Chapter 228: Recapturing Bezos (2)

The Empire’s Supply Unit, upon suddenly seeing unknown figures appear, sighed in relief upon realizing they were beggars.

“What? Just some beggars?”

“Please give us something to eat.”

“We’re hungry.”

The imperial soldiers brandished their weapons to threaten them.

“Get lost! We’re Imperial troops. Come any closer, and we won’t be responsible for what happens to you.”

“Filthy damn beggars…”

They issued fierce warnings.

But the group of unknown beggars didn’t retreat. On the contrary, they kept getting closer, rubbing their hands together with submissive expressions.

“We’re starving…”

“Please, have mercy…”

“Give us some food…”

As they got even closer, one of the imperial soldiers lost his patience, slapped away a beggar’s hand, and struck him across the face.

“Damn you…!”

“Ack…!”

“I told you to get lost while you still could!”

That was the trigger.

The beggar whose head had snapped back from the blow suddenly drew a sword and slashed.

It all happened so suddenly that the imperial soldiers couldn’t process the situation right away.

“Huh?”

Meanwhile, all around, the other beggars also unsheathed blades that gleamed toward their victims. In the blink of an eye, several soldiers fell, coughing up blood.

“W-what’s going on?”

“It’s an attack! The beggars are attacking us!”

The ronin disguised as beggars began a frenzied massacre.

“I told you we were hungry!”

“Who do you think you are?”

“Kehihihi!”

“The sky is blue!”

The ronin shouted random phrases in the continent’s common tongue as they slashed their weapons wildly.

With blood-streaked faces and twisted smiles, their disheveled appearance created a grotesque and chilling image.

“They’re insane!”

“Stop them now!”

Thanks to approaching under the pretense of being beggars, the ronin had easily engaged in close combat.

The Imperial troops, caught off guard, didn’t respond effectively.

Chaos broke out. Yuri watched the scene with a satisfied expression.

“Incredible.”

“The ronin have lived hard lives.”

Cheongun, standing next to him, stepped forward.

“I’ll fight too.”

“Yes, let’s go together.”

Yuri and his group, who had remained hidden until then, also revealed themselves.

As the new group appeared, the Imperial soldiers shouted:

“More beggars!”

“New beggars!”

Exactly.

Yuri and his group were also disguised as beggars to fight alongside the ronin. That’s why the Imperial soldiers didn’t recognize them.

They would never imagine all this was a strategy from Briol.

“Let’s go, beggars!” Yuri shouted, and Francesco, Jared, Simon, and Guinness, standing behind him, roared—forgetting their shame.

“Give me food!”

“Food!”

To minimize allied casualties, Yuri focused on eliminating only the strongest in the Imperial army.

“You—fight me.”

“W-what…?”

“Next!”

Who could have imagined that a swordsman of the Ten Greats would appear disguised as a beggar in a surprise attack on a supply unit?

The Empire wasn’t prepared for this, and Yuri was able to massacre enemies without encountering real resistance.

Some knights, crossing swords with him, sensed his level.

“No, it can’t be…”

But they couldn’t say more.

“Yes, it’s me.”

Yuri slashed their throats in a single stroke.

They died with their eyes wide open, unable to believe what they had seen. Things were going so well that Yuri even allowed himself moments of calm amid the chaos.

“Jared.”

“Yes.”

“Did you see that?”

“I saw it.”

They both watched the ronin.

At first, they had doubted their abilities, seeing them appear like beggars.

But once the battle began, the ronin proved to be masters of killing. They fought as if born for real combat.

They didn’t hesitate to strike vital points or roll on the ground to find gaps in the enemy’s defense.

They used every practical killing technique imaginable.

“Maybe it’s only natural,” Yuri murmured.

“These are people who left their continent to survive in another. If they didn’t trust their skills, they wouldn’t have even tried. They don’t speak the language, so if anything goes wrong, they could end up in a worse misery.”

“That’s true…”

“Their confidence in their swordsmanship is what brought them out of the East.”

Yuri was right.

This group of ronin was made up of experts who knew they could survive anywhere if they had a sword in hand.

But no matter how good they were, in the East’s current situation, without a school or backing, it was hard to live. So, impressed by the wealth shown by the Elaine Company, they decided to migrate west and seek a better life.

They were, in short, frustrated elites of the ronin world seeking a new world.

Jared nodded in admiration.

“Look at how they wield their swords. In terms of real efficiency, they’re better than most knights.”

Living on the edge of the blade, they had learned flashy assassination techniques to survive. They attacked from unexpected angles or sometimes coordinated in pairs to stab an enemy from behind.

That’s why even stronger knights fell to their ambushes.

“I think we should put out a call in the East. We need to take advantage of this human resource.”

“I agree.”

“Look, look at how that one fights… he’s throwing dirt while attacking. He’s a real swordsman!”

After a prolonged chaotic battle, the Imperial troops, seeing how badly things were going, began to flee.

Cheongun, still in the midst of the fight, asked Yuri,

“Do we pursue them?”

“No.”

Yuri had no intention of taking unnecessary risks. His goal was simply to disrupt supplies, rattle the enemy, and continuously undermine their morale.

Yuri shouted,

“Don’t pursue them! Just drive them away! Take the supplies!”

At his words, some of the ronin who understood a bit of the continent’s language looked at Cheongun.

Then they began to speak in their Eastern tongue.

[“Take”? Cheongun, what does that mean?]

[It means to take it from them.]
[Oh! Like looting?]

[Exactly.]

[I really like that young guy from the continent!]

[He’s our employer. Watch what you say.]

[Bah, whatever.]

[Didn’t you see his skill? He’s at absolute master level. Step out of line, and you’ll get hurt.]

[Fine, fine. So it’s looting, right?]

[It’s looting.]

[Looting!]

And soon, the ronin began shouting that Eastern word loudly.

“Chierué!”

“Chieruééé!”

“Chierué!”

It sounded like some specific term, and the ronin shouting it were visibly excited.

Yuri asked Cheongun,

“What are they shouting now?”

“Hmm…” he answered, a bit embarrassed.

“It means looting, sir.”

“So they’re shouting Looting! Looting!?”

“Yes.”

“What a bunch of wild men.”

It wasn’t hard to imagine what these men had done back in the East.

Yuri couldn’t help but lament the state of the East, where such skilled warriors had to leave their homeland because they couldn’t make a living.

“I’ll have to open a recruitment office there. I want to bring many more like them.”

“I think that’s an excellent idea…”

The ronin were in high spirits. The Imperial soldiers fled in panic at their strange cries and wild advance.

The tide had completely turned.

“Retreat!”

“Fall back!”

Yuri sent sword waves at the backs of fleeing enemies, trying to take down as many as possible, but he stopped once they were far enough. Then he turned to look back.

The ronin had swarmed the supplies and were wreaking havoc.

Yuri let out a sigh.

“Cheongun, make them stop.”

“Yes, sir.”

With a regretful expression, Cheongun responded and shouted something to the Easterners.

But the ronin, blinded by greed, didn’t listen. When Cheongun tried to raise his voice further, Yuri placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Cheongun, do you have any close family or friends among them?”

“N-no, sir.”

“You came alone?”

“Yes.”

“I see.”

Yuri patted him on the shoulder.

Realizing what Yuri intended to do, Cheongun swallowed hard and stepped back.

Yuri approached the ronin.

Some, with good instincts, sensed something was off and backed away. But others were too busy stuffing their pockets with provisions.

Yuri touched one of them on the shoulder.

“Hey, you. Stop.”

But the ronin, without even looking at him, muttered a curse and pushed his hand away.

Yuri drew his sword without hesitation.

The ronin’s body was split in two.

He died instantly, without time to scream. And with the noise around, only a few nearby noticed and stopped, stunned.

Then, Yuri touched another ronin’s shoulder. That one also ignored him—and lost his head.

After two or three more deaths, the rest of the ronin went silent.

Yuri looked at Cheongun and gestured for him to translate.

“As long as you work under my orders, anyone who acts on their own will die. I will pay your reward. Until I give the signal, looting is forbidden.”

The ronin nodded, eyes full of fear.

They knew to obey without complaint when faced with overwhelming power.

“We’re leaving soon, so gather only provisions. If the soldiers who fled return with reinforcements, we’re in trouble. Understood?”

The ronin nodded.

“Then go ahead.”

This time, instead of behaving like savages, they began collecting food under Yuri’s supervision.

It didn’t take long. Once they had gathered what was needed, Yuri ordered the remaining wagons to be burned.

“Retreat!”

True to their nature, the ronin fled quickly.

They had managed to annihilate a supply unit and withdraw successfully. They returned to the provisional camp, where they recovered and distributed the food.

“You’ll get your pay when this battle ends. Until then, hang in there.”

Despite Yuri having killed some of their comrades, the ronin didn’t complain.

On the contrary, some even thanked him as he handed out food.

“Ronin come from all walks of life. There are servants, real beggars, and even people from the base of the Hao Mun.”

While chatting, a familiar name came up.

“Hao Mun?”

“It’s a very lowly sect. Full of criminals.”

“Ah…”

According to Cheongun, the Hao Mun was like an underworld gang disguised as a sect, formed by thugs who supported each other. They were skilled in deception, but their martial level wasn’t high.

Yuri remembered Rick—the one who claimed to have brought martial arts from the East.

“Hmm…”

That guy had boasted that Hao Mun was one of the great sects of the East and had shown him martial arts books he bought there.

Maybe, like Iris said, he was just someone good at flattery.

“That Rick…”

Regardless, Yuri had managed to gather lots of useful information about the East thanks to Cheongun.

“Hmm…”

Yuri quietly shared an idea with Cheongun—importing warriors from the East as mercenaries.

Cheongun nodded.

“They need rewards. If there’s enough money, it’s possible.”

“Yeah?”

“Even mid-tier sects have no money. Eastern society is unfair.”

“Money won’t be a problem.”

If the time came, he could attack the Empire and use the looted resources.

After all, the Empire was the richest place in the world. He just needed to gather troops from the East, defeat the Empire, and distribute part of the spoils.

Besides, in the Empire was “the Shadowless Sword.”

“Cheongun, do you know anything about the Demonic Cult?”

“The Demonic Cult, you say…?”

Cheongun frowned.

Through their conversations, Yuri confirmed that Eastern martial artists hated the Demonic Cult. Orthodox sects continued sending expeditions to track them down.

One of their biggest goals was to completely explore the cult’s base—the Ten Thousand Mountains—and wipe them out.

If Eastern warriors learned that the Heavenly Demon was here, they’d be highly motivated.

“Which sect hates them the most?”

“All of them. The Nine Schools, the Five Great Families… they all hate them.”

“I see.”

Yuri smiled in satisfaction.

When the Shadowless Sword revealed its identity, he never imagined things would end up like this.

“Once we retake Bezos, we’ll need to have a proper talk. I have something I want to entrust to you.”

“Understood, sir.”

“Good.”

Yuri stood up.

“Time to eat?”

It was already lunchtime. Yuri planned to eat just like the ronin, as always.

Some ronin with cooking experience were preparing the meal.

“And today’s menu…?”

Yuri walked over and widened his eyes.

Despite the poor environment, they had made noodles and were pouring a black sauce over them.

A sweet, oily aroma tickled his nose.

Yuri murmured, astonished.

“Is this food…?”

With pride in his voice, Cheongun replied,

“It is the ronin’s signature dish. Jjajangmyeon.”