Chapter 101
101
Yeon-ryang was uncharacteristically serious. I was flustered and asked cautiously.
"What's the matter?"
"I can't sleep without a sword."
"......Huh?"
I tilted my head, wondering if he was joking, but Yeon-ryang's expression was serious.
"Your brother is a swordsman. I need a sword within reach at all times, but my hand feels empty, so I can't sleep."
I rolled my eyes at his troubled expression as he scratched his cheek.
"Ah. I see."
I hadn't thought about the sword.
I was only thinking about healing Yeon-ryang, and I hadn't considered how a Martial Artist would feel after losing their weapon.
The sword was broken in half right in front of him, so he must have felt terrible, but he managed to hold it in until now. I felt sorry.
"I'm sorry, Brother. I was too flustered to think about the sword. I was planning to go to the market tomorrow anyway, so I'll try to find something decent."
"Tomorrow?"
"Yeah. Monk Kak-moon said tomorrow is market day. I need to buy some medicinal herbs that I can't find in the mountains. I need to buy you some clothes too. You can't leave the hermitage looking like that."
I looked at Yeon-ryang's Monk's Robe, which looked like it was haphazardly patched together from rags, with blurred vision.
If he went out like that, he would attract the attention of everyone in the world.
Yeon-ryang nodded as if he understood.
"It will be difficult to find clothes that fit me here. I'll need to add fabric to them, so ask for extra fabric to add to the clothes."
"Okay. How much should the sword weigh?"
"Around three geun would be good. The sword I used for a long time weighed about two geun and eight liang."
"That's pretty heavy. Okay. I'll try to match it as closely as possible."
I guess it should be about the weight of Ju-ryeong. I wish there was a decent sword.
I nodded and held out my hand to Yeon-ryang.
"Then give me the money pouch. I don't have any money."
"......Alright."
Yeon-ryang sighed and handed over the money pouch.
The next day, I made thorough preparations to go down the mountain from dawn.
I wore the clothes that Monk Kak-moon had lent me and applied some dirt to my face.
It was to blend in naturally among the people wearing plain clothes.
"Is this good enough? Does it look natural?"
"It's enough, stop applying it. You look like a neighborhood bully who goes around beating up the local kids."
Yeon-ryang, who was watching me, clicked his tongue.
"It's because my skin is fair, so I stand out. If I had known this would happen, I would have learned disguise techniques."
"It's not too late, So-hye. If you join the Lowborn Sect now, they'll even teach you Bone Tempering Skill."
"Still, I grew up in the Orthodox Faction, so the Lowborn Sect is out of the question."
Yeon-ryang smacked his lips at my reluctant reply.
"I don't know. When I see what you're doing, this brother of mine wonders if the Tang Clan can even be called the Orthodox Faction."
"What? Brother. I may be from the Tang Clan, but I'm walking the righteous path. I didn't abandon my injured brother and brought him here with loyalty."
"So you don't deny that the Tang Clan is far from the righteous path......"
He muttered and shook his head, then dusted off my crumpled clothes.
"Can I trust you......? Fur ball, you. Stay close to So-hye so she doesn't get lost. If she goes to the wrong place, you need to go and bring her back quickly."
"Kkii."
"Don't come out of your sleeve, watch carefully from inside, and if it looks like she's being ripped off, stop her from buying it. And if there's any suspicious movement, make her run away immediately. Can you do it?"
"Kki!"
Why are you telling Ju-ryeong all this? Tell me.
Yeon-ryang seemed uneasy about me going down the mountain alone.
He frowned and scratched his head for a long time, then waved his hand as if he didn't know what else to do.
"Worrying about it just gives me a headache. Go quickly. This bum will cook some rice."
"Okay. I'll be back."
I shrugged and left the mountain gate, and Yeon-ryang, who was seeing me off, shouted from behind.
"So-hye, be careful of people!"
"Don't worry, just cook, Brother!"
I shouted back and hurried down the mountain.
\ \ *
The market, which was held every nine days, was large for the size of the village.
There were farmers who came to sell vegetables and wheat harvested in the summer, and there were also wandering merchants selling household goods.
It was not difficult to understand why the small village was full of merchants.
"Hee-heeing!"
"Listen to me, you rascal! I told you to go quietly into the stable!"
There was a post station in the village.
It was a place where travelers on horses or carriages stopped to rest, so naturally there were many people.
I flinched at the sight of the post station guards standing watch, but I was relieved when I realized that they weren't even paying attention to me.
They were too busy being wary of the Martial Artists carrying swords on their waists to notice me.
In a street filled with express delivery caravans, foreigners who were staying overnight before crossing the mountains, and merchants who came to sell goods at the market, no one would pay attention to a child like me.
That's better. It's crowded, so I won't stand out.
Relieved, I blended into the crowd.
The herbal medicine shop and the fabric store were on the main street, so they were easy to find.
The buildings also looked quite large, so it seemed like I could easily find the things I needed.
However, the blacksmith was not easily found.
Why isn't there one? Is it in a remote place?
I walked around for a while, looking around, and soon I was quite far from the market.
Just as I was wondering if I should go back, an alley with a particularly strong smell of metal appeared.
I slowly entered the alley.
Inside the alley, an old man was sitting in front of an old blacksmith shop with no sign, tending to a sickle handle.
"Ahem."
When I made a loud noise, the old man looked up. I politely clasped my hands in front of me.
"Excuse me, Elder. I want to buy a sword."
"A sword, you say? Not a kitchen knife?"
"Yes. A sword for a Martial Artist to use."
"I don't think it's a sword for a young lady to use, so who's going to use it?"
"It's for our brother, no, Young Master. Where can I see them?"
"......A swordsman is telling his servant to buy him a sword? Some pretentious fool must have joined a martial arts academy."
The old man snorted at my question, pretending to be a servant girl, and gestured towards the corner.
"Pick one of those over there and take it."
Then he started tending to the sickle handle again.
He didn't seem to want to deal with me seriously.
I watched him carefully and moved towards the direction the old man had pointed.
Inside a box covered in dust, as if no one had looked for a long time, dozens of old swords were piled up messily.
They were all worthless iron swords at a glance.
I frowned and slightly pulled one of the swords out of its scabbard. As expected, it was made of low-quality iron.
It's even worse than what Yeon-ryang used to carry.
The other swords were in similar condition. Some of them had blades that were so worn that they looked like they would break even if they hit a tree branch.
Should I go to another blacksmith? I don't think there are any other blacksmiths in this area.
I bit my lip, agonizing over the state of the swords, which were worse than having none, when Ju-ryeong poked his head out of my clothes.
"I told you not to come out."
I pushed him back in with a small scolding, but he resisted with force and scratched my arm.
Not only that, but he jumped down and dragged out one of the swords.
The old man muttered from afar at the sound of him scurrying across the floor.
"What's that sound? Young lady, do you have a rat or something?"
"Yes? No! It's nothing, Elder! I'm just choosing a sword!"
As I shouted, the scabbard of the sword that Ju-ryeong had chosen fell to the floor with a thud because the fitting was not right.
My mouth dropped open.
"Oh my god."
My dumbfounded expression was reflected on the blue shining blade.
The smooth blade was sharpened so sharply that it looked like it could cut anything.
Even to an amateur like me, it was no ordinary object.
No, why is a sword like this buried among the dust?
I was so surprised that I could only gape, and Ju-ryeong scratched my knee, as if asking for praise.
"Good job, Ju-ryeong. When we get back, let's ask Yeon-ryang for a jar of honey."
"Kkit."
"Now go inside."
I shoved the excited guy who was jumping around back into my clothes and took out a Flying Dagger.
I took the strength out of my hand and tapped the Flying Dagger against the blade, and a clear, chilling sound rang out.
Kang!
It was such a clean sound that I was worried that the sword had broken.
I was startled and turned the blade around to examine it, but there wasn't a single scratch on the sword.
It's unscathed even after colliding with Woon Iron, so it's not an ordinary metal......
I widened my eyes and was about to bite my tongue as I observed the blade.
Wait a minute. This is also Woon Iron? They're treating a sword made of Woon Iron like this? Do they not know it's Woon Iron?
I have to buy it no matter what. I have to buy this no matter what. It would be even better if I could buy it cheap.
I quickly shoved the sword into the crumpled scabbard and approached the old man with a nonchalant expression.
"I'll take this sword. How much is it?"
Then the old man glanced at the sword I was holding and shook his head.
"That's not a sword for sale, young lady."
"Please sell it to me. Elder. Our Young Master needs this sword."
"I told you it's not for sale. I didn't make that sword. I'm just holding it for someone. I won't sell it even if you bring a thousand gold."
The old man said firmly.
Damn it, this isn't good.
I swallowed hard and met the old man's gaze.
Yeon-ryang needs a good sword that can withstand not using Inner Energy.
If I hadn't found this sword, I wouldn't have known, but now that I have it in my hand, I couldn't give up.
As I was wondering how to persuade the old man, I fiddled with the scabbard, and the old man gave me a strange look when he saw my wrist.
"Young lady. Can I take a look at that white jade bracelet?"
His eyes weren't coveting the bracelet, but I became instinctively wary. It wasn't a good thing to be noticed.
I pulled my sleeve down to cover the bracelet and mumbled.
"Ahaha, it's just a crudely made fake, so it's not something that an Elder like you would be interested in......"
"I know what it is."
"Yes?"
"That bracelet that the young lady is wearing. Someone I knew made it more than thirty years ago."
The old man frowned and stroked his beard as he scanned me up and down. He asked.
"Is the young lady from the Tang Clan?"
