WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈
Chapter 214: An Unwanted Invitation (3)
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“What do you mean?”
Moyong Jaehwa trembled as he answered Eunho’s question.
“I-I’ll die if Grandfather catches me... I-I’m definitely going to die.”
Moyong Jaehwa had hidden himself on the rooftop, crouching down and covering his head with both hands. Eunho could only stare at him in disbelief.
Die at his grandfather’s hands? What kind of grandfather would...
Ah! His grandfather was the Wind-Splitting Sword!
“Because you chose a bow instead of a sword?”
“Y-Yeah!”
Eunho tilted his head.
“But you chose the bow knowing you’d be scolded.”
“I know... I know, but I haven’t prepared myself yet. No, I mean, I haven’t prepared myself to get beaten...”
Eunho found it absurd.
Moyong Jaehwa had chosen that path despite knowing how frightened he would be.
Eunho found his friend’s contradictory courage remarkable.
“Are you that scared? Scared enough to prepare yourself for a beating?”
“I-I was planning to learn some external martial arts on the side. O-Of course, even if I did, Grandfather would still beat me hard, but at least I’d bruise less...”
Eunho swallowed hard at the thought that Jaehwa had even considered learning external martial arts.
This was not something Eunho could dismiss as an ordinary grandfather giving his grandson a spanking.
How much had Jaehwa been beaten to be this anxious...?
“Sigh... But how did your grandfather at the main estate find out about this? Did someone tell him?”
Moyong Jaehwa desperately shook his head.
“That can’t be it. I made sure everyone kept their mouths tightly shut. But there is one thing I suspect...”
Moyong Jaehwa looked intently at the payment slip in his hand.
“...”
“...”
Eunho let out a long, embarrassed sigh.
‘Eldest Senior Brother! Eldest Senior Brother! Eldest Senior Brother! How much more are you planning to embarrass me?!’
Looking at the payment slip, Eunho could roughly piece together what had happened.
While everyone else had been anxious about the Invitation of Distinguished Figures, Jin Sowoon had been the only one brimming with confidence.
As far as Eunho knew, the Eldest Senior Brother did not have many connections. Eunho had wondered who the Eldest Senior Brother planned to invite with such confidence.
No matter how reckless the Eldest Senior Brother was, he would not invite old Mr. Go from the blacksmith shop to the Invitation of Distinguished Figures.
‘So it was the Wind-Splitting Sword...’
Jin Sowoon must have sent Moyong Gang a letter, knowing he would fly straight to the Martial Arts Academy the moment he learned of Moyong Jaehwa’s break from clan tradition.
Once Moyong Gang had finished venting his anger on Moyong Jaehwa, Jin Sowoon had probably planned to ask him to attend the Invitation of Distinguished Figures while he was already here.
It was obvious without even seeing it.
“Sigh...”
In the end, poor Moyong Jaehwa would be the victim of all this.
‘No wonder that money demon opened his purse so willingly.’
Eunho could not even lift his head while watching Moyong Jaehwa tremble with a deathly pale face.
“...”
Still, could a good person like Moyong Jaehwa be allowed to suffer because of a madman?
The moment Jaehwa got money, he had thought of treating his friend first and called Eunho out.
Evil causes bring evil results. The person who started the trouble should clean it up.
“W-What are you doing?”
Moyong Jaehwa asked as Eunho took out the Four Treasures of Study from his robes.
Eunho spread out a large sheet of paper, dipped a brush in ink, and answered.
“Delivering justice.”
“Huh?”
Eunho’s eyes held more determination than ever.
#
How dare someone unleash a Lion’s Roar loud enough to reach the Academy Head’s office within the sacred grounds of the Martial Arts Academy?
The Academy Head and instructors rushed over to punish the brazen intruder.
But...
“...W-Why are you here...?”
The moment they saw the intruder’s face, they went pale.
One instructor seemed to recall an unpleasant memory, turned pale, backed away, and fled.
The intruder stroked his beard.
“The Three Pure Supreme Sword’s presence is frightening. You see a senior and do not even offer a greeting.”
Buk Wonpyeong’s scalp prickled. He quickly clasped his fists.
“G-Greetings to Senior Moyong Gang! Have you been well?”
Those standing around him hurriedly bowed as well.
“Greetings!”
Moyong Gang.
Moyong Gang!
That eccentric, infuriating name echoed through the Academy.
Even as they greeted him, the instructors’ hands trembled.
It was not simply because he was powerful.
What was truly frightening was his unpredictable, eccentric temperament.
“Since you all came out together, you must be here to punish me. Come at me!!!”
That was exactly the problem.
“W-What are you saying? W-We came because we were concerned something might have happened within the Academy...”
He had unleashed a Lion’s Roar loudly enough to shake the entire Academy.
Some attendants had collapsed while vomiting, while some students had grabbed their swords and rushed out, thinking war had broken out.
Of course the Academy Head and instructors, who were responsible for the Academy, would come to investigate.
Yet Moyong Gang was using that as an excuse to say something as ridiculous as telling them to attack him.
“If that is the case, you should greet me and guide me inside. Is it right to leave me standing out here in the street?”
“T-Then I shall escort you to the Academy Head’s office... No, to the guest reception room.”
“I refuse!”
“...”
Ah, seriously! He was not even a child!
People usually became less eccentric as they grew older.
Why did his temperament grow wilder along with his martial arts?
Though his insides twisted with rage, Buk Wonpyeong kept the smile on his face.
“T-Then may I ask what brings you to the Academy?”
“I did not permit you to question me!”
Buk Wonpyeong’s lips twitched violently.
Still, he had to endure it.
He did not want to become the subject of rumors that he had gotten beaten badly enough to break his legs now that he was a senior figure in the martial world.
Even if the other person was the Wind-Splitting Sword.
Buk Wonpyeong lowered his head even further, trying not to offend him.
“...Then may I ask permission to ask?”
“...Hm? Go ahead and ask.”
This old man...!
“Ahem, may I ask what brings you to the Academy...?”
“I heard my grandson has taken up the bow.”
“...!”
Buk Wonpyeong’s eyes shook violently.
Moyong Gang’s expression turned chilling.
“...Gulp.”
“So you knew.”
It was not as though the Academy Head could force a student to choose either a sword or a bow as their primary weapon.
“T-That is...”
Just as Buk Wonpyeong was about to make an excuse...
“You understand that failing to inform me was clearly wrong, do you not?”
“...”
“That is why you are so nervous before me, correct?”
Those persistent eyes seemed to see through everything.
People with eccentric temperaments were often simple.
You soothed and flattered them... It was strange to say that about an absolute master, but if you coddled them a little, they would go “Ahem” and preserve their dignity on their own.
Moyong Gang, though, was exceptionally skilled at reading what others were thinking and using it to torment them.
And he enjoyed it.
More than anyone.
If he were not the Clan Head of the Moyong Clan, he would have become a public enemy of the martial world long ago.
Buk Wonpyeong desperately racked his brain. How could he get out of this?
Getting beaten by Moyong Gang could not be helped, but he still wanted to avoid getting pummeled in front of everyone now that he was a senior figure in the martial world.
Besides, knowing Moyong Gang’s temperament, a few words would not be enough to calm his anger.
“N-No! I would have informed you immediately if I had known...”
Buk Wonpyeong’s gaze fell on several trembling instructors.
They were the ones who had recently joined hands with the White Path Society to create a fake delegation.
Not only that, they had also insisted that Jin Sowoon, the Head Disciple of a lay martial sect, be disciplined over the matter of Ak Jupyeong.
Buk Wonpyeong’s eyes lit up.
“It is all the instructors’ fault!”
“Pardon?”
“That work was originally the instructors’ responsibility, but they did not report it to me in time...”
The instructors stared at Buk Wonpyeong as though they could not understand what he was saying, while Moyong Gang’s gaze shifted from Buk Wonpyeong to them.
“Is that so?”
Crack.
“L-Lord Wind-Splitting Sword, that is not what happened...!”
Before the instructors could offer excuses, Moyong Gang’s figure blurred like smoke.
“Shift Form, Change Position?”
They had witnessed an incredible movement art that could deepen their understanding of martial arts.
...The problem was that they were its targets.
“Argh!”
“Urk!”
“Ghk!”
The instructors cried out in pain and rolled across the ground one after another.
Buk Wonpyeong swallowed hard and wiped away his cold sweat as he watched Moyong Gang’s divine movements, too quick for him to see.
After giving them a thorough beating, Moyong Gang looked much more refreshed as he asked Buk Wonpyeong, “Where is Moyong Jaehwa?”
“H-He should be in the dormitory. It is a day off today...”
“Where is that?”
For a moment, Buk Wonpyeong stared at him blankly.
“...You came without knowing?”
He had just entered the Academy and shouted at the top of his lungs because he was angry?
Was this man really a White Path martial artist?
As Moyong Gang’s eyes narrowed, Buk Wonpyeong quickly lowered his head.
“I shall guide you there immediately.”
They searched through the four-person dormitory, but there was no trace of Moyong Jaehwa.
The students only said that he had left without telling anyone where he was going.
Buk Wonpyeong did not know what to do as he watched Moyong Gang’s expression darken, his anger still unspent.
Then...
Whoosh.
The sound of air being cut brushed against Buk Wonpyeong’s ears.
‘W-What was that? A sneak attack?’
It was clearly an artificial sound, yet nothing could be seen flying toward them when he looked around.
“What is this?”
Moyong Gang spoke indifferently as he reached out.
An arrow falling vertically from the sky was easily caught in Moyong Gang’s grasp.
‘An arcing shot?’
Buk Wonpyeong could not hide his surprise.
Moyong Gang catching an arrow fired in an arc so easily was impressive enough, but the fact that Buk Wonpyeong had not seen it meant it had truly been fired vertically upward.
Moyong Gang’s attention had already shifted elsewhere.
“A letter?”
He unfolded the paper tied to the arrowhead and slowly read the densely written words.
What sort of letter was it?
Before Buk Wonpyeong could even think of asking...
By the time Moyong Gang finished reading, his face had turned as vicious as a demon’s.
Buk Wonpyeong felt as if he could not breathe.
‘W-What is it? Has the clan been attacked?’
An unprecedented pressure spread outward from Moyong Gang in every direction.
It was pressure that even Buk Wonpyeong could not easily withstand.
Then the name of the person responsible for Moyong Gang’s anger burst from his lips.
“Jin Sowoon!!! You bastard, I’ll chew you to pieces!!”
Huh?
Buk Wonpyeong was dumbfounded.
Why was that bastard’s name coming up here?
#
One Arrow Against a Thousand.
It was the epithet given to Moyong Jaehwa after he protected the Academy students with a bow.
It was an extraordinary epithet for a mere Academy student who had not even joined the Martial Alliance.
To the Shaolin Sect and Mount Cang Sect disciples, who had been out of their minds under the influence of dark arts, Moyong Jaehwa’s display had been beyond shocking.
Naturally, his background as a direct descendant of the sword-renowned Moyong Clan also stirred people’s curiosity.
Moyong Jaehwa was not the only one.
The Geum, Eun, and Dong brothers, who had held off Kunlun Sect’s Thirty-Six Swords Winter Plum Sword Formation with just three people, gained the new epithet Three Iron-Wall Dragons.
‘Fuck, but why am I still the Black Flame Dragon?’
The Geum, Eun, and Dong brothers seemed disappointed that their Black-Blood Three Dragons epithet had disappeared.
Still, it was only natural that word spread about how our group had gone to Sichuan to save the Academy students.
The story was more than enough to make people want a drink.
On top of that, the Martial Alliance had ignored the detailed strategy I wrote for them, bungled things in Sichuan, and dragged the war on and on.
The mood of war was escalating.
The prices of necessities and iron materials kept rising without end, making people increasingly anxious.
They needed stories to ease that anxiety.
And among those stories, could there be anything better than One Arrow Against a Thousand?
“Mm... This can’t be helped. That’s right.”
Judging by how quickly the rumors were spreading, the truth would surely reach the Moyong Clan before long.
Moyong Jaehwa had been born a direct descendant of a sword family, yet chose the bow. He would have had to face this trial eventually.
“Besides, he got paid to take a beating he would have had to take anyway. What a profitable deal.”
Mm, the aroma of the tea was nice.
As I prayed for Moyong Jaehwa’s departed soul and calmly savored the scent of Seven-Colored Flower Tea...
“Aaargh!”
“Urgh!”
“Ghk!”
Screams came from the hallway.
‘What? An attack?’
I quickly downed the Seven-Colored Flower Tea and placed a hand on the Black Dragon Sword, preparing for an attacker.
‘Ak Jupyeong? Jegal Gipyo? Whoever it is, I’ll break their arm in one blow!’
Every conflict had already ended, yet someone still refused to accept their defeat and was making this display of force.
It was utterly pathetic.
As someone who loved justice and obeyed the law, I could never forgive such conduct.
Not because they had interrupted my precious tea time, of course.
I circulated the Taeul True Scripture and prepared for the enemy’s intrusion.
A moment later...
Bang!
The office door shattered with a thunderous crash.
Huh? This was rather intense.
A figure walked through the thick clouds of dust.
An unrestrained manner. Confident steps.
It was definitely the gait of someone from my memories.
‘What? Why is he here...?’
The person who emerged from the dust with a face full of irritation was supposed to be somewhere else.
Yes, he was definitely supposed to be somewhere else...
“Jin Sowoon...”
Crack.
Why was Senior Moyong Gang, the Wind-Splitting Sword, here at this hour?
He had appeared here when he should have been thoroughly beating his grandson for breaking from clan tradition.
“Did you dare cut off the Moyong Clan’s line of succession?!!!!!”
He looked ready to beat me to death in place of his grandson.
Fuck... What the hell happened?
Footnotes:
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