ROTMHS Special Spin-off - Chapter 19
Chapter 19. No way, right? (4)
“So what I’m trying to say is......”
“Wait.”
Just as Cheong Myeong was about to continue, Baek Cheon
hurriedly stepped in.
“Come out for a moment.”
“Huh? Wh-what is it?”
“I said it’s fine. Just come.”
Yoon Jong and Baek Cheon each grabbed one of Cheong Myeong’s
arms and, with him still in a sitting position, lifted him up and carried him
outside the house.
“What are you doing? All of a sudden.”
“I’m saying this out of needless worry—”
[tl note: Nopasim (노파심)*. Literally “old woman’s
heart,” an idiom meaning excessive or unnecessary worry.]
Watching Cheong Myeong frown in confusion, Baek Cheon spoke
in an extremely cautious tone.
“Don’t get angry, and don’t hit him.”
“Huh?”
Before Cheong Myeong could even answer, Yoon Jong added as
if urging him over and over again,
“Yeah. Listen properly to your sasuk. Don’t just lash out
because you’re pissed. There are guys who come to their senses when they’re
beaten, but there are also guys who go even more crooked when they’re beaten.
And from what I can see, that one is clearly the latter.”
“What nonsense are you on about?”
Cheong Myeong said, dumbfounded.
“You think I’m going to latch onto that kid and start
fighting him or something?”
“Yes.”
“Yeah.”
“......”
Cheong Myeong’s face twisted violently.
“What kind of people do you take me for? You think I can’t
handle a brat like that?”
“Anyway, we’ve made it clear. Use words.”
“Ah, I said I got it!”
Cheong Myeong let out a sharp snort. There’s a limit to how
much you can look down on a person—how old does he think he is, to get into a scuffle
with a child that small?
“Just watch quietly.”
With brisk steps, Cheong Myeong walked back into the house.
He dropped down in front of Seok Hanbin and stared at him
intently with sharp eyes before speaking in a firm tone.
“Yoo Hanbin.”
“......”
“What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“No. It’s nothing.”
“What is it? Say it.”
“No, it’s not really something that needs to be said....”
“I said, say it.”
Seok Hanbin glanced aside once, then gave an awkward smile
as he spoke.
“I told you my name was Seok Hanbin once before, but seeing
how you’re stubbornly calling me Yoo Hanbin....”
“Hngh?”
“It seems like you either can’t communicate properly or have
some kind of... issue. So there’s no point in me wasting energy on it.”
“......”
Cheong Myeong’s mouth fell open. Seeing that, Seok Hanbin
smiled faintly at him.
“It’s fine. What does a surname matter? Just call me
whatever you want. Since I’m younger, I should be the one to understand.”
“Cheong Myeong-ah.”
“Huh?”
“Lower your fist.”
“......”
Cheong Myeong flinched and turned his head. Before he knew
it, his hand had betrayed his will and risen up beside his face.
“W-Why is this here?”
“Look at the veins standing out on the back of your hand.”
“Good grief, trying to hit a child......”
“Beast.”
“......”
Hearing the condemnation from the Five Swords—
—Cheong Myeong’s head turned to the side with a clunk, like
a broken machine. Rather than anger, this was something different... some
emotion he had never experienced before.
“Didn’t you have something to say? If you’re done, can I go?
I’m rather busy.”
“......”
Cheong Myeong took a long, deep breath. Right. It isn’t
proper to get worked up over a kid this small.
“Fine, Seok Hanbin.”
“Yes.”
“Are you planning to keep living like that?”
“Like that, meaning what?”
“Swindling the black path, scamming the wealthy, fooling
around with kids—like that?”
Seok Hanbin tilted his head to the side, as if he didn’t
understand the intent of the question.
“Well......”
“Yeah?”
“Is there any reason I shouldn’t?”
“......”
“Isn’t this a pretty good life? I don’t see any particular
problem.”
Cheong Myeong’s mouth dropped wide open.
“No problem? An assassin came for you! You almost died
today! And you’re saying there’s no problem?”
“Well, that’s not wrong.”
Seok Hanbin shrugged.
“In the end, I didn’t die, so isn’t that what matters? If
the result is good, everything’s good. If you think about it, those guys lost
money because of me, while I’m perfectly fine.”
“......”
“Then that means I win.”
Cheong Myeong stared blankly at Seok Hanbin, who was smiling
faintly, and spoke in a daze.
“No, this crazy lit—......”
“Cheong Myeong-ah.”
“Now. Take a deep breath. Deep breaths.”
Cheong Myeong looked at Seok Hanbin with a vacant
expression, then suddenly exploded in a shout.
“I said you almost died! Can’t you grasp the situation? If
things had gone just a little wrong, you’d really be dead!”
“I told you, I know?”
“You know and you’re like this?”
At that, Seok Hanbin made a slightly sulky face.
“Wow, you must’ve lived a pretty comfortable life.”
“...What?”
“How many times do you think an orphan scraping by on the
streets nearly dies? If you make a fuss over things like this every time, how
do you even live? In a harsh world like this. Well, I suppose a Taoist cultivating
in the mountains wouldn’t know how dangerous the world is. I should be the one
to understand.”
“Ha, ‘dangerous’?”
It felt like the back of Cheong Myeong’s neck was starting
to throb.
The dangers of the world? So this brat was seriously talking
about the dangers of the world in front of him?
Cheong Myeong turned his head and looked at Baek Cheon with
a desperate expression.
“...Sasuk.”
“No.”
“Can’t I just hit him once? Just once?”
“No.”
“I’m so dumbfounded I can’t stand it. It’s even a bit
pathetic.”
“If it’s pathetic, why are you hitting someone? You lunatic.”
Heat rushed to Cheong Myeong’s head. But somehow, he
suppressed the fury that was about to burst and took a deep breath.
Right. This isn’t about whether he’s the descendant of the
jangmun sahyung or not.
The one in front of him right now is just a child, green as
grass. If he’d had children earlier, he might even have a grandson this age—...no.
A great-grandson.
“Listen to me properly.”
“I’ve been listening this whole time?”
“......”
No. That’s not it. If this were really his great-grandson,
he would have beaten him to death already and hung him from a tree by now.
“If you keep living like that, don’t you realize you’ll
eventually die a roadside death?”
[tl note: Gaeksa (객사 / 客死). To die away from
home, often miserably and unattended, typically on the road.]
“Well, that could happen. But that doesn’t mean I can just
sit around sucking my fingers.”
[tl note: Finger-sucking (손가락만 빨다).
Idiom meaning to sit idle, helpless, doing nothing despite need.]
“You can just avoid doing dangerous things! Just don’t do
them!”
“Ahh. You really don’t get it, Taoist. If you want to gain
something big, you have to stake something big. That’s how success works.”
“That’s success? That’s success? If you want to succeed, you
do it properly! Making money by scamming black-path bastards—calling that
success? What a waste of blood! Blood!”
[tl note: “What a waste of blood” implies lineage or human
worth being squandered.]
“Success is success. What’s the difference?”
“Respectable guys don’t talk about ‘success’ over such
trivial matters!”
“Haha. I’ve always had a bit of a petty nature. If you don’t
like it, I apologize.”
“Grrrk... You little—......!”
“Grab him!”
The Five Swords rushed in swiftly and pinned Cheong Myeong
down.
“Calm down and breathe! Breathe!”
“Uaaaargh!”
Cheong Myeong shook off the Five Swords clutching him and
roared toward Seok Hanbin like a lion.
“In the old saying, if a person is born, they must achieve
distinction and bring honor to their name!”
[tl note: Ipsin-yangmyeong (입신양명 / 立身揚名). “Establish oneself
and spread one’s name,” meaning to succeed in life and gain honor.]
“So first, ipsin (立身)—to properly establish your
foundation—!”
“I did? For an orphan, this is plenty.”
“And then yangmyeong (揚名)—to make your name widely known—!”
“Ah. I’m famous. Did you not know because you just got to
Jinan?”
“That’s not that kind of fame, you bastard!”
“Hey, famous is famous. Are there different kinds of fame?
It’s still reputation either way!”
“Advancement! You have to advance and make a name for
yourself!”
“Ah, advancement?”
Seok Hanbin nodded readily.
“That’s true. I guess I haven’t really advanced in status.”
“Right! Advancement is what matters! Money isn’t everything!”
If he achieved advancement, not only Seok Hanbin but even
the fallen Shandong Yoo Family could be restored. Wasn’t that Cheong Myeong’s
ultimate goal in coming here? So if this brat would just understand—...
“Ah, really?”
“Yeah!”
“Advancing and achieving distinction—that’s the best?”
“That’s right! You’re finally getting it.”
Seok Hanbin clapped his hands together as if in agreement.
“Then you should just do it yourself.”
“...Huh?”
As Cheong Myeong blinked, Seok Hanbin spoke seriously.
“If you think advancing and achieving distinction is that
great, it’s not too late, so go take the state examination. If something’s
good, shouldn’t we do it together?”
[tl note: Gwageo (과거 / 科擧). The imperial/state
examination system used to select officials.]
“I’m a Taoist, you lunatic!”
“Then return to secular life.”
[tl note: Hwansok (환속 / 還俗). To leave monastic life
and return to lay society.]
“Our ages are different!”
“Tsk tsk. There’s no age for learning. Ah? Maybe you
wouldn’t know since you’re a Taoist? Do I have to explain even this.....”
“UAAAAAAAH!”
Cheong Myeong shot to his feet, then grabbed Jo Geol, who
had been standing behind him, and began beating him wildly.
“Aaagh! Aaaaargh!”
“Aaagh! Agh! You lunatic! Why me! Aaaagh!”
“Endure it, Geol-ah. You can’t exactly hit a child.”
“Yeah. That’s true.”
“If someone’s going to get hit, it makes sense that it’s
you.”
“What kind of bullshit is that! Aaaagh!”
“Huff. Huff. Huff. Huff!”
After beating Jo Geol for quite a while, Cheong Myeong stood
there, breathing heavily, his face looking like it might burst.
He had barely managed to vent his anger, but the moment he
saw Seok Hanbin yawning with a face that plainly said ‘Are we done here?’, it felt like his blood started rushing upward
all over again.
‘No... how did jangmun sahyung manage to keep me alive? Ah.
I must’ve been more useful.’
— How the hell does
that conclusion come out, you bastard!
Why? Otherwise, he would’ve beaten me to death long ago! How
is anyone supposed to endure this!
“Tsk. I told you, words don’t get through.”
At that moment, Seok Hanbin stood up from his seat.
“Where are you going?”
“We’ve only known each other for a day. Why should I tell
you something like that? You barge into someone else’s house and sit there like
you own it!”
“...That’s true, but.”
Seok Hanbin stared straight at Cheong Myeong, then suddenly
lowered his head deeply.
“Thank you for saving me.”
“...Huh? All of a sudden?”
He raised his head again and spoke cleanly, cutting it off.
“I’ve expressed my thanks, so let’s not see each other
again. If I keep talking with you people, I feel like my insides are going to
burst.”
With that, Seok Hanbin turned to leave, but Cheong Myeong
spoke—his voice a little different from before.
“Turning away doesn’t mean anything.”
“......”
Seok Hanbin silently turned his head to look at him.
“Whether you’re Yoo or Seok, it’s the same. No one would
want you to live like this. Whether they’re alive or already dead.”
“No matter what others think—”
“And you too.”
“......”
“Aren’t you?”
Seok Hanbin bit down on his lips a couple of times, then his
face twisted violently.
“...Nagging.”
He spun around and rushed outside.
“W-wait. It’s still dangerous—”
Just as Tang Soso was about to stop him, Yoo Iseol grabbed
her shoulder.
“Sago.”
Yoo Iseol shook her head. It meant that trying to force him
any further wouldn’t be good.
“But it’s still dangerous...”
At that moment, Cheong Myeong grabbed Baek-ah, who had been
perched on his shoulder, and set him down in front.
“Go watch him. If anything happens, report back.”
Kii!
Baek-ah swiftly chased after Seok Hanbin.
“Hmm. Cheong Myeong-ah.”
Baek Cheon spoke as he looked at him.
“He doesn’t seem like the kind of kid who can be persuaded
with a few words.”
“I know.”
“We can’t just keep waiting.”
“I know that too.”
“Then what are you going to do?”
Cheong Myeong closed his eyes for a moment. What would
Cheong Mun have done in a situation like this?
“Let’s wait two more days. If not, we go back.”
“...Will that be alright?”
“It’s enough that we confirmed he’s alive. What he said
isn’t entirely wrong. If he doesn’t want it, then it’s nothing but force.”
“Hmm.”
The Five Swords’ gazes fixed on the door Seok Hanbin had
gone out through.
A sigh, released by someone, spread slowly through the air.
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Sorry it took so long guyss, I had a lot of assignments and I was sick too augh
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If anyone wants to donate to motivate me (I'll use the money to buy the RAWs from Naver Series too). Thank you so much!
- Patreon
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