The Ignored Granddaughter of a Murim Family - Chapter 188

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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 188
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The Inn had no shortage of empty rooms.
My father closed the door behind us as we entered a suitable chamber.
“Sit.”
Once I settled into the seat he indicated, Father glanced around as if searching for something.
“What are you looking for?”
“There’s no teapot.”
I tilted my head in confusion.
“Father, there’s no staff at the Inn right now.”
“Ah, my mind must be…”
Father pressed his fingers to his temple briefly.
The Inn Owner and his employees, whom we found to be of no particular concern, had been released the day before we attacked Mantong Express Station.
However, the Original Employee, already consumed by terror, had fled and abandoned his position. With two employees vanishing overnight, the Inn Owner had mentioned he would hire new staff, but not even a full day had passed.
“I’ll fetch it for you.”
“No, no.”
I rose from my chair and yanked the door open. There, I caught sight of someone hastily concealing themselves beneath the Staircase. It was painfully obvious they’d been caught eavesdropping.
His presence was genuinely well-hidden—it was simply that his movements couldn’t keep pace with my perception.
“You there. I saw you.”
“Ha ha ha… I was, I was just passing by.”
“Wasn’t your name So-gae?”
“Ah ha ha. You even remembered my name.”
So-gae.
There were three beggars who primarily worked beneath the Eaves, and their names were So-gae, Jung-gae, and Dae-gae. When I first heard them, I found them so absurd I could never forget them.
“You seem to have nothing to do. Bring us some tea.”
“What?”
“You don’t have anything to do, do you? Then why were you standing here?”
“Ah, ah ha ha. I’ll fetch it. No problem at all.”
So-gae grumbled as he descended the Staircase.
“There. All settled.”
“…”
Father regarded me with an expression of utter speechlessness.
I tilted my head curiously.
“…Never mind.”
Father let out a slightly deflated laugh and shook his head.
I gazed at him for a moment, then rushed forward and embraced him tightly.
“…”
Father’s hand, which had been silent, rested gently upon my back. There was no weight to it whatsoever.
“Were you worried?”
I said nothing, only nodding my head.
“You didn’t look anxious at all.”
“If I suggested striking at the Demonic Cult and then showed worry, wouldn’t everyone else become even more anxious?”
Besides, seeing Namgung Wan in that state somehow suddenly frightened me.
If my father’s seizure had occurred this time, the possibility that it wouldn’t have been just Namgung Wan lying there became terrifyingly real.
“I’m truly grateful.”
My father stroked my head.
“The seizures don’t happen at random times like that. If they did, I wouldn’t have stepped forward.”
“….”
Well.
The words of someone who never held back and even ended up dying held no credibility whatsoever.
As I nestled there, I began to sniff.
My father’s voice took on a bewildered tone.
“…Yeon?”
What is this? Where is that smell of blood coming from?
Soon after, I discovered torn fabric and dried bloodstains on his shoulder.
My eyes widened.
“You’re injured!”
“Ah, it’s just a scratch. Nothing serious.”
My father carefully pushed me away and fastened his robe.
“What suddenly—weren’t you startled?”
“That’s exactly what startled me!”
“….”
“Quickly, let me see the wound!”
There was a brief struggle, but I won.
I fell silent upon seeing the wounds running from his shoulder blade down to his arm.
Since I had been wearing dark clothes to move inconspicuously in the night, I hadn’t noticed anything until now.
Of course, I would have seen it if I’d examined carefully, but I was too preoccupied searching for the Deputy Leader to pay attention.
“….”
“And you call this nothing serious?”
“Yes. It’s not a particularly deep wound.”
“…I understand.”
I agreed readily, but my father, who had paused for a moment, turned to look at me. His expression seemed suspicious about something.
I calmly withdrew a trauma salve from my sleeve.
“I’m glad I brought the trauma salve. For now, let me apply the medicine, but I think we should show it to the Physician later. It might need stitches.”
“Understood.”
“….”
“Something seems odd.”
“What is?”
My father blinked several times before speaking.
“It’s strange that you’re letting this pass without much complaint.”
“Father must have been preoccupied as well. And truthfully, it doesn’t seem like much of an issue.”
“…?”
Father regarded me with even deeper suspicion. I continued with a bright smile.
“I’ve decided to let minor wounds like this pass quietly next time too!”
“…I’m sorry.”
With that, Father and I bickered lightly as I slowly applied wound salve to his injury. I also channeled my natural energy to aid the healing.
“Yeon, what do you make of Wan’s arm?”
I opened and closed my mouth several times before speaking weakly.
“The flow of qi meridians is already gone…. Which means perhaps….”
“Even your abilities can’t help?”
“….”
“I’m sorry. I’ve placed an unfair burden on you. This is enough.”
Father pulled his sleeve back down.
“Let’s hear what the other physicians have to say first.”
“Yes, we should.”
The chamber fell heavy with silence.
I smiled bitterly.
“Don’t worry too much. There must be a way. Everyone said it was impossible for me too, yet here I am using martial arts.”
Father looked at me and nodded with a faint smile.
“You’re right.”
I studied Father for a moment before asking.
“Father, what will you do about Cheon Gwi-jo?”
The moment Cheon Gwi-jo was captured, his dantian was shattered and the tendons in his limbs were severed.
He had already killed countless Orthodox Martial Arts Sect members and innocent civilians. It was a fitting punishment.
He wasn’t killed because there was much information to extract from him. And among that information were matters unfavorable to Father.
“You truly intend to take him to the Murim Alliance? The Alliance can barely function as it is now… Is there really a need to go through such trouble?”
“The Murim Alliance has many branches. You needn’t worry about that.”
“….”
I exhaled heavily.
‘He’s my father—there’s no need to speak in riddles.’
“What if Cheon Gwi-jo speaks of Yalyu?”
Father spoke with complete indifference.
“He will.”
“How… is that acceptable?”
The Demonic Suction Technique was a martial art that made martial artists convulse merely at its name. If it became known that Yalyu had learned the Demonic Suction Technique and that Father had hidden this fact, he could be treated as an accomplice to the same crime.
Father remained unmoved as he spoke.
“Cheon Gwi-jo is a crucial witness to this attack. Had we failed to capture him, it would be different, but I cannot dispose of him for my personal matters.”
I bit my lip hard.
His logic was sound.
But… was there truly a need for this?
I barely suppressed the words rising to my throat—just kill him here and now.
Father continued speaking.
“Of course, I cannot continue as the commander of the Baek Ho Dan as things stand. Once we return, I intend to step down from that position immediately.”
I blinked rapidly.
Father held considerable affection for the Baek Ho Dan. I had always assumed it was because it was a place where he was recognized, having escaped from the suffocating constraints of our clan.
Because of that affection, he had tried to step down after I fell into demonic madness, yet because of that same affection, he ultimately could not. Lingering attachment had held him back. But now, because of Yalyu, he was finally letting it go.
I felt hollow inside, and without realizing it, I found myself nodding slowly.
‘Yes, that is the kind of person Father is.’
Father continued.
“That is precisely why I called for you.”
I stopped my moving hands and looked at Father.
“Comfort Yalyu so he does not become too frightened.”
“…Pardon?”
For a moment, I could not properly comprehend his words. I asked again, belatedly.
“Frightened? You say Yalyu is frightened?”
“He is still a child, is he not?”
“Ah… well… yes…”
Though Father must have seen my expression—neither laughing nor crying—he continued with utmost seriousness, not a hint of amusement in his face.
“That child wishes to remain by your side, does he not?”
This was accurate. I was confused whether to say Father understood Yalyu well or did not understand him at all.
“If it becomes known that he has learned the Absorbing Demonic Art, it will become difficult for him to remain by your side.”
“…”
“With Cheonsan Yeom-je present, no immediate grave problems should arise.”
But Cheonsan Yeom-je would soon…
Now that I thought about it, there had been no contact since he departed for the Namgung Clan.
“Furthermore…”
Father suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
After a rather long silence, Father spoke.
“As you heard from Mak-gae just moments ago, the current military strength of the Orthodox Martial Arts Sects has been greatly weakened. They will not easily cast aside a child who could become a major force for the Orthodox sects.”
“…”
“For now, I intend to make that argument.”
I looked at Father with some surprise—quite a bit of surprise, actually.
‘Father was thinking such thoughts?’
What he meant was that he would exploit the Murim Alliance’s desperate situation, cornered by the Demonic Cult.
It could hardly be called a conspiracy, but… the very fact that Father had conceived of such a thing was shocking to me.
“Of course, this alone will not put Yalyu at ease. That is why I am asking this of you.”
I nodded dumbly.
“I will inform him as well, but it will be most reassuring if you tell him that everything will be fine. That child is very fond of you, after all.”
The conversation had taken on a somewhat embarrassing tone, yet as Father’s voice continued, it somehow sounded displeased.
After a brief silence, he spoke in a tone tinged with dissatisfaction.
“You seem displeased.”
“…You mean you like me?”
“It’s only natural that I’ve come to cherish you.”
“Yes? Ah, I see.”
I squirmed inwardly with embarrassment and hastily changed the subject.
“Now that I think about it, why is it taking so long to bring the tea?”
As the saying goes, speak of the tiger and it appears—Father glanced toward the door first, and I soon sensed a presence approaching the entrance.
“Ah, it seems the tea has finally arrived.”
“Come in.”
When the door opened and I saw who entered, my eyes widened in surprise.
“Why did you come?”
“You said you needed someone to run an errand for tea, so I volunteered.”
The tiger that had appeared was not the Beggar, but Yalyu.

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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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