Chapter 27: Becoming a Young Master

The Gwak family was said to have been established in Han-jung for nearly a hundred years.

Like most local aristocratic families, the Gwak family also dreamed of advancing into the central government. And about 20 years ago, that

dream was finally realized. The third son of the family, Gwak Baek, passed the civil service examination.

And today was the day that the son of the esteemed Scholar Gwak was arriving.

From early morning, the Gwak family’s mansion was bustling.

I sat in the carriage, gazing at the mansion, a smile on my lips.

“Young Master Gwak Jun has arrived.”

The servant respectfully announced my arrival. The gatekeeper bowed and opened the gates wide.

“To come for recuperation at such a young age…”

One of the servants muttered with a pitiful voice. Hearing those words, I chuckled inwardly.

It was a disguised identity created by the Thousand Slaughter Valley, a fabricated history formed through a deal with the Gwak family.

Yuha noona approached me. She was now my bodyguard.

“Young Master, I will guide you to the room where the elders are.”

Her voice contained a strange amusement.

It seemed she also found this situation amusing.

I nodded and followed her inside.

“To hire so many guards.”

“They’re all female martial artists, and the one at the front is an incredible beauty.”

“I heard she’s a first-rate master.”

“First-rate at that age.”

The corners of my lips lifted slightly. The external explanation was that Yuha noona, who possessed late first-rate skills, had signed a contract

with the Gwak family in Beijing to be Young Master Gwak Jun’s… that is, my bodyguard for three years.

With thirteen girls, said to be her disciples, coming along, it was only natural that the servants’ attention was focused on us.

“Let’s go in, Young Master.”

Guided by Yuha noona, I stood in front of the main gate. The head of the Gwak family and his wife, my nominal grandparents, were waiting.

“It’s been a long time, grandson.”

The grandfather’s voice trembled slightly. They knew my true identity.

A member of the Thousand Slaughter Valley. Moreover, the fact that I was someone who needed special protection.

“The air in Beijing is not good, so I simply need some recuperation. Please do not worry.”

I bowed politely at the fake grandfather’s question.

Formal greetings were exchanged. I could feel a subtle fear in their eyes.

“Young Master, I will guide you to your room.”

A young servant led the way. We crossed the garden and stopped in front of a detached building.

“You can use this detached residence as you please.”

“You can decide the residence for the bodyguards. You can also use the servants attached to the detached residence as you wish.”

I looked around the detached residence. There was a wide garden, and several buildings were located within it.

“The open space is quite wide. It would be good for training.”

I nodded at Nan Cheong’s words.

“I like that it’s in a secluded location too. Interactions with others in the house will be minimized.”

“They probably don’t want to interact with us either. Not only me, but Young Master is a dangerous person from their point of view.”

Yuha noona said with a meaningful smile at my words. Yuha noona used the title ‘Young Master’ and honorifics to match her fake identity.

Living under the same roof as assassins from the Thousand Slaughter Valley must have been fear itself for him.

Overall, it was a satisfactory house. But the really good thing was something else.

That was that outings were unrestricted.

Outings were not prohibited even at the Thousand Slaughter Valley’s headquarters, but it was different from Cheongseong Mountain, where

all there was to see was mountains anyway.

I fiddled with my pocket. It was full of money that I had collected from exploring the ruins.

“Alright, then let’s go out!”

It was time to freely spend the money that I had been accumulating.

I, no, we showed off.

The sight of our group, including fourteen guards including Nan Cheong, and Yuha noona, walking together was spectacular in itself.

“Make way!”

“The son of the Gwak family is passing by!”

The servants shouted ahead, clearing the way. People glanced at us and stepped aside to one side.

It was a natural reaction, as a noble young master who had come down from Beijing was in the center of a procession of women wearing

luxurious silk clothing and carrying swords.

“Is the purpose of the outing amusement, after all?”

Nan Cheong quietly asked next to me. Her voice contained a slight curiosity.

It’s shopping in English.

There was no suitable word for it here.

In the case of women, they focused on gathering when obtaining food from the primitive era, while men focused on hunting.

In other words, there is a hypothesis that women had to disperse their attention in various places to gather for survival, while men had to

concentrate on hunting, which affected their shopping styles.

Of course, since I was a man, I was thinking of heading straight to my destination.

“Would you like to go this way, Young Master?”

Nan Cheong pointed to the silk shop on the left. It was a large store decorated with colorful lanterns, and several wealthy noble ladies were

already examining the goods inside.

“No, I have other business.”

I shook my head. I could see the girls’ expressions change slightly to disappointment.

“Then what about accessories?”

Another girl pointed to the jewelry store on the right. The glittering ornaments visible through the glass windows sparkled under the

lanterns.

“That too, later.”

A small sigh escaped from the girls at my words. Yuha noona glared at the girls, and they quickly corrected their expressions.

“Hey you, do you know the geography of this area well?”

I turned my head and called out to the servant who was quietly following behind.

The servant bowed nearly 90 degrees and answered with a trembling voice. Knowing our true identities, he was still terrified.

“Guide me to the best blacksmith in this area.”

“The best blacksmith?”

The servant had a puzzled expression.

It seemed unexpected that a young master of high status would look for a blacksmith rather than a jewelry or silk shop.

“Yes.”

“Understood!”

The road, although good, was narrow. The atmosphere was ominous as they entered the forest.

The sound of carving wood and hammering metal could be heard. It was the sound of skilled craftsmen working late into the night.

“What on earth are you thinking? You already have a good sword, Young Master.”

Yuha noona approached me and asked in a small voice. It was a voice so quiet that the servant could not hear.

“I’m going to see spears.”

“Spears?”

Yuha noona’s eyebrows rose slightly. Her voice contained surprise.

Noona still had a questioning expression at my answer. But Nan Cheong was different.

“Ah!”

The formation I obtained was originally a spear formation, not a sword formation.

“This is the best blacksmith.”

We stopped in front of a shabby but large building. The wooden sign read ‘Yang’s Blacksmith.’ The sound of hammering metal was constantly

heard from inside the building.

“Let’s go in.”

When I opened the door, a hot air covered my face. Inside the blacksmith, there was a large furnace, and three strong men were heating

metal. The sight of them swinging hammers with sweat-soaked upper bodies was impressive.

“Welcome.”

“I came to see spears.”

I said bluntly.

“Spears… Come this way.”

He led us to the back of the blacksmith. Various types of weapons were arranged on the walls. There were swords, axes, spears, staffs, and

maces.

“Give me about fifteen spears.”

“Fifteen spears?”

The old man’s eyes widened. After looking at the bodyguards standing behind me once, he seemed to realize something.“That’s right.”

“Then I would recommend custom-made spears rather than ready-made ones…”

“I will use them for training first. Please choose some decent ones from the ready-made ones.”

The old man thought for a moment and then walked towards the wall. Among the various spears, he pointed to one type in particular.

“These spears were made to be supplied to the government army. The quality is guaranteed.”

I picked one up. The weight was appropriate, and the grip was not bad.

“Give me fifteen of these spears.”

The old man calculated for a moment and then said the price. I took out silver coins from my pocket and handed them over.It was a spectacle

to see the children wearing black martial uniforms carrying spears at the same time.

I could hear people whispering as they looked at us passing by.

“We gave the children spears, but where are you planning to learn the spear techniques?”

Yuha noona came close to me and asked.

“I haven’t thought about it yet.”

I had given them spears in order to learn the spear formation.

The formation came first, and the detailed spear techniques were the next problem.

Eventually, they would have to learn spear techniques, but first, I was thinking of starting by having each person apply their familiar

swordsmanship to the spear. After all, the Thousand Slaughter Valley’s swordsmanship was more focused on stabbing than cutting.

en in front stopped walking. The procession stopped, and I could hear a small commotion in the front.

It seemed there was a slight argument.

Because I was in the middle of the group and receiving concentrated protection, I could not see the front well. I tried to grasp the situation

over the backs and shoulders of the girls, but I could not know the exact details of the argument.

Then someone shouted loudly.

“Do you know who I am? I am the third daughter of the Gwak family!”

The third daughter of the Gwak family?

At those words, I could not contain my curiosity and peeked out between the girls. Then, there was a girl who looked one or two years older

than me.

“Oh, you are… surely the third uncle who came today…”