Right — She's a Martial Artist
Between the merchants' warm hospitality, a leisurely browse through the market, and bellies filled to bursting, the sun had set before either of them noticed.
Once darkness fell, the merchants would all pack up their stalls and head home — which meant there was nothing left to see at the market, and in turn, nothing left to do in this small village.
Nothing to do, then. Might as well get some sleep, So-yul thought.
"We'll be sleeping over there."
"Huh? Weren't we staying at that merchant's house?"
So-yul exclaimed, staring at the little shack on the village outskirts that looked all but abandoned.
It wasn't as though So-yul were picky about where she slept, but neither was she the ascetic type who would happily choose a less comfortable bed when a better one was on offer.
"If we had nowhere else to stay, perhaps — but why would we impose? For common folk, merely having sword-wielders under their roof means one long stretch of tension. When a guest makes his host uneasy, the right thing is to keep out."
"Hmm... I guess?"
"Besides, that dying man's last words have been nagging at me. He mentioned the Dark Umber Sect — I asked around, and it seems they're a fairly large unorthodox sect here in Gansu. If any remnants of the Azure Sand Society survived, it's only a matter of time before word of our movements reaches them."
"Then we just go to this Dark Umber Sect and settle it ourselves. Perfect timing, really, with nothing else to do. Sleep? Who needs sleep. Come on, let's go, Ja-un!"
So-yul sprang up without waiting to hear him out, and her robes billowed with the motion, flashing a glimpse of smooth thigh.
Cho Ja-un averted his eyes, flustered by the sight.
"Just two requests. Don't dress like that and then throw yourself about so carelessly. And do hear a man out to the end."
"Why? Can't I go?"
Ignoring the first request and answering only the second, So-yul drew a sigh out of Cho Ja-un.
Still, it was something that she had honored even one of the two.
"What if, on our way to the Dark Umber Sect, we cross paths with them on the road? Or what if they reach this village and find us gone? Do you imagine they wouldn't take their fury out on the common folk?"
"Ahh~"
"So we stay here tonight. It's an abandoned shack, but someone was kind enough to clean it for us — it will serve well enough for a single night."
"By the way, Ja-un."
"What is it?"
"Do orthodox sect people... no, do orthodox martial artists really go this far for common folk, even fussing over the cleanup afterward? Not just you, Ja-un — the others too. It's nothing like what I've heard."
She had asked, true, but she expected the same predictable answer from this orthodox sect man.
Well, weren't the orthodox supposed to be like that by definition? How could anyone leave people in obvious danger and simply walk away?
But Cho Ja-un gave a small shake of his head.
"Not everyone. For most, their own life comes first."
"Really? I seem to recall someone saying, 'If a stronger unorthodox dog ever comes looking for me and I lose, then I'll offer up my neck without complaint'...?"
So-yul was mimicking — voice and all — what Cho Ja-un had said as he cut down Sa Gwang-jin earlier, and his face went red.
"Ahem. Cough. That just slipped out; it has been far too long since I last said such a thing. No — wait, that's not the point. I stand by what I said. If an unorthodox dog comes for revenge over some chivalrous deed of mine, I will fight him. And if my training proves insufficient and I lose, then I lose my life."
"And?"
"Did I not say most people? For most, their own life is the most precious thing, and orthodox martial artists are not so very different. Suppose someone stepped up as we did, in a situation like this — then heard that a larger sect like the Dark Umbers might come looking. They might simply bolt."
Hearing this much, So-yul tilted her head.
"Why?"
"Why, you ask... Did you not hear that the Dark Umbers have not one but two masters who have reached the Peak realm? Since they could die at those men's hands, anyone fond of their life would run. Of course, no one would come out and say they were running — they would say something dignified, like 'Urgent business calls me away.'"
Somewhat intrigued by this unvarnished portrait of the orthodox, delivered straight from an orthodox master's mouth, So-yul sat back down and asked again.
"Then what? Do people like that get pointed at and scorned later?"
"Haha. You think so?"
"Wouldn't they? It's cowardly, that's all. They let the matter fester, ran away, and left the common folk to suffer for it."
At her words, Cho Ja-un paused to consider how one ought to explain such things to so unjaded an orthodox expert.
But the deliberation did not last long.
She had entered the Jianghu now; these were things she would keep seeing with her own eyes, hearing with her own ears, and living through with her own body regardless. Realizing that downplaying and sugarcoating would accomplish nothing, Ja-un spoke quietly.
"I'm afraid so. If anything, the orthodox sects I know would be flaunting their feat of taking down scum like the Azure Sand Society, praising one another as chivalrous heroes."
"Even if a sect like the Dark Umbers came and swept the whole village away?"
"They would say they were forced to depart with heavy hearts because some other grave and urgent matter demanded them — and next time they would drag senior brothers and elders along for their revenge. After the common folk had already bled as the enemy's targets, in their stead."
"Hmm..."
"Irresponsible? Honestly, most are. Those who prized chivalry above their own skill died holding their ground in situations like this, long ago. Surviving long in the murim — that fate belongs to the strong, or to those who know how to look after their own interests."
"Then what about you, Ja-un?"
"I..."
Cho Ja-un let the words hang for a moment.
"Me... well, I'm alive now, but who can say what becomes of me later. I try to put chivalry before my own life."
"Aren't you trying awfully hard to look cool?"
"Haha. If I looked cool, then it worked. What a relief."
"Don't worry — I'll protect you, Ja-un. You're the first friend I've made since coming to the Central Plains. It's fine that you're weak."
At that, Cho Ja-un broke into a warm smile.
Calling a Transformation Realm master weak and promising to protect him — watching this childish girl, barely early Peak herself, made him think of his own younger days.
Come to think of it, when I was her age and stood at that same realm, nothing in the world frightened me either.
Then something brushed through Cho Ja-un's mind.
"Ah — Lady Kang. Forgive me; I have pressed ahead on my own without once asking your mind. If the Dark Umbers come, might I entrust the villagers to you for a while? To keep them from growing too afraid."
That was what he said, but the considerate Cho Ja-un meant something rather different.
From what the merchants had let slip, the Dark Umber Sect was an unorthodox sect that had outgrown the mid-sized tier. They counted two known Peak-realm masters to begin with, a considerable number hovering around First-Rate, and no small horde of ordinary disciples besides.
None of it posed the slightest threat to him, of course — but to Kang So-yul, a fledgling martial artist only newly debuted into the Jianghu, it could weigh plenty. And her experience was far too thin to be facing masters of her own level.
So, out of fear that she might be swept along by him into a fight she dreaded and did not want, he had circled around to asking her to protect the villagers instead.
"Huh?"
Seeing So-yul put on a face that asked how he could possibly have known, Cho Ja-un smiled wryly.
"How did you think the exact same thing as me?"
"Yes. You are still inexperienced, still lacking, so—"
"You go put your strength into protecting the villagers, Ja-un. Whether it's the Dark Umbers or the Black Bears, I'll take care of them."
"...?"
What on earth was this now?
Did 'thinking the same thing' mean shipping him off to the village while she alone faced the Dark Umbers' two Peak masters and all their First-Rate experts?
Wondering what to do with this reckless girl, Cho Ja-un said,
"...Are you in your right mind? How would you face them alone—"
"Are you in your right mind? You're at the same realm as me, nothing more — so why is it fine for you and not for me?"
Hearing her tease him in his very own manner of speech, Cho Ja-un's words died in his throat.
"Well... that is to say."
"Ahh~ it's fine~ You were sitting in front of the fabric shop earlier, remember? Wait there. If one or two of them slip past, you can catch them nicely for me."
"Now, now. I can't do that. You go to the village and—"
"Hmmm. Ja-un."
The sudden shift in So-yul's tone stopped Cho Ja-un mid-sentence as well.
The air had turned beyond chilly into something bleak and desolate, and from her whole body poured out an energy impossible to believe belonged to early Peak, creeping outward to claim everything around her.
So-yul spoke on, facing the silenced Cho Ja-un.
"Chivalry? I can't say I know much about such things. But let me tell you this — not one of the people who taught me ever told me to show my back to an enemy in a situation like this. Not a single one."
"......"
"I suppose that's how it goes for hothouse orthodox types, precious about their own lives and quick to scare. But not me. This fight began with my hand in the first place, and you only got dragged in because of me. The responsibility for all of this is mine alone to bear. Isn't that so?"
Every word was sound, and so Cho Ja-un had no choice but to nod. Her spirit, too, had made his head dip before he knew it.
"So understand this: any further persuading, and I will take it as a slight against me as a martial artist."
"......"
To the bold young martial artist raised within the Heavenly Demon Cult, greatest of all unorthodox sects, one of the mightiest pillars propping up the orthodox faction opened his mouth, and his words came out heavy.
"You are right. I was out of line. I apologize. Forgive my discourtesy."
With that slender waist, that bewitching beauty, those fluttering garments — it seemed he had forgotten, somewhere along the way.
Right. She was a martial artist.
A young, audacious one at that — overflowing with talent, a bold and spirited martial artist who had reached the Peak realm at so tender an age.
Watching him, So-yul beamed.
"So hurry up and go sit in front of the fabric shop, will you? I do believe they're arriving about now."
And indeed, a tremor was slowly rising from the earth.
The vibration of well over a hundred martial artists kicking off the ground in unison with lightfoot technique crossed twenty li and rumbled through the ground like distant thunder.
"I will."
Before launching himself, Cho Ja-un hesitated for a moment.
"Please — be careful. Earlier I spoke as though one should never cling to life, but in truth, withdrawing from an unfavorable situation is never a foolish or cowardly thing."
Hearing him overturn his own words from before, So-yul felt how thoroughly he worried for her, and answered meekly.
Not that she had any intention of doing such a thing. There would be no danger anyway.
"Okay. If it gets dangerous, I'll pull out."
"Good. May fortune favor you."
Ja-un vanished toward the village center, and So-yul, plopping down alone at the entrance of the outskirt shack, stretched her arms toward the sky.
"Ahh, this is going to be fun. It's been a while."