A faint vibration rumbled across the area, growing steadily stronger.
Amid the rising commotion within Wudang, Yu Baek sat across from the Sword Queen.
The weather was clear, with warm sunlight shining down on a table set with tea. Yet, the atmosphere between them was colder than the harshest winter.
"What an unfortunate turn of events."
After a brief silence, Yu Baek finally spoke, and the Sword Queen raised her gaze. Her eyes, typically warm and kind, were now sharp and glinting with frost.
"Did you just call this unfortunate?"
Her voice carried barely suppressed anger.
"This mess was caused by Wudang. And yet, you speak so confidently."
"It seems thereâs been some misunderstanding," Yu Baek replied calmly. "We acted based on the evidence and took appropriate measures."
"You call imprisoning a guest who came here in good faith an appropriate measure?"
"Sword Queen," Yu Baek began, his tone placating, as he pulled something from his sleeveâa bracelet carved from jade.
The object was none other than the Jade Dawn, an artifact stolen in the early morning, only to be discovered later in Gu Yangcheonâs quarters.
"Can you still say the same after seeing this?"
The Sword Queen said nothing, her silence as sharp as her blade.
"We took every precaution to safeguard this," Yu Baek continued. "The Jade Dawn is not just an artifact. It was once a symbol of Wudangâs greatest martial figure, the Wudang Absolute Sword. It holds immense value to us."
The Jade Dawnâan artifact once belonging to a legendary Wudang master.
"When Mount Hua proposed exchanging their own artifact for the Jade Dawn, we were overjoyed. Thatâs why we prepared so thoroughly for this."
The Sword Queen listened, unmoving and silent, as Yu Baek continued.
"And yet, the artifact was stolen. Worse, we found it in the quarters of one of our most trusted guests. Under these circumstances, we had no choice but to act as we did."
Though his tone remained calm, the Sword Queen couldnât help but let out a bitter laugh.
"What a ridiculous excuse."
"Excuse?" Yu Baek frowned. "You think this is an excuse?"
"You call them trusted guests, but you never trusted them in the first place, did you?"
From the moment Wudang forced their guests to wear Enyi Lines for surveillance, it was clear that trust had no place in their dealings. Every action Wudang took since then had only confirmed this.
Yu Baek chuckled faintly. "And yet, no harm came from our precautions."
"Elder Yu!"