Surviving as a Cripple in Murim – Chapter 19

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Teottry
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“But… your arm!!”

“It’s okay.”

My body trembled. Gwahae’s trembling was transmitted to me. Bewilderment, fear, guilt, and various other emotions poured out along with tears.

I hugged Gwahae tighter. Tightly… tightly… enough to forget any useless anxieties.

Perhaps because I had lost so much blood… my mind was hazy. I couldn’t remember clearly if it was from my previous life… or this one… but I recalled breaking a large flowerpot once.

It happened so long ago that I couldn’t even remember why I broke it. I must have been angry about something.

Breaking a flowerpot just because I was angry… such a barbaric childhood.

But the funny thing was, after breaking it myself, I was startled and frightened by the unexpectedly loud noise.

Unable to even think of running away, I just blankly stared at the broken pieces of the flowerpot and the pile of dirt scattered on the floor. Then, my mother rushed over and hugged me.

My mother didn’t even glance at the broken flowerpot. She just comforted me, asking if I was “okay” and if I was “hurt” anywhere.

It was a remnant of the past, a memory so faded it could hardly be called one. Yet, the warmth I felt then… so warm… so gentle…

A faint trace of that sensation still lingered in my heart.

Wanting to share even a little of the warmth I still felt with the child silently weeping in my arms, I held her tightly and comforted her.

“It’s okay… I don’t hate you… I don’t resent you… I’m not afraid….”

I forced a smile, my face contorting with pain as I met her tearful blue eyes, slowly looking up at me.

“I’m alright. I’m okay, so don’t cry.”

I never understood why master characters in manga always tried to look cool in front of their disciples, but now I did.

A master naturally wants to show only their best side to their disciple.

Ultimately, Gwahae couldn’t stop crying. Instead, she hugged me with both arms, sobbing uncontrollably until she finally fell asleep from exhaustion.

I wanted to sleep too, but I felt like I would fall into an eternal slumber if I did, so I struggled to stay awake.

Murmurs… murmurs…

“Young Master! Young Master! Are you alive?!”

I saw Jang-sam and several others approaching. They showed up after everything was over, just like the police in a B-grade horror movie.

I checked Gwahae’s face. She was sound asleep. I could finally drop the master act.

As people approached, the pain I had been ignoring, believing I would survive, now became a reality. Tears and agony overwhelmed me.

Seeing Jang-sam’s face pale as he rushed towards me, I burst into tears and cried out. I hadn’t intended to cry, but the pain was too much.

“Hng… so much has happened. Sniff… sob… It’s bad enough that I’m crippled in the leg… if I become crippled in the arm too, then I’m really doomed. Sob… It hurts so much, so quickly bring a physician. Hurry.”

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After injuring my arm, I finally understood why Shanks didn’t tell anyone that he lost his arm to a Sea King in the East Blue and instead boasted about “giving it” to the “New Era.”

“What?! How did your arm end up like this?”

“Well, actually, I was bitten by a ten years old girl.”

I could still vividly remember the physician’s crushed expression, as if he had just witnessed the world’s biggest idiot.

Shanks was truly a skilled fighter and a clever man. Next time, instead of being honest, I’ll say…

“Ah… this? I gave it to the future Pirate King.” and embellish the story.

Lost in such thoughts as I looked down at my bandaged left arm, Jegal Liang, who had come to visit, spoke to me, seemingly bored.

“How’s your arm?”

“Yes, it’s getting better thanks to you. But, was it really okay to give me that ‘Sohwandan’?”

The Sohwandan of the Shaolin Temple. A miraculous elixir made with various rare medicinal herbs and Shaolin’s secret techniques. When consumed, it could drastically increase one’s internal energy.

Though less effective than naturally formed elixirs, it still required a vast fortune and connections with the Shaolin Temple to acquire.

Even though I had used most of its energy to heal my body, my internal energy had still doubled compared to before the incident. The Shaolin’s “Hwandan” was truly extraordinary for a reason.

“You’re an arrogant brat, but your Go is beautiful. Beautiful things should be preserved in this world.”

Thanks to him, I survived, but he truly was a Go obsessed old man. Still, if it weren’t for Jegal Liang, my recovery would have taken much longer. I might have even lost my arm.

I would need to express my gratitude properly on another occasion.

Just as my opinion of Jegal Liang was rising considerably, he placed a Go board and stones in front of me.

“You seem well enough. Let’s play. Give me a two-stone handicap.”

“Elder, I’m injured, you know?”

When I gestured with my injured left arm, Jegal Liang pointed at my healthy right arm with his chin.

“The beauty of Go is that you can enjoy it even with one arm. If you don’t want to play, cough up the Sohwandan.”

This damn Go crazy geezer.

Since I couldn’t possibly vomit up something I had already digested, I reluctantly played Go with him. And since things had turned out this way, I decided to ask him about what had transpired while I was recovering.

Click. (Sound of a Go stone being placed.)

“There was talk within the Jegal Clan of eliminating Gwahae.”

“And?”

In response to my trembling question, Jegal Liang calmly placed another stone on the board.

“So, I ‘persuaded’ them otherwise. As I said before, I always keep my promises, especially those made with a fellow Go player.”

He kept his promise to look after Gwahae. It couldn’t have been easy. Despite his eccentricities, he was a man of his word.

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“Gwahae, you’re heavy. Get off~”

Gwahae’s cheek was squished against my outstretched right arm, but she refused to give up, pushing closer.

“No. I’ll sleep with you. We’ll be together forever.”

She was always a clingy child, like a baby chick following its mother, but ever since the incident, she had become even more attached. It was almost obsessive.

Wherever I went, she would ask, “Where are you going?” And if I spoke to someone else, especially a girl, she would interrupt with, “Who is she?”

Even now, she was pushing against my arm, determined to get into my bed. I thought about scolding her, but her struggling was so endearing that I couldn’t help but smile.

It was too late to keep her at arm’s length.

Eventually, I softened and moved to the left side of the bed, pulling back the covers to make room for Gwahae.

“Alright, come here.”

“Okay!”

Gwahae smiled brightly, a rare sight, as she slipped under the covers and hugged me.

It was the middle of summer, so it could get hot sharing a bed, but Gwahae’s skin was soft and cool, making it surprisingly comfortable.

The problem was, she tended to climb on top of me in her sleep. It was uncomfortable, and with my injured left arm, I needed to be extra careful.

“If you climb on me tonight… wha-a? She’s already asleep.”

Gwahae was already fast asleep, breathing softly.

I didn’t want to wake her up just to nag, so I decided to let it go. I was tired.

As Mancheon closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep, two glowing blue eyes opened in the darkness of the room.

Gwahae stared intently at Mancheon’s sleeping face in the moonlight. Silently… silently… she watched him until he was deeply asleep.

Once she was sure he was completely out, Gwahae carefully removed the covers and climbed on top of Mancheon, curling up on his chest like a small animal preparing for a nap.

She pressed her ear against his chest and listened to his heartbeat.

Thump-thump. Alive. Safe.

With the steady rhythm of Mancheon’s heart as her lullaby, Gwahae finally fell asleep.

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Late at night, when everyone was asleep…

Assassins from the Jegal Clan, dispatched by elders from a rival faction… or rather, assassins with no remaining ties to the Jegal Clan… approached the guest quarters where Mancheon and Gwahae slept.

“A quick kill and a swift escape.”

“According to the intel, the Sima child is also present.”

The apparent leader of the assassins drew his sword.

“It doesn’t matter. The Sima clan is all money and no power. The elders will take care of it.”

The masked assassins nodded and drew their weapons.

Ten assassins approached the sleeping Mancheon and Gwahae, intent on ending their lives. Then, there were eight.

“Gah—!”

Two assassins collapsed without a sound, dead before they hit the ground. While the remaining eight were still reeling from the sudden deaths, two more fell.

Now there were six.

“Gather around!”

As the leader shouted, two more assassins died. Four remained.

This wasn’t supposed to happen. This was supposed to be an easy mission. Just killing two sleeping children.

Something flickered in the darkness and flew towards the leader. He instinctively raised his sword to block it.

Clang!

The sound of metal clashing against metal echoed in the silent night. The leader had blocked the projectile, but his subordinate hadn’t.

Three assassins remained.

They focused their senses, straining to see anything in the darkness. They enhanced their vision, and finally, they saw a figure emerge from the shadows.

It was a nondescript figure, average height and build, an ordinary face. It was impossible to believe this person had just killed six of their comrades in an instant.

And more importantly, they recognized the face. They had thoroughly investigated Mancheon and Gwahae’s surroundings after receiving the mission. This man was just an ordinary servant. How could he…

“Sima Clan servant Jang… Sam…bung?”

“Drop the ‘bung.’ Sounds stupid.”

As Jang-sam spoke, he flicked another metal ball. It pierced the heart of another assassin.

Two assassins left.

“H-how can someone like you?! The Sima Clan is nothing but…”

“Heh… hehehehehe.”

The leader’s desperate cry was drowned out by Jang-sam’s chilling laughter. He looked at the leader with an incredulous expression.

“The Sima Clan is the last family you should trust at face value. You shouldn’t believe everything you see.”

“Who are you?”

“A Sima Clan servant, bodyguard, and assassin.”

As Jang-sam finished speaking, he flicked another metal ball.

Clang!

The leader thought he had blocked it, but a second ball followed immediately, piercing his body.

“Gah… Urgh!”

The leader fell to his knees, then collapsed onto the ground. Jang-sam approached him and spoke gently.

“We’re both the same, living by staining our hands with the blood of others. Don’t worry about your body. I’ll take care of it.”

Jang-sam placed his hand on the leader’s face, and then, something unbelievable happened. Even as he was dying, the leader couldn’t believe his eyes.

He was looking down at himself.

“Ah… ah… Is this what my voice sounds like? Gather around!”

The leader lost consciousness and died, his last moments consumed by the horrifying sight.

Jang-sam, disguised as the leader, called out to the remaining assassins.

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Jang-sam is a Master disguised as servants?!😱