I Am the Youngest Disciple of the Martial Arts World’s Mastermind
Chapter 16
Chapter 16
The Youngest Disciple of the Murim’s Hidden Mastermind
Episode 16
Every time I moved, I could hear the gritty sound of sand shifting inside my clothes.
God, this is so embarrassing….
I knew there were mechanisms and formations all over Cheongsanbong, but this was the first time I’d encountered one indoors.
‘To think it was a trap….’
While I wallowed in my gloom, Gwang-eum spat out his words, his voice thick with a reluctance that bordered on physical pain.
“If you’d been an outsider, I would have used Poisonous Sand. If you came here for martial arts manuals, you should have walked in through the front door.”
“Yo—you knew I was coming?”
“How could I not?”
“But you told me not to come….”
“That doesn’t mean you actually listen!!”
Unbelievable.
When I puffed out my lips in a pout, Gwang-eum clicked his tongue again as if to make a point. He turned his back on me and began walking down the dark passage.
As he moved, torches along both sides of the corridor flared to life, one by one.
“W—wow….”
I had no idea such a vast, sprawling space existed underground.
“Follow me. This is the Secret Manual Library.”
“……!”
Incredible.
I quickly scurried along behind Gwang-eum.
There were still so many things about Cheongsanbong that I didn’t know.
After passing through a few more lethal-looking mechanisms, a massive library built into what looked like a natural cavern came into view.
“…….”
I couldn’t take my eyes off my surroundings even as I followed Gwang-eum. Partly because I could recognize some of the Hanja titles, but also because….
‘…Isn’t this one of those forbidden techniques because it’s so wicked?’
Why did they even have things like this?
Scattered everywhere were manuals for Demonic Arts that made the hair on my arms stand up just by looking at them.
‘Ah, wait.’
As the game’s story progressed, there were countless times when villains would corner the protagonist with overwhelming stats, only to fall into ruin because of these very Demonic Arts.
How those villains got their hands on such techniques in the first place… it was all because of this hidden mastermind in the Murim.
“…….”
This is terrifying….
“What is it?”
Perhaps sensing my gaze lingering on the dangerous books, Gwang-eum glanced back at me, one corner of his mouth curling into a crooked smirk.
“Do you want to learn those?”
“…No, thank you.”
Seriously, isn’t he taking this too far? Suggesting a technique that leads to self-destruction.
“Why not?”
At his brazen question, I gave a nonsense answer.
“They smell weird.”
Of course, it wasn’t entirely a lie. The leather covers of those books smelled of rot because they had been soaked in blood during their making.
Upon hearing my answer, Gwang-eum whipped his head back around and muttered to himself.
“I suppose your five senses are decent, at least.”
It’s not that, it’s just that I already knew….
“Then what kind of book do you want?”
Though I hadn’t answered yet, Gwang-eum started talking as if he hadn’t expected me to in the first place.
“Excluding the secret techniques of a few founding grandmasters, every martial arts manual in existence is here. I am constantly making copies of them. There are techniques for fist, saber, spear, sword, and staff. And besides those….”
Gwang-eum paused for a moment before adding.
“There are also things like devices and traps. Is there anything in particular you want to learn?”
Devices and traps…? Is he talking about mechanisms and formations?
Meanwhile, Gwang-eum furrowed his brow and issued a stern warning.
“Danhwi-hyung asked me to help you once, so I’m only going to help you this one time. Choose carefully.”
“…Yes!”
Danhwi-sahyeong, thank you. I’ll start calling you Sahyeong again from today.
I fell into deep thought for a moment. Alright. I’ve been given options and the right to choose.
When you think of the Murim, is it… swordsmanship? But fist techniques, which allow you to respond even without a weapon, are also tempting. And staff techniques are quite….
‘No!’
Since I’d made it all the way up Cheongsanbong, there was only one choice for me.
‘I’ve decided.’
I finished my brief deliberation and looked up.
“Have you decided?”
“Yes! I….”
I spoke with confidence.
“I want to learn about devices and traps!”
“Right. Swor—”
Gwang-eum, who was about to say something, saw his expression shift strangely.
He stopped mid-sentence. He looked like a man who had been caught utterly off guard.
“……?”
Why? To me, it was the obvious choice.
Of course, in the Murim, mechanisms and formations didn’t have a great reputation regardless of whether one was Orthodox or Unorthodox. In fact, until one reached a certain level of mastery, they were often looked down upon.
But why was the hidden mastermind who he was? Because he orchestrated everything without anyone knowing!
Therefore, the most valuable thing I could learn while serving the hidden mastermind as my Master was how he designed those things ‘secretly’ and ‘disguised them as strokes of fate.’
Stealth and lightfoot techniques were secondary; ultimately, the answer lay in mechanisms and formations.
Even this very peak was quite modernized thanks to mechanical devices. There was the plumbing, and I’d just seen the intruder defense system.
‘Though I still don’t understand why there isn’t an elevator up to Jinmyeonggak….’
“You….”
Ah, I got distracted.
I straightened my posture, which had tilted while I was daydreaming, and looked at Gwang-eum.
However, the reaction from Gwang-eum—who would usually have scolded me—was peculiar.
He was wearing an even stranger expression than before.
“You want to learn mechanisms and formations?”
As if he found me… commendable?
Huh?
I hit the jackpot.
I quickly nodded my head.
“Yes! Devices and traps. Is that what you call mechanisms and formations?”
I even tilted my head slightly as if I’d never heard such a difficult term before.
At that, Gwang-eum seemed to go through some internal struggle before grabbing both of my shoulders.
“Hey.”
“……?”
He met my eyes and asked subtly.
“You said you wanted to get stronger. So why this instead of other martial arts?”
“Because I think mechanisms and formations are the strongest….”
“Why?”
“Well….”
I rolled my eyes.
I see now. I’d wondered who managed the mechanisms and formations that were spread across Cheongsanbong like moving walkways, and it was Gwang-eum.
He wasn’t just ringing bells and reading books.
‘I think I’m starting to understand his personality….’
He probably didn’t want to deal with a kid while managing all those mechanisms. Suddenly feeling a surge of empathy, I said seriously.
“Even when I fell in here… if Gwang-eum-sahyeong hadn’t gone easy on me, I would have been helpless, right? That’s why I started thinking traps are strong.”
Gwang-eum asked back without blinking.
“Not that they’re cowardly?”
“Cowardice is cowardice, and strength is strength. And as long as I can survive, I don’t mind being a little cowardly.”
“…….”
Gwang-eum took his hands off my shoulders, crossed his arms, and began pacing around restlessly, his high ponytail swaying back and forth.
“……?”
I strained my ears to hear what he was muttering, and it was something like this.
“…I thought she was someone who didn’t belong here.”
“Pardon? What was that?”
When I finally raised my voice to ask, Gwang-eum curled his lip and changed the subject.
“The martial world values righteousness and chivalry to a sickening degree and won’t tolerate such cowardly acts, so watch your mouth once you’re outside.”
I could feel the atmosphere softening slightly.
Come to think of it, the point that had set Gwang-eum off last time was also the word ‘strong.’ I’d tried to say something nice, but he reacted so sensitively that I’d been flustered.
Now I see it was because he thought of himself as cowardly.
Many questions were being answered.
“Uh….”
But first, I corrected the most important part.
“Outside? I’m going to stay right here.”
Regular meals, a warm bed, a kind Master, and handsome Sahyeongs. Not to mention being safely protected.
Isn’t this place a paradise on earth? So there would be no reason for me to go around saying such things outside.
At the same time, Gwang-eum spoke as if to burst my bubble.
“According to whose plan? Once you can pull your own weight, you’ll have to go out and run errands for Master just like Danhwi-hyung. You’ll need to learn lightfoot techniques too.”
“I’m already learn—no, but Gwang-eum-sahyeong, you hardly ever come down from Jinmyeonggak!!”
I wanted to bring up Hyeonhak-daesahyeong too, but Daesahyeong makes the food. I bit my tongue.
Gwang-eum’s lips twitched.
“I….”
Then, after a brief pause, he said in a low voice.
“I must not go out into the martial world.”
“Why?”
What on earth is the secret you’re hiding?
When I asked with deliberate innocence, Gwang-eum clenched his fists and spoke with a trembling voice.
“…Because I was originally… a man of the Namgung.”
“…Eh?”
At the unexpected answer, I let out a dumbfounded sound without realizing it.
But I couldn’t help it.
The Namgung Clan?
The very Namgung that was ranked second among the Five Great Clans in the martial world? A clan so prestigious that it wouldn’t be strange for someone from the Beggars’ Sect like me to know them naturally—that Namgung?
Gwang-eum continued slowly, his face twisted in a grimace.
“I was from a branch family. I became obsessed with mechanisms and formations, which were dismissed as mere parlor tricks… I earned the ire of the main family, and my entire family was slaughtered.”
“……!”
