Chapter 6
Chapter 6
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: The Sloppy Net
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The next morning.
Jin Choyoung awoke with a start, utterly shocked.
"Ah!"
A man was tossing branches into the campfire.
Thinking it might be the pursuit squad, a chill ran down her spine. But she soon realized that wasn't the case.
"Jeok... great hero?"
"Jin Choyoung, was it? If you're up, get moving."
"Pardon?"
"We'll set out in less than an hour at the latest. Better catch something beforehand."
"Ah."
At least four rabbits a day.
She barely recalled that was their agreement.
"But..."
She sneaked another glance at Jeok Muryong.
He looked utterly transformed overnight.
No wonder she'd mistaken him for someone else.
"It's not like his face changed or anything."
He'd simply put on some weight.
That alone had completely altered his appearance.
Overnight.
"What in the world...?"
Jin Choyoung found his change all the more baffling.
"What about the young lady?"
As if reading her thoughts, Jeok Muryong spoke up casually.
"Neung So-hwa headed to the stream."
"Pardon? The stream?"
"Yeah. To wash up and rinse some greens."
"W-wait a minute! There might be pursuit squads right nearby..."
"There aren't, you idiot."
Jeok Muryong stated it flatly.
Jin Choyoung, who'd been terrified, felt instantly embarrassed.
"H-how can you be so sure?"
"Because there really aren't any."
"But..."
"If this Seat says there aren't, there aren't. Got it?"
"......"
"Not going hunting? This Seat's hungry."
If you're that hungry, why not hunt yourself?
Jin Choyoung wanted to snap back but swallowed her words.
It wouldn't do any good.
"...I'll check on the young lady first. Hunting after that."
"This Seat's hungry, I said."
"Then why not hunt yourself?"
In the end, Jin Choyoung had to ask.
Of course, she kept her tone as polite as possible.
Who knew what this monstrous man might do otherwise.
"But..."
Surprisingly, Jeok Muryong didn't get angry or annoyed.
Jin Choyoung puzzled over it until she saw why.
Neung So-hwa was approaching, carrying something.
"Choyoung?"
"Ah, young lady!"
Seeing her return from the stream, Jin Choyoung breathed a sigh of relief.
"You should've woken me if you were stepping away."
"Sorry. You were sleeping so soundly, I couldn't bear to."
"Ah."
Jin Choyoung's face flushed red.
Jeok Muryong, who'd been watching silently, muttered offhandedly.
"Disqualified as an escort."
"......"
"Don't be too hard on her, Jeok great hero. She's been carrying you and staying on high alert everywhere since yesterday—she must be exhausted."
"Young lady..."
"Still, a disqualification's a disqualification."
"......"
Ignoring Jin Choyoung's resentful glare, Jeok Muryong changed the subject.
"Anyway, catch anything?"
"Ah, yes. Here."
Neung So-hwa approached Jeok Muryong and held something out.
It was a plump trout.
"What do you think?"
"Hm."
Jeok Muryong turned unusually serious.
Over just one fish, no less.
"Counts as one rabbit."
"Got it, Jeok great hero. Hm. So three left?"
"Yeah, about that."
"Eat up for now."
"Sure."
Jeok Muryong took the trout with delight, skewered it on a branch, and stuck it by the fire.
Meanwhile, Jin Choyoung sidled up to Neung So-hwa and whispered.
"Did you catch that trout yourself, young lady?"
"Yes. Pretty big for my first one, right?"
"Must not have been easy alone."
"Once I got the knack, it wasn't bad."
"The knack?"
"Yeah, Jeok great hero gave me a quick lesson."
Jin Choyoung was at a loss for words, mouth agape.
So she'd learned from Jeok Muryong, gone to the stream, and caught one.
Of course, it made no sense to Jin Choyoung.
"Why didn't he do it himself?"
"Because that's the deal."
Jeok Muryong replied as if he'd heard everything.
Jin Choyoung clamped her mouth shut, chastened.
"Doubt you'd get it even if I explained, but this Seat doesn't just want to stuff himself silly."
"I... see."
"Obviously. If it was just about gorging, this Seat could wipe out every beast in these mountains right now."
That much was true.
He was a supreme expert who'd single-handedly annihilated the Gale Division even in his emaciated state. Now with some meat on his bones, mountain beasts were nothing.
He seemed to have his own principles. Jin Choyoung had no interest in prying.
"Well, supreme experts are said to be quirky as hell anyway."
She muttered carefully to herself.
"Anyway, don't worry too much, Choyoung. Fishing wasn't as hard as I thought. I bet I can catch one or two more if I go back."
"No proper rod—how'd you manage?"
"Hm. Jeok great hero taught me they swim upstream. They jump when going uphill from lower spots, and you can grab them then easily."
It was how bears hunted.
Far from easy for Neung So-hwa, whose martial prowess was low.
"Young lady, leave that sort of thing to me from now on."
"No way. Can't make you do all the work."
"I'm fine, really. Please prioritize your safety."
"It's just catching fish."
"But pursuit squads could appear anytime, anywhere."
"It's okay. Jeok great hero guaranteed it's safe."
"......"
"No squads within three hundred paces at least."
To trust that at face value.
Jin Choyoung wanted to argue but swallowed it.
For some reason, Neung So-hwa's trust in Jeok Muryong had deepened overnight.
"Did something happen between them?"
Jin Choyoung unconsciously furrowed her brow.
Behind her, Jeok Muryong flipped the roasting trout and spoke.
"Better hurry. Less than half an hour left."
"Eek."
Jin Choyoung rushed to the stream.
Feeding Neung So-hwa came first.
A short while later, Jeok Muryong finished neatly filleting and eating the trout, then stood.
"Ah, that hit the spot. Time to head out."
"W-wait a second."
Jin Choyoung, picking bones from her teeth with her tongue, spoke up.
She'd rushed to the stream, caught a trout, and was sharing it with Neung So-hwa.
"Almost done—just wait a bit..."
"I said one hour. Eat on the move if you have to."
"Do that, Choyoung."
With even Neung So-hwa saying so, Jin Choyoung had nothing left to say.
"Got it."
The three followed a mountain path.
Path in name only—barely navigable by animals.
They pushed through dense underbrush.
Blazing the trail fell to Jin Choyoung up front.
Jeok Muryong could've helped but merely trailed silently at the rear.
"Isn't this too much?"
Jin Choyoung was baffled.
Everything since waking had been one shock after another.
He'd boasted no pursuers within three hundred paces, yet rushed to move.
Leaving foraging solely to her and Neung So-hwa was odd too.
"His condition seems much improved."
He couldn't be worse at hunting or gathering than they were.
Yet he stubbornly left it to them. Infuriating.
Of course, Jin Choyoung knew better.
This man was their lifesaver, after all.
No matter how petty it felt, she couldn't voice complaints.
"Need help, Choyoung?"
"No, young lady. I can handle it."
Jin Choyoung replied stoutly to Neung So-hwa's offer.
That was when Jeok Muryong suddenly spoke.
"Stop."
"Pardon?"
"Fifty paces left from here leads to a clearing. Head there."
"A clearing? But..."
"Go, Choyoung."
"Ah, alright."
Jin Choyoung looked left—nothing but thick bushes.
Still, nothing to lose. She hacked through, and sure enough, a clearing opened up after fifty paces.
"Whoa..."
"Let's regroup here."
Jeok Muryong turned to Neung So-hwa.
"Several factions are after you, the Young Palace Lord of True Heaven Palace. Each sent their warrior groups in pursuit, extending all the way to Heavenly Center Mountain. Right?"
"Yes, exactly."
"That formed a sort of net around here."
"A net... you say?"
"Yeah. Though calling it a heavenly net's an exaggeration—more like a sloppy one."
"W-wait."
Jin Choyoung cut in.
"Didn't you say no one within three hundred paces?"
"I did. And it's true. Still is."
"Then..."
"Keep going, though, and they'll catch on eventually. They're competent enough."
"...?"
"Plus, the squads are moving in uncanny sync. Looks like they're coordinating via messenger birds or something."
"Ah!"
Jin Choyoung's face darkened as realization dawned.
"True Heaven Palace groups use well-trained falcons for communication. Lets them coordinate like they're chatting right next to each other, even dozens of li apart."
"Oh ho, not pigeons—falcons. That explains the birds I saw flying around."
"You saw them?"
"Yeah. Guess that's why they switched tactics."
"Switched tactics?"
"Their movements were all over the place until dawn. But right as we set out, they changed completely."
"Changed?"
Jin Choyoung kept gasping in surprise.
She couldn't help it—every word from Jeok Muryong was a bombshell.
More precisely, the fact that he saw through all this so clearly.
"How does this man know all that?"
Hard to believe.
Normally, she'd dismiss it as nonsense.
But not now.
Jeok Muryong's unwavering confidence.
And Neung So-hwa listening with full trust.
It couldn't be a lie.