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“Would you like a drink?”

“Sure.”

The fact that he, who was always so polite to me, came at this hour meant he had made up his mind.

Whether to follow me or remain as the leader of Yang Minor Faction.

He had made his decision faster than I expected, and I couldn’t guess which way he had chosen.

We had a light conversation while drinking. Mostly, he was the one talking, and I was listening.

He told me about when he first entered the martial world.

He said that when he was a little kid, a martial artist killed some bandits and saved his family. After that incident, he decided to become a martial artist.

He then told me about various experiences he had gone through.

By the time the bottle was empty, he finished talking about his past life.

“As you can see, I’m an ordinary person. No, I think I’m even a bit below average. Somehow I became the deputy leader of Yang Minor Faction, but I was about to be discarded, and that’s when I met Young Master Byeok and became the leader like this.”

He looked straight at me and asked,

“Is someone like me good enough?”

I didn’t say much else.

“You are.”

“Lastly, I have one question. What is Young Master Byeok’s ultimate goal?”

The first thing that came to mind at that question was the Realm of the Mind Sword.

The earnest desire to reach the Realm of the Mind Sword was a pure aspiration as a martial artist. It had been a lingering indigestion in my heart and a thorn in my throat throughout my past life.

Of course, there were many other things I wanted to achieve.

First, if it’s certain that I was assassinated, I will seek revenge. If I hadn’t known, it would be one thing, but if that’s the case, I’ll kill them all. If those who turned their backs on Gal Sa-ryang after my death are related to that incident, I will punish them too.

I will raise the Byeok Sword Clan and make it the number one clan in the world. Of course, I want to be filial to my parents. I want to raise Gwang-du and the Sword Squad to be great martial artists, and naturally, I want to bring back Gal Sa-ryang and Baek Pyo as well.

Come to think of it, there really are a lot of things I need to do.

Jeong Yeo is asking about the ultimate goal, so I need to give one answer.

What answer should I give?

Then, a thought suddenly occurred to me, and I blurted it out without realizing.

“I want to be happy.”

If I achieve all the goals mentioned earlier, wouldn’t I be happy?

“I want to be happy, and I want everyone around me to be happy too.”

Jeong Yeo, who had been staring at me blankly, burst into laughter.

“Hahaha.”

He soon stopped laughing and said,

“I’m sorry. I was rude because the answer was so unexpected.”

“It’s fine. But what answer were you expecting?”

“I was internally nervous, thinking you might say something like unifying the world.”

He had been considering me as a hidden dragon preparing for the times, so it was understandable.

Speaking as someone who has already achieved world unification, I think the things I just mentioned are just as difficult as unifying the world.

“I’m sorry for not meeting your expectations.”

At my awkward response, he smiled and stood up.

Jeong Yeo bowed deeply on the spot and said,

“I greet my lord. I swear before heaven and earth that I will be loyal until death.”

I could tell. My answer about wanting to be happy resonated more in his heart than an answer about unifying the world would have.

I firmly grasped his hands and lifted him up.

“From now on, I’ll consider you family. Please help this inadequate person.”

“I’ll dedicate my life to you.”

“I, too, will prove that your choice today was the right one.”

“I hope that I, too, can be happy along with my lord.”

I was glad. Initially, bringing him in wasn’t that difficult. After all, I was in a position of having saved him from a crisis. But if I had emphasized that debt of gratitude and forced him in with power, I wouldn’t have felt this happy.

He was sincerely moved by me as a person and was sincerely trying to offer his loyalty.

After Gwang-du, the Minor Sword Squad, and Gong Su-chan, I had gained Jeong Yeo as a loyal subordinate.

My relationship with them will continue to develop in the future.

Their loyalty might change tomorrow, or it might never change.

That loyalty could disappear with a carelessly spoken word, or it might not change even after a thousand curses.

I will form relationships with them while acknowledging this variability.

With the basic premise that no human relationship is ever complete.

***

I returned home.

I judged that it was time to take a brief rest and get my house in order, having pushed myself relentlessly with the Ma Jeongsu situation.

I decided to let Yang Minor Faction govern itself independently for the time being. Jeong Yeo said he was ready to hand over Yang Minor Faction and come under my command immediately, but that wasn’t necessary, nor should it be done.

I will nurture various organizations independently and then unite them at a crucial moment.

I am the person who has managed the largest organization in this martial world. I had hundreds of organizations like Yang Minor Faction under my command.

Instead, I assigned two tasks to Jeong Yeo.

First, I attached a skilled spy to Ma Jeongsu. I told him to contact me immediately if he noticed any movement related to Song Hwa-rin in particular.

Secondly, I introduced carrier pigeons for a close communication system with Jeong Yeo. Of course, we didn’t keep the carrier pigeons directly in our household.

We set up a small contact office near the house. Jeong Yeo also set up a contact office outside Yang Minor Faction, not inside. This was a precaution because Ma Jeongsu’s people were inside the Yang Minor Faction.

Also, I had the warriors at the contact office selected from trustworthy people. After all, information-related aspects are extremely important in martial arts organizations.

I added one more safety measure.

We established a code that only Jeong Yeo and I could understand. The Martial Righteous Alliance has various code systems. From simple codes to high-level codes that are impossible for outsiders to decode.

Of course, I used the highest-grade code. It was a modified version of the code used in the Hall of Righteousness. It was a code that others could never decipher.

Jeong Yeo was once again impressed to see that I knew such an advanced code system.

This is how you need to give trust to your subordinates.

Even if later on they might live with conflicted emotions, unsure whether it’s affection or loyalty, now is the time to constantly demonstrate ability.

I told Gwang-du about the death of Flower Fan Elder.

“Ah! You did really well.”

Gwang-du rejoiced as if his own enemy had been avenged.

“Are you that happy?”

“Of course. The child and the elder must be greatly rejoicing in the other world. I really wish I could contact that landowner who left his hometown. To tell him that his enemy has been avenged.”

“They’ll find out someday.”

“Do you think so?”

“Of course. How could they forget about that incident? As long as they don’t forget, they’ll learn about it, and they’ll think that justice still exists in the martial world.”

I’d like to tell them right away, but that would put them in danger. Everything finding its rightful place will have to come later.

“I really hope that’s the case.”

“Gwang-du.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

“Become stronger.”

It was a single phrase that implied many things, and I believe Gwang-du understood its meaning properly.

In the afternoon, I watched the Sword Squad members’ training for the first time in a while.

“Is everyone working hard?”

“Yes!”

Their answer was full of spirit, and their eyes were sparkling.

With individual training, Sword Squad training, and even flying dagger technique training added, it must be very tiring, but throughout the training, not one of them showed any sign of fatigue.

Anyone who teaches would feel the same. You naturally become more invested in those who truly want to work hard.

If you all strive this hard, I too will do my best.

Thanks to their diligent training so far, everyone had achieved significant results.

Especially the achievements of Gwan Hwi and a few others were so remarkable that I praised them in front of everyone.

After the training, Gwan Hwi stayed behind.

“Master, I have a question about my martial arts.”

The lad was full of enthusiasm to learn. You could tell just by the fact that he was asking about martial arts again right after sweating through such hard training.

“When I use this move, I keep feeling like my balance is shaking.”

He then demonstrated the move to me.

After watching his demonstration, I said:

“It’s because the force in your legs is wrong. It’s a move where you step forward with your right foot, but you’re actually putting more force on your left foot, aren’t you?”

“Yes, that’s right. I was taught that balance is the most important in this move. I thought my right foot would naturally have more force, so I’m consciously putting more force on my left foot.”

“That’s actually disrupting your balance. Naturally put more force on your right foot, but compensate for the balance with the movement of your upper body.”

“Is that allowed?”

“Is there a reason it shouldn’t be?”

“I was taught that the lower body should always maintain the center.”

The martial art the lad had learned was the Hall-Instructed Sword Art[1], mainly taught in martial arts academies. It’s not a sword technique passed down through family lineages, but a publicly available sword technique that can be learned in various martial arts academies throughout the central plains.

The sword technique itself was excellent. That’s why it’s taught in many martial arts academies.

On the other hand, the Hall-Instructed Sword Art had certain limitations. After all, being a sword technique taught to government officials, it was somewhat bound by formalities.

Gwan Hwi had learned the sword technique properly. Because he learned it properly, he will definitely feel its limitations later.

There was no need to tell him about that yet. There was still a long, long way to go even within this formality.

“In martial arts, there is no concept of ‘always’. Martial arts can and must ‘always’ change.”

“Ah, I understand. Thank you, Master.”

In fact, it’s a statement he can’t fully understand. Because beyond the literal meaning of what I said, there’s another deep essence of martial arts wisdom contained in those words.

I could see traces of hard training in his hands, roughened with calluses. He was investing his efforts over time, believing my words like iron-clad truth.

So I gave him the opposite advice from before.

“Hwi.”

“Yes, Master.”

“It’s okay to go a little slower. It’s good to work hard, but if you overdo it, it can have the opposite effect. Like your move just now.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Gwan Hwi bowed and ran off. Despite my advice, he will continue to work hard.

I thought that perhaps those words were what I needed to hear myself.

Even if the twenty-three-year-old Gwan Hwi didn’t know, I did.

That there are things in this world that can only be seen when you go slowly.

***

“I don’t feel good about this collaboration.”

Baek Jung[2], the internal manager of Shandong Merchant Association, said worriedly.

“You should cancel it even now.”

Go Sun-gyeong, the company’s president, had his eyes closed, his body sunk into a comfortable chair made of fur.

Baek Jung had been observing Go Sun-gyeong for a long time, so he could tell that Go Sun-gyeong was not pleased with his direct words.

But if it were any other matter, he would have just withdrawn, but this time he couldn’t.

“Based on what we’ve seen so far, Ma Jeongsu is a dangerous man. President, I beg you, please don’t make the mistake of inviting a tiger to chase away a wolf.”

Go Sun-gyeong opened his eyes at Baek Jung’s earnest words.

“We’re about to be devoured by the wolf right now, what does it matter if a tiger enters the room?”

Baek Jung was startled.

“Is the situation that serious?”

“Indeed. Hebei Merchant Association and Seok Clan Leader are taking fierce revenge for the last incident.”

Shandong Merchant Association had tried to expand into Hebei by bringing in Yang Minor Faction. There were several clashes in the process, and Hebei Merchant Association and Seok Clan Leader were greatly offended.

“When they found out that we failed to bring in Song Clan Manor last time, they’re pushing us even harder.”

Hebei Merchant Association was cornering Shandong Merchant Association.

They were pushing so hard, even at the cost of their own losses, that Shandong Merchant Association’s financial losses were not insignificant.

There’s no place where rumors spread faster than the business world. As rumors spread that Shandong Merchant Association was in crisis, money lines were cut off even more, and even existing business partners were turning their backs.

Baek Jung wore a serious expression. As the manager in charge of internal affairs, he hadn’t realized that the external situation had deteriorated so much.

“But even so, we can’t raise such a large sum of 100,000 taels right away. Why on earth did you promise to collaborate with them?”

“I plan to borrow money from the Night Merchants[3].”

Baek Jung was shocked for a moment.

Night Merchants refer to those who engage in secret and clandestine transactions, meaning “merchants of the night”. They were mainly people who lent money at high interest rates or led mergers between companies on commission.

It’s easy to borrow money from them.

But it was an extremely dangerous transaction. Not only were the interest rates high, but if you couldn’t repay the money, they were the kind of people who would do anything to get their money back.

“The Night Merchants are truly dangerous beings.”

“I know.”

“No, you don’t know. If you knew, you wouldn’t think of getting involved with them.”

Baek Jung continued earnestly.

“The swordsmen of the Night Merchants are truly frightening. It’s not because their martial arts are exceptional that they’re scary. They are cruel and vicious. Once they hold a grudge, they never forget it for life. There are countless people who have disappeared after getting involved with them. Moreover, rumors say that the Night Merchants’ swordsmen use secret weapons that are banned in the martial world to deal with martial artists.”

But even such words couldn’t change Go Sun-gyeong’s mind.

“Borrow 100,000 taels from them.”

“President!”

Go Sun-gyeong closed his eyes gently and sank back into the chair.

“Anyway, we have wolves and tigers prowling in the room, don’t we? It won’t get any worse if a snake crawls in.”