Chapter 82: Madman
A streak of shadow darted across the darkness of Yichang.
Jin Seong-un searched for something to steal, his half-dead eyes as lifeless as a frozen fish.
‘…Did I really become the disciple of the Martial Gods for this?’
But what choice did he have?
The glittering eyes of his master, the Divine Thief, were still vivid in his mind. Of course, it was also true that the thief who had stolen the signboard had been despicable.
‘Well, it also weighs on me that the young mistresses and masters are suffering.’
Various reasons were pushing Jin Seong-un down the path of thievery.
They said there was no villain without a story.
It felt strangely amusing because that saying perfectly fit his current situation.
And so, he leapt noiselessly from roof to roof, wall to wall, leaving not the slightest trace of his presence.
In truth, even without inheriting the Divine Thief’s mastery, this much was still easily possible for him.
By the time he had circled the village once—
A small shop caught Jin Seong-un’s eye.
“……”
Across from the shop, on a rooftop, Jin Seong-un landed and stared down, hesitation gripping him strongly.
Was this the right thing to do?
The shop he was staring at was none other than Sangwon Cloth Shop.
But wasn’t it better than stealing from strangers completely unrelated to him?
At least, if something from Sangwon Cloth Shop went missing, Jin Seong-un could personally compensate for it.
Just as he was about to descend—
A woman’s muttering drifted up from below.
“Three hundred nyang…”
It was Elder Byeok, ever desperate for money-making.
Apparently, she had not yet left Yichang.
Jin Seong-un held his breath and lowered his stance.
“……”
Elder Byeok suddenly stopped muttering and froze in place.
Jin Seong-un employed the Tortoise Breath Technique.
His breath stretched long and thin, almost imperceptible—so faint that even he could hardly feel it himself.
His heartbeat slowed, his body temperature dropped, and even the flow of his qi was meticulously restrained.
It was the very pinnacle of concealment.
Elder Byeok scanned the surroundings.
Time passed in silence.
“Three hundred nyang… what kind of name is that for a dog…”
Grumbling, Elder Byeok finally left.
Only then did Jin Seong-un release his breath, dropping lightly beneath the eaves. Even as he landed, no sound escaped.
For a moment, he stared at the signboard of Sangwon Cloth Shop…
‘I’m sorry. I’ll definitely return it.’
With that silent apology, Jin Seong-un neatly removed the signboard and affixed a single note in its place.
Justice.
The recent symbol of the prowling thief.
The next morning, Yichang was turned upside down.
“My signboard!!”
No Sang-won, the owner of Sangwon Cloth Shop, shouted from in front of his store. Martial artists who had yet to leave Yichang gathered around.
They clearly saw the note stuck where the signboard once was.
The rumor spread like wildfire.
– The great thief is still in Yichang!
– He’s struck twice in the same place!
– The thief’s rules have changed!
The martial artists of Yichang grew excited.
Truthfully, chasing after a thief was tiresome. Other than patrolling, there was nothing they could do until the thief acted again.
Still, it was better than scouring the entire country—if he was lingering in one area, things became much easier.
Even martial artists who had already left Yichang returned upon hearing the news.
Tang So-yeon, Baek Sang, Baek Seol, and others who favored Jin Seong-un actually welcomed this development.
Just as peace was about to return, Yichang was thrown into chaos again by Jin Seong-un’s midnight theft.
“Why does he keep stealing perfectly fine signboards?!”
No Sang-won raged, looking first at the empty spot where Seong-un Inn’s signboard had been, then at his own.
But as he noticed the growing number of martial artists around him, realization struck.
‘Wait… this is actually good for me.’
Recently, as martial artists gathered in Yichang, the one who profited most was none other than No Sang-won.
With nothing better to do, the martial artists spent their days training or dueling, quickly wearing out their uniforms.
Sangwon Cloth Shop was enjoying its golden age. That golden age might have ended, but now the thief had once again drawn martial artists to his shop.
The more he thought about it, the less reason he had to be angry. Deciding instead to eat, No Sang-won headed to the inn.
“Hey, Jin Seong-un.”
“O-Oh, welcome.”
“……”
No Sang-won narrowed his already small eyes at Jin Seong-un. He was chubby, and his eyes were naturally slitted, but when he squinted further, they looked nearly shut.
Jin Seong-un felt his heart pound at that sharp, blade-like gaze.
Then No Sang-won spoke.
“You’re hiding something from me, aren’t you?”
“Of course not.”
Jin Seong-un let out a silent breath of relief.
For all his appearance, No Sang-won was a merchant who had survived decades in one spot.
There were times when his sharp instincts revealed themselves—though very rarely.
“No, something’s definitely off.”
No Sang-won wiggled his finger as he scrutinized Jin Seong-un.
At last, Jin Seong-un spoke.
“How about I bring out some noodles first?”
“Ooh, noodles!”
In an instant, No Sang-won’s suspicion vanished.
Seo Yu-gyeom’s noodles were one of the few reasons No Sang-won lived these days.
“Ahh, delicious.”
Even when eaten daily, the taste never grew old.
That was the Seong-un Inn.
* * *
At the border of Yichang and Dangyang—
A traveling merchant passing through a small village overheard a strange story in an inn.
“Did you hear? They say the great thief is still in Yichang. Last night, the No family’s Cloth Shop was hit.”
Since Dangyang and Yichang were neighboring counties, traffic between them was frequent.
The peddler who heard the rumor froze on the spot, his brow furrowing.
‘What kind of nonsense is this?’
The great thief committed two thefts in Yichang? That was impossible—because he himself was that great thief.
“They say the signboard was taken down, and a note with the word Justice was stuck in its place.”
“……”
The peddler’s brow furrowed even deeper.
This was clearly…
‘A copycat crime.’
Between thieves, a copycat crime was nothing short of a provocation.
Just who was it?
No matter how he thought about it, he couldn’t figure it out.
There was no choice but to return and see for himself.
Yichang was in utter chaos day after day.
In particular, the young prodigies who had gathered to catch the thief wandered the streets with vacant faces.
For several days in a row, thefts had occurred.
The first had been at the estate of a wealthy family in Yichang.
The teeth of a haetae statue in the courtyard had disappeared. Naturally, in the place where the teeth had broken off was a note that read Justice.
At that time, the young prodigies had actually welcomed the situation. If the great thief continued to strike multiple times only in Yichang, the chances of catching him would increase.
But when the crimes continued for seven consecutive nights, their willpower collapsed entirely.
The fact was clear: the thief was in the region, and another theft would happen the next day.
So, of course, the young prodigies and countless wanderers guarded every place without a gap.
And yet, each night, things still vanished.
With defeat piling up, their sense of shame only grew. The blow was especially harsh for those called Poison Phoenix, Sword Phoenix, and Rising Dragon, who had been praised all their lives.
“This is so damn annoying.”
Tang So-yeon muttered as she entered Seong-un Inn. Nearly fifty martial artists had gathered in Yichang.
Even with all of them glaring with eyes like fire, the thief succeeded each time.
It truly felt as if the Divine Thief had been reborn.
After ordering noodles, Tang So-yeon mumbled to herself with a face full of despair.
“…Just what kind of madman is it?”
And then, the madman Jin Seong-un brought out the noodles.
Tang So-yeon suddenly asked.
“Jin Master.”
“W-Why do you ask?”
“…Why are you stuttering?”
Tang So-yeon’s eyes narrowed.
Jin Seong-un hurriedly made an excuse.
“I wasn’t stuttering.”
It wasn’t an excuse—it was stubborn denial.
Tang So-yeon had always thought Jin Seong-un was a bit strange, so she let it slide. Besides, she had another purpose in mind.
“Can’t you help us, Jin Master?”
“With what?”
“With catching that madman.”
“……”
That was impossible.
Half of the recent thefts were Jin Seong-un’s doing.
Lately, the thief and Jin Seong-un were locked in an invisible battle of wills.
The scale of the thefts was rising each time.
It was as if they were saying to each other: “I can even steal this. You fake!”
This too had been advice from the Divine Thief.
Each time Jin Seong-un told him about the situation in the Martial God Realm, the Divine Thief laughed so hard he held his stomach, like a child who had just received a new toy.
“Well, I still have to run the inn…”
Jin Seong-un declined politely.
Tang So-yeon nodded, as if she had expected that answer.
“True. It was a bit of an unreasonable request.”
She knew Jin Seong-un had his own work, so she couldn’t push further. After all, he wasn’t like martial artists whose entire lives revolved around fighting, chasing, and training.
“Still, if you helped even a little, we might catch him more easily…”
Since she already knew of Jin Seong-un’s martial prowess, Tang So-yeon felt even more regretful.
But of course, Jin Seong-un couldn’t very well catch himself, so he replied evasively again.
“If I find some free time, I’ll take a look here and there.”
“Even that much is appreciated.”
Just as Jin Seong-un nodded once, Seo Yu-gyeom stepped out of the kitchen, taking advantage of a lull in customers to rest.
Tang So-yeon’s eyes gleamed.
“What about you, Seo Master?”
“What?”
“Wouldn’t you be good at catching the thief?”
Who was Seo Yu-gyeom?
Even Tang So-yeon, the Tang Clan’s young mistress, clicked her tongue at his skill. He was a martial artist specialized in stealth and hidden weapons.
In Tang So-yeon’s view, Seo Yu-gyeom might even be better suited for this than Jin Seong-un.
But what came back was a half-hearted response.
“Why would I bother with something so annoying?”
Literally, he had no reason to get involved.
Tang So-yeon looked disappointed for a moment, then her eyes lit up again.
“Scared?”
“……”
Seo Yu-gyeom’s brow twitched.
Jin Seong-un looked at him in disbelief. Surely a grown man wouldn’t fall for such a childish and transparent ploy.
But “surely” was exactly how people got caught.
“Haah, what’s so special about this thief anyway? You’re telling me you’ve all been flailing for days because you can’t catch one thief? Fine. Tonight. I’ll bring him in.”
Seo Yu-gyeom’s eyes burned with competitiveness.
Assassins and thieves were only a hair’s breadth apart.
Right—he had once been an elite assassin of Deathshroud. Was he to believe he couldn’t catch some petty thief?
This was the perfect chance to show Tang So-yeon and the others the clear gap between them!
He imagined dragging the thief through the streets and shouting:
– I, Seo Yu-gyeom, cook of Seong-un Inn, have caught the thief that even Rising Dragon and Sword Phoenix couldn’t catch! Isn’t Murim nothing but hot air?
Just imagining it was delightful.
“Hehehe…”
Seo Yu-gyeom grinned wickedly.
Jin Seong-un silently pressed his temples.
As if the swelling number of martial artists wasn’t enough, now he had to deal with Seo Yu-gyeom as well.
‘If Master’s advice is right, it’s soon…’