Chapter 70. The Cold Glint of a Well-Polished Sword (17)
“...I apologize,” Do-Gun said.
Woo-Moon smiled in response and continued, “I admit that I have little experience. However, as I said earlier, although I plan to comply with the plans of niece Ye-Ye, that’s only as long as her commands stay reasonable.”
Do-Gun frowned.
“That’s the problem. When the battle unfolds, and the situation becomes hectic, every split-second decision and order will decide life and death. There may be moments where you may not have time to think or convey your plans to us, uncle.”
“So what?”
"So—”
“It seems that you may have forgotten a little something,” Woo-Moon said. His face was smiling, but his tone was dead cold. “I am your uncle, one generation above you. Also, I was appointed as leader for this expedition by the patriarch's direct command. But from the very beginning, you have all been trying to get me to give up my position and just follow your orders. Don’t you find that rather disrespectful?”
This response took everyone by surprise. They had assumed that Woo-Moon would back down after some convincing, yet Woo-Moon’s response was not only negative, but also much more aggressive and rigid than they had thought.
‘This village bumpkin really doesn’t seem to understand how vast the heavens are. He won’t get his head on straight until he faces reality,’ Do-Gun thought, laughing internally at Woo-Moon before responding, “Understood. Then, please excuse us.”
Like when they arrived, the rest of the Distinguished Swords followed Do-Gun like ducklings.
Woo-Moon then turned to Ye-Ye.
“Anyway, I admit that I’m lacking when it comes to leadership. With that in mind, unless I have a very good reason to do otherwise, I’ll follow your orders when things turn ugly. This is acceptable, right?”
Ye-Ye realized that this was the best compromise she would get.
“Understood, Uncle. If I or the others have offended you in any way, I would kindly ask you to be generous and let it slide this time.”
Although Ye-Ye and Do-Gun were saying the same things, Woo-Moon couldn’t find any of the latter’s pretentiousness in Ye-Ye’s words.
‘They really are worlds apart. She’s completely different from Do-Gun and the other idiots who just came here to flaunt their greatness.’
Now that their conversation had ended, Ye-Ye moved away from Woo-Moon and Ma-Ra. However, looking at the way she interacted with the other Distinguished Swords, Woo-Moon realized that just like him and Ma-Ra, Ye-Ye also seemed slightly distant from them.
‘I mean, it makes sense. Although Ye-Ye is the daughter of the patriarch, the family seems to be more skewed toward Hye-Ryeong and Ju-Ryeong’s authority. In other words, it’s safe to assume that the Ten Distinguished Swords will follow Do-Gun.’
Hye-Ryeong and Ju-Ryeong looked down upon the patriarch, Mu-Hoon. It was only natural that there was a similar trend among the younger generation, so it made perfect sense that Ye-Ye also had a more distant relationship with her peers.
‘Tsk...’
Although Ye-Ye looked down on his skills and demanded that he respect her authority, it was still a little sad to see her riding her horse alone, her back seemingly straighter and more tense than necessary.
‘So, for now, the first person to bring to my side seems to be Ye-Ye.’
***
The Red Fog Valley was located close to Mount Ma’an.
The Baek Family's troops rushed their march to reach Wuhu before sundown, where they were to rally with the forces of the Namgoong Family.
“We could at least eat before we moved out,” Woo-Moon grumbled. However, no one listened to his complaints.
Eun-Ah had fallen asleep almost immediately, snoring as if to ask ‘Why did you bring me?’ while Ma-Ra continued to ride her horse silently without any expression.
On the other hand, Yong Hwa-Pyeong, who had come to him as his adjutant, laughed as if to say nothing could be done about Woo-Moon’s constant grumbling, which had begun a ways back.
The sun started to set and Eun-Ah had finally woken up and began to mewl in hunger. In the distance, Woo-Moon finally caught sight of the figures from the Namgoong Family, waiting for the Baek Family Troops.
The Three Great Sword Families.
The title referred to the three families that focused on the arts of the sword: the Namgoong Family, the Baili Family, and the Baek Family. The three families were so great that it wasn’t an exaggeration to say that the entirety of Anhui Province was divided into the Baek Family territories and the Namgoong Family territories by the Yangtze River.
Usually, when two forces were located too close to one another, it was difficult to establish or maintain a good relationship even if they were of the same faction. However, alongside the bond that came with the title of Great Sword Families, these two Ancient Families had made good use of political marriages long ago to establish a tight relationship.
“Seeing you all from the Iron Sword Baek Family really helps to put me at ease. It’s nice to meet you. My name is Namgoong Sung, and I have been appointed the representative of the Namgoong Family forces for this expedition.”
Namgoong Sung was in his mid-twenties and looked very handsome.
While Ye-Ye was also one of the representatives of the Baek Family, in this situation, it wouldn’t be right for her to circumvent her on-paper uncle, Woo-Moon, and greet them first. Thus, Woo-Moon greeted the other party on behalf of the Baek Family, cupping his fist.
“Hello. My name is Song Woo-Moon of the Iron Sword Baek Family. It delights me to be able to greet the famed swordsmen of the Namgoong Family.”
Hearing Woo-Moon’s polite greeting, surprise bloomed on the faces of the Ten Distinguished Swords.
‘At least the country bumpkin has some decent manners,’ Do-Gun mused, snorting to himself.
Ye-Ye then also walked forward and greeted Namgoong Sung.
“Hello, my name is Baek Ye-Ye, and I have also been appointed as the Iron Sword Baek Family representative alongside Uncle Woo-Moon.”
Namgoong Sung smiled brightly at Ye-Ye’s introduction, clearly different from when he dealt with Woo-Moon.
“It’s been a while, Emotionless Sword Baek Ye-Ye.”
Namgoong Sung was a little surprised that the Baek Family had two representatives.
‘How come they put two people in command? That’s odd.’
Although he was confused for a moment, he immediately figured it out. The rumors regarding Woo-Moon had taken some time to reach the Namgoong Family, but he was naturally privy to everything that was known about Woo-Moon.
‘Right, this country bumpkin turned out to be the grandson of the Palm Martial Emperor. Then that makes sense; they had no choice but to appoint him as a representative because of the generational hierarchy.’
His companions were also aware of what was going on, and the gazes looking at Woo-Moon suddenly shifted. Of course, they all believed that Woo-Moon was just making things difficult for Ye-Ye, insisting on keeping the authority by relying on his backing but without any skills to bring to the table.
Woo-Moon, who could feel the shift in attitude, smiled coldly and turned his head away.
‘Whether it’s this bastard or that bastard...’
After the greetings of the representatives, the others on both sides greeted each other and found their acquaintances.
“Big brother, it's been a long time!”
One of the girls in the Ten Distinguished Swords, who looked at Woo-Moon as if he was a bug, had a completely different smile on her face as she greeted one of the talented geniuses of the Namgoong Family.
As if they, too, didn’t view this expedition as a difficult endeavor, the Namgoong Family had also sent out eight of the most talented members of their younger generation so that they could gain experience, together with their Heavenly Dome Battalion. The Heavenly Dome Battalion was the lowest-ranked martial force belonging to the Namgoong Family, with about four hundred members.
As a result, their combined forces reached about seven hundred members.[1]
‘We won’t all fit in a single inn, so we’ll have to split up into several. I would like to sleep at the best inn in this city if I can, so let’s see how this plays out,’ Woo-Moon thought. It was a desire stemming from the pride of someone who used to be the son of an inn owner.
Meanwhile, there was a strange tension between the younger generation's talents—a tension that stemmed from Ma-Ra, who was as always standing behind Woo-Moon with an expressionless face.
‘She’s gorgeous.’
Although the Baek Family's people had somewhat gotten used to her presence by now, the talents of the Namgoong Family had no such resistance to her appearance just yet.
The problem was that she wasn’t just beautiful. Alongside her beauty, she had the pure youthfulness of someone at the young age of seventeen, while at the same time, she held a strange charm stemming from her hidden bloodlust, sharp aura, and expressionless face. This contrast made her irresistible for these youngsters
As the young men of the Namgoong Family fixated on Ma-Ra, the young men of the Baek Family also looked at Ma-Ra again in a new light.
“Hmpf. What’s so pretty about her?!” one of the girls of the Namgoong Family said, revealing a poisonous expression.
“Oh, by the way, isn’t that guy standing next to that girl kinda cute?” commented the younger sister of the girl who was jealous of Ma-Ra.
“Huh? Who? Oh...!”
The girl burst out in admiration as she belatedly caught sight of Woo-Moon.
‘Why haven’t I seen him till now?!’
Woo-Moon was, in fact, very handsome.
It was only that he wasn’t that flashy or impressive looking in any way, so people weren’t directly drawn to him. However, his facial features came together quite nicely, something anyone could appreciate once they looked at him properly.
In short, although he was inconspicuous, if someone properly looked at him and compared him to the most handsome members of the Baek and Namgoong families, they would find that the others fell rather short.
At that moment, one of the girls of the Ten Distinguished Swords of the Baek Family said coldly, “What does it matter if his face is handsome? He’s still nothing but a bumpkin.”
Possibly because they were still young, even these children from prestigious families didn’t hesitate to say whatever when they were by themselves.
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
Whether one was a man or a woman, one would feel good if anyone praised their appearance. Woo-Moon, who knew that the girls of the Namgoong Family were speaking about him, even went so far as to use his qi to eavesdrop secretly. Secretly laughing to himself, Woo-Moon suddenly glared over at the girl from the Baek Family, who had ruined his mood with a single sentence.
‘That brat, seriously?!’
The girl from the Ten Distinguished Swords, Baek Ryeong, had started talking about Woo-Moon to the rest. Of course, all she was saying were ridiculous rumors meant to knock Woo-Moon down a peg deliberately.
‘What? I’m a pervert? Where the hell did she hear these things?! Also what?! The second it turns dark out, I take my clothes off and run around?! What sort of lunatic is she making me out to be?’
However, Woo-Moon knew it would be embarrassing if it became known that he was eavesdropping on conversations between girls who were not only lower in standing but also younger to boot. Thus, he couldn’t let himself get angry at what he was hearing and realized that he should have just quit eavesdropping when he was ahead earlier.
However, because his cultivation was so high, Woo-Moon couldn’t help but be pissed off more and more due to the clarity with which he could hear every word that Baek Ryeong spat.
"Face, red,” Ma-Ra said after watching him for some time.
Woo-Moon felt his rage growing so quickly that it seemed like it would make his head burst. However, his response was calm.
“I’m okay, it’s nothing.”
“Sickness.”
“...No, this isn’t a sickness.”
“Fix.”
“Don’t talk to me.”
“Fix sickness.”
Woo-Moon thought Ma-Ra was more obsessed with the word “sickness” than necessary.
In the midst of their conversation, the troops scattered around in small groups, deciding to spend the night among the relatively inexpensive inns and lodging houses in the area. Meanwhile, the talents of the younger generation, including Woo-Moon, all arrived at the largest inn in Wuhu.
Woo-Moon was still struggling to overcome the double-sided offensive between Baek Ryeong and Ma-Ra. As soon as they arrived, he covered his ears and ran up the stairs to his room.
“What’s going on with him?” asked Yong Hwa-Pyeong, tilting his head in complete confusion.
On the other hand, Ma-Ra simply followed Woo-Moon into his room, leaving everyone in surprise.
“D-did you just see that?”
“How indecent!”
“They aren’t even married yet! Of course, that bumpkin doesn’t know any decency.”
The girls who were jealous of Ma-Ra gossiped amongst each other, while the rage of the young men was incomparable to that of the girls. In fact, some of the youngsters were trying their best to restrain their bloodlust, and their hands were already squeezing the hilts of their swords.
‘How could this be?! To think they were in that sort of relationship!’
‘Then that girl is actually a whore!’
‘That dog bastard Woo-Moon!’
Whether it was the young men of the Namgoong Family or the Baek Family, they all cursed Woo-Moon with all of the sincerity in their hearts.
Woo-Moon had been sleeping with Ma-Ra in the same room for a while now, but none of the other Baek Family members would have known that, as it was something that happened within the privacy of the Song Family residence.
Ye-Ye looked at Woo-Moon's room with a cold gaze before retiring to her room, while the others also went off to their respective rooms with ire in their bellies.
In the end, the last person left behind in the reception area was Yong Hwa-Pyeong, and the poor man had tears in his eyes.
“How could this be?! My goddess, the Smileless Flower, is...”
A flower that doesn’t smile. It was the nickname given to Ma-Ra in the short time that she had been with the Baek Family.
The sight before him was absolutely shocking for Yong Hwa-Pyeong, who had enshrined Ma-Ra within his heart even before they had set off for the expedition.
***
Meanwhile, in Woo-Moon’s room.
“Before, I slept on the bed because it was my room, but today it’s not. You sleep on the bed, Ma-Ra. I’ll take the ground.”
“Okay.”
However, when Ma-Ra tried to get on the bed, she saw Eun-Ah already lying there as if she had claimed it first.
Growl!
Eun-Ah growled, almost as if to say, “This is my spot. Sleep on the floor!”
Ma-Ra quietly stared back at Eun-Ah, her eyes silently bearing down on Eun-Ah as if she was about to flay the baby tiger with the knives in her eyes.
Feeling the weight of Ma-Ra’s gaze, Eun-Ah squinted and stared back in return, their confrontation continuing silently.
“Just what are you doing?” Woo-Moon asked, finding the entire situation ridiculous.
1. The Iron Sword Four Beast Battalion, as mentioned earlier, has about 600 members. As two of the four squadrons that compose the Iron Sword Four Beast Battalion have set out, there are about 300 members on the Baek Family side. ☜