Chapter 484
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 484
Chapter Title: Nice
"Then the Fierce Dragon Corps will carry out its original mission."
That was Ha Mu-baek's conclusion.
The original mission.
Assisting the Demon-Sealing Corps in guarding the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest.
Blocking the walking corpses.
Even though there were no more walking corpses now.
The Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest was still there.
Meaning they would remain stationed in that place.
"Hmm."
This time, Gong Son Dan-gyeong crossed his arms and fell deep into thought.
It was simply too wasteful to leave it at that.
The Fierce Dragon Corps members who had accumulated one to four years of real combat experience in the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest.
And the ones personally trained by Ha Mu-baek himself.
Truly valuable forces.
"The Fierce Dragon Corps belongs to the Heavenly Eye Pavilion, and as its Pavilion Lord, I can decide its missions, can't I?"
"As its Corps Leader, I'm saying we'll stick to our core duties."
"I can change those core duties if I want."
It was a declaration that he wouldn't let them lounge around sucking honey in the now-peaceful Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest until their service ended.
"The Dragon Training Pavilion's Fierce Dragon Corps. Do you plan to keep it going?"
Gong Son Dan-gyeong shut his mouth again at the sudden curveball.
With the walking corpses and Blood Cult gone from the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest, and the Demon-Sealing Corps in such a state.
There was no more reason to raise a Fierce Dragon Corps.
The Dragon Training Pavilion had already been informed.
No more recruiting new cadets for the Fierce Dragon Corps.
"You know what it means to halt further recruitment?"
Indeed.
A fighting force cut off from a steady supply of new recruits was doomed to dissolution.
"We have to think about the monthly stipends they'll keep drawing going forward."
In other words, earn your keep.
"What if the corps members want to leave the alliance?"
"They know the Fierce Dragon Corps doesn't allow that."
That was right.
A Fierce Dragon Corps member who wanted to leave before fulfilling their term had to repay every stipend received so far.
Even the ones from their cadet days.
No one could possibly afford that.
Most of them had joined the Fierce Dragon Corps precisely because of that money.
The two locked eyes once more in a tense standoff.
So Hwi-woong quietly watched, sipping his tea.
He couldn't side with either.
Though deep down, he favored Gong Son Dan-gyeong.
He hated to lose the Fierce Dragon Corps too.
"Understood. Let me know once the Fierce Dragon Corps' disposition is decided."
In the end, Ha Mu-baek yielded a step.
The moment Gong Son Dan-gyeong's lips curved into a triumphant smile.
"Well, I can't say how well the Fierce Dragon Corps will perform that mission."
With those parting words, Ha Mu-baek rose from his seat and strode out.
Gong Son Dan-gyeong stared blankly at his retreating figure.
The Fierce Dragon Corps Leader.
In front of his own Heavenly Eye Pavilion Lord.
Right now.
He had openly declared they would slack off.
"Hah..."
A sigh escaped him.
And understandably so.
That man had shown exactly how he slacked off during his first month after assignment to the Fierce Dragon Corps.
What if the entire Fierce Dragon Corps did the same?
That would be a headache in its own right.
"What should we do?"
Gong Son Dan-gyeong turned to So Hwi-woong with a troubled expression.
So Hwi-woong merely shrugged.
It wasn't that there were no solutions.
Remove Ha Mu-baek as Corps Leader and then move the Fierce Dragon Corps.
However.
Alliance rules allowed it, but in practice, it was impossible.
That monster who had single-handedly ended the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest affair.
No one could command him at will.
"It's your problem, so think it over carefully. See you tomorrow."
It was already late at night.
So Hwi-woong rose from his seat as well.
"Damn humans..."
Left alone in the empty room, Gong Son Dan-gyeong muttered with feeling.
Ha Mu-baek walked the streets of Luoyang.
Though thick darkness had fallen.
The streets lit by countless lanterns still bustled with people.
Even children who should have been in bed were running about here and there.
Luoyang, the city where the Righteous Heaven Alliance headquarters stood.
That was the reason.
The Righteous Heaven Alliance had the city's security under near-perfect control.
So even at this hour, the common folk could roam the streets without worry.
For Ha Mu-baek, it had been truly ages since he'd strolled Luoyang's night streets.
He walked, thinking of finding a suitable inn for the night.
But none caught his eye.
Ever since realizing the evil spirit lurking deep within him.
Ha Mu-baek found it hard to hold back his irritation.
Today.
His confrontation with Gong Son Dan-gyeong had been the same.
If he'd kept pushing and pulling with him.
He might not have been able to hold back.
So he'd stormed out.
After meeting Master Mugyeok in the Investigation Cave.
And stepping into a new realm, growing stronger.
This was a sudden obstacle.
That evil spirit was now turning into his inner demon.
"Tch."
Ha Mu-baek clicked his tongue without realizing it.
"Great hero! Great hero! Looking for a place to stay? Come to our inn! It's newly opened, clean, and the food's delicious!"
Ten years old? No, maybe nine?
A boy about that age approached Ha Mu-baek and hawked like that.
Ha Mu-baek had overheard him while walking.
He'd already missed ten potential customers.
Yet the boy still wore a bright face as he touted.
Such a young kid.
Seeing the boy approach, Ha Mu-baek frowned.
It reminded him of his own time at ten.
The moment Ha Mu-baek frowned.
A girl who looked thirteen or fourteen, standing on one side of the street.
Seeming on the cusp between girl and woman, she hurried over and bowed deeply.
"Great hero, forgive us. The child knows nothing and was rude. Please pardon him."
She pressed the boy's head down, bowing her own, and apologized earnestly.
And understandably so.
Luoyang was the Righteous Heaven Alliance's city.
In other words, a place swarming with martial artists, kept safe by them and the alliance.
But conversely, they were also the ones who could shatter that peace.
The girl knew well how fearsome martial artists could be.
So when one who looked like one frowned, she panicked and intervened.
When her younger brother dragged her along, saying he was hawking.
She'd come, reluctantly.
But too embarrassed to hawk herself, she'd just watched her clueless little brother.
Now here, feeling ashamed for doing nothing out of embarrassment.
The martial artist frowned.
All she could think was to protect her brother.
So she dashed over and bowed deeply.
The naive little brother.
Having done nothing but hawk.
Wondered why his big sister was making such a fuss.
His head bowed only because she pressed it down.
Ha Mu-baek asked at the sight of the two who oddly resembled each other.
"Siblings?"
"Y-yes, great hero. Please forgive..."
"You did nothing wrong, so what's there to forgive? I'm the one who's sorry."
At the girl's frantic demeanor, Ha Mu-baek came to his senses.
Dressed in black martial robes, anyone could see he was a martial artist.
He had forgotten how Luoyang's commoners would react to such a one frowning.
"Where's your inn? I think I'll stay the night."
In the end, Ha Mu-baek decided that.
And followed the siblings.
Off the main avenue.
A small three-story inn facing a side alley.
A spot where foot traffic rarely reached.
'Bad location.'
He had that much discernment.
Opening the door, the first floor used as a dining hall was empty.
"Mom! Dad! We have a guest! He's staying the night!"
Before dinner, Ha Mu-baek had said, but the boy who'd seated him at a table shouted toward the kitchen.
The curtain at the kitchen entrance parted, and a woman appeared.
She didn't look like someone who worked at an inn like this.
A considerable beauty.
"Welcome."
She bowed to Ha Mu-baek, then hurriedly wiped the table.
Meanwhile, the little hawker boy brought tea.
Ha Mu-baek looked around the dining hall.
'Clean.'
The boy was right.
It was truly spotless.
But the boy was wrong.
It wasn't clean because it was new.
The people running this inn kept it that way with devoted care.
It claimed to be newly opened, but the small building itself seemed quite old.
"One roast duck, a bottle of takju, and a suitable soup."
Ha Mu-baek placed a simple order.
"Yes, understood. You said you're staying the night—how shall we prepare the room?"
"Anything suitable for one person is fine."
"Yes, we'll prepare it that way. Please wait a moment."
The woman bowed once more and turned, whereupon the girl approached her.
"Which room?"
"The Wood Room on this floor."
The girl nodded at the woman's words, grabbed something, and headed upstairs.
Apparently to tidy and prepare Ha Mu-baek's room.
Ha Mu-baek sensed another presence in the kitchen.
'The chef?'
And likely the father of these children.
The woman who had gone into the kitchen soon emerged and stood at the empty counter.
The cashbox on the counter was nearly empty, catching Ha Mu-baek's eye.
His gaze soon turned to the kitchen.
Sounds of cooking soon followed, along with a delicious aroma wafting out.
'The food's good too, huh?'
From the smell coming from the kitchen, it seemed so.
A moment later, the little waiter brought the food.
One dish at a time.
His small frame somehow carried them steadily without spilling, placing them on the table.
And indeed, every dish was delicious.
Which made Ha Mu-baek tilt his head.
'With food like this...'
Newly opened, in a side alley off the main street, sure.
But it couldn't be this empty.
Entertaining that doubt, he slowly ate and drained his takju.
Hoping to soothe the inner turmoil building up knowingly or not.
But takju wasn't enough to cool it.
However.
The flavors of the roast duck and soup.
Did ease his inner heat somewhat.
'Haven't had food this good in ages...'
It was a taste that naturally lifted his spirits, greatly improving his foul mood.
Ha Mu-baek's gaze turned to the little boy beside his mother.
An unexpected encounter.
But thanks to the kid, he'd had a delicious dinner.
Then the girl who had gone upstairs returned.
About this much time had passed.
Given the inn's size, it must be a small room—did it really take that long?
The girl approached Ha Mu-baek.
"We've prepared the room for you, sir. Go upstairs to the second room on the right. It's the Wood Room. Here's the key."
The girl offered a large key.
"Thanks."
Ha Mu-baek said, handing her a single coin.
And refilled his glass.
'If I tell Mu-hyeon about this place, he'll be thrilled. Or does that guy already know?'
Newly opened or not.
With flavors like this.
He might know it already.
The guy knew every corner of Luoyang's underbelly.
The girl soon went to her mother's side.
The kitchen seemed tidied, as a man who looked like the chef parted the curtain and emerged.
He too headed to the children.
In Ha Mu-baek's eyes, as he quietly ate and sipped alone.
The harmonious sight of the four family members entered his view.
'Not a lone household.'
The warm scene brought a pleased thought as he watched them.
Midway, he sensed the woman's presence.
Another life was growing in her belly.
From snippets of conversation, it seemed the others didn't know yet.
A smile touched Ha Mu-baek's lips.
"Nice."
He murmured lightly without realizing.
Watching them.
It just felt good.
Ha Mu-baek was suddenly ten again.
Back before those hellish days.
He too had such times.
Mother holding his newborn sister Seol-ran, father beside them, and him.
Those harmonious, happy days.
How much time had passed?
Ha Mu-baek finished his meal and drained the last of his takju.
For the first time in ages.
A pleasant, leisurely dinner.
Ha Mu-baek took a coin from his bosom, placed it on the table, grabbed the key, and went upstairs.
Opening the door.
As expected, a small room.
One bed, one low table, one small dresser—that was it.
Clean.
This little room was spotless from the time the girl had spent tidying it, and that care was felt.
Ha Mu-baek roughly settled in and lay on the bed.
He just felt like it.
The bedding was cozy.
A moment later, Ha Mu-baek fell asleep.