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Chapter : 16
“How much do you want?”
It was the sentence Yu Geon-myeong had said the most today.
It was far too blunt for a conversation meant to propose marriage, but after several meetings, he had learned that this was the method that worked best.
The Namgung family he faced was as deeply stagnant and rotten as its long history—and it stank as badly as the grand shadow it cast.
‘Now I understand why she looked so lonely.’
His heart burned with pity.
‘If this doesn’t work out this time, I might have to say those words in front of her next time!’
To prevent that, he had to pay a far greater price than originally planned just to persuade the Namgung clan leader and the grand elder, who disliked him to the end.
‘Even then, they were greedy and still unsatisfied. And when I asked who had offered better terms than me, they couldn’t even answer.’
Perhaps the Namgung family wasn’t only seeking immediate gain—they wanted a pliable son-in-law they could keep controlling even after the marriage.
And Yu Geon-myeong and the Daejeong Merchant Guild didn’t fit that category.
‘Only after I showed that we had already promised each other a future—and that I wouldn’t hesitate to involve the Three Spirits if problems arose—did they reluctantly give permission.’
The Namgung family, who had pushed things forward assuming the Three Spirits had no interest in Namgung Yeon-hwa’s marriage, were shocked out of their wits.
They repeatedly demanded to know what assurances the Three Spirits had given, but Yu Geon-myeong never gave a clear answer.
He rubbed his face with his palm.
‘This is practically the same as getting permission for the marriage by relying on the Three Spirits’ reputation.’
Even though, in truth, the Three Spirits would likely oppose this marriage as well.
Still, perhaps it was fortunate that the relationship between the Three Spirits and the Namgung family was more distant than expected.
The only thing those two factions seemed to have in common was one person:
Namgung Yeon-hwa.
‘A younger sister?’
Yu Geon-myeong snorted inwardly.
The Daejeong Merchant Guild had only recently entered the martial world, and perhaps because he himself didn’t fully see himself as a martial artist yet…
When viewed without being blinded by the Three Spirits’ aura, they were nothing but lunatics.
“Young master.”
As soon as he left the Namgung estate, someone called out from beside him. Turning his head, he saw a middle-aged man with a dark expression watching him cautiously.
“There are many eyes watching, so please be careful with your words.”
At Yu Geon-myeong’s warning, the man nodded and straightened his posture.
The middle-aged man was someone Yu Geon-myeong had brought along to maintain proper decorum for the marriage proposal visit. Publicly, he was known as the acting head of the Daejeong Merchant Guild and Yu Geon-myeong’s uncle.
Only after they had put considerable distance between themselves and the Namgung estate did they begin speaking again.
“Is there something you wanted to say?” Yu Geon-myeong asked.
The man—Yu Jung-chi—moved his lips several times before stopping.
“I will simply follow your will, young master.”
“Good. That’s a wise decision. After all, haven’t we decided to put down roots in the Martial Alliance and live in the martial world from now on?”
However, the Daejeong Merchant Guild had joined the Martial Alliance only recently. Compared to its wealth, its history was short and its foundation shallow.
To firmly establish itself, the guild needed both martial strength to protect itself and alliances with other factions.
If there was a way right before his eyes to drastically shorten the time, effort, money, and power required to achieve that—why wouldn’t he seize it?
Seeing Yu Geon-myeong’s determination, Yu Jung-chi sighed inwardly.
‘Didn’t the young lady say she couldn’t repay anything right now but would pay it back gradually? Isn’t that basically just credit?’
He wondered if his young master was confusing the means with the goal.
Instead of growing the Daejeong Merchant Guild through an engagement with the young lady, it seemed his true goal was to grow the guild in order to secure the engagement.
‘When on earth did he start harboring feelings for Miss Namgung?’
But he gave up asking. The young master would surely insist it wasn’t like that—that Miss Namgung had made the proposal first and he had only accepted for the sake of the guild.
“If you have nothing more to say, I should get going. I need to inform Lord Hyeonmu’s commander that the Namgung family has accepted the marriage proposal.”
With that, Yu Geon-myeong disappeared in a hurry, leaving Yu Jung-chi shaking his head.
To anyone watching, he looked like he was off to boast about successfully completing a difficult task.
‘When she’s at the academy, she’s usually either at the training grounds or working in the Hyeonmu Hall… Where should I check first?’
As Yu Geon-myeong hurried along, he suddenly slowed upon noticing an oddly silent area.
‘Why is the academy’s central district so quiet at this hour?’
Puzzled, he soon spotted someone in the distance.
“Huh?”
He frowned upon seeing that the person he was looking for was somewhere unexpected—and that she wasn’t alone.
As he tried to approach her quickly, warriors suddenly appeared and blocked his path.
“Halt.”
Each of them radiated the presence of top-tier fighters, but Yu Geon-myeong didn’t retreat.
“If I can’t go there, at least inform her that I’m here.”
Chang-hee, commander of the Military Guard Unit, twisted his face at the young man’s insolent words.
“Who do you think you are, daring to interfere in Lord Muryeong’s event!”
Any other academy student would have lowered their head immediately at the sight of Chang-hee—let alone at the mention of Lord Muryeong—but Yu Geon-myeong showed no such caution.
Calling him tactless, Chang-hee reached out, grabbed Yu Geon-myeong by the collar, and tried to throw him aside.
But a voice stopped him.
“Leave him. Just let him in.”
Tak Mu-seong rushed out with an ominous air, and those who had been in Munryeong Pavilion with him followed behind.
Usually, matters concerning Yeon-hwa were left to Tak Mu-seong, so they watched the situation from a distance.
“Not allowed. Lord Muryeong has not given permission,” Chang-hee insisted.
“I don’t recall him ordering you to block people from approaching,” came the reply.
“He also never ordered us to let anyone approach.”
Chang-hee stood firm, believing that even Lord Munryeong shouldn’t lightly interfere in his master’s affairs.
Mo Yong-yun-hwan frowned, and Yang Ui-jun stepped forward.
“Come on, we all know each other. No need to make things ugly. I’ll go ask—sounds fair, right, Commander?”
With a bright smile, Yang Ui-jun spoke, but Chang-hee answered,
“I will go and ask myself.”
His stubbornness disappointed Yang Ui-jun.
“Huh? Even me going personally isn’t allowed?”
“My apologies.”
As Yang Ui-jun listened to the formal apology, he subtly blocked Chang-hee’s line of sight with his body.
Right on cue, Yu Geon-myeong dashed toward Yeon-hwa.
Yang Ui-jun had created the opening because he saw no need to keep young lovers apart—but the timing was terrible.
Just as Yang Ui-jun moved, Tak Mu-seong had been about to grab Yeon-hwa’s shoulder.
Grinding his teeth, Yu Geon-myeong managed to avoid being caught by the guards and reached them—but that was where his luck ended.
Tak Mu-seong, who had anticipated his intrusion, struck without hesitation, sending him sprawling with severe injuries.
Yeon-hwa ran to support him and checked his condition.
“I’m fine. I guarded myself to minimize the damage when the strike came.”
Despite his words, blood streamed from the corner of his mouth.
Realizing where her gaze had fallen, Yu Geon-myeong quickly wiped his lips with the back of his hand.
The blood smeared across his lower face, leaving him flustered. His eyes darted around.
Yeon-hwa took out a handkerchief and handed it to him. Clutching it tightly, he instead wiped his face roughly with his sleeve.
Once he had cleaned himself up somewhat, he examined her.
“Are you alright? Were you badly startled?”
As if to shield her from Tak Mu-seong’s gaze, he kept pulling her behind his back.
When Tak Mu-seong looked at him with contempt and moved to strike again, Yeon-hwa stepped forward.
“Brother Mu-seong! Please stop. Why do you oppose Young Master Yu so much? I truly don’t understand.”
Her voice was loud enough that anyone nearby could hear.
Before they realized it, Yang Ui-jun and Mo Yong-yun-hwan were already standing close to Tak Mu-seong.
Yang Ui-jun looked between the young couple and Tak Mu-seong, then poked Tak Mu-seong’s face with his finger.
“You villain.”
Anyone watching would have reached the same conclusion.
The already rumor-filled situation was about to grow even noisier, and Mo Yong-yun-hwan sighed.
“We’ve heard everything about Yeon-hwa too. If there’s no real problem, let’s just do things her way. It’s the first time our little sister has asked for something she truly wants. We should grant it, shouldn’t we?”
Even with Yang Ui-jun joining in, Tak Mu-seong remained frozen like a statue.
Mo Yong-yun-hwan felt the situation slip completely out of his hands.
‘Did she plan this?’
He looked at Yeon-hwa.
The fake younger sister who used to seem foolish now appeared somewhat clever—but it didn’t please him at all.
‘Is that really the same girl?’
She felt strangely unfamiliar—and it left him deeply uneasy.
