Chapter 117: Let’s Make a Bet (3)
Once the conversation started, Namgung Bi-ah and I found ourselves silently feasting on tension-filled glances.
Normally, discussions like this would involve each party conducted in a formal and harmonious manner. However, this time the air felt sharp, as if we were thrown into a battlefield.
“How have you been?”
“Me? I’ve been well.”
The conversation began with a light greeting. Up to this point, everything was fine.
Everyone deserves a little pleasantry, right?
But the trouble began immediately after.
“Well, I’m glad. From your expression, I was worried you had some issues, but I must have been mistaken.”
I swallowed hard at my father’s words. There was nothing wrong with the words themselves, but from his expression and tone, it was evident he meant anything but gentle concern for Namgung Jin.
He was simply tearing down Namgung Jin’s arrogant facade. Namgung Jin, unfazed, shot back nonchalantly.
“Yet your eyes look like they’ve seen better days; I thought perhaps you were feeling down, but then again, those eyes of yours have always been like that. I’m glad to see you’re all right.”
Spikes. Their words were laden with hidden daggers, and they weren’t even attempting to conceal their animosity.
In a situation like this, one might expect a little restraint…
Especially since it was my first time witnessing my father behave so confrontationally. I was certain he wasn’t always like this.
Namgung Jin, seemingly not finished, continued to dig.
“If that’s not your typical expression, perhaps you’re troubled by something else?”
“What exactly are you implying?”
“Well, there could be the issue of your child or something along those lines.”
‘…What is this guy even saying?’
While Namgung Jin was taking a jab at my father, he was also using me as bait.
It made sense— the only one causing chaos in the Gu Clan was me. Everyone knew about the firstborn, Gu Huibi, and her dreadful personality, but she had the talent to justify it. Hence, her flaws were accepted as charming traits of a gifted warrior.
But what about me?
I hadn’t made a name for myself yet, and I certainly hadn’t tried to draw attention to myself. Thus, I remained relatively unknown in the martial world.
This was mostly by choice, but I could hardly believe Namgung Jin would use that against my father.
Father raised his eyebrows slightly at Namgung Jin’s words before calmly sipping his tea. Is he getting angry?
I don’t think so.
The corner of my father’s mouth lifted ever so slightly as he sipped his tea. Although it was hidden by the teacup, I could see it.
That wasn’t the smile of a loser. After swallowing the tea, he spoke.
“If that is what you see as a problem, then it indeed is a problem.”
Namgung Jin managed a thin smile at my father’s words, but his expression soured immediately after the next line dropped.
“My foolish son is still young and immature, hence he acted poorly with your son, the Lightning Dragon. Allow me to apologize on his behalf.”
‘Wow…’
I silently marveled at those words. I didn’t know my father could be so cutting.
What he really meant was something along the lines of… ‘My son, who’s much younger than yours, managed to beat him up.’
Essentially, my father was calling Namgung Jin’s son a joke.
“I heard the Lightning Dragon is quite talented like his father, so I worry this incident may have caused him some distress, too.”
Just like you.
That was likely the underlying message there.
Crack—!
As expected, a cracking sound echoed from the table where Namgung Jin was seated. I figured we’d be replacing that table by tomorrow.
The servants would have a lot more work to do now.
“Ah… Lord Gu, you remain unchanged as ever.”
“Thank you for the kind words. I see Lord Namgung is also remaining the same.”
Zap—!
An electric tension surged between the two of them.
I often wondered where your obnoxious manner of speaking came from, and I suppose this is the source…
‘…’
I couldn’t argue with Elder Shin’s observation. There was no way it could be true, though.
I hadn’t been close enough to my father to imitate him or learn anything.
In my past life, we hardly exchanged words; it was an extreme rarity.
People often said I resembled my father’s looks, but they hardly commented on our personalities being alike.
The common refrain was that I should have at least inherited half of my father’s merits.
This expectation was a major factor that drove me to become who I was.
Though ultimately, that alone is just an excuse.
Every choice I made was my own decision. With that came the responsibility for my own actions.
I was determined to live my life recognizing that truth.
Anyway, neither my father nor Namgung Jin seemed inclined to stop this verbal sparring, continuing their senseless back-and-forth banter.
I felt the atmosphere was growing increasingly tense, so I decided it was time to intervene. If this continued, we’d be here all night.
“Uh… Are we not going to discuss the engagement?”
After my question broke through, a silence fell between the two. Moments later, Namgung Jin cleared his throat and changed the topic smoothly.
“When do you think would be a good time?”
“Is there a specific date you have in mind?”
Like a scene straight out of a play, their previous hostility vanished, and they were now casually discussing planning the engagement. Is it possible they realize there’s a time and place for everything?
But this does make one wonder if they were already just having a spat to set things up…
‘…Right?’
Finally, they appeared to be shifting gears. Surely, being clan heads, they wouldn’t continue such a trifling exchange, would they?
“To start with, I have no objections on when the ceremony takes place. But I would prefer the actual wedding not to be delayed too much, seeing as my daughter is already of age.”
The mention of ‘wedding’ almost made me shudder. By standards of aristocratic families, Namgung Bi-ah’s marriage timeline was later than expected. However, compared to the martial community, it wasn’t too terribly late.
For someone of her caliber, aging would be a slow process, and based on pure talent alone, there really was no issue if the wedding were delayed, or if she never wed at all.
He must be aware of that too.
Namgung Jin had to know the kind of talent his daughter possessed on the path of the sword. Yet, here he was, looking somewhat anxious to marry her off.
Is there a pressing reason for him to hasten the marriage?
Does the Namgung Clan have internal concerns?
Father nodded at Namgung Jin’s remarks, then looked at me and asked.
—Do you desire this?
I barely managed to suppress my eyes from bulging at his words. Suddenly asking me telepathically…
Is he assuming I can even engage in telepathy?
With no idea how to react, I finally chose to answer— it seemed he had an inkling of everything anyway.
—I think it’s still too early.
—I see.
His asking for my view shocked me even more than the fact that he used telepathy.
This kind of thing was practically unheard of in my life. Yet, was it really okay to answer like this?
“For the wedding, I would prefer if it occurred after my son assumes the role of successor.”
“…So you’re saying it’s already decided?”
“Yes.”
My father replied calmly to Namgung Jin, who appeared utterly taken aback. Assuming the title of Young Lord meant one was effectively the next in line to lead the clan.
Thus, speaking this way was not something that could be taken lightly until the Young Lord in question was actually appointed, yet my father seemed unbothered as he declared it so.
Guess that’s what separates our clan from the rest.
“When is that?”
“I think at the very least, it should happen by the time he’s twenty.”
“Then… the timeline…!”
Just as he opened his mouth to retort, Namgung Jin closed it again. He knew any argument would yield poor results for him.
It was clear there was a specific reason behind his demeanor, yet he wasn’t willing to push his luck in this debate. He likely realized that any insistence would only backfire.
Possibly, he painted this image because he had an inkling that the future leadership would indeed fall into my hands.
Namgung Jin sighed heavily, clearly exasperated, and said.
“…Fine. Then when do you think is a good time for the wedding?”
“You mentioned that you have no particular time in mind, so I think spring next year would suffice.”
“Understood. I’ll discuss this further with the elders and send you a letter regarding it.”
“I hope for a favorable outcome.”
Amid their prior bickering, they swiftly wrapped things up as soon as the discussion took a serious turn.
Food and drinks were soon served for the clan heads, but strangely, only Namgung Bi-ah was eating among us.
I didn’t feel inclined to eat given the oppressive atmosphere, and my father only sipped his tea, leaving any actual food untouched.
Namgung Jin firmly stated, “I have no interest in dining with an unpleasable individual.”
Ultimately, it was just Namgung Bi-ah feverishly working with her chopsticks.
‘…So you can still eat in a circumstance like this?’
Maybe it was due to her unyielding personality, but though she was eating more reservedly today, it was astonishing she could manage to eat in this situation.
Has she been hanging out with Wi Seol-Ah lately?
That seemed quite possible.
“Then I’ll take it that the ceremony will be in the spring, and I’ll be departing with my daughter now.”
At Namgung Jin’s words, Namgung Bi-ah froze mid-bite. Noticing this, Namgung Jin glared at her sharply.
“I will not permit you to be wilful any longer. Under normal circumstances, I would have imposed strict punishments, but given the current situation, I will let this slide. You know this, yes?”
“…Yes.”
Namgung Bi-ah, who was previously enjoying her meal, seemed to have lost her appetite immediately. After all, running away to accompany me without permission wasn’t exactly the best decision.
Yet… I couldn’t help but feel concerned for her despondent expression.
Sad…? She looks the same to me. What’s so wretched about this?
Elder Shin voiced his confusion, yet I could definitely see a shift in her expression. No matter how slight, the signs of her emotions were evident in her eyes or the subtle changes in her facial movements.
She had expressed a desire to join me and Tang Soyeol in the Tournament of Dragons and Phoenixes, but it seemed that for now, Namgung Bi-ah had no say in the matter.
Staring at her forlorn face prompted Elder Shin to inquire.
What’s the plan?
‘What do you mean?’
With a slight chuckle, Elder Shin responded.
Don’t play dumb with me. Surely you’ve got something up your sleeve for this situation?
‘Hmm.’
He was right; I did have something in mind, though it wasn’t substantial enough to be called a full-fledged plan.
From the events unfolding, I figured I had reached a point where provoking my father wouldn’t lead to dire consequences.
What are you going to provoke?
‘Nothing much.’
Honestly, I was planning to do what I did best.
I’m just going to stir things up a bit.
With that, our conversation came to an end. The discussion about the engagement was straightforward. They settled on spring for the engagement ceremony, while the wedding date was still open for deliberation.
However, Namgung Jin couldn’t solidify the wedding timeline as he mentioned having to consult the elders first.
And what that revealed to me was…
—The Clan Head doesn’t wield much power after all.
Namgung Jin didn’t hold too much authority within the clan despite his prestigious title.
It was strange how little influence he had regarding the engagement between his daughter, Namgung Bi-ah, and me.
Could it be due to the Heavenly Lord?
He was known as one of the three Heavenly Lords, and arguably the mightiest, who also currently resided within the Namgung Clan’s territory. I was reminded of the man who couldn’t save the Namgung Clan from destruction at the hands of the Heavenly Demon.
Not that I should be concerned about it so much.
After the meal concluded, Namgung Bi-ah rose along with Namgung Jin.
Her gaze lingered on me.
There was a look of sadness in her eyes. Or perhaps it was a look of apology?
What could she possibly be sorrowful about?
For not being able to accompany me to the tournament even after saying she would? Or leaving me behind?
We hardly spent enough time together to warrant an apologetic look.
She must be feeling disappointed, perhaps due to the affection she felt, or maybe for having experienced freedom only to lose it again. I couldn’t tell…
But the way she regarded me was what truly mattered.
I definitely felt remorse for her,
And I had no intention of letting her go at this point.
Elder Shin, smiling, asked me.
So when will you push her away?
‘Well, that makes two of us…’
How had it come to this? The human heart is truly treacherous.
Desiring not to hold onto something I wished to lose, yet now, having grasped it, I didn’t want to let it slip away.
How arrogant and selfish would that be?
Though I’m aware of it myself.
When my father finally stood up, I snatched a dumpling sitting before me and devoured it in one bite. It was the first meal I’d had today.
As I chewed, I mumbled.
“I’m going to indulge a bit.”
Elder Shin said nothing in reply.
I assumed this meant, whether I wanted to or not, my intent was not going unnoticed.
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