Book 26 Chapter 2

"Peace, what is that useful for?

―Sea King Rakbio

Peace. It's a word that somehow sounds good.

Just hearing it calms the mind and warms a corner of the heart. Most people say they prefer peace to war. However, not everyone desires peace. There are those who make more money during wartime, and there are those who cannot find the value of their existence during peacetime. Sea King Rakbio, who was currently confronting Biryu Yeon, was one of those people.

For him, a warrior to the bone, peace was a kind of obstacle that deprived him of opportunities to excel. He wanted to show his strength to the world more. He also wanted to see how far his power would go in the world. He hated situations where he didn't know if he was getting weaker or stronger. Because it made him anxious.

So, this unexpected mission from above was a good opportunity for him. It was a rare crack that had appeared in the giant organization called Macheon Peak, where enemies or intruders rarely appeared.

By daring to challenge this solid and vast organization, he himself decided to acknowledge the existence of these intruders. Without a certain amount of guts and skill, they would have trembled in fear just by imagining the act of intrusion.

Making an enemy of Macheon Peak was no different from making an enemy of the entire Black Path. It held that much symbolism. Moreover, the combat techniques accumulated there had reached a level that was not insufficient to be called the strongest.

Macheon Peak was a place that had spent a hundred years solely researching how to fight well and how to become stronger. To storm such a place, one must be prepared to make an enemy of the martial world, no, the entire world.

'It means you're not afraid of becoming an enemy of the martial world.'

Well, in this case, it would mean becoming a target of extermination by the Black Path, but it's not much different. Once branded as an enemy of the state, the White Path also couldn't touch them.

'I hope they are strong enough to meet my expectations.'

Rakbio sincerely thought so. If the intruders were too weak, his achievements and capabilities wouldn't stand out, would they? That would be troublesome. The enemy had to be strong enough for his achievements to shine along with them. Only then would his strength be more recognized by Kak and Meng.

If that happened, after graduating from Macheon Peak, he could be selected as a captain for 'Hongcheon', a special combat unit of the 'Heukcheon Alliance'. 'Hongcheon', a frontline practical unit where bloodthirsty warriors abound and always charge towards the enemy at the forefront of battle, was the most suitable place for his strength to be unleashed. A place of learning like Macheon Peak was not suited for him. He preferred battlefields where he could wield his military power more practically.

Hongcheon.

It was a combat organization to control the entire Black Path, a practical unit for swift responses to external enemies and for punishing internal enemies. Although it was a combat unit, it held immense influence in the martial world due to its direct use of force. And just by belonging there, one could receive both respect and fear from the Black Path. Of course, his goal was not to be a mere regular soldier.

There were several units within Hongcheon, and becoming a captain of one of those units was his goal. However, most of the captains there were supreme experts who had gained fame in the martial world over ten years ago. So, even if a vacancy arose, it was uncertain whether it would be his turn.

Even though he had the track record of being a captain of the Macheon Thirteen, from an outside perspective, it was seen as a cosmetic display, appointing four students as captains for show.

In other words, it was seen as a measure to increase the students' autonomy, even though their skills were inferior to the instructors. Therefore, student captains were replaced quickly. Their position was different from that of the instructors who had held their positions for a long time.

Of course, Rakbio himself was confident in his ability, 'Diamond Rebound Body Technique'. He had never doubted that he could fight on par with other Macheon Thirteen captains from instructor backgrounds if he fought properly. He did want to prove that by fighting directly, but private sparring matches were strictly forbidden by the阁规 (Kakgyu), so he hadn't been able to do so until now. But with that, he couldn't change public perception. They were clearly viewing him as one or two steps below the other Macheon Thirteen captains. He needed a striking achievement.

Strength is justice.

To dispel such doubts, he had no choice but to prove his abilities with his own power. And that opportunity had finally come knocking at his door.

Now, all that remained was to grasp victory with his strength."