Translator: Nox

Chapter 103

103

Then the boy turned around.

He had a face similar to Namgung Hwi, but he was much smaller and had delicate features.

I made eye contact with the boy and quickly lowered my head.

"I apologize, Young Miss. I mistook you for someone else."

I had assumed it was Namgung Hwi and thought it was a boy, but it turned out to be a radiant little Young Miss who got out of the carriage.

As I awkwardly turned around and tried to sneak away, the girl, who had approached me unnoticed, grabbed the hem of my clothes.

"Do you know my brother?"

"Pardon?"

"You mistook me for the Young Patriarch. So, you know my brother, right?"

The girl's expression as she widened her eyes and asked back was exactly like Namgung Hwi's from some time ago.

Is this kid Namgung Hwi's younger sibling?

I awkwardly waved my hand.

"Of course not, Young Miss."

"Hmm? Really? It seems like you do know him..."

Despite my denial, the girl didn't let go of her suspicion.

She put strength into the hand holding me and scanned me up and down, her eyes showing she wanted to find out who I was.

Belatedly, a maid who had been taking luggage out of the carriage called out to the girl.

"Young Miss, why are you standing there?"

"Gyogyo, this sister called me..."

The girl, answering the maid's question, turned her back and let go of my clothes.

Now's my chance, let's run!

I started running away as fast as I could.

\ \ \

Namgung Yeon watched the girl's receding figure and let out a small exclamation.

She was carrying so much luggage and running away so fast that she almost looked like she had seen a ghost.

"Gyogyo. Did you see? That sister seems to have faster Light Footwork than my brother."

"Indeed. She's incredibly fast..."

"She must be a Martial Artist. Why did she put mud on her face?"

Namgung Yeon, with her hand on her forehead like a visor, couldn't take her eyes off the street until the girl had completely disappeared.

"Yeon-a, what are you doing there? Why aren't you coming in?"

"Namgung Ran!"

Only then did Namgung Yeon turn around and run to Namgung Ran, hugging her tightly.

"Our Yeon-a, you've had a long journey. Does your bottom hurt?"

"I'm ten years old now. Riding in a carriage is nothing. Namgung Ran, you know what? I just saw a really pretty sister. But that sister called me Young Patriarch. I think she knows my brother."

"Hwi-a? That's unusual. There aren't many people who know Hwi-a's face unless they're from Hapcheon."

"Isn't it strange? So, when I asked if she knew my brother, she ran away."

"Is that so? Haha, she must have been surprised because she mistook you for someone else."

Namgung Ran replied casually and took Namgung Yeon's hand. She didn't seem to care at all about the person her younger sister had seen.

"Our Yeon-a, are you hungry? Shall we have tea with your sister? With pine nut honey preserves from Mobong."

"Yes!"

"Now, I'll show you the merchant guild where your sister works. Yeon-a is well-behaved, so you can be quiet, right?"

"Yes!"

Namgung Yeon, answering energetically, straightened her back, putting strength into her neck.

Namgung Ran, barely suppressing a smile at the sight of the little Young Miss trying to look dignified, adjusted her pace to match Namgung Yeon's and headed to the office.

Namgung Ran placed tea and refreshments in front of her youngest sister, who was sitting on a plush chair, and asked.

"How is Hwi-a doing?"

"Brother? He's the same as the day you visited. He's always training, and when he's resting, he droops his eyebrows like this and fiddles with the wrist knot."

"Oh my. He still hasn't untied that knot?"

"Yeah. My brother is such an idiot. Who would believe that a wish will come true if the knot breaks?"

"Yeon-a. I told you not to say that to your brother."

"Tch."

Namgung Yeon, pouting, munched on a walnut and said.

"But my brother has become really strange. He doesn't play with me much these days."

Namgung Ran smiled wryly at Namgung Yeon's grumbling.

"Yeon-a should understand. The fever of first love is always intense. It will get better with time."

"Okay."

"Good girl. Our youngest. Now it's time for your sister to work. Shall we talk again in an hour?"

"Okay."

Namgung Ran, lightly pinching Namgung Yeon's cheek as she answered clearly, opened the ledger.

Namgung Yeon sipped her tea, watching her sister flipping through the ledger.

Fever? Is my brother sick somewhere? He shouldn't be sick.

No, if my brother keeps being sick, I'll have to become the Young Patriarch! I'll train hard and learn the Emperor Sword Form too!

Namgung Yeon, making ambitious plans, smiled brightly and reached for a walnut.

She had long forgotten about the pretty sister she had met in front of the carriage.

\ \ \

Hurrying out of the village, I looked back and sighed in relief.

Ugh, that was close. Why was the Namgung Family carriage there?

I heard that Anhui was under the control of the Namgung Family, and it seemed that they also exerted influence on the borders leading to other regions.

"Ju-ryeong. Is anyone following us?"

"Kee!"

Ju-ryeong, answering, peeked out and climbed onto my shoulder. The little guy, who had been holding his breath in the narrow space for a while, had his fur pressed to one side.

If Ju-ryeong hadn't sensed anything, it should be safe, but I chose a longer route, considering the possibility of anything.

After climbing up and down five peaks, I returned to the hermitage as the sun was setting, and Yeon-ryang was seen pacing in front of the mountain gate, waiting for me.

"Brother. I'm here."

"You're finally here. I was worried something had happened since you didn't come even though it was almost dinner time."

He smiled weakly, checked if I was okay, and took the luggage. I grinned and said.

"Something did happen, Brother."

"What? Did you run into pursuers or something?"

I turned around and pointed to the sack.

"Ta-da. Look at this."

"You got a sword? So, that's why you were late."

"Hurry up and open it. You'll love it."

"I won't refuse. Let's see how much our sister got ripped off."

Yeon-ryang chuckled as he opened the mouth of the sack. But his laughter didn't last long.

As he unwrapped the cotton cloth around the sword, a look of bewilderment crossed his face.

"Wh, what is this? So-hye, did you rob some Divine Thief's Secret Vault or something?"

"Amazing, right? Ju-ryeong found it in the iron shop."

"Kit!"

Ju-ryeong raised his chin as if asking for praise, but Yeon-ryang didn't even glance at Ju-ryeong.

He said firmly.

"Put it back where it was. Right now."

"Huh? Why? Brother, look closely. This is a Cloud Iron Sword. It's incredibly rare."

"That's why it's not allowed. These kinds of things always cause trouble."

His attitude was so firm that I felt intimidated. I mumbled excuses.

"It's not something that will cause trouble. It's something the person who made it has completely forgotten about. ...Probably."

That's why they haven't come to find it for over thirty years.

"How do you know that? I don't even believe that something like this was in a neighborhood iron shop."

Yeon-ryang frowned at my excuses. Then, as if conscious of the monks in the hermitage, he lowered his voice and gestured towards the forest.

"Let's talk over there. The monks will be surprised."

"...Okay."

"Wait here for a moment."

Yeon-ryang left me standing there, moved the luggage into the room, and came back to pull me away. His face was uncharacteristically stern.

I thought he would like it...

As my shoulders drooped powerlessly, the wrinkles on Yeon-ryang's forehead smoothed out. He said in a much gentler voice.

"I'm not angry at you, So-hye. It's just that it's better to avoid things that could cause trouble, so I want to make sure. How did you get it?"

I suppressed my disappointment and answered.

"Ju-ryeong found it buried in a corner of the iron shop. The owner of the iron shop knew a Tang Clan Master Craftsman. He was keeping a sword made by the Tang Clan Master Craftsman."

"A Tang Clan Master Craftsman? Why is something like that lying around here?"

"I was wondering about that too. It must be one of the elders of the family, but what were they thinking... There are so many eccentric people in our family, so it's not a big deal."

Even just my siblings are all different.

Despite my explanation, Yeon-ryang still looked suspicious.

"Let's say the origin of the sword is like that. Why did the Tang Clan Master Craftsman give the sword to you? You didn't reveal your identity, did you?"

"The owner of the iron shop recognized my bracelet. He asked if I was a Tang Clan person first. It seems this was also made by the elder who made the sword."

"What? You're being chased. What if the family finds out?"

Yeon-ryang pressed his temples. I awkwardly touched my neck.

"I sold my brother's name, so there shouldn't be a big problem. I used our second brother's name."

"The brother who was your writing teacher?"

"Yeah. When I left the house, my brother gave me his identity plaque. I pretended to be a servant coming to do errands for the Young Master with that."

"You pretended to be a servant? The owner of the iron shop believed that? While you were wearing a Protective Charm made by a Tang Clan Master Craftsman?"

"I don't know if he believed it... He promised to keep it a secret. That old man seems to like our family a lot. He claimed to be a disciple of the Tang Clan Master Craftsman, so he won't talk carelessly."

Yeon-ryang, looking at me with a troubled face, sighed and rubbed his eyes.

"Haa... I'm not trying to criticize your choices, So-hye... It's just that you didn't believe that the old man would keep his promise even if a knife was held to his throat, did you?"

Cold sweat gathered in my hands at Yeon-ryang's words, pointing out the part I had been trying to ignore. I mumbled as if making excuses.

"He was an ordinary old man. There's no need to kill him to worry about future troubles."

The people I've fought and killed so far were clearly enemies who were targeting me, but not the old man.

He just happened to meet me. He even treated me as a guest and served me tea.

I didn't want to become such a low person as to stab in the back someone who had willingly shown kindness.

"...You knew what you had to do, but you just came, didn't you? You kind-hearted Young Miss."

Yeon-ryang, letting out a hollow laugh, muttered softly.

"Well, that's my sister's charm. That's why you couldn't abandon even one dying Demonic Sect guy and are going through all this trouble."

I was jolted awake by the words that were close to a lament.

If I killed the old man in the iron shop to avoid leaving any future troubles, it would be like becoming the same person as the Third Madam, so I pretended not to know and didn't take any action.

But what if information really leaked through the old man?

What if Yeon-ryang was also put in danger because of my shallow sympathy?

Yeon-ryang can't fight or run away with his body. It wasn't the time to be presumptuous and hypocritical.

I took a deep breath and raised my head. It was right to tie up the loose ends with my own hands since it was my misjudgment.

I looked straight into Yeon-ryang's eyes and said.

"...I was wrong. Brother. I'll go to the village after sunset."