[The First Blood and the Burning Village]
I instructed Palbong to bring me two quick-witted servants, and after he did, I returned to my room to find a cute little creature wriggling on my bed. "Sohye? Can you look at me for a second?"
At my words, something wriggling under the blankets poked its head out and flashed a bashful smile. "My husband, is something the matter?"
Is she openly playing the role of a wife now? This is a big deal. 'Ah... should I have a round with her before I head out?' I hesitated for a moment at the thought, but I shook my head and briefly explained what I had heard from Jeri.
"Sohye, there probably won't be any trouble today or tomorrow, but if something happens while I'm away, don't try to fight. Just hide or run away, okay?"
"Okay~" She looked at me with clear, sparkling eyes and gave a slight nod. Is Sohye actually an angel? She’s smart, so she’ll handle things well. Besides, isn't she stronger than me anyway?
Just as I turned to leave, Sohye tapped her cheek. I chuckled and went to give her a light kiss on the cheek, but she turned her head and met my lips instead.
Smack, smack, kiss♡
Once the kiss ended, Sohye stuck her tongue out at me, pulled the blanket over her head, and hid. I let out a dry laugh at her behavior. She really is cute, but... 'This is unavoidable. I really need to do it once, don't I?'
Lately, I can't help but have lewd thoughts whenever I see Sohye. I’ve always been that kind of guy, but Sohye is a truly wonderful woman. If she were someone else's woman, I would have snatched her away immediately...
Just as I was about to have a meaningful moment with her, I sensed Palbong arriving with the two servants, right on cue. Come to think of it, I was the one who ordered Palbong to do that. I felt a pang of resentment toward the obedient Palbong, but I knew I’d be able to enjoy myself more comfortably after I finished my business.
As I walked toward the door, Sohye poked her head out from under the blanket again and smiled with her eyes. I gave her a small wave and stepped out of the room.
After telling Palbong and the others to wait for a moment, I arrived at the Rear Pavilion and entered through the door that was left naturally ajar.
"Husband, you've come early today."
The woman who once looked at me with haughty eyes now sent me a submissive gaze. It was Dang Hyewon, with her beautiful light-green hair. 'But "husband"... she's already trying to play the role of a wife too.'
I didn't feel the need to correct her, though. She can call me whatever she wants.
I quickly explained what I had heard from Jeri and the precautions she needed to take. "If anything happens while I'm away, don't fight. Put your own safety first and evacuate. Do you understand?"
"Yes, I understand. Please take care of yourself, husband."
As I turned to leave, Hyewon called out to me. "Husband... won't you give me a kiss?"
I don't know how she found out, but I wrapped my arm around her waist, pulled her toward me, lifted her chin with one hand, and kissed her.
"Mmph..."
Gihu began to gently suck on Dang Hyewon's lips, slowly savoring the taste. I didn't exactly dislike her growing clinginess. I squeezed her bottom, which felt great no matter when I touched it, and continued to entwine our tongues.
"Hmph... mmph."
Smack, smack.
The deep, suggestive kiss, reminiscent of intercourse, made Hyewon slowly lose the strength in her body as she leaned into me. While savoring her tongue, I lifted her up and moved toward a chair. Even as I moved, our tongues and lips remained locked in a greedy dance, refusing to part.
Thud—
Plop.
"Ha... how was that? Satisfied?"
When Gihu pulled away and sat her down, Dang Hyewon replied with ragged breaths. "Ah, haaaa..., yes..."
The sight of Dang Hyewon sitting in the chair was truly beautiful. Her curvaceous body, her disheveled appearance, the sex appeal radiating from her entire being, and her heavy breathing—her clothes were already soaked in her sweat, revealing the very shape of her pussy.
"I'll be back soon. Wait for me."
"Yes...♥ I'll be waiting."
Wearing a long robe over my martial arts attire, I spoke to Palbong and the gathered servants. "If anything happens to the sect, you lot stay on standby and quickly evacuate people like Sohye and Mother through the back gate. Got it?"
They seemed slightly flustered, as if they thought we were just going down to the village to buy medicine. News travels so fast...
"Young Master, weren't we supposed to go buy the medicine the Sect Leader ordered with you?"
Palbong and I had been to the lower village several times, but the other two servants seemed to have been looking forward to a rare trip out, and they began to look sullen at my words.
I shook my head at them and said, "It's much faster if I go alone. Besides, wouldn't it be more comfortable to just walk around the sect and take it easy?"
They couldn't say a word to that. Well, even if they could, they wouldn't have. The situation was urgent, after all...
Actually, I had intended to take them, but I had a feeling that if I did, we might all be slaughtered if something happened. After leaving the sect, I headed quickly toward the lower village.
'I should buy everything that might help with treatment, like Golden Wound Medicine or Golden Guard Pills.'
My goal is to fill this leather bag I brought with me with medicine! While I was thinking this, I reached the final hill right in front of the lower village.
'Wait, what is that smoke?'
I was climbing slowly since it was the last hill, but black smoke was rising from the end of the slope. This feels ominous. As soon as I felt that sinking sensation, I used my light-foot technique to rush up the hill, and the smell of blood from the lower village wafted toward me on the wind.
'Damn... is it bandits?'
A group of men who looked like bandits were fighting with the villagers. My cultivation level was still just a low-tier scrub, so I couldn't be certain, but to the naked eye, the two sides seemed evenly matched. I don't know what those bandits were thinking, attacking such a large village... are they insane? They must have seen the nearby sects get destroyed and thought this was their chance... but this is too reckless.
'Even so, the escort warriors and guards of the Escort Agency shouldn't be pushovers...'
Gihu ignored the questions popping into his head and entered the lower village through the south entrance. With that many bandits, they should be suppressed quickly. But unexpectedly, the village was in a state of absolute pandemonium. Buildings were burning, and the bandits, armed with blunt weapons, were killing every resident they saw, regardless of age or gender.
'Damn, there were more bandits than I expected.'
The picture finally started to become clear. The bandits in the west were probably just a decoy. Was looting not their goal? Such cruel bastards...
Just as I was thinking that, I sensed five or six bandits heading toward me. Perfect. I needed real-world experience, and some good sacrifices were walking right toward me. I walked toward the bandits I had caught in my senses.
"Huh?"
"What is this guy? He should be running for his life."
"He's lost his mind—"
Strike first, win first! Taking advantage of the moment the bandits were letting their guard down because I was alone, I launched a preemptive strike with the Vermilion Bird Chain Strike!
"Gah, gack!"
"Ugh..."
The first strike of the Vermilion Bird Chain Strike, the Strong Sword, sent two of the bandits to the afterlife. With two of their lackeys dead in an instant, the bandits finally realized the situation and began to scramble in a panic.
"H-huff!"
"He's a martial artist! Bring that person here immediately!"
Swish—
Thwack—
The second and third strikes of the Vermilion Bird Chain Strike, the Swift Sword, descended upon the bandits, granting them eternal rest. Now, there were no bandits left to witness the fourth strike...
'It’s a more practical sword technique than I thought. History and tradition are not things to be ignored, after all.'
If someone had seen this, they would have surely praised me, but there were only corpses nearby. 'Come to think of it... this is my first kill since coming to this novel's world, but I don't feel anything.'
The disgusting smell of blood and the sensation of cutting through the bandits were vivid, but I didn't feel any strange emotions or resistance. Being this calm in a real-life situation is very advantageous for survival, so it's good for me, but... I couldn't help but feel a sense of dissonance.
'Let's not think too deeply. I should just grab the medicine and get out of here.'
I spread my senses, dodging the bandits, dealing with villagers I could help or bandits wandering alone, and rummaged through the burned or smashed stalls and shops to find supplies. I could hear many screams and sounds of fighting from far away. But I have my own problems to deal with—who am I to help others? I'll help those I can, but there's no need to be proactive. And eventually, the bandits will be suppressed. The west side seems to have been suppressed already, and the other places will be soon, too.
I was lucky enough to fill my bag with medicine, and Gihu tried to leave the village through the south entrance, but to make matters worse, bandits began to storm in from the south as well. Damn it, I didn't think there would be even more bandits...
Still, I wasn't too worried. Because I was alone. It wouldn't be hard to shake them off if I wasn't surrounded yet. I'll head west immediately!
My intuition was right—it's a good thing I didn't bring the servants. Aside from the bandits who were busy murdering the residents, about ten people armed with various weapons noticed me and tried to surround me. Among them was a man who looked like the leader.
'That guy in black, he's about my level.'
But there's no reason to wait for them to surround me, is there?
"Sigh, you have no skill, so you're trying to overwhelm me with numbers? How pathetic. Really."
I saw the man in black flinch at those words. At that moment, Gihu kicked off the ground hard and dashed toward the west.
"Uh, he's running!"
"Catch him! Catch him!"
The bandits chased after me, trying their best to catch me, but they couldn't keep up with me—most of them hadn't even learned martial arts, or were at best third-class. Only the man in black, who seemed to be the leader, was managing to keep up with my speed.
'Does this bastard not know what's in the west?'
Otherwise, there's no way he'd be chasing me like his life depended on it... Thanks to my Four Gods Body, my senses were one level higher than a martial artist of the same rank. If I go this way, the escort warriors and guards will surely welcome us.
It wasn't strange that this man in black was still chasing me without realizing it. "Hey mister, can you even catch me at that sluggish pace?"
Provoking them along the way is essential. "You don't even have hair, you really look like an octopus."
"Y-YOU BASTARD!!!!!!!!!"