Better Settled by a Duel
“It might be better to settle this with a duel instead.”
The suggestion caught them off guard. Ju Yu-ryeon’s eyes went wide, and even Su Hwa-seon looked startled.
Yoo Eunhyeon seemed to weigh the idea for a moment, then spoke again.
“You said we might push them back with the paperwork for now, but they’ll never actually give up, right?”
“That’s true.”
“Then rather than leave them free to try who-knows-what, wouldn’t it be cleaner to settle it with a duel?”
He made it sound almost too simple. Ju Yu-ryeon huffed, exasperated.
“Do you even know who we’re dealing with? What happens if you lose?”
“Then we get ugly about it too. Winning would be nice, but the point is also to make them think twice before messing with us. That’s half the reason we trained in the first place.”
If Su Hwa-seon hadn’t produced the land deed when she had, there was no telling what those people might have done. Seen that way, ending things with a proper bout was almost the cleanest path left.
“Fine. If you’re set on it… then the only question is whether we can actually win.”
Ju Yu-ryeon muttered the words while staring off toward Seong Jung-hyeok. Eunhyeon followed her gaze.
Ji Heun-dong and Gong Yeo-ak looked like non-combatants, so they could be set aside. But Seong Jung-hyeok and the veiled woman were another matter entirely. Neither of them looked weak.
“What? Getting cold feet before the fight even starts?”
“Of course I’m nervous. Both of them look terrifying just standing there. Which one do you think they’ll send?”
“Why are you worrying about that? They’re probably both coming out.”
Eunhyeon blinked at her.
“Both of them? Why both?”
“Because there are three of us—you, me, and your mother.”
Ju Yu-ryeon planted her hands on her hips and fired back as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. The one left staring in disbelief was Eunhyeon.
“Hold on. I’m the one who should fight, right? You’re an outsider, so you’re out. Mother’s elderly, so she’s out. That leaves me.”
“Excuse me? What kind of nonsense is that? And after I came all this way with you, you’re calling me an outsider? I may have come along for fun, but you think I’m just going to sit and watch when things get like this?”
She wasn’t wrong. Still, dragging her into this sat poorly with him. Eunhyeon’s voice stayed uneasy.
“So you’re saying you’ll fight too?”
“Obviously. And whether I fight or not, they won’t send just one person either. The numbers have to match.”
“How would you know that?”
“It’s written all over them. What do you think, Auntie?”
Ju Yu-ryeon turned to Su Hwa-seon, who only gave a little shrug instead of answering.
“What do you want to do, Eunhyeon? Yu-ryeon is a young woman, and your mother is practically an old lady now… If you want to fight alone, go ahead.”
There was a quiet barb in her tone—clearly still stinging from being called “elderly.” Eunhyeon grimaced.
“Honestly… what’s so wonderful about this that you’re all lining up to fight?”
“It isn’t that I don’t trust you, dear.”
Eunhyeon’s brow stayed furrowed. Then Su Hwa-seon spoke again.
“Having one more person on our side can only help, don’t you think?”
A single-match contest could turn on one stroke of luck or one careless mistake. Three opponents changed the math. You could afford a loss. The more bouts there were, the less fortune mattered. In a fight where two wins out of three decided the day, what remained was less raw strength than the skill of managing the match itself. Su Hwa-seon’s face said she had already finished that calculation.
At last Eunhyeon gave in and nodded, and Su Hwa-seon smiled with gentle warmth.
“All right. When do you want the duel?”
“Not right away. We’ll need time to prepare.”
He had spent the past year training at Uiseon Suga, but that hardly meant he was ready to fight this instant.
“They know their proposal is shameless. They’ll give us some room on the schedule.”
Ju Yu-ryeon said it lightly, and Eunhyeon nodded.
“Three days from now should work?”
“Yes. That sounds good. We only need to buy a little time. We may not even need that much… but three days will do.”
Su Hwa-seon’s answer came with a distant, thoughtful look, as if she were speaking of something else entirely. Eunhyeon couldn’t make sense of it, but he trusted she had her reasons and didn’t press.
Decision made, the three of them walked back toward Seong Jung-hyeok. This time Eunhyeon stepped forward in his mother’s place.
“We accept the duel.”
“A wise choice. That should spare us all a great deal of trouble. This is how a martial artist ought to settle things, don’t you agree?”
Seong Jung-hyeok smiled, clearly pleased by how smoothly things were falling into place.
“Then let us set the terms. Three fighters from each side will take the field in turn. The first to claim two victories wins.”
“Three fighters?”
“You have three. We have three. Seems fair enough to me.”
At that, Eunhyeon glanced back. From a short distance away, Ju Yu-ryeon wore a look of pure smug satisfaction, as if to say, See? He looked away again, remembered his mother’s words, and nodded with reluctant resignation.
“Since your side chose the numbers, we’d like to choose the timing. We’ve already spared you some inconvenience—surely you can grant us that much.”
Seong Jung-hyeok’s eyes narrowed, as if Eunhyeon’s intentions were laid bare. Even so, he let out a short, knowing laugh and played along.
“Very well. We’ll yield on that point. When would you prefer?”
“Three days from now, at noon. The place will be one we designate. Killing an opponent counts as a loss. Whichever side wins overall is the victor of the duel.”
“Hmm… Agreed. All of it.”
Seong Jung-hyeok accepted without a moment’s hesitation. As if sealing a bargain, he held out his hand. Eunhyeon took it without thinking.
The instant their hands met, a faint but scorching current of inner energy flowed from Seong Jung-hyeok’s palm.
The force of it left no doubt—he was no ordinary opponent. Eunhyeon didn’t flinch. He received the energy as naturally as breathing and tightened his grip.
He had held plenty in reserve, yet even that much was enough to surprise Seong Jung-hyeok, who let out a low chuckle.
“This may not only be convenient. It might actually be entertaining.”
“I’m glad to hear it.”
“Good. Then we’ll return in three days.”
Satisfied by Eunhyeon’s nod, Seong Jung-hyeok turned on his heel and led his party down the mountain.
Eunhyeon watched until they vanished from sight, then let out a long breath of relief and walked back to Su Hwa-seon and Ju Yu-ryeon.
“You did well. Let’s head home. We’ve been on our feet since morning—you must be starving. The duel’s settled, so eat as much as you can.”
Su Hwa-seon rose and started toward the house. Eunhyeon followed, muttering under his breath.
“Something about this still feels off.”
“Hm? What does?”
Walking between mother and son, Ju Yu-ryeon slowed her steps and drew up beside him.
“Them. They accepted the terms too easily.”
“They’re as confident as we are, that’s all. From their side, once things got this far a duel was the best option left—they weren’t going to counter with something else. People from the demonic path usually have so much arrogance it starts to rot. You’re both still young, and Auntie’s been away from the great houses for years. Of course they look down on us.”
Even so, the way Seong Jung-hyeok had tested him through that handshake stuck in Eunhyeon’s mind. He chose not to mention it.
“So it all comes down to who they send…”
Seong Jung-hyeok, who had briefly let his true nature show, was formidable enough. So was the veiled woman who had studied Eunhyeon so intently from the first moment they met.
“It won’t be easy. Still—it’s been forever since I’ve had a real duel. I’m actually looking forward to it.”
Ju Yu-ryeon’s eyes narrowed slightly as she patted the hilt at her waist. The tension was rising in her too.
Eunhyeon felt the same. His heart was beating faster than usual.
He had sparred during the past year at Uiseon Suga, but nothing like this. In a real sense, this duel would be his first true battle since beginning his martial training.
The next morning, Eunhyeon woke early to find Su Hwa-seon already dressed and ready to leave.
“Where are you going?”
“Into the village. We need to prepare properly for the duel, and I have some business there as well.”
“Business?”
“Call it insurance. Or a variable. Either way, it will work in our favor.”
Eunhyeon tilted his head, uncomprehending, but Su Hwa-seon said she had no time to explain and hurried out.
Moments later Ju Yu-ryeon came in from washing her face, and he turned the question on her.
“What kind of insurance or variable could she mean?”
“Who knows? Auntie’s been handling the information gathering, so she must have something… Wait. Could it be that?”
“That? So you have a guess?”
“We’re of the orthodox path. Maybe something that fits.”
“Stop being cryptic and just say it.”
“I’m not sure enough to say. Forget it. These aren’t the kind of opponents you beat by filling your head with distractions.”
“Tch…”
Ju Yu-ryeon shrugged, as if uncertain news would only rattle him for nothing. Eunhyeon still felt uneasy, but he clicked his tongue and went to change.
Su Hwa-seon returned a little late, though still before the midday meal. When Eunhyeon saw what she had brought home, his eyes went round.
“What is all this?”
“A bit heavy on the meat, isn’t it?”
“A bit? It’s nothing but meat.”
“You can’t fight on an empty body. We’ll eat like this until the duel.”
“Well, I’m not complaining…”
They finished a meal stacked high with rich, heavily seasoned meat, then spent the afternoon each sunk in meditation—checking the state of their bodies, drawing up their inner energy until combat would come as naturally as breath, and honing the edge of the mind.
“Your mother needs an early night. Aigoo… once you get older the stamina just isn’t there. Best way to fight is to sleep early.”
After the session, Su Hwa-seon stretched out on her bed, determined to conserve her strength. Eunhyeon thought he might turn in early himself. He finished tidying up and sat for a moment on the edge of his bed.
Just then Ju Yu-ryeon came in from washing, and their eyes met. She said nothing—only smiled, bright and knowing. A vague unease prickled through him.
“What? What’s going on?”
“Come outside for a second. I’ve got something for us to do.”
She crooked a finger toward the door and slipped out carefully, so as not to wake Su Hwa-seon. Bemused, Eunhyeon had no choice but to follow.