Chapter 29
Chapter 29
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 29
Chapter Title: Reward for Merit
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Namgung Jangcheon slightly furrowed his brow.
Slurrrp!
The sound of Namgung Hyeok slurping his tea pierced Namgung Jangcheon's ears sharply.
There was not a shred of the tea etiquette expected from a scion of the prestigious Namgung family.
Normally, Namgung Jangcheon would have at least pointed it out, if not outright scolded him...
'Whatever.'
Who cares about tea ceremony for a boy! As long as he fights well!
Watching Namgung Hyeok sip from his teacup, Namgung Jangcheon's lips twitched upward involuntarily.
Twitch, twitch.
He tried to suppress the smile, but the muscles on his face refused to obey.
"Ahem!"
Namgung Jangcheon let out a loud fake cough, turning his head slightly and stroking his beard to cover his mouth.
"Ahe—hahaha!"
An uncontrollable laugh leaked through his fingers.
Fortunately, Namgung Hyeok seemed oblivious to Namgung Jangcheon's reaction.
Watching his son calmly drink his tea filled Namgung Jangcheon with a swell of pride.
'Heh heh, he looks quite reliable up close.'
He seemed more solid than before—was he even taller? Or was that just his imagination?
There was a newfound dignity about Namgung Hyeok.
How reliable and impressive he looked.
What if Namgung Hyeok had been utterly defeated in this sparring match?
In the worst case, he might have had to step down as Family Head.
Not only would their support have been cut off, but they wouldn't have been able to obtain the elixirs Namgung Hyeok needed.
It had been a truly perilous situation.
Yet Namgung Hyeok had turned it around with his own hands and even silenced the opposing faction with his prowess.
'To think I'd live to see such a day.'
Namgung Hyeok, who had always worried him with his frail body, had achieved such brilliant results—how could he not be delighted?
Namgung Jangcheon's mouth gaped wider until he snapped back to his senses.
'Rewards and punishments must not be swayed by personal feelings.'
Even as the son of the Family Head, he shouldn't receive extra rewards or lighter punishments.
The laws of the Namgung family must be fair to all...
'Or perhaps I can give it to him as a father, not as Family Head?'
Exactly!
This was a father gifting his commendable son.
'What should I give him? What reward would make Hyeok happy? I need to properly acknowledge his merits. Everyone in the family knows how great our son is... I can't just brush it off casually, not when they're all watching. Yes, something substantial...'
And since his son was a genius, the reward had to match.
What should he bestow?
Namgung Jangcheon pondered deeply, then glanced sideways.
Namgung Ryong sat with his lips pressed tight, shoulders squared rigidly.
"Ryong."
"......"
"Your younger brother has accomplished something great. What do you think?"
"......"
"Right? We should reward him! What would be a good reward?"
At Namgung Jangcheon's words, Namgung Ryong took a sip of tea.
He set it down quietly and fixed Namgung Jangcheon with an intense gaze.
Twitch, twitch.
His brow twitched, eyebrows and lips moving.
Namgung Jangcheon nodded as if understanding perfectly.
"Yes! That's perfect!"
Namgung Jangcheon slapped his knee as if enlightened, and a faint smile tugged at Namgung Ryong's lips.
But unlike the pleased pair, Namgung Hyeok watched the scene without a smile.
'How do they even understand that?'
It was more amazing the longer he watched.
"Ahem!"
Namgung Jangcheon cleared his throat loudly and looked at Namgung Hyeok with a proud face.
"Your contributions this time were enormous."
"Yes."
"......"
Humility was something Namgung Hyeok had never learned, not even in his previous life.
"......Anyway, as Family Head, I want to reward you. On this occasion, I'll grant you access to the Emperor's Pavilion..."
"No need for that."
"Right, no need for that... Huh? No need?"
"Yes. I'm good now."
"......Really?"
Namgung Jangcheon narrowed his brow.
His ace reward failing, he continued thoughtfully.
"What do you want? A manual? No, you're a proper martial artist now, so a treasured sword! How about the Dragon Subduing Sword? No, the Eternal Autumn Divine Sword..."
"Just give me elixirs."
Namgung Jangcheon froze at Namgung Hyeok's listless words.
"......Elixirs?"
"Forget treasured swords and such—just prepare good elixirs. We need to treat the Nine Yin Severed Meridians first. What's the use of some hunk of metal?"
"The Dra—Dragon Subduing Sword?"
"Yeah, so what?"
"One of the family's Ten Great Sword Armaments..."
"Just the elixirs."
Namgung Jangcheon was at a loss for words.
Calling the Dragon Subduing Sword mere metal!
But Namgung Hyeok wasn't wrong, so he soon accepted it.
'Right. Elixirs are what matter. If the Nine Yin Severed Meridians aren't cured, what's the point of anything!'
He felt ashamed for getting carried away and missing the essentials, both as Family Head and father.
Namgung Jangcheon readily continued.
"Elixirs go without saying! I'll give you everything you need! Manuals and treasured swords too!"
Who needs scraps of manuals from the Namgung family?
They'd make decent kindling at best.
"Tell me! Anything..."
"Great Return Pills."
"......Huh? Gr-Great Return Pills?"
"Is that no good?"
"......Even Shaolin Temple is said to have only ten left..."
"Only ten? Why?"
"Their secret transmission was lost."
Lost?
Heh, those damn monks.
That's a cash cow gone!
"No more selling pills, huh. Those must've been quite profitable."
No, wait—not good at all! I can't get any either.
"What do you mean?"
"Nothing. What about Supreme Purity Pills?"
"We only have three..."
"Sigh."
Namgung Hyeok let out deep sighs.
Namgung Jangcheon, listening quietly, flinched at the sighs for some reason.
Namgung Hyeok clicked his tongue.
'How do you mismanage something that valuable? Idiots.'
Elixir recipes were as precious as core sect techniques.
Losing them? Namgung Hyeok's stomach churned.
'Monks are never any help.'
If the Namgung family still had its former power, he might squeeze even one out despite the scarcity, but it didn't seem like they did now.
Namgung Hyeok ground his molars, face twisting.
His lips trembled.
"......Just regular elixirs are fine."
An awkward smile crossed Namgung Jangcheon's face.
"Ah, no! This father will procure the finest spirit pills! Trust only me!"
"Yes, yes."
Namgung Jangcheon's heart stung at Namgung Hyeok's indifferent response.
Namgung Hyeok exhaled lightly.
"Then prepare them step by step."
"Huh?"
"Before rewards, there's something I need permission for first."
Namgung Jangcheon hesitated, sensing something ominous.
"......Something else you need? Not a reward?"
"Yes."
"What is it?"
"Allow me to go out now."
"Go out?"
"Yes."
Namgung Hyeok rattled off his prepared words.
"Staying cooped up makes me antsy. My body's weak, but practicing martial arts has improved it some."
"Ri-right."
"I'm not a thief climbing walls every time. And managing that must be tiring for you? If I slip away unnoticed, it's just exhausting for everyone."
"Ri-right."
Namgung Jangcheon nodded as if entranced.
'What is this? I was going to allow it anyway, but it feels like he's taking it from me?'
Suddenly, he felt stingy about giving to his own son?
But he couldn't refuse.
The brazen request was nonetheless reasonable, so he found himself nodding.
'No, no.'
He's my son!
After what our boy accomplished, can I not grant this one thing?
A genius deserves genius treatment!
"Very well! Granted!"
"Yes, thank you."
"Anything else?"
"I'm going out but have no money. Some pocket money?"
"Right, pocket money! Pocket... Huh? Pocket money?"
Namgung Jangcheon paused, seeing Namgung Hyeok's outstretched hand.
"Pocket money, you say?"
"Yes. Can't just go out and twiddle my thumbs."
"Ri-right. Of course!"
Namgung Jangcheon quickly pulled out his money pouch and placed it in Namgung Hyeok's hand.
Clink!
The hefty weight made Namgung Hyeok's lips curl up.
A bright smile bloomed on his otherwise sullen face.
'Wow, this pocket money?'
Feels like at least fifty silver taels.
Oh, and notes too.
This is the Namgung family's power?
Nice power.
"Heh heh."
Namgung Hyeok chuckled unwittingly.
"You didn't have to give so much. Though I'd take more if offered."
"......"
"Then I'll head out. Rest—you must be tired."
Namgung Jangcheon was left dazed by Namgung Hyeok's fluid exit.
From the moment he opened his mouth, he'd been led along—and it ended that way.
"Heh heh, heh heh heh!"
A low laugh escaped Namgung Jangcheon's lips, soon booming through the room.
"When did his silver tongue sharpen like this? Haha, did you see?"
Namgung Ryong nodded slightly.
"Looks like your little brother is gearing up to soar high."
Namgung Ryong sipped tea wordlessly, but his lips curved long.
"Right. Commendable. Not just talent. Keeping such a lively spirit amid illness is no easy feat. Seems he's undergone some major change in mindset."
"......"
"You'd better step it up too. If your brother catches up ten steps, you can't just stand still."
Namgung Jangcheon grinned broadly.
"That's right. Give it your all."
"......"
"Yes, today's a celebration. For the second son..."
There was no second son.
"Something feels off..."
The two left in the room without Namgung Hyeok sipped tea awkwardly in silence.
* * *
Namgung Baek groaned, looking at Namgung Jeong lying on the bed.
Namgung Jeong was wrapped head to toe in white bandages instead of the pristine martial robes from the sparring ground.
His swollen face was barely recognizable.
No trace of his former heroic bearing.
His body was a mass of bruises.
Bones cracked, shattered, in chaos.
How did the blows not show at first, only swelling like a bloated pig's bladder after three or four days?
Utterly wretched.
Namgung Baek clenched his fist tight.
Staring at Namgung Jeong with bloodshot eyes, he steadied his breath.
It happened in an instant.
In one moment, everything crumbled.
The Namgung Jangcheon they meant to oust had nurtured a once-in-a-century genius, and Namgung Hyeok became the main family's top junior.
"Ugh... ugh! S-stop."
Namgung Jeong shuddered and grimaced as if in a nightmare.
Namgung Baek gazed at him with despair.
"Namgung Jangcheon...!"
He'd stolen the Family Head position in his youth, and now his son was targeting him and his boys.
With two sons already fallen...
'It was a trap.'
Thinking back now, it had been off from the start.
A Nine Yin Severed Meridians cripple challenging to spar, and Namgung Jangcheon not even pretending to stop it.
Clearly premeditated.
Namgung Jangcheon had surely pulled some trick.
'No one with Nine Yin Severed Meridians can learn such martial arts!'
No matter how he thought, it was impossible.
Even if possible, not to Namgung Hyeok's level.
Nine Yin Severed Meridians filled the body with yin energy.
Imbalanced yin harms the body.
It gnaws vital energy, twists meridians, dries the flesh.
The opposite of Nine Yang Severed Meridians, brimming with yang.
For a man's body, it was especially harsh.
To send the Sword Tiger Namgung Jeong flying in one exchange and dominate the spar with that body?
Absurd.
"Cunning bastard."
Crunch!
Namgung Baek ground his teeth.
Just like Namgung Jangcheon.
He'd seen him as a threat and orchestrated this grand scheme to push him out.
Namgung Baek's eyes chilled.
"You lot want to take me on?"
He gazed quietly at the suffering Namgung Jeong.
Turning away, Namgung Baek murmured to the air.
"Keep watching Namgung Hyeok."
The presence on the ceiling vanished in an instant.