Chapter 12: Chapter 12
Manhwa: Chapter 10
First sword approached after hearing the scream of the Gok Soo-chang. He looked at the Gok Soo-chang lying around while holding on to his broken wrist with cool eyes.
The First Sword's gaze quickly turned to Pyo-wol.
"Did you do this?"
"Yes."
Swing!
In an instant, a sharp sound resounded. When Pyo-wol saw that something was glinting up in front of his eyes, a sword was imperceptibly drawn pointing at his neck.
Pyo-wol's shoulders trembled.
Even with his eyesight, he could not catch the moment when the sword was drawn.
It was a terrifyingly quick sword.
It was Pyo-wol's first time witnessing how a human could draw a sword and wield it so quickly after seeing the First Sword skills.
It was a mind-blowing feeling.
As he perfectly adjusted to the darkness, Pyo-wol thought that he had already become a pretty strong person. This is because he has the ability to see what other children cannot see with their own eyes, and is one step ahead of them.
The First Sword's quick sword shattered his arrogance into pieces.
He realized that the skies are high and there are many more stronger people in the world.
Pyo-wol does not know how strong the swords are as compared to the others in Jianghu. However, he knew that assassins were not treated as human beings in Jianghu.
The real masters of Jianghu said that they can break large rocks with just one swing of their hand. Even if you hit it high, it didn't seem like the single sword had reached that level.
But even such a single sword could kill Pyo-wol as easily as an ant if the First Sword made up his mind.
The sword that was now touching his neck proved that fact. A cold sweat ran down the back of Pyo-wol.
First sword applied strength to the sword that touched Pyo-wol's neck. Pyo-wol clenched his fists involuntarily at the cold feeling that penetrated his skin. Those eyes without any emotion were crazily terrifying.
'Am I going to die?'
For the first time, Pyo-wol remembered the word death. At this moment, in his eyes, the First Sword appeared to be a reaper. The god of death who has the right to decide his life or death.
Pyo-wol bit his lip until it bled.
'Did I make a mistake?'
He thought that if he wounded the Gok Soo-chang, they wouldn't punish him. Because that's what they've done so far.
They decided that what they wanted was only a useful tool, and that the life and safety of the children were not so important, so he acted like this.
'No, I'm not sure yet.'
Pyo-wol tried his best to maintain a calm expression. If he revealed his anxiety, he decided that they might swing their sword in disappointment. The pressure applied to the neck grew stronger and stronger. At this rate, the sword will soon pierce through his flesh and enter his muscles.
Jureureuk!
Blood gushed out from Pyo-wol's lips.
The sword pressure came in through the neck and hurt his internal organs.
That was then.
The pressure on his neck disappeared like a dream. First sword had quickly withdrawn. He said as he put the sword into its sheath.
"An assassin leaves no traces under any circumstances. Breaking the wrist like this and leaving a mark is no different from telling the opponent your military power and identity."
"Keep in mind. Never leave a mark."
Pyo-wol could not easily decide how to respond. So he remained silent. Because he knew that sometimes silence is more effective than giving out a ten-word answer.
Perhaps he liked Pyo-wol's reaction, the First Sword turned around without saying anything more.
In an instant, Pyo-wol was about to let out the breath he had been holding back.
'No, not yet. I must not relax.'
Fortunately, he gave out a good look so he passed, but he didn't know what kind of reaction he would get if he showed a relaxed appearance.
Pyo-wol kept his nerves sharp for a long time.
* * *
Gok Soo-chang eventually died.
It was an underground cave where it was difficult to survive even with the best physical condition.
The other children did not leave Gok Soo-chang alone, who had broken one arm and could not use his strength properly. Just as Gok Soo-chang did to Pyo-wol, the other children also aimed at Gok Soo-chang under the guise of training.
For the first time or two, he somehow managed to survive a difficult incident, but the situation was not easy enough to survive without injuries.
In the end, Gok Soo-chang could not survive the attacks of the other children and died. The death of Gok Soo-chang has alarmed many children.
It's okay to attack other children, but if they get hurt, they'll be beaten up by others.
Pyo-wol also watched Gok Soo-chang die.
And because of that, he treated the children more harshly.
He looked around with keen eyes.
Now was the time to practice the Turtle Breathing Technique to hide their presence.
First, they use the terrain to hide their body, and then they spread the Turtle Breathing Technique to hide their presence.
The essence of the Turtle Breathing Technique is to artificially stop most of the vital functions by slowing the heart rate as much as possible. The natural body temperature would drop and become like a dead person.
They are not dead, but they are in a state similar to that of a dead person.
Once you spread the Turtle Breathing Technique you will never be able to detect any uninhabited person. However, the extent of mastery is different.
Being well versed in the Turtle Breathing Technique, means learning the trick of understanding your body.
Even the seemingly perfect Turtle Breathing Technique had one drawback.
It is a feeling of discomfort that cannot be described in words.
In particular, the more vital it is, the deeper the sense of disharmony.
Because the human body is forcibly made to resemble a dead state, foreign parts inevitably stand out in a lively place.
For that reason, even if the same Turtle Breathing Technique were used, those who did not have enough experience would inevitably be detected.
Thud!
Geum Pyeong suddenly stabbed the floor with a knife.
"Kugh!"
Suddenly, someone came out yelling. It was a child who had been caught hiding since his eardrums stood out. A sword of Geum Pyeong was stuck in his shoulder.
"If I were an enemy, you would already be dead."
"Kargh!"
The child couldn't even make an excuse and clenched his teeth.
A look of anger was evident on his face.
Obviously, he did his best to practice the Turtle Breathing technique, but he's' angry that he's been exposed like this in vain.
Geum Pyeong passed by such a child and looked for the next prey.
Thud!
Every time he stabbed something with a knife, the children who were practicing the stealth technique came out wearing scars.
There are five children hiding in his area. Four of them were already caught.
Now there is only one last person left.
"Hm..."
Geum Pyeong looked around with sharp eyes.
He believed he could catch the last one soon. Although his legs were paralyzed, his eyesight and sense of detection were more developed.
He mobilized all of his powers to find the remaining child.
However, as time passed, no traces of the child were found anywhere.
'Is he not here?'
After coming to the underground cavity, he opened up all his senses wide for the first time. However, no trace of the last child was found anywhere.
No matter where he looked, there was no sense of incongruity.
'What?'
For the first time, a puzzled expression appeared on his face.
It might not be possible to find a person if they reached the peak of the technique. But he couldn't believe that the children here had already reached that level.
He looked around again closely.
Instead of looking around, he tried to find a place where he felt a sense of incongruity by mobilizing all his senses. However, no matter how hard he tried, there was no place where he felt uncomfortable any longer.
'Aren't you hiding somewhere else?'
Eventually, he doubted that the last child who was missing was here. But he knew best that that couldn't happen. The children were aware that those who break the rules will be killed.
It was inconceivable that such children would break the rules and leave this place.
Geom Pyeong wandered several times in search of the last remaining child. But he couldn't find the last child at all.
Eventually, he gave up looking and opened his mouth.
"I can't find you, so you can stop and come out now."
As soon as he finished speaking, the ground shook right next to where he was standing.
...!!
'He was hiding this close to me!'
Geom Pyeong was astounded.
The fact that he couldn't find him even though the last child was right next to him frightened him.