Surviving as the Sacheon Dang Clan’s Servant - Chapter 80

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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 80
Thunk! Thud-thud!
With a dull sound, five fish flipped belly-up and shot through the water’s surface all at once.
“What? Did I just see that?”
Yeon Ryang rubbed his eyes in disbelief, staring at the stream before letting out an exclamation and hauling up the fish.
“Whoa! I’ve never heard of anyone catching fish with stones. Is this the sort of trick people from the Dang Clan can pull off? That’s incredible, isn’t it, sister?”
“It’s not a trick—it’s the Dark Technique.”
“Right, right. A trick-like Dark Technique, then. If I stick with you, I won’t have to worry about meals. Ha, that’s fantastic.”
Somehow his reaction made it sound as though I’d just performed some circus act.
It was praise of a sort, but why did it leave such a sour taste?
I pushed aside the nagging feeling and asked him a question.
“Should I catch more?”
“Let’s get five more. The fuller the belly, the better.”
Yeon Ryang grinned good-naturedly and pulled a Short Sword from his belt, beginning to clean the fish.
I nodded and bent down to pick up another stone.
As I retrieved the floating fish, Yeon Ryang deftly scraped off scales and removed the entrails, then snapped off a thin branch and threaded the cleaned fish onto it.
In moments, he’d fashioned a whole armful of skewers, which he rinsed in the running stream and shook dry.
“Come on, sister. I’ll roast them for you.”
He shrugged his shoulders and strode off with the skewers in hand.
I watched his broad back and scratched my cheek.
The way his frame blocked the view of everything behind him made him look less like a person than a walking door.
He planted the skewers in a line before the campfire and pulled something from his pocket.
“What’s that?”
“Rock salt.”
Yeon Ryang rubbed the rock salt across the surface of each fish.
Once he’d seasoned them evenly on both sides, he held them over the flames.
Sizzle!
Oil bubbled and popped, releasing a savory aroma into the air.
Ju Ryeong, who’d gotten to his feet at some point, sparkled with excitement, drool dripping from his mouth.
“Here, sister. Take one.”
“Thank you.”
“You too, furball. Eat up.”
Yip!
Delighted, Ju Ryeong pounced on the fish, snatching it up before tumbling across the ground, rolling and bouncing.
“Oh no, it’s hot. Let it cool down first.”
Yeon Ryang chuckled and peeled some bark from a nearby branch, laying it on the ground and setting the fish on top.
Ju Ryeong poked and prodded at the fish with his paws until, finally, he pushed the white flesh into his mouth.
Munch-munch. Munch-munch-munch-munch.
The way Ju Ryeong devoured his share—you’d think he’d gone ten days without food—he turned his gaze back to Yeon Ryang, clearly asking for more.
“Finished already? Not bad, furball.”
Yeon Ryang’s eyes went wide and he handed over another small fish.
This time, Ju Ryeong seemed to have learned that touching fish straight from the fire was hot; he didn’t reach forward right away.
Instead, he lay down in front of the bark and waited for the fish to cool to an acceptable temperature.
I couldn’t help but laugh at the expression of stern concentration on his small face.
I watched Ju Ryeong sidelong as I bit into my own perfectly roasted fish. For something seasoned only with salt, it was remarkably good.
Yeon Ryang, watching me work my cheeks as I chewed, broke into a grin.
“Eat plenty, sister. That’s how you grow tall.”
“What? You keep bringing up my height, but I’m hardly small now, am I? I’m five feet four inches.”
“That’s nothing. You need to grow more, sister. A proper martial artist should be at least six feet tall.”
I’d already grown to nearly six feet. Was he trying to turn me into a walking door like himself?
I stared at him with a blank expression, and he scratched his chin sheepishly.
“Ah. Perhaps people from the Dang Clan tend to be smaller than average? That might explain why you feel you’re already tall. But with your current build, it’s not nearly enough. In the martial world, you need more height to exert presence suppression.”
……
I wasn’t some street thug, and why would I need to rely on physical presence to suppress anyone? I couldn’t even think of a response, I was so dumbfounded.
“I’m six feet four inches. Want me to spare you an inch?”
“No thank you. Besides, I use the Dark Technique. I’d rather move in shadow—I don’t need presence suppression at all.”
Undeterred by my grumbling, Yeon Ryang simply laughed and pushed a fish skewer toward me.
“Right, right. I understand. There are good points to being small too. Who knows, if you eat well from now on, you might gain another inch or so. Let’s just eat for now.”
……
This man is absolutely infuriating.
When I said nothing, Yeon Ryang shook the skewer again.
“Ha, come on—eat before you cool off. Sister. Food tastes terrible cold.”
I glared at him, then snatched the fish skewer away roughly.
* * *
He said unlucky things often enough, yet Yeon Ryang was a cheerful person.
It was hard to believe that someone raised as a human weapon, locked away in the Demonic Sect’s training hall, could shine with such brightness.
“Sister, won’t you try one of these soup dumplings?”
“I’m fine. Please, have some yourself.”
“But that skewer looks delicious too.”
“Yes, yes. Go ahead.”
He was a bit too cheerful, perhaps.
Like a sparrow that couldn’t pass by a grain mill, he stopped at every street stall, eager to taste whatever snacks caught his eye.
I’d begun to wonder whether I’d hired a bodyguard or signed up for a culinary tour.
The vendors, initially wary of Yeon Ryang’s intimidating appearance, grew bolder in their hawking once they saw him eating quietly and peacefully.
“Honored guest, the heart is perfectly grilled. Do try some.”
“Oh, Sister, want to try some grilled heart?”
“There’s no need to ask—just eat whatever you like. You’re going to anyway.”
“Ha, thank you.”
He smiled warmly, took the chopsticks the vendor offered, and began eating the grilled heart.
Ju Ryeong, perched on my shoulder, let out a short cry as if asking for a taste.
“Chirp!”
“You furry scrap. Want one too? Sister, is it all right if I get another plate?”
“Go ahead.”
The moment I consented, Ju Ryeong leaped down and settled onto Yeon Ryang’s lap.
Yeon Ryang held up a piece of heart with a thoughtful expression.
“Will you eat chicken heart or pork heart?”
“Screech!”
“Hmm? You want both?”
“Screeeech!”
Were they actually communicating, or were they just on the same level?
I watched, utterly bemused, as Yeon Ryang and the furry creature divided up the hearts between them.
My earlier wariness of him now felt foolish, given how utterly at peace he seemed.
To look at him now, you’d think he was just some idle uncle from the neighborhood.
Not that I could afford to drop my guard—but the longer I watched, the more he seemed like someone who wasn’t fundamentally bad.
Ju Ryeong felt equally at ease.
Sprawled across his broad lap, working his jaws contentedly, the creature seemed to regard it as his own bed.
Perhaps he was pleased because this was someone I’d chosen and brought along myself.
If Gyeong A saw this, she’d be jealous. She’s barely gotten to hold him a few times.
The thought of Gyeong A, who always lit up at the sight of Ju Ryeong, cast a shadow over my mood.
How was Gyeong A doing? Was she restless without anyone to exchange written words with?
I wondered how Deok Ju was faring. Whether her injuries were healing, whether she was receiving proper treatment.
Song Ji was no doubt crying every day—she worried so easily.
I missed them. All of them.
I muttered this under my breath, my gaze dropping to the ground.
The days when the three of us shared mandarin oranges and rice cakes felt distant now, like a memory from ages past.
Fighting off the gloom, I turned to the vendor.
“How much is it?”
“Three coins, Miss.”
As I settled the bill for everything Yeon Ryang and Ju Ryeong had consumed, Yeon Ryang set down his chopsticks and rose, contentedly rubbing his belly.
Ju Ryeong scampered up onto his shoulder and let out a delicate burp.
Yeon Ryang chuckled softly, stroking Ju Ryeong’s head.
“You furry little thing. You eat better than your owner does. By next spring, you’ll be bigger than Sister.”
Bigger?
He spoke nonsense—whether joking or serious, I couldn’t tell—and gazed at me while humming to himself.
“We’ve filled our bellies well enough. Let’s move on. Sister. Once we cross this mountain range, we’ll be in Hubei.”
He pointed to the towering peaks ahead and began walking forward.
I swallowed hard and followed behind him.
The moment when I’d finally leave Sichuan was actually arriving.
I’d set Wuhan as my destination on impulse, but now that it was drawing near, my heart felt unsettled.
“Had we taken a boat, we’d have enjoyed the scenery of the Three Gorges of the Yangtze and composed poetry. But here we are, crossing Wu Mountain on foot instead. What a pity.”
I brushed away Yeon Ryang’s mumbling with a light wave of my hand and rubbed my eyes.
My silver coins were running thin. The destination was within reach, and soon I’d part ways with Yeon Ryang.
In Zhongyuan where I knew not a soul, I began to worry about how I’d make a living.
Should I take up escort work? Or throw myself into a medical clinic?
Since I was rather confident in external wound treatment, I might be able to land some work as a physician’s assistant.
I could even go to the Hao Gate and ask them for a job.
Hwa Hong had said they’d help if I used her name—I could probably get hired as a maid at an inn or pleasure house.
Yes, maid work would be better.
To lie low quietly until my grandfather’s seclusion ends, I’d need work that doesn’t draw attention.
No one would expect someone with martial skills to take a maid’s position anyway.
……Laundry again? Damn it.
Sighing deeply as I walked, I buried my face in Yeon Ryang’s back.
My forehead throbbed where it struck his solid muscle.
I rubbed my forehead irritably and looked up to find Yeon Ryang gazing down at me with a chuckle.
“Will the ground split open just because you sigh? You need to sigh harder. Little one.”
What’s he going on about? Honestly.
Pretending not to hear, I stepped aside to walk beside him, and Yeon Ryang placed Ju Ryeong on top of my head as he spoke.
“It’ll take seven weeks to cross the mountain range. We’ll run into the Greenwood Bandits’ brothers, so you should prepare yourself.”
“The Greenwood Bandits’ brothers?”
“Bandits, I mean.”
Who talks about bandits that way? Judging by his words alone, Yeon Ryang himself seemed like one of the Greenwood.
I blinked and asked.
“What should I prepare?”
“I don’t know. A broad mind so you won’t be shocked no matter what fool pops out at you?”
As my face twisted in annoyance, Yeon Ryang pointed toward the mountainside with an aggrieved expression.
“I’m serious. They’re already coming to greet us.”
“Coming to greet us? Who said anyone was coming to—!”
As I raised my voice, I flinched at the rapidly approaching presence and spun around in alarm.
From the direction Yeon Ryang had pointed, a group of burly men clad in beast hides came thundering toward us through clouds of dust.
They really are here.

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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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