Food was piled up on the table.
Everyone was absorbed with eating as they aimed to satisfy their hunger. This was the same even for Hong Na-yeon.
It wasn’t until the bowls were empty that they could start a conversation.
“It is raining so much. Should we just stay here in the inn?”
Jin-sung looked out the window at her question.
-Swish!
As she said, it was raining outside to the point where they could not see anything. The rain also showed no signs of letting up.
This would inevitably delay their journey back.
‘This is troubling.’
It was reassuring to have Mumu beside him, but the rain caused two more problems.
The first was that the longer it took for them to return, the more chances the enemy would have to attack them.
Since the ambush had failed once, they would likely resort to more unique attack methods.
‘And if it rains like this, we cannot cross the river.’
Not far from their location was a river. It wasn’t a small river but a wide one that required a boat or a raft.
With the intensity of the rain, the water level was also bound to rise and increase the strength of the currents.
‘And if we cannot cross it, we will be delayed further.’
And that would result in more time for the enemy to ambush them. Jin-sung then said to the group,
“I think we need to assess the situation correctly.”
“The situation?”
“Yes. It is raining heavily right now, so I think we will have to stay inside, just as the lady said. However, if the water level of the river ahead rises, the time it would take for us to return would be delayed as the currents would also become stronger.”
“Ah…”
“It doesn’t look like the rain will stop today, though. If the rain weakens, we might have to hurry and cross the river before the currents build up.”
“The current at the river must already be strong, considering the heavy rain. Would the ferry even be running?”
Jin-sung was also concerned about this.
If the river’s flow became stronger, then even a ferry or boat would end up being pushed around. Most people would choose to not let their boats on the river in such conditions.
However, continuing to delay their return would only result in more danger. While they deliberated, someone said to them,
“This old man can lend you his ferry if you pay enough for it.”
Their eyes turned to the table next to them. It was a man in his 70s with a curved waist who was sipping alcohol.
Jin-sung approached him and asked.
“Are you a sailor?”
“Hehehe. That’s right. I sail a raft with my sons at the river ahead.”
“Ah! Then, would you move the raft for us?”
“Isn’t that what I just said?”
“Uh?”
“Sometimes it rains heavily on narrow rivers, and the current becomes too strong. I tied it to a rope at the side of the river to keep it afloat.”
“Ah!”
There was indeed a way. If the rope was connected to the land, it was done in preparation for strong currents.
Jin-sung’s face turned red.
“Even if the rain gets weaker, the current will become stronger, making it dangerous to attempt it, even for experienced sailors.”
“I know. It is quite a dangerous task to take, so we will pay how much you want.”
“These young friends are so upfront.”
The old man smiled as if he liked this.
With the situation looking like it would go forward, the officials also smiled as the situation seemed to be becoming favorable for them.
However, Hong Na-yeon was filled with doubts about the old man. After some time, the old man left them bidding tiredness and asked them to inform him when the rain let up. He then left for his own room.
And then she asked,
“Doesn’t something feel odd? No matter how much we pay them, this is too favorable for us and…”
“You mean it’s a trick?”
“Yes.”
“I feel it too.”
“You realized it?”
Jin-sung nodded at her question. He was already suspicious of the old man since the moment he intervened in their conversation.
The old man had offered them his raft as if he had waited for the moment, which made Jin-sung suspicious.
And the biggest factor…
“He isn’t a sailor.”
“He isn’t?”
“For someone who claims to be a sailor, his skin is light, and he has no calluses on his left hand.”
‘!?’
Hong Na-yeon couldn’t hide her surprise at this.
She was surprised at how alert Jin-sung was to confirm his suspicions of the old man in such a short time. As Jin-sung said, sailors typically had tanned skins even if they wore bamboo hats.
They would also have calluses on their hands as they needed to hold a sailing pole all day and move it. The old man’s left hand was too clean, and only his right hand had calluses.
“Looking at the placement of calluses, he seemed to be a long-time practitioner of the blade.”
Calluses would appear in different places depending on the weapon used. Jin-sung’s guess was that the man was either a thief or a bandit.
“Ah!”
She exclaimed in admiration.
As expected of a Royal Inspector from the Imperial Palace.
“You pretended to fall for it on purpose?”
“Right.”
“Then how will you respond?”
Even if he pretended to fall for it, he needed a way out of the man’s trap. He then looked at Mumu.
It was difficult to figure out what the old man was aiming for, but thankfully they had Mumu.
Swish!
It was still raining outside, but it was much weaker than it was in the morning, allowing the group to move.
And so they headed to the river with this unknown old man who called himself a sailor.
Despite the river’s width, the water level was high, which made the currents strong.
It was much different compared to what they saw in the academy.
“Oh! A rope!”
Jin-sung looked over to where his traveling companions pointed to.
He was convinced this was a trap, so he had expected nothing around the river. This, however, was unexpected.
Jin-sung thought that this was good.
They could use the raft to cross the river if the ropes were in good condition.
“Hehehe. Those kids there are my sons.”
The old man wearing a bamboo hat pointed to the men exiting the ferry. The sight of them puzzled Jin-sung.
They were a little far away, but they appeared to be real sailors. Their tanned-skinned appearance was unmistakable.
‘What?’
Did the old man actually get real sailors for this? He looked closer at them but couldn’t detect any trace of martial arts.
They were just ordinary people. Hong Na-yeon also became unsure.
“Inspector Yu. They are…”
“We still don’t know.”
Jin-sung shook his head.
It was unknown if they were real boatmen hired by the man or just people hiding their internal energy.
But if they were pretending to be the old man’s sons, he could talk to them to find any discrepancy. The old man then asked.
“Are you all warriors?”
“…”
Jin-sung stopped at his words. What could the purpose behind this be?
He didn’t expect the man to suddenly ask such a thing. This question made everyone alert.
And…
“Hehehe. I am just asking because you could be my juniors. We can never know, right? It is the law of Murim to be aware of those who seem to be talented.”
Jin-sung’s eyes shone at this. Calling them his juniors meant that he was also revealing himself to be a warrior.
“… Then you are a senior? Please tell us more.”
Jin-sung was trying to get the big picture. He was skeptical, and the old man said,
“It has been a long time since this old man retired, so I don’t know the younger generation. I am Byeok-woong.”
‘Byeok-woong?’
Jin-sung’s eyes widened.
No one would not know his name.
He was one of the top ten warriors in the past and was known for his strong stabbing technique.
It had been more than ten years since he retired, but his reputation had yet to be forgotten.
In response, Jin-sung raised his hands.
“How can this junior not know you, sir? I am junior Yu Jin-sung…”
Sh!
At that moment, the old man grabbed Jin-sung’s hand and shook it.
“Shh! My sons will hear.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“I have retired for a long time, and I didn’t reveal it to you to get such a greeting. I am now retired. I only revealed it to you so you would be more comfortable.”
“Ah!”
Jin-sung felt moved by his words. He hadn’t cleared up all the doubts, but he respected this man’s goodwill for his juniors.
Hong Na-yeon also let down her guard. At this sight, Byeok-woong smiled internally.
‘Morons.’
From the moment he noticed Jin-sung looking at his body, he knew that this inspector was keeping an eye on him. He revealed his identity to dispel any immediate suspicion.
‘So annoying, but this is fun.’
The old man had thought about killing them in the inn. However, due to all the people there, he decided to do it secretly like he had been asked.
[Let them drown.]
The river’s water level was rising due to the rain. What if such a river had been dammed up by people and said dam suddenly broke?
The halted water will rush down like a tsunami.
“Now. Let’s cross over.”
Byeok-woong turned his head and smiled.
‘This is worth watching.’
There were four rafts there, and, considering their size, each could handle the weight of four horses and four people at most, excluding the sailor.
And so they divided themselves into groups.
A group was made with Mumu, Hong Na-yeon, Kang Mui, and another person from the palace. This was done to protect Hong Na-yeon.
‘Good.’
Byeok-woong thought that this was ideal. Once they crossed on the first raft together, he could break the embankment. He then turned towards Mumu, who had the sternest face.
‘I will take his life after crossing the river.’
As he thought that, Mumu looked at the people on the raft and stroked his chin.
Kik!
He then turned the band around his arm, confusing the watching Byeok-woong.
Crack!
‘!’
Mumu’s muscles began to swell up as steam was released from his body. Seeing this, Byeok-woong frowned.
‘What is this?’
The sudden increase in muscle size was something he had never seen, even in his days as a warrior. However, something more unexpected then happened.
A dark-skinned boatman had pulled out the support beams for the raft and pushed.
Shhh!
At that moment, the raft was lifted up.
“Uh?”
“W-what are you doing?”
Mumu had lifted the raft. Everyone, including the sailors, couldn’t hide their shock.
The horses and people on the raft would be an ungodly amount of weight. They didn’t expect him to move it that lightly. More shockingly, however…
Kukuku!
The group watched as Mumu bent his knees while moving the raft.
Byeok-woong stared at him as…
Kwaaang!
The ground on which he had been standing suddenly collapsed as Mumu flew over the river while holding the raft.
‘!!!!’
Swish!
In the blink of an eye, Mumu and the raft had moved across the river.
Everyone felt dumbfounded at this
Did this make sense?
“Is this a dream?”
“Is he human? How can he carry a raft across the river?”
“Huh! L-look there!”
They saw Mumu letting the horse and people disembark on the opposite side before raising the raft again. It looked like he was trying to move everyone across the river like this.
Byeok-woong lost it at this sight.