Side Story 19. Gyun-go And Nok-su (3)

“Tsering! Hey!”

“You okay? None of the kids got hurt, right?”

“The kids from our branch are all fine.”

The Branch Leader and the beggars welcomed Tsering.
Fortunately, none of the beggars from the Beggars’ Union had been harmed by Gyun-go.

“That’s a relief.”

“That martial match was incredible. You might even get an epithet soon.”

“An epithet?”

“Yeah. It’s only after you get an epithet that you can really be called a Murim person.”

“Wow!”

There were not many of the beggars, but they were loud.
Their chattering voices were filled with laughter and joy.

Tsering had put on an excellent performance in the martial match at the request of the Three Pleasures Butchering Guild.
The outcome of the match had stopped mattering once the Nam Family Manor Lord and the Guild Master of the Three Pleasures Butchering Guild reconciled, but it was still clear that she had performed brilliantly.
Not just the Three Pleasures Butchering Guild, but even the people of Nam Family Manor had taken a liking to her.

“Miss.”

Nam Yu-gyeol, the second son of the Nam Family Manor Lord, came over as well.
He had lost to Tsering, but he was not badly injured.
Even after taking that incredible barrage of blows, all he had to show for it was soreness all over, nothing that could truly be called an internal injury.

“Thank you for holding back.”

“Hehe, it was nothing.”

“I learned a great deal. We met as opponents in a martial match this time, but I trust there will be chances to build a friendship in the future as well.”

Surprisingly, Nam Yu-gyeol said that with his face turning red.
The beggars nearby stared at him with their mouths hanging open.

“His face turned red.”

“Is he crazy?”

He had probably heard their whispering too.
Nam Yu-gyeol spoke with his face growing even redder.

“Please stay and rest at your leisure. If there is anything you need, please tell me.”

“Ah, then could you perhaps get me a wet towel and something to wear over myself?”

After the martial match, Tsering had subdued the people who had gone berserk after being poisoned by spores.
In the process, her clothes had gotten torn a little, and she had been covered in dirt and blood.
It was not as though Tsering liked being dirty.
Nam Yu-gyeol nodded and called for a maid.

“Attend to the young lady.”

Then he stressed to the maid that she was to treat Tsering like an honored guest.
Tsering followed under the maid’s guidance.
She was planning to wash up and change clothes.

The remaining beggars passed the time fooling around.
And after a while, Geum Yang-bae came by.
He had come to see Tsering.

“Um, where’s Tsering…?”

“Ah, she went to wash up and change clothes.”

“I see.”

An awkward silence passed between Geum Yang-bae and the beggars.
He had been beaten up by them a while back. There was no way their relations were good.
He fidgeted with the money pouch in his clothes.
Inside were silver taels. They were meant for Tsering, who had helped him.
In truth, Warrior Jang and the guild members had been with the Tang Clan people, but what did that matter.
Tsering had helped Geum Yang-bae as though it were her own business, so he meant to give her most of the reward he had received from Nam Family Manor.

‘Should I just hand it to the beggars and leave?’

Since Tsering was not there, he wondered if he should do that, but Geum Yang-bae shook his head.
How could he trust beggars with that much money?
After hesitating for a moment, he decided to wait.

Even after waiting a good while, Tsering didn’t come back.
She had only gone to wash up and change clothes, so why was it taking so long?

‘Well, I guess it would take time to wash off all that grime.’

She had not looked much different from the beggars in front of him.
To be honest, when he was with Tsering, there had always been a faint musty smell creeping up.
He was spacing out when—

“What?”

A familiar voice came with a fresh, clean scent.
Thinking Tsering had returned, Geum Yang-bae turned his head.

“What took you so long……”

And then he couldn’t finish what he had been about to say.
The person speaking to him was not Tsering.
A beautiful young woman dressed in a blue palace-style gown was standing there.
Her cheeks were fair and healthy-looking.
Long eyelashes, and dimples deeply set at the corners of her mouth.

“Uh……”

A daughter of Nam Family Manor?
Judging from the fine gown and her refined looks, that seemed possible.
But he had never heard that the Nam Family Manor Lord had such a beautiful daughter.
If one compared beauty, she didn’t lose to Baek Sang-ye either.
Her playful eyes sparkled.

“W-who might the young lady be?”

Geum Yang-bae asked in a fool’s voice.
He regretted it immediately.
Because the beautiful young woman burst out laughing.
It was an awfully hearty laugh for a woman, but even that looked lovely on her.

“What’s with that stupid voice, Mister.”

“Heh, hehe.”

He had just been called stupid, and yet for some reason a foolish grin spread over his face.
But he was sure he had never met her before, so why was she speaking so familiarly?
And strangely enough, her voice sounded like Tsering’s.

“Hey, Tsering. You cleaned yourself up nicely.”

“Yeah. It feels amazing to wash up after so long.”

“Heh heh, right. You’re not even a beggar, but you were living way too much like one.”

“I should be heading for Azure Forest again soon.”

Yet that beautiful young woman was chatting and laughing with the beggars of the Beggars’ Union.
Standing there listening like a fool with a grin on his face, Geum Yang-bae froze.

“Tsering, you’re Tsering……?”

No way.
That beautiful woman was Tsering? That grimy, smelly little beggar girl?

“Of course I’m Tsering. Who else do you think Tsering is?”

Tsering glared at Geum Yang-bae as though he were being ridiculous.
Only the beggars seemed to understand what he was thinking, and they burst into loud laughter.

“Ah, ……ah?”

“What is it?”

“Then why were you going around looking…… like that?”

“What?”

Without realizing it, he had slipped into formal speech.
When Tsering pointed it out, Geum Yang-bae’s face turned bright red.

“No, it’s just so strange……. Here.”

So in a fluster, he handed over the money pouch.
Tsering tucked it into her clothes as if grateful.
She didn’t even check what was inside. To Geum Yang-bae, a merchant, she looked impossibly careless.

“Wait, you need to check how much it is, you idiot.”

Even the beggars pointed that out.

“I-is that so? I figured he’d have taken care of it properly.”

“With that empty head of yours, how are you planning to make it all the way to Azure Forest again? If you don’t run into kind beggars like us, you’ll starve to death.”

The Branch Leader clicked his tongue.

“Why not just find some merchant guild and go with them instead?”

“Ah, that works!”

It wasn’t Tsering who said that would work, but Geum Yang-bae.

“Our Golden Measure Merchant Guild is planning a caravan run to Mount Heng, where Azure Forest is. If you’re okay with it, Tsering, do you want to tag along? No, I mean, come with us?”

Geum Yang-bae babbled on without even knowing what was coming out of his mouth.
A caravan run to Mount Heng? There was no such thing.
Well, it wasn’t as though they couldn’t go if they wanted to.

“Hmm……”

Tsering thought for a moment.
Watching her think, Geum Yang-bae’s mouth went dry and he grew tense for no reason. His heart pounded too, of course.
What was she thinking? The beggars helped Geum Yang-bae along.

“It’s a good chance. Go with him.”

“Should I? Alright then!”

Geum Yang-bae pumped his fist with a silent yes, then quickly pulled it back.

“Then, ahem, I’ll be in your care until Mount Heng.”

“I’ll be in your care too.”

Geum Yang-bae grinned from ear to ear.
Only a few days ago he had gotten an icy reception from Baek Sang-ye, but perhaps his spring had only just begun.
Then, all at once, the beggars crowded around him.
The Branch Leader himself slung an arm over Geum Yang-bae’s shoulder and dragged him off to one side.

“W-what are you doing?”

“Brother.”

The beggars whispered so Tsering would not hear.

“If you try anything funny, we won’t forgive you in the name of the Beggars’ Union. Got it?”

It seemed the beggars didn’t trust Geum Yang-bae completely.

“……Of course.”

Geum Yang-bae nodded vigorously.

Cheongho quietly watched that little farce.
Leaning against the wall, Cheongho was alone by himself.
Even while everyone else was talking or excitedly rehashing what had just happened.
He sat crouched in the shadow of the wall.

The clear blue sky entered Cheongho’s expressionless eyes.
There was a single cloud hanging there all by itself.
Like an island left alone in the middle of the vast sea.

“……”

Suddenly, Cheongho felt an unfamiliar emotion.
It felt as though the strength had gone out of his body and even his hair was hanging limp.
His mouth felt bitter, and it seemed as though no one was looking at him.
Cheongho didn’t know that was loneliness.

“What are you doing here?”

That was probably why he had not even noticed Jang Man-chun approaching.

“I’ve been looking for you this whole time. Hehe.”

“Mm……”

Come to think of it, Cheongho had a companion too.
Even if it was only a bandit he could not exactly call close.

“You look like you’re in a bit of a good mood?”

“Do I?”

“Yes, haha. So what will we do now? The Guild Master of the Three Pleasures Butchering Guild said he’d treat us magnificently.”

Jang Man-chun asked that.
Ever since receiving the Green Jade Token and ending up traveling together, Jang Man-chun had treated Cheongho with the utmost respect.
That was only natural, since Cheongho was his lifeline.

Thinking perhaps the title ‘Young Master’ displeased him, he had asked before, and Cheongho had shaken his head.

“No, we should leave right away now.”

“Oh. You mean we’re leaving tomorrow?”

“We’re going now.”

“……Come again?”

Cheongho said it with a rare smile.

“Let’s head for Azure Forest. We stayed too long.”

“……”

Jang Man-chun’s face twisted.
It seemed the chance to receive the Guild Master’s ‘magnificent treatment’ had gone up in smoke.

“Make sure to leave only when the weather is clear.”

When Cheongho said he would leave, the Guild Master of the Three Pleasures Butchering Guild told him that.
Naturally, it was better to leave on a clear day than on a rainy one.
But the Guild Master emphasized it again and again.

“It’s fortunate the weather’s clear today. If it rains, you must never pass through the forest. The chances of that thing appearing go up.”

“That thing” referred to the yokai living in the eastern forest of Chaesang County.
Its name was Nok-su.
It meant green water. They said it appeared on rainy days and harmed people.

“No matter how skilled your martial arts may be, it’s the same. It isn’t a yokai you can kill by cutting it down with a blade. If a green swamp suddenly appears, get away at once.”

That was the Guild Master’s advice.
Cheongho decided to follow it, because he could feel the sincerity in the Guild Master’s words.
Fortunately, the day was clear.
They crossed the bridge over the gorge, which could not be crossed in the rain, and even when they finally entered that dangerous forest, the weather was brilliantly fine.

Then dark storm clouds rolled into the once-clear sky.
A downpour began.
Once the rain came pouring down, even the forest canopy couldn’t keep it out.

Swaaaaaa-

The sound of the rain was loud enough to swallow human voices.
Jang Man-chun was instantly seized by fear.
Could their luck really be this bad?

“Hey, Young Master! Shouldn’t we find shelter from the rain!”

He half shouted it at Cheongho right beside him.
Cheongho glanced toward Jang Man-chun.

“Where?”

Jjeojeojeong!

Cheongho’s reply overlapped with a crash of thunder, but Jang Man-chun still understood him.

“……”

He had nothing to say.
Where exactly were they supposed to take shelter?
No cave had appeared at just the right moment, and the rain was far too fierce to hide under a tree.
The rain was falling so hard that they had even lost their sense of direction.
Even if they ran, they would never get out of the forest.

Cheongho and Jang Man-chun kept walking.

Huuuuung-

The sound of the wind was like the wailing of ghosts.
Jang Man-chun looked around nervously, and Cheongho suddenly stopped.

“Wh-what is it?”

Instead of answering, Cheongho looked down.
Jang Man-chun flinched in shock as well.
He had thought it was rainwater pooling on the ground, but it wasn’t.
At their feet spread a green swamp.
It certainly hadn’t been there before. It felt as though they had been bewitched by a ghost.

“When the swamp appears, that means Nok-su has appeared as well.”

The Guild Master’s words came back to them.