A week had passed since Ho Cheon-an successfully forged the ingot. He had devoted himself to hammering the metal to make a sword, and upon seeing the result, Tang So-yeol spoke up.
“My Disciple.”
“Yes.”
“Who told you to create crap with iron and a hammer?”
“…”
Tang So-yeol sighed as he rubbed his aching neck, blowing out a cloud of smoke mixed with frustration.
Just when he thought things were going smoothly, here came the disaster.
“I can’t tell if this guy has talent or not.”
While he could quickly piece together clues when given a few, he lacked the ability to find them on his own. Should he label it stupidity or unorthodox brilliance?
If not pushed, he wouldn’t rise to the occasion, but once given a nudge, he’d fly away on his own.
But then, while soaring, he would suddenly stop without any clues, and instead of finding one, he’d awkwardly walk down, leaving Tang So-yeol completely bewildered.
An individual unbalanced in every sense.
That was how Ho Cheon-an appeared to Tang So-yeol.
“My Disciple.”
“…Yes.”
“I can tell you’ve seen and heard something somewhere. Yet, foolish disciple, this is the Tang Clan’s workshop, the best in the world for metalworking, and your master is recognized as a craftsman here. So just do as you’re told. Don’t be foolish.”
“…….Yes.”
“Your response is dreadfully slow, My Disciple. Melt that crap down and turn it back into an ingot.”
Tang So-yeol watched Ho Cheon-an pout in response and thought.
“What an interesting feeling.”
The formulaic way of thinking typically leads one to be overly critical.
Despite having a sharp mind, they often see problems and express dissatisfaction.
They’re not one to reject incoming visitors, but they don’t strive to blend in or bond.
They have a strong intuition for spotting faults or issues.
Full of doubt, they are unafraid to reveal their criticism of others.
If the black cat, endowed with lunar energy, mesmerizes the intellect, then Tang So-yeol, imbued with the energies of celestial intuition, was sensitively aware of others’ negative emotions and could often penetrate situations intuitively.
“Ordinary folks can be read just by looking, you know.”
The insight and perceptive skills derived from his special talent were exceptional. Tang So-yeol could instantly see through Ho Cheon-an, who exuded an aura greater than his own.
He had the ability to sense the energy even stored away by martial arts experts.
Compared to that, deciphering human emotions was child’s play.
However,
“That guy is absolutely unreadable.”
It was hard to tell if he truly had no complaints or if he simply didn’t register them.
The truth was it was both.
Ho Cheon-an’s impurities blocked the lunar energy’s effects, just as Tang So-yeol’s special skill hindered his ability to read Ho Cheon-an’s feelings.
And yes, Ho Cheon-an harbored no real discontent. He already had a good grasp of Tang So-yeol’s personality and, more importantly, knew about his future potential as the world’s best craftsman.
Right now, Tang So-yeol was just a quirky guy with talent. However, he treated Ho Cheon-an according to his potential as the future world’s top craftsman, which meant he could tolerate his oddities much more than he would for anyone else.
Because of these two factors, Tang So-yeol found it challenging to read Ho Cheon-an’s emotions, making him feel quite annoyed at the whole situation.
“Haah.”
“…I assume your morning duties are over?”
Tang So-yeol’s gaze shifted to the black cat. He definitely held a keen interest in the black cat for various reasons—both shared energies and being bound by the temple.
Had it not been for the black cat, Ho Cheon-an might still be standing at the forge, hammer in hand, instead of making progress. He would’ve likely been learning the craft for several more months, and in that case, one of them would have surely collapsed from frustration.
“Thank you.”
Thus, Tang So-yeol expressed his feelings of gratitude, a rare occurrence.
“…Thanks, I guess.”
Receiving the thanks, the black cat contemplated. Tang So-yeol’s explanation was so poor it would struggle to compete with a five-year-old child. While that was surprisingly not shocking, what was shocking was that it somehow made sense.
Was it because those who shared celestial energy had a unique understanding of each other?
“Yet it still feels awkward.”
Tang So-yeol had done nothing to the black cat, but somehow it felt as if it was being cornered.
While the black cat tilted its head in confusion,
“Has the morning lesson concluded? The meal is prepared, so that worked out well.”
“Indeed.”
“Please, you two go first. I’ll attend to the Honorable Person.”
Tang So-yeol watched as Miss Yeo Il-ye moved to leave the workshop, reflecting.
“It would be nice if internal feelings were as clear as that.”
Miss Yeo Il-ye was thoroughly monitoring Tang So-yeol. Shuttling between Ho Cheon-an and the black cat, she was double-checking what had transpired that day, naturally managing activities such as meal preparation or cleaning.
Utilizing the situation of calling Ho Cheon-an to the workshop, she’d inquire about the morning’s events.
However, regardless of intention, it remained true that they were considering the inconvenience of the two.
While Miss Yeo Il-ye’s gaze and intentions left something to be desired, seeing the clean workshop and the enticing smells of various dishes quelled some of that dissatisfaction.
“Seeing through this much… is this real skill?”
As she contemplated this, Miss Yeo Il-ye returned with Ho Cheon-an in tow.
“Let’s eat well.”
“Let’s eat heartily.”
“Another delicious meal.”
“Ha ha, make sure to enjoy.”
Miss Yeo Il-ye observed the diners. Starting with the black cat.
“I thought it might help upon my approach to the Honorable Person, given the resistance, but…”
Though a bit clumsy, she had expected the black cat to show some teeth or claws; surprisingly, it was far too meekly inclined toward Tang So-yeol.
Because of that, Miss Yeo Il-ye found herself having to take a more proactive stance.
“The Honorable Person surely is very kind-hearted.”
To Miss Yeo Il-ye, Ho Cheon-an was that type of person: someone who, even after past grievances, still looked out for others—evidence being Miss Yeo Il-ye herself.
“Both of them might appear unfeeling, but once the Honorable Person starts caring for Tang So-yeol, who knows what could happen?”
Where it starts as a disciple and master dynamic, nobody can predict where it might lead.
A hypothesis borne from Miss Yeo Il-ye’s observations!
Thus, she remained vigilant, closely watching the atmosphere between the two.
Should there be even a hint of tension, she’d swoop in to nip it in the bud!
With such resolute thoughts wrestling in her mind—mixed with goals and entwined celestial powers—life in the workshop continued in confusing turmoil and repeated training.
The outcome was something no one could foresee.
*
Riding the rampaging Bicheongmacha, Ho Cheon-an entered and exited the Tang Clan, but one thing remained unclear to him:
The intense vigilance around the Tang Clan’s peripheries.
No nearby guards tried to stop the Bicheongmacha, a cart known to be one of a kind in the world.
The Tang Clan’s poisons, herbs, and hidden weapons were treasures in their own right. And with thieves flocking in, drawn to these treasures, it was only natural that vigilance would be at an all-time high.
“Yawn…”
Yet maintaining tension while waiting for a thief, whose arrival was uncertain, was no easy task.
Tang Do-yul, sharing a generation with Tang Do-yeon and Tang Do-gyeong, stretched languidly, pondering how this outer guard duty was perhaps one of the world’s most tedious jobs.
Everyone knew the clan motto: “Kindness is doubled, but resentment is repaid tenfold.”
Thus, true thieves with skill would never dare plunder the Tang Clan.
No matter how tempting the hidden weapons or herbs might appear, the risk of being discovered was too great.
So, the kind of thieves who attempted to break in were merely fools who mistook their luck or bravado for skill.
It was the tedious job of catching fundamentally incompetent thieves.
As Tang Do-yul lowered his hands, he thought about how that monotonous task had suddenly turned dangerous.
“…This is the domain of the Tang Clan.”
A man appeared suddenly, as close as one could get to the hidden weapons specialists. Despite wearing a hat that obscured his face, the beard covering his jaw revealed he was likely middle-aged.
‘…An expert.’
As he slid his hand into his pouch of hidden weapons, Tang Do-yul assessed the man. Despite being a peak-level martial artist, he couldn’t detect a hint of his aura, indicating that the man had either mastered a specialized martial art or was an expert beyond the peak.
Such a transcendent figure showing up at the Tang Clan’s outer perimeter in the dead of night was astonishing.
And even with ample skill to evade detection, he chose to reveal himself right in front of Tang Do-yul.
It was clear this path would be fraught with danger.
“State your business.”
“I’m but a passing gentleman.”
Nonsense.
Tang Do-yul immediately unleashed a hidden weapon. The paralysis-tainted weapon soared toward the mysterious man’s vital points, but Tang Do-yul did not wait for the outcome; he reached for another weapon.
A signal device.
It would make a loud noise upon being thrown, signaling for help.
‘Even if I throw everything, I can’t win against a peak expert armed only with non-lethal weapons. I need to inform the clan!’
However, the signal device never left Tang Do-yul’s hand.
Before he could throw it, the stranger had already grasped his wrist.
“What the…”
As he was about to utter, “What is happening?” he noticed the overwhelming energy woven into the stranger’s attire, which easily nullified his weapon.
The mysterious man charged forward, subduing Tang Do-yul.
In that moment, Tang Do-yul realized he had misjudged the stranger’s level.
The energy that dissipated his weapons with ease clearly indicated skills exhibited only by someone at the very pinnacle, or possibly even beyond.
‘This is insane.’
The arrival of an expert of that caliber at the Tang Clan was shocking enough, but one that surpassed even that was unfathomable!
“You’d best get some more rest.”
“Ugh…!”
The mysterious man’s right hand thumped against Tang Do-yul’s body. All his internal energy had raised hopes before being utterly crushed, leaving him with no defenses while his insides were ravaged.
“Ugh…!”
With a thud, Tang Do-yul fell, spitting blood as his vision blurred. Through his fading sight, he saw the mysterious figure strolling unhurriedly toward the Tang Clan, while he desperately tried to wriggle his body to take action, but his severely injured state wouldn’t respond.
‘I must… inform the clan…’
That thought lingered in his mind before he lost consciousness.
The next patrol team discovered the collapsed Tang Do-yul, triggering chaos throughout the clan.
Kindness is doubled, but resentment is repaid tenfold.
Following their motto, the Tang Clan began to mobilize all resources in search of the hidden threat.
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