Chapter 7 : Chapter 7

Chapter 7. I Wonder if I Could Meet You Just One More Time? (1)

The work Han Cheong-un did as a retainer was to guide Dang Jin.

But he didn't devote all his time to it.

They would duel once in the morning after breakfast, and again in the afternoon after lunch.

That was all.

Of course, the duel itself was a high-intensity duel of astonishing degree.

He just didn't get seriously injured.

He pushed Dang Jin by dueling with an intensity that was practically the same as real combat.

“Aack! Ack! Stop……. Why do you keep hitting me? You can just stop right in front of me, can't you?”

“That would lower your combat sense.”

“You son of a bitch!”

For Dang Jin, it was like experiencing a living hell twice a day.

After finishing the afternoon duel like that…….

“Then please review today's duel well and come prepared.”

“…….”

He leaves the training ground, leaving Dang Jin, who is playing dead.

With this, Han Cheong-un's daily duties as a retainer of the Tang Clan were over.

The rest of the time was all free time.

And Han Cheong-un took advantage of this free time to slowly walk around the inside of the Tang Clan. Of course…….

“This is a place where guests cannot go.”

“I understand. Is there something important inside?”

“I cannot say.”

“I see. Excuse me.”

However, the places a mere retainer could go were limited.

In particular, the Sichuan Tang Clan was a place where confidentiality and security were strict, even among the Five Great Families.

Still, Han Cheong-un wandered around here and there without caring. As if he were looking for something.

There were some in the Tang Clan who looked at Han Cheong-un's blatant spying-like actions with displeasure, but they ignored him for now.

After repeating this for several days…….

“Hmm……”

He finally found the person he was looking for in the backyard of the Tang Clan's rear garden.

Someone was there, staring intently at the fish in the pond.

A woman dressed in black with accessories dangling all over her body.

Her face was not visible because she was wearing a thick veil, but he knew the moment he saw her.

‘Found her.’

That woman was probably the one Han Cheong-un had been so eagerly searching for.

Han Cheong-un carefully approached her from behind as she was looking at the inside of the pond and spoke to her.

“What are you looking at?”

At that, the other person was startled and turned around. And she took a step back and covered her mouth with her hand.

Then she spoke in the smallest voice possible.

“Who are you?”

The sound of a bead rolling on a tray.

It was a beautiful voice that perfectly matched the term "jade voice". Han Cheong-un gave her a polite fist-and-palm salute and said.

“My introduction is late. I am a retainer staying at the Tang Clan, with the surname Han and the given name Cheong-un.”

“…….”

“If it is alright with you, would you be so kind as to tell me your name, young lady?”

At Han Cheong-un's extremely polite attitude, she carefully opened her mouth.

“I am called Dang Seoyeon.”

“Ah, so you were Young Lady Dang.”

Han Cheong-un received the greeting calmly.

But at this moment, he was clenching his fists tightly.

‘Found her. I finally found her.’

Dang Seoyeon.

She was the key and the core figure to prevent the Tang Clan's bloody tragedy.

Because the timid woman in front of him right now was the very person who had caused the Tang Clan's bloody tragedy.

* * *

The result of the Murim Alliance's investigation into the Tang Clan's bloody tragedy.

They concluded that the terrible tragedy was caused by a deadly poison stored in the Tang Clan that spread due to an accident.

But the truth was different.

The identity of the poison that had run rampant in the Tang Clan at that time.

It was not a deadly poison sealed deep in the Tang Clan's secret storage, nor a fatal poison under experiment.

The poison harbored within a single person had run rampant.

Heavenly Killing Poison Flower Dang Seoyeon.

Her rampage was what had brought the terrible bloody tragedy to the Tang Clan.

Han Cheong-un learned the truth of this incident later, after the Evil-Annihilating Squad was formed, when he heard it directly from Dang Jin.

“My younger sister had a Myriad Poisons Body.”

“Myriad Poisons Body? Isn't that something that only appears in legends?”

Myriad Poisons Body.

It was known as a body that harbored all the poisons in the world and was optimized for learning poison arts. But a Myriad Poisons Body had never appeared in the Jianghu.

As a result of research by those who practiced poison arts, they concluded that in order for a human to master poison arts and reach a realm of transcendence beyond great accomplishment, they must possess ten thousand poisons in their body.

A human created from this theory, an imaginary being.

That was the Myriad Poisons Body. But…….

“She was born in our clan. No……”

Dang Jin bit his lip hard and continued with difficulty.

“We created her.”

Han Cheong-un was greatly alarmed.

“You created her?”

“Yes. A child born of the Tang Clan's greed, created by injecting poison into her while she was still in her mother's womb, soaking both the mother and the fetus in poison.”

“…….”

“That was my younger sister.”

“…….”

“That child……”

Dang Jin with a sorrowful expression continued.

The Myriad Poisons Body, artificially created with a great deal of effort, carrying the aspirations of the Sichuan Tang Clan.

That was Dang Seoyeon.

But she, who was born with the expectations of the Sichuan Tang Clan, was a failure.

The elders of the Tang Clan had the ambition to nurture her, a Myriad Poisons Body, into the number one under the heavens and make the Tang Clan the number one family under the heavens.

But raising her, born as a Myriad Poisons Body, was excruciatingly difficult.

Her mother had died as soon as she was born.

No, it wasn't just her mother.

The midwives and other maids who had entered the delivery room to receive her all died as well.

From the moment she was born, she had taken thirteen lives.

But that was just the beginning.

Dang Seoyeon, born as a Myriad Poisons Body, would poison anyone she brushed against.

That poison grew stronger as she grew, and by the time she was ten, she carried a poison that even the Tang Clan could not detoxify.

And by that point, the number of people who had died from poisoning while serving her or by accidental contact had exceeded thirty.

A cursed constitution.

A child who spread death just by existing.

The existence of Dang Seoyeon was an object of fear even within the Sichuan Tang Clan.

“When that child caused the bloody tragedy, I was not at the clan. Even after learning the truth later, I secretly thought. Ah, our clan has received heavenly punishment.”

“But Vice Grand Master……”

“I know. I know well that this is not an excuse.”

“…….”

“Right now, my younger sister is a public enemy of the Jianghu and a criminal who has already taken the lives of hundreds of thousands, including commoners.”

“…….”

“The reason I am telling you this, Grand Master, is not to defend my sister, but……”

Dang Jin squeezed his eyes shut and spoke in a wet voice.

“I just wanted you to know.”

“…….”

“If that child and I die together tomorrow, then there will be no one left who knows the truth about that child……”

“Vice Grand Master.”

“Isn't that too sad?”

Dang Jin had steeled his resolve.

His resolve to stop his sister, even if it meant risking his own life, in tomorrow's subjugation of the Heavenly Killing Poison Flower, Dang Seoyeon.

Han Cheong-un, knowing Dang Jin's resolve, could not say anything.

And the next day.

The Evil-Annihilating Squad relentlessly pursued the Heavenly Killing Poison Flower, Dang Seoyeon, who was trapped in a heavenly net, and finally succeeded in killing her.

What killed her at the final moment was Dang Jin's Silver Flowing Fly that had pierced her heart from a long distance.

* * *

‘I can't let such a tragedy happen again.’

Han Cheong-un, who knew the future, decided to first try to melt Dang Seoyeon's heart.

If possible, it was best to change her mind so that she wouldn't cause such a terrible bloody tragedy. To do that…….

‘First, I need to get close to her.’

Han Cheong-un carefully approached Dang Seoyeon.

“Were you looking at the carp in the pond?”

Han Cheong-un naturally took a step closer. At that…….

“Don't come closer!”

Dang Seoyeon hurriedly shouted and took a step back. Then she stretched out her hand and said, wary of Han Cheong-un.

“Don't come near me.”

At that, Han Cheong-un stopped and said.

“Ah, are you perhaps training in poison arts?”

“…….”

Dang Seoyeon carefully nodded her head. At that, Han Cheong-un said as if he was happy that his guess was correct.

“As expected of a warrior of the Tang Clan. The things you are wearing on your body are poison-warding beads, right?”

Dang Seoyeon nodded her head slightly.

At that, Han Cheong-un said as if in admiration.

“As expected, your accomplishment seems to be extraordinary.”

The accessories on Dang Seoyeon's body were all high-priced, top-grade poison-warding beads.

Only by wearing not just one but dozens of poison-warding beads could she barely suppress the poison energy that seeped out of her body.

Without them, it was impossible for her to even live a minimal daily life.

Dang Seoyeon, hesitating and choosing her words. And Han Cheong-un said…….

“I cannot disturb the young lady's training.”

Thank goodness. It seems he's going to leave.

“Then I must get to know the young lady in a different way. Hmm……. Do you perhaps like interesting stories?”

“……?”

Before Dang Seoyeon could say anything, Han Cheong-un began to unravel his stories on his own.

“Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, a woodcutter……”

What is with this man?

It was a first for Dang Seoyeon.

For someone to keep approaching her even when she tried to push them away.

Han Cheong-un unraveled stories in front of Dang Seoyeon as if he were a storyteller.

“The deer said that if you steal the celestial maiden's winged clothes and hide them, and then ask her to be your wife……”

“…….”

“……But the celestial maiden courageously reported this to the Murim Alliance, and as a result, the woodcutter was branded a public enemy of the Jianghu and met a miserable end.”

Han Cheong-un subtly checked her reaction.

He was not a storyteller.

But as a person of the Jianghu, he had heard plenty of anecdotes from various gossips.

He tried telling one of the funnier ones…….

“……Pfft.”

Thank goodness.

It seems to have worked.

Because of the veil, Dang Seoyeon's expression was not visible, but a very small laugh escaped from her lips.

This alone was a sufficient gain.

“Was my story interesting?”

“……Yes.”

Dang Seoyeon's voice as she answered softly.

At that, Han Cheong-un smiled and said.

“Thank you. Then, as a reward for the story, could the young lady grant my request?”

“A request……?”

Dang Seoyeon felt burdened.

There wasn't much she could do for him.

Even though she was a daughter of the Tang Clan, within the clan, she was an object of avoidance, a malignant tumor that should not be touched.

What could he possibly be asking for?

What if it's an unreasonable request that I can't grant?

To the thinking Dang Seoyeon, Han Cheong-un said.

“Could I see you again at this time tomorrow?”

“……Is that all?”

“Yes. I will prepare something more enjoyable for the young lady tomorrow.”

So that means…….

‘He wants me to come out again tomorrow?’

I can't.

Dang Seoyeon was about to refuse in a hurry, but…….

“Then I will take that as a yes and be on my way. I have quite a few things to prepare.”

“No……”

Without giving Dang Seoyeon a chance to say anything, Han Cheong-un quickly disappeared.

Dang Seoyeon, left behind, let out a small sigh as she watched Han Cheong-un's retreating back.

‘What kind of pushy person is he?’

But she had made a promise, so it couldn't be helped.

She had no choice but to come out at this time tomorrow…….

Purely because she had to keep her promise.

* * *

The next day.

“You've come, Young Lady Dang.”

Han Cheong-un was already at the pond, waiting for Dang Seoyeon. Dang Seoyeon bowed her head slightly to Han Cheong-un and said.

“I have kept my promise. But……”

“Ah, before that, I have something for you.”

What is this? How rude. To interrupt someone while they are speaking? Dang Seoyeon momentarily flinched, but Han Cheong-un pointed to a bundle he had placed on one side and said.

“That is a gift I have prepared.”

“A gift?”

“Yes. I have prepared it for the young lady. Would you like to open it?”

“…….”

Dang Seoyeon sighed and walked towards where the bundle was placed.

The small bundle was lighter than she thought, and she couldn't tell what was inside.

When Dang Seoyeon looked at Han Cheong-un, he was looking at her with an expression full of anticipation.

She let out a small sigh and opened the bundle.

And what came out was…….

“What is this?”

“They are skewers of honey-glazed roasted dumplings. Have you ever tried them?”

“……No.”

“Oh my, you've been missing out in life.”

“…….”

“Of course, the Tang Clan's chefs are also very skilled, but sometimes, you crave street food like this. Especially when you are training hard like the young lady, eating something sweet can give you strength.”

She had heard of it.

That if you go over the walls of the Tang Clan, there are many people, and there is a place called a market where those people buy and sell things.

She had heard that there were food vendors there who sold snacks to the people coming and going.

This was probably that kind of food…….

“H-how do I eat this?”

“That is……”

“Don't come closer!”

Dang Seoyeon hurriedly shouted.

And she widened the distance from Han Cheong-un and said.

“From there……. explain it to me from there.”

A blatant display of avoiding him.

One would normally feel offended by Dang Seoyeon's behavior, but…….

“Ah, I made a mistake. You can just eat the street food comfortably.”

He was not.

He still had a bright smile as he apologized to her and explained about the food.

“Hold the skewer at the bottom and eat the dumplings on top. Please try it.”

Dang Seoyeon turned her head, slightly lifted her veil, and put the dumpling skewer in her mouth. And then…….

“……!”

She was surprised.

“How is it? It's delicious, right?”

“…….”

“This is a place in the Chengdu market that is particularly famous for being delicious. I had to stand in line for a whole hour to buy it.”

“…….”

Dang Seoyeon was, after all, a daughter of the Tang Clan.

The food she ate was always high-class cuisine made by skilled chefs.

But this dumpling skewer she was eating now was more delicious than any high-class dish she had ever eaten.

Sweet, chewy, and savory…….

‘……It's warm.’

This was a taste she had never experienced in her life.

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