The situation was spiraling into the worst possible outcome.
At any moment, one of the high-ranking officials might once again succumb to the blood of the Plague Demonic Spirit and start slaughtering people, yet we had not even devised a method to kill it.
The demonic spirits were rising everywhere, both within the main palace and throughout the imperial capital.
Soldiers were dying one after another, and only a handful of general-level officers remained.
“I believe heading to the main palace should be our first priority.”
A leader had to remain composed at all times.
Even amidst the severed limbs strewn across the ground and the overwhelming stench of blood, I had finally learned to maintain my composure.
The boy who had once trembled in fear, his hands shaking after cutting down mountain bandits, was gone.
Now, I had to become the general who led military officials.
“What we do know for certain is that the ones who succumb to the Plague Demonic Spirit’s blood are officials ranked Upper Second Rank or higher. Fortunately, we have already restrained all the high-ranking officials behind the podium.”
The gathered individuals turned their gazes toward me.
Some were my adjutants, while others outranked me in the palace’s ceremonial hierarchy, but regardless of status, every one of them was prepared to follow my orders without hesitation.
Having people who trusted and followed me was reassuring.
Yet at the same time, it made me keenly aware of the weight of responsibility.
A single wrong decision here could cost lives.
High-ranking officials would die, soldiers would fall, and perhaps even someone standing in this very place would lose their life.
Only by understanding that weight could I truly lead others.
“For now, Black Princess, please remain here.”
“Me?”
“Yes. The only known condition for a high-ranking official to fall under the Plague Demonic Spirit’s control is being of Upper Second Rank or higher, but that cannot be the only requirement. There must be another factor. Otherwise, I would have already succumbed to its grasp myself.”
“Mhmm… Well, that’s true.”
The Black Princess swallowed dryly before speaking.
“I don’t even want to imagine General Seol falling into the hands of the Plague Demonic Spirit and cutting people down… How should I put it? It feels like there’s no solution.”
“That will never happen, so don’t worry.”
I spoke with unwavering confidence before continuing.
“In any case, we need to further specify the traits of those at risk of being controlled by the Plague Demonic Spirit. We would need someone highly observant, someone who never forgets what they’ve seen, and someone with the agility to rush over and report any new findings immediately, right?”
“…You’re making me sound impressive. It’s a little embarrassing.”
“Black Princess, in this situation, you are not someone who can be easily replaced. Defining the conditions for the Plague Demonic Spirit’s control is very important, so please remain here and analyze its traits.”
It wouldn’t be an easy task.
She might have to examine the corpses of the high-ranking officials I had cut down.
Just looking at them was horrific. For the Black Princess who had lived her life with no connection to the dead, it would be a mentally exhausting ordeal.
Even without me spelling it out, she must have understood the underlying meaning of my words.
With a solemn expression, she nodded before responding.
“I’m not so immature that I’d pick and choose my tasks in a crisis like this. Just leave it to me.”
I gave a firm nod in return before turning my gaze in the opposite direction.
“White Princess, please accompany me to the main palace. We must mobilize all the forces of the Inbong clan.”
“That goes without saying. If I could send a letter, I could gather them quickly, but I suppose that would be difficult….”
“When Adjutant In Ha Yeon collects herself, she will accompany us, and we will also deploy the forces of the Jeongseon clan.”
The White Princess let out a hollow sigh before abruptly turning her head toward the top of Taehwa Pavilion.
At the far edge of the opulent structure, now drenched in blood, sat a young girl. She was kneeling with her head bowed in silence.
Once, she had been the mistress of the Vermilion Bird Palace, a woman who commanded the world. In Ha Yeon.
She was also the very person the White Princess had spent her entire life envying and resenting.
A woman so flawless that the idea of a flaw simply did not exist. The White Princess had fought relentlessly, desperately trying to surpass her.
As she gazed at the kneeling In Ha Yeon with a conflicted expression, the White Princess scoffed.
“Weak.”
Though she spoke dismissively, she must have known how complicated In Ha Yeon’s emotions were at this moment.
After all, her father, Chief Councilor In Seon Rok had never been a benevolent or righteous man.
To seize power, he had never hesitated to employ every political maneuver at his disposal, and even if he had once discarded a person as useless, he was always ready to extend his hand again the moment they became necessary.
He had been a vile opportunist, yet among the people, he was known as a brilliant official who single-handedly reformed the corrupt practices of tribute collection and government appointments.
And above all, he had been a father. A father who had spent his life in constant anxiety over his daughter.
Like most people in this world, he had been neither purely white nor purely black but a man of gray.
When weighing a person’s merits and faults, the scale inevitably tipped one way for some and the other way for others.
Perhaps, when he first stepped into the political arena of Cheongdo, he had been a young man burning with ideals, eager to change the world.
Yet as time passed and he was swept into the currents of the real political world, he had turned gray like so many others. Still, there had been one thing he had never been able to let go of, even until the very end.
For Chief Councilor In Seon Rok, that one thing had been his daughter In Ha Yeon.
That was why In Ha Yeon could do nothing but bow her head in silence, closing her eyes tightly.
“She knows the situation is urgent, so she will need to collect yourself quickly. Until then… Your Highness.”
I swiftly turned my head toward Jin Cheong Lang, the Heavenly Maiden and the mistress of Azure Dragon Palace.
“Th-That’s right. What should I do?”
“Nothing at all.”
“…Huh?”
Jin Cheong Lang stared at me, her expression blank as if struck by lightning.
“Are you saying… I’m useless?”
“Of course not. However, you have already expended too much strength in orchestrating this uprising and subduing the Sun Demonic Spirit. Wielding the power of the Heavenly Dragon on such a scale must have taken an enormous toll on your body. Am I wrong?”
“I am not that fragile. At the very least, until we reach the palace—”
Tak!
I grabbed Jin Cheong Lang’s hand and lifted it. Beneath the folds of her azure robes, her slender arm trembled uncontrollably.
It was not from the cold.
Her already pale skin spoke for itself.
“Considering the situation, it is highly likely that the Moon Demonic Spirit and the White Demonic Spirit have already arrived somewhere nearby. While it may be possible to subdue the Sun Demonic Spirit through sheer force, those two are nearly impossible to deal with without divine power or spiritual power.”
“That may be true, but…”
“Stay here and recover your strength. The soldiers may be well-trained in combat, but they lack divine power and spiritual power. If the White Demonic Spirit or the Moon Demonic Spirit were to launch a sudden attack on the high officials, you are the only one who could stop them.”
Jin Cheong Lang gazed at me for a moment with eyes filled with concern before finally nodding her head.
“You always have a way of saying things that leave no room for argument.”
“That is the nature of reason.”
“Then I have only one thing left to say.”
Among those gathered here, Jin Cheong Lang was the youngest.
Yet, with her unwavering resolve and commanding presence, she appeared more mature than anyone else.
“Don’t die.”
“Understood.”
With that, I turned toward Seol Ran, the mistress of Vermilion Bird Palace.
Seol Ran, the Vermilion Princess.
She had been watching me in silence as I coordinated the situation. Among everyone present, she was undoubtedly the most extraordinary.
I had said it countless times before. So many times that my own ears had grown tired of it—
Not just anyone could be the protagonist of a romance fantasy novel.
It had been over a decade since she fled from the burning Hwayongseol clan.
A long time if long, a short time if short.
We were perhaps the two people in this world who understood each other best.
And because of that, there was no need for unnecessary words between us.
…Even so, there were moments when one had to remain cold and rational.
Seol Ran had been born with an extraordinary disposition befitting the protagonist of the Heavenly Dragon Love Story, but those qualities were meant for a mistress of the harem, not for shining on a battlefield.
She folded her arms and stared at me with a sullen expression as if she were an interviewer trying to gauge what I was about to say.
Countless thoughts sprang to mind.
Ran-noonim, you are destined for a far higher position in the future. If anything were to threaten your life here, it would be a great loss. Please take refuge somewhere safe and observe the situation.
There is no reason for you to head to the main palace and walk straight into the clutches of the demonic spirits. Assess the circumstances first, and only go there once you are certain the emperor and crown prince are safe.
Avoid the battlefield. Instead, quell the unrest among the high officials in areas less overrun by the demonic spirits.
Those were the kinds of words that filled my mind. The usual advice to stay behind the frontlines and prioritize safety.
But against Seol Ran, every single one of them was the wrong answer.
“Ran-noonim.”
As I had said before, there was no need for lengthy conversations between us.
“Will you help me?”
“…….”
“It may cost us our lives.”
At those words, a bright smile spread across her face.
“Of course.”
If I had told her to stay safe, she would have erupted in anger.
That was the kind of woman Seol Ran was.
“Given the situation, I didn’t have the chance to mention this yet… but, Tae Pyeong-ah. Light suddenly started shooting out of my hands.”
“…What?”
“I was ambushed by a lower demonic spirit earlier, and, well… The moment I became absolutely determined to survive, this bluish energy surged up, and before I knew it, I had wiped the thing out in an instant.”
I stroked my chin at her words.
It was an obvious fact by now, but still worth acknowledging. Seol Ran possessed the potential to become the next Heavenly Maiden.
When exactly that potential would awaken was unknown, but I had always believed that one day, without a doubt, she would reveal her true nature.
“It seems Her Highness the Vermilion Princess may have a natural affinity for wielding the power of the Heavenly Dragon.”
Just then, Yeon Ri casually chimed in.
“R-Really…?”
“Most people awaken to the Heavenly Dragon’s power in moments of absolute desperation, when they feel they must overcome a crisis.”
And that insight hadn’t come from just anyone. It came from the former Heavenly Maiden Ah Hyun herself.
Her words carried an entirely different weight since she had already experienced wielding the Heavenly Dragon’s power firsthand.
“C-Could that really be true…? Me, of all people…?”
“If you’re that doubtful, why not ask Her Highness the Heavenly Maiden herself? Azure Princess, when you awakened to the Heavenly Dragon’s power, surely you were driven by some desperate determination. Isn’t that right?”
“M-Me…?”
Jin Cheong Lang who had been quietly listening fell into deep thought.
She seemed to be retracing her memories, trying to recall what had felt so desperate when she first awakened to the power of the Heavenly Dragon.
Then, all at once, a flush of heat rushed to her face. She quickly shook her head and spoke.
“I-It’s a secret. Don’t try to pry too much. That’s insolent.”
“……?”
Whatever the case, one thing was certain. Heading to the main palace was the top priority.
“Warrior Commander, you stay here as well.”
“…Me too?”
“I have to leave all of the court officials behind, so it only makes sense to invest some manpower in guarding this place.”
Brushing off my robes, I rose to my feet.
The damage caused by the Sun Demonic Spirit had mostly healed. Now, it was time to reclaim the main palace and restore order to the capital, which had fallen into chaos.
In the process, I would uproot the demonic spirits completely and put an end to this wretched cycle of reincarnation.
This would be the final cycle.
At that moment, I steeled my resolve.
Fwoosh!
I had thought the rampage of the demonic spirit had been mostly quelled, yet once again, a dense wave of evil energy surged up from Taehwa Pavilion.
Even the brief moment of respite had come to an end.
***
The greatest masterpieces wrought by the demonic spirits—
Moon Demonic Spirit Yoran.
Sun Demonic Spirit Pyeong Ryang.
White Demonic Spirit Ah Hyun.
Each one was a fearsome demonic spirit capable of plunging the country into disaster.
And among them, White Demonic Spirit Ah Hyun, a being that wielded mysterious energies, was now descending upon the skies above Taehwa Pavilion.
Most likely, it was that monster that had caused this terrifying anomaly, twisting night and day into disarray.
Fwaaaaah!
Beneath the blood-red moon looming over the skies of Taehwa Pavilion, a monstrous energy gathered and started swirling ominously. And within that ominous energy, the White Demonic Spirit finally rose again, gazing down upon the world.
Amidst a world soaked in blood, it vividly recalled its previous descent. How it had met a futile death before vanishing without a trace.
But this time, it swore to unleash that mad, twisted grin once more upon a world drowning in carnage.
The moment it tried to turn the world upside down by using the power of the even stronger Plague Demonic Spirit…
In front of Taehwa Pavilion.
There, gripping his sword tightly, stood Seol Tae Pyeong. And the monster’s gaze inevitably locked onto him.
[………]
It had crossed paths with that Vice General in its previous descent, testing its strength against him.
– Even if you’ve taken on Yeon Ri’s form… there’s no way I can hold back against you…!
– But… damn it, I’m only human… My fists lose strength against my will…!
That was the very man who had hesitated for a moment, saying he found it difficult to strike something wearing Yeon Ri’s face before proceeding to beat the White Demonic Spirit senseless as if it were a mutt on the hottest summer day.
To his merciless fists, gender meant nothing. That pretty face had been bruised and swollen in an instant, yet he hadn’t shown the slightest sign of hesitation.
The White Demonic Spirit could still remember how badly it had been beaten, the way stars had burst across its vision, leaving behind nothing but blinding flashes of light.
Even now, just recalling it made its face feel as if it were caving in. The eerie, twisted grin it had worn up until that moment quietly faded.
All of a sudden, its expression shifted. It became rational, composed, and startlingly logical.
[…………………….]
And then, the sinister mist swirling above Taehwa Pavilion gradually began to recede.
– H-Huh? What’s going on?!”
– Wasn’t the demonic spirit supposed to descend again? D-Don’t lower your swords! Stay alert!”
The soldiers who had been in full battle stance were left in stunned silence, unable to comprehend what was happening.
A few moments later, the grand platform of Taehwa Pavilion fell into complete stillness once more.
As if—
As if the demonic spirit had never appeared in the first place.
– W-What…? It retreated…?”
– No, no… Did I miscalculate? Could it be planning something else…?”
Even Seol Tae Pyeong who stood ready with his sword could not hide his bewilderment.
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