Chapter 103
Chapter 103
-----------------------------------------------------------------
>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 103
>Chapter Title: Misunderstanding (3)
>-----------------------------------------------------------------
‘What the hell are they talking about?’
Of course, martial arts were relative, and it was hard to quantify skill precisely due to matchups and situations.
Especially since Jeong-hyeon’s specialty was archery, which varied greatly depending on conditions and circumstances.
Even accounting for that, though, Il-mok didn’t think Jeong-hyeon was inferior to those guys.
On top of that.
‘Unlike those idiots who only know brute-force head-on clashes, Inspector Jeong has a lot of practical skills that are actually useful in real combat.’
Those fools thought Jeong-hyeon had scored well thanks to him, but all he’d done was let her deploy her abilities at the right moments.
‘Tch. Bunch of blockheads. They see Inspector Jeong’s versatility as just some scouting skill.’
Maybe because they were ignorant cult fanatics, or perhaps because they were still young. There was this trend of looking down on archery and covert techniques.
Petty backtalk from immature, pathetic kids. He wasn’t sure it was worth bothering with.
The problem was if it escalated from backtalk to actual bullying.
While Il-mok pondered what to do, an odd comment popped up.
“We were just about to go question her ourselves, but she’s sharp-eyed or something. Ever since the youngest young master went missing, she’s been hanging around with ‘that guy.’”
“I happened to see them passing by too. They were blatantly sticking together.”
“Yeah. Even so, getting tangled up with ‘that guy’ is off-putting in all sorts of ways….”
Who was this ‘that guy’ they couldn’t even name?
It didn’t take long to figure it out.
‘Well… yeah, hanging with that psycho attention whore would make her off-putting in all sorts of ways.’
They were talking about Baek-cheon.
Jeong-hyeon had only gone to him for lessons on how to talk to people properly, but those guys apparently thought she was using him as a shield.
‘For now, thanks to that lunatic, they haven’t been able to bully her.’
Even shit could be medicine, as they said. Il-mok had discovered an amazing use for it.
And with that, Il-mok turned and left the backtalk scene behind.
He’d concluded there was no need for him to step in as long as it didn’t turn into bullying.
How long had he been walking, ignoring the pathetic quartet chattering away?
Suddenly, thoughts of Jeong-hyeon and Baek-cheon crossed his mind.
‘Come to think of it, their pairing is pretty weird.’
They were both loners, but for totally different reasons.
One avoided people due to social anxiety, while the other was an attention seeker who thrived on it.
The only issue was that he didn’t care what kind of attention, so people treated him like a madman and kept their distance.
‘…Yeah, he’s always been like that.’
Il-mok felt oddly uncomfortable. Ever since his advice back then, the guy had turned into a total lunatic who ignored everyone’s stares.
And another thing they had in common: both practiced archery and covert arts, which the cult warriors scorned.
Unlike Jeong-hyeon, who got even more depressed because of it, that psycho seemed to think covert arts were perfect for drawing attention.
‘Hmm. They don’t match at all… or maybe they do.’
Il-mok’s thoughts reached that point, then his body shuddered violently, and he shook his head vigorously.
‘Am I going mad from dealing with lunatics? Thinking those two guys match or whatever.’
Rubbing his arms at the sudden goosebumps, Il-mok hurriedly activated his stealth technique again to avoid the pervert trio.
And far off, at the spot where they’d been gossiping about Jeong-hyeon.
“For her to stick to ‘that guy’ after the youngest young master… As a fellow woman, her behavior is truly pathetic.”
Such talk was going on, but Il-mok, who had already left, didn’t hear it.
* * *
The next morning.
The martial arts lesson with Instructor Chui Il-hwan, as always.
Il-mok, as usual, had Choi Woong’s trio forming a human screen and was lazily swinging his sword.
But he wasn’t dozing off. Unlike usual, he was peeking through gaps in the screen toward somewhere.
After confirming it several times with his eyes, Il-mok had a realization.
‘…That’s pretty serious.’
He finally understood why those guys had been badmouthing Jeong-hyeon.
Of course, he had no intention of justifying their gossip. It was just…
‘That pathetic?’
Jeong-hyeon’s archery was genuinely terrible.
At one edge of the training ground, various targets had been set up by the instructor and assistants for Jeong-hyeon, who was practicing archery.
Every time she aimed and shot, the arrow flew off without any speed, and accuracy was all over the place. It hardly ever hit the center.
It was bizarre.
When they were alone in the clearing or teamed up in the exam, her archery hadn’t been this awful.
And Il-mok quickly realized why her archery was so poor now.
‘…Seems like it’s because people are watching.’
There was this thing called stage fright.
The type who could perform at full strength on stage in front of an audience.
Or even better under the pressure of many eyes.
And the opposite.
The kind who couldn’t even show half their skill once on stage.
He’d heard plenty of singers, actors, or athletes born with that trait ended up failing.
Their singing, acting, or athletic skills were flawless, but if they couldn’t perform in front of people, they couldn’t show their talent to the world—which was no different from having no talent.
And to Il-mok, Jeong-hyeon’s current state seemed exactly like that.
‘She must’ve been like this back in Class E too, huh?’
If they’d only seen her archery like that for three months, it was no wonder they thought she sucked.
He’d only seen her in the clearing and exam hall before, so he’d never imagined she could be this bad.
While Il-mok diagnosed Jeong-hyeon’s condition,
‘Why, why, why is he keep staring?’
Feeling Il-mok’s gaze repeatedly, Jeong-hyeon couldn’t focus at all.
She already struggled to concentrate on archery during lessons because of her classmates’ stares.
With Il-mok peeking at her now and then, it got even worse.
Ting!
Her hand shook, releasing the string prematurely, and an awkward twang echoed across the training ground.
Tick.
The arrow bounced off the string and dropped right in front of her, making a small noise.
“Pfft…”
Someone’s laughter pierced her ears.
Curious why Il-mok kept looking somewhere, Choi Woong had turned to follow his gaze, seen the scene, and burst out laughing.
At that laugh, Jeong-hyeon’s face went pale.
Her hand trembled so badly as she tried to pick up the fallen arrow that even that simple motion was impossible.
“Tch.”
Il-mok clicked his tongue lightly and smacked Choi Woong’s head with his scabbard.
“What are you doing during lesson time? Focus on your training.”
“Urk…”
Choi Woong, suddenly hit in the back of the head, fought back tears while forcing his mouth shut.
It wasn’t to stifle a groan.
‘He’ll beat my ass!’
If he didn’t hold back, curses would spill out, and he’d get thrashed again.
* * *
That afternoon.
Unlike the day before, Il-mok headed back to that quiet clearing.
He’d thought she might hole up in her room after the morning fiasco, but fortunately, Jeong-hyeon was there.
“Hahaha!”
“Ahaha… hahaha.”
Today too, under the excuse of practicing abdominal breathing, she was with Baek-cheon, letting out bizarre laughs.
‘…Not that she came out willingly; maybe that attention whore dragged her here?’
The suspicion crossed Il-mok’s mind, but it wasn’t important right now, so he let it go.
“Ahem.”
Il-mok cleared his throat to announce his presence, and the two, mid-laugh, turned to him.
“Il-mok young master! Perfect timing!”
“Y-Young master?”
Ignoring Baek-cheon’s welcome, Il-mok spoke to Jeong-hyeon.
“Inspector Jeong. Let me ask you one thing.”
“P-Please, speak.”
Facing the trembling Jeong-hyeon, Il-mok calmly opened his mouth.
“In your opinion, Inspector Jeong, what do you think you’re best at?”
“Y-Yes…?”
Unable to grasp the intent, she reflexively asked back.
But as Il-mok stared silently, she hurriedly bowed her head to avoid his gaze and pondered.
‘What… what am I best at?’
Honestly, nothing came to mind right away.
Since nothing came to her own mind, she decided to rely on others.
On the things her one and only friend, Young Master Il-mok, had praised.
“Ar-Archery or stealth arts. Tr-Tracking too, I’m… somewhat confident in those.”
Il-mok inwardly sighed in relief at her answer and asked again.
“Then, what about talking with people? Are you confident in that?”
“N-No…”
She slumped her shoulders completely, looking utterly defeated.
At Il-mok’s next words, Jeong-hyeon looked up in surprise.
“The reason you’re training with Inspector Baek is because dealing with people is hard, right? If so, instead of practicing what you’re weak at—like talking—wouldn’t it be better to start with what you’re good at?”
“Wh-What do you mean?”
“Just what I said. Showing something to others is scary to begin with. No need to make it scarier by doing what you’re bad at.”
“Th-Then, you mean… spar with me?”
Il-mok shook his head at her question.
“Sparring’s fine too, but for now, just practice archery. Except in front of me and Inspector Baek.”
“…?”
“We’ll keep watching you, so ignore the stares and practice your Ghost Spirit Divine Bow.”
Il-mok thought.
If she couldn’t do archery in front of a dozen people, maybe start with two.
Il-mok hated getting involved in others’ business, but this wasn’t a big deal.
‘It’s just watching, after all.’
He had no intention of training his own martial arts after all the torment at Peach Blossom Ridge. So watching Jeong-hyeon’s archery here while zoning out wasn’t bad.
He could just think of it as spectating archery tricks.
Plus, no need to critique or analyze her archery.
“Also, Inspector Baek, give her advice now and then while watching. As her master.”
There was Baek-cheon to teach her in his place.
‘See, shit can be medicine after all.’
Baek-cheon was some pretty useful shit.