Before Ak Mujin could even react, someone soared up, a white Long robe fluttering.
The person unleashed dazzling swordsmanship, suppressing Elder Yeo, who had been right on top of him. Elder Yeo was momentarily flustered by the appearance of the new figure, but she couldn’t properly make out his face because he was wearing a bamboo hat.
“Who is it! Damn it, an accomplice!”
Not really.
But still! Right now, he was incredibly grateful that someone was facing Elder Yeo with a sword in Ak Mujin’s place.
The person, with a slender figure that made it difficult to distinguish whether he was a man or a woman, seemed to emanate a subtle plum blossom fragrance with every swing of his sword.
Ak Mujin widened his eyes and carefully watched the swordsmanship. He wondered if it was the Plum Blossom Sword Technique of Mount Hua, which he had thought he might get to see someday.
But his expectations were far off. The swordplay and movements were somehow familiar.
The reason was that it was the ‘Azure Moon Sword Technique’ that he had created himself while writing the novel. Moreover, Ak Mujin had seen the Azure Moon Sword Technique once through Jin Geum-ryeon.
Ak Mujin was startled.
If there was another person who could use the Azure Moon Sword Technique, who could that person possibly be?
The person who saved Ak Mujin was none other than ‘Mae-yeong’!
Clang, clang, clang—
Even though the sword and spear had not clashed many times, Elder Yeo began to be noticeably pushed back. He had brought escorts with him, but Mae-yeong showed no signs of panic or fatigue. Rather, they had collapsed to the ground from the start and were not moving. Elder Yeo was being drained by an unexpected hidden force.
“Go. I will follow.”
A voice as calm as the ripples of a lake spoke.
Only then did Ak Mujin come to his senses and grasp the situation. He wanted to see Mae-yeong’s swordsmanship a little more, but there was an order to things in the world. He hurriedly forced the hooks stuck in his upper arm and ankle out and began to climb over the hill.
Ak Mujin gasped and tried to get as far away from there as possible. There were bloodstains everywhere, so he could be found if they looked for him, but Mae-yeong was watching his back.
At this point, it was not unusual for Mae-yeong to wander around, so there was nothing strange about it. Rather, the fact that he had encountered him by chance was incredibly reassuring.
Before long, he could feel someone approaching him quickly.
“Are you alright?”
That calm, wave-like voice was heard again. When Ak Mujin turned his head towards the sound, he could see a person who was slightly shorter than him but still wearing a bamboo hat.
He slowly took off his bamboo hat and revealed his face.
Ak Mujin knew at once that this person was the one from his masterpiece.
It wasn’t actually the first time he had seen Mae-yeong. He had witnessed him from afar when he left Jin Geum-ryeon in the Plum Blossom Forest. He had also seen his back in an inn at some point.
But since it was the first time he had faced him like this, even Mae-yeong, who was familiar with Ak Mujin’s face, couldn’t help but gape and make a foolish face.
His eyes, which felt large compared to his face, were slightly droopy, but they didn’t look easy going at all. His small and delicate features, including his nose, were in harmony, and his small lips were plump and well-shaped.
Mae-yeong also began to scan Ak Mujin’s body up and down. In fact, his appearance was a mess. The Long robe he had just changed into was torn to shreds by the hooks, and blood was flowing profusely around it, enough to make anyone who saw it feel pain.
He slightly narrowed his pretty brow, then readjusted his bamboo hat and grabbed Ak Mujin’s good arm, placing it over his shoulder. Ak Mujin was startled.
“I, I’m alright…”
“Even if you are a Yin Person who sells songs, this is too much.”
…
That’s not it!
“I’m not that kind of person. I just happened to go into the House of courtesans…”
“Ah…. Is that so? I’m sorry to hear that.”
Mae-yeong quickly apologized, then clicked his tongue as if something had occurred to him.
“Old habits die hard, they’re stretching their hands out to human trafficking again.”
Ak Mujin felt somewhat sorry for Chun-wol, who had been trying to stop human trafficking. But she had to bear the consequences of her future actions.
He suddenly felt a throbbing pain in his affected area and looked down at his arm. Mae-yeong quickly followed his gaze and scanned the wound.
“…Let’s go. There’s a doctor I know nearby.”
Before those words were even finished, Ak Mujin shook his head.
“It’s alright. I’m already indebted to you for saving me, I can’t trouble you any further.”
“…Is that so? But, it’s only a matter of time before the Demonic Cult bastards catch up…”
Ak Mujin hesitated for a moment. Clearly, treating his body was also an urgent matter. However, relying on someone while being chased was also somewhat unsettling.
“If you really insist, could you take me as far away from here as possible? That would be enough.”
When he still insisted on not going to the doctor, Mae-yeong had no choice but to nod. He lifted Ak Mujin’s good arm and placed it over his shoulder, then kicked off the ground and soared up, using his Light Body Skill. This was the best way to escape as quickly as possible.
Mae-yeong moved for a long time while supporting Ak Mujin. And finally, he found a very small village, stopped, and politely greeted Ak Mujin.
“This should be enough. Please take care of yourself.”
“Thank you. I am greatly indebted to you, hero.”
Ak Mujin also greeted Mae-yeong, then stroked his arm and quietly watched Mae-yeong’s retreating figure without any regrets.
Indeed, it was not much different from the way he would suddenly appear and save Jin Geum-ryeon whenever he was in danger in the original story. Would he be able to see him again? He swore that meeting him was a stroke of luck.
***
Ak Mujin began to head south, the opposite direction from where he had come.
However, the further he walked, the stranger rumors began to catch his attention. The rumors were so bizarre and somehow the protagonist seemed to be related to someone he knew, so he couldn’t help but get caught up in the story and stood in the market for a long time.
In the middle of the market, people were crowded around, surrounding a bulletin board attached to the front of an inn.
“Huh, he looks so young…. Is he a master who has undergone reverse aging?”
“No, no. I heard he’s a fresh young man? He studied under a reclusive master?”
“In my opinion, he’s definitely from the Evil Sect. If he had learned the pure and clean Martial Arts of the Orthodox Sect, how could he dare to have such thoughts?”
Those in the front row jostled and whispered. The word “Evil Sect” made Ak Mujin feel uneasy, but he calmly observed the situation for the time being.
“What exactly did that young man do to cause this?”
A man with a dull tone, who had been listening to the conversation, asked as he squeezed into the crowd.
“What! Have you been living in a cave somewhere? Haven’t you heard the rumors that the Martial Alliance is in ruins?”
“What?!”
Ak Mujin was startled. That Martial Alliance? How? He was so engrossed in the story that he had been fiddling with a wooden doll for a long time. A merchant, unable to watch any longer, tapped the back of Ak Mujin’s hand with a fan.
“Put it down if you’re not going to buy it.”
Only then did Ak Mujin come to his senses, put it down, and slowly approached the crowd of people.
“A person who is colluding with the Demonic Cult has crept into the Martial Alliance, and, of course, the Martial Alliance can’t just let such a person be, right? They immediately sent people to catch him. They say the guy was a newcomer that none of the people there had ever heard of? But…”
People listened to the words, and the place became quiet. Ak Mujin was also listening intently.
“Ah, that guy swept away dozens of Martial Alliance members! The Martial Alliance Leader has disappeared to hold an emergency meeting, but it’s obvious without even looking!”
Ak Mujin felt goosebumps on his back when the words “Martial Alliance Leader” popped out.
If it was the current Martial Alliance Leader, wasn’t it none other than ‘Namgung Mun’?
Namgung Mun was Jin Geum-ryeon’s father’s cousin, Namgung Cheon. In the original story, the Martial Alliance Leader recognizes Jin Geum-ryeon as soon as he sees him. If Jin Geum-ryeon had met the Martial Alliance Leader, the situation would have flowed quite unfavorably for him.
“Tsk—they’ve really lost face!”
“The Martial Alliance was defeated by such a young punk?”
“What are we supposed to believe now?”
Sounds of clicking tongues, sighs, and even exclamations of admiration came from here and there.
“No, there’s no way a person with that level of skill wouldn’t have been rumored about.”
“That’s what makes it even more amazing!”
People expressed their opinions and raised their voices. Ak Mujin squeezed through the crowd to see the poster on the wall of the inn.
And what he faced was a portrait of Jin Geum-ryeon.
“…”
He had been imagining this face while listening, but he never thought that the protagonist of this rumor would really be Jin Geum-ryeon.
But something was strange. Jin Geum-ryeon destroying the Martial Alliance was not something that had happened anywhere in the original story. So, was this a natural flow of the Doujinshi?
But even if it was a Doujinshi, why would Jin Geum-ryeon destroy the Martial Alliance? Ak Mujin frowned deeply at the situation that was not properly explained. Clearly, Mae-yeong had told Jin Geum-ryeon when teaching him not to harm innocent people, to do justice as much as possible, and not to kill recklessly. Each time, Jin Geum-ryeon had understood Mae-yeong’s teachings, which were like the sky, and had engraved them deeply in his heart.
Nevertheless, the fact that this had happened meant that the Orthodox Sect had done something that was not innocent?
…
Those Orthodox Sect bastards. Ak Mujin, who had understood to some extent, calmly blinked his eyes.
“Were you also curious, sir? He has a pretty face, doesn’t he?”
A man who had been talking and spitting next to him suddenly asked, looking at Ak Mujin, who had a refined appearance.
“…Is it really this person who made the Martial Alliance like this?”
Ak Mujin asked cautiously. Then the man who had been leading the story nodded. In fact, he was just passing on the rumors. But he began to unravel the story as if he had been at the scene.
“His Martial Arts is so nimble and powerful that there was no one who could match him!”
“…”
Ak Mujin was silent.