Myst, Might, Mayhem (Novel)

TL: RuinsTranslator

Mok Gyeongwoon died with his neck snapped. The assailant was dazed for a brief moment. But it did not last long.

"This son of a bitch!"

*Pop*

Furious to the point of explosion, the assailant reached out to the boy in one swift motion, grabbing his neck and slamming him against the wall.

*Thud*

It was unbelievable. Even though Mok Gyeongwoon was merely mediocre in martial arts, this man was just an ordinary civilian. The difference between a death row inmate and someone trained in martial arts was stark.

But how could it be possible that Mok Gyeongwoon's neck was snapped in an instant, even if it was a surprise attack? As bewildered as he was, the boy spoke to him with an expressionless face.

"Even if you used a sleep incense, you shouldn't cause such a commotion, right?"

"What? You dare to say that…..!?" the assailant frowned.

He was gripping the boy's neck, but there was no sign of discomfort. Instead, the boy was speaking clearly, 'This guy, looking at his neck, why is it so….'

It was as if he had trained his external martial arts, with significantly developed neck muscles. It seemed that proper inner qi would be required to break it, 'Could it be that he has trained in external martial arts? No, if that were the case, he should have at least some inner qi.'

External martial arts also rely on the circulation of Qi as a foundation. But this guy really had no inner qi. He seemed to be no ordinary man. The masked assailant's mind was becoming complicated, but that was not the important issue at the moment.

"Crazy bastard. Our young master gave you an opportunity, and you truly have gone mad. To think you would dare to do this to someone who was given a chance to a mere death row inmate…"

"Am I misunderstanding the purpose of being a stand-in?"

"What?"

"Originally, the role of a stand-in is to take risks on behalf of the real person. Of course, it also meant I get to extend my life by about three days, but if you went to the trouble of breaking a death row inmate out of jail to serve as a stand-in, doesn't it also mean you could dispose of me anytime as the saying goes, 'When the rabbit dies, the hunting dog is boiled'?"

The boy spoke calmly. At his words, the assailant was momentarily at a loss for words.

This guy was smarter than he thought. A typical civilian or an ordinary death row inmate would have been too preoccupied with overcoming the current crisis.

'Could anyone even think to do such a thing?'

And yet, he had not only grasped the situation in an instant but was also taking a risk. Even though he himself could be killed at any moment.

'What kind of person is this…..'

As incredulous as he was, the boy spoke again, "May I ask you something?"

"You- do you even understand the situation…."

"You mentioned being a guard, but considering that your master is dead, you seem quite calm."

"This son of a bitch….."

"In a situation where you ought to want to kill, to have this much rationality left suggests that you don't have much affection for your master, right?"

"Ha!"

At the boy's words, the assailant was taken aback. It was annoying how accurately he had read his feelings. Indeed, the assailant did not have much affection for this reckless young master.

He was merely flustered and angry at this unexpected situation. Of course, that didn't mean his judgement was so clouded that he would kill the boy right here and escape from the government office.

'It's a complete mess.'

He was being manipulated by a mere death row inmate boy. As the situation had come to this, it would be right to kill the boy. However, if he were to lose this boy on top of the young master's death, Mok Sword Manor would surely hold him responsible with his life.

'Damn, everything's completely tangled up.'

His plan to become the head of Mok Sword Manor and live out his old age in comfort had gone up in smoke because of this damned death row brat.

As he was feeling dejected, the boy spoke, "If you don't have much affection, how about changing horses mid-race?"

"Change horses?"

"Wouldn't it be easier to think of the guy lying on the ground as a prisoner who would have been executed in two days?" the boy spoke nonchalantly.

Looking at him, the assailant was taken aback but also felt a chill for some reason. This damned death row inmate is essentially saying he wants to become Mok Gyeongwoon.

*Squeeze*

The assailant increased the strength in his grip around the neck.

"Kuk…"

Only now did the boy let out a slightly pained groan. The assailant glared at him and said, "This damned death row inmate... did kill the young master with that goal in mind?"

To that, the boy smirked and said, "Is there…. another…. reason?"

'!?'

At the boy's words, the assailant involuntarily swallowed his saliva. What kind of person was this? His way of thinking seemed to be on a completely different track from normal people.

His cunningness was extraordinary. Maybe that was the reason he was a death row inmate in the first place, 'This guy is dangerous.'

Regardless of whether Mok Sword Manor would hold him responsible or not, he thought it might be better to kill him now. His instincts were strongly telling him that there was nothing good to come from getting involved with this guy, regardless of his martial arts skills or age.

*Squeeze*

"Cough!"

He exerted more force with his hand. It would be difficult for him to withstand his inner qi.

"Don't make me laugh. It would be better for you to just die here."

'I have to kill him. Even if it means starting over from scratch'

At that moment, the boy suddenly grabbed his wrist.

*Pop*

"It's useless. I don't know if you killed the young master by luck, but I'm different."

As he tried to lightly brush off with his other hand infused with inner qi,

*Pop*

'This guy? He withstood it?'

It felt like hitting a sturdy tree trunk. There was resilience felt at the wrist, and the muscles were extremely firm. Firm enough to withstand a force imbued with inner qi. Suddenly, the assailant quickly tore the sleeve of the boy's arm with swift hand movements.

'!?'

The assailant's eyes wavered. The densely packed muscle structure was clearly visible to the eye. He almost exclaimed in amazement at the muscles that seemed to have been developed by training in external martial arts for over a decade. Now the secret was unveiled.

'…It makes sense that the young master was overpowered.'

It wasn't just luck through a surprise attack. Looking at the density of this guy's muscles, it seemed difficult to inflict damage without considerable power. Physically, he was beyond what a third-rate martial artist could handle.

'If this guy had properly trained in martial arts…'

He might have become a considerable expert. But to properly train in inner qi, one must start at least between the ages of 5 to 10. Over time, impurities accumulate in the body's meridians, slowing down the circulation of inner qi.

*Squeeze*

At that moment, pain shot through the wrist he was gripping the neck with. The boy was exerting force, trying to remove his hand.

'What kind of strength does this son of a bitch have?'

He was using a force equivalent to a 7-star power level, and this guy tried to shake it off with sheer strength. To say his strength alone was formidable would be an understatement. If he wasn't careful, he might actually let go.

'This won't do.'

The assailant then executed a technique from the hand-catching method. Releasing the grip on the neck, he grabbed the boy's wrist and twisted it, aiming to dislocate it towards the back.

'What?!'

It happened so quickly that the boy was defenceless, his wrist being twisted.

'How did he do that? Was this also martial arts?'

It seemed miraculous. He had used his own strength to twist the wrist. But thanks to that, the grip on his neck was loosened, making it easier to breathe and speak.

*Swish*

The assailant was seen drawing something from his waistband. It was a dagger. He seemed intent on stabbing him with it.

At this, the boy said, "Do you really need to kill me?"

"What?"

"Since I'll die without the antidote, I have no choice but to listen to you, right?"

At that, the assailant momentarily halted his stabbing motion. He had been so caught up in the absurdity of the situation that he had forgotten the boy had ingested the poison pill he had brought.

And remembering this made it all the more absurd, 'Ha! A guy who had taken a poison pill was pulling off such a crazy stunt.'

It was puzzling why a man who couldn't survive without the antidote would do such a thing, 'Is it because there's no other stand-in but himself if the young master dies?'

His cunningness was over the top.

Then, the boy said, "I have no interest in Mok Sword Manor or being a third young master."

"No interest? And yet you're pulling something like this…"

"I just have a reason to live longer."

"Live longer?"

What was he talking about?

The boy spoke in a meaningful voice, "Since you have the antidote, you can control me like a puppet as you wish."

The assailant hesitated at the boy's words. He had merely thought that his retirement plan had been ruined. He wanted a peaceful life unlike the past. He was tired of investing time somewhere else to achieve that. How much time and research had he spent to find the ideal place he had in mind? 'To control as I wish…'

He suddenly found himself contemplating. It was a tempting offer, but he was no fool. Even from a brief experience, he knew this guy was dangerously cunning and hard to control. However, if he was this fixated on life, he might not defy him for a while, at least because of the poison pill.

'Should I take this as an opportunity to switch sides?'

There was only one reason he had sought a stand-in in the first place: to save the young master's life. But now the young master was dead. Using this guy as a way to switch sides seemed like a good strategy. Being the power behind this guy would only cause him more headaches as time went on.

'Right. Use him and then discard him.'

After a moment of contemplation, the assailant made a decision. To use him only until it was time to switch sides.

The assailant warned, "If you show even the slightest sign of betrayal, you'll die. Disobey my orders, and you die."

"I understand."

The boy answered without hesitation.

"Remember, if you don't ingest the antidote for the poison pill within twelve hours, the poison will spread to your internal organs."

*Pop*

Eventually, the assailant released his grip on the twisted arm. Then, as the boy got up, he said, "From this moment, you are…Mok Gyeongwoon."

"Understood. Should I call you Guard Kam?"

"Yes."

"Can I speak informally in front of others?"

"...Yes."

He didn't want to be treated disrespectfully by the boy, but clarifying wouldn't hurt. Then the boy, now Mok Gyeongwoon, approached the 'real Mok Gyeongwoon' lying on the ground.

He started to undress him.

'Hmm,' Guard Kam watched with displeasure.

It was cunning of him to switch clothes with the real one without being asked. Only the dead 'real Mok Gyeongwoon' was pitiful.

*Swish*

*Swish*

Mok Gyeongwoon was undressing the upper part of the clothing, 'Look at this guy.'

Inside his upper body were densely packed, well-developed muscles. Even with bandages stained red across his chest and abdomen, the shape of his muscles was distinct, hinting at their extent.

'To think this is a body not trained in external martial arts.'

It was surprising before, but even more so now. Watching Mok Gyeongwoon's upper body, Guard Kam's eyes narrowed, 'But why does he seem fine despite the bandages indicating severe injuries?'

That was the question. If the injuries were old, maybe, but they seemed recent. Yet, Mok Gyeongwoon's complexion and movements seemed fine.

'What exactly?' he became curious about what this guy had been doing to end up as a death row inmate. It seemed he had to meet with an acquaintance from the office again.

Then, Mok Gyeongwoon, having switched clothes, turned to him and asked, "May I borrow your dagger?"

"Dagger… Why?"

Mok Gyeongwoon nonchalantly pointed towards the head of the 'real Mok Gyeongwoon' lying dead, "The young master's body is weaker than mine, so it seems we'll have to leave the head and take the torso."

"....." it was a logical argument, but still, this guy was unnerving. It seemed best to switch sides quickly.