The two warriors had just begun their spar, or rather, their martial bout.
And Captain Yong Eung-wan’s brother was easy to find. He was one of the two warriors in the ring.
Except he wasn’t holding any weapon.
His opponent, on the other hand, had a sword.
Were they seriously doing this just to make things hard for him?
“Min, are you all right barehanded?”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re sure you’re fine without a blade?”
“I’m fine.”
The instructor serving as referee and the warriors asked him several times if he was truly willing to fight barehanded, but he kept saying it was all right.
Which meant this wasn’t some attempt to bully him.
But why wasn’t he using a weapon?
Could he have trained in a martial art like Fist-and-Kick Art?
Clack!
The bout began with the sharp crack of the bamboo clapper.
The two warriors slowly circled each other, each searching for an opening.
And then, in that instant.
Whish!
The swordsman charged first, swinging his blade down toward Warrior Min.
Swoosh.
For a moment, I couldn’t help but be impressed.
Warrior Min slipped past the sword as if it had only brushed by him, drove inside his opponent’s reach, and struck the man’s right wrist with his left hand, forcing him to drop the sword.
Then he immediately hooked the opponent’s rear leg with his foot.
“Whoa!”
His opponent went down backward almost laughably easily…
Whoosh!
Warrior Min’s fist stopped right in front of the fallen man’s nose.
Everything had happened in the blink of an eye.
Everyone stared at him, utterly dumbfounded. Even I, who had reached the Profound realm, found his movement admirable, so to the other warriors, it must have looked like the whole thing ended before they could even breathe.
But that movement was definitely… the movement of someone who used a sword.
After all, warriors whose main weapon was a sword and warriors who specialized in Fist-and-Kick Art used their bodies differently.
When I imagined how the bout would have ended if he’d been holding a sword, I began to understand why a warrior named Min had entered the bout barehanded.
“W-Warrior Min wins!”
“Waaaaah!”
The warriors who had been watching the bout erupted into cheers.
“That was incredible!”
“He’s seriously amazing!”
Praise for him followed from every direction.
I was grateful for the way they acknowledged skill as skill, without discriminating against him simply because he wasn’t an imperial citizen.
All of the Eunpoong Division had to share that kind of heart if the Eunhae Merchant Group was going to rise higher.
“Ah!”
A few warriors who noticed I had arrived startled and cupped their fists to me.
“We greet the Third Deputy Merchant Lord!”
“You’re all working hard.”
The instructor hurried over to me and asked,
“What brings you all the way here?”
“I came to see Warrior Min. On that note, may I borrow him for a little while?”
The instructor readily nodded.
“Warrior Min’s turn has just ended anyway, so please take him with you.”
“Thank you.”
I approached Warrior Min and greeted him.
“I am Deputy Merchant Lord Eun Seo-ho of the Eunhae Merchant Group.”
“I am Min. It has been a long time.”
“Could we speak for a moment?”
“Yes.”
I brought him to the Reception Room in my annex.
Captain Yong Eung-wan was already there after being summoned by me.
The two greeted each other with delighted expressions.
My Great Yue Language was still lacking, so I couldn’t understand the details, but Warrior Min seemed curious about why he had been called here.
Putting that aside, to think Yong Eung-wan in Captain Yong Eung-wan’s name was his family name, not his given name…
When I told him I would call him Captain Yong Eung-wan from now on instead of Captain Yong, he asked me to simply keep calling him Captain Yong like before.
“Now then, let’s sit and talk.”
“Yes.”
Soon, Palgap brought in tea, and we sipped it while talking about this and that.
When I spoke in my halting, awkward Great Yue Language, Warrior Min looked surprised.
“That’s impressive. I never thought you would already be able to speak this much.”
“I still have a long way to go. By the way, what is your full name? I’ve heard the others call you Min.”
“My name is Yong Eung-wan Gong Min.”
Since Yong Eung-wan was his family name, Gong must be something like a middle name.
“Then what should I call you?”
After hearing Captain Yong Eung-wan’s explanation of my question, he answered.
“Then please call me Yong Min as well.”
“Very well. I’ll do that.”
I slowly brought up the main point.
“The reason I called you, Warrior Yong Min, is because I have a favor to ask.”
“A favor?”
“I will soon be going to Beijing.”
I explained the whole situation to him.
That my main place of work was Beijing, that I had only stopped by Headquarters for some business, and that it was now time for me to return to Beijing.
“However, just as I’ve begun learning the Great Yue Language, I feel regretful that my lessons will have to stop. But there are people here still continuing their studies, so I can’t exactly bring Instructor Ho all the way to Beijing with me.”
“I suppose not.”
“That is why I’m asking you, Warrior Yong Min. I would like you to come to Beijing with me and teach me the Great Yue Language.”
I continued.
“Beijing is the capital of this empire, so I believe it will be a place where you can experience many things. I don’t think it would be a bad offer.”
He listened to my proposal, then closed his eyes and sank into thought.
A short while later, he opened his eyes and looked at me. There was a rather fierce light in his gaze.
“Very well. But I have one request in return.”
“What is it?”
“Please spar with me.”
“…Pardon?”
“From what I can sense, you are very strong. The strongest person I have seen here.”
His instincts are quite sharp.
Even among martial artists, most people usually can’t tell that I’m strong.
“And for a martial artist, having the chance to cross hands with someone that strong is both an honor and a joy.”
Honestly, I had also been curious about his exact level of skill, so I agreed to his request.
“Very well. However, we cannot do it publicly. And you must not tell anyone what you learn about my martial arts.”
“I understand.”
We immediately went out into the yard.
The yard in my annex was fairly spacious, so there was no issue using it for a martial bout.
I had sparred with Great Hero Jin Yeong here before as well.
I took off my outer robe and stepped out. Warrior Yong Min then came forward and stood in front of me.
Apparently, word had spread that I was going to spar with Warrior Yong Min, because even the Escort Guards who should have been resting all came out into the yard.
“Are you guys that curious?”
“Why ask when you already know the answer.”
Escort Guard Seo Wu answered on everyone’s behalf.
If watching my bout gave them some realization, I had no reason to object.
Besides, they all knew my level of skill anyway.
We stood facing each other in the middle of the yard.
“You’re not going to use a weapon?”
“No.”
“Then I’ll also fight without a weapon.”
At my words, he looked puzzled and asked,
“Are you certain you don’t need a weapon?”
“Yes. Come at me without worrying.”
Then I clenched my fists and took my stance. What I intended to use was Extreme Yin Soul Ice Combat.
My main weapon was the sword, but Extreme Yin Soul Ice Combat was more than enough to face him.
And he also had a proper main weapon of his own.
Seeing my stance, he likewise put on a serious expression and took his position. The bout began.
We moved slowly, each searching for the other’s opening. And I realized he had far fewer openings than I had expected.
Even the places that seemed like openings weren’t actually openings at all.
The warrior who had sparred with Warrior Yong Min earlier must have seen that and charged in, thinking it was a gap.
Still, we couldn’t end this by simply standing off against each other like this. I needed to create some kind of change on my end.
The response came immediately.
He rushed toward me. At the same time, he leaped high into the air and tried to slam his heel down onto my shoulder.
Hup!
His movements were clear to my eyes, so dodging wasn’t difficult. Counterattacking wasn’t difficult either.
Tap, tap, tap, tap!
Papapapat!
Our hands and feet clashed fiercely, one exchange after another. Gradually, I could see Warrior Yong Min growing tired.
If I compared Warrior Yong Min’s ability to the empire’s martial artists, he was roughly at the level of a First-rate warrior.
Wouldn’t he be about the same as Escort Guard Myeong Jong or Escort Guard Chang Un?
If he used a weapon, he looked capable of crossing blades with Peak warriors.
Impressive.
He wasn’t using Internal Power, yet he had reached this level through External Martial Arts alone!
Martial arts had Internal Power and External Martial Arts.
Internal Power was accumulated through a Cultivation Method, while External Martial Arts focused on tempering the body without building internal force.
Honestly, there was no real way to say which was superior.
I had heard that someone who reached the extreme of External Martial Arts could even suppress a Transcendent master.
However, tempering the body through External Martial Arts was far more grueling and difficult than training Internal Power.
That was why I was impressed by Warrior Yong Min’s ability.
I couldn’t even imagine how much hardship he must have endured to reach this level.
And this tenacity and endurance.
He must have realized he was no match for me, yet he refused to give up and kept throwing himself at me with sheer determination.
I like him.
Still, it was about time to end this.
I had seen enough of his skill and personality, and if we fought any longer, Warrior Yong Min’s body might suffer damage.
I took a deep breath and drove my fist toward him.
Thud!
The punch sank into Warrior Yong Min’s stomach, and he collapsed where he stood.
It was one of Extreme Yin Soul Ice Combat’s forms, a technique that drained strength from the body.
“Hah, hah…”
Perhaps he understood my intention, because he did not push himself any further. Trembling, he rose from his spot.
Then he cupped his fists in the imperial style.
“It was an honor to cross hands with a master.”
“It was nothing.”
“But why did you not use your full strength?”
As expected, he had realized I hadn’t gone all out.
“Why didn’t you use a sword when you sparred with the Eunpoong Division warriors earlier?”
When I answered his question with a question, he hesitated.
“Your sword must be specialized for real combat, Warrior Yong Min. That’s why you were worried that if you used a sword in a bout, you might injure your opponent.”
“…!”
His expression showed a hint of surprise.
Just as I thought.
“It is the same for me. Does that answer your question?”
“Yes.”
“Then will you accept my request?”
“I understand. I will follow you.”
The way he looked at me had changed again. His gaze was so burning hot that I couldn’t help but quietly turn my head away.
It was honestly a little overwhelming.
The day for my departure to Beijing was set, and preparations were progressing smoothly.
Then, one morning, with only a few days left before departure,
Gwak Hyeong-jin came to my annex.
“What brings you here?”
“Well, my father has returned.”
“Really?”
“He said he would come see you tomorrow at dawn.”
Master had finally returned. At last, I would be able to ask him about what had happened when I went to Sichuan last time.
.
.
.
The next dawn.
When I finished my Breathing Meditation and rose from my seat, Master entered the annex as if he had been waiting for that exact moment.
“Welcome.”
“Good morning.”
“This escort run took quite a long time.”
“I went to Beijing, and I ended up stopping by several places on the way back, so it took longer than expected.”
“To Beijing… you mean?”
“Yes. This time, we were tasked with transporting grain brought in by merchant groups that traded with foreign countries.”
“Ah! I see.”
So that was why he had stopped by so many places.
“Then, let’s begin training.”
“Yes.”
Like that, I trained with Master again for the first time in quite a while.
Master’s training intensity was still absolutely merciless. The sad part was that I could actually endure it now.
Have I gotten a little stronger?
Before, I would collapse onto the ground after training ended, but now I could remain standing on my own two legs.
Seeing that, Master looked deeply satisfied.
However, the sword art Master was teaching me still did not have any clear form to it.
I didn’t even know the name of the sword art I was learning.
Even so, I felt like I was beginning to vaguely grasp something.
Of course, I would need a great deal of time to clearly understand and realize what that something was.
“You worked hard.”
“Thank you for your teaching.”
Master quietly stared at me for a while, then suddenly tossed out a remark.
“Young Palace Lord, you are a truly unusual person.”
“Huh? Me?”
“At this point, it would be only natural for you to ask the name of the sword art you’re currently learning… yet you never do.”
At that, I wiped my sweat with the towel Palgap handed me and answered.
“That’s because I trust you completely, Master.”
“Pardon?”
“You wouldn’t teach anything bad to a precious disciple, would you?”
“…”
“You must have your own reasons for doing things this way, Master. As your disciple, all I need to do is trust you and follow.”
“…”
Master’s eyes reddened as he looked at me. Flustered, I awkwardly scratched my cheek.
“I will repay that trust.”
I gave an embarrassed smile. The Master I knew was a fairly reasonable person.
So if he wasn’t telling me the sword art’s name, there had to be a reason for it.
That was also part of why I hadn’t asked…
Oh, right! This wasn’t the time for that.
“Actually, Master, there is something I wanted to ask you.”
“What is it?”
“Not long ago, Brother Jeong-ho went missing, so I went to Sichuan.”
Then I explained in detail what had happened at the time.
As Master listened to my explanation, his face grew increasingly serious.
“So you are saying her eyes turned red, then returned to normal?”
“Yes.”
“And the moment she died, you could no longer sense the Unorthodox Qi from her?”
“That’s right.”
Master briefly closed his eyes, then opened them and asked,
“By any chance, did that Unorthodox Qi smell like blood?”
“…!”
I was a little startled and asked back,
“How did you know?”
Master let out a long sigh, then slowly spoke.
“They are Blood Cultists.”
“Pardon?”
“Blood Cultists specialize in martial arts that use blood. Perhaps because of that, they always carry the stench of blood.”
“I see.”
“Have you told anyone else about this?”
“No.”
“That is a relief. You must never tell anyone else about this.”
“Why not?”
At my question, Master said,
“Because only those who have learned Snow Wind Palace martial arts can sense their blood-tinged Unorthodox Qi.”
–TL Notes–
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