The Return of the Sw Chapter 17 : People Do Not Change. -02

Chapter 17: People Do Not Change. -02

As if proving that fact, Ban Hojin lightly received Samugung’s decisive strike with his left hand.

Not only did it pierce in sharply like an awl, but true, pointed sword force had even sprouted from his knee; nevertheless, Ban Hojin raised his forearm and blocked it with ease.

Then, while gripping the knee, he swung his sword in a wide arc.

Slash. Ssk.

Along with a faint tearing sound of flesh, Samugung’s two legs were severed.

They were cut off in an instant, without even a chance to evade, and Samugung’s mouth fell open.

The pain was beyond description, so much so that he could not even let out a groan.

“Huh…!”

“……!”

At that sight, not only Geum Hoyun, who had been watching from behind, but also the escort warriors showed expressions of utter shock.

They could not believe it even after seeing it with their own eyes.

As Samugung, who had reigned at the pinnacle of wandering warriors, was helplessly overwhelmed by a rising junior who looked strikingly young, the escort warriors could not tell whether this was a dream or reality.

No, to be precise, it felt as though they were seeing an illusion.

“Ggguhhhh……!”

The one who dragged them back to reality was none other than Samugung himself.

Having lost his right arm and both legs, with even his left arm split up to the elbow, Samugung writhed like an insect, letting out groans filled with agony.

At the sight of someone who was alive yet did not look alive at all, everyone watching shuddered.

It felt as though they could sense Samugung’s pain just by looking at him.

Thud!

After watching him for a moment, Ban Hojin drove his sword into Samugung’s heart without hesitation.

He made sure to finish it properly.

“Y-you… I’ll never….”

“Yeah. That won’t happen.”

Though the dying Samugung glared with eyes filled with venom, as if he would kill him, Ban Hojin merely snorted instead.

Having experienced death before, he knew all too well how futile Samugung’s words were.

“Th-there….”

After dealing with Samugung with an expressionless face, as if killing an insect, Ban Hojin flicked his sword.

As though shaking off something filthy that had gotten on it.

At that moment, Geum Hoyun cautiously approached.

“Thank you for helping us. Thanks to you, Great Hero, we were able to preserve our lives. Truly, thank you.”

When Ban Hojin turned around, Geum Hoyun respectfully performed a fist-clasp salute, filled with sincerity.

He was expressing his gratitude in the way of Murim.

And at that sight, Ban Hojin showed a look of mild surprise.

He could feel that this was not gratitude as a young lord of the Geum family, but pure thanks expressed as one human being to another.

“Th-thank you!”

“Thank you for saving us, Great Hero!”

Behind Geum Hoyun, the escort warriors bowed their heads toward Ban Hojin one by one as they shouted.

All of them looked as though they had returned from the brink of death.

“They say excessive courtesy becomes discourtesy, so I’ll accept greetings only this much. I also had an ill fate with Samugung.”

To be precise, it was an ill fate from a previous life, but what mattered was that Ban Hojin remembered it.

Even aside from that, Samugung was someone who deserved to die.

“A-ah, my name is Geum Hoyun of the Geum family. If it isn’t rude, may I know the Great Hero’s esteemed name?”

Though Ban Hojin looked younger than him at a glance, Geum Hoyun maintained proper etiquette, filled with respect.

He had received the grace of having his life saved, but in the Rivers and Lakes, martial strength itself was status and hierarchy.

That was why Geum Hoyun did not hesitate to lower himself.

“I am Ban Hojin of Shaolin.”

“As expected of Shaolin. To think there is someone like Great Hero Ban. By any chance, are you a lay disciple?”

“That is correct.”

Geum Hoyun’s eyes sparkled.

However, he concealed that look in an instant.

“That’s impressive. To think a lay disciple could defeat even the Iron King.”

“I was fortunate.”

Ban Hojin answered modestly.

And that was also the truth.

If he had not known Samugung’s martial arts, if Samugung had not been careless, he would not have been able to defeat him this easily.

Though his realm was high, his inner energy was insufficient, so Ban Hojin at present could not yet fully display true martial arts.

‘So humble, too!’

That sight left an even deeper impression on Geum Hoyun.

Even after defeating a martial artist as formidable as the Iron King, Ban Hojin showed no sign of arrogance at all, which Geum Hoyun found remarkable.

At that age, most people tended to swagger or act conceited, but Ban Hojin had none of that.

Rather, he carried an attitude as if it were nothing special.

Gulp!

At that sight, Geum Hoyun’s heart thumped wildly.

But there was something else that was important right now.

“You have saved not only my life but also the lives of the escort warriors, so I would like to repay you. If you are not busy, I would like to properly treat you to a meal. Would you be willing to accompany us at least as far as the nearby village? If I send Great Hero Ban off like this, my heart truly will not be at ease.”

Geum Hoyun bowed deeply once more, maintaining a most respectful posture.

It was as if he were earnestly asking for a chance to repay the favor.

However, Ban Hojin knew.

That all of this was calculated.

‘Yes. This is what you would expect from someone aiming for the position of heir of the Geum family.’

Geum Hoyun was certainly sincere.

He was simply trying to secure his own safety as well, while obtaining an opportunity to repay the favor.

The instinct to survive was natural for a human being.

And this level of clever calculation was nothing more than child’s play to Ban Hojin.

‘Whether he can win the succession struggle or not, it won’t hurt to leave him indebted.’

Ban Hojin’s mind spun just as quickly as Geum Hoyun’s.

To win the war against the Four Tyrants of the World, the strength of the Orthodox Martial World alone would not be enough.

No one felt that more keenly than Ban Hojin.

But if the Central Plains—if the entire Rivers and Lakes—joined forces, the outcome would be different.

“Very well. I am also concerned, so I will accompany you as far as the nearby village. Since I caused trouble, it is only right that I take responsibility.”

“Thank you!”

Geum Hoyun smiled brightly.

Yet inwardly, he thought that Ban Hojin was not someone to be taken lightly despite his age.

He understood the meaning of Ban Hojin’s words at once.

And that was exactly why he liked him even more.

“Young Lord, I will collect the Iron King’s head.”

“Do so. There are those who won’t believe it unless they see it themselves. And there’s also another use for it.”

“Yes.”

As the conversation seemed to have been settled to some extent, the head of the escort unit cautiously stepped forward.

He spoke while glancing at Ban Hojin, his two eyes filled with unmistakable admiration.

However, even after seeing that, Geum Hoyun did not rebuke him.

It was because he knew well just how tremendous Ban Hojin’s martial prowess was.

“Would you wait until we finish cleaning up the surroundings?”

“Yes.”

Since they had already decided to go together as far as the nearby village, Ban Hojin replied readily.

Then he slowly looked around the area.

Even if he could not move, he could still freely spread his sensory perception, so he surveyed his surroundings.

Swish!

In the meantime, the escort warriors moved swiftly and collected the bodies of their fallen comrades.

Seeing companions who had been laughing and chatting just yesterday now turned into cold corpses, some of the escort warriors sniffled.

Just because they were close to death did not mean they were accustomed to it.

That was why each of them mourned and paid respects in their own way.

After gathering the gazes of the escort members, Geum Hoyun immediately headed toward the nearest village.

It was to properly treat Ban Hojin to a meal, just as he had promised.

However, after reserving a room at the largest inn and ordering the finest dinner, Geum Hoyun did not rest and immediately turned to work.

“What about the Third Young Master’s movements?”

“It seems he still doesn’t know about the Iron King’s death.”

“That figures. We should have about a day.”

Though he was his younger brother, Geum Hoyun referred to him as the Third Young Master rather than by name.

From the beginning, he had never thought of the Third Young Master as family.

Even if they shared the same father, he was a half-brother, meaning half of his blood was that of a stranger.

And through this attack, Geum Hoyun came to recognize the Third Young Master as a complete enemy.

“If he learns of the Iron King’s death, the shock will probably be great.”

“Of course. Even I thought of death the moment the Iron King betrayed me.”

At the escort leader’s words, Geum Hoyun let out a low sigh.

Just recalling it again made Geum Hoyun feel dizzy.

If Ban Hojin had not appeared, he would surely have died at the hands of the Iron King Samugung, and the successor of the Geum family would undoubtedly have become either the First Young Master or the Third Young Master.

‘I really got stabbed in the back. I never imagined he’d target me first.’

Though it was called a three-way struggle, no matter what anyone said, the one closest to the successor’s seat at present was the First Young Master.

After him, the Third Young Master and he himself were striving hard to catch up.

In other words, for the battles to come, weakening the First Young Master should have come first, yet the Third Young Master unexpectedly targeted him.

‘So this is how he’s coming at me.’

Bloodshot veins appeared in Geum Hoyun’s eyes.

In truth, he had not paid much attention to the Third Young Master.

Not only was his power base the weakest, but Geum Hoyun had assumed that the Third Young Master, too, would clearly understand that to overturn the situation, he would naturally have to drag down the leading First Young Master first.

Yet contrary to expectations, the Third Young Master had aimed not at the First Young Master, but at him.

‘He probably planned to swallow me up and then settle things directly with the First Young Master. By absorbing my forces intact. But his thinking is shallow. To believe that just because I disappear, my support base would attach itself only to his side.’

Geum Hoyun snorted.

That level of short-sightedness was almost unbelievable.

Still, that very inability to see the bigger picture might have been why he targeted him.

Because he could not see the board as a whole.

“We’ll be the ones to spread the news of the Iron King’s death first. The third will naturally think I’m already dead. But when he sees that I’m alive and well, he’ll definitely be shaken. He must have spent a lot of funds to recruit the Iron King as well. So we can’t miss this opportunity—we need to shake the board even harder. Until the third wavers. And along with him, the hearts of those who support him. We’ll dig into that gap and take people away. Merchants will always come to the side that offers greater profit. Once they know we captured the Iron King, even if they don’t show it, many will be shaken.”

“So you intend to absorb the Third Young Master’s faction.”

“He struck first, so this is self-defense. And if you decide to strike, you naturally have to be prepared to be struck back.”

“That’s right.”

The escort leader nodded as if it were only natural.

In a way, the wars of merchants were just as fierce and desperate as the battles of martial artists.

Since entering this line of work, the escort leader had felt that keenly.

And also that wherever people lived, it was all much the same.

“Let’s repay him properly, with interest. Just paying back the principal would be heartless, wouldn’t it?”

“I’ll do my utmost.”

The escort leader grinned.

This war was not Geum Hoyun’s alone.

If Ban Hojin had not helped, he too would certainly have ended his life on some barren hillside just like Geum Hoyun, so the escort leader also intended to repay them properly.

“More importantly, did you look into Great Hero Ban?”

“Yes. He is indeed a disciple of Shaolin. A lay disciple, and the one who personally taught him is the Abbot.”

“Huh. Well, of course. At that age, to possess that level of skill, his master would naturally have to be at least the Abbot.”

After his initial surprise, Geum Hoyun quickly accepted it.

If he had not been taught by the Abbot, it would not have made sense to begin with.

However, the escort leader’s report was not finished yet.

“His age is said to be twenty this year. The martial art he practices is, astonishingly, the Three Dharma Swords, and he was already famous as a genius even when he first entered through it. Though he has no karmic ties to the Buddhist sect, Master Damhyeon personally brought him in after seeing nothing but his talent.”

“Three Dharma Swords at twenty?”

Geum Hoyun’s eyes went wide.

The Three Dharma Swords was a martial art spoken of almost like a legend, with only a bit of exaggeration.

Moreover, the fact that a martial art like the Three Dharma Swords had been passed on to a lay disciple rather than a True Mountain Disciple meant that Ban Hojin’s talent reached the heavens.

Because of that, Geum Hoyun could not hide his astonishment.

“Upon looking into it, his very existence was a secret until just recently, but he became known to the world due to a duel with the young lord of the Namgung family.”