The Protagonist’s Daddy Long Legs – Chapter 28

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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One of the things that separates geniuses from ordinary people is their sense of alienation.

Ordinary people, even when they delve into extraordinary realms, tend to think similarly to other ordinary people.

But geniuses are different. They constantly think, and within those thoughts, they refine themselves and produce results that are logical from their perspective.

And those results are often incomprehensible to ordinary people.

It’s only natural, isn’t it? They are inherently several steps ahead when deriving their conclusions. So, it’s no surprise that others struggle to understand their outcomes.

Therefore, those who encounter geniuses are often left bewildered.

In that sense, the Sword Saint had undoubtedly proven her genius.

Even I, who knew about her, was momentarily speechless.

As I stood there, frozen, after she looked at me with pity in her first encounter, clenched her fist, and told me to do my best, Ryuhyeon recovered first. She approached me, looking flustered.

“I apologize. This disrespect…”

“N-no, it’s not disrespectful at all. I’ve heard that the Sword Saint is an eccentric person… well, the rumors are true.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you for your understanding. Then… Sayoon?”

“Oh, yes.”

Sayoon, who had also been looking at me nervously, snapped out of it. Ryuhyeon spoke to her cautiously,

“Please guide the innkeeper.”

“O-okay! I understand!”

“And don’t take him to any restricted areas. Alright?”

“Yes, I understand.”

Sayoon bowed deeply and lightly held my arm.

“Shall we go?”

The bewilderment I felt from the initial encounter with the Sword Saint quickly subsided. After all, I knew quite a bit about Sword Saint Na Yerin from playing Heavenly Bright Moon.

However, Sayoon seemed anxious, thinking that I might have a negative impression of the Sword Saint.

Well, while that sight was quite amusing, I couldn’t let it continue.

“The Sword Saint is a good person.”

“Ah, yes, Master is a bit unique… huh?”

Sayoon’s eyes widened as she looked up at me. I met her gaze and smiled.

“Those with power often use it for their own benefit. But the Sword Saint doesn’t do that, even though she could.”

I glanced around. The few buildings of the Hongseong Sect seemed quite old. The disciples seemed to be maintaining them as best as they could, but cracks were visible in the mud walls, and the pillars were clearly marked by the passage of time.

“And all the Hongseong disciples accept that. If she wasn’t a good person, they wouldn’t follow her like this.”

My gaze fell on Sayoon. Her patched-up uniform. Her worn-out sword.

“That sword, isn’t that the one you used to fight the Fire Tiger? It looks quite old.”

“It’s still usable!”

In what way?

But I couldn’t tease her any further, seeing her flushed face.

Of course, I still planned to get Sayoon a better sword later.

There was a sword to be obtained in the next secret realm.

Although that sword would eventually be broken down and used as material to forge a greatsword for the Greatsword Style, the most powerful technique of the Hongseong Divine Art,

It was still many times better than that old sword and would be usable for the time being.

“Anyway, seeing their frugality makes me realize that the Sword Saint is truly a remarkable person.”

Sayoon’s expression gradually brightened. She seemed less anxious about the earlier incident, her steps becoming lighter as she led me.

“Shall we start with the training hall?”

“We should.”

“But how do you investigate?”

I took out a small pouch from the bag I had brought.

It contained the White Jade Tablet I received from the government office and the reagents needed to activate it with demonic Qi.

“I use this to analyze the demonic Qi and identify the demonic art it originated from.”

“Wow, that’s amazing.”

“The empire’s hostility toward the Demonic Sect is beyond imagination. They once even attacked the Imperial Palace, so they practically foam at the mouth at the mere mention of the Demonic Sect.”

Sayoon fell silent for a moment at my words. As we walked, she lightly tugged at my sleeve.

“Then… can the empire help the Hongseong Sect?”

Perhaps due to the recent confrontation with the Demonic Sect member, she seemed to have developed a sense of hostility towards them. Seeing the determination in her eyes, I smiled.

But I wasn’t feeling particularly at ease.

In the prologue of Heavenly Bright Moon, the empire didn’t help the Hongseong Sect. After all, the ones who attacked at that time weren’t the Demonic Sect, but the Iron Blood Clan.

Of course, the Iron Blood Clan would also become a threat to the empire later on, but at this point in time, they were much less dangerous than the Demonic Sect.

Therefore, the empire hadn’t sent troops even after receiving the news that the Hongseong Sect was under attack.

Later on, Sayoon would form a connection with the Imperial Family, and after learning about the circumstances surrounding the destruction of the Hongseong Sect, they would regret it immensely.

“Yes, they will help.”

At least for me, that was a future that absolutely couldn’t happen.

The trials and tribulations Sayoon would have to go through to get there were a tear-jerking drama I couldn’t bear to watch.

I smiled at the girl who was looking up at me.

To reassure her.

To make sure she wasn’t afraid.

“Without fail.”

At my answer, a smile appeared on Sayoon’s lips.

The first place we arrived at was the half-destroyed training hall. It was a cave on a hillside, seemingly on the verge of collapse. The inside was completely destroyed, so we couldn’t enter, and could only examine it from the outside. Even after all this time, the stench of demonic Qi lingered, assaulting my nose.

“This should be enough.”

I placed the White Jade Tablet near the remaining demonic Qi. According to the magistrate’s explanation, I had to leave the tablet there, combine and sprinkle the reagents, and then wait a day for the tablet to absorb the demonic Qi.

At the same time, I looked around. There might be traces of demonic arts that I could recognize.

As I was examining the area around the training hall, I noticed something peculiar.

“Hmm.”

“What is it?”

“No, this.”

It was a large boulder on the hillside where the training hall was located. The problem was the holes in the boulder. They were perfectly round, as if drilled by a precise machine, with no cracks or chips around them. There were seven of these holes, like a fruit infested with worms.

“It couldn’t be the Hongseong Divine Art, could it?”

“No, it’s not.”

But there was no demonic Qi on the boulder. Then what was it? I tapped the boulder, lost in thought, and then snapped my fingers.

Yu Gyeong-seon, the Seven Birds and Seven Insects.

A sorcerer from the Demonic Sect who used a technique called Seven Birds and Seven Insects, controlling seven birds and seven insects.

He was a Demonic Sect member, but he primarily used his insects and birds to gather information quickly, rather than directly using demonic Qi.

Of course, he wasn’t an easy opponent, as he also knew other demonic arts like Bone Corrosion Technique and Black Blood Art, aside from his Insect and Bird Control.

Now, Yu Gyeong-seon came to attack the Sword Saint?

That narrowed down the possibilities.

Yu Gyeong-seon served the Black Dark Five Families, one of the five major families within the Demonic Sect. So, if he came here, it meant he was acting under their orders.

Why would Oh Gi, the head of the Black Dark Five Families and a contender for the position of Sect Leader, target the Sword Saint?

…There were too many possibilities.

To kill the Sword Saint and cause chaos within the righteous faction.

To kill the Sword Saint and display the power of the Black Dark Five Families within the Demonic Sect.

To kill the Sword Saint and use her body to create a powerful Jiangshi.

And many more.

It was difficult to make a judgment based on this alone…

But all those reasons had one thing in common.

They all underestimated the Hongseong Sect.

Would they attack the Sect Master or other powerful figures so recklessly?

The answer was no.

They would have planned more meticulously and attacked with more and stronger masters.

They would have put the fate of the Black Dark Five Families on the line and attacked with everything they had.

I looked around.

Old, dilapidated buildings and furniture.

These were some of the reasons that made the Hongseong Sect look weak.

Perhaps, if this continued, the Hongseong Sect might self-destruct even without the Iron Blood Clan’s attack.

“Tsk.”

“Huh? What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing. Shall we move on?”

I headed towards the destroyed warehouse with Sayoon. The stench of demonic Qi still lingered there.

As I placed another White Jade Tablet in the warehouse and stepped back, Sayoon looked at me with concern.

“You look troubled. Is it because of the lingering demonic Qi?… Um, Innkeeper, could you follow me for a moment?”

Where was she taking me?

When I looked at her questioningly, she just smiled brightly.

So, I followed her lead, and we arrived at a field behind the Hongseong Sect.

It seemed to be a field where they cultivated medicinal herbs.

A refreshing fragrance tickled my nose.

“This is the medicinal herb garden cultivated by my sisters. And it’s only this year that we’ve finally been able to grow them to a marketable quality.”

Sayoon smiled brightly, stroking the herbs with pride. The leaves were lush and full of life.

They had put a lot of effort into cultivating them.

But did this even exist in the game?

The details about the Hongseong Sect were only briefly mentioned in the prologue, and I only heard about them from other characters in the main story, so I didn’t know they had a medicinal herb garden.

“We can’t just rely on Senior Sister forever. We all know how much she’s struggling.”

“Hmm…”

“So, we’re doing our best. This garden is one of our efforts.”

Her pride was practically visible. It seemed like she was happy to be able to help Hongryeon and the Hongseong Sect.

I examined the herbs. They were well-cultivated. Was there a disciple with a talent for herb cultivation?

The quality was surprisingly good.

“This is… Soul Returning Herb.”

“Yes, they say that if you dry it and decoct it with Five Needles Root, it purifies the blood and improves health. And this is Grass Needle Root, and this is…”

They had put a lot of effort into growing them.

However, these herbs, while used in tonics, weren’t that rare.

Most of them were easily obtainable.

A few were somewhat valuable, but none were on the level of elixirs.

They were mostly used for tonics and everyday medicine.

“These herbs, do you know where to sell them?”

“I don’t think it’s been decided yet… Senior Sister Ryuhyeon mentioned considering Old Man Cheol, the pharmacist in the village.”

“Is that so?”

I walked around the herb garden, calculating the types and quality of the herbs.

The profit they could earn from managing this herb garden would be about one gold coin per month… huh?

Wait a minute.

A sudden realization struck me, and I started to think.

The knowledge I had and the information I gathered since coming to this world.

I combined various factors.

Calculations.

More calculations.

And even more calculations.

I pondered, considering the risks, the effort required, the routes I needed to take, the people I had to meet, and various other factors. I derived a solution from those considerations.

If I played my cards right, this could work.

Perhaps this could be another way to help the Hongseong Sect.

“Is there anything else you can show me besides this?”

“Uh… ah, yes, there is.”

Sayoon’s eyes sparkled after a moment of thought. She led me to another location.

After a long walk, we arrived at a hillside filled with the fragrance of thousand-day plum blossoms.

“The thousand-day plum blossoms here smell much better than anywhere else. Whenever my sisters and I feel overwhelmed, we come here to relax and take a breather.”

I looked at the plum trees, larger and more lush than the other thousand-day plum blossoms. The thousand-day plum blossoms, which bloomed for a thousand days under the influence of Mount Hongseong’s spiritual energy. They were trees that only produced a lovely fragrance, bearing no fruit.

“I’m thinking of drying these petals and making scented pouches.”

Scented pouches, huh.

That’s not a bad idea.

I examined the thousand-day plum blossom trees and stood up.

“Let’s go.”

“Huh? You can rest a little longer.”

“I don’t want to take up too much of your time.”

“Okay…”

As we descended from the thousand-day plum blossom forest with Sayoon, I organized my thoughts. When we returned to the Hongseong Sect, I spoke to Sayoon,

“The Hongseong Sect doesn’t accept outside help, right? Especially money.”

“Yes. It’s a long-standing tradition and a rule. It’s natural for those who have mastered martial arts to use their power to protect the weak, so how can we ask for compensation for that…?”

“I see…”

I recalled the lore I knew about the Hongseong Sect.

To uphold righteousness.

Not to profit from protecting the weak.

Even after recalling their other rules, all I could think of was how they embodied the image of an ideal righteous sect.

An image that was perfect for starving to death.

Trying to change that would be futile, so to prevent them from being destroyed by the Iron Blood Clan and to help them manage their finances, I had to find a solution within those constraints.

Of course, there were ways.

“Right, right. Sayoon, do you know why rules exist?”

“Well, to prevent chaos and uphold justice…”

Hahaha, this girl. Hahaha.

So naive.

Rules exist to be exploited.

If you can’t profit from the poor, then profit from the rich.

I thought of the honorable, idealistic, and beautiful disciples of the Hongseong Sect, the medicinal herbs they meticulously cultivated on the sacred Mount Hongseong, and the thousand-day plum blossoms used for scented pouches.

I’ll turn these…

Into “specialty products” and “limited edition” items, add a “premium,” and sell them at exorbitant prices to those with deep pockets.

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I apologize There was a technical issue earlier, but I’ve fixed it now. Happy reading~~