Chapter 1277: I Wasn't Wrong (Part 2)

Gohong looked at Yugong with a complex expression in his eyes. At the strong resentment from his eyes, Yugong chewed on his lower lip.

"Sahyung..."

"Call me 'hyung-nim.'"

Yugong spoke briefly and coldly.

"We are no longer disciples of the Southern Island Sect."

"...Yes, hyung-nim."

Gohong glanced at the other disciples of Hae Nam standing beside him. Their village, Cheonghae Village, was the largest among the villages along the coast. As a result, many disciples who had left the Southern Island Sect were staying here. Yugong had summoned them all.

"...You know, we have to sail."

"No, hyung!"

Gohong exclaimed with a voice tinged with distress.

We are from the Southern Island Sect. If we board that ship, who knows what will happen to us?"

The other disciples from the Southern Island Sect shared similar glances with Gohong. Despite receiving resentful looks, Yugong replied coldly.

"So?"

"Yes?"

"Are we all going to die here?"

Everyone fell silent at his words. Yugong continued with a biting tone.

"If we don't step forward, everyone in the village will die. Are you just going to stand there and watch while sucking on your fingers?"

"But, Sahyung... I mean, hyung-nim!"

Gohong spoke with an uneasy expression.

"It's true that we can sail the ship, but we're not very skilled at it, right?"

"We can still sail."

"Well... if that's the case..."

"So?"

Yugong interrupted Gohong and stared at him.

"Are we going to take people from the village who don't know any martial arts on that ship?"

"That's... I..."

"I don't want other people to do what I don't want to do. At least we can jump off the ship and escape when the situation gets dangerous. Even if we enter Gangnam, if things seem really bad, we can run away."

"..."

"But others don't have the power to do that, right?"

Gohong lowered his head.

That was not an incorrect statement. People from Southern Island had varying levels of skills, but they all knew how to sail to some extent. The disciples of the Southern Island Sect were not much different.

The real issue was that the ship they had to sail was none other than the one carrying the Evil Tyrant Alliance, and the people gathered here to sail the ship were the ex-disciples of the Southern Island Sect.

"I won't say much."

Yugong said with a stern face.

"Wasn't the reason we left the Southern Island Sect in the first place for the sake of our families left behind in the village? There's no reason to hesitate now."

"It's true, but..."

At that moment, Damhwan, who had been silently listening to Yugong's words, spoke up with a sarcastic tone.

"I really don't understand why this has to be."

"What do you mean?"

"Though it sounds plausible, isn't it true that anyone else can go instead of us? All we need are people who can sail the ship, and there are others in this village besides us who can do that."

"Are you really saying that?"

When Yugong questioned him as if reprimanding him, Damhwan laughed.

"Do not pretend to be superior, Sahyung."

"What?"

Yugong's eyes momentarily flashed with anger at the sudden outburst. However, rather than backing down, Damhwan became even more defiant.

"Aren't we the ones who abandoned our duties, our sect, even our Sahyungs and fled?"

Yugong's mouth seemed to be sealed shut for a moment. He wanted to refute it, but he knew best deep down that the words were not wrong.

"Now, suddenly, there's talk of sacrificing our lives for some sense of justice and righteousness? If that's the case, why didn't we just stay in the Southern Island Sect?"

"This guy..."

"I won't do it."

"Damhwan!"

Damhwan gritted his teeth and spoke.

"When we hesitated to leave, it was Sahyung who raised the question of what would happen to our families left behind once we died. It was Sahyung who persuaded me to abandon my name on the Southern Island Sect's lineage. It was Sahyung who convinced me to step out of the Southern Island Sect, a place I swore never to leave!"

"..."

"But now you're telling us to risk our lives again? Now you're telling us to do the right thing? Why should we? Isn't it more righteous to prioritize our own lives? Sahyung himself said that safeguarding our lives comes first, didn't he?"

"Isn't the situation different now?"

"Is it really different?"

"..."

"Really?"

Yugong fell silent. He believed the situation was different, but it was a complex issue with differing perspectives and interpretations.

At that moment, Damhwan smirked, raising the corner of his mouth.

"I don't know if there's a conscience left to protect for those who ran away, leaving their sect and Sahyungs behind. Haven't we come too far to start considering conscience now? Vile humans should live like vile humans. Whether you ride that ship or not, let our martial brothers decide for themselves. Someone will go even if it's not me."

"Does it not matter who goes? This is the village where we grew up."

"The Southern Island Sect was also where we grew up! Damn it!"

When Damhwan yelled vehemently, Yugong flinched and trembled slightly. Damhwan glared at Yugong with venomous eyes.

"If you wanted to show off your righteousness, you should have wielded a sword with the Southern Island Sect rather than causing a scene here! I would have preferred if we fought together over there at least..."

Damhwan was about to say something but stopped himself, closing his mouth and lowering his head. It was because he thought it was meaningless to speak now.

He knew. Regardless of Yugong's attempts to jab him in the side, in the end, the decision was his own.

And the full consequences of that choice were something he had to bear entirely.

"...Anyway, I won't do it. Figure it out on your own. I won't be much help, anyway, as I'm not particularly skilled in handling ships."

Coldly turning his body, Damhwan walked away. Then, suddenly, he stopped and said.

"Oh, and..."

"..."

"I don't think guilt just magically disappears. If that's the case, you should have refrained from committing sins in the first place."

With those words, Damhwan turned decisively and distanced himself with hurried steps.

Yugong clenched his fist. His trembling fist conveyed his current state of mind. After closing his eyes and calming his emotions for a while, Yugong looked at Gohong. Gohong was sending a resentful gaze.

"...Are you not going?"

"Me?"

"Don't you have a sick grandmother?"

"Grandmother?"

Gohong asked with a twisted expression. But even as he asked, his feet didn't move from their spot.

For a moment, Gohong remained silent, then chuckled bitterly.

"I already expected things to turn out like this from the moment the Sahyung called my name."

"..."

"So, when I told my mother that I might leave, do you know what my sick grandmother said?"

"I... don't know."

"If you're going to be a burden, you might as well drown in the sea."

Yugong bit his lip.

"She said that women from Southern Island are like that. They wake up, and their husbands who used to live with them have drowned in the sea, and the next day, one of their children becomes fish food."

"..."

"But instead of sitting around, crying and waiting, Southern Island women make a living somehow, feeding the remaining children and living tenaciously. So, have you ever seen a son like you refusing to go out to sea, using excuses?"

Gohong laughed as if in disbelief.

"Every time she utters a few words, she coughs violently."

"..."

"It seems like your mind is all over the place. If we go out to sea and the villagers survive, it means we have to kill our fellow martial brothers with our own hands. You don't seem to grasp the gravity of that situation."

"Gohong..."

"But what can I do? If you want to deal with a crazy old woman, you have to align yourself with her craziness. If nothing else, make sure her son, who drove others to death out of fear, doesn't hear that he's a coward. Even if everything else fails, it seems at least Sahyung will go." 

"Well, that..."

"Your father bravely went out to sea to feed you and died, so you've always been told that you should be proud of it for the rest of your life. And your mother was the one who proudly fed and raised an obedient Southern Island disciple alone. My grandmother doesn't even know that I left the Southern Island Sect. But... How can I say that I can't go in front of her?"

Yugong couldn't bring himself to speak. Gohong murmured with self-pity.

"If I knew it would be like this, I should have stayed in the Southern Island Sect. Why did I leave the Southern Island Sect to do something..."

Yugong unconsciously nodded his head. A strange silence passed between them.

To dispel this awkwardness, Yugong turned his gaze towards the remaining disciples.

"What about you?"

"Well, it's similar."

"...I see."

Yugong nodded and opened his mouth.

It wasn't a good situation to continue the conversation, and there was no room for it. First, they had work to do.

"Since those guys won't go, I'll have to pick more people than originally planned. Make sure there are at least two people on each boat. We'll have only one person per boat for ourselves."

"Yes, Sahyung."

"...Understood, Hyung-nim."

"Let's move."

Watching the disciples running out quickly, Yugong sighed deeply. He turned his head to look at the sea, which was indifferent and only blue.

"Preparations are complete."

"It took a while."

Ho Gakmyung looked at Yugong with dark eyes.

"It... ended quickly."

"Hmm."

Ho Gakmyung nodded as if he was somewhat satisfied.

"I take it to mean that you selected those who are good at handling boats. If there's a delay, you will pay the price."

"..."

"Let's depart."

"...Yes."

Yugong turned his body towards the boat. The others were already on the boat. Once he boarded the boat, they would depart.

Yugong, forcing himself to lift his unwavering foot, unintentionally turned his head. The villagers were gathered on the shore.

From those who looked at him with gratitude, to those who watched with a sneer on their sullen faces, and even the disciples who stared at him with hostile eyes.

Among them, Yugong's gaze stopped in one place.

His wife was looking at him with eyes soaked in tears, hugging their young son in her arms. Yugong momentarily closed his eyes, vividly capturing the scene.  [...fuck]

'I will come back alive.'

Absolutely...he would definitely come back alive.

By any means necessary.

Blood Ghost Division Leader Goyang, who saw Yugong boarding the boat, asked Ho Gakmyung in a sour voice.

"Is it necessary to take those guys with us? They might be more of a hindrance."

"I don't know."

"Huh?"

"The scariest things in the world are not enemies."

"..."

"It's traitors."

Goyang, who heard those words, looked at Yugong's back with some interest. A mixed laugh came from Ho Gakmyung's voice.

"Especially, there's no one more vile than a traitor harboring guilt. You'll find out soon enough."

A smile spread across Ho Gakmyung's lips.