Heaven-and-Earth Dragnet (2)

“Well, now. This is a real headache.”

Yang Jeonghak, the Martial Alliance leader, narrowed his eyes at the ground.

Shortly after the pursuit began, his subordinates had sent for him. The reason was simple: the footprints on the ground before him.

Masses of tracks branched off in dozens of directions. Even their size and the weight pressed into the earth were almost identical. So much so that even he had trouble telling which tracks were genuine.

If you want to hide a tree, hide it in a forest.

They had followed that saying to the letter.

Just then, Gu Yangcheon scratched his head irritably.

“... Matching the weight this precisely? This bastard didn't just run off on impulse. He planned the whole thing.”

“... Indeed. And the bigger problem is...”

“They've completely mixed their own tracks in with the undead's. This is going to be a real pain.”

Yang Jeonghak nodded. They had split their forces into groups of fifty and scattered them in all directions, each group continually treading over the footprints ahead of them. That made tracking impossible even for the three leaders.

Every direction was littered with mangled tracks.

‘I can't tell them apart.’

That meant the undead had been trained with extraordinary thoroughness.

Yang Jeonghak tilted his head.

“... Is it even possible to train undead to be this precise?”

“Ask that Unorthodox Alliance leader over there. He ought to know.”

“...”

Baek Hakseong was also staring at the ground, his face grim. At last, he spoke.

“Such training is possible in itself. However... the undead must be of a high enough caliber. At least a jiangshi.”

“Then Baek Socheon has reached that level?”

“No. They were a kind of undead I'd never seen before, but the energy I sensed from them wasn't particularly strong. Normally, low-grade undead like those cannot be trained.”

“But he did it. How?”

“... I don't know either.”

“Damn it. Then we have no choice but to split our forces too.”

The other two nodded at Gu Yangcheon's words.

“Are we searching every direction?”

“... Some directions are clearly unlikely, but we don't know which way their escape lies. We cannot dismiss even a single possibility.”

The other two nodded at Baek Hakseong's reply. They were dealing with a cunning bastard.

He might have caught them off guard by heading in an unlikely direction. There was even a very slim chance that he hadn't left this place at all.

The clue to ascension was at stake. They couldn't disregard even the smallest risk.

Stroking his chin, Yang Jeonghak said, “Then we'll divide into groups of seven hundred. Search everywhere. Each group must include at least two elder-level figures.”

There were no objections to that proposal either.

They had heard about the Dragon and Phoenix Gathering from Cho Wonhwi, who had finished third. The trial required the participants to kill one another until only three remained.

The most prominent young talents in Murim had participated. Not one of them was a nobody. All possessed the skill and standing to command respect in the outside world.

And the two powerhouses who had placed first and second there were now on the run. Worse, the first-place winner was known to command thousands of undead.

If they sent groups made up of mere rabble, the fugitives would likely devour them before they could even buy time. It would take at least two elder-level fighters to hold them up.

Fortunately, all three organizations that dominated Murim were assembled here. Assigning that many experts wouldn't be difficult.

The only questions were whether to mix their personnel and which search directions to assign them.

“The Demonic Cult will take this area.”

Looking at the map, Gu Yangcheon pointed straight ahead. The other two immediately scowled.

“Ho ho. Cut the bullshit.”

“Do you take our Unorthodox Alliance for a bunch of fucking idiots?”

If the bastard and his bitch had chosen an escape route, straight ahead was the most likely direction. From there, they could turn any way they pleased.

Out toward the edges, on the other hand, their options would be somewhat limited if they were surrounded during their escape.

“Then what do you suggest?” Gu Yangcheon demanded with a scowl.

Yang Jeonghak offered an answer.

“Start at this far edge and alternate. Unorthodox Alliance, Martial Alliance, Demonic Cult, in that order. Unorthodox, Martial, Demonic. Unorthodox, Martial, Demonic. That should work.”

“You want to space out each faction's groups like that? Forget communicating—we'll be lucky if they don't screw each other over.”

“But if we assign each faction a single direction as you suggest, whoever doesn't get the central route will complain. Am I wrong?”

“Ahem.”

Gu Yangcheon cleared his throat. The man certainly had a point.

“Besides, one group will struggle to capture those two. Whoever finds them will need support from nearby. This way, all three factions will be able to join the chase.”

The other two nodded.

With this arrangement, any faction that found the pair would have only the other two factions nearby to call on for support. Even if they called for help from their own people much farther away...

‘The others would notice.’

If one faction suddenly swarmed toward a particular location, wouldn't the groups beside them notice and follow?

It was the best arrangement for giving everyone an equal chance. Efficiency was another matter, of course...

But efficiency was only worth debating if there was a chance they couldn't catch their quarry.

‘There's no way they can escape us.’

All three shared the same thought. Failing to catch them had never been an option.

The escape point surely lay some distance away. What if it were close?

‘Then they wouldn't have made their escape so convoluted.’

If it were nearby, the sensible thing would be to run flat out instead of wasting time on tricks like this.

Of course, the bastard was cunning enough that he might have done this even if the exit were close...

But there was nothing they could do about that. How could they catch him if his escape point was already nearby? They therefore excluded that possibility from consideration.

‘We'll catch them without fail.’

Their pursuit force numbered nearly thirty thousand. Besides, whichever direction the fugitives took, there were provincial capitals ahead of them.

Naturally, carrier pigeons had long since been dispatched to those cities, ordering them to block passage for several days and let no one through.

The fugitives were blocked both ahead and behind. The hunt would succeed, even if it took a little longer.

“Now that we're agreed, let's move. Every moment counts.”

“Agreed.”

The three nodded.

And so the pursuit parties were formed.

* * *

Human stamina has its limits.

That held true even for exceptional Awakened. After crossing several mountains in succession over the course of a day, Minwoo was gasping for breath.

He looked at Seo Yerim. She was showing signs of exhaustion. Her stats were higher than his, but that didn't mean she was immune to fatigue.

‘We need a short break.’

They had been running for a full day. He had also scattered the fifty skeletons following them in every direction, which should have confused their pursuers.

That ought to have bought them some time.

He looked around and spotted a suitable cave.

“Whew. Let's rest over there for a bit.”

He went into the cave with her and sat down. Chewing an energy bar, he examined the map floating before him.

[Distance Traveled: 20%]

[Distance Remaining: 80%]

‘Only a fifth of the way there.’

In other words, they would have to run four more stretches like this at the same pace to reach their destination. Worse, according to the map, some of the routes passed through provincial capitals.

Those cities were in territory under the Martial Alliance's influence, too.

No wonder his thoughts were tangled. Judging by Seo Yerim's troubled expression, hers were too.

“It looks like we've managed to throw them off to some extent... Are we going straight through?”

The route leading straight up the map passed directly through the provincial capitals. From the map, they looked roughly city-sized.

The advantage was that it would be the fastest route.

The disadvantage...

‘They've probably distributed wanted posters with bounties on us everywhere by now.’

Carrier pigeons were dozens of times faster than a person running. They would already have been sent out in every direction.

Going straight ahead meant giving up any hope of slipping through quietly.

“I'm still thinking about it. But if we take a detour, they'll catch up sooner.”

A straight route versus a roundabout one.

Naturally, the straight route was far faster. Taking a detour would also mean crossing mountains, which would consume vastly more stamina.

“They don't seem to have discovered which way we went yet. Wouldn't it be better to circle around and stay hidden?”

“There's a problem. Once my skeletons get beyond a certain range, they're unsummoned.”

Granted, that range was far greater than one might expect. The problem was that every stretch they ran put more distance between them and the skeletons, and fast.

‘... Half a day left, at best?’

The summons would gradually disappear, starting with those farthest away.

“... So whatever we do, they'll eventually narrow down the search.”

“I never expected us to get there unscathed anyway. Besides, the skeletons are slow. They'll be caught soon enough.”

His skeletons did have fairly high stats thanks to Bone Exchange (B), Death Lord, their equipment effects, and so on. Even so, they were bound to be slower than martial artists who trained in footwork day in and day out.

And they were wearing heavy armor and carrying bags on top of that.

‘I did give them follow-up orders...’

He had instructed them to travel a little farther, then scatter one or two at a time and hide whenever they found a mountain or cave. It was meant to make things as irritating as possible for their pursuers.

The problem was...

‘All it does is buy time.’

The conclusion was simple.

Their pursuers would eventually narrow down the search and pick up their trail no matter what.

Seo Yerim's expression darkened.

“A full day of running for twenty percent... So we need at least four more days... How long can the skeletons keep buying us time?”

“They've probably split up all thirty thousand troops. A day at most, and every one of my summons will be dead.”

“One day. That gets us to forty percent at best.”

“That's because we've been taking mountain paths. If we can go straight through the cities, we should be able to reach the halfway mark. And if we get horses? We might make it even farther.”

“At least fifty percent...”

That must have sounded like a tempting goal, because Seo Yerim's eyes turned dreamy.

Minwoo took a sip of water and spoke.

“The problem is... they'll know which way we're going. And on level ground, they'll be able to use transportation.”

Horses couldn't travel those mountain paths. Naturally, the martial artists would have to run on foot too.

Were he and Yerim the only ones suffering?

No. Their pursuers would be exhausting themselves as well.

But on level ground?

The other side would have no such restrictions. They could come racing after them on horses or in carriages. They could even switch to fresh horses along the way with ease.

For Minwoo and Yerim, however, everything from acquiring horses to riding them along the roads posed a risk. The bounties on their heads would be fucking enormous. The slightest hint of suspicion would bring reports pouring in from every direction.

“What if we just hide in some mountain valley... Oh, no, that won't work. The gate would break...”

“Yes. If it breaks, we're both dead.”

A gate break meant failure to clear it.

Every challenger still inside would die. An A-rank gate allowed three months for its first clear.

And about a month had already passed, hadn't it?

Only two months remained.

Camping out and waiting?

Not an option.

“Even if the rules didn't kill us, holding out wouldn't accomplish much. Do you think they'd give up on the clue just because a few years had passed?”

“... Probably not.”

“Either way, we have to choose now.”

Seo Yerim nodded and spoke.

“Let's sum it up. If we circle around, it'll take them a little longer to find us, but they'll still figure out our direction eventually. And we'll be slower.”

“Yes.”

“If we go through the cities, we can move faster, but the pursuit parties will swarm us like a pack of dogs. Is that right?”

“There's one more thing to add, isn't there?”

“...?”

“It's not just the city ahead. There are more cities all along our route. Why do you think they're there?”

“... They'll come after us from the front, not just the back?”

“That's what makes it an A+ gate, wouldn't you say?”

“Haah... This is tough.”

Kim Minwoo nodded.

Recommended party size: thirty.

There was a reason that number was so high.

“Still, the forces ahead shouldn't be that strong. All their elites will have been called to the Dragon and Phoenix Gathering.”

“... What do you want to do?”

“In my experience, the right move in a situation like this is to keep running without looking back.”

“You mean punch through the cities?”

“Yes. Take some half-assed detour, and those three old monsters will catch us. Then we get the dismemberment ending.”

Seo Yerim shuddered at his words.

“... All right. Let's go straight ahead.”

Just then...

COO.

Snowy flew into the cave.

The bird began poking the ground with its beak, making seven marks in total, with an X beside them.

Finally, it scratched at the ground with its talons, drawing eight lines.

“Aww, my baby. Aren't you clever? Daddy will give you a treat.”

COO!

Snowy devoured the attributes, eyes rolling with delight. Then it began casting sidelong glances at him, as if asking whether there was any more.

“Daddy will buy you lots of treats when we get out. Be patient for now, all right?”

COO!

Snowy nodded vigorously. What a precious divine beast.

Minwoo looked at Seo Yerim.

“About seven hundred pursuers, roughly eight hours away. Fortunately, the three old monsters aren't among them.”

“... Snowy told you that?”

“Our divine beast can do this sort of thing. Now, let's get up.”

He rose to his feet with Seo Yerim.

Before more pursuers joined the chase, this was their only chance to break through the city.