Chapter 35
Chapter 35
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: Never War!
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Back home after so long.
It was a tiny studio apartment, small enough to call it a one-room, but returning to my own place still put my mind at ease.
I wasn't the type to toss and turn sleeping elsewhere, but nothing beat the satisfaction of my own bedding.
I figured now there'd be no night watches, and I could sleep soundly until it was time to head to work without interruptions—
- One! Two!
"One! Two! One! Two!"
The noise from next door reminded me why I dreamed of living in an apartment.
It was sincere neighborly motivation to work hard, earn money, and move into a nice place—kicking in right as I opened my eyes early in the morning.
"Ah, shit..."
I checked the time on my phone beside me.
[05:22]
"Ah, give me a break."
Five a.m. wasn't morning these days—it was still the dead of night.
"One! Two! One! Two!"
Having to wake up to the sound of the grandma next door doing her exercises at this hour.
This had to be the most real-world motivation to hustle for cash.
- Alright, now side to side! One! Two! One! Two!
"One! Two! One! Two!"
"......"
My bedding was right up against the wall, of course. Those in the know get it—in summer, pressing against that wall chills you right through, nice and cool.
- Come on! Keep it up! Not much longer!
"Ugh! Easy now! One! Two! One! Two!"
- Doing some stretching and light exercise this early in the morning will help you stay healthy and live a long life.
"What is that grandma planning to outlive, anyway?"
I muttered in disbelief, and the noise cut off abruptly. Remembering elves had keen ears, I yanked the blanket over me and pretended to sleep, eyes shut tight.
It was still only five.
I had a full four hours until work—plenty of time for more shut-eye—
Thud thud thud!
"I heard that just now! I'll only hit you three times, so come out already!"
'Fuck.'
She heard that.
Elves never needed hearing aids, even as grannies. Lucky them.
Thud thud thud!
"Come out, I said! Mocking me while I'm putting in the effort this early?!"
I was dead serious about earning big and moving to a nice apartment.
One with solid soundproofing, no floor noise issues, and no grandma knocking at five a.m.
Reneah pounded on the door a few more times before apparently tiring herself out and heading back to her room.
'Gone now?'
Just as I thought it was over.
"Eek?! The floor's wet! It's soaked!"
The voice came from the balcony.
My balcony.
"What the—?!"
I threw off the blanket and bolted up, spotting Reneah climbing in from the balcony into the living room.
"How'd you even get over here?"
"I'm an elf! I've climbed trees my whole life—hopping to the neighbor's balcony is child's play!"
After 1,900 years of tree-hopping, yeah, that tracked.
"You're insane. Even so, you can't just hop into someone else's place like that. I'm calling the cops."
This 1,900-year-old grandma hopping over like she had dementia? No way was I letting that slide as a joke. She'd done Santa cosplay yesterday, and now she'd mastered fence-jumping too?
"Heh heh—! I just came for breakfast together!"
"At five in the freaking morning...?"
And she wasn't kidding—she was holding cup ramen in both hands.
"Huh? Huh? Let's eat together! While the boss is away on business to the fifth floor, I've been eating cup ramen all alone in my room, so lonely!"
"......"
Picturing Reneah sadly slurping ramen alone in her room hit me with this weird sense of camaraderie.
I'd lost count of how many times I'd done the same here, watching NerTube solo.
"Sigh... Coffeepot's over there."
"Yay!"
I caved in the end.
Early-morning cup ramen wasn't ideal, but hey, food from an elf granny.
'Saved on groceries.'
The side dishes from the gukbap auntie yesterday crossed my mind, but I kept it to myself.
Every penny saved on food was a win.
Reneah filled the coffeepot with water and plopped down on the floor to set up the ramen.
"Can I have the udon one?"
"They're both mine—what are you even saying?"
"......"
"Bring your own if you want some."
I wished she'd just leave.
Early morning at Meracle.
I was out front in the smoking area having a cig when Kim Yang arrived for work—we crossed paths exactly.
"Morning."
"B-Boss. G-Good morning."
A quick morning greeting.
It really felt like I was back.
The business trip had only been five days, but it was grueling labor.
"This is peace—"
Thud thud thud thud!
Hurried footsteps pounding down the stairs.
Before I could even turn, Kim Yang's headbutt slammed into my side.
"P-Pass—!"
"Gah?!"
I nearly hit the deck. Her headbutt looked harmless, but those horns packed a punch.
"What the hell? Mutiny?"
Was she scheming to take over Meracle?
"Wh-What's this."
Kim Yang shoved a pouch at me. Money from Shinseondo Garden.
"......Your pocket money."
"N-No need! H-Hey. D-Don't go!"
"I didn't go 'cause I wanted to!"
This was so unfair.
"B-Boss. Why don't you listen? Idiot?"
"Why don't you have any respect for your boss?"
"R-Respect? Wh-What's that mean?"
"Ah—! I told you to study words. Respect. Like... looking up to someone, following their lead faithfully, no backtalk—"
"Sl-Slave?"
"No, not that."
How was I supposed to explain this?
"I-I won't be a slave!"
As Kim Yang geared up for another headbutt, a hefty guy in an apron and rubber boots approached the smoking area—straight-up restaurant owner vibes.
The gukbap place owner's son.
"Oh, hey."
"Hey. Did you eat those side dishes yesterday?"
"Yeah, had 'em with ramen today—"
As we started chatting, Kim Yang sidled behind me and gave a quick bow, peeking out.
She dug into her pocket, pulled out her phone, scrolled—no trace of the silly fight we'd just had.
"......"
She checked her phone silently, then headed up the stairs into Meracle without a word.
The gukbap son glanced her way while lighting up, only speaking once she was gone.
"Wow, seriously. Her aura is no joke. How do you work with someone like that?"
"Huh? Why, what's up with Kim Yang?"
She was cheeky, sure, but worked hard.
"She's so cool and aloof. Doesn't answer much, just nods politely."
"......Who?"
"Huh? Kim Yang."
"She's aloof? Dancing all over SNS—that's aloof?"
"You don't know girl crush? She's super popular with girls especially."
Didn't match the Kim Yang I knew.
I couldn't agree, so I awkwardly puffed my cig. He switched topics.
"Oh yeah, you hear about the knife fight at Sora Cafe yesterday?"
"......At Sora Cafe?"
I often sent Kim Yang there for their tasty bread.
"Heard it was some lovers' quarrel or something. Outsiders swinging knives, tables smashed, windows broken. Crazy stuff."
"Ugh, coming to our floor to cause chaos."
"Right? Makes me feel for you, Juseon. Dealing with folks like that is your job."
"Whew."
I exhaled smoke, grinning with a bit of pride.
"But Meracle manages clients carefully. We don't match people who'll just brawl like that."
"Ooh, pro."
"Yep, pro. You need the right hands clapping to make noise. Unreasonable types fighting—that's on them. I never match like that."
"Nice, tip me off if a good lady comes around. Mom's nagging me to marry lately—"
I recalled the auntie saying her son fancied Kim Yang, but I didn't bring it up.
She might want to keep it under wraps.
Anyway, exactly one hour after wrapping up with the gukbap son and heading back into Meracle.
"Kim Juseon?"
The police stormed the office.
"B-Boss! R-Run! Shred the files!"
Kim Yang panicked at the sight of cops, lunging for the documents. It put the officers on edge—they drew tasers.
"Freeze! Don't touch those files—hands up!"
"Hold on, officers, misunderstanding. Hey, Kim Yang! Why freak out and scare them?"
"Huh? In dramas, they do this."
I wasn't running anything illegal.
We took a moment for everyone to calm down, then talked.
I figured it was follow-up on the owl case or something—
"Last evening around five. There was a knife disturbance at Sora Cafe nearby."
The cop dropped something I never expected.
"Two suspects arrested on site. Transferred to our precinct for investigation. They had a connection bringing us here."
"Connection?"
"Yes. Tracing how they met led to matchmaking here."
"......"
"B-Boss. Run?"
This felt ominous.
As Kim Yang and I froze, the cop added,
"Oh, we're not blaming anyone. Just procedural investigation and cooperation request."
"Right? I just matched them—no wrongdoing."
The fight was on them.
"Alright, a few questions. Do you know Jessica from the sixth floor and Nangong Yeon from the fifth?"
"They fought?"
I'd connected them for strategic marriage—perfect fit for family gains.
No romance involved, pure benefit, so I thought it'd go smoothly to wedding bells.
"Why?"
"That's why we're asking for cooperation. Nangong Yeon posted bail and headed back to the fifth floor right away."
"......And Jessica?"
"Still at the station. And—Meracle President Kim Juseon, she's been waiting to see you."
A beautiful wooden building blending brown timber with serene carvings.
Above the grand double front gates.
A large, weathered sign hung there.
In elegant ink-black brushstrokes: 南宮 (Nangong).
In the Old Martial World, where "sword" evoked this place. The Nangong Clan, a true house of renown.
Now, the main hall brimmed with the clan's elite: clan head, grand enforcer, elders, steward.
Having heard young master Nangong Yeon's tale, their faces flushed red with rage as they bellowed.
"Clan Head! This tramples the Nangong dignity—pure outrage!"
"Hah—what insolence! In half a century in the martial world, I've never suffered such humiliation!"
"City rabble truly can't share the same sky!"
"The treasured sword bestowed by the Sword Empress herself—! Those shameless curs—!"
"......"
Amid the uproar, the clan head Nangong Patchun sat calmly at the head seat, eyes fixed on his eldest son.
"Young master, Nangong Yeon."
His voice fell heavy, oppressive—like parrying a downward sword stroke, shoulders buckling instinctively.
"Yes, Clan Head."
"The loss of the Moonlit Sword. Can you bear that responsibility?"
At the clan head's question, Nangong Yeon snapped his head up, as if he'd been waiting.
"I'll lead our warriors to the sixth floor myself and bring back the heads of those who sullied the Nangong name."
Nangong Patchun gestured for his son to leave.
No more words needed—prove it with action.
As Nangong Yeon rallied supporters amid cheers and moved to the training grounds,
"Things look dire, brother."
A woman's voice, captivating. His sister Nangong Haryeong approached in simple training robes.
A tragic figure, outmatching him in skill yet barred from leadership for being a woman.
Of marriageable age, but fated unmatched, she remained in the clan unwed.
"Dire doesn't cover it. I trusted the place you recommended, and look what happened. Meracle will answer for this."
"Don't touch Meracle."
Nangong Haryeong's icy warning.
Nangong Yeon swallowed hard and nodded.
"Y-Yes, understood."
Haryeong clicked her tongue at the assembling warriors and left. Plenty of men in the clan, none she cared for.
'Can she really duel-marry like that?'
Watching her go, Nangong Yeon shook his head.
Duel marriage, of all things.
He couldn't picture the Heartless Sword Fairy Nangong Haryeong losing to a man and going off as a bride.