Chapter 14
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Black Moon (2)
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Na and Gwang-u wandered the village in search of work.
We scoured every corner, but couldn't find a single decent job.
"At this rate, we'll starve to death by next year."
"Don't worry, hyung. You think the mountain's gonna weave spiderwebs over its mouth?"
Gwang-u's carefree, sunny disposition grated on my nerves, and my voice rose despite myself.
"You bastard! It's because you eat like a pig!"
"Sorry, hyung. But eating a lot isn't a crime, right?"
"In a house with no food, it sure as hell is!"
As I dragged Gwang-u around the village, I spotted an old man in the backyard of an inn, chopping firewood. He looked utterly exhausted.
I approached the elderly man and asked politely.
"Excuse me, sir. How about we chop that firewood for you?"
The old man set down his axe and looked us up and down.
He paid special attention to Gwang-u, his eyes gleaming sharply.
"You look like you've got some muscle on you. Give it a try. If you finish all that, I'll treat you to a meal."
The old man pointed to a pile of logs stacked against the wall, as tall as I was.
Chopping all that for just one meal...
Before I could respond, Gwang-u piped up from behind me.
"Don't worry, sir. We'll have it done in no time."
Gwang-u took the axe from the old man's hand, gripped it in his right hand, and brought it down on the logs.
Thwack! Crack! Thwack! Crack! ...!
Each swing split a log clean in two.
The old man watching from the side gaped in astonishment.
"Haha..."
"Even with all that strength, chopping firewood isn't easy... but you seem experienced."
"I chopped wood every day in the mountains."
"Hahaha..."
"I see."
Before long, the entire pile against the wall was reduced to split firewood under Gwang-u's hands.
"Come on in. As promised, I'll get you that meal."
Gwang-u and I followed the elderly man inside and took seats at a table.
The old man went to the kitchen and brought out rice along with a few dishes: stir-fried pork, stir-fried beef, and a whole roasted chicken.
Gwang-u devoured the rice and food like a man possessed.
Watching him, the old man returned to the kitchen and brought out a large bowl of rice.
I scooped some rice into my own large bowl and started eating.
The old man watched us intently for a moment before speaking.
"New faces around here. What brings you to the village?"
"We moved here not long ago."
"I see. Where are you staying?"
"In the house on the hill by the river."
"Oh ho..."
The elderly man showed more interest in us than seemed normal.
"Living there can't be easy... though with your build and strength, it might not be so bad."
I didn't say much.
I knew he was referring to those river thugs.
"So, you're looking for work?"
"Yes."
"Finding a job in this village won't be easy. If there were a construction site, you could do day labor, but..."
Suddenly, my chest tightened, and the rice going down my throat felt like stones.
"One more bowl, please."
But Gwang-u, without a care in the world, had already polished off his huge serving.
"You really eat a ton. Shouldn't have asked you to chop wood."
The old man refilled the rice and sat back down, continuing.
"Since you're by the river, why not become fishermen? It's a small river, but there are some decent-sized fish. Get a boat and cast nets, and you won't go hungry."
"We don't have the money for a boat."
"Haha..."
"Makes sense. That's why you're out looking for work."
With our bellies full, Gwang-u and I left the inn and resumed our search for jobs on the streets.
'Ah... we're really gonna starve. Life's no joke.'
The old man who left the inn headed to the bustling market.
He bought meat at the butcher's, checked the rice shop, then spotted a small twig on a street corner and his eyes lit up.
Back at the inn, he handed the meat to the kitchen and headed out again to the market.
He slipped into a dark alley, opened a weathered door, entered, and opened another.
Alleys connected to alleys, and he opened a door on one side.
Inside, a young man sat up and bowed his head.
The old man passed through another dark passage and sat in a dim chair.
Across from his seat was a thick wall with a small hole.
He waited there for a long time.
Finally, a voice came from the other side.
"Are you there?"
The old man replied immediately.
"What commission do you have?"
"I want to place a request with the Black Moon Gate."
"Speak."
"Kill the head of the Seok Family."
The old man flinched but kept his voice steady.
"The fee will be quite high."
"Will five thousand nyang of silver do?"
"Pay four thousand nyang upfront."
"Here."
A neatly folded bill passed through the hole.
"We'll meet again when the job's done."
The old man pocketed the bill and walked the dark passage.
'They say the Life-Escaping Sword lost to the Seok Family head and died... and now a request to kill him comes in. That means the client is from the Si Family.'
It was a pity that the Seok Family head, known as a gentleman, would die.
But assassins moved for silver.
'The Black Moon Gate is about to make a fortune.'
Screeech!
The Great Heavenly Demon's fist shattered my bones, starting from my blackened fingers and toes, splitting my body apart.
The unbearable pain wracked me; I could only scream like a beast.
But the Great Heavenly Demon methodically disassembled me without mercy.
"You, who should shake the world, worry about starving? Ridiculous! Subjugate the martial clans and sects before your eyes right now—make them kneel at your feet!"
The Great Heavenly Demon bellowed, his eyes blazing with fury, blue flames dripping down.
"I've... told you... many times before. I have... no such intentions... whatsoever."
I swallowed the agony, looking up at him through blood-soaked eyes.
"Then why the hell did you even learn martial arts?"
"That was... because of... a promise... with my master."
"What promise?"
"It has... nothing to do... with you."
"Urgh."
The Great Heavenly Demon trembled with barely contained rage.
It was the first time I'd seen him like this since our unavoidable encounters began.
"I'll fix that rotten mind of yours!"
The disassembly of my body resumed.
Screeeam... aaagh!
"You think... this will... make me obey you?"
"I'll make you."
Screeeeeam!
My screams grew shriller as time passed.
Gwang-u watched his senior brother thrashing and screaming on the mat in the yard, then shook his head.
"Looks like tonight's a bust."
Some nights were like this.
But tonight, the screams were louder and more frequent than usual.
Gwang-u stepped into the yard, practicing his martial arts alone amid his senior brother's cries.
The techniques his senior brother displayed nightly were breathtaking in their splendor and dominance—focused on killing, not mercy.
"Where the heck did hyung learn such moves?"
His senior brother was an utter enigma.
When he'd first arrived at Heavenly Mountain holding master's hand, his senior brother had been practicing alone in the yard.
He'd handled all the cooking and laundry by himself.
Years later, thinking him an easy mark, Gwang-u had beaten him under the pretext of sparring.
But his senior brother had been hiding his true skills.
Those eerie techniques must have been secretly taught by master, pitying his junior disciple's beatings.
With their fearsome power, the beaten senior brother turned the tables and started pummeling back.
Gwang-u had envied him.
But there was no rule saying the junior couldn't learn them too.
"No matter what I do, I can't keep up with hyung. Master said I had unparalleled martial bones, unmatched in the world..."
Screeeam... aaagh!
Gwang-u stared at his senior brother writhing on the mat, screaming.
"What kind of nightmare is he having?"
Clack, clack...
Gwang-u hummed a tune as he ground spices in the mortar.
Just days ago, he'd insisted master's legacy couldn't be used for such things, but now he wielded it better than I did.
Gwang-u was thrilled because they'd finally had a proper hunt after so long.
He'd caught a massive deer, skinned it, separated the meat and bones, and cleaned the innards spotless.
Tonight's dinner would be deer organ soup and roasted meat.
I sat on the mat in the yard, listening to Gwang-u's humming and the grinding of spices.
This mat was my bed too.
Ever since moving in, my habit of smashing doors and walls meant I slept outside.
'This is bad. Real bad.'
Even sitting still burned through silver.
We needed rice, clothes now and then.
And Gwang-u's appetite was double anyone else's, draining it faster.
As I fretted on the mat, I stood and peered over the wall.
A group of about a dozen people approached— not the river thugs, by their appearance.
"Gwang-u. More visitors."
"Those bastards again? Hyung!"
Gwang-u rushed out, mortar in hand.
"No, different people. They have swords at their waists—jianghu folk, maybe. But doesn't look like they're coming here."
The jianghu types strolled along the riverbank, chatting aimlessly.
Gwang-u, fuming moments ago, deflated and returned to the kitchen to grind spices.
But against my hopes, they knocked on our gate.
"Anyone home?"
'This place is cursed.'
I wanted peace, but constant visitors made it a hassle.
"The gate's open. Come in."
The gate swung open, revealing a dignified middle-aged man and sprightly young folk.
"What brings you here?"
"Ah, forgive us. I'm Seok Yang-ho, head of the Seok Family in Huanin County. I was walking the riverbank with my clansmen to escape the heat when I heard some troubling rumors lately and came to check."
The dignified man bowed politely, explaining himself first.
'A man like this actually exists.'
No one I'd met before compared.
Older than me, yet courteous; family head, yet bowing to a stranger.
"Ah... I'm just a worthless villager. If you need a surname, call me Ko."
As I finished introducing myself, Gwang-u emerged from the kitchen.