Chapter 103: Chun-bong's Return (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 103: Chun-bong's Return (2)
The woman introduced herself as the Hidden Sword of the Darkness.
Seo-jun offered her a seat and sat down across from her.
The reason he welcomed the Hidden Sword of the Darkness so casually was simple. Although she was concealing her presence, he hadn't sensed any malice in her energy. More than that, it had been genuinely amusing to watch her hesitate outside, only to jump out of her skin when she realized he had already noticed her.
"Hidden Sword of the Darkness, huh... Do you have a real name, or just the alias?"
"Fufu, you shouldn't ask such things. A little mystery is just another one of a woman's charms."
"Uh... is that right? If you keep too many secrets, your death might just end up as a mystery too."
When someone had too many secrets, they became untrustworthy. Naturally, the number of people wanting to slit their throat would increase.
Seo-jun placed a cup of freshly brewed tea in front of her. The woman offered a slight eye-smile and brought the cup to her lips.
"Well, I happen to be very confident in my ability to run away."
The Fist King, who had been watching her with clear dissatisfaction, spoke to Seo-jun.
"Have you really never heard the alias 'Hidden Sword of the Darkness'? She's a famous assassin. A weird one, like a wealthy beggar."
"Oh, that’s hip."
"You’ve been using strange words like that for a while now. What on earth does that even mean?"
The answer came from the Hidden Sword of the Darkness instead.
"My, so you're the open-minded type? I like that. After dealing with nothing but stuffy old men, meeting a man like you feels like a breath of fresh air."
The Hidden Sword of the Darkness chuckled and pulled something from her robe. It was a glass jar filled with brown beans. Seo-jun’s eyes widened.
"That’s...!"
"Uhuhu, I knew you’d like it. It’s coffee, and it was incredibly hard to get. Since I like you, I’ll give it to you as a gift."
"Whoa, really? Thank you!"
Seo-jun grinned as he accepted the coffee. Once Chun-bong came back, he’d have to brew a pot to share with her and his sister.
Watching Seo-jun, the Hidden Sword of the Darkness grumbled, "I really can't stand those isolationist bastards. If there’s something good out there, you should use it. Look at this place. Sitting around lighting candles... Why on earth are they doing this when there are light bulbs that turn on with the flick of a switch?"
"Huh? What? Light bulbs? Those exist here?"
"Hm? You didn't know? No, wait—you know what a light bulb is, but you didn't know they were available? How peculiar."
"How do you get electricity? There shouldn't be any power plants."
"The Jegal Clan makes Qi Jades, don't they? If you get one infused with lightning energy, it lasts quite a long time."
"Wow..."
Surprised, Seo-jun glanced at Pae Jin-gwang. The old man looked utterly disgruntled. When his eyes met Seo-jun’s, he immediately began to spout old-fashioned nonsense.
"What’s so good about using things made by those big-noses? There’s nothing inconvenient about how things are now."
"Ugh, what a dumbass."
"Hey! Who are you calling a dumbass?!"
"Old man, that’s enough. Just clean up the pieces of the wall you broke and go to bed."
"Tsk, hmph... Kids these days..."
Pae Jin-gwang grumbled as he began clearing the fragments of the shattered wall.
Watching the Fist King, the Hidden Sword of the Darkness let her jaw drop.
"I’ve lived long enough to see everything. To think someone could treat the Fist King so casually..."
"Well, it’s not that big of a deal. We’re all just people trying to live our lives."
"I don't think that's quite it."
The Hidden Sword of the Darkness gave an awkward smile. Seo-jun chuckled and changed the subject.
"Anyway, uh... Jung-mil Noona?"
"...What did you just call me?"
"Well, 'Hidden Sword of the Darkness' is a mouthful."
She gave Seo-jun a slight glare.
"Just call me Ye-hwa."
"Oh, is that your real name?"
"Of course it’s an alias," she snorted.
Seo-jun pressed on. "Anyway, what’s up? You said you had news to deliver."
"Ah, right. Look at me forgetting."
Ye-hwa carefully spread a Qi Membrane. It felt as if a flowing, faint darkness was enveloping their surroundings.
As Seo-jun looked around at the slightly darkened room with fascination, she spoke.
"The Blood Crow Sect is targeting you. An assassination contract was put out on your head."
An assassination contract. At those words, Seo-jun thought of the uninvited night guests who had been visiting him whenever they felt bored over the past few days.
They haven't been coming lately. Is it the off-season?
Seo-jun scratched his head.
"Is that so? But why are you telling me this?"
"I have no intention of dying for a stupid job. Looking at you now, it seems I made the wise choice."
"Aha."
"But I felt uneasy just rejecting the request and staying put. I figured I might as well move houses while I'm at it. And to do that, I need to get on the landlord's good side, right?"
Ye-hwa winked. Seo-jun’s eyes went wide.
"Are you going to get a job with the Namgung Clan?"
"No? Do you think I'm crazy? I just thought Anhui seemed like a decent place to live."
"Aha, Anhui. I see."
"Anyway, we might bump into each other occasionally. Look after me if we do, okay?"
"Ah, sure. I hope your business prospers."
"If a business like mine prospers, wouldn't the Namgung Clan try to beat me to death?"
"Uh... then stay healthy?"
"Fufu, you're a funny man."
Ye-hwa giggled as she shrouded herself in darkness.
"Anyway, that’s all I came to say."
In an instant, her form vanished without a trace.
"Well then, see you later."
Only her voice lingered where she had stood. It was quite impressive. It was a technique that would guarantee her success if she ever decided to perform magic shows.
Unfortunately, since it was a technique utilizing internal energy, her form was perfectly visible to Seo-jun’s eyes. He could clearly see her sneaking over the windowsill while blended into the shadows...
Oh dear...
As he stared blankly at her, their eyes eventually met. Her eyes immediately darted around in a frantic panic.
Wow, that must be incredibly awkward.
He considered pretending not to notice, but figured that would be even more embarrassing for her at this point, so he just gave a little wave.
"Goodbye."
Zip! She bolted away like an arrow.
Is that woman really an assassin? She’s so clumsy.
Regardless, her Shadow Hiding Technique was quite excellent. He thought it might be useful to create a version of it for himself later...
But that was for another time.
"Yawn... Man, I'm tired."
Seo-jun yawned and crawled into bed.
"Old man, please just go to sleep now."
"Strange fellow."
Pae Jin-gwang also returned to his room through the hole in the wall. However, the hole was so large that his bed was clearly visible from Seo-jun's side.
Pae Jin-gwang lay down, grinned, and waved his hand.
"Goodnight."
"Oh, for fuck's sake."
Seo-jun gave a half-hearted wave and turned his back to the wall.
In any case, Hefei was just around the corner.
In his dreams, a chubby-cheeked Chun-bong ran toward him and jumped into his arms.
*
Recently, a rumor had been circulating in Hefei.
They said that on the top floor of the Cheonggwang Inn, a fairy sat gazing out the window with sorrowful eyes!
Since one had to order quite expensive dishes to access the top floor, the innkeeper was screaming with joy as customers flocked in after hearing the rumor.
Neung Yu-gang was one of those customers.
Having reached the Peak Realm at a young age thanks to his decent talent and the backing of his sect, he was overflowing with confidence.
There is no woman I cannot have if I desire her.
Confident in his looks, he often thought that he might even be able to pluck the 'Flower of Namgung' himself.
Today, however, all such arrogant thoughts were completely wiped from his mind.
He had visited the Cheonggwang Inn thinking the talk of a 'fairy' was the usual Jianghu exaggeration, but there really was a fairy sitting there.
A beauty that didn't seem human. Truly, she was a fairy descended from the heavens. For the first time in a long while, his heart pounded so loudly it was almost deafening.
Neung Yu-gang stared at the woman's face, lost in a daze.
If one were to carve ice into a flower, would it look like her? While his heart felt a chill from her cold aura, he was so intoxicated by her beauty that he instinctively wanted to reach out.
Yet, the reason she still gave off a cute impression was likely due to the baby fat she hadn't quite lost yet.
It was a minor flaw in an otherwise perfect beauty. But even that created a harmony that made the viewer's heart race. What would she look like in the future once that baby fat was completely gone?
Neung Yu-gang approached her as if possessed.
"Young lady."
The woman’s eyes flickered toward Neung Yu-gang. That cold gaze felt like an electric current searing straight through his spine and into his brain.
"I would like to buy you a drink. Would that be alright?"
"No."
Ah...! Even her voice is beautiful!
Hiding his nervous inner thoughts, Neung Yu-gang smoothly sat down across from her.
"Don't be like that. How about just one light drink?"
At his actions, the glares of the other men filling the room pierced him, looking as if they wanted to kill him.
How dare he approach the fairy...! They were making a fuss internally, but they were pathetic fools who didn't have the guts to actually come over and say anything.
Neung Yu-gang wore a winner's smile and subtly manifested internal energy over his hand.
"I am a man of this caliber. In the Jianghu, I am known by the undeserved alias of Flashy Swift Hand."
Flash! Neung Yu-gang’s hand moved rapidly. It was a move aimed directly at the liquor bottle in front of the woman. However, the woman lightly shifted the bottle, cleanly evading his hand.
"Uh...?"
Though flustered, Neung Yu-gang didn't let his confident expression falter.
"Ha, haha...! You are impressive. So you are also a martial artist..."
"Will you get lost?"
The woman, Chun-bong, was starting to get pissed off.
She brought the bottle straight to her lips. Since she could barely handle alcohol, the contents were actually a sweet beverage. She had heard it was made from sugarcane, and its sweetness was on par with Tanghulu, which Chun-bong liked very much.
Gulp. After quenching her thirst with the refreshing drink, she glared at Neung Yu-gang with icy eyes.
"I’ll give you three seconds. Get lost."
"Haha, young lady. Don't be like that..."
"Three."
"I'm really not saying this with any ill intentions."
"Two, one." By the time she finished counting, Neung Yu-gang was still shamelessly sitting in his seat.
"I wasn't going to say this, but I'm actually quite a remarkable person. You certainly won't regret sharing a drink with me today—"
CRUNCH!
Something flew in from outside the window.
Neung Yu-gang stared at the table in front of him, his movements stiffening. The exact spot where his hand had been resting had cleanly vanished, even though his hand itself was completely unharmed.
"Uh..."
He felt it instinctively. This was a master. Someone he couldn't possibly handle.
Neung Yu-gang looked out the window. A man was approaching, literally walking through the air.
Plum blossoms bloomed with every step the man took. He approached by treading upon the blooming petals, then crouched casually in mid-air and looked down at Neung Yu-gang.
"Hey, Chun-bong told you to get lost."
"Chun... bong?"
"You disrespectful brat. How dare you say our Chun-bong's name so casually?"
An approaching hand grabbed Neung Yu-gang by the collar.
"W-wait... don't do this..."
Whoosh! Neung Yu-gang’s body was forcefully launched into the sky.
"Aaaaaagh!"
Thrown straight out the window, he screamed as he flew far, far away.
Dusting off his hands, Seo-jun plopped down into the seat where Neung Yu-gang had just been sitting and looked at Chun-bong.
"O-oppa..."
A dazed gaze met his. Within her trembling eyes, he could see countless emotions swirling. The corners of Seo-jun’s mouth curled upward.
It had been a while since he’d last seen Chun-bong. She had certainly matured a lot, perhaps because her Severed Meridians were fully healed.
She didn't seem to have grown much in height and was still tiny, though not exceptionally small for a woman. Her beauty was something anyone would praise. She was still flat-chested, but since her cheeks were still plump, it was actually better.
No, a Chun-bong who wasn't flat wouldn't be Chun-bong. In that sense, it was an ideal evolution.
His only concern was that she might not want to play with him anymore now that she was all grown up... but there was no way his Chun-bong would do that.
"Hey, Miss Geum."
He felt incredibly excited. There were so many things he wanted to say, but because there were too many, he couldn't organize his thoughts.
So, he just blurted out something short.
"You're alive...! My baby fat!"
"Hey, you son of a bitch!"
Chun-bong threw her cup straight at him.
