Chapter 40
I greeted Dongryong with my fist after a long time, then dragged him to the Mountain Stronghold.
Then, before asking I made Dongryong, Bangsam, Bongchun, Jeokyeom, and Eungchil all put their heads down.
“Alright, now explain. *Damn it*, how did you become the Bandit King?”
“Uh, but before that, Leader...”
Bangsam, still prostrate, spoke in an aggrieved voice.
“Well, granted, the Deputy Leader is one thing, but why are *we* being punished? We didn't do anything wrong...”
“Shut up, you bastard. Don't you know about Joint Responsibility? What were you all doing while Dongryong was acting like a lunatic? When the leader goes off track, the Subordinates should steer the leader right.”
“Oh, come on... a clean upstream makes a clean downstream, you know...”
“Haha, are you perhaps referring to *me* as the 'upstream'? Oh, I see. Today, I'll show you what the 'upstream' is really like.”
“W-wait a minute, Leader! *Hiiieek!*”
Bangsam was the Subordinate who had been beaten by me the most, yet he remained unyielding and cheeky.
I couldn't understand why he was like that, and it was infuriating, so this time, instead of my fists, I brought out a club to show him the “harsh lesson” of the upstream.
*Thwack! Thwack!*
“Ughhh...”
“...”
“...”
I could see the subordinates tense up at the brutal sounds. I dragged the club over to Dongryong, the culprit of this whole situation, and asked again.
“Alright, Dongryong... I'd like to give you a taste of the 'upstream' too...”
“L-Leader... I already got hit earlier... Please, mercy...”
“Then I'll ask again. How did you end up becoming that damned Bandit King?”
“I'll tell you right now!”
As expected of Dongryong, who had served under me the longest, Dongryong began to speak rapidly, like a rapper.
“It happened a few days after you left, Leader, while we were doing our Martial Arts Training...!”
A few days after the Leader left...
“Straighten your back more! Extend the Aura of your arm further!”
Dongryong was teaching Martial Arts to the Muak Mountain Brotherhood members as per the Leader's command.
Although only a few days had passed since the Leader left, there were more results than expected.
The Muak Mountain Brotherhood members had previously served in the Imperial Army, and even after quitting, they had continued their training together, so their External Cultivation was already complete.
Each and every one of them, their understanding of Martial Arts is excellent.
Since the Cultivation Method had also been passed down long ago, Internal Energy was beginning to gather in their properly established Dantians...
Given these developments, it seemed possible for them to master all the basic elements before the Leader's return.
Just then...
“Alright, now for the next Stance...”
“Jeokyeom, you bastard—!!!”
“Huh?”
A gruff voice was heard calling Jeokyeom from behind them, as they were about to continue their Martial Arts Training.
More precisely, it came from beyond the eastern Outer Wall.
“...What's going on all of a sudden?”
Jeokyeom answered Dongryong's puzzled question.
“It sounds like someone I know. I'll go check it out.”
“...No, let's all go together.”
The atmosphere felt unusual, so the entire Muak Mountain Green Forest Stronghold rushed to the eastern Outer Wall and peeked over.
What they saw was about a dozen men, each holding a weapon.
Before Dongryong could ask anything upon seeing them, the man who appeared to be their Leader cut him off and shouted.
“You bastards! Jeokyeom! We heard the news long ago! You Muak Mountain Brotherhood guys were completely ruined by a few passing Beggars, weren't you?”
“Ahahaha!”
“Tsk, tsk, as fellow Green Forest members, it's shameful! You're probably in terrible shape, both body and mind. If you come out now, surrender everything, and yield, we'll take you in as Subordinates of our Yeohusan Green Forest!”
After hearing their demands, Dongryong asked Jeokyeom with a bewildered expression.
...Are they talking about us, those beggars?
“...It seems so.”
“That's absurd... Who are those guys?”
“They're bandits who operate on Yeohusan, next to Muak Mountain. They've always coveted our Muak Mountain's excellent water and air. It seems they heard I lost and saw it as an opportunity to rush over.”
“Hmm... I see. So... are they stronger than you guys?”
At Dongryong's words, Jeokyeom immediately asserted.
“Those guys were never a match for our Muak Mountain Brotherhood.”
“...”
Based on Jeokyeom's tone and expression, he wasn't speaking out of mere confidence.
Rather, there was a hint of resentment towards Dongryong for putting them on the same level as those idiots.
If so... it meant those guys were truly weaker than the Muak Mountain Brotherhood members.
“Hahaha! It seems this great one was scared and hid! What a pathetic sight!”
Dongryong hated seeing someone weaker than himself swaggering in front of their home.
Therefore...
“Well, he's just all talk, so he'll probably hang around for a bit and then leave on his own... Huh, where are you going...?”
“I'll go check for myself if he's just all talk.”
...He personally went out, saber in hand.
“Even Jeokyeom, the best in the world, is now...! Uh, what's that?”
“Someone's coming out, aren't they?”
And Dongryong's Conquest Myth began from that day.
“...After defeating those Yeohusan Green Forest bastards, I gained confidence. So... I went around to nearby mountains from the next day, Dojang-breaking. Within a few days, I earned the nickname *Muak Mountain Tiger*.”
“...And then?”
“I was quite proud to have earned the nickname *Muak Mountain Tiger*, when I'd always just had nicknames like 'skinny' or 'weakling'. Dealing with those Bandits was so easy... So, from the next day, I started on the Bandits throughout Hunan Province, instead of just this vicinity...”
Dongryong, who had been speaking proudly as if in high spirits, turned pale when he saw me pick up the club.
“...Leader. Could you perhaps put that down before we talk?”
“Dongryong. This is something even the Buddha himself couldn't tolerate if he came back to life.”
“W-wait...! I-I did this for you, Leader...!”
“Don't give me that bullshit, you bastard! You just enjoyed beating up guys weaker than you, and it was all for your own self-satisfaction, wasn't it?!”
“Th-that's...!”
Dongryong didn't even try to hide his flustered expression, which only infuriated me further.
Before my brain could get angry, the club reacted first.
*CRACK!*
“Kuaaaaaak!”
“Dongryong, I thought you'd been quiet lately, but you've gone and caused a Major Incident after all. This won't do. Let's settle this today.”
“Ugh... but didn't it ultimately help you, Leader...? Now we have hundreds of Bandits under our Green Forest's command...!”
*Hmph.*
I felt like an idiot for thinking Dongryong was somewhat of a brain all this time. In the end, they were all just uneducated Bandit bastards.
I began to kindly explain to Dongryong, who still couldn't grasp what I was thinking.
“Dongryong, you've crushed Bandits throughout Hunan Province and brought them all under your command in just one month, so the title of Bandit King is certainly not wasted on you. Do you know? Your name is already famous among the Merchants.”
“...When you, Leader, are here, it's truly undeserved for me to have the title of Bandit King... but I must admit, I am proud.”
“This *fucking bastard*...”
“Do I sound like I”m praising him right now...?'
For a moment, I almost raised the club again, but I barely held back and continued.
“Right, the title of 'King' isn't given to just anyone. For now, Dongryong, you've become quite the Big Shot in this Hunan Hick Town. And I, who have such a Big Shot as a Subordinate, will also become a Big Shot, won't I?”
“C-congratulations...?”
“...”
“...S-sorry.”
Dongryong, having observed my expression, lowered his gaze. I gently stroked his cheek with the tip of the club and got to the main point.
“Dongryong, *damn it*, did we become Big Shots by doing good deeds? The title includes 'Bandit,' *Bandit*. A Big Shot among the bad guys has appeared after a long time, so do you think the Murim Alliance, who can't stand such things, will just sit by?”
“Ah.”
As soon as he heard the name Murim Alliance, Dongryong exclaimed "Ah" with an innocent face. Of course, that only made me angrier.
“Hmph... I can't take it anymore.”
“Leader. I understand now. I truly repent, so... Kuaaaaaak—!!
Even while being subjected to the Clubbing, Dongryong continued his last desperate struggle.
“L-Leader! Still, we're just Bandits. Would the Murim Alliance even care about us? Let's try to look at the situation more positively...”
“*Damn it*, there are probably hundreds of Martial Artists waiting at the Murim Alliance Headquarters right now. Are they just playing around? Playing? Huh? *Damn it*, did they gather hundreds of people for a grand feast? You just accept my club instead, positively.”
“Aaaaaaaak—!!”
How many times had I hit Dongryong today? I think I counted up to a few dozen, but after that, I lost track.
Of course, no matter how much I hit Dongryong...
“Die! Just die from the beating!”
“I'm really going to die at this rate, aaaaaak—!!”
...my pent-up rage knew no bounds.
**
Immediately after that, an Emergency Response Committee was convened.
Those who gathered were my Direct Subordinates, who could be collectively called Executives, along with Jeokyeom, the former Leader of the Muak Mountain Brotherhood, and Eungchil, its former Deputy Leader.
The agenda, naturally, was how to deal with the current situation.
With Dongryong's face swollen, the atmosphere in the room was heavy... and surprisingly, the Youngest was the first to speak.
“Perhaps... if the Murim Alliance's threat is the problem, couldn't we also join the Murim Alliance?”
“...What?”
Youngest, what kind of talk like the Heavenly Demon Cult joining the Murim Alliance is that?
Frustrated by such nonsense, I clutched my forehead and spoke.
“Youngest, does that even make sense? If we're going to do that, why don't we just make those Heavenly Demon Cult bastards join the Murim Alliance and achieve Murim Unification? *Damn it*.”
“Ah... was that nonsense?”
“Of course it's nonsense. Rejected. Do any of you other bastards have any ideas?”
I looked around and spoke, but they only bowed their heads, unable to offer any reply.
“Haa... to call these bastards my Subordinates...”
...I am ashamed.
Dongryong, the instigator of the situation, finally seemed to realize his mistake and bowed his head deeply. I offered him a word of comfort.
Dongryong, don't look so dejected. When you act like that, I just can't...
Leader...
Dongryong looked touched, as if he thought I was encouraging him, but...
...I feel like *shit*. How can I feel good when the one who made this mess isn't thinking of cleaning it up, but just making a sad face?
I'm sorry...
I felt like *shit*.
As I expressed my feelings, Dongryong's head, which was already bowed like ripe grain, sank even lower.
Oh, that idiotic bastard. I said one more thing and he's like this again... *Sigh*... *Damn it*.
What can I do? They say a Leader covers for his Subordinates' mistakes, after all.
Just then, an idea popped into my head that might at least calm the current situation.
To act on it immediately, I commanded my Subordinates.
“So, how many Green Forest Strongholds are under our command now?”
“A dozen or so.”
...That's quite a lot. Send people to all of them.
“Yes...? For what reason...?”
“It's an emergency, so we need to call in all the guys who are acting as leaders and talk to them.”
“You mean...”
“Yes.”
For now, we all need to gather to survive together.
“It's a full assembly.”