. The opponent was not a murderer who would just run wild. He was the most difficult type of enemy to deal with, who would act hot when he was hot and act cold when he was cold.

Srrrrung!

The one who drew his sword was the Bukhyeolmunju. Since the Blood King had given the order to kill, they had to step forward. Moreover, if the drunken horse were to provoke the Blood King like that, if they just stood by, they could end up being killed by the Blood King.

When the Bukhyeolmunju drew his sword, his subordinates also drew their swords at the same time. Their momentum was extraordinary.

Although they revealed their intention to live, the gaze of the drunkard was directed towards the Blood King.

It is sending them out first, knowing full well that they will be sacrificed.

‘Want to test my skills?’

There may also be an intention to drain one’s internal energy. While he gave off such a strong scent of blood, he was actually a heartless man.

‘That smoke over there! It must be a signal calling someone.’

On the other hand, the Bukhyeolmunju was also ruthless.

I had no choice but to come with him because of the Blood King, but I knew how dangerous my situation was. I was being forced to deal with the Demon Lord.

‘Even if I have to sacrifice all my men, I must survive.’

First, the Bukhyeolmunju gave the order to attack to three of his subordinates.

The three men jumped down from the wall. In any case, the number of people who could attack together was limited. It would be best to take turns in a wheeled battle and weaken the opponent’s strength.

Three warriors approached the horse from three directions.

Chwima was still sitting there drinking.

Phew!

Suddenly, a circle appeared around them and in an instant, they all disappeared into the fog.

I could hear the sound of swords being swung in the fog. I could also hear the sound of flesh and bone being cut, and the sound of neck bones being broken.

Ssssssssut.

When the fog cleared again, Chwima was sitting there drinking.

The three people who had approached to kill the horse were lying dead around them. Since it happened in the fog, no one could see how they died.

“If you like the smell of blood better than the smell of alcohol, I’ll let you smell it.”

The expression on the face of the Bukhyeolmunju hardened. He knew that three people would be hit, but he didn’t know that it would happen this quickly.

Moreover, fighting in fog that completely obscures vision was absolutely disadvantageous.

“Pour out your sword energy and sword power!”

At the order of the Bukhyeolmunju, the remaining subordinates simultaneously unleashed their sword energy. Once again, the cycle obscured their vision.

Shhh shhh shhh shhh shhh shhh!

Only after pouring out a barrage of sword energy did the Bukhyeolmunju stop his attack.

The fog cleared, revealing the mess inside the room. The ground was turned upside down and shattered.

Chwima was sitting on the edge of a broken table, drinking alcohol.

What was surprising was that the drunken horse was not unharmed. None of the bottles of alcohol lying around were broken.

In other words, it means that the drunkard protected the bottle of wine in the midst of the flying black air.

‘Is this possible?’

Not only the Bukhyeolmunju, but the rest of the warriors were also discouraged.

Chwima looked up at Bukhyeolmunju and said.

“Come here and have a drink.”

When no one answered, Chwima drank the entire bottle.

Since the Blood King still didn’t open his mouth, the one who had to deal with the drunkard was the Northern Blood Lord.

“It seems like you’re just trying to buy time, so it would be best not to expect any help from the cult leader.”

“Time is being dragged by you.”

It was a reprimand as to why the Blood King or the Northern Blood Lord did not step forward first and instead sacrificed their innocent subordinates.

“Are you worried? Are you worried that the cult leader will arrive before you kill me?”

Naturally, Bukhyeolmunju was worried.

He felt that the Blood King highly regarded the martial arts of the Young Cult Leader. If he had the confidence to eliminate the two of them together, he would not have let Yang Seok lure the Young Cult Leader away.

“The young sect leader cannot come. He is already in our hands.”

It was a remark meant to shake Chwima’s spirit, but he did not fall for it.

“If that were the case, I would have suggested switching the small group leader and the extreme retard right here and now.”

Chwima was not only more intelligent than anyone else, but also had absolute faith in the art of swordsmanship.

That’s why I even made this joke.

“Don’t worry. The little sect leader always comes to me last.”

The drunk slowly stood up from his seat, holding a bottle of alcohol. It was just a drunk person standing up, but his presence made everyone tense.

“The person you should be worrying about is not the cult leader, but me.”

Even at this moment of tense tension, Chwima drank the entire bottle in gulps.

“I ended up drinking alone because he didn’t give me a drink like you guys and instead brandished a knife.”

The colors of the cycle that had been rippling around the horse’s body began to change.

“I was very drunk.”