Chapter 28 – Training…? (5)
“Can’t we do it…?”
I opened my mouth without hesitation, looking up at the sparkling eyes that had my arm wrapped around her chest.
“Of course we can!”
I gave an answer without even realizing it. At the same time, Hong Yeon-hwa’s pitiful expression, as if to say “when did this happen?”, turned into a confident smile.
“No matter how much I think about it, it seems like you really like the Lady.”
“That’s right.”
Paeng Soso also seemed to have no idea what to do, so she crossed her arms and nodded her head beside me.
…Stop it!
You can’t make an irresistible offer and then react like that!
Hong Yeon-hwa, whether she knew my grievances or not, spread her large chest and nodded her head continuously.
“Don’t worry too much. The Lady is not someone who is ignorant. We have to eat, so leave some strength to hold the spoon.”
I pressed Hong Yeon-hwa’s philtrum with my chin, feeling unjustified.
“What do you think? This Lady’s reasonable… ugh.”
Her confident expression melted away in an instant.
Philtrum… weakness… note, note…
I spoke to Paeng Soso with a winner’s smile, even though my whole body was aching.
“Now let’s go find a guest room. We need a place to train, so it should be spacious enough and not too crowded….”
Paeng Soso stared blankly at Hong Yeon-hwa, who was groaning, “Kke-eung, Hie-eung,” every time her philtrum was pressed.
Finally, she regained her senses and shook her head a few times before hesitantly speaking.
“Well, I know a good place for that. I’ve come here often since I was young because it’s one of the few big cities in the northern region… I used to come with my father and uncle.”
Paeng Soso’s voice became a little hoarse. It must be complicated to come to a place of memories with her family after running away.
I followed Paeng Soso’s guidance calmly without revealing my feelings, pushing through the crowd and walking through the complicated streets.
More and more people were gathering even though the sun was setting, lanterns were lit one by one, and there were even more splendid buildings than other places.
Paeng Soso pointed forward with her outstretched arm when we arrived at a bustling neighborhood in this already large city.
“It’s there! That’s the place I’ve been to a few times!”
“Wow….”
My mouth fell open for a moment. Of course, it was the most luxurious building here.
Come to think of it, I should have realized it since Paeng Soso had come here often with her family. Although the Haebuk Paengga family was not particularly wealthy, they were still a family befitting the reputation of the Odaese-ga.
Of course, it means that they can afford not to worry about money on occasional family trips.
Chapter 28 – Training…? (5)
“Can’t we do it…?”
Without hesitation, I replied to the sparkling eyes that had my arm wrapped around her chest.
“Of course we can!”
Hong Yeon-hwa’s pitiful expression turned into a confident smile.
“No matter how much I think about it, it seems like you really like the Lady.”
“That’s right.”
Paeng Soso also seemed to have no idea what to do, so she crossed her arms and nodded her head beside me.
…Stop it!
You can’t make an irresistible offer and then react like that!
Hong Yeon-hwa, whether she knew my grievances or not, spread her large chest and nodded her head continuously.
“Don’t worry too much. The Lady is not someone who is ignorant. We have to eat, so leave some strength to hold the spoon.”
I pressed Hong Yeon-hwa’s philtrum with my chin, feeling unjustified.
“What do you think? This Lady’s reasonable… ugh.”
Her confident expression melted away in an instant.
Philtrum… weakness… note, note…
I spoke to Paeng Soso with a winner’s smile, even though my whole body was aching.
“Now let’s go find a guest room. We need a place to train, so it should be spacious enough and not too crowded….”
Paeng Soso stared blankly at Hong Yeon-hwa, who was groaning, “Kke-eung, Hie-eung,” every time her philtrum was pressed.
Finally, she regained her senses and shook her head a few times before hesitantly speaking.
“Well, I know a good place for that. I’ve come here often since I was young because it’s one of the few big cities in the northern region… I used to come with my father and uncle.”
Paeng Soso’s voice became a little hoarse. It must be complicated to come to a place of memories with her family after running away.
I followed Paeng Soso’s guidance calmly without revealing my feelings, pushing through the crowd and walking through the complicated streets.
More and more people were gathering even though the sun was setting, lanterns were lit one by one, and there were even more splendid buildings than other places.
Paeng Soso pointed forward with her outstretched arm when we arrived at a bustling neighborhood in this already large city.
“It’s there! That’s the place I’ve been to a few times!”
“Wow….”
My mouth fell open for a moment. Of course, it was the most luxurious building here.
Come to think of it, I should have realized it since Paeng Soso had come here often with her family. Although the Haebuk Paengga family was not particularly wealthy, they were still a family befitting the reputation of the Odaese-ga.
Of course, it means that they can afford not to worry about money on occasional family trips.
But staying in a place like this, even if you have enough money in your wallet, seems a bit excessive….
Seeing my reaction, Paeng Soso smirked and flicked her finger.
“Not there, a little to the side.”
“???”
Upon closer inspection, Paeng Soso’s fingertips were pointing towards a small inn hidden behind a dilapidated building.
“It’s not crowded because it’s right next to the big inn, and the price is cheap. And compared to the big inn, it’s quite spacious. It’s probably the perfect place for what the Lady is looking for.”
“Huh… to be honest, tell me, Paeng Soso. Did you plan this?”
“A little bit? But it’s true that I came here with my father before. He didn’t like places that were too noisy.”
Paeng Soso spun around with a mischievous grin, revealing a playful side amidst her usual sharp attitude.
Well, we’ll have to keep going together for a while, so it’s not a bad thing.
Now that we’ve arrived at the inn, I was about to remove my chin from Hong Yeon-hwa’s philtrum… but she suddenly pulled away from my embrace.
What’s going on?
As I looked down in confusion, Hong Yeon-hwa was glaring at something behind Paeng Soso. Or rather, someone.
Thump, thump.
Only then did I notice a young boy coming towards us from the small inn next to us. He was probably around sixteen years old, dressed in expensive clothes, and was accompanied by two women who looked like his escorts.
Who is this rich kid?
Paeng Soso, who sensed something off about them, turned around to look at us and smiled awkwardly.
“I understand why the Lady is showing such a reaction, but there’s no need to worry too much. This child is…”
“Ah, wait a minute, Nuna. I’m not a kid anymore, so I can introduce myself.”
The boy who interrupted Pangsoso’s words raised his fist again and grabbed it with his other hand, smiling.
“Nice to meet you. My name is Eonjuwon, the son of the So-ga-ju family in Jinju. I’m sorry for interrupting your conversation, but I’m happy to see you again since we’ve known each other since childhood.”
“Ah.”
Finally, I understood the uncomfortable feeling I felt from them.
It could be because of Jinju.
“My name is Jinsochan. It’s natural to act like this when you unexpectedly meet someone you know. I understand.”
“I’m Hong Yeonhwa.”
As we faced each other, Hong Yeonhwa nodded and followed my lead.
Pangsoso added an explanation about Jinju, as if he didn’t understand Hong Yeonhwa’s reaction.
“Jinju is a famous family known for their martial arts and boxing skills. Maybe the strange feeling you felt was due to the natural aversion to martial arts.”
“Martial arts…? Are you saying that martial arts really exist? I thought it was just a myth.”
Hong Yeonhwa blinked her pink eyes. Similarly, Eonjuwon, who was surprised that Pangsoso called us “Eunin,” proudly pointed to the two guards behind him.
“Of course! These two are also martial artists!”
“What?! …Hmm. Now that I look at them, they don’t breathe or have a heartbeat.”
Hong Yeonhwa observed the martial artists around her, looking interested, but the uneasiness she had felt since earlier made me pull her towards me by the back of her neck.
Without resistance, she took a few steps back and looked up at me with her small head buried in my chest. I explained instead.
“Of course, they’re corpses. But you can’t ignore them. They can use martial arts as they did in life, and they’re physically stronger, so they fight better than they did in life.”
In that state, Hong Yeonhwa raised her head slightly and blinked.
“That’s strange. If martial arts were so great, wouldn’t you try to control or prevent anyone from using them?”
“…Is that so?”
As I listened, her words seemed to make sense, and I blinked along with her blinking eyes.
“Ahaha! There is such a rumor, but only a few martial artists are stronger than they were in life.”
Eonjuwon, who overheard our conversation, stroked the arm of the martial artist with an affectionate touch.
…It’s a little creepy to think that they can do that even when they’re corpses.
“Before the corpses decay, they need to be treated in a special way, and a skilled alcohol maker is needed depending on the level of martial arts they had in life. There’s also a limit that they can’t fully reproduce their martial arts skills beyond a certain level. Well, once they’re made, it’s easy to transfer them, but…most of them are supplied to the royal family.”
The corpses supplied to the royal family are used to prevent intrusions by rogues in remote areas or as part of the imperial guard that only follows the emperor’s orders.
The royal family…
The biggest reason why Jinjuwon could prosper with the creepy martial art of gangsi was that they had prostrated themselves before the royal family.
The royal family transparently supervises all processes related to gangsi.
Thanks to that, Jinjuwon could avoid negative speculation and prosper, and the royal family could obtain valuable power for free.
Jinjuwon is a martial arts family famous for their fist fighting skills, but at the same time, they are also a managing household that pledges allegiance to the royal family for the sake of gangsi.
That’s Jinjuwon.
Hong Yeonhwa nodded her head, seeming to have understood roughly. It seems that there were no gangsi in the martial arts world where Hong Yeonhwa was.
“By the way, I didn’t expect to meet Nuna who ran away while participating in the Yongbong Association.”
“Huh? Well, I’m participating too, so it’s natural. …Wait, how did you know I ran away?!”
“Pangsoso asked the neighborhood to let him know if he found Nuna.”
“Ugh….”
Pangsoso, who was making a shocked expression, shrugged his shoulders at Eonjuwon.
“Don’t worry. I’ll keep it a secret from Pangsajin.”
“Thank you! Really, thank you!”
Eonjuwon nodded his head with a meaningful expression, and Pangsoso expressed his gratitude repeatedly.
At first glance, it was a trivial, even heartwarming scene…but for some reason, it felt a little uneasy.
Especially since the smiling smile that had been on Pangsoso’s face all along suddenly changed in an instant. Is this also due to the discomfort unique to gangsi? Or…
While lost in thought for a moment, Pangsoso and Eonjuwon, who had finished their conversation, were saying their goodbyes.
“Well then, see you at the Yongbong Association next time, Nuna. And your benefactors.”
“Sure. I won’t go easy on you then!”
Pangsoso waved his hand with a warm smile until the end.
As if all the negative feelings I had felt so far wouldn’t go away because of my mood.