Murim Login - Chapter 532

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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 532
The young man pondered deeply.
Where had things gone wrong?
Was it when he’d choked down those dumplings someone had bought for him? Or when he’d dozed off while standing guard, ignoring the dull ache creeping through his belly?
He couldn’t pinpoint exactly where or how things had spiraled into disaster. But one thing was certain.
CRASH!
The deafening roar that erupted the moment he stepped into the outhouse had obliterated everything.
“Ah, so warm….”
His squad leader had said it once. That surrender brings comfort.
He was right. The sensation was exquisite, and warmth flooded his lower body like the embrace of his mother’s arms.
Then why were tears streaming down his cheeks?
‘Why indeed. Damn it.’
He’d done it. He’d actually done it.
In the outhouse of a massive inn located on the main road teeming with people.
The fact that the stalls were separated by partitions—a mercy afforded only to establishments frequented by the wealthy—offered scant consolation, but it changed nothing: he could never leave this place alive.
‘If anyone discovers me like this, it’s over.’
The mere thought sent ice down his spine and twisted his organs.
Strip away pride and martial prowess from a martial artist, and only skin remains.
Better to face the Demon Master in a life-or-death duel than to have this discovered and the rumors spread throughout the Murim.
‘What do I do?’
The crisis of a lifetime.
His lower garments and underclothes would have to be abandoned, naturally. The leather shoes he’d splurged on recently were already beyond recovery.
So if he stripped everything off, covered his face with his upper robe, and ran with all his might….
‘I’d be killed.’
Any martial artist who saw a man flailing naked across the main road would be legally justified in striking him down on the spot.
Every passing martial artist would rush out and swing their weapons without hesitation. He might face even worse attacks than from the Demon Master of Dark Heaven.
‘Then I have no choice but to ask someone for help. Jeom So-i, perhaps.’
That was manageable. He could summon Jeom So-i, slip her some silver, and she’d bring cloth and clothes to clean himself with.
If Jeom So-i happened to know his identity, it would cost extra, but that was better than funeral expenses.
‘The others… no. I absolutely cannot let Elder Brother, Gung Ki-bang, or those men see me like this!’
Hyuk Moo-jin made a firm resolution.
Unfortunately, his companions were more relentless than vipers. If they caught wind of this weakness, they’d mock him for at least ten years—possibly thirty.
No, they’d likely never stop, even as Hyuk Moo-jin lay on his deathbed.
‘Moo-jin….’
‘Good grief, you bastard from the Hyuk family!’
‘Heh heh, you’ve arrived at just the right moment, Elder Brother. And Dae-hyeop Gung.’
‘Sniff sniff. Of course I arrived on time! You soiled your pants that day because you were late, but I wasn’t!’
‘Hyuk, rest easy now. You can waft the stench of shit freely from behind the screen.’
‘…Please, just stop.’
Even in thought, it was a pathetic end.
I briefly considered having Jeom So-i fetch Chung Poong from the quarters, but that would have been digging my own grave.
‘Wow, this is the first time I’ve seen someone soil their pants like that! At first, I thought it was a snake! It’s a thousand-year-old dung guardian that looks like Mi-mi!’
‘Wait. Cheong So-hyup! Just a moment!’
‘Please wait. I’ll call the others! Hey there! You, Wudang Sect Taoist passing by! I know someone here who’s had an accident with their pants….’
‘Damn it, you bastard!’
It would be a hundred times better to walk around with a sign hanging from my neck that read ‘The Man Who Soiled Himself.’
It was precisely when Hyuk Moo-jin, his spine chilled by the horrifying images flooding his mind, was trembling with dread.
Creak.
The sound of a door opening, accompanied by the presence of someone approaching.
Hyuk Moo-jin’s eyes snapped open, and he let out a forced cough.
“Ahem. Cough.”
When there was no response from outside the door, his coughing grew more intense.
“Cough-cough-cough! Who’s there? Hack, anyone? Hack!”
“Hmm?”
Finally, a response came. Hyuk Moo-jin swallowed hard and forced out a grave voice.
“Is that Jeom So-i?”
Someone outside the door answered. A young man’s soft voice carried a natural casual tone.
“You seem to be looking for Jeom So-i, but unfortunately, I don’t have the leisure to concern myself with that. You’ve heard it too, I’m sure—quite a commotion has broken out.”
There was no way not to know. That cursed thunderous sound had been the decisive cause. Though the building hadn’t collapsed, everyone seemed busy with the aftermath.
‘Still, I should take comfort in the fact that someone is visiting the outhouse in the midst of all this.’
It was then that Hyuk Moo-jin muttered inwardly.
“Then, suffer the shame.”
With those casual words, the presence gradually receded. Hyuk Moo-jin’s heart sank as he cried out.
“Wait! Just wait a moment!”
“Hmm?”
“I’m sorry, but could you help me? I truly need assistance.”
“Well, I’m a busy man myself.”
“A rather trivial problem has arisen, you see.”
“If it’s trivial, you should solve it yourself.”
“Wait! Elder Brother! Father! My savior!”
After a brief silence, the voice came again.
“Did you… soil yourself?”
Soil yourself. Soil yourself. Soil yourself…
The words echoed in his ears like a refrain. Hyuk Moo-jin answered in a choked voice.
“Yes. I did.”
“Big or small?”
“….”
“Ah. Both?”
“Sob. Whimper.”
The man outside the door murmured softly.
“They say that when you handle great matters, small ones resolve themselves naturally.”
“Please, I beg you, help me out.”
“If I happen to see Jeom So-i on my way, I’ll drop a hint or two.”
“C-couldn’t you bring it now? By then it might dry out completely.”
“…Filthy business. Well, I have someone to meet, so I’ll take my leave.”
“W-wait a moment!”
Hyuk Moo-jin, growing desperate, squeezed his eyes shut and opened his mouth.
“I-I am Hyuk Moo-jin! It seems you’re a martial artist yourself, so if you’d just help me this once and keep quiet about it, I swear I’ll never forget this debt!”
“Hyuk Moo-jin, you say? Could you be the little toe of Yeolhwa Shinryong?”
“…Yes, that’s right. Though it’s the right arm, not the little toe.”
Hyuk Moo-jin’s vision darkened. He’d suspected the man outside was a martial artist, but he never expected his identity to be recognized so instantly.
Yet at least he’d succeeded in stopping the man from leaving.
“Whether coincidence or fate, this is amusing.”
“…?”
Flutter.
As Hyuk Moo-jin stood bewildered, a cryptic chuckle accompanied a silk robe fluttering down from above his head.
Hyuk Moo-jin caught the robe awkwardly and stammered his gratitude.
“Th-thank you.”
“Clean yourself up properly before coming out. I’ll give you a chance to repay this favor.”
“That is… do you perhaps know our leader…?”
“We’ve never met. But Yeolhwa Shinryong won’t exactly snub the one who helped his little toe—or rather, his right arm.”
A gentle voice continued.
“After all, I’d be his benefactor.”
“…!”
Hyuk Moo-jin realized something had gone terribly wrong, though he couldn’t fathom what.
But it was too late for regrets. Hyuk Moo-jin spoke with a rigid expression.
“So you threw the robe just to say that?”
“Why? Changed your mind? Then I could just throw it back—”
“Since we’re at it, could you find me some presentable clothes too? What I have now is beyond mere cleaning.”
“…”
* * *
Gowol Pavilion.
That was the name of the luxurious three-story inn.
Given its size, trouble seemed to occur frequently. As we stepped inside, the proprietor appeared as if waiting, leading a dozen hired swordsmen toward us.
Then he opened his mouth with a menacing expression.
“I don’t know who you are, but no matter how skilled you martial artists are, compensation must be paid—”
I cut him off without hearing him finish.
“First, my condolences, and how much for repairs?”
“What?”
“Repair costs.”
“…It looks like it’ll come to around two hundred taels.”
“Then let’s settle on three hundred taels, including compensation for various damages.”
“Pardon?”
At most, only the railings and some walls on the third floor had collapsed.
I’d boldly quoted two hundred taels, and now I was countering with three hundred—the innkeeper must have thought I was out of my mind.
But I felt no hesitation whatsoever at naming such an enormous sum. The reason was simple.
It wasn’t my money anyway.
“However, put it under the Hwangbo Family’s name. If someone called So-ga-ju gives you trouble when you go collect, just tell them Jin Tae-kyung ordered it.”
“How am I supposed to say that…? Wait. Jin Tae-kyung?”
The innkeeper and the hired swordsmen, who had been eyeing me suspiciously, widened their eyes in shock.
“Y-you mean Jin Tae-kyung? That Jin Tae-kyung from the Taewon Jin Family?”
“Gasp, Yeolhwa Shinryong! It’s Yeolhwa Shinryong!”
“I, I’m overwhelmed.”
To operate an inn of this scale on the main road of Hanan, one needed considerable capability.
And the proprietor of Gowol Pavilion certainly had sharp instincts.
“For Jin Tae-kyung, a great hero, to grace us with a visit—it is the honor of a lifetime!”
“Consider it an honor to your family as well. Anyway, my throat’s been parched since earlier….”
“I shall prepare a feast fit to break the table legs! Everyone, what are you doing!”
Indeed, financial treatment was the best cure for anger.
As the innkeeper, his eyes now sparkling as though nothing had happened, disappeared with his swordsmen in tow, a soft laugh escaped from beside me.
I turned my head toward the source of laughter—a sound that made my ears tingle just hearing it.
“What is it?”
Eun Bi-hwa, Ju Hwa-ran. She answered with eyes like forget-me-nots.
“Just, I was remembering what happened last time.”
“Last time? Ah.”
“You haven’t forgotten, have you?”
“There’s no way I could have.”
The dispute between the Yongbong Escort Agency and the Zhongnan Sect.
While I was heading to Sichuan to treat Jeok Cheon-gang, I had inadvertently become involved in that matter, broke the Tae-eul Mujeong Sword when he tried to crush me with force, and even participated in the subsequent negotiations.
‘I uprooted two or three of the Zhongnan Sect’s pillars back then.’
Ju Hwa-ran was clearly recalling that situation. Her eyes, gazing at me, shimmered softly.
“It hasn’t been that long, but it feels like such a distant memory.”
“I suppose it does. Strange, isn’t it.”
What was truly strange was something else entirely. Looking into the eyes of the person I was speaking with while talking had proven to be this difficult.
“Why are you avoiding my gaze?”
“I have a wandering eye. I’m looking straight ahead right now.”
“Heh.”
“Why, why are you laughing?”
Had I misspoken somehow?
Ju Hwa-ran wore a gentle smile as she watched my flustered reaction.
“You really haven’t changed at all, Jin Dae-hyeop. Not one bit.”
“Neither have you, Miss Ju.”
There was something I nearly blurted out carelessly, but I managed to hold it back.
Partly because of the several pairs of eyes fixed on me from the side, their gazes narrowed to slits.
I feigned a cough while discreetly sending a transmission.
– Ki-bang. Why are you staring so intently? Do you want your solar plexus pierced?
– Ahem. Cough.
One down.
But there were still three more to deal with.
I fixed my gaze on the one who seemed most useless among them.
– Hey.
Konryun Un-ryong Hak-woo—the Kunlun Sect’s finest late-stage expert, who had been stomped on the crown of his head and sent plummeting during the preliminary rounds of the Seongnae Tournament.
For some reason, he who had developed circular alopecia flinched at my gaze and sent a transmission.
– W-what is the matter, Jin Dou?
– Nothing much. Just thought you might have urgent business elsewhere.
– Eh?
– Be honest. You’re busy right now, aren’t you?
– Infinite Buddha. I am not busy at all.
– Yes, you are. I’m sure you just remembered something urgent you need to attend to.
– My master has already given permission for today’s appointment. There is no urgent matter….
– Hey, Hak.
– Infinite Buddha?
– Leave. Unless you want every last hair on your head plucked out.
– …!
To those suffering from alopecia, hair is as precious as life itself. Only now understanding the threat, Hak-woo’s face crumpled as he turned to Ju Hwa-ran and opened his mouth.
“Um. Miss Ju.”
“Yes? What is it?”
“This humble monk has just remembered urgent business he must attend to. I sincerely apologize for this rudeness, Miss Ju.”
“Oh, it’s fine. Please go ahead.”
“But still, it is rather impolite….”
“I won’t be going far. Please, take care on your way out.”
“Just a moment. At least let me finish what I was saying….”
“We’ll meet again next time!”
Now that I thought about it, Ju Hwa-ran seemed to have quite an impatient temperament.
As Konryun Un-ryong Hak-woo disappeared, his eyes glistening with tears as he alternated his gaze between me and Ju Hwa-ran, my attention naturally shifted to the two remaining people.
“Let me make this clear—I’m not leaving. I’m the direct bodyguard of the Escort Agency Master.”
Song Il-seom, the escort agent cradling a sword in his arms and sitting in a defiant posture, spoke, and I merely shrugged my shoulders.
“I wasn’t asking you to leave. I had no such intention.”
“Hmm. I’ll trust you then.”
Song Il-seom’s public identity was Ju Hwa-ran’s bodyguard, but his hidden identity, known only to a select few, was something else entirely.
He was the last surviving heir of the Guangdong Chen Family—a martial clan that had been annihilated by the Demon Cult during the Jeok Cheon-gang Incident. Once known by the alias “Soul Reaper,” he was an undefeated rogue of legendary renown.
‘This fellow hasn’t changed one bit.’
I had my share of fame back then, but it pales in comparison to my current reputation.
Yet Song Il-seom remained as composed and taciturn as when we first met, unchanged by the passage of time.
Perhaps that’s precisely why I found him so agreeable.
But the last one remaining….
“Hungry. Food. It’s too late.”
“….”
What’s with that shameless attitude?
This mysterious giant—why had he followed us?
I didn’t know the reason, but I hadn’t bothered to stop him either. I was curious about his true identity.
With [Perception], I could only discern his level and name at best. His sect affiliation and connections—those required conversation to uncover.
“Seems you’re quite famished.”
“Yes. I, very hungry.”
The giant continued with a grave expression.
“Today. Only six meals. Dying.”
“….”
Six meals—was he serious?
Regardless of which sect he belonged to, I’d wager my wrist against Hyuk Moo-jin’s that this bastard had already bankrupted us with his food expenses.
‘Wait. Hyuk Moo-jin?’
Now that I thought about it, he’d vanished claiming he needed to relieve himself—so why hadn’t he returned?
It was precisely as I glanced around, finally noticing Hyuk Moo-jin’s absence, that it happened.
“L-Leader!”
A cry tinged with inexplicable unease.
Yet my gaze wasn’t fixed on Hyuk Moo-jin, who had finally appeared.
Behind him stood a stranger, grinning faintly in my direction, and our eyes met. I murmured softly to myself.
“Who in the world is that….”

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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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