We approached the fabric store to look at the clothes.
“Welcome!”
The one who greeted us was a man in his mid-thirties with a goat-like beard.
“I would like to take a look at the clothes hanging by the door.”
As I pointed to the outfit I had just seen, the owner smiled brightly and nodded.
“Oh, you’re talking about the Goryeo-style clothing.”
He hurried over and brought back the outfit I pointed at.
“This outfit resembles the Durumagi that Goryeo people wear over their clothes. It’s excellent for warmth, so you can wear it even in the coldest winter.”
Saying that, the fabric store owner spread the clothing wide in front of me.
Unlike the typical Chinese clothing with separate top and bottom, this solid black Durumagi looked very similar to the clothes seen in historical dramas.
The only slightly different point was that it had a deep slit on the sides.
It seemed designed for convenience when riding a horse.
“Can I try it on?”
“Of course! This way, please.”
The store owner nodded and led us inside, where there was a much larger selection of clothing than it appeared from the outside.
I entered the fitting room he guided me to, took off the plain robe I was wearing, and put on the black Durumagi.
“Oh wow.”
It’s usually tough to find clothes fitting perfectly off the rack, but this felt like it was tailored just for me as the length fit exactly.
When I opened the fitting room door and stepped outside, the fabric store owner and Samajak looked surprised and exclaimed:
“It suits you incredibly well, guest!”
“You look fabulous!”
“Really?”
While the shopkeeper would surely know how to flatter to sell, Samajak’s reaction made it seem like it genuinely looked good on me.
Feeling my cheeks lift unknowingly, I asked the store owner, “I’ll buy this. How much?”
The store owner rubbed his hands together and said, “Ten silver coins.”
“…What?”
“Ten silver coins.”
I thought I might have misheard, so I checked again, but the price didn’t change.
“Could you perhaps lower the price a bit…?”
“I’m sorry, but that would be quite difficult.”
I attempted to haggle, but the shop owner firmly refused.
I didn’t lack money, but paying ten silver coins for one outfit felt like an extravagant purchase, and I hesitated.
As I contemplated for a while and reached to untie the robe I was wearing, suddenly, Samajak interjected.
“Hey, why don’t we have a quick chat?”
“Uh?”
The owner, caught off guard as he hadn’t expected Samajak to speak up, looked flustered.
Ignoring that, Samajak glanced pointedly at my outfit and said, “Considering the dust on the shoulders, this looks like it hasn’t sold for quite a while; how about you lower the price a bit?”
The shop owner laughed in disbelief.
“What are you trying to say? You want to find flaws in perfectly good clothing?”
Samajak then pointed at the outfit I was wearing.
“It’s not even made from the highest quality fabric, and the surface is quite rough. It doesn’t even seem like something you’d wear in this season, does it?”
“Clothes are meant to be worn in cold or hot weather; what’s the point in debating when to wear them? And regarding the fabric, if it were better than this, wouldn’t it be sold at that price?”
It was truly a battle of wits between the one trying to haggle and the one adamantly standing firm on price, with me caught in the middle, glancing nervously as I took off the Durumagi.
“Well, I’ll just take a look around.”
At that, the shop owner, deeply engaged in his argument with Samajak, suddenly stopped.
“You’re not buying?”
“Right. You don’t seem keen on selling at a loss, so I wouldn’t want to force you.”
And I thought I might find a similar outfit elsewhere.
“Well, that’s true.”
With a somewhat reluctant expression, the owner agreed with me.
I neatly handed the Durumagi back to the owner and turned to Samajak.
“Let’s go.”
To that, Samajak, as if puzzled that we had ever haggled, simply replied, “Okay,” and followed me.
Just then, the owner called out to us from behind.
“Wait, just a moment!”
Curious about what was happening, I turned around to see the shop owner hurriedly say, “If you buy now, I’ll give it to you for nine silver coins.”
‘Really now?’
I squinted at the shop owner, who had suddenly changed his tone.
Now that he thought I wouldn’t buy, he quickly lowered the price?
This meant he was holding onto a price he could have lowered all along.
“That’s fine. I’ll check another place.”
I wasn’t about to sell my self-esteem for a mere silver coin, so I turned my back on him coldly, prompting the shop owner to hastily drop the price further.
“Eight silver coins!”
Already, that was a nearly 20% reduction from the original price.
But in a market where the asking price is often inflated, it was likely that this price was the standard rate.
Thinking that way made me feel a bit annoyed, so I issued the shop owner an ultimatum.
“Seven silver coins.”
The store owner, taken aback and stammering without being able to answer immediately, finally replied, “Alright! Let’s do that!” while handing me the Durumagi.
*
“I still ended up buying it cheaper than expected.”
That was what Samajak said as we left the fabric store, having put on my new Durumagi.
“Looks like he was itching to sell quickly, just as you said.”
Now that I had bought the outfit, I noticed the black Durumagi was indeed quite dusty, indicating it must have been hanging there for quite some time.
Thanks to Samajak’s keen observation, I could take the upper hand in haggling over the price of the clothes.
“Still, isn’t it better for the clothes to have found a good owner like you?”
As he said that, Samajak looked me up and down in the black Durumagi.
It seemed clear that this outfit suited me exceedingly well, considering the compliments I was getting.
“I feel good. I bought my clothes at a bargain, so I’ll treat you to lunch today.”
“Oh, really?”
As I saw Samajak light up at the unexpected news, we were on our way to grab a late lunch.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted behind us.
“What the heck! That’s outrageously overpriced!”
“What’s going on?”
“Looks like a fight broke out.”
Normally, I would have ignored it and kept going, but today it piqued my interest.
“Let’s check it out.”
“Hey, wait a second!”
I immediately turned and began pushing through the crowd, with a surprised Samajak trailing behind.
Before long, we squeezed into the space where people had formed a circle and spotted some familiar faces.
“So we have no intention of playing with you!”
It was Namgoong Ruby, who usually always wore a bright smile but now had a rare furious expression, and behind her stood Dokgorin, observing the situation with narrowed eyes.
In front of them were two rough-looking men who seemed to have gotten rejected.
I instantly grasped the situation.
‘Those two guys over there were hitting on them.’
And Ruby and Dokgorin had shut them down cleanly, but the guys were being pestering.
If they had realized those two were martial arts masters, they would have wet themselves and fled, but as young reckless fools often do, they were clueless.
Judging from Dokgorin’s expression, it looked like her patience was nearing its limit, so I stepped in urgently.
“Excuse me.”
As I popped out from the crowd, the men frowned and asked, “Who are you?”
“Why don’t you just go on your way?”
That was such a classic delinquent attitude.
I had never seen guys like this back in Sangam, but I thought this must be the variety of characters in a big city as I opened my mouth.
“The two over there are my friends, so I think it’d be better if you leave before things get messy.”
Then one of the two, with short hair, stepped forward, flaring with anger.
“Are you trying to act tough in front of the girls?”
As he pushed my chest, at that moment—
Swish!
I swiftly tied his arm with the silk thread hidden under my sleeve while simultaneously pulling back hard.
Crash!!
He lost his balance and toppled over in an instant.
Seeing this, the other guy jumped in surprise and drew a dagger from his coat.
“You punk!!”
But his thrust was far too straightforward.
I quickly shot the silk thread and tied up both his arms and legs, cross-wrapping his hands.
In an instant, he dropped the dagger from his grip as he fell forward, entangled in the threads.
Wow!
The scene of two well-built adult men falling helplessly drew cheers from the onlookers.
“Are you alright?”
As I approached while asking, Namgoong Ruby and Dokgorin nodded in unison.
“Thanks to you.”
“Thank you.”
Having received their words of gratitude, I noticed more spectators gathering and suggested to the two of them.
“By chance, I was hoping to grab a bite to eat now. Do you want to join us?”
Before Namgoong Ruby could respond, Dokgorin clung to my right arm and said, “Sure.”
Samajak shot a jealous look at Dokgorin.
It felt like things were shifting into an odd direction, but I suggested we move on.
I didn’t want to draw any more attention than necessary.
