Chapter 840: Ilcheonkyo.

Tuk tuk. I shook my body this way and that.

Pain still remained in my body.

It usually doesn’t hurt this much. This time, the backlash was severe.

“Kkeung.”

I endured the backlash, letting out a groan.

My bones still ached, and my muscles screamed.

“Aww, shit.”

This is not something one should do. I regretted trying it immensely after thinking, ‘Maybe I should give it a shot.’

“Is imitating someone else’s body too much?”

It seems possible to modify the framework I possess, but changing it to a completely different framework is difficult.

I had to change not only height but also wrinkles and physical characteristics, and maintaining it consumed an enormous amount of energy.

Perhaps if I had been even a little later, the Body Transformation Technique might have worn off.

No, it definitely would have.

“…Hooouuu….”

I exhaled a sigh and wiped away the sweat.

I thought my proficiency had improved, yet this is the result when I try to make changes. Does this mean I can’t use this level of technique yet?

Although this part was disappointing, there was something fortunate.

‘…It means not yet.’

I can’t use it yet. If so, won’t it be easy someday? That was my hope.

Pudeudeuk-! Touching my shoulder, I popped my bones back into place.

These are the parts that weren’t done properly because I couldn’t keep up with the speed of the return.

This also meant that the disguise just now was of low quality.

Quite significantly, too.

‘If it had lasted any longer, besides wearing off, the probability of being discovered would have been high.’

Given that it was a hastily created situation, Ilcheonggeom would surely have noticed.

Because he’s a guy with surprisingly good intuition.

‘He said he noticed as soon as he arrived.’

That guy immediately noticed the anomaly spreading through this forest.

That alone means he’s quite a sensitive guy.

It’s understandable, considering the one who meddled with this forest was none other than the Dark King.

“…You don’t have to hide anymore.”

“Yes.”

My words were answered from right beside me. Without even needing to look, it was the Dark King.

“Thanks to you, it went well. Thank you.”

“Not at all.”

The Dark King reacted as always, saying it was nothing, and if it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t have even attempted this.

As I said earlier, disguising myself as another person was quite poorly executed.

No matter how closely I tried to replicate it, the details were different.

The number of wrinkles, the subtlety of the eye corners, even the lines of the body.

Not everything could be perfect, and it could easily give off a sense of dissonance to experts who constantly analyzed the opponent’s body.

So, what should I do?

Should I perhaps choose a different method? I pondered this, and fortunately, there was a way.

The method was simple.

If the quality is low and easy to notice, why not just obscure it so it can’t be noticed?

‘Of course, I can’t just wear a mask or anything.’

The method I chose wasn’t to hide my face, but to blind Ilcheonggeom’s eyes.

More precisely, rather than literally blinding his eyes….

‘Blur his five senses.’

Lowering the clarity of his five senses so he couldn’t perceive properly.

That was what I wanted.

There are various methods for this.

Using formations, spreading pressure to suppress the opponent’s senses, or perhaps using poison.

If I looked, there would be countless things I could try, but none of them were options for me.

I don’t know how to use formations properly, and spreading pressure would be immediately noticed by Ilcheonggeom.

Poison is no different.

So, what method remained? The answer was simple.

‘If I can’t do it, I ask someone who can.’

Since it would inevitably be noticeable if I did it myself, I just needed to ask someone for whom it wouldn’t be noticeable.

Fortunately, I had an expert in this field beside me, more so than anyone else, and I immediately asked the Dark King for his help.

When asked if he could subtly lower Ilcheonggeom’s senses, the Dark King immediately carried out the task.

At first, it looked like he was doing something around the mountain, but I couldn’t grasp the details.

What’s important here is.

‘Whatever it was, Ilcheonggeom wasn’t able to properly focus his mind.’

The moment that guy entered this mountain. That’s when it began.

As soon as he set foot here, his senses gradually lowered. Slowly, without him even noticing.

‘I was a bit tense when he said he noticed something slightly.’

I heard he noticed something strange, but fortunately, it seems he didn’t perceive it significantly.

‘Thanks to that, the job went smoothly.’

Ilcheonggeom, with his lowered senses, couldn’t properly recognize my flawed disguise.

Using this, I could also cover up my weak acting skills. Furthermore.

‘I also realized this is something I can’t use twice.’

I confirmed that it’s something I can’t use again anytime soon.

‘Not bad.’

I tried, and I didn’t fail.

Moreover, since I even gained a harvest, it was undeniably a significant profit.

However, there’s one thing that worries me.

‘It’s questionable whether he believed it all… but this should be fine.’

Even if he didn’t believe it, I just had to react accordingly. The important thing is that Ilcheonggeom must have been sufficiently shaken.

I recalled Ilcheonggeom, whose eyes had wavered just before.

‘How far down will you fall?’

It’s laughable to even say he was ‘up there’ in the first place, but since he seems to believe he’s flying on his own, I’m just curious.

How far will Ilcheonggeom, who broke his own wings, fall? Will he crash into the ground and die?

‘Or maybe….’

Will he realize he wasn’t flying in the first place and choose self-destruction?

Of course, whichever it may be.

His end will not change.

---

A time slightly before dawn arrived.

As night had fallen, the time when lanterns were lighting up the branch.

Sarang.

I sat in the room, examining the two letters as if comparing them.

“…They’re both eastward… the directions identified are similar….”

Is there anything different?

Or what is the same? I examined them closely, checking this.

The letters were none other than mission reports, sent by those entrusted with reconnaissance and information gathering.

The difference was: one was sent by supporting members, and the other by self-dispatched members.

I had been receiving them this way ever since the mission began.

“Hmm….”

After checking the contents, I had to frown as if displeased.

‘The information is similar.’

The reason was that the information sent from both sides was quite similar.

“If it’s like this, it seems they’ve noticed.”

I chuckled and folded the letters.

Overlapping investigation information isn’t necessarily bad on the surface. The problem was, from my perspective, it required various considerations.

I had even taken measures to prevent the information from overlapping in the first place.

The reason for that was.

‘Because obscuring information is the easiest.’

Anyway, most of the information sent by the Meng faction guys is fake. More than half of it.

I don’t find it strange. It’s because I ordered them to do so.

This method was convenient for filtering out the bastards who were causing trouble.

Because I could filter out all the idiots.

However.

‘The fact that the information is becoming similar now…’

It’s one of two things.

The first is that they thought it was dangerous and backed off slightly. Or else.

‘They realized it belatedly.’

In the case they realized that information gathering was assigned to multiple people.

In my view, it was one of these two.

‘Hmm.’

Since I had already filtered out the ones I needed to, there was no need to do more, but one thing bothered me.

‘How did they know?’

How exactly did they figure it out? That’s what’s bothering me.

No one except me knew that the gathering was assigned to multiple people.

Moreover, I had even tied knots to prevent them from asking each other.

That they noticed in this situation…

‘Did someone leak it?’

Could it be that someone intentionally leaked this fact? Such a thought crossed my mind.

And, if someone leaked the information.

“Was it you?”

Since there was a suspect right at hand, I looked directly at him and asked.

“…Yes?”

The man panicked at my question. The man’s identity was none other than Mun Do-hyeok.

“The talk about these letters. Did you blab about it?”

“Ah, no…!”

Mun Do-hyeok said, startled by my words.

“No?”

“Really… I, I didn’t know anything about the reports.”

“Hmm….”

Pallak.

I looked at Mun Do-hyeok, fanning myself with the letter I held. As my gaze fell upon him, he stiffened and lowered his head to the ground.

I could feel his intense nervousness very clearly.

“Whether you did or didn’t, it doesn’t really matter. I was just asking, literally.”

As I said before, it’s too late now. I’ve already identified the ones I needed to identify.

And that guy was included among them.

That’s why it was even stranger.

“It’s truly unexpected.”

“Yes…?”

“Why did you betray us?”

“…”

Why did that guy come over to this side?

No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t understand the reason.

“…Well… as I told you….”

“No, it’s because I genuinely don’t understand.”

I heard his words, but I still don’t understand.

“‘Because he didn’t remember my name’… you have to admit that sounds a bit flimsy, right?”

“…”

The reason Mun Do-hyeok turned his back on Ilcheonggeom and reported to me.

It was merely that.

Because he didn’t remember his name. The reason was that Ilcheonggeom didn’t remember his name.

‘What the hell is that?’

It’s absurd.

Betrayal just because he wasn’t remembered by name?

Ah, perhaps it didn’t matter since he was a spy in the first place? No, even so, betraying the Azure Dragon Brigade to join my side is strange.

Because to others, it would seem like my side was significantly losing.

Then.

“…I…”

Mun Do-hyeok cautiously began to speak to me.

“…For the past few years, I was part of the Azure Dragon Brigade.”

“I know.”

Was it four years by count?

It wasn’t a long time, but it wasn’t short either.

“Although I was just a subordinate, I believe I was faithful to my duties and worked hard… However.”

“Ilcheonggeom didn’t remember your name?”

“…Yes.”

Hearing this, I couldn’t even manage a hollow laugh.

I thought, ‘What kind of ridiculous complaint is this?’

He probably wasn’t expecting anything from saying this, but I only had one thing to say after hearing it.

“Well, that’s probably because you were useless enough not to need remembering.”

“…”

Mun Do-hyeok’s head drooped even lower upon hearing my words.

Seeing an old man like that, he looked pathetic…

“Look at you now. Just the fact that you defected to my side over such a trivial matter means you’re not exactly a trustworthy person.”

Coming to me solely based on the fact that his name wasn’t known.

It was ridiculously trivial to call it a reason for betrayal.

Did he think I’d be pleased if he betrayed them and came to me?

I would have been pleased because there was a use for him. However, as a person, I found him repulsive.

Perhaps my displeasure showed on my face. Mun Do-hyeok glanced at me and quickly continued speaking.

“Th-that’s not all.”

“Then?”

“…It’s not a definitive reason, but…”

He hesitated, his lips trembling, before finally opening his mouth and saying to me.

“…I thought it would be better to join the Great Master.”

“Me? Not Ilcheonggeom?”

“Yes…”

“For what reason?”

“…I apologize. It was purely a hunch.”

Hearing this, I nodded.

The only reasons were intuition. Along with not being remembered by name, he followed his gut feeling to join my side.

I nodded at his words.

‘Hmm.’

Perhaps he has more intuition than I thought.

Such a thought suddenly crossed my mind.