episode_0111

‘gibberish.’

Did he want to show that he was embarrassed? The moment I heard the words flowing from the mouth of Yoon Soo-hyun, a man scratching somewhere between his cheek and temple proudly, that was the first thought that came to mind.

Honestly, I had no choice but to do that because it made so much sense.

This is not the time of the Murim Alliance, and in this day and age, training in the mountains is something.

Even the idiotic purists who chose to be eliminated with their own hands did not practice training in the mountains for the reason that they thought, ‘why leave this good environment alone?’

But I spent my old age alone in the mountains training.

If you want to hide your origins, you can come up with an excuse that sounds more believable. The quality of what is being used as an excuse is so poor that even if you want to be fooled, you can’t.

As I quietly listened to what the other person was saying, those thoughts came to me before anything else… but on the other hand, thoughts like ‘Maybe that’s why…?’ or ‘Could it be that’s why…?’ were secretly creeping into my mind. He also raised the.

For example… What if the way he seemed to lack moral sense in his debut match with Ha-young, or the way he acted like a man in front of me with Dang-ga on his back, was actually influenced by that?

Now, as an expression that can only be found in history books, if he acted like that because he had just come down from the mountain and didn’t know much about the goings on of the world… then it was as if people had suddenly become polite as if the contents inside had changed in just two weeks. Any explanation was possible. That’s because two weeks were a very busy time. It is difficult to realize how great a group Sacheon Pharmaceutical and the party behind it are.

That was why I swallowed my saliva quietly.

To be honest, I still couldn’t believe what the man said, but if what he said was true, it was an opportunity. And that too…an opportunity that might turn the situation around, which had become infinitely disadvantageous for her, in an instant.

What can I say?

She was planning to offer to recruit Su-hyeon today.

The fact that I apologized first, bending over my pride in an uncharacteristic way, and the fact that I showed my bare face after making up my mind could all be said to be build-up for that moment.

Personally, it was something I didn’t really want to do.

Even though that was my true intention, I had no choice but to act that way… because there was no other way. Because there was no other way to prevent Ha-yeong’s recruits from falling to Mo Yong-se’s side.

Hayoung was her friend, but at the same time, he was also a ‘guest’ who received support from the family.

From the family’s point of view, it could be said to be an extremely humiliating thing for Hayoung’s new recruit to be transferred to the rival family, the Moyong family.

After all, I couldn’t take care of even one guest properly, so how could I stand up in front of other families?

So what if something like that actually happens?

The competition with others for the Sogaju position will end on that day.

Because it is unlikely that the family’s elders would accept as their successor someone who has tarnished the family’s reputation.

Not only will you be deprived of your candidate position, but all the benefits and privileges you received while running as a Sogaju candidate will also be taken back.

On top of that, being looked down on by family members is an added bonus.

Therefore, in order to prevent the situation from going that way, I suppressed my pride as much as possible and proceeded step by step according to what I had already decided in my mind. I never thought he was hiding such a secret.

Of course, this is only a story assuming that what the man said was true… but strictly speaking, there was nothing that could be called evidence.

‘It was clear earlier…’

When that man, that is, Yoon Soo-hyun, revealed his origins, Ha-young, who was sitting next to him, had a very strange expression.

Normally, when you hear something like that, it’s normal to look surprised or embarrassed, but Hayoung’s reaction at the time was neither of those two. Rather than an expression of surprise or confusion, it was closer to an expression that seemed to mutter, ‘Ah, somehow…’ It’s as if he’s someone who has something to point out.

Considering that Hayoung lived with that man for two whole weeks… perhaps she saw or learned something while they were together.

Only Ha-young knows exactly what happened, but anyway, after witnessing Ha-young’s unusual reaction, I honestly felt like denying it because it didn’t make sense based on common sense.

How many crazy people are there in this world?

So, even in these times, it would not be surprising if there was at least one strange person, or rather a monster, who insisted on training in the mountains, enduring various inconveniences.

“In this day and age, training in the mountains… I guess the teacher was someone who valued tradition.”

That’s why I chose to argue appropriately with the words that came out of the other person’s mouth rather than trying to question whether they were true or not, saying they didn’t make sense or something.

“Rather than that, what should I say…he was a cute person.”

Then, that’s exactly what I heard.

Cute, la.

I don’t think it’s a good word to use to describe the teacher who taught me martial arts.

Nevertheless, it is safe to say that the use of such an expression is highly unlikely to have been fabricated. If I had planned to lie about it, I would have chosen more appropriate words to say.

So perhaps that man’s teacher was a woman. She is also a fairly young woman.

Also… seeing that he naturally used past tense expressions, there was a high possibility that he was a person who no longer exists in this world.

She is a female expert who has the ability to raise disciples of that level at a relatively young age. Who is there?

I quickly searched my mind to see if any names came to mind, but unfortunately I failed to narrow down the list of candidates. It wasn’t that there were no faces that came to mind. Rather than saying that was the case, it was because there were too many people that came to mind.

The same was true even if we limited the scope to those whose whereabouts had become increasingly unknown in recent years, that is, over the past 10 years.

In general, all of these expert groups are unpredictable, so even if they belong to a specific group, there are many cases where they suddenly disappear one day. And there are many cases where it disappears like that and then reappears years later as if nothing had happened.

Most of those who are called experts in the present era, but is there any way that the scope can be narrowed by imposing conditions?

So instead of obsessing over that, I decided to focus on what I had to do right away.

Recruiting the man in front of her under her command.

“You seem to have a good relationship with your teacher.”

“What… right? Although we argued that often…”

“I’m jealous. Because I wasn’t like that.”

So I took the man’s words in stride… and when I started to think that maybe this would be okay, I opened my mouth.

“Hmm, anyway, the reason I came here today…”

Open your mouth-

“To propose recruiting you.”

I brought out the main topic that had been lying dormant for a long time.

*****

“I’d like to recruit you.”

I wasn’t that surprised when I heard that.

Because there was no reason to be surprised.

“Of course… I don’t mean to just recruit him. We promise to give you the best treatment considering your performance at the Colosseum so far.”

It was even more true when he said he would guarantee the best treatment. That’s because it wasn’t the first time Dang Soso said that in front of me.

As a result, I was able to maintain a calm expression without much effort.

“People who came to see me over the past few days usually said that.”

“That’s probably true, because even though humans are extremely stingy with the fish they put in the fish tank, they generously give food and bait to the fish that haven’t been caught yet.”

” When you say that, does that mean you are different from them?”

How much of a difference would it make?

Did I manage to capture the nuance contained in my voice?

“It’s different.”

Tang Soso, who said this in a very firm tone, as if there was no room for refutation, curled up one corner of his mouth and smiled brightly.

It was a smile that conveyed tremendous confidence just by looking at it, and that somehow made you want to trust it.

“Hoo… If you don’t mind, may I ask you the basis for your confidence?”

“Isn’t that obvious? Those who have found you so far are those who are being manipulated by someone, and I am in the position of being manipulated by someone.”

The standing position is different, the eye level is different, and the authority in hand is different.

That’s why I’m the one who can treat you the best.

That’s what Tang Soso said.

“And more than anything… I don’t think of you as just a bodyguard.”

“Then…?”

Are you planning on having me develop a new drug?

It must have been a moment when I was unconsciously thinking something strange about a remark that seemed a bit unexpected.

“Do you know anything about the traditions of the Tang family?”

Even more unexpected words flowed into my ears.

“You mean the Tang family tradition?”

It might be obvious, but there was no way I knew that.

As a result, I was able to put a genuinely puzzled expression on my face without even having to act or sleep.

“···The women of the Tang family have the right to choose their own groom.”

“Is that so?”

Since they said it was a tradition, I thought it would give off a musty smell, but surprisingly, it was an open family.

“Therefore, it can be said that how to use such rights depends solely on the woman’s will.”

If you want wealth or power, get an arranged marriage. If you want to spend a hundred years with the person you love, get a love marriage.

That was what Dangsoso added after his own remarks.

“Of course… That doesn’t mean the family recognizes just anyone as a son-in-law.”

“Are you taking it like a son-in-law certification test?”

“···Similar.”

Speaking of the son-in-law certification test, it sounds a bit strange, but in any case, in order to be officially recognized as a son-in-law, you must pass a test set by the elders of the family.

‘···huh?’

wait for a sec.

Could it be that I am giving this kind of explanation at this time…?

The moment my thoughts reached that point, what suddenly passed through my head was the image of Dang So-so carefully showing his bare face to the world, and the image of Ha-young who was literally shocked upon seeing her friend’s behavior like that.

Gulp~

‘Oh, no way…’

I guess not…?