Light Novel: Volume 21 Episode 24
Manhwa: N/A
The Sol Family Courtyard quickly fell into Pyo-wol’s hands.
Upon realizing Pyo-wol’s identity, Sa Do-won gave up any thought of resistance.
The Reaper and the Hundred Wraith Union.
It was truly the worst combination imaginable.
For the assassins living in the assassin sects, it was nothing short of a disaster.
Pyo-wol, the one hailed as the greatest assassin in the history of Jianghu.
The Hundred Wraith Union, the strongest among the assassin sects in Jianghu.
Encountering just one of them meant no guarantee of survival, let alone both together.
It was clear from the situation that Pyo-wol had taken control of the Hundred Wraith Union.
Even the Hundred Wraith Union, unparalleled in the world, had knelt before Pyo-wol. So, the idea of the Sol Family Courtyard standing against him was unthinkable.
In the end, Sa Do-won and his members swore allegiance to Pyo-wol.
“Sa Do-won swears allegiance to the Reaper.”
We swear allegiance.”
Their voices resounded strongly throughout the Sol Family Courtyard.
Pyo-wol looked at them and then spoke.
“I will stay in the Sol Family Courtyard for a while. Cooperate.”
“Of course. We will serve you to the best of our abilities.”
Sa Do-won bowed his head and answered.
Pyo-wol’s gaze then turned to the Elder Assassin, who nodded as if understanding and said,
“I will take care of the rest. Please rest comfortably, my lord.”
“Hmm!”
Pyo-wol nodded and went inside.
Following him were Hong Ye-seol, Do Yeonsan, and others.
After they all disappeared, the Elder Assassin approached Sa Do-won.
“You are Sa Do-won, correct?”
“Yes, my lord!”
Sa Do-won respectfully replied.
Seeing Pyo-wol entrust the Elder Assassin with responsibilities, Sa Do-won intuitively knew he was no ordinary figure.
The Elder Assassin continued,
“I am the Elder Assassin. As you can see, I am old and nearing retirement, but fortunately, I met the Supreme Leader and am realizing a great dream.”
“And what is this dream?”
“To unify all assassin sects under heaven!”
“Under heaven?”
“Yes, the whole world!”
Sa Do-won’s eyes widened.
It was a scale he dared not imagine.
He was just a small-time assassin sect leader, taking small jobs to get by.
He had somehow become an assassin and then the leader of a sect.
For him, the idea of aiming for dominion over all assassin sects under heaven was something out of a dream.
“Re… Really? Are you saying that the Supreme Leader plans to unite all the assassin sects in the world?”
In disbelief, he asked again.
The Elder Assassin’s response was firm.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Good heavens!”
“You and the Sol Family Courtyard are lucky. To be among the early ones to join— you understand what that means, right?”
“Of course I do. It’s an honor to be part of the Supreme Leader’s journey.”
“Both the Sea Hawk Clan and the White Moon Group have already sworn allegiance to our lord.”
“Ah!”
His heart suddenly began to beat wildly.
Pyo-wol wasn’t just doing lip service and talking about unifying the assassin sects, he was actually taking action and actively pursuing it.
Sa Do-won knew there was a big difference between joining at the start and just adding a chopstick to an already set table.
He bowed to the Elder Assassin, saying,
“Please just give the command. Even if you order me to take the mane of the Underworld King, I will follow it.”
The Elder Assassin patted Sa Do-won’s shoulder.
“That’s a good attitude. The Supreme Leader will stay here for a while, so start working on making this place a fortress.”
“Understood. Just issue the command. I will trust and follow you, Honored Elder.”
“Honored Elder?”
“If the title displeases you, shall I use another?”
“No, it sounds good. Honored Elder. It’s a fitting title for an old man like me, close to retirement.”
“Then I will continue to call you Honored Elder.”
“Do so. Now, let’s start by organizing the interior of the Sol Family Courtyard.”
“Understood.”
The Elder Assassin issued instructions, and Sa Do-won listened attentively.
* * *
The Sol Family Courtyard was already located on a naturally fortified terrain.
The Elder Assassin transformed it into an even stronger fortress.
He was deeply knowledgeable in mechanisms.
Among his assassination targets, there were many who protected themselves with intricate trap devices. Having to breach these mechanisms to complete his missions naturally led him to study them, and over the years, he developed exceptional expertise in this area.
In just three days, the Sol Family Courtyard was transformed into a formidable fortress, yet nobody outside knew of this fact.
During these three days, Pyo-wol stayed secluded in his quarters, but not a single person held any complaints.
Sa Do-won and the members of the Sol Family Courtyard had fully accepted Pyo-wol as their ruler.
The nights at the Sol Family Courtyard were exceedingly dark.
That was because there were no nearby houses, and it was precariously situated atop a cliff.
Anyone who came to the Sol Family Courtyard without knowing of its existence was apt to wander in the dark and fall off the cliff.
All those currently inside the Sol Family Courtyard were accustomed to the darkness.
This was because, except for Do Yeonsan, Eunyo, and Nam Shin-woo, everyone was an assassin.
They possessed the ability to see through even moderate darkness without needing to light a fire.
That’s why they didn’t bother lighting fires even at night.
There were those who watched the Sol Family Courtyard engulfed in darkness.
Wrapped up so tightly that their age and even gender were indiscernible, these individuals stood atop high trees, gazing at the Sol Family Courtyard.
Despite the strong wind that made the branches sway as if they were about to snap, they did not show the slightest bit of instability.
After watching the Sol Family Courtyard for a while, the three people suddenly exchanged glances.
“He’s there.”
“Does he really deserve it?”
“We’ll have to see now.”
The three exchanged unintelligible words.
Normally, they hardly had any interactions.
It had been years since they had come together like this.
All this was because of one man.
The man staying in the Sol Family Courtyard, Pyo-wol.
The three of them looked at each other for a moment, and then scattered.
Ssssh!
Although they moved in different directions, their destination was the same: the Sol Family Courtyard.
Thunder Eye1 was one of the three who had gathered today.
He had a real name, but it had been so long since he used it that he had almost forgotten it.
That was why instead of his real name, he went by the nickname Thunder Eye
He liked the nickname Thunder Eye.
He was called Thunder Eye because his eyes were as intense as lightning strikes, emitting a powerful aura.
Revealing such a clear characteristic was typically a disqualification for an assassin, but the fact that he survived as an assassin for so long was a testament to his skill.
Thunder Eye was an assassin.
And not just any ordinary assassin.
He was a member of the Hundred Wraith Union.
Within the Hundred Wraith Union, he belonged to the Ten Blood Assassins.
He only accepted one assignment per year.
No matter how much gold he was offered, he refused to take on any other assignments. The reason he was able to become a member of the Ten Blood Assassin was because of his extraordinary prowess.
In terms of completing assassinations, none of the Ten Blood Assassins could match him.
No matter what the assignment or the circumstances, he would be able to complete it.
He also harbored great pride in himself.
He usually had no interest in the internal strife or power struggles within the Hundred Wraith Union.
He thought that as long as he was paid well for his assignments, internal affairs didn’t matter. So, when Hong Ye-seol killed the previous union leader and became the new leader, he did not pay much attention.
After all, they were all part of the same Hundred Wraith Union.
His relationship with Hong Ye-seol was not bad, and more importantly, he knew she wouldn’t bother him just because she had become the leader.
His principle was firm.
He only took one assignment per year.
As long as it did not conflict with his principle, it didn’t matter who became the leader of the Hundred Wraith. As long as it was someone from within the union.
Three days ago, he received a message.
Not only him, but all the Ten Blood Assassins received the same news.
The leader of the Hundred Wraith Union had changed again.
His initial reaction was to curse.
“No way! How could the union leader change again so soon after she took over?”
The position of the leader of the Hundred Wraith Union wasn’t something so trivial that it could be changed so easily.
Moreover, the person who became the leader this time was the Reaper.
He could understand Hong Ye-seol becoming the leader. After all, she was originally an assassin of the Hundred Wraith Union. But Pyo-wol was different.
He had nothing to do with the Hundred Wraith Union.
Even though he was known throughout the Jianghu as the Reaper, his origins were completely different from the assassins of the Hundred Wraith Union.
‘The Elder Assassin must have lost his mind. Even if he’s the Reaper, how could he acknowledge him as the leader of the Hundred Wraith Union?’
He could understand Hong Ye-seol, but accepting Pyo-wol as the leader was out of the question.
Even if Pyo-wol had reached the pinnacle of assassination, accepting him as the leader of the Hundred Wraith Union was a different matter. Therefore, he had come all the way here to check Pyo-wol out for himself.
It just so happened that the place where he was hiding was not too far away.
‘Bloody Rain2 and Death Shadow3 must be thinking the same as me.’
The two who were with him just a moment ago were also among the Ten Blood Assassins.
Bloody Rain and Death Shadow.
They, too, had come all the way here to see Pyo-wol for themselves.
Bloody Rain had an equally unique disposition as Thunder Eye, and Death Shadow was known as the owner of a formidable assassination technique, enough to be called the shadow of death.
All three of them were top-notch assassins among the Ten Blood Assassins.
In terms of assassination skills alone, they were so skilled and formidable that even Hong Ye-seol could be considered inferior.
They only had one reason to come here.
And that was to ascertain whether Pyo-wol was qualified to be the leader of the Hundred Wraith Union.
There was only one way for an assassin to test another assassin’s skills.
Direct assassination.
If Pyo-wol couldn’t fend off their ambush then he did not deserve to be the leader of the Hundred Wraith Union.
While Thunder Eye did not expect that Bloody Rain and Death Shadow would join him, he didn’t want to make any concessions to them.
Whoever ambushed and subdued Pyo-wol first would be recognized as the foremost assassin in Jianghu.
Although he wasn’t particularly interested in the position of leader of the Hundred Wraith Union, he coveted the title of the best assassin in Jianghu.
Thunder Eye executed the Traceless Assimilation4 stealth technique.
The Traceless Assimilation that he executed, as the name suggests, is a stealth technique that leaves no trace and blends with the surrounding scenery.
No one could detect him once he employed this stealth technique.
He would produce no sound, no presence.
He even controlled his body temperature to deceive the senses of those on guard.
The current guardians of the Sol Family Courtyard were the Black Assassination Squad.
Direct subordinates of the leader of the Hundred Wraith Union.
Their senses and martial prowess were beyond imagination.
Being an assassin himself, Thunder Eye knew the capabilities of the Black Assassination Squad better than anyone. His confidence in using Traceless Assimilation unhesitatingly stemmed from his own confidence in his skills.
In fact, even as he infiltrated the Sol Family Courtyard, no one from the Black Assassination Squad noticed.
Thunder Eye’s eyes sharply scanned the surroundings.
What appeared to be an ordinary wall was actually five assassins of the Black Assassination Squad hiding.
They were watching without a single gap, but they were still human.
Blind spots that go unnoticed always exist.
Thunder Eye exploited those blind spots.
As he infiltrated the Sol Family Courtyard, his senses picked up two stealthy movements.
‘Bloody Rain and Death Shadow.’
Thunder Eye immediately recognized their identities.
Just as he had stealthily infiltrated the Sol Family Courtyard, they too had successfully scaled the wall.
All that remained was to locate Pyo-wol’s residence.
Thunder Eye did not know the layout of the Sol Family Courtyard.
Ordinarily, he would have thoroughly studied the structure to determine a clear route to infiltrate. However, he had rushed over so quickly that he hadn’t had time to research the interior of the Sol Family Courtyard.
Nevertheless, Thunder Eye wasn’t too worried.
This wasn’t his first experience with such a situation.
The interior structure of a large residence like the Sol Family Courtyard was mostly similar. And the master’s quarters were usually located in a similar place.
The largest and most ornate building in the residence.
The biggest room in that building was usually the master’s quarters.
Although Pyo-wol wasn’t the original master of the Sol Family Courtyard, having taken over, he would be staying in the master’s quarters.
‘There!’
Thunder Eye quickly identified the building where Pyo-wol was likely to stay.
As if to prove his suspicions, an unusually large number of Black Assassination Squad members were positioned around it.
That was where his target was.
A prey named Pyo-wol.
Swoosh!
A crescent-shaped odd-shaped sword was drawn from his waist.
It was the Thunder King Blade,5 a unique weapon of his.
Thunder Eye, with the Thunder King Blade in hand, slipped into the building.
At the same time, Bloody Rain and Death Shadow also made their moves.
LUNACAVE
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