novelraw Chapter 153 : A Guest Arriving with Spring
Chapter 153 : A Guest Arriving with Spring
Chapter 153: A Guest Arriving with Spring
Spring had come.
The training ground that had once frozen solid was now warmed by the sun, and fresh, pale-green shoots sprouted from the bare branches of the manor's trees.
As the weather thawed and the once-hushed cries of hawkers regained their vigor, the crowd returned to the marketplace, and the snow that once clogged wheels melted away.
Even the Eunseong Trading Company and Escort Agency, which shared the same manor, began to feel the warmth.
Perhaps another escort trip had been scheduled—merchants and warehouse assistants bustled about in all directions.
Pack horses came and went, and various cargoes passed diligently over the manor's threshold, while Ilhong stood silently, watching a man intently.
A man who now, more than just a youth, began to take on the air of a proper man.
To be precise, he stood at the threshold between youth and manhood.
A year had passed, and his features had become more defined, his jawline sharper—his masculinity more pronounced.
“Agh! Why can’t I see the lines! What’s the problem, you damn Salsung!”
Still shouting cryptic nonsense, as always—her captain.
To the eye, his sword strikes seemed flawless, cutting through the air with vigor, but clearly, something wasn’t satisfying him.
“Cut the crap and roll!”
And then, Hwang Geolgae—her teacher as well—fiercely pressed in, unleashing a flurry of strikes.
Dan Mujin continued his training, claiming he was on the verge of grasping something.
Their “training” was so intense it might as well have been a real battle. With blades flashing from all directions, it was terrifying to even get close.
Thus began days of waking up, eating, sleeping, fighting—sweating and bleeding in equal measure.
Ilhong approached Dan Mujin, who lay on the ground like a rag, sprawled out.
“You okay?”
“……”
Without a word, Dan Mujin merely turned his head to look at her.
His eyes looked utterly drained.
“…I'm dying, Ilhong.”
He certainly looked the part.
Ilhong, too, had trained diligently for her revenge and took pride in her efforts, but even she couldn't claim to throw herself into it as desperately as this man did.
“Still, Captain, your training seems to be paying off. Your build’s bigger, and your presence feels different.”
“It’s just that I got taller. Taller, that’s all.”
He claimed his growth came from eating a lot, moving a lot, and then collapsing into deep sleep.
Well, they did say boys in their growth spurts could grow noticeably overnight.
“Then why haven’t you grown much?”
He murmured, pointing to the crown of her head.
What did he mean, not much? Ilhong had grown at least a little over the past year—by a full inch, even.
At the very least, she was still taller than the already fully grown Venom of Venom Valley and still had room to grow.
“And why am I not getting more handsome but just prettier?”
“…Isn’t that obvious?”
Ilhong made a face like she couldn’t believe the question.
One of these days, she really needed to drop the disguise and make it clear she was a woman.
At this rate, he was going to see her as nothing more than a useful subordinate.
That wasn’t the future Ilhong had in mind. She now had a new reason to try harder.
“Ilhong, why do you think my swordsmanship isn’t improving?”
Dan Mujin stabbed the training sword he had picked up from the training ground into the dirt as he sighed and asked the question.
Ilhong tilted her head, puzzled.
“Isn’t improving? From what I can see, you’ve been getting better every day.”
Was it the Dog-Slaying Sword Technique, perhaps? At first, he’d simply relied on brute strength, swinging wildly. But now his strikes were precise and practiced.
In fact, just earlier, during his spar with Hwang Geolgae, the swordplay he showed was leagues beyond what her Branch-Summoning Sword Technique could match.
Yet despite her praise, Dan Mujin’s expression remained troubled.
“That’s not it—I can’t see the line. The line.”
“The line?”
“The line that slices through the grain of things. The one I used back in the basement of the Eon Clan in Jinju, when I cut down the Jiangshi.”
“…Ah.”
She understood what he meant.
Despite claiming it was his first time wielding a sword, he’d cleaved through the Jiangshi’s arm—something not even a Peak Master could do—with a clean, decisive slice.
“You were… different back then.”
“…Different how?”
Dan Mujin looked at her seriously and asked.
Ilhong cast her mind back, trying to explain the moment.
“Well, you were… kind of scary. It felt like just being near you could get you cut.”
“Scary, huh. Was it killing intent? A survival instinct? No… perhaps there’s no point distinguishing between the two.”
Muttering to himself, Dan Mujin suddenly stood up as if he had realized something.
Wearing an inexplicable solemn expression, he stared intently at Hwang Geolgae, who had seized the brief break to drink again.
“He’s gotten soft too. He’s not trying to actually kill me anymore.”
What an absurd thing to say.
What teacher in their right mind would genuinely try to kill their student?
Ilhong stared at Dan Mujin in disbelief.
“Then I guess I’ll have to get serious. To make that red line mine.”
He began walking straight toward Hwang Geolgae, muttering ominously in a way that would make any listener uneasy.
“Hey, you old drunk beggar! Quit chugging booze and let’s have a round!”
“……”
Ilhong shook her head silently. This was about to get messy. Sometimes, her captain truly had a few screws loose.
“Has he finally lost his mind…?”
As expected, Hwang Geolgae’s eyes turned icy in an instant, the drunken haze vanishing.
He put down the bottle he was about to drink from and stood up with a look that said, What the hell is this lunatic on now?
Apparently, Dan Mujin had entirely forgotten the student-teacher relationship and was dead set on going all out.
Swooooosh.
Not mere sword qi, but a chilling sword flux began to emanate from Hwang Geolgae.
“Captain, um… good luck…”
All Ilhong could do was offer a nervous cheer with a pale expression.
“Bring it on, Blusterous Wind Daoist!”
The front yard of the Troubleshooter Office.
Jo Harang’s large broadsword sliced through the air. With the fierce gust it generated, the weeds bent and were swept away in droves.
Ever since Dan Mujin and Ilhong had gone off to learn swordsmanship, the office had grown strangely quiet and still.
Feeling a little lonely, Jo Harang trained alone with determination.
A place usually filled with noise and chaos now felt oddly tranquil, leaving her with mixed feelings.
“I wish I’d just gone with them to train.”
Swinging a blade made her a do-guest, so she thought she could at least serve as a sparring partner.
She had wanted to repay the favor she had received somehow—but Dan Mujin had adamantly stopped her, saying she might reveal something if she came here.
He said his master might notice something if he saw her, and that would be disastrous.
“What on earth is that supposed to mean…”
Could it be that she was someone Dan Mujin was embarrassed to show to his master?
Ja Misung, who prided herself on living a righteous life of helping good and punishing evil, found that hard to accept.
“I’ll definitely dig into it when he gets back.”
She sheathed her broadsword, entered the office, and munched on some snacks as she mumbled to herself.
Come to think of it, even with the money they’d earned from that gambling incident last time, they’d soon have to start looking for more work.
Most of the crew had gone off to set up some kind of relief center or whatever, and now the office was on the verge of running out of funds.
Just as she was worrying like any member of the Troubleshooter Office would—
Creak.
The front door opened.
“Welcome!”
Thinking it was a rare guest, Jo Harang cheerfully greeted the visitor.
She also thought, ‘With this excuse, I can run off to the trading company and drag Mujin back.’
“What the—where’s my Mujin?!”
But the visitor wasn’t ordinary.
With paper-white skin, sharp eyes, crimson lips, and dark green-pointed nails—
It was Tang Yeo-hye of the Venom of Venom Valley, who had briefly joined them on their way to the Murim Alliance.
Feared by all for her fierce temper, she was also someone Jo Harang personally tried to avoid for a different reason.
She was the very woman who had dragged Dan Mujin up Mount Sung under the pretext of getting married.
“I’m sorry, but we’re not taking any more guests.”
Jo Harang issued a firm dismissal, a far cry from her earlier tone.
“Who said I came as a guest? You’re clearly just some green junior in the murim. Where’s Mujin? Just tell me that.”
But the woman was unbothered. As if this were her own home, she plopped into a chair and made herself comfortable.
“So you know who I am. I don’t remember anything like you, though. Who are you?”
“Jo Harang. Mujin’s closest and only true friend.”
Tang Yeo-hye searched her memory for a moment, then recalled a passably attractive woman who had once been by Dan Mujin’s side.
“Oh, that girl who was next to my Mujin back then? Sorry, I don’t bother remembering nobodies.”
It wasn’t mockery—she genuinely seemed to be the type to not recall anyone insignificant, calmly stating it.
Back then, Jo Harang really had been unknown and weak. It stung, but she swallowed her emotions.
“But what’s this ‘my Mujin’ talk? You sound very familiar with him.”
If she could overlook the insult to herself, this was something she could not.
“Hah, familiar? I’ve walked through life and death with him countless times. We’re like siblings!”
Laughing at the brazen attitude of this junior in the murim, Tang Yeo-hye boasted of her family-like bond.
“Huh… a ‘sister,’ huh…”
Jo Harang scanned Tang Yeo-hye’s diminutive figure from top to bottom multiple times.
“You little—trying to die, are you?”
Her eyes flared up instantly, reading the hidden implication.
But perhaps recalling that this was Dan Mujin’s office, she shook her head and calmed herself.
“No, no. I must endure. Venom of Venom Valley. You’ve mellowed out a lot, haven’t you? All thanks to him.”
Jo Harang quietly stared at her.
Him likely referred to Dan Mujin.
According to rumors, Tang Yeo-hye had defeated a young clan master named Tang Ak in Sichuan and solidified her position as heir.
“If you're a guest, I can at least offer you some tea.”
“I’m not a guest, but sure, I’ll take something.”
Jo Harang brewed a tea meant for unwanted visitors, pressing only the most bitter leaves into the pot.
But Tang Yeo-hye sipped it without complaint.
“Cute. Compared to poison, this is sweet. Not bad at all.”
Whatever her purpose, Jo Harang wanted to chase her off—but had no means to do so.
Not only was Tang Yeo-hye equal in murim rank and power, but she was also backed by the massive Tang Clan of Sichuan.
“……”
“……”
The two exchanged silent glares in a suffocating silence.
As their mental standoff dragged on to the point of dizziness—
Creak.
The door opened, and Dan Mujin and Ilhong walked into the office, looking like they’d just finished training.
They were chatting casually—talking about how they nearly died under Hwang Geolgae’s training—when they sensed the odd tension and fell silent.
Dan Mujin looked back and forth between the two women, sensing something off.
“…Ilhong, shall we leave?”
He turned to leave again, wearing a face that clearly wanted nothing to do with this.
“Where do you think you’re going?!”
“Get back here!”
There were a couple of things bothering me lately.
First, the red palm hadn’t shown up since I asked about the Previous Heaven-Slaying Star.
It was like it had gone mute from some emotional shift.
Normally, it would pop out and mock me when I was training myself to death, but not recently.
I had no idea what was going on.
Second was this current, uncomfortable silence.
“….”
I’d just finished a grueling session where I almost started to see the red line—and had returned hoping to finally rest.
But as soon as I opened the door, an even bigger headache greeted me.
Jo Harang and Tang Yeo-hye were radiating a deadly tension.
At the moment, the office contained two women and two men, all with their lips sealed in an intense standoff.
Of course, if you looked deeper, the gender ratio might shift again.
“Mujin, have you been well?”
It was Tang Yeo-hye who spoke first, her sharp gaze gone, now smiling warmly.
“Yeah, well. Didn’t die, so I’m still here.”
It really had been a near-death experience.
Hwang Geolgae had first reacted with sheer disbelief and rage, but later, having understood my intentions, had come at me full of killing intent.
“Aren’t you going to ask me how I’ve been?”
“…Have you been well too, noona?”
Calling her noona never quite rolled off the tongue, especially given her height.
“Hmph, had to force it out of you, huh?”
She snorted and put down her teacup, but the twitch at the corner of her lips betrayed that she didn’t dislike hearing it.
But wait—wasn’t that old guy who usually dealt with her not here today?
“Where’s Uncle Neung Sam?”
“He didn’t come today. And don’t worry, I didn’t come here to get mad. I just have something to confirm.”
What could be so important that she flew all the way from Sichuan to Beijing?
And why create such strange tension with Jo Harang over it?
“Mujin, you…”
Just as she was about to continue—
Knock knock.
“Is Dan Mujin Master in?”
This time, it was a young man with a sturdy build.