Requiem of Subdued Souls

Chapter 83: Flute Of Foreboding (3)

House of Nothing, the library of the Blue Dragon Troops.

The mountains that could be seen through the window were beautiful, and the back of a great blue dragon with bristling scales seemed amazing.

Seol Young mumbled.

“The scenery is nice.”

Actually, he didn’t really go to the library for the records. He wanted to be in a quiet place away from the others. And since there wasn’t much about the Disfigured Spirit, it was much better to learn about it from someone who had witnessed it firsthand.

Wasn’t there someone who had come across it? When he looked back, he saw Zaha waiting.

“It sounds like the scenery is nice. Did you see anything nice?”

“My eyes are working fine.”

“It didn’t seem like that before. Dealing with his spiritual power like that, don’t you realize that even if you go out of your way, it wouldn’t be worth it?”

“The one who doesn’t know anything is the High Governor.”

Seol Young answered.

“For me, this place is like the center of the enemy lines. I wouldn’t look down on them just because they showed me their weak side. Otherwise, I might really turn into a target for their arrows this time.”

“For that reason alone?”

Zaha said, as if he couldn’t understand.

“I wonder if they can still attack you now that their troops have a big problem?”

“You never know. How can you be sure that they won’t be angry or attack me first just because they’re quiet now?”

“Even if you are on alert, it cannot be helped…”

Zaha was about to say something.

What was wrong with being alert?

Seol Young looked around.

This library was the place where he had previously ordered his demonic beasts to be destroyed. How was he sitting here like this?

‘As expected, you never know what happens in the world.’

With that thought in mind, he looked at Zaha.

“Anyway, I tried to be moderate this time. It seems like the spiritual power of Seo Jun-rang is becoming stronger, and if he wakes up again, it will be difficult to calm him down.”

“We need to get clues soon.”

He was deep in thought and looked serious. Zaha said,

“The more I think about this, the more confusing it is. Six Hwarangs returned from a simple investigation mission and were attacked by the spirits… but the truth was that Seo Jun-rang killed them?”

Zaha mumbled as he walked through the bookshelves.

“Does a Disfigured Spirit commit suicide? Right. Of course, I know that there are cases where the spirit returns in a short time. But this is Seo Jun-rang we are talking about.”

Seol Young turned to him.

“What kind of person was he?”

“Seo Jun…”

Zaha said.

“He hated the sword.”

“A Hwarang?”

“So what? It might not be the right fit for him.”

“Then he should have stopped.”

“How can the eldest son of a famous family do that? It was painful for him. Because he was the type of guy, who hated swords and liked poetry and jokes. He was someone who couldn’t be compared to the brilliant younger brother he had.”

He added that right away.

“It may sound like an insult, but I actually liked Seo Jun-rang.”

“Because he wasn’t sane?”

“Do you have to say that? There is nothing wrong with wanting something else.”

It was surprising that he liked someone for the personality that they had.

“When Seo Jun-rang did well, I would congratulate him, saying, ‘Ah, you did great.’ Even when his father would scold him, the man never gave up.”

“I see.”

“Not just me. But many people actually liked him. However, Seo Geom hated his brother. He couldn’t stand how he didn’t have any talent.”

Seol Young didn’t have to see it to know, and he asked,

“Was there anything strange about Seo Jun-rang before it happened?”

“Not at all.”

Zaha shook his head.

“It’s normally like that. First, it happens without warning. A person who has just been laughing and talking suddenly turns into an evil spirit and hurts their family and friends.”

“And the second?”

“Too many forms. There is no big change in their appearance. Only their eyes change, or they turn into monsters. In some cases, they even grow horns, and their nails become longer.”

“And the third?”

“It is impossible to turn back. From the old days until now, there has never been a case where a person who had lost his nature returned to his original state. Because their souls have completely changed.”

Zaha looked out the window.

“And because of that, everyone was afraid of becoming a Disfigured Spirit. As the evilness intensifies, one never knows when it will change and turn into something crazier. That is why I began to look for the Yin-Yang plaque. Right before a soul becomes tainted, at least the Yin-Yang plaque can show the signs of it.”

Seol Young listened and asked.

“Then what did you do? If the plaque showed signs…”

“I was prepared to kill them.”

“And what about the exceptions?”

“No.”

Zaha said.

“Anyway, the important thing is this. It is true that the plaque changes when a Disfigured Spirit gets close, but just because there are abnormalities in the plaque doesn’t mean everyone is tainted. For example, you.”

“Yes.”

“So Seo Jun-rang seemed to be the same to me when he first appeared. He seemed fine.”

Zaha spoke.

“All of the times I used my sword to cut them down were done neatly. Was it because he didn’t die at my hands and killed himself?”

What Euljae had said came to his mind.

-At that time, the High Governor was going through tough times, so we didn’t rush…

Looking back at his face as he said that, he felt a sense of déjà vu.

He had a cautious attitude, as if he didn’t want to talk about something personal.

It reminded him of the attitude Jin Rim had when he met Zaha.

-And his sister had a third child…

Jin Rim said that, but then he regretted saying it as well.

‘Is it something bad related to his sister?’

As Seol Young thought about it, Zaha looked up. He seemed to notice it.

“Did you think of something just now?”

Seol Young was shocked, but…

“Do I have the time to think about something else?”

Instead, he hardened his face.

At that moment, a blue light shone from Seol Young’s wrist.

Seo Jun was waking up, which shocked them both.

“Already?”

They thought he would be asleep, at least for the night.

They hurried outside, and it was already noisy.

“HAAA….”

Seo Jun was in the middle of the yard, yawning.

“When I opened my eyes, it was already morning, I should really drink in moderation.”

Seol Young doubted his eyes.

“How is he out? Could it be that he had already begun to break free of the constraints of space?”

“I don’t think so.”

Sa Hyun, the 4th member of the Blue Dragon True Toops, said with a pale face.

“Looking at the situation, it seems like he did it on his own.”

Seol Young asked in disbelief,

“On his own?”

“If it is Seo Jun-rang, it is possible.”

What do you mean?

When Seol Young turned to Zaha, he didn’t seem to know anything either.

“We forgot one important thing.”

“What is it?”

“Seo Jun-rang was a genius when it came to escaping, and since he was young, he would always run away from home.”

“Uh?”

“His father locked him up too. So the way he would escape always changed. He was always modifying the shackles and locks…”

“…”

He never thought of this.

Seol Young was lost for words and looked at Seo Jun.

Yawning again, Seo Jun looked at his clothes.

“Look at this mud. Where did I roll around last night? Did they kick me out because I didn’t pay for the drink?”

He didn’t even know why everyone looked so shocked…

Seo Jun spoke and acted normally, like a living being.

“It will be a mess if he sees…”

He looked around and found the trainees.

“Can someone get me clothes before my brother comes? As soon as possible!”

The trainees were shocked.

“That, clothes…”

“What about clothes?”

“There are no clothes.”

“What? My room should have lots of clothes! Go!”

Seo Jun’s voice rose a little.

They should never provoke him. Everyone knew that, so they didn’t know what to do.

At that time, Gyeon Yun, the third member of the Blue Dragon True Troops, ran hurriedly and stood in front of the frightened trainees.

“You asked for your old clothes to be thrown away, and you said that your new clothes had to be tailored for the festival.”

He responded wittily and held out someone’s robe.

“Ah, right.”

“Now…”

Although the situation was creepy, Gyeon Yun mustered up the courage and tried to put clothes on Seo Jun. But the moment he was about to touch his hand…

“Do not touch me!”

Seo Jun yelled.

A strange aura rose from his body, and his face twisted.

‘Is he going rampant again?’

Seol Young was about to jump out. But Zaha blocked him.

‘No.’

He pointed at Seo Jun. His face, which looked like it would explode, went blank.

“What was it? There was something very important…”

Seo Jun mumbled like he had something to say. Then he moved his lips a few times as if to say something, and then he stopped.

His strange aura slowly subsided.

“Well, thank you.”

He quickly put on a new robe and tied his hair.

“I just realized now that even my shoes are a mess.”

As was his habit, he put his hand on the tree next to him and tried to take his shoes off, but he stumbled.

“Uh? Where did the tree go? The tree I planted?”

“That….”

“I took it down.”

A cold voice said.

Seo Geom walked with the Hwarangs, and he looked straight at his brother.

“That is too much.”

Seo Jun shook his head.

“I was the one who came drunk. What did the tree do wrong for you to cut it down? It was such a precious tree…”

“It wasn’t cut down. It died.”

“Died? No, why did a tree that was fine until yesterday die?”

Seo Jun asked, puzzled, and his gaze stopped in one place.

“What happened to the library? Why did you tear down a perfectly fine building and build a new one?”

He looked horrified.

“Where did my music sheets go?”

“They burned.”

Seo Geom said.

Seo Jun was shocked.

“Did you….”

“I didn’t burn it.”

Seo Geom looked at his older brother. There was tension between the two.

And Seo Jun’s face changed.

“Come to think of it, I forgot something important…”

He mumbled, and the unknown energy began to grow thicker again.

Seol Young stepped forward again. Zaha glanced at him.

“Did you forget what you just said? You said you were going to let go of it this time.”

“I tried, but… I didn’t think it would be like this. This is my responsibility.”

The idea that the Blue Dragon Troops gave him a reason to burn down the library didn’t change, but if Seo Jun-rang was someone whose truth had to be uncovered, then he needed to help.

‘Because I was the one who ordered the spirits to run rampant here.’

Seol Young thought so and stepped forward.

“I burned it.”

Seo Jun looked at him.

“Who?”

“I’m Seol Young, a Hwarang.”

“I’ve never heard that name.”

Seo Jun’s eyes flashed.

“What were you thinking when you came here and burned down my music sheets?”

A strange aura rose. It felt like his negative emotions were fueling it.

‘Dangerous.’

Seol Young raised his spiritual qi in one hand and confronted Seo Jun.

Meanwhile, in the Moon Palace, Jin Rim was having a meeting with the three Hwarangs of the White Tiger Troops.

“The festival is coming soon, so I hope you will all pay special attention to…”

He thought for a while and added,

“Ah, Seol Young-rang has come back.”

“Is that so?”

All three of them looked happy.

“We should go and see.”

“If it is about the plaque, I already told him. But right now, he has a task on his hand.”

“Are you saying that his trip to Apryang didn’t go well?”

“No. I heard that it went well, but they went straight for the Blue Dragon Hall because they had something else to do.”

“The Blue Dragon Hall?”

The three were startled.

They couldn’t say anything with the Governor right in front of them, so they greeted him goodbye and went out.

“Is it about the supernatural calamity?”

Hyo Wol mumbled, being a bit on the edge.

“At the Blue Dragon Hall…”

Seo Geom was not the type to hide his ill feelings toward Seol Young, so everyone was aware of them.

Song Ok looked at Baek Eon with a hardened face.

“Could it be that something bad happened? Is Seo Geom-rang hurting…”

“Ah, would he do something like that?”

At Hyo Wol’s words, Song Ok said,

“I don’t know. He is an insane person. I don’t know what he would do with Seol Young.”

And then they turned to Baek Eon.

“Let’s try to find out why he went there.”

He thought for a while and then nodded.

Finding out about it wasn’t wrong.

Coincidentally, some Hwarangs were passing by, and Baek Eon grabbed one of them.

“Have you seen the Hwarangs of the Blue Dragon True Troops?”

“We saw a few of them a while ago, but they were in a rush due to a summons order.”

They all said.

“It looks like they are closed.”

“Closed?”

“Yes, we don’t know what is happening, but it seems like everyone apart from them is being prohibited from entering.”

“Then what about the visitors?”

“They said things like, ‘We cannot let anyone come.’”

“What?”

The three of them were shocked.

“We need to go.”

Everyone hurriedly turned around and followed Baek Eon.