Chronicles of the Lazy Sovereign Novel - Chapter 516

**Chapter 516: The Lazy Man Prepares (1)**

Jangil watched the two men with tense eyes.

Wei Jeonghan, with his serene face, and Yeom Mong, with his cold expression, maintained a peculiar confrontation.

The atmosphere had become so icy that Jangil couldn’t help but shrink back.

*”This is no joke.”*

In Jangil’s mind, there was very little information about Yeom Mong. He had heard his name, but he didn’t know what kind of person he was.

He wasn’t someone who had particularly stood out in the past wars.

But at this moment, Jangil clearly felt it: even if the Supreme Sovereign (권극) were to rage, he couldn’t create an atmosphere like this.

The pressure emanating from someone who had dedicated their life and soul to a single purpose, without looking back, was something Jangil had never experienced before.

*”For someone like that to be rotting away in a place like this…”*

No matter how he thought about it, he wasn’t someone who deserved to be wasted here. Even if his martial skill wasn’t remarkable, he was a person who, even if he wasn’t a martial arts expert, would undoubtedly have utility.

“Instead of offering your guest a cup of water, are you kicking him out?”

But Wei Jeonghan wasn’t someone easy to intimidate either.

Gently, he deflected the cutting pressure emanating from Yeom Mong.

Even seeing Wei Jeonghan’s smile, Yeom Mong didn’t relax his expression in the slightest.

“I told you to leave.”

“Senior.”

Wei Jeonghan spoke calmly.

“Why are you so angry?”

“You ask me why?”

Yeom Mong looked at him in disbelief.

“I thought peace had filled your belly with fat, but it seems it’s gone to your head. Have you forgotten what kind of place the Demon Cult (마교) is?”

“How could I forget?”

“And still, someone who says they haven’t forgotten wants to voluntarily enter the Demon Cult? Why? Wouldn’t it be better to fall flat on your face with a sword in your mouth? If it’s now, we could even dig a hole to take out the buried liquor, and instead of a barrel, you could get inside. I myself would dig the first hole.”

It was biting sarcasm.

But Wei Jeonghan wasn’t fazed.

“I know well the terror of the Demon Cult. As you know, there aren’t many who fear it as much as I do.”

“Hmm.”

Although every word of Yeom Mong was loaded with sarcasm, at this point he couldn’t deny it.

Paradoxically, those who had fought most fiercely against the Demon Cult were the ones who feared it the most. The more they faced them, the more deeply they understood their strength and cruelty.

And Wei Jeonghan was one of those who had fought the Demon Cult the most.

“And still, someone who knows that says these things?”

“Senior.”

“Knowing and understanding are different things. Do you understand?”

“…Yes.”

Yeom Mong’s eyes turned cold.

“Sometimes, thinking you know something too well can bring misfortune. Do you really understand the fear of the Demon Cult? Isn’t it just that you know it, but you understand it?”

It was as if each word had an edge.

Wei Jeonghan couldn’t help but shudder at the sharpness of each phrase.

“I understand it.”

“Do you really understand it?”

“Senior.”

Wei Jeonghan sighed before speaking.

“I used to think like this: if there’s something to fear, the way to overcome it is to fight. I tried to do it too. In the world, there are many like you who fight against their fears.”

Yeom Mong looked at him strangely.

What was he trying to say?

“But as I got older, had children, and carried responsibilities, I understood something. Those who risked their lives to fight against the Demon Cult with me didn’t do it to overcome them or defeat them.”

“…What do you mean?”

“They didn’t fight to overcome them. Nor for a sense of duty. They simply did it because they had to.”

Yeom Mong was silent.

Wei Jeonghan gave a bitter smile.

In the past, they had always fought on the front lines, giving their best. Every time he turned his head, Yeom Mong was there. They were so close that they could guess each other’s thoughts without needing words.

But now, the distance between them was abysmal.

*”Time is sometimes cruel.”*

Although they used to understand each other perfectly, with the passage of time it was no longer the case. Of course, not everything was the fault of time.

“There are times when you must endure things you don’t want to do, things you want to run away from immediately. It’s not the same as resisting of your own will. That is being a leader, that is being a father. You endure it because you have no choice.”

His mouth tasted bitter.

Although he spoke, he knew that Yeom Mong probably wouldn’t understand. He had been deprived of the opportunity to live common experiences that everyone has.

The experience of starting a family, having children, carrying the weight of being a common father. Those small happinesses that, although they seem insignificant, can be the greatest strength in the world.

“Then…”

Yeom Mong asked with a slightly bewildered face.

“What is it that you want to say?”

“That it’s not something I want to do. If I think about it rationally, I know it’s something I shouldn’t do. But this isn’t something I do out of rational understanding. I do it because I must do it.”

“Why?”

“Because I am a father.”

“… ”

Yeom Mong pursed his lips.

Regardless of Yeom Mong’s reaction, Wei Jeonghan continued bitterly.

“The relationship between father and son sometimes cannot be explained with logic. It’s something silly, but I must go. If a child is trapped in a pit of fire, there is no father who wouldn’t run towards him, even if the fire is burning fiercely.”

“You…”

Yeom Mong let out a sigh.

“I thought you were a pretty rational person. I thought you were one of those who, even if you prick them with a needle, not a drop of blood comes out. But it turns out you were hiding this madness. It’s scary how people change.”

Everyone held their breath, focused on the conversation between Wei Jeonghan and Yeom Mong.

It wasn’t a particularly deep dialogue, but it contained an overwhelming force that dominated the room.

“I haven’t changed.”

A serene voice.

That’s why it sounded even more forceful.

“We all have multiple facets. This has always been in me. And… yes, maybe I have changed. The truth is, not even I know. I don’t know if I have changed or if I was always like this. The only thing that’s certain is that I can’t sit here waiting.”

“Because you are a father?”

“Because I am Wei Jeonghan.”

Yeom Mong stared at him. The serene gazes of Wei Jeonghan and the sharp ones of Yeom Mong faced each other without yielding an iota.

“I don’t understand it.”

Finally, Yeom Mong shook his head.

“I don’t know if you’ve changed or not. Listening to your nonsense, it seems like you have, but seeing how you defend it, it seems like you haven’t changed at all.”

Wei Jeonghan smiled bitterly.

Not even he was sure if that was an insult or not.

“Anyway, these are things I can’t understand.”

“I’m sorry.”

“There’s nothing to apologize for. It’s the life I chose. Do you think they have the right to pity someone who lives their own life with pride?”

“Of course not.”

“Then we should just respect each other. I still don’t understand what’s going on in your head to want to enter the Demon Cult, but…”

Yeom Mong shrugged.

“There are ways to save someone in danger, but there is no obligation to stop someone who wants to commit suicide. Do what you want.”

“I won’t die.”

“Of course not.”

Yeom Mong grimaced at the sight of Wei Jeonghan’s kind face.

*”Is this what the passage of time is like?”*

There was a time when that face seemed as sharp as a sword to him. Not because of his features, but because of the aura that Wei Jeonghan gave off, which made his countenance seem like that.

But now, there was no trace of that past in Wei Jeonghan’s face.

Was aging and becoming rounder this?

He thought that Wei Jeonghan was one of those who would never become round…

*”More than regrettable, it’s curious.”*

He was curious to know what that “family” was that had even made a man like him soft. Wei Jeonghan was one of those who, if something went against his principles, would release venom even if they had a sword to his neck. And now that same man defined himself as a father.

Yeom Mong shook his head.

*”Everyone must be like that.”*

After all, he wasn’t the same as before either.

At that moment, the door of the tent opened and a barrel of liquor came flying in.

“Section Chief, I brought it.”

“Tch.”

Yeom Mong looked at Wei Jeonghan disapprovingly, but finally nodded.

“Even if they are unwanted guests, they are guests after all. There’s nothing left but to offer them a drink. Here there’s only liquor and dried meat, so don’t complain about the food.”

“I would be grateful with a glass of cold water.”

“Nonsense. Here, cold water is harder to get than liquor.”

With their jokes, the atmosphere relaxed and soon the table was set. Wei Yanho was wiping his face with a damp cloth that he had gotten from somewhere.

“But, how do you live in a place with sandstorms like these?”

“You live because you live.”

“In such a hostile place?”

“Hostile…?”

Yeom Mong smiled slightly.

“If I say this, they’ll think I’m an old man who only talks about the past.”

“Then don’t say it.”

“…Listen.”

“Yes.”

Yeom Mong moved his face slightly and continued.

“Does man ever live satisfied? If you’re standing, you want to sit; if you’re sitting, you want to lie down. That’s how man is.”

“Me, if I’m standing, I want to lie down.”

Faced with Wei Yanho’s obvious response, Yeom Mong turned his gaze towards Wei Jeonghan.

Wei Jeonghan coughed heavily and avoided his gaze.

Faced with the question *”Where did you find someone like that?”*, Wei Jeonghan was always speechless.

“I had heard rumors, but reality surpasses fiction. I didn’t think there would be someone more exaggerated than your father.”

“Hehe, I’m not used to compliments.”

“…Well, let’s say it’s a compliment.”

Yeom Mong coughed and continued.

“Compared to the hell where, the day after sleeping, one or two of those who shared the tent were no longer there, this is like heaven.”

“To be heaven, it’s a bit dirty.”

“Well, something like that.”

Yeom Mong poured liquor into the cups.

He was trying to appear indifferent, but, seeing a guest after years, he inexplicably felt happy.

“Moisten your throat.”

“Thank you.”

Wei Yanho tilted his head as he saw his cup filled.

*”He seems polite, but he also seems not to be…”*

He was a guy who naturally avoided manners, but at least he had received a decent education and knew how to follow the forms.

“Drink.”

The liquor circulated one round.

And, almost as soon as the cups touched the table, Wei Yanho opened his mouth.

“But, why are you here?”

“Why do you think? Because of those damn bastards.”

“The Demon Cult?”

“Yes.”

“What kind of place is the Demon Cult?”

At the unexpected question, Yeom Mong looked up and stared at Wei Yanho.