The Protagonist’s Daddy Long Legs – Chapter 3

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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As the moon, after enjoying its time at its peak, descended and settled around the middle of the sky, when a new climber wasn’t even prepared to ascend…

When even the merchants opening the dawn market were rubbing their eyes, just starting to rise, the morning of the Hongseong sect began.

The morning of the Hongseong sect, governed by the Sword Saint, was fair to all.

Following the instructions of Hongryeon, the first disciple of the Hongseong sect and already famous throughout the land for her title, “Sunset Sword,” the twenty disciples of the Hongseong sect began their morning training.

However, the training wasn’t as graceful as outsiders might have imagined.

The Sword Saint’s swordsmanship could be called the epitome of beauty. The single greatsword in her hand, living up to its name, created a beautiful red star, but one that didn’t hide the ferocity contained within.

The foundation of that beauty and strength was built upon the unshakeable bedrock of “fundamentals.”

Therefore, the disciples gathered on the training ground, with not a wink of sleep in their beautiful eyes from the night before, bent their long, toned legs.

The beginning was always the horse stance.

Bending their legs like they were riding a horse, keeping their backs straight, they trained their lower bodies.

The Hongseong sect was led by the renowned Sword Saint Na Yerin.

Most of the disciples who joined the Hongseong sect underwent basic training before joining.

As such, they had already mastered the very basic training of the horse stance, so an hour of it wouldn’t be too difficult for them.

Still, they didn’t complain. It was a fact that lower body strength was important in martial arts.

And, Sunset Sword Hongryeon, who was in charge of the morning training, was also doing it.

However, if there was one small complaint the disciples had, it was…

“Haha! Endure! Endure! A woman’s strength lies in her lower body! You need to train your lower bodies even for the sake of your future husbands! If you tighten your perineum, later it will turn into energy and…”

“Se-, Senior Sister! Please, your mouth…”

Always laughing cheerfully, instead of focusing solely on her own training, she led the Hongseong sect admirably, yet she always spouted such vulgar words to these disciples who had never even held a man’s hand.

Of course, the disciples close to her knew. They knew that she, too, had never held a man’s hand, and that her knowledge came only from erotic novels, and that she never brought up such lewd topics outside the sect.

The reason she, who was like a lioness within their walls, was so boisterous was simply that she felt comfortable in the Hongseong sect and considered it her family.

And so, after an hour of horse stance training, mentally scarred by Hongryeon’s boisterous vulgarity, when the new climber started to reveal its head, the disciples of the Hongseong sect began to warm up.

As heat started to rise from their toned bodies honed through years of training, the disciples began to steal glances at each other.

It was only natural.

The last five to finish in this training session would be responsible for cleaning up after breakfast.

The desire to avoid squandering their precious break time, a rare treat within Hongseongmun’s demanding training schedule, on cleaning duty was motivation enough.

Of course, this time too, Hongryeon’s exclamation served to dampen their enthusiasm.

“Do you know? The legs of a woman in training are like the thighs of a sprinting deer, supple and…”

“Uwaah! Let’s go! Let’s go!”

Alarmed by the increasingly suggestive turn of the conversation, the other disciples cried out urgently, and the radiant young women, their long hair billowing behind them, broke into a run.

It was as if they were fleeing from Hongryeon herself.

Perhaps it was due to their familiarity with this routine, but their movements were remarkably swift.

They couldn’t employ lightness skills without utilizing internal energy, but even so, their bodies, tempered by countless hours of training, propelled them forward faster than most wild beasts.

Run. Run. Run.

Those who couldn’t run were unworthy of wielding a weapon.

And so, they ran.

Even as their breaths caught in their throats, even as their hearts pounded as if they might burst from their chests, they didn’t stop.

And in those moments, even Sayoon, the youngest of Hongseongmun, brought to the sect by the Sword Saint years ago, could forget the loneliness of her existence.

As expected, it was Hongryeon, the Sunset Sword, who reached the summit of Hongseongsan first.

Wiping away the beads of sweat that trickled down her face in the cool breeze, she waited for her fellow disciples, a faint smile gracing her lips as they arrived one by one.

Some were doubled over, others collapsed onto the rocks, and still others gulped down water from the canteen Hongryeon had carried up.

Just as they were catching their breath, the sound of footsteps reached them from within the forest, and Hongryeon’s smile widened.

“Haah… Haah… Haah…”

It was a young woman with damp, gray hair.

Her delicate, pretty face was flushed and slick with sweat from her exertion. Her worn training robes clung to her, revealing the burgeoning curves of her youthful figure.

She possessed the innocent charm of a flower bud on the verge of blooming, a beauty that could captivate any man or woman. The other disciples of Hongseongmun smiled warmly, thinking to themselves:

Surely, the world would be a more interesting place once this child came of age.

But Hongryeon saw her a little differently.

She’s exhausted.

Ready to collapse.

Her sweat-drenched form held a certain allure, and many were captivated by her beauty, but Hongryeon believed her true charm lay elsewhere.

The most captivating thing about this girl, whom her master had brought back covered in dirt years ago, wasn’t her burgeoning beauty…

“…Arrived… Haah… Made it…”

…but those eyes she’d possessed from the start.

Those violet eyes, the color of delicate pansies, held a tenacity that seemed determined to overcome all the hardships and adversity the world could throw at her.

That, Hongryeon believed, was the true allure of Sayoon, the youngest of Hongseongmun.

“Last again today, Little One?”

“Ugh…”

Sayoon, having finally arrived, slumped down with a dejected look on her face.

She had climbed the mountain with all her might, but her seniors had already settled at the peak.

It was only natural. She had been nothing but a beggar orphan, and it had only been a few years since she’d begun proper training.

Her seniors had all trained within their families from a young age and had received formal instruction upon entering Hongseongmun. Surpassing them was an almost impossible feat.

She was putting in the effort.

But her seniors weren’t slacking off either. She couldn’t simply disregard the years they had spent honing their skills.

The only way to catch up was through unwavering dedication and training.

“Good work today.”

“Y-yes…”

Sayoon nodded slightly as she fiddled with her gray braid, its end brushing against the swell of her chest that had just begun to develop. Her hair, still damp with sweat, was tousled by the rough caress, but to Sayoon, that touch…

…was one of her few sources of happiness.

Hongseongmun wasn’t a particularly wealthy sect.

Sword Saint Na Yerin was undoubtedly a virtuous individual who had rescued countless people from bandits and monsters, but she held little interest in material possessions.

She believed it was only natural for the strong to aid the weak, and that rewards were inconsequential when it came to using one’s strength to maintain peace.

While her principles had brought great honor to Hongseongmun’s name throughout the land, they did little to bolster the sect’s finances.

Therefore, Hongseongmun relied on occasional requests to sustain itself.

Exterminating monsters, for instance.

Eradicating bandits, for another.

Or investigating mysterious realms.

The sect subsisted on the funds brought back by its senior disciples, those who had achieved a certain level of mastery in the Hongseong Style, from these missions.

Of course, families of the disciples and the Murim Alliance offered financial support, but the Sword Saint politely declined such offers, as was her way. Those funds never made their way into the sect’s coffers.

As a result, the disciples’ meals were, by necessity, frugal.

That didn’t mean they were inadequate, of course. They were provided with fresh vegetables harvested from Hongseongsan and meat that Hongryeon or the other disciples hunted, ensuring three square meals a day.

However, not everyone was content with this exceedingly simple diet.

Most of the disciples hailed from prominent families and had been doted on by their loved ones.

At the very least, they had always enjoyed a bountiful table. When they recalled the hearty meals they’d enjoyed during their occasional visits home, the meals at Hongseongmun seemed rather unappetizing.

But to Sayoon, even this was a blessing.

Compared to her days as a beggar orphan, left to fend for herself in a harsh world, she was well-fed and warm.

And so, she washed the dishes with a happy heart.

As she set a freshly scrubbed wooden bowl upside down to dry, she spoke to the young woman cleaning beside her.

“Senior Sister Yoohee, you didn’t eat much today.”

“Hm? Oh, I’m having lunch out today.”

“Ah.”

Come to think of it, today was the day they descended to Seonhwachon Village to purchase supplies for the sect. Realizing this, Sayoon’s cheeks flushed slightly. Yoohee smiled gently at her.

“Do you need anything?”

Sayoon knew that Yoohee wasn’t referring to the communal supplies used by the disciples of Hongseongmun.

Even so, she couldn’t bring herself to voice her desires.

“I… I don’t need anything.”

“Don’t be shy.”

“But I…”

Sayoon knew.

Twice a month, when they went down to Seonhwachon Village to purchase supplies for Hongseongmun, her seniors would use their own money to buy personal items or sweet treats to soothe their palates, weary from the relentless training and austere diet.

And she knew that the money came from their families, sent as a form of “personal allowance” disguised as support.

Women had many needs.

While Hongseongmun provided for them, it wasn’t always enough.

In that sense, the allowance sent by their families was a necessity.

As such, while Sayoon envied them, she wouldn’t dare ask for a handout.

She had to have some self-respect.

Out of all the countless orphans in the world, she had been rescued and taken in as a disciple of Hongseongmun.

She didn’t have to worry about going hungry or fearing for her life.

She had already received more than she could ever repay. She didn’t want to squander the opportunities given to her seniors.

“Hmm…”

There’s no need to feel burdened.

Seeing Sayoon’s continued refusal, Yoohee smiled wryly.

Their adorable junior was overly conscious of her orphan status.

It was a shame that she still couldn’t act spoiled, even after all these years at Hongseongmun.

It was about time she started seeing them as older sisters.

Yoohee recalled a time when she had bought Sayoon sweets as a gift. She remembered catching Sayoon, who had been sneaking away to train while swallowing hard, and forcing the sweets into her mouth.

Her mouth might have said no, but the bashful smile that bloomed on her face and in her eyes was proof enough that she had been completely won over by the sweetness.

Yoohee longed to see that adorable side of her again, but if Sayoon refused, she couldn’t force her.

Especially not after she had become even more guarded since then.

“You can treat me back later, once you start getting your own allowance.”

“Later… Well… Once I start receiving support too…”

Yoohee chuckled at her words.

Perhaps she should secretly send some support to Sayoon when she visited her family next time.

“Yoohee, Sayoon, a delivery has arrived from the mail courier. Help me sort it out once you’re done with the dishes.”

“Yes, Senior Sister.”

The other three disciples had gone to do laundry, so it was up to them. They quickly finished up and followed Hongryeon out of the building.

A considerable number of boxes and letters were piled up in front of her room.

“Ah, it’s from my family.”

Yoohee murmured softly as she spotted her name on a small box. It seemed there were a few allowances for the disciples among this delivery.

Meanwhile, Hongryeon began to sift through the letters, her expression turning serious.

Regardless, their task remained unchanged, and Yoohee and Sayoon quickly began sorting through the boxes.

“…Huh?”

Sayoon’s hand suddenly froze.

Yoohee, finding her behavior unusual, looked over just as Sayoon lifted a small box.

“This… This is addressed to me?”

“…What? What is it?”

Sayoon had barely stepped foot outside Hongseongmun since she had arrived. Did she have acquaintances outside the sect? And someone wealthy enough to afford a delivery through a mail courier, at that?

“Oh ho, does our Little One have a secret admirer already? How scandalous! But if there’s love involved, I suppose it’s alright! Very well! Today, I shall impart my secret collection of erotic literature to our dear junior…”

A beauty renowned throughout Murim when she kept her mouth shut.

A senior sister more reliable than their own master within the sect. Why was it that her words had a way of making their hearts sink whenever she opened her mouth?

Just as Hongryeon, laughing heartily, seemed about to actually retrieve her erotic books, Yoohee hurriedly changed the subject.

“Who… Who’s the sender?”

“There’s no name.”

This unprecedented event piqued even Hongryeon’s curiosity.

Under normal circumstances, she would have told Sayoon to take it to her room and open it there. But what if it was a cursed object, or a cruel prank intended to hurt her?

Thus, her expression hardened, a rare sight.

“Open it here.”

“Uh… Yes.”

Sayoon swallowed nervously and carefully lifted the lid of the box.

Inside were a single letter and a silver coin.

“…A silver coin?”

Sayoon cautiously opened the letter and her expression turned complex.

“……”

“What does it say?”

Intrigued, Yoohee peered at the letter, her own expression turning serious.

Hongryeon was equally curious. She took the letter from Yoohee’s hand and read it aloud.

“Have you eaten?”

At the baffling message, the faces of the three women gathered in the small room became a mixture of confusion and bewilderment.

But on one thing, they could all agree.

…Just who in the world sent this?

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