Chapter 5
Chapter 5
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: The Scoundrel Fits Too Well! (1)
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At my comment that the fee had gone up, Escort Leader Eun jumped up, asking if I could think of such a thing in this situation.
But Yin Xia Lian's reaction was different.
"This is exactly the time for a guest escort to negotiate his worth. It actually makes you more trustworthy. Very well. We'll scrap the previous agreement of one silver tael per day and pay in gold instead."
"Aren't you undervaluing the lives of me and my men a bit too much?"
"It's an extraordinary time, but precedents like this can be set. However, if you help us break through this crisis and reach the branch hall in Radiant Prosperity safely, I'll show my personal sincerity to Young Master Eon separately and grant any request within my power. How does that sound?"
"I'm fine with it, but you shouldn't make promises like that lightly. What if I ask for something outrageous?"
"Indeed, please reconsider, Hall Leader!"
"Whatever Young Master Eon asks for has to be better than dying like dogs here."
I nodded to show I understood.
Then Yin Xia Lian ordered Escort Leader Eun to follow her decision before addressing the surroundings again.
"Due to my inexperience and carelessness, this merchant caravan has fallen into dire straits."
She bowed her head deeply and continued.
"I apologize for that. On behalf of Yin Xia Lian and the Silver Radiance Merchant Group, I promise to change this caravan's compensation from silver to gold. At the same time, I also promise to take lifelong responsibility for any casualties and their families."
Personally, I don't think money can solve everything.
But having money is still better than having none.
The others probably thought the same.
With Yin Xia Lian's words, the somewhat chaotic atmosphere of the caravan settled down.
'Now that's more like the Yin Xia Lian I know.'
Following the changed strategy, Escort Leader Eun repositioned the porters and escorts, joined the Bang Cheon-deok elimination squad with the selected escorts, and spoke up.
"The defense team's deployment is complete."
At Escort Leader Eun's words, I glanced around briefly.
And admired the quite solid formation.
'I thought he was just a blood-related parachuted-in guy because his surname is Eun, and mediocre for a first-rate escort leader despite his skills. Turns out he has some real ability.'
With Yin Xia Lian's carriage at the center, they toppled the escort wagons and other carriages to form a crumpled circular wall of wagons.
Then split the escort forces in two: the battle-hardened veterans around Yin Xia Lian's carriage, and the inexperienced but sturdy young ones nearest the wagon wall.
In between, they placed the porters and servants less accustomed to combat.
'That way, the veterans can naturally take command, and even the inexperienced can thrust their swords while the young escorts hold the front.'
Plus, with the life insurance buff Yin Xia Lian had promised.
Against bandits, that setup should hold for a while.
Anyway, preparations were done.
I climbed onto a toppled wagon directly facing where Bang Cheon-deok stood.
Srrrrng—
And drew the sword Regret from my waist.
As I drew my sword, Escort Leader Eun and Escort Chae, in the Bang Cheon-deok elimination squad, followed suit and climbed onto the wagon, drawing their swords.
Srung—
Srrrrng—
And with that as the signal, everyone inside the wagon wall drew their swords simultaneously.
Chaeng! Chaeng! Chaeng! Chaeng! Chaeng!
It looked just like a hedgehog bristling with quills.
As we drew our swords.
From the other side, a man who looked like he'd been 3D-printed from the classic bandit leader image stepped forward, raised his halberd, and bellowed.
"I could have just charged in, but I gave you time to deliberate so there'd be no need for blood between us. Does the famed wise daughter of the Southern Jiang Merchant King truly intend to refuse the wine of peace and choose the cup of punishment?!"
The lair chief of the Northern Deer Bandit Lair.
The Iron Skin Wild Yak, Bang Cheon-deok.
What nonsense about avoiding bloodshed—he was really just worried his men might get hurt because our momentum looked fierce.
As I said before, in that industry, weakened forces invite takeover attempts from the neighbors right away.
Of course, Yin Xia Lian's caravan had no one who could use sword qi except me, who could mimic it vaguely.
'If Bang Cheon-deok charges with that halberd, we'd be like light infantry facing a tank.'
But that industry doesn't produce leader-types like that.
'Guys like that don't enter the field to begin with, or they get wiped out before becoming chief.'
Anyway.
When bellowed at, it's only right to bellow back.
I raised my voice and bellowed at Bang Cheon-deok.
"Bullshit! You moron!"
Bang Cheon-deok's eyes bulged even more at the blue young punk hurling abuse.
"What?!"
From experience, guys like that tend to be hot-tempered and petty.
So I shouldn't miss the chance to fan the flames of his rage.
"Like hell you gave us time to think—you were just watching, hoping Radiant Prosperity Hall Leader would come out begging so you could take it for free! Now that we're set to fight, you're getting cold feet?!"
"C-Cold feet?"
"They say a long tongue brings regret. Oh, that's from the Qin Shi Huang tomb murals."
Oh.
I tried my past life's trash-talk, murim edition.
And Bang Cheon-deok's face started turning red then purple.
Looking at him, I continued.
"And from the look on your face, you probably slammed the Thousand Character Classic shut around 'heaven' and 'earth.' Wine of peace, cup of punishment—you can recite it, but can you even write it?!"
"...W-What?!"
At that point, laughter erupted indiscriminately from friend and foe alike.
"Kuhp."
"Uhahaha!"
"Khuh."
"Puhahaha!"
Bang Cheon-deok's face turned beet red like a persimmon past harvest.
"Who just laughed?!"
His bellow cracked with a falsetto.
That guy's pissed. Real pissed.
"And you! I don't know where you rolling stone pup crawled from, but this brat's got no sense of respect!!"
"Arrogant. Arrogance. Spouting off without care is what arrogance is."
As I tossed in one more line, Bang Cheon-deok's reason snapped.
"Y-You!! What are you waiting for! Charge in, capture Radiant Prosperity Hall Leader Yin Xia Lian hiding in her wagon! Bring that punk alive too while you're at it! I'll skin him myself and see if that mouth keeps flapping after! Kill everyone else except those two! Attack!!"
Some alternate history novel's strategy said to start fights at the enemy's undesired time and in their undesired way. By that metric, this was already a win.
"Suddenly? Some guys went back to the lair for stuff!"
"You said she'd come out if we just pressured her!"
"Now? Their momentum's at its peak!"
The Northern Deer Bandits had us surrounded, but after the long wait, they'd loosened up a bit. Bang Cheon-deok's sudden rage-fueled attack order threw them into chaos...
"If you don't want to die on my blade first from all this yapping, then charge, damn it!!"
"We're going! We said we're going! Right now!!"
The charging bandits looked more chaotic than orderly.
That alone bought our defense at least half a breath.
Spotting it, Escort Leader Eun and Escort Chae both stuck their tongues out at me.
"...Riling the enemy? Can't use sword qi, but... that mouth's at least Fire Realm level?"
"I'm Chae Deok-gyu. First time talking, so not sure if I should ask this, but... are you from the Beggars' Sect? That tongue's no mortal's..."
...Is this praise?
Anyway, no time to dawdle.
The fight had started.
We had to take Bang Cheon-deok's head before our nexus fell.
"Let's go."
At my voice, Escort Leader Eun and Escort Chae unleashed their movement techniques and charged.
Then, roars and death cries began echoing from the rear of the defense line.
"Waaaaah!!!"
"Gahk!!"
"Kuaaak!!!"
The original Eon Yong-un would have trembled, but I'd seen and dealt countless deaths.
My nerves weren't rattled.
Honestly, Bang Cheon-deok was a tough matchup for me now.
'Pure spar with wooden sword and wooden halberd? I'd lose 99 out of 100.'
At least my strength had improved decently from following the servants' training during my Eon Family stay, thanks to my natural martial bones despite no prior training as a wastrel.
But it couldn't compare to Bang Cheon-deok, who'd lived by the blade as a bandit his whole life.
Plus, I didn't know Central Plains-style martial arts or breathing methods, lacking the original's memories.
'That's why I was heading to the Heavenly Demon Founder's tomb to learn, only to hit this mess.'
But that didn't mean I couldn't wield a sword.
Taking fallen senior black mage hunters—who died to blind blades after sniping—as negative examples, I'd learned Western swordsmanship routes and knife fighting.
'Hm. Three Essences Swordplay's vertical slash, thrust, horizontal slash. I can do those damn well. So, I know Three Essences Swordplay?'
If Escort Leader Eun heard that, he'd yell 'What, a Three Essences master?' and refuse my plan despite Yin Xia Lian's orders.
'Three Essences Swordplay sounds fancy but it's the murim rule: third-rate sword art you learn for pennies at the market.'
But it was worth a shot.
This wasn't a pure spar with wooden swords—it was life-or-death with live blades.
"Kuhahaha! Thought the three dogs charging without guarding their master meant something! Two are mere first-rate trash, and one's a pathetic punk who can't even use proper movement technique?! Puhahaha!"
Bang Cheon-deok was lulled into carelessness as I'd planned.
And I had something he could never expect.
That was when.
As I arrived last at his side amid my thoughts.
"Such a shallow trick!"
"Guhk!"
"Think it'd work?!"
"Kuhk!"
Escort Leader Eun and Escort Chae, who had charged first and clashed, couldn't withstand the power in his halberd thrust and spat blood, flung left and right.
"Kuhahaha! Punk pup!! Worried my men couldn't take you alive, but you walked to your death yourself!"
And now his killing intent turned to me.
"Die!!!"
Swaaaaang!!!
A mighty halberd strike that could fell an ancient tree!
But I'd planned up to here.
Mid-charge, I drew inner energy from my lower dantian like thread and laid the pre-made curse array under Bang Cheon-deok's feet.
[Curse of the New Moon]
A curse that drastically narrows the target's vision and hearing.