Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: A Visit from the Scholarly Paragon
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Jang Ung gestured to the seats.
“Please, sit.”
Do Hyeon-tak and the others sat down, their eyes quickly scanning me, Jang Ung, Sang Gang-jo, and Ja-un before settling on me. Jang Ung had introduced me as the Fire Dragon Sword.
I, however, was engrossed in my cooking lesson with Ja-un.
“Once you have all the pre-prepared ingredients, add them to the thoroughly simmered broth, cover the pot, and let it boil for about a quarter of an hour more.”
“Hmm! This carp wonton soup recipe is quite tricky.”
“But if you ever crave it, my lord, I can make it for you anytime.”
“Oh! That’s much simpler!”
Jang Ung pointed at Do Hyeon-tak.
“My lord, this is the Regional Master of Hangzhou.”
“Is that so?”
As I glanced over, Do Hyeon-tak offered a polite fist-and-palm salute.
“I am Do Hyeon-tak.”
“Ak Bi-ryong.”
I looked at the bearded young man and another man sitting on either side of Do Hyeon-tak.
“And who are they?”
Suddenly, the bearded young man bellowed.
“Shouldn't you be showing respect to your superior first?”
“That’s enough.”
“Regional Master! This man is from the Dong-ro Branch, a subordinate of the Main Alliance! He should naturally be paying his respects to you!”
Do Hyeon-tak’s expression turned stern.
“Hush! I said that’s enough!”
A hot-blooded young man. I have a soft spot for reckless guys like him.
Just then, the man who appeared to be in his late thirties looked at Sang Gang-jo and spoke quietly.
“Are you, by any chance, Chief Sang?”
Sang Gang-jo offered a faint smile.
“I am.”
The man’s face broke into a bright smile as he unhesitatingly grasped Sang Gang-jo’s hands.
“I’ve finally met you, Chief Sang! You’ve been through so much!”
“Hahaha! Mae-dang! Did you recognize me at a glance?”
“There can only be one man in the world with a gaze as noble as yours, Chief Sang.”
In other words, he had recognized Sang Gang-jo by his eyes.
Despite his words, he probably would have walked right past a disguised Sang Gang-jo on the street. He only recognized him because he was standing next to me.
Do Hyeon-tak looked on with a puzzled expression, while the bearded young man stared in bewilderment at Mae-dang and Sang Gang-jo.
In truth, Do Hyeon-tak had traveled here with this man from the Martial Alliance’s Main Headquarters, who was none other than Mae-dang. However, he knew neither his name nor his rank.
Do Hyeon-tak’s mission was simply to accompany him to the Martial Alliance’s Dong-ro Branch and to assist the Fire Dragon Sword in defeating the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union and the Ten Heavens of the Unorthodox Path.
But hearing Mae-dang call Sang Gang-jo ‘Chief Sang,’ Do Hyeon-tak instantly intuited that he must be the Chief Hall Master of the Martial Alliance.
The very same Chief Hall Master whom the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union and the Ten Heavens of the Unorthodox Path were desperately hunting.
Sang Gang-jo rose and respectfully introduced me.
“Mae-dang, please greet this gentleman.”
Mae-dang stood and clasped his fist in salute.
“I am Mae-dang.”
“Ak Bi-ryong.”
I also stood and returned the salute.
Sang Gang-jo spoke.
“Let us move to another room.”
“Very well.”
Do Hyeon-tak found it exceedingly strange that the Chief Hall Master of the Martial Alliance’s Main Headquarters was being so deferential to the Fire Dragon Sword.
As Do Hyeon-tak and the bearded young man started to follow, Mae-dang stopped them.
“The two of you, wait here.”
“Why must we wait?”
The bearded young man asked, clearly displeased. He believed that with his and the Regional Master’s rank, they were entitled to be part of any discussion.
As I was leaving, I commented as if in passing.
“If they want to come, let them.”
Neither Sang Gang-jo nor Mae-dang objected to my words.
* * *
Before we entered the new room, Sang Gang-jo advised Do Hyeon-tak and the bearded young man.
“If you hear our conversation, you will have to take responsibility for it.”
Do Hyeon-tak flinched, but the bearded young man still wore a look of displeasure.
Though he didn’t know the specifics, Do Hyeon-tak had a rough idea of the situation.
He understood that Sang Gang-jo was the Chief Hall Master of the Martial Alliance, and Mae-dang was a high-ranking official from the Main Headquarters who had come to meet him.
However, the bearded young man, quick to anger and prone to acting before thinking, remained oblivious and bristled at every opportunity.
Seeing Do Hyeon-tak’s hesitation, Sang Gang-jo said curtly.
“Go and wait.”
“We will enter.”
“Is that so?”
Do Hyeon-tak wanted to witness this historic occasion, to occupy even a small corner of it.
The bearded young man still didn’t understand what was happening, but seeing Do Hyeon-tak’s deference to Sang Gang-jo, he decided it wasn’t his place to interfere.
Sang Gang-jo introduced Mae-dang to me.
“This man is the Grand Proctor of the Main Headquarters.”
“Is that so?”
“Ah!”
At those words, Do Hyeon-tak and the bearded young man shot to their feet in shock.
The Martial Alliance was filled with countless brilliant, star-like figures, but the three most prominent among them were known as the Three Paragons of the Martial Alliance, and they represented the entire organization.
They were the Grand Elder, the Four Heavenly Kings, and the Grand Proctor.
Though the Four Heavenly Kings consisted of four people, they were collectively considered one of the Three Paragons.
The Grand Elder was the Benevolent Paragon, virtuous and merciful.
The Four Heavenly Kings were the four lords, revered as the Martial Paragons, gods of martial arts.
The Grand Proctor was the Scholarly Paragon, who knew everything between heaven and earth.
Of course, I had long known of the Three Paragons and how revered they were.
But back then, the Three Paragons were beings as distant as the heavens, and as a low-ranking warrior, I had never even seen their faces.
And now, one of them, the Scholarly Paragon, had traveled a long way to meet me.
Do Hyeon-tak and the bearded young man—Mak Pyo, the General Manager of the Hangzhou Branch—were stunned, having never dreamed that the man they had accompanied was the Grand Proctor of the Three Paragons.
Mak Pyo quickly folded his hands in front of him, assuming a respectful posture.
I studied Mae-dang for a moment. He had an unremarkable face, pale and delicate, like a scholar.
“You came to see me?”
“That is correct.”
Mae-dang spoke with formal respect. He must have concluded there was a reason Sang Gang-jo was so unfailingly polite to the Fire Dragon Sword.
“Is Mae-dang your name?”
“It is my moniker. My name is So Yang-gun.”
“Are you friends with Jo-suk?”
“Who is Jo-suk?”
Sang Gang-jo chuckled.
“It is the name I go by here.”
“Ah! Is that so?”
So Yang-gun replied respectfully.
“Yes. We are the closest of friends.”
At that moment, Do Hyeon-tak and Mak Pyo stood up.
“We will take our leave now.”
They lacked the confidence to handle the conversation that was about to unfold between Grand Proctor So Yang-gun, Chief Hall Master Sang Gang-jo, and me.
“As you wish.”
Sang Gang-jo nodded, and Do Hyeon-tak and Mak Pyo left the room.
* * *
The five of us—me, Jang Ung, Ja-un, Sang Gang-jo, and So Yang-gun—sat around a table laden with food and wine.
So Yang-gun asked Sang Gang-jo.
“Chief Sang, have you told him about the mission?”
“He does not know.”
“He may as well know.”
Sang Gang-jo smiled faintly.
“I offered to tell him several times, but he steadfastly refused to listen.”
So Yang-gun turned to me.
“Were you not curious?”
“Not at all.”
“Even though the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union and the Ten Heavens of the Unorthodox Path are desperately searching for Chief Sang?”
“That has nothing to do with me.”
“But you are protecting Chief Sang, are you not?”
“Jo-suk is merely staying by my side.”
“That is precisely how Chief Sang is being protected.”
So Yang-gun seemed to have grasped a certain aspect of my personality.
“You have no interest in matters that don’t concern you.”
“That’s right.”
“And yet, people in this world often lose their precious lives by meddling in affairs that have nothing to do with them.”
“I am no such fool.”
A brief silence followed as we quietly refilled our cups.
The letter from the Alliance Lord that Sang Gang-jo had recently received contained an order to become my aide.
—Until you receive a separate order, remain by the fledgling’s (雛) side. It would be even better if you could become his aide. Assist and support the fledgling to the best of your ability.—
In truth, that letter had been written by So Yang-gun under the Alliance Lord’s command.
Sang Gang-jo had shown me the letter, and he had become my aide soon after.
Not a subordinate, but simply an aide who stays by my side.
From So Yang-gun’s perspective, it seemed Sang Gang-jo had indeed become the Fire Dragon Sword’s aide, but he appeared to be a genuine one, not just someone following orders.
The Sang Gang-jo he knew was not the type to feign loyalty.
So Yang-gun spoke, his face gentle.
“I have something to tell you.”
“Does it have something to do with me?”
“It does.”
“Speak.”
I crossed my arms and let out a soft snort. At this moment, a peculiar sentiment began to well up inside me.
Thirteen years ago, I was a low-ranking warrior in the Martial Alliance. Now, I was conversing with So Yang-gun, the Scholarly Paragon, one of the Three Paragons I couldn't even dare to look at back then, and he was treating me with the utmost respect.
This was proof of how formidable I had become. My chest swelled with immense satisfaction.
“Currently, the eyes of the world are focused on the Main Alliance’s Dong-ro Branch.”
“I’m aware.”
“Because you drove out the Dong-ro branches of the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union and the Ten Heavens of the Unorthodox Path and have not allowed their forces to return, Dong-ro County has become the eye of the storm.”
“The eye of the storm?”
Jang Ung politely and indirectly explained.
“It means that while the world is a fierce battleground for various powers like the Martial Alliance, the Demonic Emperor's Grand Union, the Ten Heavens of the Unorthodox Path, the Four Seas Way, and the Mysterious Jade Palace, Dong-ro County alone is a world dominated by the Martial Alliance’s Dong-ro Branch, with no other powers present. It is the only such region in the world. A true calm amidst the storm.”
“Right.”
“What are your thoughts on moving the Main Alliance’s Hangzhou Branch to Dong-ro County?”
So Yang-gun cut right to the chase, coming straight at me.
Jang Ung, Sang Gang-jo, and Ja-un looked mildly surprised, but I wasn't surprised at all.
I hadn’t expected him to say that, but it didn’t faze me in the slightest.
I had always been strong-willed, and now it seemed very little could rattle me.
I don’t know if it happened during my three years and five months of martial arts training or after I came to Dong-ro County, but in any case, I no longer got surprised by much.
“Do you think of me as a member of the Martial Alliance?”
“I do not.”
“Then why do you say such a thing?”
“It is a proposition.”
“A proposition… what do I get out of it?”
“Tell me what you desire.”
It sounded as if he would grant me anything.
“What can you give me?”
Having recently developed a taste for amusing wordplay, I wasn't about to let such a fine opportunity pass.
So Yang-gun answered without hesitation.
“Money, power, wealth, and glory. We can give you anything you desire.”
“I have no need for such things.”
Money, power, wealth, and glory were far from what I wanted.
“Please, name anything.”
“You’ll grant me anything?”
So Yang-gun smiled faintly.
“Besides impossible requests like plucking the sun or stars from the sky, I will grant you anything.”
I found So Yang-gun’s confidence, which bordered on arrogance, rather irksome.
Sang Gang-jo, who knew my personality well, sensed danger. But it was already too late.
“I want the Alliance Lord.”
So Yang-gun, who had been smiling serenely, flinched in surprise.
Jang Ung, Sang Gang-jo, and Ja-un, who had never imagined I would make such a demand, grew tense.
So Yang-gun became cautious.
“What do you mean by ‘want’?”
His reaction amused me, making me want to push things even further. So I said languidly.
“I mean I want to take her as my wife.”
When I had said, ‘I want the Alliance Lord,’ So Yang-gun had sensed trouble, but he never expected me to make such a preposterous demand as marriage.
‘This man is truly incorrigible!’
“Are you serious?”