This Is Absolutely Insane
"Oh..." Do-gwang let out a sigh of admiration. Slap! Slap! Slap! Dang Jung-hyeok's merciless slaps against Dang A-ran's cheeks were landing with such perfect precision that even a game couldn't replicate the sight. Right when Do-gwang was thinking about how badly he wanted some popcorn—
"Can I kill that one too?" Dohwa's bright voice rang out.
"...Huh?"
Do-gwang, still impaled in A-ran, tilted his head slightly. Our daughter has such a quick temper. Since A-ran had called that guy a lunatic, he understood the impulse to want to put him down immediately. But could he really end such an entertaining spectacle this early? Go on, watch.Slap! Slap!
"In the first place, I told you not to go picking fights and to stay home! You go out and get into trouble, and you still haven't snapped out of it?"
"P-Please, I was wrong, so if you'd just— Aaahhh!!!"
"Shut up! You useless woman bringing nothing but trouble!"
CRACK—!!!
Even the worst soap opera couldn't top this level of melodrama. Beating your own daughter bloody just to prove you're alive—If Do-gwang were to witness all of it, Dang Jung-hyeok would lose every shred of authority, trust, and whatever else he had left in the family.
Anyway. Do-gwang, who wanted to savor this delightful scene a little longer, gently patted Dohwa on the head.
"Dohwa, hold on."
"Ee..." Dohwa stuck out her lower lip in a pout. The look was so cute he almost changed his mind.
Then—
"...Huh?"
By chance, Do-gwang's eyes met with Dang So-ryeong's.
"...!"
Dang So-ryeong flinched in shock and quickly bowed her head all the way down. His dark eyes were so intense that her heart hammered so violently she couldn't bring herself to look at him.
Do-gwang, on the other hand, could only tilt his head again. It wasn't that he was curious about why So-ryeong had turned away.
Hmm... Who is that?
He couldn't place who she was. He'd spent thousands of hours grinding in this world, so he remembered even the most insignificant NPCs. And yet he couldn't identify Dang So-ryeong.
I'm sure I've seen those eyes before... That's strange...
Do-gwang couldn't help but stare at her even more.
And that gaze—
"A... Ah..."
Dang So-ryeong trembled all over, her entire body prickling with rapture. Every time his eyes fell on her, her heart felt like it would burst.
And then—
"...Seriously, can I kill her?"
Dohwa tugged on Do-gwang's sleeve, pestering him again. And there was one other person who had noticed Do-gwang's gaze—
"Oh ho!"
It was Dang Jung-hyeok, watching his daughter get beaten with undisguised glee.
As expected, men are men!
He rejoiced inwardly. At first, he'd thought Do-gwang didn't care about A-ran at all since the guy had called her the Three Flowers of the Dang Family without showing any particular interest. But now Do-gwang's gaze was clearly fixed on So-ryeong, wasn't it?
True, she doesn't put much effort into her appearance, but her face is quite balanced.
And she had advantages that A-ran didn't—qualities that could tempt a man. Ever since her mother passed, her chest's fullness and graceful curves were absolutely stunning.
If I pair those two together...!
Greed flickered in Dang Jung-hyeok's eyes. Though his real strength tended to be underestimated under the shadow of the former family head, the Poison King Dang Jin-kyeong, he was himself a peerless grandmaster who stood proudly among the Hundred Great Elders. Anyone with a single glance could see that—based not only on how he'd eliminated his eldest son Dang Cheol-u, but on the overwhelming power that had launched the entire courtyard into the air. The Poison King was among the Twenty Great Heavenly Kings, and that was exactly the realm Dang Jung-hyeok occupied!
Right. He's definitely at Hwa-gyeong!
He looked like he hadn't even reached the Secret Gate, yet he was at Hwa-gyeong? The Eight Great Sects, the Nine Schools and Ten Courts—no late-stage practitioner of any faction could even hope to match him! Which meant that pairing them up wouldn't just make twenty-one Heavenly Kings—it meant cultivating the future number one under heaven!
I have to seize this opportunity!
Dang Jung-hyeok stopped hitting A-ran and bowed deeply.
"H-High Elder! Might you perhaps be interested in that child...? No, I mean—might you be interested in that girl?"
Do-gwang furrowed his brow. He was about to say "that thing." No matter how lowly a servant she was, calling a person "that thing" was bound to make anyone's expression sour.
He looked at Dang So-ryeong carefully. Her clothing and manner were shabby, and her cheeks were swollen bright red. ...Looks like she got slapped less than a moment ago.
Who exactly is she...?
Do-gwang tried to dredge up his memory again. He was certain he'd seen that face somewhere. But he couldn't place it. Was it because this wasn't a game but reality? A person in the Dang family who was treated like a nobody and beaten up—it just wasn't coming to mind.
So he stared at So-ryeong even more. But Dang Jung-hyeok, mistaking that gaze for ardent longing, spoke up excitedly:
"You are indeed interested! That child's name is Dang So-ryeong, our family's third daughter."
"Huh? Third daughter?"
Do-gwang objected with a look of utter disbelief. His voice was thick with displeasure. She's not a "thing," and he was about to call her one. Based on the way he was acting, she had to be an illegitimate daughter at best. But even so, calling your own daughter "that thing" was going too far.
That's genuinely disgusting...
Yet Dang Jung-hyeok couldn't read the discomfort at all.
"Unlike that idiotic girl who's sniveling right now, she's wise and dutiful! If you wish, I can arrange it right this instant..."
He was babbling away, blinded by power and desire, shaking his butt with excitement. The sight was so revolting and vulgar that—
"Ha..."
Do-gwang let out a helpless laugh. He wasn't the only one who had sighed.
"Ha..."
Dang So-ryeong could only feel bitter humiliation. ...How pathetic. Not just Dang Jung-hyeok, but even she herself was pathetic. She'd once wanted her father's love and approval, and yet she'd been so naïve as to want it from such a cold, calculating person.
Unlike that idiotic girl, she's wise and dutiful!
She had wanted to hear that. Not that hollow pretense, but her father's genuine affection and recognition. And yet, absurdly, even that pretense—
"Ha... Why does it feel good...?"
Her heart fluttered even though she knew the compliment was clearly the result of a cheap trick. No! She shook her head violently three times. No, it's not that. It's because... It wasn't that she was happy to receive praise. It was because that man who didn't deserve to be called "father" had wrapped it up so prettily.
"..."
That savior-like person keeps looking at me, and it makes me feel warm.
But why... Does his gaze look displeased?
Oh...
Dang So-ryeong snapped back to reality. Of course. Why would someone like her deserve his attention? She berated herself, annoyed and pathetic. She'd foolishly let herself dream for just a moment, and she despised herself for it.
That kind of person would never take interest in someone like me...
As she was lost in self-pity, Do-gwang spoke without particular emotion:
"You said you'd do whatever I wanted, right?"
"Y-Yes...?"
Panic flashed across Dang Jung-hyeok's face. He had offered to give whatever Do-gwang wanted, but he had never said he would do anything Do-gwang desired.
"Ah...!"
But Dang Jung-hyeok quickly recovered, breaking into a broad grin. After all, Do-gwang's gaze was still fixed on So-ryeong.
"Of course! Right this instant, I can—"
Do-gwang wasn't listening. He walked right up to Dang So-ryeong, stepping over Dang Jung-hyeok's words.
And then:
"What do you want to do?"
He asked her in a flat voice.
"N-Yes?"
Dang So-ryeong stared blankly. She couldn't believe her ears. What did he want her to do? Did he actually care about her? Did he want to take her out of here? Or did he want to—
How do I do this for the first time...!?
While she scrambled to figure out how to make the man happy, his flat voice cut through again:
"Hey."
"..."
"I asked what you want to do."
He gestured behind him—at Dang Jung-hyeok, Dang A-ran, and the Dang family retainers.
"Them. That's what I'm talking about."
"Eh...?"
Dang So-ryeong blinked rapidly, her expression freezing. Do-gwang sighed lightly.
"Hah..."
He had genuinely asked her. After all, he'd come to this Dang estate to flatten it. Now that things had reached this point, he figured it was better to do whatever she wanted. ...She was the only one smiling when A-ran got beaten. The retainers had all reacted differently—anger, shock, disbelief—but the only one who felt joy, the only one who thrilled at it, was Dang So-ryeong. Only her.
And—
Everyone here looks at her like she's a pebble on the road or a bug.
The people of the Dang family all looked at her with the same indifference they'd give a stone or an insect.
See? Proof right here:
"Hey you, Light-Bringer! Forget the rude way you treated me! No, actually, since I was wrong, forget that useless woman and take me instead!"
That was Dang A-ran, openly dismissing So-ryeong. Do-gwang's brow furrowed again.
"You dare defy the High Elder's mood! You can't even keep your mouth shut!"
Dang Jung-hyeok flushed red and barked the order. Thwack—!
"Aaahhh!!!"
Dang A-ran was kicked and tumbled across the floor again. Dang Jung-hyeok then turned to Do-gwang with a sycophantic smile.
"Heh heh... High Elder. Don't mind that foolish girl. Please, do as you wish."
That despicable, revolting look made Do-gwang smirk coldly.
Then he raised his steel rod and asked So-ryeong:
"Should I smash her head open from the top?"
"...!!!"
Dang So-ryeong's eyes went wide. Dang Jung-hyeok gasped and shouted:
"H-High Elder...!? What do you mean?! Please calm yourself. I said I'd do whatever you wanted, but I never—"
"Quiet."
Do-gwang's voice was ice cold. "We're talking about her right now."
He looked at her steadily.
"Ah..."
Dang So-ryeong was overwhelmed with emotion, her breath catching. A person this extraordinary is stepping forward for me. When she was very young, very young indeed, the fairy-tale princes from the stories her deceased mother used to tell appeared before her eyes.
As she stood there unable to answer, Do-gwang let out a deep sigh.
"Hah..."
He thought: she must have lost her sense of self from years of abuse and mistreatment. She couldn't even decide things for herself anymore. I guess I should just beat everyone to pieces. As he raised the steel rod to swing—
"Light-Bringer! I'm better than that nobody! Look at me! Look at me!!!"
Dang A-ran, blinded by jealousy, writhed and screamed.
And at that absurd display—
"Pfft."
Do-gwang couldn't help but snort with laughter.
"This is insane."
"Huh...?"
"I said it's insane."
He repeated himself to the flabbergasted A-ran.
"What exactly is better about you?"
"Obviously everything!!!"
Dang A-ran shrieked as her pride crumbled. Dang Jung-hyeok's face went white.
"You useless—!"
He was about to shout again when Do-gwang murmured, low and even:
"Family Head. 'Agari'."
"A... Agari...?"
"Or should I say, 'Daegari'?"
Do-gwang lifted his steel rod just above Dang Jung-hyeok's crown. Dang Jung-hyeok immediately understood the terrifying power dynamics between "agari" and "daegari."
"N-No, I'll use 'agari'."
With his mouth firmly shut, Dang Jung-hyeok retreated meekly.
Do-gwang swept the obstacle away and spoke again:
"Hey. You said everything, right?"
He clicked his tongue. Dang A-ran puffed up.
"I—well, except for one thing, it's true! Everything else is fine!"
She pointed at So-ryeong and shouted:
"If you take away that ridiculously huge chest, then everything's perfect!"
Oh come on, you're supposed to be a lady of one of the Eight Great Sects! Was that really the kind of language you expected from the Dang family's direct bloodline?
Do-gwang's eyes involuntarily swept down to So-ryeong's chest. It was definitely ample! The curves were so overwhelming they threatened to burst through her clothes!
"Oh..."
And under Do-gwang's gaze—
"...!!!"
Dang So-ryeong flushed crimson and bowed her head all the way down.
Then—
"Kyaahaha~~"
A bright laugh rang through the Dang estate.
"Can I kill her?"
Dohwa's eyes sparkled as she radiated killing intent.
"S-Sorry..."
Do-gwang looked away, flustered. This time, a instinctive thought crept in: maybe the "Can I kill her?" was aimed at himself.
"Hemph!"
He forced his gaze elsewhere and coughed. "Anyway, you said everything was fine?"
"Yes! Except for that ridiculous cow chest!"
Dohwa's laughter grew even louder. The girl was practically ready to draw her short sword to defend So-ryeong's honor.
Do-gwang pinched the bridge of his nose and suppressed a sigh. "Dohwa, calm down. And can we stop talking about that woman's chest..."
He jerked his chin toward So-ryeong.
"Go spar with her."
"Huh...?"
Dang A-ran's expression went blank. Sparrer? Does he mean I should fight that lowly thing? She stared at Do-gwang as if he'd lost his mind.
"Are you joking?"
"Why would I joke with you?"
"Ugh...! Are you serious? Me, the direct bloodline of the Dang family, fighting that illegitimate—"
"Tsk, why are you so long-winded."
Do-gwang grimaced in irritation and cut her off.
"Scared?"
"What?!"
"Then what? Just answer yes or no."
"..."
Dang A-ran sighed in exasperation. Do-gwang smirked.
"If you win—even by a hair—I'll do whatever you want."
"Even by a hair...?"
A-ran's eyes narrowed dangerously. He was confident she would lose to that illegitimate daughter. Her pride battered to pieces, she bit her lip.
"...Fine. You'd better keep that promise."
"Yeah. Obviously."
Do-gwang nodded and turned his gaze to Dang Jung-hyeok. An unspoken command: Guide them to the sparring grounds. Dang Jung-hyeok, drenched in cold sweat, panicked.
"I-If I may, High Elder...?"
"No thanks. I don't want to hear the old chestnut about how a fight between the direct bloodline and an illegitimate daughter is a foregone conclusion."
"B-But you know that, and yet—!"
Dang Jung-hyeok tried to raise his voice, but Do-gwang's scowl and the steel rod coming up made him reconsider.
"Oh... Should I just crack your head open instead?"
The killing intent in Do-gwang's eyes left no room for another challenge.
"N-No! I'll guide them to the sparring grounds right away!"
Dang Jung-hyeok bowed so low his back cracked and hurried ahead.
Thanks to Do-gwang's steel rod cutting through the main gate with a satisfying swing, the Martial Alliance members outside the Dang estate walls could observe the situation from a distance.
"Director, I truly don't understand what that madman is thinking."
—Gak-byuk, via secret transmission—
Gak-byuk thought: What on earth could he be thinking? As he himself had said, a fight between the direct bloodline and an illegitimate daughter was a foregone conclusion. The difference in their clothing alone made it obvious. Even though Dang A-ran had been thoroughly thrashed by Dang Jung-hyeok until she was covered in dust, she was still far better dressed than Dang So-ryeong in her rags. Which meant that if the gap in what they wore was this stark, the difference in their martial arts would be even more dramatic. He was certain of it.
"I really don't understand what that madman is thinking..."
—Gak-byuk, via secret transmission—
Unlike the flustered Gak-byuk, Mo-yong-jin stroked his beard thoughtfully and his eyes gleamed.
"Hmm..."
—Mo-yong-jin, via secret transmission—
"Director?"
—Gak-byuk, via secret transmission—
"Watch for a while."
—Mo-yong-jin, via secret transmission—
"Yes, I understand."
—Gak-byuk, via secret transmission—
Gak-byuk found Mo-yong-jin's attitude puzzling, but he nodded anyway. Perhaps the eyes of a Hundred Great Elder saw things differently. But wasn't Dang Jung-hyeok himself also a peerless grandmaster? It seemed he was betting on A-ran's victory. Still, the question was resolved quickly—because the fight started and less than ten minutes had passed when—
Thud—
"N-No way...!"
Dang A-ran collapsed to her knees.