Chapter 429: How Could I Ever Touch a Married Woman!
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 429: How Could I Ever Touch a Married Woman!
Tap, tap.
Sun-woo began to stroll along at a leisurely pace.
"Ah... what a pain..."
Perhaps because he had just woken up, every single step he took was drenched in lethargy.
"If it's such a pain, let's go back to bed and sleep more!"
Yorang’s voice drifted over from beside him.
"No."
He flatly rejected her suggestion.
It was an incredibly tempting and attractive offer, but he couldn't ignore Tang Seo-yoon’s summons.
"Whyyyyy!"
"Seo-yoon called for me."
"Since when did you start listening to her so well?"
"What are you talking about? I've always been a good listener."
"Liar! You said you wouldn't add any more women to your collection, but you keep doing it! You said you’d be back early, but you spent the whole time messing around!"
"Where did you even learn a word like 'messing around'!"
Sun-woo shouted in horror at Yorang’s words. He was genuinely startled by her ever-expanding vocabulary.
"I learned it from you!"
"That’s a bad word. Don't use it."
"Then why do you use it?" Yorang asked, looking genuinely puzzled.
"Because I'm a bad guy."
"Then I want to be a bad girl too!" Yorang added with a bright smile.
"No." Sun-woo replied with a firm expression.
"Why not?"
"If I say no, it's no. Why do you have to talk back so much?"
"Why not? Why not?"
Thwack!
"Gah!"
Sun-woo promptly rapped Yorang on the head again. He had realized that he could never win against her with words alone.
She had always been prone to rebellion, but now that her verbal skills had improved, he had no way to handle her.
"Auuugh! Why did you hit me!"
"Because you keep refusing to listen!"
"You don't listen either!"
"I don't have to!"
"What kind of bullshit is that!"
"If you've got a problem with it, get stronger than me!"
"You jerk!"
At Sun-woo’s shameless response, Yorang huffed and whipped her head away.
Why was it okay for him but not for her? How could someone be so selfish?
"I'm not talking to you!"
"Fine, I'm not talking to you either, brat!"
After their shouting match, Sun-woo and Yorang both clamped their mouths shut. It was a declaration of their refusal to exchange another word.
After a long silence, they finally arrived at the Clan Head's Office.
Creeeeak.
Sun-woo reached out and pushed the office door open. The interior of the room filled his vision.
Inside were Tang Seo-yoon, Geum Jeok-hwa, and Madam Un Ga-ryeo.
"Ga-ryeo-yaaaa!"
At that moment, Yorang flew straight toward Madam Un Ga-ryeo.
Flump.
Rub, rub.
Burrowing into the woman’s ample chest, Yorang began to nuzzle her head against her.
"Oh my, welcome, Lady Yorang."
Madam Un Ga-ryeo smiled brightly as she looked down at Yorang in her arms. She felt a sense of pride that Yorang had come to her first, rather than Tang Seo-yoon or Geum Jeok-hwa.
"Listen to this... Sun-woo whacked me on the head again."
"Oh dear, are you alright?"
"No, I think I have a huge bump... feel it."
Yorang began to act spoiled, pointing a finger at the crown of her head.
"Shall I take a look?"
Pat, pat.
Madam Un Ga-ryeo gently stroked Yorang’s soft hair several times. She didn't particularly feel anything like a bump.
"How is it? It's huge, right? Really, really big?" Yorang pressed.
"My goodness, it really is a large bump," the Madam replied, feigning surprise.
"I knew it! Sun-woo, you jerk!" Yorang barked, glaring at Sun-woo.
"Oh dear, it must have hurt so much," Madam Un Ga-ryeo added in a worried tone.
"Mm-hmm... blow on it for me."
Pleased by the Madam's concern, Yorang burrowed deeper into her embrace and continued her childish behavior.
"There, there... the pain is going away... there, there... it's all better now..."
In response to Yorang’s antics, Madam Un Ga-ryeo gave a gentle smile and began to blow softly on her head to comfort her.
Sun-woo watched the scene with an incredulous look. Forget a bump—the girl didn't even have a pimple. What was with all the exaggeration?
"Ga-ryeo, don't indulge her like that. You'll spoil her."
Sun-woo spoke up quietly as he looked at the Madam.
"Don't you worry about it, Sun-woo!" Yorang shrieked. She seemed annoyed that he was raining on her parade.
"I wasn't planning to," Sun-woo snorted.
"It seems everyone who needs to be here has arrived," Tang Seo-yoon said in a stiff tone. It was a signal to stop the playing around and get down to business.
"Then, let us begin the meeting."
Tang Seo-yoon opened the discussion, looking around at everyone. Sun-woo gave a slight nod. Teasing Yorang was fun, but he agreed that the meeting took priority.
"The reason I have summoned you all is because of a certain letter."
"A letter?" Sun-woo asked back, curious.
"Yes. A letter has arrived from the Cheonmu Alliance."
Tang Seo-yoon held up a neatly folded piece of paper.
"Is it a demand for payment from Tang Jin-seol?"
Sun-woo offered his best guess. He figured the only reason the Cheonmu Alliance would send a letter at this time was for Tang Jin-seol to demand more money.
"If it were a demand for payment, I would have preferred it. Unfortunately, it is not that kind of letter."
Tang Seo-yoon spoke with a grave expression.
"What kind of letter is it then?"
Sun-woo’s expression turned serious as well. She was a woman who usually maintained a stoic, dry expression. For her to look this grave meant something significant had happened.
"The letter was sent directly by the Cheonmu Alliance Leader."
"The Alliance Leader!?"
Sun-woo’s eyes widened in surprise. Why would that pathetic loser send a letter to the Tang Clan?
"The contents are simple. He is requesting treatment for the White Tiger Hall Master, Gal Ji-cheon."
"The White Tiger Hall Master?"
"Yes. It is said that due to an unfortunate incident, the White Tiger Hall Master has sustained catastrophic injuries. The Cheonmu Alliance is unable to handle it, so they are sending him to the Tang Clan."
Tang Seo-yoon spoke in a calm, steady voice.
"Just how bad is his condition!?"
Sun-woo asked, looking bewildered. The Cheonmu Alliance was a place where not only martial artists but people from countless professions gathered. The monthly salary was high and the treatment was excellent. Furthermore, who wouldn't want the honor of working for the organization that represented the Orthodox Faction?
The same applied to physicians. While they might not be on the level of the Tang Clan—the world's greatest medical house—the Cheonmu Alliance still housed many exceptionally skilled doctors.
If even those doctors couldn't handle it, what kind of state was he in? He couldn't even imagine it.
"Every single bone in his body has been shattered. Furthermore, his internal organs are so severely ruptured that they are practically in tatters."
"Hah."
Sun-woo let out a hollow laugh. He never imagined that the leader of the White Tiger Unit, one of the Alliance's primary combat forces, would end up in such a wretched state.
"What kind of 'unfortunate incident' causes injuries like that? Did the Demonic Cult invade or something?"
Sun-woo asked, genuinely curious about what could have happened to the White Tiger Hall Master.
"It is said he engaged in a life-and-death duel with the Phoenix Hall Master."
"The Phoenix Hall Master?! Kang Ha-yoon!?"
Sun-woo’s face filled with shock. A completely unexpected name had popped up. Why was that woman suddenly involved?
"Yes. It was indeed the female martial artist, Phoenix Hall Master Kang Ha-yoon."
"What about Kang Ha-yoon’s condition? Is she okay? Is she unhurt?"
Sun-woo’s voice was thick with worry.
"..........Fortunately, it is reported that she suffered no injuries at all."
Sensing something strange in his tone, Tang Seo-yoon replied with a look of distaste.
"Whew... thank god."
Sun-woo let out a sigh of relief.
"........You seem to be quite close to her?"
Tang Seo-yoon glared at Sun-woo with cold eyes.
"Close? No, not at all."
"And yet you seem strangely worried."
"...........Haha... well... just... curious."
"It didn't sound like you were 'just' curious."
"..........."
Sun-woo fell silent at her suspicious questioning. He realized her suspicion was entirely justified.
But he couldn't help it. Kang Ha-yoon was the character Sun-woo had been most attached to.
Phoenix Hall Master Kang Ha-yoon.
Known as the second greatest woman in the world after the Heavenly Sword Empress Joo So-yang, she was the epitome of a chivalrous hero who lived and died for justice.
High School Senior Goes to Murim was, at its core, a smutty wuxia. Because of that, women were forced into passive roles; no matter how fierce a woman was, the moment she faced 'Phallic Submission,' she would act as if she’d give her very liver to the protagonist, Lee Jae-won.
In such a novel, Kang Ha-yoon was a ray of light. She acted proactively rather than passively, and she functioned more like a second protagonist than a damsel in distress. There was no 'Phallic Submission' plotline for her, and she remained active until the very end, making the readers' hearts swell with her exploits.
Sun-woo suspected the author simply didn't want to add another male companion and forced her into a female role, as she felt more like a reliable, strong ally.
She was a true hero. She was a woman so upright she would rather break than bend.
Sun-woo liked that about her. He liked her even more than the protagonist.
Thinking that such a woman had gotten into a massive fight with the White Tiger Hall Master made him worry. It hurt his heart to think that a character he was so attached to might have been hurt.
However, it seemed he had made his concern too obvious. Tang Seo-yoon was glaring at him with sharp, narrowed eyes.
"Sun-woo."
Tang Seo-yoon called his name suspiciously.
"Y-yes?"
"You aren't planning to go after the Phoenix Hall Master, are you?"
"What are you talking about!"
Sun-woo looked flustered. What was she saying now? Adding more women?
"The look in your eyes is suspicious."
"That would never happen."
Sun-woo spoke with a firm expression.
"I find that hard to believe."
"I'm serious! Besides, how could I ever touch a married woman!"
Sun-woo raised his voice as if he were being wronged.
"What about Madam Un Ga-ryeo?"
".........."
"What about Joo So-yang?"
".........."
Sun-woo clamped his mouth shut. He had nothing to say to that rebuttal.
Of course, if he wanted to argue, he could. In Madam Un Ga-ryeo’s case, there were unavoidable circumstances, and wasn't her husband already dead? And in Joo So-yang’s case, hadn't he chosen that path out of necessity to keep her quiet?
He wanted to protest. He wanted to say he hadn't intentionally gone after married women.
But the words wouldn't come out. He felt like any excuse would just sound pathetic.
"Sun-woo, I don't care if you add more women."
Tang Seo-yoon spoke slowly as she looked at him.
"But only add women you can handle. From what I can see, the Phoenix Hall Master is too much for you."
She looked at him with cold eyes.
"No, I told you I have no intention of doing that! Why won't you believe me?"
Sun-woo continued to protest his innocence.
"Besides, she's in Jinan. When would I ever even run into her?"
Sun-woo shook his head. Even if he did want to woo her—which he didn't—the distance between them was enormous. It was a distance that made meeting difficult even if one wanted to.
"You will."
She spoke in a flat tone.
"Huh?"
Sun-woo asked back with a blank expression.
"I said you'll have a chance to run into her."
"Why!?"
"Because she is coming to the Tang Clan."
"..........."
For a moment, Sun-woo’s mind went blank. He had just heard something he couldn't believe.
She was coming? Phoenix Unit Leader Kang Ha-yoon? His favorite character from High School Senior Goes to Murim?
Twitch, twitch.
Unbeknownst to him, the corners of Sun-woo’s mouth began to twitch. The thought of meeting her in person made his lips move of their own accord.
"Stop smiling."
Tang Seo-yoon’s sharp voice pierced his ears.
Snap.
Sun-woo instantly wiped the expression from his face and stiffened.
"I wasn't smiling."
He tried to play it off.
"I saw everything."
Tang Seo-yoon glared at him with a piercing gaze.
"You must have seen wrong."
"No, I saw it clearly."
Tang Seo-yoon spoke with absolute certainty.
".........."
"Exactly five times. The corners of your mouth twitched exactly five times."
".........."
Sun-woo shut his mouth. He realized there was no way out of this.
"Sun-woo, I've made myself clear. I don't care if you add more women."
Tang Seo-yoon’s expression remained stiff.
"But take responsibility only for the women you can handle."
"........I get it."
Sun-woo replied, feeling like a scolded puppy. He realized she wasn't wrong.
He was already sitting on a nuclear bomb named Joo So-yang. If his affair with her were ever discovered, the bomb would detonate.
In such a situation, to steal Lee Jae-won’s wife as well? It would be nothing short of suicide.