The Rising Stars
If fellowship and exchange among the Five Great Clans was the purpose of the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering, then it had already begun in all but name.
The escorts kept to the escorts, the servants to the servants, and the rising stars to their own. Each mingled with those of matching rank. All of it was a branch of the gathering's exchange, and so sitting it out was not an option. Namgung Seowol was no exception — her face had been a study in boredom from the moment the young heirs' drinking party began.
"Seowol, are you sleepy?"
Jegal Seoseo leaned in, glancing around before whispering the question. Namgung Seowol nodded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"It's boring."
"Hmm. And what would our Seowol find interesting, I wonder?"
"A duel."
"Ahaha. The martial contest doesn't open until the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering is formally underway, and even then it's near the end. You'll be waiting a good long while for something that suits you."
Namgung Seowol puffed out her cheeks in a sulk. Jegal Seoseo covered her mouth, laughing as if she found the whole thing delightful. There were only two years between them, yet Seowol felt like a much younger sister.
Well, it's not as if this is actually interesting.
They had been holding these nightly drinking parties to build camaraderie ever since before they'd even reached Anhui Province. The novelty had long since worn off.
"Haha. The Namgung Clan, through and through. Pouring precious wines this generously even for juniors as young as us — one truly feels the open-handedness of a house that claims descent from the dragon. The elders of our Hwangbo Clan take a rather dim view of drink, you see. They insist it does nothing for one's martial studies."
As usual, it was Hwangbo Yong who held the reins of the gathering.
Jegal Seoseo stole a glance at Namgung Muyoung. There was no hierarchy of portions among them — no seniors, no juniors. And yet the seat of honor belonged, without question, to Namgung Muyoung. Rumors were already flying that he would ascend to Young Clan Lord at this very Dragon-Phoenix Gathering. That would make him the officially recognized heir of the Namgung Clan — the man who would one day be Patriarch. And this was Namgung ground. The rest of them were guests. That he occupied the high seat was only natural.
And still, whether by temperament or habit, Hwangbo Yong continued to steer the conversation. He was no silver-tongued orator, but neither was he clumsy with words — a more than serviceable speaker. A reasonably handsome face, the backing of an illustrious house, and a disposition to match. Where Namgung Muyoung was comparatively grave and quiet, Hwangbo Yong's cheerful nature did the rest.
Jegal Seoseo, however, was often praised for possessing a wisdom worthy of the Jegal name.
Did something happen?
She realized Namgung Muyoung was not himself. He was not simply being quiet by nature. From the start, he had seemed somehow apart from the gathering — as though his thoughts were elsewhere. The conversation flowed between Hwangbo Yong and Peng Jeokhon, with Jegal Seoseo offering the occasional reply.
She glanced around, then asked Namgung Seowol quietly,
"Did something happen?"
"Happen?"
"Before you came to the drinking party tonight."
"Ah."
Namgung Seowol, who had been idly picking at her food with her chopsticks, gave a small nod.
"I dueled."
"A duel?"
Jegal Seoseo tilted her head. In truth, there was not a single rising star here who had not crossed blades with Seowol. The girl requested matches with a bluntness that bordered on rudeness — refusing was hardly an option. That she had dueled someone was not, in itself, surprising. Jegal Seoseo would have let it pass without a second thought, if not for what came next.
"I fought the yellow-haired one."
"That guest retainer?"
Jegal Seoseo's eyes went wide. The unexpected answer lifted her voice before she could catch it, and the gazes around the table swung toward them.
"Oh? You crossed blades with the guest retainer we saw at Manhyangru, Young Lady Namgung?"
Peng Jeokhon looked on with genuine interest. Namgung Seowol flicked him a glance and nodded.
"Mm. We dueled."
"Hoh."
The conversation had veered abruptly toward Sun Wukong, and Hwangbo Yong, who had been holding forth at length, showed a flicker of discomfort. He buried it at once, of course — but Jegal Seoseo saw it plainly.
"The rumors about him are quite something. I thought him considerable enough when I saw him at Manhyangru, but I hear he brought down Hunamdo entirely on his own…"
"Mm. He was strong."
At Namgung Seowol's answer, the rising stars exchanged faintly startled looks.
Namgung Seowol was an oddity even among the young heirs. A martial artist was expected to be somewhat excessive in their devotion to the arts — but Seowol took it too far. She trained every day without fail and almost never appeared at gatherings like this one. Were it not for the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering, she would have gone off somewhere quiet to swing her sword rather than sit here. Her skill was every bit as formidable as her obsession. Not a single person among the rising stars present had ever beaten her.
And above all, she was stingy with praise. Peng Jeokhon, Hwangbo Yong, and Namgung Muyoung had all exchanged reasonably long exchanges with her, but even in the post-match sharing of insights, Seowol was as savage as her temperament. It was not only her blade that cut — her tongue was just as venomous.
And yet here she was, acknowledging someone's strength with such unguarded honesty…
Curiosity rippled through the young heirs.
"What was it like?"
Jegal Seoseo's eyes shone with interest. But the answer came from somewhere else entirely.
"What was it like? She came at me like she was trying to kill a man."
"Ah…!"
Sun Wukong's voice rose suddenly from below the pavilion. The rising stars surged to their feet in surprise. Even in their cups, they offered a cupped-fist salute with the impeccable courtesy of children raised in great houses.
"A good evening to you. That is to say…"
"Call me Teacher Sun. That's easier."
"Yes, Teacher Sun."
"I heard my name come up, so I thought I'd stick my nose in."
Sun Wukong glanced around the gathering.
"Since you are already here, why not share a cup with us? The stars are bright tonight — there is a certain charm to it."
Hwangbo Yong spread his hands with a deliberately cheerful face. Jegal Seoseo's expression tightened.
We are the guests here, strictly speaking… and this man really…
Namgung Muyoung occupied the seat of honor. This was a table at which the Namgung Clan was entertaining its visitors. If anyone was to invite another person to join them, it ought to have been Namgung Muyoung. It was a matter of the most basic courtesy. A glance confirmed that Namgung Muyoung himself looked somewhat uncomfortable.
That was when Sun Wukong gave a short laugh and spoke toward Namgung Muyoung.
"I'm a bit old to be drinking with you kids, but you don't mind, do you, Young Master?"
The invitation had come from Hwangbo Yong. The permission he sought was Namgung Muyoung's. Namgung Muyoung nodded readily.
"What objection could there be? You are a guest retainer of the Namgung Clan."
"Then I'll shamelessly squeeze in."
Sun Wukong dropped into a seat with a bright laugh. Jegal Seoseo watched him with open interest. A sidelong glance caught Hwangbo Yong's face stiffening, just slightly. He was still smiling, but the corner of his mouth gave a faint, telltale twitch.
As if it were nothing at all, Sun Wukong had praised the Namgung Clan and stamped this gathering as theirs.
So he really is entirely on the Namgung Clan's side?
Jegal Seoseo had quietly doubted the story that he was merely a guest retainer.
He seems less like a guest retainer and more like a master they recruited from outside.
To the Namgung Clan, a guest retainer was ordinarily little more than an ornament in a display case. Sun Wukong was different.
I looked into the Azure Chivalry Hall affair in my own way. The one at the heart of it is this Teacher Sun.
The Namgung Clan may have taken the lead, but Sun Wukong had been the key. Jegal Seoseo saw through it in an instant.
A master recruited from outside, disguised as a guest retainer.
The Namgung Clan already had no shortage of experts. What they lacked was numbers. If they had gone out of their way to bring someone in despite that, he had to be a considerable talent — that much was obvious. And if a clan as closed-off as the Namgung had chosen to recruit him at all…
Are they preparing to step into the martial world in earnest?
The assessment was laced with Jegal Seoseo's own misunderstandings, but it was sharp. Whether it was accurate was another matter entirely.
Sun Wukong melted into the drinking party with effortless ease. More than that — Namgung Muyoung, who had been drifting at the edges, showed genuine interest the moment Sun Wukong appeared and began to take part in earnest. And that was not all.
Oh my…
Jegal Seoseo covered her mouth as she watched Namgung Seowol staring at Sun Wukong, eyes shining, without so much as a blink.
"Well, isn't that just like him. Typical."
Ojeong grumbled from above the pavilion, glaring at Sun Wukong's back as the man inserted himself among the rising stars. He had said he would join the young heirs' drinking party — and then gone in alone, leaving everyone else behind.
Ojeong clicked his tongue at the voice ringing through his skull. Sun Wukong did not fit among the escort retinues any more than he did among the young heirs. The man drank with Namgung Jinbaek himself — the Patriarch. How was he supposed to squeeze in with the rest of them? Which meant the work that needed doing had fallen to Ojeong.
Ojeong flinched. Sun Wukong was still up there drinking and chatting away with the rising stars.
Has he got eyes in the back of his head or what?
Ojeong had the distinct feeling that cursing the man behind his back would end badly. He followed the instructions all the same.
"Evening, friends."
"…?"
"I'm a guest retainer around here. I also happen to serve that yellow-haired fellow up there. First time I've had a look at the Hwangbo Clan's martial artists — call it fate. Mind if I squeeze in for a cup?"
Ojeong slid into the gathering with shameless ease. The mood had loosened with drink, so a stranger joining them felt almost natural. And Ojeong had spent long enough in organized company that seats like this were familiar ground. The moment he mentioned serving Sun Wukong, the reaction came at once.
"You serve that Teacher Sun?"
One of the seven Sun Wukong had pointed out showed open interest and offered a cup. Ojeong's eyes lit up.
"That's right. I'm only a guest retainer of the Namgung Clan thanks to that man."
They were showing interest in talk of Sun Wukong on their side as well.
Well, of course.
Ojeong was nothing if not quick on the uptake.
The Namgung Clan is curious about them — and they're just as curious about us.
He decided to drive a wedge into that curiosity and work it open.
"I may not look it, but I followed Teacher Sun into a fight with Hunamdo at the Azure Chivalry Hall. Ah, I'm telling you, the fighting that day was vicious…"
"Well now — a hero of the martial world who crushed the unorthodox path. A pleasure. I am called Dragonfly. And what might your name be?"
"Nothing so grand as a name. I go by the dharma name Ojeong."
"Ah, so you hail from Shaolin."
"Not quite hail from. I was registered there in my younger days."
"Then what of this Teacher Sun?"
Ojeong smiled inwardly. Just as expected — they were showing a great deal of interest in Sun Wukong. That much, any of the Five Great Clans arriving for the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering would share. And yet, feeling the gazes of Dragonfly and the other six gathering on him, Ojeong sensed something else entirely.
Would you look at these ones?
Now he understood why Sun Wukong had picked out precisely these seven. There was something off about them. Ojeong steered the conversation aside with an easy grin.
"Ahaha. Anyone who lives in the Central Plains can recite a sutra or two."
Dragonfly's expression turned faintly sour. For men who were supposedly up to something, their faces gave them away far too easily. Ojeong pressed in at once.
"Your name's an odd one too, brother. Dragonfly, is it? Then what about the ones with you?"
"Ah — this is Honey, that's Ant, then Cricket, Speckle, Horsefly, and Wax."
"Well now. Brothers, are you?"
"We share the same master."
Ojeong's eyes gleamed. If he kept digging from here, they would notice something was wrong. He judged it time to dangle a scrap of the information they wanted.
"Ah, I see. Teacher Sun and I aren't of the same school. We just happened to cross paths and have been traveling together since."
"And Teacher Sun's school is…?"
"Well, even I don't know that much. But you brothers don't look like Hwangbo Clan martial artists. How did you come to be with the Hwangbo Clan all the way out here?"
Ojeong fed them information one careful piece at a time, and drew theirs out in return.
He's doing well.
Sun Wukong's keen hearing picked up Ojeong's voice with perfect clarity.
Not bad at all.
He was rather satisfied with Ojeong's work. Even in the last life, Ojeong had been more reliable than Bajie — and sure enough, he handled a job cleanly and well.
Sun Wukong had picked out those seven for no complicated reason.
Honestly. The way I live. Every last thing I run into turns out to be a bad connection.
All seven were bound to Sun Wukong himself by threads of fate — faint, but unmistakably red. The color was too pale for them to be blood enemies who could not rest until one had killed the other. They were bound by ill fate all the same, and so Sun Wukong had decided to dig up their identities first.
Well. I'll leave that side to Ojeong for now.
Sun Wukong turned his gaze. The Hwangbo Clan had brought men bound to him by ill fate among their escort. His eyes settled on Hwangbo Yong.
Hmph.
Sun Wukong's eyes gleamed with a meaningful light.