Chapter 50. Twin Swords of the Wind and Clouds (25)

“Haha, it’s something that my father is really keen on. He’s always wanted to help the disadvantaged children, you see. After all, what dangers could there really be in the manor of the prestigious Iron Sword Baek Family? He decided it would be better for us to bring in these poor orphans and give them a home instead,” Woo-Moon explained.

“...Is that...so?”

Yoon Ha-On was struck speechless for a few moments, but then he realized that he didn’t have the status to be discussing these things with Woo-Moon in the first place, and the latter was merely letting him know, not asking for permission.

“Understood. Then, I will send them back. As for bringing in people from the outside, let me report to the elders.”

“Please do that.”

Yoon Ha-On then left the residence with the ten “guards” of ridiculous constitutions, returning alone after half an hour.

“The elders said that there is no problem, so I’ll let the others know about your decision.”

“Thank you.”

As his parents had also left the matter to him, Woo-Moon proceeded to leave the Iron Sword Baek Family complex without hesitation, leaving Eun-Ah at the residence to run and play as she pleased.

She had grown considerably, and if Woo-Moon continued to carry her in his breast pocket, she would tear off his robes at the slightest movement.

‘It just feels like I’m showing off a pair of breasts if I walk around with her in my robes now.’

Of course, due to the sudden separation, the tiger was being rather irritable. It was only natural—she didn’t want to be apart from Woo-Moon.

Leaving Rat behind to attend to his parents, Woo-Moon went to the market with Dok-Du and Gwang Ryeok-Gwi, asking around about the orphan villages or slums nearby.

There were quite a few people in the Hefei City Market, and as they walked down the road, someone suddenly passed by and bumped into Woo-Moon.

Of course, this was completely normal, there were thousands of people around and the market was bustling.

Woo-Moon looked behind and saw that the one who had just bumped into him was a young man, around seventeen or eighteen. As he walked past Woo-Moon, he had a delighted expression, as the money pouch that he had just taken from Woo-Moon’s pocket and hidden within his sleeve was much heavier than he expected.

However, mixed with his delight was also a subtle hint of shame and self-hatred.

“Oi, brat! Do you really think I didn’t notice?!”

With these words, Woo-Moon suddenly appeared in front of the boy.

The boy panicked as if he had seen a ghost, and Woo-Moon took the chance to grab the boy’s arm. His grip was relaxed, as he could tell that the boy had almost no qi.

However, at that moment, the boy’s eyes suddenly glowed fiercely. He grabbed Woo-Moon’s hand with both hands and twisted it, breaking Woo-Moon’s grip on his shoulder. Then, he grabbed Woo-Moon’s collar with one hand and actually attempted to throw him over the shoulder.

‘You little brat!’

The boy intended to throw Woo-Moon down so he could run away, but there was naturally no way for Woo-Moon to be taken down by a kid who only had some martial skills but no qi to speak of. The only reason Woo-Moon’s grip had been broken was that he had been too relaxed and the boy actually caught him off guard.

‘He’s someone from murim!’

There was despair in the boy’s eyes, but it was also accompanied by a strange anger that Woo-Moon did not fail to notice.

“How impressive. And look at the killing intent in his eyes! Hey kid, what do you think? Do you want to come with me?” Woo-Moon said, having already grabbed the boy’s arms and completely subdued him.

“What kind of bullshit are you spouting? Let me go!”

“I am Song Woo-Moon of the Iron Sword Baek Family. I’ve been looking for people to train as guards for my family, and I think you’re the right fit. What do you think?”

“You crazy bastard! Who the hell goes around hiring guards like this? Let go of me right now!”

“Wow, you have such a crude mouth for someone so young. Well, it’s probably because of the situation you’ve lived in, so I’ll be a little lenient. Hehehe, either way, you’ve piqued my interest, so you’re coming with me. Dok-Du! Keep an eye on him so he doesn’t escape.”

“Understood!”

As He didn’t know what Woo-Moon would do to him if he lost this child, Dok-Du tried to restrain the boy with a rope that he had prepared in advance.

However, the boy's struggle was harsher than expected.

“Let go of me! What the hell are you doing? Untie the ropes right now!”

Although the people around them stared, Woo-Moon and the others weren’t too worried.

It was a big city, and there were many outcasts and orphans. There was no lack of pickpockets among them, so everyone instantly understood what was happening. Moreover, the ugly appearances and statures of Dok-Du and Ryeok-Gwi also contributed to the observers moving away quickly.

Woo-Moon had a cold expression on his face as he looked at the boy trying to cause a racket.

“So you refuse? Okay, then, should I take you to the government office right now? You’re a criminal, so you’d get locked up right now. Is that what you prefer?”

The boy paused at Woo-Moon’s words.

If he were to be taken to the government office, it would be the end of him. He would be held captive for at least a month, possibly even beaten to death if he was unlucky.

The boy bit his lip before speaking, “If I go with you...then you won’t be taking me to the government office, right?”

Woo-Moon nodded in response.

“My word is my bond. I guarantee that coming with me will be better than being caught by the officials as a pickpocket.”

“Fine, whatever you want then.”

In the meantime, Dok-Du tied up the upper body of the boy, who had become quiet, tightly with a rope.

Seeing that, Woo-Moon grinned and muttered, “Heh, things really are a lot easier with you guys around. It’s a good thing I didn’t let you go back then and took you with me.”

Hearing that, Dok-Du and Ryeok-Gwi could only curse to themselves.

‘You bastard! You said you brought us along to rehabilitate us!’

Afterward, Woo-Moon headed to a nearby slum, where another child caught his eye.

The boy was around the same age as the pickpocket he had just caught and was also dressed in shabby clothes, but he was diligently drawing water from a well.

He was young and looked poor, he had long arms and strong muscles.

‘A bow! Doesn’t he seem perfect for using a bow? That’s a perfect specimen right there.’

The Martial Arts Fundamentals that he had been given by Sang-Woon naturally contained information regarding archery. As Sang-Woon’s breadth of experience was simply immense, the Martial Arts Fundamentals manual really included the fundamentals of all kinds of martial arts.

“Hello there, young man.”

As Woo-Moon approached and spoke, the boy drawing water looked back with a wary expression. It made sense, as Woo-Moon had a sword on his waist while two scary-looking figures flanked him on each side with threatening gazes.

“What are you calling me for?”

“I’m looking for guards. You seem rather strong, so I’m thinking of hiring you. What do you think?”

The boy thought for a moment before speaking cautiously.

“I’m grateful that you’ve shown interest in me, but... I’ve never learned any martial arts or fought before.”

He was a more upright and honest boy than Woo-Moon had thought. Woo-Moon smiled, delighted by the boy’s attitude.

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll teach you how to fight. But in return, you will enter our family and live with us. Is that okay with you?”

“W-well... Does that mean you want to buy me?”

Although the imperial law forbade the possession and trade of slaves, that was only the official stance, not something that necessarily applied in society. A child from a poor family was practically an object for sale, and they would end up a slave.

“If I become your master, regardless of what happens, I’ll have to take responsibility for you for the rest of my life. Why would I want to go to such trouble? Don’t worry, it’s nothing like that.”

Only then did the boy bow deeply.

“T-thank you! Then, I will follow you. Wait, this isn’t something I can decide on my own. You see, I have to get permission from my parents first...”

“No worries, no worries. Guide me to your house.”

In truth, this was a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the boy with the long arms.

Jin-Jin did not want her son to be looked down upon by either her family or everyone else around, so she had bought him the best clothes she could find. From the first moment, the boy with long arms had realized that Woo-Moon was part of a wealthy family. If he could join a family like that as a guard, his life would be incomparable to how he lived now.

Hefei City was a prefecture-level city with an astounding amount of wealthy people. However, the greatest light would always be accompanied by the darkest shadows.

The slums in Hefei City's corners were massive and extremely destitute.

Following the boy with the long arms to his house, Woo-Moon went inside, spoke with his parents for some time, and then left after giving them ten silver tales.

The boy's parents had refused at first, saying that it wasn’t right for them to take any money when Woo-Moon not only wasn’t buying the boy but was even offering to take him in, feed him, and teach him martial arts. However, Woo-Moon was determined to help them, so in the end, they accepted.

“Good. Now that that’s been handled, from now on, you can live with the Baek Family.”

“

Cough!

” The boy almost choked. “T-the Iron Sword Baek Family?”

The long-armed boy had thought that Woo-Moon was the scion of an ordinary wealthy family, so he was shocked when he heard that he would be heading to the Baek Family.

The thought of moving out and separating from his parents at an early age naturally caused him some sadness, but the boy soon got over it. He would not be far from them, and whenever he had time off, he could just go and visit them.

The more important fact was that

the

Iron Sword Baek Family now employed him.

“Yes, it is the Iron Sword Baek Family. You will become a warrior there.”

Becoming a warrior meant that he would be able to learn martial arts.

The long-armed boy realized that he had just struck gold, and the kind of opportunity he was being given now might never come again in his lifetime.

“T-thank you! Thank you!”

A vast, prestigious family like the Iron Sword Baek Family wasn’t one to hire just any warrior, much less an ordinary person. It was a place that a child from the slums could never dream about.

“Now, let’s go. Oh... since you live around here, you probably know some people with various talents, right?”

“W-what do you mean by talent?’

“Whatever you think is outstanding about them. I’ll decide when I see them, so just take me to them and introduce me.”

“I understand, Master!”

The long-armed boy actually proved his worth immediately. Through his recommendation, they met with someone who was particularly good at throwing rocks, someone who was quick on his feet, and someone who was extremely strong, all of whom liked Woo-Moon.

If the pickpocket and the long-armed boy were around eighteen, the three people Woo-Moon brought in next were twenty-one, nineteen, and seventeen, respectively.

There were other people introduced to Woo-Moon as well, but they were excluded as they were either too young or had some other issues. Even if Woo-Moon were to teach them martial arts directly, if they were too young, problems related to their constitution would inevitably occur.

After walking around the slums and finding one more seemingly good child, Woo-Moon headed to the orphanage. His group now numbered nine people, including Dok-Du and Ryeok-Gwi.

The orphanage mainly had young children as inhabitants. However, there weren’t many that caught Woo-Moon’s eye. Instead, being there just made him feel depressed.

‘How pitiful... I wish I could help you.’

They went around slowly, but unfortunately, none of the children in the orphanage were suitable to take in as a guard.

“Let’s go back now.”

Although he hadn’t reached his goal of ten people, Woo-Moon didn’t worry too much. He knew that he would be able to find the rest later.

‘There were a lot more kids with amazing talents than I expected. It seems like this will work?’

They may have been unassuming rocks buried in the mud, but these children seemed that, if polished well, they could all turn into jade and shine brightly.

“Wait! I have a little sister! Let me just see her before I go! And untie this rope, too! And pay me a fair wage like those bastards, too!”

The boy speaking in this blatantly arrogant and aggressive tone was the pickpocket that Woo-Moon had first caught. Seeing Woo-Moon’s actions as they moved from place to place, his heart seemed to have relaxed a little.

Woo-Moon burst into laughter.

“You’re not being serious, are you? Or do you just not understand that your actions were horrible? Why should I treat a criminal like you the way I treat your companions, who are all honest people?”

The boy found it impossible to retort to Woo-Moon’s words. He had been caught red-handed while trying to steal from Woo-Moon, so the argument was ironclad.

“Some people go down the wrong path at a young age for a lot of reasons. That is one thing, though, and your lack of ability to judge the situation is something else entirely. You’re making a huge mistake by acting like this. I had every right to break your arms and take you to the government office to get punished. You should thank the heavens and count your blessings for the way I’m treating you, but instead of being grateful, you’re pushing your luck!”