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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: Full Authority
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Clop-clop— Clop-clop—
The orderly sound of horse hooves echoed through the mountains.
Sama Jin, sitting in the carriage with his chin propped on his hand, gazed out the window with a complex expression.
"What in the world happened?"
Muttering softly to himself, Sama Jin tried to piece together the process behind the order.
His father was not one to issue private commands from the cult.
Nor could anyone else dare summon a scion of the Sama Clan.
That left only one possibility.
The Heavenly Demon.
He had personally singled him out and called for him. That much was certain.
'...But why?'
He could guess who had appointed him, but he still couldn't fathom the intent behind it.
Why summon a wastrel who did nothing but drink all day?
Sama Jin couldn't unravel the mystery even after arriving at the Heavenly Demon Palace.
"Young master, we've arrived."
"You've worked hard."
Standing at the entrance to the Heavenly Demon Palace, Sama Jin dismissed the coachman.
As he moved to step forward, he spotted an unexpected figure.
"Father?"
"You've come."
Sama Geuk, who had been waiting at the entrance, greeted his son.
This isn't like him, Sama Jin thought as he looked at him, but Sama Geuk said nothing and moved without delay.
"Follow me."
Sama Geuk started walking toward their destination.
Sama Jin hesitated for a moment before quickly following.
As they walked in silence, Sama Jin spoke first.
"Is there some intention of yours behind this appointment?"
Sama Geuk paused briefly at the words before continuing onward.
"It was the Cult Leader's sole decision."
"...!"
Sama Jin's pupils shook at the response.
The faint possibility he had harbored vanished.
In that case.
"What kind of person is the Cult Leader?"
Hoping to probe the situation even a little, Sama Jin asked.
But Sama Geuk offered no answer, merely continuing to walk.
After that, they exchanged not a single word until they reached their destination.
Upon arriving at the Pure Heaven Pavilion, they encountered the Left Guardian waiting at the door.
"The second son."
"Confirmed."
So this is the Heavenly Demon's office, Sama Jin thought, taking in the exterior of the Pure Heaven Pavilion. At that moment, Sama Geuk's lips curved slightly.
"What kind of person the Cult Leader is."
Sama Jin's eyes widened at the sudden remark.
He had remembered the question asked so long ago.
"I don't know well myself."
"...Pardon?"
The Grand Strategist, who had served at the Cult Leader's side, had pondered long and come up with that answer.
As Sama Jin looked at him in bewilderment, Sama Geuk placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't push yourself. Just faithfully fulfill your duty."
"...Yes, understood."
With those words, Sama Geuk departed, leaving Sama Jin alone to stare at the door.
'I have no idea why he called me or what he'll have me do. But even so, if I botch a few tasks, he'll send me packing soon enough.'
The successor for the Sama Clan had not yet been decided.
Until then, he had to maintain his facade of incompetence.
'My goal hasn't changed anyway. No matter what, I won't reveal my talents.'
Steeling his resolve once more, he waited behind the Left Guardian.
"Cult Leader, the second young master of the Sama Clan has arrived."
"Send him in."
Jang Wi bowed his head, opened the door, and gestured inside.
Meeting his gaze briefly, Sama Jin slowly stepped into the Pure Heaven Pavilion.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Knock knock.
"Cult Leader, the second young master of the Sama Clan has arrived."
A welcome voice reached Hyeok Mulin's ears as he speed-read through documents while handling his duties.
He had finally come.
The one he had been waiting for had arrived.
"Send him in."
With the sound of the door opening, a figure entered the Pure Heaven Pavilion.
Hyeok Mulin addressed him as he curiously looked around.
"I'll finish this and go, so sit in the empty seat and wait."
"Pardon? Yes, understood."
Having instructed him to wait, Hyeok Mulin quickly wrapped up the documents.
There was nothing difficult about it.
It was work he had handled while leading the old cult in his previous life.
Soon, he set the documents aside, slowly rose from his seat, and walked over.
Sitting across from Sama Jin, Hyeok Mulin met his eyes directly.
Hyeok Mulin greeted the soft-featured young man.
"Pleased to meet you. I am the Cult Leader of this cult, Hyeok Mulin."
"I pay respects to the exalted Heavenly Person. This humble one is the second son of the Sama Clan, Sama Jin."
The current Grand Strategist, Sama Geuk, was one of the top strategists in the history of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
But decades later, Sama Jin, who inherited his position in the Sama Clan, was a genius of the century whose talents went far beyond such words.
'However, he couldn't overcome his family's affections and hid his abilities.'
Sama Jin had concealed his talents to yield the successor position to his elder brother and later left the clan.
Yet decades later, Sama Jin abruptly returned to his home clan.
All the direct descendants of the Sama Clan had perished in a sudden incident. Returning alone in a daze, he was said to have wailed in grief.
—If only I hadn't left, if only I hadn't abandoned the home clan...!
They said that during the mourning rites, Sama Jin shed bloody tears for three days straight amid regret and self-recrimination.
Afterward, though he did not take the position of Grand Strategist in the cult, as clan head, he led the Sama Clan into its greatest golden age ever.
'He is, right now, the person I need more than anyone.'
Someone to swiftly, accurately, and impartially handle the paperwork that the Heavenly Demon must do.
As a scion of the Sama Clan, he couldn't be easily touched by outsiders, and he would handle matters more cleanly than anyone.
Moreover, he was someone Hyeok Mulin could entrust his position to without worry.
Freedom of action.
That was the most essential thing Hyeok Mulin needed above all.
"Your seat is over there. To briefly explain the duties you'll handle from now on..."
To that end, he had even prepared an additional desk for work in the Pure Heaven Pavilion.
After introducing the seat and tasks, Hyeok Mulin asked finally.
"That's all the work. Do you have any last words?"
"May I ask one thing?"
"Speak."
Nodding, Sama Jin asked without hesitation.
"Why did you single me out?"
"Why, you say."
Hyeok Mulin pondered with his chin in hand, eyes closed briefly.
Lost in thought, he soon parted his lips softly.
"You have something in common with me."
"...Pardon?"
Sama Jin looked at Hyeok Mulin in bewilderment.
Chucking at the puzzled gaze, Hyeok Mulin moved on.
"It's just a temporary deputy strategist position for half a month anyway. No need to feel burdened—work comfortably."
"Yes. I shall obey."
Clap.
Hyeok Mulin clapped to draw attention and rose from his seat.
"Then let's resume the paperwork."
"What should I start with?"
"Take the documents on my desk and process them."
Nodding, Sama Jin gathered a bundle of documents in his arms and moved to his desk.
Sitting down, he began examining one of them.
'This kind of content. I get the gist.'
It was a petition stating that a severe drought had struck Gu屯, leading to cultists starving, requesting aid.
Grasping the core quickly, Sama Jin flipped to the back.
But soon, surprise flickered in his pupils.
The reverse side detailed the handling, decision, and reasoning behind it.
This seemed to be a document already processed by the Cult Leader.
'Much cleaner than I thought.'
It wasn't just about distributing relief grain; it meticulously outlined nearby regions for quickest collection, margin of error in quantities, support systems, and even yearly famine records with future countermeasures.
It was hard to believe this came from a Cult Leader who had ascended only half a year ago.
'Not just a mere figurehead.'
Sama Jin glanced at Hyeok Mulin.
At that moment, their eyes met by chance.
Sama Jin hurriedly averted his gaze, but Hyeok Mulin said calmly.
"Ah, I forgot. Use this for approvals."
With that, Hyeok Mulin tossed him something small.
Sama Jin reflexively caught the flying object and looked down curiously.
The moment he confirmed what lay in his hand, his body stiffened.
'Th-this...!'
In Sama Jin's grasp was the Cult Leader's official seal.
Sama Jin looked at Hyeok Mulin with trembling eyes, but he had already lost interest and focused on his own work.
Sama Jin's gaze returned to the object in his hand.
The seal itself was quite light, but knowing its power, Sama Jin felt as if his hand might fall off from the weight.
'Handing the Cult Leader's seal to a mere temporary deputy strategist?'
With this alone, he could instantly wipe out a prestigious clan.
With this alone, he could immediately declare war on the Murim Alliance and order the ravaging of the Central Plains.
How could he entrust such a precious, critical seal to someone rumored to be a wastrel?
The burden went beyond mere weight; even a genius like him couldn't comprehend it.
Gulp.
Swallowing dryly, Sama Jin steadied his breathing and barely calmed himself.
'Hoo, stay calm. Don't forget the essence.'
For now, the plan to botch tasks had to be shelved.
A few wrong stamps on the seal could shake not just the work, but the entire cult.
'Right, just do nothing and stay put.'
If he couldn't do the job properly, they'd kick him out soon enough.
Changing plans, Sama Jin nodded slowly.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
A day passed, then two.
Three, four days flowed by, then five.
Seven days and nights went by, reaching the tenth day.
Sama Jin stared with a stiff expression at the empty Cult Leader's seat.
He turned forward, gazing at the still-piled documents unchanged.
"Wrong. Completely wrong."
Sama Jin admitted he had miscalculated.
The Cult Leader had no interest in what he did. It was practically neglect.
But it wasn't intentional indifference.
"Can a person live that diligently?"
The Cult Leader he had observed was busier than anyone in the cult.
Apart from occasionally stopping by the Pure Heaven Pavilion to process a few documents, he devoted himself to training at the Heavenly Martial Hall from morning till evening.
He was so obsessed with training that he even skimped on meals with dry rations.
"This is the current leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult?"
Hyeok Mulin.
Even without seeking it out, he had heard plenty about him.
By rumor, he was a man of meager talent and martial prowess, laziness, who had chosen the foolish path of divorce.
But Sama Jin could now assert those were mere fabrications.
"Who spread these lies? Not a single one holds true."
The martial arts he had glimpsed in the training chamber were profound in every aspect, and he faithfully carried out days busier than anyone's.
Moreover, Hyeok Mulin was not one to take meaningless actions.
Such a man wouldn't push for divorce out of stupidity.
"Could he have seen that path too?"
The one path for the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, the Hyeok Clan, and even himself to survive.
He had thought only he could see it in the world, but he was mistaken.
"Definitely no ordinary man."
He possessed intellect, magnanimity, and insight comparable to his own.
Along with that, Sama Jin gradually came to understand the weight and burden on his shoulders.
Having watched the Cult Leader closely for ten days, Sama Jin found himself subtly influenced without realizing it.
Perhaps he knows.
If he found that path...
Creak.
At that moment, Hyeok Mulin entered the Pure Heaven Pavilion.
Having finished his morning training and come during break to handle duties, Hyeok Mulin glanced at Sama Jin.
'Still the same.'
The position and volume of the piled documents were unchanged.
He had completely stepped away from work in the meantime.
Turning his gaze, Hyeok Mulin sat and opened a document.
As he was about to finish yesterday's paperwork, Sama Jin's voice came from beside him.
"Cult Leader. May I ask one thing?"
Hyeok Mulin responded indifferently to the voice after ten days.
"Speak."
Hyeok Mulin continued his work without looking at him.
Steadying his breath briefly, Sama Jin asked in a faintly trembling voice.
"What should I do?"
Stop.
Hyeok Mulin's hand paused at the words.
Silence filled the room briefly, then his lips moved.
"I don't know."
"...I see."
"However."
Hyeok Mulin resumed his hand and continued.
"Don't abandon yourself for others. Just follow where your heart leads."
This was sincere.
Don't sacrifice yourself for the clan.
It wouldn't lead to a positive end for himself or the clan.
Sama Jin had lived a life of pain and regret, just like him in his previous life.
Setting aside subservience to him, Hyeok Mulin hoped he would live without regrets this time.
"...!"
A brilliant light flashed in Sama Jin's pupils at the words.
A heavy silence descended between them. But soon, Sama Jin broke it.
"Cult Leader, one last question."
Rising from his seat, Sama Jin slowly approached Hyeok Mulin.
A massive blaze ignited in his previously vacant eyes.
"To what extent does my current authority go?"
Hyeok Mulin's gaze slowly rose at the question.
Meeting Sama Jin's eyes, Hyeok Mulin parted his lips steadily.
"Everything."
Hyeok Mulin declared clearly from his seat.
"All that I can do is your authority."