My Dear Sisters
Moyong Geon was in absolute agony.
"Vice Commander, are you alright?"
"Shut the hell up. I want to die right now, and if you keep talking to me, you're going to die, and then I'm going to die. Got it?"
"Yes, sir!"
Though his words were incredibly harsh, his tone and demeanor carried the serene detachment of a Daoist master who had transcended all worldly affairs. The White Tiger Unit member scrambled backward. Watching his subordinate keep a wide distance—definitely not because of the smell, of course—Moyong Geon let out a sigh heavy enough to sink the earth.
"Sigh... Damn it. That spineless turtle of a brother."
Moyong Geon ground his teeth, cursing Moyong Gon, who was likely living in the lap of luxury back at the clan's estate right about now.
That was definitely a movement that couldn't have been executed without knowing the counter to the Seven Stars Swordplay.
The final movement Tang Hwi had shown him was unmistakably that of someone who knew the counter inside and out. But how could a notorious scoundrel of the Sichuan Tang Clan possibly know such a secret?
Those words Tang Hwi had whispered right before delivering the gut punch that made him soil himself... They definitely pointed to Moyong Gon. It almost felt like an intentional hint to make him suspect his brother, but realistically, there was no other way Tang Hwi could have known the flaws of the Seven Stars Swordplay.
To his surprise, Tang Hwi had reached the Peak Realm, but he shouldn't have been skilled enough to defeat Geon so utterly. Had Moyong Gon felt so threatened by Geon's rising influence in the Murim Alliance? Yes, that bastard must have leaked every single one of his weaknesses and bad habits to Tang Hwi.
It wasn't that he bore no grudge against Tang Hwi for making him defecate in his pants. However, since Geon was the one who had unilaterally broken the engagement and wronged the Tang Clan, he couldn't bring himself to truly hate the boy. The Tang Clan's motto of returning grudges tenfold was famous, after all, and Geon had accepted that risk when he broke the engagement. But Moyong Gon—the brother who had set him up to be utterly humiliated by the Tang Clan's trash—was someone he could never forgive.
I will return to the clan and get my revenge. But first, I must apologize.
At least I don't have to strip. That's a small mercy.
At Tang Ga-hui's request that she had no desire to see the half-naked body of a man who had just soiled himself, Moyong Geon was spared from having to strip.
Let's get this over with and go back.
As he waited with that thought, the sound of steady footsteps echoed. Step. Step.
Tang Ga-hui finally revealed herself.
Just as the rumors said, she appeared with a veil covering her face, and the crowd parted to the left and right to make way for her. For the onlookers, seeing a young elite of the Five Great Clans—and a member of the prestigious Nine Dragons, no less—perform a five-point prostration to a woman on the open street was a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle. Some of them would probably gossip about this over drinks for the rest of their lives.
Yet, Moyong Geon accepted it calmly. Perhaps because he had already pooped his pants in front of a massive crowd, this level of humiliation barely registered as a disgrace.
They say there is always a rock bottom below the floor.
Having achieved a strange state of spiritual enlightenment, he knelt before the approaching Tang Ga-hui. *Thud.* He placed both hands in front of his head and bowed deeply, pressing his forehead against the dirt.
"Tang Ga-hui. I am sorry."
"For what, exactly?"
"For everything."
Moyong Geon did not want to look any more pathetic than he already did.
"Even though it was an arranged marriage, I unilaterally broke it off just because you suffered a facial scar from a Heart Demon. And I didn't even have the decency to come and apologize... It was all my choice, and it is only right that I apologize for it."
"And you're only doing this now, after being beaten like a dog by my brother and soiling your pants?"
"......Yes. Even if it is only now."
For a split second, his composure threatened to shatter, but he barely managed to hold it together. A heavy silence stretched between them. Moyong Geon desperately wanted to believe this was enough, but having no other choice, he could only wait in silence for Tang Ga-hui's judgment.
"I forgive you. Even though you made me distrust men to the point where I lost all confidence in starting a family and resolved to live a single life... since you are offering this apology, even if it is like swallowing broken glass, I will forgive you."
"I... see. Thank you."
Dizzy from her savage, polite sarcasm, Moyong Geon barely managed to push himself up. And at that exact moment—*flutter.* Tang Ga-hui cast off her veil.
"Ah!"
Moyong Geon gasped in shock. He had heard rumors that she had overcome her Heart Demon, but this was far beyond his wildest expectations.
Behind the veil was a face that wasn't just healed; her skin was flawless, and her jawline was so sharp and elegant that she looked far more beautiful than before her disfigurement.
As he stood utterly dazed by a beauty that truly deserved the title of the First Beauty of Sichuan, Tang Ga-hui offered a soft, parting smile.
"Then, let us make sure we never cross paths again to avoid any unpleasantness. Farewell."
"Uh, uh? Right..."
The farewell was over in an instant. Realizing that the final thread of their connection had been severed, Moyong Geon stood frozen, unable to gather his thoughts.
Watching the scene unfold, Mu Jan of the Qingcheng Sect clicked his tongue.
"Tsk, tsk. If he had been just a little more prudent, he could have bound his life to that beauty and enjoyed a happy marriage... I guess the position of Clan Leader is just that tempting. Why not just go with the flow? Right, Senior Brother?"
"......"
"...Senior Brother?"
Receiving no reply, he turned his head. There stood Mujeong, his mouth hanging wide open, staring at the departing Tang Ga-hui as if his eyes would pop out of his skull.
Anyone could see he was utterly smitten. Mu Jan let out a wry smile.
"Senior Brother..." he said pityingly. "The Poison Phoenix just said she resolved to live a single life."
Mujeong's crush was doomed to be unrequited.
***
At that moment, Tang Hwi was receiving burning glares of envy from every man present, all of them wishing they could be his right arm.
This was because Tang Ga-hui was currently clinging to his right arm so tightly that her massive breasts were completely squished against it.
To an outsider, it looked like a passionate display of lovers.
However, since everyone at the banquet now knew that Tang Hwi had fought a fierce (?) duel with Moyong Geon for his sister's sake, no one made that mistake (?).
Aware of this, Tang Ga-hui clung to him even more blatantly.
"Sister, people are watching."
"It's fine, it's fine. We just look like a close brother and sister, what's wrong with that?"
"...While saying that, you're stealthily fondling my butt."
Indeed, Tang Ga-hui was squeezing her younger brother's buttocks out of everyone's sight.
Ga-in likes to be touched, but Sister likes to touch. They're similar yet subtly different, truly sisters.
"Ah. Are you unhappy because it's not the front?"
Was she doing this because he had utterly humiliated Moyong Geon, the man who dumped her? Or was she simply overjoyed that he had gone to such lengths purely for her?
Honestly, Tang Hwi didn't mind either way. Who would complain when a beauty of Tang Ga-hui's caliber was actively trying to act like a lover?
"Mmh♡ Hwi, you pervert."
"So, did you dislike it?"
"No. I love it♡"
The moment other people's eyes drifted away, Tang Hwi's hand firmly cupped her breast over her clothes.
Far from being worried about being seen, she pressed her body even closer, thrusting her bountiful curves forward as if begging for more.
"Sister, there are still many people around. Behave yourself."
"Hmph. Hwi is so stingy. You don't even understand your loving sister's heart."
"Don't worry," he whispered so close that his breath tickled her ear, "Tonight, I will indulge all of my 'loving' sister's tantrums."
"...♡"
"By the way, can Ga-in join us too?"
"......"
Even while spending sweet time with Tang Ga-hui, his mind was simultaneously dealing with another woman at the Tang Clan Tower.
Outside the banquet, specifically near the outer area of the Tang Clan Tower, Tang Hwi's clone was meeting with Bang So-yul.
She was sprawled on the ground, chugging liquor straight from the bottle.
"Puhaha! So~ good! ...Hm? Why are you staring at me like that?"
"Anyone would find it strange to see a beautiful woman who is not only a beggar but also lying on the bare ground, chugging from a bottle."
"Heheh. I guess that's true."
Even for Tang Hwi, who had lived through numerous reincarnations, it was a first to see a woman this beautiful acting as the Beggars' Sect successor while speaking in a bizarre, mixed rustic dialect.
Surely others found her just as fascinating, including her fellow Beggars' Sect members.
"Anyway, Young Master, thanks to you, I saw something mighty entertaining. Heheh. Never in all my days did I think I'd see that fellow soil his pants. I'm already looking forward to the next Dragon and Phoenix Gathering."
"I assume you haven't forgotten my request."
"Don't you worry. I've given strict orders to my underlings. But say..."
Suddenly, Bang So-yul floated up and, with elegant footwork, landed right next to Tang Hwi, nudging his ribs with her elbow.
"From what I see, your realm isn't just the Peak Realm, but the Super-Peak Realm. Can I treat this as information?"
"If the relationship between the Beggars' Sect and the Tang Clan becomes closer, there's no reason you can't."
"Yikes!"
"?"
Bang So-yul recoiled in shock, backing away. Like a maiden who had just run into a lecher, she crossed her arms, tightly covering her voluptuous breasts.
"I'm not so easy that I'd give away my cherry to a lad I've only met twice!"
"......"
Tang Hwi felt a headache coming on.
"Lady Beggar Phoenix, stop joking. You're making my gratitude vanish."
"I'm not joking, though? I really am a virgin."
"...Lower the corners of your mouth before you lie. You're grinning ear to ear; how is that not a joke?"
Bang So-yul wasn't actually misunderstanding him. She was just teasing him, her lips curved into a playful smirk. She was pretending to mistake organizational cooperation for a marriage proposal between successors just to mess with him. Of course, since she wasn't putting much effort into the act, she was likely just looking for a lighthearted tease.
"At any rate, I am highly likely to become the next Young Patriarch. My eldest sister has declared she will live a single life, and Ga-in has no interest in the position. As the future leader of my clan, it is only natural that I wish to be on good terms with the successor of the Beggars' Sect."
"Hmm. That's all well and good... but how far can I trust you, Young Master?"
The aura surrounding Bang So-yul grew sharper. She wasn't getting drunker; rather, she was circulating her inner energy to expel the alcohol. With the drunkenness gone, her eyes shone brilliantly in the darkness, radiating a powerful presence.
"I might look like a scruffy beggar... but I deal in information. And we are beggars. The Beggars' Sect is a group of outcasts who gathered because they had no other way to survive under this sky. So while we pursue righteousness and chivalry, we never give unconditional trust to anyone."
So tell me.
"How can I trust you?"
Convince me.
Tang Hwi stared at her quietly, then shrugged his shoulders calmly.
"You can't."
"...Huh?"
She let out a deflated sound.
"Aren't you supposed to convince me?"
"Yes. But I can't just blurt out my secrets and beg you to trust me, can I? Trust is built over time, forming a solid relationship. You say beggars don't easily trust others, but I don't easily trust verbal agreements either. To be precise, I don't believe in them."
Tang Hwi's voice, calm and detached as if he had transcended the world, seemed to carry absolute truth.
"That is why we, as the future leaders of our respective factions, should become close. If we build a friendship and establish trust starting now, won't we have an unbreakable bond by the time you become the Sect Leader and I become the Clan Leader?"
"Well, that's..."
Bang So-yul found herself at a loss for words. She prided herself on her silver tongue, but she hadn't expected this.
Thump. Thump.
Looking into Tang Hwi's dark eyes as he stared at her, suggesting they build trust together, she felt a sudden pull, and her heart began to race as if it were malfunctioning.
It was an entirely unfamiliar sensation, but...
"That's a mighty fine way of putting it."
It didn't feel bad at all.