Monopolizing Fortunes (143)
Monopolizing Fortunes (143)
After leaving those words behind, Do Tong-dal went to the empty lot at the very back of Dongui Martial Hall. Even though he had worked her that hard, Jang Yeon-seon was already out there waiting for him.
Seeing Jang Yeon-seon say, "You're a full ke late, Master," he found himself thinking, "I might really end up becoming a master."
Jang Yeon-seon's training was as grueling as the day before. Sweat poured off her whole body like rain, and she was breathing so hard she looked ready to throw up.
She had finished the horse stance and was on her thousandth cut when Jang Bu-ok came looking for them.
"I apologize. I was rash, Master Bae."
Jang Bu-ok bowed politely.
"I said I'd accept your apology, so I will."
"Thank you. Please continue to look after my daughter."
Jang Bu-ok glanced at the struggling Jang Yeon-seon with a pitying look, then left.
"What was that about?"
"Kids don't need to know."
Jang Yeon-seon, who had been mulling something over, snapped her fingers.
"Ah! It's about the fire fox, isn't it!"
"Huh?"
"If it weren't about the fire fox, what reason would Father have to be rude to you, Master? And if he even apologized, then that's definitely it. Hmm . . . Father isn't a rash person, so something must have happened, right?"
"You must be exhausting."
"Why?"
"Being that smart at your age."
"Tell me about it. I wish I were stupid like other kids."
"Break's over."
"Can't I rest just a little longer?"
"You can rest forever."
"You must be pretty exhausting yourself, Master."
"Because I've got a disciple like you?"
"Because you struggle so hard."
Jang Yeon-seon promptly went over and grabbed a wooden sword.
"No matter how hard you struggle, Master, you have to accept me as your disciple. So give up on trying to shake me off."
The distance between master and disciple was gradually closing.
He thought, "A disciple at my age," but if he counted his past life too, it wasn't actually early. Of course, that was a secret only he knew.
'It'll work out somehow.'
For now, he decided to focus on the task in front of him. If he did that, things had a way of resolving themselves.
Jang Yeon-seon's morning training was nearly finished when Seo In-sik came running up, out of breath.
"Master Bae! The Company Head is asking for you!"
"What is it this time?"
"It seems the people who broke into Hwangdae Merchant Company have followed us all the way here."
Do Tong-dal put on a deliberately startled expression. Jang Yeon-seon's surprised face was also quite convincing.
"Is that true?"
"Yes! The Dongui Martial Hall people brought sketches, and they say they look similar. They asked for you, Master Bae, since you saw them from the closest range, to come and confirm."
Dongui Martial Hall had caught on fairly early, which saved time. Do Tong-dal hurried to where Jang Bu-ok was.
It wasn't a room but the rear garden, and not only Dongui Martial Hall people were there but also several figures from Hwangdae Merchant Company.
When Do Tong-dal arrived, Jang Bu-ok hastily held out three sketches.
"You'll have heard the story. Is there a face you recognize among these?"
Do Tong-dal placed the sketch of Jang Yu-seom on top of the three.
"I'm not sure about the other two, but this one is the man I fought at Hwangdae Merchant Company."
"Are you certain?"
"How could I forget someone I fought for my life against?"
At that, the pockmarked Go Bu-sang spoke.
"If a cowardly low-grade warrior was enough to fight him, they can't be much. Hall Master, let's go capture them first."
Hall Master Gwak Jeong-ju furrowed his brow deeply.
"We shouldn't lay hands on people from the imperial palace so easily."
"There's no proof they're imperial palace people, is there? And if they've come all the way here to look into Dongui Martial Hall, doesn't that mean they intend to seize us anyway?"
The bearded man, Bae Ji-seok, agreed.
"Rather than sit back and take it, shouldn't we capture them and first find out why they're pursuing us? The imperial palace already regards us as enemies, so I see no need to agonize over whether we'll become enemies now."
They were ready to throw down with the imperial palace if it came to that. Well, a cornered rat had no choice but to lunge even at a cat.
Gwak Jeong-ju also seemed to be swayed by the two men's persuasion. The Dongui Martial Hall warriors around them likewise urged Gwak Jeong-ju to take a hard line.
"Then we'll capture them and interrogate them. Who should we send?"
"The two of us will go. If he couldn't cleanly beat one low-grade warrior like that, I could go alone."
At Go Bu-sang's words, Gwak Jeong-ju said, "The two of you take a few warriors and go capture them."
"Company Head, let's be on our way."
When Do Tong-dal spoke to Jang Bu-ok, Gwak Jeong-ju asked.
"Leave?"
"If they've come this far, right now is the only chance to leave."
Go Bu-sang sneered.
"There's that cowardly streak. Running away before even seeing the opponent."
"I'm trying to run because I do know the opponent. Against those three, even if all of Dongui Martial Hall swarmed them, you'd be smashed to pieces."
"How dare you take our Dongui Martial Hall for—!"
"Cats who mistake themselves for tigers, or rat bastards who don't know fear. Something like that."
Bae Ji-seok shouted furiously.
"How dare you insult Dongui Martial Hall inside Dongui Martial Hall! Do you think you'll walk away unharmed after that!"
Do Tong-dal picked at his ear and muttered.
"That's a fine set of lungs. For a man who'll be on the road to the underworld soon."
It was a quiet voice, but everyone could hear it.
"A low-grade warrior from a trivial merchant outfit running his mouth! Do you hope to live after disrespecting Dongui Martial Hall!"
"If you can kill me, try it."
The sharp sound of a sword being drawn rang out. It wasn't Bae Ji-seok but Go Bu-sang who first put his hand on his sword.
"If I don't kill you today, I'll change my family name!"
"I couldn't care less about your family name . . ."
Do Tong-dal drew his blade as well.
"Just remember one thing: your Dongui Martial Hall started this fight."
Go Bu-sang's killing intent had reached its peak when Jang Bu-ok spoke.
"Master Bae, can't you avoid killing them?"
"Why?"
"They're infuriating, but they belong to the same Revenge Society, and right now isn't the imperial palace a bigger problem than dealing with small fry like them?"
Jang Bu-ok had also accumulated plenty of grievances, so he had provoked Dongui Martial Hall's temper.
Do Tong-dal had never intended to kill them in the first place. He still couldn't afford to make an enemy of the Revenge Society.
"If that's how you see it, Company Head, I'll settle for roughing them up a bit."
"You damn bastards!"
Go Bu-sang charged. The sword that came down toward Do Tong-dal's crown was quite fast and sharp, but it didn't cut a single hair.
Do Tong-dal moved to the left to evade, then struck the back of Go Bu-sang's head with the flat of his blade.
With a thwack, Go Bu-sang collapsed face-first without even a scream and didn't get back up. He was unconscious.
"Hall Master Go!"
Do Tong-dal hooked Go Bu-sang up with the top of his foot and flung him at Bae Ji-seok, who had shouted. Bae Ji-seok caught the unconscious Go Bu-sang, stumbled backward, and landed hard on his rear.
"I wondered if you might at least be a cat, but you really are rat bastards."
"You son of a bitch!"
Hall Master Gwak Jeong-ju tried to stop him, but Bae Ji-seok charged too quickly.
The reason Do Tong-dal had been able to subdue Go Bu-sang in a single move was that Go Bu-sang had looked down on Do Tong-dal.
Bae Ji-seok was furious, but he hadn't lost his head. Because he attacked knowing Do Tong-dal was a master, he left himself a path of defense even within his offense.
Do Tong-dal blocked the sword sweeping at his waist, then swung his blade toward Bae Ji-seok's shoulder. It was one of the movements Bae Ji-seok had anticipated, but the actual speed of Do Tong-dal's attack, experienced firsthand, defied his expectations.
"Hup!"
Bae Ji-seok recoiled in alarm, but the blade that had been falling toward his shoulder suddenly shot forward right in front of his eyes. Do Tong-dal had predicted exactly how Bae Ji-seok would move.
Smack!
He learned for the first time that such a sound could come from being struck on the cheek with the flat of a blade. Bae Ji-seok spun once in place and spat out four molars.
Then he crumpled to the ground and, like Go Bu-sang, couldn't get back up. A moment of silence swept in.
The Dongui Martial Hall side had never imagined this outcome, and even the Hwangdae Merchant Company side, who knew Do Tong-dal's martial arts, hadn't expected such a one-sided fight.
After a brief silence, Do Tong-dal's muttering was heard.
"Strutting around calling yourselves martial artists with skills like that. I don't know who you're trying to take revenge on, but it seems wrong from the start."
A dozen or so Dongui Martial Hall warriors drew their swords in unison.
"Shut up! What do you know to talk like that!"
At someone's shout, Do Tong-dal wore a cold smile.
"Revenge only becomes possible when you lower yourself, and lower yourself again, until you feel you're at least close to your opponent. But you're already swaggering around as if you've gotten your revenge, so how could that revenge ever succeed?"
Do Tong-dal pointed the tip of his blade at the Dongui Martial Hall warriors.
"If those blades of yours are pointed at me rather than at the targets of your revenge, I'll gladly receive those straw-like swords."
Jang Bu-ok spoke cautiously.
"Master Bae, as I said before, killing them . . ."
"Hwangdae Merchant Company has collapsed, so I'm no longer part of Hwangdae Merchant Company. But that doesn't make me part of the Revenge Society either. I'm just Yeon-seon's master. Yeon-seon."
At Do Tong-dal's call, Jang Yeon-seon, who had been hiding and watching, popped right out.
"Yes! Master!"
Jang Yeon-seon trotted over and stood beside Do Tong-dal.
"When you go out into the martial world, there's something you must always uphold. You must always eliminate your enemy. If you leave an enemy alive, trouble is sure to follow."
"Understood."
Do Tong-dal raised his aura. Even those called first-rate masters in the martial world cannot easily raise their aura.
To emanate aura was a realm attainable only when one's martial arts surpassed first-rate and reached the peak of mastery.
And that aura made one's opponent feel fear. Like a dog before a tiger, like a mouse before a snake, that fear was close to instinct.
When Do Tong-dal raised his aura, the warriors unconsciously flinched back. Since they had never felt an aura before, they probably didn't even know what it was.
There was only one person here who could understand it.
"Master Bae, please calm yourself."
The person who hastily stepped forward was Hall Master Gwak Jeong-ju. The aura of Do Tong-dal that he felt made him realize that even if he and every Dongui Martial Hall warrior present attacked together, they couldn't handle it.
"I will apologize on behalf of my subordinates' rudeness."
"Hall Master!"
The warriors called out, but Gwak Jeong-ju silenced their discontent with a fierce glare.
"My subordinates' rudeness is entirely my fault, so blame me and withdraw your anger."
Gwak Jeong-ju even bowed his head to Do Tong-dal, who was young enough to be green. Gwak Jeong-ju knew well that in the martial world, martial force was order and rank.
Do Tong-dal had expected that if he raised his aura, Gwak Jeong-ju would come out like that, so he backed down at this point.
"If the Hall Master says so, I'll leave it at that. Then we of Hwangdae Merchant Company will prepare to depart."
"You mean to go separately?"
"Why would we travel with people who don't even consider Hwangdae Merchant Company part of the Revenge Society family? And if we go separately, won't we find out who the imperial palace is chasing?"
Hwangdae Merchant Company claimed the Revenge Society was the imperial palace's target, while some within the Revenge Society claimed they had become enemies of the imperial palace because of Hwangdae Merchant Company. If they went separately, they would learn who the imperial palace's target was.
Jang Bu-ok also agreed with Do Tong-dal's approach.
"A good idea. We'll move separately from the Revenge Society from here on."
Gwak Jeong-ju, his pride wounded, spoke.
"If Hwangdae Merchant Company splits off on its own, we won't be able to protect you."
Jang Bu-ok let out a scoff.
"Is the Hall Master the one protecting us right now?"
Gwak Jeong-ju's gaze naturally turned to Do Tong-dal. In the current situation, it was rather Dongui Martial Hall that was in a position to ask Hwangdae Merchant Company for protection.
Do Tong-dal turned and said.
"Let's hurry. If those three come charging in, even I would be helpless."
As the Hwangdae Merchant Company people followed Do Tong-dal out, only the Dongui Martial Hall people were left standing there.
Gwak Jeong-ju couldn't take his eyes off Do Tong-dal until he rounded the wall and disappeared.
"To think a master like that was in Hwangdae Merchant Company."
The level of martial arts Do Tong-dal had just shown was a realm that even Gwak Jeong-ju wouldn't dare to follow.
He might even compare to the three senior hall masters who had been dispatched to Hwangdae Merchant Company and called by that laughable name, the Three Saints of Hwangdae.
"If those are people that even a man like him can't handle, then our Dongui Martial Hall doesn't stand a chance."
Better to withdraw quickly than to get caught by the imperial palace and suffer a beating for nothing.
"Let's hurry and prepare to leave too!"
* * *