novelraw Chapter 88 : Chapter 88
Chapter 88 : Chapter 88
Chapter 88 - I Hope That Bastard Hears It Too
“I will formally introduce myself. I am Ji Seok-gi of the Beggars' Union.”
“The Flying Beggar!”
At Ji Seok-gi’s introduction, Solbo’s eyes sparkled.
It seemed his reaction was the biggest, probably because his main interest was in movement techniques.
“It is an honor to meet the great master Ji, who is renowned for his elusiveness, here.”
‘……So there is someone who greets me normally.’
If he had come to another sect, this reaction would have felt natural.
But since everything in the Diancang Sect was bizarre, Solbo’s welcome felt rather awkward.
“Flying Beggar is an undeserved title. Please just call me by my name.”
“I will do so. By the way, how did your leg end up like that?”
“!”
As Solbo asked with innocent eyes, Ji Seok-gi’s face filled with dismay.
Do I have to say this with my own mouth right now?
Ji Seok-gi turned his head to look for Biyoung, but he had disappeared from the group at some point.
‘That damn brat. Where did he go in such a short time?’
Ji Seok-gi felt his face flush as he answered in a small voice.
“It happened while I was exchanging a blow with the great hero Biyoung.”
“Oh. With Biyoung? That's a relief.”
“A-a relief? Did you just say a relief?”
Ji Seok-gi thought he had misheard, but Solbo even snorted as he nodded.
“Of course. If you fight with Biyoung properly, it's basic to be bedridden for a few years or become half-paralyzed. A broken leg is getting off cheap. Biyoung usually doesn't hold back, so it's strange.”
Is this person making fun of me right now?
But looking at Solbo’s innocent face, there was no sign of ridicule.
Well, hadn't he already felt the gap with Biyoung to the bone?
He thought that the man in front of him was just curious.
“By the way, why did you come to Diancang Mountain?”
“…………!”
Another question that flustered Ji Seok-gi was thrown at him.
Looking around, everyone seemed curious even if they weren't saying anything.
“That is…… well……!”
At this moment, Ji Seok-gi wanted to see Biyoung more than his deceased father.
Young Hero Biyoung……!
No.
Biyoung, you bastard!
You should have explained earlier!
But a person who is not present cannot speak.
Ji Seok-gi barely answered in a voice that was barely audible.
“I was given a mission from my union to assess the current situation of Diancang Mountain…… I was watching from a distance.”
“Eh? Isn't that just spying?”
That's right.
You brat with unnecessarily clear eyes.
“I am sorry for that. However, Young Hero Biyoung has decided to let this matter slide……”
“Then if you were watching from a distance, how did you get caught? Besides, if you're the great hero Ji, the Flying Beggar, can't you just slip away?”
“………….”
Ah.
So that's how it is.
Ji Seok-gi finally felt like everything was becoming clear.
This punk in front of me.
And these punks around him with twitching temples.
They all know and are making fun of me!
‘Guardian. Why did you give me such a mission.’
If the Guardian had heard, he would have replied, ‘Didn't you say you didn't want to be a branch leader?’, but at this moment, Ji Seok-gi couldn't help but resent the Union Leader and the Guardians.
Right.
What face do I have left to save now?
Ji Seok-gi spat out the explanation in a state of desperation.
“I thought I wouldn't get caught! However, Young Hero Biyoung’s senses were so keen that I was discovered! I fled with all my might…… ran away, but! I couldn't shake off Young Hero Biyoung! And as a result of exchanging blows with Young Hero Biyoung, I ended up in this state!”
“Ah~ so that’s what happened.”
It felt as if a cunning demon was dwelling in those innocent eyes.
An immense sense of exhaustion and hunger washed over Ji Seok-gi after his outburst.
I'm tired.
I'm hungry.
I want to go home.
Ah.
I'm a beggar, so I don't have a home.
It was when a stream of thought different from usual was flowing through Ji Seok-gi’s mind.
“Senior Brothers! The food is ready!”
From afar, the voice he had been searching for was heard.
Ji Seok-gi looked at Biyoung running towards him and smiled a supremely benevolent smile.
He comes now that it's all over.
That damned brat.
On the other hand, he felt a strange feeling.
When was he training his senior brothers, and now he was personally delivering the news that the food was ready.
At times like this, he was faithfully carrying out his role as the youngest of the disciples.
He was truly an incomprehensible person.
Biyoung, who had run over in a single bound, asked Ji Seok-gi brightly.
“Even if we have to treat you, let's grab a bite first, shall we?”
“……Thank you.”
When they were fighting, he was as fearsome as a predator, but now he just seemed like an innocent young boy.
The Diancang Sect.
And Biyoung.
In many ways, they were unpredictable and far from ordinary.
***
“How do you feel?”
“I feel much more comfortable. At this rate, I could go down the mountain tomorrow. I thank you for your grace.”
Ji Seok-gi formally clasped his fists towards the Great Mother.
It might seem like all beggars are far from formality, but that also changes as the knots on their belts increase one by one.
“Hoho. What grace. There are so many people getting hurt all the time that I've gotten used to this.”
“I understand.”
Ji Seok-gi nodded with a look of understanding.
In fact, the injured people the Great Mother was referring to were the bandits of the past, not the warriors of the Diancang Sect, but the Great Mother held her tongue, thinking it would be stirring up trouble.
“The treatment is finished, so please go to Elder Jeokseo…… no, the prospective Sect Leader. He has been waiting for you since after dinner.”
“I will do so.”
Ji Seok-gi bowed politely once more and left the room.
‘It has improved a lot.’
His leg had improved so much that he felt it was strange himself.
The broken bone wouldn't heal immediately, but the pain and swelling had improved much more.
The meal he had been treated to in the evening was also excellent, and before seriously treating his leg, he had received a very small amount of internal energy from Biyoung.
Along with the advice, ‘from now on, choose your opponents before you swing your leg.’
Tak, tak, tak.
The crutch made by the man with narrowed eyes also fit perfectly under his arm, as if it were custom-made.
It felt like he was being given medicine after being hurt, but it seemed that there were many warm-hearted people here in the Diancang Sect.
With that thought, Ji Seok-gi stood in front of the pavilion.
“Elder Jeokseo. Are you there.”
Saying that the inauguration ceremony had not yet been held, Jeokseo had asked him to call him by his name.
It was more comfortable for Ji Seok-gi as well.
It would surely be burdensome if he had to call him Sect Leader every time he opened his mouth.
“Holholhol. Please come in.”
Along with the usual laugh, Jeokseo’s voice was heard, and soon Ji Seok-gi opened the door and entered.
“Hmm……?”
There were three men in the room.
Jeokseo.
Biyoung.
And a tall, handsome man in his twenties.
‘This person…… was he called Eung Gajin.’
Although he had seen him for the first time today, his impression of him remained vivid.
A sense of reliability and trust that made one feel they could follow this person.
Despite his young age, Eung Gajin was overflowing with such a heroic aura.
“Please sit here.”
His attitude towards Ji Seok-gi was also extremely polite.
He seemed fundamentally different from that punk Biyoung, who was sitting in a corner gulping down liquor.
“Holholhol. Did you finish your meal and treatment well?”
“Yes, Elder Jeokseo. I am grateful for the undeserved consideration.”
“Will you have tea, or some liquor?”
Ji Seok-gi hesitated for a moment and then smiled faintly.
“If I drink tea at night, I cannot sleep at all.”
“Holholhol. An answer to my liking.”
Jeokseo personally poured a cup for Ji Seok-gi.
After a few cups were exchanged, Jeokseo asked with a good-natured smile.
“I heard the general story from Biyoung. It is said that the Beggars' Union shows special interest in the Diancang Sect. What is the reason for that?”
Having already received various things, Ji Seok-gi couldn't just hide it.
“Our union wanted to confirm whether the force that retook Diancang Mountain was truly affiliated with the Diancang Sect.”
“Holholhol. Is it because you were afraid there might be a force impersonating our sect? For a sect that has already been destroyed once, would there be any value in impersonating a name that has been stigmatized?”
“Senior Grand Uncle……!”
That was an expression that would make not only Eung Gajin but also the listening Ji Seok-gi flush.
For a person who would soon become the Sect Leader to talk about his sect in this way.
But Jeokseo just tilted his cup with a holhol sound as if he didn't care.
“Wasn't the Diancang Sect a prestigious orthodox sect that belonged to the Nine Sects One Union in the past? Honor is like a person's heart; sometimes it soars high in the sky, and sometimes it crawls on the ground. But the words themselves never disappear.”
Jeokseo asked as if he couldn't quite believe it.
“Are you saying there are those who want to be a cut above the rest, even if they are rotten?”
“I thought there was a possibility. And another thing is…….”
Ji Seok-gi hesitated.
He had not intended to go this far with the story.
But looking at Jeokseo’s attitude, it was clear that he would not be satisfied with the reason given earlier.
“Requests came in from numerous sects. They asked us to confirm whether the Diancang Sect’s forces still remained.”
“!”
After saying that, Ji Seok-gi observed the three men’s expressions.
Jeokseo was still holhol-ing good-naturedly, Biyoung snorted, and sparks flew from Eung Gajin’s eyes.
Unable to bear it any longer, Eung Gajin opened his mouth with a sharp voice.
“Are they not truly shameless? When the sect was in difficulty, they turned a blind eye, and now they are even secretly trying to confirm the truth using the eyes of the Beggars' Union. If they are so curious, why don't they come and find out themselves?”
At the words 'come and find out themselves,' Ji Seok-gi’s earlobes flushed.
It was a statement that also applied to him, who had spied on the Diancang Sect earlier.
“Holholhol. Wouldn't it be a lot of trouble to find out for themselves? The eyes of the Beggars' Union are spread throughout Murim, so if they ask them for help, they can easily find out. And the Beggars' Union was also curious.”
“But…….”
“Isn't it rather a good thing? As long as Great Master Ji officially stays as a guest of the Diancang Sect, from now on, accurate news will be delivered to Jianghu instead of groundless rumors.”
Although it was still a small spark, it was that the Diancang Sect was burning the flame of revival.
Jeokseo’s flushed face seemed to be saying so.
Ji Seok-gi was carefully observing Jeokseo’s words and actions.
‘If you just think about the smell of liquor he exudes, he seems like a simple drunken old man. But this person is also different from how he appears.’
Well.
Wasn't he a person who would become the Sect Leader of a sect?
A new person to watch out for was added to Ji Seok-gi’s mind.
“Hmph.”
For some reason, Biyoung, who had been quiet, opened his mouth for the first time in a while.
“I hope not only the Nine Sects One Union but also that bastard’s ears hear it.”
“Who…… are you talking about?”
“The one with a hole in his chest from a Diancang Sect sword.”
“?”
Even for the well-informed Ji Seok-gi, he couldn't guess at all right now.
The smile on Biyoung’s lips became more malicious.
“The Heavenly Demon. I hope that bastard hears it too.”
“!”
That was something that went beyond the expectations of not only Ji Seok-gi but also Eung Gajin and Jeokseo.
As the three men’s expressions became serious at the outrageous statement, Biyoung suddenly grinned.
“Relax. I was just kidding.”
“Holholhol. You rascal.”
“Shall we get to the main point now?”
Ji Seok-gi’s head tilted slightly to one side.
The main point?
Did he mean that what Jeokseo had just said was not the original purpose?
What more could they be curious about from him, who had been caught peeking secretly, if not about the spying?
Ji Seok-gi made a completely clueless expression.
“Holholhol.”
Jeokseo took a sweet sip of liquor and then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
Between his half-closed eyes, a sharp gleam, unlike any before, was flashing.
“Great Master Ji. We have something we are curious about regarding an assassin group.”