“Barbarian bastards! Damn bastards digging traps?!”
Indeed, they all gathered. I thought as I looked down at two Black Knife factions from the third floor.
The Black Gang and Red Line. The two factions, caught in a trap, looked up at the Joseon people on the upper floor, their faces realizing how things had turned out.
“How dare you, with your lowly black hair! You dare?!”
“We need to deal with the barbarian bastards first!”
The Black Knife thugs, raised their swords to slice the Joseon people on the second floor and rushed towards the blocked second-floor stairs.
Whoa. Go any further, and it’s ring out! You guys should be fighting on the first floor.
I raised my hand towards the Joseon people while watching the Black Knife members trying to come up to the second floor.
“Uwaaaaaah!”
“The barbarian bastards are throwing stones!”
We’ve captured the high ground. This is the traditional culture of Joseon people living in a foreign land. “Loubudap” Joseon people!
Even for martial artists, if they’re at the third-rate level, they wouldn’t be able to withstand stones thrown collectively from the heavens.
“You bastards! Do you think you’ll be safe doing this?!”
Huh? We’ll be fine. The Joseon people gathered in the inn silently laughed at the Black Knife punks, who were gritting their teeth.
The standoff between the Joseon people, the Black Gang, and the Red Line continued for a while.
Since they were set to fight anyway, they certainly wouldn’t recklessly engage, thinking they were caught in a trap.
But there’s a way around that.
I activated the Small Wheel Mental Image Technique to keep narrating with a voice that echoed throughout the entire inn.
“The participants seem to be embarrassed! I will now introduce our next contender! The Red Line! To diminish the influence of the Black Gang, they murdered the black gang lord’s younger brother last night while he was drunk and heading home by throwing him into the river!”
You can just toss the stones in a calm stream.
“What?!”
“How do you know that?!”
How do I know? The Joseon people are scattered all over Wuhan!
“You bastaaaaaaaaard!”
The Black Gang leader, wearing a face of murderous intent, gripped his sword tightly. You can’t just be angry on one side. I need to introduce quickly.
“Now, for the introduction from the other side! The Black Gang! Recently, their leader met the Red Line’s lord’s nephew and cousin at this inn! He purposely provoked them, leading to their deaths!”
The two Joseon tavern workers and a Joseon guest were involved and killed.
“You dog! My nephew was the one who started it!”
“Weaklings who start a fight usually die!”
Anger blinds the sight. Eventually, the blades of the two factions began to turn towards each other.
“Stop! This is a trap by the barbarian bastards!”
A trap, you say? That’s a bit unfortunate. It’s just a setup.
As one of the Black Knife members earnestly cried out, the two Black Knife leaders glanced at us with conflicted expressions.
In this case, I should throw some bombs, not just stones.
“Additional information! The Black Gang has instructed their lord to raid the home of the Red Line lord’s mother today! If he doesn’t return by the designated time, his mother will be killed!”
“What?!”
That’s a good reaction. At the same time, a horrified cry was heard from the Red Line lord.
“By the way, the hidden location is a warehouse commonly used by the Black Gang! If they don’t deal with it and return quickly, today will be the date of the Red Line lord’s mother’s funeral!”
The Black Gang had them put all their strength into this because they had Choi I-gu and Sam-gu doing legwork, though they wouldn’t actually be kidnapped, but that was not the point.
“……Today, I should cut your life thread in this inn.”
“I’ll kill you! And I’ll kill all the barbarian bastards too!”
In the end, the two Black Knife leaders came to a decision.
“Attack!!!!”
“Gack! My arm!”
“If you can’t stab the neck, aim for the limbs first!”
“Ooooh.”
“Starting with the Black Gang’s sharp attack! As expected, the Black Knife members are dealing cowardly with two against one!”
Watching thirty people tangled in a fight from above is quite a spectacle.
I continued narrating with a joyful voice like a sports commentator highlighting the points in a massive battle.
“Someone go help quickly!”
“Meanwhile, one from the Red Line is preparing to throw a smoke bomb!”
“Why is that guy giving it away?!”
Because you guys need to mutually annihilate!
“Is it carelessness? One Red Line member is sneaking up behind the Black Gang! He’s ready to stab with a dagger!”
“Dodge!!!”
“Who the hell is that guy talking nonsense from above?!”
The Joseon Good Friends Association. It’s the new club leader Kang Yoon-ho!
Both Black Knives only had about a dozen members. And among them, there was only one lord of second-rate level. I was directing their mutual annihilation as if I was the conductor of a battlefield, disguising it as commentary.
“Before we knew it, only 10 Red Line members and 8 Black Gang members remain! They’re facing off again! Normally, one side would have to abandon and escape, but the exit is already blocked! Time is of the essence! Today might be the Red Line lord’s mother’s funeral!”
“Kugh!”
“Damn it!”
Both Black Knives groaned as if in anguish.
Meanwhile, the Joseon people on the upper floor were in a festive mood.
“Hey! Is that all you can do? I bet on 8 Red Line against 6 Black Gang!”
“Awesome! I won!”
“You won? Treat me to a meal later!”
“You better pay back your debt first!”
“Grilled squid! There are peanuts too!”
“Bring me some grilled squid!”
“Don’t you want peanuts?”
“I have a peanut allergy…”
“How about some chicken skewers with thunderbolt sauce? What do you think?”
“I’m a spice wimp, so that’s a bit tough.”
As they say, the most enjoyable sights are watching a fire and fights. The Joseon people enjoyed the brawl of the Black Knife members, who had oppressed them, increasing the tavern’s revenue.
“Finally, a one-on-one! As expected, only the capable leaders remain!”
Before long, only two people remained among the corpses and the injured on the first floor.
“Cough!”
Is this it? The blade of the Red Line lord, superior in skill, grazed the arm of the Black Gang leader, who dropped his sword with a pale face.
How disappointing. If this happens, the Red Line lord would be too unharmed.
“Letting go of the sword! The Black Gang is in a desperate crisis! Could it be that the Black Gang leader knows of a hidden weapon?!”
Please keep fighting just a little longer. I’ve prepared my trump card.
“A hidden weapon? Could it be this?”
Yes. That’s it. The Black Gang leader lifted the object he had been ignoring with a surprised face.
The Joseon people also yelled, finding the situation interesting, looking at what the Black Gang leader was holding.
“He picked it up! A metal chair!”
The hidden weapon was a metal chair.
“In the Martial Arts World, there’s a saying: ‘One must train with every weapon for at least a hundred days to a thousand days!’ It means it takes at least that much time to master every weapon! However, the weapon held by the Black Gang leader is a metal chair!”
The blade of the Red Line lord headed towards the Black Gang leader.
“The metal chair blocked the blade!”
“Look! At that perfect parry! A metal chair can be used to sit and yet requires no training—truly a universal weapon! The genuine king of all maladies, the Metal Chair!”
Suddenly, the blade stuck in the metal chair wouldn’t budge, confusing the Red Line leader. The Black Gang leader didn’t miss the opportunity.
“Die! Die! Die!”
The full force of the metal chair slammed down on the Red Line leader’s head. Snap. That must have been a serious injury.
In the end, the one who fell was the Red Line leader.
“I’ll kill the barbarian bastards!!!”
On the first floor, filled with corpses and the injured, the last surviving Black Gang leader shouted towards the upper floor in a furious voice.
Now the Black Gang leader will regroup his forces and, not forgetting what happened today, continue to oppress the Joseon people.
But you know, that’s only if you become the ultimate victor.
“Hm.”
The kitchen door on the first floor opened, and a man approached the Black Gang leader with relaxed steps.
“Who the hell are you?!”
“What kind of madness is this happening in the inn guarded by the Seocheon Post Office?”
“Madness? …Ugh!”
The speed of the postman’s blade was faster than any martial artist’s blade seen today.
“As expected, the conclusion of an inn fight comes from the sudden appearance of a master. Let’s give a round of applause for the ultimate victor, the postman of Seocheon!”
“Waaaaah!”
Did you think I’d leave any aftermath?
——————
“Kang Yoon-ho, Club Leader!”
I had been wondering when you’d come. After clearing up the Black Knife bastards in the inn, Choi Il-gu, I-gu, and Sam-gu approached me with moved faces.
“Don’t just look emotional; take this.”
I coldly handed a small box to the Sam-gu brother.
“What’s with the pigeon?”
“It’s a carrier pigeon. Use it to contact me when you need to. And when the Black Knife guys disappear at the docks, introduce Joseon laborers in their place.”
“Are we supposed to do that?”
“Don’t you think we need to stick together as fellow Joseon people? Just operate without cheating like the Black Knife bastards, and it’ll be good for you and other Joseon people.”
It’s a small interest, but this was a place where the two Black Knife factions fought for their lives. Since I had done the hard work, it’s better to let the three brothers, who had mastered martial arts, manage it.
“Such an opportunity you’re giving us…”
The Sam-gu brothers looked at me with expressions that seemed unable to be more courteous.
“Since I’ll even give you all the cargo coming by the Seocheon Post Office, do well. That’s okay, right, Pyo-du?”
I asked Pyo-du, who was next to me and belonged to the Seocheon Post Office’s Wuhan branch, for verification.
“If you’re offering, there’s no reason to refuse.”
Pyo-du nodded with a smile.
The Seocheon Post Office’s Wuhan branch can hire dock workers cheaply, and the Joseon people will have a steady income—it’s mutual benefit.
“Thank you for giving us work! So, how much do we offer as a tribute?”
Maybe because the Sam-gu brothers were mingling with the Black Knife bastards, they had pretty quick minds.
“I’m here to bleed you dry! Do I look that pathetic?”
I laughed derisively as if watching my nephew’s pocket money.
But you know, I’m not expecting you to immediately agree just because I said that, right?
“No! We really feel bad for being given a job…”
Right? A rejection is necessary.
“If you truly feel guilty, don’t give it to me. Instead, set it aside as a fee for the Good Friends Association. Then I’ll help those Joseon people who are starving.”
I pretended to be a high and mighty person unconcerned with small amounts of money, raising my voice intentionally while using the Small Wheel Mental Image Technique.
The Joseon people in the tavern can hear me, right? I’m subtly revealing the true aspect of a Joseon Good Friends Association leader.
The Sam-gu brothers looked as if they were about to be moved to tears, and without realizing it, they all kneeled.
“…Club Leader. We will be loyal!”
“Club Leader! We will do our best!”
“This grace! We will never forget! Please accept our bow!”
The three brothers bowed as if they were hosting a great elder of the family, pledging their loyalty to me.
“Okay. If you keep working hard, I will use you in a big way.”
The three brothers didn’t seem to notice, but all the gazes in the tavern were focused on me.
Expectations, emotions, and awe toward the new leader. I was satisfied with the situation I had staged and patted their shoulders.
————
“Are you really turning the inn into an arena for business?”
As I quietly watched the Joseon people cleaning up on the first floor, Im Ha-yeon cautiously approached.
“Doesn’t seem possible?”
“It’s novel to think of gathering people by making martial artists fight, but not many martial artists would want to be a spectacle.”
That’s a valid point. Martial artists are corpses without their pride.
Rather than honor or pride, even the ronin who could be hired for money would want to fight with a reason, not just to be a spectacle.
To operate an actual arena, you’d need to offer an amount they couldn’t refuse.
“I don’t think I want that either. This was a favor done for the Joseon Good Friends Association.”
Running an arena would have too many issues. I shook my head with a faint smile.
“For the Good Friends Association?”
Im Ha-yeon tilted her head, curious.
“All the Black Knife bastards were notorious among the Joseon people. The number of Joseon people they’ve killed could be counted on fingers, and the number who have died, been injured, or rendered unable to move is countless.”
“Was it revenge for the Joseon people?”
“I’d prefer to think of it as an inauguration ceremony for the position of club leader.”
Are Joseon people being oppressed?
I wasn’t angry at the world that disregarded our proud country, which produced the world-renowned K-dramas, K-Pop, legendary football clubs like Manchester United, Tottenham, and Napoli, and K-game and esports players.
It was more for another reason than simple vengeance.
“Inauguration ceremony?”
“People’s psyche changes just by looking down from a high position. Just enjoying watching those who had to cower in fear fight among themselves gives them a feeling of participating in vengeance. Moreover, they can look up at a man who orchestrated all this and engrain his power into their minds.”
First, reveal the club leader’s strength. For that, vengeance must also be certain.
Though many didn’t notice behind the excitement, the Joseon people who suffered from the two Black Knife factions couldn’t tear their eyes away from their bloody fight. Some were even in tears.
“Is that you, who became the club leader?”
“Of course. It’s far more impactful to show this once than to say it a hundred times. We have a club leader! A reliable person! We can receive help! To do that, we must follow commands. There will be a simultaneous feeling of reverence and fear.”
Originally, the Joseon Good Friends Association leader isn’t a high position.
It’s like the head of an apartment residents’ association or the group leader for a project. There’s a reason they gracefully nodded when the non-leader asked to serve as the leader of the association.
I didn’t intend to take on the role of the Joseon Good Friends Association leader purely for that.
In this unfamiliar Wuhan,
I stand at a crossroads: am I to become a lifelong debtor or earn the wings to soar into the world?
I won’t leave that crucial challenge to mere luck and to the toss of a coin. I must succeed. For that, I need people I can manipulate as easily as my limbs.
“Indeed, the way Joseon people look at you has changed.”
“Today’s events will spread to all Joseon people in Wuhan who didn’t attend. Now the club leader has called. No Joseon person will easily refuse my words.”
I leaned against the railing and looked down.
On the first floor, the Joseon people were diligently cleaning up, casting glances at me even without my command.
They know too.
If they do well in front of me, surely a day will come when they can gain benefits, just like the Sam-gu brothers.
“You really…”
Im Ha-yeon looked at me, unable to close her mouth in disbelief.
“I’m planning to start a business in earnest now.”
“If you’re not going to run an arena, are you planning to use the Joseon people to introduce labor to the docks?”
It wouldn’t be bad to introduce labor to the docks. Surely, the profit would be decent. But that’s not the only reason behind all this.
I opened my mouth with a reassuring smile towards Im Ha-yeon, who looked worried.
“I plan to do something far more significant.”
Having gained my limbs, I need to embark on a venture larger than the arena.
