The Tournament Begins

A few days later, the sparring tournament at Jeongmu Academy opened its curtains.

Disciples from various sects that could be seen everywhere on the streets. Plum blossoms, clouds, waves, and more. Righteous faction martial artists wearing robes embroidered with all kinds of symbols strode boldly through the streets.

Although it was an event hosted by Jeongmu Academy, the emergence of outstanding young talents from the murim was still a rather ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠interesting matter. Moreover, if any of those promising juniors belonged to no sect, recruiting them into one of the visiting factions was also part of the martial artists’ duties.

“Cheap! We’re cheap!”

“I’ll sharpen your blade with a premium whetstone! Done in half a shichen, so leave it with me if you need it!”

“Meat dumplings from Tangho! You can’t watch the tournament on an empty stomach! Come get your snacks!”

Not only martial artists but all kinds of merchants refused to miss this special annual event. It was a day when countless people from every region gathered. Since both the government and the murim joined forces ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to hold it, any merchant who let the opportunity slip would be considered a fool.

Among them, a few figures stood out. Usually those were either renowned masters or students of Jeongmu Academy like myself.

“There are so many people. This huge academy suddenly feels cramped.”

“It’s actually on the lighter side since it’s the first day. Once the preliminaries end and we move into the main bracket and winner’s advancement rounds, the crowd will grow even larger.”

Winner’s advancement rounds… I had suspected as much, but it seemed the sparring tournament was indeed being run in a tournament format.

“By the way, which group were you assigned to, Lady Hwayeong? It would be awkward if we faced each other right from the start.”

“There is no need to worry. When acquaintances register for the tournament together, they are usually placed in different groups.”

I nodded at her words. It made perfect sense. If a whole group of people rushed in to register and all ended up in the same bracket, it would be easy to intentionally throw matches and send one person straight to the main rounds. Then everyone else would have to fight fair and square, exhausting themselves before the main stage, while that one person competed in perfect condition. That would hardly be fair.

“That certainly wouldn’t align with the tournament’s purpose. Good. It looks like we won’t meet at the beginning.”

Of course, even if we did meet, I had no intention of rigging the match, so there wouldn’t have been a problem anyway.

“But Lady Hwayeong, who are those people over there?”

“Hmm, how should I put it… It’s nothing particularly impressive, but if you’re curious, would you like to take a look?”

When I asked about the crowd visible in the distance, Hwayeong gave a faint, slightly bitter smile and led the way toward an open area to the right of the arena.

The sight of people gathered and passionately focused on something entered my view. It looked chaotic yet strangely orderly. When my gaze reached the end of the line, I spotted a merchant sitting at a wooden desk covered with rather fine silk, counting something.

“Two, four, six, eight…”

Clatter.Pop pop pop!

A man pulling coins from his pouch and calculating at incredible speed. Listening to the customers standing in front of him, I immediately realized what kind of place this was.

“A gambling board.”

“An unhealthy pastime that measures the students’ strength with money.”

“Hmm…”

After hearing Hwayeong, I naturally stepped into line behind the people.

“Young Hero Siin?”

“Ah, it’s not that I desperately want to bet or anything. I’m just a little curious who’s on the bracket.”

Hwayeong’s eyes narrowed at my words. She seemed to find it suspicious. I didn’t bother arguing. Whatever she was thinking, it was probably a fairly plausible guess.

“I’ll bet on Chusa Sword from the fourth year advancing to the main rounds!”

“Chusa Sword? Isn’t that a bit of a stretch?”

“Hey! Even if the odds are low, the payout is high, right?”

The two men who had been examining the student list finally picked names and started betting. A large sheet of paper was covered with names and titles. Looking closer, it was divided into right and left columns. The right side already listed students who had made some name for themselves and earned titles.

The higher up, the better their reputation and the higher their chances of winning money. They were all fourth-years from prestigious families who possessed titles. Starting with the Huashan Sect that always appeared in wuxia novels, the disciples of the Nine Great Schools occupied the spots.

Then the left side…

It was completely empty. As I stared at the blank space, the man taking bets grinned and held out a small brush to me.

“That column is prepared in case an unknown star appears. If there’s someone not on the right side but you think will rise in this tournament, feel free to write them down.”

So that was it. After hearing him, I glanced at Hwayeong. Her name was already boldly written on the right side of the list I was about to fill, so it felt a bit awkward to openly squeeze my own name onto the left.

But Hwayeong, watching me, let out a dumbfounded laugh and then looked me in the eye.

“Just write it quickly. We’re picking main round qualifiers anyway.”

“Heh heh…”

Scritch scratch.

With an unfamiliar brush stroke, I wrote my three characters in the left column. But after writing my name, something occurred to me.

“Um, Lady Hwayeong?”

“What? Now that you’ve written it, you’re having second thoughts?”

“No… that’s not it…”

I held out my open palm so she could see it clearly.

“I don’t have any money. Could you lend me some?”

“Gambling with someone else’s money… That’s the perfect picture of someone headed for ruin.”

She let out a deep sigh and began rummaging through the pouch hanging behind her. But a moment later, as I watched her, a notification floated up before me and I stopped her from taking out the coins.

A small pouch appeared at my right side, drawing an involuntary sound of admiration. I immediately reached into my pocket and pulled out as many coins as I could grab.

The messages kept popping up without pause. They finally stopped around the time the owner’s eyes widened at the silver I had taken out.

I had left a bit of coin for emergency potions just in case. Dumping everything else made even Hwayeong, standing behind me, look flustered.

How much was a silver tael again?

Since wuxia novels were set in China, they probably followed a particular era. The value of silver varied wildly by period, but even using the Qing Dynasty standard when silver flooded in and its value dropped, one tael was roughly equivalent to 400,000 to 600,000 won. It was certainly enough money to shock someone when a mere student casually tossed it out.

“Uh… weren’t you a student of Jeongmu Academy?”

“That’s correct.”

“Are your parents running a trading company? No… even then, this is a bit…”

The owner’s expression had done a complete 180 from when I had tried to borrow money from Hwayeong. It was the face of a merchant who had caught the unmistakable scent of money. After carefully counting the fifteen silver taels I produced, he cautiously asked the question that had clearly been bothering him.

“By any chance… who is this person you wrote down? They don’t have a title, so they don’t seem like a famous master…”

His eyes sparkled with strange anticipation. The appearance of a new talent. If this ‘Kim Siin’ written on the left turned out to be a hidden expert, this round was going to become very interesting.

“It’s me.”

At my answer, the owner’s face instantly filled with momentary emptiness and disbelief. The kind of youthful recklessness only a beginner who had just learned martial arts would have. And since I was apparently wealthy enough to casually throw around such a large sum, I must be a rich young master from some family who had entered the academy to amuse himself.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

“Ah, I see. Do your best. I’m sure you can do it.”

The owner put on a business smile and began explaining the odds for my bet.

“People written on the left side usually have high payouts. At least three or four times, sometimes up to ten times… Anyway, will you pick one more person? If you get both correct, we multiply the odds. Of course, if even one is wrong, you lose everything.”

At his explanation, I gave a toothy grin and boldly pointed at the name already written on the right.

“The young lady can do it, right?”

“Haa……”

Hwayeong let out a deep sigh at my response. A safe choice with low payout due to her reputation. I walked toward the sparring arena, already looking forward ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to the hefty amount of coins I would soon possess.

With a pounding heart, I entered the arena. The competition grounds I was seeing for the first time were so vast that even a World Cup soccer stadium would have to step aside, and the crowd filling the spectator seats looked ready to burst through them.

“You’re in Group Gap, right, Lady Hwayeong?”

“Yes. You were in Group Gyeong, Young Hero Siin? It looks like we won’t meet until the main rounds.”

“I suppose so… As expected, let’s meet in the main competition.”

“Yes. Well then.”

After giving me a polite farewell, Hwayeong headed toward the sign marked with ‘Gap.’ The groups were named after the first eight of the Heavenly Stems. I watched her back for a moment, then found my own ‘Gyeong’ group and got in line.

“Everyone in Group Gyeong, follow me!”

Once the line had been organized to some degree, a martial artist in black robes approached and guided us.

So only two people advance from here.

When I followed the man in black to the inside of the arena, I saw countless sparring platforms lined up tightly together. I stepped onto the stage as instructed and finally faced my first opponent.

“Huh?”

“You bastard! I’ve been waiting for this day!”

The guy wearing blue robes with a small wave pattern at the hem pointed a fierce blade at me. He was the third disciple of the Hainan Sect and the least impressive thug among those who had picked a fight with me.

“Group Gyeong, number 19, Jonghyuk!”

“Yes!”

When the referee waiting at the platform called the name, the guy answered vigorously. Then came the next call.

“Group Gyeong, number 20, Kim Siin!”

“…Yes.”

“Begin the match!”

And so the stage of the sparring tournament opened. I drew my sword with a bright smile.