Chapter 52
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 52
Chapter Title: Grow Tall and Strong (2)
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The escorts of the Diamond Escort Agency were lined up in front of the training grounds from the crack of dawn.
From faces stiff with tension, to those a bit more relaxed, and even ones still bearing the marks of yesterday's beatings.
All the escorts had gathered on the training platform before starting the day's business.
"From today onward, everyone will come out at dawn and train before opening for business."
Until now, the escorts of the Diamond Escort Agency had trained individually, except when receiving instruction from Kang Moo-jin.
With the demands of running the agency and teaching martial arts, Moo-jin simply couldn't give personal attention to each one.
"The Iron Fist Squad was already training from dawn anyway."
The Iron Fist Squad, the armed unit Moo-jin had personally selected, had been putting themselves through grueling routines every morning—like slamming their fists into iron pillars.
They were meant to be the sword protecting the agency, so Moo-jin had paid them extra attention.
"From now on, all you escorts will undergo training at the same intensity as the Iron Fist Squad."
"…!"
Do-ryang, Jo-yu, Eun Do-hyeon, and the other squad members broke into bright smiles, their eyes gleaming with delight.
The thought of sharing the pain—no, the training—they'd endured sent a thrilling shiver through them.
"Heh heh…."
"Heh heh heh…."
The Iron Fist Squad members eyed the escorts like wolves staring down prey before a hunt, and a few escorts shuddered under that inexplicable gaze of terror.
"And starting today, we'll divide the escorts into four groups."
The Diamond Escort Agency had grown into a mid-sized operation with over a hundred escorts.
It hadn't mattered before, but with their numbers swelling, it was time to reorganize the agency more systematically.
"First, the Iron Fist Squad, made up of our most skilled escorts."
Moo-jin gestured, directing the squad to assemble against the left wall of the training yard.
"Next, the Rehabilitation Squad, led by Ma Du-gwang. All the reformed evil sect folks who've finished their reeducation go here. Head to the right."
"Bro, Rehabilitation Squad is kinda…."
"Kinda?"
Moo-jin clenched his fist slightly as he met Ma Du-gwang's dissatisfied gaze.
"…kinda cool-sounding. Heh heh."
Ma Du-gwang and the evil sect warriors assembled on the right, broad smiles on their faces.
The quick-witted ones among them knew better than to argue in the face of a rock-hard fist.
"The remaining escorts will be split into regular and elite levels. That way, fewer lives will be lost on dangerous escorts."
Moo-jin's gaze turned to the four escorts who had escaped Ghost Wanderer Valley.
"…."
They expressed their gratitude with their eyes rather than words, sensing his intent to prevent such tragedies from repeating.
"Reformed evil sect folks will handle requests from their old territories whenever possible. Elite escorts take the riskier ones. Regular escorts stick to the routine jobs."
"Chief, what about the Iron Fist Squad?"
"They'll provide backup for high-difficulty escorts."
Regular escorts, elite escorts, Rehabilitation Squad, and Iron Fist Squad.
Moo-jin was wearing a satisfied smile at having neatly divided the escorts into four groups when—
"Um… Sir Kang?"
Five figures standing awkwardly stepped forward.
The Black-White Twin Freaks, Ghost Dream Master Ha-ran, Iron Blood Young Lord Un-yeop, and Mad Dragon Blade Sim Jung-cheon.
"Ah, right, you guys were here."
Moo-jin finally remembered the five experts he'd "acquired" while escorting Scholar Won Jong-do to the capital, clapping his hands together.
"You all have such a low presence, I forgot about you."
"…."
They were masters who would be revered anywhere in the Central Plains, yet he called their presence lacking. The five felt wronged but kept their mouths shut.
They'd learned from watching the sharp evil sect warriors—keep quiet in front of a solid fist.
"Hmm… for now, to make it easy to call you, you'll be the Royal Path Five Grunts starting today."
"…?"
Royal Path Five Grunts. It meant the five lowly soldiers picked up on the road to the royal capital.
"…Understood."
It was a nickname that disregarded their reputations as renowned masters, but all five accepted it without protest.
They were already being called things like Mong-shil, so it couldn't get much worse.
"Everyone except Mong-shil, you'll serve as acting escort leaders for now. I'll assign your official roles later."
Escort leaders were managerial positions responsible for teams of escorts. With their superior skills, they were perfect for the job on a temporary basis.
'Nothing beats starting as an escort leader.'
He'd forced them under his thumb with strength, but they weren't truly his people yet.
You could make knees bend with fists, but not hearts.
To fully win them over, he needed to dangle a carrot. And escort leader was a prime one.
Sitting tall on horseback, commanding escorts, leading missions to victory—that was the escort leader's allure.
Successful missions brought praise and lavish treatment, and once you got a taste, it was hard to go back to anything else.
No wonder nameless wandering swordsmen ended up sticking with escort agencies.
"What about me, then?"
"Mong-shil, you set up defensive formations around the agency first. We're big enough now that we can't rule out outside attacks."
"Got it."
Ghost Dream Master Ha-ran, whose nickname Mong-shil was starting to feel more natural than her real name, nodded.
"I'll do that, Sir Kang. But in return, grant me one favor."
"A favor? What kind?"
Ha-ran wore an enigmatic expression. Paired with her cat-like eyes, it was seductively alluring, leaving the escorts gaping like fools.
"Buy me a meal sometime."
"Huh? Sure, that's no big deal. Anything else?"
"That's plenty."
"Alright. That wraps things up. Iron Fist Squad, go teach everyone the training regimen."
Bright smiles bloomed on the Iron Fist Squad members' faces at his words.
"Heh heh…."
"You ever smashed into an iron pillar? It hurts… hurts like hell."
"Your turn now… take it!"
"…."
Moo-jin let out a quiet sigh as he watched the squad members, their eyes half-mad with glee.
'The agency's full of lunatics.'
"Uncle! Time for lunch!"
Soo-yeon, the daughter of his eldest brother and Moo-jin's niece, came pattering over on her tiny feet.
"Already that time?"
Moo-jin, his upper body drenched in sweat and steaming, relaxed his stance.
"Yes! Everyone's waiting. We just need you, Uncle!"
"Got it. That's it for today, then."
"Fi… finally…."
"We… we… survived…."
Five warriors—looking more like corpses than people—sighed in relief.
The Black-White Twin Freaks, Ha-ran, Un-yeop, and Sim Jung-cheon. These five experts picked up on the way to the capital had been Moo-jin's sparring partners, beaten to the brink of death.
"Mo… monster of a man…."
Ghost Dream Master Ha-ran staggered to her feet, her lovely face caked in dirt.
Five top-tier masters with few equals in the Central Plains, smashed by a single bare-fisted warrior.
If anyone had seen it, they'd have been shocked into collapse.
"How the hell did you get so strong? You're human, right?!"
"It's not that I'm strong—it's that you're weak."
"…."
Moo-jin shut Ha-ran down with one line, then jerked his chin toward the training escorts.
"Once you're done with personal training, go help those escorts."
"'Help' like you just did to us, Sir Kang?"
Ha-ran shot back peevishly.
She'd pledged to serve under him after defeat, so helping with agency work or sparring was fine.
But teaching escorts who were leagues below? It bruised her pride.
"Oh, that's a great idea."
Contrary to her expectation, Moo-jin lit up.
"Survival of the fittest, right? Half-killing them in training sounds perfect."
"…!"
The five masters' eyes sparkled like stars at his words.
The chance to repay the "favor" they'd received surged new strength through their battered bodies.
"Thanks! We'll do just that."
"Keh heh heh. You're dead, you bastards."
The limp five suddenly overflowed with vigor, charging at the escorts.
"Gaaah!"
"Aaaack! A-attack!"
Screams erupted across the training yard in unison.
"Un-uncle?!"
"It's fine. Let 'em be. That's how kids grow up."
Moo-jin scooped up the startled Soo-yeon and strolled out of the training area leisurely.
"There you are, Moo-jin. Sit."
The long rectangular table was laden with meat dishes galore: appetizing brown braised pork belly, steaming pork knuckles, spicy chicken, colorful squirrel-shaped fish, and more.
Seeing delicacies he couldn't have dreamed of affording before spread across the table, Moo-jin marveled at how much the Diamond Escort Agency had changed.
He wasn't alone in that thought—the rest of the family eyed the food with similar expressions.
"All thanks to Moo-jin here, we get to eat like this. Feels like yesterday we were staring at dried fish on a string."
Kang Moo-seon smirked and picked up some braised pork with his chopsticks first.
"Keep staring, and I'll eat it all."
"You punk—Eldest hasn't even touched his yet!"
"First to eat claims it, Big Bro."
Bickering between the eldest and second brothers sparked chopsticks flying everywhere as the family dug in.
With everyone together for once, the food tasted several times better, and they ate in contented silence for a while.
"Speaking of which, it's about time you boys got married."
His belly full, Kang So-gong smiled more warmly than usual, his gaze drifting to Won Yu-hwa.
"…."
Yu-hwa averted her eyes to hide her flushed face; her earlobes burned bright red.
"Brothers first, then me. Respect your elders—our old men should go before I do."
"Old?!"
"I'm not old—you are, Big Bro!"
Eldest brother Kang Moo-woong had been widowed for years, living alone; for his daughter's sake, he needed to remarry.
Second brother Kang Moo-seon was thirty and still hadn't held a woman's hand.
"Ahem… right. Guess I'll start looking into matches for you two."
Kang So-gong chuckled at his awkward sons.
"Our youngest is handsome and skilled—no worries there. But you two? I'm deeply concerned."
"…?!"
The sudden paternal strike left the brothers exchanging panicked glances.
"N-no, Father. It's Big Bro's issue. I'm fine, right?"
Moo-seon protested indignantly.
No denying Moo-jin was the handsomest of the three, but he figured he beat Eldest.
"…If you were fine, you'd have held a girl's hand by now, wouldn't you?"
"…."
Father's killer blow silenced Moo-seon like a honey-mute.
"Hooah."
After lunch, Moo-jin stepped out of the compound, stretching in the sunlight.
It had been ages since he'd had such a lazy, uneventful day.
'No—first time ever?'
In the Linked Qi Realm, he hadn't rested a single moment. Here, he'd been saving his brothers and the agency without a proper break.
He'd caught his breath here and there, but leisurely meals and strolls like this? First in decades.
"Finally, some uninterrupted relaxation…."
"Bro!"
"Spoke too soon."
Moo-jin's lips quirked up at Ma Du-gwang's frantic approach.
Maybe he suited blood-pumping tension more than lazy peace.
"What is it?"
"A request came in, Bro!"
"Escort job? Tell Second Bro—that's his department."
Back at the agency, Moo-seon handled dispatch duties as the escort coordinator.
"It's… not for the Diamond Escort Agency. It's for you personally."
Moo-jin cocked his head at that.
"A request for me?"