Chapter 20 Fame

Chapter 20: Fame

My life was in danger, but I gained quite a lot from this mission.

First, martial arts.

Just like the ancient saying of the Zhenwang style—that one grows stronger with every movement and becomes even mightier with every fight—life-or-death battles brought me great achievements.

Unlike the past when I could barely use the first technique, Exploding Eye, I could now not only master Exploding Eye perfectly but also use its ultimate form, Extreme Eye.

Considering the five-stage progression of the technique, my achievement had leaped from a 1-star to a 3-star level.

I also achieved a major breakthrough in my internal energy.

By absorbing the essence of the top-tier elixir, Snow Dew Elixir, crafted by the Blue Pavilion, my internal energy, which had stagnated at 30 years, surged to 60 years.

Thanks to this, my cultivation level, which had been stuck at the Peak (True) stage due to insufficient internal energy, advanced to the True stage.

After graduating from the Ascension Pavilion, I never once thought my martial arts were lacking.

In fact, he had always considered exceptional martial prowess unnecessary, as it increased the likelihood of being assigned to dangerous missions.

However, this mission changed his perspective.

You never know when, where, or what kind of bastard will jump out.

Just look at this time—didn’t that terrifying bastard, the Soul-Shattering Slaughterer, jump out trying to split my skull open?

Thanks to that, I regretted neglecting my training dozens of times while fighting.

Regret is not a common occurrence for a man like me, walking the path of the Overlord.

Such profound regret hadn’t struck me since the day of my senior year college entrance exam, when I grabbed my head thinking, ‘I should have studied more.’

So I reached a conclusion.

When it comes to martial arts, more is always better.

Of course, the rewards from the mission weren’t limited to that.

The highlight remained: the bounty.

“Good work.”

Thud.

A wooden chest, about the size of a convenience store cash box, landed on the desk of the Military Bureau’s scribe.

The Military Bureau of the Nine Dragons Fortress wouldn’t pay bounties in coins.

Meaning, the money inside this chest was silver ingots.

‘Damn, over a thousand taels!’

The amount, equivalent to 10 billion won in modern value, made his entire body tense with excitement.

Staring blankly for a moment, the clerk from the Military Bureau who handed over the money explained with a smile.

“This is a special reward, including a token of appreciation from the Qing family. Even for the most dangerous missions, we don’t usually pay this much.”

“I-Is that so?”

“And you were quite fortunate. Normally, gifts received from transactions between sects belong to the city, but this time, the Qing Family Head specifically requested that the entire amount be paid to you, the one who saved his daughter’s life.”

How incredibly grateful I am!

I felt like rushing to the Qing Family Manor right now to bow in gratitude.

Moreover, the Military Bureau’s clerks looked different now.

I’d thought they were mere desk-bound bureaucrats, but seeing them again, each one seemed like the reincarnation of Zhuge Liang or Sima Zhongda.

“Anyway, you really did a great job. Actually, it’s a bit late to say this now, but all the clerks at the Military Bureau thought you’d fail the mission and die.”

“……”

That is, until I heard this bullshit.

***

Clang!

The moment I got home, I flipped open the wooden box.

The light reflecting off the pure white silver filled the room.

“Hehehehe.”

The sight made me laugh involuntarily.

After admiring the brightly shining silver for a moment, a thought suddenly struck me.

[But half the success reward is ours!]

The demands of the team members participating in the mission came to mind.

Back then, I agreed thinking I’d get at most fifty silver taels, but now that I’ve received over a thousand taels, the situation has changed.

Because I might end up getting fleeced for five hundred taels.

‘Those guys didn’t contribute a damn thing.’

I planned the operation, recruited the outsiders, and single-handedly succeeded in the raid on the field boss, Talhon Salbu.

If we’re being precise, my contribution was over 90%, while the team members’ contribution to success was less than 10%.

If we split the reward money using capitalist logic, giving them only a hundred nyang was the fair thing to do.

‘Alright, let’s just give them exactly a hundred nyang.’

But this decision of mine was doomed from the start.

“Is it true you received a thousand nyang in rewards?”

“Is that really true?!”

“I’ll follow you for the rest of my life, Captain!”

“…Overwhelming… Enemy… Thank you.”

Somehow, the amount of the reward I received from the Military Bureau had spread like wildfire among the team members.

“H-how did you…?”

“The Captain just told us it was a great honor and left.”

‘That damn Captain.’

No, why did he come and blabber on when he didn’t even do anything?

‘Right, if these guys had any conscience, they’d ask for it themselves.’

I decided to trust the team members’ conscience.

A hundred nyang, no, I’ll give them a generous hundred and fifty nyang.

But my plan hit a snag right from the start.

“I can’t cut a single penny off.”

They’d put Yang Gang, who never cared about my opinion, up front for negotiations.

Of course, I’m also a negotiation veteran, having briefly worked part-time at a cellphone store in my past life.

“Wouldn’t it be fair to divide it based on each person’s contribution?”

I wasn’t about to back down easily.

“They say a person’s mind changes between going into and coming out of the outhouse. Our team leader seems to be exactly that sort.”

” People’s hearts can’t always stay the same.“

”But isn’t this change too extreme? If things keep going like this, who would follow the team leader and risk their life for him?“

”Hmm…”

He wasn’t wrong.

Though it was a barbaric martial world where fists came before law, it still functioned somehow because the worldview’s mindset was rooted in Confucian Taliban principles.

If he lost the trust of his team members, life in the outer sect wouldn’t be easy from now on.

Ultimately, there was only one point at stake: justification.

“That’s why I’m saying we should think rationally.”

“What kind of rationality are you talking about? I’m just saying we should split it fairly in half.”

“Now, now. Let’s calm down and think about the people who participated in the mission. “

”……“

”Me and the four of you—‘Yongmasan, the leader of over two hundred disciples from the Second Hall of the Second Sect,’ and ‘Danun, the peerless master born of the Blue Dragon Sect and its chief disciple, the great hero Blue Dragon Sword’—joined forces to complete the mission, didn’t we?”

He deliberately exaggerated the backgrounds of Yongmasan and Danun. It was to make the team members’ contributions seem smaller.

“W-well, yes, but…”

“Danun, Yongmasan, and I each did the work of one person, while the four of you combined did the work of one person. You admit that, right?”

“……”

“So it should be divided into four equal parts.”

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“Look closely. Me, Yongmasan, Danun, and the four of you. The contributions are clearly divided like this, aren’t they?”

Truthfully, I didn’t think that at all.

I did all the work. What exactly did Yongmasan and Danun contribute?

Still, for now, I had to insist this was fair.

That way, the team members’ grounds for revolt would weaken.

“Hah, but didn’t the team leader say he’d give half?”

“I said I would! Who said I wouldn’t? It’s just that it’s right to give half after taking out Danun and Yongmasan’s shares.”

“Do you plan to share the reward money with Dan the Hero and Yong the Hero too?”

“Isn’t that obvious? We all suffered together, so we should share.”

Of course, that was a lie.

I had no intention of sharing a single penny.

Naturally, Yanggang, unaware of the situation, just nodded his head.

“Well, I suppose there’s no helping it. Let’s do as the squad leader says.”

And so, I achieved the triumph of cutting the 500 nyang expenditure down to half—250 nyang.

All while the squad members exchanged satisfied glances behind my back, unbeknownst to me.

***

As if possessed by Judge Bao himself, after dividing the reward money fairly, we set out for the seventeenth shift to guard the city gate.

Normally, after completing an external mission, we’d get a fortnight’s leave. But due to the war with Namcheongung, many of the Outer Hall warriors had been drafted, leaving us short-handed.

Well, no complaints.

“Next!”

“Hehe, oh my, you’re working hard again today. Have a bowl of rice wine after you finish.”

Because a tidy little side income awaited us.

Only amateurs would neglect the small change after making a big score.

Isn’t fulfilling your assigned duty, even after a big payday, the spirit of a professional?

“Well, what do you know…”

Half a day passed like this.

As this more satisfying workday than usual neared its end, murmurs rose from the waiting line, and all eyes turned to me.

‘Huh?’

Just as I sensed something was off, Yoo So-pyeong’s voice reached me.

“Team Leader, the sun has set. ”

“Already? Then let’s wrap up and head in.”

No matter how curious I was, clocking out came first.

I was a manager who complied with labor laws, after all.

Just as I finished tidying up and was about to leave, Yang Gang approached.

“Since we got paid, how about grabbing a drink? Want to join us?”

“I’m a bit tired today?”

“We’re buying.”

I can’t resist free drinks.

“What are you doing? Not coming?”

A short while later, I followed the team members to Jihwa-ru.

Opening the door and stepping inside, I saw Manager Yuk bustling about greeting customers as usual.

Her voluptuous figure, slightly revealed with every movement, struck a chord within me.

After a brief wait, she seemed to recognize us and approached with quick steps.

“Welcome, Master Jin.”

“Hmm, it’s been a while, Manager Yook.”

“I hear you’ve accomplished something great this time.”

“Heh heh, great? It was just a trip to Gansu Province for a drink. Don’t make too much of it.”

A touch of modesty at times like this boosts your charm points.

If you brag too much, you might just come off as unlucky.

“Is that so? As expected, Captain Jin is the hero of Nine Dragons City.”

Sure enough, whether the strategy worked or not, words full of favor poured out of Commander Yook’s mouth.

There was no doubt his favor stat had risen significantly thanks to this mission.

“Hah! Heh heh heh. Hero? You flatter me too much. I’m at a loss for words. Anyway, about that tea we were going to have last time…?”

“Ahem!”

After a moment of small talk, Yang Gang behind us gave a warning glance.

Anyway, they’re the type who can’t stand seeing others succeed.

But what can you do?

The one paying the tab is the boss for the day.

“Oh dear, it seems our team members are thirsty. I’ll tell you the rest later, but could you show us to our seats first?”

“Of course. Follow me.”

And so the drinking session began.

A large banquet table was brought in, rare liquors hard to come by were served, and lovely women joined the feast.

How could one not be happy?

“When I hurled that fireball spell, ‘Bam!’—watching those Ten-Armed Demon seeds scramble away, ‘Oh my!’—how utterly ridiculous they looked…”

“Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! That’s not the sound from my mouth—it’s the sound from the Judge’s Brush!”

“…With poison… I… brought them… down…”

“Jin-hyeong’s legs are worth a million nyang!”

Each man was busy boasting about his exploits to the courtesans pouring them wine.

‘Oh dear, these pathetic fellows.’

People should be honest, not just spouting nonsense.

“And what exploits did you perform, Great Hero?”

“Ah! Nothing much for me. Just… so… I fled… crossed the mountain range… carried the daughter of the Blue House Lord on my back… hid somewhere… when that soul-stealing bastard appeared. I raised my fist and struck him, and he went ‘Eek!’ and died.”

Even after over ten minutes of explanation, the courtesans reacted positively, so I ended up finishing the story without realizing it.

Before I knew it, I saw the courtesans had closed their mouths and were staring at me silently.

‘Oh no! Too much talker is never popular…’

Unless you’re a national hero like Brother Chanho Park, a too much talker is unforgivable.

I quickly admitted my mistake and apologized.

“Oh no! I’ve talked too much. I’m usually a quiet person. I guess I made a mistake since it’s been a while since I’ve been at a drinking party.”

But even after my apology, the courtesans just stared blankly at me, not saying a word.

The other members glared at me, the main culprit who ruined the mood, as if they wanted to kill me.

After a moment, one courtesan spoke in a trembling voice.

“…To, Toulong!!”

“Huh?”

What is that?