I let out a quiet chuckle.
The man and woman were none other than Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang and the noodle shop owner’s daughter.
One look at their affectionate expressions and tightly clasped hands told me exactly what kind of relationship they had.
Still, this was surprising.
Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang was so hopeless with words that he often left everyone around him frustrated beyond belief.
How in the world had he gotten this close to her in only a few days?
I quietly approached them.
“Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang.”
He turned around, saw me, and nearly jumped out of his skin.
“Huh? Uh… Mm…”
The noodle shop owner’s daughter interpreted his reaction for me.
“He’s asking when you returned to Luoyang.”
“I arrived today. But it seems the two of you have grown remarkably close while I was away.”
Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang nodded in response.
“How did this happen? I’d very much like to know your secret.”
Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang gave me an embarrassed look.
“Well, the truth is… letters…”
She smiled and explained on his behalf.
“Deputy Merchant Lord Sa sent me a letter every day. What he wrote was incredibly moving.”
Oh… right.
Now that I thought about it, Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang might have been terrible at speaking, but I had heard he was quite talented with the written word.
I remembered finding that strangely fascinating at the time.
“To be honest, Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang is the Deputy Merchant Lord of a great merchant group, while I’m nothing more than a noodle shop owner’s daughter. I spent a long time wondering whether I had any right to accept his feelings. But after reading his letters, I finally made up my mind.”
So that was what happened.
But marriage wasn’t something that could be decided by the feelings of only two people.
I asked Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang a question.
“Does the Merchant Lord of the Hongryeon Merchant Group know?”
“He does.”
He knows?
“I told him.”
“Then did he approve the marriage?”
He nodded.
That was surprising. The Merchant Lord had actually approved their marriage?
Just then, someone called out to me from behind. When I turned around, I saw the Supervisor of the Eunhae Merchant Group’s temporary shop beckoning to me.
It couldn’t be helped.
I would have to ask for the details later.
.
.
.
I eventually learned why the Merchant Lord of the Hongryeon Merchant Group had approved the marriage between Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang and the noodle shop owner’s daughter through Deputy Merchant Lord Bok Yun.
“Ah, that? To tell you the truth, I was quite surprised myself.”
“So I wasn’t the only one.”
He nodded.
Having finished the day’s schedule, I was now drinking tea with Deputy Merchant Lord Bok Yun.
There was always information to be gained from people belonging to other merchant groups.
“Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang was apparently deeply moved when Young Lady Jeong Ryeon, Shopkeeper Jeong Gal-san’s daughter, understood what he meant immediately.”
“So that was the beginning of his affection for her.”
“It would seem so.”
So the owner of Haechun Noodles was named Jeong Gal-san.
“Still, I’m surprised the Merchant Lord of the Hongryeon Merchant Group approved the marriage so readily.”
“Ah, Young Lord Sa Cheol told me a little about that.”
I leaned closer and listened.
“Apparently, when Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang told the Merchant Lord that he had met a woman he wanted to marry, the Merchant Lord ordered him to bring her home. During their meal, he watched her understand exactly what Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang was trying to say and explain it clearly to everyone else. The Merchant Lord approved the marriage on the spot.”
“So that’s what happened!”
“I also heard that the lady of the house burst into tears and said he had finally met a woman who could understand his heart.”
“…”
It seemed the Merchant Lord and his wife had suffered quite a bit over Deputy Merchant Lord Sa Gang’s inability to express himself.
How happy must they have been when a woman who could put an end to that lifelong worry finally appeared?
Even with the vast difference between their families, it was more than enough reason to approve the marriage.
“More importantly, the most exciting part of the Murim Grand Assembly will soon begin.”
“Indeed.”
To be precise, the preliminary matches would begin in two days.
I was looking forward to seeing who would emerge as the winner of this Murim Grand Assembly.
I remembered the outcome from my previous life, but the future had already changed because of my actions.
The result could be different this time.
.
.
.
At last, the friendly martial tournament commonly known as the Murim Grand Assembly began.
Early in the morning.
The tournament bracket had been posted, but every space on it was still blank.
Rather than deciding the matchups in advance and announcing them, the organizers would randomly draw wooden plaques bearing the competitors’ names.
It was the same format used during the Dragon-Phoenix Martial Gathering.
There was one difference, however. Instead of drawing a new pair before every match, they would draw all the names at once.
The thin wooden plaques were placed inside a large container. Then one of the Murim Alliance’s senior figures would step forward, draw them one by one, and hang them on the bracket at random while everyone watched.
The plaques used here were made with two layers to conceal the names, allowing them all to be poured into the container and drawn without anyone seeing what was written on them.
This method was possible because the Murim Grand Assembly had fewer competitors than the Dragon-Phoenix Martial Gathering.
However, each individual match tended to last much longer.
Every participant possessed a certain level of skill, so defeating one another naturally took more time.
Moreover, with both their personal pride and their organization’s honor at stake, most competitors refused to admit defeat over an ordinary injury.
For that reason, the Murim Grand Assembly had one special rule. Each competitor wore seven markers made from solid ebony over vital areas of the body, including the arms and legs. A competitor lost once all seven markers were either destroyed or knocked away.
The rule had a long history, and even in my opinion, it was quite sensible.
Peak martial artists and those above them could easily suffer crippling injuries or even die when their pride got the better of them.
This rule helped prevent that.
“Are you ready?”
As I waited on the first floor, Father came downstairs after finishing his preparations.
“Yes. Mother hasn’t come down yet.”
“I see.”
No sooner had we said that than Mother descended the stairs.
“Am I late?”
Father shook his head at her question.
“Not at all. I only just came down myself.”
Father extended his hand toward Mother.
“Then let us be on our way.”
“All right.”
I followed behind my parents and glanced at Brother Jin Ho.
His eyes were practically sparkling with anticipation.
But… it didn’t look as though he was merely excited to watch the matches.
Surely not.
I quietly moved closer to Brother Jin Ho, who was following at the very back, and whispered to him.
“Brother. Are you confident you can make it through the preliminaries?”
“Of course! Even the Outer Chief Administrator said someone at my level should have no trouble passing the preliminari… Hup!”
Startled, Brother Jin Ho hurriedly clapped a hand over his mouth.
“How did you know?”
“How could I not? I’m your little brother.”
I had suspected it, but he really had registered to participate in the Murim Grand Assembly.
As it happened, the day Brother Jin Ho arrived had also been the final day to submit an application.
“What were you thinking, registering for the Murim Grand Assembly?”
“I needed recognition.”
“Recognition?”
“That’s right. Recognition. You know the Outer Chief Administrator introduced me to several martial artists this time, don’t you?”
“Yeah.”
Brother Jin Ho’s expression grew complicated.
“While speaking with them, I came to understand something. Even hollow recognition has value when the right situation arises.”
“…”
“The Eunhae Merchant Group will continue growing and climbing higher from now on. We’ll keep rising until there’s nowhere left to go. And as we do, all kinds of people will begin trying to obstruct us.”
He was right, so I slowly nodded.
“That’s why I’m entering. Even if it’s only a little recognition, I’d like it to become another source of strength that can help protect the Eunhae Merchant Group.”
He looked directly at me.
“So couldn’t you cheer for me?”
He hadn’t entered out of simple curiosity or youthful recklessness.
He had his own reasons.
And when those reasons were all for the sake of the Eunhae Merchant Group, how could I possibly try to stop him?
“Fine. But…”
I smiled at him.
“If you get knocked out during the preliminaries, you’re dead.”
“Hahaha. I’ll remember that.”
“Did you tell our parents?”
Brother Jin Ho shook his head.
“No. They would have stopped me if I had. So keep it a secret for me.”
“Brother, I figured it out on my own. Do you really think our parents haven’t noticed?”
“…”
.
.
.
Before long, we arrived at the martial arena.
It had been constructed on an open field within the Murim Alliance, and they seemed to have put even more care into making it sturdy than they had during the Dragon-Phoenix Martial Gathering.
We each took our assigned seats.
The spectator seats had once again been divided into several grades, and the best seats available for public purchase were Eul-class seats.
Naturally, they had been quite expensive, but that was a small price to pay for a close view of the matches.
“Thank you again for allowing us to watch.”
“To be honest, I was considering buying a seat with my own money.”
“There’s no need to thank me.”
I spoke to them.
“This is an investment too. Shouldn’t I be safer if all of you watch these matches, gain some insight, and become stronger?”
“We’ll observe every match and learn all we can.”
I had purchased Eul-class seats for all six Escort Guards as well.
I had also secured seats for Palgap and Lady Seohyang.
Escort Guard Jin Yu and Lady Seohyang both appeared somewhat tense.
That was understandable.
Neither of them could afford to be recognized by the Murim Alliance.
I sent Escort Guard Jin Yu a Voice Transmission.
– Escort Guard Jin Yu, relax. Acting nervous will only draw more suspicion.
– My apologies, my lord.
– Your face has been completely altered. No one who sees you now could possibly connect you to Yeon Gye-seung, the Alliance Leader’s secret assassin.
– Understood.
What made the Novel Disguise Art so extraordinary was that it could alter not only a person’s appearance, but even the nature of their Qi.
Martial artists normally distinguished one another through their Qi.
The stronger the martial artist, the more heavily they relied on it.
In other words, recognizing Escort Guard Jin Yu was now almost impossible.
I sent Lady Seohyang a Voice Transmission as well.
– Are you nervous?
– A little.
– There’s no need to worry. No one will recognize you. You’re even wearing a veiled hat on top of the disguise.
– That’s true.
She fiddled with the edge of the veil.
– To be honest, standing here so openly in front of the people who tried to kill me… feels rather satisfying.
– Only rather?
– No. It feels… extremely satisfying.
She smiled as she said that.
The Novel Disguise Art made her smile appear cold, but I knew the truth.
She was genuinely enjoying herself.
Just then, I heard a conversation behind us.
“Did you hear about it?”
“Hear about what?”
“They brought a Golden Buddha Statue to reinforce the formation, but apparently someone stole it.”
“What? Something like that happened?”
“So I’ve heard. They still haven’t identified the thief.”
“Good grief. That must be one remarkable thief. How did anyone manage to steal something from the Murim Alliance?”
“Exactly. That level of skill is truly astonishing.”
Thank you for the praise. Hahaha.
It seemed word of the Golden Buddha Statue’s theft had already spread among the spectators.
The Alliance Leader had asked me to retrieve it, but I knew it would never be used for the purpose he claimed, so I stole it without the slightest hesitation.
I had never heard of the Golden Buddha Statue being used in my previous life.
Had an Artifact of that caliber been used for anything significant, there was no possible way the story would have escaped me.
Unlike this time, it had probably entered the Alliance Leader’s possession in complete secrecy.
Even if the Sect Leader of the Nine Rocks Sect on Mount Tai had hidden it, the Alliance Leader would have found it somehow.
He had more than enough ability to do so.
And if he had needed to annihilate the entire Nine Rocks Sect simply to acquire it in secret, his purpose could not possibly have been innocent.
That was why I stole it.
Besides, there were many other ways to reinforce the formation without relying on the Golden Buddha Statue.
“Oh? Who might this be?”
“Ah! Young Lord Zhuge Cheon-du!”
At that moment, Young Lord Zhuge Cheon-du approached me.
The seat plaque in his hand gleamed with a golden light.
It was a Gap-class seat plaque.
Even if he belonged to a branch family, a member of the Zhuge Clan was still a member of the Zhuge Clan.
This was perfect timing.
I quietly spoke to him.
“I heard that the Golden Buddha Statue brought here to reinforce the spectator protection formation was stolen.”
“So I heard.”
“I was questioned as a suspect as well, but the members of the Zhuge Clan must have suffered quite a bit. Reworking an already prepared formation is no simple task, after all.”
He smiled and shook his head.
“If something like that were enough to trouble us, we would be unworthy of the Zhuge Clan name.”
Fair enough.
“To be honest, we can reinforce the formation perfectly well without it. I have no idea why they insisted on bringing it here in the first place.”
So he had his doubts as well.
“I should be going now. I hope you enjoy the tournament.”
“You as well, Young Lord.”
Young Lord Zhuge Cheon-du offered a brief farewell and headed toward his seat. I turned my attention back to the martial stage.
I looked forward to seeing what kind of hero would emerge this time.
Boom, boom, boom!
Drums thundered through the arena, and a woman stepped onto the martial stage.
I didn’t recognize her.
“Welcome to the Murim Grand Assembly Friendship Tournament, an event with a proud and storied history dedicated to strengthening fellowship throughout the martial world! I would also like to express my gratitude to everyone whose hard work made this tournament possible.”
She introduced herself.
“My name is Geum Yeon-hwa, Commander of the Jahong Division, and I will be presiding over this year’s Murim Grand Assembly Friendship Tournament.”
“Waaaaah! Red Rain Sword! Red Rain Sword!”
The epithet shouted by the crowd immediately revealed her identity.
Red Rain Sword Geum Yeon-hwa.
She had been famous in my previous life as well, not only for her beautiful appearance, but also for her exceptional martial arts.
She was originally a disciple of the Emei Sect, and it was said that whenever she swung her sword, blood sprayed through the air like crimson rain.
That was how she had earned her epithet.
In my previous life, she would later die while carrying out a mission.
I had heard that many of her subordinates questioned the circumstances surrounding her death.
However, the Murim Alliance refused to investigate.
Unable to accept that decision, quite a few of her subordinates ultimately left the Murim Alliance.
That alone showed how deeply respected and trusted she had been.
In other words, she wasn’t someone I needed to regard with suspicion or keep at a distance.
“Now, the Alliance Leader will offer a few words to commemorate the opening of the Murim Grand Assembly Friendship Tournament.”
The Alliance Leader stepped onto the martial stage.
He slowly swept his gaze across the crowd before beginning his address.
“I welcome all of you who have gathered here today.”
I stared into the distance and barely listened to his speech.
To be honest, these speeches were always the same.
One predictable platitude followed another.
“…And so, to lend even greater meaning to this friendship tournament, I would like to nominate one competitor.”
It was an authority traditionally granted to every Alliance Leader.
Anyone personally nominated by the Alliance Leader could skip the preliminaries and advance directly to the main tournament.
I wondered who would receive that honor this time.
“Handsome Young Hero Eun Seo-ho of the Eunhae Merchant Group. I hereby nominate him.”
“…What?”
M–me?
–TL Notes–
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