The Tail and the Tiger
"Hmm. We finally found them."
"But approaching any closer is dangerous, Leader."
"I suppose so, right?"
"Judging by their movements and the tracks we've observed from afar, they appear to be the Mansi Sect's prized Blood Jiangshis. And there isn't just one."
"So it seems."
"We've already sent word to the main house, so reinforcements should arrive soon. Let us wait."
"That is also true. A very wise decision, Vice-Leader."
Watching Song Gwang-sik, who kept his eyes fixed on the valley beyond the mountain while giving half-hearted replies, Na Han-il, the Vice-Leader of the Hunter Unit, swallowed hard and spoke.
"Leader. If you cause trouble again this time, it won't end with a simple disciplinary action. We don't even have the youngest Elder to cover for you this time."
"Do you really think that old man won't come after receiving the message? He probably can't even sleep at night out of sheer curiosity. By now, he must have heard that the Mansi Sect and the Blood Sect clashed. Knowing his personality, there's no way he'd just let this slide."
"..."
"Well, let's wait a bit anyway. We need to get an accurate assessment of the situation first."
The clash between the Blood Sect and the Mansi Sect was an earth-shattering event that would leave the entire Jianghu in utter shock.
Both factions possessed fearsome reputations in the martial world.
Yet despite their notorious infamy, the exact scale and background of both organizations remained shrouded in a thick veil of mystery.
And we only just found out that those two groups don't get along.
If this news reached the Murim Alliance?
They might have to completely overhaul all their grand strategies for dealing with the public enemies of the Murim.
Fighting poison with poison would be the best approach, after all.
Pitting the Mansi Sect against the Blood Sect to make them destroy each other would be the ideal strategy.
Just as Song Gwang-sik, the Hunter Unit Leader, reached that conclusion, one of the Hunter Unit members who had gone to scout the Blood Jiangshis across the valley returned.
"So, did you get a headcount?"
"Yes. I have an exact count."
"How many corpses are there?"
The scout slightly raised his sun-blackened face before looking down again as he answered.
"There were ten Blood Jiangshis in total."
"Hmm. That's quite a lot. With that many Blood Jiangshis, we'll need at least one of the Elders and the main family's elite martial force to handle this."
In truth, he had been thinking of sneaking over to play a few tricks.
Song Gwang-sik had briefly considered trying to steal away at least one of the Blood Jiangshis.
Yeah, let's scrap that. It's impossible.
Regrettably, the plan that had only existed in his head was quickly discarded.
In reality, the Hunter Unit members currently on-site were merely first-class masters, excluding himself and the Vice-Leader.
If they fought head-on, they would barely be able to handle a single Blood Jiangshi.
That was how monstrously powerful a Blood Jiangshi was.
It was a crucial strategic weapon that allowed the Mansi Sect to project its terrifying might to the world.
"However, there was a child in the cave."
"A child? There were definitely no child's footprints in the tracks we found. Was he kidnapped?"
"Actually... it's a bit strange. It's possible that the child is the jiangshi master."
At the scout's hesitant report, Song Gwang-sik, who had been stroking his chin with his characteristically expressionless face, froze as if time had stopped.
"...Is this a joke?"
"N-no, sir. I thoroughly investigated the area around the Blood Jiangshis, and there was no other living person besides that child. Isn't that strange?"
"I suppose it is."
Song Gwang-sik fell into deep thought.
A child in the cave?
Considering they hadn't found any footprints up to this point...
It means he was carried all the way here.
A Blood Jiangshi carried him?
Then wouldn't it be reasonable to assume that the kid is the master of the Blood Jiangshis?
It was a very simple progression of logic, and it was quite persuasive.
"About how old did he look?"
"He looked to be around ten years old. The child even roasted and ate a deer that the jiangshis had caught for him."
It was a plausible report.
And it made sense.
But there was a fatal flaw.
"Do you really think a child of that age can fully control Blood Jiangshis?"
"...I believe it would be highly unlikely."
While Blood Jiangshis were powerful,
their residual instincts and egos were equally strong.
Naturally, it was nigh impossible for a ten-year-old child to perfectly control them.
"And yet, you still think that brat is their master?"
"Yes. That is how it appeared to me."
"But you can't be sure?"
"Yes. Even though I saw him controlling as many as ten jiangshis with my own eyes, I still find it hard to believe."
In a way, it was an inconsistent, contradictory report.
However, reports from the Hunter Unit usually went this way.
They did not filter their initial findings through their own assumptions or judgments.
They simply reported what they saw, raw and unfiltered.
The members of the Hunter Unit were trained from a very young age to speak with absolute honesty, without arbitrarily filtering out details that seemed like errors to them.
"Very well. Then we will observe them from a distance for now."
Thus, the ten members of the Hunter Unit hid in the darkness, keeping a stealthy watch over the Blood Jiangshis and the young boy.
Their stealth skills were so exceptional that Tvalier, who was in the cave, did not sense them at all.
"The child is moving. He is heading south, toward the town."
"I told you before, I have eyes too."
"What should we do? If he attacks the town with those Blood Jiangshis, we won't be able to stop him."
"Hmm."
Hunter Unit Leader Song Gwang-sik.
He kept his brow slightly furrowed and delayed his response.
Did the boy really intend to raid the town?
With that kind of power, it was certainly possible.
A single Blood Jiangshi possessed the destructive power of two or three peak masters.
And there were ten of them.
In theory, that brat was moving with the equivalent of thirty peak masters.
With that kind of force, any ordinary minor or mid-sized sect could be reduced to ashes in the time it took to drink a cup of tea.
"...He stopped!"
"He left the Blood Jiangshis in the forest and is moving alone."
"...I see it too. So stop making such a fuss."
Fortunately, the boy left the Blood Jiangshis behind in the woods and walked toward the main road alone, entering the town.
He gradually grew more distant until he finally vanished from their sight.
Song Gwang-sik made his decision then.
"Tsk, I guess this is as far as we go. Everyone, return to the clan."
Though he issued the order to withdraw, none of the Hunter Unit members hiding in the bushes made a move.
They merely squinted their eyes and stared silently at their leader.
"What? Why are you all looking at me like that?"
"..."
"I told you to go home and rest. You guys are workaholics."
At that moment, Vice-Leader Na Han-il, who had been listening quietly, spoke up.
"What about you, Leader? Aren't you coming with us?"
Song Gwang-sik flinched slightly before muttering in a voice as tiny as an ant.
"Well, someone has to stay. I'm the one in charge."
"Then I'll stay too."
"Since when were you so loyal?"
"If I go back now, the youngest Elder will nag me to death. I'd rather suffer a bit more out here."
"Oh... so it's not loyalty, you've just gotten smarter? Impressive. Do you want to be the Hunter Unit Leader instead?"
"I'll pass. You know better than anyone how much the youngest Elder pesters people, Leader."
"...Clever bastard. May you live a long life."
The Hunter Unit Leader finally let out a sigh and said,
"I'll handle the close-range tracking alone. The rest of you who stay will act as liaisons."
"You can't go alone. It's too dangerous."
"He left the Blood Jiangshis behind anyway, and the target is just a kid who looks about ten. If things go south, I can easily run away."
"What if the opponent is a master who has undergone Rejuvenation?"
At his vice-leader's shameless counterargument, Song Gwang-sik let out a deep sigh.
"If we think like that, how are we supposed to get anything done in our line of work? If you're going to be this stubborn, just go back."
"My apologies."
Realizing that his argument was a bit of a stretch, Na Han-il quickly backed down.
"I'll say it again: I will handle the close-range surveillance alone. The rest of you keep your distance. At least as much as we have now—maintain a distance of at least two hundred zhang."
"Understood."
Recalling the boy who had followed the official road and vanished through the city gates, Song Gwang-sik quickly set off.
"Follow slowly. From now on, we are in Operation Protocol B."
"We obey your command, Leader."
Because the Hunter Unit frequently conducted this type of tracking and surveillance, several operations were pre-established and could be quickly initiated using designated code words.
This time was no different.
There was an active close-range tracker, while the rest supported him from afar.
And so, the Hunter Unit of the Namgung Clan latched onto Tvalier's tail.
After purchasing high-quality clothes from a drapery shop and dressing himself well, Tvalier headed straight for the Nangin Association.
The Nangin Association had branches in every city, and each branch received and distributed various requests within its region.
The Giyang County branch of the Nangin Association was no different.
The problem was that, by the very nature of the Nangin Association, its rules were not particularly strict.
Tvalier was about to experience firsthand exactly why that was a problem.
Blocking the entrance to the Nangin Association, a scar-faced vagabond spat on the ground.
The vagabond, who introduced himself as Jong Chu, stretched out his long leg to block Tvalier's path as the boy tried to enter the basement entrance.
"Whoa there. This isn't a place for a wet-behind-the-ears young master, is it?"
It was a cheap, direct provocation.
Rather than feeling angered by the blatant hostility, Tvalier found the experience quite refreshing, as it had been a long time since he last dealt with such nonsense.
Right. I've become a kid.
He often unconsciously forgot this most crucial fact.
Tvalier stared at the grim-faced man for a moment, then smiled brightly.
He could feel gazes on him from all directions.
Although the Nangin Association's building was located in a semi-basement, it was surrounded by a simple wooden fence rather than solid walls, save for the stone pillars.
This left plenty of open spaces all around, apart from the main entrance.
Vagabonds were gathered in crowds between those open spaces.
"Whew~ What's that? I can smell the baby formula all the way over here."
"Looks like the young master is running an errand for his mommy. Or did he get lost?"
"Heh, looking at his clothes, he must be from a wealthy family."
"Is this some kind of commoner experience trip?"
They babbled noisily, looking at Tvalier with expressions that said they were glad to have found some entertainment to cure their boredom.
Well, this isn't bad.
It felt like the perfect opportunity for an initiation.
And much like Tvalier's thoughts, the vagabond blocking the entrance seemed to be getting quite excited as the crowd whistled and waved their arms around him.
With a triumphant look, the vagabond took large strides up the stairs, one step at a time.
"Hey, didn't you hear me? A little brat like you shouldn't dare to—"
The man, who had extended his index finger to poke Tvalier's forehead, suddenly realized his finger was wrapped inside the kid's tiny palm.
Huh?
In that instant,
Crack—
"Argh! Gah! You crazy son of a bitch!"
Tvalier calmly grabbed the man's finger and twisted it sideways until it snapped.
Ignoring the other fist flying toward him, he drove the toe of his boot, infused with mana, straight into the man's right shin.
Crack—
"Aaaaargh!"
The vagabond lost his balance mid-swing and collapsed pathetically onto the ground.
He tumbled down the stairs, thrashing like a freshly caught carp.
Tvalier stared down at the groveling vagabond, then slowly approached him, leaned in close to his ear, and spoke in a flat, monotone voice.
"If you make any more noise, I'll rip your tongue out."
He delivered the threat politely in a high, pre-pubescent child's voice, and it seemed to work perfectly on the man.
"Ugh... Mmph...!"
The tone and expression were so absolute, carrying the chilling certainty of someone who could and would carry out the threat without hesitation, that the vagabond desperately swallowed his screams, forcing himself to endure the agony.
Only then did Tvalier smile with satisfaction and look around.
It was a brief display of violence, but a faint trace of terror had clearly washed over the faces of the numerous vagabonds who, just moments ago, had been watching with mischievous anticipation and whistling.
Their expressions were like those of people who had witnessed something they should never have seen.
Faced with an absurd, nonsensical sight that was hard to believe came from a mere ten-year-old child, the onlookers quickly averted their eyes the moment Tvalier looked their way.
"It seems you don't have many friends. No one is coming to help you."
"Ugh..."
Somehow, the first introduction had gone quite smoothly.
Tvalier patted the cheek of the vagabond with the broken finger and shin with a smiling face, then stepped over him and confidently walked into the Nangin Association branch.
The interior of the Giyang County branch was quite massive.
The stone pillars scattered everywhere rose to a height of at least two zhang.
"Welcome, young hero. I am Mak Chung, the receptionist at the Giyang County branch of the Nangin Association."
Perhaps because he had finished his initiation so loudly, despite his appearance as a young child, Tvalier received quite respectful treatment at the reception desk.
"I came to make a Vagabond Plaque."
He needed to establish a proper identity starting from here.
Just as Tvalier was taking his first steps into the Jianghu, the Hunter Unit Leader of the Namgung Clan, who was observing him from afar, Song Gwang-sik's expression was gradually growing more and more complicated.