Murim Login - Chapter 113

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

Chapter 113
Half a double hour after dispatching an envoy to the Hangsan Inspection Bureau, Pung Yang issued his command without hesitation.
“Attack.”
Swift and decisive.
The longer he delayed, the worse his position became. Word that the Red Wind Bandits had besieged the Hangsan Inspection Bureau would spread rapidly, and if external forces—especially the Taewon Jin Family—intervened, matters would become far more complicated.
‘I never expected a bloodless conquest anyway.’
Though she bore the body of a woman, she carried the blood of Blood Wolf Sword Lee Cheon-baek.
If she could not be tamed through words and gestures, then violence would force her submission. The very method Pung Yang had employed all along.
Whoooosh.
The piercing wail of war horns echoed across the highlands. At the signal for advance used by the Highland bandits, the Red Wind Bandits surrounding the Hangsan Inspection Bureau kicked their horses’ flanks in unison.
“Charge!”
“Kill every last one of them!”
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud!
Hundreds of hooves thundered across the snow-covered ground.
The horn’s cry continued unbroken, resonant and far-carrying.
* * *
Ding.
– You have successfully completed [Energy Circulation].
– A small amount of fatigue and stamina has been recovered.
The system notification chimed, and the moment I opened my eyes, I surveyed my surroundings.
“Did you just hear something?”
Wol-hwa and Hyuk Moo-jin, who had been feeding hay to the horses, asked with bewildered expressions.
“Young Master Jin, what sound?”
“Sounds are always around. Listen carefully. The horses chewing hay, the wind…”
“Not that nonsense, you fool.”
“Then what?”
“A… a horn?”
“A horn, what?”
“The kind used for sports cheering… never mind. Something like that exists.”
I abandoned my explanation and stared in the direction from which I thought I’d heard the sound. By coincidence—or perhaps not—it was precisely northward, toward the Hangsan Inspection Bureau we were heading toward.
‘Did I mishear?’
According to Wol-hwa, we still needed to ride for three more double hours—six hours—before reaching the Hangsan Inspection Bureau. Whatever might have occurred, it was too far away for the sound to carry here.
‘Unless it were cannon fire.’
Just then, Jin Moo-kyung, who had also finished his energy circulation, added his voice.
“I didn’t hear anything.”
“But I’m telling you, I’m sure I heard something.”
“It’s your imagination.”
“What if something’s happened at the Hangsan Inspection Bureau?”
“That’s possible. But I heard nothing.”
“But I’m telling you I heard something!”
“So it’s a misunderstanding, that’s all.”
“On what grounds?”
“Simple. If you heard it, there’s no way I didn’t.”
“….”
This is infuriating, but he’s right—I can’t refute him.
Jin Moo-kyung clicked his tongue at my speechlessness.
“If you don’t want to die by a blind sword, focus on disciplining your mind and body. The battlefield is a place where anything can happen.”
Who’s teaching whom?
In terms of combat experience, no one here could match me.
I’ve grown so accustomed to it that it appears unremarkable, but I’m thoroughly seasoned in preparing for and engaging in battle.
“Since the enemy numbers are large, conserve your strength as much as possible and minimize your movements. I’ll lead the way, so just follow and there won’t be any problems.”
Is he showing concern because we share the same blood?
Come to think of it, Jin Moo-kyung has been quite helpful to me all this time, despite making his dislike abundantly clear.
He’s helped with my training, accompanied me to the Hangsan Inspection Bureau this time, and I’ve heard that in my childhood, he even made considerable efforts to reform his lazy younger brother.
Even if Jin Wi-kyung had asked him, such things would be impossible if he truly despised me.
‘Perhaps he’s actually quite affectionate at heart.’
Is this what they call a tsundere personality?
As a wave of emotion suddenly washes over me, I gaze at Jin Moo-kyung with sentimental eyes—and our gazes lock.
“What are you looking at? Eyes down.”
“….”
“If you get so much as a scratch from those Horse Bandits, know that you’ll die by my hand.”
“…Yes, understood.”
Right, of course. Tsundere my ass. I must have gone mad for a moment with that ridiculous fantasy.
Accepting reality, I move toward the spare horse I’d seized earlier to transfer the saddle, when Hyuk Moo-jin, who’s quietly approached, opens his mouth with a worried expression.
“Young Master, you’re not planning to kill me too, are you?”
“…Are you saying it’s fine if I die?”
“Ah, no—why must you interpret it that way?”
“You’ll definitely die by my hand, so shut up and prepare to depart.”
I give Hyuk Moo-jin’s rear end a kick as he grumbles, then mount the horse.
Three hours remain until the Hangsan Inspection Bureau. From now on, I must ride hard without any rest whatsoever.
Time Remaining
: 6:25:19
* * *
The Hangsan Inspection Bureau resembled a fortress. The towering stone walls were solid enough to be called ramparts, and various defensive installations for siege defense were erected throughout.
Built by the iron will of Lee Cheon-baek, the first sect leader, they finally fulfilled their purpose after thirty years.
“Fire!”
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Dozens of arrows shot in unison rained down upon the charging cavalry.
Yet the most common weapons found on the Highland are spears, swords, and bows. The Horse Bandits of the Red Wind Gang, accustomed to Highland warfare, raised the shields held in one hand without waiting for anyone’s command.
Thunk, thud-thud!
Only about a dozen riders had been unhorsed.
The shield, fashioned from the dried hide of an old horse stretched across brittle wood, had admirably deflected the arrows.
“Krahaha! These fools dare disrespect their elders…!”
It was the moment a Red Wind Bandit captain burst into laughter.
A piercing shriek—then a sickening thud!
Something hurtled through the air with devastating force, piercing the horse’s neck and embedding itself in the captain’s chest. He, who had only recently reached the first rank, stared in disbelief at the arrow protruding from his body before toppling from his steed.
Several mounted riders following behind lost formation due to the obstruction and tumbled down in succession.
“Crossbows! Watch for crossbows!”
“Return fire!”
Whissssh!
If the Hangsan Inspection Bureau’s initial assault had been a sudden downpour, the Red Wind Bandits’ arrow barrage was a torrential deluge. Even from horseback, they drew their bowstrings in rapid succession—their arrows precise and swift.
Thunk, thunk, thunk, thunk!
“Argh!”
“Hide behind the shields! Don’t expose your heads!”
Seizing the opportunity, the bandits drove their horses forward and hurled grappling hooks and hastily constructed ladders against the ten-zhang-high walls in an attempt to breach them.
Screams and blood erupted across the ramparts where close combat had erupted.
“Krahaha! Kill them all!”
“Don’t let them climb! Hold the line!”
Eun So-wol watched the entire scene unfold from the highest watchtower. Her lips trembled, and all color drained from her face.
‘So this is the Murim.’
The screams of the dying, the desperate struggles of those clinging to life.
The world of survival of the fittest, now before her eyes, was far more brutal and terrifying than she had ever imagined.
And yet…
‘I cannot retreat.’
So many had already fallen. Those who could leave had departed, and those who remained fought with their lives on the line.
Eun So-wol was now their sect leader, bound to share the fate of the Hangsan Inspection Bureau.
“Sect Leader! The walls are in peril. We must send reinforcements!”
“They’re using a battering ram on the gate!”
“Sect Leader! Act quickly!”
“Sect Leader!”
In that moment, bombarded with urgent reports from all directions, Eun So-wol spoke.
“When I signal, fire one flaming arrow toward the walls and two toward the gate. And Uncle Chul.”
Chul Moo-baek, who stood guard at Eun So-wol’s side, responded.
“Say what you need.”
“The gate will break soon. Can you buy us some time?”
“You mean me alone?”
“I apologize for asking the impossible.”
“One against a hundred—I’ve always wanted to try that.”
“The Uncle I know is a master of the ten-thousand-foe technique. But please, take care of yourself.”
“Ha, you think such rabble could best me?”
Chul Moo-baek laughed heartily and leaped down from the wall. With him—a master of the perfected pinnacle realm—heading to Hangshan Lake, no one else would breach the gate unless Pung Yang himself stepped forward.
‘Just a little more. Just a bit longer.’
Eun So-wol, who had been observing the fierce battlefield below, suddenly unleashed a thunderous cry.
“Now!”
Two warriors who had been awaiting her command simultaneously drew their bowstrings taut.
In the next instant, flaming arrows that had somehow taken flight into the darkened winter sky above blazed brilliantly over everyone’s heads.
* * *
The burning arrows falling like meteors were clearly visible even to Pung Yang, who stood beyond a hundred paces away. He muttered to himself.
“So they had a hidden move after all.”
It did not take long for suspicion to transform into certainty. Moments later, an enormous inferno erupted around the perimeter of the city wall.
Whoosh, roooaaaah!
“Aaaahhhhh!”
Burning to death is among the most agonizing of deaths. The Red Wind Gang’s bandits, who had swarmed like ants at the base of the wall, writhed in terrible screams.
The ropes attached to the hooks on the wall snapped, and wooden ladders were engulfed in flames.
“Strike!”
“Kill every last bandit!”
Those waiting to climb below the wall, those climbing it—all burned to death in the flames, while those already atop it were pierced and slashed by weapons striking from all directions.
“They made decent preparations, I’ll grant them that.”
A single bandit, his body charred black in patches like charcoal, approached Pung Yang, who gazed calmly upon the battlefield.
“What is it?”
“B-Bandit Lord. The casualties are catastrophic!”
The bandit threw himself prostrate before him and continued in a gasping voice.
“From the first assault until now, we’ve lost at least a hundred. More than anything, the morale of the brothers has been shattered by that fire attack just now.”
“The gate?”
“Sir?”
“What of the gate?”
“We’ve breached it, but Chul Moo-baek of Hangshan Lake is holding it alone.”
“Alone, you say?”
“Yes. But his martial prowess is so formidable that no one dares step forward.”
“Then that’s enough.”
As Pung Yang spoke, he extended his hand. The bandit, moving to clasp it without thought, staggered and collapsed.
A hidden blade was buried deep between his furrowed brows, his expression frozen in bewilderment.
“How many soldiers remain?”
This sight was familiar to Pung Yang’s right-hand subordinate. He glanced at the corpse and answered.
“Roughly one hundred fifty, perhaps slightly more, but fewer than two hundred. It’s true our losses have been greater.”
“And theirs? The ones on the wall now are the Hangsan Inspection Bureau’s final bastion.”
“You mean those few remaining are all that’s left?”
“That’s right.”
“Not that I doubt you, Bandit Lord, but given that fire attack just now, there might be another trap.”
“That’s precisely what I’m counting on.”
Pung Yang let out a dry chuckle. He couldn’t say whose mind had conceived this stratagem, but it was rather clever.
Had he possessed less experience than he did now, Pung Yang too would have suspected another trap and withdrawn his forces.
‘They’re desperately buying time. Are they waiting for reinforcements?’
If so, there was no reason to hesitate further.
Overwhelming numbers against a depleted force—even with the Red Wind Bandits having suffered considerable losses, sweeping away the Hangsan Inspection Bureau would be child’s play.
And beyond that….
“I’ll go myself.”
“You intend to go personally, Bandits’ Chief?”
“Of course. How else does one catch a tiger?”
Pung Yang broke into a hearty laugh, his hand instinctively reaching into his garment.
Beneath the sturdy leather pouch lay something that could fell a tiger in a single stroke.

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