Chapter v20c9

## Disaster at Dawn

– Waterfowl Take Flight on a Foggy Pier

The hazy dawn. People began to gather at the pier, shrouded in mist and slumbering peacefully. Five rough-looking men, their weapons strapped to their waists or backs. They were all under twenty, yet their faces bore a certain hardness, a hint of cruelty. Their eyes were cold and predatory, as if they had sworn to live like wild beasts.

These were men who had committed every imaginable crime – assault, rape, robbery, even murder – at a tender age. Their parents, who had made their fortunes through similar crimes, had indulged their every whim, raising them with a warped sense of entitlement. Inevitably, they had become the dregs of society. To their eyes, the woman in white and her two maids, who had just emerged from the mist, were nothing but prey.

In stark contrast to these men, whose hands were perpetually stained with blood, the woman in white exuded an aura of purity. Her face was clean and kind, almost innocent. They were Yeong-Ryeong, Mong-Mu, and Hwan-Mu.

“What do you think?”

A quick telepathic conversation ensued among the villains.

“Not bad.”

“What should we do? We have time.”

“Let’s make good use of our time. I’m in!”

“Me too.”

Once the consensus was reached, someone pointed out a problem.

“But there are only three of them. Not enough.”

“So what? We’ve always had a shortage of resources. Let’s practice the virtue of sharing.”

Someone proposed a solution, and the five villains quickly agreed. Unanimous consent.

Birds of a feather flock together. These men were all thugs from the same region, all wearing red sashes around their waists. They were the successors of the five leaders of the Iron Heart Manor, a notorious Dark sect in Gangnam, known as the “Five Little Devils of Gangnam.” They had grown up spoiled and arrogant, thanks to their parents’ protection, treating women as disposable playthings.

They had been too busy preparing for the Machun Pavilion entrance exam to indulge in their usual pleasures, and now these stunning beauties had appeared before them. They considered it a gift from heaven, a stroke of luck, and they slowly surrounded Yeong-Ryeong and her maids, their eyes gleaming with lust, their mouths practically drooling.

“Kehehe!”

“Look at them. Ahh!”

“Now, now, be good. We’ll take good care of you.”

“We’ll send you to heaven. Kekeke.”

“You look delicious. Slurp!”

They were repulsive, their words dripping with malice. They clearly believed that women should be dominated by force.

“Hwan-Mu, what are these things?”

Yeong-Ryeong asked her trusted maid, who always provided objective and rational judgments.

“As you can see, they’re human scum, Miss!”

Her answer was short and accurate.

“I guess you’re right.”

“I think so too, Miss. What should we do?”

Mong-Mu asked, shrinking back in fear.

“I wonder. Can we reason with them?”

“A mad dog needs a beating, Miss.”

Hwan-Mu’s blunt words enraged the villains.

“Listen to her! You should be grateful to be serving us!”

“Yeah, yeah, you should be thanking us for gracing you with our presence!”

“We’ll shut your mouths for good!”

Yeong-Ryeong frowned, shaking her head at their vulgar threats.

“I didn’t want to spill any unnecessary blood… But you’re too noisy!”

*Thud!*

“Aaaaaargh!”

The sound of “blood” and the “thud” coincided perfectly. Her scabbard, moving with lightning speed, smashed into the first man’s mouth. Blood and teeth flew through the air, accompanied by a scream. The other men, caught off guard, stared at her with wide eyes.

“Ugh!”

The man, his mouth mangled, doubled over and collapsed. Hwan-Mu’s elbow, moving like a flail, had slammed into his stomach.

“Uh oh…”

The men, realizing that the maids were also skilled, were stunned.

“What are you looking at?”

Mong-Mu, who had moved behind the second man, twisted his right arm and pressed down on his left shoulder. His face slammed into the ground. Before he could scream, she kicked him in the face with her knee, then broke his arm without hesitation. It was a brutal, efficient joint lock.

“Aaaaaargh!”

“Y-you bitches!”

The men panicked.

“All bark and no bite.”

Hwan-Mu appeared in front of the third man, her hand moving with blinding speed. A thin, sharp needle, three inches long, pierced his left earlobe, went through his neck, passed between his cervical vertebrae, and emerged from his right earlobe. He was still alive, but immobilized.

He froze, his mouth agape, like a statue. She kicked him to the ground and stepped back, her face expressionless.

“Your breath stinks. Gross!”

Only two men remained standing.

“R-run!”

They had forgotten about their fallen “friend.” To them, friends were people you enjoyed good times with, and abandoned in bad times. And the good times were over!

“Where are you going?”

Yeong-Ryeong stood before them, her face cold. Her sheathed sword moved between their heads twelve times, a blur of motion. They saw stars.

‘That should be enough.’

She was about to sheathe her sword when their eyes widened, as if they were about to pop out of their sockets.

“Aaaaaargh!”

A bloodcurdling scream echoed through the quiet dawn, startling the waterfowl, who took flight from the surface of the lake. The men collapsed, foaming at the mouth. She saw Mong-Mu’s foot between one of the men’s legs and understood what had happened.

“Mong-Mu, what was that! A lady should be graceful! How could you kick him there? It’s filthy!”

Hwan-Mu scolded her.

“Hmph, I don’t want to hear that from you. What’s with that club in your hand, Hwan-Mu? You were even more brutal than me. You practically impaled him.”

Yeong-Ryeong coughed, averting her gaze. Hwan-Mu was standing behind the last man to fall, holding a wooden club.

“I didn’t touch him directly, so it’s fine. I don’t want to experience that filth with my precious body. The thought of it is repulsive.”

She seemed to be concerned about the type of weapon used.

“Ahem, why don’t you two stop it?”

Yeong-Ryeong blushed and coughed again.

“Let’s do the same to the other three, Miss. We have to be fair to their friends.”

“Do we really have to?”

She asked, her expression reluctant.

“Of course. They’ll just cause more trouble if we leave them alive.”

“We have to nip this in the bud.”

Hwan-Mu agreed, leaving no room for further discussion.

“That sounds scary today.”

“Miss, this is the Dark Faction. Women are always the weaker sex. If we show mercy, we’ll just suffer more. No one will pity us. And these scum don’t know the meaning of remorse. We have to teach them a lesson whenever we get the chance. Otherwise, other women will become victims.”

She couldn’t argue with that.

“Then I’ll turn around. Finish it quickly.”

“Yes, Miss.”

She turned around, and the vast expanse of Dongting Lake filled her vision. She tried to focus on the beauty of nature, but the sounds coming from behind her distracted her.

*Thud!*

A sickening thud, followed by a brief silence. Something moved, then fell silent.

“Want to borrow mine? I’m done with it.”

“No, I’m already tainted. I’ll keep using this.”

*Thud! Crack!*

The pier shook beneath her feet. She resisted the urge to cover her ears. She had to maintain her composure as their master.

“What about the other one?”

“Hmm, we have no choice. Let’s do it together.”

“Alright. But don’t hit my foot!”

“Don’t worry. Gross!”

*Thwack!*

She pondered in the eerie silence that followed the double thud.

‘When should I turn around?’

She hesitated, unsure what to do, when Mong-Mu shouted,

“Look! A boat! A boat, Miss!”

She slowly turned around, trying to avoid looking down.

A black ship emerged from the mist, cutting through the water. It was a large ship, with two tall sails and twelve oars on each side. A red flag fluttered on the mast, whipped by the lake breeze. The ship, moving with practiced ease, glided across the lake, as if it had made this journey a thousand times before. It approached the pier at an alarming speed, then slowed down, maneuvering itself into position with precise movements of the oars. It was an impressive display of skill. But the ship was silent, like a ghost ship.

“It’s quiet, Miss.”

“You’re right. Not a single sound. It’s like a ghost ship.”

The ship remained silent. Mong-Mu didn’t like the silence.

“How are you feeling, Miss? Is your energy recovering?”

She asked softly, unable to bear the silence any longer.

“Do you think I used much energy against those weaklings? They weren’t even a warm-up.”

Hwan-Mu said skeptically.

“That’s true.”

But Mong-Mu’s eyes were still filled with hope.

“Well, I’m not fully recovered, but I’d say I’m about fifty to sixty percent there.”

She said, relieved.

“That’s good to hear, Miss. You were badly injured in that last fight. You almost lost all your martial arts skills. You’ve worked so hard to recover your family’s secret sword technique for the past three months.”

“But it still feels unfamiliar, like I’m wearing clothes that don’t fit. I must have been really hurt. I need to recover quickly…”

She was still dissatisfied with her condition. The aftereffects of the last fight were lingering longer than she had expected. She often felt like her body wasn’t her own.

“It’s all because of those ‘Sword Pavilion’ bitches!”

Mong-Mu exclaimed angrily.

“We can’t let them get away with this, Miss. An eye for an eye. We have to avenge you!”

Hwan-Mu agreed.

“Well…”

A long, wooden gangplank was lowered from the ship, connecting it to the pier.

“Let’s talk about that later. We have to deal with the matter at hand first.”

“Yes, I was being careless.”

Hwan-Mu apologized, bowing her head.

A lantern flickered on the ship’s railing.

“Are you three the only ones today?”

A man with a long scar on his cheek, who looked like a seasoned sailor, emerged from the mist. He didn’t seem like an ordinary crewman. Yeong-Ryeong looked around, her gaze still slightly elevated.

“It seems so.”

“Good. Come aboard.”

“Thank you.”

She replied, then looked at her maids.

“Let’s board the ship.”

“Yes, Miss.”

They finally boarded the black ship bound for Machun Pavilion. The five thugs were still lying on the pier, foaming at the mouth. They were the only passengers.

But…

As she was about to board the ship, after showing the token she had received from the scholar in black in exchange for ten gold taels, the man stopped her. He held out his hand.

“What’s this?”

She asked. He looked at her, as if she were the one being unreasonable.

“The fare, of course. What else could it be?”

“Another fee? Isn’t the fare included in the application fee?”

She asked, incredulous.

“What are you talking about? You think this ship is free? Do you know how many people are working hard to operate this ship? At least thirty people are working tirelessly to transport you, even at this early hour. And do you think a ship is just a bunch of logs floating on water? Do you have any idea how much it costs to maintain this ship? If you have any conscience, you wouldn’t even think about riding for free.”

His eloquence was impressive, as if he had done this many times before.

“B-but…”

She couldn’t argue with him.

“Fine. I’ll pay. How much is it?”

He glanced at her maids, then said,

“One gold tael per person. So that’s three gold taels for the three of you.”

Her eyes widened. She had just spent ten gold taels yesterday. And now he was asking for three more.

“Isn’t that a rip-off?”

“You can get off if you don’t like it. But this is the only ship that goes to the ‘island.'”

He replied curtly, his voice devoid of fear or concern. They had no choice but to use his ship. It was a classic monopoly.

“They’re my maids. And you’re charging them a gold tael each?”

“What are you talking about? Man or woman, noble or slave, everyone exerts the same pressure on the ship.”

He was an egalitarian, in a way. He gestured at their surroundings.

“Look around. Everyone else paid their fare without complaint. You’re the only one left. We’re waiting for you. Don’t you feel guilty? Are you going to pay, or are you getting off?”

She didn’t want to blindly accept reality, but she didn’t have the power to change it yet.

Something was wrong. She looked around. There was no one else there. She was relieved. She had been worried that she had misheard him.

“Excuse me… but we’re the only ones here.”

He slapped his forehead.

“Oh, right! Sorry! It’s a habit.”

“A… habit…”

She was speechless. It was a habit! He must have done this many times before.

“Have you ever failed?”

She meant, had he ever failed to collect the fare?

“No. And I never will.”

His determination was clear. It was pointless to argue any further.

“Fine. I’ll pay.”

She finally surrendered.

“Good thinking. Why waste time on trivial matters? Pay up.”

“Are there more fees?”

She asked, sensing a hidden meaning in his words.

“You’ll find out when you get there.”

He replied bluntly.

“Oh, but what about them? Aren’t you taking them? They paid the application fee.”

She pointed at the five thugs, who were still lying on the pier, twitching and groaning.

“They’re still alive?”

He sounded disappointed.

“It doesn’t matter. We don’t need losers.”

His words were cold.

“Tsk, ‘you’ll find out’… Miss, what do you think he meant by that?”

Mong-Mu asked, troubled by his words.

“Don’t you get it? He’s saying there will be more expenses. Period.”

Hwan-Mu replied curtly.

“I have nothing to add.”

That was all she could say.

“Let’s go!”

The gangplank was raised, the oars moved, and the ship left the pier, heading towards the deep water.