Chapter 867: This Isn't Your First Time Having Street Food, Is It?

TL: FoodieMonster007

An ox-drawn cart rumbled down a road that cut through a field. Riding in the cart were Geom Mugeuk, Lee Ahn, and Jin Hagun. The three had been walking when an old man driving the cart offered them a ride to the next village.

Jin Hagun sat perched on the edge of the cart, looking back the way they came. Lee Ahn leaned against the side, while Geom Mugeuk lay flat with his eyes closed.

Jin Hagun had never ridden in an ox-drawn cart before. He had never traveled this slowly, either.

CREAK, CREAK…

His dangling feet swayed with every jolt of the cart. Below him, the dirt road they had traveled receded into the distance.

The past two days had been incredibly fun. The three of them had hunted together, grilled meat over a campfire, and admired breathtaking scenery. They even tried the food at a famous inn. At night, they fell asleep gazing at the stars. He couldn't even tell how those two days had flown by.

Still, as much fun as it was, he knew if his companion wasn't Geom Mugeuk, he would have already resumed his work and training. It seemed Geom Mugeuk was right about him being a workaholic.

Jin Hagun glanced behind him. Geom Mugeuk was breathing softly in his sleep, and Lee Ahn was looking down at her lord, her deep gaze seemingly filled with many thoughts.

Sensing his stare, Lee Ahn turned toward him. Their eyes met, and she gave him a bright smile.

Jin Hagun returned a faint smile of his own before looking away. Her kind smile can lift anyone's spirits.

Like a ship crossing a sea of sunset, the cart continued on its way. The last beautiful moments before sunset painted the world crimson. The grass bent in the blowing wind before rising again, looking just like a spreading fire.

It was dark by the time they reached the village, so they immediately looked for an inn.

"We have two rooms left."

They were three people, and there were only two rooms.

"Let's see the rooms first," Geom Mugeuk said.

The innkeeper led them to the guest rooms in the rear courtyard. "If you happen to be a married couple, you could use this spacious room," he said. As an experienced business owner, he didn't dare carelessly assume who the husband was.

"Doesn't it look obvious that we're the couple?" Geom Mugeuk exclaimed. "Come on, Lee Ahn. Let's take this room."

Before Geom Mugeuk could take Lee Ahn away, though, Jin Hagun stepped forward and grabbed his arm. "I'll share this room with this fellow, so please rest comfortably, Martial Artist Lee."

Geom Mugeuk immediately tried to pull his hand free. "You spoilsport!"

However, Jin Hagun forcefully dragged the guy along, thinking, Is it really okay to be playing around like this?

When they were alone, Geom Mugeuk asked, "Do you regret it?"

"……" Jin Hagun hesitated. He didn't regret his decision, but everything felt unfamiliar to him. For three days, he had done nothing.

Have I ever lived so carefreely?

Even more surprising, he had nothing scheduled for tomorrow either.

"Grandfather must have been notified by now," he muttered. He was particularly concerned about his grandfather, since he had left without permission.

Geom Mugeuk snorted. "The Chairman will probably say you did a good thing. He'll think, 'My grandson has finally found some leisure'."

Jin Hagun smiled. The words might have been meant only to make him feel better, but they put his mind at ease nonetheless. "In that case, I should get the large bed."

"This and that are two completely different things!" Geom Mugeuk yelled, but Jin Hagun had already thrown himself onto the large bed.

The next morning, Jin Hagun opened his eyes. Turning his head, he saw that Geom Mugeuk's bed was empty.

He sat up and pushed aside the curtain. His eyes widened in shock. He had thought it would be dawn or early morning, but the sun was high in the sky.

Have I ever overslept like this?

He couldn't believe he had slept in so late. This was the first time he had overslept since he was a very young child!

He was always on edge and never slept properly, usually waking up several times a night. Yet, yesterday, he had slept incredibly soundly, like he was dead to the world. If someone had launched a surprise attack, he would have been killed.

Just then, the door opened, and Geom Mugeuk entered.

"You're awake?"

"Why didn't you wake me?"

"I just woke up myself." Geom Mugeuk joked about their oversleeping. "I slept without waking up once, too. The successors to the Murim Alliance and the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult were almost replaced overnight! My brother almost got to cheer 'Hooray'!"

Jin Hagun was baffled. I can never tell anyone about this. If the people of the orthodox sects found out, they'd call me crazy. How could I fall into such a deep sleep while sharing a room with the successor of the Divine Cult?

"If you're up, let's go explore the village," Lee Ahn's voice came from outside. "I did some scouting, and we should eat out."

Jin Hagun quickly washed his face and left the inn with the other two.

The marketplace was bustling with people during lunchtime. Perhaps because they hadn't eaten breakfast, his feet naturally stopped at a street food cart. It sold skewers of grilled meat and vegetables, and the appetizing smell was almost violent.

After a silent agreement with the other two, Geom Mugeuk ordered three skewers.

Jin Hagun pulled the meat off the skewer with his teeth and marveled at the taste. "This is delicious!"

He looked like he would eat politely, but he finished his skewer the fastest and ordered another.

Geom Mugeuk stared at him. "Don't tell me… is this your first time having street food?"

"It is," Jin Hagun admitted honestly.

Geom Mugeuk wasn't one to let this slide. "You look like you had a rough upbringing, but you were raised more delicately than I thought."

"What part of me looks like that?" Jin Hagun wiped the sauce from his mouth with his sleeve, an action he would never have imagined doing if his subordinates were present. The deliberately rebellious act gave him a great sense of liberation.

Of course, it was more fun because there were friends beside him whose eyes went wide with surprise.

"Lee Ahn, it seems we brought the wrong person along. The next Murim Alliance Chairman oversleeps, is a glutton, and wipes his mouth with his sleeve?"

"What should we do? I think we've been scammed."

Jin Hagun pretended not to hear them. "I'll pay for the skewers," he announced, paying the vendor.

Geom Mugeuk shouted, "And one more thing! He even flaunts his wealth!"

Jin Hagun started walking toward a line of food carts. This time, it was noodles.

Today was his first time eating noodles while standing on the street, and his first time learning that such delicious food could be so cheap. He had no excuse if Geom Mugeuk teased him again for being raised so delicately.

After their simple meal, they went to a stall to look at the goods for sale.

Jin Hagun was amazed. They sell all sorts of things.

He had passed through countless marketplaces, but he realized he had never once been curious about what they sold or how much it cost. He simply hadn't been interested.

When he walked down a street, he only ever thought of his destination, the people he would meet, and how to resolve whatever incident awaited him. The only time he paid attention to the roadside was when there was a possibility of an ambush.

He realized that all his efforts were ultimately to protect these people, yet he knew nothing about them.

Suddenly, a group of shell gambling hustlers caught his eye.

"Step right up, step right up! Guess right and win triple! Guess wrong and we just take your bet! Triple your money!"

Jin Hagun's eyes lit up with interest.

"Don't tell me you're into gambling now too?" Geom Mugeuk immediately asked, pretending to dissuade him but actually egging him on.

"Why not?" Shrugging, Jin Hagun walked over to the hustlers, who ran their illegal gambling business with their backs to an alley, ready to flee at any moment.

He stood among the onlookers, watching the hustler's hand movements carefully. Finally, he placed a coin in the rightmost cup.

"I'll win and buy you dinner too," he said.

That confidence was short-lived. When the cup was lifted, the die was in the middle.

Jin Hagun looked at Geom Mugeuk in surprise. "I was so sure it was on the right."

Geom Mugeuk smirked. "The better your eyes, the more you're deceived. You have to understand the principle of the trick."

Jin Hagun shook his head in amazement.

Geom Mugeuk leaned close and whispered, "I want to tell them: 'Do you know what a historic day this is in your lives as swindlers?'"

"……"

Jin Hagun bet two more times but failed both times.

"Any more and I'll go bankrupt," Jin Hagun said firmly, walking away.

Geom Mugeuk asked, "You're just leaving?"

"What else?"

"Those scoundrels! Tricking innocent people with their schemes! Aren't you going to punish them?"

"The one who gets tricked by something like that is the fool."

"Ooh! For a moment there, I thought you were a villain." Geom Mugeuk turned to Lee Ahn. "Lee Ahn, this guy is already starting to get corrupted. We don't even have to tempt him…"

Lee Ahn was busy picking out an item at a general goods stall up ahead. She held up a small fine-toothed comb and waved it. "Hey, please buy this for me."

"Buy it with your own money."

"I don't want to. Please buy it for me, Young Master."

"……"

Jin Hagun groaned in frustration. "Just buy one for her. How much can it cost?"

Geom Mugeuk shouted, "Hagun-orabeoni here says he'll buy it for you!"

Jin Hagun flinched, flustered. "O-Orabeoni?"

"You said you'd give up being the Young Alliance Chairman and Brigade Commander, didn't you? That means you just an Orabeoni. What else should she call you? Mr. Jin? Hagun? Master Jin?"

Hearing that, Jin Hagun realized Geom Mugeuk wasn't wrong. Still, he insisted, "Don't be rude to Martial Artist Lee. Asking her to call me Orabeoni is also disrespectful to her."

"Back to being the orthodox good boy, are we? Even though you were so naughty just a while ago…"

Jin Hagun couldn't help but chuckle. Right. No matter how much I try to deviate, can my fundamental nature change so easily?

He went over to Lee Ahn and paid for the comb.

"Thank you!" Lee Ahn exclaimed. "I'll have to keep this as a family heirloom!"

"It's nothing."

Lee Ahn repaid the cost of the comb with a piece of advice. "When you're dating a woman in the future, you shouldn't give her everything she asks for."

"?" Jin Hagun gave her a questioning look.

Lee Ahn answered, "If you give them too much, they start to think it's a given. I have a feeling you would give them everything, Young Alliance Chairman."

Jin Hagun's eyes widened. She had read him well. If he were to date a woman, he would probably grant most of her requests.

"I think being good at refusing is actually a way to protect love," Lee Ahn said, smiling bashfully as if embarrassed by her own words. "It's all just things I've overheard, I don't really know myself. Oh, I'm going to go look over there."

She went into a weapon shop, while Geom Mugeuk went into the clothing store across the street.

"Do you happen to have any floral-patterned pajamas here?" Geom Mugeuk asked.

Watching them, Jin Hagun shook his head. "Hey, you two are switched!"

It was an ordinary marketplace, but being with these two made it feel like a new world. It was so much fun.

He ambled over to an open square in the middle of the market. There, several apothecaries had gathered a crowd and were selling their wares.

"Medicine! Get your medicine! Give your children this medicine for just three months, and their height will shoot up!"

Jin Hagun stood among the people and watched the haggling. Just as his grandfather had once enjoyed the amusement of being unrecognized in a tavern, he too was savoring the pleasure of blending into a crowd where no one knew him.

"Then what happens if an adult takes it?" someone asked.

A muscular man tensed his stomach, and the wooden plank the peddler swung at him broke in two.

"For a child, it all goes to height, and for an adult, it all goes to muscle."

Jin Hagun smiled. That's a medicinal effect that not even the miracle herbs of the Murim Alliance can produce.

"Did some mysterious faction disguised as medicine peddlers show up?" a woman behind him asked.

He spun around, only to see his sister Jin Haryong standing there.

"How did you find me!?" he exclaimed.

Jin Haryong pouted. Her brother had sent an urgent messenger pigeon telling her to meet him here, so she had rushed over, surprised by the sudden message, but his expression looked more relaxed than she had expected.

"I came here with Young Cult Leader Geom. Martial Artist Lee is with us too."

Jin Haryong's eyes widened at the news that Geom Mugeuk and Lee Ahn were here.

"I took a vacation. The entire Demon Slaying Brigade is on leave."

Jin Haryong's jaw dropped. "Orabeoni? On vacation? Really?"

She stared at him in disbelief before finally nodding. Geom Mugeuk must have convinced this stubborn Orabeoni of mine.

Jin Hagun added sheepishly, "I thought you'd want to see him too."

Jin Haryong, who had been watching the performer transition from flexing to spinning plates, blurted out, "Aren't you worried? I haven't completely gotten over my feelings for him yet."

"I am worried."

"Then why did you call for me?" Jin Haryong tilted her head. She was surprised that her brother had sent the messenger pigeon himself. Usually, Geom Mugeuk was the one who contacted her.

Jin Hagun replied, "Because it's human nature to want to do something more when you're told not to, and to miss someone more when you can't see them."

"So, you're asking me to meet him and get over it?"

"……" Jin Hagun couldn't say no. How can a human relationship be severed just by not seeing someone? You have to see them to end it.

Jin Haryong nodded. "True. If I were to get together with him, Orabeoni would be plagued by all sorts of rumors throughout your future term as Chairman."

Hers was indeed a forbidden love, something the people of the orthodox sects, especially the old masters and renowned figures, would never tolerate. Political enemies would even emerge, accusing Jin Hagun of colluding with the Demonic Cult.

"If we had met as ordinary people, you wouldn't have opposed it then, would you?" she asked, expecting that since her brother liked Geom Mugeuk so much, he would have actively supported them.

Unexpectedly, Jin Hagun shook his head.

Jin Haryong blinked in shock. "You would have opposed it?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I thought you would have a hard life." Jin Hagun conveyed to his sister the feelings he had never expressed until now. "You feel it too, but that man was born with the destiny to be the protagonist of the murim. He was born to save the murim, rather than to be with his woman. I want my sister to live as the protagonist of her own life."

Jin Haryong instantly found a flaw in her brother's reasoning. "Then what about Lee Ahn? Is it okay if she's not the protagonist?"

She thought her brother would be flustered by his own logic, but…

Jin Hagun said firmly, "But Martial Artist Lee is not my sister."

Sensing that he meant it sincerely, Jin Haryong was both moved and surprised. "Are you sick somewhere? Did you get a fatal disease?" she asked, half-joking, half-serious question.

Jin Hagun calmly conveyed the rest of his thoughts. "You were born too late to receive our parents' love, Grandfather is always busy with his work as the Chairman, and I am busy training martial arts and going on missions. I hope that at least your husband will be someone who is always by your side, taking good care of you."

Somehow, he felt his sister could meet a truly great man, even if it wasn't Geom Mugeuk.

Jin Haryong grinned. "And not because I'm a selfish person who only thinks of myself?"

"There's that aspect too." Jin Hagun nodded in agreement.

"To think you'd say all this! Orabeoni, you've really changed a lot."

The two of them looked at each other and smiled.

"If you really can't get over him, I'll just give up becoming Chairman."

"Don't say things you don't mean. So? Where are they?"

"Over there, in the weapon shop and the tailor's."

Jin Haryong strode towards the weapon shop.

"Uh… that's the wrong one," Jin Hagun whispered softly.