Chapter 5: It’s Not The Demonic Cult, It’s Bandits!

“I will surely punish you…”

“……”

Hmm, scary.

In the novel, she is a heroine who will become as strong as the protagonist.

But, tied up like that, growling…

“My, my. So cute.”

“You-!!”

To my eyes, she just looked cute.

When I patted Yoo Somyeong’s head, she lunged at my hand as if to bite it.

“Hey, Young Lady. Calm down and listen to me first. We’ve been protecting you all this time, and now we’re going to send you home.”

“…What?”

As soon as I said that, Yoo Somyeong froze in surprise. I scratched under her neck and continued.

“Still, since we’ve been protecting you, we need to collect a protection fee, right?”

“What are you talking about! Protection fee! …Ugh.”

At the mention of the protection fee, Yoo Somyeong shouted in frustration, but I flicked her forehead, pushing her back.

“…And you’ve already taken everything I had as the protection fee!”

“Not enough.”

“What-?”

Of course, if Yoo Somyeong sold her belongings and sword, it would more than cover the tolls we’ve been collecting from merchants passing through the mountain path.

But, Yoo Somyeong is on a different scale.

“I want 10 Gwans of gold.”

“…What.”

At the mention of the amount, her mouth dropped open. As expected, Yoo Somyeong had a rich reaction.

“…I don’t have that much money right now.”

“You don’t have to pay. The Shanxi Yoo Family will pay for you.”

“…My family?”

I answered with a sly smile. Without a mirror, I couldn’t be sure, but it was probably a very roguish smile.

“We mountain bandits are smarter and quicker with information than you think.”

“Smar… what?”

“Never mind that. Right now, the Shanxi Yoo Family doesn’t have a family head, and there aren’t many martial artists, right?”

“How, how do you know that…!”

In reality, mountain bandits are quite quick with information. By extorting merchants, we can learn about the state of the world.

Last week, merchants who donated Bamboo Leaf Liquor to us mentioned that there was a significant movement within the Shanxi Yoo Family.

The family head led the martial artists in response to the Murim Alliance’s request for reinforcements.

Anyway, the current Shanxi Yoo Family is practically empty. Perfect for plundering.

Moreover, I have their most precious treasure in my hands.

“Now, Young Lady. Make me rich quickly.”

“I’d rather die than suffer such humiliation… Mmph…!”

“If you’re going to say that, just bite on this gag.”

After gagging Yoo Somyeong, I tied her securely to my back and went outside.

Outside, my subordinates were already waiting, ready to go.

“Boss, let’s go.”

“Alright, guys.”

No more, no less, exactly 10 gwan of gold.

“Let’s go make some money.”

We’re going to plunder thoroughly.

……

……

But…

“Waaah-!!”

“…Hey, why is it suddenly so noisy over there?”

“…I don’t know.”

We were almost at the Shanxi Yoo Family’s doorstep, but it was very noisy, as if something was happening.

Dongryong climbed up the wall of the Shanxi Yoo Family to check and then returned to me.

“B-Boss.”

“What is it, what’s going on?”

“Inside, martial artists are fighting with swords.”

“…Huh? Really?”

…This is unexpected.

I need to make money.

It seems there are other intruders.

‘I can’t believe someone else had the same idea to rob an empty house…’

Suddenly, a saying from a celebrity in my past life came to mind.

‘The thoughts in your head are also in other people’s heads.’

The idea of robbing an empty place is common to everyone.

“Ha… damn. I should have come earlier.”

There’s no way to get money in that chaos… what to do.

“Boss, what are you going to do now?”

“I don’t know… me neither.”

Twitch-

At that moment, I felt something wriggling behind me like a fish out of water.

It was Yoo Somyeong, who had been listening to our conversation.

“Mmph!! Mmmph!!!”

“Ah, hold on… okay, I’ll let you down.”

As her struggles grew more intense, I set her down from my back and removed the gag from her mouth.

Once her mouth was free, Yoo Somyeong asked me with a confused expression.

“What on earth is happening at my house right now?”

“I’m not sure, but they say martial artists are fighting inside.”

“Why…”

In an instant, her expression changed from confusion to urgency.

“…Untie me.”

“Phew… Young Lady. Now is not the time to be stubborn…”

“Untie me quickly-!! Inside…!”

No, now that I look at her, her face seemed more desperate than urgent.

“My brother is inside-!!”

“…!”

…Brother?

Only then did I recall more details from the original novel.

Did Yoo Somyeong have a brother in the novel?

No, she didn’t. Yoo Somyeong was the Young Master of the Shanxi Yoo Family.

Come to think of it, I remember Yoo Somyeong telling the protagonist about her brother.

She said…

“He was killed by Demonic Humans… …!”

‘No wonder something felt off.’

Now that I know, I can sense a strange Demonic Qi with my Qi Sensitivity.

A Demonic Human… a member of the Heavenly Demon Cult… is inside.

“……”

My life’s goal is to live peacefully without getting involved in the novel, the Orthodox Sect, or the Heavenly Demon Cult.

But…

‘Go… Go and never set foot in this world again.’

…Just hearing the words Heavenly Demon Cult made my body tremble uncontrollably.

“Untie me quickly!! I have to go protect my brother!!”

Thud.

I untied Yoo Somyeong, who was struggling and shaking. She widened her eyes, not expecting me to release her so easily.

“You…”

“Young Lady.”

I helped her up and said.

“It seems I’ll have to charge double the protection fee.”

**

Sling-

“Ugh-!!”

Wi Yongmyeong’s sword, filled with dark red energy, slashed Yoo Jinmyeong’s waist.

In addition to his waist, his arms and legs were already covered in sword wounds.

“Huff…”

As Yoo Jinmyeong lost his balance from the burning pain, Wi Yongmyeong sneered.

The benevolent smile he had worn all this time seemed like a lie, as a vile grin suited his face perfectly.

“If you give up now, I’ll send you off without pain. Heh.”

“You bastard…”

Yoo Jinmyeong gritted his teeth and stood up.

“Even if I die, I will never give up.”

In truth, the situation was dire.

The enemy outnumbered his allies, and he had a leg injury.

‘The Willow Flower Sword Technique relies on speed…’

Moreover, his opponent was a seasoned veteran with several times more experience. His sword, imbued with dark red energy, was even more menacing.

There were few chances left to win.

‘There’s no other choice.’

Yoo Jinmyeong decided to put everything into one final strike.

Sss-.

“Ho?”

As Yoo Jinmyeong began to gather energy into his sword, Wi Yongmyeong sneered.

“Are you planning a final strike? But, Young Master, your remaining energy seems quite low.”

“……”

Yoo Jinmyeong didn’t respond, but Wi Yongmyeong’s words were true. Due to his other injuries, his remaining Inner Qi was insufficient.

Nevertheless, he put all his effort into extracting every last drop of energy.

And then… he lowered his stance.

“…!”

Yoo Jinmyeong focused solely on his opponent’s neck, as if he had lived his entire life just to sever it.

The moment Yoo Jinmyeong locked his gaze on Wi Yongmyeong’s neck and concentrated his strength in his legs and hands lasted less than a second, but he poured all his blood, sweat, and tears into that second.

Finally, his body leaped into the air…

And his sword unleashed a technique.

Willow Flower Sword Technique (柳花劍法) Willow Blooming Slash (柳開一殲).

Piiing-

Time seemed to slow down for Yoo Jinmyeong, as if everything was moving in slow motion.

But to others, it was a blink-and-you-miss-it moment.

Even in that moment, Yoo Jinmyeong’s sword was steadily aiming for Wi Yongmyeong’s neck.

‘Got it.’

The speed of the Willow Flower Sword Technique was difficult for even a master to react to.

From the moment the technique was executed, Yoo Jinmyeong was confident of his victory.

But…

Bang-

“Ugh-!”

His sword didn’t reach Wi Yongmyeong’s neck. Yoo Jinmyeong’s body was thrown several meters by the impact.

“Ugh-!!”

He coughed up blood. The shock of forcibly gathering Inner Qi and then receiving a heavy blow had caused internal injuries.

Yoo Jinmyeong’s body trembled from the pain of his organs being damaged.

Wi Yongmyeong, adjusting his clothes, slowly approached Yoo Jinmyeong. He looked like a man who had already won.

“Young Master, you are truly foolish.”

“You bastard-! Ugh…”

“I have been with the Shanxi Yoo Family longer than you have lived. Do you think I wouldn’t know the counter to the Willow Flower Sword Technique?”

“Th-That’s…”

The counter to the Willow Flower Sword Technique… Yoo Jinmyeong despaired. And Wi Yongmyeong kindly continued his explanation.

“Those who use the Willow Flower Sword Technique always aim for the neck. It’s obvious where the sword will come, so if you block it with a heavy sword, what can you do?”

“Ugh…”

In truth, this was something that could be easily deduced with a bit of reasoning, but the lack of experience had led to this outcome.

It might be unfair, but the outcome of victory and defeat was already decided.

The victor, Wi Yongmyeong, approached Yoo Jinmyeong to deliver the final blow.

“Then, see you in the next life.”

“Wi Yongmyeong-!!!”

And just as the sword was about to descend on Yoo Jinmyeong’s neck…!

Whoosh-

Thud!

“Ouch!”

Wi Yongmyeong felt a sharp pain in the back of his head.

“Who’s there-!”

“Who do you think?”

Clang-!

As he turned around, he was met with a young man swinging a blade at him.

The young man, dressed in shabby clothes and looking like a male entertainer in a gisaeng house, used his body’s rotational force to push Wi Yongmyeong’s sword away…

Thud-

“Ugh…!”

And kicked Wi Yongmyeong in the solar plexus. Wi Yongmyeong was sent rolling several meters away.

‘Who is he?’

Seeing the young man, Yoo Jinmyeong realized he was no ordinary person.

Especially since a stranger had suddenly appeared to help him, Yoo Jinmyeong couldn’t help but be surprised.

But he didn’t let his guard down and asked the young man.

“…Who are you? Are you with the Demonic Humans?”

“You’re the Young Master, right? Don’t worry, I’m not a Demonic Human.”

Hearing that he wasn’t a Demonic Human, Yoo Jinmyeong finally found some relief.

Whoever he was, the young man in front of him had come to help as an ally.

Now that he looked closely, the young man was quite handsome, which made him seem trustworthy…

“I’m a mountain bandit living on Mount Hyeongak.”

Trustworthy…… Huh?

“What, what did you say…?”

“I came to protect you.”

Yoo Jinmyeong rubbed his eyes and looked up at the young man who had saved him.

He was indeed handsome, but…

“Young Lady Yoo promised to pay double the protection fee.”

…He seemed quite roguish.