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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Teottry
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Mancheon’s eyes, unusually cold and sharp, pointed at Xiaoshao, who looked unwell.
“This isn’t what I taught you martial arts for.”
“Martial arts are just tools. How they are used is up to the individual.”
His senior brother’s casual words ignited a fury within him, his mind becoming preternaturally calm.
Seeing the girl he had wanted to protect hurt, and his respected master’s teachings twisted, he no longer hesitated.
“Don’t you dare approach my Lady Xiaoshao again!”
Perhaps sensing something amiss, the North Sea Ice Palace guards who had been waiting downstairs approached, but Mancheon paid them no mind.
He simply took a step forward.
Immovable King Stance – Suppression
-Crash!!
The guard who had been approaching Mancheon was slammed into the floor.
“What was… that?!”
“S-sorcery…?”
“It’s a martial art. Stay out of this.”
Mudan calmed the startled guards with a gesture and slowly raised his sword towards Mancheon, who was walking straight towards him.
“If you come any closer…”
He didn’t bother listening. Ignoring Mudan’s words, he continued to close the distance.
Mudan’s left eyebrow twitched slightly, and
the beautiful snowflakes began to dance again. A cold petal grazed Mancheon’s cheek.
But… he didn’t stop.
Only the sound of his staff echoed through the silent inn.
“You’re approaching despite my warning. Why?”
He clenched his fist and answered the foolish question.
“Because I can’t beat you if I don’t get closer.”
Further conversation was unnecessary.
They observed each other, preparing to unleash the martial arts they had learned from their master.
Now, only ten steps separated them.
And suddenly, Mancheon’s feet stopped moving.
Or rather, they were stopped. By slender fingers gripping his back.
“Young Master Sima… I’m… fine… Please don’t fight.”
Xiaoshao, struggling to stand, pleaded, clutching Mancheon’s clothes.
“Please…”
Her ragged breaths, the slight trembling of her frail hand…
He couldn’t bring himself to push her away.
There was someone he needed to beat down right in front of him, but he couldn’t.
Swallowing his rising anger, he turned and lifted Xiaoshao into his arms.
Xiaoshao’s eyes widened as she was held in a princess carry, buried in Mancheon’s embrace. All eyes in the inn were on them.
“You shouldn’t do this… I… I…”
As “Nangong’s Young Master”, she tried to push Mancheon away, embarrassed by the attention, but
“Brother Nangong, do you really want to see me lose it?”
his low, emotion-laden voice silenced her.
“Just… don’t say anything and… lean on me for now.”
He held her close, not as the “Little Emperor”, the “Sword Dragon”, or “Nangong’s Young Master”, but as a frail, injured girl.
He shared his warmth with her cold body.
“Jang Sam, let’s go.”
Mancheon carried Xiaoshao in his arms and walked out of the inn.
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In a private room within the Martial Alliance headquarters,
perhaps it was a blessing in disguise, but when he mentioned Xiaoshao’s condition,
Zi Lu, the Martial Alliance leader, who was effectively Xiaoshao’s backer, sent a physician familiar with the Nangong Family’s situation.
According to the physician, Xiaoshao would recover if she avoided cold food, took her medicine, and rested, which was a relief.
As he was catching his breath, the immediate crisis averted,
“Um… Young Master? There’s a visitor… What should I do?”
“A visitor?”
He followed Jang Sam and found the young mistress of the North Sea Ice Palace,
“U-um… Sister Xiaoshao…”
Xue Yuehua, standing there nervously, fidgeting and looking around.
“How dare you show your face here! Are you here for a free meal?!”
Realizing that Yuehua might have been in cahoots with Mudan, he snapped at her.
“N-no… I… I didn’t know.”
Her usually bright and cheerful golden eyes flickered with tears.
“Please believe me… Is she alright? If something happens to Sister Xiaoshao… I… I…”
Seeing Yuehua crying and asking about Xiaoshao, a mixture of annoyance and pity welled up inside him. He raised his voice without thinking.
“Stop asking about Xiaoshao! Is she your mother?!”
Jang Sam chimed in, adding insult to injury.
“That’s right! Or is it that you don’t have a mother to care for you?”
“Gasp!?”
It was like a bucket of cold water had been dumped over his head. Jang Sam’s unexpected verbal attack brought him back to his senses.
“Hey, Jang Sam, that’s a bit harsh, don’t you think?”
“Stay out of this, Young Master. Spoiled brats like this need to be reminded of their lost mothers to straighten them out.”
He tried to stop Jang Sam, but it was too late.
“Sob… sniffle… I-it’s true… I don’t have a mother…”
The mournful cries of Xue Yuehua, a motherless child, echoed through the room.
“I don’t have a mother… or an aunt… Sniffle… If something happens to Sister Xiaoshao…”
Seeing her tears streaming down her cheeks, he couldn’t help but sigh, feeling a pang of sympathy.
‘Well… it’s not her fault.’
Yuehua had been happily anticipating spending time with Xiaoshao before the incident.
Then, suddenly, her respected brother and her cousin had a sword fight, and her cousin ended up collapsing and being carried away to a hospital room.
She must be terrified and confused.
He pulled out a handkerchief, wiped her tears, and patted her back.
“Hey… I’m sorry for snapping at you. You must have been shocked. Xiaoshao will be fine.”
“Sniffle… Really?”
“Really. The physician examined her. She said Xiaoshao will recover if she takes her medicine and rests.”
As he was comforting Yuehua, who had calmed down and was now sniffling,
Jang Sam, who had been made out to be the bad guy,
muttered sullenly, his fists clenched, his lips pursed in a pout.
“Just saying… you do have a father and a brother.”
“Shut up, you brat!!”
He really knew how to pick the wrong battles.
“It’s hard having someone to look after.”
“Whenever I hear that they’re hurt or sick, I get so worried I can’t focus on anything.”
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Zi Lu, his senior brother, the Martial Alliance leader, arrived later, and he spoke, leaning against the wall in the hallway.
“You’re quite devoted. Why don’t you punish the one responsible then?”
“It’s complicated. The only support Xiaoshao has within the Nangong Family is her mother’s family, the North Sea Ice Palace. If this incident becomes public, Xiaoshao will be seen as a political fool betrayed by her own family.”
Zi Lu’s eyes, softening in a way that was invisible to others, looked towards the door of Xiaoshao’s room.
“And if I interfere, it’ll just make things worse and create more distance between them.”
“I think the distance was already created when she poisoned Xiaoshao’s tea.”
“It wasn’t life-threatening. She must have thought it through and decided not to cross the line.”
“Are you taking her side because she’s your junior sister?”
“No, that’s not it. More importantly, I’ve been meaning to tell you, you have a good eye for martial arts.”
His gaze shifted to Mancheon.
“Anyway, don’t get involved and stay out of this. This is Xiaoshao’s problem to solve.”
“What if I refuse?”
“Then Xiaoshao will have to witness another person she cares about getting hurt because of her.”
‘Someone she cares about? Hurt?’
Unable to ignore those words, he pushed himself off the wall and stood up straight, facing Zi Lu.
“What do you mean?”
Zi Lu scratched the back of his head, thinking for a moment, then made up his mind.
“It’s a long story. Let’s change locations.”
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In the Martial Alliance leader’s private office,
he was shocked by the story Zi Lu told him: the prophecy Xiaoshao had been burdened with since birth, the reason for her disguise as a boy, the brutal murder of her parents by the assassin Wu Ming when she was only twelve.
He finally understood why Xiaoshao had begged him not to fight.
She had been afraid.
Afraid of witnessing another person she cared about getting hurt and collapsing before her eyes, just like her parents, who had been her whole world.
Afraid of losing her faith.
“What kind of person is this Wu Ming?”
“I don’t know. He’s my disciple’s enemy, so I’ve been gathering information about him, but I haven’t found much.”
“I don’t know where he was born, or his real name. All I know is the martial arts he uses, and…”
Zi Lu pulled out a cigarette, lit it with a flick of his finger, took a deep drag, and exhaled.
“that he worked for one of the Four Pillars of the Demonic Sects as an assassin before he killed a member of the imperial family and became a public enemy of the martial world.”
“His alias back then was the Iron Dog. That’s the biggest clue we have right now.”
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Well that’s your uncle bruh…
