Chapter 168 Full Term Release (2)

Chapter 168: Full Term Release (2)

Through my conversation with Mun Sang, I confirmed that the Lord of the Castle holds considerable favor toward me and my master.

Otherwise, there would be no reason not to investigate, especially since the White Sword Corps, the White Dragon Hall’s elite force, was completely annihilated.

Looking at it that way, perhaps confining me to Yongweidong wasn’t meant as punishment, but rather as protection.

After all, he couldn’t have predicted how things would turn out at the White Dragon Corps.

Of course, that doesn’t mean my grudge against Mun Sang has vanished completely.

It’s just that I moved his name from the execution list to the punishment list, and then to the watch list.

‘I’ll let him off this time. After all, he’s So-pyeong’s father.’

Emerging from the Military Affairs Bureau, I arrived at Mujeon’s house in front of the school gate for the first time in ages.

“What the fuck?”

I rubbed my eyes at the unbelievable sight before me.

“Soso! Are you inside?!”

Clang, CRASH!

The hinges of the recently replaced gate ripped off, sending the entire door crashing down.

The commotion in the middle of the night drew the attention of a few passersby, but now wasn’t the time to worry about that.

The house was completely wrecked.

The wall had collapsed, and the space used by the cleaning company was smashed beyond recognition, no longer fit to serve as a clinic.

And the interior was no different.

Three buildings had collapsed without even their frames left, only the foundation stones remaining.

Shhhhh.

Just in case, he spread his senses to scan the interior, but only the structure was perceptible; no sign of life was detected.

Grit.

The gruesome sight made his teeth grind involuntarily.

Who on earth could have done this?

More importantly, where had the cleaning crew gone?

The house could be rebuilt. It was a shame, but he had more than enough money and time to spare.

But if something happened to the cleaning crew, this would be no ordinary matter.

The Cheong Family itself wasn’t particularly powerful, but the martial arts connections they held were beyond imagination.

Take the Cheong Family head’s sworn brother, Yi Je-yuk, who was handling the Han Jung Sang-ryeon affair right now – a peerless master at the peak of his art.

Rumor had it there were over ten such sworn brothers, meaning the Cheong Family’s connections wrapped around the entire martial world.

Above all.

Touching my people is absolutely unforgivable.

‘How dare you touch my precious tenant!’

Thud.

His rage intensified, his footsteps heavy as lead.

The floor cracked as shockwaves exploded around him.

Just as he was about to be consumed by fury.

“Captain?”

The wild scent of Miao Xiang appeared.

* * *

“Damn it, you could at least say something! I thought something terrible had happened and got scared out of my wits. This isn’t some hidden camera prank.”

“Wh-wh-what? Anyway, Squad Leader, you were locked up in the brain prison, so I couldn’t get a word to you.”

“Hmph, true enough…”

“And it was incredibly urgent, too.”

Finishing her words, Myohyang handed over a receipt.

“Here. This is the payment for the house purchase.”

“Khehehe, thanks. Sis.”

“If you know better, act like it. You never came to visit once… I could die of frustration!”

“Oh dear, our sis is sulking!”

“I don’t care! Why are you embarrassing me like this, seriously.”

Today, she looked even more beautiful than usual.

Of course she did.

Thanks to her, he sold the house for four thousand nyang.

“What are you doing? Hurry up and come.”

‘Phew.’

With cash reserves running dangerously low due to the Jinmu Hall construction, this was like a timely rain in a drought.

And on top of that, news that Sangryeon’s projected net profit this year would exceed twenty thousand nyang!

This must be what Warren Buffett’s value investing is all about.

‘Who knew public safety and commerce were so closely intertwined?’

According to Myohyang, Hanjung was currently enjoying an unprecedented boom.

The Merchants’ Guild, which collects one-tenth of its affiliated merchants’ profits, now held enormous cash reserves.

This was all thanks to the security established through the bandit-clearing operation I and the Black Coral Pirates had carried out together.

With such unimaginable profits and stable security as a foundation, Myohyang proposed to the head of the Merchants’ Guild that they expand into Guryongseong.

In the martial arts world, a merchant guild expanding its territory isn’t merely about increasing sales channels.

It means being able to transport goods directly from production sites, reducing costs.

In other words, the plan was to reinvest the overflowing profits to increase net profits in the long term.

And the first step in that plan was to purchase and expand my house to use as the guild’s headquarters.

And they did so by spending a whopping four thousand taels.

Simply put, it was as if the Han-Jung Trading Corporation, a legal entity, had purchased real estate owned by me, its major shareholder.

In modern times, this would have landed them in court for breach of trust and embezzlement, but in the martial world, it posed no problem whatsoever.

‘Well, at worst, it’d be probation…’

Anyway, I hurried my steps, thinking about the gift I’d give to Myohyang, the top contributor to this endeavor.

And finally, after arriving at Jinmugwan—my own golden castle, the world I’d created.

Buzz, buzz.

“……”

Seeing the place packed to the rafters, I could only shut my mouth.

That’s right. She had invited nearly seven hundred officials, plus everyone I knew personally, to throw a feast.

The number was over a thousand.

I knew she was generous, but this was beyond imagination.

“Ha… ha…”

In the martial arts world, alcohol is never cheap. Meat is the same.

Feeding a thousand people their fill of both would easily cost at least a hundred taels of silver.

As I let out a hollow laugh at the sheer scale, Miao Xiang jabbed my side.

“Don’t laugh like that. Try to laugh as gracefully as possible.”

“All of a sudden?”

“More eyes are on you now, Captain. And it’s certain to only increase.”

“…So?”

“Is your position really the same as before? You’re the peerless master bearing all of Nine Dragons Fortress’s hopes. Plus, you’re the disciple of the Outer Sect Master, one of the Ten Great Masters.”

“W-well, that’s true.”

After all, he was part of the martial world’s upper echelon.

He quietly nodded at her well-founded argument. She lowered her voice and continued.

“Above all, the people sitting over there right now are the ones who will become your long-term support. You should arrange gatherings like this whenever possible to strengthen those relationships.”

“The officials too?”

“They’ll become warriors of the Nine Dragon Fortress in the future, won’t they?”

“That’s true.”

The higher one climbs, the more impossible it becomes to ignore the sentiments of the common folk below.

‘Is this why they send students abroad?’

It seemed just a few months working in Hanjung had raised Myohyang’s intellect score by over 20 points.

Swish swish.

Feeling proud, he stroked her head.

She looked up at him, her face flushed.

“Ugh… People are watching.”

“So what? It’s just between us…”

“Ugh…”

I entered the training ground with her, who was embarrassed.

“It’s Captain Jin!”

“Turyong!”

Turyong! Turyong! Turyong!

The people attending the banquet shouted my nickname.

“……”

Stunned and clueless, I stood there dumbfounded. Myohyang, her face still flushed, explained.

“The rumor that you rescued the sold children has spread all over the Outer City.”

“Ah…”

So this is what they call chivalry in the martial world, I thought.

* * *

The banquet proceeded at a breakneck pace.

Naturally.

As today’s main guest, I had to go around greeting people everywhere.

“Hahaha! You haven’t forgotten Master Sabakjo’s teachings! This elder brother believed in you.”

“Come here and have a drink!”

“Wow! That’s awesome!”

“Oh, come on, it’s just doing what you should do…”

Starting with the people from the Black Dragon Sect, including Wei Zhifeng.

“What were you thinking, taking such risks?!”

“Heh heh heh, leave it be, Brother. From what I saw, he handled it our way. Very satisfyingly.”

“Yes, thanks to him, didn’t the White Dragon Sword’s pride get shattered? I heard the rumor that he’ll have to live crooked for the rest of his life. Pwahahaha!”

“Oh, come on! Is that the problem now?! Our Gagga nearly got hurt!”

The Jik Il Sam brothers, subtly showing their favor, and Jik Hwa Ran, spouting strange words.

“Shall we talk about it later?”

“Come find me tomorrow. Let’s just drink today.”

Yongmasan, looking somehow lonely, and the Hao Munde members eating and drinking obliviously.

“We respect you, Lord Guan!”

We respect you-!

And even the seven hundred officials.

After wandering around like that for quite a while, I was finally able to sit down at the table where North Palace Baek and the former Seventeen Bureau members, along with the cleaning crew, had settled.

And soon, I witnessed an amusing scene.

“Here, try this gungbo jing. I made it myself.”

“Hmm… Thank you, but there’s no need to go to such trouble…”

“Oh my? What do you mean? You’re Master Jin’s teacher, of course we should take care of you. We’re not strangers, after all.”

“Ah, right.”

“If you’ll have the appetizer, this girl will pour you a drink.”

“Th-that I’ll handle myself…”

Master Bukgung was the epitome of awkwardness.

“Pffft.”

The Fire Demon King of Guryongseong, ranked as the most dangerous individual, looking utterly flustered.

I covered my mouth to stifle a laugh, but suddenly sensing a killing intent, I hastily clamped my mouth shut.

“Huh.”

Bukgung Baek asked in an intrigued tone.

“You’ve improved greatly, haven’t you? To sense my aura so quickly.”

“Yes, well… I’ve improved a bit.”

“It seems so.”

It was a simple remark, yet those seated nearby stared at us in astonishment.

It was only natural.

Bukgung Baek was a warrior who never spoke falsely.

If he said it had increased, it truly meant he had grown stronger.

He had gained something from the battle in the Brain Prison too.

“Hehehe, when you see it, you’ll be so shocked you’ll shout ‘The Back Wave Pushes the Front Wave’.”

It was a phrase containing my resolve to push Bukgung Baek into the background, using the idiom describing how the back wave of the Yangtze River pushes the front wave.

“We’ll see about that later.”

“……”

It felt like I’d brought some troublesome business upon myself, but I wasn’t overly worried.

‘I suppose I shouldn’t meet him for a while.’

If I don’t go, that’s that.

The holidays are coming soon, but what can you do?

I could just write a letter using the excuse that I’m too busy making a living. And ask for some pocket money.

As I nodded to myself, Cheong-a, perched on the shoulder of the cleaning robot, caught my eye.

When our eyes met, Cheong-a chirped brightly.

Tweet tweet. Chirp chirp-!

At first, I didn’t understand why anyone would keep one, but the more I saw it, the cuter it seemed.

It wasn’t just because I earned money for her.

Really.

“Oh my? Even after a month, Cheong-a still recognizes Team Leader’s face?”

“Guess she liked me that much…”

“No, it’s because our Cheong-a is a genius! Ah, how adorable.”

Peck peck.

Tick tock.

Still, kissing a cricket was crossing the line.

“Here.”

After the kisses, the little cleaning station offered a small pill.

“What’s this?”

“It’s a pill to restore your energy. I made it with decent ingredients, so it should definitely work. You haven’t been eating properly for a while, right?”

“Only you would think of this. I’ll eat it. “

”……Well, take it or leave it.“

How embarrassing.

”By the way, how was it inside?“

”That’s right. How was it? If I’d known you were going to Yongweidong, I would have given you some advice.“

”It’s……fine…….”

Dang Yanggang and Dang Jinhyeong suddenly asked about the incident in the brain prison.

Probably trying to show off that they’re senior ex-convicts.

“Where? You mean the Shadow Wing?”

“Gasp! How… how did you…?”

“I heard everything. I met with everyone from the First to the Fifth Division. I heard all about you guys too. Hey, you’re supposed to be Green Dragon Hall alumni, yet your ranks are like that? Even if you lack inner strength, that’s no excuse.”

“Huh!”

The three were startled when he mentioned the hierarchy of the Shadow Wing.

Finding their reaction amusing, everyone focused their gaze on him.

“Hehe. If you heard what happened inside, you’d all be shocked, right? I brought peace to that hellish place, the Dragon Guard Wing, didn’t I?”

Wow.

That’s awesome.

As everyone marveled, North Palace Baek asked in an intrigued voice.

“I’d like to hear it. Tell us.”

“Since the Master wishes to hear it, explaining is only right.”

I began recounting what had happened inside.

Of course, I left out the matter concerning the legacy of the Lowly Demon.

After all, that was an issue to be resolved separately with North Palace Master.

“…So, after sending seventy to the other world and crippling eighty, I restored peace to Yongweidong. Phew, thinking back now, it was quite the rollercoaster.”

And so, I recounted the entire tale of achieving peace in the underground prison, from beginning to end.

“……”

I witnessed silence spill over the table.

“Huh? What’s wrong with everyone?”

When I asked about the incomprehensible situation, starting with the cleaning crew, everyone began leaving their seats.

“Oh no! I left the medicine pot on the stove!”

“Damn! I should’ve packed the training materials for tomorrow!”

“I have documents to…”

“Ah, no! Where are you going?!”

Thanks to that, only Master Bukgung and Myohyang remained at the table.

She struggled to speak.

“I… I believe the leader won’t fall down the path of evil. I… truly do.”

Meanwhile, contrary to Myohyang’s reaction, Bukgung Baek smiled contentedly and nodded.

“It’s true, you have to take care of things to avoid future troubles. I’m proud of you.”

“No.”

It just makes me feel worse.