Chapter 25: You've Come to the Right Place

TL: FoodieMonster007

Kwon glared at Yang Dang. "Who the hell is that guy?"

"He's a mercenary I haven't gotten rid of yet."

"You should have gotten rid of him! Wasn't the original deal just to hand over the woman and child?" Kwon demanded.

"I'll take care of it."

"Do it now!"

Yang Dang drew his sword and approached me, confident he could win.

I wonder how much arrogance and delusion my youthful face will cause in the future. How many more like Yang Dang will it attract?

"You look like a bunch of scoundrels who betrayed your master," I said. "Do you really think you'll get paid properly? He'll probably kill you to silence you and swallow the money he owes you."

Kwon's eyes blazed with fury. "What? A bunch of scoundrels who betrayed our master?"

"I'm holding back because of the child," I added.

Kwon laughed in disbelief. "This guy is one strange lunatic."

"Hit a nerve, did I? You were really planning to kill that guy and take his money, weren't you? Don't do it. That guy killed all his comrades to get here."

Kwon's face turned red, unable to hide his true intentions. "This damn mercenary worm!"

He shouted to his subordinates, "Kill that bastard first!"

Three masked men stepped forward.

I looked at Yang Dang. "See? He said 'that bastard first'. Doesn't that mean you're next after me?"

Yang Dang couldn't hide his bewilderment.

"Even if you're going to run, you should at least get paid first," I continued.

Yang Dang, who had taken a step back, flinched. "What nonsense is this? When did I ever run away?"

The moment Yang Dang flared up in anger, hidden weapons cut through the air.

"……"

Kwon had launched a surprise attack. Unable to dodge the sudden volley, Yang Dang collapsed.

I looked at the dead Yang Dang. "The idiot handled things so poorly. Live like that, and this is what happens."

Then I turned to Kwon. "Your turn is next."

"You're just like him," I said. "You should have at least kept one of them alive to face me. What's the point of killing him just because you got angry? How can any of you expect to survive long if you can't control your tempers?"

"How long are you going to listen to this bastard's flapping jaw?" Kwon shouted.

The three masked men drew their swords and stepped forward.

Indeed, their skills were enough that they didn't need Yang Dang as a shield.

I gestured for the woman to cover the child's eyes. She hugged the child, covering his eyes and ears.

I didn't drag the fight out. I lunged forward before they could attack.

I unleashed the Hell Step from the Four Strides of the Wind God. My skill was only at a toddler's level, but it turned my opponents into newborns.

They had no chance to defend. I appeared before the first man in a flash. The moment he registered my presence, I cut his throat.

I saw the second man's eyes widen behind his mask. Gasp! What the… His thought died as I slit his throat too.

The third masked man failed to react even after his two comrades died. Less than a blink of an eye had passed.

My original martial arts, now combined with the Four Strides of the Wind God, created an attack they couldn't have blocked with a hundred years of preparation. I closed in on the third man with the Hell Step and cut him down with the Soaring Sky Sword Art.

Kwon stared at me with a horrified expression. To him, it must have looked like three sword lines appeared at once, felling his subordinates simultaneously.

"A fast sword technique?" he asked.

"I didn't even use a fast sword technique, but I suppose that's how it looked to you."

"Wh-who are you?" Kwon's voice trembled with terror.

Instead of answering, I asked the woman, "Who is that man?"

"He is Kwon Won, one of the vassals who protected our family. I am Geum Sayeon, the daughter of the Golden Manor Master."

"The Golden Manor!" I acted surprised.

But I already knew her identity.

The woman's father was Geum Ahju, a great merchant ranked among the top ten in the Central Plains. He was the wealthiest man in Fujian and the master of the Golden Manor.

This was the reason I had traveled so far.

The rebellion of the Golden Manor.

This was the incident Lim Chu had told me about. The Golden Manor Master was betrayed and killed by the vassal he trusted most.

The master's daughter escaped due to a last-minute schedule change. She tried to flee by hiring a mercenary, but they all lost their lives in the end.

Geum Sayeon said, "I want to hire you, Master. Please, help us."

"The situation has changed, so my price has gone up."

"That's a relief. We can afford any price, no matter how high. Please kill that man and save my father."

At that, Kwon Won pleaded with me. "Spare me and join our side. I'll speak to the Elder and have him pay you more than that woman!"

"More than the daughter of the Golden Manor Master? How?"

Kwon Won was momentarily at a loss for words.

I walked toward Kwon Won and scolded him coldly. "You said you were a vassal, didn't you? Then your place should be in front of that woman and child."

Kwon Won desperately tried to dodge my sword, but the gap in our skills was too great to be bridged by a struggle for survival.

My sword cut through Kwon Won's bone and flesh, piercing his heart. He collapsed with a single scream.

Only after seeing him die did Geum Sayeon feel relieved. She still firmly covered the child's eyes and ears.

I searched the bodies of Kwon Won and the masked men, collecting throwing knives. The place I was heading would be crawling with enemies.

"Let's go," I said.

"We have to take my Yang to a safe place first," Geum Sayeon replied.

I climbed into the driver's seat. "Get in. The safest place right now is next to me."

Geum Sayeon's hesitation was brief. She had seen my skills firsthand and knew she would have died without me.

She boarded with the child. The carriage turned and sped back the way it came.

Yeo Sang.

He was the Chairman of the Yeo Family Manor, the guardian family of the Golden Manor, and the mastermind of the betrayal.

He had prepared for this day for ten years. He won over key martial artists of the Golden Manor, eliminated some through staged accidents, and sent the rest far away.

He thought his plan was perfect. That was until I reappeared with Geum Sayeon.

When Geum Sayeon and the child got out of the carriage, Yeo Sang smiled brightly. He mistakenly thought his subordinates had captured them.

"Hahahaha!"

If the mother and son had escaped, he would never have slept peacefully again.

"Where is Kwon Won?" he asked, thinking I was one of Kwon Won's subordinates.

"He's dead. Everyone is dead except me."

Yeo Sang must have sensed something strange in my tone, but he was more curious about his next question. "By whom?"

"A young, handsome, mysterious master."

"What did you say?" Yeo Sang shouted, his expression uncomprehending. "You pathetic fool! What are you thinking, showering the enemy with such praise?"

"Because it's the truth."

"Fine. Let's say that's true. Then how did you survive…" Yeo Sang flinched as he grasped the situation.

"It was you!"

I answered with a faint smile.

Yeo Sang shouted, gathering his subordinates. They swarmed forward, surrounding me and the carriage.

"If you saved the woman and child, you should have run far away. Why did you return to the tiger's den?"

I looked around. "Where's the tiger here? All I see is a pack of dogs that bit the master who raised them."

Not only Yeo Sang but all his men radiated killing intent. They were Yeo Sang's limbs and the treacherous martial artists of the Golden Manor. Their pricked consciences made them mask it with an even colder fury.

Standing beside the carriage, Geum Sayeon held her son tightly. Despite the terrifying situation, she showed no fear. She knew composure was a luxury of the strong, and her merchant blood made her quick-witted. She took her son into the carriage so I could fight without hindrance.

Yeo Sang sensed I was no ordinary man and was extremely cautious. "Who might you be, Master? First, let's go inside, have a drink, and talk. I'll treat you to some fine liquor."

"No need for formalities. I won't spare you for acting nice. I won't spare you for begging, either. So feel free to curse and raise hell."

Sensing his appeasement wouldn't work, Yeo Sang gave a cold command. "Attack together and kill him!"

He emphasized the words 'attack together'.

The moment he gave the order, the men rushed in from all sides.

SHWIK! SHWIK! SHWIK! SHWIK! SHWIK!

Like a cool breeze, throwing knives flew from my hand. Before the men could even think to dodge, the knives cut off their thoughts and embedded in their vital points. The charging martial artists dropped one after another.

The knife throwing art I learned before my regression was the Life-Taking Secret Art of the Flying Dagger Grandmaster, Seo Muncheol.

I had never found a superior knife throwing art, so it was a martial art worth keeping for a lifetime.

When I ran out of throwing knives, the survivors rejoiced. Their joy was brief, born from the misconception that I was only a master of knife throwing.

I drew my sword and charged. Their skills ranged from high to mid-level, but they were all the same before my completely mastered Soaring Sky Sword Art.

After I swept through the area, all the enemies had fallen. Yeo Sang's face grew pale.

"Who are you, Master?"

The blood dripping from my sword earned me that title.

"Master? What master! I'm just a swordsman who smelled money passing by."

"How much would it take for you to just walk away?"

"You have a lot of money?"

"Enough to change a person's life."

"If you have so much money, why do this? If you wanted to change your life, you should have used your own money. Why touch someone else's? Especially your own master's."

Yeo Sang, at a loss for an answer, could only bite his lip.

As Yeo Sang hesitated, racking his brain, a voice shouted from a building in the back.

"Drop the sword!"

One of his subordinates emerged, holding a sword to Geum Ahju's throat.

The subordinate was trying to force my submission, but Yeo Sang sighed in dismay. He had intended to keep Geum Ahju hidden and negotiate, but his foolish subordinate brought him out.

Since what was done was done, Yeo Sang roared to pressure me. "Hurry up and drop your sword! Or the Golden Manor Master dies!"

In that instant, a stream of sword qi tore through the air.

The Soaring Sky Sword Art, Fourth Technique, the Burning Sky Strike.

It was already a rough and domineering sword qi technique. Channeled through the Black Demon Sword and loaded with powerful inner arts, its force could startle the heavens.

KRAKAKA-CRACK!

The swirling sword qi flew past and struck the martial artist.

He had used Geum Ahju as a shield, hiding two-thirds of his body, but the exposed third vanished. The dead body collapsed with a thud, leaving only Geum Ahju standing.

Thinking this was his chance now that I had expended my inner arts, Yeo Sang lunged with his sword in a surprise attack.

I was prepared, so his critical strike missed. As he continued his attacks, Yeo Sang's openings became more apparent.

Even if he had polished his skills his entire life, he would have been no match for me. Greed had filled the space where training should have been.

I could have subdued him immediately but allowed him a few more moves. If I defeated the head of the Yeo Family Manor too easily, curiosity and fantasies about me would grow too large.

Yeo Sang's sword flew continuously, aiming for my vital points. His life was on the line, making his attacks desperate.

An onlooker might have held their breath at the thrilling match, but my mind was as calm as still water.

After some thirty moves had passed, the fight ended with the sound of tearing flesh.

THWACK.

Yeo Sang's outstretched sword froze in mid-air. Its blade reflected Geum Ahju's joyous face.

My sword had crossed Yeo Sang's attack at an angle and was now embedded in his heart.

Yeo Sang's eyes, fixed on me, were full of resentment. I spoke to him calmly.

"You're the Patriarch of a guardian family, aren't you? You, of all people, shouldn't have done this. In your next life, become a merchant if you want to make money. Become an assassin if you want to kill people."

Already dead, Yeo Sang could not answer. He crumbled when I pulled out my sword.

Geum Sayeon, who had been watching from the carriage window with bated breath, cheered and got out with her son.

"Father."

"Grandfather!"

Geum Sayeon and the child ran to Geum Ahju and embraced him.

"Sayeon! Yang!"

Geum Sayeon clung to her father and shed tears. When his mother cried, the child cried with her.

A short while later, the imprisoned martial artists of the Golden Manor were freed.

Once the area was cleared, Geum Ahju expressed his gratitude to me again. He had heard the story from Geum Sayeon, and his gratitude for saving his daughter and grandson was far greater than for saving himself.

"I will never forget this debt. You, Master, are the benefactor who saved our family from annihilation. Would you please tell me your esteemed name?"

I can imagine how curious they must be about me, since I dealt with Yeo Sang and his men single-handedly.

"I'm nothing more than a passing mercenary."

"Even the Mercenary King couldn't have handled them this easily."

"You flatter me."

When I refused to reveal my identity, Geum Ahju didn't press further.

Geum Sayeon told Geum Ahju about the promise she had made with me. "I promised our benefactor that the reward would be in money."

Geum Ahju praised his daughter with a satisfied expression. "Well done. You made the most reliable promise."

Having regained his composure, he finally showed the bearing of the wealthiest man in Fujian.

"If what our benefactor needs is money, then you've come to the right place today."