WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Satori
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Wanderer of the Martial World ◈
Chapter 7
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After a storm of passion swept through the room, while its heat had yet to fade, she adjusted her clothes.
I held out a pouch to her.
“Take it.”
“...I won't take it.”
The haze had vanished from her eyes. They were resolute now as they stared straight into mine.
“This isn't that kind of money.”
Confusion layered over the disappointment in her eyes.
“It is only a small token from me, for your future with Gyeong.”
I offered the words I had struggled to come up with.
They were not grand, but I put as much sincerity into them as I could.
I did not say it was not a flower fee.
A vulgar word could wound all on its own.
She hesitated slightly after hearing me.
I pressed the money pouch into her hand.
Her eyes widened a little at the weight of the five silver taels inside.
I quickly took her by the waist and kissed her.
Other words remained in my heart, words meant to take our relationship further, but I did not speak them.
It was too soon to suggest that we find a home outside the slums and live together.
After a deep kiss, we looked closely into each other's faces.
Her resolute eyes had become faintly hazy again.
The sight was so cute that I let out a quiet laugh and released Seoryeong's waist.
With a slight blush on her face, she spoke.
“Be careful... on your way.”
“I will.”
A smile slipped out before I knew it.
After calming my mind with a round of Qi Accumulation, I left the house.
I headed for Azure Balance Gate through the noisy marketplace.
Strapped to my back was a bundle containing dried rations, jerky, firestarters, a blanket, and other supplies for sleeping outdoors.
A straight saber hung at my left hip, an iron mace at the other, and a water skin hung behind me. I was heavier than usual.
Of course, I would throw down my bundle before a fight, so it would not be much of a problem.
When I arrived at Azure Balance Gate, the familiar old gate clerk was sitting behind a desk.
“Hwang Jeong-un.”
“Hwang Jeong-un... Second Grade.”
When I gave my name and held out my token, he glanced at it and marked the place beside my name.
“Go in.”
Following his words, I entered and found people gathered here and there.
These wandering martial artists were properly equipped, unlike the simple outfits they had worn last time.
“Hey! Jeong-un! Over here!”
At Yi Pyeong's call, I exchanged brief nods with the wandering martial artists I recognized and joined Yi Pyeong's group.
“Oh! Haven't seen that mace in a while.”
Yi Pyeong teasingly pointed at my iron mace.
It had a not-too-large iron ball attached to it.
I had barely used it recently, but after swinging it a few times before coming here, the familiar feel quickly returned to my hands.
Its handle was unusually longer than those of ordinary maces, so it could be used with both hands. That made it a rather comfortable weapon for someone like me, who wielded a straight saber with both hands.
“Heh heh heh. Jeong-un, look at these two.”
With a mischievous grin, Yi Pyeong pointed at the two unranked people.
Aside from their usual weapons, both were carrying heavily rusted iron clubs.
Baek So-ok had at least wrapped leather around the handle. Yu Sam held his as it was, leaving his hands covered in yellowish residue.
I wondered whether he might catch tetanus like that, but it was not my business, so I said nothing and looked away.
Honestly, I expected the wound medicine made by sects and government offices to cure tetanus to some degree.
Otherwise, I would not have survived after taking so many blades myself.
“Thank you for yesterday.”
With a faint blush on his face, Yu Sam gave me a fist-and-palm salute while holding his rusty iron club.
It was a courtesy wandering martial artists rarely used.
“Don't mention it.”
Smiling slightly, I returned the salute.
“Wow. Our Yu Sam must be happy, huh? Getting a fist-and-palm salute from a second-rate martial artist.”
Yi Pyeong's teasing made Yu Sam scratch his head.
Rust flakes remained in his hair.
I decided I should keep some distance from him today and turned my gaze away.
“What are all those wagons for?”
A line of freight wagons stood off to one side.
“Ah, those? I think they're going to carry us.”
“...What?”
Martial artists usually traveled on foot.
Wealthy martial sects might let their disciples ride horses, but wandering martial artists like us could not afford horses, so we normally walked.
Our stamina was on another level from that of ordinary modern people, so it was not a serious problem.
“Well, perhaps the young master wants to meet Sanhwi quickly. What's good for him is good for us.”
Yi Pyeong was right.
We would have had to walk anyway. Even if they were freight wagons, riding them would still be more comfortable.
“Everyone, assemble!”
At the shout of an Azure Balance Gate martial artist, the wandering martial artists gathered in groups.
Unless they worked completely alone, wandering martial artists often joined groups like mine when leaving the county.
The wilderness was dangerous, and so were the people who entered it.
As we loosely gathered, the inner gates opened and a group of people came out.
At their head was a man.
He had a face pretty enough for a male courtesan and a confident smile.
Despite heading outdoors, he wore fine clothes and a blue silk outer robe.
The sword dangling at his waist did not suit him at all.
He was Gwak Ha-jun, the son of Azure Balance Gate's young gate master and a famous dandy of Yeongheung County.
However, everyone's attention fixed on the man walking slightly behind and to one side of him.
“Yeongheung Charging Sword!”
Wang Gang, the Yeongheung Charging Sword, was the deputy commander of Azure Balance Gate's martial force, the Azure Balance Sword Squad.
The Chung (衝) in his epithet was not the chung meaning “loyalty,” but the chung meaning “to ram straight into something.”
The epithet suited both his appearance and personality.
His face was rugged enough to resemble a bandit's. Though he was of ordinary height, his shoulders and chest were enormous, and his arms were thick.
On top of that, they said he was the sort to raise his hands whenever something displeased him.
I had only heard of him before. This was my first time seeing him in person.
“Hah. I guess the Blue Chivalrous Sword really dotes on his son.”
I gave a slight nod at Yi Pyeong's quiet sneer.
Wang Gang was known as a mid-level first-rate master.
Unlike that young master, he was a genuine first-rate martial artist.
Considering that the Blue Chivalrous Sword, the young gate master, was Commander of the Azure Balance Sword Squad, it seemed they had sent one of their strongest available forces.
And as the squad's deputy commander, Wang Gang would bring the second-rate martial artists of the Azure Balance Sword Squad with him.
Perhaps not all of them, but they would still be a great help.
“Why did they call us here instead of going by themselves?”
There was a trace of inferiority in Yi Pyeong's continual sneering.
“They'll probably put us in an encirclement formation or use us as shields.”
Yi So-gang spoke in a quiet voice.
His low words told us the reality.
Right. That was how wandering martial artists were treated.
Ptooey!
Yi Pyeong spat as if he could spit out his hurt feelings.
Gwak Ha-jun and Wang Gang climbed into a proper carriage, while around ten Azure Balance Sword Squad martial artists mounted their horses and followed behind.
The wandering martial artists boarded the freight wagons with their respective groups and followed them.
“What do you think, Jeong-un? Think you could handle one in a fight?”
Yi Pyeong spoke while pointing with his chin at an Azure Balance Sword Squad martial artist riding ahead and guarding the wagons.
With a bitter smile, I shook my head.
Second-rate.
That martial artist and I were at the same realm, but our actual martial ability would be different.
There was bound to be a gap between a second-rate martial artist who had learned a proper qi circulation method and matching sword techniques, and a second-rate martial artist who could only practice Qi Accumulation.
Even if they had not opened every blood acupoint required by their qi circulation method, simply having done so much would increase the destructive force of their techniques.
Still, I had not lost all chance of winning.
I had picked up a few trump cards while scraping through life at the bottom.
A fight was not a spar. It was a real battle.
So if all I thought about was killing, I could manage.
After traveling for half a day, the wagons arrived at a wild mountain.
At the order to dismount, the wandering martial artists stretched their bodies.
“Ah, I'm dead.”
Yi Pyeong moved his body this way and that, loosening his stiff muscles.
Even I, with a young body and internal energy, felt somewhat stiff. Yi Pyeong, Jang Wi, and Yi So-gang were older and had no internal energy, so they were likely worse off.
“Everyone, come this way!”
One of the Azure Balance Sword Squad warriors shouted from ahead.
The wandering martial artists shuffled over to him.
“From now on, we will search that mountain!”
“Already?”
The wandering martial artists voiced their complaints.
Even if we had ridden in wagons, it was rare to begin a search immediately without resting.
A rough voice rang out amid the murmurs.
“Who dares complain?!”
Everyone turned toward the voice.
Wang Gang was glaring at the wandering martial artists.
The complaining voices instantly vanished, and silence settled over the clearing.
“If you're paid, then do the work the pay calls for! If anyone wants to defy me, step forward right now!”
Not one wandering martial artist answered his shouting.
It was bad enough to meet someone frightening like him inside the county. Here we were facing him in the wilderness.
Wang Gang and the Azure Balance Sword Squad alone possessed enough force to slaughter all the wandering martial artists.
There were a few second-grade wandering martial artists, including me, but fewer than ten. We were no match for them.
“Hmph! Begin!”
“Yes!”
Seven Azure Balance Sword Squad martial artists stood before us.
“Everyone assigned to this section, follow me.”
The people were divided accordingly.
Our group also faced one martial artist.
“What grade are you each?”
“This one is Second Grade, these are Third Grade, and these two are unranked.”
Yi Pyeong answered on behalf of the group.
“Second Grade?”
The martial artist looked at me in slight surprise, then a faint sneer filled his eyes.
“Ahem. Everyone, follow me.”
With his forced cough, the climb began.
Mountains in the martial world were harsh.
Having only gone hiking a few times on well-maintained trails in the modern world, this rugged mountain once again reminded me that I was in another world.
Especially during a search like this, we did not follow animal trails or the mountain paths used by herb gatherers.
That was the point of a search.
Gasp! Gasp!
Heavy breathing came from behind us.
It was Baek So-ok.
But no one helped her.
Once a person entered the path of a wandering martial artist, it was best to forget the consideration they had received as a woman.
Baek So-ok seemed to know that as well. She kept climbing, forcing herself onward despite breaths that seemed ready to make her collapse.
“Hmm.”
The martial artist ahead of us examined beneath a rough boulder and fell into thought.
Then he lifted a translucent skin.
“This looks like a gersu's molted skin. Is that right?”
He asked Yi Pyeong, who seemed to have the most experience.
“Whew... I think so.”
“Be certain. Is it or isn't it?”
Everyone's expressions stiffened at once.
My hand twitched before I could stop it at the arrogant bastard's words.
“...It is.”
“I see.”
The martial artist tossed the skin in front of Yu Sam.
“Carry it and follow.”
Yu Sam's eyes reddened slightly with indignation, but in the end, he could do nothing but pick up the skin.
I had often seen the arrogance of sect members, but it was rare for them to look down on wandering martial artists this openly.
It was one thing for Yu Sam, who was unranked, but they did not normally treat Yi Pyeong, the leader of a group, that way.
Having internal energy did not mean a blade could not pierce them.
The bastard began climbing again. As I watched him, a familiar voice quietly spoke.
“Endure it.”
Yi So-gang stopped me, then went forward and patted Yi Pyeong on the shoulder.
“It seems that bastard only recently became second-rate.”
Jo Man-sik, who had come beside us, spoke as he passed.
He looked cool-headed, unlike yesterday's drunken state.
“Yes.”
I knew that too.
His question about the molted skin of a common yokai like a gersu, along with his attitude toward wandering martial artists, made it clear.
Normally, sects did not send disciples into the wilderness before they became second-rate, unless it was an emergency.
They wanted to keep their trained disciples from dying easily, rather than giving them practical experience.
They probably thought they could simply fill the empty places with wandering martial artists.
Still, there was nothing we could do.
If we killed a sect disciple, the consequences would not be small.
I clenched my teeth slightly and continued up the mountain.
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