Chapter 84
“Hey there. Are you all right?”
It was after she had fought a bloody battle with one of the Heavenly Palace warriors and was looking for a safe place to rest.
A stranger with a worried expression approached Woon-yeong and asked.
She had managed to deal with all of the Heavenly Palace men, but she herself had suffered a serious wound.
Too weak to even answer, Woon-yeong waved her hand, trying to chase the man away. But he was persistent.
“Good heavens, this is a deep wound… Wait, wait, just sit here for a moment.”
The man helped her lean against a tree and then disappeared.
Woon-yeong lost consciousness not long after.
When she opened her eyes again, it was deep into the night. The man had lit a fire and was watching over her.
As she tried to sit up, he stopped her.
“Don’t get up. Ha, you really are a stubborn patient.”
Even at his words, Woon-yeong pushed herself upright. Pain pulsed from her shoulder.
When she touched it, she found that the wound had been neatly bandaged.
“I’ve stopped the bleeding and applied some medicine.”
“Th–thank you.”
Despite his kindness, Woon-yeong did not let down her guard.
“I’ll give you more of this medicine. Apply it well and don’t forget. You’ll have a scar, but it won’t fester.”
“I’ll be fine.”
It had been a long time since Woon-yeong had felt comfortable receiving someone’s goodwill.
She had wandered the martial world alone for so long, meeting all kinds of people.
None had ever approached her with good intentions. It was only natural she no longer trusted anyone.
“Ah, come now. Listen to me. I may not look it, but I’m a physician. You’ll lose nothing by heeding my advice.”
When Woon-yeong stayed silent, the man spoke again.
“You don’t need to be so wary. You look to be about the same age as my younger sister… that’s all. It makes me worry.”
He said this with a lonely face. Woon-yeong bowed her head in thanks.
“Then… I’ll accept your kindness.”
The man’s expression when he mentioned his sister was so sincere that Woon-yeong finally lowered her guard.
“Since fate has brought us together, let’s exchange names. I’m Baek Seon-ha, from Gangseo. As I said, just a wandering doctor.”
Baek Seon-ha smiled warmly as he introduced himself.
“Seol… Woon-yeong.”
“Woon-yeong, is it? What a beautiful name.”
It felt strange to tell someone her name again after such a long time.
The man repeated it softly and praised it.
“I see.”
Woon-yeong responded awkwardly, but Baek Seon-ha suddenly mentioned his sister’s name.
“My younger sister’s name is… So-yeong. Baek So-yeong.”
“Why do you…”
“You seemed like someone who also wandered from place to place, so I thought I’d tell you.”
“What do you mean?”
“If you ever happen to meet a woman named Baek So-yeong, could you tell her that her brother is looking for her?”
“Ah…”
At his words, Woon-yeong felt her heart sink heavily.
Her brother, Seol Do-jin’s face came to mind—so gentle and kind to her always.
If he were still alive, would he be searching for her like this too?
“She looks quite like me. You’ll know right away if you see her.
Tell her to contact the Muhan Trading Company.”
“I… I will.”
Baek Seon-ha’s expression was so full of yearning that Woon-yeong could only nod.
“By any chance… do I resemble your sister?”
It was a question she hadn’t needed to ask, but somehow it slipped out.
The startled Baek Seon-ha blinked and replied,
“Yes, you do. How did you know?”
“You asked my name so suddenly. It made me wonder.”
“Ah… I see. So it was that obvious, wasn’t it?”
He gave a twisted smile that looked like he might cry.
“It’s all right. It just shows how much you care. I’m sure you’ll find her one day.”
It had been so long since Woon-yeong had spoken comforting words to anyone.
“Thank you, miss.”
After a long moment, he spoke again, his face calm now.
“It’s nothing. You treated my wounds, after all.”
“Haha, I healed your body, and you healed my heart. I owe you. If we meet again, I’ll repay that debt.”
“Then I’ll be sure to collect it when that time comes.”
Thus they made a promise for the future—
a night when kindness was given, and comfort was exchanged.
* * *
“Hello, Guildmaster.”
Baek Seon-ha greeted as he entered the Juhwa Trading Company.
“Oh, it’s you again. Where’s your father?”
“My father is attending to a seriously ill patient, so I came in his stead.”
In truth, his father had passed away two months earlier.
But Baek Seon-ha could not reveal that fact—not now.
Baek Seon-ha was a senior disciple and branch master of Sangchun-gok,
the medical sect once founded by the legendary healer known as the God of Medicine.
But the sect had long since declined.
Disciples scattered; some even stole its secret techniques or slandered the sect as quackery.
Now, only six disciples—including his late father and Baek Seon-ha himself—
survived as wandering doctors, struggling to keep its name alive.
“Bah. What could a wandering doctor be so busy with? I wanted to see your father about something.”
The guildmaster scolded him, his tone unpleasant as always.
Even though he was speaking ill of his deceased father, Baek Seon-ha could not say a word.
It was hard enough for a traveling doctor to earn a living.
To survive, the disciples of Sangchun-gok gathered herbs from the mountains
and sold their medicines to trading companies like this one.
Juhwa Trading Company was one of the five largest in Hubei Province.
Baek Seon-ha’s sect could only trade here thanks to the connection his late father had with the previous guildmaster.
Now that management had changed, he had to tread carefully.
That was why he hadn’t dared to reveal his father’s death.
“What’s the matter, Guildmaster? I can identify most medicinal ingredients myself.”
“Ha! You? I doubt that, but fine, let’s see.”
The guildmaster narrowed his eyes, giving Baek Seon-ha a slow once-over.
His gaze was unpleasant, but Baek Seon-ha only smiled politely.
“Come over here. Put your things down first.”
“Yes, sir.”
Baek Seon-ha handed his pack to a servant and approached the guildmaster.
“Try tasting this and tell me what’s in it.”
The guildmaster handed him half a Byeokgokdan pill.
“You can see it’s a fasting pill, right? Byeokgokdan.”
“It does look like one. Is there something special about it?”
“Just try it. You’ll understand once you do.”
“Yes, sir.”
Baek Seon-ha first sniffed it—pine pollen, the familiar fragrance of Byeokgokdan ingredients.
Nothing unusual.
He split the half-pill again and placed a small piece in his mouth, slowly rolling it on his tongue.
‘Pine pollen, jujube, chestnut, cassia seeds, pine nuts, honey… wait, this taste—Sojeoncho?’
Yes. It was the distinct taste of Sojeoncho seeds.
But who would add that to a Byeokgokdan?
He tried to keep his face neutral as he chewed.
Using Sojeoncho wasn’t a Sangchun-gok secret technique, but it was something he knew well.
When the disciples had gone hungry during their wandering days,
they’d soak Sojeoncho seeds in water to stave off hunger.
It was a small, personal secret of his own.
‘Who else could know this…? Among our disciples… ah, So-yeong!’
His sister, Baek So-yeong—missing for ten years—she had known this too.
“Hmm…”
“So? Figure anything out?”
The guildmaster asked, sounding like he didn’t expect an answer anyway.
“Pine pollen, jujube, chestnut, cassia seed, pine nut, and honey…”
“And?”
“I can’t identify the rest.”
Baek Seon-ha smiled and shook his head.
“Ha! I knew it. Damn it, how are we supposed to find out what’s in this thing?”
“What’s going on, sir?”
“Ah, fine, I’ll tell you. This fasting pill came in as a test batch for the Murim Alliance.”
“The Murim Alliance?”
“Yeah. Think of how many warriors they’ve got. They need a ton of these, right?”
“Of course. Perfect for long training or travel.”
“Exactly. But get this—the new batch makes you feel full after eating it and drinking water.
And we can’t figure out what ingredient does it!”
“Where was it made?”
Baek Seon-ha’s heart started pounding.
Could this be his sister’s work?
“Uh… what was it… Hong’an’s Seo Clan? Or Seol Clan? Something like that.”
At that, Baek Seon-ha’s mind raced. Hong’an’s Seol Clan!
He nodded calmly, but his heart thundered in his chest.
Maybe—just maybe—his sister was there.
Hong’an was nearby. He bit his lip hard.
“Then why not just buy it from them? Why look for the ingredients?”
“Bah! That’s why everyone says the Alliance is full of crooks.
There’s this inspector, Do Gong-hyo, he’s been eyeing this stuff.
Bet he’s already extorted the clan for a fortune, tsk.”
“My, that sounds troublesome.”
“Troublesome? It’s killing us! They give us barely any samples and keep barking at us to identify the ingredients! Damn it all.”
The guildmaster spat on the floor.
Baek Seon-ha quietly stepped aside to avoid it—and took his leave.
Leaving the Juhwa Trading Company, he turned north.
Toward Hong’an County.
