Alliance.
Unbeknownst to me, there was some sort of alliance between Miss Zhuge and Im Ha-yeon.
What was said, I don’t know, but after forming the alliance, the two ended their standoff and began to act like sisters. The cold war had ended, and peace had arrived.
However, history tends to repeat itself.
Whenever the balance of power tips between forces, alliances are usually betrayed. Im Ha-yeon crossed the line first, and Miss Zhuge knew she would.
In the end, Im Ha-yeon was thoroughly defeated by Miss Zhuge and had to apologize.
‘No way she was prepared for a second betrayal.’
Miss Zhuge, aren’t you a bit too thorough?
The legendary Shadowless Thief was taken aback as the Zhuge clan’s machine of fate showed no mercy towards the intruder.
A fist-sized iron ball was launched from the bed, and a spear shot from the wall. Im Ha-yeon normally walked away from traps unscathed, but come on, an iron ball is a bit much.
Thanks to that, the assassin was pushed back to the window.
‘If I try to escape recklessly, I’m dead.’
Can I even escape? Even if I want to get up and run, unfortunately, the door is somewhere in between the assassin and me.
‘Looks like the same guy as yesterday. Does he have no plans to give up?’
He figured me out. He wouldn’t think I wouldn’t get up in this situation. Just go away.
The machine of fate was in a brief moment of stagnation. The guy looked to be in rough shape, but he was still keeping an eye on me, not giving up.
What should I do?
‘I have no choice but to do what Brother Cheol taught me.’
————
“The survival skill I’ll teach you is the mindset of a ronin.”
The advice given to me by Three-Eyed Sword Cho Cheol was the kind that sticks to your bones and flesh.
“The mindset of a ronin?”
“Look, there’s an ant here. Watch this. If I draw a circle and put the ant in the middle, how do you think it will move?”
Brother Cheol drew a large circle and placed the ant inside.
“It will run away… wait?!”
“Do you think I can’t catch the ant?”
“…It’s the ant, isn’t it?”
The ant is me. I’m the one being chased by the assassin.
Brother Cheol nodded as if it were the right answer.
“The circle is the range of consciousness, and the ant is the skill gap. No matter how hard a rookie moves within the range, he’s just an ant to a master. The reason my little brother ended up in crisis last time, despite having excellent light body movement, is the same.”
No matter where the ant tries to run, it can be crushed. Just like how I, no matter how hard I run, will eventually be caught.
“So what should I do?”
I asked with a frustrated expression.
“I’ll show you directly. I’ll just block, so you try to come at me.”
Brother Cheol gestured for me in the middle of the training field. Is he going to teach me some defense strategy?
I charged right in.
“Ugh! You said you’ll just block?!”
I immediately got a clear view of the autumn sky.
Now, a vendor should stick to honesty and integrity as a principle. If you lie, you won’t stay in business long.
“That’s the survival skill. It’s about striking at what’s unexpected.”
“Are you saying I should attack unexpectedly?”
Striking at the unexpected means attacking out of the blue.
“Imagine the ant suddenly running into the dirt. I was just trying to catch the ant trying to escape the circle, but it turned out to be something completely unexpected, thinking it was all within the range. In reality, there was an escape route.”
“I understand what you mean. But the assassin is a higher skill level than me. Are you saying to take a gamble?”
“Why not? You’re good at something, aren’t you?”
Brother Cheol shook his head and smiled at me.
“Something I’m good at?”
“Just now, I threw an attack that you should have been able to dodge easily. So why couldn’t you dodge it?”
If I had charged calmly, it should have been dodgable. But why couldn’t I?
“…I was caught off guard by your words.”
I couldn’t fully use my conscious range. Just from hearing a single word.
“Good to see your understanding is quick. There’s no need to take a gamble. It’s about steering the opponent’s thoughts. In a contest of wits between masters, it’s about subtly shifting the circle or making them think only of half of the circle.”
“That sounds difficult.”
“When a master points a sword at you, you’re already halfway through introducing yourself to the king of the underworld. So, feel free to act ugly. Be called cowardly; it doesn’t matter. Anything is fine. Even if you roll in a pile of dung, this world is better than the afterlife.”
The martial arts I learned until now were about the orthodox approach.
Where to move my feet. How to deflect the opponent’s hand. How to throw stealth techniques.
But Brother Cheol’s theory was different.
“It’s about guiding thoughts. Creating variables by any means.”
How to create variables from the opponent and not from myself.
If what I learned was character strategy, what Brother Cheol is teaching me now is the flow of defense and offense as a martial artist.
How can a rookie defeat a master?
“Right. That’s it. My little brother has stealth techniques and light body movement. He has plenty of means to strike at what’s unexpected, surpassing the opponent’s expected range. You can create variables not only from the circle but also from the ant itself. I’ll teach you a useful method starting today.”
Suddenly, throw sand. Spit. Roll on the ground. Curse your parents. Act as if you only have slashes, then finish it with a thrust.
Three-Eyed Sword Cho Cheol was not just a master, but as a ronin, as a surviving martial artist, he spared no advice on how I could survive.
————
‘Chapter One: To Survive in the Martial Arts World. Make it unpredictable.’
In the end, the survival skill Brother Cho taught me can be summarized like this.
As the assassin was pushed back to the window, the machine of fate halted. Was there no further trap? Or would it trigger again if he advanced?
The assassin began to observe the situation for a moment.
In this current situation, a conventional offense and defense were unfavorable. If my guard dies, how can I win?
There can only be one answer.
‘I just need to do what I’m good at.’
I have to steer his thoughts.
My escape route has been cut off. Just like last time, I’m trapped in a cage. But the difference is, this is my mansion.
I can create a game I lead as much as I want.
What should I do? The answer had already been given.
“I think I might have treated our last meeting a bit too coldly, so this time I prepared thoroughly for my guest. I wonder if it met your expectations.”
I grabbed the bed’s headpiece and casually stood up to speak.
I had prepared the traps in advance.
How does it feel to have walked into a tiger’s den?
‘Good. He’s flustered.’
I could see the faint tensing of his jaw.
I must not show fear. If he discovers that the machine of fate may not trigger again, it’s game over.
Stay calm. I’m a tiger. I’m a tiger waiting for my prey. Having completed my self-suggestion, I leisurely reached for the teapot.
“Since you must have had a hard time coming in the dead of night, would you like to have some tea? There’s a tea I drink instead of refreshments; let me pour you a cup.”
If you have the courage to come this far, that is.
‘He’s conflicted.’
Will he give up today? Will he take the risk? The strange silence hinted at what thoughts he was wrestling with.
Please, don’t come in.
Save me.
Click clack, click clack.
I heard the noise of the machine of fate starting up. This guy, he just flinched.
If I miss this opportunity, I’m a fool. I smirked at him as if I found it ridiculous.
“What are you so surprised about? Come on, let’s have a drink.”
I offered the teacup with a completely relaxed smile.
You’re the one who sketched the circle around me. In fact, it’s the circle I wanted you to draw.
I’m about to hunt you.
Let’s steer his thoughts.
“……”
Are you scared?
I could sense his gaze directed at my hand, towards the bed’s headpiece that I had been holding onto all along.
‘He must think I’m planning to trigger a trap as I get closer.’
In fact, it’s just an ordinary headpiece.
I kept holding it to make him believe it was the trap’s switch.
As his gaze shifted to my hand, I slipped a stealth technique hidden under the teapot into my bosom. Great. That’s my second stealth technique. My chances of survival have increased.
What decision will he make? While waiting in tense anticipation, an unexpected variable appeared.
“Is that you, Master Kang? Are you awake?”
——————
“Is that you, Master Kang?”
Miss Zhuge called out again as if sensing the presence.
‘Oh no.’
I hadn’t expected Miss Zhuge to show up. If she suddenly opened the door, Miss Zhuge could be in danger.
“Miss Zhuge, what’s the matter?”
I responded calmly, without taking my eyes off the assassin.
“I-I heard a strange sound.”
“It’s nothing. I just rolled off the bed while sleeping.”
“That didn’t sound like just that. C-can I come in for a moment?”
“Please go sleep. It’s not appropriate for a young lady to be coming in and out of a man’s room in the middle of the night.”
I purposefully replied curtly.
‘We have to make it a worst-case scenario for both of them against the assassin.’
I was rejecting Miss Zhuge, who could be my ally. The assassin would think this meant I had confidence in myself.
If he moves closer, the machine of fate will activate. Can he kill me and escape safely? He must be worried.
Not to mention, the instant he takes a hostage, quiet escape becomes impossible.
Let’s keep him guessing. We need to guide his thoughts.
“……”
I sensed a strange silence filled with discontent lingering outside the door.
“Miss Zhuge, we can talk tomorrow. I’m sleepy.”
I issued a tone of annoyance aimed at Miss Zhuge. Good. I casually pulled out another stealth technique.
Now I just need to pull out the one from the nightstand drawer.
“Is Hayan fine?”
An unexpected sulky voice came from her.
“Wasn’t Im Ha-yeon off on a trip?”
“The formation of absolute retribution against the Shadowless Thief has been activated. Im Ha-yeon must have returned just now!”
Her voice was filled with a strange conviction.
“W-What?”
“Master Kang, you said you were tired and wanted to sleep. Being awake at this hour is suspicious. You seemed to be acting fine, but you’re clearly hiding something from me! You better be honest with me, or I… I’ll…”
What a tremendous misunderstanding this is.
“Miss Zhuge! You can’t come in!”
“Yes! I know! But Hayan has to face punishment for now!”
Huh?
“Absolute retribution against the Shadowless Thief!!!”
“Oh no!”
Did the assassin sense something was amiss? He lunged for me.
Damn it. Am I done for? I quickly loaded my stealth technique.
“Secret Technique!!! All at Once!!!”
Something massive was launched from behind me.
“Logs?!”
Massive logs flew out simultaneously. The logs were big enough to launch a person.
Where on earth did they even come from? The thought didn’t even cross my mind.
“Cough!”
In an instant, the assassin was hit by a log and sent flying out the window.
“Just as expected from the Zhuge clan!”
An unexpected momentum surpassing expectations!
The only thing I had left to say to the assassin flying with the logs was:
“Farewell, assassin. Live well by the Yangtze River.”
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