Episode 5: The Second Young Lord’s Talent (2)
These days were nothing but a series of surprises for Dancheol.
That Namgung Rim’s talent had blossomed, and his rapid achievements in the martial arts, were all surprising. But what surprised him most was the dignity he exuded.
‘Given the adversity facing the family, the Second Young Lord could very well have shown impatience. But instead, he is overflowing with composure.’
His eyes brimmed with conviction, and nobility dwelled in his bearing and gait. Furthermore, his words held a clear resonance that overwhelmed others.
‘Almost like some noble bloodline.’
Dancheol thought so. The Namgung Family had once been a prestigious martial family in the martial world. But after enduring long years and storms, that prestigious bloodline had faded—could it not have manifested once more in the Second Young Lord?
‘Our family can change again. Centered around the Second Young Lord.’
Dancheol held that conviction, but the family’s evaluation was not the same.
*The Second Young Lord who had shut himself away, turning his back on the family’s hardship.*
Everyone whispered as much. Especially among the collateral lines centered around the Sword Hall Master.
Namgung Han, the Young Lord and Namgung Rim’s elder brother, could do nothing to stop such whispers. He was swamped simply by handling family affairs and proceeding with marriage negotiations with the Myeong Clan.
Dancheol did not go out of his way to argue or correct the rumors.
He kept Namgung Rim’s words firmly in mind.
*Because the day would come to prove that rumors were merely rumors.*
‘Yes. For now, I need only believe in the Second Young Lord.’
When his duties ended and he was returning to his quarters, someone approached Dancheol.
“The Sword Hall Master is looking for you.”
* * *
A middle-aged man stood in the rear garden of the Sword Hall. His very presence made the vast garden feel cramped.
His height and build were as imposing as Mount Tai, but more than that, it was the overwhelming aura he radiated.
Sword Hall Master Namgung Hancheon.
By rule, the Sword Hall Master was always the family’s greatest expert, and the current Sword Hall Master was none other than him.
Namgung Hancheon, who had been standing silently in the rear garden, soon asked the subordinate at his side.
“Is the Second Young Lord still locked up in the training chamber?”
“Yes. It has already been well over a month.”
“He cast everything aside and fled. Truly befitting the direct line’s bloodline.”
One hundred fifty years ago, the battle against the Demonic Cult claimed many supreme masters, and gradually, the lineage of the highest martial arts had been severed.
“They accomplished nothing. Neither restoring the lost martial arts nor creating new ones. Truly, the direct line’s bloodline has already exhausted its talent.”
Namgung Hancheon wished to change the direct line this time. Now, when the Young Lord had not yet ascended to the Family Head’s seat, was the perfect opportunity.
“Then, will you take the Family Head’s seat, Hall Master?”
Namgung Hancheon shook his head.
“That doesn’t matter. I have no particular greed for power. What I want is talent. I merely hope that someone talented can reverse this damned situation of our family.”
“So that is why you are seeking fault with the Second Young Lord.”
“Exactly. Shaking the foundation before striking the head is the proper method.”
The current Young Lord, Namgung Han, had no particular faults. His martial talent was ordinary, but he was well-liked. Since many followed him, if one wished to find fault, it had to start with the Second Young Lord, Namgung Rim.
If it were revealed that the Second Young Lord was escaping reality, turning his back on the family’s hardships, it could serve as a crucial opportunity to pressure the direct line.
“The Second Young Lord’s problem will be dragged up to the Young Lord. The Young Lord’s marriage talks with the Myeong Clan are also stalling. It’s a good enough opportunity to make the Young Lord step down on his own.”
As Namgung Hancheon was speaking, Dancheol soon arrived in the rear garden.
Namgung Hancheon looked down at Dancheol with his massive frame and asked.
“What is the Second Young Lord doing in the training chamber?”
Even under Namgung Hancheon’s fearsome gaze, Dancheol replied calmly.
“He is training in martial arts.”
“What? Martial arts? Kuhahaha!”
As Namgung Hancheon laughed loudly, booming laughter echoed throughout the rear garden.
“The Second Young Lord who, until recently, was looking to quit martial arts and find other ways to help the family, is now training? How dare he say that to me.”
Soon, Namgung Hancheon’s face hardened horribly.
“Are you telling a lie?”
It was a momentum so fierce that even his nearby subordinates froze.
But strangely, Dancheol remained calm. So calm that even he was surprised. Somehow, after seeing the Second Young Lord these days, the Sword Hall Master’s imposing force did not affect him much.
‘The dignity the Second Young Lord showed during the duel was far more overwhelming.’
Dancheol looked straight at Namgung Hancheon and opened his mouth.
“It is not a lie.”
“If it is not a lie, what martial art is he learning?”
“The reason the Second Young Lord trains in the underground training chamber is so that no one may disturb him. How could I dare leak to the outside what martial art such a person is cultivating?”
“I, the Sword Hall Master, am asking, and a mere bodyguard like you refuses to answer?”
Energy surged from Namgung Hancheon’s body. An intangible energy that forced opponents into submission.
“The only ones I take orders from are the Family Head and the Second Young Lord.”
Seeing Dancheol still unwavering, a strange light flickered in Namgung Hancheon’s eyes.
Ten years ago, when Dancheol entered the Namgung Family, Namgung Hancheon had coveted him. He had wanted to place him in the Sword Hall and personally teach him the sword to help him grow.
‘If things went well, I wanted to give him the Namgung surname and make him a member of the family. As expected, my eyes were not wrong. An excessive bodyguard has gone to the Second Young Lord.’
At that moment, Namgung Hancheon’s eyes turned toward the entrance of the rear garden. Someone completely unexpected had appeared.
A young man with delicate, handsome features who took after his mother—it was Namgung Rim.
“I was looking for my bodyguard and heard he was here.”
Namgung Rim gave Dancheol a glance before turning his gaze to Namgung Hancheon.
“So I came myself.”
Facing the Second Young Lord, surprise filled Namgung Hancheon’s eyes.
‘The brat before me now is the Second Young Lord I knew?’
He had become an entirely different person.
The previous Second Young Lord had a somewhat blurry impression. His martial talent had been ordinary, an inoffensive person who stood out nowhere.
But the Second Young Lord he now faced radiated an entirely different presence.
A presence so overwhelming that it even eclipsed Namgung Hancheon himself.
Namgung Hancheon looked at Namgung Rim standing straight on unwavering feet, then glanced briefly at Dancheol.
‘Even Dancheol’s earlier momentum was the influence of his superior, the Second Young Lord.’
Wrinkles formed between Namgung Hancheon’s brows.
‘So he wasn’t in hiding after the Family Head’s death, but undergoing a transformation. But I don’t know yet. The opportunity to find fault remains.’
Namgung Hancheon, who had quickly sorted out the situation, soon opened his mouth slowly.
“I had something to ask Dancheol, so I called him here for a moment.”
Namgung Rim replied calmly.
“So, was your curiosity resolved?”
“No, your bodyguard was lying.”
“Dancheol is a loyal bodyguard. He would not lie.”
Namgung Hancheon sneered.
“He lied that you were training in martial arts in the training chamber. Does that make sense? Weren’t you looking into the civil service exam until recently?”
A faint smile hung on Namgung Rim’s lips as he cast his gaze toward Dancheol.
“Dancheol spoke the truth. What would a martial artist do in a training chamber? Naturally, they would train in martial arts. Then, could it be that the Hall Master…”
Namgung Rim’s gaze turned to Namgung Hancheon.
“…uses the training chamber as an escape from the secular world?”
An intrigued smile formed on Namgung Hancheon’s bear-like face. He had never imagined that the Second Young Lord would not back down and would parry every blow. Moreover, he knew all the rumors circulating about himself in the family.
“Very well. Then if you have been training for over a month, there must be results.”
“Of course.”
An assertion so confident.
An arrogant smile rose on Namgung Hancheon’s face.
“If you are so bold as to boast so, you might be able to spar with someone from our Sword Hall.”
Namgung Hancheon cast bait. Hoping the Second Young Lord would take it.
“A duel? That sounds interesting.”
Namgung Hancheon’s eyes flashed.
‘He took it.’
“Then tomorrow, let us have you duel Chief Namgung Danung at the Sword Hall.”
Unlike the triumphant Namgung Hancheon, Namgung Rim still wore a composed, leisurely smile.
“The sooner, the better for me.”
And Dancheol, watching from the side, looked at Namgung Rim in amazement, recalling the words he had once spoken.
*The one who can wield the greatest influence in the family is the Sword Hall Master. He will call me to find some fault.*
‘It may seem the Sword Hall Master is leading the situation now, but that is not the case. Everything is flowing exactly as the Second Young Lord predicted.’
* * *
Once Namgung Rim left, the subordinate at Namgung Hancheon’s side asked.
“But why have him fight Chief Namgung Danung? Aren’t the other chiefs stronger?”
“The Second Young Lord is not even of age yet. I cannot have him fight those of a completely different level. There is no use in winning an unfair fight.”
“Then, shall we spread the rumors publicly? That way, the effect will be greatest when the Second Young Lord loses.”
Namgung Hancheon could not answer easily. In truth, he had initially planned a public duel. But after meeting the Second Young Lord, his thinking changed.
‘There is something.’
The Second Young Lord had changed as if he were a different person. It was impossible to know what he was hiding. If they held a public duel and, by some chance, the Second Young Lord won, it would only serve to strengthen the direct line instead.
“No. For now, hold the duel internally within the Sword Hall only.”
Namgung Hancheon was that meticulous and cautious a man.
Inside the Sword Hall was a spacious area. Though indoors, it was large enough for two people to duel.
The next day, many Sword Hall martial artists lined up there. All wore swords at their waists and stood watch with solemn faces.
And at the far end stood Namgung Hancheon.
It was a place waiting for the Second Young Lord, Namgung Rim, but the lineup was not for his sake. Naturally, it was to crush his spirit.
Amid such silence, the hall’s doors soon opened and Namgung Rim revealed himself.
Namgung Hancheon, who had been waiting with a triumphant expression, slowly began to widen his eyes.
Namgung Rim was not intimidated in the slightest by the Sword Hall martial artists’ formation. On the contrary, he was overflowing with composure, as if such occasions were all too familiar.
His shoulders were straight, his back upright, and every step he took flowed with a dignity that overwhelmed his surroundings.
As if the formation of Sword Hall martial artists existed not to pressure Namgung Rim, but to conduct ceremonial rites for his entrance.
And more than anything, what surprised Namgung Hancheon was the sword strapped to Namgung Rim’s back.
‘No, is that… Changse?’
The sword used by Family Head Namgung Musang in the war against the Demonic Cult one hundred fifty years ago.
How that very sword, which symbolized the paramount might of the Namgung Family, had come to be strapped to Namgung Rim’s back was beyond knowing.
Namgung Rim stopped walking and looked around.
“It seems the Sword Hall’s preparations are already complete.”
Soon, Namgung Rim’s gaze turned to Namgung Hancheon.
“I, too, am ready.”