“Demon Commander. Name: Gu Cheonyang. Younger brother of Gu Cheonpa, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon.”

“He’s held the post for eight years now, steadily rising through a mountain of dangerous missions. Under his command, the Demon Corps has become an elite force recognized even outside the sect.”

Seo Daeryong was well-informed about the Demon Commander.

“Sounds like he did a good job.”

“He did.”

“Can I see the letter that came in?”

“Yes, here it is.”

He handed me the letter.

The handwriting was crooked, as if the sender had gone out of their way to disguise their script. The message itself was brutally simple.

—Major corruption within the Demon Corps. Request investigation.

I stared at it for a long while. Eventually, Seo Daeryong spoke.

“Something bothering you?”

“Let’s play with a thought.” I looked at him. “Say there was corruption inside the Yellow Spring Division, and you found out.”

“Would you report it?”

“I wouldn’t.” He answered without hesitation.

“Right? It's not your business.”

“That’s not why.”

“Then?”

“Because nothing would change.”

His reply, so casually tossed out, carried the weight of a quiet kind of defeatism.

“Isn’t the Yellow Spring Division supposed to exist to change the sect?”

“No. We’re the blade used by the people who want change. Not the ones who wield it.”

“So unless the ones up top change, the sect never will?”

“I never said that.”

But his expression clearly did. Isn’t it obvious?
That air of melancholy suited him. He’d always looked like someone who’d seen too much. Pessimism clung to him like a shadow.

“Still, someone sent this letter. Whoever it was, they knew they'd be killed if found out. Just look at how they faked their handwriting.”
“So why send it? Like you said, nothing will change.”

Ian spoke up instead of Seo Daeryong.

“It’s unlikely they did it out of righteousness… maybe they have a grudge against the corrupt party?”

“That makes sense.” I nodded and handed the letter back to Seo Daeryong.

“Either way, we have to find this person. If we seem soft, they’ll never come out of hiding.”

“Agreed.”

“Think you can handle it?”

“It’s not a choice. I was ordered here.”

“I mean, this could be dangerous. The Demon Commander might be involved. You scared?”

“No.”

“You know an investigator died on this case, right?”

“I do. He was my direct senior.”

“Ah.”

“He was the one who trained me.”

There was a quiet sorrow in his voice. Maybe memorizing the names of all 181 Demon Corps members was his way of holding onto that grief—of seeking revenge.

“You miss him?”

“He died so suddenly… it was empty. Senseless.”

“It wasn’t a meaningless death. His death brought you and me to this place. And you should be afraid. These people killed a Yellow Spring investigator—and wiped out his team without hesitation. They don’t leave loose ends.”

“I don’t want to fear scum like that.”

That was the moment I understood him clearly.
He wanted vengeance. That small body held a rage too large for its frame.

“Alright then. Let’s begin.”

I was just [N O V E L I G H T] stepping outside with Seo Daeryong when Ian caught up.

“Young Master! Please take me with you.”

She clearly knew how dangerous this was.

“No. This is an official mission. Take this chance to rest.”

She needed distance from me.
As we walked away, Ian looked after us with worry in her eyes. Then she glanced around, suddenly confused.

I had sent a gentle flow of qi behind me to brush her hair once.
Don’t worry, Ian. I walked a long road for days like this.

 

****

The Demon Corps’ barracks—Marong Hall— were located in the western district, beyond the sect’s main grounds.

Fitting for an elite unit, the compound was massive and well-equipped.

When I arrived at the gate with Seo Daeryong, two guards stepped forward to block our path. True to their reputation, they were massive—easily twice the size of an average man.

“State your business.”

“Seo Daeryong, Special Investigator from the Yellow Spring Division. Step aside.”

He was small, but firm.

Still, the two guards didn’t flinch. If anything, they looked amused.

“Special Investigator? Doesn’t look very special.”
One of them muttered it under his breath—but just loud enough for us to hear.

Before either of us could respond, the other guard spoke up.

“No entry without clearance from above.”

Seo Daeryong held up the official writ.

“Here’s your clearance. This order comes from above.”

“Wait here. We’ll report it.”

“We’ll speak to your superior ourselves. Move.”

I remained behind him, watching how he handled it.

“I told you—no entry without permission.”

“This writ is the permission!”

Their voices rose.

“What the hell is this? You come here, you follow our rules!”

“What did you just say?”

Without pause, Seo Daeryong drove his foot into the man’s shin.

Thud.

“Ugh!”

The guard grabbed his leg and raised his fist.

“You little shit!”

Seo Daeryong didn’t flinch.

“You’re going to strike a Yellow Spring Investigator?”

The man froze. Even the most arrogant Demon Corps goon knew what that meant. Hitting a Yellow Spring officer meant prison—immediately.

“Tch. What, do I break this little runt and pay the fine?”

That summed up the Demon Corps nicely.

Then again, it wasn’t just them.
The entire sect was full of people who lived without restraint, who acted only on their own impulses.

We had no path.
Maybe once we did. But now? Now we had lost the Way of the Demon.

No one questioned why we existed in the martial world, or what our goal was supposed to be.

If someone were to accuse our sect of being nothing more than a den of violent beasts clinging to the delusion that brutality equals truth… I don’t think I could argue.

Seo Daeryong raised his voice again.

“Step aside!”

“Wait for our superior to arrive!”

They refused to move.

This was the world Seo Daeryong lived in.

—“Nothing changes just because you send a letter.”

His standoff with those two brutes, with that small frame of his, was a perfect reflection of our sect’s reality.

I watched in silence. Then I stepped forward.

“Do you know who I am?”

Even then, their arrogance didn’t waver.

“We do.”

 

“You don’t seem to get it. Or worse—maybe you do know who I am and still decided to act like this?”

Before the last word left my mouth, my leg snapped forward and struck the man without mercy—not in the shin, which would’ve solved nothing, but somewhere far more vital.

Thwack!

“Aaaaaugh!”

He clutched his groin and collapsed, writhing on the ground like a worm on hot stone.

“You really wanna talk about compensation while I’m standing right here?”

The second guard, clearly panicked, didn’t get a chance to react before my fist drove straight into his face.

Crash!

The massive body dropped with a single punch.

Seo Daeryong stared at me in disbelief.
He clearly hadn’t expected I’d beat down the Demon Corps gatekeepers so openly.

“What are you waiting for? Lead the way.”

“Y-yes, let’s go.”

Seo Daeryong stepped ahead, and I followed behind.

News must’ve spread, because before we even made it to the main building, a whole group of Demon Corps soldiers had gathered and blocked our path.

“Move!”

When no one budged, Seo Daeryong raised his voice, holding out the writ.

“You see this? This is a formal investigation order. You’re obstructing an official operation. Want to rot in prison?”

No matter how loud he shouted, they only sneered.
His small frame made them even bolder.

Then the crowd parted, and a man walked out.

“So which bastard’s causing trouble here?”

“Special Investigator Seo Daeryong. Identify yourself.”

“I’m Go Dang, First Captain of the Demon Corps. That enough for you, you little shit?”

Seo Daeryong discreetly sent me a voice transmission.

—This man is the real power here. Known as the most vicious among the Demon Corps.

Go Dang must’ve noticed his lips moving.

“You suicidal rat. Whispering to your buddy right in front of me?”

Just like the thugs at the gate—arrogant and unchecked.
But of course they were. The Demon Corps was a nest of loyalists who supported my older brother.
The Demon Commander himself—Gu Cheonyang—was under the patronage of the Blood Heaven Blade Demon, who in turn stood behind my brother.
That’s why they dared ignore me so openly.

“Captain Go, I am here on official orders as a Special Investigator of the Yellow Spring Division. Watch your mouth.”

Seo Daeryong didn’t flinch, even in front of Go Dang.

I like this one.

After dealing with the scum spawned by the Blood Heaven Butcher, seeing someone like Seo Daeryong was like a breath of clean air.

Go Dang’s eyes narrowed.

“Watch my mouth? Or what?”

“Obstruction of investigation and insulting an officer of the Yellow Spring Division. That’s enough to have all of you arrested.”

“Arrested?”
He burst out laughing. Loud, mocking, and contagious.

His underlings joined in, as if the idea were the best joke they’d heard all year.

“Go ahead, try it!”

Even if we'd brought enforcement officers, these bastards would've acted the same.
Seo Daeryong glanced back at me—his hands were tied.

Time for me to step in again.

“Captain Go, it’s been a while.”

I strode forward, smiling like an old friend, and reached out as if to shake his hand.

“When did we last meet? Was it at that banquet? It’s good to see you again.”

He didn’t look happy to see me.

“I’m afraid we urgently need to speak with the Demon Commander. I’d appreciate it if you could set the bravado aside and let us through.”

Without waiting for a reply, I walked forward with him.
A path opened up—just like that. Seo Daeryong and I walked in, still clasping hands as if nothing had happened.

Go Dang’s men looked baffled.
Compared to how he’d started, he was letting us pass far too easily.

We parted ways at the staircase.

“Next time, drinks on me.”

We began to climb, and Seo Daeryong turned to me, still wide-eyed.

“You know Go Dang personally?”

“Nope. First time meeting him.”

“Then how…?”

“He’ll be eating with his left hand for a while. I broke his hand during that handshake.”

“What?”

Seo Daeryong nearly shouted.

Of course he was shocked. I’d just broken a Demon Corps captain’s hand without even making a scene.

“I didn’t notice a thing. But why didn’t he order his men to attack?”

“Because that would’ve exposed him. Imagine the humiliation—‘my hand got crushed during a handshake.’ No way he risks that in front of his men.”

That wasn’t the only reason.
The moment I crushed his hand, he almost struck back—
But I sent him a voice transmission right away:

—Act up, and you’ll never use that hand again.

I’d gripped it hard enough to finish the job right then and there.
He remembered what I did to the Blood Heaven Butcher’s disciple. That fear stayed his hand.

“Still, Go Dang’s the kind who’ll hold a grudge.”

“And if he does?”

“He’ll try something. Retaliate, somehow.”

“Then he’ll die with his skull cracked open. That’s a prophecy.”

Seo Daeryong gave me a new look—equal parts surprise and awe.

“Respect me a little more now?”

“You’re… different than I imagined.”

“Go on. Say it.”

“Your temper is…”

“Worse than you expected?”

“…”

“You don’t lie, do you?”

“That’s why people hate me.”

“Sometimes, what one person hates is exactly what another person likes.”

Seo Daeryong studied me for a moment, then changed the subject.

“The Demon Commander’s office is on the seventh floor. Let’s go.”

“Seven? What’s with all the stairs. Fine. Let’s move.”

And so we began our climb to the top.