Plum Blossom Sword Saint? Not Me (4)
“I…….”
Baek Cheon wiped at the sweat beading on his face and carefully opened his mouth.
“Th-That’s a bit much…….”
“What?”
The Tang clan artisan, his eyes bloodshot with fury, whipped around to glare at him. That mad look alone was enough to make even Baek Cheon take a step back.
“N-No, I’m just worried. There’s no need to go this far…….”
“What do you think a sword is?”
“Huh? Well…… a sword…….”
“It’s a Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron sword! A Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron sword, damn it!”
“…….”
“They’re divine blades the world will never see the likes of again! And you want us to make them half-heartedly?”
“N-No, that’s not what I meant…….”
“You’re in the way, so get lost! Now!”
In the end, Baek Cheon gave up trying to stop them and backed away with a helpless look on his face.
That was when the Mount Hua disciples, who had been watching from behind, rushed over in a clamor.
“What did they say?”
“……They said to get lost.”
“…….”
The Mount Hua disciples stared into the workshop with dejected faces.
No, but do they really need to go that far?
If they were pouring their souls into forging the swords, no one would stop them. Hell, they would have cheered them on.
But what the artisans were doing now wasn’t that.
“You damned bastard! The petal’s crooked!”
“Can’t you see this bit sticking out? Here!”
“Khhhhh. Damn it. It’s too hard.”
With chisels and hammers in hand, they were all clinging to the swords and groaning. They’d barely slept for nearly ten days, their eyes bloodshot as they carved plum-blossom patterns into the Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron blades.
“……Those are just swords they’re gonna use carelessly anyway.”
“Right? Even if they do all that, the end result is just that they look prettier, isn’t it?”
“I mean, sure, it’s nice if they look better…… but do they really need to bleed themselves dry for that?”
It was completely incomprehensible to the Mount Hua disciples.
“Grrrgh.”
“Hey, what are you collapsing for, you nuisance? Drag him out, now!”
“Yes, sir!”
All while they were literally grinding body and soul into powder…….
Growing increasingly uneasy, Baek Cheon looked at Dang Soso and said, “Soso. Since our words don’t seem to be getting through, why don’t you try talking to them?”
“About what?”
“That they don’t have to go this far…….”
“What?”
“…….”
But he had to fall silent almost immediately. Dang Soso’s eyes had ignited like twin flames.
“Senior brother! This is a craftsman’s pride! Just as good-looking food tastes better, a divine blade only has meaning if it looks like a divine blade at a glance! Senior brother, have you ever seen an ugly masterpiece?”
“……No.”
“You seniors and senior brothers only care whether the edge is good, no matter what the sword looks like, but the people making it are different! Besides, these are Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron swords made by the Tang clan. If we slap them together carelessly and the other workshops start saying the Tang clan has gone downhill, are you going to take responsibility for that, senior brother? Hm?”
“…….”
Intimidated by her forceful glare, Baek Cheon shrank his neck back.
No, why is her personality getting worse by the day?
“This is a matter of pride! The Tang clan’s dignity and pride are no less than any sect in the world!”
“……Yes. I understand now.”
In the end, the Mount Hua disciples gave up trying to persuade the artisans.
“By the way, what’s Chung Myung doing? If something like this happened normally, he’d have been the first to blow up, saying, ‘Who cares if it’s a sword? If it cuts well, that’s all that matters. Does carving plum blossoms into it even make Plum Blossom Sword Art work better?’”
“He’s over there.”
“Huh?”
“There.”
Baek Cheon jerked his chin in that direction.
Sure enough, Chung Myung was sitting on a flat wooden platform placed in front of the hall, his back straight as he sat cross-legged and drew the sword from his hand with a solemn motion.
It was the height of reverence and seriousness…….
“Heh heh heh heh.”
“…….”
“Hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee.”
Watching Chung Myung’s lips curl so high they seemed about to reach his ears, Baek Cheon muttered before he knew it, “He looks happier than he’s ever looked in his life…….”
“He wasn’t even this happy when we found the Honwon Dan,” someone said.
“From an expert’s point of view, that’s about the level of finding a tower made of gold.”
Baek Cheon clicked his tongue.
“……Well, that makes sense.”
“……It does.”
It was enviable.
Infuriatingly enviable.
Just as a musician lusted after a good instrument, a swordsman naturally coveted a good sword.
They had encountered plenty of fine weapons while dealing with the Nine Sects and One Gang, but none of the swords they’d seen until now could compare to what Chung Myung was holding.
“No wonder the old man gave it to that bastard!”
“Exactly!”
“That old man’s gone so blind he can’t even see straight anymore……! Soso! I was wrong. P-Please put that fist down.”
Jo Gul, who had nearly been hit by not only his senior brothers but also his junior sister, stumbled back in alarm.
As if they’d agreed on it beforehand, the Mount Hua disciples began inching toward Chung Myung.
“……Chung Myung.”
“Yeah?”
Chung Myung lifted his head slightly.
“……Can’t I touch it just once?”
“No.”
“I’m not saying I want to swing it around, I just want to touch it for a sec…….”
Smack!
Chung Myung struck the back of Baek Cheon’s hand hard as he tried to sneak closer.
“How dare some shabby, low-class thing think it can touch a precious object? Get lost.”
“Come on, just one touch! It’s not like it’ll wear down!”
“Get out of here!”
Chung Myung guarded the Black Night Sword like a wildcat gone rabid. There was no way he was letting anyone else have it.
Baek Cheon and the other disciples gritted their teeth.
“Cheapskate bastard!”
“Greedy piece of trash!”
Normally, they would have given up their greed out of sheer disgust and pettiness, but the Black Night Sword was so incredible that they couldn’t stop looking at it. Anyone who used a sword would be tempted by it.
Even the scabbard alone drew the eye with its heavy, imposing presence, and when the sword was drawn, it was almost overwhelming in its beauty.
“So this is why they call it a divine blade.”
“At this point, I’d carry it around even if it didn’t have an edge.”
“I’m going to steal it.”
Everyone was drooling over the Black Night Sword when—
“Done!”
“Woooooah! It’s finished!”
At last, the long-awaited cheer erupted. All eyes snapped toward the workshop.
In just ten days, the artisans had gone from hale and hearty to skin and bones, yet they emerged with eyes shining so fiercely it barely matched their gaunt faces, carrying a dozen or so Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron swords each.
“Silk! Bring the silk!”
“Yes, sir!”
Silk was spread out in a long sheet in front of the workshop, and the swords were placed on it in neat rows.
They’re laying out silk just to put swords on it.
My God, what kind of exalted swords are these?
Knowing that they themselves would be the ones to wield those exalted swords sent a thrill racing through them.
“Now then…….”
Dang Gun-ak, who had come out of the workshop, picked up one of the Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron swords laid on the silk and drew it with a casual motion.
Sching!
With a clear sound pleasing to the ear, the silver blade revealed itself.
“Beautiful.”
A smile touched Dang Gun-ak’s lips.
Seeing a perfectly tuned weapon was like admiring a work of art.
“Bring the anvil!”
“Yes, sir!”
At Dang Gun-ak’s command, the artisans rushed inside and heaved out an anvil with great effort.
“Here it is, Family Head!”
“Step back.”
Once the artisans had retreated from the anvil, Dang Gun-ak casually swung the Ten Thousand Year Cold Iron sword in his hand toward it.
Swish.
There was no special sound at all. The large cast-iron anvil split cleanly in two.
“Hah?”
Dang Gun-ak himself looked surprised and stared at the sword.
“Iron isn’t tofu.”
This time, he poured in his inner force as well. Instantly, a sharp killing edge filled the sword from end to end. If it already had this much power in his hands, despite him not even being a swordsman, then Dang Gun-ak couldn’t even imagine how terrifying it would be in the hands of Mount Hua’s swordsmen.
“Hrrm. I feel like I may be giving them something too good…….”
“Um…….”
Dang Gun-ak, who had been muttering to himself, stiffened and turned around. The Mount Hua disciples had approached without him noticing and were now standing behind him, practically drooling.
“C-Could we swing it once?”
“……Why not.”
“Thank you. Family Head, you’re a good man.”
“…….”
Was that really something worth saying?
The Mount Hua disciples, hastily gathering up the swords lying on the ground, each drew one and began testing the swings.
“I-It’s insanely light, Senior Brother!”
“How can a sword this light move so fiercely? What in the world…….”
“Wow. So this is what they mean by a good sword.”
“Every sword I’ve used until now feels like trash.”
“Exactly!”
Watching their reactions, Dang Gun-ak smiled with satisfaction.
Those were made by the Tang clan for the swords you used before, you little brats.
At least think before you speak!
Dang Gun-ak clicked his tongue bitterly. Still, he couldn’t say he didn’t understand. He himself was astonished, so how much more so would they be?
“Thank you. Truly, thank you.”
Baek Cheon and the others rushed up to the artisans and bowed so deeply their foreheads seemed fit to touch the ground.
“Ho ho, there’s no need for that.”
“No, really! We never expected swords this good to come out. Thank you so much.”
“Thank you! I’ll buy everyone a huge round of drinks!”
“Oh? I hear you’re the young master of the Sahaesanghoe. If that’s the case, doesn’t that mean we can really fleece you?”
“Of course! Then I’ll take you all to the merchant association myself.”
“Hahahaha. No, no, that’s fine, really.”
The artisans laughed heartily, their faces glowing with pride.
Those are strange ones indeed.
Even if they were part of the Tang clan, in the end they were blacksmiths. People the world did not hold in especially high regard.
There had been those who thanked the clan head whenever they commissioned and received goods from the Tang clan, but no one had ever bowed to the artisans like this in person.
Mount Hua, huh.
What an interesting sect.
He could understand why the clan head had wanted to build ties with them.
“If you’re done, load them up.”
“Huh?”
Chung Myung, who had come over at some point, was standing right beside him.
“We need to pack up and head back soon.”
“Already?”
“Not this very second, but we leave tomorrow morning. We can wrap these up and take them…….”
“Wrap these up and take them? Are you crazy?”
“That bastard’s sword means more to him than his own life!”
“A divine blade should be treated like a divine blade!”
Caught off guard by the Mount Hua disciples’ fierce resistance, Chung Myung flinched a little. Then the artisans spoke up.
“We’ve also prepared wooden sword cases. You can put them in those and take them.”
“Oh!”
Baek Cheon’s face brightened as he nodded eagerly.
“Thank you.”
“……And here I thought that would only make the baggage heavier.”
“You shut your mouth too!”
“That damn mouth!”
Chung Myung grumbled, shaking his head.
Look at them, choosing to suffer on their own.
Well, if they wanted to work themselves to the bone, what could he say?
“We can’t return yet.”
“Pardon?”
At Dang Gun-ak’s words, Chung Myung turned his head. Something in his gaze looked oddly meaningful.
“Have we not yet properly shared our drinks?”
“Ah, right. That’s why we have to leave tomorrow. I was planning to drink myself senseless tonight.”
“No, that isn’t what I mean.”
“……Yes?”
Dang Gun-ak smiled faintly.
“For my part, one day would be enough. But would that person truly be satisfied with only one day? He’s the sort who could be drowned in liquor for three days straight and still not be satisfied.”
“That person?”
Who was he talking about……?
That was when—
Kuuuurrrrung!
“Huh?”
The ground shook once, as if an earthquake had struck.
“What the…….”
Kuuuurrrrung!
It trembled violently again, and then the vibrations came in a steady sequence.
“An earthquake?”
“No, I don’t think it’s an earthquake.”
“That way!”
The Mount Hua disciples dashed toward the Tang clan’s main gate.
Dang Gun-ak smiled as though he wasn’t surprised in the least and said to Chung Myung, “Let’s go too.”
“Pardon?”
“We should greet our guest.”
Without another word, he began walking. Chung Myung tilted his head, then silently followed after him for the moment.
“My goodness! What on earth is happening?”
“What in the world is this?”
The Tang clan retainers who had rushed outside in alarm murmured among themselves. The Mount Hua disciples, heading toward the front gate with Dang Gun-ak, passed them and went straight to the door.
“Open it!”
At Dang Gun-ak’s booming shout, the guards at the front swung the massive gates wide open to either side.
“Whoa…….”
“Amazing…….”
Then the Mount Hua disciples’ eyes widened to the size of teacups.
They were looking at a scene beyond astonishment.
Bwoooooo!
A beast the size of a house lifted its long trunk and trumpeted, while a tiger twice the size of an ordinary one roared in response.
To either side of them, white leopards bared their teeth, and beasts with sharp horns jutting from their noses snorted and pawed the ground.
Beasts. More beasts. And even more beasts.
Huge creatures they had never seen in their lives were marching in formation toward the Tang clan.
“W-What in the world are all those things!”
“Shouldn’t we stop them?”
“What the hell is this!”
And then—
Fwaaaat!
Among that mass of beasts, something pure white like a streak of lightning shot into the Tang clan in an instant and launched itself toward the Mount Hua disciples at the front.
“Wh-What!”
“Move!”
Thud!
Baek Cheon, who had reflexively leaned back, soon looked at Chung Myung standing before him with a bewildered expression.
To be exact, at the thing perched on Chung Myung’s outstretched hand.
“Kyaaaaarrrrrr!”
A snow-white marten was rubbing its face against Chung Myung’s hand.
“Oh? Isn’t that Baek Ah?”
Baek Ah?
Huh?
Then……?
“KWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”
Just then, a tremendous laugh that felt like it would split their eardrums thundered through the Tang clan.
There were many people in the world, but surely there could not be two people with such a boisterous laugh. And who else would command this many beasts?
“Mount Hua Divine Dragon! Where is the Mount Hua Divine Dragon! I’ve arrived, so why aren’t you coming out at once!”
“Well, where else would I be? I’m right here!”
“Oho!”
Among the beasts, a giant who looked as though he’d been forged from an iron tower strode forward.
“It’s been a long time, Mount Hua Divine Dragon!”
“Haha…… I didn’t expect to see you here instead of in Yunnan, Palace Lord.”
Maeng So, the lord of the Southern Barbarian Beast Palace, laughed loudly and spread both arms toward Chung Myung.
“Good! Excellent! Tonight, we’re going to drink until we drop!”
“Did you get better at drinking?”
“I’ve improved enough to beat you!”
“Oh? You dare?”
Seeing the two of them grin and laugh at each other, the Mount Hua disciples let out a simultaneous sigh.
There would never be a peaceful day, would there?
Never a peaceful day at all.