Chapter 49
Chapter 49
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: Mouth of Honey, Belly of a Sword (8)
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Ah, that feels so refreshing.
It was like the indigestion I'd been nursing for ten years was being swept away like the ebbing tide. You know that kind of situation, right? Someone clearly messed up, but it's awkward to call them out on it directly.
That was exactly Ma Gang. Sure, it was true he'd caused harm by not mentioning the betrayal upfront. But on the flip side, what if Ma Gang had joined the Demonic Cult instead of Go Gyeom back then?
He might have actually fallen for those Demonic Cult bastards' schemes. And there was even a mitigating reason for keeping the betrayal quiet.
What if he'd rejected the Demonic Cult's offer at the time?
Or shown even a hint of betrayal midway through?
He could've ended up dead at their hands.
But even so, just letting him walk away like this... how should I put it? There was this strange reluctance. Lingering resentment, if you want to call it that. Attachment, maybe.
Yet even that washed away clean when I laid him out flat with a single strike this time. I nodded, flashing a refreshed smile.
The one unexpected thing, though, was Ma Gang himself—overwhelmingly defeated by me—nodding with an equally refreshed look on his face. What the hell?
"Thank you, Great Hero."
"What's that all of a sudden?"
"Thanks to you, Great Hero, I've finally realized the path I must take. And at the same time, that the path I've chosen isn't wrong."
"I-is that so? Glad I could help... whatever that path is, keep at it."
I said the words, but I instinctively pulled my disciples back a step. He hadn't gained some weird enlightenment about enjoying getting beaten, had he? Felt pretty iffy.
"Allow me to thank you as well, Great Hero."
"What does Go Gyeom the young hero have to thank me for?"
"That guy Ma Gang... he's not such a bad fellow, really."
"I heard you and Ma Gang the young hero were sworn rivals."
"That's true. But I don't enjoy watching a worthy rival break himself like that."
Ah, what was this? This guy had a bit of an intense vibe too.
I read wuxia novels the most, but I wasn't exclusively a wuxia reader. Fantasy, modern fantasy—you name it, even sports stories, I devoured them all.
Thanks to that, I'd encountered plenty of masterpieces.
And stepped on just as many landmines.
And that experience was telling me now:
'No way... this is some yaoi bromance thing?!'
Of course, it wasn't certain. But from my perspective, spoiled by modern novels, I couldn't help being sensitive to it. Better play it safe.
"Oh, right! Master! Sua the junior sister got a marriage proposal from that Go Gyeom guy!"
"I told you to keep that quiet..."
"It's good news, isn't it? Worth celebrating!"
"............"
But the suspicion cleared up in an instant. Replaced by caution in another direction. I glared at Go Gyeom wordlessly. This bastard, eyeing my disciple?
"A-anyway, Great Hero. There's something important I need to tell you..."
"Later. I've got a path to follow right now."
"S-sorry. I'll come find you again later."
It was hard to pin down definitively. But Sua, whom I now thought of almost like a daughter—forgetting our initial bad blood—was the one he'd proposed to?
'You punk! No way you're getting my daughter!!'
I didn't know much else, but I finally got why parents in stories guarded their daughters so fiercely from suitors.
"Are you seriously considering Go Gyeom the young hero's proposal?"
"Absolutely not! I turned him down flat, Master."
"Good."
"...Does my marriage bother you that much, Master?"
"Of course it does. You're my disciple."
I didn't bother lying—just told Sua the honest truth. She nodded, a pleased smile tugging at her lips.
"I'll settle for that much, Master."
"Don't tease your master, you rascal."
"Sorry, Master. Oh, and Seolhwa? Come here."
Sua, cheeks slightly flushed as she bowed her head in apology to me, suddenly turned scary-eyed toward Seolhwa. Seolhwa broke into a sweat and spoke up.
"Why me all of a sudden...?"
"Didn't I tell you to keep it secret?"
"But isn't it better to eliminate rivals early?"
"You're hopeless. Master, mind if I spar with Seolhwa for a bit?"
"You think I'd allow that? I can tell you're just bullying her."
"Yay! Master is the best!!!"
When I refused the spar, Seolhwa jumped for joy and hugged me. At least that was a relief. She didn't notice Sua glaring daggers at her back.
...She wasn't doing this on purpose, was she?
Thankfully, with horses, it didn't take long to reach Shandong. Sua and Seolhwa couldn't ride, but Namgung Yeon and I gave them lifts.
Of course, Sua and Seolhwa bickered over who rode with me first, but we sorted it by taking turns amiably. Namgung Yeon smiled as she said:
"Your disciples sure love you, Master."
"It's just 'cause they haven't met a good man yet. Once they do, the spoiled act ends."
"Doesn't feel like such a simple issue..."
"Master! There's a village over there!!"
Sure enough, in the direction Seolhwa pointed, a fairly large village came into view. Smaller than those in Henan, sure, but still sizable.
"Ma Gang and Go Gyeom the young hero went ahead to spread the word, right?"
"They had to. If we don't expose the Demonic Cult's schemes properly, the Orthodox Murim Alliance is next."
"...Hard to believe at first, but after experiencing it firsthand, it really hits home."
Namgung Yeon, having felt the Demonic Cult's threat personally, shuddered and readily agreed. Thanks to her, I'd gotten a solid grasp on the Orthodox Murim Alliance's dealings.
To sum it up:
They'd grown too complacent in peacetime.
Blind to the rot eating them from within.
Truth be told, their greatest foe back then had been none other than the Sword Demon. They said only the Orthodox legend, the Sword God, could stand against him.
And even that Sword God passed away soon after. Effectively, the martial world had been the Sword Demon's domain. That was the Orthodox factions' peak threat.
No expert in the Orthodox side to stop the Sword Demon—who rampaged through them, killing at will. They had to do something.
"Circumstantially, they probably joined hands with the Demonic Cult back then."
"No force left to stop the Orthodox side then."
"But one thing I can't figure out. The Orthodox side, fine—but what were the unorthodox factions doing?"
Why ask me? I'm not the Sword Demon.
But as a proper master, saying "I don't know" looked bad. Fortunately, I'd heard the full story from Muwol already.
"The Demonic Cult had infiltrated the unorthodox side too. To isolate them completely. Hardly anyone trustworthy left, so they had no choice but to go it alone."
"Even the unorthodox factions? Those guys are thorough."
"Yeah, just recently I buried the whole Black Death Squad—the unorthodox crew that sided with the Demonic Cult."
"Th-the Black Death Squad...? You mean the Black Epidemic Sect's Black Death Squad?!"
Apparently, the Black Death Squad's infamy reached even the Orthodox side. Not just Namgung Yeon—even the Orthodox's top hundred experts knew the name.
"Even if they're fallen now, they were the elite unit of the Black Epidemic Sect, boasting poison arts on par with the Sichuan Tang Family—one of the Five Great Clans."
"Right, that's them. But let's save that story for later."
"Pardon?"
"Looks like the Namgung Family sent people."
My chat with Namgung Yeon was plenty informative and fun. But hoofbeats interrupted from afar—about ten riders.
Each one an extraordinary warrior brimming with inner energy. The Orthodox Murim Alliance... no, the Namgung Family must've heard and sent escorts.
Too late, maybe? But only two days had passed, so it was fine. I went to greet them casually.
"Ah... th-that person..."
"Someone you know?"
"Y-yes. Actually..."
But the unexpected reaction came from Namgung Yeon herself. Her face drained of color at the sight of the lead youth.
Like her, he had near-black hair and wore a long robe. His sharp eyes evoked a hawk eyeing prey.
"First time meeting you, Great Hero. I'm Namgung Baek, Young Lord of the Namgung Family, here under the Patriarch's orders to escort you."
Namgung Baek clasped his fists in salute and bowed. Proper words, but his tone wasn't—strong vibes of wariness toward me.