412 - The Outcast Writer of a Martial Arts Visual Novel

"What on earth kind of book could it be?" Dan Seowol, as she carried the book written by her disciple's lover, still found it hard to believe what she had just heard. "Please, speak kindly to writer Ho-pil for me. From a devoted reader, Dan Se-ak. It would be great if he could write just one more sentence!" It was a sincere request. That's why she found it even harder to believe. A book that could captivate even the master of the assassination hall? What kind of book could it possibly be? "Unit 5! Why did you change the topic? Ah! Lady Dan Seowol! Welcome back!" As Dan Seowol opened the door, she found two people in the middle of a playful argument inside. "You're back?" Her disciple greeted her with an impassive face, but her eyes conveyed that she was relieved to finally deal with a bothersome matter. "What were you doing?" "Yukiko! Unit 5 is being so frustrating!" Seolja pounded her chest in exasperation and rushed to Dan Seowol. "Frustrating?" "Yukiko! Unit 5 decided to learn the art of seduction from the Kunoichi in Dongyoung, but after coming out of closed-door training, she suddenly wants to quit!" "It wasn't that helpful anyway." "Didn't you just stop after learning a bit last time? Did Unit 5 somehow manage to cultivate inner energy as soon as she learned martial arts?!" "Yes." "…Geniuses, I tell you!" "Take a look at this book." It seemed to be a trivial matter. Dan Seowol, having assessed the situation, pulled out a book from her bundle and handed it to the two. "A book?" "Nin-nin! What book is it? 'The Winding of the Dang Family?' Is it a martial arts book written by those poison-using scoundrels?" As an assassin from the assassination hall, Seolja often found Dang family's poisons and hidden weapons more of a nuisance than an ally. Upon seeing the title, she frowned and questioned. "This…" On the other hand, Cheon Sohee was speechless as she looked at her master. "Yes, it’s the book written by your lover," Dan Seowol said with a smile, recognizing that her disciple had caught on. "A book my brother wrote…?" "When I inquired about your lover's whereabouts, this book was given to me." "Oh oh oh! A book written by Unit 5's lover! Yukiko! I'm curious about the contents of the book!" Seolja's face immediately brightened upon hearing it was written by Unit 5's lover. She excitedly inspected the book. "I'm curious, too. What level of work could make it scarce in all of Hubei Province?" Why would the magistrate want an illustrated manuscript? Dan Seowol also seemed curious as she looked expectantly at her disciple. Even Cheon Sohee didn’t know the details of the book, but she understood why it was popular. "Whenever my brother started to tell a story, people would swarm to listen." Since it's a book my brother wrote. Of course, it's bound to be famous. The corners of Cheon Sohee's mouth twitched with pride despite her otherwise cold demeanor. "With his talent for storytelling, he must have written well too." He's the kind of man who could inspire a disciple thought to be aloof to say she would follow him to the grave if he died. Someone who could make bandits cry and gift their belongings just with a silver tongue—Dan Seowol could understand why the book was significant. "The more I hear, the more I'm curious!" "I want to read it." "Here it is." Dan Seowol handed the book written by her disciple's lover to her. "'The Winding of the Dang Family…'" Cheon Sohee took the book with care, murmuring the title written in neat letters. "The protagonist, originally from Sichuan Dang Family, ends up being drawn into the family." "Why is it the Sichuan Dang Family?" It's the book that led her brother to be tangled with the Sichuan Dang Family's affairs. Yet, her brother isn't even from the Sichuan Dang Family. Why is a Dang Family member the protagonist? Her brother isn't a martial artist either. She only provided the basics for his martial skills. No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t fathom why he chose a Dang Family protagonist. "I don’t know the intricate details myself." Neither master nor disciple could come up with a reason. "Hah! Yukiko! I've realized it." Seolja had been pondering over the book and, with a finger raised and eyes wide open, she seemed to have figured something out. "You know why?" For the first time in hours, Cheon Sohee directed a curious gaze at Seolja. What could the reason possibly be? How does Seolja know? With a triumphant smile in response to Cheon Sohee's curious expression, Seolja shared her deduction. "Heh heh heh! Unit 5's lover! Didn't he live with a Dang Family woman?" "……." "He isn't a martial artist, but he likely received help from a Dang Family woman! Nin-nin!" Seolja looked pleased with her perfect deduction, oblivious to the unfolding scene before her. "Yukiko." "Lady Assassin. What is it? Eek! Why does it feel like a murderous aura is emanating!!!" Startled by the chilling feeling on the back of her neck, Seolja leapt up. "That's right. Yoon Ho oppa, he was living with a woman…." The source of the chilling aura was, of course, Cheon Sohee. Her expression was solidifying. Why had she forgotten? In a corner of Cheon Sohee's mind, the memory she had consciously avoided thinking about by worrying over Kang Yoon Ho was forcibly dredged up. Her brother is living with a woman. A woman from the Dang Family. No. He said they were just friends. But for someone to teach martial arts for his novel—it’s not just an ordinary relationship. Like her brother and herself…. Deep inside Cheon Sohee's chest, in the once calm sea of murderous intent, bubbles slowly began rising to the surface. "Is it not just a simple friendship…?" She's here. Her brother is living with that woman. "Nin-nin! Eek! I can see the Heavens' Illustrious Star!!! I must use the escape ninja art number one!" Seolja, flustered, began forming hand signs in a hurry. Watching the two, Dan Seowol sighed softly and spoke up. "Your lover returned to Yichang, but the Dang Family woman did not return with him." "He's not living together?" All at once, the bubbles in the sea of murderous intent burst. "We haven't verified what happened at the Dang Family, but I heard he's living alone." "Yes. I see." In an attempt to mask her earlier reaction, Cheon Sohee nodded as if nothing had happened. It was an unfounded worry. She tried to return to her usual composed and cold demeanor, but Seolja didn’t miss the subtle change in Unit 5's expression. "Ah! Unit 5 is smiling!" "I wasn’t smiling." "Lies! You looked completely relieved, as if you'd thought for sure he was cheating on you! You say you trust your brother, but you don't really trust him, do you?!" "…I trust him." She hadn't trusted her brother. Though Seolja spoke teasingly, Cheon Sohee couldn't immediately respond to the sharp observation. "A woman who is overly jealous is hard to love, you know!" "Hard to love…?" The thought of being hard to love by her brother left Cheon Sohee speechless, as she stared at Seolja. "Ha ha, the expression on your face is so amusing! That's why you need to hurry and learn the charm techniques from Dongyoung…" "Enough with the jokes, will you take this with you?" Dan Seowol asked, as she handed the book to her disciple, who took it with gratitude. "Yes." "Yukiko! I was just joking! Yukiko wants to read it too!" "There are more copies here." Dan Seowol took out several copies of "The Winding of the Dang Family" from her bundle. "Nin-nin?! Wasn't it supposed to be hard to come by?" In response to Seolja's question, Dan Seowol let out a dry laugh and replied. "You can have copies for reading and proselytizing. But if you want a collector's item that not just anyone can have, there's that." "What do you mean by that?" "Such things exist. Let's discuss it after you read." With that, Dan Seowol distributed the books to her disciple and her friend, sending them back to their rooms. ————— A book written by Yoon Ho oppa. Holding "The Winding of the Dang Family" tenderly, Cheon Sohee entered her room. "Ho-pil (胡筆)." Barbarian writer. Like a woman tracing the name of her beloved on his palm, Cheon Sohee traced the lines of her lover’s pen name with her fingers. Her brother had chosen a pen name instead of using his real name. Although she hadn’t asked, Cheon Sohee understood why. Since he was from Joseon, like her, he knew well what might happen if he put himself directly in the spotlight. She remembered the moments when Yoon Ho oppa was working as a storyteller. "Even if he's a barbarian, can he really tell stories that well? He's still just an outsider." "He's a barbarian storyteller, but still, just shut up and listen." "What could a barbarian possibly know?" People who saw his black hair and looked at him with disdain—they filled the Central Plains, where appearances were everything. Some types were particularly intolerable. "Wow, look at that face, storyteller. How about chatting after his story?" "Just chatting? I want to do more than that." "He's fair game… oh?!" "Ouch!" Those ignorant bugs, speaking only about his outward appearance without knowing his inner worth, were unforgivable. She wouldn’t let those pests speak with her brother even once more. She quickly knocked them out and handed them over to a man at the fabric shop. Though it was unclear why a man with such martial prowess ran a fabric shop, he was perceptive. While he sighed about bringing him another one, he took care of them without any gossip spreading. Anyway, though her brother laughed as if he were used to the indifference from the people of the Central Plains, sometimes there was a bitterness on his face that even she could detect. The name Ho-pil must have been one he chose after much contemplation. Cheon Sohee looked at Kang Yoon Ho's pen name with a gaze filled with affection. "The Winding of the Dang Family." Cheon Sohee murmured the title with a slight awkwardness. "Dang Hwa Rin…" He said she was a business partner and friend. As a business partner, surely she must have helped with the writing. There couldn't be any other meaning to it. Nevertheless, the matter still irked her. She felt a subtle unease, perhaps something people might call a woman's intuition. In the end, she rose from her seat and looked into the mirror. While other women gazed into theirs to apply makeup daily, mirrors meant little to Cheon Sohee's routine. Yet today, she found herself scrutinizing her reflection with care. "He said I was pretty." Although hers was still a youthful face, the mirror reflected a beauty who might be considered unrivaled throughout Joseon. From the neck down, her figure suggested maturity beyond her age, making her appear unbelievable as someone just beyond adolescence. Yet, an unexperienced sense of crisis led her to the mirror, trying to quell her unease without realizing. Calming herself with difficulty, Cheon Sohee opened the first volume of "The Winding of the Dang Family." "Dang Jeong." She didn't have a hobby of reading fiction. Finding entertainment in letters was for time spent calming the murderous instincts of the Heavenly Star. But "The Winding of the Dang Family" was written by Kang Yoon Ho. Cheon Sohee mouthed the protagonist's name, fully engrossing herself in the writing. The protagonist falls for the woman known as the most beautiful in Sichuan, striving diligently to refine himself. He works hard, with unwavering devotion, toward the woman he loves. It reminded her of someone. "Yoon Ho oppa…?" They were similar—the dedication to striving for one woman. Cheon Sohee saw Kang Yoon Ho in Dang Jeong. Her brother, too, was overcoming death-defying odds and living earnestly for her sake. Dang Jeong was her brother. As her thoughts reached that conclusion, a realization suddenly blossomed regarding the heroine. "The most beautiful woman in Sichuan… is me?" Could the person Yoon Ho oppa loves be none other than herself? Surely, the most beautiful woman in Sichuan couldn't be anyone else. It dawned on her that "The Winding of the Dang Family" was the love story of her and Yoon Ho oppa. With this new understanding, Cheon Sohee dived headlong into the novel. [My skills are lacking, and I cannot guarantee victory. But if that depraved man wishes to approach you, he will first have to take my life.] "The story of Seongga!" It truly was her brother. The brother who, when she had rampaged at Seongga, did not abandon her but tried to save her. Remembering that time, Cheon Sohee's heart ached, and her thoughts of Kang Yoon Ho swelled with warmth. "Yoon Ho oppa…." Dang Jeong was defending the most beautiful woman in Sichuan. Dang Jeong was Yoon Ho. The most beautiful woman in Sichuan was herself. Unconsciously, Cheon Sohee replaced Dang Jeong's face with Yoon Ho's and that of the most beautiful woman with her own. 'Is Yoon Ho oppa protecting me?' Her brother, wielding a sword, protecting her. Though she'd never seen it, the mere thought filled her chest with a gentle warmth, making her cheeks flush. She couldn't tear her eyes away from the book, devouring it ceaselessly until the very last page. [Brother, please handle my first time gently.] Right up to the scene at bedtime. "Huh…?" Cheon Sohee instinctively snapped the book shut upon encountering a scene painted in rosy hues, though the script was in stark black ink. The scene was too explicit. Naturally, she understood what goes on between a man and a woman at night, but her understanding was purely mechanical, limited to educational basics. Thus, for her, the bed scene in "The Winding of the Dang Family," a commercial novel designed to excite readers, was overwhelmingly shocking. 'First night.' With Dang Jeong as her brother, Kang Yoon Ho, and the most beautiful woman in Sichuan as herself, the scene in the story—one she had deeply immersed herself in—was embarrassingly direct. Cheon Sohee's heart thumped wildly. Opening the book revealed what felt like the first night scene between her and Yoon Ho oppa. Should she not read it? "I want to read it anyway." It takes the resolve of a virtuous monk to resist the allure of such scenes. Fearing someone might see her, Cheon Sohee instinctively brought the book closer, almost touching her nose, and began to read once more. The scene in "The Winding of the Dang Family" was overtly explicit and crafted to cater to specific tastes commercially. "A chest is supposed to be for nursing an infant... but for this…." Nineteen years old. A late yet swift education in the ways of intimacy in the Heavenly Star. While some might criticize such scenes for imparting distorted sexual education, true introductions require an intriguing distortion to ignite interest. It didn’t matter if it was a distorted form of education. 'It’s a book written by Yoon Ho oppa.' It contains Kang Yoon Ho's preferences. A book imbued with his tastes. Because her lover is Kang Yoon Ho. It was, in essence, custom-tailored education for her.