Chapter 5 – Gathering Gazes (2)
“Well, fine. I’ll watch.”
“Huh?”
“I said I’ll be watching what you do.”
“Oh!”
Jung Maryung’s eyes widened to the point where they could hardly open any further.
He hadn’t expected permission to be granted so easily.
“I think you misunderstood. I didn’t accept you. I just said I’ll be watching what you do.”
“Ah…”
Jung Maryung’s face quickly darkened.
He realized he had misunderstood the meaning.
“Still, you’re giving me a chance, aren’t you?”
“Well, I guess you could put it that way.”
Seok Jin-ho answered indifferently to Tak Yoon, who had chimed in at just the right moment.
But Tak Yoon smiled instead at his words.
“That means he’s letting you in, Maryung hyung.”
“R-really?”
“Not inside the house.”
Seok Jin-ho said firmly to the now overjoyed Jung Maryung.
What he had permitted was only the front yard.
The house interior and the backyard were still off-limits.
“Th-thank you so much! I promise I won’t let you down!”
“Do as you please.”
Jung Maryung kept bowing until his forehead hit the ground, and Seok Jin-ho responded half-heartedly as he turned away.
The only reason he had even come out was because he sensed someone unfamiliar in the front yard—not for any other reason.
“I’ll serve you with utmost loyalty from now on!”
Even though Seok Jin-ho’s back was already turned, Jung Maryung shouted with determination.
He felt as if he had just climbed the biggest mountain, overcome the first major hurdle.
At the very least, he had gotten started, and that was enough to brighten his face.
“That went well, hyung.”
“It’s all thanks to you.”
“I didn’t do anything. It was your luck. The young master came out at the perfect time.”
“You think I’d even have had a chance if you hadn’t let me in?”
Jung Maryung grinned widely.
He claimed he hadn’t done anything, but in his heart, he knew otherwise.
Without Tak Yoon, he wouldn’t have had this opportunity.
“Thank you, really.”
“You know this is just the beginning, right?”
“Of course. I came here thinking it might be the end, but now I’m determined to give it everything I’ve got.”
Jung Maryung’s eyes shone.
He couldn’t give up just because he lacked talent—his passion burned too hot.
And there’s that saying: constant effort can overcome talent.
‘If I’m going to regret it, better to regret after I’ve tried everything.’
If there truly was an insurmountable wall, he wanted to see it for himself before giving up.
And so, Jung Maryung was determined to seize this chance at all costs.
“Judging by what you’re saying, things must’ve worked out?”
“Maryung hyung got accepted? For real?”
“I thought he didn’t have even a speck of talent?”
“Even the Hoga warriors said he was hopeless.”
Because he’d shouted so loudly, murmurs and whispers were constant around the residence.
Some were even poking their heads over the wall, trying to see for themselves what was happening.
They were curious and wanted to witness it firsthand.
“No way. That can’t be true.”
“Why him, of all people?”
“Ugh, if I’d known, I’d have gotten close to Tak Yoon hyung too…”
“Too late for regrets now. Damn it.”
“It’s not like we ever imagined things would turn out like this.”
The whispers were soft, but the wall wasn’t thick enough to block sound, so every word reached them.
Especially for someone like Jung Maryung, who had good hearing.
“What’s going on here? Why are you all gathered around?”
“Oh, hello!”
At that moment, a visitor appeared.
A martial artist with a sword at his waist approached the front gate with a stern expression.
“We’ll be leaving now!”
“What the…?”
As the martial artist appeared, the servants scattered in every direction.
The man furrowed his brows at the sight.
It was strange that a group of servants, from early teens to late teens, were all gathered here—especially around Seok Jin-ho’s normally empty residence.
“And who might you be?”
“I’ve come to see Young Master Seok Jin-ho. Is he inside?”
Tak Yoon emerged, and the martial artist got straight to the point.
But even at his directness, Tak Yoon didn’t dare to object.
It was obvious the man was a bodyguard.
“He is inside, but…”
“Deliver this to him. It’s a letter personally written by Lady Seok Mi-ryong.”
“Lady Seok Mi-ryong?”
Tak Yoon repeated the name before bowing his head deeply.
He instinctively reacted to the bodyguard’s cold gaze.
“Your job is not to question me but to deliver the letter.”
“Ah, understood.”
Tak Yoon turned without asking further, cowed by the man’s sharp eyes.
That left only Jung Maryung behind.
“And what are you doing?”
“Oh, uh, I was just leaving. Goodbye.”
Jung Maryung gave a slight bow to the man before leaving the premises.
But as he turned, his eyes blazed with determination.
He was absolutely set on joining Seok Jin-ho and becoming a master.
And once that happened, he would never belittle or ignore others just because they were of lower status.
‘The martial arts masters I admire aren’t like those guys.’
Even if they were bodyguards, they were only first-rate warriors at best.
In the grand world of the martial arts, they weren’t anything special.
Yet they strutted around as if they were great masters.
Jung Maryung hated that.
Even worse, some of them had harassed the maids.
Clench.
He had hoped the Seok Clan would be different, but in the end, people were the same everywhere.
Maybe just in different proportions.
So Jung Maryung clenched his fist and walked away.
