All My Murim Noonas Are Obsessed With Me!-Chapter 116: The Divine Thief’s Stash (3)

[Protagonist POV]

That’s how harsh this world was—and how weak my own strength was.

’Even my fortune-telling came from Master’s teachings.’

...Now that I thought about it, hadn’t I gotten basically nothing from Yeo Socheon or her ilk?

The saintess at least gave me some handy help through her shop interface, but Yeo Socheon and the divine duo—

Crack!

"Ow!"

Yeo Socheon flicked my forehead.

"Thinking insolent thoughts again."

"That’s cheating—reading my mind!"

"What are you on about? Your face gave it all away just now."

"...Tch."

I rubbed my stinging forehead and clicked my tongue.

"I’ve told you a bunch of times already—you owe me a lifetime of gratitude just for pulling you out of that woman’s clutches. Remember that."

"Ugh..."

"Enough. Back to the point. You said you want to drown your rumors with a bigger one, right? Lay out everything you’ve got planned. I’ll hear you out, at least."

Her tone brooked no more objections. Pouting, I explained my original idea.

"...I was thinking of finding the location of Shintu’s Vault and leaking it. That’d spread like wildfire, no question."

"...What did you just say?"

"...It’d spread like—"

"No, before that."

Her expression hardened, almost to a scowl.

It was a stark contrast to her usual lively range of emotions—cold and unyielding.

"...Shintu’s Vault?"

The moment that name left my lips again—

"...Why the hell is that bastard’s name coming up here?"

A wave of murderous intent erupted from her.

++++

Tap, tap, tap.

Arms crossed, eyes closed, Yeo Socheon drummed her fingers against her arm, lost in thought.

Then it hit me—a detail I’d forgotten.

She was one of the people Shintu had stolen from, too.

’...Am I getting forgetful from all this stress lately?’

As I seriously wondered if this was any way to live, another question crept up.

’But why didn’t Yeo Socheon go after her sword?’

From what I knew, she could read the heavens too. That meant she could’ve divined the location of Shintu’s Vault just like I had.

Based on what the Sword Empress had said and how she acted now, she’d treasured that sword dearly—so it made no sense.

’If she’d read the heavens and retrieved it, that’d be that. Why sit on it until now, only to react like this?’

My mind churned through countless theories, each discarded as fast as it formed, the mystery deepening—

"...Ha. Funny."

Yeo Socheon opened her eyes and spoke.

"I’d barely managed to forget, and now I’m hearing that name again. Never would’ve guessed."

"Uh... well..."

"Fine. Let’s go. Tell me the location, and I’ll arrange transport. We’ll leave in a day or two, so if you’ve got anything to prepare, do it now."

Her sudden agreement to head to the vault threw me off, and I stammered—

"W-Wait, my original plan wasn’t to raid it ourselves—just to leak the rumor!"

"No good. If the rumor spreads first, it’ll be harder for me to get my sword. We leak it after."

"...Didn’t you just say spreading a rumor like that would start a huge fight?"

"That vault was bound to come out eventually. If it’s going to happen anyway, might as well use it."

I couldn’t tell if she was serious or just rationalizing.

"...Your face is practically shouting what you’re thinking again. Don’t misunderstand—I’ve got a plan."

"What plan...?"

I braced for some flimsy excuse, but what followed was surprisingly solid.

"A half-dead corpse. A lure for the maggots that shouldn’t exist in this world."

It was a new metaphor, but I quickly realized she meant the Blood Cult—the vampires infesting this world.

"I hate him so much I’d tear him into a hundred pieces and scatter him across the earth if he were still alive. But there’s no denying that bastard Shintu was the greatest thief of his time—no, in all of martial history. The kind of lunatic who’d vanish with the cherished weapons of his comrades right after we fought back-to-back in the war."

Grind.

Her teeth clenched, and I couldn’t help but think that guy must’ve been something else.

"And that mad thief didn’t care if it was righteous or evil—he stole everything. Including the Blood Cult’s sacred relics, swept away by the Heavenly Demon back then. Now, think about what it means that those damned maggots rose from the Blood Cult’s ashes."

"...What’s that?"

"Shintu’s Vault isn’t something they can ignore. It holds their sacred relics and will draw countless martial artists. Those maggots won’t sit still. If we play it right, we could wipe them out in one fell swoop."

"Oh!!"

My eyes lit up at her words.

If she was right, we could drive out the vampires and stop the world’s collapse—all before Master even finished her training.

"And if we get there first, before the news spreads, and snag my sword and the Blood Cult’s relics? I’ll have the power to burn those world-rotting maggots to ash!"

Her excitement surged, arms flung wide, eyes gleaming.

"Wow..."

Clap, clap, clap.

"...What’s with that half-hearted applause?"

"It felt like the mood called for it—guess I was wrong?"

"..."

The vibe got awkward toward the end, but after parting with Yeo Socheon on decent terms, I started preparing for the trip.

Hoping everything would go smoothly.

++++

Not long after Yeo Socheon left, Dang Ayeong returned home, her face clouded with gloom.

"Lady, you’re back?"

Seeing her mood, I tried to cheer her up with a bright smile and rushed over—

"..."

Rustle.

But she brushed past me without a word and collapsed onto the bed.

"...Lady?"

"..."

No response. She must’ve been really upset.

She buried her face in the blankets, staying silent for a long while—

"...Hey..."

Finally, Dang Ayeong spoke, her voice heavy with melancholy. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

"Could you... tell me what you two talked about?"

"...We’re going somewhere together."

"Where...?"

"..."

I hesitated, wondering if I should tell her about Shintu’s Vault.

It wasn’t that I didn’t trust Dang Ayeong—she was the daughter of Sichuan Tang’s leader, destined to guide the sect someday. But that also meant she might prioritize her family over her own wishes.

As I wrestled with that thought, saying nothing—

"...Forget it. If you can’t say, you don’t have to."

Her voice sank deeper as she buried her face further into the blankets.

"...I’ll tell you when I get back."

"..."

’This is bad.’

I’d seen her angry before, but never this downcast. I had no clue how to comfort her.

Back on Earth, I’d heard letting a guy touch your chest could cheer him up—but the genders were flipped here.

Even if our roles in bed were practically reversed, a guy couldn’t just pull that on a woman.

As I racked my brain for a way to console her, she spoke again.

"...You know, I’ve been called a prodigy since I was little. I mastered every martial art I learned in no time... concocted poisons just as fast... I outshone all my relatives, and plenty of friends complained about being compared to me by their masters because of it."

It came out of nowhere, but I listened quietly, letting her talk.

"I was always the best among my peers... even surpassed siblings years older than me in no time. Sure, at the last junior tournament, I only got second because I couldn’t use my poisons or hidden weapons freely—but if I had, I’d have won. No doubt. Everyone there knew it too."

Now that I thought about it, we’d been close, but we’d never really opened up like this before.