Chapter 8
His expression was blank, yet his gaze felt strangely cold.
What was that? He couldn't have read my mind, could he? I had just been thinking he didn't seem like the type to have any friends.
"Tsk, is that a Daoist? He’s nothing but a street thug."
The very next moment, Maeng Ryeong-ji’s voice cut through the air beside me.
Just as Eun-hyun brushed past us, she had sneered, seemingly intending for him to hear every word.
Oh, for heaven's sake. Even if his methods were cruel, was it really necessary to point it out to his face?
It seemed Eun-hyun hadn't suddenly looked at me; rather, Maeng Ryeong-ji had been glaring at him from the start.
"Hyang-ah, you’re amazing. This father is truly, truly...!"
The training grounds were quite noisy due to the cheers for the successful candidates and the crowd watching the ongoing trials.
I had hoped that Eun-hyun wouldn't hear her, or that even if he did, he would simply ignore it and walk on.
"..."
He stopped dead in his tracks and looked straight at us.
Eun-hyun’s indifferent gaze—the same one he used when he was ruthlessly attacking his opponents on the sparring stage—swept over us, or rather, over Maeng Ryeong-ji.
...Oh, it feels quite strange to be glared at by someone so handsome.
"What? What are you looking at?"
Maeng Ryeong-ji said, her tone blunt.
You were the one who started the fight!
"Are you cowards from beyond the borders?"
Eun-hyun spat out coldly.
"…?"
Cowards, all of a sudden?
It sounded like an insult, but I tilted my head, not quite grasping the meaning.
"Tsk."
He cast a mocking look at the tiger skin draped over Maeng Ryeong-ji’s shoulders.
Ah? Was he digging at her origins?
The Central Plains martial arts world had long held a subtle prejudice against the forces from beyond the borders.
There were even quite a few who dismissed them entirely as savages.
In fact, the "Southern Barbarian" in Southern Barbarian Beast Palace carried the connotation of being a savage.
In any case, the term "coward" seemed intended to belittle them for having been cut off from the Central Plains and joining the Great War of Righteous and Evil late.
Honestly, I didn't even feel offended, as I probably would have said something much worse in his position.
"What kind of bullshit..."
"I thought as much."
His expression really is insufferable.
"You bastard!"
Maeng Ryeong-ji didn't seem to understand the nuance, but she sensed through instinct that she had been insulted.
She flew into a rage and grabbed Eun-hyun.
"Let’s see if you can keep that attitude even in front of my axe!"
She snarled, her face contorted as if she were about to draw her axe right then and there.
Eun-hyun silently placed his right hand on his sword.
'…Huh? Are they really going to fight?'
But as I watched, the atmosphere grew increasingly strange.
Is this really a situation that calls for drawing weapons?
Even if Eun-hyun’s methods were excessive, he hadn't actually injured Maeng Ryeong-ji.
I didn't understand why she was picking a fight and getting angry like a street thug, nor did I understand why Eun-hyun, who could have just ignored her and walked away, was responding to the provocation right before his next match.
'No... well, I suppose they have their pride.'
I reminded myself that they were still only in their mid-teens.
Come to think of it, back in my past life, there were always boys in middle and high school who would fight like that in class.
Since they were the types who liked to act tough, once a confrontation started and they lowered their voices to sound intimidating, they found it hard to back down.
They would shout loudly, fearing that if they backed off now, they would look weak and be looked down upon later.
But if no one stopped them, they would secretly wish for other students to intervene or for a teacher to be called so they could save face while "being held back."
"..."
Unfortunately, the martial arts instructors only glanced over with interest, showing no intention of stopping the fight.
Hmm, if a friend I’ve just made gets blacklisted before even entering the academy, that won't be good for me either, right?
And I certainly didn't want to be lumped in with Maeng Ryeong-ji and receive Eun-hyun’s hostility from here on out.
'Sigh, I have no choice. Since we decided to be friends, I’ll be the one to stop it.'
I stepped between Maeng Ryeong-ji and Eun-hyun, who were exchanging intense glares.
"Both of you, calm down."
I placed my hands on their shoulders and pushed them apart.
"…?!"
Wait, why is Eun-hyun channeling internal energy into his shoulders?
Still, since he was only posturing and not actually resisting with intent, both of them stepped back a few paces, looking appropriately flustered.
'Ah, so they were secretly hoping someone would stop them.'
Eun-hyun blinked, looking bewildered. Maeng Ryeong-ji’s mouth hung slightly open as well.
They would have stopped so easily.
Why fight for no reason?
"Ahem."
Because of Maeng Ryeong-ji’s shouting earlier, quite a few people were staring at us.
What would be the best way to talk them down?
If I scold them too harshly in front of so many people, they’ll both be embarrassed.
I started by giving Maeng Ryeong-ji a soft reprimand.
"Leave it at this. You were the one who used harsh words first."
Maeng Ryeong-ji, who had been stunned for a moment, said,
"Sool-ryeo, uh, wow... what is this? Is this a secret technique of the Ice Palace?"
What is she talking about?
Perhaps at a loss for words, she just waved her hands in the air and spouted nonsense.
"Secret technique, my foot."
I lectured her, saying that if she wanted to warn someone as a martial artist, it was proper to speak politely at least once.
I told her that picking a fight with someone who hadn't attacked her directly or done anything truly heinous was exactly the kind of behavior of a street thug who frequents inns.
"Uh... yeah, I wasn't acting like a proper martial artist..."
Maeng Ryeong-ji replied, caught off guard.
Eun-hyun must have heard that, right?
That was as good as an apology.
Eun-hyun stood awkwardly, clutching the shoulder where my hand had touched him.
I didn't particularly want to strike up a conversation, but it wouldn't look good if I only scolded Maeng Ryeong-ji.
I decided to say a word to Eun-hyun as well. It *was* a bit much to beat someone who was crawling away with full internal energy.
"Um, Daoist from Mount Hua?"
"Of the Ice Palace..."
"I’m Seol Sool-ryeo. We’ll be peers soon, so you can speak comfortably, right?"
"…Please, do as you wish."
Oh? He’s using honorifics with me?
Maybe he’s just reciprocating because Maeng Ryeong-ji was rude first.
Since he was maintaining courtesy toward me, I spoke much more softly.
"Ryeong-ji’s expression was a bit rough, wasn't it? She didn't intend to insult your sect."
"..."
"You heard her say she was sorry and that she wasn't acting like a martial artist, right? I’ll apologize on her behalf as well."
I tried to mediate, subtly adding an apology to Maeng Ryeong-ji’s outburst.
"…?"
Eun-hyun’s eyes trembled.
He looked like someone who hadn't expected me to apologize at all.
He had taken his hand off his sword hilt, but his reaction was ambiguous.
Can’t he just say it’s fine?
Eun-hyun just blinked, glancing back and forth between my face and my hands.
"Ryeong-ji, um. She just wanted to say that your methods were excessive."
When I added that, he looked truly confused.
I had thought it strange that he didn't seem like someone who enjoyed bullying the weak.
Was it possible he really hadn't realized he was fighting so brutally?
"I know you aren't breaking the rules of the entrance exam. I suppose, by your standards, giving your all against every opponent is a sign of respect. But as you can see, the others aren't all like you."
"Ah..."
"Because you crush opponents with a large skill gap so thoroughly, they misunderstood it as you being cruel."
Personally, I didn't think the young Eun-hyun had a truly malicious hobby of drawing blood every time.
Perhaps he was just putting himself in their shoes, thinking that if he were the one fighting, he would be offended if a stronger opponent went easy on him?
"…I see."
He didn't argue.
Instead, he nodded slightly, as if he understood. Unlike when Maeng Ryeong-ji had picked a fight, he understood perfectly well when I spoke kindly.
Would Maeng Ryeong-ji be satisfied with this much?
I gave a light wink to Eun-hyun, who was still blinking, and draped my arm over Maeng Ryeong-ji’s shoulder.
"Let’s go now. Save the fight for class later."
As I grinned, Maeng Ryeong-ji finally snapped out of it and burst into a hearty laugh.
"…Y-yeah, sounds good! With you by my side, we’ll surely overwhelm those Nine Great Sects bastards! Hahaha!"
Overwhelm, huh...
If there were a theory subject, I’d be confident in crushing them in that.
Maeng Ryeong-ji had been sullen when I apologized to Eun-hyun for her, but once I calmed her down, she quickly cheered up and shook her fist at the air.
"See you at the entrance ceremony."
Eun-hyun still had a few more matches to fight, so it was best if we cleared the way first.
I waved at Eun-hyun and walked away a few paces.
"Oh..."
"What, are they not fighting?"
Yes, yes. We aren't fighting. Please go back to watching the trials.
Just as I had finally managed to resolve the entire situation,
"Kwahahaha!"
Someone who had appeared late burst into a thunderous laugh.
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