The Reincarnated Hunter Sweeps Up All Fortunes - Chapter 44

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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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Episode 44
44
The Bigeom Mun Leader’s office.
Cho Pae stepped inside and brought his palms together lightly in greeting.
“I’m back, Leader.”
……
The Bigeom Mun Leader, who had been gazing out the window, exhaled a short sigh.
Inside Bigeom Mun, only one person called him Leader.
The moment he heard that title, he knew Cho Pae had returned.
“How did the task go?”
“Oh, handled it cleanly.”
Cho Pae settled into the chair with his legs crossed and his back leaning at an angle—the posture of a street thug.
The Bigeom Mun Leader accepted it without concern, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
“But on the way back, I ran into someone interesting.”
“Someone interesting?”
“Yeah. Goes by the name Mu Young Bigeom.”
The corner of Cho Pae’s mouth lifted slightly.
“That one’s got ‘Flying Sword’ in his epithet—seems like good stock. And he measured me up. The way he talked, it felt like if we ever fought, even if I took serious wounds, I’d be capable of killing him.”
The Bigeom Mun Leader’s eyes narrowed slightly. He knew Mu Young Bigeom was first-rate, but he hadn’t expected Cho Pae to gauge him as someone worth testing.
Just like his disciple, he thought. It seemed the boy had a hidden technique tucked away.
“Strange that such an interesting character appeared while I was away. I wonder where he came from. Do you happen to know, Leader?”
“Nakgaek’s disciple.”
“…Huh?”
Cho Pae’s crossed legs slowly descended to the floor.
“Nakgaek’s disciple?”
The Bigeom Mun Leader gave a short nod.
“Oh. That Nakgaek’s disciple? No wonder I took a liking to him.”
Cho Pae nodded in understanding. He tapped his cheek with a finger, then suddenly asked:
“Would it be alright if we fought until one of us died?”
“No.”
“Aw, what a waste.”
Cho Pae stuck out his lip in disappointment.
“If you’d said yes, I would’ve had a proper sweat. I’ve been lacking exercise lately, you know. That whole trip I just took didn’t amount to much.”
……
The Bigeom Mun Leader said nothing. He had no fondness for speaking to someone’s mumbling thoughts.
“Leader, would it be alright if I got friendly with him instead?”
“Do as you like.”
Cho Pae grinned widely.
* * *
The stores were running low. With his gate and walls collapsed, he’d been eating at home to guard against thieves, and supplies had gone quickly.
Im Gang headed to the Marketplace. Since the gate and walls were now under repair, there was little fear of theft—barring the workers deciding to steal from him.
‘How strange the world turns…….’
Throughout the alleys and market streets, Heterodox Sect members and wanderers continued to kill each other.
Occasionally, innocent civilians suffered damage.
But compensation came swiftly enough that complaints rarely spread.
Was this the grip of the Hangju Samae? They let the Heterodox Sect kill among themselves, but the moment common folk were harmed, they compensated immediately.
Uncharacteristic of a Heterodox Sect…….
‘When will it end, I wonder.’
Twenty days since Hangju had fallen into this state.
In the past, Im Gang had been attacked every time he left his house.
After he’d beaten them all to a pulp, no one bothered him anymore.
Word spread among the Heterodox Sect’s martial artists: ‘That one’s not to be touched.’ Apparently two or three thrashings were enough to get the message across.
Or perhaps Cho Pae had taken measures to spread the word.
Thanks to that, he’d been able to stroll the markets freely and search for treasures here and there.
Still, he remained cautious.
‘The newcomers are the problem.’
The Heterodox Sect members who usually fought near his house and the marketplace knew to recognize him and leave him be. But with the fighting so intense, replacements for the dead sometimes didn’t know who he was and attacked anyway.
When someone who recognized him was present, they’d intervene. But often they weren’t.
‘Some of these second-rate types throw some pretty vicious attacks.’
Even as a wanderer, Im Gang was first-rate. Against second-rate opponents, he could handle them easily enough, but a blind blade was always the most dangerous and terrifying of all.
“…Hmm. Nothing here.”
Hangju was in such disarray that there wasn’t a single treasure to be found.
Truth be told, that was perfectly normal.
It was rare for genuine treasures to make their way into bookshops and fencing operations by chance.
And since he’d already exhausted those rare opportunities with the Treasure Search skill over the past months, it wasn’t strange that he found nothing now, no matter how hard he looked.
Im Gang decided to head back home.
On the way there.
“Aaahhh!”
“Hack-!”
A scream erupted from a nearby alley.
He almost walked past it without a second thought. Screams were commonplace these days—barely more noteworthy than a greeting. Stopping for every one would wear him out.
“Ahhh…!”
“Ack……!”
…But the screams didn’t stop after the first one. They came in rapid succession.
Five, six, seven…….
Not one or two people dying, but several all at once.
When Im Gang paused and glanced toward the alley.
“Ha ha. Fancy meeting you again like this?”
A familiar voice rang out.
A chill ran down Im Gang’s spine.
‘…Cho Pae.’
Cho Pae emerged from the depths of the alley, a blood-stained blade in his hand.
He shook the sword lightly, and droplets of blood scattered in all directions.
“Good to see you.”
Cho Pae approached Im Gang with a bright smile, as though greeting an old friend.
His expression and tone were warm and welcoming, yet the killing intent radiating from his body felt sharp enough to shred anything in its path.
The bloodlust that had clung to him moments before, while he was slaughtering people, hadn’t yet faded.
Instinctively, Im Gang took a step back.
His survival instinct was screaming that this was dangerous.
“Ah. Sorry. I’m still riding high from that.”
Cho Pae noticed and apologized. Once he reined in the killing intent, it dissipated in an instant, and his usual playful demeanor returned.
Im Gang wiped the back of his neck with his hand. Despite the middle of winter, cold sweat was pouring down him. His back and underclothes were soaked through. At least he hadn’t wet himself.
Just as Cho Pae drew near.
Plink.
A single snowflake drifted down between Im Gang and Cho Pae.
‘……?’
Im Gang stared blankly at the snowflake.
‘…What the hell is this?’
It wasn’t a romance novel trope.
It wasn’t a bromance scene.
It wasn’t BL either, so why was snow falling now of all times?
He couldn’t fathom what the heavens were doing.
‘Sky, are you out of your mind?’
Im Gang protested vehemently to himself.
Why not some other time? Why now?
…Though naturally, the sky had no intention of listening to his complaints.
“Ha ha. Even the heavens seem to bless what lies between us.”
Cho Pae caught the snowflake on his blade as he spoke.
The snowflake rested briefly on the sword’s surface before slowly melting away. And when he smiled that crooked grin, despite his thuggish appearance, he was undeniably handsome.
A different caliber of beauty than Baek Do-gwang and Baek Cheon—this was the kind of handsomeness that belonged to a scion of a great Heterodox Sect, where rowdiness and boldness blended in an oddly compelling way.
‘…Why do I keep assessing men’s looks?’
Im Gang lamented his own situation for a moment before refocusing.
In any case, if he weren’t a man, this whole atmosphere would be downright lethal.
‘…Thank heavens I’m male.’
After exhaling a silent sigh, he moved to bow respectfully, cupping his hands.
“I don’t like repeating myself, but since we’re close, I’ll let it slide.”
Before Im Gang could even begin his bow, Cho Pae waved him off.
It was a gesture telling him not to be so formal.
‘Ah…….’
Im Gang flinched at the sight of blood still clinging to Cho Pae’s blade, then let out an awkward laugh.
“…I understand.”
“Good.”
Cho Pae smiled with satisfaction, then closed his mouth.
Im Gang hesitated, unsure how to continue the conversation, and ventured a careful question.
“I was wondering… when do you think this will be over?”
“Hmm? When will what be over?”
“This situation, sir.”
Cho Pae nodded with an understanding sound.
“The purge is almost finished. It should be wrapped up within four days at the latest. Has it been very inconvenient for you?”
“Yes. I do love peace quite dearly…”
It was the truth.
“…You love peace quite dearly?”
“…?”
“Hahahaha! You’re amusing.”
“I was speaking in earnest…”
“Hahahaha!”
Cho Pae burst into hearty laughter.
He clutched his belly and bent double, then straightened again, repeating the motion as he laughed without restraint.
Im Gang stared at him, utterly bewildered.
“…??”
Did I say something funny?
He’d only said that he loved peace because he did. In all his years, he’d never once lied about loving peace.
He truly loved it. It was simply that the world wouldn’t leave him alone.
What was amusing about that?
“A disciple of the Wanderer who loves peace. Now that’s a good jest.”
Cho Pae wiped tears from the corners of his eyes.
‘The Wanderer… the Wanderer…’
There it was again.
He knew his master’s epithet was “the Wanderer.”
He’d heard it before.
But he’d never realized that epithet carried a meaning entirely opposite to peace.
When he thought about it, it was rather fitting.
What would peace mean to a rogue?
‘Just what kind of man is my master…’
He might be someone far greater than he’d thought. Perhaps not merely someone of Baek’s caliber, but something beyond that. Or perhaps something even higher still?
He found himself curious about the true identity of this master of his.
“Is it possible that my master’s epithet is the Wanderer?”
Im Gang asked with complete seriousness.
At that moment.
Cho Pae’s eyes began to tear again as he prepared to burst into laughter once more. But just before the laughter broke free, he caught sight of Im Gang’s face and stopped abruptly. The young man’s expression was far too grave.
Cho Pae asked, looking somewhat taken aback.
“…You truly didn’t know who your master was?”
“No, sir.”
Im Gang nodded slowly.
“Hmm.”
Cho Pae sheathed his sword and regarded Im Gang for a moment.
Then he nodded slowly to himself.
“Ah. He deliberately kept it from you. That makes sense, I suppose.”
“…Sir?”
Cho Pae nodded, as if understanding something, and drew his own conclusions.
Im Gang wanted to hear those conclusions.
But.
“I’m afraid I can’t tell you about your master.”
“…!”
“Not for any other reason—only for your own sake.”
Cho Pae spoke in a grave voice.
The words “for your own sake” weighed heavily upon him.
If the Deputy Leader of Hangju Samae refused to speak, then the burden of that secret was far too substantial for him to bear lightly.
“If you truly must know, I could tell you—but you’d regret it.”
“…”
“For my sake, even if you’re curious—hold back.”
Im Gang turned the words over in his mind, and a faint chill crept across his skin.
He’d almost slipped into another genre entirely.
He exhaled deeply and answered that he understood, and Cho Pae smiled with satisfaction.
“Good. Well then, I’ll be on my way.”
“Yes.”
“Ah, one more thing. Next time we meet, let’s share a drink.”
“Yes.”
Im Gang watched Cho Pae wave and depart, remaining motionless where he stood until the man vanished from sight, then let out a long, deep breath.
“Huh…….”
Soon white flakes began to fall from the sky in thick clusters.

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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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