Chronicles of the Martial God’s Return - Chapter 29

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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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“Feeling good?”
“Yes!”
Namgung Sohye and Hwa Somi set off hand in hand toward the Academy. Since this was Somi’s first day attending, they had dressed her up in her finest clothes, far more elaborate than her everyday wear.
“I’m sure you’ll make wonderful friends there.”
“I hope so.”
Sohye stroked the hair of smiling Somi. Truth be told, Namgung Sohye harbored some anxiety about the whole affair.
She knew all too well how those born into houses of power and wealth looked down upon the unremarkable and the poor.
Whether such a delicate thing could endure it—that was the question that gnawed at her.

“Just take Somi with you without worry. You’ll have things to attend to in Akyeong anyway, won’t you?”

She could not simply accept Dan Woo-hyeon’s words at face value. To her mind, it seemed rather irresponsible of him.
Yet she was in no position to flatly refuse, so she arrived at the Academy with misgivings weighing on her heart.
“Come now, keep your chin up! The important thing is to command the room from the start.”
“Command it?”
“That’s right—never let them see you waver. You’re no lesser than any of them.”
“Hehe, I understand. Don’t worry about me.”
Hwa Somi nodded and stepped into the Academy. The anxiety did not fade easily, yet she could not let it consume her entirely.
‘What am I supposed to do now?’
As Hwa Somi disappeared into the Academy and was no longer in sight, Namgung Sohye exhaled softly and turned away. Though she had wandered the streets of Akyeong every evening in recent days, she had uncovered nothing of significance.
Now that she had come into Akyeong during daylight, she could not afford to squander this opportunity.
Four days had already slipped past, and if she delayed much longer, she would become nothing more than a handmaid at the Estate, let alone uncover the identity of the master hidden somewhere in Akyeong.
She gripped her aching head and sighed once more.
“Let me ask around for information.”
Even a single detail could make all the difference. If she caught hold of even the smallest thread, she might follow it back to the whole tapestry.
Namgung Sohye headed first toward Market Street.
It was where crowds gathered, the best place to harvest information of any kind. Yet it seemed she was not the only one with that thought.
Market Street was astoundingly loud.
Though notably thinner than four days prior, martial artists could be spotted alongside drifters who hoped to catch any falling morsels of opportunity.
The calls of merchants hawking their wares and the fragrant aromas of delicious foods assaulted her senses from every direction.
‘I came, but…’
Namgung Sohye swallowed a groan. Sometimes coin was needed to pry information loose. But her purse held only dust, making it practically impossible to buy information outright.
Was she to give up, then?
She steeled her resolve and clenched her fists tight.
She would not surrender.
She moved swiftly through the crowd, her ears attuned to the voices around her.

‘Is that the woman?’
Two men compared a sketch rendered in Facial Description Painting technique with Namgung Sohye, nodding in confirmation. This was certainly the woman their client had described.
The thought of wandering in circles through Akyeong for days searching for her kindled a bitter frustration. But now that they had found her, it was time to proceed with the plan as designed.

“Listen well. You must casually drop information about the woman in this portrait to her. If you manage that, this money is yours.”

Five taels of silver for uttering a mere handful of words—that was a considerable sum.
Since both men made their living by their tongues, deceiving a single woman was child’s play.
They drifted naturally toward Namgung Sohye. Fortunately, a small food stall stood nearby, so they sat down without drawing attention and opened their mouths to speak.
“I’m telling you, there’s some incredible master backing up the garrison commander! I saw it with my own two eyes!”
“You’re insane—so that’s who destroyed the Heukdohoe all by himself?”
“Who said alone?! It wasn’t just one person!”
Namgung Sohye’s eyes snapped open.
The moment she heard the name Heukdohoe, her mind cleared.
Namgung Sohye edged quietly toward them.
“Say that again, please.”
“Huh?”
The man turned his head, regarding Namgung Sohye with a languid expression. Struck momentarily speechless by her striking beauty, he soon collected himself and let out a loud cough to cover his confusion.
“What did I say, exactly?”
“What you just said… tell me again.”
Namgung Sohye lifted her sword with deliberate slowness.
The man’s complexion drained to ash—he’d expected at least a pittance. Her gaze was so cold it raised the hair on his neck.
“That is to say… that…”
He trembled, pitching his voice higher with nerves, choosing each word with the caution of a man determined not to arouse suspicion.

***

“I’m… I’m Hwa Somi… pleased to meet you…”
With a shy expression, she bowed deeply to the children gathered at the Academy, maintaining formal speech even as she looked up at them—some older, some younger, the stilted politeness lending the moment an awkward edge.
The children regarded Hwa Somi with vacant stares.
Their silence felt less like indifference and more like outright dismissal. They barely glanced at her as she moved slowly to take her seat.
Yet one child was different.
‘That one… I’m certain of it!’
It was unmistakably the same child she’d seen at home.
‘What is he doing here?’
Hong Jinrang’s eyebrows twitched. He drifted over and sat nearby, watching as Hwa Somi settled herself. When their eyes met, she broke into a luminous smile.
“What? Why are you smiling?”
“Hehe, hey there?”
Her ease was unguarded, her laughter untainted and clear.
Something in her manner—something about the way she carried herself—set her apart from every other child he’d met. Hong Jinrang felt a flutter of alarm, though he gave no sign of it, turning his face away.
‘Annoying.’
He knit his brows, his eyebrows flicking upward.
A few of the other children glanced at him, then hastily averted their gaze the moment his eyes touched theirs. His bulk, his iron fists, and his unsparing manner were reason enough for many to fear him.
“Hwa Somi—that’s my name, Hwa Somi.”
A soft whisper came from beside him.
When he didn’t respond, she pressed on, repeating her name—whether out of stubborn pride or as an invitation for him to share his own, he couldn’t say.
Of course, Hong Jinrang ignored her completely.
He let her words wash over him unheeded, passing the time in silence.

***

“I found them!”
Namgung Sohye burst back into the Estate, calling out loudly as she rushed toward Dan Woo-hyeon. When she couldn’t find him, her expression shifted to puzzlement.
Jang Samtae, who was tending to the courtyard, let out a sound of disapproval.
“He’s outside. Didn’t you see him on your way in? He’s fishing.”

Namgung Sohye’s face flushed. She shot a sharp look at Jang Samtae for his rebuke, then carefully made her way out of the Estate. It wasn’t her fault she’d missed him.
Dan Woo-hyeon had virtually no presence at all.
Even standing beside him, you couldn’t sense him unless you looked directly. Sometimes when they spoke, it felt as though she were addressing empty air.
‘He says I have no presence, but he’s like a ghost himself.’
Namgung Sohye muttered complaints as she approached Dan Woo-hyeon.
She didn’t strictly need to report anything to him, but she was so pleased that she simply wanted to share it with someone.
And the first person who came to mind was Dan Woo-hyeon.
She didn’t understand why.
It was simply that she found herself seeking him out.
“Well? What did you find?”
Dan Woo-hyeon, fishing pole in hand, was perfectly calm.
The line hung slack in the water; he sat motionless, eyes gently shut. At this rate, a fish could nibble the bait and he’d never know.
Yet in this rare moment of contented quiet, a subtle shift had crept across his usually expressionless face.
Namgung Sohye smiled brightly.
“A master who might be behind Hyeon-ryeong!”
“You found them?”
“Yes! It was incredibly difficult!”
Dan Woo-hyeon tilted his head.
Watching her, he got the impression she hadn’t found anything after all.
“Doesn’t sound like you found them.”
“No, I’m telling the truth! I didn’t meet them directly, but I’m supposed to see them this evening.”
“That person… them?”
Namgung Sohye had already suspected that Hong Wonjang’s patron might not be singular. In truth, expecting a single person to take on the Heukdohoe would be more naive than pragmatic.
“Have you seen them?”
“What do you mean?”
“The Honam Ogeom!”
Dan Woo-hyeon tilted his head.
It wasn’t a strange thing to say, but he had no memory of ever hearing those words. Where in the world had the Honam Ogeom come from?
Unable to grasp their meaning, he turned his gaze toward Namgung Sohye.
“Do you know of them?”
“No, I don’t.”
……
In truth, Namgung Sohye had no idea that such people even existed. They weren’t particularly famous, and their activities were virtually nonexistent—which explained why the Murim Alliance itself had failed to identify them.
“With a name like that, they must be quite formidable. These are the people I’ve been searching for.”
Namgung Sohye felt pleased. There was a quiet satisfaction in having found the Honam Ogeom before anyone else. Now she wouldn’t have to remain a servant any longer—she could simply report back to the Alliance with an easy heart and return home. That was all.
This tedious life would finally be behind her.
“The Honam Ogeom, you say…… They must be exceptional masters if they were capable of eliminating the Heukdohoe.”
Dan Woo-hyeon let out a soft laugh.
Whoever they were, it seemed there were con artists trying to take credit for other people’s work. True enough—unless one stepped forward openly, one’s identity rarely became known, so fraud was perfectly suited to such circumstances.
Dan Woo-hyeon did not know how formidable Namgung Sohye truly was as the leader of the Bonghwangdan. He did not understand the magnitude of the Murim Alliance or its influence.
In his eyes, Namgung Sohye and even the celebrated masters of the realm were little more than minnows.
“Are you planning to meet them?”
“I should hear the details and convey the Alliance’s intention to recruit them.”
Her excitement would not easily fade.
In truth, she was conducting a covert mission for the Murim Alliance, so she should not breathe a word of it to anyone.
Yet here before Dan Woo-hyeon, she chattered away like someone with a loose tongue. The gentle aura that naturally emanated from him had set her mind at ease.
“This evening, then…… I’ll go with you.”
“What?”
“I’m curious to see these Honam Ogeom for myself.”
Dan Woo-hyeon smiled.
What on earth did these people look like, to be so audacious in their deception? In truth, having someone else claim credit for work he had done bothered him not at all.
If such things had mattered to him, he would never have handed everything over to Hong Wonjang in the first place. Yet he was willing to follow along for one reason alone.
He was curious how they would spin their story, and how they would attempt to deceive this woman.
“If you promise to stay calm. And if you’ll give me a generous purse when we return……”
Namgung Sohye glanced sideways at Dan Woo-hyeon.
The subtle shift in her expression had already faded into composure.
Perhaps sensing his awareness, her gaze trembled slightly.
Dan Woo-hyeon paid it no mind and nodded.
“Very well. Let’s go have a look.”

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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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