CHAPTER 62…………….
Kids’ Fight and Adults’ Fight (3)
“Hey, you! From the looks of it, you’ve trained in martial arts quite a bit. Who are you? Are you from the demonic sects?”
“My identity isn’t something someone like you needs to know.”
At Uifungmyeong’s shout, Baekryeong let out a short, derisive laugh, then turned his dry, indifferent gaze on him.
“I’ll warn you just once. If you pull the same stunt as today again, your right hand will be gone.”
“W-what?”
“Honestly, I’d prefer to take your head off… but my nanny would scold me for that.”
After delivering his one-sided warning without hesitation, Baekryeong turned toward Yeonha.
“Well then, shall we go? Weren’t we on our way to buy sweets?”
“Uh… You mean in this situation?”
“Why not? It’s all settled.”
“…Settled?”
At his words, Yeonha cast a sidelong glance at Uifungmyeong, who was standing behind Baekryeong.
In that instant, Uifungmyeong let out a deep, chilling breath, his eyes flashing coldly as he muttered in a low voice:
“…Come here.”
“Come on, let’s go buy—”
“I told you to come here!”
Clang!
Unable to endure it any longer, Uifungmyeong drew the sword from his waist and pointed it at Baekryeong, who hadn’t even bothered to look at him and was simply walking away.
Baekryeong scratched the back of his head in annoyance before turning back.
“Sigh… So it comes to this, huh.”
“…Draw your weapon.”
His bloodshot eyes revealed that anger was consuming Uifungmyeong’s reason. If not for the crowd, he would have already been slashing wildly.
“You attacked me first, and you insulted me. Now, let’s see you take my right hand as you claimed.”
“…Tch. I do have my pride. How could I use a weapon against the likes of you?”
Slip—
“Besides, too many people are watching.”
Baekryeong swept his eyes around the crowd, then faced him squarely, crooking his finger to beckon.
“Fine. This started as a kids’ fight anyway, so I’ll keep it light. Come on.”
“You brat! Draw your weapon right no—”
“Not coming?”
Whoosh.
In a flash, Baekryeong’s figure ghosted right up to Uifungmyeong.
Before Uifungmyeong could even finish his sentence, the distance between them had vanished. Flustered, he tried to retreat in haste.
But—
Thud.
Baekryeong’s palm was already pressed against his abdomen.
BOOM!
Riiip!
“Guhhh—!”
Thud, thud, thud.
The explosive impact sent Uifungmyeong staggering back several paces, blood spraying dark from his lips.
Barely managing to stay on his feet, his body trembling, he was greeted with Baekryeong scratching his head awkwardly.
“…Harder to hold back than I thought. If it were my older brother, it would’ve been over in one strike.”
“C-cough… Y-you bastard…!”
“Well… Even so…”
Slip—
Moving with eerie smoothness, Baekryeong ghosted up to him again as he coughed blood.
“When it’s over, it’s over.”
Smack!
Thud.
Baekryeong lightly struck the back of his neck with the edge of his hand.
The blow cut off Uifungmyeong’s consciousness, and he collapsed forward.
The instructor had fallen without even managing a proper swing of his blade. Sot’ae stood dumbfounded, mouth agape, blinking in disbelief, while the onlookers who had witnessed everything murmured uneasily.
“D-did you see that?”
“The instructor of Black Shadow Martial Hall went down like that?”
“Damn… things just got noisy.”
Shaking his head at the unwanted attention, Baekryeong turned back to Yeonha.
“Well then, let’s go get those swee—”
Grab.
“…Forget it. Let’s just go home quickly.”
“Hm? Home? Why—”
“Just hurry. Now.”
Ignoring his puzzled look, Yeonha grabbed his arm tightly and dragged him away at speed.
Baekryeong raised an eyebrow at her urgency, glancing down at Pyeongha as if to ask what he had done wrong. But Pyeongha only blinked back in equal confusion.
As the three of them departed, the distant crowd began to swarm around the fallen Uifungmyeong, whispering feverishly.
***
“What were you thinking, Brother Baekryeong?!”
Once they were safely out of sight, at the edge of a mountain path, Yeonha stamped her feet and raised her voice.
Baekryeong only shrugged.
“I just subdued him properly. No problem. He was the one who drew his sword and attacked first.”
“T-that’s true, but…”
“He was about to attack you and Pyeongha. I couldn’t just sit and watch.”
Seeing his unusually serious expression, Yeonha faltered, bowing her head.
“…I should’ve thanked you first. Instead, I acted rude. I’m sorry.”
“No need. I tailed you without asking permission, so we’re even.”
“You weren’t tailing me—you were protecting Pyeongha, weren’t you?”
“Both you and Pyeongha, actually. Anyway, so you’re not mad anymore?”
“I wasn’t mad. I was worried.”
She sighed softly, then spoke again.
“The man you fought is an instructor of the Black Shadow Martial Hall. You humiliated him in front of so many people. He’ll definitely try to take revenge.”
“Revenge? I doubt it.”
If he wasn’t a complete fool, he should have realized the vast difference in their skills after just one exchange.
Then again… maybe he was too weak to even grasp it?
Maybe I should’ve let him at least swing his sword once.
Baekryeong rubbed his chin thoughtfully, while Yeonha’s shoulders sagged.
“They know where Pyeongha’s school is… How can I safely send him there now?”
“Well, then maybe this is a good chance to just keep him—no, no, I was joking. Just a joke.”
“…Not funny at all.”
Yeonha’s eyes blazed, and Baekryeong quickly raised his hands in surrender.
“Don’t worry too much. They’re still a righteous sect. They wouldn’t stoop so low as to harass a child at school.”
“They seemed plenty low already. They said they’d been searching for us all day just to fight again.”
“They said that? Out loud?”
“Yes. At least, that’s what they claimed.”
“Hmph…”
Baekryeong narrowed his eyes with a dry snort.
“To go that far over a kids’ quarrel… they’re pettier than I thought.”
“Exactly.”
“Well… Don’t worry too much. If it comes to it, I’ll stick with you openly for a while. I was only keeping watch from a distance until now anyway.”
“Uncle, Nanny.”
While Baekryeong and Yeonha furrowed their brows in concern, Pyeongha, who had been quietly listening, finally spoke.
“I’ll fight.”
“Eh?”
“What?”
“They came for me, didn’t they? Then I’ll fight.”
Both Baekryeong and Yeonha stared at him, startled by the unexpected declaration.
“If I win, that’s enough. Isn’t it?”
“…”
“Right?”
***
…Dark.
And suffocating.
His chest ached, and his body refused to move.
‘Where… is this?’
Uifungmyeong tried to recall his last memory in the pitch-black void.
A crowd of staring eyes.
The mocking gaze of that unknown man.
And the blinding white hand that came flying at him…
“…Hhhuhh!”
He jolted awake, gasping loudly, hands clutching his head as he scanned his surroundings in panic.
“Instructor… sir!”
“Sir Uifungmyeong.”
He recognized the faces of some of his disciples, other instructors—and an elderly man in physician’s robes.
“…Calm yourself.”
The old physician spoke gently.
“You’re at the Martial Hall. I am the physician who was just treating you.”
“Hhh… hhahhh…”
Breathing steadier now, Uifungmyeong lowered his trembling hands and looked around.
As the physician said, he was indeed in his quarters within the Black Shadow Martial Hall.
“Why… am I lying here?”
“That, you should ask that boy.”
The physician nodded toward Sot’ae, who was sitting nearby with a worried expression.
“What… exactly happened?”
“Well… it’s just…”
Sot’ae opened and closed his mouth several times, hesitant, then, glancing at the physician, spoke cautiously.
“…You were ambushed.”
“Ambushed?”
“Yes. While searching for that boy, Pyeongha…”
“Pyeongha… Ugh…!”
The name triggered a stabbing headache. Clutching his brow, memories rushed back in jagged fragments.
That’s right… He had… lost.
Shamefully, miserably lost.
Even though he had known the opponent wasn’t ordinary, he had let anger cloud his mind.
“Where are they now?”
“…They left.”
“You mean you didn’t even manage to track down where they’re staying?”
“…No, sir.”
Frustrated, Uifungmyeong growled, but Sot’ae could only nod weakly.
“There was… no chance to.”
“You…!”
He nearly shouted, but clenched his teeth instead, swallowing his anger.
After all, how could that young disciple have pursued them when his own instructor had been knocked down? This was his own failure, not Sot’ae’s.
“…Sot’ae.”
“Yes, Instructor.”
“Prepare yourself. At dawn tomorrow, we return to the school.”
“That won’t be possible, Instructor Uifungmyeong.”
Another man, seated nearby, spoke. It was Cheongmubang, the hall’s instructor of fist arts.
“The Hall Master has given orders. Both you and Sot’ae are forbidden from leaving the hall for one month.”
“W-what?”
“And furthermore, if you ever go to that school again to pick a fight with the boy, Pyeongha, your title as instructor will be stripped.”
“What… what are you saying?”
Uifungmyeong trembled in shock.
“I admit, I should have reported to the Hall Master sooner… But to say my actions were improper…”
“Teacher Cheon paid us a visit.”
“…!”
His eyes widened. Cheongmubang’s tone was sympathetic.
“Teacher Cheon has raised many disciples here in Heungguk for years. With him personally coming to explain and request, how could the Hall Master refuse? And truthfully, the justification is not in our favor.”
“So because of Teacher Cheon’s request… I’m being punished like this?”
“…No. Your punishment is separate from Teacher Cheon’s request.”
Cheongmubang hesitated, then continued:
“Word has already spread, Instructor. That you attacked a child and a woman, and were then defeated by some stranger.”
“…What?”
