My Dad Is the Strongest Under Heaven
Chapter 34
Chapter 34
Chapter 34. Just Who Might You Be
A tall, exceptionally handsome young man was walking with measured, calm steps toward a destination.
Wherever he passed, people turned their heads to look back at him—a striking spectacle in itself.
He was none other than Yeo Woonhwi.
After undergoing the shedding of mortal marrow, he had transformed; already a slender, striking man before, he now possessed a lean, firmly corded physique that radiated a completely different allure.
Those laying eyes on him for the first time found their gazes helplessly stolen by his presence and striking looks.
In any case, where was he headed right now?
‘Hmm. Is this the place?’
After walking for quite a while, he came to a stop.
An old, dilapidated mansion situated far out on the outskirts, well beyond the boundaries of the Peng estate.
This was precisely the location Peng Mugang had told Yeo Woonhwi to visit.
It was then.
“Who goes there?”
A rough, gruff male voice rang out from behind Yeo Woonhwi.
Following it came the prickle of sharp killing intent.
Yeo Woonhwi turned his head slightly to look in that direction.
There stood two men, faces scrunched in fierce scowls as they growled toward him.
“What do you think you’re doing, loitering around here? Suspicious bastard.”
“Tell me about it. I don’t like him already, starting with that pretty face of his. Who are you?”
Would it feel like this if one ran into wild dogs while walking down a road?
At a single glance, their faces and demeanor looked almost identical.
They were likely twins.
“Ah. I am…”
Just as Yeo Woonhwi opened his mouth to reply to the aggressive pair—
However,
A loud smack resounded, followed swiftly by another.
“Aargh!”
“Hey. Gi-su, Gi-sang! You two! Did I or did I not tell you never to throw killing intent at someone you’re meeting for the first time without reason? Huh?”
“Ah, noona! That hurts!”
The two men clutched their heads, grumbling at the woman who had just struck them.
The woman was a beauty with sun-bronzed skin and large, striking eyes.
“Hurts my foot! I went easy on you! Want another beating? Acting all proud after what you did!”
“No, but some stranger was lingering at the entrance…”
“And what if he turns out to be someone from the main house again? Huh?”
“All the better, then! When they treat us with such contempt and disregard!”
“Exactly!”
“Do you know this confinement is because of you two or not?!”
“Come on, how could a frail-looking guy like him possibly be from the main house?!”
“So you went and threatened someone so frail? Look at you bastards! Absolutely hopeless, aren’t you?”
“No, that’s not what we meant—!”
“Quiet! Keep it up, why don’t you!”
“Tch. We were wrong.”
“Sorry about that. Happy now?”
“Ha… is that the attitude of someone admitting their mistake? Huh? Come here! Take a few more hits!”
“W-We said we were sorry!”
The men, who had seemed so vicious just moments ago, were now flustered and helpless before this woman.
Watching the scene unfold before him, Yeo Woonhwi merely chuckled inside.
He could not very well laugh out loud in front of strangers.
“I must apologize for this, haha. My younger brothers have been quite on edge lately.”
“It is quite all right. And in fact, I did come from the main house.”
“Pardon?”
“Eh?”
The twin brothers and the woman simultaneously widened their eyes in surprise.
“Wait, was there ever someone like you in our Peng Clan?”
“It’s certainly been half a year since we were confined and came here…”
“I came to the Peng Clan around that time.”
Yeo Woonhwi then retrieved a token from his robes and showed it to them.
Recognizing the token, the woman nodded.
“Ah, let us head inside first.”
A middle-aged man opened the door and guided Yeo Woonhwi inside.
Meanwhile, sharp gazes could be felt from all corners of the compound.
To an outsider, one might easily mistake this place for the hideout of some renowned vagabond mercenary band rather than members of the Peng Clan.
To think these were people who could not stomach injustice and ended up causing trouble. Haha.
Knowing full well what kind of people they were, Yeo Woonhwi could not help but chuckle quietly.
Once they reached the reception room, the woman spoke to Yeo Woonhwi.
“The Vice Captain has stepped away for a moment, so I will bring our eldest brother first. Please wait here a moment.”
At her words, Yeo Woonhwi nodded.
Soon, Yeo Woonhwi was left alone in the room.
He slowly looked around the chamber.
The interior was just as worn and ancient as the exterior.
Yet it was kept reasonably tidy and clean.
The same had been true of the mansion’s grounds as he walked through.
It seemed they were putting in continuous effort to maintain cleanliness.
The contrast between that and the rough, fierce auras felt all along the way kept bringing an amused smile to Yeo Woonhwi’s lips.
Just then.
“What do you find so amusing?”
Someone asked as he entered the room.
He was a man who gave off the impression of an enormous bear.
With his massive build, full beard, and fiercely protruding, glaring eyes, a mistaken glance could easily have had him pegged as the bandit chief of Mount Dae’s stronghold.
“I am Gu Tae-san.”
“I am Yeo Woonhwi. Pleased to meet you.”
Gu Tae-san tilted his head in confusion.
For he had never in his life seen the face nor heard the name of the man before him.
Even if the White Wolf Troop had been cooped up here under confinement for the past half year, he found it completely baffling that he had remained unaware of such a man joining the Peng Clan.
They had still been receiving news of the main house through various contacts, yet he had never heard of any newcomer among the Peng Clan’s martial artists matching this man.
“So, you say the Patriarch sent you.”
“Yes. That is correct.”
“What business brings you here?”
To Gu Tae-san’s question, Yeo Woonhwi answered without the slightest hesitation.
“He instructed me to take charge of the White Wolf Troop from now on.”
“What?”
At Yeo Woonhwi’s words, a savage aura surged from Gu Tae-san’s body.
“Are you saying you are taking command of our White Wolf Troop right now?”
“Indeed.”
“Just who are you for the Patriarch to issue such an order? Even if we are confined in a state like this, we are undisputedly the martial squad representing the Peng Clan. And I have never once heard of someone named Yeo Woonhwi before this moment. Yet you expect me to believe that?”
At that, Yeo Woonhwi reached into his robes, pulled out a token, and presented it.
In truth, had Peng Mugang come in person to deliver the command or written a formal missive, things would have been far simpler.
Yet Peng Mugang had done no such thing.
He had simply handed over a single token symbolizing the Patriarch’s command and told him to go.
At this point, it was hard to tell whether this was a trial or mere harassment.
Even Yeo Woonhwi had never imagined that the father-in-law he saw before his regression—the one who had wept openly and apologized from the depths of his heart before his daughter’s death—could be this eccentric and cantankerous.
Still, none of that mattered.
Whatever his father-in-law commanded, as long as it was not gravely wrong, he was willing to carry it out.
And so, he had come bearing only this token as proof.
“Ha…”
Gu Tae-san was equally troubled and dumbfounded by the situation confronting him.
He was, in fact, the second strongest expert in the White Wolf Troop and served as the right hand to the current Vice Captain.
The eldest brother, who was the actual Vice Captain of the White Wolf Troop, was away at the moment.
Whatever one thought of the others, he was a grandmaster whose martial prowess and character even Patriarch Peng Mugang readily respected.
Yet this bizarre development had occurred precisely while he was absent.
“I understand that this is the Patriarch’s command. But there is one thing I am curious about—may I ask?”
“Go ahead.”
Yeo Woonhwi nodded.
Gu Tae-san stroked his beard-stubbled chin and asked:
“Just who are you that the White Wolf Troop would be entrusted to your hands? I cannot make head nor tail of it.”
At that, Yeo Woonhwi offered a gentle smile.
“I do not know if you have heard, but these days, I am the person most talked about in the Peng Clan.”
“Hmm?”
“If you mention the scholar fellow, everyone seems to know.”
“Aha! You are Lady Seoyeon’s husband? The so-called Running Ghost.”
Yeo Woonhwi nodded.
Even so, Gu Tae-san still wore a look of utter incomprehension.
“Yet as far as I know, you are a scholar who has never learned martial arts in his life. And such a person intends to take charge of our White Wolf Troop?”
“Well, it is the Patriarch’s command. What choice do I have but to follow orders?”
“Our stance is different. We do not follow such absurd orders.”
“Oho. Is that so?”
“Indeed.”
Gu Tae-san spoke with absolute conviction.
His expression clearly said to cut the nonsense and turn right back around.
Quietly studying Gu Tae-san’s face, Yeo Woonhwi let out a quiet smirk and spoke again.
Gu Tae-san had not noticed in the slightest that Yeo Woonhwi’s gaze and tone had begun to shift.
“Is the Patriarch of the Peng Clan not your master? Or have I been misinformed?”
“Of course he is. That is undoubtedly true. But we have always—”
“Is that something to be proud of?”
“What?”
“I asked if having always acted that way is something to brag about.”
“Going by your words, the Patriarch may be your master, but you pick and choose whether to obey him whenever it suits your mood—is that not what you are saying?”
“Somehow… it sounds as though you are mocking us.”
“I merely stated the plain truth, not mocked you. Does even that offend your sensibilities?”
“Listen here.”
At Yeo Woonhwi’s retort, Gu Tae-san’s face twisted furiously.
Before long, a fierce, threatening pressure billowed outward from his frame.
“Haha. Hearing the rumors, I thought you were upright wolves. Turns out you’re just rabid dogs that can’t even tell shit from piss.”
The moment Yeo Woonhwi tossed out those words, the room flooded with Gu Tae-san’s suffocating killing intent.
“What did you just say? Rabid dogs that can’t tell shit from piss?”
“Am I wrong?”
Yet even under Gu Tae-san’s killing intent, Yeo Woonhwi did not shrink back in the slightest.
It was strange, considering he was supposed to have never learned martial arts.
Or was he acting this brazen solely because he relied on his status as the Peng Clan’s matrilocal son-in-law?
All manner of thoughts flashed through Gu Tae-san’s mind.
In the meantime, Yeo Woonhwi pressed on in a resolute voice.
“A martial squad is like the Patriarch’s sword. If that sword refuses to obey the will of its master, what reason does it have to exist?”
“…”
“It becomes a sword with neither use nor purpose. There was indeed a good reason the Patriarch refused to employ you heavily. Tsk, tsk.”
“Why, you damned bastard—!”
When Yeo Woonhwi clicked his tongue, Gu Tae-san could no longer contain his fury.
Though every single word was undeniably true, Gu Tae-san believed it was merely the blathering of someone ignorant of their inner circumstances.
His face flushing red and purple with uncontrollable rage, he hurled his fist straight into the wall.
With a thunderous crash, the wall shattered instantly into pieces.
“You must have resolved to die today! Fine! Good! Then as you wish—!”
“Stop.”
It was at that moment.
The door swung open abruptly, and someone stepped into the room.
Unlike Gu Tae-san, who resembled an active volcano, this man gave off a calm, serene presence.
He was none other than—
“B-Brother!”
The current Vice Captain and de facto leader of the White Wolf Troop: Oh Chae-mu.
In that instant, Yeo Woonhwi’s eyes narrowed slightly.