The Martial Alliance Rulebook Archives - Chapter 72

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Haruto

◈ The Martial Alliance Rulebook Archives ◈

Chapter 72: Madmen (2)

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Sima Ye fumbled for an answer.

Hmm. Had she not expected a question like that?

It was an unexpected reaction. The Sima Clan was a family held in high regard even within the Black Lotus Society, a den of unorthodox martial artists. Had she not been called a prodigy recognized by such a clan?

Moreover, she was presumed to be a member of the Infiltration Warfare Office.

If she had grown up in such a cutthroat environment, I thought she would be able to return a question like this with ease.

At this rate, I was going to end up looking like I was bullying a child.

I opened my mouth again, intending to smooth things over.

“Ha ha, this fellow's joke has gone too far!”

Just as I was about to speak, Zhuge Byeok stepped in first.

“This fellow is very close to the Chivalrous Thief, so he has a habit of teasing people. We will speak for a moment.”

With a natural smile, he dragged me to a corner outside the meeting hall. Unlike his expression, his movements were extremely hurried.

* * *

“H-Hey, Young Hero Yeok. You don't truly intend to kill Ye, do you?”

“Well...”

Zhuge Byeok looked desperate. Naturally, I had not actually intended to kill Sima Ye. I had asked because I was genuinely curious.

As I was about to explain my thoughts, another question suddenly came to mind.

The Sima Clan and Zhuge Clan were traditional rivals. The Zhuge Clan was renowned for its cold, ingenious schemes. Shouldn't Zhuge Byeok be pleased if he could eliminate a promising young talent from an enemy clan?

Why would he show compassion across the divide between the Orthodox and Unorthodox Paths?

Unexpectedly, Zhuge Byeok gave me the answer himself.

“Ye is Gwa-ah's half-sister. Please spare her, for the sake of me, who loves Gwa-ah!”

Ah. So that was why.

If he thought the family of the person he loved was in danger of being killed, it was understandable that he would rush forward so desperately.

“That child, uh... she made a rather dangerous proposal, but she only intended to break our spirit. She couldn't have truly intended to see blood in a contest of wits. Such discourtesy as taking her life here and now...!”

“Hmm. Young Master Zhuge.”

I calmly explained.

“I had no intention of killing Sima Ye either.”

“Aha! Just as I thought! I saw in you the bearing of a hero from the orthodox sects! To repay in kind the discourtesy of speaking so lightly of lives, and teach her proper conduct anew...”

“N-No. I asked because I was simply curious about her answer.”

Zhuge Byeok's expression stiffened strangely. Was there something so bewildering about that?

I did my best to reassure the man lovesick enough to want to look good before the person he adored.

“Even if Sima Ye tried to provoke me by saying, ‘Then kill me right here,’ I wouldn't have used a killing strike. I would only have struck her numbing acupoint.”

“...Young Hero Yeok truly is a friend of the Chivalrous Thief.”

How could he level such a merciless accusation?

I barely managed to suppress the protest that nearly burst out of me. He was a man with enough clout that he had not been thrown out of his home despite openly confessing his love to the legitimate daughter of a Black Path clan.

His public reputation had suffered because of it, but still. There was no reason to make an enemy of him.

“Hmm. I am acquainted with that person. But didn't you have an old grudge against Brother Peng, Young Master Zhuge?”

“What grudge? If anything, it is closer to a favor.”

It was a truly unexpected answer. Zhuge Byeok seemed to hold more fondness than resentment toward Peng Juhyeok.

“Anyway. Young Hero Yeok, you truly possess the character expected of a friend of the Chivalrous Thief. Then I need not meddle any further.”

There was something unpleasantly suggestive in his words, but I could hardly complain when he said he would recognize me enough not to interfere further.

I returned to the meeting hall with an awkward nod.

* * *

The meeting did not continue.

Sima Ye seemed thoroughly frightened. She had already left, saying that today's meeting should end and that she would return tomorrow with a better-prepared proposal.

“Tsk...”

I ruffled my hair. Cheongyeong Town had such poor feng shui that I did not want to remain there even one more day, yet we had ended up wasting time like this.

“Brother Yeok! What happened inside?”

“Brother Peng?”

Peng Juhyeok confessed that he had spent the time barred from the meeting hall watching the Life-and-Death Gambler and keeping her in check.

“Then, at some point, that terrifying old hag suddenly clutched her stomach and cackled! Trembling in fear, I demanded to know what she was plotting.”

Peng Juhyeok had said with his own mouth that he had been afraid. It seemed he had suffered terribly during their previous Anomaly investigation.

“But that old monster calmly told me to ask you when you came out. Then she said her work for the day seemed finished and returned to the Sima Clan. What happened to make her react that way?”

Puzzled by the news that the Life-and-Death Gambler had laughed, I told him what had happened in the meeting hall.

Peng Juhyeok stood silently for a while. Then he clapped with an extremely satisfied expression.

“A true chivalrous hero...!”

“What nonsense are you saying now, Brother Peng?”

“Didn't you turn their wicked argument back on them in kind when they tried to break the spirit of the orthodox sects? You restored our banner. How could I call you anything other than a hero and a chivalrous man?”

Seeing Peng Juhyeok shed tears of admiration, I suddenly began to question myself.

Had my actions truly been odd enough to move Peng Juhyeok and make the Life-and-Death Gambler burst into laughter?

* * *

“By the way, what will you do if Sima Ye does not yield tomorrow and says that if you intend to kill her, you should do so?”

After fully savoring his admiration, Peng Juhyeok asked in a hushed voice. I shrugged.

I had asked that question out of curiosity, with no particular plan in mind. But if Sima Ye refused to give up her insistence and continued this brinkmanship...

“Hmm. As I told Zhuge Byeok, I think I would strike her numbing acupoint.”

Let us assume that, after regaining her composure, Sima Ye responded, “Ha ha, if you wish, then do it. Though you will bear the disgrace for the rest of your life of harming a young lady because you lacked confidence that you could counter the form.”

Then the most reasonable thing I could do was knock Sima Ye unconscious first and continue the discussion afterward.

Of course, this was not the usual method of taking a hostage by force and making threats. If we began talking about strength against strength, the Life-and-Death Gambler was on their side.

However, subduing Sima Ye would prove one thing: the difference in martial ability between Sima Ye and me.

From then on, I could argue this.

‘Since there is a gap between our respective martial arts, even if I complete the countermeasure and teach her the formula, there is no guarantee that Sima Ye will be able to perform it properly.’

If the Black Lotus Society side demanded to know what I intended to do, I would invoke fairness and say this.

Just as Sima Ye had selected the martial artist she brought along to demonstrate the forms, I would select a martial artist I knew to demonstrate the counter-techniques.

Both sides would be competing through third parties rather than the participants themselves, so would that not finally make things fair? It would be a martial contest demonstrated by proxy.

The important point was this.

‘The person I would send out would be Peng Juhyeok.’

No matter how skilled the martial artist brought by the Sima Clan was, the martial arts they could use would ultimately be extensions of the forms used during the Cheongyeong Town bloodbath.

And the records of Cheongyeong Town had been analyzed to death by the Anomaly Records Office.

There was no need to devise counter-techniques from scratch. If I simply told him, “Brother Peng, you have read the Cheongyeong Town report, right? Please handle it,” victory would be as good as ours.

Peng Juhyeok clapped after hearing my explanation.

“What a splendid scheme! I am deeply moved that Brother Yeok trusts me so much!”

“See? I told you Young Hero Yeok would win.”

Peng Juhyeok and I turned toward the voice. The Life-and-Death Gambler, who had somehow taken a seat nearby, waved at us with a cheerful expression.

“...Why are you here?”

“The Sima Clan members are fighting among themselves. No, calling it a fight does not quite fit. A certain Miss Sima, who is showered with affection by Mr. Zhuge Byeok, is severely scolding her subordinates.”

“Did your personality become so twisted because no one showed you affection, Life-and-Death Gambler?”

“It would be troublesome to get struck by lightning for poking around in someone else's family quarrel, wouldn't it?”

Letting Peng Juhyeok's sharp jab go in one ear and out the other, the Life-and-Death Gambler casually spoke of the Sima Clan's internal strife.

No. Calling it internal strife was too strong.

It was more like discipline. After Sima Chu's defeat, Sima Gwa had apparently become somewhat angry after seeing Sima Ye flee upon hearing my words today, though frankly, I felt a little wronged.

“Hmph. Perhaps people who overwork their minds also lose their tempers more easily. Yesterday the Zhuge Clan fought, and today it is the Sima Clan.”

I tilted my head. That woman could not have come to find me for no reason. What was it?

As I stared at the Life-and-Death Gambler, she smiled and said something strange.

“I did not come on personal business. Miss Ye has organized the parts she failed to mention in the meeting hall and sent them with me.”

The Life-and-Death Gambler handed me a carefully rolled scroll. It contained a rough map of Cheongyeong Town.

From A through F, six letters were marked atop different houses. They were the six locations designated for devising counter-techniques.

“Does Sima Ye intend to proceed with the final topic as it is?”

“Who knows? I am not responsible for this matter.”

Mubeon waved, saying that all the deliveries were now complete, and left.

“Ugh. That person truly is creepy and gloomy.”

“Brother Peng.”

“What is it?”