Murim Login - Chapter 104

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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 104
Bulya City.
That was my first impression of Hongjoo. Despite the darkening night, the streets lined with numerous pavilions glowed with lanterns, and the sound of people laughing and chattering never ceased.
‘It’s better than I expected.’
While not quite matching a modern nighttime district, it was a well-developed entertainment quarter in its own right.
How should I put it? There was a certain charm unique to this culture.
‘Oh, that looks pretty impressive.’
Unlike me, who was gazing out the window with interest, Jin Moo-kyung’s reaction was lukewarm.
“It’s too noisy. I’d much prefer sleeping outdoors.”
“Come now, we’re just passing through anyway. Why be so difficult?”
At Hyuk Moo-jin’s good-natured response, Jin Moo-kyung’s eyebrows twitched.
“If you’d only driven the carriage properly, we’d have passed through long ago.”
“Well, if the young master hadn’t dismissed the Coachman in the first place…”
“What?”
“Nothing, sir. I’m the one who deserves to die.”
Pricked by that sharp gaze, Hyuk Moo-jin began stammering out excuses.
“Still, since we’re representing the Main Residence, shouldn’t we eat well at a good place and rest the horses properly?”
“Food exists merely to satisfy hunger. And who among us ordered you to do such a thing?”
“The Family Head, sir.”
“…My Elder Brother?”
“Yes. Since you’re traveling without attendants, he specifically instructed me to arrange good lodging and meals.”
I should have been his Elder Brother instead.
Jin Moo-kyung had a terrible personality and refused to listen to anyone, yet he couldn’t disobey his one and only Elder Brother. He let out a sigh.
“Fine. Now hurry up and get going.”
“Yes, sir!”
Finally claiming his first victory, Hyuk Moo-jin’s lips twitched upward as he began driving the carriage.
* * *
The carriage stopped before a massive four-story wooden structure.
Fenghuang Inn. The placard written in elegant calligraphy was striking.
“This place looks incredibly expensive?”
“It’s where the young masters of the Great Tae Won Jin Family will be staying, so it naturally must be expensive. The Family Head was very specific about it—only the best!”
“…”
He was absolutely delighted to be spending someone else’s money.
Shaking my head as I descended from the carriage, a girl who appeared to be around middle school age came scurrying over and bowed respectfully.
“Welcome!”
For her young age, her service spirit was quite impressive. Hyuk Moo-jin stepped forward and asked in a weighty voice.
“Do you have any vacant rooms?”
“Of course. What sort of room would you prefer?”
“The largest one you have.”
“Ah, you mean the Separate Annex?”
Jeom So-i gazed at our group. Perhaps because all three of us wore martial robes, her next words came cautiously.
“I apologize, but you must pay half the fee for the Separate Annex in advance.”
“Heh, what a cunning little thing.”
Hyuk Moo-jin deliberately hardened his expression and pulled out a heavy money pouch from his breast. It seemed to be the security deposit he’d received from Jin Wi-kyung.
“Fine, how much?”
“It’s fifty taels for one night’s stay.”
Fifty taels—how much was that?
I had never used currency here before and didn’t understand the monetary system, so I simply left it to Hyuk Moo-jin.
‘Well, he’ll handle it properly.’
Glancing sideways, Jin Moo-kyung seemed to share the same thought.
After all, a martial arts fanatic and a young master from a wealthy household—his background hardly suited him for financial sensibility.
But Hyuk Moo-jin’s reaction, being of the laboring class, was different.
“What? How much?”
“Fifty taels.”
“…Iron coins?”
“Pardon?”
Jeom So-i, sizing up Hyuk Moo-jin from head to toe, let out a snicker.
“Shall I change your room?”
“…!”
Clear mockery. Hyuk Moo-jin’s lips trembled, then he burst into hearty laughter.
“Hahaha! The little one’s got quite the sales technique. Never mind changing—just show us to the Separate Annex.”
“But you still need to give me twenty-five taels first.”
“This brat!”
“Eek!”
Jeom So-i flinched at Hyuk Moo-jin’s intimidation.
That fellow only gets bullied among us, but despite appearances, he’s a first-rate martial artist and a candidate for the next Gate Master of the Taewon Jin Family.
An ordinary commoner with no martial arts knowledge, and merely a child in her teens, could only be terrified.
“Y-yes, I’ll show you right away!”
We followed the now-tense Jeom So-i to the Separate Annex. Along the way, we passed a garden exaggerated to be the size of a soccer field and a pond where carp swam.
Inside the Separate Annex, there were three large rooms, and they were decorated with clearly valuable furnishings.
“Wow, nice rooms.”
Jin Moo-kyung nodded in agreement.
“Not bad. This size should be fine for training.”
“….”
Does that fellow think of nothing but martial arts?
While I wandered through the Separate Annex exploring, Hyuk Moo-jin returned after paying the lodging fee.
“Would either of you care for a meal?”
“Not for me. Enduring hunger is a form of training.”
Jin Moo-kyung answered firmly and left the Separate Annex, disappearing into the garden.
“And you, team leader?”
“Do I look like some madman to you? I’m starving to death. Let’s go order everything and eat.”
Was it my imagination, or did his face darken for a moment?
* * *
The Fenghuang Inn was a landmark of Shanxi Province. There were three reasons for this reputation.
First, it could accommodate hundreds of guests. Second, the cuisine was prepared by a former imperial chef. And third, there was the beauty of the Female Innkeeper.
Because of this, the Fenghuang Inn never lacked customers despite its exorbitant prices.
Of course, for Hyuk Moo-jin, born into a tenant farmer’s family, it was a place he could never have dreamed of visiting.
‘When else would a guy like me ever get a chance to come here?’
Just half an hour ago, Hyuk Moo-jin’s spirits had been at their peak. A fine guest room, delicious food, and the beauty of the Female Innkeeper—something one could only see on a lucky day.
And I could enjoy all of this with someone else’s money!
‘Is this a dream or reality?’
Then, after hearing the nightly rate for the Separate Annex, I reconsidered.
‘Is this a dream or reality?’
The same words, but a different feeling.
I wished it had been a dream, but by the time I came to my senses, it was already too late. I’d been completely taken in by Jeom So-i’s mockery and even paid a deposit. Everything was finished.
‘I only received fifty silver taels as payment.’
Fifty silver taels.
Considering that a family of four typically needed just over ten silver taels for a year’s living expenses, it was an enormous sum.
However, the problem was that the Fenghuang Inn’s prices operated on an entirely different scale.
‘I paid twenty-five taels as a deposit, so I have exactly half left.’
Even that would be gone by morning. Hyuk Moo-jin, who was about to spend all the payment he’d received from Jin Wi-kyung just on one night’s lodging, felt his back grow damp with cold sweat.
‘If only Jeom So-i hadn’t mocked me like that….’
Regret always comes too late.
Hyuk Moo-jin quickly began calculating frantically in his head.
‘The payment is gone, but I brought emergency funds just in case, so maybe I can manage somehow.’
Five silver taels. His entire fortune accumulated so far. He’d brought it to prepare for emergencies, but he never thought he’d actually need to use it.
‘As long as I don’t indulge in excessive luxury, I can somehow survive until I return.’
However, there was one thing Hyuk Moo-jin hadn’t considered.
It was Jin Tae-kyung’s appetite.
Slurp, slurp. Gulp. Munch, munch.
“Wow, this really sticks to your palate.”
“….”
Honey-glazed chicken, fish-fragrant pork, Sichuan peppercorn beef, soft tofu with scallions, kung pao chicken…. Each time another dozen or so dishes were brought to the table, Jin Tae-kyung’s hands moved like lightning.
“Wow, this is really delicious. The juices are incredible.”
“….”
“You’re not eating? Then I’ll just have the rest?”
“….”
“Wow, the broth is amazing.”
“…Please, enjoy as much as you’d like.”
Before long, a single tear rolled down Hyuk Moo-jin’s cheek.
‘Just the dishes that have come out so far amount to five silver taels.’
My last hope has crumbled to dust. Judging by how things are progressing, that pig of a man will devour another twenty plates before he’s done.
Hyuk Moo-jin wanted to smash a plate over that pig-like bastard’s head, but he restrained himself. He had no desire to lose his life after already losing his entire fortune.
‘Jade Emperor, Primordial Lord of Heaven. Please, I beg you, stop that monster.’
It was at that very moment I was cursing the heavens.
Crash!
* * *
In the Murim, the two hardest things to endure are survival and food. For some reason, every dish was spicy, salty, or dripping with oil, and I found myself desperately craving broth with every meal.
In that sense, this dish that had just arrived at the table held special significance.
‘Chicken and corn soup.’
A kind of corn chowder made with gently beaten egg.
I lowered my head slightly and inhaled deeply, and the distinctive savory aroma of corn wafted to the tip of my nose.
‘Yes, this is it.’
A smile bloomed naturally on my face. My stomach had been growling anyway, and if I soothed it with this chicken and corn soup, I could easily empty ten more plates.
‘Now then, let me….’
It was at that moment I grasped the warm ceramic bowl, filled with pleasant anticipation.
Crash! Splash splash splash!
“…What?”
In an instant, a wine bottle shattered in the center of the table, scattering into hundreds of ceramic shards that flew in all directions.
And along with it, the small amount of wine that had remained inside the bottle.
Splash splash splash.
Drenched by this sudden downpour, I was left speechless.
‘This can’t be happening.’
The chicken and corn soup I had so eagerly anticipated. That savory, gentle broth that was meant to soothe my stomach—it was no longer there.
What now sat in the ceramic bowl was nothing but garbage: food mixed with wine and ceramic fragments.
Hyuk Moo-jin, sitting across from me, gaped wide open.
“Oh, Jade Emperor. Primordial Lord of Heaven.”
Ignoring his nonsensical muttering, I slowly turned my head in the direction the wine bottle had come from.
Five men stared back at me, grinning wickedly.
“Oh my, Hyung-jang. My apologies.”
“Don’t blame your hand for slipping. Just order another one.”
“Heh, that’s a dangerous thing to say. Didn’t you see how much he was eating?”
I watched them snicker among themselves for a moment, then gestured with my hand.
The one who had first apologized to me—he was the culprit who had ruined the chicken and corn soup.
“What, you want me to come over?”
The man smirked and rose from his seat, striding toward me with long steps.
The martial robes reeking of sweat and blood, and a curved saber hanging from his left hip—that was the confidence he carried.
Fine, let me handle this rationally. I opened my mouth calmly.
“The ancient sages once said that even a dog should not be disturbed while eating. Apologize properly and order the food again. The chicken and corn soup first.”
“Heh, look at this young pup with his clumsy tongue.”
“An apology?”
“Come now, stick your tongue out. I’ll pull it for you.”
As the brute grinned, his teeth—blackened and rotting—became visible.
The stench from his mouth was so vile that my appetite vanished without a trace. I would have to save the Gae Yong-ok Mi-aeng for later, it seemed.
“Open wide. My fist is coming in.”
With those words, I drove my fist straight into his face.
Crack!
* * *
The Fenghuang Inn was renowned for three reasons.
Yet men in particular—especially those seeking its most distinctive draw—frequented it for the third reason alone.
The beautiful Female Innkeeper, whom one could only hope to encounter on a fortunate day.
And today was precisely such a day.
“How rowdy.”
The Female Innkeeper’s voice was clear yet languid—and no mere murmur. The sudden silence beyond the door proved it.
Moments later, a quiet voice came from outside.
“Martial artists have begun fighting, madam.”
Tsk, tsk. The Female Innkeeper clicked her tongue softly before speaking.
“Is anyone dead?”
“One man subdued all six of the others.”
“And who might this person be, and from where?”
“The Shanxi Sleeping Dragon.”
The Female Innkeeper laughed silently.
“Well, what a welcome name. I should see his face after all this time.”
She rose from her reclined position, and moonlight filtering through the window illuminated her slender long pipe.

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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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