WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

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◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈

Chapter 99: Hell's Entrance Exam: Gate ‘III’ (2)

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"I truly can't help but be impressed."

Maeng Juwon exclaimed while looking over a report on Jegal Somyeong's desk.

"......"

Jegal Somyeong found it strange.

Most of the Mantong Office was so busy they could not spare a thought for anything else, so why was that bastard always doing something unrelated whenever they saw them?

"Grand Strategist, have you seen this?"

The document Maeng Juwon held out was a report sent from the branch hosting Gate III. Of course, Jegal Somyeong had not reviewed it yet.

Jegal Somyeong considered scolding them, then shook their head.

If that bastard was doing something else, it meant they had already finished more than they were supposed to.

"What is it?"

"It's a report from the Martial Alliance's Nanyue Branch."

Of course it was.

For some time now, Maeng Juwon had been unable to stop taking an interest in Jin Sowoon.

"Is this about Jin Sowoon again?"

"No. It's a report concerning the incident on the Puyang Plains."

"Didn't Cheonmok Pavilion already report on that?"

"It's about what really happened. Aren't you interested?"

"......Let me see it."

Jegal Somyeong set aside the documents they had been handling and rose from their seat. Was that report supposed to have arrived this soon?

The Nanyue Branch Head had ties to the Orthodox Society. If it was an important report, they would normally submit it through the Orthodox Society rather than the Mantong Office.

Jegal Somyeong had assumed they would learn the details only after the Martial Alliance dispatched an investigation team, yet the report had already arrived.

"There really was a culprit."

"A culprit?"

Jegal Somyeong accepted the report from Maeng Juwon and quickly read through it.

It contained the time of the incident, a brief summary, and even a detailed account of what had happened. It was an unusually thorough report.

"They say a young lady named Namgung Seonhwa drafted it."

That made sense if it was Namgung Seonhwa. The Namgung Clan likely used a reporting format similar to the Martial Alliance's.

"An evil art that uses darkness?"

The contents that followed were hard to believe.

"Perhaps our suspicions were correct."

"Hmm......"

A report alone was not enough to trust everything. Fantastical stories such as this might sometimes be seen under the effects of Dream-Soul Incense or as hallucinations.

"If you look at the end, it says they will send the evidence to us directly by courier."

A bizarre corpse with black skin as tough as animal hide and blades protruding from its palms.

It was difficult to picture from the description alone.

As Jegal Somyeong read the report, they tilted their head.

"But they're sending this evidence to the Mantong Office?"

If it was real, if it was such an important matter, the Nanyue Branch Head would not simply let this opportunity pass.

By delivering evidence they had secured to the Mantong Office through the Orthodox Society, they could bolster both their own standing and the Orthodox Society's influence.

"Ha. Is the sun rising in the west?"

It was enough to make them wonder if the whole lot had taken some kind of drug.

Then Maeng Juwon shook their head.

"That's not it, Grand Strategist."

"What?"

"If you look closely, doesn't it say our Sowoon proposed ten nyang of gold?"

Jegal Somyeong had snorted at that part as well.

That Nanyue Branch Head had been thoroughly outplayed by Jin Sowoon.

Bringing money into an important Martial Alliance matter had not looked particularly good.

"Look closely. Didn't he say the ten nyang of gold should be used for the dead and wounded on the Puyang Plains?"

"Yes."

"Wasn't that all for our Mantong Office's benefit?"

"......"

Jegal Somyeong looked at Maeng Juwon as if they were a drunk rambling nonsense.

"Ten nyang of gold isn't money the Nanyue Branch Head would spend personally."

"That's right."

"Then the branch has to spend it, and wouldn't that require filing a proper report?"

"......"

"If it were me, I would have handled it this way to prevent information from leaking along the way. Just like Sowoon did."

It sounded plausible, but it felt like Maeng Juwon was reading far too much into it.

Either way, the Mantong Office would receive the evidence directly, allowing them to press the investigation into the culprit even harder.

So many things were changing because of Jin Sowoon.

"Grand Strategist, this isn't the time. Shouldn't we just bring our Sowoon into the Mantong Office?"

Maeng Juwon sounded genuinely anxious, a side they had never shown while working.

"What if those crude idiots in Gate III hurt his head? And after Gate III? Will our Sowoon really come through that hellish chaos unharmed......?"

"Hey."

"Yes? Ah! I've finished all my work. I even took care of things you hadn't told me to do yet."

"......"

Having beaten Jegal Somyeong to it, Maeng Juwon beamed at them.

Jegal Somyeong cocked their head to one side in a deliberately insolent manner.

"Your tone is extremely insolent."

"Pardon?"

#

"Brother! I knew you'd come."

As Jin Sowoon's group entered the Martial Alliance's Nanyue Branch, they encountered a familiar face.

"Jaehwa?"

"Yes! It's me, Brother!"

Moyong Jaehwa hurried over, delighted as though he had found a lost sibling.

He then greeted the Geum-Eun-Dong brothers, apparently having grown close to them during his stay at the Taeul Sect.

"Hey, can't you see us?"

At Seong Moran's cheeky remark, Moyong Jaehwa startled and turned around.

"Gah! Sister Moran, Sister Seonhwa?"

"You've gotten awfully lax just because you haven't seen us for a while."

Namgung Seonhwa and Seong Moran seemed to know Moyong Jaehwa as well. As they teased him, he looked flustered.

"Um, but......"

Moyong Jaehwa carefully glanced at the two young ladies.

"Did you two fail to pass Gates I and II?"

"Huh?"

"What are you talking about?"

Their questions made Moyong Jaehwa look even more surprised.

"Then did you come to take the Gate III examination?"

"Of course. What do you take this sister for?"

"Jaehwa, I'm not that weak."

The two spoke as if it were obvious. Moyong Jaehwa looked even more dumbfounded.

"Looking like that?"

"......"

"......"

Gate III of the Martial Arts Academy regular examination was decided through duels.

Those who had passed Gates I and II gathered and chose opponents to duel, and only the winners received a Gate III Token.

People strong enough to pass the first two gates had to duel as though facing mortal enemies, yet Namgung Seonhwa and Seong Moran looked as if they had come out for a stroll.

"W-what are you talking about, Jaehwa? This is how I usually look."

"Pardon? What do you mean......?"

"You remember I looked like this when we trained together, don't you?"

The corners of Namgung Seonhwa's mouth, which rarely lost their smile, trembled.

She stepped closer to Moyong Jaehwa and lightly placed a hand on his arm.

Moyong Jaehwa screamed as sudden pain shot through him.

"Argh!"

"Oh? What's wrong? Did you get hurt at Gate I or Gate II?"

Feeling as though the flesh were being torn from his arm, Moyong Jaehwa looked at Namgung Seonhwa with frightened eyes.

- Hey! Do you want to die?

At that moment, thunder boomed inside Moyong Jaehwa's mind.

The one who sent the sound transmission was none other than Seong Moran.

- Don't make it obvious by looking so surprised.

Moyong Jaehwa quickly lowered his head.

- Say anything unnecessary, and this is what you'll get.

Behind Jin Sowoon, Seong Moran drew her thumb across her throat.

Moyong Jaehwa had no idea why this was happening, but he decided changing the subject came first.

"B-Brother, you're here to register, right?"

"Huh? Yeah. But why are you sweating so much?"

"Ah, haha. I suppose I'm just so happy to see so many familiar faces after such a long time."

For Gate III, those who arrived first chose opponents from among those who arrived later. That was why Jin Sowoon's group had hurried along since morning.

"Quite a lot of people are already here."

"Some arrived the day before and waited."

As Moyong Jaehwa said, martial artists from various sects were gathered all across the Nanyue Branch's large training ground.

Some groups had only three or four people, while others had hundreds.

"The first to arrive was Shaolin Sect."

Nearly twenty bald-headed figures stood inside the training ground, examining everyone who entered one by one.

They were looking for suitable opponents.

"What about you? Have you chosen someone?"

"I haven't found anyone suitable either, so I'm waiting."

Seong Moran lightly smacked Moyong Jaehwa on the head.

"Don't fuss over things like that. Just fight anyone. They're all the same anyway."

"Sister, that's why you're always...... No, never mind. Still, you know Gate III requires especially fierce strategic jockeying."

"Isn't that Wudang Sect over there?"

The martial uniforms of those gathered before the registration desk all bore the white clouds that symbolized Wudang Sect.

"Wudang Sect usually goes to Shaanxi Province. What's going on?"

"Exactly. Competition in Hubei Province is always brutal because of Shaolin Sect, and now Wudang Sect has joined in as well."

There were five people who appeared to be examinees. They appeared to be of a different caliber from the other candidates.

"Huh? Have they already chosen opponents?"

"That's strange. It's still the first day, and not all the examinees have even arrived."

The Wudang Sect disciples began leaving the training ground together.

"Young Master Jin, Young Master Jin!"

Seong Moran urgently called out to Jin Sowoon.

"What is it?"

"Lower your eyes."

"Pardon?"

"You have a somewhat defiant look in your eyes. You might offend Wudang Sect."

"......"

"For Gate III, it's best to fight someone weaker than yourself."

"......"

At that moment, the young man at the front of the Wudang Sect group suddenly stopped and looked toward Jin Sowoon's group.

Geumpyo and Moyong Jaehwa, who had been staring blankly at the unexpected behavior, both startled.

"W-what is it?"

"Are they going back inside?"

"Could they know Sister Namgung Seonhwa or Sister Seong Moran?"

Geumpyo looked at the two women, but both only gave small shakes of their heads.

The young man approached Jin Sowoon's group, looked around, then fixed his gaze on Jin Sowoon.

"You must be Jin Sowoon."

"......"

"I am Hyeonsu of Wudang Sect."

Jin Sowoon had no idea why Hyeonsu of Wudang Sect was calling for him.

"I am Hyeonjeong's senior martial brother."

"Is that so?"

When Jin Sowoon answered indifferently, Hyeonsu's eyebrow twitched.

"Hyeonjeong set out with Yeon Umun of Mount Hua Sect to capture you."

Other examinees who appeared to be Hyeonsu's junior martial brothers silently gathered beside him.

They all gave off the forceful presence of dragons.

"Yet I cannot contact my junior martial brother, while you have arrived here."

"So?"

Hyeonsu's eyebrow twitched again.

"......I would like to know what happened."

Jin Sowoon tilted his head.

"Didn't anyone teach you to be polite when you want something from another person?"

The faces of Hyeonsu and the Wudang Sect disciples hardened.

"Do you think someone will answer you graciously when you start talking down to them right from your first meeting?"

"......Hyeonjeong is like a brother to me."

"Then you should have asked more politely. How can you so rudely ask me about the whereabouts of someone who came to kill me?"

As Jin Sowoon continued speaking, the Geum-Eun-Dong brothers gradually edged away from him.

Namgung Seonhwa and Seong Moran also slowly backed off, as if they could not get used to this. Moyong Jaehwa alone stepped closer to fill the empty space.

"Words are wasted on you."

At Hyeonsu's sigh, the other disciples' eyes flashed.

Still, they did not resort to violence like the people outside the branch.

"You will have no choice but to talk eventually."

With those words, Hyeonsu and the Wudang Sect disciples left the large training ground.

Seong Moran, who had been tense, let out a long sigh.

"What is wrong with you? I just told you. Are you that eager to pick a fight?"

"No. If anything, I don't want to fight."

"Then why act like that?"

"If I don't do this, they'll treat my junior martial brothers and the Taeul Sect disciples this way from now on. If that's the case, it's better for me to fight in their place."

"......"

Seong Moran looked at him with an odd expression.

"Come on, let's go register."

"Y-yes."

The registration desk was quiet.

Not many examinees had arrived at the branch yet, and some deliberately delayed registering to gain an advantage in the fierce battle of wits.

After Jin Sowoon's group finished registering, Jin Sowoon said to the scholarly Martial Alliance official,

"I'll choose my opponent after seeing who arrives."

"Hmm?"

The official shuffled through the papers, then shook their head.

"All the Taeul Sect examinees already have opponents."

"Pardon?"

"Some people registered and left as soon as your group entered the branch."

"What do you mean? We just......"

Eunho could not finish his sentence.

"Who are they?"

At Jin Sowoon's question, the official turned the document around and showed it to the group.

"What is this......?"

The group could not hide their shock when they saw the list.

● Gate III Examination Opponents

Hyeonsu of Wudang Sect - Jin Sowoon of Taeul Sect

Hyeonmyeong of Wudang Sect - Geumpyo of Taeul Sect

Hyeonhyang of Wudang Sect - Eunho of Taeul Sect

Hyeonjin of Wudang Sect - Dongryong of Taeul Sect

Footnotes:

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