## Chapter 1118 – Royal Palace

After overseeing all the unloading and loading operations, listening to the merchant and Jabong’s various business conversations, and familiarizing myself with management, it was finally lunchtime.

Today, the prisoners would once again subsist on that godforsaken human feed made from terrible ingredients. It looked and probably tasted awful, but judging by the fact that no one had starved to death yet, the rations and nutrition seemed adequate.

Anyway, I was heading to the cafeteria to observe the little shits’ table manners when…

ㅡBuzzing.

The front of the cafeteria was noisy.

Listening closely, I could hear cursing, and it seemed like the other prisoners were surrounding those who were fighting.

“You son of a bitch!”
“You fucking bastard!”

Did a fight break out?

“These bastards…”

Daring to fight in my prison? I never gave them permission to fight, did I? This was a clear overreach of authority, an act worthy of immediate execution.

Alright.

Let’s take a look at these suicidal bastards’ faces.

They’re begging to be killed, so I should grant their wish.

“GAAAAAAH!!!!!”

So, I loudly scolded the prisoners.

“Ugh, uaaaaagh!”
“Aaaagh!”
“Uooeooooogh!!”

Startled by my shout, the prisoners slumped to the ground, then quickly looked at me, rubbing their palms together like flies.

“Who were the bastards fighting just now! If you don’t come forward, I’ll pick fifty of you here and kill you!”

I immediately raised my fist and shouted.

“Th-those guys!”
“These guys!”
“It’s this person!”

The prisoners instantly subdued the culprits and brought them to me.

“Wh-what…!”
“Don’t grab me!”

Seriously.

They could subdue them this quickly, but they just let them fight?

This isn’t the attitude of proper penitents. Penitents don’t fight, and if a fight breaks out nearby, they should throw themselves in to stop it.

But these bastards didn’t do anything until I arrived. And only when I threatened to beat them up did they take action.

This deserves punishment.

Judging by the looks of it, a guard was rushing over. Fighting in the brief moment when the guard’s gaze was averted… I’ll beat them all to a pulp and reform their minds.

“…”
“…”

Anyway, the fighters were kneeling with black eyes, trembling.

“Daring to fight in my prison? Do you still think this is the outside world? Who gave you permission to fight?”
“We’re sorry!”
“We’re sorry!”

At my words, the two of them bowed their heads and begged for forgiveness.

“Enough. Why were you fighting?”

Let’s hear the reason first.

“Th-this guy cut in line! I was questioning him about it…! Then he suddenly hit me, so I had no choice but to fight!”
“That’s a lie! It wasn’t me who tried to cut in line, it was this guy! I was the one who got hit first!”

But strangely enough, both of them were claiming that the other had tried to cut in line… I could feel a terrible rage rising within me.

“…Why are your stories different?”

Not only did they fight without my permission.

“Th-that’s!”
“It’s not!”

They’re even lying to me.

“You’re lying to me? One of you is a liar, and the other must be wronged, huh?”
“W-witnesses! There are witnesses! The other prisoners must have seen who started the fight!”
“Yes, yes! That’s probably right!”

At my words, both of them, as if they had something to rely on, mentioned witnesses and slammed their heads on the ground. I don’t really care who’s wronged. These bastards have committed a taboo that penitents should never commit.

What the hell are these heinous criminals doing, arguing about who cut in line?

“Get up, you bastards.”
“Ye-yes!”
“Yessir!”

The guys immediately stood up.

And I spread my hand blades and raised both hands above my head.

“For the sin of daring to lie to me.”

And then.

ㅡWhoooooosh!!!

I brought my hand blades down like a guillotine, splitting the two guys in half.

ㅡSplatter!

The hand blades easily cut through their skulls and cleanly split their spines.

“You shall repay with death.”

The split corpses spewed blood and fell to the left and right.

“A-aaaaaaagh!!”
“Aaaaaagh!”
“Uaaaaaaaagh!!”

The prisoners screamed at the sight. These bastards… I keep thinking that if they were seen outside, they would be summarily executed, but they don’t know their place and are causing trouble.

ㅡWipe wipe.

I grabbed a guy in front of me and wiped the blood on his clothes.

“Shut up!!!!!!”
“…!”

Silence descended.

“Daring to cause such a ruckus over something like cutting in line. Listen carefully. There can be no disputes between prisoners within the prison. Likewise, lying to this Paladin is unforgivable.”

Whatever else, anyone who lies to me cannot escape death. These prisoners need to know that. That lying to me means summary execution.

“You’ve seen the example, right? If you don’t want to die, shut up no matter what happens.”

ㅡGulp.

The sound of swallowing could be heard.

“…!”

The heinous criminals, their faces pale, trembled as they looked at me with uneasy eyes. Yeah. Splitting a person in half with bare hands must have been quite shocking. They seemed to have fully realized that I was a superhuman.

“And!!! Why were you guys just watching without stopping the fight!!! You came here to repent, but you wanted to watch a fight, is that it!”

More than anything, though, damn it.

I couldn’t forgive this either. After all the mental training they’ve received so far, they’re still acting like this, so it seems like it’ll take a really long time to train these bastards.

“This is proof that you still haven’t abandoned your evil hearts!!!”

ㅡFlash!

“So, I’ll engrave it into your bones!!!”

I charged at the prisoners and randomly swung my fists, beating them up.

ㅡThwack!
ㅡThud!

“Aaaaagh!”
“Uaaaaaagh!”
“Kkeuaaaagh!!”

I punched them, kicked them. This wasn’t for killing, but for punishment, so I adjusted my strength so they wouldn’t die. But even so, it was a difficult attack for the prisoners to endure.

“I’ll kill anyone who runs away! Stay where you are!”

At those words, the guys who were trying to run away lay down on the spot.

“Warden!!! Ring the bell!!!”

I took advantage of the gap and threw the bell at the warden, saying.

“Ye-yes!”

The warden, grabbing the bell, shook it wildly.

ㅡJingle jingle!
ㅡJingle jingle!
ㅡJingle jingle!

From beyond the winter came a group ringing bells.

It was the Salvation Army, dressed in red.

ㅡJingle jingle!

As the bell rang out.

“Hahahaha!”
“Heu… Hahahaha!”
“Hahaaaaah!”

The prisoners immediately burst into laughter. Of course, I had no intention of being lenient just because they were laughing. I just kept beating the shit out of them. They laughed as they got hit, flew away, and screamed.

“Cry! Cry now! Why isn’t anyone crying when a fellow prisoner died!!!”

As I ordered them to cry, the prisoners, getting hit by me, cried and laughed, their butts swelling up, becoming a complete mess, and sprawling everywhere.

These bastards are rotten to the core, so I need to beat them up this time to make them come to their senses. Daring to just watch without stopping a fight, when they’re supposed to be penitents? And lying? Fighting?

Is this a prison!!!

“Aaaaaaaagh!!”
“Heueoeoeong!”
“Ha, hahaha! Hahahaha!”

Laughter and crying.

And screams that never stopped in the Cheonma Gulag.

There was nothing there anymore but emotion and tears. As the fusion-Confucian seeker who executes true justice arrived, the heinous criminals who harbored wicked hearts all knelt down in tears.

Paradoxically, I saw paradise in this hellish scene.

“Ah! This is the spirit of Hongik Ingan!”

An enlightenment that gushed out from within my heart.

“This must be the feeling of Hwanung, who made the bear and tiger kneel!!!!”

The advent of a true seeker.

My fist was mugwort.

My kick was garlic.

“Aaaaaaaagh!”
“Kkyaaaaaagh!!”
“Hahahahahaha!!”

Behold, these groups screaming and laughing.

In this dark cave, the prisoners will be trained with my mugwort and garlic, those who cannot endure will perish, and those who endure will be reborn with cleansed hearts and live new lives.

It was truly nothing but tears and emotion.

“Kekekek!”

Joyful, so joyful.
This was the path created by Cheonma Kim Kat.

* * *

The prison ran well according to the new rules I had created, and I had written more than half of the fusion-Confucian scriptures.

“Hehehe. Ah, sseubal. Fucking cool, super strong Cheonma, this.”

Things are going so well these days.
Everything I touch turns to success.

“Do you like black-haired girls?”

As I sat at my desk, laughing, I felt something soft on my head, and at the same time, I heard Winia’s voice.

“Yeah.”

Looking up, it was Winia’s chest. Winia was resting her underboob on my head as she spoke.

“Then, of course, I like it.”
“What do you like so much?”
“No, it’s just. Running the prison is so much fun.”

Just thinking about the prison makes me laugh.

“There’s a sense of accomplishment, and it’s fun to teach. I guess I’m just a teacher at heart.”

Literally, Kim Kat, the murder teacher.

“If things keep going like this, maybe they’ll sincerely repent. I’ve created new prison rules, so it’s become a really good place.”
“It sounds like things are going the opposite of what you’re saying… Is it really going well?”

Our Winia seems to only carry suspicion in those ample breasts.

“Of course. I’m making it very well.”

As I answered, Hilde emerged from under the desk.

“Winia-nim. There’s no way things can go wrong with what Kat-nim is doing. Has Kat-nim ever failed at anything? It may flow in a slightly bizarre… no! A different, creative way, but he’s never failed!”
“That’s true, but… Hilde, did you come out of there again?”
“It’s comfortable! It’s my designated seat!”
“…Switch with me now.”
“No way!”
“You!”

I got up from my seat. Anyway, getting out of my seat, I noticed Winia standing on a few books to make herself taller.

“Hehehe, Winia. Did you come here because you wanted to get in there? You’re so lewd.”
“That’s not it!”
“Then?”
“I don’t know.”

Winia doesn’t know anything.

“Haa… This one simply cannot bear it because she is so impressed. Are you not thinking like a proper ruler? If you were to become king, you would surely be a good king.”

When did Risha get here again?

“If the black-haired guy becomes king, he’ll just be a demon king.”
“Winia. Is all that’s in those breasts just suspicion of me!”

I immediately drew the Gwangya Blood Jade Hand and grabbed and kneaded Winia’s breasts.

“Aah!”
“Risha has such a benevolent heart!”
“Ah, aah! Black-haired guy…! Stop!”

Anyway, as I was grabbing and kneading her breasts, it was almost time.

“Ah, right. Risha. Hilde. I’m going to go to the Great Temple soon.”
“But weren’t you not going today?”
“They told me to come in a little late. I have to go now.”
“Ugh…”

I stroked Risha’s head, which was visibly disappointed, to appease her, and then headed to the Great Temple.

* * *

“Paladin. A formal letter has come down from the royal family.”

That’s the news I heard when I arrived.

“Oh. Are they giving me a reward now?”

The moment has finally come.
But Kadia’s expression is strange.

“They say they’re giving one… Hmm. This is troubling.”
“Why.”
“It seems they want you to come directly to the royal palace.”
“Royal palace?”

They want me to go directly to the royal palace to receive the reward?

“Why the fuck are these bastards asking me to go to the royal palace…”
“Bastards?”
“No. It’s just a habit.”

ㅡ…

Kadia, narrowing her eyes, stared at me silently.

“…Hoo.”

Sighing, she pulled out a cigarette and said.

“I think you’ll handle it well, but, Paladin. You need to be careful with that habitual cursing in front of royalty.”
“Of course, I will.”
“Then let’s move past that. Anyway, as the Holy Maiden, I can’t help but worry about this. This is the formal letter.”

I read it right away.

The gist of it was that they would be giving a reward in a few days… so I should bring this with me and come directly to the royal palace. I have to go inside that magnificent royal palace? This isn’t very appealing.

“But are they only calling me? I reported that there were three companions, and it should have all gone up.”
“They said they would talk about that next time. Right now, they’ve only called `one` Paladin. They’re probably thinking of having various conversations.”

It seems like they’re calling me alone to talk about the elf envoy and other things.

Ah, damn it.

Do I really have to go to Elven Forest?

And on top of that, go to the royal palace alone?