A Baby Cat Who Commands the Dog Clan - Chapter 153

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 153
Hong Seol poked her head out from behind Tian Tong Gai and let out a cheerful laugh.
“I got blisters on my feet, so I’m a bit late.”
True to her words, one of Hong Seol’s feet was wrapped tightly in silk cloth.
The wrapping was so thick around the blister that it might chafe, or worse, become infected.
The small foot was wrapped so heavily in cloth that it looked almost like a snowball. She hardly needed shoes at all.
Hong Seol limped toward the O Dok Valley Estate in that very state.
“I told you I’d carry you…”
Yang Do Jin, his voice tinged with disappointment, followed behind.
Nam Goong Baek, who had torn off one sleeve of his robe without hesitation, also appeared on the path.
Nam Goong Ho, whose face seemed unusually gloomy for some reason, brought up the rear of the procession.
“Hmm, you’ve all worked hard.”
The elders of O Dok Valley, recognizing them, barely concealed their disappointment.
Now that things had come to this, it was time to execute the plan they had prepared in advance.
Soon, sinister glances exchanged among the elders in the air.
Unaware of this, Maeng Woo Hee spoke carefully.
“I intend to create a martial art for controlling venomous insects by referencing the Twelve Beast Martial Art I obtained this time.”
“Ha!”
Exclamations of disbelief erupted from various quarters.
“How foolish, how utterly foolish.”
“Beasts are one thing, but can you truly subdue an opponent with mere petty insects? The warriors of Nam Man would have built up resistance to ordinary poisons.”
When the elders’ reaction differed from what she expected, confusion was evident on Maeng Woo Hee’s face.
Watching from behind, Ya Pae’s chest felt ready to burst.
Tch.
These blasted old fools, I should just…!
“Wait a moment!”
At that instant, Hong Seol stepped forward.
In her small hands, she held a fistful of what appeared to be tough thread.
Hngh!
Hong Seol drew upon her energy and exerted her strength, but the net didn’t budge an inch.
‘Ugh, I even used the power that Dok Bi Jo gave me…’
“Hand it over.”
“Let’s pull together, Hong Seol!”
Only with Nam Goong Baek and Yang Do Jin’s help did something trapped beneath the net finally emerge.
Screeeech!
It made an ominous sound as it came.
“What, what is that?”
All the gathered elders gasped in unison.
“You said combining the Twelve Beast Martial Art with venomous insects was a bit underwhelming, didn’t you?”
Seeing the frightened elders, Hong Seol smiled brightly.
“Would even that venomous creature, the Human-Faced Spider, dare speak such words?”
The eyes of the elders seemed ready to burst from their sockets at those words.
“W-what did you just say?”
“Command the Human-Faced Spider?”
The sound of people swallowing hard echoed throughout the chamber.
“Yes, it was the Valley Master herself who said so directly.”
Hong Seol spoke with unwavering confidence.
Maeng Woo Hee’s mouth had fallen open in shock at something she never imagined, but upon catching Hong Seol’s glance, she quickly composed her expression.
Young though she was, she truly carried herself as the leader of a martial sect.
“Indeed. That is precisely why we deliberately captured a young Human-Faced Spider alive.”
At Maeng Woo Hee’s words, admiration bloomed across the faces of the assembled warriors.
To command the Human-Faced Spider.
It was something never even dreamed of in all the long history of Five Poison Valley.
“The feline humanoids of the Southern Barbarian Night Beast Palace conquered Nam Man long ago through the Twelve Beast Martial Art, which commands ferocious beasts.”
Maeng Woo Hee spoke, meeting the eyes of each warrior one by one.
Among them was Ya Pae.
“Now the time has come for Five Poison Valley to reclaim the glory that once rivaled the Southern Barbarian Night Beast Palace.”
Maeng Woo Hee’s voice brimmed with certainty.
“Through the Spider Soul Summoning Art that we shall create!”
The Spider Soul Summoning Art.
It meant to summon and command the soul of a spider.
For a name conceived on the spot, it was quite fitting.
“Rooooaaarrr!”
The warriors of Five Poison Valley, unable to contain themselves any longer, let out a tremendous roar.
The sound was so thunderous that the entire O Dok Valley Estate seemed to tremble.
Even warriors from tribes other than the Maeng clan wore excited expressions.
The elders who had been finding fault averted their eyes or looked away in embarrassment.
‘You did it, Woo Hee!’
Standing in the midst of it all, Ya Pae felt his chest swell with pride.
The Maeng Woo Hee he gazed upon smiled with eyes curved like crescents.
To Ya Pae, that smile was the most beautiful in all the world.
* * *
In the waning afternoon, the scent of fragrant ink drifted through the Odok Valley Master’s Residence.
Hong Seol and Maeng Woo Hee bent their small heads over a low writing table, struggling with brushes in hand.
As if they had been playing, the children’s bodies were covered entirely in ink stains.
“We’re done!”
Maeng Woo Hee lifted a bundle of papers high into the air.
It was filled with crooked, uneven characters throughout.
It was the result of the two of them copying the secret manual of the Twelve Beast Martial Art for days on end.
Of course, they could have had subordinates do the copying, but secret manuals were secret manuals.
Nam Goong Ho and Tian Tong Gai both agreed it would be best if the Valley Master copied the texts directly herself.
However, since that would consume considerable time, Hong Seol volunteered to assist with half the work.
‘Besides, while I’m transcribing the secret texts, I won’t be able to practice the Twelve Beast Martial Art anyway.’
As a result, the silk sleeves of Hong Seol’s robe were stained pitch-black with ink.
A droplet of ink had also splattered across the bridge of her nose.
They had grown quite close in the interim—close enough that such appearances no longer bothered either of them.
Upon seeing Maeng Woo Hee’s haphazard transcription, Hong Seol murmured softly to herself.
“It seems the Valley Master isn’t particularly skilled with the brush either…”
Maeng Woo Hee laughed heartily.
“Ha! A Valley Master of Five Poison Valley must master weapons far better than the brush, after all.”
Besides, correspondence and such could simply be delegated to others to write.
“But…”
Hong Seol carefully pursed her lips.
‘This manuscript is something that should be passed down through generations, isn’t it…?’
Could it truly be acceptable to record something so important in handwriting that resembled a dog’s paw prints?
The moment Hong Seol tilted her head in puzzlement, a man’s deep voice resonated through the chamber.
“Valley Master, may I enter?”
‘Ah, it’s that man!’
Hong Seol quickly recognized his identity. It was Ya Pae, a warrior of Five Poison Valley whom she had seen several times before.
‘The man who seems to be the most valiant in Nam Man, with that muscular, rippling chest.’
He matched precisely the conditions Maeng Woo Hee had mentioned for her first husband.
Well, except for the tiger claw scars across his chest.
‘But there’s no way I could know that…’
Hong Seol had never seen Ya Pae with his upper body exposed.
Maeng Woo Hee’s face brightened.
“Ah, come in!”
Ya Pae, with his sun-darkened complexion and broad shoulders, stepped carefully into the room.
He had just emerged from the banquet hall.
This was already the fourth day of celebrations honoring the return of Hong Seol and her companions.
“Tell me, is the banquet for our guests proceeding without incident?”
“Yes.”
I wonder if our guests’ palates will take to Nam Man’s cuisine and spirits. It must be quite different from what they’re accustomed to in the Central Plains.”
“The guests are consuming Five Poison Valley’s food with such fervor that the provisions are nearly exhausted. Several warriors have hastily gone out to hunt for more. Especially that beggar…”
Ya Pae glanced at Hong Seol and corrected himself.
“…No, rather, the guests from the Beggar Sect dressed in white robes are eating with tremendous appetite.”
Ugh.
Hong Seol’s shoulders drooped slightly.
It was exactly as she’d expected.
Tian Tong Gai, Hu Gae, and Yang Do Jin were seizing the opportunity to eat with unbridled enthusiasm.
‘I hope you’re not going to eat so much that you get thrown out…’
Yet when Hong Seol stole a glance at Maeng Woo Hee’s face, there was no trace of regret—if anything, she seemed to wish she could do even more.
“Excellent! Open the Storage House for our honored guests—spare nothing!”
“Yes!”
“If we run short on wine, open the Storage House and bring out the Great Fortune Wine!”
“Yes! …Yes?”
Ya Pae, who always answered without hesitation, faltered this time.
“But that is the precious wine the Valley Master had brewed when you were born…. Was it not meant to be reserved for your wedding day?”
“Pah! Today brings me joy equal to my wedding day. For these guests, I shall hold nothing back.”
“Yes, I understand!”
Ya Pae, who guarded Maeng Woo Hee’s commands as fiercely as his own life, hurried away.
Such was the depth of Maeng Woo Hee’s gratitude toward Hong Seol and her companions.
“Are you truly certain, Valley Master? It seems to be a wine of great value….”
At Hong Seol’s words, Maeng Woo Hee nodded.
Then, with careful deliberation, she withdrew something wrapped in silk cloth from her bosom.
“I shall hold nothing back for those who gave me this. I can offer all things save O Dok Valley itself.”
As she spoke, Maeng Woo Hee unwrapped the silk.
What lay revealed was none other than the inner core of the mother Human-Faced Spider.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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