677 - Childhood Friend of the Zenith

**Chapter 677: The Northern Rabbit** "Vice Commander." "Yes, Commander." The man standing behind Beom-dong answered with strict discipline. "I'm going to lay a trap, so be prepared." "...!" Operation Snare is underway. Hearing Beom-dong's words, the man's eyes sparkled with intrigue. 'A Snare...?' What kind of being does he intend to catch with that? No one has ever escaped from the Dragon Wing Commander’s Snare. It was an operation that no one short of the top ten martial artists could escape from. As the middle-aged man braced himself nervously. 'Let's see you taste some bitterness, you unlucky brat.' Beom-dong smiled as he thought of the quivering eldest son of the Gu family. Not long after Beom-dong sought out So-yeom-ra. Snap—! "Ugh!" "Raise your head. Didn't I tell you if you close your eyes, you'll end up dead? Why do you keep shutting them? Should I gouge them out so you can't use them anymore?" Beom-dong suddenly realized something was wrong. "Huk..." With every spout of bloody spittle, shards of glass spilled from his mouth. The inside was shredded, leaving a coppery taste lingering. Every attempt to move was futile; his body failed to muster strength after being choked. It wasn’t like a meridian was pinched or his body restrained. He simply couldn't gather any force. "And yet, you, the Alliance's warrior, resort to threatening others? Have you lost your mind?" "Krr... Let... let go. You’ll regret it..." "Still mouthing off, huh?" Crash—! "Urgh!" A blow to the head. Gu Yangcheon smashed a glass he was holding against Beom-dong's head. The shattered fragments hovered in the air. Gu Yangcheon picked up a larger shard. Crunch—! "Arghh!" He stabbed it into Beom-dong’s hand without hesitation. Instinctually, Beom-dong tried to cloak his body with Qi, but Gu Yangcheon easily ripped through his protective energy. With a flick, he pulled out the shard embedded in the hand. There's blood dripping from it, but then— Sssizzle—! "...!!!" The searing pain made Beom-dong unable to even scream. Gu Yangcheon torched the wound. "Khak... K-kurgh... Kraaah..." While Beom-dong writhed in agony, Gu Yangcheon lifted him by the crown. With sharp eyes, he locked gazes with him. "You really should've behaved when I spared you. Why do you insist on behaving so obnoxiously? It just makes me act the same way, doesn't it?" He was smiling. Gu Yangcheon was grinning while scorching Beom-dong's hand. Seeing that smile, a chill ran down Beom-dong's spine. '...I made a mistake.' The plan was to exert pressure using the Alliance's status and power. It was clear it wouldn't work here. But. 'To think he's this strong.' The key part of the operation was to provoke the target's anger with his words. In case they tried to subdue or threaten him. That way, they’d establish grounds for accusing them of intimidating a member of the Alliance and get jurisdiction for investigation. 'Damn it.' Beom-dong's misunderstanding was that he never imagined Gu Yangcheon would resort to such methods in the heart of Hanam to a commander. Sssizzle—! Feeling the scorching heat on his hand, Beom-dong trembled with a cry. "Haaa—!" The situation was deteriorating. Believing his opponent to be a formidable warrior, Beom-dong had stepped in himself. But to be subdued like this was unexpected. He knew they were strong, but to this extent...! In the midst of agony, Beom-dong wondered. 'My Qi won’t function properly. Could it be poison...?' Beom-dong was not one to go down quietly. He was a notable martial artist and the leader within the Alliance. Yet, being unable to use his energy after being caught by the throat—something wasn’t right. ‘Damn it. When did it happen?’ Had the tea he drank been poisoned? But when? Not at the start. He’d checked everything beforehand. ‘Surely, I inspected it thoroughly…?’ The thought that some trick was played on the tea he'd personally prepared. But when could the poison have been administered? With his mouth ripped and strangled by the pain, Beom-dong rolled his eyes. Even if so, he had to endure. Though there was suffering now, they wouldn't kill him. He had to survive. The Dragon Wing members stood guard outside. While executing Snare, meticulous attention was paid to personnel deployment. Either a signal would be sent, or if he didn’t appear after a set time, they would breach. Within just a few seconds, the time would lapse. Then the Dragon Wing members would come for Beom-dong. Just endure until then. While Beom-dong thought this. "Milord." Na-hi approached Gu Yangcheon, who was relentlessly burning Beom-dong's wounds. "What should we do with the rats outside?" "...!" Beom-dong's back went cold at her words. Rats? Could she mean the Dragon Wing? How could they tell, using stealth from afar? "Should we dispose of them?" Despite Beom-dong's shock, Na-hi asked casually. Gu Yangcheon paused his torturing of Beom-dong’s hand to give a slight nod. "Hmm." The silence only filled with Beom-dong’s shallow breathing. "No, leave them be." Gu Yangcheon answered lightly. "I was going to tell you to clean them up. But just now." His eyes drifted to the closed window. "That guy's here." A presence was felt approaching from afar. A very familiar and irritating presence. --- As time ticked away since Beom-dong approached target, certain unease stirred among the group. "Vice Commander, we’re almost at the designated time." "...I know." Jeong Jin, one of the vice commanders of the Dragon Wing, nodded at the subordinate. After Beom-dong had reached his target, the door abruptly closed. Unexpected, everyone was taken aback but maintained the course. "Stick to the plan. Prepare yourselves." Jeong Jin was managing his subordinates, following Beom-dong's orders precisely. Half an hour had passed since the strange phenomena began to manifest. After that time, they would mention the name of the Alliance and storm the target. That was the core of the operation. Recalling this, Jeong Jin bit his lip. 'Are you truly okay with this?' He had mentioned that it didn’t seem like anything too dangerous would happen. Yet, the doors and windows were immediately barricaded upon entry. Moreover, it was evident that some form of shielding was set up inside the building. Clearly, something had occurred. Seeing this, Jeong Jin pondered deeply whether they should enter immediately. 'It’s the Commander we're talking about. He must have anticipated this.' This must be part of some tactic. Trusting this belief, Jeong Jin adjusted his breathing. The target was reportedly only slightly above average age. While the Commander was considered a formidable master, it was unlikely they could match the level of a commander. Even if the Intelligence Division's Commander might have less martial prowess, they were still a commander. Beom-dong was certainly no weak martial artist. Trust and prepare. As Jeong Jin was making this decision. "Vice Commander. It's time." The subordinate alerted him, and Jeong Jin nodded, drawing his sword. Swish. With the sword drawn, Jeong Jin addressed those around him. "Dragon Wing, prepare for battle." As Jeong Jin moved, the surrounding martial artists began shifting into a combat stance. "The target is just up ahead...." "The sword." "Towards the sword... No. Huh...?" The voice from beside him made him freeze. A chill ran down Jeong Jin's spine as he turned his head to the side. Someone stood where no one had been moments ago. 'What is this...?' Jeong Jin's eyes widened at the sight. A woman of small stature. A petite figure holding a weapon larger than herself on her shoulder. Yet, her hair was unusually short, barely covering her ears. "It's a sword, a sword! Right? This is a sword, isn't it?" The woman looked at Jeong Jin's sword with an eerie fascination. "It's a sword, a sword!!" "...What...!" Before Jeong Jin could react to the bizarre behavior and prepare himself. "But why do you have a sword? Mister, why are you holding a sword? What are you trying to do? What is it? Around here, the cult— Oh, I shouldn't say it. Yes, thank you for telling me." The woman began rambling to herself. "Isn't it strange for you to be holding a sword here? They told me to come here, but it's weird if you're holding a sword here. Don't you think so too? Yes, I think so too." While the woman was caught in that strange cycle of self-dialogue. Jeong Jin frowned. This couldn’t delay him. Ignoring her was the only option, as he tried to move. "Damn it—! Ignore and advance...!" "Then, is it okay to kill him?" Whoosh—!! "...!!" A powerful murderous intent swept across Jeong Jin's skin. Reflexively, Jeong Jin moved his sword, but— Before he could act. "Yes. It should be fine." The woman acted first. Swoosh. The weapon once on her shoulder was now gripped in her hand, swung with force. At that moment. Boom—!!! A violent explosion swept across the Dragon Wing unit.