The joy of finally reuniting with Jegal Se was short-lived.
After hearing the situation from Eurius, Jegal Unhyeon’s expression turned serious.
“Hmm… As far as I know, there are no typhoons at this time of the year. It’s a strange thing.”
“Have you heard any news about the others?”
“Unfortunately, I haven’t received any contact yet. I’ll send someone to the base as soon as we get back.”
“Please do that. I survived, but I’m worried about some of the weaker ones.”
Jegal Unhyeon thought for a moment and then smiled again.
“Hwayeong and that kid, as well as the others who came with us, are all outstanding talents. They have a high chance of being alive. For now, you should go to the Alliance of Justice. I’ll guide you.”
He led Eurius and his group slowly from the front.
The place they entered was a small coast where the sea was visible.
“This is the base of the Alliance of Justice that was dispatched this time. We were planning to sail to the South Sea soon.”
Eurius felt a presence for a moment and his eyes sparkled.
‘Indeed… I can feel an extraordinary aura, but?’
Jegal Unhyeon, who noticed his thoughts, explained.
“You are sharp indeed. You can assume that half of the main force of the Alliance of Justice is gathered here.”
“Well, it’s understandable since it’s Lee Cheongmun’s legacy… It must be an incomparable treasure in the Eastern Continent…”
“That’s right.”
The two people who were chatting at the front made the masters of the Alliance of Justice and Gu Cheon-geol who were following behind them look incredulous.
“Master? That guy who is famous for being rude even in Jegal Family is our master?”
Gu Cheon-geol muttered as if he was bewitched.
The one he knew as one of the four great masters of the Eastern Continent, Jegal Unhyeon, was not someone who would act so friendly even in front of Baek Hakgeomseon, the leader of the Alliance of Justice.
As proof, that damn guy was still turning his head and talking down to him, who was a senior master.
“You also joined our master’s side because you lost a bet, right?”
“Of course not.”
Jegal Unhyeon smiled brightly. It was obvious that he was holding back his laughter.
“Don’t you know the saying that you should serve someone who has a connection with you? My family has some kind of fate with our master.”
We are different from you who came under him by chance!
That’s what he meant.
Gu Cheon-geol had no more strength to be surprised or angry, and he slumped his body.
‘Out of all the prestigious families in the continent, why did Jegal Family have such a relationship with him… That bastard… No, what is the identity of that damn master?’
Eurius, who was watching their conversation, opened his mouth curiously.
“You seem to have a considerable connection with each other. What kind of relationship do you have?”
“You can think of it as a business rivalry.”
“Business?”
“Information.”
“Ah!”
Eurius nodded his head.
According to Jegal Unhyeon’s explanation, Jegal Se and Gu Cheon-geol were competing with each other in terms of information within the Alliance of Justice.
“Of course, if you look at it comprehensively, the family with more powerful masters has a slight advantage, but Gu Cheon-geol also has its strengths.”
Although they had fewer masters, Gu Cheon-geol was a group of almost 100,000 beggars.
They were unmatched in collecting and analyzing the trivial information that floated around the continent.
“Hooh.”
Eurius agreed as if it made sense.
Gu Cheon-geol didn’t like being compared to a bunch of ragtag beggars by numbers, and he snapped back.
“Hmph! Is that why you couldn’t predict the attack of Majo and even got your precious base raided?”
“Haha! We were careless this time.”
“…”
‘Ugh, I should have chewed him out for that.’
Jegal Unhyeon passed it off so skillfully that Gu Cheon-geol had nothing else to say.
They murmured.
Meanwhile, the four late-stage Jisu and the experts of Jeongdomang who were following behind them had their mouths wide open.
To their eyes, the two people who had a high reputation in the martial world were bickering like children next to Eurius.
“Did Jeong Chang Jegal Unhyeon, the great master of Shinchang, ever act like that to anyone?”
“And didn’t he call him master? What is the identity of that foreigner…”
Jegal Unhyeon was one of the four great masters in the martial world, excluding Magyo.
He was also famous for being elusive and rarely appearing in front of people.
‘If he is so respectful to that person, he must have an extraordinary status.’
‘And that weird old man who is famous for being eccentric is also following him obediently(?). What is his identity?’
Receiving countless gazes from behind, Eurius entered the base of Jeongdomang.
The experts who were guarding the place greeted Jegal Unhyeon warmly.
“You’re back. Wasn’t it an attack from Magyo?”“It seemed like Magyo, but he took care of them so we didn’t have a chance to do anything.”
“…!?”
Looking at their bewildered expressions, Jegal Unhyeon looked back at Eurius.
“I think it’s important to inform the leaders of Jeongdo Alliance about your existence if you want to join them.”
“That would be good. I’m sick of being misunderstood by now.”
In fact, Eurius knew almost nothing about the martial world. He had managed to find his way here while being involved in various troubles.
Jegal Unhyeon, who guessed that well, first guided him to a fairly large two-story building in the center of the village.
“This is where the leaders of Jeongdo Alliance gather. The deputy leader of Jeongdomang, who is leading this alliance, is also here.”
“You’re not the leader of this place?”
Eurius asked with a curious expression, and Jegal Unhyeon shrugged his shoulders.
“I like wandering around, so I don’t have much influence in Jeongdomang. Usually, people who have both background and skill sit in these seats.”
That meant that there was someone who matched Jegal Unhyeon’s skill in this room.
Following his guidance, Eurius went up to the second floor of the building and found out who was the owner of the intense aura he felt when he first entered the village.
There were two people sitting in the room drinking tea.
One of them had shaved his head bald.
He greeted Jegal Unhyeon happily.
“Namu Amitabul. Jegal Master has returned.”
Jegal Unhyeon also briefly introduced him to Eurius.
“Master, this is Jiwoo Sunsa from Sorim.”
“Hmm… Is he similar to a monk of the Order? Anyway, nice to meet you.”
As he said that bluntly, Jiwoo was not offended but slightly flustered.
“…!?”
[Jiwoo]
Job: Monk, Peak Expert
Strength: S Agility: S Intelligence: B+ Spirit: A+ Force Aptitude: A+ Force: S
Disposition: Calm, Gentle
[Traits]
Fist Technique (S+), Staff Technique (S+)
“Jegal Master? Who is this?”
Looking at Jiwoo’s slightly flustered expression, Eurius calmly evaluated him.
‘He’s not the one. He’s strong enough not to lose to any superhuman, but he’s not a superhuman.’
Then it was obvious that the person sitting next to him was the one who had the strong aura when he entered the village.
The person sitting next to Jiwoo Sunsa was a tall and burly middle-aged man.
He looked at Jegal Unhyeon with a puzzled expression and opened his mouth.
“Unhyeon, who is this foreigner?”
Jegal Unhyeon smiled brightly and looked at the middle-aged man.
“He is the master that my sect serves.”
“…!?”
“Namu Amitabul?”
A moment later.
The middle-aged man who had jumped up from his seat looked at Eurius and Jegal Unhyeon alternately with a doubtful expression, even after hearing a brief explanation.
“Haha, I didn’t know that this lord was such a person. It’s a great fortune for the martial world to have another reliable ally at this time.”
Master Jiwoo, who had a good relationship with Jegal Unhyeon since childhood, smiled and sat down again.
He didn’t think Eurius was a villain.
But the middle-aged man still looked dumbfounded.
“This bastard… I mean, this young master is your lord?”
“That’s right. Oh, I forgot to introduce him.”
Jegal Unhyeon introduced the middle-aged man to Eurius as well.
“This person is Namgoong Ilcheon, the head of the Namgoong family and the deputy leader of the Righteous Alliance. He and I have been friends since we were young.”
Eurius nodded his head.
‘So he’s the deputy leader? He’s a Grandmaster.’
[Namgoong Ilcheon]
Job: Grandmaster
Strength: S Agility: S+ Intelligence: A Willpower: A Force Aptitude: A+ Force: S+
Disposition: Righteous, Firm
[Traits]
Swordsmanship (S+)
Changgung Sword Technique – The secret sword technique of the Namgoong family. You get an additional bonus to your swordsmanship rank.
Lightning Strike – A 4th stage force control technique. You change your force into the attribute of lightning. You get an additional bonus to your agility and force rank.
The intense aura that Eurius felt was from this person.
“Nice to meet you, Eurius.”“…”
Namgoong Ilcheon shook Eurius’ hand, but the overall atmosphere in the room was awkward.
He didn’t know how to act in this situation.
He looked at Jegal Unhyeon with a nervous expression.
“So this young master is also coming with us to the South Sea?”
“Of course.”
“And you can’t tell me his identity or background?”
“I can’t tell you the details, but you and I are not strangers, right? And Jegal family guarantees the lord’s safety.”
“Hmm…”
Namgoong Ilcheon made a troubled expression.
He trusted Jegal Unhyeon personally, but he was the deputy leader of the Righteous Alliance.
He couldn’t fully trust an unknown bastard. But he couldn’t ignore their words either, since they were from the Jegal family.
And Jegal Unhyeon, who belonged to the same group of great masters, had a lot of influence as well. It was a headache for him.
He decided to postpone the decision for now and sent them away.
“Wait for a moment. I have to hear from the kids who came back this time and Koo Cheon-geol senior first.”
The decision was temporarily delayed, but as he left the temporary office, Jegal Unhyeon opened his mouth in a calm tone.
“He’s a fair person, so he’ll listen to your words and allow you to accompany us.”
Eurius felt a bit drained.
He had been doubted as soon as he explained himself, but the matter was easily resolved by Jegal Unhyeon’s simple guarantee.
‘It seems that reputation and power are important in both continents. I have to pay attention to that if I want to act in the East Continent.’
He hadn’t cared about that until now, because he had been an emperor or crown prince, which were high statuses in the West Continent. But when he came to the East Continent, he realized that his status in the West Continent wasn’t very helpful.
“That’s good, but there’s something you need to explain to me.”
“What is it?”
As they headed to the residence of the Jegal family, Eurius opened his mouth with a tired expression.
“Please explain to me about the Righteous Alliance and the Dark Sect. It would be more reliable if you do it.”
“You must have had a hard time.”
“It’s more difficult than I thought because of the cultural difference.”
“Of course. The martial world has different values from the West Continent.”
Of course, Eurius had caused trouble for himself because of his way of speaking rather than just cultural difference, but Jegal Unhyeon decided to keep quiet about that.
“It’s strange for someone who is already a crown prince to change his way of speaking now.”
Je Gal Woon Hyun, who had suppressed a laugh for a moment, opened his mouth to explain.
“First of all, have you heard of the four great masters of the Eastern Continent?”
“Vaguely. Are they the superhumans of the Eastern Continent?”
“That’s right.”
According to his explanation, there were four martial artists of the fourth level in the Eastern Continent, excluding the Dark Sect.
The leader of the Martial Alliance, White Crane Sword Sage Shin Ja Seong!
The head of the Namgung Clan, Thunder Dragon Namgung Il Cheon!
The strongest of the Je Gal Clan, Divine Spear Je Gal Woon Hyun!
Upon hearing this far, Eurius couldn’t help but be slightly surprised.
Je Gal Woon Hyun was a master who was almost on par with the great masters who were ranked in the top three in the Western Continent.
“You’re only ranked third? You don’t look much different from that Namgung guy to me.”
Je Gal Woon Hyun gave a bitter smile.
“Of course, the order I mentioned is just their external reputation. There’s not much difference between Il Cheon and me. But there’s a significant gap between us and the leader or the other absolute masters of the Dark Sect.”
If there were four great masters in the orthodox sects, there were also three masters in the Dark Sect who matched them.
“First of all, I heard that you killed Sura Ma Jon.”
Sura Ma Jon, who was the third-ranked absolute master of the Dark Sect, had crossed over to the Western Continent a while ago under the orders of the sect and met his end at Eurius’s hands.
Eurius nodded his head with a grim expression.
“He was a tenacious bastard. But you’re saying there are two more who are much stronger than him?”
“That’s right. They are none other than the leader and deputy leader of the Dark Sect. In fact, no one can fight them one-on-one except for the leader of the Martial Alliance, White Crane Sword Sage.”
At this point, Je Gal Woon Hyun sent a meaningful smile.
“Wait! That’s not true anymore. You’re here too.”
‘Hmm… I’ll have to see them to know for sure.’
Eurius had also surpassed the normal standards of superhumans after obtaining the secret technique of the empire, but he couldn’t tell the outcome without actually fighting them.
‘Anyway, it seems that the level of the Eastern Continent is generally higher than that of the Western Continent.’
As he watched him shaking his head repeatedly, Je Gal Woon Hyun opened his mouth again.
“Actually, you might have that opportunity this time.”
Eurius understood right away.
“One of them came down here because of this legacy thing.”
“That’s right. The deputy leader of the Dark Sect came down. The Martial Alliance was planning to send me and Il Cheon to deal with him.”
That meant that two martial artists who were almost at the level of great masters had to attack him at the same time to have a chance.
He was not an opponent that Eurius could be complacent about.
“Deputy leader, you said? What’s his name?”
Finally, from Je Gal Woon Hyun’s mouth, the name of the most powerful enemy he would face this time began to emerge.
“His name is Byuk Ok, also known as Ice Flame Sword Demon. He is a fearsome master who is called the best sword in magic.”