Chapter 227: Epilogue (2) |
Seol Young used his footwork to change his direction in the air. However, as he was trying to land safely, he strayed a little and brushed past this mother and daughter walking from the other side.
The candy the child was eating fell to the ground and shattered into pieces, and Seol Young’s face went pale.
“Sorry! Sorry!”
He fell flat right there and apologized.
The mother and child were both taken aback.
“Ah, no. You don’t have to.”
“Seol Young!”
Baek-Song-Wol rushed over. After helping Seol Young stand up, they gave the child sweets, said goodbye and smiled.
“It’s okay. Everyone makes mistakes in life. Usually, things are resolved if you sincerely apologize and compensate for the damage.”
Seol Young nodded with a red face. Although there were minor accidents, they managed to reach the right place while camping happily and caught demons along the way.
The White Tiger Spirt Troops Hwarangs and trainees all went to the village in Mount Song. The atmosphere was unusual.
The roofs and walls of each house were densely fenced with thorns, and strong men with clubs glared at each other.
“We heard rumors of demonic beings harassing poor people. What is happening?”
To Baek Eon’s question, the villagers answered with concerned faces.
“At night, the henchmen of the demon come and take the women of the village one by one. More than 10 people have been taken away and are being held in the fort on top of the mountain.”
When they looked up at the top of the mountain, there was an iron fortress. All the surrounding trees were pulled, and the rocks were polished to make it look like a tower one couldn’t climb.
Even from this distance, the Yin-Yang plaque was trembling.
“…”
The faces of everyone changed.
They had thought they could simply deal with a single demon collectively, but the situation was more serious than they had anticipated.
Baek Eon calmly said,
“Everyone must be angry at it, but never lose your reasoning and move carefully. A demon of that level would require us to be at our best.”
“Hwarang trainees. First, do not advance tonight and protect the village.”
At the earnest pleas of the villagers, the troops borrowed clothes to disguise themselves and blended in with the crowd.
‘Try taking these people.’
A girl from the village cautiously asked Seol Young, who looked trustworthy.
“Trainee, my family doesn’t have drinking water. Could you accompany me to the well?”
“Yes, of course!”
Seol Young moved as an escort to the girl. And seeing how she was still shaken, he noticed her trembling hands drop the gourd into the well, and he quickly stepped ahead and said,
“Give it to me. I will do it.”
As Seol Young was fetching water, suddenly, there was a flapping sound in the air.
Here they come.
Seol Young immediately drew his sword and swung it. But the demon’s henchman was so fast that it attacked before he could blink.
Unexpectedly, the target was not the girl but Seol Young himself. It seemed to have misunderstood, seeing him fetching water.
‘Is this one out of his mind?!’
Seol Young was enraged and tried to stab it in the heart, but then, a thought came to his mind.
‘This idiot, not knowing anything, is trying to capture me. It’s actually better this way. It would be difficult to sneak into that fortress. I’d rather stay captured and work from the inside.’
Seol Young sent determined glances to the trembling girl, indicating to play along, and allowed himself to be captured. This winged demon flew in the night sky and then dropped Seol Young in the middle of the fortress, surrounded by rocks.
“Oh my! Someone else was caught!”
“Look who it is!”
The women who had been captured earlier rushed over, crying.
But upon realizing that this time it wasn’t a young girl or a villager, they were surprised and stepped back.
“Who is it?”
Seol Young silenced them with a gesture and pointed to his sword.
The women immediately recognized him.
“Oh my! Miss! You got caught!”
“Come to unnie!”
The women were smart enough to understand and changed their words as they covered Seol Young with a blanket and took him to their living place.
“You aren’t even a kid from our village, so how did you get caught?”
“I am a trainee of the White Tiger Spirit Troops.”
Seol Young’s answer surprised the women. They rubbed their eyes and looked at him again. It seemed strange that despite being captured, he remained calm.
Even in the dim light, his handsome face seemed truly befitting of a Hwarang.
“So you are a trainee?
“Yes. Of the White Tiger Troops.”
Seol Young made sure to emphasize it again. If it was a normal trainee, even if they succeeded in infiltrating, they would have a hard time.
To Seol Young, who had served as an elder back in the past, this place was as clear as looking into the palm of his hand.
After getting a familiar idea, he looked at the women, and they all had flowers in their hair and light straps on their shoulders.
“Is there a feast in here?”
To Seol Young’s question, they answered with fear-stricken faces.
“Not a feast, but something called To Heavens? It was said so.”
“The demon dares to imitate a ritual for sacrifice?”
“Yes, every day.”
Seol Young secretly peeked at the demon.
It was a huge creature, as if a few people were combined into one, with tough skin like steel and sharp iron pieces protruding from its armor.
He couldn’t figure out what it was, but it smelled like a wild boar.
In the past, he might have prepared for a rough battle, but now the situation is different.
“My hyungs are right down there. When we get out of the fort, hide in the mountains and send a signal. They will come running. If my hyungs come, then this all ends.”
“Yes, trainee.”
At Seol Young’s confident words, the women nodded.
Seol Young took out a pill to subdue demons from his plum blossom patterned bottle, which every White Tiger Troop member had, and asked for a drink.
“Now, let us all be calm.”
Everyone followed Seol Young’s instructions and prepared the food calmly, as usual.
Eventually, the henchmen of the demon came to hold the sacrifice. After drinking alcohol and eating meat, they began to fall one after another.
Seol Young led the women, then.
“Enough now. Where is the passage you spoke of earlier?”
“This side!”
The path through which the carts were loaded with offerings. It was the only exit.
Seol Young and the women hurried there.
“Do not make a sound…”
When everyone was moving slowly and were about to open the heavy gate…
Bang!
Suddenly, there was a tremendous roar, and the gate shattered from ahead. Beyond the thick dust were three shadows.
Seol Young was shocked.
“Hyungs?”
“Seol Young!’
Baek Eon, Song Ok, and Hyo Wol rushed in and hugged Seol Young.
“Are you fine? Are you all right? Any injuries?”
Seol Young asked with a puzzled look.
“Weren’t you waiting at the bottom of the village? Hyungs don’t have wings, so how did…?”
“I don’t know! You got taken away, how can you even ask that now? Where is that demon?!”
Seol Young waved his hands even more confused, and he blinked hard, unable to understand how his plan of intentional capture didn’t strike his hyungs.
The demon and his henchmen were getting their senses back. Realizing what happened, they rushed in.
Baek-Song-Wol came ahead as if waiting.
“Is it you who caught our youngest? How much suffering has the child endured at such a young age, yet you dared to kidnap him again!”
In a fit of rage, the three pulled out their swords and attacked.
-Never lose your reasoning, and move carefully.
The Great-rang must have said something like that…
Seol Young frowned, but when he saw the demon’s club flying towards Baek-Song-Wol, all thoughts vanished instantly.
“Hyungs!”
He also drew his sword spirit and rushed ahead. The demon was completely surrounded by the light of the swords pouring in from all four directions.
It was like when they first met. When Seol Young led his hyungs to the swamp.
The four of them misunderstood and confronted each other, but at some point, in front of a strong opponent, they always got together.
Just like now.
Puak!
The body of the demon was simultaneously pierced by four swords.
“As expected!”
A bright smile appeared on the face of Seol Young.
“What?”
Baek San asked, unable to believe it.
“Did you climb a cliff-faced fortress, which was heavily carved out, without a foothold?”
“Yes. We relied on ropes.”
Baek Eon said, showing the rope and how they reached such a height.
“Strange.”
Beside Baek Eon, Song Ok and Hyo Wol swung their swords at the rock.
But not even half of it broke.
The two boys muttered in confusion.
“Weird. It worked then.”
Baek San was shocked
When Seol Young vanished, they must have rushed ahead using their full force, but they couldn’t do it now.
Even if they were told to do the same now, they couldn’t.
They had demonstrated superhuman abilities to rescue their youngest.
‘They cannot be stopped.’
Seeing Baek San shook his head, the four of them asked,
“Did we do something wrong?”
“No, no. You did well. You did well.”
He glanced behind them, and there was this cart with demon on it.
This time, the White Tiger Troops cut off everything that could let the demon rise again. And his first mission, which the former ‘Ghost Demon King’ did, was done.
Baek San looked proud.
He proudly took the kids to the palace and reported about it.
“No, how can just four boys do that?”
“Did they use sorcery?”
Baek-Song-Wol-Young heard what the people were talking about. The four of them were angry and turned their heads.
“What sorcery? It was done out of love.”
“If you don’t know, stay out of it.”
As they walked out of the palace side by side, the four brothers held hands as promised. Through their tightly held hands, a warm bond was conveyed.
This feeling would never change.
The four of them looked at each other and smiled warmly.
