Chapter 37
Chapter 37
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 10
>Chapter Title: Martial Talent (4)
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Timber Sword Manor's youngest young master, Mok Yu-cheon.
He had no choice but to mature faster than his peers.
Upon learning that his mother was nothing more than a lowly courtesan, Mok Yu-cheon faced the harsh reality at a young age.
At first, he despaired.
No one acknowledged him as Timber Sword Manor's young master.
He was merely a bastard born of ignoble blood.
It was misfortune itself.
For Mok Yu-cheon, who spent his childhood in despair, there was only one breakthrough.
‘......I’ll get stronger.’
The world was fair.
His blood may have been lowly, but his martial talent was exceptional.
No, it was innate.
For someone with nothing to his name, martial arts was the only way to stand out.
He believed that if he became strong enough that no one could ignore him, everyone would have to acknowledge him.
‘I’ll earn their recognition.’
And it actually happened.
The clan head, who had previously dismissed him as a bastard, began to favor him due to his outstanding talent, and even the retainers acknowledged him.
His half-brothers, who had once scorned him and his mother, no longer dared to treat him carelessly.
‘Maybe......’
Perhaps even he, who had been mocked for his lowly origins, could become the clan head.
He began to swell with hope bit by bit.
However, that anticipation had recently turned into anxiety.
‘What happens if the clan head passes away?’
The clan head had not named any successor.
If things continued like this, the wastrel eldest brother or the scheming second brother Mok Eun-pyeong could become the clan head.
In that case, the Great Madam might try to kill him, whom she saw as a thorn in her eye.
‘Aaaah......’
Things were getting complicated again.
He had hoped effort alone could change everything.
But once more, he felt blocked by a wall.
And yet, there was nothing he could do about it.
Unlike his other half-brothers, he lacked the cunning, the manpower, or the wealth to build influence.
The only thing he could do right now was one thing.
Continue to refine his martial arts.
So today, too, he threw himself into training to clear his mind of distracting thoughts.
But then, the face he least wanted to see—no, the one he hated most—appeared in the training hall.
‘Mok Kyung-un.’
Why the hell was this guy here?
Talentless as he was, he had no interest in martial arts training either.
Just seeing him made Mok Yu-cheon’s mind, which he had barely cleared through sweating it out, start to sour with displeasure.
“Get out of the training hall.”
He had been beaten half to death once before, so if the guy had any sense, he’d understand.
But unexpected words came from the guy’s mouth.
“Could it be you want to become clan head too?”
“What?”
For a moment, Mok Yu-cheon was dumbfounded.
“What nonsense are you spouting?”
“It’s exactly what you heard. I asked if you want to become clan head.”
Raising his voice, Mok Yu-cheon said,
“I don’t know what scheme you’re up to by showing up in front of me, but stop talking bullshit and get lost. Unless you want to crawl away like last time.....”
“Who knows. I thought you might want this.”
With those words, Mok Kyung-un pulled something out from his bosom.
Seeing it, Mok Yu-cheon’s eyes widened.
“You...... how the hell did you get that?”
“Want it?”
Mok Kyung-un shook the manual and asked Mok Yu-cheon.
Timber Transforming Heart Method.
It was the breathing technique and internal energy circulation method that only Timber Sword Manor’s clan head could cultivate.
There was no way Mok Yu-cheon, who bore the Mok family blood, didn’t know of this manual.
‘How does this guy have it?’
Mok Yu-cheon couldn’t comprehend the situation.
The clan head was still bedridden and unconscious—how could Mok Kyung-un have the Timber Transforming Heart Method manual?
Then, suddenly, his mind grew chaotic.
‘No way?’
Had his father given the Timber Transforming Heart Method manual to this guy?
No.
That couldn’t be.
Regardless of birth, the two sons his father despised most were the eldest, Mok Young-ho, and the third, Mok Kyung-un.
The reason was that both lacked talent and effort.
Hadn’t his father said it outright to him?
[If only your brothers resembled you even halfway.]
Such words weren’t spoken idly.
Staring sharply at Mok Kyung-un, Mok Yu-cheon said,
“Where did you get that? Did you steal it behind Father’s back?”
Mok Kyung-un smirked and replied,
“That’s not the important part, is it?”
“Not important? There’s no way Father would give a manual to a guy like you.”
“Who knows? If the clan head took a liking to me, he might have.”
“Bullshit!”
Mok Yu-cheon raised his voice.
‘Hmph.’
At that moment, Go Chan, standing behind, grimaced as the ringing in his eardrums distorted his expression.
He must really hate Mok Kyung-un.
He had infused internal energy into his voice, making it dizzying.
In contrast, Mok Kyung-un only furrowed his brow slightly, showing no major reaction.
Seeing this, a glint appeared in Mok Yu-cheon’s eyes.
‘No reaction at all?’
Normally, Mok Kyung-un would have whined endlessly.
Yet he endured it.
Had he diligently trained in martial arts during the time they hadn’t seen each other?
If so, why did he feel even weaker than before?
Puzzled, Mok Yu-cheon spoke again.
“Is there proof that’s real?”
“Proof?”
Mok Kyung-un smirked, then casually held out the Timber Transforming Heart Method manual.
Mok Yu-cheon frowned.
What kind of trick was this?
After hesitating briefly, Mok Yu-cheon took the manual.
Not out of greed, but curiosity about whether it was genuine.
‘Hm?’
But the manual felt thin.
Flipping it open in suspicion, he found only two pages inside the cover.
Heart methods could be concise, but not just two pages.
A fake after all?
He read the initial formulas.
The moment he did, Mok Yu-cheon was certain.
‘........It’s real.’
Having perfectly mastered the basic arts, he could tell.
Naturally flipping to the back, he examined the remaining formulas and unconsciously swallowed in regret upon seeing the torn traces midway.
‘Ah.......’
He was seized by a momentary thirst.
As a martial artist, he couldn’t help craving higher arts.
The clan head’s exclusive Timber Transforming Heart Method and Timber Forming Sword Art were pinnacle martial secrets.
Mastering them could lead to the peak realm, and perhaps even higher from there.
“Why’s the rest missing?”
To that question, Mok Kyung-un smiled faintly and tapped his own head with a finger.
Understanding the meaning, Mok Yu-cheon’s eyes narrowed.
‘This guy.......’
Was Mok Kyung-un always this sly?
By memorizing about ninety percent of the original and showing only the genuine remnant, he had firmly established that no one but himself could obtain the full manual.
He had even prepared for the possibility of it being snatched.
‘Is this guy’s thinking really that sharp?’
He glanced at the escort Go Chan behind him.
But seeing him on high alert, it didn’t seem so.
Then it must be real.
‘.......He’s changed.’
What had happened in these two years?
Since that incident, they hadn’t clashed or spoken directly.
Mok Kyung-un had been avoiding him out of fear.
Yet the Mok Kyung-un he saw after two years was very different.
“What the hell are you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Never mind how you got it—what scheme are you playing right now?”
“Scheme? Does it seem like one?”
-Thud!
Mok Yu-cheon tossed the manual to the ground and stepped right in front of Mok Kyung-un.
“After dodging me and my brothers for two years, you show up with that, babbling about clan head? You think that’s normal?”
“Hm. I thought you wanted to be clan head, but maybe not?”
“What?”
“If you don’t want to be clan head, then this offer is pretty meaningless.”
Mok Yu-cheon was dumbfounded by Mok Kyung-un’s words.
Offer?
What was he talking about?
As he puzzled over it, Mok Kyung-un picked up the manual from the ground, dusted it off, and said,
“If you don’t want to be clan head, you don’t really need this either, right?”
“............”
Mok Yu-cheon couldn’t respond.
Even if he didn’t want to be clan head, he desired Timber Sword Manor’s pinnacle martial arts.
It was natural for any martial artist.
But he hesitated because he couldn’t grasp Mok Kyung-un’s true intentions.
This was clearly bait.
“........What scheme are you up to?”
“If you’re not interested in schemes or anything, I’ll be going then.”
With that, Mok Kyung-un tucked the manual back into his bosom and turned to leave without lingering.
Mok Yu-cheon called out to him after just a few steps.
“Stop!”
One corner of Mok Kyung-un’s mouth curled up.
He had taken the bait, as expected.
Though their conversation had only just mixed, he had a rough sense of the guy’s personality.
He was quite rigid, acting according to his own convictions.
Types like this didn’t bite a simple lure.
You had to lay out the board just right like this.
Without turning his head, Mok Kyung-un casually said,
“You said you weren’t interested.”
“........It’s not interest—what scheme is this?”
“Same question over and over.”
“Shut up and answer my questions. What’s your intent in keep asking if I want to be clan head?”
“Intent?”
“If you have one, just secretly master it and aim for the clan head position yourself. So what’s the point of bringing this and asking me if I want to be clan head?”
Mok Kyung-un shrugged at the question.
Then, slightly turning his body, he said,
“You might not believe it, but I’m not particularly interested in the clan head position.”
“What?”
Mok Yu-cheon eyed him suspiciously.
Not interested in the clan head position?
Was he supposed to believe that now?
“Ha.......”
Mok Yu-cheon let out a hollow laugh.
Of course.
It was absurd.
Obtaining that manual and coming to him with such talk was a trap in itself.
Whatever his intent, it was surely sinister.
From the start, after the incident two years ago, he disliked this guy, but the guy feared and hated him too.
As Mok Kyung-un approached him then, he said,
“You can’t believe...”
But before he could finish—
-Thwack!
Mok Yu-cheon’s fist, thrust forward in an instant, slammed precisely into Mok Kyung-un’s face.
Struck, Mok Kyung-un staggered back and fell flat.
-Drip, drip!
Blood flowed from his nose.
It should have hurt, but the corners of the fallen Mok Kyung-un’s mouth trembled.
‘It’s different.’
That was Mok Kyung-un’s inner thought.
Setting aside the black sword man, he had personally experienced the skills of escorts like Go Chan and Gam Escort.
From that, he learned the difference between second-rate and first-rate.
And now, tasting the fist of the genius Mok Yu-cheon, who had reached the initial peak at just sixteen, he bodily realized the gap in power.
He understood why Go Chan had said he was several times stronger.
This wasn’t a strength one could handle by luck.
‘My body can’t react.’
He had glimpsed it in that instant, but his body wouldn’t follow.
Unless he approached this level of strength to some degree, it was impossible to contend with.
‘......What?’
Meanwhile, Mok Yu-cheon narrowed his eyes, fist still extended.
He had thrown the punch to shut the guy’s mouth.
He knew someone of mere third-rate skill couldn’t block it.
But one thing differed from the Mok Kyung-un he remembered.
‘He didn’t close his eyes.’
He had stared straight at the fist.
Normally, facing an unblockable punch, one would flinch and shut their eyes in fear.
Yet he had watched the fist right up to the moment of impact.
‘He wasn’t afraid?’
That Mok Kyung-un?
Puzzled, Mok Kyung-un raised his upper body.
Wiping the flowing nosebleed with the back of his hand, he said,
“Your fist is sharp.”
“Sharp?”
Mok Yu-cheon scoffed.
Strictly speaking, it wasn’t a full strike.
Certain the guy was scheming against him, it was a light punch to instill fear.
“You’d better not get up. If you do, the intensity will rise to make that one seem laughable.”
Mok Yu-cheon warned.
And he fully intended to follow through.
But Mok Kyung-un smirked and said,
“I think it’s natural to be suspicious.”
“It’s not suspicion—it’s certainty. I don’t believe a word you say.”
“Is that so?”
“So I’ll make you regret coming here to pull this crap.”
Mok Yu-cheon clenched his fist.
Since it had come to this, he’d do it like two years ago—no, even more thoroughly.
That way, he wouldn’t dare try something like this again.
As he steeled himself, Mok Kyung-un smiled and said,
“Then I’ll have no choice but to give it to the Great Madam or Second Brother Mok Eun-pyeong’s side.”
“.......What?”
“Believe it or not, it’s your choice. But if you do, I’ll have to give the manual to one of those sides to get what I want.”
Mok Yu-cheon froze.
He knew exactly what that meant.
Mok Kyung-un continued,
“When the clan head passes, the retainers will ultimately support a Mok bloodline who has mastered the manual as the new clan head. If it’s Mok Young-ho or Mok Eun-pyeong who becomes clan head, what do you think will happen?”
“........”
“Do you think they’ll leave you alone?”
Stabbed at the core, Mok Yu-cheon was speechless.
He had been frustrated, unable to predict future events.
Thus, Mok Kyung-un’s words pierced his ears inescapably.
In that gap, Mok Kyung-un stood up and continued,
“I doubt they’d let a talented successor candidate—who once had the clan head’s favor and outshone them and their children—go free.”
‘.......’
Go Chan, the escort, couldn’t hide his inner bewilderment at these words.
‘No, what’s he planning, provoking him more?’
This wasn’t persuasion—it bordered on coercion.
Provoking him like that was practically begging to be killed. What was he thinking?
Sure enough, Mok Yu-cheon’s face flushed with rage.
“........Are you threatening me right now?”
“You get it, don’t you?”
“What?”
It seemed it would end in a beating.
Fury rising, Mok Yu-cheon moved to strike again.
Then Mok Kyung-un said in a cold voice,
“It’s a matter of life and death, but it doesn’t sound like a threat?”
-Freeze!
Mok Yu-cheon halted his hand.
He was furious, but he couldn’t ignore Mok Kyung-un’s words.
With the clan head not firmly naming a successor, in the current situation, whoever mastered the manual had the highest chance of becoming clan head, just as he said.
And if it fell into someone else’s hands besides his......
-Grip!
The dreaded outcome would unfold.
To him, Mok Kyung-un approached with light steps, placed a hand lightly on his shoulder, and whispered softly,
“Now you seem to grasp the situation. Who holds the hilt of the sword.”
Mok Yu-cheon’s pupils trembled.
‘This guy.......’
Was this really the Mok Kyung-un he knew?
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