The World's Greatest is Dead

Sword Queen.

She was the master of my older sister, Bang Seojin, and a person currently hiding her identity while acting as one of the younger generation.

Well, she seemed to have all kinds of circumstances, but they did not have much to do with me.

I had not been paying much attention to her, since I did not talk much with my older sister either.

I never expected to run into her here.

Especially not in this situation.

What is this? Should I at least greet her?

I hesitated.

We had even made eye contact, so just sitting still felt a little awkward.

Just as I thought that and started to rise slightly—

“There happens to be a seat.”

Sword Queen spoke with her gaze turned toward me.

Seeing that, I froze.

It seemed like a signal telling me not to come.

No, it was definitely that.

What is this?

Puzzled, I sat back down.

Then I looked at the other side.

I tried identifying each person one by one, but none of them seemed familiar.

What kind of gathering is this?

Since they were made up of younger-generation members, I wondered if they had gathered to prepare for the Assembly Hall.

There was probably a high chance of that.

So.

Why was Sword Queen mixed in among them?

...And does that mean one of those people is one of the Eight Demons?

According to Bow Ghost, that seemed to be the case, but no matter how I looked, I could not tell.

And on top of that—

It is strange to call that a younger-generation gathering, too.

Their ages were all over the place.

There were some people mixed in who were too ambiguous to simply call members of the younger generation.

Who is it?

Who among them was the person Bow Ghost had mentioned?

I was trying to identify each one.

Meanwhile, Bow Ghost was excitedly shoving food into her mouth.

She could at least tell me something.

But it seemed she had not the slightest intention of doing so.

I will deal with you later.

The woman was unnecessarily irritating.

I sighed and quietly wrapped myself in energy.

Should I release my energy sense?

If they were just younger-generation members, I would have done it without hesitation.

But Sword Queen was there, and so were the others.

I looked with my eyes, but I did not feel any Sky-Crushing Palace energy in particular.

Then would I be able to see anything else?

Unfortunately, nothing entered my eyes.

They were people without any particular distinguishing features.

As I said before, if it had not been strange for Sword Queen to be among them, they would not have been worth paying attention to.

Hmm.

I quietly ate.

Just as I thought I should watch their reactions for now—

“Innhand. Bring us some food.”

One of the men in the group spoke and sat down at the table.

I was watching them when—

Hm?

One person’s movement caught my eye.

It was one woman.

Among the ordinary movements of simply sitting down, I caught a small clue.

“Ha.”

“Hm?”

Bow Ghost reacted to the sound I made.

“What is it?”

“Nothing. Keep eating.”

I had noticed.

Even if Bow Ghost did not tell me, I knew now.

It is that person.

A woman mixed in among the group.

I looked at her and became certain.

One of the Eight Demons.

I felt as though I knew who it was.

*****

After finishing the meal, I came outside with Bow Ghost.

“Were you not curious?”

Bow Ghost asked as soon as we came out.

She seemed to be asking whether I was not curious which of those people was the Demonic Cultist.

“I am not curious. I already know.”

“What?”

I already knew, so there was no need to be curious.

At my words, Bow Ghost looked startled.

“You already know?”

“Yes. I noticed.”

“H-how?”

She panicked.

How did I know?

“Do you know this?”

“Know what?”

“Most humans have habits.”

Whatever they may be, there are habits people carry no matter what.

I had never seen a human without them.

“No matter how much most people hide their identity and pretend otherwise, something is bound to show. And I am fairly good at seeing things like that.”

“You mean...?”

“Fortunately, I have seen the Eight Demons before.”

In the past, I had seen them in Henan.

The ones that bastard called the Young Cult Leader had brought along.

Back then, I saw them.

The way the Eight Demons moved, their mannerisms, and the features of their breathing.

It did not matter that they had been wearing martial uniforms and masks.

Fundamental habits were ultimately rooted deep, and differences were bound to show.

Were there people who could hide them?

Sure, there were.

But—

It does not seem to be that one.

Fortunately, she seemed to be on the side that could not hide it.

To begin with, people who could hide even such minute things were the strange ones.

“You really noticed?”

Bow Ghost looked deeply flustered by my reaction.

I really had noticed. Did she not believe me?

“Why?”

“Yes?”

“Why, why did you notice?”

“...Am I not supposed to notice?”

I noticed because I realized it.

Why was she asking why I noticed?

That was a new kind of thing to say.

What was this? Why was she acting like this?

I stared at her in confusion.

Ah, no way.

“...Were you planning to get another meal out of me by telling me?”

“...”

“That is it. You are seriously ridiculous.”

How could someone be this petty and cheap?

When I stared at her in disbelief, Bow Ghost reacted as though wronged.

“W-what did I do! If you had fed me properly on time!”

“What kind of insane nonsense is that? The person who has eaten the most around me is you.”

“Eaten? Eaten!? You ill-mannered brat!”

“Ill-mannered, my ass. Looking from the outside, who do you think looks ill-mannered here? And I am the one feeding you, so what is with that attitude? Do you not want to eat?”

“...Grrr.”

Bow Ghost had nothing to say and ground her teeth.

This situation was truly absurd.

No wonder she had not been talking.

It was because she wanted to get more food out of me?

There was insane, and then there was this.

Is she really possessed by a starving ghost?

I wondered if I should perform a ritual or something.

Should I really do it?

I was not exactly used to gentlemanly methods like rituals.

I was more familiar with beating things to death.

I let out a sigh.

“...Stop being so greedy. We are in Henan now, so I will feed you often.”

“Oh... oh. Truly?”

“No, but seriously, Senior. Do you really not have money?”

She was Bow Ghost.

If nothing else, did she not have some money piled up somewhere?

Why was she eating off me every day?

When I asked in confusion, she said,

“...Right now... it is a little difficult to take it out, that is all.”

“Difficult to take it out? Why?”

“T-there are circumstances. Just wait. Once I get my body back, this shame and humiliation—and everything I have borrowed from you—I will repay it all...!”

That was really hard to believe.

As if I would believe that.

“Yes, yes. Understood. I believe you.”

“...You do not look like you believe me.”

“Of course not. I believe you. I do.”

“You... youuu.”

Bow Ghost’s face reddened.

Was she upset?

What was she going to do about it even if she was?

I gave a hollow laugh.

“That is enough. Let us go back.”

I lightly ignored Bow Ghost’s reaction and moved my feet.

There was no reason to stay in the county town any longer anyway.

People are starting to watch us, too.

I could feel the gazes of the people following us.

That had also been one of the reasons I had not approached the group in the inn earlier.

*****

I moved to return to the main Alliance headquarters, and as soon as we arrived, I turned back and said,

“I am back now, so you do not need to keep following me.”

“...”

I felt a presence behind me at my words.

It was a martial artist wearing a pure-white martial uniform.

I did not know his name.

“...My apologies. I did not think you had noticed.”

He was the martial artist who had followed me since I left the main Alliance headquarters.

Still, I had left him alone because I felt no malice.

“They called you the future of the orthodox faction and the Azure Moon Sect. It seems those words were true.”

“You overpraise me. I am just a little quick to notice. May I ask your name?”

“I am Tae Munhak.”

“...Master Seven Dragon Fist.”

“Thank you for recognizing me.”

“You would be hard not to know.”

Seven Dragon Fist Tae Munhak.

He was a unit leader of the main Alliance headquarters and a famous master of the orthodox faction.

He was also an outstanding martial artist whose epithet even I knew.

“What made you follow me?”

“It was for the purpose of guarding you. If that offended you, I apologize.”

“Guarding me... If someone requested a guard, was it the strategist?”

“...That is correct.”

“Hmm.”

Thousand-Mile Divine Eye assigned a guard to me?

He was not the kind of person who would go out of his way to order something like that.

Something is going on.

I realized something had happened.

Once my thoughts reached that point, I nodded.

“Will you still come even if I say it will not be necessary from now on?”

“It is an order, so I ask for your understanding.”

“So there is no way around it. I understand.”

I nodded.

That did not mean I was actually understanding about it.

I bowed my head to Tae Munhak and moved.

“Senior, go play somewhere.”

“...It feels as though you are telling a little child to go outside and play.”

“You understood me. As expected, you are smart.”

“You brat.”

Teasing Bow Ghost was becoming more and more fun.

At her reaction, I laughed lightly.

Now then, enough teasing.

I have to move, too.

Tae Munhak was in the way.

So I needed to use another method.

*****

I entered my room.

A little time passed after that, and it was around night.

Just as darkness slowly began to fall, I moved.

Before that, I took out one talisman and wrote letters on it with my blood.

I scrawled several strokes and infused it with energy.

Using that, I rolled it up, placed it in a leather pouch, and tossed it onto the bed.

Then—

Now.

I went outside.

I saw a few guards.

“Oh. Young Master Bang.”

“I am going out for a walk.”

When I said I was heading outside, no one stopped me.

Of course they would not.

Nominally, there was no reason to stop me, and since someone was already approaching, they probably thought it was fine.

Getting out into the county town was very easy.

As expected, someone followed me.

Tae Munhak.

It was probably him.

I could not drag a unit leader around with me.

I roughly headed into an alley and killed my presence.

I reduced my energy sense and erased my presence as well.

Then I attached another prepared talisman to the wall and moved.

“...!”

I felt a presence turn urgent.

It was Tae Munhak.

By the time he arrived in the alley, I was already gone.

“This is...”

I heard his low groan.

I stared down at him from the top of a building.

I could not watch him for long.

He will detect my presence soon. Should I run while I can?

I moved immediately.

As expected, I could not maintain it for long.

I had to finish my business before Tae Munhak found me.

Whoooosh—!

I moved quickly.

I had to find the other party, too.

Where are they?

The person I had met earlier.

Where would that person be?

I did not need to circle around for long.

They would be inside the county town anyway.

I was certain of that.

And before long, I was able to find the group.

“Found them.”

A distant inn.

Inside it, I saw the people I had seen earlier gathered together.

I stared at them.

I had no intention of going in.

Because—

“...Do you have some business with us?”

I had expected the person who noticed me first to approach.

Sure enough.

Sword Queen.

She had come up beside me.

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