Chapter 224. There Aren’t Many Chivalrous Heroes.

Jang Deuksu, a man good at cooking, and Junior Sister Hong, good at stealing.

It was a strange combination. It was strange, yes, but I generally believed a person ought to be good at at least one thing, so I took it positively.

At any rate, the two of them would never starve to death.

“What an impressive combination.”

Brother Deuksu cleared his throat, and Hong Sin’s eyes darted this way and that. Before eating the pork backbone, I began a solemn congratulatory address.

“Listen well, you two.”

“Mm.”

“Please speak, Eldest Senior Brother.”

I looked at Hong Sin and pointed at Jang Deuksu.

“He’s my brother.”

Hong Sin flinched in surprise and straightened her posture.

“Yes.”

She seemed too startled, so I corrected myself.

“I mean, he’s a brother from my neighborhood.”

“Ah, yes.”

“He’s a neighborhood brother, but he’s still my brother.”

“That’s right.”

“When I was hungry, he let me eat on credit many times. Men this kind are rare in the world.”

“Indeed.”

“He never trained in martial arts because he was studying cooking, so even if something makes you angry, you must not hit Brother Deuksu. If he had learned martial arts, he would have been stronger than you, Junior Sister. Why? To cook well requires a sense for grasping the essence of ingredients, and the comprehension to properly combine all manner of ingredients. Just from the way he seasons food neither too much nor too little, you can tell he’s a man with restraint. Learning martial arts and cooking well are merely different fields. In my eyes, Brother Deuksu is also an expert. He’s an excellent man.”

Hong Sin, who had been staring blankly at the table, answered with a bewildered expression.

“Yes. Eldest Senior Brother, I understand what you mean, but we’ve only just met……”

“Shut up.”

“Yes.”

I looked at Brother Deuksu.

“Brother.”

“Yeah.”

I formally introduced Hong Sin to Brother Deuksu.

“The sole flower among our Twelve Divine Generals, the only beauty among the Twelve Divine Generals, Junior Sister Hong, whose lightness skill is the finest among the Twelve Divine Generals. It is difficult to meet a woman who possesses beauty, wisdom, and even thievery. The way I saw it, Brother, you were going to grow old and die a bachelor in Ilyang County, so this is a miracle.”

“That’s true.”

“If you don’t want to get beaten by Junior Sister, always respect her. Make her lots of delicious food. Even if a customer prettier than Hong Sin happens to come by, do not so much as glance at her, and until your black hair turns white as scallion roots……”

Jang Deuksu said to me,

“That’s enough.”

“Shall I stop?”

Only then did I laugh. Hong Sin, who had been listening to me in tension all this while, finally relaxed as well. It seemed she had only now realized I was teasing them.

“Anyway, it’s nice to see. Let’s eat.”

“Yes.”

Jang Deuksu shook his head, stood up, and headed to the kitchen.

“I’ll give you noodles, so wait.”

As I tore into the pork backbone, I said to Hong Sin,

“Wow, so this is what it means to get sleepy while eating.”

Hong Sin nodded as she ate the pork backbone. I spoke to her as she gnawed on it in a trance.

“Junior Sister, did you perhaps come here to steal the recipe for pork backbone?”

Hong Sin answered while tearing at the pork backbone.

“It’s a bit difficult. He taught me, but I don’t think I can do it right. It’s not something you can learn in a day or two.”

I nodded.

“There should be no one in Ilyang County stronger than you, so if you wander around and see any strange bastards, beat them as you please. Or make sure word reaches my ears. I’ll take care of it.”

“Understood.”

“Since it’s come to this, you might as well become Hao Gate’s branch chief in Ilyang County.”

“If there’s any need to contact the senior brothers, I’ll take care of it.”

A little while later, Brother Deuksu joined us, and while we were eating noodles together, cheers from beggars sounded outside.

A sigh escaped me on its own.

“What beggar bastards are……”

I drank the broth, then stood and looked outside. In that instant, something passed by at tremendous speed. Perhaps they were holding a lightness skill contest among themselves, because every time experts of the Beggar Gang arrived, cheers erupted.

“……”

In the end, Hong Sin and Brother Deuksu also stood and looked outside. Hong Sin said,

“I’ve never seen this many beggars in my life.”

Brother Deuksu answered in an admiring tone.

“Looks like they came to find you. There’s no other reason for so many beggars to flock to Ilyang County.”

“Probably. Brother Deuksu, close up shop for today.”

“All right.”

I said to Brother Deuksu and Hong Sin,

“Tell the people at Maehwaru and Yeon Jaseong to finish work on their end too. We need to serve dinner to the Beggar Gang. Connect tables in front of Zaha Inn, then prepare simple side dishes and rice, serving it like rations. Some beggars may not have brought rice bowls, so tell Maehwaru to put out bowls. Since the Beggar Gang and Hao Gate have met, Hao Gate should at least treat them to dinner.”

I looked at Jang Deuksu.

“You’re the head of Jeommun, so you can manage this much, right? I’ll have Maehwaru handle the expenses.”

“Got it.”

“Junior Sister Hong, get a count of the beggars and help Brother Deuksu.”

“Yes, Eldest Senior Brother.”

After sending Jang Deuksu and Hong Sin outside, I watched the beggars from in front of Chunyang Restaurant. With this many people, it seemed an important figure from the Beggar Gang was coming. I had no choice but to assume that No Sin was coming.

As for why, I had no idea.

The beggars had come, so I would simply treat them to a meal.

Those beggars were not particularly paying attention to me either. Whenever more beggar brothers arrived, they merely clapped or cheered. As I watched, cheers from the beggars came from a fair distance away, and soon No Sin appeared with an old man on his back, looking around.

“Ah……”

I applauded No Sin along with the beggars. The only person No Sin would carry on his back was the Gang Leader of the Beggar Gang, so I was bewildered too.

I wondered whether the old man being carried on his back truly was one of the Three Calamities.

The White-Clad Scholar’s words generally could not be trusted, so I had never had anything like certainty to begin with.

The old man, who had not the slightest presence, got down from No Sin’s back and smiled as he looked at the beggars around him.

It looked like nothing more than an old beggar and young beggars chatting together. A little while later, No Sin spotted me and extended a hand toward me, and the old man who was presumed to be the Gang Leader of the Beggar Gang walked toward me together with No Sin.

As soon as the old man met my eyes, he said,

“Sect Leader, I came to get a meal from you.”

I nodded and answered,

“We’re preparing it.”

No Sin also waved at me.

“It’s been a while.”

“Brother Nosin, come on in.”

Though we had only met once in the gorge, the last thing I had called him was simply “brother.”

Nosin said to the old man,

“Please go inside. I will wait outside.”

“It’s fine. Let’s go in together.”

“Yes, sir.”

I ushered Nosin and the old man into the empty Chunyang Restaurant, then found myself looking anew at its shabby signboard. I never imagined that the leader of the Beggar Gang would appear at Chunyang Restaurant, where I had eaten since I was young.

Suddenly curious, I glanced around at the beggars waiting outside, and once again they were sitting here and there, chatting idly or playing jacks.

I entered the restaurant and asked the two of them,

“Have you eaten?”

The old man answered,

“Just bring us some water. This fellow ran quite a long way. He must be tired.”

I cleared away the empty bowls, then went to the kitchen and came back with a kettle. As I poured water for the old man and Nosin, I said,

“You have come a long way. What brings you all the way here?”

The old man replied,

“I heard from my disciple that you fought the Demon Cult not long ago. I was curious, so I came to see.”

“I see.”

After drinking a cup of water myself, I looked at the old man and Nosin.

The old man said,

“I received Alliance Leader Im’s letter, so I knew your name from before.”

“Is that so. I am I Jaha, the Haomun Sect Leader.”

The old man answered with a gentle smile,

“Good to meet you. I am the Beggar Gang Leader. I intend to station a county-level dantou (團頭) near Ilyang County. Would that be all right?”

“Of course. How may I help?”

“I find it uncomfortable for them to do nothing but beg. The dantou have also learned how to conduct funerals and prepare bodies for burial. If they happen to send off the dead from time to time, see that they are taken care of then. Even that much will keep them from starving to death.”

“Understood.”

The Beggar Gang Leader said to Nosin,

“I have discussed it with the Sect Leader, so take it as settled.”

“Yes, Gang Leader.”

If Nosin had called him “Master,” the odds would have been high that he was one of the Three Calamities, but since he addressed him as Gang Leader, it was ambiguous again. Moreover, even as we held this conversation, the Beggar Gang Leader had no presence whatsoever.

On the other hand, if he had no presence at all to my eyes,

it also made me wonder just how high his skill was.

In other words, I now possessed a level of skill that could not even gauge the Beggar Gang Leader’s ability. It was not particularly strange. If the Gang Leader was indeed one of the Three Calamities, then there would be fewer than ten experts in the jianghu capable of measuring this man’s skill.

Until now, I had thought that I was the person who stood at the exact opposite of the Demon Cult Leader.

But the Beggar Gang Leader was also positioned precisely opposite the Demon Cult Leader.

There was no authority, no gravity, no oppressive air or spirit to be felt from him. He was simply an old beggar through and through.

The Beggar Gang Leader, who had been staring intently at me, held out his hand.

“Sect Leader, are you having trouble sleeping?”

“Yes.”

“Let me see.”

I entrusted my wrist to someone other than Moyong Baek. Instead of taking my pulse, the Beggar Gang Leader fiddled with my hand and examined it from all sides.

“It has not been long since you learned martial arts. Nor have you trained long with weapons.”

“Yes.”

Nosin chimed in from the side.

“I was right, wasn’t I? This is the first time I’ve seen an expert become this strong in such a short period of time.”

The Gang Leader nodded as well.

“How curious. Your sect?”

“I have none.”

The Beggar Gang Leader blinked in bewilderment, then stared at me.

“None?”

I nodded.

“I have not revealed it even to the White-Robed Scholar when he pressed me, so I cannot explain the circumstances.”

“Ah, the White-Robed Scholar. Have you met him recently?”

“Yes.”

“Then did you hear about me as well?”

“I gave him information about myself and asked what I wanted to know, and heard about it then.”

The Beggar Gang Leader said with a smile,

“What do you think? He must have said I was one of the Three Calamities. Seeing me in person, does it seem like credible information?”

I answered honestly.

“The Scholar doesn’t seem like the type to lie. However, even though I am looking at you in person, Gang Leader, I cannot understand how you fought the other Three Calamities and survived.”

“In what way?”

“I have seen the Cult Leader in person, and he looked tremendously strong.”

“The Cult Leader is strong.”

Nosin looked at me and said,

“Our master is strong too. The world simply doesn’t know it.”

Nosin confirmed that the old man beside him was one of the Three Calamities.

One of the Three Calamities was before my eyes.

A laugh came out of me on its own.

How was my life going to flow from here on?

If all three of the Three Calamities had been people trying to kill me, I would have vanished on the spot, but it seemed I was not quite that unlucky a person.

“As the White-Robed Scholar said, Senior, you were the last member of the Three Calamities.”

The Beggar Gang Leader nodded.

“The Three Calamities is not a title I gave us. It is a name that spread from the mouths of those who watched our fight.”

Since one of the Three Calamities had appeared, I asked what I was curious about first.

“What kind of person is Cheonak?”

The Beggar Gang Leader answered without delay.

“I know him as an expert on the Scholar’s side. Though he does not seem close to the White-Robed Scholar. I understand him to be of the lineage of the Medicine Immortal (藥仙), who was responsible for obtaining elixirs to present to the First Emperor.”

“You mean those who were ordered to find the medicine of immortality?”

“That’s right. They received the order, received the money to organize expeditions, and gathered plenty of elixirs, but every time, they mocked the First Emperor. ‘We must go somewhere farther away. This time, perhaps we should go to Tibet. This time, perhaps we should cross the sea.’ They achieved nothing, yet continued to consume the imperial family’s wealth while ridiculing him. Even so, the First Emperor believed the medicine of immortality existed, so whether it was eloquence, martial arts, or something else, they were people of real ability.”

“Mm.”

“Why do you believe Cheonak is one of them?”

“He was the youngest among the three of us. His body was an artificial one. As for martial arts, he had learned most of what exists under heaven. He had also mastered many martial arts I did not know. Combining what the Beggar Gang investigated, what Nosin personally found out, and what the White-Robed Scholar said… that is the conclusion I came to. Broadly speaking, he must have been the greatest master under heaven created by those who could be called an alliance of scholars, but he was stopped by the Cult Leader and me. They must have been deeply shocked as well.”

“Are you close to the Cult Leader?”

The Beggar Gang Leader laughed.

“That cannot be. Think about it. Cheonak was younger than us. We could not settle the contest. The Scholar Alliance will make Cheonak even stronger. If my training and the Cult Leader’s training fail to catch up to Cheonak, then at the next gathering of the Three Calamities, the title of greatest under heaven will pass to Cheonak’s side. Among the scholars, there are many whose hearts are misaligned, so even I cannot predict what will happen then.”

I listened quietly and merely nodded. A brief silence followed before the Beggars’ Sect Leader spoke.

“The Cult Leader will have abandoned any thought of growing stronger by normal means.”

I lowered my voice before answering.

“Who in the world knows what you have told me so far?”

The Beggars’ Sect Leader said,

“About ten people, but the man who understands it most accurately is Alliance Leader Im Sobaek. In any case, he has heard my story.”

“Is there a particular reason you are passing such things on to me?”

The Beggars’ Sect Leader gazed steadily at me.

“Would there be? Talking with young righteous heroes is always a pleasure. There are not many righteous heroes in this world.”

As I listened to the Beggars’ Sect Leader, my face grew hot.