Chapter 6
Chapter 6
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Protection Fee Double Double
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"Uh..., huh? S-so, you're a bandit..., right? But why are you helping me..., uh?"
The young clan leader of the Shansu Yu Clan—his name was Yu Jin-myeong, I think?—was stammering, his mind clearly caught in cognitive dissonance.
Hmm... What should I say? Explaining would be such a hassle...
"Oppa—!!"
"So-myeong!"
Just then, Yu So-myeong came running and threw herself straight at the fallen Yu Jin-myeong. At a glance, it looked like tears were welling up in her eyes.
"Oppa—!! Sob..., what happened?"
"So-myeong... I'm just glad you're safe. While Father was away, Elder Wi staged a rebellion. But more importantly..., who is this person next to you...?"
"Ah, that guy isn't..., I mean, this person..."
Yu So-myeong's face flushed red, as if she were embarrassed about having received my help.
"...He's the boss of the bandits operating around Hyungak Mountain."
"...What?"
"I'll..., explain later. The situation is urgent right now."
"Young lady, you said it perfectly. It's a pretty dire situation as it is. Look ahead."
I'd kicked him hard in the solar plexus, but sure enough, the old demonic cultivator in front of me was rising to his feet without a twitch.
No...
"Hoo..., you damn mutt..."
He might even be more pissed off now?
Seeing him like that, Yu So-myeong cried out in shock.
"Elder Wi! How could you betray us...!!"
"That guy's an elder? But that guy..., he's a demonic cultivator?"
"...What? A demonic cultivator?"
Yu So-myeong wore an expression of utter disbelief, but my senses were telling me clearly. The one called Elder Wi was a demonic cultivator.
And as if to confirm my certainty, the fallen Yu Jin-myeong at our feet cried out desperately.
"It's true, So-myeong... Elder Wi really is a demonic cultivator. Look at the dark crimson energy on his sword."
"...It really is."
"And... Elder Wi is no match for you... The situation is urgent, so run for now..."
"Oppa..."
Hearing Yu Jin-myeong's anguished voice, the one called Elder Wi cracked his back and let out a hearty laugh.
"Puhahaha—!!"
Then he raised his sword and pointed it at Yu So-myeong.
"As expected of the young lady, quick on the uptake. But do you think I'll let the bloodline of the Shansu Yu Clan live? So-myeong, I'll make you join your brother soon enough."
"You traitor..."
Burning with rage, Yu So-myeong's hand trembled as she drew her sword. She looked ready to charge at the demonic cultivator called Elder Wi any second.
"No, young lady, hold on a moment."
I let out a sigh and raised my hand to stop her. From what I could see, there was a clear gap in skill between Yu So-myeong and the old demonic cultivator named Wi Yong-myeong right now.
She had to know that better than anyone.
But...
"Young lady promised to double the protection money, right? I'll help you out."
"...No."
"...What?"
Instead, Yu So-myeong pointed toward the wall to the west.
"There's the infirmary over there where I pointed, and the physician lives inside. With all this noise, he's definitely awake by now. Take Oppa..., to that physician."
"......"
At her words, I looked down at Yu Jin-myeong collapsed at my feet.
Blood trickled from his mouth, and the energy inside his body was badly disrupted—extremely unstable.
'He's suffered internal injuries.'
If that state continued, he'd either lose the ability to use martial arts or die.
I glanced at Yu So-myeong and asked.
"You gonna be okay? That old guy in front of us looks pretty strong. Maybe I should handle it..."
"...You're a bandit! What do you think will happen if you butt into a fight between martial artists—!"
Ho?
"I'll repay your kindness someday, so please save Oppa first. And if things get bad..."
Yu So-myeong's next words didn't come out as voice. But they reached me through transmission.
*Take Oppa and run.*
"......"
I couldn't give an easy answer to that.
The righteous sects really are something else, huh? Prioritizing family even in a situation like this.
My underlings would cut and run the moment something like this went down.
But more than that...
*...You're a bandit! What do you think will happen if you butt into a fight between martial artists—!*
I was a little surprised—maybe even impressed—by those words, as if she were worried about me after all the rotten things I'd done to torment her.
No, impressed is the right word.
I found myself admiring her pure heart.
"Fine, whatever... If that's how you feel..."
She'd shown such strong resolve; it wouldn't do to ignore it.
Besides, the young clan leader of the Shansu Yu Clan did look like he might kick the bucket any minute...
So I hoisted him onto my shoulder and climbed up the wall.
"Then I'm off first."
"So-myeong—!!!"
The young clan leader wailed, as if foreseeing her end, but Yu So-myeong didn't look back.
And so I carried the young clan leader toward the infirmary.
**
"You think I'll let you go—!!"
"Where do you think you're going—!!"
As Wi Yong-myeong bellowed and went for Oppa, Yu So-myeong immediately drew her sword and attacked him.
Seeing her charge, Wi Yong-myeong countered by slashing down from midair.
Clang—!
"Ugh—!"
In an instant, Yu So-myeong was smashed into the ground.
Just one exchange, and she could clearly feel the skill gap between her and Wi Yong-myeong.
She managed to stand, but her body began to tremble bit by bit.
Now it was sinking in... the fear.
Wi Yong-myeong sneered at her in a manner befitting his demonic title.
"Afraid?"
"Shut up..."
"If you're scared, close your eyes. For old times' sake, I'll send you off painlessly."
"Shut up—!!"
Yu So-myeong held her sword straight out and leaped forward. She was using the Flowing Flower Sword Technique.
'As expected...'
Seeing that, Wi Yong-myeong prepared to guard his neck. The basics of the Flowing Flower Sword Technique were throat strikes, so he assumed she'd go for it.
But...
Slash—!
"Graaaah—!"
Yu So-myeong's sword veered not toward his anticipated neck, but his torso.
It was a lucky fluke—he'd overlooked her habits.
She disliked killing and preferred torso strikes to subdue foes, just as she'd been taught.
'It worked.'
She didn't know why, but the attack landed, and in that moment, momentum shifted to Yu So-myeong.
And her innate talent never missed such an opening.
Clang-clang-clang—!
"Urk—!"
His defenses held, but Yu So-myeong gradually pressed Wi Yong-myeong back.
As she wielded her sword, her speed increased in tandem. She could feel her skills growing in real time as she fought him.
And...
'An opening...'
Slowly, it began to appear. His opening.
A battle she'd never thought she could win was turning in her favor through luck and growth.
At last...
Slash—!
"Argh—!"
The moment her sword grazed Wi Yong-myeong's wrist...
Drop.
His sword began to slip from his hand, from the pain.
'Chance.'
In a duel between swordmasters, dropping your sword ends it.
The gap from Wi Yong-myeong dropping his sword was too wide, leaving Yu So-myeong momentarily torn.
Should she behead him... or not?
And...
'This man is a traitor.'
She resolved to take his head.
Wi Yong-myeong was a traitor to the clan. And he'd hurt Oppa. As blood of the Shansu Yu Clan, she had to punish him.
'It's over.'
Yu So-myeong swung her sword toward Wi Yong-myeong's neck.
Flash—.
But...
"Heh heh..."
"How..."
Wi Yong-myeong's sword had clearly fallen to the ground. Yet with a hand brimming with demonic qi..., he caught her blade.
"You didn't even notice I dropped it on purpose."
"A s-swordmaster drops his sword on purpose?"
"Ah, I never mentioned it. So-myeong, truth is, this body of mine..."
His words came as his demonic-qi-filled fist...
"...isn't a swordsman. It's a fist fighter."
...slammed into Yu So-myeong's solar plexus.
Boom—!!
"Gaaah—!"
Unlike Wi Yong-myeong's demonic fist, Yu So-myeong's young body was far too fragile.
She writhed on the ground, feeling as if her guts were being ripped out.
"Hahk..., haaahk..."
It was like being stabbed in the entrails with a spear.
Even as a prodigious later-generation talent, she was only eighteen. Raised as a sheltered flower, Yu So-myeong had never once seen real combat.
The unbearable pain and terror of death she felt now were the firsts of her life.
*It hurts, I'm scared...*
Even as her mind went blank with such thoughts, Wi Yong-myeong approached her.
Each slow step he took made him look not like a man, but a demonic beast to her.
"You should've accepted when I offered a painless death. Seeing you like this pains me."
"D-don't come..."
"Don't worry. I'll soon send your father and brother to join you..."
With those words, Wi Yong-myeong raised his fist high. Tears streamed down Yu So-myeong's face as she prayed for the impossible.
*Father, Mother, Oppa...!*
Even then, the fist descended toward her small head.
*Please save me...*
Swoosh—.
*...someone.*
Clang—!
Wi Yong-myeong's pitch-black fist seemed impossible to block. But...
"Why the tears, young lady."
When she opened her eyes at the now oddly familiar, incomprehensible words...
"Protection fee double double. Okay?"
There stood a single familiar bandit.