Rebirth of the Heavenly Demon

Chapter 107 – Finding the Head (1)

The successful candidates, including myself, waited in the outer court for about ten days, receiving basic training.

They were investigating us before we entered the inner court. Our origins, backgrounds, even personalities. We could only enter the inner court once our identities were confirmed.

I became moderately friendly with my fellow recruits. Although we wouldn’t be together for long, there might be a time when I’d need their help.

After those ten days or so, we were finally able to enter the Righteous Thought Pavilion.

There were several dormitories for martial artists in the outer court, with a separate one for Righteous Thought Pavilion martial artists.

Most martial artists, except for those who were married, stayed in these dormitories.

I was also assigned a room. The room only had a bed, a small table for drinking tea, and a wardrobe for clothes. Fortunately, there was a window overlooking the scenery of the outer court, so it didn’t feel too cramped.

Though I’m not sure how long I’ll be staying here.

“I look forward to working with you.”

The next day, I was standing in front of my assigned place.

Operations Team Five[1].

Small letters were attached to the door.

Here in the Righteous Thought Pavilion, each military officer led their own team.

I wondered whose team I had been assigned to.

With a somewhat nervous heart, I opened the door and entered.

The gazes of the people in the room turned towards me. I instantly noticed that there were six people in the room. Four were sitting at partitioned desks working, one was writing something on a large map attached to the wall.

And the last person.

Someone was standing with their back turned, looking out of a large window in front of me. The moment I saw that back, a smile naturally formed on my lips.

It was Gal Sa-ryang. I had succeeded in making a special impression during the interview.

“I greet you. I am Byeok Ri-dan, newly assigned to Operations Team Five of the Righteous Thought Pavilion as of today!”

The others watching laughed at my loud voice. Their expressions suggested they had been the same when they first entered.

Then Gal Sa-ryang asked without turning around.

“What’s your dream for the future?”

It’s probably a dream that would shock you if you heard it.

To sweep away the Martial Righteous Alliance Leader and the forces behind him, together with you.

But I had no intention of becoming the crazy guy at the center of gossip from the first day by saying such things.

“To become a good military officer.”

“What kind of military officer is a good one?”

“One who leads the martial artists in the field well to minimize casualties.”

“Can you win a battle if you’re too careful?”

“At least I don’t want to treat my comrades as expendables.”

“It might be difficult for you to become a capable military officer.”

“I want to become both capable and good.”

“You’re quite ambitious.”

Gal Sa-ryang, who had been staring out the window for a moment, turned towards me.

“Welcome. Do your best from now on.”

“Yes. Please guide me well!”

I was assigned under Gal Sa-ryang. It was a good start, just as I had hoped.

With my joining, Operations Team Five now had seven members.

While eating, I could hear about Gal Sa-ryang from the seniors of Team Five. There’s always at least one chatterbox who can’t help but talk when five or so people gather.

They said he was initially mistreated by Sima Cheon but recently started receiving his favor. He used to be confined in a small room, but now he’s leading an operations team.

And surprisingly, the main task of Operations Team Five was to track down the Nameless Great Master.

Good heavens. Gal Sa-ryang was working on tracking me down.

It was surprising, but in some ways, it made sense. In recent martial world trends, the Nameless Great Master could be seen as the most important key figure. The fact that he was in charge of this task itself meant that Gal Sa-ryang was moving in the right direction.

Several days passed since I joined Operations Team Five.

I was adapting well. I diligently handled the tasks assigned to me and was getting along well with others.

There was no one who bullied newcomers under the guise of organizational discipline.

This was also related to Gal Sa-ryang’s personality. He wasn’t the type to keep subordinates with messy personalities; he either wouldn’t keep them at all or would keep them close.

Since the whereabouts of the Nameless Great Master were so elusive, we mainly worked on other tasks these days.

Investigating corrupt martial artists.

Looking at several recent tasks related to this, I could guess one fact. That Gal Sa-ryang was trying his best to establish his position somehow.

Six days after I joined, Gal Sa-ryang called for me.

“How is it? Is the work manageable?”

“Yes, everyone is helping me, so I’m adapting well.”

Gal Sa-ryang assigned me a task.

“Investigate as quickly as possible and bring me a report.”

“Yes, I understand.”

I could tell. Although it looked like an ordinary task, he was testing me.

First, I needed to show him my abilities.

The task Gal Sa-ryang assigned was to find and summarize materials. The amount of material was not trivial. If it had been one of my peers, they would have been overwhelmed by this enormous workload.

First, I quickly searched for the materials. The materials were scattered in the Righteous Thought Pavilion’s archives and data rooms.

To start with, I had good eyes and was fast. I quickly went back and forth gathering materials.

A desk was piled high with materials. I began to analyze them quickly.

I had become accustomed to reading over the past two months.

The next thing needed was concentration. I analyzed the materials to the best of my ability.

The next morning, a report was placed on Gal Sa-ryang’s desk.

Gal Sa-ryang was shocked when he checked the report. Even at the fastest, it should have taken three days. But the work was completed in just one day.

He checked the content of the report with disbelief. He expected it to be very lacking, but surprisingly, it was perfectly organized.

“Oh ho, not bad?”

Gal Sa-ryang’s eyes sparkled. He had been trying to create trustworthy subordinates within the Righteous Thought Pavilion. But it wasn’t an easy task.

The subordinates in Operations Team Five were all decent. But that was just it. There was no one he could consider his right-hand man.

To them, he was a leader past his prime. In some ways, he was a shabby leader who hadn’t left when he should have.

Therefore, unless he revealed his true purpose, it wasn’t easy to turn the existing subordinates into his right-hand men again.

But this time, they recruited new members, and a notable person had joined. He assigned work to test his abilities, and he handled it better than expected.

Gal Sa-ryang immediately called Byeok Ri-dan forward.

“Did you handle these alone?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Impressive.”

“I’m not slow with my hands and feet.”

“Well then, handle this too.”

Gal Sa-ryang assigned another task. It was more complex and difficult than the previous one.

“But you know, you lack tact. Don’t you know that if you handle work this quickly, your workload will increase?”

Then Byeok Ri-dan smiled and said,

“But in exchange, Military Officer’s trust in me will increase, right?”

It was more work than yesterday, but the next morning, without fail, another report was on his desk.

‘Look at this guy?’

Gal Sa-ryang was genuinely impressed by the speed of work. It reminded him of how he used to work in his prime. Those were the days when things just clicked.

However, there was a deficiency in today’s report.

“I think you’ve misunderstood this part.”

Gal Sa-ryang pointed out the flaw in the report.

After listening, Byeok Ri-dan asked a question about it. It wasn’t argumentative, nor was it a question thrown out just to look good. It was the kind of question one should certainly have in this situation.

What pleased Gal Sa-ryang was that he was really listening to his words. Usually, when he pointed something out, subordinates would keep their mouths shut. And if they did ask questions, they were questions trying to prove they hadn’t done anything wrong.

But Byeok Ri-dan’s question was different. He could tell that he was genuinely curious about this matter and wanted to know how to improve it.

‘This guy is a gem.’

***

That night, Gal Sa-ryang treated me to drinks.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t formally throw a big welcome party for you. As you know, the Martial Righteous Alliance situation is tense these days due to the Demonic Cult’s resurgence.”

“Not at all. I’m really grateful that you’ve welcomed me like this.”

Come to think of it, I realized I hadn’t had many drinking sessions with Gal Sa-ryang. Naturally, we had never shared our true feelings while drunk.

He always tried to show me only his upright side. Partly because of his personality that disliked showing a disheveled appearance, and half because of me who valued authority.

Several drinks were exchanged. Unexpectedly, Gal Sa-ryang was quite good at drinking.

“Do you think the Demonic Cult has really revived?”

“Why? You joined the Alliance because of that, but you don’t believe it?”

“Honestly, I don’t. I heard that the previous Alliance Leader completely uprooted the Blood Heavens Divine Cult.”

“Those Demonic Cult bastards are like weeds.”

I wanted to hear his honest thoughts about this matter, but he wasn’t someone who would reveal his inner thoughts to me, who had just joined.

“If I may be so bold, can I ask one question?”

“Go ahead.”

“I heard you served as the Commander-in-Chief during the previous Alliance Leader’s time.”

“That’s right.”

“Why didn’t you leave the Alliance?”

Gal Sa-ryang looked at me. I calmly met his gaze, so this question didn’t take on any special meaning.

“It’s not easy to leave a place where you’ve spent your entire life.”

Gal Sa-ryang didn’t express his honest feelings that it was for revenge. When I can hear that story, that’s when I’ve truly become close to him.

“To be honest, I had a lot of concerns when applying this time.”

“What kind of concerns?”

“Because the rumors about the Heavenly Blade Sect weren’t good.”

Gal Sa-ryang nodded. But again, he didn’t reveal his thoughts about it.

I tried to stay as calm as possible. Looking at him, I fall into the desire to blurt out everything.

I am Cheon Hajin. Let’s go, Sa-ryang.

But I can’t do that. Heaven made me reborn as Byeok Ri-dan. It must mean I should live as Byeok Ri-dan. If not, it would have made me survive as Cheon Hajin somehow.

“We just need to focus on doing our job well.”

“Yes, Military Officer.”

The drinking session that started with a light drink continued quite late.

Although he drank a lot, he didn’t lose his composure.

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Thank you for today. Please get home safely.”

The sight of him walking away alone without any guards was unfamiliar.

***

Several more days passed.

I had now fully adapted to life in the Righteous Thought Pavilion. I had become friendly with people and handled my assigned tasks without mistakes.

I didn’t rush.

There are certainly things in the world that go well when your heart is ahead. But at least not when it comes to human relationships.

The door of the place where everyone was concentrating on work suddenly burst open. The protagonist of this rude visit was Commander-in-Chief Sima Cheon.

Gal Sa-ryang stood up from his seat and greeted him.

“You’ve come.”

We all stood up and greeted him politely.

He always opened the door like this without any warning. He tried to prove that he was above Gal Sa-ryang and us with this rude behavior.

He strode in and sat in Gal Sa-ryang’s seat.

At first, Gal Sa-ryang found this disgusting behavior very unpleasant and difficult, but now he didn’t feel any emotion at all.

Gal Sa-ryang thought like this. Dogs bark, muddy water splashes, dung stinks, and Sima Cheon is that kind of guy.

“An order has come down from above.”

“What kind of order?”

“It’s related to the Demonic Cult.”

At the mention of the Demonic Cult, everyone, including Gal Sa-ryang, was shocked.

“What’s the matter?”

“The details are top secret. The Thousand Bow Regiment will move, and our pavilion needs to support that mission.”

“Is it a field support order?”

“That’s right.”

Originally, the Righteous Thought Pavilion provided rear support. But occasionally, for big operations, military officers were directly dispatched.

“It’s an important operation, so I want you to go personally.”

“I understand.”

As Sima Cheon left the room, Gal Sa-ryang’s eyes sharpened. Top-secret missions were usually ones where you learn the details on the day of departure, or at the point when the operation is about to take place at the destination. It means it’s that important of a mission.

‘But why the Thousand Bow Regiment of all units?’

The three important units of the Martial Righteous Alliance were the Bright Moon Regiment, Iron Cavalry Regiment, and Thousand Bow Regiment. Among them, the Bright Moon Regiment led by Ju Cheol-ryong took the lead in making Ma Bong-gi the Alliance Leader. In that process, the Iron Cavalry Regiment followed Ju Cheol-ryong.

The only organization that opposed Ma Bong-gi becoming the Alliance Leader was the Thousand Bow Regiment.

‘Could it be? No, it couldn’t be?’

I, who had heard the entire conversation from the side, opened my mouth.

“I’d like to accompany you on this mission. I think my martial arts skills will be helpful in ensuring your safety, Military Officer.”

Like Gal Sa-ryang, I also felt that this mission was not normal. It was something where I absolutely had to stick close to Gal Sa-ryang.

Gal Sa-ryang stared at me for a moment, then nodded and said,

“Get ready.”