The Wizard Who Endured the World of Murim - Chapter 65

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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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Surviving in the Martial Realm as a Mage: Episode 65
The Seventh Princess.
Yu Ga-ye.
She was calmly accepting the situation that had suddenly been thrust upon her.
“So when exactly is this Black Dragon Faction leader supposed to arrive?”
“According to them, he’s stepped away for the moment, so we’re to wait.”
“Ugh, General! Even for an uncouth brute ignorant of propriety, treating our sovereign in this manner crosses the line, does it not?”
Go Seok.
The white-haired, steadfast old general stood beside the princess, observing the middle-aged scholar who was fuming with indignation, and spoke quietly.
“Ma Scholar.”
“Y-yes, General Go. What is it?”
“Does this place appear to you to be the Imperial Palace?”
“…No, it does not.”
“This is not the Hanrim Academy of the Imperial Palace where you once served, Ma Scholar. Remember this well—our forces number merely twenty men.”
Go Seok glanced briefly toward the martial artists gathered outside as he spoke.
The martial artists outside were water bandits from the Yangtze River, notorious throughout Kangho for their brutality.
‘Most appear to be of mediocre skill, but…’
Remarkably, several among them possessed such formidable strength that even General Go, who had made his name on the frontier, would find them difficult to contend with.
“Still, it’s hardly proper to make the sovereign wait indefinitely like this…”
“I am content. There is no need for concern.”
The princess, seated at the head of the chamber behind a hanging curtain, spoke without emotion.
Ma Scholar’s face flushed as he opened his mouth.
“But surely this is unacceptable!”
“Enough. We shall meet him in time. We need only trust what they say. Perhaps the master truly has stepped away.”
“Ten days the master has been absent! Though they are bandits, this is simply too much…”
Then.
General Go raised his palm toward Ma Scholar, cutting off his words.
As he remained silent.
A voice came from outside.
“Commander!”
“Speak.”
“The Black Dragon Faction has sent someone. They request your presence.”
“How dare they summon the sovereign!”
As Ma Scholar began to foam at the mouth.
Princess Yu Ga-ye, listening from behind the curtain, spoke in a measured tone.
“It seems the faction leader has arrived. Very well. Make preparations.”
“Your Highness!”
“They are the masters of this place. It is only proper that a guest should answer the master’s summons.”
“Such barbarous wretches…”
Ma Scholar let out an anguished cry, though his protest fell on deaf ears.
The Seventh Princess herself showed no particular change in expression as she instructed the maidservant beside her to prepare for departure.
Go Seok had already stepped outside to ready the carriage.
Ma Scholar, unable to accept the situation, grumbled irritably while crumpling the scholar’s cap upon his head and rose to his feet.
“Ma Scholar.”
“What is it, General Go?”
“Temper your nature. I understand your loyalty drives you to act so boldly. But do not underestimate the Black Dragon Faction in this place.”
“What manner of words are these, General Go? Surely you do not fear mere water bandits? You, the General Go of all Tianxia!”
Go Seok nodded with a grave expression.
He deemed there was no point in concealing the truth.
“This is a tiger’s den, Ma Scholar. This is no third-rate pirate band as the rumors we heard on the wind suggested.”
“How can such words spill from the lips of General Go! It is unthinkable!”
“It is the truth, and I felt you should know it as well.”
“I… I cannot believe it.”
Even as Ma Scholar spoke, his momentum had visibly diminished compared to moments before.
This was hardly surprising—the white-haired General Go before his eyes had earned his renown long before Ma Scholar ever entered the Imperial Palace.
And this venerable general was repeatedly emphasizing the need for careful deliberation.
Naturally, Ma Scholar’s fervent spirit, which had been grasping at propriety and righteousness, could only wane.
“We may need to prepare for the worst possible outcome.”
“…!”
Ma Scholar stared at General Go, who lightly tapped his tensed shoulders in surprise, and found himself swallowing hard without realizing it.
General Go Seok lifted his wrinkled eyes to gaze toward the distance and spoke in a low voice.
“Still, I shall be the first shield. I hope you too are prepared to that extent, Ma Scholar.”
“Ah….”
From the moment they fled the Imperial Palace until they arrived at this remote region of Myeong Province.
General Go Seok had struck down countless martial artists who blocked their path in single blows.
That invincible general was now contemplating death!
‘If I carelessly wag my tongue any further, I shall invite great calamity!’
Ma Scholar came to his senses.
Meanwhile.
Princess Yugaye drew a purple silk veil over her face and slowly climbed into the prepared carriage.
The carriage moved along the well-trodden road toward the heart of Sungwha Island.
* * *
“This is the Chilbo Artifact?”
“Yes, Master.”
Gong Jeol-gang swallowed dryly as he regarded his Master, who had picked up a master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect, including the Blood Flame Demon Lord, from the roadside.
“Certainly a curious object. Levitation artifacts are indeed rare treasures. Depending on circumstances, they are sometimes valued equally with spatial pouches.”
“In this world, such items were apparently quite common in the past.”
“Is that so? There must have been abundant primary materials then.”
Ilhyang examined the seven-colored paper crane that had come into his possession.
In other words, he could not hide his fascination as he turned the Chilbo Artifact over and over in his hands.
“I should test it out.”
Ilhyang walked directly to the window of the office and hurled the Chilbo Palanquin outward.
The office was on the third floor.
Yet the paper crane did not fall to the ground.
Instead, it swelled in size, transforming into something massive enough for five grown adults to ride upon.
“Oh? So that’s how it works.”
It was absorbing the surrounding mana.
The absorption rate was so feeble that it descended slowly toward the ground.
In any case, I was certain it was crafted from floating stone—a material I knew well.
In the Seven Continents where I came from, floating stone was more precious than gold, yet in this world, it seemed to be no rarity at all.
Examining the Chilbo Palanquin from every angle with newfound fascination,
I eventually climbed aboard and drifted through the sky for a while, testing its maneuverability in different directions.
And my conclusion was clear.
“This is pretty garbage, honestly. The mana efficiency is abysmal. Absolutely terrible.”
“Yes. As a magical artifact, its grade was not particularly high.”
“That’s probably why the Namgung Clan handed it over.”
An ordinary person could never attempt long-distance travel on this thing.
It consumed mana at a staggering rate.
If one used spirit stones, the duration could be extended considerably, or so it seemed.
But considering the value of spirit stones in the Lower Realm, that too would be wasteful spending.
“Still, I can improve it well enough. It’ll just take some time.”
The inscribed formations—the runes—didn’t appear overly complex.
Through handling various artifacts and magical implements in this world, I’d grown somewhat familiar with the script and rune systems here.
I wasn’t at the level where I could create something entirely new.
But modifying and refining existing creations was certainly within my reach.
“By the way, those fellows I summoned are taking their time.”
“Perhaps they are simply the sluggish sort, sir?”
“Hmm, true enough. Whether in this world or the other, those of imperial blood can’t help themselves.”
They arrive later than others.
Those who believe that walking with their heads held high is a display of authority—they are the very essence of imperial lineage.
In the Seven Continents of old, they would never have dared such behavior before me.
But here, circumstances were necessarily different.
‘Because I haven’t yet shown them what I’m capable of.’
The alias I carried—Janggang Heukryong—was famous only in a small locality.
I had not yet earned renown across Tianxia.
Yet I could be certain of one thing.
In the Lower Realm today, there was no one who could stand against me directly.
‘Numbers make no difference.’
Whether a single faction
or an entire nation.
There was nowhere in the Lower Realm that could dare stand against Ilhyang now.
It was simply that Ilhyang had not made any grand moves, so he lacked renown.
Besides, he had no desire for such things anyway.
What I now sought was a far greater objective.
The conquest of the Upper Realm.
Honestly, the Lower Realm had far too little to offer.
‘It matters not who claims the Lower Realm.’
At a certain point in the Upper Realm.
The 4th Realm Spirit Vein entrusted to Jigang Apryong.
That was where it would begin.
From that foundation, I planned to gradually expand my influence.
‘I cannot fathom how this fellow Jecheon Daeseong Sun Wukong will emerge.’
That man who had vanished as if fleeing.
When I ascended to the Upper Realm again later, I might encounter him once more.
For now, I set aside such external uncertainties and merely devised plans to gradually expand my power.
Then.
A crimson silk cloth draped upon the table.
The two ears of Geumok, who had been curled up sleeping there, perked up sharply.
I too murmured while gazing outward.
“It seems an esteemed guest has arrived.”
Before those words even finished.
“Master! A guest has come to call!”
Gong Jeol-gang looked at me cautiously, and I nodded in acknowledgment.
Seeing this, Gong Jeol-gang turned toward the office door and spoke.
“Show the guests inside!”
“I obey your command!”
A subordinate outside cried out, then
carefully slid open the door, revealing four figures standing before it.
An elderly man with white hair, wearing layered armor, with the solid impression of a weathered stone.
And behind him, a middle-aged scholar with an anxious expression.
Beside him, a woman who appeared to be a maidservant.
And finally.
‘That woman must be the Seventh Princess.’
She wore a purple silk veil, and upon her head sat an ornate phoenix crown adorned with golden phoenixes, jade, and pearls.
Her garments were a crimson silk robe embroidered with pheasant patterns upon a blue foundation.
At a glance, her attire was quite resplendent, and Gong Jeol-gang beside her transmitted a message to me through message magic.
That this was ceremonial dress worn only at state occasions.
A form of grand ceremonial robes.
‘A display of power through appearance.’
One’s garments held great significance.
It was simply a matter of revealing one’s position and power.
Still, I never expected the Princess to flaunt her strength and authority in such a manner.
Whether on the Seven Continents or in this world.
The Imperial bloodline’s ceremonial pretenses deserved acknowledgment.
But that was their worldview.
There was no reason for me to conform to it.
“A pleasure to meet you. I am Ilhyang, leader of the Black Dragon Faction. Are you the Seventh Princess?”
“How, how dare you show such disrespect to Her Highness the Princess….”
Just as the middle-aged scholar was about to cry out with wide eyes.
The Old General stepped forward and shook his head.
In that moment.
A young woman’s voice—high-pitched and beautiful in its own way—emerged from behind the veil.
“A pleasure to meet you. I am the Seventh Princess, Yu Ga-ye.”
Yu Ga-ye gestured to the maidservant following behind her to wait.
Then she suddenly swept the veil aside.
Go Seok and Ma Scholar.
When both men’s faces paled at the sight.
The Seventh Princess Yu Ga-ye strode forward and spoke.
“I am in need of your assistance.”
A glimmer of curiosity flickered across my impassive face.
The Princess before me was somehow different from the Imperial bloodline I had observed in the past.
Those fools made it their nature to look down on others with their pointless arrogance and haughtiness.
But this one before me wore an expression that was somehow desperate and even pitiable.
Moreover.
‘She’s beautiful.’
Objectively speaking, the Seventh Princess Yu Ga-ye was extraordinarily lovely.
I had thought the humans of this world had somewhat broad, flat faces.
So their beauty or handsomeness had never struck me as particularly special.
‘This one is definitely different.’
As I was lost in such peculiar thoughts, I spoke abruptly.
“If it’s a favor you’re asking, there must be compensation. What can you offer me?”
“Whatever you desire.”
“Your Highness!”
Whether the middle-aged scholar cried out in protest from behind or not.
Yu Ga-ye’s gaze remained fixed solely on me from beginning to end.
Though unknown to the outside world, Yu Ga-ye carried the purest bloodline of the Imperial House.
Among the abilities inherited through her bloodline, the one she possessed most strongly was.
The ability to sense the magnitude of danger.
This was a gift the Imperial House had possessed since before the founding of the empire.
A special legacy of the Yu Clan from their days as one of the Sundo Sect’s branches.
‘A dangerous one indeed.’
Princess Yugaye had not noticed it at first.
She had merely sought to intimidate the bandit leader with her resplendent attire and commanding presence.
Her plan was simply to negotiate favorably, and once she successfully returned to the Imperial Palace, she would reward him with one or two small fiefdoms as compensation.
But then.
‘This man is not one to be swayed by such things.’
The danger inscribed in her very bloodline was warning her strongly.
The Fifth Prince who now sat preening in the Imperial Palace?
That fool was nothing but an ant.
Compared to the danger this boy before her possessed, he was but a firefly before the sun.
Despite his youthful appearance of barely ten years old.
Princess Yugaye had been educated in the Imperial Palace for a long time, so she knew well.
‘A talented Celestial Watcher who accumulates long years of cultivation can at some point become a young child.’
Returning to youth.
Princess Yugaye suspected that the boy before her was such a monster.
In fact, it was a guess that came remarkably close to Ilhyang’s true nature.
Ilhyang, too, observed Princess Yugaye, and his lips twitched slightly.
He had read something in the light of her eyes.
“It seems your ancestors carried bloodline from the Upper Realm.”
Interest flickered in Ilhyang’s gaze.
He had discovered unexpected utility in the princess he had thought was merely a time bomb.

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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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