Chapter 51
Chapter 51
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: Sixth Chapter - Escort Duty, Fate (1)
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About three more days passed.
Having wrapped up all their business in Seo-hyeon, the group bid farewell to the familiar city and set off on their journey.
Before them stretched an endless highway.
Mok Ri-won gazed at it with excitement bubbling in his heart, then suddenly remembered something he had forgotten and spoke up.
"Ah! Come to think of it!"
"Yes? What is it?"
"Little Sister! We forgot about Monk Il-un! Didn't he say we had to stop by Shaolin first to go to the Murim Alliance?"
Mok Ri-won's face turned pale as he made a fuss.
It was only natural for him.
There had been a discussion during the Dragon-Phoenix Tournament.
To aim for a division leadership in the Murim Alliance, one needed a renowned master's endorsement.
Dang Hwa-seo had mentioned planning to visit Shaolin before heading to the Murim Alliance with that in mind.
But look at them now.
When visiting Shaolin required bringing along one of their own, they had departed without even consulting Monk Il-un.
The journey was off to a rocky start from the very beginning.
Dang Hwa-seo chuckled at his panic.
Jegal San was the same.
He burst into loud laughter and slung an arm around Mok Ri-won's shoulders.
"Hey, Mok little brother. The situation back then is different from now, isn't it?"
"Uh, um? What do you mean?"
"It was true at first. If my sister went alone to establish a division in the Murim Alliance, she would definitely need the endorsement of Grandmaster Won Myeong, the former Alliance Leader. But I'm talking about if she went alone."
A shadow of doubt crossed Mok Ri-won's face.
Jegal San playfully pointed at Dang Hwa-seo, himself, and Mok Ri-won in turn before speaking.
"Now, what are our nicknames?"
"Little Sister is Poison Phoenix... Jegal brother is Strange Dragon, and I am..."
Mok Ri-won's cheeks flushed slightly.
As if embarrassed, he cleared his throat with a cough before stating his own nickname.
"...the, Dark Dragon!"
Strength surged into Mok Ri-won's shoulders.
Seeing this, Dang Hwa-seo, her face reddened, covered her mouth with her sleeve.
Jegal San nodded in satisfaction and continued.
"That's right. We're dragons and phoenixes. All three of us bear such nicknames. And we're all hoping to establish new divisions and join them. Mok little brother, you need to take the meaning of your 'dragon' nickname more seriously."
Nicknames of dragons and phoenixes were special.
Not just because of their meanings, but because of the unique status they held in the jianghu.
"We're proven prodigies. The ones destined to lead the next generation of the jianghu. Even if we don't think so, the jianghu does. So when we go to the Murim Alliance together and say we want to establish divisions, from their perspective, they'll be prostrating themselves in gratitude."
Dang Hwa-seo nodded as if agreeing with his words.
It was arrogant, but true.
Prodigies who would lead the next generation enlisting in the Murim Alliance.
For the Murim Alliance, which sought to control the righteous sects of the martial world, this was the most welcome news imaginable.
Of course, there were political reasons beyond that.
'The calculation that they could reshape the landscape of the prestigious clans.'
Prestigious sects and clans were delicate matters even for the Murim Alliance.
With their considerable power, mishandling them could lead to backlash.
Thus, if the heirs of those clans enlisted in the Murim Alliance, it would weaken the clans while bolstering the Alliance's own strength—the perfect scenario.
'Well, given their backgrounds, they could return to their clans if they wished...'
Still, it was a win for the Murim Alliance.
They would build friendly ties with the next generation's leaders of prestigious houses.
Dang Hwa-seo didn't delve into the complexities.
Instead, she told Mok Ri-won.
"Anyway, as Jegal says, we no longer need to visit Shaolin. We can head straight to Wuhuan in Hubei Province."
Mok Ri-won's expression turned serious at her words.
"...I, I can feel the weight of it!"
He clenched his fist tightly.
Being one of the leaders of the next jianghu generation was no light burden.
Mok Ri-won, who had simply wanted to do heroic deeds and ride off coolly with a smile, now realized he needed to adjust his mindset to match the gravity of being a dragon.
"Got it! I'll become a man with the weight befitting my nickname!"
Dark Dragon Mok Ri-won.
He would live up to that name!
Seeing Mok Ri-won's newfound resolve, Dang Hwa-seo and Jegal San just smiled.
Both thought the same.
'If only he'd keep his mouth shut, he'd pull it off naturally.'
A prime specimen of a country bumpkin from the mountains.
An naive young fool ignorant of the world.
As long as those traits didn't show, Mok Ri-won's appearance suited the title of dragon better than anyone else's.
In short, that mouth of his was the problem.
*
On the map, Hubei Province lay directly to the left of Anhui Province, but that didn't mean the distance was short.
Why would it be?
This was the vast Central Plains.
Even crossing a single province took weeks on horseback.
Thus, it was only natural that Mok Ri-won and his companions' journey would be a long one.
Two weeks after departing Seo-hyeon.
Mok Ri-won finally reached the last city in Anhui and let out a joyful exclamation.
"Once we pass this, it's Hubei Province!"
"That's right. We've arrived faster than expected. Probably because there were no incidents."
Dang Hwa-seo spoke with a satisfied face.
She was in high spirits.
'The road here had little to pique Mok young hero's curiosity. That's likely the biggest reason.'
Without that scatterbrained curiosity turning a day's journey into three, they made such good time.
Of course, she had planned the route with that in mind, but even so, it was impressively fast.
'At this rate, two more weeks and we'll be there.'
No, with some leisure, it might stretch to three.
Either way, it was satisfying progress, so Dang Hwa-seo now planned to take the remaining journey at a relaxed pace.
"Alright, shall we go?"
"Where to?"
Mok Ri-won asked with sparkling eyes.
Dang Hwa-seo was about to answer, then flashed a grin.
She was curious what reaction Mok Ri-won would have.
He'd probably jump for joy.
With that strange anticipation rising, Dang Hwa-seo smiled brightly and spoke.
"To an escort bureau. We'll guard an escort caravan and cross Anhui that way."
Mok Ri-won's body froze stiff.
Then it began to tremble finely.
His eyes sparkled, and his mouth hung open in awe.
"Es, escort bureau guarding...!"
Mok Ri-won clenched his fist.
It was an even stronger reaction than Dang Hwa-seo had imagined.
"This is too good-!"
Mok Ri-won's romantic fantasies ignited.
*
Escort bureau guarding.
It was a staple trope in Tales of the Jianghu Heroes, the book Mok Ri-won revered so much, appearing in nearly every volume.
Since it dealt with jianghu tales, escort duties were inevitable, but one volume featured it prominently.
Volume 6.
The chapter on wandering heroes (浪俠).
A mysterious master wandering the jianghu.
A man who hid his identity, enjoyed wasting time on escort jobs, and relished drinks with the fateful encounters he made along the way.
Taking the form of a travelogue, it wasn't popular with the young readers who favored Tales of the Jianghu Heroes, but Mok Ri-won was different.
There was a scene in Volume 6 that set his heart ablaze.
-This is fate too, so I'll lend a hand this once.
The climax of Volume 6, the life-or-death duel between the Black Snake Alliance Leader and the wandering hero.
A man who had never known love falls for a woman he meets during an escort duty and reveals his true identity for the first time in his jianghu travels.
-Allow me to introduce myself properly. I am Cheon-gwak, the last successor of the Seven Valleys Sect.
The mysterious wandering hero's true identity: the final successor of a vanished one-man transmission sect.
The description of the Black Snake Alliance Leader hesitating at that revelation was too thrilling for Mok Ri-won to bear.
...Yes.
Mok Ri-won was hooked on the idea of 'the successor of a one-man transmission sect hiding his power.'
He couldn't deny that feeling a similarity to his own situation influenced it.
"Hurry! Let's go to the escort bureau quick!"
The immature Mok Ri-won, unable to contain his excitement, urged Dang Hwa-seo on.
Jegal San chuckled and backed him up.
"Come on, sister. Mok little brother's raring to go—let's head out."
Dang Hwa-seo looked flustered at Mok Ri-won's more intense reaction than expected and Jegal San's prodding.
Realizing too late that she had underestimated Mok young hero, she let out a deep sigh before giving a resigned smile.
"Yes, yes, let's go."
People who never let life get boring.
With that thought, Dang Hwa-seo started walking.
*
The Yunseong Escort Bureau was a well-known outfit in the area, with Hubei Province as its base.
It mainly transported valuables for merchant groups.
With a 90% success rate on escorts, it always had plenty of jobs, attracting many escorts eager to join.
Today, it welcomed utterly unexpected guests.
"We've come to join an escort caravan."
In the reception room of the Yunseong Escort Bureau's Anhui branch.
A refined beauty sat across from the branch manager.
Poison Phoenix Dang Hwa-seo.
The young lady of the Sichuan Tang Clan, who had made a splendid comeback at this Dragon-Phoenix Tournament.
Her presence alone set the branch manager's heart racing, but the two men standing behind her forced him to seriously wonder if this was a dream.
To the Poison Phoenix's right stood a weasel-like man grinning slyly: Strange Dragon Jegal San.
And to her left, the dazzlingly handsome man was none other than...
'D-Dark Dragon...!'
Dark Dragon Mok Ri-won.
The newest sensation shaking the jianghu.
The branch manager wondered.
Why had they come to a local escort bureau like this?
It wasn't small by any means—it could handle jobs for the All-Heaven Merchant Group—but their presence made it feel that way.
Meanwhile, Dang Hwa-seo spoke.
"We're heading to Hubei anyway, and our schedule has some leeway. Rather than just passing through, we thought it'd be nice to do some light work, so here we are."
"I-Is that so..."
The middle-aged branch manager struggled to keep his head from drooping.
'N-Nothing bad about it...'
Having them join an escort would be ideal.
Especially with the ominous rumors lately.
'...Lately, bandits targeting escort caravans have been on the rise.'
The rumors had started a week ago.
They were too brutal for mere bandits—late discoveries left people retching.
The branch manager swallowed dryly.
It would be great if they joined, but there was still something to consider.
"Um... we can't offer more than the standard pay. It would be the same as the other escorts."
Escort duty was serious business.
Even if they were dragons and phoenixes, he couldn't pay above the rate just for that.
If they accepted, wonderful; if they complained about the pay, he'd have to send them away.
The branch manager waited for their answer with that in mind.
And then.
"No worries. It's just for fun, so we're not after the money."
He got the most perfect response imaginable.
"We look forward to working with you."
The Poison Phoenix smiled.
True to her demeanor, it was a remarkably refined smile.