Chapter 116
Chapter 116
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 116
Chapter Title: What if I Do That for You? (2)
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Gongson Mugyeol stammered.
'This is amusing.'
- ...? What are you suddenly calling amusing?
'It's just a thing.'
Setting aside my master at my waist, who seemed puzzled.
I could understand Gongson Mugyeol's fluster.
'Taking me, who was expelled from the family, as a disciple is completely different from taking Pang Sojin, who's firmly rooted in her family.'
Moreover, that family was the Northern Hebei Pang Family, which, alongside the Moyong Family, claimed to be the orthodoxy of the Way—not even a branch line, but direct lineage.
And crucially, her father was that Pang Muhyeok.
'On top of that, Gongson Mugyeol himself is the Murim Alliance Leader.'
His authority might be merely that of a mediator, but the Alliance Leader was still the face of the orthodox martial world.
Every action could influence the state of the jianghu.
Gongson Mugyeol was someone who knew that well.
Which was precisely why he was so flustered.
"Hrm."
That was why he pondered so deeply.
But it was worth waiting for a positive answer from him.
'Gongson Mugyeol isn't just someone focused on maintaining the current balance and order of the jianghu; he also has a sense of duty toward nurturing the next generation.'
You could tell from how he'd come to see me right after the entrance ceremony, or from his vow to soon cast down Namgung Uk, the vice chairman of the Veteran Assembly.
'Even in the original story, he took Pang Sojin as a disciple.'
And sure enough.
"Did that friend Pang Sojin say yes?"
After a moment of deliberation, the words from Gongson Mugyeol's mouth were essentially approval.
"Yes."
"Well, since she agreed, you'd bring it up with me, right? A direct descendant of the Pang Family and a student of Yun Guo Guan wanting to learn the sword—she must know what repercussions that could bring. That friend must have agonized over it too. Hrm. Alright, I get it."
"Thank you, Alliance Leader."
"Don't thank me yet. This is just me saying I'll check her aptitude first—no firm commitment."
For now, sure.
But it would become firm.
Because Pang Sojin was the one who, in the original story, inherited Gongson Mugyeol's moniker of Nine Defeats Sword and became known as the Nine Defeats Swordswoman.
But I couldn't take that for granted.
'Pang Sojin is of the protagonist's generation in the original, a character who abandons the Way and takes up the sword to grow—so this has to happen.'
The hilt of this matter lay entirely in Gongson Mugyeol's heart.
So, clasping my hands in a fist salute, I opened my mouth to tilt his heart even slightly my way.
"Yes. I only meant to express gratitude for even listening to my impertinent request."
"Well, if that's the case."
"I know full well that the fame of Nine Defeats Sword wasn't built overnight. Though I only glimpsed it briefly before, I know how profound that sword is. And I don't take lightly the position of being your disciple, Alliance Leader."
I wove together what I'd seen with my own eyes and the knowledge from my days as a reader of the original story.
"In the spring dormitory tournament, I sparred with Student Pang Sojin, and she seemed like she was wearing the wrong clothes. Then, for some reason, your sword overlapped in my mind. Trusting in the favor you've shown me, Alliance Leader, I decided to push a bit. Naturally, if it doesn't meet your eyes, that's the end of it."
As my words ended.
Gongson Mugyeol burst into roaring laughter that shook the Alliance Leader's office.
"Hahaha. You have a real talent for pretty words. Looking at you, it's like you're one of those old fogeys from the Veteran Assembly—except unlike those geezers, you don't rub me the wrong way."
"Pardon?"
"Probably because your heart's in the right place."
"...Pardon?"
And such words came.
At Gongson Mugyeol's words, my master let out a hollow laugh.
- ......? This is the most absurd thing I've heard in my life.... Whose heart what now?
I'm flustered too, Master.
Anyway, wondering what he was leading up to, I listened quietly.
"Well, I know full well the close ties between the Pearl Eon Family and the Northern Hebei Pang Family. I also know the walls that Pang Family's Way practitioners, who weren't born with the Alliance Tiger Physique, face. You must be worried about the inner demons your older sister, raised alongside you since childhood, is going through. I just said no firm commitment, but I've heard plenty about Student Pang Sojin's diligence and talents, so don't worry too much."
The outcome seemed to lean my way, so I decided to keep quiet.
Having thus wrapped up Pang Sojin's matter first, Gongson Mugyeol tossed out a new topic.
"By the way. I have a gift I want to give you."
"A gift, sir?"
"Yes. Excluding Student Yin Xia Lian, who's both a student and an investor, Azure Bamboo Hall still hasn't gotten any proper sponsorship offers, right?"
Well, plenty of people were cheering us on in spirit.
My father and mother up in the north, Dean Gyeong Hye of the academy, the head chef and kitchen staff at the student cafeteria, the old innkeeper at Dan River's Finest Inn.
There were also shadowy benefactors providing real cash as compensation for damages.
Bo Jun and the kids, Yang Geum-pyo, the Sea Gold Hall Leader, the shadowy offspring of Fragrant Orchid Pavilion.
'Oh, should I count that guy from Lo Ha Medicine Market who gave me great stuff dirt cheap? What was his name—Heo Hye-ja?'
- Isn't it Heo Im-saeng?
Well, anyway.
No proper sponsors yet.
"Yes. None for now."
"Azure Bamboo Hall's spring tournament win shocked the world, so there must've been some offers at least?"
"There were proposals from merchant groups aiming to boost their standing and martial instructors close to Righteous Martial Academy. But I couldn't sell Azure Bamboo Hall's name for pocket change, so I turned them down."
"What if I do that for you?"
* * *
Having accepted the Alliance Leader's sponsorship offer, I returned to the dorms provided for visiting students, holding the sword he'd given me as a sample.
But I heard chattering voices from inside my room.
"If it's that Eon Yong-un guy, he could really snag something even from the Alliance Leader."
"...No way."
"The phrasing itself is off. 'Snag'? Young Master Eon is the most righteous, chivalrous, and principled among all my peers."
"Talking to you, Jeong Hyeon, is like eating a hundred sweet potatoes. Ah, we agreed it'd be a secret so I can't say much, but I've experienced it myself, so I know. Ha Seong, right?"
"Even mentioning that incident like that is disloyal to Brother Yong-un. Dan Dan."
"Kyaaak! Disloyal? What lord-vassal relationship are we in?!"
"I agree with Ok-gi, though. He's rough-mouthed, but what he said fits, doesn't it? I think he won't come empty-handed either. Wanna bet, Brother Jeong Hyeon of the dojo?"
Rooms were single, with separate men's and women's dorms, so a girl's voice was one thing.
But with the sun still high, they should be following the tour schedule—why were these guys chattering here?
'Did I let them loose after Medicine King Hall, telling them to handle it themselves, and they're already messing around?'
The finance minister wants to yell "discipline," but I don't have one, so I have to step up.
Clatter-clatter—
I flung open the door right away.
And demanded an explanation from my Eon Family underclassmen.
"What are you all doing here?"
"Mommy!"
At my action, Dang Ok-gi, closest to the door, called for her mother back in Sichuan.
"You're back?"
"You've returned, sir?!"
The rest chimed in with "You've returned, sir?"
"Yeah, I'm back. But what are you doing here? Not doing the tour schedule?"
At my words, Yin Xia Lian smiled brightly and spoke.
"We finished."
"Finished? Today's Alliance Leader meetings are just me, then Namgung Yun, then Gok Jun-pyeong in order. Any department besides meeting the Leader that has a light schedule? Where'd you all sign up that you're done already?"
"Veteran Assembly."
Ah. Veteran Assembly's legit.
There, you tour the grand hall, upper and lower chambers, snag some refreshments, and done.
But how'd they know Veteran Assembly's the honey pot...
Oh, right—when I told Sister Sojin to take it easy and mentioned Veteran Assembly, Jeong Hyeon and U So-rung were there.
'You.'
I stared right at Jeong Hyeon.
"N-not me."
"Then it's So-rung."
"W-was I not supposed to say?"
"Nah. You all worked hard yesterday, so taking it easy one day is fine. It's fine. I'm not mad."
"Phew..."
"Just makes me think I need to help you live even harder once we're back at the academy."
"......"
Well, anyway.
I held out the sword I'd gotten from Gongson Mugyeol to U So-rung.
"Anyway. Take this."
U So-rung drew the sword I handed her and her eyes widened.
"Whoa. This is a sword made of Hundred Refinements Pure Steel? You're giving this to me? This?"
It wasn't unreasonable.
Hundred Refinements Pure Steel was the finest steel, tempered to a certain strength threshold.
Per the original setting, excluding rare ores like cold iron and dark iron from specific regions, or meteorite star iron, it was the best material for forging weapons.
"Everyone here uses cold iron swords, but you're the only one still swinging that cheap junk iron from Dan River District's smithy. You should take it first."
"Thank you, Brother Eon! Wow! I'll use it carefully...! Ah, but other classmates and seniors use the same Dan River junk iron. Is it okay for me to take it first?"
Exactly.
Though things had improved a lot since Yin Xia Lian became finance minister, unlike other dorms, Azure Bamboo Hall's students and finances weren't great.
Dan River District's weapon shops jacked up prices on Hundred Refinements swords, banking on students buying—so most Azure Bamboo Hall students used swords like U So-rung's.
'Even that low-grade iron sword costs three times what similar ones do elsewhere.'
I'd been planning support since the semester start.
'But it's like pouring water into a leaky jar—budget killer.'
Securing steady funds through businesses under Azure Bamboo Hall's name came first.
And rightly so—until reaching the pinnacle of Sword Aura Mastery, where one could freely control sword qi, martial artists broke weapons nonstop.
Yet Azure Bamboo Hall students' skills were mostly first-rate to expert level.
Excluding the rare few like me, Jeong Hyeon, or the Yin siblings with personal cold iron swords, they were in prime weapon-breaking phase.
'Not even our dorm, and not dark iron so price doesn't match perfectly, but like Sister Sojin, they fly apart in spars.'
Teeth chipping was common; over-infusing qi into junk swords often shattered them like dropped pottery, so I couldn't just hand them out.
'But that's solved for the time being starting today.'
I smirked and spoke.
"It's fine to take. There are ones for seniors and other classmates too."
At my words, my underclassmen widened their eyes one by one.
"Pardon?"
"What?"
"C-come to think of it, didn't Young Master Eon say 'first' when giving the sword to Brother U?"
"Young Master Eon? You mean you got as many Hundred Refinements swords as Azure Bamboo Hall's capacity? From the Murim Alliance Leader?"
"Not the full capacity."
"Ah, that'd be too many. So how many? I've been thinking about who's most logical to get them first."
"Triple that."
"Triple's not much, so first- and second-years... Wait. Triple?! Triple our number?!!"
"See?! I told you! Scam! It's a scam! I'm right, right?!"
"Damn, I believed you! Brother Yong-un!! Strip off the uniform and scream!"
My dorm turned into an excited frenzy in an instant.
I stepped up to calm things.
"...Your eyes are gonna pop out, Little Yin."
"Ah, sorry. I was just shocked."
"And Dang Ok-gi, you're not even an Azure Bamboo Hall student—why are you butting in?"
"......"
"And Yin Ha-seong."
"Should I shut up?"
"You know it."
The room quieted down.
I calmly explained how Gongson Mugyeol had agreed to sponsor Azure Bamboo Hall.
"The Murim Alliance sets usage periods for training weapons. When time's up, they dispose of them to civilians or melt them down for remelting."
"Right. They set periods, replace them when due—for local smithy support and young artisan training. Ah! The Alliance Leader's giving us those?!"
"Exactly. They over-order when forging, so many are unused even after expiration. He's giving us selected ones."
"The Alliance Leader really favors you, Young Master Eon—such a huge gift. Hehe."
"But the key is, sponsorship isn't just that. There's something even bigger."