WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈
Chapter 424: The Price of Fame (4)
──────
“Ahem...”
The pleasant atmosphere instantly turned frigid when Jegal Somyeong clutched the back of their neck and leaned back in their chair.
‘It’s freezing in here.’
I hadn’t even done anything wrong, yet somehow I had become the bastard who deserved to die.
For a moment, I wanted to say, “Actually, I was joking. Hahaha,” then pull Dam Ak’s letter from my robes and hand it over, but...
‘After coming this far, I can’t leave empty-handed. What kind of idiot would do that?!’
I gritted my teeth and desperately endured the taut tension.
Silence fell, and a brief moment felt like an eternity.
After what felt like a long time without anyone saying a word, I cautiously shifted my eyes.
‘Huh...?’
Hyeok Mugang’s reaction was different from what I had expected.
‘He’s... smiling?’
I had just told him I’d lost an important letter concerning the future relationship and prospects of the Martial Alliance and the Black Alliance, yet Hyeok Mugang was strangely smiling.
Perhaps noticing me staring at him, he calmly spoke.
“That was amusing. Still, shouldn’t you stop joking now?”
Just as I wondered whether I should stop or hold out a little longer...
“Chief Strategist, you should stop joking as well. The child is sulking, isn’t he?”
Hyeok Mugang even threw a remark at Jegal Somyeong.
Huh?
I looked at Jegal Somyeong without understanding why, and...
“Someone like you would never have lost the letter, if only for the reward.”
Jegal Somyeong glared at me with the stubborn expression unique to old people.
What was with these two?
Relief washed over me when I realized their reactions had all been a joke, but another thought took over my mind at the same time.
‘What on earth do people think I’m like?’
When I pulled out the bloodstained letter with a dumbfounded expression, Jegal Somyeong snatched it away like an eagle seizing prey.
They immediately opened the envelope and quickly read through it.
“...”
Then they nodded and handed the letter to Hyeok Mugang. He read it quickly as well before folding it.
I was curious about what it said, but I couldn’t bring myself to ask.
Yet when I tried to stay quiet, the exchanged looks between them made me unbearably curious.
At last, the Alliance Leader spoke.
“Your contribution in this matter is beyond words.”
His voice sounded like a parent proud of their child.
Perhaps it carried his concern for a younger member of the martial world.
“You have, for all practical purposes, prevented an unavoidable war between the Martial Alliance and the Black Alliance.”
That was why he added bitter words as well.
“But understand that the Alliance cannot officially commend your contribution in this matter. Doing so would divide the Martial Alliance.”
Well, if those prideful Wudang people believed they were being branded traitors simply for attacking Black Path martial artists, they would rise up at once.
Most of the people I met at the Wuhan manor were Unit Leader-level, but those above them would probably feel the same way.
‘The Beggar Sect’s camp may already be packed with people digging into my background.’
As I sank into thought, Hyeok Mugang continued in a grave voice.
“Nor will any punishment be imposed on you.”
I had expected things to end roughly this way.
If I’d held back because I expected too much, I would only have regretted it.
I took a step back and bowed my head, grateful that he had protected me from Wudang and the Orthodox Society.
“Thank you.”
Still, something caught my attention.
He had clearly said “officially,” hadn’t he? Then...
Could he give me something unofficially?
‘Should I ask?’
I worried I would seem too calculating, but I also wondered whether saying something would be better than remaining silent. In the end, I made my decision.
“Then... is there anything I can receive unofficially?”
“...”
Ah... Jegal Somyeong’s gaze felt sharper than ever.
‘They’re going to bore a hole through my forehead.’
But when would I ever get another chance to meet the Martial Alliance Leader privately?
As I kept my head held high, Hyeok Mugang’s face twitched.
“Hahaha... Hahahahaha.”
Hyeok Mugang soon burst into hearty laughter.
After his shoulders shook for a moment, he smiled kindly.
“Of course, we should give you something. Is there anything you want?”
Of course there was.
Before coming here, I had thought so hard about what I should ask for that my head nearly burst. At last, I voiced the decision I had made.
And then...
“...Hngh.”
Jegal Somyeong pressed their temples as though my request had given them a headache.
For the first time, Hyeok Mugang looked blank.
“Hmm...”
What was this? He had acted as though he would give me anything, and now he was suddenly backing out?
Disappointment was about to show on my face when...
“Is that truly what you want?”
The Alliance Leader’s voice was serious, and I nodded without the slightest hesitation.
“Of course.”
Hyeok Mugang fell silent for a moment as he stroked his beard.
He raised his head and looked steadily at me.
“What concerns me is your future.”
His voice was filled with worry.
“Your actions were right, but the Alliance is sick.”
The man who had stood like Mount Tai in my previous life, a figure comparable to a giant, was revealing his feelings so honestly.
Before I could even be surprised, his words came flying at me.
“The rot within it will block your path the further you advance, and in the end, it will try to strangle you.”
I understood his concern well.
Though my actions had been right, clashing with the Orthodox Society and attacking Alliance members for Dam Ak would ultimately become stains on my record.
I would become a target within the Alliance.
“It will be far more difficult and painful than climbing a mountain against the current.”
Even so, I did not regret my actions.
Those rotten elements were what had been eating away at the Martial Alliance.
I had only just begun clearing them away, and the same process would repeat countless times in the future.
“Do you intend to continue that suffocating struggle?”
I recalled the giant who had ultimately fallen to those rotten elements in my previous life.
Things that were insignificant compared to a giant.
They gathered and gathered until they finally brought the giant down.
I straightened my posture and met his eyes directly.
“If we don’t pick up trash because our hands might get dirty, the place will soon become a garbage dump. But if we keep cleaning it up, others will gradually begin helping as they see their surroundings change.”
This had happened because no one had cleared away what could have been removed bit by bit.
“...The bird at the forefront of the flight faces the most violent gusts. In the end, it is the first to fall.”
And the fact that I had not become a criminal was proof that hope still remained for the Martial Alliance.
“If I fall, my junior disciples will face those gusts after me. If they fail, the children after them will... If we keep moving forward, even one step at a time...”
I did not want to let go of this hope.
No, I would not let go.
“Even if it’s only little by little, we’ll be able to go farther. We simply must not stop until we reach our destination one day. I learned that chivalry is not one person’s choice, but something everyone carries on together.”
My voice, which had filled the room, faded, and the various auras filling the hall vanished with it.
When I looked around, not only Hyeok Mugang but even Jegal Somyeong had become statues, staring at me.
Only after a long while did Hyeok Mugang look away. He stroked his beard and closed his eyes.
“I have never regretted not taking a disciple in my life, but today, I find myself regretting it.”
I did not know how things had turned into this, but it did not seem bad, so I remained quiet.
Jegal Somyeong asked the reflective Hyeok Mugang, “What will you do?”
“If the Chief Strategist is agreeable, I will do the same.”
“He wishes to walk into hellfire of his own accord...”
Jegal Somyeong paused, then looked at me.
“Then let us do so.”
Contrary to their harsh words, Jegal Somyeong wore a strangely satisfied smile.
#
After Jin Sowoon left the inner hall, the two spent a long time silently sipping tea, each deeply moved by their own thoughts.
“I do not understand why that child is called the Black Flame Dragon.”
“That is because the Alliance Leader only sees his good side.”
Jegal Somyeong shook their head with an exasperated expression, though their eyes held a certain warmth.
“More than fifty Wudang bastards had bones broken at the manor. And he deliberately broke only their right arms and left feet.”
For martial artists, having their right arm and left foot broken meant they would be unable to use martial arts for some time.
Even after their injuries healed completely, they would be unable to display the skill they once had.
“Are those people all right?”
Though he asked after their well-being, his voice was far colder than before.
Even Hyeok Mugang could not easily forgive Wudang’s conduct.
“They are unable to act one way or the other because they are watching the situation, but once the result is decided, they will surely rise up.”
The thought of the unrest that would continue within the Alliance for some time drew a sigh.
“Still, isn’t that child’s resolve remarkable? It would be shameful for us adults to stand back and simply watch.”
“...”
They had always looked away, even as they watched it happen.
No matter how rotten things had become, cutting away the old pillars and replacing them with new ones seemed impossible.
Thirty years had already passed in such indecision.
Now the Martial Alliance was about to face a storm supported by rotten pillars.
Yet there was someone who said he would replace those pillars, though there was no knowing when the rotten pillars might collapse along with the roof and bury him beneath them.
“What can’t one say with words?”
Hyeok Mugang smiled faintly at Jegal Somyeong’s grumbling.
“You always show dissatisfaction while secretly holding expectations.”
“Hmph! What expectations could I possibly have for someone like that...?”
“How did you find the result of the test?”
“I only learned how shameless he is.”
Even if no one his age could match him in martial arts, strength alone would not be enough to endure the schemes of old monsters.
Among the opponents he would face in the future were the old monsters of the Martial Alliance as well.
“You saw it earlier. Even while standing before us frozen stiff with fear, he somehow managed to secure his share. He will not easily lose heart even before most elders.”
“Is that all? Didn’t he practically grab us by the hair and refuse to let go?”
What Jin Sowoon requested was a considerable burden even for the two of them.
“More importantly, think about what he said.”
[If I fall, my junior disciples will face those gusts after me. Until we reach our destination one day.]
“Wasn’t that him plainly telling us to support his sect as well?”
Jin Sowoon was confident.
He believed that not only he, but the Taeul Sect would stand at the center of change.
But could Jin Sowoon and the Taeul Sect truly do it?
A suitable wind could make flight smoother, but a violent gust could knock down a small bird.
Jin Sowoon and the Taeul Sect were small birds.
Small birds that could not spread their wings even in a light gust.
“...”
But what if that was not true?
What if they had been unable to spread their wings only because they had been waiting for a violent gust...?
“Could this be the first beating of wings in five hundred years?”
“What do you mean?”
Jegal Somyeong asked about the meaning of Hyeok Mugang’s murmur, but...
“It was only a thought.”
Hyeok Mugang simply smiled and shook his head.
“In any case, Jin Sowoon’s residence has now been decided.”
“At this point, there is nowhere else that would take him in anyway.”
“Congratulations. It has finally turned out as the Chief Strategist wished.”
Jegal Somyeong grumbled at Hyeok Mugang’s teasing.
“I do not know what use there is in becoming the public enemy of all.”
Hyeok Mugang pretended not to notice the corners of Jegal Somyeong’s lips twitching as they tried to hide their smile.
Jegal Somyeong soon rose from their seat.
“I am busy, so I will take my leave first.”
Was gaining such a promising junior truly making them that happy?
Jegal Somyeong seemed almost to dance away.
Come to think of it, even while serving in the Martial Alliance, Jegal Somyeong had always devoted great effort to nurturing younger generations.
As though it were the greatest mission of their life.
“Hmm, a disciple...”
The regret Hyeok Mugang had felt when looking at Jin Sowoon rose in him again.
“Perhaps I should train one...”
A face happened to come to mind.
The small, frail child who had recently entered the Alliance Leader’s Hall.
A child who overcame the Heavenly Killing Star for their sibling, and overcame their nature to save people.
“That child was from the Taeul Sect as well.”
For some reason, it felt as though fate had fit together in a strange way.
Footnotes:
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
