Chapter 57
I immediately descended the mountain and ran straight to Hunan City.
Then, I naturally went down into the familiar basement of the now-familiar building.
“Munseok-aemon - !!”
“Munseok-aemon… I don’t know what that means, but it’s a rather annoying title…”
There, Munseok greeted me with a slightly fed-up expression.
It might be annoying to Munseok, but the nickname Munseok-aemon was truly fitting. Haomun, a Sect made up of all sorts of things and people gathered together, was a truly omnipotent existence in the Martial Arts World.
Munseok let out a sigh and asked me.
“I was actually just thinking about going up the mountain because I was worried. Was the matter… resolved well?”
Munseok’s expression was full of worry. Even though he spoke gruffly, he must have been genuinely worried about me.
“Somehow… I managed to handle it well enough. But the problem is the aftermath.”
“…I suppose so. The Murim Alliance won’t sit still once it finds out the Extermination Squad was defeated instead…”
“In that sense, I want Haomun to help. No, from now on, the Haomun Hunan Branch and our Green Forest Twenty Strongholds are a Community of Shared Destiny. If we’re finished, your side is finished too.”
“…No, what did we even do wrong?”
As Munseok tried to argue back, I immediately responded by raising my index finger, bearing the Haomun Leader's Ring.
As soon as he saw it, Munseok sighed again and grumbled.
“Haa… Damn it, I need to steal that ring or something… So, what do you need us to do?”
“I knew you’d do it.”
The Haomun Leader once called me a tsundere. But that was wrong.
Why did the Haomun Leader call me a tsundere when the very definition of a tsundere was right next to him?
Munseok, who showed his reluctance but immediately tried to do whatever was asked of him, was the true tsundere, My Little Doraemon.
I explained my plan to My Little Doraemon, who was already listening to my words with a serious expression.
“I thought about it on the way here, how to avoid clashing with the Murim Alliance as much as possible. So I finally came up with a plan…, and among the things Haomun needs to do for it…”
As I told Munseok what I was going to do, he nodded continuously with a deeply contemplative expression.
“Ah… Yes. That should be entirely possible.”
“And…, there’s something you need to look into…”
“…Did such a thing happen? …I will look into that as well.”
“Lastly…”
And the moment I reached my final request…
“…What?”
…For the first time, Munseok’s expression distorted.
Munseok began to express stubborn refusal, as if he didn’t want to grant that one thing no matter what.
“N-No. I don’t think we can do that. We have our own pride too. That is…”
“Oh, come on. Does pride feed you? Just bend it this one time. Our Green Forest is on the verge of ruin right now, you know? Munseok-aemon - !”
“Nngh…”
As I kept clinging to him and whining, Munseok groaned again and then…
“Understood…”
…He eventually nodded.
Relieved that Munseok had finally accepted the proposal, I asked casually.
“Is the Haomun Leader… still busy?”
I wasn’t ignoring Munseok’s abilities, but if the Haomun Leader helped with this matter, it could be finished much more smoothly.
However…
“He is still very busy.”
…As expected, it seemed he still didn’t have the time to make a trip to the Hunan Branch.
“Still, from his letters, it seems the Leader misses you quite a bit. He will come running straight here once his work is done.”
“…No, there’s no need for him to miss me. Anyway, handle what I told you well. Ah, I plan to stay here for a while, so prepare some Quarters for me.”
“Understood.”
For now, today’s business was over. All that was left was to wait for the results Munseok would bring.
Since Munseok would be busy from now on, I stood up from my seat to clear out as quickly as possible.
At that moment, Munseok opened his mouth.
“…You saved our Haomun and the Leader from a great crisis. I am thankful for that.”
“Why all of a sudden…”
“…I will also help you both materially and emotionally. I wanted to say this.”
Munseok, who always had a sly, smiling face, would sometimes put on a stern, old-man-like expression like that.
That must be Munseok’s true face.
Even the words he was saying now… I could strongly feel his sincerity, making me feel like I was going to laugh for some reason.
“Mister, if you ever get fired from Haomun, do you have any intention of working under me?”
“…If I worked under you, I’d feel like I’d die of a stress-induced illness within seven days and nights, and that’s no joke. I will bury my bones in Haomun. Even in death, I will become a ghost of Haomun.”
“Heh… That’s a real shame.”
I knew he would say that, of course, but I still felt a bit disappointed.
I waved my hand behind me and left the basement.
* * *
The Beggar's Sect.
Originally, the Beggar's Sect served as a pillar of the Nine Great Sects and One Alliance, and it boasted its influence as there was no place in the world without a Beggar's Sect Branch.
However, compared to other sects or noble families, the Beggar's Sect was somewhat lacking in martial prowess, making it difficult for it to become the Hegemon of a region.
Then what about in the Hunan Region?
Because Hunan Province had few people and many mountains, the number of beggars was also small.
A small number of beggars meant that the scale of the Beggar's Sect was also small.
However, since there were no sects of notable scale in Hunan, the Beggar's Sect Hunan Branch was able to exert quite a large influence despite being smaller than other branches.
“Fuck, what’s the point of being able to exert influence? There’s no work to do…”
At the Hunan Branch, located in a dilapidated Pavilion, Branch Master Jangsong let out a long yawn.
Even if he could exert more influence in the region than other Branch masters, what did it matter when there was nothing to do?
Among the Beggar's Sect Members, the Hunan Branch Leader position was already considered a dead-end job.
‘It’s not like I lack ability either, geez…’
Jangsong, who had been sent to become the Hunan Branch Leader after unavoidably getting on the bad side of a higher-ranking Beggar, merely spent his days eating the food his Subordinates begged for.
And…, he thought that day would be just another ordinary day like the rest.
“Branch Master - !”
The voice of his Subordinate reached Jangsong’s ears just as he was about to take a nap. When he opened his eyes, the Subordinate was calling him with an urgent expression.
It was a bit annoying, but since he couldn’t just ignore his duties, Jangsong asked in a subdued voice.
“What, what is it…”
“Well…, I don’t know if I should call him a guest…, but anyway, someone has come to see you.”
“Someone came to see me? Why, do they need information? Or are they asking for directions?”
It was a quiet place, but that meant people did visit. Of course, since most of the visitors came wanting very trivial information, Jangsong assumed this time would be the same.
However…
“Um…, it doesn’t seem like he came for information.”
“Eh? Why are you so sure?”
“The truth is…”
As the Subordinate Beggar hesitated, seemingly unsure of how to continue, someone walked in from behind him with the sound of footsteps.
And as soon as he saw the person’s face, he could understand why his Subordinate had been hesitating so much.
Because he couldn’t imagine at all that the person who had just walked in would come to the Beggar's Sect to buy information.
“Hmm…, it’s been a while since we greeted each other, Branch Master.”
“Wow…, someone I never expected has arrived.”
Jangsong, flustered by the unexpected guest’s visit, let out a hollow laugh before quickly getting angry.
“More importantly, greeted? …What nonsense about greeting - ! You threatened us not to even set foot in the businesses you manage because we smell like beggars!”
The name of the man standing in front of Jangsong right now is Munseok.
He was quite a famous big shot in this field.
He was considered to have the trust of the Haomun Leader, having held the position of Sichuan Branch Leader, one of the most important positions in Haomun.
However, through the Beggar's Sect’s information, it was known that the Haomun Sichuan Branch was closed for unknown reasons, and that he too had come here to the Hunan Branch.
It was already astonishing that someone with the potential to become the next Haomun Leader had come to a dead-end job at the Hunan Branch.
But…, the Haomun Branch Leader is visiting a Beggar's Sect Branch right now?
“Hmm…, I apologize for speaking harshly last time.”
“…!”
He even swallowed his pride and apologized to Jangsong. At this, Jangsong couldn’t help but be astonished.
Haomun and the Beggar's Sect did not have a good relationship.
Haomun was the Unorthodox Faction, and the Beggar's Sect was the Righteous Faction.
Their affiliations were different to begin with, yet the work they did was similar.
Both had high pride regarding which Information Organization was the best.
Should they be called… rivals?
Anyway, it was a daily routine for Haomun and the Beggar's Sect to trash-talk each other, each claiming to be better than the other, and if they crossed paths on the street, they would glare or frown as they passed by.
Munseok, who was right in front of him, was the same.
Seeing how he tried to establish dominance over the Beggar's Sect on his first day at the Hunan Branch by telling them not to smell like beggars, he didn’t seem to like the Beggar's Sect either, yet he went out of his way to visit the Branch and swallow his pride…
There was definitely something going on. Jangsong raised his guard internally and asked.
“What brings a nobleman who hates the smell of beggars all the way here?”
His voice was raised a notch.
Whatever the matter was, since the other party had come swallowing his pride, it was clear that he himself held the upper hand.
Even though Jangsong, who was more than ten years younger than Munseok, spoke in a disrespectful tone, Munseok didn’t show any intense reaction, as if he intended to endure it.
Then, he immediately stated his business.
“You know what recently happened up there in the Green Forest, right?”
“Of course I know…”
It made no sense for anyone not to know when such a huge incident had occurred in this quiet neighborhood. The first to grasp the situation and report it to the Murim Alliance Headquarters was also the Beggar's Sect Hunan Branch.
“But why are you bringing that up?”
“Why else? It’s because our Haomun wants to get involved in that matter.”
“Haomun, going out of its way? No, what relationship did Haomun have with the Green Forest over there? Are you trying to look out for them because you’re both in the Unorthodox Faction? Well…, whatever the reason, there won’t be any room for Haomun to interfere.”
“What’s the reason?”
“What do you mean, what’s the reason? The Murim Alliance will be sending another Extermination Squad soon anyway, so unless you want to see blood, there’s no reason to get stuck in the middle.”
“…”
At Jangsong’s words, Munseok nodded and continued.
“…What if there is a reason we must interfere?”
“…No, does Haomun have such a deep relationship with the Hunan Green Forest? …Even if it does, Haomun alone wouldn’t be able to withstand the wrath of the Murim Alliance, would it?”
“That’s why I came here to find the Beggar's Sect, isn’t it?”
“Hmm?”
To Jangsong, who was making a bewildered expression, Munseok cleared his throat and spoke seriously.
“I, Haomun Hunan Branch Leader Munseok, propose that Haomun and the Beggar's Sect conduct a Joint Mediation regarding this matter between the Hunan Green Forest Twenty Strongholds and the Murim Alliance.”
“What…?”
As soon as he heard those words, Jangsong’s face was dyed with panic.