The Downfall of the Golden Lion
“It’s been a while, Mr. Kim Soo-hyun.”
”…”
“I heard you’ve started a new clan. Congratulations.”
Yoo Hyun-ah spoke to me in a calm voice, though it seemed like she was forcing herself to appear composed. I couldn’t fathom what she hoped to gain by coming here, but her congratulatory words left me unmoved.
“I established the clan earlier today. You have quite the quick information network.”
“Should I take that as a compliment?”
“That’s up to you.”
“It sounded sarcastic to me, as if you were implying I dug around for it.”
“There’s a saying: ‘A guilty conscience needs no accuser.’ I’m glad to see you’re not hard of hearing.”
I retorted sharply, and Yoo Hyun-ah’s expression twisted. The two people standing behind her mirrored her reaction. I recognized Cha Seung-hyun from before, and next to him was a woman watching me with interest.
Her hair and eyes weren’t the usual black. Her hair was tied back in a deep red hue, and her slender face was framed by it. Her eyes, a striking shade of purple, looked at me with a peculiar gaze. The thick robe she wore identified her as Ban Da-hee, the so-called “Crazy Woman.”
She turned slightly to Cha Seung-hyun and laughed.
“Brother~? Is that the guy you mentioned? What did he just say? He’s got no manners.”
“Ban Da-hee, keep quiet.”
Cha Seung-hyun quickly admonished her, but the words were already out. She had raised her voice as if to ensure I heard, and the expressions of my clan members hardened instantly. As the tension crackled in the air, Yoo Hyun-ah turned around, flustered. Ban Da-hee shrugged and snorted derisively.
“Sigh. I have something urgent to tell you.”
“I’m not interested.”
“Please, just a moment. I received some very urgent news.”
“Urgent news?”
The mention of urgent news piqued my interest. Could it be about the expedition to the Iron Mountains? I sat back down, my curiosity piqued, and looked at Yoo Hyun-ah intently. She gauged my reaction carefully before speaking in a slightly trembling voice.
“We just received communication about the Iron Mountains expedition.”
“Hmm. Congratulations. It seems the expedition ended sooner than expected. Now, Mule can finally move beyond being a frontier town.”
”…”
I watched her reaction as I spoke words I didn’t mean. As expected, she merely pursed her lips. I decided to press further.
“Even so, I must decline any offer to join the Mercenary Clan under the Beech Tree. We have our own goals, and they can’t be achieved in Mule.”
“Wait, that’s not what I meant.”
“Didn’t you assure us last time that it would be a success?”
“I think there’s been a misunderstanding. No, I misspoke. The Iron Mountains expedition… failed.”
As I suspected. The moment they entered the Iron Mountains, the powerful magical interference would have cut off communication. The fact that we received a message meant a few lucky users had managed to escape. A mage capable of communication magic must have sent a distress signal.
“That’s unfortunate.”
“Yes, it is. We don’t know the details yet, but…”
“And why are you telling us this?”
Yoo Hyun-ah bit her lip, at a loss for words. She had boasted that success in the Iron Mountains would bring prosperity to Mule, but reality had turned out quite differently. Instead of prosperity, they faced uncertainty. And since I had already made it clear we wouldn’t stay even if they succeeded, she had nothing left to say.
“If there’s nothing else, we’ll be on our way. We’re a bit busy. Ahn Hyun, Ahn Sol, Lee Yoo-jung, grab a bag each. Share the rest with the other clan members.”
“Yes, brother.”
“Okay.”
The kids glanced between me and Yoo Hyun-ah before getting up. Watching them, I saw Yoo Hyun-ah bite her lip even harder. As they started moving towards the bags, I was about to stand up myself.
“Hey, you three~. Stop~!”
Ban Da-hee, who had been watching with her arms crossed, stepped forward.
“Pick up the bags. Don’t dawdle.”
Her stern voice made the kids pause, but they nodded reluctantly.
“Sigh~. So full of hot air. Acting like they’re something special with zero experience.”
As I moved to leave, Ban Da-hee sighed dramatically. Then she uncrossed her arms and extended her hands forward. A reddish orb began to form in her palms. Before Yoo Hyun-ah and Cha Seung-hyun could stop her, she grinned and spoke in a playful voice.
“Brother~. Sister~. Let’s play~!”
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
As Ban Da-hee slammed her arms down, a powerful shockwave rippled through the inn’s floor. It split the space between the kids and the bags, leaving a deep crater. Watching the splintered wood fly, she burst into laughter.
“Ban Da-hee! What are you doing?”
“You promised to behave…”
“Ha ha. You’re too uptight, sis. And that guy’s attitude was infuriating. Ah, that felt good! Oh, I feel a bit sorry for the innkeeper. Hee hee.”
No matter how prestigious the clan, they couldn’t ignore this. I glanced at my waist, where the Sun’s Glory and the Moonlight Sword were sheathed. Just as I was deciding which to draw, I sensed someone rising. Turning, I saw Go Yeon-joo, the innkeeper, with a sly smile, her fingers twitching.
“I’m the innkeeper.”
“Oh? You’re the innkeeper? Now that I think about it, you’re the Shadow Queen, Go Yeon-joo, one of the top ten. Perfect. I’ve been wanting to face you. But tell me, Shadow Queen, is it hard to make a living these days? Running an inn? Ha ha ha!”
“Ho ho. You’re quite the madwoman, aren’t you?”
“Yep! How did you know? My nickname is ‘Crazy Woman.’ Guilty as charged!”
Ban Da-hee laughed, continuing to provoke Go Yeon-joo. Yoo Hyun-ah covered her face with her hands, and Cha Seung-hyun was at a loss, trying to calm her down. In a way, Ban Da-hee reminded me of Lee Yoo-jung in the early days. The difference was that Lee Yoo-jung had gradually changed under my guidance, while Ban Da-hee seemed to be beyond Yoo Hyun-ah’s control, running wild like a loose cannon.
I decided to take advantage of the situation and activated my third eye. Given that she would eventually become one of the top ten, I was curious about her current stats.
Name: Ban Da-hee (3rd Year)
Class: Normal Warrior Expert
Nation: Babara
Clan: Beech Tree
True Name · Nationality: Mentally Unstable, South Korea
Sex: Female (22)
Height · Weight: 167.2cm · 54.2kg
Disposition: Barbarism · Desire
(12 stat points remaining)
[Strength 96(+2)] [Endurance 92] [Agility 98] [Stamina 72] [Magic 96] [Luck 90(+2)]
(No stat points remaining)
[Strength 89] [Endurance 90] [Agility 97] [Stamina 85] [Magic 93] [Luck 82]
[Strength 94] [Endurance 87] [Agility 81] [Stamina 88] [Magic 79] [Luck 55]
Look at her. While her stats weren’t on par with the top ten, considering she would eventually join their ranks alongside Cha Seung-hyun, she still had room to grow. Her stats were impressive enough to be a high-ranking member of a major clan. I couldn’t help but be a little impressed.
The atmosphere had grown tense. Go Yeon-joo reached into her thigh holster and drew a gleaming dagger. Ban Da-hee, seeing this, grinned and readied herself. It was a powder keg waiting to explode. But then…
“Sigh.”
Go Yeon-ju let out a soft sigh and lowered the hand holding the dagger. Ban Da-hee, who had been licking her lips with an eager expression, pouted in disappointment. Clicking her tongue, she spoke in a voice dripping with regret.
“What? Did the great Ten Tails chicken out? Wow, what a letdown…”
Just then, as Ban Da-hee shook her head in disbelief, a shadow as dark as night swiftly swept across her face.
Slap!
“Whoa…!”
With a sharp crack, Ban Da-hee’s head snapped to the right. Yoo Hyun-ah, Cha Seung-hyun, and the others, who had been mere spectators, stared at her in shock. No one had moved, yet Ban Da-hee’s head had turned on its own, accompanied by the sound of a slap. I watched Go Yeon-ju with a calm expression. She stood there, her hand still lowered, maintaining a distance from Ban Da-hee. At least, it appeared that way.
Slap!
“Ouch!”
Another crisp sound echoed, and this time Ban Da-hee’s head jerked to the left. She tried to regain her composure, her face a mask of fury, but Go Yeon-ju’s shadowy slaps were far from over.
Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap! Slap!
Right. Left. Right. Left. Right. Left. Right. Left. Each time the shadow brushed her cheek, Ban Da-hee’s head whipped back and forth with a resounding crack. The blows were so powerful that eventually, it wasn’t just her head but her entire body that was being dragged along.
Yet Go Yeon-ju didn’t let her collapse. She kept Ban Da-hee upright, relentlessly delivering slap after slap, like a boxer caught in a Dempsey Roll.
“You wretched…!”
After taking a thorough beating, Ban Da-hee staggered back as Go Yeon-ju finally ceased her shadowy assault. Her cheeks were covered in red handprints, and her face was twisted with rage, her eyes blazing with a murderous intent.
“Spit. I’m really going to kill you.”
“Ban Da-hee! Stop it!”
“Get out of my way!”
Cha Seung-hyun tried to intervene, but before he could even approach, Ban Da-hee lunged forward with the agility of a tiger, closing the distance in an instant and swinging her fist at Go Yeon-ju with all her might.
Boom! Crash!
The violent noise reverberated through the inn’s first floor. Ban Da-hee’s punch had only succeeded in shattering the innocent floorboards. Realizing she had missed her target, she growled in frustration, whipping her head around.
“What the hell? Where did she go?”
“Right here.”
The Shadow Queen had already moved to Ban Da-hee’s side. Hearing her voice, Ban Da-hee spun around, but Go Yeon-ju was already poised to strike. With the grace of a rhythmic gymnast, she extended her right leg high into the air. Through the gap of her raised leg, a glimpse of her azure underwear… No, never mind. Go Yeon-ju smiled softly at Ban Da-hee, who was staring up at her in a daze.
Then, she brought her leg down with full force toward Ban Da-hee’s head.
Thud!
“Ugh!”
As a brief aside, the entire exchange between Go Yeon-ju and Ban Da-hee lasted less than four seconds. When the dust from the impact settled, Ban Da-hee lay with her head buried in the floor, Go Yeon-ju’s heel firmly planted on the back of her head.
Go Yeon-ju wiggled her foot slightly, tapping Ban Da-hee’s head.
“This is for damaging my inn.”
“User Go Yeon-ju!”
“This is for speaking to me so rudely.”
Yoo Hyun-ah’s urgent voice rang out, but Go Yeon-ju paid no heed, continuing to press her heel down. Oh, this time it was a bit stronger. As her foot moved, Ban Da-hee’s head bobbed back and forth like a spring. She lay sprawled out like a dead frog, though the occasional twitch suggested she was still alive.
“And this is for…”
Go Yeon-ju glanced at me with a wink. I shrugged, giving her the go-ahead.
Once more, Go Yeon-ju’s foot soared into the air, and Ban Da-hee’s face twitched as she struggled to lift her head. But as soon as she did, Go Yeon-ju brought her leg down with a force that seemed to split the sky.
Thud!
“For speaking out of turn to our Soo-hyun.”
The head that had barely lifted crashed back down with a resounding thud. Only then did Go Yeon-ju smile brightly, looking down with satisfaction. Following her gaze, I saw Ban Da-hee’s limbs twitching uncontrollably.
---------------------------= Author’s Note ---------------------------=
Hello, this is Ro Yu-jin.
Dear readers, I’m sorry I couldn’t update over the weekend. ;ㅇ; As you know, tomorrow—or today, if you’re reading this note—marks the start of the dreaded exam period, making it difficult to post updates. I’ll do my best to keep them coming. I ask for your understanding. ㅜ.ㅠ
『 Reader Comments 』
Sensitive: Congratulations on being first! I think this is the first time I’ve seen you in the top comment spot, right? :) I hope you enjoy this chapter.
EyeSeeYou: You’re a consistent fan of An-sol and Vivian! Haha. If you had to choose between the two, who would it be? ’~’
Infernius: Phew. Let’s hang in there together. I’ve skimmed through it once, but just in case, I’ll review it again. ㅜ.ㅠ
Ashen Wings: I started with a trial run by taking down “Crazy Ban Da-hee.” Ahahaha.
Celestial Blood God: … Why, why are you doing this? ㅜ.ㅠ I’m not a woman. I’m a man. It’s scary when you keep saying that. ’-’
Peaceful: Really? Is my cliffhanger technique that intense? Ahahaha! If that’s true, it’s about time I mastered the art of continuous updates. I’d love to hear feedback from others too. Haha.
Repil: Yoo Hyun-ah is, in a way, a bit of a disappointing character. Initially, she was set up as a complete nuisance… Who knows how she’ll change later on. Hehe. :)
Gongho7: No, it’s not necessary for the protagonist to step in when the other side has sent a subordinate. It’s only fair to send a subordinate too. The catch is that the subordinate is the Shadow Queen. Hehe.
Idrian: Kim Han-byeol is a character that really divides opinions. Hahaha. There are many readers like you who dislike him, and just as many who support him. I wonder what will happen when they reunite. :)
[DeepBLue]: Oops. Correction complete. Thank you. I made a lot of mistakes early on because I copied and pasted the magic user settings. ㅜ.ㅠ Ah, yes. Shin Sang-yong is a lucky case. :)
Devil’s Shrine: An-sol Ver. Hee. I’m sorry. I just wanted to try it once. You’ll forgive me, right? Hehe. Aiying~. Yes. I’m really sorry. I sincerely hope your monitor survives, Devil’s Shrine. :D
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