“What will you do, Jin-ga? We can’t afford the head chef’s dish,” Hong Yeon-hwa said, grabbing my sleeve with a sullen expression.
I sighed, disappointed that we couldn’t try the famous dish. “Let’s just order something else. We can’t waste money on one dish.”
Jomsori, who seemed to have experienced this situation before, chimed in with a slightly tired expression. “I’m sorry, but there are a lot of customers right now.”
We ended up ordering a few other dishes, but I couldn’t help but think about the experiment I saw in my past life. It was said that ducks and otters detect the surrounding current through a special organ located in their beaks and find their prey. But how did they prove it?
As we ate, I shook my head to clear my mind and looked at Hong Yeon-hwa. “Next time, let’s bring something with us when we leave home.”
She nodded in agreement, and we enjoyed our meal, satisfied with our alternative choices.
In a simple experiment, a hungry duck and otter were placed in a tank with shrimp and shrimp-shaped batteries on opposite ends to observe which side they would react to for food.
The results were a resounding success.
The duck and otter reacted more intensely to the battery that looked like shrimp than the real shrimp.
Well, they realized it wasn’t real food and spat it out before swallowing it.
To produce meaningful data, the experiment was repeated many times.
To the extent that the duck and otter were fooled about 100 times and learned that batteries were not edible.
However, I don’t think this is learning.
The duck and otter didn’t learn that batteries were not edible…they gave up.
How much disappointment did they experience before giving up? These wicked scientists!
Thinking about it, Hong Yeon-hwa and Jomsori began to feel like pitiful ducks and otters crying in a tank due to hunger.
I can’t allow that!
I bounced ideas around in my head and checked my plans. If we reduce our time in Nayang, we can make it work somehow.
Just as I was about to hand over some money to Jomsori, a stranger, a man and a woman, came down from the second floor and spoke to us.
The woman had a gentle voice, but her tone was sarcastic.
“Oh my, who is this? So Jang Pungsoso was here all along?”
“…Jegal Yeong-yeong.”
Jang Pungsoso answered in a trembling voice. Wait, Jegal?
Looking again, he was dressed in a very flashy outfit. He looked like a child from a wealthy family.
But still not as pretty as our ducks and otters…no, Hong Yeon-hwa and Jang Pungsoso.
The man had an unusual combination of golden hair and blue eyes, but his facial features were Asian.
Is he like Hong Yeon-hwa’s constitution? In a world where ki exists, it’s possible.
However, the dark skin and fierce impression combined to make him feel like a blonde tanning thug.
Maybe it was because I was thinking a little rudely. Jegal Yeong-yeong looked at me up and down as if to return the favor.
“I heard you ran away because you didn’t want to get married…did you catch a new man outside? Or did you run away to do this from the beginning? Either way, you can’t beat us Hwirang, right? Right, Hwirang?”
Jegal Yeong-yeong said, linking arms with Hwirang, a man who was called that and laughed so hard that his mouth hung open and he thumped his chest.
“Hahaha! Of course! At least I can give my woman what she wants to eat!”
Damn it! I was just about to give him money!
As I was about to burst into tears, Jang Pungsoso blocked my path and shouted.
“Yeong-yeong! Apologize to Jin Gaga right now! The same goes for you, Jegal Yeong-yeong! Is it the job of the Jungpa to insult their opponents like this?!”
Jang Pungsoso reacted a bit harshly, perhaps due to hearing about the corrupt Jungpa just before.
By the way, that guy who looks like Kim Tae-yang is from the Moyong clan?
Well, they seem to be in a very intimate relationship, like lovers or engaged.
It’s strange that me and Pungsoso are the odd ones out. Usually, the children of the Odaese clan tend to associate with children from families of similar status.
In the past, the Moyong clan was ignored as the “scholar class,” but now they are treated as dignified members of the Odaese clan.
Perhaps that unique appearance is due to their “scholar class” lineage.
I missed the timing to intervene, but that guy named Moyong-hwi. He was only looking at Jegal Yeong-yeong the whole time, not us.
What he said earlier wasn’t so much about ignoring me, but rather trying to impress Jegal Yeong-yeong.
“Oh, sorry about that…”
He seemed to realize his mistake and was about to apologize, but…
“Hmm…”
It seems like Jegal Yeong-yeong intentionally led Moyong-hwi on, knowing full well what he was doing.
Snap!
Jegal Yeong-yeong covered his mouth with a fan and hid behind Moyong-hwi, then started crying out in a wailing voice.
“Hwirang…Soso is tormenting me.”
“Huh? That was just our mistake earlier…”
“Hwirang?”
Jegal Yeong-yeong looked up at Moyong-hwi with a face full of wounds.
“Are you taking Soso’s side now? Not mine?”
“Well, that’s not…”
“Is Soso better than me? Is that it?”
“How could that be!”
After sending a moist gaze until the end, Moyong-hwi finally nodded his head vigorously.
“Leave it to me!”
Moyong-hwi approached us confidently. I was surprised to see him snatch Jegal Yeong-yeong’s hand away in an instant.
Pungsoso, who seemed to have seen this many times before, was holding his forehead, while Hong Yeon-hwa came up to me and whispered in my ear with interest.
“That kid Jegal Yeong-yeong. He has a really bad personality.”
“Yeah, I know. Seeing something like that makes me feel really lucky.”
“If you know, then treat Bonny and Soso a little better.”
As the two whispered to each other, Moyong-hwi, who had arrived in front of Pungsoso, opened his mouth with a serious expression.
“Pung Sojo. I hope you apologize to Jegal Sojo for your words, as he was deeply hurt.”
“What? What are you talking about? Hurt? Him?”
Pungsoso let out a groan.
“Get a hold of yourself! Don’t you know that Yeong-yeong is playing on the palm of your hand?!”
But Moyong-hwi was firm in his decision and raised his fist, ready to use force if necessary. He didn’t seem to be crossing any lines since he didn’t draw his sword from his waist… but was he really going to fight?
“What? Are you serious, Sohyeong?”
Pungsoso was dumbfounded, his mouth agape. Jegal Yeong-yeong, who was watching from behind, had a blissful smile on his face.
Did Moyong-hwi’s actions make Pungsoso angry or was Jegal Yeong-yeong pleased that he was able to manipulate him?
Either way, it didn’t matter. Since they were acting like that, it was strange that I was the only one standing behind Pungsoso.
Through my enlightenment, I realized that the benefits of the Muryeong Divine Skill were not limited to just swordsmanship. My control over my inner energy had improved significantly, and my senses were sharper than before.
Thanks to this, I could tell that Moyong-hwi was weaker than Unjuwon.
Perhaps Pungsoso was taken aback because Moyong-hwi, who was not even close to Unjuwon’s level, rushed towards him without hesitation.
He confidently stepped forward, pulling out his Muryeong Divine Skill.
“Since it’s come to this, let’s fight like men…”
“Eh?”
Pow!
Before I could finish my sentence, Hong Yeon-hwa, who had jumped out, hit Moyong-hwi’s acupoint and knocked him out cold.
Moyong-hwi fell without any resistance.
“W-what…!”
This time, Jegal Yeong-yeong stammered and quickly caught Moyong-hwi.
Hmm… it looks like it’s not my turn to step in.
However, feeling like I had to do something, I wrapped my arm around Hong Yeon-hwa’s neck and pulled her in closer. So deep that my hand touched her chest.
“Huh?”
Surprised, Hong Yeon-hwa was pulled in even closer, and with my other hand, I wrapped it around Pungsoso’s waist.
Of course, I did it in a way that my hand barely touched his pelvis.
“What are you doing? We need to take him back. The situation is getting out of hand.”
“Kuk…! I’ll remember this day!”
Jegal Yeong-yeong left with Moyong-hwi in his arms, leaving behind a distorted face and a third-rate villain-like line.
When they disappeared from sight, Hong Yeon-hwa grumbled and pulled something out of her pocket.
It was a thick envelope.
“What’s this…?”
“I did it while hitting his acupoint earlier!”
Hong Yeon-hwa’s pink eyes sparkled as if asking for praise. I petted her head as she wished.
“You did well!”
“Mhmhm~”
