Murim Troubleshooter Dan Mujin

Chapter 4: Beware of Children and Elders

A strange rumor had spread that an escort of the Eunseong Escort Agency got beaten up by some brat.

“Ahem.”

“Lord, the thing is……”

The escorts didn’t know how to respond to Eun Hwaran’s interrogation.

They had thought it was a joke, but it seemed to be real.

Eun Hwaran, who had been reclining in the chair of the trading lord’s office, wore an expression of disbelief.

A full-grown adult, and not just any adult but a third-class escort who had passed the rigorous entrance examination.

Beaten by a mere child?

“Did that little kid, by any chance, have a knot on his waist?”

If it were a beggar from the Beggars’ Union, it would make some sense.

Even if they looked shabby, they had learned martial arts.

However, they should have been banned from entering the capital due to certain incidents.

“No, he wasn’t a Murim man.”

“We didn’t feel any internal energy either. He fought like a wild bird.”

The two escorts, Yangjo and Yangwi, said this while rubbing their swollen cheeks and the buttocks that had been kicked.

A testimony that the kid was an ordinary citizen who hadn’t even learned martial arts.

“Then why did you get beaten up……?”

Eun Hwaran’s expression looked as if she was saying, ‘You’re Murim people, aren’t you?’

With nothing to say, Yangjo and Yangwi subtly avoided her sharp and piercing glare.

Seeing this, Eun Hwaran pressed her throbbing forehead with the fan she was holding.

“Sigh, as if the silk business sinking wasn’t already giving me enough of a headache.”

She let out a shallow sigh while gazing at the mulberry field beyond the window.

They say a beauty’s sigh can bring a nation to ruin.

For a moment, the escorts thought even the troubled Eun Hwaran looked truly beautiful.

They momentarily forgot their own predicament.

“What are you smirking about? Both of you are getting a pay cut.”

“Gasp.”

“No way.”

The grinning faces of the escorts quickly turned pale.

Their wages were already meager, and now even that would be halved for a while.

“My Lord, I have a family to feed……”

“You don’t. That’s additional probation.”

“Urgh.”

It didn’t work.

She saw right through them.

Yangjo and Yangwi lowered their heads with gloomy faces.

“Pulling such a disgrace against a beggar…… You should be grateful it ended like this.”

In fact, it wasn’t something that should have ended with just a pay cut.

They had tarnished the agency’s reputation, so a formal disciplinary action would have been appropriate.

But since there hadn’t been any escort missions recently and money was tight, she decided to let them rest for a few days instead.

“Tsk tsk, sounds like an interesting story.”

Suddenly, an elderly voice intruded into the conversation.

Appearing from behind without a hint of presence, an aged man lifted a gourd filled with rice wine with an intrigued expression.

“Got your asses kicked by some beggar brat, did you?”

Wearing a worn-out robe and reeking of booze, he looked like an ordinary drunk at a glance.

But at his appearance, everyone stood up and greeted him respectfully.

“We greet Elder Hwang.”

When the previous trading lord, Eunjincheong, had suddenly passed away under mysterious circumstances, this unknown Taoist had appeared out of nowhere and visited the trading company.

He stroked his awkwardly grown beard, claiming to emulate the immortals.

Taoists were supposed to avoid food touched by fire, but the greasy pork belly glistening on his lips suggested he had partaken in Dongpo pork for lunch.

“But Elder, what brings you here?”

Eun Hwaran asked with a curious look.

He looked like a bogus Taoist, but in truth, he was a master capable of emitting Sword Qi.

When the company was in crisis, he claimed he had a promise with her late father and volunteered his help.

A truly honorable man.

“Forget this old man, keep talking about that boy.”

He seemed extremely interested in the beggar brat who had knocked down the escorts.

Elder Hwang waved his hand, urging them to continue the story.

“Yes, please continue.”

Eun Hwaran, also intrigued, rested her chin on both hands and gave them the go-ahead.

And so, the two escorts hesitantly began recounting the fight that had taken place in the marketplace.

“He wasn’t ordinary.”

“That little rat had monstrous strength, believe it or not.”

They claimed it felt like wrestling with a raging bull.

Yangjo and Yangwi vividly described the scene with animated hand and foot gestures.

No matter how much he was hit, the beggar brat would spring up like a jiangshi and come at them again.

At first, since they had martial arts, they were able to gain the upper hand by not getting hit while striking.

But at some point, his killing intent exploded, and his movements changed.

“From then on, he charged in like a mad dog.”

“It was terrifying… His punches suddenly became vicious, and dodging them became very hard.”

As they allowed more hits, the tide of battle began to turn.

In the end, they were the ones who got knocked out, the escorts recounted in disbelief.

“Could it be that he trained in outer arts?”

At the trading lord’s question, the escorts shook their heads simultaneously.

“No, Lord. He had a scrawny build with no signs of training.”

Outer arts usually left visible traces due to the nature of their training.

But the kid had soft skin and looked like a noble who had never suffered a day in his life.

That appearance had made Yangjo and Yangwi completely lower their guard.

“Ugh.”

Their faces still ached, and the escorts kept rubbing them.

“Well, well?”

Suddenly, Elder Hwang, who had been silently munching on the snacks in the trading lord’s office, narrowed his eyes.

Then he grabbed Yangjo’s mouth, who had been whining in pain.

“……Mmm, Elder?”

“You brat, didn’t you say he hadn’t learned martial arts?”

“Yes, I swear.”

The two escorts looked truly wronged as they answered.

It didn’t seem like a lie.

“When you fought that kid, did you by any chance use Eight Slashing Fists?”

“Pardon? How did Elder know that…?”

The escort asked, puzzled.

How did he know?

“Those marks on your cheeks. They’re from the Eight Slashing Fists.”

“……?!”

A bear-waist style strike that involved extending the knees and pulling the back muscles to swing.

It was clumsy and rough, but the marks on his cheeks were unmistakably from the Eight Slashing Fists.

Elder Hwang was quite certain, having seen Eunjincheong practice it before.

“…Well now, what do we have here? The brat copied martial arts in that short span of time?”

He let out a small exclamation while inspecting the marks.

As the punches continued, the boy had gone beyond mere mimicry and was even beginning to imitate the essence of the technique.

Although Eight Slashing Fists was a basic martial art that escorts learned, it still wasn’t something a complete outsider could easily imitate.

Let alone a beggar brat wandering the marketplace.

“Tsk tsk……”

No one taught him, but he had naturally picked it up by mixing hands and feet, and taking blows all over his body.

A remarkable martial talent could be sensed.

Sometimes, there were those born with such innate ability.

“Where is that kid?”

Elder Hwang grinned as he asked about the boy’s whereabouts.

The escorts relayed information they had heard from merchants, saying he had likely nested near the southern gate.

“Elder Hwang, we’ll just send someone to bring him here…… Oh.”

Eun Hwaran, thinking this wasn’t something worthy of a top expert’s time, was about to summon a subordinate.

But when she turned her head, Elder Hwang was already gone from his seat.

As if he had never been there to begin with.

Truly an elusive Taoist.

“Where on earth did Father meet someone like that……”

Seated again, Eun Hwaran scratched her cheek in awkwardness.

Dan Mujin asked while gripping the two coin pouches the escorts had dropped.

“What are these?”

“Coin pouches!”

The victor takes the spoils.

That was a natural right and common sense in the Murim.

“What can you do with this?”

“You can eat meat dumplings!”

The little ones with purplish bruises around their eyes shouted with cheerful smiles.

They seemed to be remembering the meat dumplings they had only watched from a distance and never got to eat because of interference from some gang.

“Bah - !”

But Dan Mujin, who had defeated not one but two third-rate martial artists and ascended as the God of Beggars, scoffed and declared:

“Such small dreams! A real man should dream big! Today, everyone will get one dumpling each… and Dongpo pork too!”

“Wowww - !”

Dongpo pork, simmered in sweet sauce for a long time until it melted in your mouth like snow.

A supreme luxury they had never enjoyed before.

Naturally, the children’s reaction was explosive.

“Dan Mujin! Dan Mujin! Dan Mujin!”

The Mujin gang cheered with glowing faces.

Excited, they chanted their leader’s name nonstop.

The beggars’ den stirred like a festival with every word Dan Mujin uttered.

“Whoa, what the……”

Ilhong, who had rejoined after running away, stood dazed at the boisterous scene.

Normal beggar gangs weren’t like this.

Typically, a strong boss exploited weaker kids and didn’t share anything equally like this.

“He’s kind of strange.”

That was Ilhong’s brief assessment of Dan Mujin.

Usually, when people gained even a little power, they were quick to wield it.

Ilhong, who had suffered greatly because of that, found Dan Mujin to be an oddball.

“And what else did he say…”

Dan Mujin had shouted that instead of biting each other among orphans with nothing, they should join forces and rob the rich.

He said the real trickle-down effect started from gutting the capitalist’s belly or something like that.

It was gibberish to Ilhong.

But he agreed with the idea of the lower class banding together.

The place Ilhong had belonged to before had also been founded on that ideology.

“Was the first Sect Leader my father spoke of someone like him, I wonder.”

Ilhong murmured with a bitter expression.

At any rate, perhaps due to these eccentricities, the kids’ loyalty soared sky-high.

And perhaps because of rumors that you wouldn’t go hungry if you came here, the number of applicants wanting to join had recently increased dramatically.

“Let’s go! We’ll kick open the tavern door and boldly order food!”

Dan Mujin, now puffed up with confidence as much as the weight of the coin pouches, shouted.

People naturally stood taller and spoke louder when their wallets were full.

With confidence, he declared a charge toward the inn.

“Boss! But won’t the tavern owner chase us out?”

What tavern owner would welcome dirty beggars?

“If one of us goes, maybe. But if ten of us barge in? Would they still dare to raise a stick?”

Numbers were power, a means to pressure the opponent.

Tavern owners who usually kicked beggars out for being filthy would have no choice but to obediently serve them food this time.

“Right, we’re strong when we’re together!”

“Everyone, lock arms!”

“Who dares strike us now!”

The kids, who had learned that following Dan Mujin brought unexpected treats, burst into joyful cheers and rose like a swarm of bees.

Who would have imagined?

That the day would come when they would eat real Dongpo pork at a tavern instead of thin gruel.

“……How long has it been since I tasted such delicacy.”

A dish prepared with care by a professional cook.

Ilhong found himself slightly excited along with the others before he even realized it.

Dan Mujin’s words and actions seemed to have a strange power that drew people in.

And now, he had proven his strength by taking down two third-rate martial artists.

“Maybe I should stick around and get closer?”

Rather than clinging to some half-baked place, it seemed far better to stick by that guy’s side.

If things went well, it might even help with future matters.

Ilhong’s eyes curved slyly like a cat’s.

“What are you waiting for?”

But then Dan Mujin struck Ilhong’s shoulder as he was lost in thought.

“Gehak.”

Ilhong let out a strange sound at the sudden physical contact.

“Don’t make weird noises and follow me. You fought too, so you deserve to eat.”

But seemingly unaware, Dan Mujin headed to the tavern with the kids, wearing a face like, “What a weirdo.”

“…Thought I’d been caught.”

His voice came out like a whisper.

He felt like he had aged ten years from the stress.

Ilhong sighed in relief at Dan Mujin’s indifference.

In the “Attack by Stratagem” chapter of The Art of War, it says:

Build animosity toward the enemy and reward the spoils to the soldiers.

Then, the army’s morale will soar sky-high.

“Meat dumplings! Dongpo pork!”

“We’re weak alone, but strong together!”

“Waaa!”

And indeed, the contents of the military strategy book proved true.

The little ones marched boldly down the alleyway, shouting with morale at its peak.

It reminded me of the turbulent days at the orphanage.

Back then too, we’d fight off punks who picked on orphans and then go buy something tasty at the canteen.

“Boss, how much is in the coin pouch?”

Ochil, clinging beside him with sparkling eyes, asked.

“Thirty iron coins. Four silver coins.”

“Wow, I guess working at an escort agency really does pay well.”

Seriously.

For us to gather that much would take weeks of desperate begging.

To them, this must be a typical weekly wage.

Even if they were third-rate, was this the value of those who were aware of Qi and trained in martial arts?

A gap that begging couldn’t close.

Indeed, people needed skills.

“But even so, the one who won in the end was still you, Boss.”

“Well, they did feel different, probably because they had formally trained in martial arts.”

I almost lost.

What good was being strong and sturdy?

They dodged so nimbly that I couldn’t land a proper hit.

But as I kept charging in and got beaten to the brink of death, the Heaven-Slaying Star within me awakened, and from there the tide turned.

A murderous intent that half-devoured my reason.

A destructive energy coiled around my fingertips, and the speed of my punches doubled.

Then, even the chaotic swings began to contain a systematic form and principle.

Just like the movements of those escorts who had pummeled me.

Ssshhh—

And once I mentioned it, the Heaven-Slaying Star started squirming again.

It kept poking at me, who was now leading the children like the Pied Piper.

It felt furious, like, “I saved your life, and now you're playing leader of beggars?”

‘Yeah, yeah, go back inside.’

I was glad I beat the escorts, but that feeling of my reason being devoured by killing intent still gave me chills.

Maybe because of the aftereffects, I still occasionally snapped in anger.

It was starting to feel dangerous.

Poke, poke, poke!

Then, suddenly, the red energy had a seizure and urgently pointed somewhere.

“Boss, some old man is approaching.”

From the opposite alley Ochil pointed at, an old man of unknown identity was stumbling toward us.

Squelch. Squelch.

His clothes were as shabby as any beggar’s.

A gourd bottle dangled at his waist, suggesting he’d been drinking.

This place we had nested in was filthy and reeked of sewage—normally, no one would approach it.

“Boss, we’ll just drive off that old geezer ourselves.”

Flush with confidence from our recent victories, Ochil boldly stepped forward, but I held him back.

“Don’t let your guard down based on appearances. That’s your bad habit.”

What do they say in martial arts novels?

Be most wary of old men and children.

Better try driving him off with words before using force.

“Old man, looks like you’ve taken a wrong turn. Best go back.”

I waved my hand toward the end of the alley, signaling him to leave.

But despite my gesture, the old man merely grinned and stroked his beard.

“Tsk tsk, just like the escorts said, you’ve got a pretty face. You must be that Mujin fellow?”

What the hell, how did this old geezer know my name?

He had to be in cahoots with those escorts.

“Boys, surround and annihilate!”