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Chapter : 04
My Opportunity Comes with a Status Window (4)
Kangso Escort Bureau – Young Master Gidae-Seung
“You! You damn bastard, Dan-Cheon!”
“I’m sorry. I swear it wasn’t intentional.”
After dealing with Hyeokseong,
I headed back to Sosan under cover of night.
There was a burden on my heart—
someone I needed to face.
The husband of the teahouse lady who shouted the moment he saw me…
“Don’t make me laugh! I ought to drag you straight to the authorities—”
Clink.
Two silver taels.
Three hundred and fifty copper coins.
Every last coin of the tribute Hyeokseong was going to offer Hawoomoon.
“Please take it.”
“W–Why would I take this money?!”
“It was in Hyeokseong’s pouch. Please accept it.”
“A few coins won’t change anything…”
I dropped to my knees.
“I know this will sound like an excuse. But he blackmailed me with my life—I was forced to collect aggressively. I was planning to skim just a little. Truly.”
“Hmm…”
“And Hyeokseong is dead because of me. So you may use this without worry.”
His eyes flickered toward the pouch.
The gleam of silver widened his eyes.
Silver was real money.
The tribute Hyeokseong collected each month was the sum of all of Sosan’s tribute—it was not a small amount.
“I need to bury him properly… feed the children…”
At last, he took the pouch.
A weight in my heart lifted.
Still, I should apologize to Hyeokseong again in the afterlife.
“I’ll be going.”
Dawn was breaking as I left the teahouse.
No time to waste.
The constables might chase me.
I chose the roughest paths and ran like a madman.
‘I have to get out of Zhejiang!’
Escaping Zhejiang was the first priority.
[Target: Kangso Escort Bureau Young Chief Gidae-Seung’s survival]
[Success Condition: Gidae-Seung survives for 354 days]
[Reward: 1 Intermediate Inner Pill, Lv.2 Martial Art (Random)]
[Failure: Two internal organs destroyed (random)]
A new mission appeared after Hyeokseong’s death.
Kangso Escort Bureau Young Chief Gidae-Seung’s survival.
‘Kangso Escort Bureau… so that means Jiangsu, right?’
Jiangsu borders Zhejiang to the north,
but from Sosan I’d have to pass Hangzhou—probably far.
That was my vague guess.
I, Dan-Cheon—
A bumpkin who’s lived his entire life in Sosan.
Didn’t know the road to Jiangsu,
didn’t know how long it would take.
So I just ran.
If I kept going, the road would appear.
Whatever it takes—I felt I could do it.
Confidence flooded me.
Why?
Because now—I’m a martial artist. Heh.
* * *
“Why are you lazing around?”
“I already carried all the luggage.”
“What? Already?”
Jinrim—escort warrior of the Kangso Escort Bureau.
One of his main jobs seemed to be nagging me while following me around.
My new name was Gye Doopal—
the alias I used when joining the bureau as a porter.
I wanted to sign on as an escort since I could use martial arts now,
but they only accepted people with connections and clear backgrounds.
So I gave up.
“Doopal’s got strength like an ox.”
Gidae-Seung said with a laugh as he walked by.
Gidae-Seung.
The man my status window mission revolved around.
Days remaining: 162.
“Young Chief, even during rest, lying like that is terribly disrespectful…”
The moment Jinrim pointed at me, I snapped upright and saluted.
“Good day, Young Chief! Gye Doopal reporting for duty, ready to work hard for the Kangso Escort Bureau!”
“Hahaha, yes yes. Our strong new worker Doopal—keep it up.”
Gidae-Seung’s warm smile returned.
Jinrim’s brows twisted like crushed paper.
‘These escort warriors… problem is they don’t have real work.
So they pick on the porters instead.’
Kangso Escort Bureau had maybe ten escorts.
Each had only learned one minor martial art—stuff like Palm-of-Three-Threads, barely third-rate.
In their heads they were “martial artists,” so they tried to avoid manual labor.
Escort missions didn’t happen every day.
But chores? Every day.
So people like Jinrim, who hovered around complaining at porters who actually worked, felt like parasites sucking salary.
Gidae-Seung, by contrast, was decent.
He treated porters with respect and never overworked them.
‘No need to curry favor with Jinrim.
The real power here is the Chief and the Young Chief.’
I grew up in gangs—
I knew instinctively who to flatter.
Jinrim was effectively temporary labor.
Kangso Escort Bureau belonged to Chief Gicheol and Young Chief Gidae-Seung.
And the status mission was to guard Gidae-Seung.
So my eyes stayed on him—no one else.
For all their bullying, there was one perk.
Even porters got their own rooms.
Ramshackle rooms patched with rags and rotten boards.
Rain leaked through the ceiling, bugs crawled, and the latrine was shared.
Still—
it was mine.
My own space.
I’d already memorized Palm-of-Three-Threads.
The formulas came to mind just by closing my eyes.
Certain I had absorbed the manual completely,
I secretly burned it by the stream.
No need to get caught with it.
I still trained martial arts in secret.
If a porter got caught practicing—even worse than being bullied.
Early evening—breath cultivation in my room.
Past midnight—stealthily up the back mountain to practice footwork and body arts.
Thankfully—no one had caught me yet.
Long-Striding Step—the footwork I got for killing Hyeokseong.
Not amazing in combat.
More like the kind scouts use.
Honestly—it was a footwork specialized in fleeing.
The later formulas were all escape techniques.
But still—
It broadened my understanding.
Feeling distance.
Sharing space with an opponent.
New combat concepts unlocked by footwork.
I’d also absorbed two Beginner Inner Pills.
My internal energy swelled.
[Name: Dan-Cheon (Gye Doopal)]
[Title: Kangso Escort Bureau Porter]
[Combat Power: 314]
[Rank: 3rd-Rate]
[Techniques: Palm-of-Three-Threads, Long-Striding Step]
[Mission: Protect Gidae-Seung]
Combat power: 314.
Triple what I gained from a single pill.
The rank shifted from “Beginning of Third-Rate” to simply “Third-Rate.”
Growing stronger—
For a man.
For a martial artist.
There is no greater thrill.
So I tolerated the bullying.
I carried cargo laughing.
—Hoo, hoo.
An owl cried.
Time to practice.
I crept out to the mountain.
Tonight’s formula: Flow-Swift-Escape—a fleeing maneuver of Long-Striding Step.
Not flashy, but someday useful.
Poetic formula omitted for brevity—fully understood in training.
‘Like water flowing… smooth over stone…’
I imagined the cliff face as an enemy.
Under moonlight I sweated freely.
Inner energy rose from my dantian, swept through limbs, returned again—repeating.
‘It’s fun! So fun!’
Martial arts delighted as much as they disciplined.
No wonder masters sealed themselves in caves for decades.
Someday—maybe I could too.
‘Time to sleep.’
Too little rest ruined balance.
The sky was already lightening—
I must have gone out around Ox-Hour; now it was Rabbit-Hour.
Tomorrow was another day.
I slipped back into my leaking, mold-smelling room.
Snoring next door.
Damp ceiling.
Rotting wood.
None of it mattered.
Exhaustion drowned everything.
I fell asleep the moment I lay down.
* * *
“A delivery… I bring.”
“Cargo?”
“A letter…”
At the front hall, Jinrim was covering for today’s absent clerk.
He eyed the sweating visitor with suspicion.
“Recipient?”
“Beijing… Eastern Depot… Eunuch…”
“This guy must be joking…”
Jinrim already disliked this man’s face—
but Eastern Depot Eunuch made him snap.
No way a commission to a powerful eunuch would come to Kangso Escort.
Officials would handle it.
Or failing that—one of the great escort bureaus.
Not a minor regional one like theirs.
Clank.
“Fee…”
“……!!”
Four gold ingots.
Not one—four.
“W-Wait right here.”
Jinrim sprinted inside.
This was above his pay grade.
Only Chief Gicheol could decide.
Soon Chief Gicheol and Young Chief Gidae-Seung came out.
Meanwhile, the messenger’s complexion worsened.
“A letter to the Eunuch…?”
“Y-yes…”
“Are you unwell? Should I summon a physician?”
“No! Never!”
The messenger flailed at the mention of a doctor.
Gicheol’s eyes sharpened with anxiety.
“Hurry… choose.
If you don’t take it… I go to Myeongun Escort…”
Myeongun Escort.
Kangso’s strongest rival.
Business had already been slow.
If Myeongun stole a golden commission worth four ingots—the gap would widen catastrophically.
“We accept. We will deliver your letter.”
“Th… thank you.”
Not Gicheol—but Gidae-Seung accepted instantly.
The mention of Myeongun rattled him.
Gicheol hesitated till the end; Gidae-Seung took the bait.
“Confirmation will be around winter—Beijing is far. Eh? Where are you going?”
Commission accepted—the messenger left without a backward glance.
He didn’t even listen to Jinrim explain procedures.
Hard to believe a man who paid four gold cared so little.
His steps were so unstable—one wondered if he’d make it home alive.
“What were you thinking accepting that?”
“We couldn’t give it to Myeongun!”
Gicheol scolded—but too late.
The decision was made.
The leadership chose stealth.
Public escorting would draw attention—
so the letter carriers would travel disguised as ordinary travelers.
Destination: Beijing.
Personnel: Gidae-Seung and Jinrim.
Only the two.
* * *
“Huh? Young Chief, where are you going?”
Hauling another mountain of cargo, I spotted Gidae-Seung and Jinrim leaving with travel bundles.
“Hey Doopal. Stay well. I’ll see you around winter.”
…What?
Winter?
Is he joking?
Where is he going? I’m here because of him!
“How far are you going?”
“Can’t say. Just remember that.”
“I’ll go with you. You’ll need workers.”
“Haha, I appreciate the thought.”
“I mean it. Take me.”
“Hey! Know your place!”
Jinrim shoved forward, waving a sheathed sword threateningly.
You bastard. Move.
My blood boiled.
Where were they going with such big packs?
They stepped out the front gate.
They walked down the road—then turned right—disappearing.
‘Right… that’s toward Shandong.’
Left meant Hangzhou.
Right—Shandong.
But a moment later I began doubting.
“Hey Doopal! Move those crates!”
A porter snapped at me as I stared.
“I gotta take a leak.”
Damn it—
who cares about boxes?!
Gidae-Seung would be gone until winter.
I slipped behind the outhouse—and vaulted the wall.
My porter career ended that instant.
Heart pounding—
I chased them.
‘There they are!’
They hadn’t gone far—heavy luggage slowed them.
‘They’re not headed to Shandong?’
To go to Shandong they should’ve taken the east road toward the coast.
But they were walking the west road.
Toward Beijing.
‘Shit… Beijing?!’
Beijing.
Capital of the Ming.
Never been—but swarming with constables.
‘Do they plaster wanted posters on every gate wall…?’
Guilt makes a man paranoid.
A Sosan peasant killing one thug probably won’t concern officials.
But ambitious constables might sniff around.
Scary thought.
Still—no choice.
I had to follow.
In the perilous Central Plains, Gidae-Seung was heading for Beijing with only Jinrim.
All the more reason to guard him.
If he died, I died.
Two internal organs destroyed—
better to die outright.
Let’s go—Beijing.
A man should see the imperial capital once in his life.
If I get caught—
I’ll bite my tongue and die. Heh.
