Chapter 29
When the performance ended, the Haomun Leader didn't react much to me. She merely smiled faintly...
“That was an excellent performance.”
she said, then produced five bottles of Chwieseonju from somewhere and handed them to me.
Five bottles of such precious liquor for a single performance were a significant gain for me, so I promised to continue playing for the remaining period before leaving her room.
After that, my daily life at Cheongwolru proceeded uneventfully.
Youngest and I had moved on from being 'hosts' and returned to our original duty of guarding Cheongwolru, as promised to Munseok, but...
“Young Master! I’m here!”
...Sohyang, Young Lady, you're here again?
Since that day, Sohyang had visited every day, forcing me to wear silk robes once more.
Well... it wasn't that I disliked her visits.
She had plenty of money, so she didn't bat an eye no matter how much expensive liquor I ordered, and most importantly...
“Young Master... please take this to your Main Family... You might have already paid off your debts with the money I gave you, but... this is for your ailing parents' medical expenses...”
“*Hmph*... Thank you, Young Lady. I will never forget this kindness...”
Whenever I put on a sad expression, Sohyang would automatically offer me money, allowing me to rake in a considerable profit.
“Young Master... I came with my Eonni...”
“Hee-Heeya, Young Lady. P-please don't come any closer, couldn't you speak from there... *Ugh*...”
Sohyang's younger sister, who had come with her Eonni, also took a great liking to Youngest, so Youngest was able to earn some decent pocket money too.
Youngest still seemed unaccustomed to the Young Lady's aggressive behavior, but then again, that's none of my business.
And so, this life of sleeping in the morning and carousing with Sohyang at night continued for several days.
After business hours, going to the Haomun Leader's room to play the Zither also became a daily routine.
Perhaps because Haomun had a lot of money, she also seemed to possess considerable personal wealth.
*Clink*.
“That was an excellent performance. This is an additional payment, beyond the Chwieseonju I promised.”
After each performance, she would throw me a silver ingot or a piece of gold, in addition to the Chwieseonju.
How much money had I already earned at the Courtesan House in the past week?
If this were the case, I thought, I should have just made a fortune earlier at a Courtesan House and gone to live somewhere secluded.
Now, I have too many brats to take care of...
It was as I picked up the silver ingot the Haomun Leader had thrown, thinking that I had initially chosen the wrong path.
“...”
“...?”
She was looking at me with a subtle, different gaze than before. Sensing her hesitation, as if she was contemplating saying something to me, I spoke first.
“Is there something you want to say?”
“...”
At my question, she paused for a moment, then opened her mouth.
“You know what our Haomun proposed to you when we offered 200 Gold Gwan, don't you?”
“Well... did I just have to guard this Courtesan House for seven days and nights?”
“Yes, and tomorrow is finally the last day.”
“...”
Her voice, as she said that, was truly significant.
Right, *damn it*.
There must be something bigger going on.
If guarding a Courtesan House for a weekly wage of 200 Gold Gwan was all there was, I'd have a lifelong job here.
As I thought that and nodded vaguely, the Haomun Leader delivered an unexpected statement.
“The events of tomorrow are gravely important to the future of our Haomun... but in truth, they are also related to my personal affairs.”
“What...?”
Information about tomorrow's events.
Until now, no matter what, those Haomun fellows had hidden it, but now the Haomun Leader is talking about it.
I wondered what sudden change of heart made her tell me this information.
“Why are you suddenly telling me this?”
“...Haomun is a highly suspicious organization. And I, as its leader, am no different.”
It was already a known fact that these gloomy Haomun fellows were distrustful and suspicious of others. So why the sudden change...? *Could it be...*
As if confirming my suspicion, the Haomun Leader bowed her head to me and continued.
“Until now, I could not trust you, Sir. I doubted you again and again. I apologize.”
“...”
“From the moment of our first drinking contest until now, I have judged your character through somewhat aggressive methods. For this, I apologize once more.”
“Huh...”
Right... well...
It was certainly true that their actions, openly provoking me and crossing the line, weren't exactly 'Haomun-like.' But was she trying to say that was all their way of evaluating people?
Like, a patience test?
*'Let's see if this bastard still gets angry!'* Something like that?
Thinking about it made me feel like letting out a hollow laugh. After that, I became curious about something more fundamental and asked her.
“So, you can trust me now? Based on what?”
“...”
“Surely you're not judging me based on my playing the Zither a little every night? Hey, I just did that because you gave me money and liquor...”
“Is that what you truly believe, Sir?”
“...What?”
The Haomun Leader cut me off, smiling faintly at me as she spoke.
“You are strong, Sir. I'm not speaking of your martial prowess, but that you are strong as a person. So much so that others can feel the ease of that strength. However... you have a fundamentally different quality from other Strong Experts I know.”
“What is it...?”
When I asked, genuinely curious, the Haomun Leader immediately answered.
“You are strong, but you always *pretend* to be strong.”
“...Huh?”
Does that mean I'm a pretentious weakling? I tilted my head, unable to understand the Haomun Leader's words.
“Your outward appearance is bold and impressive, Sir. I also sense that you possess the ability to do whatever you wish, as you please. However... you only *pretend* to be that way.”
“...”
“Strong Experts are arrogant and indifferent. But you, Sir, are kind. You think of others a great deal and are full of consideration.”
“...Seriously, I've never heard anything like that since the day I grew hair.”
That includes my past life.
I'd heard I was rude countless times, but 'kind'? This was truly the first. Seriously.
The Haomun Leader really has no eye for people, I thought to myself, but her eyes were unwavering, as if to say her words were by no means empty flattery.
“That is because you have only *pretended* to be strong to the weak until now. I could tell you were a person of good character from the moment you played the Zither. On the first day, seeing me appear gloomy, you deliberately played a cheerful tune, didn't you?”
“Well, that was...”
That much was true, but...
“After that, you subtly observed my mood and played different tunes accordingly. At that time, I felt your consideration.”
“...No, that's because you were...”
Pitiful and unfortunate.
I was about to say that, but stopped myself.
Pitying someone or seeing them as unfortunate can be taken poorly, depending on how they perceive it.
But then...
“Were you perhaps going to say it was because I was pitiful?”
“...”
...The Haomun Leader, as if she could read minds, cut me off and continued.
“Typically, Strong Experts may feel sympathy for others, but that is all. They do not cater to others' moods or show consideration.”
“...”
“And in conclusion, the Sichuan Branch Leader Munseok’s judgment of people is exceptionally strict. Yet, he spoke highly of you, Sir. Specifically...”
“He may not seem like it, but he”s a fellow with a certain sense of loyalty.'
“...is what he said.”
“...”
Hearing the Haomun Leader's words, I felt a little embarrassed.
No, why did Munseok say such embarrassing things? No, more importantly, have I ever shown loyalty to Munseok?
*I really... can't remember.*
In any case, the Haomun Leader seemed to think quite highly of me.
What? That I only pretend to be strong on the outside, but am actually kind and considerate? Was I like that?
No, wait a minute... pretending to be tough on the outside but actually being good on the inside...
'Isn't that... a strange contradiction?'
...Isn't that a strange contradiction?
I'm a strange contradiction? I was dumbfounded.
I was someone who intended, from the start, to flee immediately if anything dangerous happened to Haomun. I couldn't help but shake my head at the Haomun Leader's misunderstanding of me.
I didn't hide that fact and told her.
“You've misjudged me. I'm a very cowardly person, and I'm good at running away. I was even planning to flee tomorrow immediately if things didn't feel right, you know?”
“Haha, is that so? If that's the case, you are welcome to flee.”
Her next words seemed to pierce through me slightly.
“If someone like you were to flee, there would surely be a reason for it.”
“...”
Hearing those words, I couldn't help but freeze like a stone for a moment.
She might not have known what she was saying, but her words lightly touched my reverse scale just now.
The Haomun Leader looked at my stiff expression a little strangely, then said softly.
“I have said all I needed to say. You may leave now.”
“...Alright.”
I quickly regained my composure, nodded, and picked up my Zither. Even then, I was repeating the Haomun Leader's words to myself.
If someone like you were to flee, there would surely be a reason for it.
*...Am I truly worthy of hearing such words?*
No, I don't think so.
The Haomun Leader is free to think what she wants of me, but I was absolutely not the person she imagined.
Telling myself that, I left the Haomun Leader's room.
**
Due to the nature of the Courtesan House's business, I usually fell asleep around dawn, so my waking hours were late afternoon.
But today, feeling somewhat restless, I had tossed and turned all night, waking up even later.
Seeing that the sun had already set, I stepped out of my room. And as soon as I was outside, I realized today was different from usual. That's because...
“Huh?”
“Oh, Elder Brother. You're awake?”
“Yeah, Youngest. But why...”
Cheongwolru usually had no days off, but today, no lanterns were lit.
“No lights? Are they not open for business today?”
“Ah, yes. I asked the General Manager earlier, and he said they wouldn't be open today. And...”
Youngest pointed downwards. There...
“...the atmosphere was quite grim.”
...Martial Artists, seemingly from Haomun, were standing by everywhere, swords at their hips.
“...It seems something big is definitely happening. Youngest, let's change our clothes first and go to our post.”
“Yes, Elder Brother.”
Since we didn't know exactly what was happening, we changed our clothes and went to our original post by the entrance. Munseok was there too.
“Munseok.”
“...Ah, you've come.”
Munseok, who was usually relaxed and amiable, wore a tense expression today. He forced a calm demeanor and spoke to me.
“As you might have noticed, something is about to happen. As I told you before, you two just need to hold your positions.”
“What exactly is happening?”
...You'll soon find out, even if you don't want to. Ah, they're arriving now...
“What's arriving? Huh...?”
I followed Munseok's gaze and looked in that direction, discovering something.
At the end of the street, a group of men was approaching.
They seemed to want to hide their identities, wearing black martial robes and masks over their faces, but...
“Oh, those bastards...”
As soon as I saw their appearance, I knew who they were.
There was only one place in Murim whose members insisted on that fashion: those flowing, oversized robes with wide sleeves.
The Sichuan Tang Family.
Those idiots insist on wide-sleeved clothes because they *have* to put their poisons or hidden weapons in their sleeves, even though they could just carry them in their pockets.
So, anyone with a bit of information can immediately identify a wide-sleeved Martial Artist as someone who uses Poison Arts.
It's like knowing that a brightly colored frog possesses deadly venom.
Well... though I described them as frogs, it wasn't that I was underestimating them.
“Hey, Youngest. Do you remember what I told you before?”
“You mean, if things get dangerous, we should run away?”
“Exactly.”
They say brightly colored poison dart frogs possess venom potent enough to kill a human instantly. Those guys are no different.
Don't underestimate those guys by thinking they're fools for insisting on oversized clothes that don't fit them. Inside those sleeves, poisons capable of wiping out hundreds of people are waiting.
“Stay alert. Those guys are the *poison dart frogs* of Murim.”
“...I don't know what kind of frog that is, but it certainly sounds like a name to be wary of.”
I patted Youngest's shoulder and watched as the figures approached Cheongwolru.