Murim Login - Chapter 74

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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 74
“You’ve changed.”
It was the first thing Jin Wi-kyung said after entering the office. He studied me carefully, then patted Jin Moo-kyung on the shoulder.
“You’ve worked hard.”
But despite his warm words, Jin Moo-kyung replied with a sullen expression.
“I almost called for a funeral director.”
“You certainly have a way with words.”
“You—hah. I’m holding back because our Elder Brother is here.”
“I appreciate that too.”
Jin Wi-kyung chuckled and offered me a seat. I sat down, took a sip of the warm tea, and looked around the office.
“This place has changed quite a bit too. It was a mess the last time I was here.”
The office was now organized and tidy. Just half a month ago, when I’d last visited, it had been cluttered with all manner of things.
Now even the desk, which should have been buried under stacks of documents, was clean.
“…It’s been a difficult time.”
Jin Wi-kyung muttered with a clouded expression.
“But it’s almost over. Just a little more—just a little more and I can endure it.”
“…”
This man’s mind is half gone too. Then again, it’s strange he’s still sane after handling that enormous workload alone.
‘If it were me, I’d have fled in the dead of night long ago.’
Looking at myself, martial artists are, to put it kindly, physical types—to put it bluntly, thick-headed. I’m not trying to insult anyone; it’s simply the truth.
‘The family elders were similar too.’
The Grand Elder had his reasons for placing puppets in positions of power, but the senior members who sided with Jin Wi-kyung were far from capable administrators.
For someone born into such a prestigious martial family to be both skilled at administration and exceptional in martial prowess made Jin Wi-kyung truly exceptional.
“Just one day—just one day of rest. I want to rest. I want to rest.”
As he muttered the same words like a man with obsessive-compulsive disorder, Jin Moo-kyung clicked his tongue.
“Being born as the second son is such a blessing.”
I nodded in agreement.
“Couldn’t agree more.”
Even in reality, managing my own family drains me to the bone. If I’d logged in as Jin Wi-kyung instead of Jin Tae-kyung… it would be nothing but despair.
The Taewon Jin Family alone commands hundreds of servants. The only advantage is being the master of the house, so I don’t have to worry about the deposit increasing.
“The eldest son’s shoulders bear a heavy burden.”
At my words, Jin Moo-kyung snorted derisively.
“You don’t have the right to say such things, so keep your mouth shut. Isn’t that right, Elder Brother?”
Jin Wi-kyung gazed at me with glistening eyes.
“How is it you always know just the right thing to say?”
“No, Elder Brother.”
“You’ve grown up. You’ve truly grown up.”
“…Am I allowed to curse right now?”
Cold words followed, but Jin Wi-kyung, as if hearing nothing, still wore an expression of deep emotion as he spread both arms wide.
“Our youngest—let me embrace you just once.”
“Yes, Elder Brother.”
“Youngest!”
Whoosh!
Jin Moo-kyung muttered with a constipated expression on his face.
“This damned household. I suppose I’ll have to come back again.”
“Moo-kyung, come over here too.”
“I refuse. You could beat me to death and I still wouldn’t go.”
“We’ve finally gathered in one place, and you won’t even listen to your only Elder Brother’s request?”
At the plaintive tone in his voice, Jin Moo-kyung flinched.
“…Just this once.”
Before he could finish speaking, a hand the size of a pot lid dragged Jin Moo-kyung forward.
Buried against Jin Wi-kyung’s chest alongside me, he gaped silently.
You. Are. Dead.
Well. I should stay out of sight for a while. Since I’m leaving soon anyway, I just need to avoid them for a few days.
‘If worst comes to worst, I can always log out.’
I’ve completed the Quest anyway, and I was already thinking about heading back. There’s the contract issue with Choi Team Leader to settle, and more than anything, my body is itching to test my newly refined martial arts in a Gate.
“Thank you. You give me strength.”
After finishing his emotional embrace, Jin Wi-kyung wiped his eyes with his sleeve.
“There’s just… so much work.”
“…”
He really does seem exhausted.
The tears of a human weapon stir something solemn in my heart. I patted Jin Wi-kyung’s back.
“Hang in there.”
Even Jin Moo-kyung, who had been wearing a death mask just moments ago, sent a sympathetic glance.
“Elder Brother. If you’re really struggling, why not put this fellow to work?”
“…?”
What nonsense is this? I asked, bewildered.
“Normally in situations like this, I should at least offer to help, shouldn’t I? That’s what one says.”
Jin Moo-kyung answered confidently.
“A martial artist does not speak empty words.”
“Then why are you dragging me into this?”
“You have plenty of time.”
“I don’t!”
“I have even less. I need to train. And I’m terrible with paperwork.”
“I’m ranked seventh in my class!”
“What nonsense is that?”
“It means I’m bad at studying.”
Jin Moo-kyung, who had been lost in thought for a moment, frowned.
“Utterly useless. Elder Brother, but this fellow does have good strength, so he’d be perfect as a laborer. I’ll take my leave now.”
“Wait.”
The creature spun around quickly, but a massive hand—no, a giant paw—caught it by the nape of its neck. The owner of that hand was, unsurprisingly, Jin Wi-kyung.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“Huh?”
“You need to hear why I called you both here before you leave.”
“…What do you mean?”
Anxiety flickered across Jin Moo-kyung’s face as he asked. Without a mirror, I couldn’t see my own expression, but I was probably wearing something similar.
‘I smell something.’
I had an uncanny talent for detecting this particular scent.
The stench of misfortune. A premonition that something bothersome was about to happen. Jin Wi-kyung’s next words transformed my suspicion into certainty.
“You’ll need to visit the Hangsan Inspection Bureau.”
Ding.
– Quest has been forcibly generated.
“…”
Damn it. Now it doesn’t even ask.
* * *
I stared at the translucent Quest window.
Quest
[Yesterday’s Enemy, Today’s Ally]
Now that all truths have been revealed, the Hangsan Inspection Bureau is not an enemy but an ally to be embraced. Invite them to the Taewon Jin Family Estate for the upcoming First Day of the Year.
Rank
: First Class
Restriction
: Jin Tae-kyung
Objective
: Deliver invitation (Incomplete)
Reward
: ???
Failure
: None
After reading it through twice, then a third time, my initial bewilderment had largely subsided.
‘Not bad at all.’
The Quest difficulty wasn’t high, and there was no failure penalty. It was a simple task—just deliver the invitation and it would be done.
Most importantly…
‘Logout.’
Ding.
– Do you wish to logout?
Logout functioned without issue. The forcibly assigned Quest left me somewhat uneasy, but this was acceptable enough to accept.
‘Well, it’s not like I have the option to refuse anyway.’
Unlike me, who had already come to terms with this reality, Jin Moo-kyung was resisting with all his might.
“So what you’re saying is…”
Jin Moo-kyung continued with difficulty.
“You’re saying we should invite the Hangsan Inspection Bureau to the First Day of the Year celebration?”
Jin Wi-kyung replied.
“Yes. They’re guests we cannot afford to exclude.”
“But why must we—why must I go?”
“….”
Look at him struggling to exempt only himself.
But I found myself partially agreeing with Jin Moo-kyung’s question.
‘Why us specifically?’
The next moment, Jin Wi-kyung’s answer only deepened the mystery.
“The Hangsan Sword Sect Master requested it directly.”
I found myself blurting out a question.
“The Sect Master?”
I had witnessed the death of Blood Wolf Sword Lee Cheon-baek with my own eyes. The Second Young Master Lee So-gun had been poisoned, and the rumored Sect Master I’d never even seen had apparently died in some pathetic bandit raid on an empty house.
‘And I thought the Hangsan Inspection Bureau’s elite masters were completely annihilated at Pal Cheon Hyeop.’
Yet now there’s a Sect Master?
Jin Moo-kyung’s reaction was equally skeptical.
“The damage must have been catastrophic. I’ve only heard rumors, but wouldn’t it be reasonable to seal the sect? Isn’t that the situation?”
Jin Wi-kyung shook his head.
“They were once a pillar of Shanxi’s martial world. We cannot underestimate their foundation. With a focal point, they can attempt a comeback.”
A focal point.
It seemed the new Sect Master of the Hangsan Inspection Bureau—the one who requested that Jin Moo-kyung and I be sent—was that new focal point. I asked.
“Who is it?”
“Eun So-wol.”
“Eun So-wol? Eun So-wol, you say….”
I’d never heard that name before. Given the surname Lee, there seemed to be some connection to Lee Cheon-baek, but I couldn’t place it.
“You truly don’t remember?”
“A hidden son? A distant relative? I’m not certain.”
“So you really can’t recall.”
“Pardon?”
Can’t recall? What was he talking about?
‘Do I know this person?’
Jin Wi-kyung regarded me with an enigmatic gaze as I tilted my head in confusion.
“The new Sect Master of the Hangsan Inspection Bureau is a woman. She is Lee Cheon-baek’s third child and the only sister of the deceased Sect Master and Lee So-gun.”
In that instant, a fragment of memory flashed through my mind.
The stage of memory: the Grand Conference Hall. The actor: Lee So-gun. His face flushed crimson with rage as he shouted at me.
‘You shameless wretch who tore my sister’s clothes and tried to violate her!’
Ah!
“Could it be her?”
“That’s right.”
“…Damn it.”
Only Jin Moo-kyung, utterly bewildered, blinked his eyes repeatedly.
“What are you talking about? Hey, do you know this person?”
“Well, that’s… I’d say it’s somewhere between knowing and not knowing.”
“What kind of nonsense is that? So what exactly is your relationship?”
“Hmm.”
A former girlfriend whose face I couldn’t even remember? Or perhaps a femme fatale?
‘One thing’s for certain.’
Neither of us was particularly delighted by this reunion.
I exhaled a deep sigh.
* * *
In the end, Jin Moo-kyung also accepted the journey to Hangsan Inspection Bureau. It was thanks to a masterstroke that Jin Wi-kyung had prepared.
‘I’ve heard Hangsan Inspection Bureau has so many secret techniques….’
‘Does it matter how many there are? It’s not like I can see them anyway.’
‘It does matter.’
‘What?’
‘The new Sect Master understands you well. He says he’s willing to reveal some of the supreme martial arts if you come.’
‘…When do we depart?’
‘Right now.’
Everything proceeded with remarkable swiftness. It was merely an hour ago that I boarded the four-horse carriage with Jin Wi-kyung’s farewell blessing.
Jin Moo-kyung, seated across from me, grumbled with a tone tinged with dissatisfaction.
“A carriage, no less. This journey alone will take an eternity.”
Given how vast the territory was, reaching Eung-hyeon where Hangsan Inspection Bureau was located would take roughly four days even with optimistic estimates.
For Jin Moo-kyung, who desperately wanted to witness the supreme martial arts of Hangsan Inspection Bureau as soon as possible, that span of time felt like an eon.
“Hey, Coachman, can’t you go any faster?”
A response came from the driver’s seat beyond the partition.
“First of all, I’m not a Coachman. And no, I can’t go faster. You wouldn’t know since you’re inside, but it’s freezing out here—I’m practically on the verge of freezing to death. Anyway, that’s how it is.”
“Then crack the whip harder! If you’re a Coachman, you should be able to manage that much.”
“I’m telling you again, I’m not a Coachman. The whip is frozen solid right now, so I think it’s more accurate to call it an icicle. If I poke the horses with this icicle, I have a feeling they’ll get very angry….”
“What? If you’re not even a Coachman, why are you sitting up there!”
“Before we departed, you said the attendants were a nuisance and ordered them all to leave, so the Coachman left with them.”
Jin Moo-kyung, who had been lost in thought, suddenly slapped his forehead.
“Oh, that’s right.”
“….”
This guy really isn’t normal either.
“Then who are you?”
I answered while recalling the law of conservation of eccentricity.
“Hyuk Moo-jin.”
“Who is Hyuk Moo-jin?”
“You’ll know when you see my face. Hey, Moo-jin!”
The partition slid down, revealing Hyuk Moo-jin’s face covered in a thick layer of frost. Jin Moo-kyung, who had been observing the fellow’s face as his teeth chattered incessantly, flicked his finger.
“Ah, so it’s you.”
Hyuk Moo-jin replied curtly.
“Yes. That would be me.”
“But why didn’t you turn back? Why didn’t you bring the Coachman?”
As if he’d been waiting for that very question, Hyuk Moo-jin puffed out his chest proudly.
“I only take orders from the Team Leader.”
“Team Leader?”
“The Third Young Master, sir.”
Jin Moo-kyung’s head snapped toward me.
“Did you call for him?”
“No, I didn’t call for him. He just showed up.”
“Is that so?”
Hyuk Moo-jin looked hurt, his gaze alternating between Jin Moo-kyung and me.
“You two really are brothers, aren’t you?”
“Hyung Moo-jin, was it? Explain what that name actually means.”
Jin Moo-kyung snapped sharply, but I let out a lazy yawn.
Whether Hyuk Moo-jin was showing off or not, my internal energy had already surpassed him long ago.
“It’s Hyuk Moo-jin, not Hyung Moo-jin. And I plan to test whether this whip or icicle of mine can poke some sense into your rear end.”
Click.
Jin Moo-kyung glared at the partition as it shut abruptly, then let out a sigh and settled back into his seat.
“I should’ve known better. When the water upstream is filthy, the water downstream can’t possibly be clean… What are you doing right now?”
I wrapped the fur pelt around myself as I answered.
“Circulating my energy.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Energy circulation.”
“Then why does it look to me like you’re preparing for something?”
“You’re mistaken.”
“Then why are you covering yourself with the fur pelt?”
“I’m sensitive to the cold.”
I crossed my legs in a lotus position for good measure. I also made sure to press my body firmly against the carriage wall so I wouldn’t topple over.
‘I can’t entrust my precious body to that bastard.’
If I returned with broken limbs or something, that would be absolutely unacceptable. It was far better to make sure he couldn’t even touch me.
“If you touch me, you’ll regret it. Got it? You know about demonic cultivation, right? Or maybe you don’t.”
“This guy really is something else.”
The moment Jin Moo-kyung raised his fist, I quickly closed my eyes. To all appearances, I was beginning my energy circulation. As expected, no fist came flying at me.
Now then…
‘Logout.’
Ding.
– Do you wish to logout?
The answer was already decided.

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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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