Chapter 37: Chapter 37
Late evening at the Anhui Song Clan.
Song Ha-baek, who was Song Yi-yeon’s father and Patriarch of the Song Clan, provided the best environment he could offer to the Martial Alliance members.
Not only meals, but he also arranged a separate space and even furnished a training ground so that they could comfortably train or rest.
It was not merely because his son had joined the Martial Alliance. Patriarch Song’s values were originally like that.
Merchants of the present era could not avoid ties with the martial world, and they usually chose either the Unorthodox Path or the Righteous Path.
In any case, the illicit affairs of unorthodox figures naturally reeked of money, so there were constantly merchants who cast their lots with them.
Of course, the Anhui Song Clan was an immense merchant clan closely aligned with the Righteous Path. The profits gained through the Martial Alliance were quite significant, and his personal inclinations also aligned with the values of the Righteous Path.
Pointing to the dining table laden with all manner of delicacies, Song Ha-baek spoke.
“Eat quickly before it gets cold. I never knew a day would come before I died when I would dine with this fellow’s friend.”
With a beaming smile across his face, Song Ha-baek looked at Song Yi-yeon, who wore a somewhat disgruntled expression, and Cheon Woo-jin, who was looking sheepish.
When his son had said he would introduce a friend first, he was inwardly surprised. It was because in his entire life, he had never recalled hearing that this fellow had someone called a friend.
When he was young, his body was so frail that he never had reason to step outside the house, and as he grew up, because he unintentionally went around breaking the hearts of every woman in the neighborhood, the only men his age were fellows who envied him.
Yet, to think he would bring home such a proper young man.
Cheon Woo-jin put food into his mouth while trying hard to look away from Song Ha-baek’s burdensome gaze.
“Father, you are going to burn a hole right through Young Hero Cheon’s face.”
“Hahaha, my apologies. He possesses such a fine demeanor by nature that my gaze keeps wandering toward him.”
Song Ha-baek took a liking to Cheon Woo-jin.
It was not merely because he was the first friend his son had brought over, but because Cheon Woo-jin’s aura was moderately weighty while also possessing an aspect that drew people’s hearts.
Usually, that was something one was born with.
Those born with such an aura were bound to achieve great success and spread their renown far and wide, whether as martial artists or as merchants.
Song Ha-baek’s discerning eye, having built a tiny rice shop into a colossal merchant clan, possessed a fairly sharp edge.
“Does the food suit your palate?”
“…Yes.”
Cheon Woo-jin answered with effort to sound calm. In truth, right after coming down from the mountain, there was something else he had yet to adapt to besides bustling scenery, and that was precisely such sumptuous delicacies.
The only meals he had shared with his masters his entire life were wild herbs or crudely roasting meat obtained from the wild.
From Cheon Woo-jin’s perspective, every time he ate food like this, it felt as though an explosion was bursting inside his mouth.
At any rate, it meant he liked it.
Song Ha-baek looked at Cheon Woo-jin with satisfaction and chuckled.
“Now that he entered the Martial Alliance and made such a fine friend, if he only brought home a graceful bride, I would have no remaining regrets.”
Clicking his tongue, Song Ha-baek looked at his son.
Though his own son, he was indeed very handsome. Yet there was no way a fellow who had not even possessed a friend until now would bring home a woman.
“Ah, come on!”
Song Yi-yeon, who was usually fairly mature for his age despite occasionally acting playful, threw a tantrum like a child and sprang up from his seat.
Suddenly, a silent staring contest unfolded between the Patriarch and the Young Patriarch of the Song Clan. It was likely because they could not bring themselves to start a verbal quarrel in front of their guest, Cheon Woo-jin.
However, given the sheer height of Cheon Woo-jin’s realm, he could perceive everything despite trying his best to bury his gaze in the food.
‘Mmm…’
Cheon Woo-jin thought this was a far more awkward situation than when he had faced the Lust Demon and the Blood Fan at the same time.
Whether knowing Cheon Woo-jin’s feelings or not, Song Yi-yeon soon stormed out of the room.
At that retreating back, Song Ha-baek clicked his tongue.
“I do not know when on earth he will mature. He is of that age, yet whenever marriage talks come up, he acts like that.”
“Cough…”
Bursting into a cough, Cheon Woo-jin drank the tea beside him.
When attacked by the seductive arts of the Black Wolf Hand and the courtesans at the Pure Flower Pavilion, Cheon Woo-jin had noticed that Song Yi-yeon practiced the Virgin Boy Art.
Having practiced the Virgin Boy Art, far from marriage, it was impossible to have any relationship of that sort with a woman.
Apparently, Young Hero Song’s father seemed unaware of the fact that his only son had learned the Virgin Boy Art.
If he found out, the Song Clan would be turned upside down.
“So, does our Alliance Member Cheon have no woman?”
“…Yes.”
“Haha, how could such a dignified young man have none? If you ever have thoughts of it, tell me anytime. Because of my son’s marriage affairs, I know every graceful woman in Anhui like the back of my hand.”
“…I am fine. By the way, since you are Young Hero Song’s father, please feel free to address me as Woo-jin.”
Cheon Woo-jin, whose eloquence suddenly improved, smoothly shifted the subject.
Of course, the great merchant Song Ha-baek nodded, noticing that Cheon Woo-jin felt uncomfortable despite knowing what he was doing.
“Hahaha! Yes, Woo-jin. Please take good care of my son. If there is ever anything you need, you do not even need to go through Yi-yeon, so send word to the Song Clan anytime.”
Song Ha-baek had already heard that Cheon Woo-jin had lived serving only his masters without any family.
Song Ha-baek, originally of an affectionate nature, felt sympathy for Cheon Woo-jin as the father of a child.
“You may not be able to think of me as a father, but I hope you will feel comfortable around me.”
He was sincere. Not only was he his son’s first friend, but he also truly liked the person named Cheon Woo-jin.
For some reason, Cheon Woo-jin was receiving favor from middle-aged men of Anhui, just like the Sword King.
Soon finishing his meal, Cheon Woo-jin spoke.
“Thank you, Patriarch. Since Young Hero Song’s heart seems troubled, I will go check on him.”
“Wait. Still, this is our first meal together, so take a cup before you go.”
As Song Ha-baek picked up the teapot beside him, Cheon Woo-jin held out his teacup with both hands.
“Since there is a mourning affair in the Heavenly Tiger Squad, we cannot drink alcohol, so this cannot be helped. I will address you comfortably, so from now on you should also just call me Uncle. Does Patriarch not seem too distant?”
“That is a bit…”
Unexpectedly, Cheon Woo-jin said everything he wanted to say.
Song Ha-baek’s eyes narrowed.
“Well, if Alliance Member Cheon is uncomfortable, there is nothing that can be done. Then I will see you again next time.”
“?”
Cheon Woo-jin looked at Song Ha-baek as if in disbelief. Song Ha-baek had a smile that closely resembled Song Yi-yeon’s, brimming with playfulness.
“…I will call you Uncle.”
“Hahaha! Yes, splendid.”
Calling each other brothers with Cheol Ji-ak upon their first meeting, and engaging in pseudo-father-and-son familiarity with Cheon Woo-jin after sharing a single meal, that man was the great merchant of Anhui, Song Ha-baek.
* * *
Cheon Woo-jin immediately headed to the backyard where Song Yi-yeon was.
There were as many as seven such courtyards within the Song Clan estate, but finding him was not difficult because his sensory perception was so vast.
Perched on the railing, Song Yi-yeon gazed plaintively up at the exceptionally bright full moon. Cheon Woo-jin, naturally sitting beside him, spoke.
“Have you not told him yet?”
“I am the only child, so how could I tell him?”
Cheon Woo-jin nodded. It was not that he could not understand Song Yi-yeon’s feelings.
“However, you cannot keep it a secret for your entire life.”
After all, was he not his father, of all people?
Cheon Woo-jin did not know familial affection, but thinking of it as an existence like his masters to himself, conversation became much easier.
“Well…”
Song Yi-yeon trailed off, then looked at Cheon Woo-jin in startlement.
“H-H-How did you know?”
From the context of the conversation, this monstrous Young Hero Cheon seemed to have noticed that he had practiced the Virgin Boy Art.
Cheon Woo-jin answered casually.
“At the brothel.”
“Ah…”
Song Yi-yeon nodded. At any rate, the first friend he had made was an uncanny man like a ghost.
“Young Hero Cheon, do you know that? The Virgin Boy Art is a truly unique martial art. Up to seventy percent of power, it does not show outwardly, but if you elevate and circulate it beyond that, its distinctive aura is bound to waft out. Since the Virgin Boy Art is a martial art with a clear weakness, it is best to circulate it only up to seventy percent until reaching great completion.”
Cheon Woo-jin nodded. He had already heard from his masters about many martial arts across all under heaven.
“Of course, reaching great completion does not mean the weakness disappears. It is simply that one becomes strong to the point where it does not matter.”
“I heard that in the history of the martial world, there were only three people who achieved great completion after practicing the Virgin Boy Art. I know it to be a martial art that is just that difficult to bring to great completion.”
“That is right. Instead, all three who reached great completion carved prominent names in martial history. The Virgin Boy Art is that kind of martial art.”
A brief silence followed.
Perhaps due to the night scenery, or because he had spoken of his secret for the first time, Song Yi-yeon felt needlessly sentimental.
“Also, the Virgin Boy Art is a truly lonely martial art. Commonly, there is a prejudice that men who practice the Virgin Boy Art engage in homosexuality. In fact, since they said one of the three masters who reached great completion was a homosexual, it is not a baseless prejudice. Of course, I am not.”
Although they said there were times in the distant history of the Central Plains when homosexuality was not considered strange, today was different.
In the present era, there was a strong climate of scorning and mocking homosexuals, regarding them as strange perverts.
Song Yi-yeon looked at Cheon Woo-jin with a somewhat tense face. He liked women. Yet he feared that the friend he had made for the first time might look at him with prejudiced eyes.
Cheon Woo-jin also looked at Song Yi-yeon with a serious face, then opened his mouth.
“It is a splendid martial art. It does not fall short even when compared to any supreme martial art. Usually, martial arts of the Nine Sects have deeper aspects than the Five Great Clans, and since the Virgin Boy Art is also a martial art branched off from early Shaolin, if you can only achieve great completion, you could become an expert counted among the top ten in the martial world in the future.”
Of course, these were words Master White Elder had told him.
At that appearance, Song Yi-yeon burst into a chuckle.
He had been talking about the world’s prejudices surrounding the Virgin Boy Art, yet this monster young hero, seeming to be a man obsessed with martial arts, was only talking about the martial aspects.
At that sight, Song Yi-yeon instead felt as though his heart was comforted.
“The primitive Virgin Boy Art, as the Heart-Calming Compliant Art, was what Shaolin’s second Abbot, Master Won-hye, taught to his disciples…”
At any rate, he did not know where he had heard it, but seeing that Cheon Woo-jin seemed ready to explain even the secret origin of the Virgin Boy Art if left alone, he spoke.
“Young Hero, thank you.”
“For what?”
Cheon Woo-jin tilted his head.
However, Song Yi-yeon merely smiled without any special reply.
Just having someone share a secret that he had harbored alone without being able to speak to the world due to prejudice and weakness made him feel much more at ease.
Unlike his worries, Young Hero Cheon had no prejudices and was not a loose-lipped man, so he was not particularly worried.
‘Also, there is no issue regarding the weakness either.’
Even without specifically targeting the weakness of the Virgin Boy Art, if he put his mind to it, he could smash his head to pieces with that ominous iron staff anyway.
The sight of Cheon Woo-jin shattering villains’ heads was still vivid in his mind.
Song Yi-yeon, getting goosebumps for some reason, shuddered and spoke.
“By the way, bringing the Virgin Boy Art to great completion is…”
It was at that moment.
Cheon Woo-jin placed his index finger to his lips as if telling him to be quiet.
Just as Song Yi-yeon felt puzzled.
“Someone is coming.”
“Ah.”
Soon, a man approached where the two of them were.
It was the Heavenly Tiger Squad Leader, whose impression was as sharp as a well-forged sword beneath the moonlight.
Springing up from his seat, Song Yi-yeon spoke.
“Ah, Squad Leader. Is something uncomfortable…”
“No. Thanks to you, I was able to rest very comfortably. Thank you.”
“Hehe, not at all.”
Song Yi-yeon, having returned to his usual demeanor before long, smiled. He had thought he had fallen out of favor with the Heavenly Tiger Squad Leader for choosing the Black Tortoise Squad, but he was more amicable than expected.
The Heavenly Tiger Squad Leader spoke cautiously with an awkward expression.
“In truth, I came because I had words to say to Alliance Member Cheon. If I interrupted your conversation, I will return later.”
“Not at all. We were just about to get up as well. Because I stormed out while eating, I am hungry.”
Song Yi-yeon rubbed his belly as he said so.
At that sight, Cheon Woo-jin spoke.
“Young Hero Song, go inside first then.”
Song Yi-yeon left the place like that, and Cheon Woo-jin and the Heavenly Tiger Squad Leader stood facing each other side by side. Because both were somewhat taciturn men, an awkward silence flowed between them.
At the end of the silence, Cheon Woo-jin spoke.
“If it is about matters regarding the mission, I only take orders from the Black Tortoise Squad Leader.”
The Heavenly Tiger Squad Leader recalled urging Cheon Woo-jin to report to him during the Pure Flower Pavilion incident.
“Ahem, at that time the situation was urgent. I have no particular intention of giving orders to Black Tortoise Squad members either.”
“Yes.”
“…”
Silence flowed again.
Soon, the Heavenly Tiger Squad Leader gently settled onto the railing where Song Yi-yeon and Cheon Woo-jin had been sitting, and spoke.
“The Black Tortoise Squad Leader is a very good person. He was already a Squad Leader even when I first joined the Alliance. At any rate, I also believe he possesses ability beyond that of a Division Head.”
“…Yes, well.”
In Cheon Woo-jin’s eyes as well, it seemed so.
At any rate, had the Black Tortoise Squad Leader remained a Squad Leader all along, from the time the youngest newcomer joined until he became a Squad Leader and was gradually considering his next promotion?
The moniker Perpetual Squad Leader was not attached to him for nothing.
However, he suddenly found it puzzling.
“Did you come to praise the Black Tortoise Squad Leader?”
“Ahem, not that. In truth, I came to say thank you.”
Cheon Woo-jin tilted his head. Somehow, today he seemed to be receiving thanks multiple times without knowing why.