_Embarrassment._
When Tang Geoh heard the news of the calamity at the Seong Family, that was how he felt. As soon as he received the news, he dashed straight to the Seong Family.
“I’ll say it again. Where is Huolin?”
To Tang Geoh, it didn’t matter who had taken over as the head of the Seong Family because of their stupid quarrels. What truly mattered was the whereabouts of Huolin, the child he had cared for over the past ten years.
With a heart full of worry, he rushed in, relieved to hear she was safe, only to find out she was missing.
Nobody knew where the child was! Tang Geoh was bound to be furious.
“Senior, are you threatening me out of the blue?”
From Seong Se-hwi’s perspective, this situation was equally absurd. His rival’s master showing up out of nowhere and throwing a fit was not a good look, especially when he had been tirelessly working to restore the Seong Family and had no time for such nonsense.
“…I momentarily lost control upon hearing news of a child like my daughter disappearing. I apologize.”
Seeing Seong Se-hwi frown, Tang Geoh reined in his emotions.
He was in the Seong House. While a senior in the martial arts world, losing his temper at the highest authority in the Seong Family would definitely be a breach of etiquette.
“I understand.”
“Can you tell me where the child has gone?”
“I don’t know. We were in the middle of a crisis since she defied Heavenly principles, and she simply vanished on us.”
“Tsk. That woman again. You truly have no idea where she might be?”
“My late father left a mansion in Shaanxi for my stepmother. She might have gone there, or perhaps back to her hometown.”
Seong Se-hwi’s father and Tang Huolin’s mother had no children. Typically, when a husband dies and a child from a previous marriage inherits the family, it places the new wife without children in a difficult position.
To prepare for such cases, Seong Se-hwi’s father had arranged for a mansion for Tang Huolin’s mother in Shaanxi.
Of course, Tang Huolin’s mother was not satisfied with that mansion and wanted to consume the entire Seong Family.
“Either Shaanxi or Yichang, then.”
“That’s all I know. I wish I could help more, but my family matters are keeping me busy.”
Seong Se-hwi politely bid farewell to Tang Geoh and subtly implied he should leave.
“Whoa. No, you look tired. I should be going as well.”
Such rudeness! Tang Geoh found the Seong Family head discomforting, but guests couldn’t refuse their host’s invitation to leave.
Tang Geoh bowed and exited Seong Se-hwi’s office.
‘Either Shaanxi or Yichang.’
Tang Geoh was deep in thought as he walked out of the Seong Family estate.
Shaanxi’s mansion or Yichang; both were far but Yichang was closer. However, Tang Huolin’s mother had a terrible relationship with her father. The chance of her being in Yichang was slim.
If he could borrow the power of the Sichuan Tang Family, he might be able to find out where Tang Huolin was quickly. But he couldn’t resort to the Sichuan Tang Family just to learn of her whereabouts.
‘I’ve finally created the ultimate vessel. The Sichuan Tang Family must not find out about this.’
Within the Sichuan Tang Family, there was a secret group engaged in forbidden experiments with poisons.
Tang Geoh was effectively the leader of that group.
After devoting over ten years to perfecting this vessel, he could never give up on Tang Huolin.
He gently handled a small box in his possession. Inside was the poison of a creature that, upon tasting, would find their tongue seared and meet a swift end.
‘I just have to feed this to her.’
If he could make her absorb the poison, she would develop it within her body like a magical beast. Once he accomplished that, he would be able to prove he could artificially create a poison user.
One concern lingered; what if Tang Huolin figured out the true nature of the poison and refused to swallow it?
‘I’ll simply tell her I’ll formally become her guardian. That should do the trick.’
She was a child raised without understanding affection. He could use that to his advantage.
If he told her he would recognize her as part of the family and formally take her in, the child, having nowhere else to go, would swallow the poison.
She would endure the agonizing pain to become a poison user.
After all, it was a vessel he had spent over a decade perfecting.
“Seong Se-hwi has collapsed!”
“He’s frothing at the mouth and has collapsed!”
The people of the Seong Family rushed into Seong Se-hwi’s office in unison.
The fool couldn’t even manage his own family and was acting tired after I gave him a little push; how absurd! Tang Geoh clicked his tongue in annoyance.
Using poison that would lead to collapse should leave him bedridden for about a week. After that, he would feel like he’d come back from the brink of death and rise again.
With a light-hearted mood, he decided on his next destination.
“First, I should go to Yichang.”
Like a tiger ready to pounce, a man with a heart full of malice set off toward Yichang.
—–
“Criminal! Tang Huolin, raise your head!”
I spoke to Tang Huolin in a Joseon-style tone, like an interrogator.
“Bullshit. What are you saying?”
“Ah! Criminal Tang Huolin! Do you not know that the reason we cannot depart is because of you?”
The day after I revealed my true intentions to Tang Huolin, we had just finished breakfast but still hadn’t set off for Yichang.
“Ha, fine. It’s my fault. Is that satisfactory?”
“Well, Criminal Tang Huolin, your attitude is shockingly brazen. Is that why you squandered money with no thought?”
“Ugh!”
Tang Huolin was left speechless, either because she genuinely messed up or was simply dumbfounded by my dramatics.
The reason we hadn’t left was simple.
“I can’t believe you thought Stealth Techniques were single-use.”
Tang Huolin had used all her Stealth Techniques battling bandits.
I mean, if they were gone, she should’ve thought about reclaiming them. But she simply walked away without a care, and now here we were.
I couldn’t help but chuckle at her ridiculousness.
“Stealth Techniques are usually single-use, you know.”
Tang Huolin seemed displeased with my laughter and retorted weakly.
Is this what the lady’s shamelessness looks like? This woman wouldn’t even lick the lid of her yogurt.
“That’s something only a lady of the Seong Family could say. You should’ve thought to reclaim your Techniques given our situation.”
Just like rich golfers who lose expensive balls but don’t bother searching for them, she must have thought it wasn’t necessary while at the Seong Family.
The problem was, once we ventured out, it became like a weapon with infinite ammo that had lost its cheat.
“Do you know how much care is needed if you toss Stealth Techniques with the intention of reclaiming them?”
Tang Huolin looked at me as if she were questioning my knowledge of Stealth Techniques.
“Can’t you just tie a string to them and toss them?”
In Joseon martial arts, there was a famous sect that used strings to handle ten Stealth Techniques at once.
“Seriously? Make some sense.”
Not that I was being completely serious either, but don’t give me that incredulous face. Right, tying a string to the projectiles would mess with their trajectory and cause all sorts of chaos if they got tangled or caught by the enemy.
“The remaining Techniques are mostly practice ones, anyway. I need to buy new ones, but this place is so backward that they don’t sell them.”
Honestly, I wasn’t going to say a word until Tang Huolin embarrassedly suggested we go shopping for Stealth Techniques after yesterday’s little cash boost.
I just wanted to buy a few ‘You know, you’ll have to sell two stamina potions for every one you throw’ warnings.
Of all places, I didn’t expect that this rundown village wouldn’t have anything but farming tools and terrible swords.
“You can’t use Poison Techniques either, right?”
Avoiding my gaze, Tang Huolin spoke in frustration. Just like she said, getting the materials for Poison Techniques here was tough and they were expensive.
“Don’t you know any swordsmanship or tricks?”
Though the Sichuan Tang Family specialized in Poison and Stealth Techniques, it didn’t mean they had no other martial arts. There could be minor styles like whip techniques or swordsmanship within the Tang Family.
“I learned when I was younger, but I didn’t delve deeply.”
“That’s a shame. If you had practiced diligently, it would’ve come in handy now.”
I scolded her half-heartedly, mingling in a bit of disappointment.
“It’s not that I wasn’t diligent but that I couldn’t.”
Tang Huolin countered with an aggrieved expression.
“Did Tang Geoh only teach you Poison Techniques?”
That had to be what she would’ve focused on mastering. He might’ve intentionally left other techniques out.
“No, it’s just that…”
“Hmm? What do you mean?”
“After puberty, I grew…”
Tang Huolin glanced at her own chest, which probably posed a major obstruction in wielding regular weapons, and awkwardly trailed off.
“Oh… My bad.”
I turned my head in embarrassment as I realized the mistake I made in assuming.
Indeed, it seems it would be more beneficial to practice launching attacks focused on her chest rather than trying to use whip or sword techniques.
“Ha. Damn. This is all because of me…”
Tang Huolin sighed as if frustrated and guilty.
Did I worry her too much?
“It’s okay! I also bear some fault for not being careful. Let’s not stress over it too much. What’s the worst that could happen?”
We can’t stay trapped here forever.
If there’s only one solution, there’s no need for me to be anxious too. Instead, relieving the worries of my anxious traveling companion would be more beneficial to our journey.
I smiled at her nonchalantly as if it were no big deal.
“Eh? Oh.”
Tang Huolin’s eyes widened slightly, and her mouth seemed to part as she blinked in surprise.
“Don’t worry too much. We’ll reach the next village soon, so let’s pack up well and set off.”
“…You, too. If anything happens, I’ll protect you, so don’t worry.”
Tang Huolin looked at me for a moment with unfamiliar eyes before stating with a tone of determination.
Why is she suddenly being all shy with her words?
“Sure. Let’s make sure we gather the remaining Techniques and buy more at the next village.”
“Okay. If we run low on funds, I’ll help sell potions again.”
Tang Huolin nodded with a slight smile directed at me.
What’s this? Did revealing my true thoughts the other day actually bring us closer? She seemed a bit warmer.
‘Even if I’m apprehensive, it’s not like a guard unit is going to drop from the sky, so we should set off.’
Just as I thought to stand up, sensing movement nearby.
“Excuse me. Are you the one who was discussing trade yesterday at the public square?”
Turning my head, I spotted a group of men who appeared to be from the martial arts world.
“That’s me. However, may I ask who you are?”
Please don’t tell me they came to harass me because my potency didn’t increase. If that’s the case, I would just explain that the black-haired barbarian might react differently based on racial differences.
I suppressed my unease and focused on the man who had addressed me.
After a moment of hesitation, he spoke, contradicting my expectations.
“We’re the postmen from the Okcheon post office. We were hoping to purchase more stamina potions that you sold yesterday.”
Oh? If they are postmen, they’re professionals at escorting people.
Suddenly, a good idea flashed through my mind.
“Ah, you’re here for additional purchases!”
Wow, I might be able to use them as heavenly-sent escort units.
