The Seven Species Black Spider Gauntlet
I first realized it during my three hundred days of training in Amyeondong.
Target-form martial art analysis complete per Cheonma Dae-seogo standards
2nd Class — Moyong Family Ssangryong-seonpung-geom
Just when I thought I had fully mastered the Ssangryong-seonpung-geom, the Moyong Family’s Ssangryong-seonpung-geom suddenly rose from third-class to second-class. At the same time, the perfect mastery I had believed was nearly complete once again felt impossibly distant.
Certain martial arts, when copied, were arbitrarily downgraded in rank according to my level at the time and then analyzed. That was my hypothesis.
The Blood Cult’s third-class technique, Hyeol-yeong-mu-hwan-sin-sul. I could swear that the terrifying power I had witnessed with my own eyes was by no means third-class. Which meant…
Right now I’m still lacking something to properly learn this.
I could surmise that because my level was low, it had been arbitrarily designated third-class for the time being. Even though it was only third-class now, there was no telling how high the rank might climb once I practiced and went through the process of true mastery later on.
Another question rose in me then.
But why did the power suddenly activate?
It clearly wasn’t something I had intended, yet the ability had manifested on its own.
[That voice hungers for what the Host’s instincts desire more than anyone else.]
Mumyeong, who had been silent until then, spoke. He always knew what I was thinking and what worried me without me having to say a word.
[Incidentally, it’s quite unique. An assassin from the Blood Death Sect practicing a footwork technique of the Blood Cult.]
“….”
I couldn’t exactly ask about it either. I had no idea how much So Yeomgyo knew about Baekho’s footwork. Or perhaps the roots of the Blood Death Sect turned out to be openly the Blood Cult itself. I pondered for a moment. In the end I decided to play dumb.
“My footwork is pretty amazing, right?”
While I was lost in these chaotic thoughts, Baekho’s sudden remark nearly made me tumble off in surprise.
“Ah, no. That’s not it.”
“You can be honest. I know. It’s an extremely unique footwork technique, rare even in the jianghu.”
Baekho laughed heartily.
“It’s been twenty years already. This damn footwork is a real pain.”
“What do you mean…?”
Baekho spoke as if lamenting his fate.
“Surprisingly, I still haven’t been able to advance it past the eighth star at all.”
Countless bushes flashed past beneath his feet like light. At this level, and he claimed it wasn’t at the peak. Honestly, I had nothing to say.
“The problem is that it’s not something you can overcome with practice or anything like that. Stalling without even knowing the reason is driving me crazy.”
[That’s probably the case.]
Mumyeong picked up where Baekho left off.
[The martial arts of the Blood Cult often root their later-stage completeness more in the refinement of the human soul or in emotions rather than mere proficiency. That’s why, despite sharing the same roots, they are mortal enemies with the Demon Cult even more so.]
“What kind of emotions?”
I asked in a near-mumble so Baekho couldn’t hear.
[It wouldn’t be bad for the Host.]
Mumyeong said something incomprehensible.
[There’s no real need to distinguish, but the Host’s nature is definitely closer to the Blood Cult than the Demon Cult.]
“We’ve arrived.”
With Baekho’s words I snapped out of my mental conversation. Only after running nonstop for three shichen did Baekho set me down. And ahead of us—
“Not late, are we?”
So Yeomgyo waved, her black hair fluttering.
“But you look like a mess. Something must have… yeah, of course there was. Naturally.”
“Yes, of course. Thankfully I managed to get out in one piece.”
Baekho nodded. Looking at the countless cuts and dried blood scabs under my old, tattered clothes, So Yeomgyo sighed.
“No matter how much the jianghu changes day by day, I don’t know when ‘completely in tatters all over’ started counting as ‘in one piece’.”
Baekho stammered in fluster.
“Th-that’s… Young Master was already injured before even coming out for the spar, and during the spar and escape he didn’t even get a scratch on his fingertips…!”
“I know.”
So Yeomgyo answered nonchalantly, sitting on a rock and crossing her legs.
“At a glance you can tell whether injuries are from someone else’s martial arts or from the training process. And from the depth and severity of the wounds, you can even project how roughly and sincerely that person threw themselves into training, even if not completely. My grandfather was a genius at that sort of thing.”
So Yeomgyo rummaged in her robes. She took out some wound medicine and held it out to me.
“This is expensive. Use it sparingly. If there’s any left, make sure to return it. I’m not giving it to you outright.”
“Uh, th-thanks…”
She stared at me blankly like that.
“You really worked yourself to the brink of death, huh.”
She struck right at my core without any warning.
“….”
I blinked.
“I can’t even imagine what the hell you did for a whole month, but… since you’re a martial artist and a man, I won’t ask for details. Men live and die by their pride, they say. So you have to respect that—my grandfather always emphasized that.”
“…Yeah.”
Hundreds of words swirled in my mouth, but that was all I could manage.
“Originally, once the Emei Sect business was over, I was going to do a job with you as a reward, right?”
“That’s right.”
So Yeomgyo jumped down from the rock and dusted off her rear.
“Something urgent came up. Looks like I can’t go with you.”
So Yeomgyo handed me a crumpled paper.
“Open it on the way.”
I unfolded the paper. A map was drawn on it. So Yeomgyo said,
“I thought about it in my own way. As the leader of the Blood Death Sect I made a promise, so even if I can’t go with you, I wanted to give you something that would help you and that you need the most.”
I examined the map carefully.
“…?”
But the location on the map looked familiar.
“The commission is a week of escort duty. I’ve already settled the payment. That will definitely be a big help to you.”
I doubted my eyes. No matter how many times I looked at the map, it was certain. Even though I was still a novice about the jianghu, there was no way I wouldn’t know this place.
“No, more than that, So Yeomgyo. This location is…”
“As expected, you know. It’s the Namgung Family.”
The words Has this woman gone mad? rose to my throat, but I barely swallowed them. So Yeomgyo tilted her head.
“Is there a problem?”
“Sorry, but what’s my surname?”
“What else? Moyong. Even if others forget, there’s no way I would.”
I let out a deep sigh.
“You know the relations between the Five Great Families are as bad as orthodox and unorthodox, right?”
“I know.”
“But even if I’m an illegitimate son, I’m still the fourth son of the Moyong Family, and you’re telling me to go to the Namgung Family now? Does that make any sense—”
So Yeomgyo handed me something.
“Use this.”
The floppy thing was like human skin.
“Th-this is…”
It was a human-skin mask, something I’d only heard of in stories. So Yeomgyo sighed as if I were pathetic and snapped back quickly.
“Who said to go as Moyong Bi? You put on the human-skin mask and go under the Blood Death Sect’s identity. You’re a ‘lowest-rank field agent’ going to carry out an escort commission on the orders of the Blood Death Sect leader, and after completing the commission you’ll receive the promised collateral and deliver it to the Blood Death Sect leader—that’s the outward appearance.”
She particularly emphasized the words “lowest-rank field agent.” I had nothing to say.
“S-sorry.”
“Nothing to be sorry about. Your pay has been replaced with that human-skin mask. I’ll give you some pocket money separately, so buy some dumplings on the way. Can you afford three of them?”
“….”
My mind went blank. At my reaction So Yeomgyo pouted her lips.
“Hmph, once you see the reward that expression will vanish. It’s absolutely not something you get just for a week of escort. This is the result of totaling up all the debts I’ve accumulated with the Namgung Family over time and calling them in.”
“What on earth is the reward?”
So Yeomgyo straightened her shoulders and declared proudly.
“One left-hand piece of the Chiljong-heukjusa-gap.”
I blinked. So Yeomgyo’s eyes blinked. Baekho stood there from the beginning without a single breath, as if he weren’t even present. Leaves rustled. Bushes swayed. Birdsong could be heard in the distance. So Yeomgyo’s expression hardened.
“That quiet reaction… don’t tell me you don’t know what this is?”
“That’s right.”
So Yeomgyo closed her eyes.
“What a pearl necklace on a pig’s neck…”
“Even so, saying that right in front of the person involved is a bit much, isn’t it?”
I protested quietly out of embarrassment.
“No, even giving a hundred concessions, what’s with one left-hand piece? Looking at it, it seems like a gauntlet or something, so a pair is a pair—what is this half-worn thing?”
So Yeomgyo’s expression upon hearing that was a sight to behold.
“Wow. That’s the most original statement I’ve heard this year. If I didn’t know your background and heard that, I definitely would have thought you were mocking me and drawn my sword.”
Whatever else, the idea of her drawing her sword didn’t sound like a joke in the slightest. Where do I even start explaining… So Yeomgyo rubbed her forehead and sighed. Then Baekho, who had been silent, opened his mouth.
“Munju-nim. It’s time.”
“….”
The smile vanished from So Yeomgyo’s face. It was like watching a strong stream of water wash the seasoning from a plate in one go. Her playful eyes grew still.
“I got so caught up in the fun that I forgot for a moment. Thanks, Baekho.”
Those eyes were clearly the ones I had seen when I first faced her—the eyes of the Blood Death Sect leader. She calmly, yet as if cutting with a blade, abruptly ended the conversation.
“My circumstances are urgent, so I can’t spare much time. I’ve already spoken to the Namgung Family side, so if you go and say you’re Biryu from the Blood Death Sect, they’ll guide you.”
She quickly checked her equipment. Baekho stood beside her.
-Kuuung.
Heat haze billowed from So Yeomgyo’s body. She was about to run with all her might. Baekho also took the distinctive starting stance of the Hyeol-yeong-mu-hwan-sin-sul, rising onto his tiptoes.
“Still—”
“Hm?”
So Yeomgyo, about to leave, blinked her Flame Eyes and looked at me.
“Still, you know.”
It had been hard and painful, but I had experienced entrusting my back to someone. Twice. In the bloody battle where the Blood Cult and Demon Cult pressed in from left and right, I had coordinated with So Yeomgyo to block the wave-like assaults. For a brief moment I had stood back-to-back with Baekho to check the Jongnam Sect’s encirclement. For someone like me who had been crawling at the bottom of the capital, that was something I couldn’t even have dreamed of until just a short while ago.
“Still, it was fun.”
“….”
So Yeomgyo stared at me blankly. Baekho urged her.
“Munju-nim.”
One beat. Two beats. Three beats. Baekho spoke again.
“So Yeomgyo-nim.”
“Me too.”
So Yeomgyo whispered along with her Flame Eyes.
“Even if it was brief, it was really fun.”
-Jjeoeong!
With a blood-red haze, the two figures of the Blood Death Sect vanished as if they had never been there from the start.
-Rustle.
In my hand was the scroll So Yeomgyo had held, still carrying her scent.
“….”
I gripped the scroll. It was a gift prepared by the leader of the Blood Death Sect. There was no guarantee, but I decided to trust that bond—indescribable, forged in blood in its own way. Invest a week to complete the commission, and take the Chiljong-heukjusa-gap as payment. Then return to Cheonsubaekryeonsa to face the final punitive trial. The end knot of the tangled thread whose end I couldn’t see seemed to be coming into view.
[It’s just us again.]
Mumyeong said. It had been a long time since I could speak freely without caring about others’ gazes. I nodded.
“Shall we go.”
I set out on the road. Several more days passed, and for the first time in my life I set foot in the Namgung Family, one of the Five Great Families of the jianghu. And that would bring a major change to my life.