Ding.

• You have trained [Jin Family’s Cultivation Arts].
• As a result of repeated training, your Physical Foundation and Internal Foundation each increase by 1.

“Hahh.”

I opened my eyes with a deep breath. In the dim dawn, the room flickered with an amber glow from the candlelight.

Failed again.

My fists clenched in the silence.

How many attempts had it been? Twenty? Thirty? The result is what matters. Once again, I failed to draw out my solidified internal energy.

Should I take comfort in the fact that I’m at least improving?

I’m getting more accustomed to handling internal energy. If I were a C-rank hunter instead of F-rank—hell, even D-rank would do—I’d have adapted much faster. But reality is cruel.

My Physical Foundation and Internal Foundation are steadily improving, which helps.

Internal energy flows through the meridians of the body.

The more you train your cultivation arts, the more your Physical and Internal Foundations improve, widening and strengthening the meridians. Compared to when I started, I could now circulate much more internal energy at a faster rate.

Thanks to skill points.

The skill points—ten per level up—were really pulling their weight. Nothing beats them for improving Physical and Internal Foundations.

Open skill window.

[Lv.17 Jin Tae-kyung]

Cultivation Arts: Jin Family’s Cultivation Arts (4-star)

Martial Arts: Jin Family’s Spear Arts (5-star) / Jin Family’s Footwork Arts (5-star)

Physical Foundation: 105

Internal Foundation: 93

Remaining Points: 0

I can see the potential.

The seemingly impregnable fortress is getting smaller and more vulnerable. I feel like if I keep hammering away, I’ll break through soon.

Fortunately, while I may lack talent, I’m one stubborn bastard.

I’ll keep trying. Until it works.

Just as I was about to sit cross-legged and begin circulating my energy again.

Among my heightened senses from the previous energy circulation sessions, I caught a troubling sound.

This is…

A buzzing sound—at first glance like the humming of bees—was actually the murmuring of people.

What’s going on?

I channeled internal energy to my ears. The distance made it hard to catch everything, but what I did hear was enough.

Battle!

It’s the Hengshan Sword Sect. The fighting has finally begun.

I hurriedly uncrossed my legs and stood up. Then I leaped out through the half-open window.

Landing like a cat, I saw lights coming on one by one across the pavilions.

So it begins…

Twenty-five. That was the number of bodies laid out neatly.

Seeing them lying there like dead trees, stripped of all vitality, I was at a loss for words.

“This is…”

I’m a hunter. I’ve been through countless battles and witnessed death.

Poisoned, slashed, crushed, exploded…

The manner of death varies wildly depending on the monster. But they all had one thing in common.

They were all adults.

That was a basic condition for awakening. Nobody knew what the criteria were or why. It was a rule as naturally accepted as the existence of Gates.

So among all those deaths I’d witnessed, there had never been a child’s death.

This is just a game. Just a stupid game.

I kept repeating it to myself.

But the scene before me was too horrific to simply dismiss like that.

Blood (血).

The character carved into their foreheads. Torchlight flickered over dried blood. More than ten children lay there, cold and lifeless.

Middle school age at most. Some even younger. Every single one of them. Dead like that.

“Hurk!”

Starting with one warrior who bent over clutching his torch with trembling hands, the sound of retching spread throughout the area.

Then another hand picked up the dropped torch.

“Somi. That was definitely her name. The day I became Acting Head, Branch Master of Yingxian wouldn’t shut up about her, calling her his treasure.”

It was Jin Wi-gyeong. With dimming eyes, he raised the torch to illuminate the children’s faces. One by one. With each face revealed, he unfailingly spoke their names.

After naming the last child, Jin Wi-gyeong looked at me.

“Do you know who these children were?”

“…No, sir.”

“They were our family members stationed at the Yingxian[1], Shanyin[2], and Shuozhou[3] branches.”

I didn’t know where those places were. But I could guess what fate had befallen these children’s parents.

The Hengshan Sword Sect’s intentions made me want to vomit.

Fucking psychopathic bastards.

Look, we can brutally murder even children like this. Soon, this will be you too.

I could almost hear the voice of the Hengshan Sword Sect Leader, whose face I’d never seen.

“It’s all my fault. Even children who knew no martial arts, to die so horribly…”

While Jin Wi-gyeong was blaming himself in a trembling voice…

“That is the nature of war, Lesser Family Head.” The Grand Elder appeared, stroking his silver beard. His eyes were calm as he gazed at the corpses.

“Victory and defeat. Death is inseparable from both.

The Hengshan Sword Sect Leader—Blood Wolf Sword Lee Cheon-baek, was it?

Being a former wandering warrior, he understands war well.

Just look at these children.”

His nonchalant tone made my skin crawl.

What kind of fucked up AI is this.

This NPC is missing something. That’s what makes him more dangerous.

I kept my mouth shut, while Jin Wi-gyeong spoke with a twisted expression.

“…Mind your words. They were our family members.”

“No, those children are casualties of war. Many more will die. Perhaps even at this very moment.”

“Grand Elder. I said mind your words.”

Jin Wi-gyeong growled. If not for the eyes of others, he might have already snapped. But the Grand Elder remained calm.

“Did you not expect this?”

The sudden informal speech caught us off guard. But it felt so natural that neither I nor Jin Wi-gyeong noticed.

“Shanyin, Yingxian, Shuozhou. All within reach of the Hengshan Sword Sect. When you sent messenger birds to each branch yesterday, did you not consider this possibility at all?”

“That’s…”

“You knew. You knew harm would come to them.

Sending those messenger birds was merely to ease your conscience.”

“Stop. Please stop.”

“It was a sound judgment. Had you tried to save the branches, you would have had to ride for seven days and nights without rest, only to face the enemy in an utterly exhausted state.

Isn’t that right?”

Jin Wi-gyeong stared at the Grand Elder with a pale face.

Blood dripped from his tightly clenched fists.

“I… I…”

“All things require sacrifice.

See the bigger picture. You are the Lesser Family Head responsible for hundreds of Taiyuan Jin family members.”

Jin Wi-gyeong’s body trembled. His expression, drained of anger and sorrow, was filled with an inexplicable emptiness.

“Sacrifice…”

“The war has only just begun. Isn’t that right? Lesser Family Head.”

As the Grand Elder made a fist salute, I bit my lip hard.

Can’t figure this old man out.

The Grand Elder is definitely dangerous.

His position in the family, his unfathomable thoughts, his psychopathic tendency to not bat an eye at dead children…

But…

His words are right.

In my view, Jin Wi-gyeong is a good Lesser Family Head. He’s humane and intelligent.

But seeing the corpses, he was shaken more than anyone. Without the Grand Elder’s cold rebuke, it would have taken considerable time to regain his composure.

He helped. The Grand Elder, of all people…?

So they unite in wartime despite being adversaries in peace?

Well, that’s good then.

As I was watching the Grand Elder with a mix of suspicion and relief…

“The Third Young Master is here too.”

My heart sank as those shrewd gray eyes turned to me. It was the first time the Grand Elder had addressed me directly.

“Greetings, Grand Elder.”

As I tried to hide my nervousness, the Grand Elder looked at me with an odd smile.

“There’s been an interesting rumor in the family lately, something about… the Hidden Dragon of Shanxi?”

I never expected to hear that ridiculous nickname from the Grand Elder.

“Some say you’re acquainted with the God of Hell. That you worked together to bring down the Thousand Strength.”

“Cough! Cough!”

“Are you unwell?”

“Ah, no. Just feeling a bit chilly.”

“My, my. That won’t do for someone who’s about to achieve great merit.”

My awkward smile slowly froze.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Anyone skilled enough to help eliminate a formidable demon leader like the Thousand Strength would be a valuable asset. Unless those rumors were false?”

“Therefore, as a direct descendant of the family, it’s only natural to take the lead in battle. What do you think, Lesser Family Head?”

Smirk. As Jin Wi-gyeong watched the Grand Elder’s smile, he turned to me.

“What do you think?”

Just as the word ‘cornered’ crossed my mind, a familiar notification rang out.

Ding.

[Mission Assignment]

You have been appointed as captain of the White Tiger Battalion’s scout unit.

From now on, lead your subordinates to complete missions and accumulate achievements!

Rank: Repeatable Quest

Restriction: Jin Tae-kyung

Mission: Achieve 100 Merit Points (0/100)

Reward: Varies based on success level

Failure: Penalty varies based on failure level

I closed the quest window. I’d seen it several times already, and the White Tiger Battalion warrior who’d briefly stepped out had just returned.

“These are the standard items issued to unit captains.”

A sword, a black martial uniform crudely embroidered with a white tiger, and a glossy wooden tablet that smelled strongly of wood.

That was all.

“Your subordinates have been assigned and are waiting at the scout unit barracks. The location is…”

Fortunately, I knew the place. I’d passed by that pavilion several times before.

After leaving the White Tiger Battalion, I first ducked into an empty alley.

Open inventory.

Ten seconds was enough to get fully equipped. I changed clothes, stuffed the sword deep in my inventory, and took out [Sharp Spear].

Until now, I’d enjoyed the privileges of being Third Young Master in my luxurious private pavilion, but things are different now.

Communal living, they said.

Eating together, sleeping together. Can’t exactly pull a two-meter iron spear out of thin air like some magician.

With the wooden tablet inscribed “Captain” at my waist, I felt like just another Jin family warrior.

Not just any warrior though. Scout captain.

White Tiger Battalion Scout Captain. A position I never expected to hold.

Of course, there was quite a heated debate behind this. The Grand Elder wanted me in the Elder Council’s combat units, while Jin Wi-gyeong strongly opposed.

They reached a compromise.

Scout captain—a relatively simple role. But under the White Tiger Battalion Commander, who’s aligned with the Elder Council. That’s how I ended up with this position before I knew what was happening.

Never thought I’d get dragged into the war like this.

I could have told them to fuck off, but I held back. The Grand Elder’s gleaming eyes whenever the Lord of Death’s Edge was mentioned was the first reason, and the second was… those children.

It’s a game. All graphics and illusions.

No matter how many times I repeated it, those corpses, those characters carved into their foreheads, kept flashing before my eyes. Yes, there was definitely an emotional component to this decision.

This isn’t good.

Don’t get immersed. Can’t confuse reality and games.

It’s been happening more and more lately. What started as treating NPCs like people for fun has turned into genuinely thinking of them as real people and forming relationships.

It startles me every time. Maybe it’s a side effect of playing for too long.

“Is this it?”

Having arrived at the scout unit’s barracks, my jaw dropped.

Split wood and musty smells. Good god, there’s even a wasp nest under the eaves. Never seen one that big before.

As expected of a family-like company…

Look at these welfare standards. Though maybe it’s the White Tiger Battalion Commander’s spite, since he dislikes me. Can’t openly harass me yet, so this is his way of saying “eat shit”?

Well, let’s get started.

After taking a deep breath, I opened the door and stepped inside.

Creeeak. The ancient floor’s wailing sound felt particularly ominous.