hotmtlnovel Chapter 98
Chapter 98
A martial artist whose identity I did not know arrived at the inn.
Although we had never met before, I could tell why he had come.
His eyes were glaring, filled with hostility—it was clear to anyone who wasn't a fool.
The men dressed in black asked immediately upon seeing me, their voices harsh and threatening.
“Are you the one who touched our Heukammun?”
“Heukammun?”
I had never heard of a sect named Heukammun.
The only factions I knew of were the Gupeilbang and the Five Great Families.
Even those, I wasn’t well-versed in.
The names were all I had heard.
Hwasa, Jeomchang, something like that.
But Heukammun?
I had no idea.
It was Namgung Hyuk who responded to the mention of Heukammun.
And the guests dining at Sooun Inn.
“Great Hero. Heukammun is one of the sects that dominates the 7th floor.”
“From the name with ‘heuk’ (black), they’re probably from the dark factions?”
“...In the Tower of Struggle, there’s no real distinction between factions.”
Namgung Hyuk whispered from behind me, adding that they hated being called dark factions, just to clarify.
But it was too late.
“How dare you draw your sword against Heukammun on the 7th floor? I’ll kill you!”
Their dissatisfaction was palpable. The fact that I treated them like a dark faction seemed to have greatly offended them, and without hesitation, one of the men drew his sword.
“It’s still broad daylight, and you’re causing a scene at an inn? What’s wrong with the security on the 7th floor?”
“Such things happen often in Zhongyuan. Martial artists tend to draw their swords at the slightest provocation. If the Namgung Family had been intact, this wouldn’t have happened...”
Namgung Hyuk trailed off, his words clearly not directed at me but whispered for the Heukammun man to hear.
The man from Heukammun reacted. His black sleeve trembled with anger.
“What’s the point of being a swordmaster from Zhongyuan? In the Tower of Struggle, you’re just another worthless martial artist!”
“The nonsense about being from the Namgung Family ends today. Gok Gyeom is dead, and now there’s no one left to stop me. I’ll kill you!”
Namgung Hyuk took out his sword in terror.
Despite his resolute action, his face showed no confidence at all.
It seemed like Namgung Hyuk could feel deep down that he was weaker than his opponent.
“I don’t care what your connection is... but that stance is a bit uncomfortable.”
Was it annoyance?
The fact that the Heukammun martial artists were so sure of their victory was unsettling.
“Heh. Just because you defeated Gok Gyeom and his elite guard, don’t think you can easily take us down. We’re different from him. We know how to properly utilize the Soul System.”
“Gok Gyeom was the same.”
Who doesn’t use the Soul System?
Maybe someone like Swordmaster might not, but still.
“Yeah, keep talking.”
The man from Heukammun activated his skill.
I didn’t know what skill it was.
Just because I was in the Soul System didn’t mean I knew every skill it had.
That’s why agility and health are important.
To evade or survive and counterattack, even when skills with hit-rate modifiers come my way.
“Vines, huh.”
The skill he activated was a crowd control skill.
I had expected something like this.
Against a strong opponent, there’s no better method than restricting their movement with crowd control skills.
Vines burst through the floor of the inn, grabbing my legs.
Though I had raised my agility considerably, the “Dodge” didn’t trigger.
“Without survival instinct, it’s not invincibility.”
With an agility stat of 50.
Technically, just below the peak.
With stats not even reaching the peak martial artists, I couldn’t perfectly dodge a Soul System skill.
“But.”@@@@
I didn’t rely solely on my stats.
I had an artifact prepared for situations like this.
[‘Messenger’s Step Lv.1’ offsets ‘Binding’.]
“Thank you, Great Hero.”
Namgung Hyuk bowed to me.
Unlike before, his posture was more respectful.
“Thanks to you, the righteous martial artists can safely ascend the Tower now.”
“...Is that so?”
“Yes. On the 7th floor, righteous martial artists have been oppressed. Especially the women have suffered a lot.”
As I listened, a question popped up in my mind.
“...Both righteous and dark factions will be summoned to the Tower anyway.”
“In Zhongyuan, the righteous faction was much stronger. But in the Tower of Struggle, the balance of power has collapsed. Because of soul absorption and skills.”
The number of dark faction members had already been large, and the Soul System allowed them to grow stronger easily.
“Well, I’ve seen quite a few of them on my way up.”
Those who freely expressed their desires.
They were everywhere.
It seemed to be a trait of men, or maybe something else...
“Why do they insist on forcibly taking women?”
I couldn’t understand their actions.
“Well, the 7th floor is better off. Dark factions like Heukammun are keeping a low profile.”
“...Is that really keeping a low profile?”
“We’re at Sooun Inn. Sooun Inn is a small inn on the 7th floor, so there are fewer customers. Even if something unpleasant happens, rumors don’t spread quickly.”
But why did they bring me here?
“...That’s why the prices are cheap. Compared to the other inns around... Well, the Earthlings say it’s good value for the money.”
“Tch.”
Namgung Hyuk admitted the truth.
“I guess that makes sense.”
Looking at him, Namgung Hyuk didn’t seem to have much money.
He didn’t have the background of the Namgung Family, after all, so it was understandable.
“I have a question.”
“Ask anything. I’ll answer as best I can.”
“You said Heukammun is laying low. Why are they laying low?”
They came here and caused a ruckus.
But that’s considered laying low?
“...It’s because of Jeomchanggwang. No, Seomgwanggeomhui.”
“Seomgwanggeomhui?”
“Yes. Seomgwanggeomhui challenged a dark martial artist who crossed the line...”
Seomgwanggeomhui was killing dark martial artists.
That’s why they were cautious.
“Then why come all the way here and make a scene? Is Namgung Family more famous than I thought?”
“....”
Namgung Hyuk awkwardly smiled.
He didn’t deny that the Heukammun visit was because of him.
“If Heukammun came during the day, it would’ve been fine. But if they come at night, it’ll be a bit uncomfortable.”
After thinking for a moment, I made my decision.
“It’s better to clear out Heukammun in advance for peace of mind. What do you think?”
“...Huh?”
Just then, a voice came from outside.
“There are bodies of Heukammun members outside. Jeomsoi, what happened?”
A woman walked boldly into the Sooun Inn.
The elf named Jeomsoi hurriedly approached and explained what had happened to the woman.
Namgung Hyuk whispered in my ear in a startled tone.
“It’s Jeomchanggwanggyeon...!”
“Jeomchanggwanggyeon?”
The woman’s sharp gaze met mine, as if she had heard my muttering.
We looked at each other.
“Great Hero Ryu?”
“Yeah. Shanks.”
A one-armed female martial artist.
I recognized her face.
The woman smiled brightly and spoke.
“It’s Eunseoryeong.”
“Ah, I remember now.”
She was the martial artist from the 1st floor who mistook me for a dragon.
“By the way, Great Hero. What did you mean earlier? Jeomchanggwanggyeon...?”
She kept smiling, but her eyes were no joke.