Chapter 9 : Uninvited Guests
At the sudden uninvited guest, the customers in the inn froze, and at the same time, they prayed that the person the burly man was looking for was not them.
And as if to resolve their anxiety, two men stood up from their seats.
"If you've saved your life, you should have quietly retreated, but you've come all the way here to get revenge…"
"Tsk! Senior Brother, that's why I said we should have made him at least half a cripple!?"
The two men, who seemed to be of the same age, appeared to be senior and junior brothers of some sect.
At their conversation, the burly man, who seemed to be furious, finally exploded in anger and drew the huge broadsword from his waist.
And he shouted.
"Boys!!"
At the burly man's shout, a line of men, just as menacing as the burly man, poured into the inn.
The people who had roughly grasped the situation slowly pulled their tables to the side, trying to distance themselves from the commotion. They wanted to kick open the door of the inn and leave right away, but since the entrance was already occupied by the burly man's group, it was an impossible dream.
In the midst of that, there was only one table that did not pull their table to the side to distance themselves, and that was, of course, the table where Jang Baekseo's party was sitting.
'Those two guys look to be in their early twenties, but they're at the peak of their prime… they're quite skilled.'
Jang Baekseo calmly observed the level of the two men who were confronting the burly man's group.
In terms of level, there was a difference as big as the sky and the earth between Jang Baekseo and the two men, but on the contrary, in terms of the enlightenment, knowledge, and experience of a martial artist, Jang Baekseo was overwhelmingly superior.
That's why, even though his current level was lower than theirs, Jang Baekseo could see through the level of those two men.
Of course, the level of the burly man and his group who had invaded…
'Tsk, they're just a bunch of nobodies not even worth looking at…'
Their actions and appearance were just at the level of ordinary unorthodox practitioners, or even lower, back-alley thugs.
In other words, they were not worth looking at.
As Jang Baekseo was thinking that… Gwang Yuwon spoke.
"Ho ho, something interesting has happened. So, who do you think will win?"
At that sudden question, Cheongmu thought for a moment and then calmly sided with the two men.
As Cheongmu, who had reached a level higher than them, the transcendent realm, he could easily tell the superiority of power between the two groups.
"I think those two men will win."
Of course, Gwang Yuwon, who knew that fact, agreed with Cheongmu's words without saying anything else and looked at the others.
"Hmm~ those two look like they've got a thing or two up their sleeves. On the other hand, those big guys are just all brawn and no brains."
The choice of Cheongmu and Cheong Yeonah, who were masters of the transcendent and peak realms respectively, was obvious. What Gwang Yuwon was curious about was the thoughts of Cheongmu's three disciples, or more precisely, Jang Baekseo's thoughts.
"Hmm, I think those big uncles are bigger and have more numbers, so they'll be stronger. But I still hope those two uncles win. The big uncles look mean!"
The first to share her opinion was Sohyun.
"I think those two martial artists will probably win. Their clothes are not flashy, but they are not cheap, and looking at the swords on their waists, they are quite high-quality and show signs of being used by a person for a long time. In addition, seeing that they are not shaken at all even when confronting such a large number of people, I think they are probably masters of a considerable level."
The second to share his opinion was Yuhan. Unlike Sohyun, who gave a childish answer, Yuhan predicted the outcome based on a sharp insight that was not like a child's.
'Ho ho, look at this. A kid who's just over ten years old is as sharp as a knife.'
And finally, Jang Baekseo, who was still thinking about his answer, opened his mouth.
"Hmm, I think the two men will probably win."
"Ho ho? Why do you think so?"
Since he was the absolute master, the Sword Demon, who had returned from his regression, he knew everything just by looking. Since he couldn't say that, he decided to give the points he had noticed while looking at the two men as a reason.
"Those martial artists, they ate their somyeon very skillfully."
"Huh? What does that mean?"
At Jang Baekseo's sudden answer, Gwang Yuwon was bewildered, and Jang Baekseo continued slowly.
"When eating somyeon, it's not easy to eat the same amount of vegetables and garnish with the noodles with every single chopstick-full, is it?"
Saying so, Jang Baekseo made a gesture of using chopsticks.
"But those two did it easily. The same amount of vegetables, garnish, and even noodles in one chopstick-full, and every single chopstick-full in a completely consistent ratio. Seeing that, I thought they were not ordinary people."
Hearing that, Gwang Yuwon realized.
That the ones who were doing the amazing chopstick work that Jang Baekseo had mentioned were not just those two men. He himself was also eating somyeon in that way.
No, to be precise.
'Myeonggwang and Myeongryo must have learned it by watching me…'
Myeonggwang and Myeongryo. Those were the names of Gwang Yuwon's disciples who were now confronting the burly men.
And now, this boy was asserting that he had noticed it.
'Ho ho, how on earth should I take this…'
Gwang Yuwon looked at the boy's eyes with deeply sunken eyes that could not be expressed in words.
In the meantime, the two groups that were glaring at each other, Myeonggwang and Myeongryo, and the group of unorthodox thugs, clashed.
And,
And what and?
Before even half a quarter of an hour, not even half of half a quarter of an hour, the group of unorthodox thugs who had attacked were beaten to a pulp and were rolling on the floor.
Myeonggwang and Myeongryo, who received applause from the people in the inn, bowed lightly and waited for the officials to come. When the officials came, they revealed their identities, briefly explained the situation, and left the inn.
"Wow! Those uncles are really strong! Is Master that strong?"
"Of course. Our master is much~ stronger than those two."
After the commotion in the inn ended, Cheongmu and Cheong Yeonah each took a room by themselves, and Jang Baekseo, Yuhan, and Sohyun went into a room with two beds and rested.
Perhaps because the appearance of Myeonggwang and Myeongryo in the inn was impressive, Sohyun was still unable to calm her excitement even after a long time and was talking about it.
"But it was really amazing skill."
Of course, it wasn't just Sohyun who was excited about it.
"I've never seen a sword used like that before."
What Yuhan was talking about was probably about how Myeonggwang had lightly swung his sword to knock down the surrounding chairs and tables against the thugs who were attacking in a group.
"Alright, alright, I get it, okay? Let's get ready for bed now~"
"I want to sleep with Senior Brother!"
"No, since it is said that men and women should not sit together after the age of seven, it would be better for Sohyun to sleep separately and for me and Senior Brother to sleep together…"
"I'm still seven, so it's okay!"
As the night of Jang Baekseo's party deepened in the inn…
***
"Aigoo~ why did you guys do something so useless and create such a troublesome situation…"
"No, Master, as disciples of the great Qingcheng, how can we just stand by and watch the unorthodox thugs run wild!?"
"That's right! If Senior Brother hadn't stepped up, I would have stepped up and smashed those trash!"
At the unreasonable words of the men who were over twenty, their master, Gwang Yuwon, no, the senior brother of the current Sect Leader of the Qingcheng Sect, Grandmaster Gwangha, sighed.
"Aigoo~! What should I do with you guys?"
Saying so, Grandmaster Gwangha recalled the people of Mysterious Profound Sect he had met at the inn, especially Jang Baekseo.
Unlike his disciples, who were still like children even though they were over twenty, Jang Baekseo was a child who had an achievement that did not match his age, an excellent eye, and the experience to pressure his opponent with even trivial words.
"Tsk! If only you guys were half as experienced as that child!"
"Who is that child again?"
"There is such a person!"
As Grandmaster Gwangha said that and was about to sink into thought again, the child who was walking next to the old man opened his mouth.
"That person named Jang Baekseo… he was a very kind person… can we meet him at this branch meeting?"
Perhaps because he had received a good impression from being given the somyeon, his youngest disciple, Myeonghwa, whom he had taken in in his old age, said such a thing.
"Hmm, that will probably be difficult. In the old days, Mysterious Profound Sect was also a member of the Qingcheng branch, but there was some incident in the past, so now it has moved to the Emei Sect's branch…"
As the old man was saying that, he suddenly thought of something.
"…Wait a minute… this might be…"
"Master? What's wrong?"
"Master, are you sick somewhere?"
"Aigoo! You bear-like brats, be quiet for a moment!"
Thus, the night of the Qingcheng disciples also deepened.
***
The day broke, and Jang Baekseo's party leisurely had breakfast at the inn and set out on their way.
"Hmm~ it was a good thing we came early. The schedule is so relaxed, isn't it?"
Sohyun and Yuhan nodded their heads at Cheong Yeonah, who was stretching and asking.
And after walking for a while, Jang Baekseo's party found a mansion that was incomparably larger than Mysterious Profound Sect.
And on the plaque hanging on the main gate of that mansion, it was written in a bold and powerful script…
Geumjo Merchant Guild
It was the moment when the one-day journey came to an end.
At the main gate of the Geumjo Merchant Guild, numerous other invited guests had gathered, forming a long line.
Jang Baekseo's party also stood in that line, and it was only after about half a quarter of an hour that they were able to sign the guest book and enter.
"Ha, I thought we came quite early… I didn't expect other places to send people so early."
The Geumjo Merchant Guild they entered was completely in a festive mood.
From people drinking and eating, mingling with those around them, chatting and playing, to people sharing recent news and socializing, to people enjoying Go-Pa or Go after enjoying the food and drinks. Among them, perhaps because many people from martial sects were invited, there were also martial artists who were showing off their skills and having duels, carried away by the festive atmosphere.
In the midst of that boisterous atmosphere, the place where the most people were gathered was, of course, where the owner of the merchant guild, Geum Gadong, was.
Numerous people had gathered around him, greeting and talking to him, congratulating him on his sixtieth birthday, and giving him gifts.
Cheongmu, who would soon have to join that group, say some unfitting words of blessing and recent news, and hand over a gift, sighed deeply.
"W-well, then I'll go over there and enjoy the party food~! Good luck, Senior Brother~!"
And Cheong Yeonah, who had noticed that such a troublesome thing would happen, tried to escape, but it was already too late.
"Geuk!?"
Cheong Yeonah, who was choked by her own collar as her nape was pulled, was dragged away by Cheongmu's hand, making a 'geuk, geuk' sound.
"Baekseo, enjoy yourself with the other junior brothers around here, eating delicious food. My junior sister and I will be back as soon as we deliver the gift."
After seeing off Cheongmu, who said that and disappeared, Jang Baekseo led his junior brothers and found a suitable empty seat.
The food was in a buffet style (a style where food is placed in a large quantity in a separate place, and the guests take as much as they want and eat it at their own seats).
As a sign that this was their seat, they left the luggage that Cheong Yeonah had entrusted to them at the seat, and Jang Baekseo and his junior brothers enjoyed the buffet.
'Ho~ as expected of a rich man's party, the food is flashy.'
It was indeed the best merchant guild in Sichuan. The quality of the food served was high, and there were even seafood dishes that were hard to see in the inland region.
What caught Jang Baekseo's eye here was the shuizhu yu, which had an excellent spicy taste.
Next to him, Sohyun seemed to have no interest in fish and was busy eating only meat dishes.
And Yuhan…
'Hey, where did this kid go in the meantime?'
He was definitely eating his food properly at the table when he first brought food a few times. In particular, he seemed to like the dandan noodles so much that Jang Baekseo even recommended him to try other things at the table full of delicacies.
After waiting for a long time, Yuhan did not appear, so Jang Baekseo stood up to look for him.
Since he couldn't leave her alone at the table, Jang Baekseo took Sohyun, who was eating, with him and went to look for Yuhan.
'This kid, what on earth is he doing?'
Basically, Yuhan had a very quiet personality. He was not the type of child who would suddenly disappear like this without telling Jang Baekseo.
But such a Yuhan had disappeared without a word like this?
'Something must have happened.'
Of course, since this was the sixtieth birthday party of the richest man in Sichuan, the probability of a bloody and gruesome incident happening was extremely low.
But wherever people gather, there is bound to be a commotion!
If the subject of that commotion was just a merchant or an ordinary person, it would be no big deal, but if it was related to a fellow martial artist, the matter would become quite dirty.
And as if in response to Jang Baekseo's thoughts, he found a menacing atmosphere flowing from a place a little away from the party, where the martial artists who had been carried away by the excitement were enjoying duels until just a moment ago.
'Please don't be…'
Thinking so, he approached the place, and there…
"Yuhan!"
His second junior brother, Jang Yuhan, was lying on the ground, clutching his face.
***
Jang Yuhan went to the place where the dandan noodles were being served to get some.
But before he could get the dandan noodles, a boy of the same age who had come first took the last remaining dandan noodles.
The blue martial robes made to fit the boy's body, the neatly arranged hair, and the wave pattern of Qingcheng embroidered on his chest indicated that he was a young disciple of Qingcheng.
When Yuhan seemed to have noticed it, the boy, with a proud face, opened his mouth first.
"Cool, right! I'm a disciple of the great Qingcheng Sect!"
Ordinary children would have pretended not to be envious of such a blatant boast, or would have gotten angry at him for showing off, but since Yuhan was a child with a very unique personality, he just nodded his head slightly without saying anything.
But that alone seemed to satisfy the young disciple of Qingcheng, as his face brightened up, and he chattered on about things he hadn't been asked.
Even while doing so, he would eat the dandan noodles in his hand from time to time and mumble. When Yuhan tried to leave, he would follow him without even chewing and swallowing all the food in his mouth and continue the story.
Of course, the content of the story was obvious. That he was a promising sprout of Qingcheng, that the Qingcheng Sect was the best in Sichuan, and that the ones protecting Sichuan were the Qingcheng Sect and the people belonging to the Qingcheng branch, and that everyone else was nothing special.
If there were people from the Emei Sect and the Tang Clan here, it would have been a story that would have gotten him into trouble, but a child wouldn't care about such things, and luckily, the people from the Emei Sect and the Tang Clan had not arrived yet, so such a thing did not happen.
After talking about himself for a long time, the young disciple of Qingcheng, realizing that he had been talking too much about himself, asked shyly.
"What sect are you from?"
Yuhan answered the boy's question with a light heart.
"Mysterious Profound Sect."
But the boy's reaction was by no means light.
"Keuk! You're a traitor bastard?"
The boy showed a fierce reaction, as if his friendly attitude from before was a lie.
And…
Yuhan's eyes grew cold.
(End of Chapter)