Murim Troubleshooter Dan Mujin

Chapter 39: Eun Hwaran’s Once-in-a-Lifetime Escort Trip

The Spring Equinox among the 24 solar terms.

A time when all things awakened from slumber and the days began to outlast the nights.

Before anyone knew it, spring had fully settled in, and the boy and girl who once wiped sweat in the training ground had aged another year.

Under the starlight, a young man and woman exchanged punches and kicks as part of their training.

Since they were brought in, they had been well-fed and well-rested for the past half-year, and they had grown rapidly like bamboo shoots after rain.

Kids at that age really did grow quickly—before long, the boy began to emanate a youthful aura, and the girl started to take on the demeanor of a proper young lady.

“Hup! Heut!”

“Ha! Hiyat!”

Especially the girl, Ilhong—since she had shed her male disguise for nighttime training, there was an even stronger sense of femininity about her.

But whether a girl of her age blossomed into beauty or not, the ruthless boy, Dan Mujin, showed no mercy, delivering a Flick Strike to her crown the moment he spotted an opening.

Ttak!

“Ugh! That hurts!”

“That’s why I hit you.”

Hwang Geolgae, who was watching from the side, recognized the Flick Strike—it was one he’d seen many times before.

The Subtle Principle of Extreme Swiftness contained in those fingertips. That cocky brat had somehow stolen half of his martial logic.

“Pain is youth... no, pain makes you stop making defensive mistakes.”

And he was even mimicking the advice Hwang Geolgae himself had once offered.

What a cheeky little bastard. One of Hwang Geolgae’s eyebrows arched crookedly.

“You bastard!”

Ilhong gritted her teeth and lunged forward with a look of frustration.

She unleashed the Beggar’s Union's Begging Fist that Hwang Geolgae had personally refined for her.

Her right foot slammed into the ground, and her left fist descended like a hammer along a curved arc.

However, as Dan Mujin’s legs blurred and his arms snaked out like lassos, her white wrist was caught mid-motion and came to an abrupt stop.

“You... son of a—”

And Hwang Geolgae had to let out another hollow laugh.

That was also the Beggar’s Union’s Grab Technique, the Copper Hammer Hand, which he had used in the past to catch runaways during training.

It seemed he had also secretly practiced linking it with the Whirlwind Steps, judging by how fluid the movements were.

“...Boss, how did you just do that?”

Ilhong, her wrist sealed by the uncanny maneuver, widened her eyes and asked.

“You just swoosh and bam.”

“Swoosh and bam? What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Swooshbam is just swooshbam.”

That guy probably couldn’t explain it with words because he had instinctively learned it while getting beaten to the brink of death.

Unlike martial artists who built their martial arts systematically from techniques upward, this guy found that life-threatening training methods were much more effective.

“Tch, I trained hard to catch up, but the gap just keeps growing.”

Ilhong grumbled, saying their training periods shouldn’t be too far apart, yet the gap in talent was overwhelming.

But in Hwang Geolgae’s view, if she continued to accumulate her training steadily, she certainly had the potential to be called a master.

It’s just that the monster in front of her was far beyond any standard.

“Hey, overflowing talent? Winter’s over and I still haven’t mastered even 15 years of Internal Energy or reached third star in Starfall Heart Cultivation Method.”

Dan Mujin wiped the sweat from his forehead and answered her grumbling.

That was probably a genuine statement.

With something like a Thunder Bomb that could explode in his mind at any time, he couldn’t feel secure even after making progress and always considered himself lacking.

On the other hand, Ilhong, unaware of that fact, looked incredulous, thinking he was mocking her.

“Wow, that was pretty annoying just now.”

“......”

Maybe he felt guilty after saying that, as Dan Mujin shut his mouth tightly.

Then, perhaps remembering the price of talent—being devoured by the Evil Star if he let his guard down—he looked like he was about to spout nonsense with a face full of unjust grievance.

“But thinking about it, I also kinda feel— Ack!”

To stop him, Hwang Geolgae smacked him hard on the crown.

The guy let out a scream like a duck with a twisted neck. He bounced up like a freshly caught mullet, expressing his pain with his whole body.

Definitely a kid who was satisfying to hit.

“Ah! Dammit! That really hurts!”

“Heuheu, that’s why I hit you, you rascal.”

Hwang Geolgae chuckled and returned the exact words Dan Mujin had used earlier.

Dan Mujin acted like his skull had been cracked and exaggerated his pain.

“Heehee, exactly. Pain helps you improve, right?”

Ilhong smirked with a sassy pout, clearly enjoying the upper hand.

Dan Mujin could only groan, rubbing the sore spot without another word.

“You brat.”

“Ah, what?”

His face full of petulance.

Back in the Beggar’s Union’s headquarters, a single word from him would make over a thousand beggars jump to attention.

And now he made that face over a single smack on the crown. What an impudent rascal.

“Do you know that Eunseong Escort Agency is setting out on an escort trip tomorrow?”

A mysterious freak had caused havoc every time Eunseong raised its banner for an escort trip.

Trading Lord Eun Hwaran seemed to have steeled her resolve this time to recover the trust that had hit rock bottom.

If even this escort trip, for which she had scraped together every last bit of remaining credibility, failed, Eunseong Escort Agency would truly be finished.

“Yes, I know. Eun Hwaran noona’s once-in-a-lifetime escort trip, all we need is you.”

“...?”

That guy sometimes spouted complete nonsense like that.

Hwang Geolgae just let it pass, knowing there was a mad star stuck in his head.

“Anyway, this old man will be joining that escort trip. I’ll be away on a long journey for a couple of months.”

Since it was an escort trip to clear out all the backlogged tasks, they would be traveling far and visiting many places.

“Phew, well, safe travels.”

After being beaten all winter during training, Dan Mujin seemed quite pleased at the thought of the old man being away for a while.

“You look rather happy.”

“No way.”

Even as he denied it, he couldn’t hide his goofy grin—it was a hilarious sight.

He clearly thought it had nothing to do with him.

“You’re going too, you brat.”

“...Huh?”

His smile vanished instantly.

He had thought he was finally escaping from harsh training, but now his face hardened again upon realizing otherwise.

Watching him from the front was quite the amusing show.

“This is insane. Why me? I’m not even an escort agency’s warehouse assistant anymore!”

“But you’ve become a wanderer instead. Trading Lord Eun Hwaran gladly agreed to hire you.”

“No, I mean, I don’t remember ever asking to be hired?”

The guy shouted, shaking his head violently, insisting he’d never done such a thing.

“Of course you don’t. I asked them to hire you on your behalf.”

When people are dumbfounded beyond reason, they’re left speechless.

I stared at Hwang Geolgae, eyes full of disbelief.

“You damned old man! This is tyranny! What gives you the right to step in and cause a ruckus?!”

He used to insist we weren’t even master and disciple, and now he’s pulling this absurd stunt.

“Heuheu, did you really think I’d leave a guy like you, who could explode at any moment, unattended for months? Stop fussing and follow this old man.”

For the sake of Murim’s peace, that brat had to remain within my sight.

At least until he reached a certain level where he could suppress the Heaven-Slaying Star, I had no intention of letting him go.

“You cursed old bastard!”

Like a wild child denied his way, he began throwing a tantrum again.

He started spouting all sorts of complaints, saying that the current training was hardship enough.

But no matter how much he argued, when I didn’t so much as blink, he eventually clamped his mouth shut and began darting his eyes about.

That subtle sideways glance at the back—it was something I’d seen before.

And the next line was surely going to be—

“...The Thirty-Six Stratagems!”

Yeah, that was it.

The brat gathered his Internal Energy and activated the Whirlwind Steps, sprinting off at full speed.

He made a desperate dash with frantic motion.

“Tsk tsk, even if you run, you’re still within the Buddha’s palm.”

To think he could shake me off with just two stars in Whirlwind Steps. Too much courage turns into recklessness.

Taat!

The Yongcheon Point surged with massive Internal Energy. I sped across the training ground like a swallow on water.

My speed was like lightning—my body stretched and blurred like a ghost.

In front of Dan Mujin, who was fleeing frantically, I suddenly appeared.

“Eep!”

But as if he’d expected it, Dan Mujin skidded to a halt with his left foot and kicked out with his right, spinning half a turn midair.

He narrowly avoided my grasp and resumed his sprint.

Just the other day, he was screaming profanity in surprise—this was a big improvement.

“You bastard! I’m not going! Stop chasing me!”

The brat shouted desperately while scampering away.

A greenhorn like him had no problem mouthing off to a senior of the Murim.

“Stop babbling and come here.”

He probably thought he’d luckily avoided the Copper Hammer Hand, but I’d just gone easy on him.

The Heaven-Slaying Star might be able to read the trajectory of attacks, but if I moved fast enough that the body couldn’t react even if it knew, that was enough.

Swish—Tatak!

I quickly caught up alongside him. Even while running, four of my arms rotated chaotically in the air.

My hand shot out from the blinding trajectory and coiled around his arm like a snake.

Tuk!

“Ugh!”

The brat lost his balance when I struck his Demonic Point, tumbling dozens of times from the momentum.

Dust rose in thick clouds. Just in case he somehow shook off the pressure point, I infused over five times the usual Internal Energy.

He was probably frozen stiff like last time, with just his eyeballs rolling around.

“You brat, your madness grows by the day.”

I let out a lamenting sigh.

His Dantian was already filled with Anti-demonic Energy, and pure Righteous Light flowed from his eyes—seems like this was just his natural personality.

“Guh, ugh. Dammit! Whose fault do you think this is…! You beat me in the name of training, and you think any sane person wouldn’t go crazy?!”

A thick curse flew out from the dust cloud.

“You brat, how did you undo the pressure point again?”

I had definitely struck both the Demonic Point and Evil Point, yet he was already flapping his mouth.

Even infusing multiple times the usual energy didn’t help. How was he pushing through the pressure point?

Maybe if I flowed True Qi throughout his body, I’d uncover the mechanism—but I didn’t want to risk encountering that vile presence inside him.

“Huff, just give it up, old man! No matter how many pressure points you strike, I’ll never submit—Ack!”

In the end, I had to knock him out physically by smacking the back of his neck.

His eyes rolled up and his head slumped. Maybe I should’ve done that from the start.

“...What kind of bastard is like this.”

Maybe because he’d been beaten so much, getting smacked around didn’t scare him anymore.

I’d gone through all kinds of hardships as a beggar, but this guy was one of the most tenacious I’d ever seen.

Was this the kind of mental toughness needed to harbor the Heaven-Slaying Star and still remain sane?

“Ilhong, take this brat and load him onto the escort wagon.”

I picked up the limp Dan Mujin and handed him over to Ilhong.

“...Yessir.”

She gulped and responded.

Surely there was no other master-disciple relationship as brutal as this one.

Even if she learned martial arts, she swore never to get between those two.

When I opened my eyes, I saw an unfamiliar sky.

The sun was high in the sky—yet my last memory was clearly training in the middle of the night.

“Boss, are you awake?”

A fluttering ponytail. A pretty boy leaned in close.

Even with the Human-skin Mask, it wasn’t enough to hide that beauty.

And behind her, hundreds of laborers and warehouse assistants were bustling around the estate.

“Move it, you damn slugs!”

“If you so much as scratch the escort goods, you’ll be paying for them out of pocket!”

Everyone was working hard to ensure everything was perfect for the upcoming escort trip.

Warehouse assistants stuffed goods and baggage into wagons, while escorts inspected weapons, personal gear, and preserved rations.

On the frontline, Head Escorts and Janggwe sprinted about, directing the whole process in perfect sync.

The more I watched, the more it reminded me of Jeon Juntae from my military days.

The atmosphere was so militarized, it felt like someone might shout “fast pace” and “dispatch authority: Eun Hwaran” at any moment.

“Damn, I can’t believe I’m feeling this again.”

I sat up stiffly on the wagon.

This was exactly why I’d thrown a fit about not wanting to go.

“Ilhong, so how far are we walking?”

I had only bothered to remember the return date since I thought it wasn’t my problem.

Why did I already feel like I had blisters on my soles?

“Roughly two thousand li, they said?”

“......”

I cursed silently in my heart.

Even Earth’s special forces only did the thousand-li march once every two years because it was so brutal.

No matter how vast the land, this side planned to walk double that distance.

Of course, we’d rest at villages along the way, but it was clear this journey would be a grueling one.

“Hmph.”

I bent my knee slightly, preparing to get up.

“If you run, Hwang Noya said he’ll chase you to the ends of the Central Plains.”

“Hrrrmmm...”

I lowered the knee I’d raised.

It wasn’t because I was intimidated by those words. Definitely not.

“Who said I was running? My knee just felt stiff.”

“Sure, sure.”

Ilhong smirked like she didn’t believe a word.

Hearing that, I kind of understood why everyone around was loaded down like they were carrying full combat gear.

They’d be walking so much and for so long, they were packing everything they might need.

Unlike the modern world where you’d find a convenience store everywhere, it would be nearly impossible to get supplies during the march out here.

“Come to think of it, you packed quite a lot too, didn’t you?”

She had nearly as much luggage as the merchants joining this escort trip.

A huge pack slung on her back and three or four small bundles hanging from her waist belt.

“There was a lot to prepare. Some of it I got from the Black Spot.”

Ah, that all-purpose shadow market that had everything and anything.

While wandering as a vagabond, she had rushed off to the Black Spot whenever she had money, and it looked like she’d brought back quite a bit.

She even borrowed money from me several times, looking deeply embarrassed.

“Now that I think about it, what did you spend all that money on at the Black Spot?”

Not just a single gold coin—she had probably burned through a dozen silver coins too.

Of course, she was a smart kid who wouldn’t waste it, but I had gotten curious.

“Heh, most of it went into this.”

She chuckled and pulled something out of her bundle, holding it up in front of me.

It was a secret disguise tool from the Hao Sect, modeled after a human face.

“Tada! A Human-skin Mask for Boss Mujin.”

A custom disguise tool fitted to my face shimmered in her hand.

“Wait, you were making one for me?”

“Yes. You said before that you wished you had one of these.”

I’d once mumbled to myself after seeing the girl flawlessly turn into a boy every morning.

She’d picked up on that and secretly prepared this gift.

It felt like giving your kid allowance and having them come back with a gift for their parent.

“What a promising kid.”

“Hehe.”

Ilhong beamed, proud and smiling shyly at my praise.

Totally worth the blind investment. Not a single coin felt wasted on this gift.

“Ooooh.”

Even just bringing it near my face, I could feel it adhering smoothly to my features. It was clearly carved exclusively for me, not some generic mask.

If I applied some of the special glue, it’d be completely seamless.

“But Ilhong.”

“Yes?”

“This surface is really detailed. How did you know the shape of my face to make this?”

You’d have to observe someone’s face up close to get it this accurate.

Now that I thought about it, there were times she stared at me with an odd look...

“Well, after your dawn training, you always pass out like you’re dead.”

“That’s true.”

Because what you call training was basically a beating inflicted on every part of my body, driving me to the limit of my stamina.

Although, that did lead to explosive martial progress.

“So I came to see you when you were asleep and observed your face…”

“...What did you say?”

So she’d come and stared at my face when I was unconscious?

Even for Ilhong, that was kind of creepy.

“O-oh, please don’t misunderstand! I just wanted to surprise you with the Human-skin Mask!”

When I looked at her in shock, she blushed at the ears and hurried to clarify her pure intentions.

“Right? That’s what it was, right...?”

“Of course! Totally!”

She nodded furiously.

Let’s just go with that since she insists so hard.

Otherwise... it might get a bit scary.