Chapter 768: Not a Proposal, but a Request.

“Holy King-nim!”

“Holy King-nim!! Please look this way just once!!”

“Kyaak! He really looked! His eyes are scary!”

“…”

The piercing sounds and all sorts of noise combined were enough to make my head ache.

“Holy King-nim!”

“Holy King-nim–!! Please hold my hand just once!”

The people surrounding me from all sides. They enveloped me in a wave of heat, sending continuous cheers.

The level of those cheers was quite intense.

“Holy King-nim–!”

“No, no, I need to get through, so could you please move….”

“Our hero!”

“Fuck’s sake.”

They weren’t touching me directly, but there were so many people that I couldn’t move forward.

At this rate, I had no idea how long it would take to reach the Alliance.

Should I push them aside or shake them off and fly away? Such a thought flashed through my mind for an instant.

“Holy King-nim…!! Thank you so much back then!”

“Thanks to you, I was able to save my mother…! Thank you, thank you so much….”

“…”

Seeing the people who approached me saying thank you, I couldn’t easily move my hands.

‘Tsk.’

What should I do? Just as I was about to ponder deeply.

“Holy King Oppa!”

Oppa…?

At the unexpected title, I shifted my gaze slightly and saw a young girl waving her hand nearby.

She was riding on the shoulders of someone who appeared to be her father.

“Hi Oppa!”

“You brat…! What kind of disrespectful talk is that to the Holy King-nim…!”

The father panicked at the girl’s tone and tried to stop her, but the child just smiled with the innocence unique to her age.

Who was it again?

Ah, I remembered.

It seemed to be the father and daughter I saved while passing by.

They had remained in my memory.

Recalling their appearance then, I chuckled and said.

“Hey, are you listening well to your dad?”

“Yes!”

“Good, keep listening well for the rest of your life.”

Though I was terrible at listening myself.

Since they weren’t too far away, I reached out. I placed my hand on the small head and patted it a few times.

This is quite strange.

‘I didn’t think there’d be a child who wouldn’t cry after looking at me.’

Usually, when babies made eye contact with me, they’d cry unconditionally. This one seemed different.

The way she stayed still under my touch resembled someone quite a bit.

It was like seeing Wi Seol-ah when she was young.

‘Even though she’s younger than Wi Seol-ah was then….’

As I continued petting her a few more times, as if it didn’t matter, the father started speaking to me.

“Back then… thank you so much. Holy King Daehyeop.”

“Uhm… yes….”

I laughed awkwardly. That damn nickname still hadn’t sunk in.

I expected I probably wouldn’t get used to it for my entire life.

It was the same with Jinryong and Soyeon-nim.

“…Thank you. If it weren’t for you, Daehyeop. My daughter and I back then…”

“It’s fine. I just happened to be passing by.”

I had to spread my ki and manage the numerous people. As I said back then, it wasn’t a matter of ‘saving’. It was cleaning up after the mess I caused.

“No. Not only did you save us, but you even remember us.”

I had to let out a hollow laugh at the man’s words.

“What’s so difficult about remembering?”

As I spoke, I pointed at someone with my hand.

“That elder over there by the window, isn’t that the one from the pharmacy?”

“Huh…? Ah, yes… th-that’s right.”

The elder answered, startled, as I pointed at him.

Hearing that, I pointed at someone else with my hand.

“That one over there… is the auntie from below the Sangjeon Merchant Guild building. Next to her is the uncle I saw at the Pungwon Blacksmith… And…”

One by one.

I pointed out the ones I remembered as I recalled them.

“That elder over there is….”

I froze mid-sentence. It was because the more I did it, the stranger the atmosphere felt.

“…What is it? What’s wrong?”

Why are they all making that face?

“…You… remember everyone.”

They looked genuinely moved.

Seeing that, I started breaking out in a cold sweat.

Why are they acting like this? Seriously.

‘I remember because I saw them.’

I don’t remember them perfectly, I just pointed out the ones I recalled. Is that enough to warrant such a reaction?

“…As expected… Daehyeop truly…”

As they were about to say more with touched expressions, I immediately waved my hand.

“Ah, that’s enough…! Everyone seems to be doing well. Now, please move aside. I need to go….”

“Daehyeop is our hope…!”

“Holy King-nim…!!”

“Seriously, fuck’s sake.”

It seemed like this wasn’t going to end anytime soon.

So, I ended up having to use a bit of my ki to break free.

‘And I’m not even feeling well.’

Tsk! Just as I was about to leap away after a short click of my tongue.

“Move aside-!”

Suddenly, a loud voice came from behind.

“Everyone, move aside!”

Everyone’s attention turned towards that voice.

“Ugh!”

People started getting pushed back as if by force. Through the gap that was forcibly created, a group appeared.

Clothes of sky-blue martial attire interwoven with white embroidery. Their appearance indicated they were personnel from the Murim Alliance.

Normally, people would have kept their distance or been delighted just to see them.

“…It’s the Alliance?”

“It’s people from the Murim Alliance.”

The expressions of those making way for the martial artists were not good.

Some still looked pleased, but the majority wore expressions of resentment or contempt.

Seeing that, I nodded.

‘Their condition seems worse than I thought.’

I expected some level of distrust, but it seemed to be much higher than I anticipated.

Perhaps sensing the atmosphere, the Alliance personnel frowned and shouted at the crowd.

“This area is currently scheduled for restoration. We informed you that civilians are prohibited from entering. Why are you all gathered here?!”

I looked around. It was indeed a mess, just as the man said.

I had rushed out just to get away, but it was a location where buildings had collapsed and debris was everywhere.

It was definitely strange for such a crowd to gather around me in this situation.

Why were there so many people?

Just as I was wondering about that, someone shouted as if answering the martial artist.

“Is all of Hanam the Alliance’s?!”

“…What?”

The martial artist frowned at the shout. His expression was as if asking how dare they raise their voice at him.

However, others began to voice their opinions regardless of the martial artist’s expression.

“What have you done to arbitrarily prohibit passage?”

“That’s right! If restoration is to be done, we’ll do it. You won’t help properly anyway, so we’ll just handle it ourselves.”

Hearing them, I realized.

I wondered what they were gathered for.

‘Were they trying to restore the region with their own hands?’

What were they planning to do about this chaotic situation?

I didn’t quite understand, but one thing was certain.

‘Trust in the Alliance has significantly decreased.’

Perhaps due to the aftermath of the incident, the perception of the Alliance in Hanam seemed to have worsened considerably.

“Th-this…!”

The martial artist was about to get angry, but.

“What is your business?”

Before he could, I spoke to the man first.

“And who the hell are you…!”

The man immediately tried to raise his voice towards me, but as our eyes met, he shut his mouth tightly.

It seemed he knew exactly who I was.

Which means.

“It looks like you have business with me. Is that correct?”

As I said that with a nod, the man cautiously approached through the path the crowd had made.

Even as he approached, the gazes from the crowd fixed upon him were fierce.

Soon, the man who came right up to me lowered his head slightly and spoke.

“…I am Gimunseok, the deputy commander of the Azure Dragon Unit, one of the Seven Seats. I pay my respects to the Holy King.”

He bowed deeply.

Although a sense of dissatisfaction was palpable during the bow, his respect was clear.

So, I replied while looking at Gimunseok’s crown.

“Alright.”

“…!”

Perhaps it was an unexpected answer, Gimunseok snapped his head up.

His eyes were filled with disbelief. Confirming that, I grinned.

“It’s a joke. A joke. You looked too stiff, so I thought I’d lighten the mood. Sorry if I offended you.”

“…N-no….”

Although it was clear he was quite offended, Gimunseok could only bow his head, unable to speak his mind.

Watching Gimunseok, I pondered for a moment.

‘Gimunseok.’

Who was he? I’d heard that name somewhere before.

I tried hard to recall, but nothing came to mind immediately.

Anyway.

“What business do you have with me?”

I asked, looking at Gimunseok, and only then did he lift his head.

“I came to escort you.”

“Me?”

“Yes…. We sent a message in advance via courier. Did you perhaps not receive it?”

“Hm?”

Hearing that, I pulled a letter from my pocket.

I unfolded it again to check.

“Ah, right.”

It was definitely written there.

A notice stating they would come to escort me around this time today.

I didn’t know about this.

‘If I had known, I wouldn’t have rushed out.’

The situation was so urgent that I just came out, but it turned out I didn’t need to.

‘Then again, it was strange.’

It was true that I received a summons from the Alliance, but the fact that they expected me to come on foot was subtle.

‘Considering they gave me a title but treated me so poorly, I thought they were trying to mess with me.’

It seemed they were surprisingly trying to take care of things after all.

That’s why I was more disappointed.

‘One excuse to cause trouble is gone.’

I considered latching onto that detail to cause a scene, but unfortunately, the Alliance, despite its incompetence, wasn’t reckless.

“…In any case, we will escort the Holy King on your journey to the Alliance this time.”

“Mm.”

I pondered for a moment and nodded.

Actually, there was no need to ponder.

I had to go anyway, and it was convenient that they came to pick me up.

It was actually good.

I had already been wondering how to get away from that crowd.

“Yes. Then let’s go.”

As I announced my departure, a sense of disappointment emanated from the surroundings.

I wondered why they were really disappointed, but… it couldn’t be helped.

That’s because the reason for going to the Alliance this time was none other than.

The Alliance had sent an official request for an investigation regarding the recent attack.

---

Guided by the Azure Dragon Unit, I arrived at the Alliance.

The interior of the Alliance wasn’t significantly different from before, but the atmosphere felt quite different.

It couldn’t be helped.

There had been an attack, they hadn’t responded properly to it, and public sentiment was currently unfavorable.

While direct property damage might be minimal, the Murim Alliance was fundamentally the most damaged party.

Kkiik.

The chair slid back slightly.

“Please sit.”

At the man’s words, I sat down on the chair nonchalantly.

I was inside the Alliance.

Specifically, I was seated in the interrogation room area I had visited before.

The difference from last time was the considerable difference in treatment.

It was clearly an interrogation room, yet there were teacups and expensive-looking snacks on the table.

They had even lit lamps in the room, so it was more like a guest reception room than an interrogation room.

“…Please wait a moment, the Grand Master will be here soon.”

Hearing Gimunseok, I picked up a yakgwa (traditional Korean cookie) placed before me and put it in my mouth.

“Not only did you make me come here since morning, but you’re making me wait too. How amusing?”

“…”

“I hate pointless power struggles…. This is a bit childish. Ah, this is also a joke.”

The words were clearly not a joke. I could see Gimunseok swallowing nervously after hearing them.

Just as I was considering provoking him a bit more.

Kkiik-!

The door opened, and someone entered.

It was the man I saw last time.

‘Ilcheonggeom.’

The man who was Jang Seong-yeon’s right-hand man in his past life.

Ilcheonggeom Jang Seong-myeong, the Azure Dragon Unit Commander.

It was him.

“Pleasure to meet you.”

Ilcheonggeom appeared without any further words and sat down. I rested my chin on my hand and asked him.

“You’re late?”

“Yes, I had a prior engagement.”

Ilcheonggeom, without meeting my eyes, organized the papers piled before him.

I watched him quietly and then spoke.

“Then you should apologize first.”

“…”

Uppeuk.

Ilcheonggeom’s hands stopped upon hearing my words.

“Isn’t it a bit much to be late without even an apology?”

As I continued speaking with a smile, Ilcheonggeom’s eyes narrowed immediately.

I watched with interest, wondering what he would say.

“I apologize for making you wait.”

“…”

Ilcheonggeom didn’t take the bait.

This was quite disappointing.

Should I try another tactic? I was tempted to.

However.

“So, why did you summon me?”

For now, I decided to get straight to the point.

There was no benefit in wasting more time here.

“Have you read the part detailing the reason?”

“I did read it. It said I was summoned for an interrogation, didn’t it?”

“…Rather than an interrogation…. It’s to confirm matters more thoroughly….”

“Isn’t that just an interrogation? To confirm whether or not I’m involved in the incident?”

No matter how flowery the language, that was the conclusion.

Several days had passed since the attack.

The first thing the Murim Alliance did was summon and interrogate those who fought against the assailants and monsters, even if they weren’t affiliated with the Alliance at the time.

The direct participants in the incident.

The stated reason was a detailed confirmation of the situation… but it was obvious to anyone that it was essentially an interrogation based on suspicion.

“After busting my ass to save everyone, I have to undergo interrogation while being suspected? I feel absolutely fantastic.”

“…As I said again, this is less an interrogation and more….”

“Enough. Let’s get this done. I want to finish quickly and go eat.”

Kkuuk.

Ilcheonggeom’s hands tensed as he listened.

It seemed like he was suppressing his anger, but again, no fist came flying my way.

“…Yes, as the Holy King wishes. We shall proceed directly to the main topic.”

I wondered how many times he sighed inwardly.

Just as I was suddenly curious about that.

“There is something I wish to ask the Holy King.”

“Yes.”

“The Alliance plans to establish a new battalion this time.”

“Huh?”

As soon as I heard that, I frowned.

It was truly unexpected news.

“Suddenly?”

“Before starting the investigation, I thought it would be better to mention this matter first.”

“…A battalion.”

“Yes. Therefore, before establishing the new unit, I offer you a proposal first, Holy King.”

As I touched my lips as if contemplating, Ilcheonggeom spoke.

“The position of commander for the unit to be established henceforth… would you take it….”

“I won’t.”

“What?”

I answered before he could even finish his sentence.

“I said I won’t do it.”

It was an immediate refusal.