We Haven't Even Started Yet
Yu Sucheon’s hand that had gripped his sword tingled.
He hadn’t drawn the blade because doing so would brand the entire Dan Manor as criminals. Dan Yuseon, his vicious mother-in-law, and the young manor lord Eun Doyun would all be dragged off to the government office. No matter how strong Dan Hyunwoo was, even he couldn’t defy the authorities.
Just like how powerless Yu Sucheon himself felt right now.
Tadadot.
Yu Sucheon and Jeon Akgwan unleashed their lightness techniques and raced toward the Dan Manor.
“Hurry. We have to tell Dan Hyunwoo.”
“Brother Yu, isn’t this actually an opportunity? With that explosive temper of his, Dan Hyunwoo will storm the government office. Then we’ll finally be free, won’t we? The authorities will hunt us for the rest of our lives.”
“Don’t forget that Madam Dan and Eun Hyeongyeom were taken because of us.”
“Are you actually worried about the Dan Manor? Well… I am, a little. Just a little! A very little!”
“We’ve lived as villains our whole lives. You think I don’t know this is my chance at freedom? But something about it feels filthy. The constables, the government office, Dan Hyunwoo—everything. But that bastard Constable Kang pisses me off the most, fuck!”
“Damn it, I completely agree that Constable Kang is a son of a bitch. Never thought the day would come when we’d worry about the Dan Manor… It used to be our meal ticket until just recently.”
“Sapa warriors and men of the Black Path worrying about others? We really must have gone insane.”
Yu Sucheon and Jeon Akgwan’s lightness techniques accelerated. They were half a quarter-hour from the Dan Manor.
“We stop Dan Hyunwoo first. We need another way before he causes a disaster!”
* * *
At the same time.
Thud. Thud!
Uninvited guests were pounding violently on the Dan Manor’s gate.
Hwa Yuhwa, who had already sensed them with her qi perception, opened the door.
“What business brings the constables and patrolmen here?”
Constable Seong Jigyeom and seven patrolmen stood with savage expressions. The moment they saw Hwa Yuhwa’s breathtaking beauty, they froze.
We could lock her up and have some fun.
Constable Seong smiled obscenely and swallowed his saliva. To think such a beauty had been hidden at the Dan Manor. It seemed Yu Sucheon had kept this woman secret. Lost in lust, he must have done all the shopping and cooking himself. That explained his bizarre behavior lately.
Unaware that Dan Hyunwoo and Hwa Yuhwa were martial artists, Constable Seong and his men strode inside.
“We have arrested Dan Seoyeon and Eun Hyeongyeom. They confessed that the Dan Manor has been colluding with the greenwood bandits. Therefore, all of you will be taken in as well. Men, bind them!”
Dan Hyunwoo’s eyebrows twitched.
“You arrested Seoyeon and Hyeongyeom? Where are they now?”
“Why the hell would I tell you? Worry about your own neck!”
Constable Seong bellowed and turned his gaze on Dan Hyunwoo.
Th-this bastard… Why are this young punk’s eyes so murderous?
Constable Seong flinched. He had faced countless vicious criminals, but never anyone with eyes like these. Cold sweat broke out against his will. Still, he didn’t retreat.
“Colluding with bandits is strictly forbidden by national law. In a situation where you should be reflecting on your crimes…”
“Your tongue is too long.”
Boom!
Dan Hyunwoo’s fist sank into Constable Seong’s chest. The moment his clothes rippled and tore apart—
Crash.
Constable Seong slammed into the wall, vomited blood, and lost consciousness.
The seven patrolmen drew their wooden clubs in shock. Before they could even set their stances, they were planted upside-down in the ground.
Crash!
“Ugh!”
Even as they were driven into the dirt, the seven patrolmen couldn’t believe what was happening. The movements were too fast, the pain beyond imagination. The blood spurting from their mouths came from deep inside their organs.
Ma… martial artists?
They realized too late that something had gone terribly wrong. There was no time to think further. One of the seven was already grabbed by the collar and lifted by Dan Hyunwoo. His legs flailed pitifully in the air.
“Where are Dan Seoyeon and Eun Hyeongyeom? At the government office?”
“I… I don’t know exactly…”
Boom!
The patrolman who couldn’t answer properly was punched in the chest and sent flying to the same spot as Constable Seong. His unconscious body convulsed as blood poured from his mouth and nose.
Fuck. That’s what happens if you don’t answer right away?
The second patrolman, shaking with terror, was lifted next.
“Where?”
“Constable Kang said he was going to arrest them, but I don’t know the exact location…”
Boom!
The second patrolman met the same fate. The third confessed before he could even be grabbed.
“They said they were making the arrest at the market. They left before us, so they should be at the government office by now.”
“Who framed them with those false charges?”
“We don’t know that either. We only did as we were ordered… Argh!”
Boom!
The rest of the patrolmen were all sent flying. Dan Hyunwoo’s cold eyes burned with rage as he headed straight for the government office—at least until Yu Sucheon and Jeon Akgwan came running to stop him.
“A huge problem has occurred! Madam Dan and Eun Hyeongyeom… Huh?”
Yu Sucheon’s eyebrows trembled at the sight of the courtyard. Constables and patrolmen vomiting blood on the ground. Wooden clubs rolling everywhere. And Dan Hyunwoo, who looked like he had half-killed them all while violating the Non-Aggression between Government and Wulin.
After all the effort they had put into avoiding that very thing. Yu Sucheon muttered with a dazed face.
“It’s not that a huge problem is going to occur. The huge problem has already occurred.”
* * *
Dan Hyunwoo, Hwa Yuhwa, and Yu Sucheon raced toward the government office using their lightness techniques. Jeon Akgwan stayed behind at the Dan Manor in case more constables or patrolmen showed up. He was probably cleaning up the half-dead Constable Seong and the seven patrolmen right about now.
Dan Hyunwoo turned his hardened face toward Yu Sucheon.
“Tell me everything that happened.”
“What are you talking about, sir? How would I know any—”
Yu Sucheon avoided Dan Hyunwoo’s gaze. But those cold eyes seemed to pierce straight through him.
“I warned you not to make me repeat myself.”
“Th-that is…”
In the end, Yu Sucheon confessed everything. When he explained that Dan Seoyeon and Eun Hyeongyeom had been taken as hostages, Dan Hyunwoo’s face turned to stone.
I’m really dead this time. He’s not just normally angry.
Anticipating a fist at any moment, Yu Sucheon flinched. If only the government office would appear already—why did the road feel so long today?
Dan Hyunwoo spoke to the nervous Yu Sucheon.
“You did well.”
“Did I mishear? I thought you just said I did well…”
“To have power and still turn a blind eye to commoners suffering is a sin in itself.”
Yu Sucheon found the words unexpected. He had thought Dan Hyunwoo was just a violent thug who beat people indiscriminately, but the blade of his anger was pointed at the government office, not at him.
Yu Sucheon said, “But what do you plan to do by charging in recklessly? There’s no way to bring Madam Dan and Lord Eun out. The county magistrate won’t stand idle either.”
“That’s exactly why the county magistrate is the mastermind—he won’t stand idle.”
“The county magistrate is famous for being benevolent. He’s the mastermind?”
Yu Sucheon’s doubt. Yet Dan Hyunwoo and Hwa Yuhwa were certain. During their time in the Mumyeongdae, they had seen countless corrupted magistrates. They all wore masks of varying thickness, pretending to be upright while sucking the blood of the common people.
“If the county magistrate is the mastermind, that’s an even bigger problem. It’s clearly different from dealing with a mere constable.”
“No problem. Just destroy him and it’s over.”
“What do you mean no problem? Everything is a problem! What about the Non-Aggression between Government and Wulin?”
Destroying a county magistrate who had no equal inside his own jurisdiction? Yu Sucheon trembled. With a face drained of blood, he looked at Dan Hyunwoo with desperate eyes. His expression begged him not to violate the Non-Aggression any further.
But contrary to his wish, the government office drew steadily closer until the main gate came into view.
Instead of answering, Dan Hyunwoo and Hwa Yuhwa walked straight toward it.
This is insane. Please don’t do this. Please.
Yu Sucheon prayed fervently. If the government office was attacked, the imperial army would mobilize. Then it would truly become irreversible.
Of course, it already looked too late.
We’re fucked.
Swish! Thud!
The three patrolmen guarding the main gate collapsed without even managing a proper scream after Hwa Yuhwa’s hand techniques sliced through the air. Yu Sucheon’s already pale face lost all color completely. They had just crossed a river of no return.
Boooom—!
With a massive roar, the main gate flew open.
Don’t! Please! Pleeease! At least don’t touch the county magistrate!
Despite his desperate prayers, the gate’s lock rolled across the ground with a metallic clang. To the half-fainted Yu Sucheon, Dan Hyunwoo said,
“Guard the gate so no other constables or patrolmen can enter.”
“I suppose I should pray that no one comes at all.”
“You seem afraid of violating the Non-Aggression.”
“Do you not know who is making me break out in this cold sweat?”
As they stepped into the government office now swarming with armed constables and patrolmen holding spears and wooden clubs, Dan Hyunwoo spoke.
“I’ll take responsibility for everything.”
* * *
The constables and thirty patrolmen, startled by the suddenly opened gate, armed themselves with wooden clubs and spears to face the intruders. In the tense silence, Dan Hyunwoo spotted the county magistrate standing behind the thirty nervous patrolmen, using the Six Departments as a human shield. His mask was thicker than any official’s Dan Hyunwoo had ever seen.
“I’ve come to take back Dan Seoyeon and Eun Hyeongyeom.”
“What? Dan Seoyeon and Eun Hyeongyeom? So you’re causing all this chaos to break criminals out of jail! How dare you assault a government office? You will be treated as an enemy of the state.”
County Magistrate Baek Changseo found the names strangely heavy on his tongue. The Dan surname. It was no coincidence that the Dan Manor had come to mind. Constable Seong had gone there just earlier. If someone from the Dan Manor had come here, their paths must have crossed. Still, the fact that this man had broken the gate lock bothered him slightly.
Could he be a martial artist?
No. Even an ordinary strongman could do that.
It was an old, creaking lock. He remembered Constable Kang saying the only martial artists at the Dan Manor were Yu Sucheon and Jeon Akgwan. Baek Changseo shouted fiercely.
“The crime of attempting to break prisoners out and the crime of destroying government property are both severe! Immediately bind that bastard, throw him in the dungeon, and torture him!”
There was no need to fabricate charges. They had committed the crimes themselves. It was almost pitiable.
The waiting constables and patrolmen formed ranks and charged as one. Dan Hyunwoo spoke to Hwa Yuhwa.
“As expected, words don’t work. Still, don’t kill them.”
“This outfit hasn’t been worn long, but it’s going to get torn again.”
Bang!
Hwa Yuhwa’s leg technique split the air. When she had been in the Mumyeongdae she wore buttoned skirts, but her current clothes produced the sharp sound of ripping fabric. The piercing sound as it cut through the air echoed loudly.
“Kyaaaack!”
“Ugh!”
Five patrolmen flew through the air and slammed into the wall. Dan Hyunwoo walked into the empty space they had left behind.
“Wh-what is this…”
An impossible scene was unfolding. Everywhere Dan Hyunwoo stepped, patrolmen were driven into the ground. County Magistrate Baek Changseo’s eyes shook violently as if struck by an earthquake.
Crack.
When he grabbed a wrist and twisted, the man spun once through the air. Those planted on the floor vomited blood without exception. And that wasn’t all. He dodged sharp spear tips with the slightest half-step. The spot where the spearman had stood became empty the next instant.
Boom!
The spear-wielding patrolman was struck in the jaw and sent flying. The sight of men flying more than ten meters was utterly terrifying. Before anyone realized it, twenty patrolmen lay on the ground.
Ma… martial artists? Even that delicate woman?
The movements of Dan Hyunwoo and Hwa Yuhwa were on a completely different level from the greenwood bandits. The patrolmen couldn’t even perceive the attacks before they were screaming and flying through the air.
That bastard Constable Kang! Did he really not know there were other martial artists at the Dan Manor besides Yu Sucheon and Jeon Akgwan?!
Baek Changseo had wondered why Hangzhou’s greatest expert, Yu Sucheon, would stay at a small manor like the Dan family’s. The answer was standing right in front of him—the person Yu Sucheon served.
“They’re experts! Everyone run!”
One of the fallen patrolmen shouted. As if on cue, the constables and patrolmen fled toward the main gate on trembling legs. Dan Hyunwoo watched them with cold eyes, then extended his left hand toward the gate.
Boom—!
With a massive roar, the gate slammed shut and locked. It hadn’t been touched. It closed with a single gesture.
Insane! A supreme expert!
The patrolmen, gripped by terror, pulled and pushed at the gate repeatedly. But it didn’t budge, as if blocked by a boulder. Closing the gate without touching it was frightening enough, but now a mere gesture made it impossible to open. The fleeing men turned their terror-filled faces toward Dan Hyunwoo.
Dan Hyunwoo, who now looked like a grim reaper, spoke coldly.
“Where do you think you’re going? We haven’t even started yet.”