Journey Outside. (4)
“Uh…..”
“Is he insane?”
It wasn’t Jin Seokrim who reacted to that action, but his fellow disciples.
This was an act that had long since crossed the line. At this point, wasn’t it practically an insult not only to Jin Seokrim but to the entire Jongnam?
“Sahyeong! There’s no need for you to step in. That little runt, I’ll…”
“Step aside.”
“Sahyeong?”
“Move.”
Pushing aside the disciple who was blocking his way, Jin Seokrim crossed the tavern and walked straight towards Chung Myung.
With a terrifying aura, Jin Seokrim approached until he was just a few steps away from Chung Myung, then stopped three paces in front of him.
“Get up.”
Glug, glug, glug.
“Get up. I’m not going to let this slide just because you’re sitting there. If you don’t want to see something worse, get up.”
Glug, glug, glug.
Chung Myung kept drinking as if ignoring him.
Jin Seokrim’s face grew as rigid as it could possibly get.
He wanted to strike him on the spot, but he couldn’t ignore the boy’s age.
If he rashly made the first move, people would certainly say he had raised his hand against a mere kid. So even if it wasn’t something grand like an official match, he had to make the brat come at him first.
“If you’re so confident, then get up. I’ll see if you’re truly entitled to that arrogance.”
But Chung Myung continued to drink, ignoring those words.
A vein bulged on Jin Seokrim’s forehead.
Clench.
He spoke through clenched teeth.
“Is that what Hwasan taught you? A brat like you only learned how to throw tantrums.”
“Yes, yes. All I learned was how to throw tantrums.”
“No, from the looks of it, you’re not someone Hwasan could ever teach. You were born that way. You were rotten from the start.”
Glug, glug, glug.
Jin Seokrim bit his lip. This brat had no intention of exchanging blows with him. He absolutely wasn’t going to get up from that spot.
“Cowardly punk.”
“Sahyeong, let’s just go. Is there any need to deal with someone like that?”
Jin Seokrim let out a sharp breath and then let his arms droop as though all strength had left him.
It was ridiculous to be the first to strike, and endlessly hurling insults was plainly pathetic. In the end, he had no choice but to back off.
Biting his lip, Jin Seokrim spat out one last curse before turning away.
“Just by looking at you, I can guess what that Sahyeong of yours, Chung Mun, is like. It’s laughable that such a person gets called the Hidden Sword of Tao or whatever it was. They should just call him the Sword Without Tao [무도검(無道劍)] instead…”
Puuuuuck!
“Huh?”
For a moment Yang Gwanjeong doubted his own eyes.
‘What…?’
That brat had been sitting there just a moment ago, drinking as if he were deaf… so why was he now floating in midair? Could a person even float like that? To pull off such a jump, you’d normally need to plant your feet on something…
‘Feet?’
“S-Sahyeong!”
They were planted. His feet. Or more precisely, they were jammed right into Jin Seokrim’s face.
Thud!
Jin Seokrim fell straight backwards.
“Aaaaah! Sahyeong! Sahyeong! Are you all right?”
His fellow disciples rushed over in a panic. Jin Seokrim, sprawled out on the floor, now had a bright red footprint marring his once perfectly sculpted face.
“But this bastard!”
Chung Myung, who had landed back on the floor, shouted angrily, still clutching his liquor bottle.
“You keep going on and on about Chung Mun this and Chung Mun that? Is my Sahyeong your buddy or something? Huh? You bastards think that just because I can trash talk my Sahyeong, you can do it too?”
“…W-What is he saying? That lunatic.”
“My Sahyeong, huh? Sure, he can’t even wield a sword properly, he’s already aging prematurely still being young, he doesn’t exercise so his belly keeps growing, his personality is nasty, and he nags more than a grandmother with five sons – but still!”
Excuse me. We never went that far.
“And you punks dare to badmouth my Sahyeong? If anyone’s gonna talk trash talk him, it’s me! Are you trying to get yourselves killed, you bastards?”
“Th-That bastard attacked us out of nowhere!”
“Get him! Catch that punk right now!”
Only then did the disciples of Jongnam finally realize what was happening, and they rushed towards Chung Myung in a swarm.
“What a load of crap.”
Chung Myung snorted and grabbed the empty liquor bottle sitting on the table.
“Come on!”
Crash!
The bottle slammed into the head of Jongnam’s disciple who was charging at him.
“I said I just wanted to drink quietly and leave!”
Crash!
Another bottle took out another disciple. In the blink of an eye, Chung Myung had knocked down five of Jongnam’s disciples while spewing fire from his mouth.
“Why isn’t anyone helping me? I said I wouldn’t cause trouble! Huh?”
“Ugh…”
“Oww, my back… argh…”
Having turned the tavern into a complete wreck, Chung Myung glanced at the chaos and snorted before picking up the remaining bottle.
“Hey.”
Then he nudged the sprawled-out Jin Seokrim with the tip of his foot.
“That’s why you should be careful who you pick fights with. Why act so cocky, huh?”
“…”
“Tsk. Ruined my drink.”
Chung Myung downed the remaining liquor in the bottle at once. Just as he reached for the very last bottle.
“Over here!”
“He’s here, Sahyeong!”
“Chung Myung is here!”
“Huh?”
The door of the tavern burst open, and a group of people dressed in Hwasan’s robes came rushing in.
“Chung Myung!”
“Goodness, already…”
Chung Myung flinched and backed away. In no time, the tavern was packed with those devilish Hwasan’s folks.
“Come on, Chung Myung. Come here.”
“The Sect Leader said to make sure we catch – I mean, bring you back.”
“Chung Mun will be here soon. You know you’ll be in more trouble if you run, right?”
He quickly turned his head, but not only the entrance, even the windows that could serve as escape routes were all blocked by Hwasan’s disciples.
Knocking them all down would be tough even for him, and if he laid hands on any more of them, Chung Mun would definitely skin him alive. Truly a predicament with no way out.
“I didn’t even get to drink that much.”
Just as Chung Myung muttered with a face full of injustice.
“Over, over here!”
“Huh?”
Near a small side door leading to the kitchen, the young waiter whom Chung Myung had helped earlier raised his hand high.
“Here!”
Before his mind could catch up, his body moved on reflex.
“He’s escaping!”
“Grab him!”
In a flash, Chung Myung scooped the waiter under one arm and dashed through the kitchen, still gripping a liquor bottle in his other hand.
“Stop right there!”
“Chung Myung! Please, just stop!”
“Hey, you damn brat!”
Hearing angry shouts echo behind him, Chung Myung ran with all his might.
Xian’s outskirts. Having fled to a small nearby mountain beyond the sparsely populated area, Chung Myung breathed a sigh of relief.
“…That was close.”
Well, truth be told, the worst had already happened, if he was being honest. But at least he hadn’t been caught. That meant he could have at least one more day of fun. Anyway…
Chung Myung’s gaze shifted to the young waiter at his side.
“I appreciate your help, but is it okay for you to leave like this? It seemed like you were right in the middle of work. Won’t you get in trouble for stepping out?”
The boy looked at Chung Myung with astonishment.
‘You’re the one who dragged me out.’
He never even said he’d come along…
“You’ve got a sense of loyalty, you really do!”
But seeing Chung Myung grinning mischievously, he felt no urge to argue.
“It’s all right. Considering the scene I caused with those important-looking folks, I’m sure I would have been fired today anyway. …It’s a bit disappointing, but what can I do? It was my mistake.”
“Disappointing? Because you can’t work anymore?”
“Yes.”
“Why? Isn’t it good if you don’t have to work?”
The boy looked at Chung Myung, puzzled. Then he nodded, seeming to understand.
From what he had heard, this person seemed to be someone who was busy cultivating the Tao and training with the sword deep in the mountains, so it’s no wonder he wouldn’t know much about the ways of the world.
“Everyone has their circumstances. The owner of that tavern was actually a decent person and paid well, so I was hoping to work there for a long time. That way, I could’ve saved up quite a bit of money.”
“Hmm? What’s a kid like you going to do with money? Is there something you want to buy?”
The boy shook his head.
“I’m not trying to buy something – I want to run a business.”
“A business?”
“Yes.”
Chung Myung’s expression brightened with interest. He seemed too young to already be dreaming about something like that.
“So your parents run a business?”
“Ah, I’m an orphan. I don’t have parents.”
“An orphan? Wow, nice to meet you! I’m an orphan too!”
“…”
Chung Myung grabbed the boy’s hand and shook it enthusiastically, as though genuinely delighted.
“Oh, so that’s it? Because you don’t have a way to make a living.”
“It’s not exactly that…”
The boy stood up. Before he knew it, night had fallen, and he looked out over the countless lights illuminating the city of Xian. It was a splendid and beautiful nighttime view of the city.
“I want to become a renowned merchant. I’m not really sure why. It’s just my dream.”
Chung Myung let out a small laugh and took a swig from the bottle.
“Then I feel bad. Seems like I got in your way.”
“In my way? It just delayed things a bit. If I work harder to make up for the lost time, someday I’ll be able to open my own shop.”
The boy, who had been speaking confidently, scratched his head in embarrassment.
He normally wouldn’t talk like this. After all, whenever he mentions it elsewhere, people just scoff at the lofty dreams of a penniless orphan.
‘I shouldn’t have said anything.’
He felt a bit bitter about leaving the tavern when he’d planned to stay there for a while. Maybe that’s why he spoke too much.
“I’m sorry. Please forget I…”
“That’s great.”
“…Sorry?”
The boy lifted his head and looked at Chung Myung. Leaning against a tree trunk, Chung Myung was smiling genuinely.
“I’m not entirely sure, but that sounds great. A dream….”
“Um… what should I call you?”
“Call me Dojang. At least in name, I’m a Taoist.”
“Yes. Do you have any dreams, Dojang? Like attaining mastery of the Tao, perhaps?”
“Not sure.”
Chung Myung shrugged.
“If I had to say, maybe it’d be escaping Hwasan.”
“Pardon?”
“Going someplace where no one nags me, eating and drinking all day, living however I please, never again dealing with those adults who make me do boring, tedious chores. Something like that, I guess?”
The boy tilted his head, looking puzzled.
“That’s strange. From what I can tell, you’re already quite skilled in martial arts, so if you really put your mind to it, couldn’t you just do that? You’re already running away from them now, aren’t you?”
“Huh?”
“Then why go back to the place you dislike so much?”
“Well, that… I guess…?”
“On your own two feet?”
“Huh?”
________
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Return of the Mount Hua 
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