Chapter 2

Danwooseong had no choice but to accept the situation that had unfolded.

Of course, the question “Why?” clung to him like a shadow, unavoidable.

Why was reincarnation the path after death? And why as the heir apparent of a merchant guild, not a martial artist?

It was something he could neither understand nor uncover the cause of.

The death-related incident was horrifying enough to make one’s blood run cold, but the fact that he was reincarnated as someone he had never met in his entire life was an utterly absurd turn of events.

The fortunate thing was that he had entered Lee Jin-eon’s body while retaining Dan Woo-sung’s mind and memories.

Only then did Danwooseong view this body, once used by another, with an objective perspective.

Simply put, it was the body of a sick person.

The room reeked of medicinal decoction mixed with the peculiar musty odor characteristic of the sick.

‘A man suffering from a serious illness embracing a woman…’

From a warrior’s perspective, it was difficult to comprehend.

Danwooseong, having calmed his mind, carefully reread the letter.

Most inquired about the eldest prince, Lee Jin-eon’s, recent affairs and health, though occasionally they also contained slanderous remarks about his younger brothers.

Some letters frequently mentioned drinking, brothels, and women’s names. After reading several letters, he reached this conclusion:

They weren’t waiting for the return of the Crown Prince, Yi Jin-eon, but for the return of the money he could spend.

‘The rotten bastards were all around him.’

It couldn’t be helped.

After all, he was the Crown Prince of the Eunhwa Trading Company, so he must have been splurging money freely at drinking parties.

There was nothing more to see in the letter.

Amidst this, Danwooseong found the issues with Lee Jinyun’s body increasingly etched into his mind.

It was truly a body riddled with problems.

He was a drunkard and a womanizer, and his martial arts training was half-hearted.

Even while reading the letter, he felt dizzy several times, such was the totality of the predicament.

Dan Wooseong shuffled awkwardly across the spacious room as if learning to walk, coming to a halt before the door.

The attendant waiting there opened the door.

As Dan Woo-seong stepped out with a pale face, the attendant supported him as if it were the most natural thing.

“Where are you going, Master…”

Then a white-haired, rather stout-looking councilman approached with quick steps down the hallway and asked.

“Master Kong, are you all right?”

The attendant supporting him was tense, as if his own life would be forfeit if Yi Jin-eon collapsed, but the approaching councilor’s expression showed none of that.

The calm expression on the physician’s face held not worry, but rather a hint of surprise.

‘How did you get up?’

That was the atmosphere, perhaps.

Dan Woo-sung, unable to understand the physician’s expression, stared intently. The physician quickly bowed his head, averting his gaze.

Dan Woo-sung looked around.

There was no sign of any bodyguards anywhere. It seemed the only people inside the mansion were servants and the gray-haired physician. He instinctively scanned for any skilled fighters who might harm him, but aside from the physician, there were no men in sight at all.

Dan Woo-sung spoke in a calm, subdued tone.

“I came out for a moment because I was feeling stifled. It’s fine, everyone, you may leave.”

“Yes.”

As the servants hesitated, Dan Wooseong spoke again.

“It’s fine. I need to sleep again, so don’t wake me.”

“Understood. Sleep well.”

Even as he spoke, Danwooseong couldn’t get used to his own voice. He patted the back of Sibi’s hand, as if to say it was fine, then entered the room alone.

Dan Wooseong sat down on the bedding and sank into thought for a moment.

Seeing the physician’s expression made his insides boil. Overwhelmed by a mix of displeasure and suspicion, he resolved to recover quickly and examine the matter again.

‘That bastard councilman’s expression was like that.’

No one here seemed capable of harming the poor patient’s life at that moment, but a physician was different. He wanted to grab the physician by the hair and drag him in for interrogation, but given his current state of health, there was a possibility Danwooseong might end his own life before the interrogation even began.

Danwooseong took several deep breaths before closing his eyes.

From the ‘position of the King of Power’, he began to quietly observe this troubled body.

.

.

.

He wasn’t poisoned.

I took my own pulse and carefully pressed my fingers into the muscles and various spots on my abdomen.

Above all, the stomach and large intestine were the biggest problems, though they weren’t actually serious illnesses. Given that his body felt this exhausted in such a condition, it was clear that Lee Jin-eon had deliberately neglected his health.

His body was already soaked in alcohol.

He had no energy.

Judging by the scent of powder in the room and the hollow state of his lower body, his sexual activity with women seemed excessive relative to his health.

He concluded this was tantamount to aiding and abetting his own suicide.

Danwooseong believed that scum like this needed to be beaten regularly to come to their senses. But who would dare strike the heir apparent of the prestigious Eunhasa Group?

Regardless of who his father was, sending him to a place like this for recuperation seemed like the best option available.

‘I’ve ended up with a useless bastard.’

But Dan Woo-sung was a man with a plan.

That’s how he managed to rise to become a power broker despite having no family, connections, or money.

Dan Woo-sung stared intently at his own face as he looked into the mirror again.

It felt like two souls facing each other through the mirror as a medium.

At that moment, Danwooseong asked, and Lee Jinyun answered.

.

.

.

‘You really were a hopeless bastard.’

‘And you’re any different?’

‘Of course I’m different.’

‘What do you intend to do? You could die soon.’

‘I have no such intention. With my abilities, I can fully recover from this. And not just recover. I’ll show you that even with your worthless body, you can become the King of Power.’

‘Is that even possible?’

‘It is. Weaklings like you can just watch. Now rest. I’ll handle this.’

Danwooseong in his past life was a truly rugged man, possessing an intense presence and angular features, while Lee Jin-eon is a delicate young gentleman who has never even practiced martial arts.

A faint smile of the martial king Dan Woosung flickered across that delicate face.

It was the moment when Lee Jin-eon’s expression changed completely.

.

.

.

Regardless of the situation at the main house, the Eunha Trading Company, once his strength was restored, he could use the company’s funds to become overwhelmingly stronger than before.

Dan Woo-seong first focused on expelling the impure energy from his body by newly entering the White Lightning Ten-Stage Technique, which he was most familiar with.

If his physical condition had been normal, it would have been best to practice qigong for about an hour before sleeping. However, his body was so unwell that his bodily functions were nearly paralyzed, making the qigong practice almost akin to a resurrection ritual.

The dying spark of life began to reignite through the martial arts of the martial king. Dan Woo-sung carefully tended that spark to keep it alive, and though weak, the formation of his dantian had laid the foundation for accumulating internal energy.

Only after the sun had risen high in the sky did he complete the initiation rite for the Hundred Battles Tenfold Dan Gong.

Dan Woo-sung exhaled a long breath.

“Huuuuu…”

His stomach growled, signaling hunger, but this was a good sign. The hangover symptoms had faded, and his once-pale complexion had regained a more human appearance compared to dawn.

Danwooseong clutched his rumbling stomach as he walked to the desk.

On the desk sat a bowl of leftover soup. He sniffed it, stirred it with his hand to check the contents, and found, to his utter disbelief, that it was Yongbongtang (Dragon-Phoenix Soup).

‘Damn it…’

Dragon-Turtle Soup is made by simmering chicken and softshell turtle in a thin broth. For a healthy person, it has nourishing and fortifying effects. But for someone in Lee Jin-eon’s condition, consuming it was no different from poison. His body grew increasingly weak, yet in the bedroom, at least his lower body still functioned properly.

Only then did Danwooseong recall the expression on the white-haired physician’s face. To Lee Jin-eon, that man was nothing short of despicable. Even if he hadn’t administered poison, the physician could be said to have hastened his natural death.

At the same time, a sigh escaped him as he realized just how foolish a man Lee Jin-eon truly was.

‘Don’t worry. You’ll end up beating him to death with your own hands.’

Danwooseong suddenly looked at his own hands.

The shape of one’s hands varies from person to person.

Some hands are poorly shaped for clenching fists, making them unsuitable for martial arts training. This is true of those whose knuckles or backs of their hands break even from a moderate strike, because the surface of their fist isn’t flat.

Fortunately, Lee Jin-eon’s hands were not like that.

They were simply thin and soft overall, having never endured hardship.

Danwooseong, clenching his fist, decided that once his health was fully restored, he must address the problems arising around Lee Jin-eon.

Until then, keeping a low profile was the right call.

Suddenly finding the air in the room stifling, Danwooseong threw the window wide open.

The crisp air from Guwhasan swept into the room, swirling around and shattering the musty scent lingering on the woman’s bedding and the sickly odor left behind by the patient.

Dan Woo-sung also breathed in the fresh air of Guwhasan deeply.

Though his body was emaciated and his health poor, the atmosphere radiating from his expression overflowed with confidence, entirely independent of his physical state.

He had been reborn into the body of a sick man, yet he was grateful simply for the chance to live again.

Noticing Danwooseong had risen, his attendant asked from outside.

“Master, how shall I prepare your meal?”

Danwooseong retorted.

“Come in and talk.”

“Yes, I’ll come in.”

When Sibi listed the foods he could prepare, Danwooseong replied.

“Forget that. For the time being, I’ll only eat rice gruel for breakfast and lunch.”

“Huh? Rice gruel?”

Sibi’s eyes widened. The Crown Prince rarely ate properly. Instead, when he got hungry, he tended to binge eat while drinking. So, his decision to eat rice gruel was bound to be surprising…

Dan Woo-sung said.

“Don’t prepare dinner. Instead, bring me a little of each kind of fruit. I’ll eat them when I get hungry…”

He planned to endure several days on near-empty stomachs.

Danwooseong pointed at the warm soup on the desk and said.

“Clear that away. And don’t prepare any more soup from now on. Just put lukewarm water on the desk instead of alcohol.”

“Yes, I will.”

Shibi’s eyes widened as he exited the room.

ⓒ Yoo Jin-seong

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