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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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It seemed that Sayoon and Yoohee were just as surprised to see me. As they stared at me with wide eyes, I shrugged.
“You don’t look like you’re here to buy anything. What brings you here?”
“Oh, well…”
Sayoon chuckled awkwardly, scratching her cheek. A faint blush spread across her cheeks, perhaps because she was embarrassed to talk about it.
Or maybe she was ashamed to be out here without finishing the homework Hongryeon had given her.
Either way, this was a good sight.
“Sayoon’s been a bit stressed lately, so I brought her out. It happened to be her day off. I thought she’d just keep fretting by herself if I left her alone.”
“Hmm, it’s important to let loose sometimes.”
“Right? But this one is so uptight.”
“Ahahaha, Senior Sister, I’m getting dizzy~!”
Yoohee grabbed Sayoon’s head and shook it vigorously. Yoohee kept shaking her head until Sayoon’s eyes seemed to spin, as she let out a strained laugh.
I’m so jealous!
I want to do that too!
But the authorities were near, and the guards were scary, so I didn’t reach out. All I could do was maintain my composure and watch with a contented smile.
Even just this was enough to fill me with a sense of accomplishment.
“What a coincidence. It’s almost dinner time… would you like to have a meal with me if you’re not busy?”
“Eh? But…”
“Of course, I’m not offering to just feed you.”
“We can’t accept missions yet. If you want to request something from the Hongseong Sect…”
“It’s nothing grand, so don’t worry. It’s just… well, something that happened today…”
I told them about the Five Animal Frolics I learned today. Perhaps because I mentioned things they knew, their eyes sparkled, and they nodded.
“Ah, I see. You’re asking for help with practicing the Five Animal Frolics?”
“That’s right.”
After thinking for a moment, Sayoon smiled brightly. Oh my god! Sayoon smiled so brightly!
Screenshot! I need to take a screenshot!
It’s a shame I don’t have a camera.
“I know a little about the Five Animal Frolics.”
Really?
“I learned it from Senior Sister Ryuhyeon. As for Senior Sister Yoohee…”
“Ah, I didn’t learn it. I’m learning a different healing technique from my family.”
“Then I might be able to help a little.”
Perhaps it was due to her youthful spirit, but Sayoon puffed out her small chest and spoke with pride.
This was even better.
“Then, could you help me out whenever you have time? Of course, you don’t have to do it every day.”
Honestly, I wished she would come every day, but that was just my greed. Since I wanted to prevent the destruction of the Hongseong Sect and for her to grow stronger, Sayoon needed to learn as much as possible at the Hongseong Sect before the Iron Blood Clan arrived.
“If it’s just that much… Yes!”
“In return, I’ll treat you to a meal and a box of candy. Or I can give you money if you prefer…”
“Well… then, I would prefer a meal and candy…”
Sayoon glanced at me cautiously.
“Could you… possibly reduce the cost of goods we purchase from your store for the Hongseong Sect?”
She fidgeted, twisting her body as if worried that her words might offend me. She looked like a pretzel.
It wasn’t a burdensome request. The cost of goods for the Hongseong Sect wasn’t that much anyway.
And she was only asking for a discount on a portion of their purchases.
And in return, I would get one-on-one lessons from Sayoon?
How could I resist this offer?
“In that case, I’d like to request it.”
At my answer, Sayoon beamed.
I really wished I had a camera.
Anyway, it was getting late, and we couldn’t skip dinner, so I brought the two girls back to the inn.
They refused several times, but after I insisted, they finally nodded.
But seeing them order only noodles, as if determined not to order anything expensive, showed just how stubborn they both were.
“I don’t have anything to teach you, Innkeeper.”
“Haha, you never know.”
“Sigh… I’m full. That was a delicious meal.”
“You’re welcome. Now, to help with digestion…”
“Ah, yes.”
We went out to the backyard of the inn. The sun had already set, but the lanterns illuminating the inn provided enough light to see clearly.
“You said you learned the Five Animal Frolics today for the first time, right? Can you show me a simple demonstration?”
“Of course.”
I performed the Five Animal Frolics in front of Sayoon. First, the metal form. I put strength into my extended leg and made circles with my arms. As I slowly rotated my waist, assuming the metal form,
“You need to lower your stance more.”
Sayoon’s small foot pressed against my thigh. She lightly climbed onto my back and pressed her hands against my shoulders, applying pressure.
“Seeing you throw stones the other day, I think learning some throwing techniques wouldn’t be bad… Of course, the Five Animal Frolics isn’t bad either.”
“Ugh, that’s something for later… Gah!”
“There, there, you need to pull your arms further back.”
Her small, light body moved around me, gripping onto me as if she were a monkey performing acrobatics. She jumped off my thigh, wrapped her arms around my neck, and then pulled my bent back straight with her knees.
As I assumed the correct posture, Sayoon whispered in my ear from behind.
“This is the ‘metal’ form of the Five Animal Frolics. It also embodies the tiger’s energy. So, you need to be stronger, more imposing.”
The Taoist didn’t go this far…
Sayoon spoke seriously as she pressed against my back.
“This posture is called the ‘tiger’s stance.’ Now, if you extend your arms from here, you’ll achieve the ‘fierce tiger’s stance’…”
After about half an hour, I was finally released from Sayoon’s grip.
Was it good or bad? Honestly, it was good.
After all, it was like receiving instruction from my favorite character.
And perhaps thanks to the fact that practicing it daily would improve my health and longevity, my body, which had been aching just a moment ago, now felt full of energy.
“Alright! Good work. Please practice every day from now on. You know the saying, ‘Constant dripping wears away a stone’?”
Consistency was the most important factor in mastering martial arts.
I burst out laughing at her words.
“Huh? Did I… say something strange?”
“No, it’s just a very good saying. Consistency. Yes, consistency is important.”
“Of course! Master always says that too!”
I nodded.
‘Constant dripping wears away a stone’ was one of the key phrases in Sayoon’s first enlightenment event.
If she could grasp the other phrase, learning the Meteor Fist wouldn’t be difficult.
“Anyway, good job. It’s getting late… You should head back now.”
“Hehe, okay. Senior Sister Yoohee, have you been waiting long?”
“Hmm? No, not at all. I was meditating. Let’s go now. Innkeeper Yu Wol, we’ll be taking our leave.”
The two girls bowed and left the inn. I watched them go and then took out a cigarette and put it in my mouth.
“Did you just have a little playdate?”
A sharp voice came from above. I looked up and saw a woman with an indifferent expression leaning against the railing.
“From the perspective of the Moonjeong Sect, it would indeed be considered a playdate, guest.”
“…Honestly.”
The sharp, black-haired beauty, wearing what seemed to be the Moonjeong Sect’s signature full-body tights, gracefully jumped down from the railing.
Her long, slender legs, ending in high-heeled boots, landed on the stone floor without a sound.
It was truly the movement of a master, as light as a feather.
Chae-jin, the senior disciple of the Moonjeong Sect, brushed her hair back, pulled a chair from the backyard, and sat down as if she owned the place. Then, she spoke leisurely,
“You were learning the Five Animal Frolics this morning, and now you’re asking the Hongseong Sect for corrections…”
“Is there a problem with that?”
“No, not really. It’s just… If you’re going to learn, wouldn’t it be better to learn properly?”
Chae-jin smirked and flicked her finger. A golden light flashed, cutting through the darkness.
Masters of the first-rate and above could freely control their internal energy and manifest their Qi at will.
It was no longer about borrowing the power of techniques, but about perfectly controlling Qi through their own will.
I watched her and smiled.
“So, you’re saying the Moonjeong Sect wants to teach me. Is that it?”
“The Moonjeong Sect is different from the Hongseong Sect. We accept anyone as a disciple as long as they pay the entrance fee.”
“And only a select few among those disciples become your personal students, right?”
“Oh my? You seem to know a lot about the Moonjeong Sect.”
She winked and chuckled. Then she slowly rose from her seat and approached me gracefully.
“Power shouldn’t be given to those who can’t awaken it themselves. And the Moonjeong Sect only differentiates between inner and outer disciples based on that criteria.”
“So, am I worthy of entering the inner circle?”
“Would you like to? But even outer disciples are taught proper martial arts, even if they don’t learn the Moonlit Divine Art of the Moonjeong Sect.”
Her soft hand, moving as if she were dancing, landed on my shoulder. She gently stroked it and guided my arm.
“The enemy does not move, I do not move; the enemy moves slightly, I move first.”
Her low voice accompanied the extension of my arm, adding a twist to the movement.
Standing beside me, Chae-jin’s hand descended softly, like a butterfly fluttering its wings.
“Intention, not force. Everything has its place. Martial arts are no different. There’s no need to use force. All you need is rotation and fluidity.”
Her hand, which had landed softly, shot upwards. But there was no ferocity, only fluidity.
She guided my arm as if it were a willow leaf swaying in the wind. Then, she gracefully stepped back, sat down, and extended her left leg.
And in an instant, she spun.
-Whoosh!!
“Distinguish between emptiness and fullness. You must understand the difference between empty and full to move correctly.”
-Whoosh!! Whoosh!!
I moved along with her movements. It wasn’t a particularly fast movement.
But each swing of her hands and feet carried enough force to create gusts of wind.
And the fallen leaves caught in the wind formed a circle, then split in two within that circle.
Yin and Yang.
Beside me, as I controlled the wind that formed the Taiji symbol, Chae-jin spoke calmly,
“Inner and outer harmony. Opposition leads to the ultimate, and the ultimate leads to unity. When the inner and outer are aligned, when the top and bottom support each other, and all movements are connected seamlessly…”
-Whoosh!!
Her spinning body stopped. My hand, which had been gathering the wind, stopped.
And what was created was…
A Taiji symbol formed around me.
“The Taiji is formed.”
And an even larger Taiji symbol, a Grand Taiji, formed by Chae-jin.
“This is the introductory martial art of the Moonjeong Sect, the Chae Family Taijiquan.”
Chae Family Taijiquan.
It was one of the martial arts that could be learned from Chae-jin upon completing the first stage of her relationship event.
Even though it was an introductory martial art, it wasn’t bad.
If mastered to its peak, it could trigger the “Understanding of Softness” event, and like the Five Animal Frolics, simply practicing it could slowly accumulate Qi, or internal energy.
Moreover, it was a Taoist martial art, so it had good synergy with the Five Animal Frolics.
But I hadn’t built any significant relationship with Chae-jin yet…
I looked at her, and she avoided my gaze, blushing deeply. Then, she spoke in a small, almost inaudible voice,
“I-I’ll teach you this, but I didn’t bring enough travel funds, so could you… give me a discount on the room…”
Ah, I couldn’t say no to a discount.
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