Chapter 47
We were unable to move for a while.
The first to regain his composure was the Manor Lord.
“Everyone, gather around.”
The Manor Lord called the remaining people together.
“Now, let us disperse from here.”
The people looked at the Manor Lord with startled eyes. I was no different. However, the Manor Lord continued speaking as he took out a money pouch from inside his robes.
“Moving together in a group like before will only make us more conspicuous. And there is no need for you to take unnecessary risks. All they want is the So family, so they will not pursue you.”
“……”
“Thank you all for following me this far. This Manor Lord will never forget your efforts. If you run into difficulties, seek out a branch of the Xiao-song Trading Company nearby. They will do their best to help you.”
“……”
“I have prepared some travel money here. I would be glad if you would accept it as a small token of my gratitude. Come, one at a time, step forward and take some.”
The people murmured among themselves, unable to move easily. But when one person stepped forward first and accepted the silver, the others soon came forward one after another to receive theirs. One by one, the people left. Before long, the area was completely empty.
The only ones left were the Manor Lord, the young lady, and me. Only the three of us…
The Manor Lord looked at me and asked,
“Are you sure you do not need to leave as well?”
I suddenly remembered the conversation I had with the young lady in the secret passage. And also what she had been about to say at the end.
Perhaps what the young lady had been trying to say was…
‘You…’
Are you going to come with us?
“I…”
I glanced sideways at the young lady. As expected, she had already been focused on me for some time.
I smiled brightly and said,
“I will follow the two of you.”
“Are you sure? It may be dangerous.”
“I am fine. I have already experienced more than enough danger. More importantly, did I not tell you before? I said I would devote my loyalty to the Xiao Estate that you gave to my mother.”
“But your mother…”
The Manor Lord spoke regretfully, but I shook my head. In truth, my intentions were a little different.
‘The real reason is because of my promise to the young lady.’
The young lady had clearly said it. That she would stay by my side. That she would not leave me alone.
Hearing those words had brought me great comfort at the time. At the same time, I made up my mind. If the young lady intended to keep her promise until the very end, then I would not abandon her either.
Because now, the only person I had left was… the young lady.
“Either way, I have nowhere else to go. I would be happy to follow if you will take me in.”
“……”
Whether he understood my feelings or not, the Manor Lord looked at me with a complicated expression. But soon, he shook his head and smiled bitterly.
“Thank you.”
I smiled silently as well.
The three of us began climbing the mountain again.
The mountain path was treacherous. It was especially so because we were deliberately traveling only through places where there were no people.
Perhaps because we had been running from place to place since the middle of the night, every joint ached, and my entire body throbbed. But I could not show it. The Manor Lord, and even the young lady, were walking silently without complaint.
I did not know how long we had been walking.
It felt as though we had come quite far, yet at the same time, as though we had barely gone anywhere. As my sense of time gradually faded, surprisingly, my heart was becoming more at ease.
‘Did we really shake them off?’
Perhaps we had.
They would not have been able to get out of the secret passage. They did not know where it led, and if they searched beyond the Xiao Estate itself, it would take even more time.
We could use that time to escape. If we could safely leave the mountain, buy horses in a nearby village, and reach the Jiangxi branch of the Xiao-song Trading Company…
‘We can survive.’
Just as hope began to raise its head…
Swish!
Suddenly, I heard the sound of wind from behind.
Without thinking, I threw myself forward.
It was instinct. An instinctive, primal feeling that if I did not get down immediately, my life would be in danger.
And my instinct had been right.
Something that passed just over my head embedded itself in a tree. A chill ran through my entire body.
“……!”
It was not simply because the thing lodged in the tree was a sharp hidden weapon, nor because the area around the tree had turned black as though the weapon had been coated with poison. It was because I heard several footsteps behind us.
I slowly turned around.
A black-masked man was standing behind us. Not just one, but three.
‘This is… dangerous.’
The masked men gave off an ominous presence.
Each held a different weapon. One had a sword, another a metal mace, and the third a soft whip. Moreover, their gazes were so chilling that they did not seem like ordinary martial artists.
I was not the only one who sensed it.
The Manor Lord stepped forward. At some point, a long sword was already in his hand.
“I apologize for not coming to greet you sooner despite your having come all this way. May I ask where you are from and your honorable names?”
“……”
“I do not know what you have come here seeking, but surely spilling blood is not the only way to resolve matters, is it? If we speak openly, I am certain we can find some common ground. Tell me what you want.”
“……”
“If it is wealth, then wealth. If it is power, then power. Anything. If it is something I can provide, I will do everything within my ability to accommodate you. Anything…”
Even while holding his sword in a defensive stance, the Manor Lord spoke earnestly. But the masked men did not answer.
No… instead, they began slowly approaching, putting pressure on us.
A tense silence continued.
The Manor Lord let out a groan and spoke once more.
“I understand what you want. If it is this Manor Lord’s life you seek, then take it as well.”
“……”
“However, I ask that you let the children go. Is it not the way of the martial world not to oppress the weak? If you still possess even a shred of human decency, spare the children and let this one life be enough.”
Still, the masked men gave no answer.
The Manor Lord squeezed his eyes shut in despair.
“…If that is your answer.”
The Manor Lord’s eyes flashed open.
He raised the sword he had been holding horizontally into a vertical position and pointed it toward the masked men.
In an instant, the Manor Lord’s figure disappeared.
“Then allow me to learn a move from you!”
Clang!
The swords collided in an instant.
The Manor Lord’s sword, which had shot toward the masked man’s shoulder like lightning, had been blocked.
That was the beginning. With that first exchange, another masked man charged in.
Whoosh! Tap!
The moment the Manor Lord’s sword clashed with the masked man’s, he stepped backward. At the same time, the metal mace flew toward the Manor Lord’s side.
The Manor Lord tilted his sword and deflected the mace with the flat of the blade. Using the recoil, he spun his sword around and immediately slashed toward his opponent’s wrist.
But the attack came to nothing. The soft whip that had shot out from the side wrapped itself around the Manor Lord’s wrist.
“……!”
The Manor Lord did not try to free his wrist from the whip. Instead, he threw his body in the direction the whip was pulling, disrupting his opponent’s balance.
As he charged forward, aiming for a vital point in the opponent’s chest, the whip naturally came loose.
At that moment, a sword and a metal mace flew in from both sides. The Manor Lord first stepped forward and swung his sword upward from below.
Then he tilted his body as though drawing a semicircle, escaping the trajectory of the mace, before immediately attacking his opponent’s abdomen. Every one of his movements flowed as naturally as water.
Suddenly, Namgung Jeong’s teachings came to mind.
“If you were to classify the sword techniques of the various sects, they could roughly be divided into Gang, Jung, Yu, Kkwae, and Hwan. Our Namgung family pursues Gang. The Namgung sword is one that overwhelms an opponent in a single blow with overwhelming strength.”
“Then what about the Xiao Estate?”
“The Xiao Estate? Older Brother’s sword would be…… Yu, I suppose.”
“Yu?”
“It is incredibly gentle, just like the name of the sword technique.”
A single sword leisurely passed between three weapons.
Cutting, thrusting, swinging, parrying.
The different forms of techniques flowed seamlessly, as though they were a single living organism, creating one great current.
“Xiaoyu Sword Technique. It is the hereditary martial art passed down through the Xiao Estate for generations. Apparently, long ago, when the ancestor of the Xiao family turned his back on the martial world and entered the mountains, he created this sword technique after watching the flowing water.”
“Ah…”
“They say he created it with the wish that no one would be injured or harmed by this sword technique. That is why, when you first see it, the sword technique appears gentle but weak.”
“……”
“But gentleness can sometimes overcome hardness, and weakness can overcome strength. The subtle principles that allow one to defeat an opponent without possessing overwhelming strength are contained in every technique. If you underestimate it because it looks weak, you will be defeated in an instant.”
Slash.
The Manor Lord’s sword blade cut into the opponent’s side. For a moment, I could almost see Namgung Jeong smiling.
“How is it? Quite an impressive sword technique, is it not?”
The true value of the Xiaoyu Sword Technique was now unfolding in the Manor Lord’s hands.
Indeed, gentleness could overcome hardness.
Even while facing three experts at once, the Manor Lord was not being pushed back in the slightest. No matter how sharp the technique, it could not sever the continuous flow of his fluid movements.
Like cutting water with a blade, no matter how many killing techniques they unleashed, he simply let them flow past him with the majesty of a great river.
‘But…’
Why was I still so uneasy?
From what I could see, the difference between the Manor Lord’s martial arts realm and that of those men did not seem particularly large.
He was somehow holding on by using the principles of the Soyu Sword Technique, but even that would soon reach its limit.
There were three of them, after all, while the Manor Lord was alone.
Only belatedly did I realize.
‘Ah, if this continues, the Manor Lord will…’
At that moment…
Tap.
Someone grabbed my hand.
I raised my head.
And then, when I met the young lady’s resolute gaze…
“Go!”
An urgent cry rang out.
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