I hastily threw on my outer robe and rushed outside.
"Master! Please help!" The desperate cry came from the direction of my father, Baek Mu-heun's quarters.
It was a familiar voice. 'What could be happening at this late hour?' It was deep into the night, when most people were already asleep.
For someone to come to the martial hall at this hour and seek out my father was no ordinary matter.
When I arrived at my father's quarters shortly after, I saw a young boy kneeling before him under the lantern light, sobbing uncontrollably. 'Who is that?' It was Jang, the second son of the Jang family who ran the fabric shop.
He was the leader of the little brats I taught.
Just this morning, he had come to me with a pouty face, urging me to teach him martial arts quickly.
Suddenly, a thought crossed my mind—what my father had said earlier.
"The fabric shop owner, Mr. Jang, came by earlier. He said his son, who was sent to the martial hall, returned half-dead."
Could it be...? Did he come here to complain because he felt wronged after being scolded?
"This is so petty..."
I was about to blurt out something in anger when the little brat sniffled and shouted, "Please save my brother! Master Baek! Please save my son!"
Looking again, I saw Mr. Jang from the fabric shop standing behind the boy, carrying a bloodied youth on his back.
"What on earth happened?" My father's expression hardened as he examined the bloodied boy's condition.
He took the boy from Mr. Jang and laid him down on the floor, checking his injuries. 'These are wounds from martial arts.'
I quietly moved beside my father to inspect the boy's condition.
Though amateurish, the wounds were undoubtedly caused by martial arts.
"Ugh..."
As my father pressed and prodded the boy's body, the boy writhed and let out a groan.
Seeing this, the little brat beside him burst into tears, snot running down his face.
Mr. Jang, the boy's father, also wore a desperate expression.
"Please, save my eldest son!" The bloodied boy was Mr. Jang's firstborn, the older brother of the little brat I taught, five years his senior.
After examining the boy, my father let out a sigh of relief.
"Several bones are broken, but his internal organs are unharmed. His life isn't in danger. I'll perform emergency treatment first, so let him stay here tonight. Take him to a proper doctor tomorrow."
My father pressed a few acupoints on the boy's body, and the boy's expression relaxed as he drifted off to sleep.
Due to his sickly wife and son, my father had spent years seeking out doctors and medicinal herbs, making him quite knowledgeable in medicine.
Especially when it came to external injuries, he was better than most doctors, so much so that villagers would come to him first when injured rather than going to a doctor.
"Ah, thank you! Thank you so much!" "Master Baek, my brother isn't going to die, right? He'll be okay, right?" Mr. Jang kept bowing his head in gratitude, while the little brat, still anxious, clung to my father's clothes, pleading.
"Don't worry. He'll be fine after a few days of rest."
My father picked up the little brat and patted his head.
The boy sobbed in his arms before falling asleep.
My father handed the sleeping brat to me and then asked Mr. Jang in a low voice, his expression now icy cold.
"Who did this?" It was the first time I felt such a chilling aura from my father, making the hairs on my arms stand on end. 'I had a feeling...' Though he often called himself a mediocre martial artist without any notable reputation, I never believed that to be true.
"Well..."
Mr. Jang hesitated, unable to answer, clearly worried that his words might cause some major trouble.
My father reassured him.
"Don't worry. I just want to understand what happened."
"He got hurt while hanging out with friends..."
"It's a bit awkward for me to say this, but among the children I teach in this village, Jang-il is one of the top in terms of skill. And the wounds he has... they aren't from the martial arts I teach."
"Well..."
Mr. Jang still hesitated, unable to answer, when suddenly, "It was those bastards from Jin Martial Hall!" The little brat, who had woken up, shouted with a fierce expression from my arms.
"They started picking a fight with my brother first! They insulted the martial arts taught at Baek Martial Hall, calling them cheap!" "Jin Martial Hall?" Jin Martial Hall was a martial hall that had opened in the neighboring village a few months ago.
I had heard rumors that the owner of Jin Martial Hall was a distant relative of the Namgung family. 'Probably just boasting.
Even if he is a distant relative, why would someone from one of the Five Great Families come to this backwater to open a martial hall?'
In any case, my father had no interest in or concern for the newly opened martial hall in the neighboring village.
Baek Martial Hall had been teaching martial arts here for over 20 years, after all.
But that indifference lasted only until today.
Those bastards had clearly crossed a line.
"Did they really say that?" At my father's cold question, the little brat nodded vigorously.
"Yes! They said the martial arts of Baek Martial Hall are worthless and that theirs are much stronger!" "Did multiple disciples from Jin Martial Hall attack Jang-il?" "No, it was just one person, but..."
The little brat hesitated before shouting, "But it was still cowardly! Yang-sam knows all about our martial arts!"
"... So it was that bastard Yang-sam."
Even though our martial hall was struggling financially, my father had a principle of not teaching martial arts to those with rotten character.
Yang-sam was one of those people.
He had been a kind and diligent child when he was young, but as he grew older, his true colors showed, and after a severe scolding, he was expelled from the martial hall.
It seemed Yang-sam had recently been learning martial arts at Jin Martial Hall.
"That bastard picked a fight with my brother! My brother didn't want to fight, but he insulted our master and our parents..."
Right.
Even a saint couldn't stand being insulted like that.
From what I heard, it seemed Yang-sam held a grudge against the disciples of Baek Martial Hall for expelling him.
But one question arose in my mind. 'Did Yang-sam act alone?'
The wounds on Jang-il's bloodied body.
As I stood beside my father, inspecting Jang-il's injuries, I noticed something. 'He used a killing technique.' If Yang-sam's hands had been a bit more ruthless, Mr. Jang's eldest son could have been permanently disabled.
It was an excessively cruel technique for something taught in a rural martial hall.
"Hmm..."
It seemed my father had similar thoughts, as his handsome forehead creased deeply in worry.
"Kids fighting... that's all it was. My son is safe, and that's enough for me."
Seeing my father's serious expression, Mr. Jang waved his hands, as if sensing that things might escalate.
He was a simple country man.
His heart was already racing from seeing his son beaten to a pulp, and he was afraid that if a real fight broke out between martial artists, he might get caught in the crossfire.
"About today's incident," my father, who had been deep in thought, raised his head and spoke to Mr. Jang.
"I will personally visit the owner of Jin Martial Hall tomorrow morning to settle this."
"Won't that just make things worse..."
Seeing Mr. Jang's worried expression, my father smiled and said, "Don't worry. I'll just give them a proper warning and leave it at that."
"Yes, yes. I trust Master Baek..."
"It's late, so you should head home now. I'll take care of Jang-il until tomorrow morning."
"Ah, thank you! Thank you so much!" Mr. Jang kept bowing his head in gratitude, while the little brat, still clinging to me, begged for revenge for his brother before being dragged away by Mr. Jang.
I escorted the two of them to the gate on behalf of my father.
In my mind, the killing technique taught by Jin Martial Hall lingered. 'Will it really end with just a warning?' My father said he would resolve it through conversation, but I had a feeling things wouldn't be that simple.
My ominous premonition was spot on.
"What's all this commotion so early in the morning?" The man speaking with a swaggering attitude was a giant, a head taller than my father. 'This bandit-looking guy is a distant relative of the Namgung family?' Just by his gait, I could tell.
What kind of martial arts he practiced, his physique, his habits in a fight, and his overall capability.
I had trained countless disciples of the Blood Demon Sect and observed many masters, and that experience told me that this bandit-looking guy was, at best, a second-rate martial artist.
Above all, this guy...
"Last night, one of our disciples was severely injured in a fight with a disciple from Jin Martial Hall."
"Why are you making such a fuss over kids fighting?" My father politely brought up the matter, but the man, Namgung Wook, picked his ear with a dismissive attitude.
"... It's more than just kids fighting. Jang-il's injuries are quite severe."
"Boys fight and get hurt as they grow up. If a man is afraid of getting hurt like a girl, how can he become a true man?" Namgung Wook openly mocked my father, implying that he was making a big deal out of nothing like a woman.
Though my father understood the meaning behind the laughter, his expression remained unchanged.
My father, with his hands behind his back, calmly said, "I don't know if the owner of Jin Martial Hall teaches martial arts to turn boys into men, but I teach so that children can grow up healthy and protect themselves from bandits. That's why I don't teach techniques that can severely harm others."
My father turned his head and spoke to one of the young men standing behind Namgung Wook.
"Yang-sam. You almost killed a friend last night. Do you realize that?" The young man couldn't meet my father's cold gaze and looked away, gritting his teeth before saying, "It was a fair fight!" "Do you really believe that?" "Well, that..."
"Hey. What are you doing to our student?" Namgung Wook stepped between my father and Yang-sam with his massive frame.
He glared at my father with a menacing expression.
"If you're upset, teach them to be stronger. Why are you causing a scene at our place over a kid getting beaten up?" "Listen here."
"Well, if the teacher's martial arts are lacking, it's no wonder the students get beaten up."
"Hah..."
Namgung Wook openly provoked my father.
By now, a crowd of onlookers had gathered around us.
I looked around and thought, 'It's a trap.' It was clear now.
Jin Martial Hall had planned this situation, using Yang-sam to attack Jang-il.
And when my father came, they were ready to humiliate him in front of everyone and pick a fight.
If my father backed down here, he would be labeled a coward, and students would stop coming to Baek Martial Hall.
So, shouldn't my father just defeat this guy with his martial arts?
"Listen here, Master Baek. Are you turning a kids' fight into an adults' fight? Just go back. I'll tell our students not to bully the weak ones anymore."
Namgung Wook was needling my father with his words, but he didn't directly challenge him to a fight.
If my father, provoked, were to challenge him to a duel here? 'He'd just look like a petty man seeking revenge for a kids' fight.' Even if my father won the duel, it wouldn't result in good rumors.
'This bandit-looking guy is quite cunning.
Or maybe someone else is pulling the strings?' Jin Martial Hall was still trying to establish itself, so it didn't have many students yet.
But today's incident would spread rumors no matter what.
Perhaps... as Baek Martial Hall's reputation fell, Jin Martial Hall's would rise.
"Ahem! It seems not everyone knows."
Seizing the opportunity, the man with the goat beard, who had been quietly standing beside Namgung Wook, spoke loudly for the onlookers to hear.
"The great Namgung Wook here is the eighth cousin of the renowned Sword King Namgung Jehak, a top instructor at the Heavenly Martial Academy! He is of the great Namgung family's bloodline!" At the mention of the Heavenly Martial Academy and the Namgung family, the crowd buzzed with excitement.
Even in this rural area, the name of the Five Great Families was awe-inspiring.
Namgung Wook coughed loudly and waved his hand dismissively.
"Ahem! I'm just a distant relative. I'm just trying to live up to the Namgung name."
I'd bet my hand that this guy isn't a Namgung.
In any case, no matter what choice my father made here, he would lose.
Unless I stepped in.
"Oh, so the martial arts taught at Jin Martial Hall are from the Namgung family?" "Huh?" Namgung Wook looked at me, standing beside my father, as if surprised that a kid like me was there.
I shrunk my neck, pretending to be scared, and said, "This is my first time seeing the martial arts of the Five Great Families... So, does Jin Martial Hall really teach the Namgung family's martial arts?"
At my naive expression and tone, he smirked and puffed out his chest.
"Well, you could say that. Of course, it's not the main family's techniques, but if you trace the roots, it's the same martial arts..."
The onlookers let out an "Oooh" of admiration.
Sensing something was off, the goat-bearded man's expression twitched, but I spoke up first.
"Wow! No wonder it's so powerful. Yang-sam's skills improved so much in just a few months!" "You..."
My father looked at me with a questioning expression, but I signaled him to stay quiet and continued.
"In my life, I've seen the divine techniques of the Five Great Families! This humble one has truly opened his eyes!" "Hahaha! You've got a good eye. If you want, I can teach you too!" Snicker. A thin smile formed on my lips as I couldn't hold back any longer.
"Yes. I never imagined the Namgung family's martial arts would include such a killing technique. I thought it was too vicious, like something from a demonic sect." "... What?" The smug expressions on Namgung Wook and the goat-bearded man froze, and the mocking laughter from the Jin Martial Hall disciples abruptly stopped.
Namgung Wook's face slowly twisted into a sinister scowl.
"What did you just say? If you keep flapping your mouth..."
"I said it seemed like a demonic sect's technique. You know, the kind that makes you progress quickly at first but eventually turns you into a cripple."
"Wha, wha, what!" The onlookers, who had been watching with uncertainty, now wore expressions of shock.
The goat-bearded man beside Namgung Wook turned red and trembled.
And the more they panicked, the wider my smile grew.
"Ah, no way? Surely the great Namgung family wouldn't teach something like a demonic sect's technique, right?" For the record, not all demonic sect techniques are evil and dangerous.
Some are as profound as orthodox techniques, with almost no side effects.
But the public perception is vastly different.
For example...
"I can brag to everyone I meet that I've seen the Namgung family's divine techniques, right? Maybe I'll even send a report to the Martial Alliance."
The color drained from Namgung Wook's face.