The Lazy Young Master of the Jin Clan

"Heok— Heok—!!"

How long had it been since such a difficult fight?

As his heart grew anxious, his blade became dull.

Namgung Muhyeok, who had trampled the Poison Men blocking his way and barely returned to the lake, looked at the boat of the next-generation talents, which had completely sunk, leaving only the stern (the back of the boat).

"Am I... late..."

Namgung Muhyeok felt a rough anger in his despair.

It was then.

"What took you so long!"

At the familiar voice coming from somewhere, Namgung Muhyeok hurriedly turned his head.

Where his gaze landed, Jin Sohyun was wringing out the water from his robe, looking like a drowned rat.

The skill with which he wrung out the water was extraordinary.

"What... what happened?"

"I tried to catch the mastermind, but I missed him."

"You missed him?"

In Namgung Muhyeok's eyes, he could see the five next-generation talents lying as if dead behind Jin Sohyun, and Namgung Seolu sleeping like a shrimp a little further away.

Although all the next-generation talents were seriously injured and had collapsed, fortunately, no one seemed to be dead.

"I'll have to tell them to train the next-generation talents a bit. Six of them couldn't beat one person, and they ended up in that state. An opponent that even a low-level practitioner like me could beat..."

Jin Sohyun grumbled endlessly and wrung out the remaining water from his clothes.

At the sight of such a Jin Sohyun, Namgung Muhyeok couldn't decide whether to cry or laugh.

But one thing was certain: if there had been no poisonous qi left in his body, he would have embraced Jin Sohyun until his body broke.

Namgung Muhyeok sat down a short distance from Jin Sohyun and asked.

"Was he strong?"

"He was just so-so."

"Then why did you miss him?"

"I misjudged my strength."

Namgung Muhyeok recalled the intense halo of light he had seen while dealing with the Poison Men.

'Was that the result of misjudging his strength?'

A hollow laugh escaped him.

"Anyway, I couldn't find out who was behind it, but I did my best. So you have to keep your promise too, Family Head. Got it?"

"Alright."

No, that would not happen.

Namgung Muhyeok, unlike his usual self, had no intention of meekly keeping his promise with Jin Sohyun.

Although he couldn't grasp his proper level because he hadn't faced him directly, the assailant who had single-handedly dealt with the next-generation talents of the Five Great Families was no ordinary person.

'He was at least at the peak level or higher.'

The power the assailant had shown at the last moment was the power of a martial artist who had reached the peak.

But even after defeating a peak-level martial artist single-handedly, Jin Sohyun was just saying that he had misjudged his strength.

'This brat is a treasure. And a treasure of the orthodox martial world.'

He was by no means a man who should be rotting away in a merchant family.

Namgung Muhyeok had no intention of leaving Jin Sohyun alone, even for the sake of the future of the orthodox martial world.

Of course, for now, he had to hide his intentions deep inside.

"This is why they say you'll suffer if you leave home."

Jin Sohyun grumbled until the very end, draining the water from his shoes.

***

"Young Master!!"

Late in the evening.

As Jin Sohyun, who had left the family estate early in the morning saying he was going for a walk, returned only after the hour of the rat, Siu and Jin Gahyeon came running out, panting.

"Brother! Where have you been?"

"A boat ride."

"A... a boat ride?"

"The Young Master went on a boat ride!?"

"Yes."

Jin Sohyun, with a tired face, pushed past the two women blocking his way and crawled into his quarters.

"I had a lot happen today. So don't wake me up until noon tomorrow."

As Jin Sohyun firmly closed the door and went in, Jin Gahyeon looked at the firmly closed door with a worried gaze.

"The fact that my brother went on a boat ride... it must be a lie."

At Jin Gahyeon's muttering, Siu nodded her head vigorously as if in agreement.

"Yes! There's no way the Young Master would go on a boat ride!"

"Why did he lie to us?"

"Mmm... a secret he can't tell us... Hah! Don't tell me!"

"Do you have something in mind?"

"Yes! Young Lady, just a moment..."

As Jin Gahyeon lowered her waist and brought her ear closer, Siu whispered quietly.

"Could it be that he went with Young Lady Namgung?"

"My brother... alone with Young Lady Namgung?"

"Yes! I heard that the next-generation talents of the Five Great Families were going on a boat ride today!"

"Really? Where did you hear that?"

"I got the information from the servants of the Namgung Family to assist you, Young Lady."

"That's amazing."

As Jin Gahyeon was genuinely impressed, Siu shrugged her shoulders with a triumphant face.

"I..."

At the voice coming from the entrance of the annex, Jin Gahyeon and Siu turned around at the same time.

Surprisingly, Namgung Seolu was standing there.

Jin Gahyeon quickly went to greet Namgung Seolu.

"Young Lady Namgung? Your wound...! Are you alright?"

"Don't mind it. It's just an injury I got during training."

"Ah... I see. But what brings you here at this hour...?"

"..."

Namgung Seolu hesitated, unable to bring herself to speak.

Then, Jin Gahyeon continued with a gentle voice and a smile.

"Would you like to come inside?"

At Jin Gahyeon's suggestion, Namgung Seolu waved her hand.

"It's fine. More importantly, is Young Master Jin inside?"

"Yes. He went into his room as soon as he came in, saying he was tired. Shall I call him if you have something to say?"

"No... it's fine. I apologize for the late hour."

Having finished her words, Namgung Seolu hurriedly left the annex with a staggering body.

Siu, who had been watching this quietly, approached with small steps and said, barely suppressing her excitement.

"See! Young Lady! To think Young Lady Namgung would come to visit at this hour..."

"..."

While Jin Gahyeon was covering her mouth and her eyes were sparkling at the unexpected development, Jin Sohyun was snoring in his bed, having fallen asleep after a long time.

"Kuuu— Kuuuu—!"

***

"The extent of the damage to the Azure Sky Squad?"

"Five are dead, three are seriously injured, and twelve have minor injuries. From what we've gathered, they seem to have been assassins from the Silver Signpost."

"Silver Signpost..." 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

The Silver Signpost, like the Nameless Pavilion, was one of the assassin organizations belonging to the unorthodox faction.

Of course, above them was the Heretic's Path Alliance.

"Treat the injured and prepare a funeral for the dead. Also, prepare a compensation plan for the bereaved families."

"As you command."

As the leader of the Azure Sky Squad, Namgung Doun, withdrew, Gongsun Su came to see Namgung Muhyeok.

"I heard the news. Why didn't you call me? I would have gladly lent my strength if it was the Family Head's request!"

"I have no excuse... I was complacent. I thought the enemies would notice if even the Thunder Roar Kick left the family. But they didn't seem to have any intention of hiding themselves in the first place."

"Hmph!"

Gongsun Su, while feeling regret, could not shake off one suspicion.

"I heard that all the next-generation talents were seriously injured. And that the one who did that to them was a single person... is that true?"

"That's right."

"I heard that Jin Sohyun was also there... why was he there?"

At Gongsun Su's question, Namgung Muhyeok was about to say something but then closed his mouth again.

Gongsun Su, who had noticed that he couldn't speak for some reason, nodded his head without hearing the answer.

It was not polite to pry into the private affairs that the Family Head did not reveal.

"Keke... Elder Gongsun. It's been a while."

"Ah... Elder Dang! You were at the Namgung Family?"

"I was here as a precaution, in case the wicked group of the Heretic's Path Alliance might use poison on the precious children."

"Ah, I see."

Tang Juseom, an elder of the Sichuan Tang Clan, appeared with his hands behind his back.

He had come to the Namgung Family in advance, fearing that the Heretic's Path Alliance would use poison in the Bud Crushing luring operation.

And thanks to that, Namgung Muhyeok was able to recover quickly from the poisoning of the Poison Men.

"Thanks to the decoction you made, the poisonous qi subsided quickly. It's all thanks to you."

"Even without my decoction, the Family Head would have recovered quickly."

"You're being humble... so, have you found out about the Poison Men?"

At Namgung Muhyeok's question, Tang Juseom's expression changed, and he nodded his head.

"As the Family Head said, the Poison Men harbored the Formless Poison. From the looks of it, their meridians were already severed or melted by the poisonous qi... so they were basically guys who could have died at any moment."

"Mmm... so they were used to stop me. Since they were consumables to be used and thrown away anyway."

"That's right. If they could tie up the feet of the Yellow Dragon Divine Sword using the soon-to-die Poison Men, they would have been able to kill all the next-generation talents of the Five Great Families in one place, just as they had planned."

Tang Juseom said with a regretful face.

"It's a pity that we couldn't find out who was behind it, even though the children were so seriously injured."

"They were reading our movements... this is my oversight."

"We were each other's hunters. However, I didn't expect the Heretic's Path Alliance to launch such an aggressive offensive."

"Although we couldn't find out who was behind it, we have achieved our initial goal, so the operation was not a failure."

"Initial goal?"

As Tang Juseom and Gongsun Su had puzzled expressions, Namgung Muhyeok crossed his arms.

"I didn't expect to be able to find out who was behind it from them anyway. But the fact that we were attacked is an undeniable fact. I plan to use this to pressure the Heretic's Path Alliance."

"Oho... indeed, the only one who can move assassins of that scale is, without a doubt, the Heretic's Path Alliance, so it might be difficult for them to deny it this time."

"When the situation calms down, I plan to request a meeting in the name of the Martial Arts Alliance."

"We'll have to prepare for a meeting."

A deep concern could be felt on Namgung Muhyeok's face as he nodded.

"It won't be a peaceful meeting."

***

"Were the next-generation talents of the Five Great Families stronger than you expected?"

"No."

"Then did the assassins of the Silver Signpost not do their part?"

"No."

"If not that, then did Namgung Muhyeok interfere with you?"

"No."

Thump—!!

Mu Yu's fist slammed down hard on the table.

Even if it was an unskilled punch from someone who had not learned martial arts, it was enough to feel his angry sincerity.

"Then why! How did you fail!"

"There was an intruder."

"An intruder? Who on earth tore the Heretic's Path Alliance's net and let go of the fish that had been caught!"

"Kang Cheon."

At the appearance of Kang Cheon, Mu Yu's rough breathing quietly subsided.

"Kang Cheon? You're saying he interfered with you?"

"The moment I was about to cut down all the next-generation talents, a flying sword flew in and interfered with me."

Mu Yu stared straight into Ma Seongun's two eyes, which were facing him.

He could not distinguish between truth and falsehood in his unwavering pupils.

"That brat is really hiding like a rat and interfering with us. Go back. The punishment for your failure will be decided after consulting with the Alliance Leader."

Ma Seongun, who had bowed his waist and lowered his head, left.

Soon, the closed door opened, and the head of the Heretic's Path Alliance's medical department, whose face was covered with a black cloth, came in.

"Have you checked?"

"The stab wound on the shoulder was not a wound made by an ordinary sword or saber. The same goes for the other wounds."

"The probability that it is a flying sword?"

"Nine-tenths... or more."

"Good work. Go back."

"As you command."

As the head of the medical department returned, Mu Yu roughly touched his forehead with one hand and took out a letter he had put in the drawer under the table.

This was a letter that Wu Am had sent a few days ago.

[I encountered Kang Cheon, but Kang Cheon, who had noticed it, attacked, so I had no choice but to run away. He seems to be moving alone at the moment.]

According to the letter sent by Wu Am, Kang Cheon had currently appeared south of Shaanxi.

"But Ma Seongun told me that Kang Cheon had attacked him..."

Since both of them claimed to have met Kang Cheon, it meant that one of them was lying.

And Wu Am does not lie.

"Ma Seongun... why are you lying to me? Why..."

Mu Yu re-read the phrase written at the end of Wu Am's letter.

[According to rumors, 11 years ago, Kang Cheon had a disciple, and the disciple's name is Jin Sohyun. He is said to be the eldest son of the Jin Family. He learned martial arts under Kang Cheon for 6 years.]

According to the information sent by Wu Am, the only person who knew how to use Kang Cheon's Flying Sword Technique was his only known disciple, the eldest son of the Jin Family, Jin Sohyun.

That meant that the one who had interfered with the Gongsun Cheong assassination operation and this Five Great Families next-generation talent assassination operation was also Jin Sohyun.

"Why are you trying to hide him? What on earth is he..."

Mu Yu, who was deep in thought, found the person he needed just in time, who had come to see him.

Thump thump—!

A middle-aged man who had entered the office with rough steps glared at Mu Yu with an indifferent gaze and said.

"I heard you failed again. Grand Commander Mu, the Silver Signpost is not a tool that the Heretic's Path Alliance can just use and throw away."

"Pavilion Master. I was just in need of you, so you've come at a good time."

"Are you even listening to me?"

"I was thinking of making a request to you... no, to the Silver Signpost."

"Do you know how many assassins of the Silver Signpost died due to the failure of this operation? The number of assassins who died at the hands of that madman named Ma Seongun..."

"Pavilion Master! Am I not speaking?"

At Mu Yu's words, the Silver Signpost Pavilion Master's mouth closed on its own.

Although he was just an ordinary man who had never learned any martial arts, he was a being that no one in the unorthodox faction dared to touch.

The old man stared at the Silver Signpost Pavilion Master with his characteristic hazy pupils and said.

"Kill the person I tell you to."

"...Who is he?"

At the Silver Signpost Pavilion Master's question, Mu Yu took up a brush and wrote down a man's name.

And the Silver Signpost Pavilion Master, who had received it, muttered the name with a puzzled expression.

"The eldest son of the Jin Family... Jin Sohyun?”

(End of Chapter)