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chapter 09
“Even if I tell you, you’ll just complain. From now on, I won’t teach you anything tastier than han-gwa.”
Hearing the words “tastier than han-gwa,” Geom-ryeong’s eyes sparkled, and the mischievous expression he had before completely vanished.
“Is there something tastier than han-gwa?”
“Of course! There are so many things tastier than han-gwa.”
“What is it?”
“Uh… I’m not telling you!”
In that instant, Geom-ryeong’s expression changed.
“Why not? You don’t know, do you?”
“No, I do know! Grandma told me not to tell you, Geom-ryeong, okay?”
“Alright, alright, I won’t tell you either.”
The old woman smiled kindly like a real grandmother, nodding repeatedly as if she enjoyed watching the two of them.
“How unfair… Grandma! How can you do that?”
“Why not! Here I am.”
When Jin A-seol interrupted, Geom-ryeong pouted.
“Oh, right!”
Then, as if he suddenly remembered something, Geom-ryeong said,
“What’s right?”
“It’s about time your dad comes to the marketplace.”
“Who?”
“Who else, your dad? Let’s go.”
“Really? Then let’s go. Grandma, I’ll come again next time.”
“Sure. Do as you wish.”
Jin A-seol greeted the old woman and held Geom-ryeong’s hand as they walked toward the entrance of the marketplace together.
The old woman watched them go, a meaningful smile on her face.
“I was waiting for a child with remarkable potential, but to see one even more outstanding appear before my eyes… If these two children are accepted as disciples of my sect, they will surely bring great fame to my sect in the martial world.”
The old woman’s name was Naeng Yeoseol, the former head of the Wolyeong Sect, known in the martial world as Wolyeong Seonja.
She had coincidentally discovered Jin A-seol and was gradually building a relationship to take her as a disciple when she noticed Geom-ryeong.
At that moment, Geom-ryeong’s voice reached Naeng Yeoseol’s ears.
“I’m telling the truth. That grandma is also a master of the martial world.”
Light shone in Naeng Yeoseol’s eyes.
“No way! How can grandma be a master of the martial world? I know her better than you do.”
“I’m telling the truth. She’s weaker than me, but she really is a martial arts master.”
Naeng Yeoseol chuckled lightly.
She thought Geom-ryeong was lying. If she could recognize someone as a martial artist, that person must be at her level or a true master. But having observed Geom-ryeong, she couldn’t find any traces of martial arts skill in him.
“Are you just trying to tease A-seol again?”
“No, really… How can you not believe someone’s words?”
“You always lie whenever you open your mouth, don’t you?”
Despite their constant grumbling, the two stuck together as they walked toward the marketplace.
“Wow! He’s really coming.”
“See? I wasn’t lying!”
Geom-ryeong said proudly, but Jin A-seol had already run ahead.
“Dad!”
Seeing Jin A-seol running toward him calling his name, Jin Seol was momentarily flustered but opened his arms wide to embrace her.
“How did you come here?”
“Well, Geom-ryeong said it was about time for you to come, so I came out to see. And he really did come! Talk about a lucky coincidence.”
Geom-ryeong could only shrug at Jin A-seol’s words.
Jin Seol looked at Geom-ryeong with mild disapproval.
It was understandable; he didn’t like that someone unrelated was spending time with his precious daughter. But since he was busy and couldn’t play with Jin A-seol himself, he allowed her to spend time with Geom-ryeong.
“So you finish your work and then play with A-seol?”
“Yes, Lord of the Guild!”
Geom-ryeong showed a different demeanor than when speaking with Naeng Yeoseol.
He clearly distinguished between martial artists and ordinary people. While the Pyo-guk (caravan) could be considered part of the martial world in some sense, Geom-ryeong judged based on whether a person’s martial arts reputation was known. Jin Seol and the Pyo-guk members were not considered martial artists.
“It’s the time to organize the tribute goods, but you’ve already finished your work?”
“Really! Geom-ryeong is super fast at his work.”
When Jin A-seol defended Geom-ryeong, Jin Seol’s expression softened, and he nodded with a smile.
“Alright, A-seol! Let’s go home.”
“Okay!”
As Jin Seol carried Jin A-seol and walked, the Pyo-guk members and caravan escorts followed behind.
Geom-ryeong stepped aside and waited until they had passed.
Then, Geom-ryeong noticed the bag of han-gwa that Jin A-seol was holding.
“Oh, my han-gwa! Hey! You have to give me my han-gwa!”
Jin A-seol stuck her tongue out playfully at Geom-ryeong’s shout from behind, enjoying her victory.
…
“So, Wangak Mountain’s bandit chief, Akjeong, fought with the Gangnam Pyo-guk in Heonghang and took their tribute goods?”
Oh-gu, the deputy chief of Bulsanbekchae, reported to the chief Son Oh after investigating traces of the massacre at Wangak Mountain’s stronghold.
“Yes. And apparently, Jin Seol, the head of the Gangnam Pyo-guk, called Mujeongchang Gongmyeongdo and visited Wangak Mountain’s stronghold with the caravan members, taking all their tribute goods and items in the stronghold.”
Geobeok, the chief of Bulsanbekchae, also gathered his subordinates, sensing discrepancies in the story.
There were no external injuries on the corpses, nor signs of a fierce battle. Everyone supposedly died from internal injuries, but the Mujeongchang Gongmyeongdo he knew was not that kind of master.
“Oh-gu!”
“…!”
Son Oh called him affectionately, and a strange sense of unease arose in Oh-gu.
“If you fought Gongmyeongdo, who would win?”
“Someone like Gongmyeongdo? Twenty seconds would be enough.”
He spoke confidently. Though a little slow-witted, he was one of the twelve leaders commanding the Nokrim forces in Guangdong Province.
“Right, I think so too. But suppose you attacked Wangak Mountain’s stronghold. Could you really wipe them out like that?”
“Well…”
“From what I know, Akjeong of Wangak Mountain may not match Gongmyeongdo, but he could fight for fifty seconds at least. If luck is on his side, he might even win.”
Oh-gu nodded. Nothing in Son Oh’s words was incorrect.
“Check again.”
“Huh?”
“Someone else got involved.”
“Who?”
Son Oh gestured toward Oh-gu. With unease, Oh-gu approached him.
Such unease had never been wrong before.
Bang bang bang!
“You idiot! That’s why I said check, because you don’t know!”
…
“Is it true?”
Two men in tattered clothes, hair unkempt, wearing shoes worse than none, sat carelessly under a large willow by the roadside, talking.
They were beggars.
But not ordinary beggars; in the martial world, they were called Gaebangbando.
The Gaebang! A group under the Gu-Pa Ilbang, representing the righteous martial world, consisting of beggars.
Calling them simple beggars would be a huge mistake. Their importance lay in their intelligence network.
There are three major intelligence groups in the martial world: the Hao Sect, the Heaven and Earth Grand Trade Union, and the Gaebang under Gu-Pa Ilbang.
Gaebang’s network was vast. The saying went, “If you lost your wife, go to Hao Sect; if you lost your dog, go to Gaebang.” Their intelligence was unmatched.
Not all beggars were Gaebang members. The easiest way to tell them apart was the knots on their belts. Some ordinary beggars would even fake these knots to claim Gaebang status.
These two sat under the willow, resting. The left one had two knots; the right one had three. Three knots indicated minor local authority.
They were Gaebang members, the Heonghang branch: Gaegulgae and Na-geolgae.
“Yes. The Nokrim forces of Bulsanbekchae have entered Heonghang because Akjeong of Wangak Mountain and thirty Nokrim were massacred by internal martial arts.”
A month had nearly passed since the Wangak Mountain incident. The place had been so quiet that even Gaebang didn’t know.
Gaebang learned of the massacre due to unusual activity from Bulsanbekchae.
“To whom?”
Na-geolgae asked in surprise. Few could kill using internal martial arts.
“It’s not known.”
“If they fell to internal martial arts, a true master must have visited Wangak Mountain.”
“Yes. If it were a mere dispute, given the temperament, it must have been a rogue martial artist.”
“Hmm…”
“But there’s something strange.”
“What?”
“Before the massacre, Wangak Mountain had a dispute with Gangnam Pyo-guk. They lost tribute goods, and Pyo-du Na-guk lost his right arm to Akjeong. Jin Seol, the leader, called Mujeongchang Gongmyeongdo to retrieve the tribute…”
They recounted the events fully.
Hearing this, Gaegulgae instinctively thought a bloodstorm would hit Heonghang.
“They must have taken unclaimed goods?”
“Yes. But for Bulsanbekchae, managing Guangdong’s Nokrim, it wasn’t pleasant.”
“Right. They may have taken others’ goods, but never had their own taken.”
Though this conversation took place on a busy street, no one paid attention to them, allowing them to speak freely.
“Indeed. Bulsanbekchae is looking for the internal martial artist, but eventually, Gangnam Pyo-guk won’t escape unpunished.”
Gaegulgae nodded. If Bulsanbekchae let Gangnam Pyo-guk be, their prestige would suffer. They would ensure justice was served. Gangnam Pyo-guk might even disappear at their hands.
“Gangnam Pyo-guk might disappear, huh.”
“Considering the Wangak Mountain incident, they won’t take it lightly.”
“Right, but we have no reason to help them, correct?”
“Yes. We should just observe. Finding the internal martial artist is our priority, not Gangnam Pyo-guk.”
“Right. That guy might go elsewhere and cause trouble.”
Gaegulgae nodded, expressing that this was obviously the right approach.
“Check it out. Put people on both Gangnam Pyo-guk and Bulsanbekchae and see how Bulsanbekchae responds.”
“We will.”
“Good. I’ll notify the branch and get support if possible. That’s all for now.”
“Yes!”
Na-geolgae got up and wandered the street. Gaegulgae slowly rose, looked at the sky, and said,
“The weather sure is nice.”
