Chapter 56 : Assassin Nameless (2)

Chapter 56: Assassin Nameless (2)

Clang!

With a rough metallic sound, the two broken halves of the dual daggers clattered to the ground.

The duel had reached its conclusion.

Nameless raised his now-empty hands to shoulder height, as though declaring his surrender.

“……What is that.”

“One Point Kill – Reverse.”

“Hah, quite a fitting name. From the grip method to the flow of qi, you turned everything completely upside down.”

Nameless gave a hollow laugh, as if dumbfounded.

For in that short span of time, through the ability of his Heavenly Martial Physique, he had deciphered the One Point Kill – Reverse. He realized it was a superior martial art, vastly advanced compared to his own One Point Kill.

Sewoon, still holding on to his wariness, answered in a low voice.

“They say it was newly devised for someone who was especially fond of wielding daggers in reverse grip.”

Nameless’s pupils trembled violently, as if shaken by an earthquake.

In that instant, a forgotten childhood memory flashed across his mind.

-……Hah, how many times have I told you not to grip it like that?

Tch, but it looks way cooler this way!

Memories faded and buried during a life drenched in blood came rushing back.

“……You acted so affectionate when you were alive.”

Nameless muttered bitterly, as though speaking to someone who was no longer there.

Hearing that tone, Sewoon realized the assassin’s doubts toward him had completely vanished.

It was inevitable.

He had spoken of memories that only brothers could share.

On Nameless’s darkened expression flickered a faint bitterness—regret at learning of his brother’s death later than Sewoon had.

‘……Don’t blame yourself. In truth, everything was what you had uncovered.’

The one who had passed down the One Point Kill – Reverse, the one who revealed the secret history of Wuyoung…

It had all been the Nameless from before Sewoon’s regression.

Even while living as the Blood Demon’s hunting hound, Nameless had constantly searched for clues about his elder brother’s death.

And at last, inside the Blood Cult’s vault, he discovered Wuyoung’s discarded belongings.

What appeared outwardly to be an unidentifiable strange book was, in fact, filled with coded words—codes known only to himself and his younger brother. Within it were the improved version of One Point Kill and the full truth of what had happened to him.

“Will you tell me the truth?”

“And what do I get in return?”

“The location of the Gate of Assassins.”

Had anyone overheard this, they would have been struck with horror.

The main base of the Gate of Assassins was a place never once revealed in the history of the Murim.

If Sewoon were to sell this information, it would yield enough funds to cover not twenty, but thirty years of the Sichuan Tang Clan’s expenses.

After feigning consideration for a moment, Sewoon spoke.

“Not a bad trade.”

As Sewoon accepted, Nameless fell into silence, listening intently.

Though death loomed before him, he seemed utterly indifferent to it.

All he desired was the truth behind his brother’s death.

“It was exactly five years ago.”

A glimmer passed through Nameless’s eyes.

That was precisely the time when the last trace of his brother had surfaced in Guihogu.

Sewoon’s explanation continued.

He had gone to Sichuan’s Mount Leshan to gather poisonous herbs. But his foot slipped, and he tumbled down a cliff.

Barely managing to cling to a branch mid-fall, he discovered a hidden cave while desperately struggling for survival.

Hearing that much, Nameless cut him off with an incredulous expression.

“Wait. Don’t tell me there was a skeleton inside? Even third-rate street novels these days wouldn’t write something that sloppy……”

“Should I stop here, then?”

“No, no, continue.”

When he finally crawled inside the cave, he found long-dried bloodstains—and a single martial manual.

“That manual contained not only martial arts, but also the truth of the incident, along with Master’s final words, all written in blood.”

“And its contents……”

Sewoon then recited word for word the passages from the book—exactly as Nameless had once shown him before his regression.

Thanks to his upper dantian having opened, Sewoon possessed the ability to perfectly recall anything he had seen once, as though etched into his mind like a painting.

Through that flawless recital, Nameless’s doubts were completely dispelled.

‘So the traitor was that man…….’

The coded messages—arranged in a format only he and his brother knew—had been revealed.

After memorizing the contents of the manual several times over in his head, Nameless finally spoke again.

“Then your recent surge in martial prowess was thanks to my brother.”

“That’s right.”

“Hah… So he entrusted you with revenge, in exchange for passing down martial arts?”

“No. Master never asked me to take revenge. He said that was something only his younger brother should do.”

“Master merely asked me to pass down the improved martial arts and the truth of it all to his younger brother.”

“But you said you obtained the manual five years ago. Why didn’t you meet me until now?”

At Nameless’s question, Sewoon narrowed his eyes and replied.

“Master told me: unless I reached at least the extreme of Supreme Peak Master Level, I must never approach recklessly. For his suspicious younger brother would surely cut off one of my limbs before even listening.”

Nameless was at a loss for words.

Because what he had just done was exactly that.

“Now then, let’s finish this by hearing the Gate of Assassins’ main base.”

“……Huh?”

Finish? What did he mean?

Nameless blinked in confusion.

Press.

Sewoon’s dagger, pressed against Nameless’s throat, grew heavier.

In that instant, Nameless realized. Sewoon intended to kill him.

“……You don’t believe I am truly my brother’s kin?”

“No, I believe you.”

“Then why?”

“In the Gate of Assassins, a commission is absolute. What guarantee is there that the one I spare today won’t come to kill me again tomorrow?”

“……Kkgh, a rational conclusion.”

“I will avenge Master’s enemy in your stead. Now, do you have any last words?”

“Of course I have.”

Nameless’s eyes, filled with grave determination, locked onto Sewoon.

Then Nameless’s lips moved.

“Spare me.”

“……What?”

“I asked you to let me live.”

The sudden and brazen shift in his attitude left Sewoon dumbfounded.

“……Does an assassin not know he must be detached from death?”

“I was, until I fought you. I had no regrets no matter when I died. But now… regrets have arisen. What can I do about it?”

“Hah, you call that an excuse?”

“And it’s because of you.”

“What?”

“Because you told me who killed my brother. Now I can’t leave this world yet.”

“What kind of nonsense……”

“So, as an apology, spare me.”

“And while you’re at it, it’d be even better if you kindly taught me the One Point Kill – Reverse.”

“You’re completely insane.”

Srrng!

Sewoon ignored him and prepared to carry out the execution.

Nameless’s gaze shifted entirely.

“I’ll give you the Gate of Assassins.”

All traces of jest vanished from Nameless’s voice.

“I am the current successor of the Gate of Assassins. I’ll rise to the position of Sect Leader as soon as possible, and hand it over to you. So…….”

“Just let me take revenge first.”

Nameless’s eyes burned with vengeance and killing intent.

“Unless I slaughter every last one of those involved in my brother’s death, my regrets will never fade.”

‘That’s enough.’

Hearing Nameless’s final words, Sewoon thought to himself.

Naturally, Sewoon never intended to kill Nameless.

He had only pressed him this far to hear those words.

Without that level of resolve, his friend could never have survived under the Blood Demon.

Cough… I failed…

Just a little longer, hold on. I can save y–

Blacksmith… you… cough… make sure you succeed…

……Find freedom.

Leaving those words behind, his friend before regression had closed his eyes.

Remembering Nameless’s final moment, Sewoon felt his chest tear apart.

And at the same time, self-loathing welled up within him once again.

Though he claimed to worry about his friend, in the end he was pushing him into a deadly battlefield yet again.

But there was no helping it.

To win the war against the Blood Cult.

He needed the strength of the world’s number one assassin—

The Assassin who had once taken the life of the Murim Alliance Leader.

Sewoon’s head spun, nausea rising from his own vile duplicity.

But he clenched his teeth and endured it.

‘I cannot show weakness.’

To the Nameless of this world, he had to appear as an all-knowing, superior existence.

Only then could he finally slay the Blood Demon and grant his friend freedom.

Hiding his inner turmoil thoroughly, Sewoon finally spoke.

“Borrowing a blade to kill…… I can’t say I like it.”

At Sewoon’s words, Nameless’s eyes lit up.

Borrowing another’s blade to kill—Borrowing a Blade to Kill. Which meant…

“If obtaining the Gate of Assassins is the price, I can endure it.”

It was a declaration that he would spare him.

Moments later.

In the Black Bamboo Forest, only one man remained.

“That brat’s got no heart. Didn’t even glance back once before leaving.”

Having said his piece, Sewoon turned his back and left.

Nameless stared blankly at the direction he had gone, then shook his head.

Sewoon had long vanished from sight.

“……Tch, no need to inherit Master’s foul temper too.”

Nameless muttered softly.

Memories with Wuyoung endlessly brushed past his mind.

“Well, you left nothing behind but blood. But what can I do, Brother? That’s the life of an assassin.”

Nameless spoke with a bitter smile.

After five years of searching, he had finally learned of his brother’s death.

He had already known this outcome was far more likely.

Yet he had clung to the faint hope that perhaps, somewhere, his brother was still alive.

For only one reason.

Because they were brothers.

“Is this what they call Heaven Beyond Heaven? Can you believe it, Brother? That such a monster exists. Kehaha.”

Congratulations. Without a doubt, your disciple is going to become the world’s number one assassin.

Nameless laughed loudly at the sky, incredulous.

But soon, the laughter died away.

An eerie stillness enveloped the surroundings.

Swoooosh!

A dreadful killing intent exploded from Nameless, flooding the area in an instant.

“I don’t know what kind of place the Blood Cult truly is, or what treasure they received to sell out my brother.”

The battlefield lay in ruins from their fight.

Under the moonlight pouring down over the desolation—

“But they will come to regret that choice, bitterly.”

Nameless recalled the traitor revealed in his brother’s secret code.

“Hyeong Eyang.”

The name of his next target.

And he was none other than—

The current Sect Leader of the Gate of Assassins.

And the father who had sired him.