The food suited his taste; Yeon Cheon Baek kept lifting spoonfuls of soup with a cheerful face.A cup of liquor on top of that, and his body felt like it was melting.He hardly felt cold to begin with thanks to Cold-Heat Immunity, but still—there was such a thing as mood.While Yeon Cheon Baek and Gwangpung Shinga were happily enjoying soup and liquor, the man who had slipped out of the inn moved somewhere in a hurry.Warriors stood where he rushed in.As the man approached, the warriors eyed him warily.“What is it? Halt!”At their words, he stopped and shouted:“C-Central Plains men! Central Plains men have appeared!”The warriors looked at one another.Then one asked,“They’re really from the Central Plains?”“From the way they talk to the clothes on their backs, anyone can tell they’re from the Central Plains. And they’re warriors!”“Warriors?”“Yes! Warriors of considerable realm!”At “considerable realm,” the faces of the Ice Palace warriors hardened.What business had such men here?Had they somehow sniffed out that the Northern Sea Ice Palace was preparing to strike the Central Plains?Were they here to scout?If so, they had to respond quickly.One misstep and the grand plan prepared over so long could collapse.“Show us where. We must confirm it first.”“All right. Follow me.” ****“See them?”The inn they reached with the man.Watching from outside, the two Central Plains men really were inside, enjoying food and drink.They looked like tourists.Even here in the Northern Sea, there wasn’t a hint of tension.Two possibilities in such cases:Either they had come through with no connection to the Ice Palace at all, or they were warriors strong enough to be that relaxed.It wasn’t likely to be the former; the odds strongly favored the latter.“Well? Don’t they look like their realms are high?”At the man’s question, the Northern Sea warriors nodded.“Thank you. We’ll see you rewarded for today.”“I’m not doing this for a reward. I’m doing it to protect the Northern Sea.”The warriors smiled at his words.Telling them to keep up the good work, the man went back inside the inn to his companions.But something felt off.For supposed scouts, they were acting far too conspicuously.At the very least, they should have covered their faces or disguised themselves like Northerners; instead, they were openly advertising that they were from the Central Plains.“They’re walking around that brazenly?”“Do they trust that much in their own strength?”“No matter how strong, this is the Northern Sea. How strong can two men be by themselves? Unless the fellow is the Martial Deity Heaven Lord, that’s nonsense.”“True enough. Then why are they here? They don’t look like they came to scout.”“Damn… who knows.”“We won’t figure out what they are by standing here guessing all night. Let’s report to the palace.”“Report what? ‘Some strange people are here, come look’? We’ll be told to do our jobs.”“R-right… that’s true.”“At least keep watch on their movements. If they do anything suspicious, we move then.”“You’re right. We watch.”The two Northern Sea warriors settled on a plan and resumed tailing the Central Plains pair.The two had no idea.That the Central Plains warrior had been listening to their entire conversation.Sluuurp—.Downing his liquor, the Central Plains warrior—Yeon Cheon Baek—smiled.He’d been wondering how to contact the Ice Palace; this would do nicely.He’d use those men to send word to the palace. ****“What is this? They’re doing nothing.”“It’s Polar Day right now. The sun doesn’t set—it’s bright enough to move about freely.”“Then why are they here?”“They didn’t really come to sightsee, did they?”“You think men that skilled came to vacation because they had nothing better to do? It’s the first day—they must be worn out. They’re resting.”“To them, this is enemy territory. Resting at an inn in the heart of enemy lines? You think that’s possible?”“Where else would they rest? Sleep rough out here and you die. Why do you think they went to an inn in Central Plains clothes? Didn’t you see earlier? They were absorbed in the food [N O V E L I G H T] and drink.”“No—they weren’t completely absorbed.”“They were. I’m telling you.”“They were just enjoying it more than expected.”As they talked, something was wrong.The other side hadn’t opened their mouths, yet somehow this was a conversation.And now the two were making faces like they’d seen a ghost.What…? He slowly turned his head—and the Central Plains warrior they had been watching was standing right behind them.“Gah!”Startled, the warrior stumbled back, yanking out his sword.Chyak—!“H-how did you get behind me?”His partner answered for him.“H-he just—appeared.”“What?”“He just whoosh—showed up.”In other words, they hadn’t even seen him approach.Grinning, the Central Plains warrior—Yeon Cheon Baek—spoke to the two stunned men.“Adorable. You’re right. We’re from the Central Plains.”“Y-you heard everything we said?”“What about that would be hard?”They were quite a distance away.They had even been careful not to be overheard.“If you really wanted secrecy, you should have used voice transmission. Talk that loud and I’ll hear all of it.”We didn’t talk loud.“W-what business brings you from the Central Plains to the Northern Sea?”“If I say sightseeing, you won’t believe me, will you?”“Would you believe it if you were us?”“No. I wouldn’t.”“Then what’s your purpose?”“We came to see your lord. I was just debating how to contact the Northern Sea Ice Palace Lord; this works. You two pass it along.”“You think our lord is someone you can just ask to meet? And meet with men from the Central Plains at that?”“He’ll want to. Otherwise… the Ice Palace gets smashed.”A man who flatly declared he’d smash the Northern Sea Ice Palace.Strangely, it didn’t sound like bluster.“I was going to sleep, but as long as we’re here, let’s just meet today. Move.”“W-where?”“Where else—the Northern Sea Ice Palace. Ah, and we paid the room charge. I’ll have to bill your lord for that.”“That’s impossible! We will not move from here!”“If you attack us, you’ll be branded enemies of the Northern Sea and hunted. This is the Northern Sea. You’ll never get out.”At their protests, Yeon Cheon Baek grinned.“Running doesn’t suit my constitution. So if that happens, an unintended clash occurs, I won’t hold back, the Ice Palace and I become irreconcilable… and then… I’ll have no choice but to fight the Ice Palace. Can you bear that?”“Kh…!”A colossal pressure began to bear down on the two Northern Sea warriors.“Against me, the Lord of Martial Deity Heaven?”“Khak!”When Yeon Cheon Baek revealed himself, the two—already groaning—gasped in shock.“Y-you’re really… the M-Martial Deity Heaven Lord?”“You think there’s a fool in this world bold enough to impersonate me? I wonder.”As the two stared in disbelief, the quiet man beside him spoke up.“He’s telling the truth. He is the Martial Deity Heaven Lord—the one the world calls the One Martial God. And I am the Beggars’ Sect Master, Gwangpung Shinga. We’ve come to see your lord because there’s something of grave importance.”At Gwangpung Shinga’s words, the two understood everything.They had joked earlier:The only person who could stroll about here at leisure was the Martial Deity Heaven Lord.Had their words taken root?The very man himself was here.The master of Martial Deity Heaven—the Northern Sea’s nightmare—stood before them.“Now—feel like guiding us?”They nodded.This had to be reported, no matter what.It wasn’t merely that two Central Plains warriors had arrived.The greatest crisis in the Northern Sea’s history stood at the gate.“U-understood. W-we’ll inform the lord at once.”“Heh-heh, good. Let’s go.” ****The main gate of the Northern Sea Ice Palace.It was late; the gate was sealed, the watch tight.Before the empty gate, a man came sprinting hard.“What is it!”“An urgent matter! Open the gate!”From his clothes and face, he was indeed a Northern Sea warrior.That didn’t mean they opened the gate easily.“You know full well this is a curfew hour!”“I do! I’m a Northern Sea warrior—how could I not! But for me to run here knowing that—doesn’t that tell you how urgent it is?”It was persuasive.“What’s so urgent!”“Open the gate first. I must relay this directly to someone high.”“Mm.”“It’s urgent! Not just someone high—to the lord himself!”“A message for the lord?”“Yes! It concerns the Central Plains! Open up! There’s no time!”At his urgent cries, the sentries looked at one another.There was a strict order to let no one in at this hour; they couldn’t open up lightly.“Then wait! This isn’t for us to decide. We’ll ask.”“Hurry! We’re out of time!”His frantic look and voice were convincing enough that the sentry moved with matching urgency. The gate guard went to his superior.“What is it!”“A man who looks like one of ours says he has urgent news and begs us to open the gate.”“There’s a strict order—no one comes in at this hour! Tell him to return tomorrow.”“He insists it’s truly urgent. He’s shouting that it must go straight to the lord.”“What? To the lord?”“Yes! He also said there’s no time. Could the Central Plains be moving to invade the Northern Sea?”“Mm! Did he really look that urgent?”“He did.”“Damn it—let’s go.”He couldn’t judge by words alone; the superior hurried to the gate.There, the man truly was hopping from foot to foot in agitation.“Isn’t this done yet? I’m telling you we have no time!”He was losing his temper now.“You idiots! I said it’s urgent!”The superior stepped forward.“I’m in charge here. Tell me what this is about, and I’ll open the gate.”“It concerns the very survival of the Northern Sea Ice Palace!”“Survival? What are you talking about?”“I don’t have time to argue! Open the gate now!”His urgency didn’t look like an act.“Mm. Open it. And shadow him without fail the entire way.”“Understood.”Gggrrk—.The gate that seemed like it would never open cracked wide enough for a single person.The warrior darted inside as if he’d been waiting for that slit to appear.“H-how do I see the lord?”“You can’t see him directly. You report to someone else first.”“Then guide me. There’s no time.”“Ha… follow me.”

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