Surviving as the Sacheon Dang Clan’s Servant - Chapter 89

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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 89
“My sister really won’t listen. I told her to stay and play with sweets, but here she is.”
It was Yeon Liang.
He frowned slightly, his expression tinged with displeasure. I laughed awkwardly and waved my hand.
“Ah, well, you see…”
“In any case, I can’t take my eyes off you. Go back to the Guest Inn.”
“But…”
“Go.”
Yeon Liang’s voice took on a rare severity. I whimpered and tucked my tail between my legs.
As I rolled my eyes and tried to gauge the situation, Yeon Liang let out a sigh and set me down.
“I’ll be back soon. Are you afraid to be alone?”
“A little.”
“You could’ve said so. I’ll take you to the Guest Inn. Let’s go.”
Yeon Liang patted my head and gave my back a gentle push, as if urging me forward.
Since it looked as though he’d truly lose his temper if I protested, I had no choice but to return to the Guest Inn.
Was it his size? When he was angry, he looked frightening.
Thoroughly cowed, I shut myself in the room and played with Ju Ryeong, squishing the creature between my fingers.
“Ju Ryeong. Would you like to follow him?”
“Squeak.”
Ju Ryeong shook his head in refusal.
Tch. If only Ju Ryeong would go, I could slip away unnoticed.
I clicked my tongue and rolled around on the bed like a child.
Now that I thought about it, it was remarkable that the Hao Gate had a contact point at the Pleasure House and Guest Inn, right in front of the Martial Alliance’s headquarters.
Gathering intelligence at the very heart of the Orthodox Martial Arts—wasn’t that bold?
These heterodox sects had guts.
And the Demonic Cult, manipulating its own followers through the Hao Gate, seemed even bolder still.
The scope of the Hao Gate’s power might be far greater than I’d imagined.
Yeon Liang, who’d said he’d return in two double hours, didn’t come back until late evening.
Just as worry began to gnaw at me, he returned staggering like a drunkard.
“I’m sorry, sister. Did you wait long?”
Though he reeked of strong spirits and perfume, I could tell he wasn’t truly drunk.
He seemed to have poured alcohol on his clothes to hide his purpose in visiting the Pleasure House.
“My goodness, how much did you drink?”
“Ha, it’s been so long since I’ve had any. One bottle just wasn’t enough…”
I played along, supporting his weight, when I noticed his neck was drenched in sweat. He was trembling faintly.
…Could the antidote have side effects? What in blazes are these Demonic Cult lunatics making people ingest?
Alarmed, I dragged him to the bed and laid him down. The man who’d been perfectly fine this morning was now burning with fever.
I wanted to ask what he’d been doing there, but it seemed cruel to undermine the effort he’d put into keeping up the pretense of having been at the Pleasure House.
I grumbled at him as though he were a real drunkard.
“Honestly, I don’t need a drinking brother.”
“Just bear with me for one night, sister. An adult has his reasons.”
“You’re spoiled because you have such a good sister. What’s so admirable about drinking? Here, let me wipe you down.”
I tossed him a damp cloth with an irritated tone, and Yeon Liang chuckled softly as he wiped the sweat from his brow.
“Thank you, sister. To think a vagrant like me would enjoy such luxury. It’s rather moving.”
“If you know that, then sleep. You need to sleep it off.”
“…All right.”
Yeon Liang nodded slightly and closed his eyes. His breathing was labored, rough.
Should I prepare a decoction? No, I didn’t know what he’d ingested; giving him medicine recklessly might make the pain worse. Should I place needles to ease his tension?
I’d considered lighting anesthetic incense, but Yeon Liang wouldn’t want to fall asleep defenseless in a guest inn.
“Squeak, squeak…”
Ju Ryeong whimpered with worry as he watched Yeon Liang.
“Your brother is sleeping. Don’t bother him. Come on.”
“Squeak. Squeak, squeak.”
I called to Ju Ryeong and gestured, but he wouldn’t follow me. As if to say I shouldn’t leave, he crouched beneath Yeon Liang’s bed and called to me instead.
He sensed something.
After a moment’s hesitation, I sat down beside Ju Ryeong and huddled close. All I could do was keep vigil.
Had this man endured such agony every three months?
I’d always known the Demonic Cult was evil, but seeing its reality with my own eyes left me unsettled.
They killed without thought, cut, tortured, threatened…
It was a world without mercy.
I swallowed a sigh and stared out into the darkening window. All I felt was resentment at my own helpless smallness.
* * *
The next morning, Yeon Liang opened his eyes as though he’d never been in pain at all, his face perfectly sound.
“What’s this? Why are you here? And why is Ju Ryeong here?”
Yeon Liang lifted Ju Ryeong, who lay curled up sleeping across his belly, and looked at me with bewilderment.
I shot him a look and pushed myself upright. After crouching all night, my lower back ached.
“I was worried you’d drink yourself to death. Who drinks that much anyway? Did you fall into a wine vat?”
“Sorry, sorry. I just got carried away, you know? I overdid it yesterday. You were worried about me?”
Yeon Liang scratched his head sheepishly and studied my expression. The sight of his stubbled chin, reeking of wine, drew a sigh from me despite myself.
“Go wash up. You need a sobering meal. Shave too. And don’t even think about coming downstairs if you’re not going to.”
I shook my head and turned to leave, but Yeon Liang let out a weak laugh behind me.
“…Thanks. I didn’t have nightmares last night because of you.”
“Think nothing of it.”
I replied and returned to my own room to prepare to leave. My mind was churning.
Could I do anything to ease Yeon Liang’s loneliness?
I didn’t know when Yeon Liang had been sent to Zhongyuan, but judging by his age, it had been at least ten years since he’d ingested the Blood Yin Insect.
Ten years was more than enough time for a creature the size of a fingernail to grow longer than a palm.
Forcing it out would damage his organs, so physical removal was impossible.
It wasn’t a toxin that Ju Ryeong could purify either, so the only way was to dissolve and kill it while the insect slept.
There had to be an antidote to kill the insect…
Damn it. I should have paid more attention when Dang Ju Yeop mentioned it. Grandfather would know.
All I felt was regret at not having asked sooner.
…Wait. Now that I think about it—that prescription Grandfather sent to the Martial Alliance leader. Wasn’t that an antidote formula? Could it be for the insect?
The sudden thought made me try to recall the prescription Dang Jung had written out, but my memory of it was hazy at best.
Useless memory. Really no help at all.
I slowly turned the memory over in my mind.
Grandfather had asked me to bring castor bean seeds while he was writing the formula. Castor beans are highly toxic when raw, but the toxicity nearly disappears once they’re roasted.
If toxins could be tempered and used as medicine, then perhaps I could use poison to kill the insect and have Ju Ryeong purify the poison afterward…
“Are you ready?”
I came back to myself at the sound of Yeon Liang’s voice, my lips still caught between my teeth in thought.
“Yes, let’s go.”
I opened the door to find Yeon Liang with his beard freshly shaved, looking neat and clean. He lowered himself eagerly and turned his chin this way and that to show me.
“See? Cleanly shaved, right?”
“Yes. You look much better without it. Please keep shaving every day. You’re much more handsome without the beard.”
“Well then, well then. They say if you listen well to what a woman says, even sleeping brings good fortune.”
This man is surprisingly good at taking a hint.
I laughed softly and descended the stairs with him.
“Do you know how to use a sword?”
“No, not at all.”
“Is that so? Hmm… That’s rather problematic.”
“Why would I need to use a sword? I’m already busy enough throwing knives.”
“I know, I know. But since not many sects use throwing knives, I’m worried. The way you habitually reach into your sleeve is a dead giveaway that you’re from the Dang Clan. What if you carried at least one sword for misdirection?”
Yeon Liang made his suggestion. Now that I heard it, his words made sense.
“I suppose I could. I think I could manage carrying a lighter sword without too much trouble.”
“Well, don’t worry about it. You’re plenty strong.”
He teased me with a chuckle.
After breakfast, we made our way to a blacksmith’s shop and purchased a decent iron sword.
The metal wasn’t of the finest quality, but since it was merely for appearance, it hardly mattered.
Yeon Liang, however, seemed to think differently.
He led me to a secluded lake and set about teaching me swordplay.
“Now that you’re holding a sword, you should at least know how to swing it. Let’s learn some basic street martial arts.”
“Um… I’m not sure I can manage it, though.”
“It’s not difficult. I’ll show you the Three Talents Sword Technique—just follow along.”
Shwing!
Yeon Liang drew his sword with a flourish and moved slowly through the motions.
“Cut vertically, cut horizontally, thrust.”
He moved the blade deliberately so I could see it clearly.
The sword edge gleamed sharply as it traced lines through the air.
I stood vacant and tilted my head in confusion.
“That’s all there is to it?”
“That’s it. That’s everything. A sword technique that holds the mysteries of Heaven, Earth, and Man.”
“Show me again, please.”
Yeon Liang chuckled and swung the sword once more. The form was simple and straightforward.
“You understand this as well as I do—the same technique can look entirely different depending on who performs it. We vagrants never know when we might have to grab a blade off the dirt and fight for our lives. There’s no harm in learning.”
“You’re right.”
Yeon Liang was correct. Knowing how to handle a sword would be useful.
I swung the sword the way Yeon Liang had shown me.
But there was a problem.
“Gyeong. A sword is meant to be swung, not thrown.”
“I know that, but my body just throws it anyway.”
“I nearly died just now.”
“Ha. But you didn’t, so we’re fine.”
A body trained in the Flying Blade Technique and Hidden Weapon Technique kept throwing the sword as if it were a throwing knife.
No matter how many times I tried, the result was the same. I couldn’t swing a sword properly.
I watched the blade sticking out of the rock where Yeon Liang had been sitting, swaying gently.
Learning to wield a sword was clearly not going to be easy.

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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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