A Baby Cat Who Commands the Dog Clan - Chapter 83

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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 83
“The current sect leader, you say?”
“Yes, sir. He would be my senior brother. His name is written with the characters for ‘Seon’ and ‘Hyo.'”
Seagull Eyebrow lowered his voice carefully, ensuring his words didn’t reach Hong Seol and Nam Goong Baek’s ears.
It seemed he believed this was not a matter for children to hear.
“The truth is, the previous sect leader became a jiangshi, which brought great shame upon our sect….”
Nam Goong Ho grasped the situation readily enough.
With the new sect leader having only recently assumed his position, a calamity of this magnitude was naturally something they wished to keep hidden.
Especially so, given that the Martial Alliance was a place where martial artists from every Orthodox Sect came and went.
“Hmm.”
Hong Seol gazed worriedly at Nam Goong Ho’s troubled expression.
‘Grandfather will help those Daoist gentlemen, won’t he?’
To never refuse those in need when they seek aid.
What else could that be but righteousness and chivalry?
‘But what if Grandfather gets injured fighting the jiangshi? I don’t want that….’
No matter that he had defeated this opponent in his youth, many years had passed since then. Moreover, as the sect leader of an entire school, this man was undoubtedly a master of considerable skill.
‘If such a person has become a jiangshi….’
His strength would surely have doubled.
I did not wish for Grandfather to be injured. It would be better to refuse this request.
As if reading Hong Seol’s heart, Nam Goong Ho answered decisively.
“I sympathize with your plight, but I cannot help you.”
“Pardon?”
“Why is that, sir?”
So taken aback were they that Pockmark spoke at greater length than his senior, Seagull Eyebrow.
“I am currently on my way to aid a dear friend at the Sa Cheon Dang Family. I have no time to tarry here.”
“But sir….”
“Sir….”
“Besides, I have my grandchildren with me. I will not put them in danger.”
Nam Goong Ho’s answer was resolute. Beside him, Nam Goong Baek nodded silently in agreement.
At those words, the two Daoists exchanged glances before speaking as if they had made a decision.
“…We hope you understand that we did not wish to resort to this.”
“We apologize, sir.”
Seagull Eyebrow withdrew a small wooden tablet from his robes.
In that instant, Nam Goong Baek’s voice burst forth in astonishment.
“Grandfather! Was there another debt-repayment token scattered throughout Jianghu?”
Upon it, three characters spelling Nam Goong Ho’s name were etched clearly for all to see.
* * *
Hong Seol’s round head swayed back and forth.
I was riding a horse up the mountain alongside Nam Goong Ho.
Before us, two Daoists in black and white robes likewise sat upon their mounts, leading the way ahead.
Behind them, Nam Goong Baek held the reins with dignified composure, guiding the horse forward alone.
“Ugh.”
As Hong Seol’s body flinched, clearly uncomfortable from the soreness in her lower back, Nam Goong Ho’s face filled with sympathy.
Though the journey was long, he simply could not bring himself to leave the children behind in Wuhan.
“I’m sorry for dragging you along on such a difficult journey, Seol Ah.”
“No, it’s not! I love being with Grandfather the most!”
Seeing the bright smile bloom across her face, Nam Goong Ho nearly lost his grip on the reins as his heart ached with tenderness.
“Ahem, ahem! Well then, I’m relieved.”
Though Hong Seol had spoken beautifully, the expression on Nam Goong Baek’s face following behind was far from pleasant.
Hong Seol herself could only steal cautious glances backward.
‘Elder Brother seems to be in a foul mood.’
And with good reason.
‘The moment Grandfather refused, the Daoists immediately presented their tokens of gratitude.’
But when someone offers such a token and asks for help, one cannot possibly refuse.
The honor and trust of the Nam Goong Estate Patriarch hung in the balance.
Besides, we were already bound to Wuhan anyway, so time was not an issue.
‘It seems Grandfather Nam Goong Ho must have lived quite the remarkable life in the Jianghu during his youth.’
One could tell from the way old masters of Nok Rim kept coming at him in succession, from Tian Tong Gai, the Beggar Sect leader who harbored a grudge, and from the tokens of gratitude he couldn’t even remember giving.
And it seemed this was deeply gnawing at Nam Goong Baek’s nerves.
“If there are any other tokens of gratitude you’ve distributed, please mention them now.”
It was a rare moment when Elder Brother, whose expression usually remained nearly unchanged, spoke through gritted teeth.
‘I understand. I’m also worried that Grandfather might get injured in a confrontation with a zombie.’
But truthfully, there was also an exhilarating thrill to this situation.
It felt like directly experiencing the Jianghu that I had only read about in books and heard about in stories.
‘Will I too be able to venture into the Jianghu someday, just as Grandfather did?’
It would have been an impossible dream before, but now that I knew how to cure my illness, everything had changed.
I lay awake night after night, unable to sleep from thinking about the future.
Hong Seol gazed at the back of Seagull Eyebrow ahead with a heart full of anticipation.
‘And I’ve always wanted to see a Daoist sect at least once!’
I had even made preparations for any unforeseen dangers.
Soon the path narrowed, and the group entered the foothills of a mountain thick with pine trees.
Seagull Eyebrow, who had been leading the way, turned back to Hong Seol and spoke.
“This is Changnyeong Mountain. Our Changnyeong Sect is situated in a valley here.”
“How many disciples do you have, Daoist?”
“Not many. Perhaps around sixty in total? And there are about a dozen or so young acolytes close to your age, Miss.”
Young acolytes were children who handled all the menial work of the sect.
They were orphans who had lost their parents to bandits and had nowhere else to go, taken in and raised by the sect.
The descendants of prestigious orthodox sects were registered as disciples from the start. But the acolytes without backing could not become formal disciples and usually spent their days chopping firewood and drawing water.
At the mention of the acolytes, Hong Seol’s eyebrows furrowed into a figure eight.
‘They’re around my age, yet they live such a difficult life….’
I was grateful for my circumstances at the Nam Goong Family Estate, yet I couldn’t shake a peculiar unease that gnawed at the edges of my heart.
“Still, many senior disciples from the ‘Seon’ generation who recently returned to secular life have come back, bringing quite a bit of vitality to the sect.”
At those words, Nam Goong Ho’s eyebrows twitched.
Regardless of which sect, there was only one reason disciples who had left for the secular world ever returned.
‘They’ve caught the scent of money.’
Yet judging merely by the shabby robes of these Daoists, the sect’s finances couldn’t be particularly abundant.
How could this possibly be?
Nam Goong Ho’s suspicion deepened.
“The ‘Seon’ generation, you say?”
“Ah, they’re from the same generation as Seon Hyo, who recently became the new sect leader. They returned not long before the previous sect leader, Mu Gwi Geom, ascended to immortality.”
Disciples who had returned precisely when the new sect leader emerged.
‘What could possibly be worth money in this impoverished-looking sect?’
To Nam Goong Ho, the whole affair seemed deeply suspicious, but Seagull Eyebrow appeared to have no such concerns.
“Surely it’s all thanks to our sect’s virtue reaching the heavens.”
Judging by the way he chuckled good-naturedly, that was his genuine belief.
In any case, it was an internal matter of the Changnyeong Sect. This wasn’t a situation where Nam Goong Ho could meddle.
Nam Goong Ho fell silent.
“Hmm….”
Yet I couldn’t suppress the turbulent feelings stirring within me. Hong Seol listened quietly to the long sigh I exhaled.
After proceeding along the narrow path for some time, a small pond nestled at the foot of the mountain came into view.
“So this must be Haejeon Pool.”
“Haejeon Pool…?”
Seagull Eyebrow smiled and explained to Hong Seol, who alternated her gaze between her sword and the sun hanging in the sky.
“It’s the place where one sets down all weapons carried upon the body before crossing the mountain gate, miss.”
“Yes, a place to leave one’s weapons.”
Nam Goong Ho added his own explanation, as if unwilling to yield the point.
“It’s originally a Wudang Sect tradition. I’ve heard the founding ancestor of the Changnyeong Sect came from Wudang, and you can see traces of it in a place like this.”
Before Nam Goong Ho could finish speaking, three or four men in Daoist robes brandished sharp swords and shouted.
“Halt!”
They all wore the same tattered robes as Seagull Eyebrow and Pockmark, along with leather belts around their waists.
“This is Changnyeong Sect territory! Lay down the weapons in your hands and show proper courtesy.”
Then Seagull Eyebrow, positioned at the front, issued a stern command.
“You should be the ones showing courtesy! This is Nam Goong Ho, the Sword King, who has come to aid us.”
The men, who had only heard rumors of the legendary Sword King, were startled to finally see him in person.
“Oh!”
“You’ve finally arrived! If you are the Sword King and his party, you may naturally enter the grounds with your blades drawn.”
The robed men had clearly been waiting desperately for Nam Goong Ho’s arrival.
That statement itself spoke to how severe the vampire plague had become.
Because of this, Hong Seol’s heart grew heavy as well.
‘Grandfather… will you be alright?’
Turning my head to steal a glance, Nam Goong Ho appeared reassuringly solid, like a massive boulder.
Then, from the rear of the procession, I sensed an unfamiliar presence.

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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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