I heard the whole conversation.
In the end, these fools recklessly confessed their crimes, and even the scalper who sold me tickets yesterday was here.
That’s why my anger boiled even more.
Seriously, the more I know, the more I realize how foolish they are!
These guys came to Sacheon just to make a quick buck under Jeong Cheol’s banner and now that they’ve gotten this far, they couldn’t just turn back empty-handed, so they thought they could gather some loose change by rounding up lowly scum in Hubei on their way back.
They were truly reckless people who thought that if they fled after messing with the House of Jegal, that would be the end of it.
But what?
Do they think they can treat me as a fool? Like invite me to a gambling table and drain my money?
“You! What are you doing?”
“How dare you invade a banquet hosted by the Black Mountain Triad! Are you looking to die?”
“H…”
Although I shouted with overwhelming momentum, the faces of the two guys had already turned pale.
Their level was peak stage.
They must have realized I was above them in skill, so it was only natural.
So today is your death day.
Just as I was confidently approaching those who didn’t even need to draw their swords…
“Is that… could it be Miss Yeo Il-ye of the Red Bamboo Swordswoman?”
One of the thugs recognized Yeo Il-ye among them.
“It’s Miss Yeo Il-ye of the Red Bamboo Swordswoman!”
“Then, the author is…?”
“An expert who uses a great sword…! Moving with Miss Yeo Il-ye…!”
“The Brain Knife Outcast!”
The thugs’ faces instantly paled. Especially the scalper who scammed me seemed about to faint any moment.
Seeing their reactions, Gu In-cheong and Ma Ga-rim glared at me and Yeo Il-ye alternately.
“Hahaha!!”
But suddenly, Ma Ga-rim burst into laughter and pointed at me.
…Is this idiot crazy?
It wasn’t just me who was confused; Gu In-cheong also stuttered as he spoke.
“A, older brother?”
“Hahaha! I almost got fooled!”
Fooled, what?
All the thugs and Yeo Il-ye were looking at Ma Ga-rim, astounded. With a confident tone, Ma Ga-rim pointed at me.
“Haha! If you’re going to impersonate, do it properly! You’re a fake!”
“…What?”
I couldn’t help but retort in disbelief.
“Everyone in the Martial World knows the Brain Knife Outcast headed towards Xin Gang after fighting Jeong Cheol! How could the Brain Knife Outcast be here in faraway Hubei already?!”
“Is that so?”
“Besides, the Brain Knife Outcast has no sect or base! What reason would he have to quickly seek a formation from the House of Jegal while even scalping tickets?!”
As understanding dawned on Gu In-cheong and the thieves, their expressions turned serious.
“Haha! If you’re going to trick someone, do it right! There’s no need to be scared of these impersonators pretending to be the Brain Knife Outcast and Yeo Il-ye! They’re just swindlers, so the current situation must be just bluster!”
“Wow…”
Listening to Ma Ga-rim’s claims, I thought introspectively.
Is this what they call “mirror therapy”?
I had dismissed the notion of a lunatic selling counterfeit tickets at the House of Jegal’s main gate and paid a hefty sum for scalped tickets.
And judging from the rumors and the common travel speeds, I reasoned that I couldn’t possibly be in Hubei, leading to a flawless conclusion that I, as an outcast, didn’t need a formation at all. Ma Ga-rim made exactly the same mistake, making me painfully realize my error.
The world is vast and people are diverse, and there are countless extraordinary stories to be told.
But I had only judged it through my narrow lens.
So I admit it.
I was looking too narrowly at the world.
The world is vast, and there are plenty of crazy people; yet I naively cut off all possibilities with disbelief.
Just like Ma Ga-rim, who declared me an impersonator despite my very existence right in front of him.
“Let’s take him down in one blow!”
“Right!”
Seeing the two of them rushing at me, I clenched my fists.
How can a person only take hits?
If you receive a lesson, you must also give a lesson back.
The muddy yellow qi emanating from Gu In-cheong swung toward me. I observed his attack and tightened my fist.
Swoosh!!
I may not be adept at any particular martial art, but once I reached the realm of Hwa-gyeong, I naturally gained an understanding of my body and the basics of martial arts.
Even if this wasn’t my main weapon, it was more than enough to deal with those just at the peak beginner stage.
Bam!!
The strike from Gu In-cheong collided with my fist, flying back at a speed as fast as it struck.
He opened his eyes wide, staring at me, bewildered, his upper body completely exposed.
Since he was an impersonator of a famous figure, it was only reasonable to expect his skills to be subpar. He must have been shocked to see his powerful attack bounce off so easily.
I decided to engrave a lesson into his chin.
A lesson about life being real practice.
Wham!
“Kaek!”
He must have been significantly impacted as his chin twisted, and his eyes rolled back while doing two flips in the air before crashing to the ground.
Ma Ga-rim, who had been bravely charging in, halted in his tracks.
The faces of the thugs, who had been looking on with anticipation, froze completely.
Ma Ga-rim looked back and forth between the collapsed Gu In-cheong and me, muttering.
“No way…”
“Yes way.”
I thought while stepping on the Seven Thunder Defense Technique.
Somehow, it seemed Ma Ga-rim would take a while to learn his lesson, so I would need to move quickly today.
Bam!
“Keck!”
With Ma Ga-rim’s chin twisting, a long session of discipline began.
I couldn’t help but hum a tune.
After a long time, I had some self-reflection, moved my body freely, and repaid the debt owed to the two friends who had given me mirror therapy.
Carrying the two heavily beaten figures back, it felt like I had a rewarding day.
It wasn’t that I had beaten them up just to make them stop treating me like a fool.
Even if I had to force them, I couldn’t simply let these two go after they committed wicked acts, so I mercilessly slapped them until I won by rolling the dice.
For some reason, that scalper received about double the slaps of the other thugs, which was quite pleasurable.
“Ugh…”
“Ugh…”
Every step I took elicited groans from the two beaten-up figures, but it was to be expected.
After all, the price to learn life’s lessons is often harsh.
Especially since Gu In-cheong and Ma Ga-rim’s levels were too high to simply let them go after just a few slaps.
I had let the other thugs go with just a few slaps, but thinking about their skills, it would have been too dangerous to let them live freely.
When we returned to the inn with the two of them, I was met with:
“I meet the Brain Knife Outcast. I am Jegal Yeong-myeong.”
…Someone from the House of Jegal was here.
What is this situation?
Not understanding the situation, I turned to my companions, only to see Hyeok Gi-rin smiling and my companions nodding in satisfaction.
“These are the ones! Indeed, the reputation of the Brain Knife Outcast is well-deserved.”
Jegal Yeong-myeong shot admiring glances at me.
What’s going on? Someone give me a hint.
I sought help with my eyes, but my companions just smiled and nodded.
Looking at their expressions, it seemed they had done something together.
Seeing the black cat and Tang So-yeol wearing mischievous smiles, I began to suspect they had hatched a plan.
“You’ve not only captured the culprits of the counterfeit tickets but also gathered all the evidence against their gang. The House of Jegal owes quite a debt of kindness for this.”
“Um.”
I decided to focus on the young man in front of me, Jegal Yeong-myeong, to figure out the specific situation later.
Even though it was unexpected, Jegal Yeong-myeong was looking at me with a friendly gaze.
If I play my cards right, I might be able to place a formation request with the House of Jegal right away.
“It was just a coincidence I got involved. It would be rude of me to act disrespectfully in your territory…”
So, let’s work on gaining favor.
I acted the part of a humble young man, easy to like by anyone, and Jegal Yeong-myeong’s face brightened with even more friendliness.
“No, it’s us who should apologize for not being able to properly govern the area so close to our family, causing inconvenience to our guests. So, you don’t need to concern yourself with it.”
“Thank you for saying that. It puts my mind at ease.”
“Hahaha! No need for such formalities.”
After exchanging a few laughs, Jegal Yeong-myeong looked at the two beaten figures and asked.
“If you don’t mind me asking, how do you plan to handle these two?”
“I hadn’t thought of their treatment. To be honest, considering the size of this event, their skill level is too high to just let them go…”
I hinted at the matter.
It wouldn’t be a comfortable job managing two peak stage experts just as ordinary inn guests.
“If it’s alright with you, how about we confine these two in our Brain Prison?”
“If you can accommodate us, I wouldn’t say no.”
“Also, we would like to formally invite the Brain Knife Outcast and your companions to the House of Jegal. I’ve heard you have business with us…”
“Would that really be okay?”
Jegal Yeong-myeong nodded with a smile.
“To treat a benefactor coldly would be a disgrace for the House of Jegal. You needn’t worry about it.”
I nodded in return.
“Then, I’ll shamelessly accept your kindness.”
For some reason, everything seemed to be going smoothly.
*
Though there was a slight commotion due to Dokgo I-seol’s new joining, we could enter the House of Jegal with ease.
Though the righteous and the outcasts are in conflict broadly, it is the norm to ignore each other if there is no direct enmity, so it was only natural that the Dark Dragon Sect and the House of Jegal wouldn’t need to set a hostile stance toward each other.
We were soon led to the Family Head’s Quarters.
“How nice to meet you. I am Jegal Jeon, the Family Head of the House of Jegal.”
“Thank you for your hospitality. I go by Ho Cheon-an, known as the Brain Knife Outcast.”
“How wonderful it is to see a hero of the Martial World.”
In the eyes of Jegal Jeon, these words were filled with goodwill toward me.
Why do they all like me so much?
Was there something in the well-known saga of the Brain Knife Outcast that they could admire?
Thinking about it, I couldn’t pinpoint any reasons, yet I felt uneasy about receiving such kindness.
It just didn’t make sense that I was receiving this treatment for capturing a scalper.
Admittedly, it was quite a deal that two peak stage experts were hiding behind that scalper, but it didn’t seem like enough to warrant such public expressions of goodwill from the Family Head of the House of Jegal.
As if sensing my confusion, Jegal Jeon suddenly spoke.
“Haha, have you heard about the recent situation of the House of Jegal?”
“I’m afraid I haven’t had the leisure to keep up with the rumors of the Martial World…”
“To get straight to the point, ever since that guy Jeong Cheol troubled the Martial World, the House of Jegal has been severely troubled as well. As requests for forming new formations in Sacheon came flooding in and the outcast factions nearby started moving around, it was only natural that related requests increased.”
“I see.”
“Normally, even if a great event occurs in the Martial World, it tends to only cause local chaos and rarely affects the whole realm. However, the troubles caused by this Jeong Cheol not only flipped Sacheon upside down but also made all the outcast factions rattle, leading to a spike in requests for formations to the House of Jegal.”
“Ah…”
“Since Jeong Cheol appeared, the formation masters have been on constant call in our House. How could we send just a formation master on an outing? Naturally, we have to send martial artists along too, and it’s become exceedingly dangerous to embark on a long journey, leading to various minor incidents…”
No wonder it felt odd that they would let counterfeit ticket makers roam free; this must have been the background.
In order to handle all the requests pouring in from various areas, they had summoned all their clan’s resources, resulting in the main house being completely empty.
Now I began to understand the goodwill from the House of Jegal.
Having upset Jeong Cheol and quelled the outcast’s movements, I was the one who brought a conclusion to the calamity they were stuck in, thus they had no choice but to look kindly upon me.
Jegal Jeon cheerfully smiled as if to affirm my thoughts.
“If you need anything, just let me know.”
It looked like it would be easy for me to take care of my business here at the House of Jegal.
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