Chapter 26
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Messenger Pigeons Are Losers of the Era (2)
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“Hmm……”
Dangchan read through the contents of the letter once more with utmost care.
Committing every bit of the coded message to memory.
He then quietly burned the letter in the candle flame.
It was not bad news.
Though the sender—that fool Dang Mok—had failed, narrowing their position within both the family and the Society somewhat.
Results came first.
If he could just sever that bastard's lifeline this time, it would more than make up for it.
There was no resentment.
However.
That bastard had to die.
And Ten Thousand Gold Treasury Fortress had to vanish.
For the sake of Azure Heaven Society, and indeed the future of the orthodox martial world.
If he pulled this off properly, he could secure even more support from the Society.
After crushing those Dark Arts Faction upstarts—who dared eye the next family head position while playing with their toys—he could solidify the Poison Principle Faction's standing within the family.
As he penned his reply, he quietly recited the Azure Heaven Society's motto.
“Make the martial world great again.”
Today's Understanding Unorthodox Martial Arts class had been a total disaster, as usual.
Perhaps because the course registration period was now over, leaving no escape.
- Understanding Unorthodox Martial Arts, Second Lesson! There's No Such Thing as a Fair Fight!
Master Dakbu had bellowed that at the start of class with gusto.
Then he promptly grabbed his club and thrashed the remaining students mercilessly.
His combat style was...
No matter how you dressed it up, it was just a street brawl.
Throwing sand in the face was child's play.
Suddenly spitting in the eyes to blind them.
He grabbed the female students by the hair and slammed them to the ground.
The male students got relentlessly targeted in the groin, to the point where Unhak foamed at the mouth and passed out midway.
“Urgh……”
Even Cheon Luri had a large lump bulging on her forehead, frowning as she kept rubbing it.
It was an equal-opportunity field of violence for orthodox, unorthodox, demonic, and evil alike.
Watching Moyong Taek piggyback the still-limping Unhak as they dashed to the infirmary.
I decided to share my concerns with an expert.
After helping Master Dakbu—who looked utterly refreshed, all stress evaporated, with a beaming smile—clean up the gruesome scene of violence.
“Oh, you rascal. Good boy?”
Master Dakbu ruffled my hair with his bloodstained hand.
I'll have to wash my hair later.
That was enough for affinity-building.
Once all the students had cleared out of the classroom.
“Do you perhaps know how to catch a messenger pigeon?”
“In this day and age?”
Master Dakbu's eyes narrowed slightly.
“Back in the day, catching one would net you a big reward for the letter, but now everyone uses smartphones, right? Why the sudden interest?”
Not wrong.
But if you doubted Murim Talk's security, traditional communication methods weren't out of the question.
Especially when conspiracy theories about message censorship popped up every cooldown period on the app that inspired Murim Talk.
“Haha... It just popped into my head.”
“Hmm. Traditionally, you'd track its flight path, set traps at rest stops, use falcons to snag it, or lay out a bunch of female pigeons to lure it in.”
The last one—what was that?
Pigeon harem technique?
“Oh yeah, you wanted to learn archery, right?”
“Yes?”
“Then just shoot it down with arrows.”
“What kind of nonsense is th—urk!”
The club that felled Unhak's line smashed into my head.
“You doubt your sky-high master's words?”
Whether scratched by my words.
Or to show me the hell of doubt, Master Dakbu dragged me to the western woods.
“Kyau!”
Watching the wolf pup joyfully bounding around its home territory after so long.
“Leash……”
“It's my original home—what leash? Our Silver Wolf is smarter than you.”
Take that back! Right now!
Not Silver Wolf—it's a wolf pup!
I held my tongue, lest a Luri-sized lump sprout on my head too.
“Watch closely. I'll show you this great master's skills.”
Master Dakbu smirked smugly, nocked an arrow to the bow he'd grabbed from the classroom.
Unlike my awkward stance.
He struck a professional pose worthy of a top archer.
And then.
Screeeeech—!
With a sound like tearing space itself.
The first shot nailed a massive tree.
“For birds……”
“Shh.”
Silencing my retort with a single breath.
Flutter—
Birds resting peacefully in the tree scattered in panic at the sudden strike, flapping skyward.
Most resettled on nearby branches to resume resting.
But one flapped higher, heading elsewhere.
“That one.”
With a killer's glare, like mailing a murder notice.
He nocked another arrow at blinding speed and—shoot!
“Hoh.”
The bird was already far away.
Like the Yuanmen Sheji tale, where Lu Bu shot an arrow into Lü Bu's halberd blade from afar.
The arrow struck the flying bird dead-on.
For a split second, I hallucinated antennae sprouting from Master's head like a grasshopper.
“W-Why are you aiming at me?!”
“Your eyes flicker with insolence, not respect. What wild thoughts are you having now?”
Unfair!
“Eek!”
This time, possessed by William Tell perhaps.
I shuddered at the whoosh of the arrow grazing perilously over my head.
But.
“No arrowhead?”
“Why bludgeon an innocent life with a barbed arrow?”
Doesn't nailing a flying bird midair already reek of human malice?
I'd clearly seen it plummet.
Probably not dead.
Still doubting my master, I headed to where the bird likely fell.
“Kyauu!”
“Oh.”
There stood the mother wolf—one of the parents who'd shirked child-rearing duties—majestically.
“Heh, Narang. Long time no see.”
Master greeted the mother wolf with a tender smile he'd never show humans.
And.
“Mnyu!”
With that onomatopoeic squeak she made when plunging her head into the food bowl and finding meat.
The wolf pup popped out from atop the mother wolf's massive body.
“How...?”
The pup had the bird in its mouth.
And the bird was alive...!
A gentle smile bloomed on Master's face.
“Even small lives should be spared if there's no need to kill. That's the realm of the living bow.”
Coming from a former bandit boss, it sounded almost convincing.
The pup hopped over, protesting bird flapping in its jaws.
The moment I pried the tiny, barely-roastable bird from its mouth.
“Huh?”
Green Forest Bandit King.
Was she a goddess?
Coincidence or fate.
A small tube was tied to the bird's leg.
Master, stroking the mother wolf's cheek affectionately, noticed it at my gasp.
“...Well, well. A real messenger pigeon in this modern age?”
Her shocked exclamation nearly shattered the respect swelling in my heart.
Approaching, Master peered into the tube with a grave expression.
“...The Azure Heaven Society's seal.”
What?
Was there such a thing?
“Among the orthodox lot, some strut around claiming they're the best, pure martial artists. Their true nature's unknown, but they meddle in our Toll Road Division's business, hiding behind masks without revealing themselves.”
Sounds like a death wish.
Master delicately extracted a sheet of paper with forensic care.
Even gloved up to avoid contaminating it—pure pro vibes.
“Hmm. Exquisite code. No amateur could crack it.”
Master frowned.
Up close, it looked like random scrawls—hard to even call them characters.
“Best to look the other way. Tangling with Azure Heaven Society brings nothing good.”
Not giving me a chance to argue, Master resealed the paper, set the bird down.
The disgruntled pigeon cooed, flapped, and fluttered skyward.
“Hmm……”
Well.
I agreed with that call.
You don't swing a big stick everywhere.
Might just heighten their alert if I botched the handover.
I'd memorized it anyway.
Now, just hand it to an expert.
Geum Sirang was leisurely practicing calligraphy.
How long had it been since he'd felt this peace of mind?
Since arriving at Hundred Flowers Academy from the Imperial Academy.
Every day had been a parade of shocks and horrors for Geum Sirang.
The sons of martial world's luminaries—such barbarians!
In class, more slept than stayed awake.
Homework submissions? Indecipherable—calligraphy or snake trails?
Recently, he'd had them chant the Diamond Sutra, only for some lunatic monk wannabe to blast palm strikes, shattering his cherished screen.
And his father kept dragging him to weekend meetups with 'prospective brides,' hounding him like a rat.
“Hoo…”
He suddenly wanted to quit and return to the Imperial Academy.
In this mess.
Even his damn little brother—
Geum Sihyeon—seemed more well-behaved by comparison.
Sure, he always slipped in simplified characters on assignments as a 'catch this!' taunt.
But at least legible.
Smart like him, high comprehension.
And he didn't nap in class.
The more he dealt with martial folk.
The higher Geum Sirang's opinion of his brother grew.
“Brother, you there?”
Speak of the tiger.
Geum Sirang set down his brush, snapped open his fan.
“Yes. What's up? You seeking me out first.”
His brother only showed unless begging favors, and his expression screamed 'request incoming.'
Without invitation, Geum Sihyeon dragged a chair screeching to the desk.
“Take a look at this.”
He proffered a paper of chaotic strokes mangling sacred script.
“What's this?”
“A letter in code.”
“Heh. Mess with the wrong one, and you're done.”
Indeed, scholars decoding imperial ciphers often ended up snorting dungeon soup through their noses in the royal guard's cells.
Feeling uneasy, he started to refuse.
“Hmm... Even the great Geum Sirang can't crack it……”
“What?”
“Right... Even an Imperial Academy scholar hits unsolvable riddles... I see... Back when you were at your prime... Surely... No, still……”
Crack!
“Seven days. Seven days, and I'll decode it.”
That infuriating tone boiled his blood; Geum Sirang took the bait.
“That's my brother.”
Geum Sihyeon grinned, handing over the paper.
“At least tell me the source.”
“Hmm... Not sure exactly. Something called Azure Heaven Society, they say. Anyway, thanks, brother.”
“Sure.”
Geum Sirang fanned away the guest.
Even brothers—instructor and cadet—shouldn't look too chummy.
Reading the intent.
Geum Sihyeon smiled and slipped out quick.
The smile lingering on Geum Sirang's lips.
Froze cold the moment he left.
“Azure Heaven Society, huh……”
Seemed.
His brother was entangled in the family's power struggles too.
Geum Sirang sighed deeply.