“You look exhausted. Rest. I’ll send you a contact soon. Tell him what you need, and it will reach me immediately.”

“Take care on your way back, Senior.”

Flame King Hwa Munyeom’s body was just beginning to disperse like smoke—

When he froze.

His gaze shifted to the space behind Unhwi.

He stood silently for a moment.

Unhwi turned.

Han Murin was standing there.

***

In the martial world, there is no one without circumstances.

Even Unhwi had his.

Hwa Muryeong had hers.

And Han Murin had his.

As a child, he had watched his entire family slaughtered.

He ran, and ran, and ran, not to survive—

but to avenge.

However he got here, whatever it took, he reached this point.

He met Hwa Muryeong—someone who would become a decisive force in the destruction of Soul Demon Flame Palace—thanks to Unhwi.

Beyond being his lord, gratitude had to be given.

So he had followed—only to find someone he had never seen.

A frail-looking old man, with long white hair loosened behind him.

It was clearly their first meeting—

and yet something about him felt oddly familiar.

He searched his memory, again and again—nothing.

“You’ve grown.”

The old man’s eyes held the far reaches of a memory too distant to grasp.

Who—

“You don’t remember.”

“…Who are you?”

“Your father Dong Yuseong’s… teacher.”

Han Murin’s brow tightened sharply—

but only for a moment.

He turned to Unhwi, then lowered his hands in a respectful salute.

“I have intruded. I will return later.”

He moved to leave—

but Unhwi stopped him.

“Han Murin.”

“…Yes, Lord.”

“This is Hwa Muryeong’s father, the one who said he would help you annihilate Soul Demon Flame Palace.”

In Han Murin’s memory, ‘Hwa Muryeong’ existed—

but ‘Hwa Munyeom’ did not.

He would have been a newborn when this man last lived publicly.

To remember would have been stranger.

“Everyone has circumstances. But if one calls himself a martial man—and someone who wishes to maintain the order of the world—then he must aid your revenge in some fashion.”

Unhwi’s eyes were not on Han Murin.

They were on Hwa Munyeom.

And Hwa Munyeom was already staring back.

Unhwi’s words were calm—

but the meaning was unmistakable.

This was not persuasion.

This was a blade.

Either help Han Murin, or be a hypocrite unworthy of the ‘Flame King.’

Hwa Munyeom did not show a reaction outwardly—

but inside, it was an entirely different storm.

This boy—

Wasn’t merely sharp.

He was terrifying.

Unhwi smiled faintly.

“Is that not so?”

“…So I am to settle old debts as the Vice Lord of the Mukse Society, and also settle them as an ordinary martial man?”

“You seem to be misunderstanding.”

“…What?”

“I’m telling you to do your duty as a human being.”

The words landed like a hammer.

“You said Dong Yuseong—Han Murin’s father—was your disciple. Correct?”

“…Yes.”

“Then since your disciple died unjustly, you, as his teacher and as a human being, should aid his child’s revenge.”

“……”

“Of course, you must have helped him survive in Seolap while he hid his identity.”

When Unhwi served as branch lord of Seolap, Han Murin had already been there for five years.

Someone powerful had helped him escape.

Not someone inside Soul Demon Flame Palace.

Someone outside.

And that left only one possibility.

Hwa Munyeom.

“So you have fulfilled the bare minimum.”

“……”

“But that alone is not enough.”

Hwa Munyeom remained silent.

“Since you are someone who holds a grand cause, you must know—there is no such thing as a half-fulfilled duty. Cause is not real unless it is completed.”

Unhwi’s voice was calm.

Unhurried.

Precise.

“If you say, ‘I kept him alive, so the rest is his problem,’ then what order remains in the martial world?”

“…Heh…”

“Would you say that you’ve done your part, and now the world should deal with the consequences for you?”

“……”

“I am far younger than you, but allow me to speak plainly, Senior. Great Cause begins first with the Fundamental Duty of Being Human. Once begun, it must be completed—no excuses, no leaving the ending to others.”

“……”

“A man who speaks of cause without fulfilling duty speaks with a tongue that holds no weight.”

Silence.

Hwa Munyeom could only exhale.

He had wanted to question Unhwi.

To demand answers.

But in the end, he was the one being corrected.

A century-old martial sage—

rebuked by one «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» still young.

Yet there was no anger.

Only the undeniable, bitter recognition of truth.

“…I carried out the duty halfway… Very well. I acknowledge it.”

“If I offended you, I will apologize.”

“It was offensive. But every word was correct. I will not be a small man. I acknowledge it fully and will correct my stance.”

His eyes glimmered—sharp once more.

“Whatever it takes, I will help. Not as Vice Lord of the Mukse Society—but as Dong Yuseong’s teacher. Is this enough?”

“Yes, Senior.”

Hwa Munyeom scratched his cheek and glanced at Han Murin.

“So. Are you going to keep using the surname Han?”

“No. When the time comes, I will return to my original name.”

“…I see.”

He remained there for a long time—thinking.

Then he spoke to Unhwi.

“I will take my leave.”

Unhwi saluted.

“Walk safely, Senior.”

Hwa Munyeom vanished.

Leaving Unhwi and Han Murin alone.

“Han Murin.”

“Yes, Lord.”

“Your desire to destroy Soul Demon Flame Palace has, until now, been nothing more than blind will without method. Do you agree?”

Han Murin nodded.

Realistically—

to destroy Soul Demon Flame Palace required time, strength, and strategy.

Until now, he had only spoken of the end.

Not the means.

But now—

the time had come to choose a path.

“It is time to decide the method.”

Han Murin’s eyes sharpened.

“You have two choices.”

“I will listen.”

“First: as you are now, erase Soul Demon Flame Palace from existence by any means.”

That path was simple.

Brutal. Efficient. Bloody.

“And the second?”

“You become the Palace Lord of Soul Demon Flame Palace.”

“…What?”

Unhwi continued.

“Your father was executed on charges of treason. But think—does that make sense?”

“What do you mean…?”

“What was the Palace Lord afraid of?”

“……”

“What forced him to kill your father, even knowing he would create an enemy in Hwa Munyeom?”

Unhwi had investigated.

Nothing concrete had surfaced.

But something had existed.

Something that had terrified the Palace Lord.

And that fear granted Han Murin—legitimacy.

“Treason means that the existing authority was threatened from within. Which means your father was recognized as a legitimate successor.”

Han Murin’s eyes widened.

“Your father’s death itself gave you a rightful claim.”

“And if you reclaim that throne—” Unhwi raised two fingers.

“First: Your father’s innocence is proven. His throne was stolen out of fear. When you take it back, the world will see it as rightful inheritance.”

“Second: The grievance is completed. The blood debt becomes whole. The martial world will recognize it—as justice.”

Han Murin drew a sharp breath…

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