The World's Greatest is Dead

It was right after I returned to the family estate.

The luggage was already packed. In the meantime, I had also stopped by the Academy and come back.

The children inside were disappointed when they heard I was leaving, but what could I do? I had to return quickly.

“Is everything packed?”

“Yes, young master.”

The luggage was loaded onto the carriage. As I said, there was not much. My family was broke, so there was not much to take.

“......Once you leave again, young master...... the family estate will grow noisy again.”

“Isn’t it usually the opposite?”

If a lot of people left, it should get quieter. Why would it get noisier? It was absurd.

Of course.

I do know why.

The reason was obvious.

“Aigoo. Little brother......!! Are you leaving alreadyyyyy!!”

The Bang Family wastrel number two was already drunk out of his mind and making a scene. That man was the problem. The Head Steward’s gaze as he looked at him held a faint contempt.

Still, he was family by blood. The young patriarch, even. What was that contempt in his eyes supposed to mean?

It made no sense.

“Aaaah! Do not go......!!”

“.......”

I felt like I understood. No, I already did understand. Holding back a sigh, I kicked off the grip on my pants.

“Guegh!”

My older brother, who had been clinging to my trouser leg, went flying. Seriously, what was I supposed to do with him?

Where is the future of my family?

Nowhere. As if it would have one. At a glance, there seemed to be no answer. I sighed and moved.

“We’ve packed everything we need for now.”

“......Please be sure to look after your health as well.”

“I’ll try.”

That would probably be the hardest thing, but I had to try. What else could I do? I smiled.

The Head Steward looked at me and smiled along. Seeing that, I said,

“When Father comes back, please give him my regards.”

“Understood.”

Whether I liked it or not, he was my father.

I had no idea what he was doing with his life, but I still needed to have the message passed along.

“Will you be leaving now?”

“Yes. We’ll depart immediately.”

In my heart, I should have left as soon as I received the letter, but there were a few things I needed to handle.

As for the Heretic Cult Leader—

I would have to use the information from the Hao Clan to look into him. Whether or not he was the Sky-Crushing Palace Lord, now that I knew the Heretic Cult Leader of Sky-Crushing Palace existed, I needed to understand him.

And once I reach Henan—

I also had to find out what exactly I was supposed to do as an envoy to the Demonic Cult. Thinking about that, I was just about to board the carriage.

“Leaving?”

The scent of flowers came from behind me. I turned around.

It was Mo Yong Yeongsun. She was looking at me with her arms crossed.

“......Yeah. I have to go. I was about to.”

This felt extremely awkward. Looking at her, I had nothing in particular to say.

That was when—

“Right. Take care.”

“Huh......?”

Mo Yong Yeongsun spoke with an entirely casual expression.

“You said you were leaving.”

“Yeah, I am, but.”

It was not as if I was thinking some insane thought like being disappointed she did not try to stop me.

I was just surprised she had come.

“Hey.”

“Hm?”

Mo Yong Yeongsun called me.

“I’m not going to speak politely to you anymore.”

“.......”

What was that declaration? She already had not been speaking politely. How much less polite was she planning to get?

“......Uh, sure.”

“Go.”

“.......”

Did she come here just to say that? Ridiculous. I let out a small laugh and climbed into the carriage.

Then—

Tap!

Mo Yong Yeongsun stepped closer and grabbed the carriage door.

Hm?

“What?”

“Not you.”

Mo Yong Yeongsun was not looking at me, but at Yu Yeon, who sat beside me. Yu Yeon turned her head with a blank expression.

Maybe she had felt the gaze. Yu Yeon and Mo Yong Yeongsun met eyes.

Several seconds passed like that.

“Hmph.”

Mo Yong Yeongsun snapped her head away.

“......?”

Yu Yeon tilted her head at that.

“What was that?”

Bow Ghost, who had been inside, reacted sleepily. Right. This old woman had been riding here too.

Mo Yong Yeongsun stepped back and returned to where the Head Steward was.

I watched her for a moment, then checked around us. It looked like everyone who needed to board had boarded.

“Let’s go.......”

The schedule in Liaoning, which had felt long yet not quite long, came to an end, and the carriage left.

As we departed, I looked at Mo Yong Yeongsun.

Our eyes met through the window.

She smiled broadly.

What was that smile? It felt strange.

Her hand moved in a light wave. It seemed like she was saying goodbye to me.

I watched, debating whether to return it or not.

In the end, I waved back.

And just like that, the carriage left Liaoning.

*****

After several carriages departed, Mo Yong Yeongsun stood among those left behind and stared at them.

She watched them grow gradually farther away, then let out a sigh.

“Idiot.”

What was she supposed to do with that idiot? A man so clever in every other part of the world looked truly lacking in this one.

“What can I do?”

Mo Yong Yeongsun faintly sensed that this was her lot.

As she was thinking that—

“Aigoo, my little brother is leavingggg!!”

“.......”

Bang Yuseong, young patriarch of the Bang Family, wailed. The smell of liquor made Mo Yong Yeongsun subtly put distance between them.

“Young patriarch....... Please calm yourself, young patriarch bastard.......”

“......Head Steward, did you just call me a bastard?”

“You misheard.”

It was chaos. Mo Yong Yeongsun let out a quiet sigh.

“Lady Mo Yong is here, so where on earth is he going! Aigoo!!”

“......Brother Bang. Please calm down.”

Mo Yong Yeongsun stepped in to soothe him. It was a form of address she had not used in a long time. When they were young, she felt as if she had often called him that.

“The Central Plains are such a harsh and frightening place....... And we have to send our Seongyeon there like this.......”

It was true that the place was harsh and frightening. But in Mo Yong Yeongsun’s eyes, Bang Seongyeon was someone who adapted better than anyone. She was not worried about him at all.

“Uuuugh....... I won’t be able to see Seongyeon.......”

Did he like his youngest brother that much? His sister Bang Seojin did not seem to like him quite that much.

“Lady Mo Yong is here, so how could he.......”

He was repeating what he had already said. Her being here was not exactly something that helped Bang Seongyeon. He had only ever run away from her whether she was there or not. What did it matter now?

And.

That was meaningless anyway.

Mo Yong Yeongsun checked the letter in her arms, the reason for what she had almost said earlier.

It was a letter sent from the Alliance.

And it was addressed to her.

The sender was none other than Thousand-Mile Divine Eye.

One of the Alliance’s strategists and heroes had personally written and sent this letter.

Its contents were simple.

The Assembly Hall, huh.

The Assembly Hall that would be opened by the Alliance. It was a request asking her to attend.

The younger generation of the Demonic Cult and the Alliance would gather there, apparently.

“Good.”

Mo Yong Yeongsun nodded.

He kept running away and growing distant. Then what could she do?

I’ll go.

She just had to go herself. This time, she would make absolutely sure he could not run.

Holding that thought in her heart, Mo Yong Yeongsun moved.

“I’ll be going now too.”

“Huh? You’re leaving already? At least have a meal before you go.”

“No. I’m fine.”

She was firm. With Bang Seongyeon gone, there was no reason for Mo Yong Yeongsun to remain here.

Her cold steps carried her straight out of the family estate.

“What a shame.......”

Bang Yuseong, who had been lying on the ground whining, clicked his tongue.

Then he slowly raised himself.

“Head Steward.”

“Yes, Young Patriarch Bastard, sir.”

“You’re not even trying to hide it anymore?”

“Of course I am.”

The Head Steward smiled. Bang Yuseong smiled along with him.

Then the smile vanished from his face.

“Head Steward.”

“Yes.”

The mood changed. Bang Yuseong’s eyes gleamed coldly.

“When did you say Father would arrive?”

“It should take about fifteen days from now.”

“Is that so?”

He rose. The Head Steward’s expression also grew heavy beneath the cold gleam in Bang Yuseong’s eyes. Even the air seemed to turn dense.

“I’m thinking of looking for the bastards who touched my little brother—”

“I will prepare it. What should we do about the Hao Clan?”

“Leave them alone. If we touch them, my little brother will feel disappointed. And.”

Hmmm.

He hummed.

“Heavenly Fist will be paying attention as well. We should make sure there are no problems.”

“Understood.”

“Good.”

Bang Seongyeon had disappeared, and there was work to do. There was also the matter of the Dark Sovereign, but Bang Yuseong did not concern himself with such things.

“Maybe— I should stop drinking for a while.”

It was about time he reduced the alcohol he drank every day.

Bang Yuseong moved his hands. He straightened his disheveled clothes and stepped forward.

One step.

As he took it, his body vanished.

As if he had never been there in the first place.

*****

On the road from Liaoning to Henan, the carriage moved without rest, then made camp once night fell.

At that point, I went out into the forest and swung my sword.

Wooooong—!!

I raised a sword cry and swung the Divine Sword without pause. The traces left in the air made me realize how much faster I had become.

The sword, layered with Radiant Moon Flash Aura, kept moving and moving.

But it won’t reach.

It was difficult to reach the place I wanted. Here and there, every now and then, I felt as if I was touching body-and-sword unity, but it would not last.

Did that mean I needed something more?

[Because you are impatient.]

The Heavenly Demon cut in.

“Impatient?”

[Yes. You know it has not wholly become yours. Yet you insist on reaching it, and that is the problem.]

“......Hmm.”

He was right. It was not mine yet.

When the Heavenly Demon had used my body—back then, I had been chasing the body-and-sword unity he had shown.

But I could not do it.

It was only a downward slash. It was not as if he had shown some extraordinary motion, so why could I not imitate it?

Is impatience really the only problem?

There was no problem with the movement, breathing, or inner qi I used. I used the exact same ratio the Heavenly Demon had shown at the time.

This is hard.

Clack.

I slid the sword back into the sheath at my waist.

Maybe it was a problem of realm.

Only a few months have passed since I reached transcendent peak.

I did not have enough time to climb higher from here. Plenty of people believed transcendent peak was the final destination.

Higher than this?

I could not even imagine it.

I had faced so many monsters and crossed swords with absolute masters, but—

How much more?

How was I supposed to do more in order to reach that place? I was lost in fog.

[I just told you impatience was the problem. Are you not listening?]

The Heavenly Demon let out a hollow laugh.

Hearing that, I scratched my cheek. Right. He had told me not to be impatient.

“I’m sorry.”

[It is fine.]

[Right. It is fine. Perfectly fine.]

I ignored the dagger bitch who subtly cut in.

I loosened my body. It would still take several more days to reach Henan.

If I trained my sword a little more during that time, I might gain something. Right around when I was thinking that—

“My Sky.”

“.......”

Freak Demon appeared.

Ah, I was less startled this time. Fine. At this point, I had expected him to appear.

“What is it?”

I steadied my breathing and looked at him as if nothing had happened. He knelt with his forehead to the ground and spoke to me.

“There are strange presences nearby.”

“Nearby?”

“Yes. In my view.”

Freak Demon lifted his head slightly and said,

“They appear to be Green Forest bandits.”

“.......”

Green Forest.

At those words, my eyes narrowed.