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Chapter 298: Listening to Jegal Jinsun (2)

This guy.

Or should I say “girl”?

Anyway, I don’t know much about this person.

Jiegal Jihee.

That was the name I knew for this gal.

The woman with the Jiegal surname.

She had noticeable freckles on her face and a slight squint in her eyes.

But what mattered more than her appearance was the fact that she bore the Jiegal name.

Not long ago, the Jiegal Clan, which was a pillar of the Central Plains known as the Odaesega, was annihilated by none other than the Martial Alliance.

According to the Martial Alliance’s records, the reason for the Jiegal Clan’s destruction was rebellion and blood calamity.

If the once-great Jiegal Clan was preparing for rebellion and bloodshed, then another name could give you some clarity.

“Descendants of the Blood Demon.”

When people spoke of the Jiegal Clan, they referred to them as descendants of the Blood Demon.

Though the Blood Demon himself left no bloodline or descendants.

The reason they referred to the Jiegal Clan as descendants was simple.

They believed the Jiegal Clan had secretly plotted rebellion following in the footsteps of the Blood Demon.

It is said that the Martial Alliance swiftly suppressed them upon realizing this, leading to the Jiegal Clan’s demise.

Chasing after the Blood Demon’s achievements, huh…

Honestly, I can’t understand it.

How could a clan known for being part of the Righteous Faction make such a choice?

I had no interest in understanding or caring about it back then.

Anyway.

As a result, the roots of the Jiegal Clan, the Jin bloodline, were subjected to decapitation.

Now, most of those bearing the Jiegal surname are merely remnants of the clan who barely survived.

And even those have mostly hidden their surname or live forgetting about it.

The only Jiegal Clan members I know are Jiegal Hyeok and Jiegal Jihee.

Of course.

If Jiegal Hyeok is indeed the legitimate grandson of Shin Yi, then Shin Yi likely has some ties to the Jiegal surname as well.

But that wasn’t particularly important to dwell on.

What matters is.

What position will her existence hold in the future?

Jiegal Jihee.

When she appeared, her declaration to the world was to lift the Jiegal Clan’s wrongful accusations and reclaim its lost fame and honor.

Isn’t that amusing?

A descendant of a clan that dreamed of rebellion and igniting bloodshed is now declaring their desire to reclaim fame and honor.

According to her, the claim that the Jiegal Clan conspired with the Blood Demon’s power and achievements to plot rebellion was a false record, but the Martial Alliance was hardly likely to recognize that.

To admit that would mean acknowledging their own blunder.

There was no chance they would do that.

In reality, even if, as Jiegal Jihee claimed, they had no mistakes or blunders…

The current Martial Alliance would not acknowledge it.

That’s a given.

In the middle of it all, the one who stood by Jiegal Jihee was none other than Yuseong Sword Jang Seonyeon.

Though he didn’t explicitly say Jiegal Jihee was right, he asked to trust her abilities and strength.

She aimed to prove herself and assist in reviving the Jiegal Clan.

Whether it was influence from the Yuseong swordsman or acceptance from the higher-ups of the Martial Alliance, they ended up accepting Jiegal Jihee.

The position they gave her was that of a strategist.

Of course, that doesn’t mean she performed her role well.

Sadly.

At the time, it was the era of blood calamity.

The counterpart she was appointed to confront as a strategist was none other than Jiegal Hyeok.

A genius known as the brain of the Demonic Sect and the Heavenly Demon.

When surrounded by three peak martial artists, he managed to escape using only the frail body of an ordinary person, utilizing the terrain and circumstances to ultimately kill all three with his own hands.

That tale was quite famous in the Central Plains.

But against such an opponent, Jiegal Jihee wasn’t particularly an outstanding strategist.

To face Jiegal Hyeok, at least someone of Moyong-hee’s caliber would be required.

But at that time, Moyong-hee was already dead.

Making her an unsuitable comparison.

And while she had low skills as a strategist, her own strength did not go unused.

Moreover.

In the end, she accomplished one significant feat.

The death of Jiegal Hyeok.

That was something she achieved.

From that point forward, the course of the war with the Demonic Sect began to change little by little.

“What the heck, you.”

But really, is this the Jiegal Jihee I’ve been looking for?

If it’s really the Jiegal Jihee I’m after, then…

‘Why does she look like this?’

Why does she look this way?

No matter how I see it, that appearance does not belong to a woman.

‘Is she in disguise as a man?’

I wasn’t sure.

Even if the lines of her body were pretty, there simply wasn’t enough curvature to claim she had a female body.

‘What… what are the chances of future Jiegal Jihee dressing like a man?’

That seemed more plausible. I don’t know why she would engage in such a peculiar act, but the current appearance suggested it.

‘The features.’

Freckles and squinty eyes.

Her appearance wasn’t that different from what I knew.

Cough— “Gulp…!” She seemed to be somewhere around the age of adulthood.

Her voice was thin and soft, but there was definitely a masculine sense to it.

“Hey.”

“Um, um, you’re mistaken…”

“What’s your name?”

“Cough… cough…”

Maybe I was holding too tightly, so I loosened my grip slightly.

“Hmm…?”

“Your name.”

“J-Jisun.”

“Add your surname.”

“”

When I asked for her surname, she couldn’t respond.

I wasn’t willing to wait.

“I’ll give you three seconds. If you don’t answer, I’ll break your arm.” Snap—

“Gulp.”

“E-eh…?” “Three seconds, and you’re already…! I-I’ll answer!” Her panicked response finally made me relax my grip.

“Speak.” “Ch-Cheol Jiseon.”

Cheol, huh.

‘That’s a lie.’

Based on her name being Jiseon, I couldn’t really tell if it was a lie or not, but at least her surname likely had a high chance of being false.

I definitely expected she was using a pseudonym.

“What do you want from me?”

I had to find out what was going on.

“Well… that… I need a belt…”

She must have intended to steal a belt after finding me collapsed and exhausted.

“Hmmm….”

Based on her level, she likely wasn’t that good. The way she moved and the energy she gave off suggested it.

How did someone like her pass the third phase?

‘This can’t be all of it.’ Hiding one’s strength is totally possible.

Just like what I was doing.

Of course, I got caught…

Damn it.

“Hey.” “P-Please, just let me off this once…! I won’t cause any trouble again when I sleep from now on…!”

Such a pitiful action, but could this really be Jiegal Jihee?

I couldn’t act rashly, suspecting she might be faking it.

“Do you have an older sister?”

I had to keep other possibilities in mind.

“Y-yes…?”

“Or a younger sister, perhaps?”

“”

I had to ask the right questions.

Her expression changed at my words.

What can I say, it was closer to the look of disgust than of being caught.

What’s with that expression?

“Why are you asking about that…?”

I |….

！..

…

.

“There is none!”

Upon hearing that, I loosened my grip on her.

“Gulp… gulp….”

Only then did she collapse to the floor and start coughing.

Watching her, I thought.

‘That too is a lie.’

The subtle difference in her breath and energy indicated that her response was a lie.

Whether or not she has a sister doesn’t concern me.

What’s important is.

‘That she’s hiding something.’

That’s good enough.

If she has a secret, whether she’s Jiegal Jihee or not, the chances are high that she’s related to her.

‘If the timing is right, then it’s definitely now.’

Since she said she was with Jang Seonyeon, this has to be the right moment.

Could something have gone wrong?

That’s possible.

I hadn’t memorized the exact timing.

Given the ripple effects caused by my mess-up, the timing could definitely have shifted.

‘But still, I don’t know yet.’

I looked over the one who lay sprawled out.

No matter how I looked at her, she was too feeble to have made it this far in the third phase.

‘Should I turn her into a demon?’

As soon as I thought that, my lower dantian stirred.

As if waiting for this moment.

Honestly, that would be the easiest way to handle things.

But I had to suppress the stirring demon energy.

‘…Not yet.’

For now, it’s best to hold off.

Especially since I was already nursing internal injuries and had bruises; it would be difficult to corrupt someone in this state.

If I were to go that far…

I might end up unconscious for days.

So then.

What’s the other option?

‘There’s got to be a way.’

There was one very straightforward method left.

“Hey, friend.”

“Y-yes? F-Friend?”

I called out as kindly as possible, aligning our lines of sight.

I intentionally knelt down on one knee.

As I made eye contact and smiled brightly, she flinched back slightly.

This wasn’t part of the original plan.

While I didn’t know what kind of person she was, it didn’t matter.

“Shall we be friends?”

I could just get to know her by having her close, right?

Even though I was planning to approach her anyway, it was a bonus that she practically came to me.

I couldn’t let this slip away.

The problem was, when I said we should be friends, she suddenly started crying.

Cough…sniff…sniff…

She seemed to be trying to suppress her sobs, but once the dam broke, she couldn’t stop.

‘…Huh? Why is she crying all of a sudden?’

I just suggested being friends.

Why is this so heartbreaking?

How rude.

I spoke to the sobbing Cheol Jiseon.

“Hey, are you crying?”

“No, I’m… sniff…”

“Wow, you really are crying. Don’t you want to be friends with me?”

“No! No! I do want to!”

“Good, that’s how it should be. Let’s do well together, okay?”

“Yes… yes.”

“Let’s get along? You owe me a favor now.”

“If that’s the case…”

She shivered and took out the belt she intended to steal.

“I-I’ll give this to you…”

“Ah, friend.”

I took the belt she was trying to give and forced it back into her hands.

“Friends don’t take things like this. Do I look like the kind of person who steals from friends?”

“ ”

“Answer me.”

“No, you don’t!”

Her honest answer came back clearly.

I nodded in satisfaction.

What can I say?

It felt like I gained a good friend…. No, a person.

Lucky me.

Really.

 

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