Let’s Go to the Martial Arts Tournament
While I was still reeling from the shock, Father laughed heartily and said, “That just leaves the youngest one to find his match!”
At his words, the heads of the prominent families who had attended the wedding all had a sharp glint in their eyes.
Just as their attention was starting to weigh on me, Father spoke again.
“Still, don’t rush into anything. If you ever meet someone you truly like, then bring her home.”
With Father declaring that there would be no arranged marriage, I felt a little relieved.
And so, in all the commotion, the wedding came to an end, and the guests began to leave one by one.
That was when the man who had given me the notice about the Martial Arts Tournament came looking for me.
“Well, I should be going too. For what it’s worth, there are many beauties in the Central Plains.”
The mysterious man patted my shoulder as though teasing me, then disappeared with a booming laugh.
The Martial Arts Tournament, which I had momentarily forgotten because of my second brother’s engagement announcement, came back to mind.
The Martial Arts Tournament, huh... I guess it does sound kind of interesting.
It was absolutely not because I had been persuaded by the claim that there were many beauties in the Central Plains.
Absolutely not. I was only curious about how strong my martial arts had become, and about how capable the younger generation of my age was. It wasn’t as if I was lonely or wanted romance.
After thinking it over for several days, I finally told Father about the Martial Arts Tournament.
Father was delighted, saying it would be an excellent experience.
But this time, since I had to go alone without my second brother or anyone else accompanying me, Mother was worried.
“This time Yugeom’s going to the Heavenly Sect too, so he has a lot to learn there. I wonder whether it’ll be all right for you to go without anyone with you?”
“Don’t worry. And in the Central Plains, I hear people my age often go traveling through the jianghu, don’t they?”
Mother didn’t stop worrying, but Father’s persuasion gradually turned the mood in the direction of agreement.
“At Yugang’s level, he’s stronger than the sect master of most factions in the Central Plains. And the youngest one is sharp enough that there’s no need to worry. Most importantly, this Martial Arts Tournament is being held in Anhui Province.”
“Anhui Province is Namgung Clan territory, so the security there is solid, but the journey is too long.”
“Ah...”
Father seemed to have only thought about the security of Anhui Province and not about how far it was from the Ice Palace.
“Looking at the timing, it seems I’d have to leave immediately just to make it in time for the tournament...”
I spoke up timidly.
In the end, after Father and I persuaded her again and again, I was granted permission to travel to Anhui Province.
I stayed at the Ice Palace for one more day, then finished preparing to depart.
I hadn’t been back long enough to feel settled there again, so leaving once more left me a little reluctant.
“Then I’m off.”
“I hear there’s some strange plague going around the Central Plains these days, so be careful on your way.”
Mother worried about me right up until the moment I left.
Father quietly handed me a glass token engraved with the character for, palace.
“It’s proof that you belong to the Ice Palace. If anything happens, show them that token.”
I tucked the token into my clothes and quickened my pace.
With my family’s farewell behind me, my journey finally began.
My first destination was very far away, but my steps felt light.
The farther south I went, the warmer the weather became, and large trees and forests appeared.
The warm scenery, so unlike the snow-white North Sea, stirred up vague memories of my previous life.
As I continued traveling toward Anhui Province and passed through village after village, I couldn’t help thinking that, contrary to Mother’s worries, the martial world of the Central Plains seemed peaceful.
Along the way, I stayed at inns now and then and listened to various rumors, but I heard nothing about that plague people were supposedly talking about these days, so it seemed to be false gossip.
And so, for a long while, the journey remained peaceful.
Then, at an inn in Shanxi, I heard one rumor in particular.
“One recommended dish, please.”
I sat down in an empty seat and placed my order with the waiter.
The waiter took my order, went into the kitchen, and a little while later brought out a plate of dumplings.
“Our inn’s dumplings are the best thing on the menu.”
Just as the waiter had recommended, the dumplings were pretty good.
As I was enjoying them, I vaguely overheard the men at the neighboring table talking.
“Bandits have been causing a real stir lately, haven’t they?”
“The Martial Arts Tournament is being held in Anhui Province. Since merchants and travelers are flocking there, the bandits are gathering too, hoping to make a profit.”
“But isn’t Anhui Province firmly under the Namgung Clan’s control?”
“It looks like even the Namgung Clan doesn’t have the spare manpower to deal with outside matters because they’re busy handling security for the tournament. So the bandits are running wild along the roads leading into Anhui Province.”
“As expected, every time a big event like the Martial Arts Tournament is held, trouble follows. In any case, I’ve got no business there, so I should stay away from the area around Anhui Province for a while.”
That was the end of their conversation.
Would anything really happen if just one guy like me passed through?
With that thought, I set off for Anhui Province.
But as expected, just before I reached Anhui Province, I ended up running into bandits.
Of course, I wasn’t the one who got caught or exposed.
What I saw was a girl who looked a little younger than me, surrounded by bandits.
As I watched the situation for a moment, the girl kept a calm expression, but the same couldn’t be said for the circumstances around her.
So, in the end, I revealed myself and drew their attention.
“I’m just passing through. Is something going on?”
As soon as the bandits saw me, they drew their blades and began threatening me.
“Nothing much, so I think you should just keep on your way, sir.”
“I wasn’t asking you.”
“You look like some rich family’s brat, so why don’t you take the hint and move along while we’re speaking nicely?”
I tried not to let their momentum push me back.
My confident, unflinching demeanor seemed to cow them, and the bandits no longer blocked my path.
So I naturally walked over to the girl.
Seen up close, she was the prettiest person I had ever seen, no, the prettiest I could remember even after counting both this life and my previous one.
She was even prettier than my mother, who was said to be the greatest beauty in the North Sea, and prettier too than Cheon Yura of the Heavenly Sect.
She looked a little younger than me, but that only made her seem cuter.
For a moment I was at a loss for words and just stared at her, and perhaps finding that awkward, the girl spoke first.
“Thank you for helping me. I’m on my way to Anhui Province, but they suddenly said they’d guide me there and refused to let me go.”
“Tch. We were only trying to guide you! So you should just go on your way!”
A guy who looked unmistakably like the leader stepped forward and snapped.
“What kind of guidance is unwanted guidance? I heard bandits have been making trouble lately, but were you planning to kidnap a helpless woman?”
My words seemed to hit the mark, because the bandits faltered.
“You’re sharper than you need to be, aren’t you? Since it’s come to this, there’s no helping it. Blame your fate for dying a miserable death in a place like this!”
The bandit leader pulled out a huge axe from behind his back.
At the leader’s frightening appearance, the girl seemed to grow a little scared.
I turned back toward her and tried to reassure her.
“Don’t worry. I’ll finish this quickly.”
That was what I said, but in truth, I was very worried.
Up until now, even while training alone or sparring, I had never used a real sword in combat.
When we left on this trip, Father and my brothers had said that my martial skills were as strong as the heads of some decent factions, but there was no telling for sure.
My hands trembled slightly, but once I gripped the sword at my waist, the shaking eased a little.
Am I really that strong? Can I win?
Leaving those thoughts behind, I naturally circulated my inner energy and drew my strength upward.
The bandit leader must have sensed my momentum, because he charged in first.
He came at me swinging that massive axe, but compared to sparring against the Heavenly Sect’s sect leader, or even against my eldest brother, I didn’t feel like I was going to lose.
As I always did, I twisted my waist and lunged straight at the leader.
Drawn Blade
The blade slid through cleanly, without meeting even the slightest obstacle, and the sensation was so crisp and certain that I slid it right back into the scabbard.
Even after what I did, the bandit leader couldn’t turn around and charge at me again.
Clang.
The axe fell onto the rocks, its clear ringing sound filling the area.
The leader was still holding the axe handle.
Of course, it was no longer attached to his body... and before long, a scream of agony tore from his throat.
“Aaaagh!!!”
At the leader’s scream, the rest of the bandits fled in a panic.
I calmly walked past the bandit leader and approached the girl.
Strangely enough, this cruel scene didn’t shock me all that much.
A man writhing in pain with one arm severed. Rivers of blood splashing across the ground. The sharp smell of iron stinging my nose.
In my previous life, it would have been the kind of scene that left me in shock and could have given me trauma, but now it had no effect on me at all.
Is that just part of this new life’s nature too?
Still, I did feel a little uneasy about the fact that this was the first person I had ever cut down.
What was strange was that the girl didn’t seem shocked either.
She only wore the expression of someone who had seen something slightly startling.
I walked up to her and spoke in a gentle tone.
“I’m heading to Anhui Province too. If it’s all right with you, would you like to travel with me? It’s not far to Anhui Province, but there may be more people like them along the way.”
“That display of martial prowess just now. White-haired and blue-eyed, a young master handsome enough to bewitch people! You’re Han Yugang, aren’t you?”
Her sudden use of my name caught me off guard.
I had no idea how she had identified me before I’d even introduced myself, but I was certainly taken aback.
“The chill in your martial power, and the fact that you’re heading to Anhui Province at this time of year, too. You must be Han Yugang, the Divine Dragon of the North Sea!”
Her certainty made me laugh.
I had no idea how my rumors had spread to the Central Plains, but the fact that she knew the nickname I’d only ever been called in the North Sea made me a little embarrassed.
Still, it felt somewhat satisfying that I’d become handsome enough to have a reputation in the Central Plains as well.
“I don’t know how you heard those rumors about me, but yes, I am Han Yugang. That’s some impressive deduction.”
I took the token my father had given me from inside my clothes and showed it to her.
Once I revealed the token, the girl looked delighted, clearly pleased that her deduction had been right.
“My name is Sohui!”
Sohui’s bright introduction was cute.
Since she didn’t seem to have a surname, she must have been a commoner.
“Your name is as beautiful as you are, Miss Sohui.”
I ended up saying exactly what I was thinking.
I worried it might offend her, but Sohui’s face flushed red instead, as if she was pleased by it.
“Thank you... then may I ask you to accompany me to Anhui Province?”
“Of course. I was getting bored traveling alone.”
And just like that, I gained a new companion for my journey.