Twisted Fate
Unlike the confident manner in which she had left Jegal-hyeon’s quarters, Jegal Jin-hee’s mind was swirling with complicated thoughts.
‘Jegal-hyeon Elder is not a foolish man. But what means does he have to incite a rebellion?’
Currently, the Jegal family was divided into factions under the overwhelming power of Jegal Mun, the head of the family, and four heirs.
Even if one faction were to be drawn in, it would be difficult to succeed in a coup. Moreover, Jegal-hyeon himself had declared his intention to become the family head.
In other words, the heirs would not side with him.
Then who remains?
‘People like me.’
Those who are angry at the family’s discriminatory practices.
However, those who have suffered severe discrimination haven’t mastered the ascending martial arts deeply, so their skills are not very high.
Thus, instead of plotting a rebellion, they wait for the crumbs to fall by aligning with the heirs.
Jegal-hyeon wouldn’t be planning a rebellion with no chance of success.
As she pondered deeply, a very important piece of information emerged in her mind.
‘Moreover, Jegal-hyeon has been frequently away from the family, presiding over the Anti-Shaolin Alliance meetings. But how could he have had time to gather people within the family and prepare for a rebellion… Could it be… ?’
Is he trying to draw power from outside the family?
As her thoughts reached this point, the complex tangle in her mind naturally began to unravel.
‘Even the warrior beside the elder was someone I’d never seen before. The martial arts as well. If he could procure martial arts equivalent to those right before the family head, it wouldn’t matter if his own disappeared! And if he gets help from external forces capable of providing such martial arts, a rebellion would be no problem!’
Finishing her reasoning, her face turned pale.
Fortunately, when she reached this conclusion, there was no one around her.
If she had shown her pale face, Jegal-hyeon would have been suspicious.
‘I must stop this somehow.’
In a way, it was quite a subtle decision. She, too, was a victim of the discriminatory practices.
Yet, the reason for her decision was simple. She could not forsake her familial bonds.
Though she was sick of the discrimination and the heirs who restrained her within the family, there were still precious people within the family.
Among them was her father.
Jegal-hyeon, in the process of rebellion, would try to kill all direct descendants without exception. Jegal Jin-hee could never participate in such a plan.
‘… There’s no time.’
Now there was less than half a ke before the rebellion began. It was impossible to stop the rebellion, but she resolved to at least protect her precious ones.
Determined, she hurried to the quarters where her father, Jegal Gung, and her mother, Jamihwa, resided.
“Why have you come at this late hour?”
The moment her father asked his daughter about her sudden visit.
Boom.
A heavy, unknown noise resounded.
Beep! Beep!
“Ahhhh!”
Whistles and screams began erupting from the outer edges of the Jegal family estate.
The rebellion had begun.
Although the Jegal family was protected by various formations created over generations by wise men, they were still vulnerable to betrayal from within.
In the chaos, Jegal Jin-hee urgently spoke to her stunned father.
“Elder Jegal-hyeon has initiated a rebellion! You must flee immediately!”
“What do you mean…?”
“There is no time to think. Father! Mother!”
Jegal Jin-hee grabbed the hands of Jegal Gung and Jamihwa, pulling them along.
After a brief moment of hesitation, the couple, realizing the urgency of her words, collected themselves and followed her.
Naturally, those assigned to guard Jegal Gung also followed behind.
Additionally, those elders and branch family members who sided with Jegal Gung in the struggle for succession began to join them one by one.
“Jegal Gung, sir!”
“We will join you!”
However, due to internal betrayal.
Warriors who had just crossed the main gate soon appeared before them.
“There is no time to waste! We must break through!”
Jegal Jin-hee drew her two fans and the others pulled out their weapons to fight the warriors.
“Hmph!”
Despite half a year’s further training since the Yongbongji Conference, it was not easy for her to deal with even one of these warriors.
The external forces aiding the rebellion consisted of high-level warriors.
Swish!
After dozens of intense exchanges, she managed to take down one warrior, but several of her comrades had already lost their lives.
‘Fortunately, there aren’t many of them.’
It seemed that most of the forces were aimed at Jegal Mun, the head of the family.
While she was thinking this.
“Ha!”
A sudden attack from an elder who had sworn to guard Jegal Gung.
Not only that, but warriors following that elder also began attacking their comrades.
The elder had been swayed by Jegal-hyeon, dreaming of a world dominated by branch families rather than crumbs from heirs.
“Damn!”
“How dare you!”
Though Jegal Gung and those nearby swiftly dealt with the elder, another attacker soon targeted Jegal Gung.
“Ha!”
This time, Jegal Jin-hee, having just defeated a warrior, was able to block the ambush with ease.
“Whew.”
Though the battle involved only about a dozen warriors, nearly half of their group had perished.
The high level of the attacking warriors and the surprise attacks by traitors caused significant losses.
Barely finishing the fight, Jegal Jin-hee urgently spoke to her father.
“We must flee to Changgyeongjeon!”
“Why there?”
“It’s the farthest from the family head’s quarters. Elder Jegal-hyeon initiated the rebellion to become the head. Therefore, his first target is the family head, followed by all direct male descendants. The farther we are from the family head’s quarters, the safer we will be.”
Realizing her point, Jegal Gung accepted her suggestion.
They headed towards Changgyeongjeon, the farthest from the family head’s quarters, but they didn’t move in a direct path.
They detoured to the quarters where her two younger brothers, Jegal Gung and Jamihwa’s sons, resided.
“Changwon!”
“Father!!”
Surrounded by traitors, Jegal Changwon and Jegal Su, who were fighting alongside their bodyguards, narrowly survived thanks to their reinforcements.
Even after that, as they made their way to Chang-gyeong Hall, they were occasionally joined by others, and sometimes encountered attacks from external warriors wandering around the family grounds.
During these moments, some of those who had joined them would suddenly turn traitor and launch surprise attacks.
“Move faster!”
Jegal Jin-hee, who was fighting at the front with her hair disheveled and her clothes and face covered in blood, shouted urgently.
‘Hurry, before Gaju Hall collapses!!’
The moment Gaju Hall collapsed, the external warriors and the traitors recruited by Jegal-hyeon would spread throughout the family grounds.
If that happened, it would be almost impossible for her direct male relatives, her father and younger brothers, to escape.
‘…If only we had headed straight for Chang-gyeong Hall, we would have had more time.’
Naturally, the time she spent rescuing her younger brothers felt painfully regrettable.
She wasn’t very close with her younger brothers.
Most of the children she was close to and interacted with were girls like her. As someone aiming for the position of the family head, most boys her age avoided or ignored her.
Despite this, the reason she rescued her younger brothers instead of her close female friends was for her parents.
‘After all, Jegal-hyeon’s goal is to become the family head. As long as we don’t interfere, he won’t touch the collateral branches.’
Women unrelated to the family headship were not Jegal-hyeon’s targets.
‘Please…stay safe until I return.’
Thinking of the few younger sisters who followed her, Jegal Jin-hee forged a path with her fan.
After a fierce struggle, they finally reached Chang-gyeong Hall.
Boom!!
With a heavy rumble that shook the earth, Gaju Hall began to collapse.
* * *
In the heart of the Jegal Family’s estate, at Gaju Hall.
“Jegal-hyeon, you bastard!!!”
In the center of Gaju Hall, an elderly man with a face full of wrinkles shouted in rage.
“Haven’t you had enough? It’s time to step down, don’t you think?”
Jegal-hyeon was sneering at the family head, Jegal Mun, but he was not comfortable inside.
It wasn’t because he was reluctant to kill Jegal Mun.
‘Damn it. He really didn’t trust anyone.’
There was a hidden formation near Gaju Hall that only the family head knew about.
Jegal-hyeon had broken all the formations of the family to bring in external warriors and attack here directly, but they were blocked in front of Gaju Hall.
Fifty external warriors and dozens of Jegal Family warriors who chose to join the revolution were all stuck here because of that damn formation.
The longer they delayed, the more family members would die.
If the number of followers decreased when he became the family head, it would be a problem, and Jegal-hyeon was anxious.
At that moment, a middle-aged man watching the situation stepped forward.
“Pull back the family warriors.”
Despite his confusion, Jegal-hyeon followed the middle-aged man’s words.
As soon as the Jegal Family warriors retreated, the middle-aged man spoke again.
“Time is short, so we will break through with force from now on.”
“Yes, sir!”
At the middle-aged man’s command, the warriors of Shinchun raised their energy simultaneously.
The middle-aged man also raised his energy, condensing it into his sword.
Initially starting with sword energy, the energy condensed into multiple layers, turning into a red cluster of stars.
When the middle-aged man swung his sword, creating sword steel,
Boom!!!
Following this, fifty warriors used their respective techniques to attack the formation.
Boom!!!
Cracks began to form in the Gaju Hall’s formation, which had been shaking slightly.
And when the middle-aged man condensed his energy again and struck with his sword steel,
Boom!!!
With a different kind of heavy sound, Gaju Hall began to collapse.
“Team One, go inside and finish off Jegal Mun. Bring his head! The rest of you, spread out and eliminate all the targets!”
“Yes, sir!”
At the command of the middle-aged man who had destroyed Gaju Hall, his subordinates scattered. Following them, Jegal-hyeon also gave orders to the family warriors.
After some time,
Jegal-hyeon received horrifying news.
“It seems that the prince Jegal-gung, his two sons, and some of their followers have escaped the family!”
“What!?”
For the rebellion to succeed perfectly, there must be no surviving direct line members.
Jegal-hyeon, furious at the report, quickly thought of a plan.
“Is anyone chasing them?”
“Yes!”
“Lord Dam, could you assign some of your subordinates to pursue the prince?”
Without waiting for a reply, Jegal-hyeon asked the middle-aged man.
“Of course, as part of the agreement to eliminate all direct line members.”
Nodding at the middle-aged man’s answer, Jegal-hyeon gave orders to his subordinates.
“Chase them with these men and finish them off. Also, spread the rumor that all direct line members have been dealt with.”
Apart from those who escaped with the prince, all direct male relatives’ heads had been cut off.
By the time they eliminated the prince, they would control internal affairs and block external rumors.
“But didn’t you say you would display the heads of the direct line members?”
“Tsk. Are you not aware of the stories about the Dragon Descendants?”
“Ah!”
“Make masks resembling the prince and his sons, attach them to other bodies’ heads. No one will notice if you mix them with the other heads.”
“Yes, sir!”
After receiving the order, the subordinate left.
Jegal-hyeon, sensing someone approaching from behind, turned his head and quickly bowed.
“Greetings, Family Head.”
* * *
A few days had passed since the rebellion in the Jegal Family.
During that time, Jegal Jin-hee had cleverly led the group, repeatedly evading pursuit.
“Are you suggesting we go to Eunsi?”
“There is a hidden safe house of the Jegal Family in the Grand Canyon of Eunsi.”
At her father’s explanation, Jegal Jin-hee decided to accept the proposal.
Thus, they left Jungjoong Mountain and headed to Eunsi while shaking off their pursuers.
“Wait, I will be gone for about one quarter of an hour. Continue westward.”
“Where are you going?”
At her father’s question, she looked at the large city in the distance and replied.
“I am thinking of contacting those who might help us.”
The city she was looking at was Yichang, one of the most prominent cities in Hubei Province.
Most importantly, it housed a branch of the Cheonryu Sangdan and a musculoskeletal treatment clinic.
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