HDCLSSRS Ch 84

Chapter 84 Aung (4)

“Stop whining and eat. I brought it for you after giving it some thought…”

Baek Ryeoil nodded and began clearing his plate. He used to eat like a pig at every meal, so he must have been quite hungry. Watching the dumplings vanish quickly, Seong Muyeon clicked his tongue.

“What kind of sight is that? You should’ve held out a little.”

“What.”

“Being locked up like this isn’t exactly a good thing, is it?”

The cave air was cold and gloomy. Every time they spoke, the sound bounced off the walls and scattered like an echo. To think that he had to stay in this place devoid of any warmth for three days. Seong Muyeon would have gone mad.

But Baek Ryeoil didn’t seem to mind at all.

“If they want to lock me up, let them! What’s so hard about this? That old geezer… he always gets on my nerves, just like before.”

“You do that just because he gets on your nerves? Can’t you live quietly? What will you do if you get expelled?”

“Then I’ll just get expelled.”

“…Excuse me?”

Was that even a real answer?

“You’re just going to leave this amazing sect? Where would you even go?”

“I’ll go anywhere. What difference does it make?”

He ate his dumplings calmly, as if the words he had just spoken were his true feelings.

“……”

Seong Muyeon stared at him again, this time with a new perspective.

Baek Ryeoil didn’t merely stir up trouble with careful calculation to avoid expulsion—he genuinely didn’t care whether he got expelled or not, and that’s why he didn’t bother restraining himself.

It gave Seong Muyeon a strange feeling.

With Baek Ryeoil’s level of skill, even if the sect took back the martial arts he’d been taught, he could easily rise to the top anywhere else.

Still, wasn’t Mount Hua the home he had lived in all his life?

And yet, in the original story, once he avenged his master, he vanished without hesitation like smoke. He left behind no clues, no successor to carry on his will. He simply disappeared.

Even assuming he held no affection for Mount Hua, at least there was Ma Jincheon here. His death had been what drove Baek Ryeoil into action. Let alone death—now that he was alive, his motivation should be even stronger.

Seong Muyeon exhaled a breath like air escaping a balloon and smiled faintly.

‘It’s a relief I managed to bring back Master Dojang.’

Baek Ryeoil would take up his sword, whether in life or death, for the sake of his master.

That was enough. His heart felt lighter.

Worrying about whether Baek Ryeoil would become a hero was meaningless.

Feeling Seong Muyeon’s gaze, Baek Ryeoil paused his meal and suddenly shot him a sharp look.

 “What are you staring at?”

“You always have to say something like that…”

…To be honest, it was kind of annoying.

How easy must life be for Baek Ryeoil?

He had enough ability not to care about anyone’s judgment, to not be bound by rules or discipline. Damn it, that was enviable.

“If that’s how the Dojang is, then it’s none of my business. I’ll be going. See you after you get out.”

Once Baek Ryeoil finished eating, Seong Muyeon packed up the empty food container and stood.

“Right. Don’t cause any trouble while I’m gone.”

“Who’s the one always causing trouble?”

They didn’t bother saying goodbye.

Outside, Seomun Yuha and the warriors were still engaged in lively chatter.

As Seong Muyeon disappeared into the underbrush, Seomun Yuha turned to the warriors and said:

“It was nice chatting, hyungs! Sorry, but please forget everything we just talked about, okay?”

“Sure, sure. Don’t worry.”

“Sleep well and have sweet dreams.”

“Take care then. Bye!”

Not long after Seomun Yuha left, the warriors looked around in a daze like waking from a dream, and then returned to their posts as if nothing had happened, continuing their vigilant watch.

“Sir Seong! Did everything go well?”

“Yes, thanks to you.”

 Having just witnessed two highly skilled Mount Hua warriors fall completely under a spell, he now thought the abilities of Hwajeong Valley were even more frightening than he had imagined.

Perhaps that fear was why the people of the Central Plains had ostracized Hwajeong Valley so vehemently.

 

 ‘He said as long as we don’t make eye contact…’

At the moment, he was more concerned with hiding his impaired vision than with the risk of being bewitched.

“Thank you, sir. Now, I’ll be on my way… wait, why are you following me?”

“It’s late at night. It might be dangerous. I’ll escort you back to your quarters.”

Seomun Yuha replied with his usual silly smile, trailing right behind him.

“Can I ask what you handed over to Head Disciple Baek?”

“It was nothing special. He couldn’t eat in the Hall of Repentance, so I brought him a lunchbox at Master Dojang’s request. It’s a secret from Mount Hua.”

“Gasp! Don’t you know me, Sir Seong? It’s me, Seomun Yuha! I’m nothing without loyalty! I won’t tell a soul, so don’t worry!”

“Ah, yes…”

Seong Muyeon made every effort to avoid eye contact with him.

 Whether he was aware of it or not, Seomun Yuha kept chatting cheerfully.

He talked about how his first day at Mount Hua had gone, and how his parents had sent him a letter filled with curses when they found out he had disappeared—just idle conversation.

“But are you sick or something?”

“P-Pardon? Me? Not at all.”

“You keep your head down, your back looks hunched… If you’re not sick, then what’s going on? Did something happen in the Hall of Repentance?”

“I-I’m fine.”

Seong Muyeon was flustered.

This young man wore a naive expression as if he had no clue Muyeon was avoiding him, but he was surprisingly persistent.

It was enough to make one suspicious that he was acting on purpose.

“Sir Seong Muyeon!”

Just in time, Kang Ung and Ma Jincheon—who had been pacing in the yard—called out to him, letting him escape from that ordeal.

Seong Muyeon hurried over to them in relief.

“There were no issues, right?”

“I delivered it safely. But contrary to what you said, there were guards posted.”

“Really? Then how… they didn’t stop you?”

“I helped!”

Seomun Yuha, who still hadn’t left, raised his hand high over the wall.

Ma Jincheon, who held an important position, recognized him immediately.

“Ah, so it’s Lord Seomun. You helped Lord Seong? Thank you very much.”

 “Not at all. Hehe.”

“That’s great. We made some more dumplings with the leftover ingredients—Lord Seomun, why don’t you come in and have some too? I can’t let you go without a proper thank-you.”

“Then I’ll gladly accept!”

Without any hesitation, Seomun Yuha followed Ma Jincheon inside.

Kang Ung, who had a poor first impression of him, furrowed his brows like an angry puppy and looked displeased, but he couldn’t speak up against what the master of the house decided.

Seong Muyeon wasn’t exactly happy to invite him in either.

But watching Seomun Yuha laugh with joy made him let out a faint chuckle.

Seeing him so cheerful, he figured the boy must’ve been feeling lonely—trying to adjust in an unfamiliar place with no acquaintances around.

‘I have something to give him anyway.’

Might as well make use of the moment.

And so, Seomun Yuha took a seat at the impromptu midnight dumpling feast.

“They don’t look great, but they taste good. Please, eat.”

“Wow, thank you for the meal!”

Seomun Yuha was the kind of person who instinctively knew where to sit.

Before Ma Jincheon, he acted politely and mild-mannered, and Ma Jincheon took a liking to him.

“Hahaha! You say Mount Hua’s rules are strict? Maybe compared to noble families, yes. But if you spent just one day in Wudang or Kunlun, you’d never say that again.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely. I often visit the Nine Great Sects1 on business, and among them, Kunlun is the strictest. Every time I come back from there, I feel grateful all over again for joining Mount Hua.”

Ma Jincheon, now in high spirits, was louder and chattier than usual.

Even though his disciple Baek Ryeoil was imprisoned for his crimes, it seemed that spending time with friendly people gave him joy.

As the night deepened, Seong Muyeon’s heart slowly began to soften.

It was surprising how pleasant things could be even without a drop of alcohol.

 At some point, young Kang Ung began nodding off, and they sent him to bed while the three adults continued their lively conversation.

Who knows how much time had passed?

Eventually, Ma Jincheon rose first.

“Oh my, look at the time. I should get going.”

He expressed his thanks again to both young men and returned to his quarters.

“I’ll head out too. I have to wake up early for training…”

Seomun Yuha shivered as though just the thought made him sick.

Seong Muyeon patted his shoulder in encouragement.

“Wait, Lord Seomun. I have something to give you. Would you come with me for a moment?”

 “What is it?”

Seong Muyeon took him to his room.

He brought out a box he had kept safely stored and handed it to him.

 When Seomun Yuha opened it and saw what was inside, surprise crossed his face.

“This is… a whip?”

Yes. Seong Muyeon had decided to give him the Whip of Wirim.

“You probably already know this, but your body type isn’t well-suited for external martial arts, so wielding a sword or saber would be difficult. I thought about it, and… a whip relies heavily on technique, so it might be a better match for you.”

Though he put it like that, this wasn’t just a random guess.

 

In the original story, Seomun Yuha—better known then as Hwahwagwi (the Painted Ghost)2—had used a whip as his weapon of choice.

Even though the weapon he used back then was quite good, the Whip of Wirim was superior and would elevate Seomun Yuha’s abilities significantly.

 His expression turned blank with astonishment.

Footnotes:

1. Nine Great Sects (구파일방 / Gu Pal Il Bang) – A fictional or traditional grouping of the nine most powerful sects in many martial arts settings, like Wudang, Kunlun, Shaolin, etc.
2. Hwahwagwi (화화귀 / 畫畵鬼) – Literally “Painted Ghost,” this likely refers to Seomun Yuha’s future title or nickname, used in the original storyline.