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Chapter: 02
Jin Cheongun’s mind drifted back to a conversation he had long ago with the Alliance’s Chief Strategist.
“Would you take care of something for me?”
“What is it?”
“Lately there’s been a shameless merchant forging land sale deeds and scamming people out of their property.”
Apparently, people would buy land only to discover that the household registration was duplicated, that the land didn’t actually exist, or that it was tied up with debts. Swindlers were exploiting loopholes in the law to commit fraud.
Jin Cheongun had replied,
“Since when does the Alliance handle things like that? If someone gets scammed, isn’t it because they’re an idiot?”
And yet…
‘That idiot… is me?’
His mouth went completely dry.
Calm down.
Not yet. There’s no way.
‘It’s probably just a simple misunderstanding.’
Maybe he had gotten the address wrong from the start.
The thought immediately soothed him.
“Sir, what’s wrong?”
“I’m not a sir. Call me big brother. I must’ve been away from my hometown for so long that I mistook someone else’s house for mine.”
“It’s okay. Lots of people come looking for our house anyway.”
“…Lots of people?”
Why would so many people come here?
‘No… well, I suppose that’s possible.’
Forcing a smile, Jin Cheongun said,
“Looks like we’ll be neighbors. See you around.”
He walked away, checked the deed again, then wandered through the neighborhood asking residents for directions, wondering if he had mistaken the address.
Then…
“Huh? You’re back again?”
…This was the right house.
Seeing the little boy peeking out through the crack in the door, Jin Cheongun nearly collapsed in despair.
“Kid.”
“I’m not ‘kid.’ My name’s So-ryong. Jeong So-ryong.”
“Fine, fine. Are there any adults inside? I’d like to come in and talk.”
“No. My sister said not to let strangers into the house.”
I’m going to lose my mind…
Jin Cheongun slowly exhaled.
“Then I’ll wait here. If there are any adults inside, ask them to come out.”
At the very least, he needed to find out what was going on.
For all he knew, he’d bought the house legally, and these people were the ones living in someone else’s property.
The boy answered expressionlessly.
“There aren’t any adults.”
“There aren’t?”
“Only my sister and I live here.”
A young woman stepped out of an inn in Cherry Blossom Village, bowing repeatedly with a bright smile.
“Thank you for your hard work today!”
“No, you’ve worked harder than anyone. Here, I packed up the leftover food. Take it home.”
“Thank you, Uncle!”
“Go on now.”
Seo Doseok, the owner of the White Cloud Inn, watched her leave with a bitter smile.
“Did Soso leave?”
His wife walked over and asked.
He nodded.
“Just now. I packed her some food.”
“You did well. Sigh… Such a young girl, and already…”
Seo Doseok nodded sadly.
The girl’s name was Jeong Soso.
She had turned eighteen that year.
Born and raised in Cherry Blossom Village, she was someone everyone on the street knew.
“Still no news of Soso’s father?”
“Not a word. Damn that worthless man. Said life was hard and abandoned his own children…”
“Enough. She might hear.”
“Oh… right.”
At that very moment, Jeong Soso smiled bitterly as she walked down the road.
She had heard every word.
It’s all in the past now.
She rubbed her rough, calloused hands.
These days she took on every odd job she could find, but it hadn’t always been like this.
Everything had begun when her much younger brother, Jeong So-ryong, fell ill with an incurable disease.
Just like their mother, who had died young from illness, So-ryong had been bedridden since childhood.
Perhaps unable to bear losing another child, their father abandoned everything else to devote himself to his son.
After that, it became a story heard everywhere.
He was betrayed by someone he trusted, scammed out of his money, buried under debt, the family fortune collapsed…
Until they lost everything.
She never blamed her little brother.
If anyone deserved her hatred, it was their father, who had secretly abandoned them one night.
“Soso? W-Why are you awake?”
“Father? Where are you going?”
“I… I’m just going to get medicine for So-ryong. Don’t worry. Go back inside and sleep, all right?”
“Hah!”
Smack! Smack!
Soso slapped both cheeks to chase away the memories.
“I earned a little extra today, so the medicine’s paid for! Let’s just keep going like this!”
As long as she kept working hard, somehow they’d survive.
Just as she reached the neighborhood near her home, she heard people arguing.
“I’m telling you, I’m not suspicious.”
“That just makes you sound even more suspicious.”
“You’re impossible.”
Soso’s face instantly turned pale.
So-ryong?
She ran over in panic before abruptly stopping.
Someone was standing in front of her house.
He was tall, wearing a dusty, worn robe, with an old sword hanging from his waist.
Just looking at him gave off a dangerous aura.
The man let out a long sigh before taking something out of his robe.
“Kid. Do you like sweets?”
He held out a candied fruit and smiled in an incredibly suspicious way.
“I’ll give you this if you keep it a secret and have an honest chat with your big brother.”
What kind of scene was this?
Anyone who saw it would think…
“So-ryong!”
Throwing aside the basket she’d received from the inn, Soso sprinted over.
“Big Sis!”
“Are you okay? Why are you outside? What’s going on?”
Just then—
“Good. So you’re this boy’s older sister?”
“Y-Yes… B-But… who are you…?”
“Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jin Cheongun. Actually…”
Soso froze the moment she looked at him.
Gasp!
His hands were covered in scars.
His eyes were so fierce they reminded her of a wild beast.
And above all—
That smile.
It was the terrifying smile of someone who looked perfectly capable of burying a person without a second thought.
“Y-You’re a kidnapper!”
“…What?”
“Y-You’re from the Black Tiger Gang, aren’t you? You can’t fool me!”
“No, listen…”
“What are you planning to do to my brother?! Never! You think I’ll hand over this house? Take me instead!”
“…”
Jin Cheongun looked up at the sky.
First a swindled retiree.
Now a kidnapper.
He chuckled helplessly.
“Hahaha…”
“He’s Mister Jin Cheongun. He wants to talk to you, Sis.”
A vein twitched on Jin Cheongun’s forehead.
“I said I’m not a mister. Call me big brother.”
“How old are you?”
“Young enough that ‘mister’ isn’t appropriate.”
“I’m ten. Aren’t you at least twenty years older than me?”
“…So?”
“That makes you almost old enough to be my dad, so calling you ‘big brother’ feels weird…”
Jin Cheongun stared blankly.
Did a ten-year-old really just say that?
At that moment, Soso glared at her brother.
“So-ryong! Didn’t I tell you never to open the door for strangers?”
“I knew he wasn’t with the Black Tiger Gang.”
“How could you possibly know that?”
“I could just tell… Cough! Cough!”
As So-ryong began coughing, Soso hurriedly rubbed his back.
“Why are you so cold? You went outside again without listening to me, didn’t you? Get inside right now!”
“But…”
“Now!”
With his shoulders drooping, So-ryong walked back into the house.
Before going inside, he suddenly turned around, placed his hands neatly in front of his stomach, and bowed politely to Jin Cheongun.
What a well-mannered kid.
But his body is cold even in weather this warm…
Meanwhile, Soso awkwardly bowed deeply.
“I’m sorry. I was very rude.”
“…It’s all right. Though… what exactly made you think I was a kidnapper?”
Soso cautiously looked him over.
Well… everything?
Looking closely, he was actually remarkably handsome.
The problem wasn’t his appearance.
It was his presence.
His eyes were impossibly deep and cold.
Looking into them felt like staring into a well at midnight.
Just meeting his gaze made her heart shrink.
“You’re really not from the Black Tiger Gang?”
“I don’t even know who those Black Tiger Gang people are.”
“The fact that you can say something like that in Cherry Blossom Village proves you’re an outsider.”
She finally let out a sigh of relief.
“Then… what brings a martial artist like you to our home?”
Jin Cheongun muttered,
“Our home…”
“…?”
“The truth is… I came looking for my own house.”
“Your house?”
Only then did he calmly explain everything.
After listening carefully, Soso finally smiled in relief.
“Oh… then there must have been some misunderstanding. I’m sorry, but we’ve lived here practically since we were born. If you say you bought this place… that doesn’t make any sense.”
Speaking politely, she bowed.
“I’m sorry I can’t help you. I hope you’re able to resolve everything.”
She turned to leave.
But Jin Cheongun stood his ground.
“This house is mine.”
“As I said, I’ve lived here since I was born…”
“I already have my identity plaque and the deed.”
He pulled both documents from inside his robe and handed them to her.
Soso accepted them absentmindedly.
After reading the deed, her eyes widened.
“W-What is this…? This can’t be real!”
“I know.”
Jin Cheongun nodded.
“There’s no proof this is genuine!”
“It bears the official seal of Yichang County. I obtained it myself.”
“W-What…! This is fraud!”
“Exactly what I’ve been saying!!”
Jin Cheongun exploded in agreement.
Soso flinched.
What’s wrong with this guy…?
Startled, she stammered,
“S-Sorry for yelling. But if we’re going by that… I have the land deed too!”
Finally.
Jin Cheongun was able to say what he’d wanted from the beginning.
“Excellent. Then let’s go to the magistrate’s office right now and settle this.”
“…?”
Sorry, but I have nothing to hide.
I’ve checked everything I could.
I paid every coin.
This house belongs to me, Jin Cheongun!
The result was exactly as expected.
“Hmm. The sale deed is authentic, and the official seal shows no sign of forgery. The household register also lists the estate owner as the Jin family.”
Thud!
Soso collapsed onto the floor.
“T-That’s impossible…”
Seeing her devastated expression, Jin Cheongun felt a twinge of guilt.
But what could he do?
Clearing his throat, he asked,
“So… does that mean the estate officially belongs to me?”
“Of course. The estate does.”
Jin Cheongun suddenly froze.
“…The estate?”
Soso immediately looked up.
The official tapped the household register with a finger.
“But not the land.”
Jin Cheongun’s eyes widened.
“What do you mean?”
“Look here. It says the Jeong family owns the land, not the Jin family.”
“…!?”
The official stroked his beard with a chuckle, finally understanding what had happened.
“It seems the Jeong family’s estate and land had been mortgaged. The creditor must have sold you only the deed to the estate.”
“How can something so ridiculous happen?! Then what is this land deed I have? Are you saying it’s fake?”
The official clapped his hands.
“Exactly.”
What did you just call it, you bastard?
“An exceptionally clever forgery. Good enough to fool almost anyone. Only someone with my discerning eye could spot it. Hahaha!”
You’re laughing? You’re seriously laughing right now?
Wait.
If it was fake…
I really got scammed?
Jin Cheongun felt the back of his neck go stiff.
What about the peaceful, comfortable retirement he’d dreamed of for years?
What about the retirement savings he’d earned through over a decade of blood and sweat?
“Tsk, tsk. They really got you good. Judging by the method… it must’ve been that fellow. You were simply unlucky.”
Jin Cheongun’s voice trembled with fury.
“That fellow? Who?”
“You haven’t heard? There’s a notorious swindler wandering the Central Plains these days, forging property deeds. What was his name again? He even gave himself a grand martial nickname…”
At that moment, Jin Cheongun remembered his conversation with the Chief Strategist once more.
“I heard the bastard strutted around calling himself the King of Buildings.”
“The King of Buildings…?”
As though foreshadowing everything that was to come…
Jin Cheongun’s retirement had gone spectacularly wrong before it had even begun.
