Bachelor Swordsmanship Remastered [EN]: Chapter 17

Yu Jae-seop was inwardly tense, his eyes darting around nervously.

On either side, two burly military officers stood like stone guardians, exuding a fierce aura. Massive red pillars surrounded him, and antique dragon emblems adorned every corner.

Yu Jae-seop swallowed hard.

‘I’ve definitely walked into the tiger’s den.’

He had lived his entire life by his wits.

Though no one had told him, he sensed that this place was forbidden ground where his life could hang in the balance.

‘What in the world is going on?’

Yu Jae-seop was a renowned storyteller in Shanxi Province, known for his silver tongue and quick thinking.

He had become a respected figure in his field, but one day, he heard that a ‘summons’ had been posted for him at the government office.

The unfamiliar ‘summons’ bothered him, and the fact that the government was looking for him made him uneasy.

For someone like him, whose motto was to ‘act appropriately according to the time and situation,’ the government, which enforced the law, was an entity to be avoided.

As the old saying goes, ‘The further you are from doctors and government officials, the better.’

‘Was it doctors and government officials, or the outhouse and in-laws? No, that’s not the point right now.’

In any case, since the ‘summons’ only requested his presence and didn’t list any charges or issue a warrant, he decided to appear at the government office.

He was mainly worried that if he stayed put, he might be falsely accused of some ridiculous crime.

‘I had a feeling……’

He appeared at the government office, but contrary to his expectations, he wasn’t treated violently. In fact, he was treated better than usual.

Thanks to this, he was relieved, but the person who had summoned him wasn’t the local governor of Shanxi Province.

Yu Jae-seop was suddenly escorted by stern-faced military officers to an unknown location.

‘It’s definitely the Forbidden City [the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming dynasty to the end of the Qing dynasty], the Forbidden City.’

No one told him.

But if this place, with its incredibly high red walls, golden roofs, and dragon carvings everywhere, wasn’t the Forbidden City, then what was it?

There couldn’t be many places like this in Beijing.

And the two military officers guarding him were undoubtedly the dreaded Embroidered Uniform Guard [a special military unit that served as the imperial secret police].

The question was, who in the Forbidden City had summoned a mere storyteller like himself?

Gulp.

Yu Jae-seop glanced at the menacing Embroidered Uniform Guards and swallowed.

Whatever the reason, he was sure that his life was on the line.

His long-honed professional instincts were screaming it, and he knew that in the Forbidden City, a person like him was worth less than a bug.

‘Should I have just run away from the start?’

Perhaps he had unknowingly offended some important person.

But Yu Jae-seop immediately dismissed the thought.

‘No.’

Even after thinking about it a hundred times, appearing was the right thing to do.

If he had run away from something involving the Forbidden City, he might have been accused of treason.

‘I’ve walked into the tiger’s den, so I need to stay sharp to survive.’

Yu Jae-seop steeled himself.

He didn’t know why he had ended up in the tiger’s den, but judging from the treatment he had received so far, there seemed to be a chance of survival.

He decided to trust his luck and judgment and navigate this situation.

Click.

At that moment, someone entered the hall.

Yu Jae-seop turned his head, and a deep voice came from one of the Embroidered Uniform Guards beside him.

“Greetings, Scholar.”

“Greetings. Thank you for your hard work. It seems you are on duty today.”

A gentle voice responded to the Embroidered Uniform Guards’ deep voices as the person entered the hall.

Yu Jae-seop narrowed his eyes and looked at the person.

A young civil official, who didn’t seem very authoritative for a member of the Forbidden City’s staff—in other words, someone with a decent impression—was entering the hall.

‘Ah, a scholar.’

In fact, he would have guessed that the civil official was a scholar even without the Embroidered Uniform Guard’s greeting.

He looked like he had ‘scholar’ written all over his face. Though he seemed a bit tired, his eyes were quite bright.

‘Huh? A scholar?’

Yu Jae-seop suddenly felt a sense of incongruity.

He looked like a scholar, like a naive bookworm, but it was a bit strange to see him exchanging greetings so naturally with the Embroidered Uniform Guards.

As far as he knew, civil and military officials didn’t usually share such friendly relations.

‘But.’

Still, Yu Jae-seop couldn’t let his guard down.

‘This person is the tiger holding my life in his hands.’

No matter how weak and bookish he looked, and no matter how good his impression was, he was a member of the Forbidden City’s staff.

And he was probably, no, definitely the person holding Yu Jae-seop’s lifeline.

A person who could kill or save someone with a single word.

Tense, Yu Jae-seop swallowed involuntarily.

Thump, thump.

In the meantime, several books were placed on the table, and writing tools were neatly arranged.

Yu Jae-seop watched the scene anxiously.

“Are you, uh, Yu Jae-seop from Shanxi Province?”

“Y-yes!”

Perhaps because he was so nervous, Yu Jae-seop’s voice was a bit hoarse, unlike his usual self.

Seeing this, Unhyun smiled wryly to himself.

‘He’s nervous. Well, I suppose……’

Anyone would be nervous in this situation.

However, Unhyun didn’t explain the situation to him.

It was more convenient for Unhyun if he remained nervous.

Unhyun moved his head slightly from side to side, loosening his stiff neck.

‘Ugh, I stayed up all night finishing the report yesterday……. I didn’t even get a proper rest, and now I have to work again from today.’

Unhyun’s expression soured slightly. He had just finished a report yesterday, and today another newly summoned storyteller had arrived.

Silently cursing Sa Il-cheon, the Changryong Hall official [a government office] who had scheduled this, Unhyun opened the newly summoned storyteller’s personal details.

“Ahem.”

Unhyun cleared his throat with a displeased look, and Yu Jae-seop, who had been watching his expression, flinched.

Unhyun pretended not to notice and silently read through the documents.

He also made sure that the contents were not visible to the other person.

‘Nothing special.’

There was nothing unusual in the documents.

That was to be expected. The other person was just a slightly well-known, ordinary storyteller.

However, Unhyun frowned as if the contents were quite serious, dragging out the time.

After confirming that Yu Jae-seop’s expression was becoming increasingly anxious, Unhyun closed the documents.

Thump.

“Do you know why you’re here?”

Unhyun lowered his voice. This was also something he had learned from watching Changryong Hall official Sa Il-cheon.

Yu Jae-seop hurriedly shook his head. Unhyun nodded as if he had expected it and leaned back in his chair.

“Hmm, I suppose not…….”

It seemed like a casual remark, but it made Yu Jae-seop’s heart sink.

‘What on earth is going on that he’s making such an expression?’

Yu Jae-seop mustered his courage. No, it was more of a natural and instinctive reaction than courage.

“Um, I’m sorry, but what is the reason for all this…….”

However, Unhyun didn’t answer. Yu Jae-seop became even more restless.

“Hmm.”

Unhyun sighed slightly and rummaged through the documents again with a displeased expression.

Then, seemingly avoiding Yu Jae-seop’s gaze, he spoke quickly in a businesslike manner.

“Well, if you tell the truth, there won’t be anything particularly serious.”

That wasn’t comforting. Rather, it made Yu Jae-seop even more frightened.

It meant that something particularly serious could happen if he wasn’t careful.

Glancing at Yu Jae-seop’s changing expression, Unhyun sighed inwardly.

‘Hoo, if I don’t do this, these people’s exaggerations will never end.’

The storytellers who were summoned by imperial decree were those with skills representing at least one province.

It was funny to talk about skills and representation for storytellers, but there was clearly a difference in skill levels.

And that meant that their senses and intuition were beyond imagination.

‘Tsk, I was nice to them at first without knowing……’

When the first person who was summoned showed anxiety, I told him everything, and he demanded all sorts of things, causing me so much trouble.

Even if I scare them like this, they will figure it out in a few days and start telling stories with a lot of exaggeration.

If there are masters in the martial arts world, these people are the masters of the storytelling world.

Unhyun picked up his brush. And he asked Yu Jae-seop, who was looking at him with an anxious expression, in a rather dry tone.

“Have you ever witnessed martial artists’ duels in person?”

***

“Ah, but you see, the Elegant Sword, who seemed focused on defense, suddenly lowered his sword and aimed for the waist of the Overbearing Saber! But the Overbearing Saber was not to be outdone.”

Yu Jae-seop shook his head and continued.

“The Overbearing Saber quickly bent backward, dodging the Elegant Sword’s attack, and then raised his great saber, slicing off the Elegant Sword’s hair! He wasn’t injured, but for the Elegant Sword, who prided himself on his handsome appearance, it was truly a devastating blow, ha!”

Unhyun listened to Yu Jae-seop’s words, moving his brush without rest.

The brush raced across the paper, following Yu Jae-seop’s story, but in Unhyun’s mind, the duel between the Elegant Sword and the Overbearing Saber was unfolding.

The Elegant Sword, a man who wielded a soft and sharp sword, and the Overbearing Saber, who boasted great strength and destructive power.

The two men, with characteristics befitting their nicknames, clashed and parried, exchanging sword and saber.

The Elegant Sword’s soft, long hair fluttered in the wind, and the Overbearing Saber’s large blade cut through the air without hesitation.

“The Overbearing Saber, having seized the advantage, attacked like a storm. He swung his large saber like a club, starting to pummel the Elegant Sword, who was truly cornered…….”

“Wait.”

Yu Jae-seop frowned.

He was getting into the story, but Unhyun interrupted him.

“Where exactly did the Overbearing Saber attack? Do you remember what his movements were like?”

At Unhyun’s question, Yu Jae-seop paused to recall, then pointed to various parts of his body with his hand.

“So, definitely here, and here. And here, in this way…….”

At Yu Jae-seop’s explanation, Unhyun nodded and moved his brush.

In fact, it was not easy to describe the moves of martial artists in detail. Most people didn’t even know what was happening before their eyes.

In that respect, Yu Jae-seop was indeed a storyteller worthy of his reputation. That was why he had been summoned.

After finishing his explanation, Yu Jae-seop began his story again.

“Anyway, the Elegant Sword, who seemed to be on the defensive, slightly deflected the Overbearing Saber’s attack and created some distance. And the two men took a breather for the final move. At that time, the Elegant Sword’s appearance was quite disheveled, and the Overbearing Saber was also breathing heavily. And, as expected, the final choice of the two men was their respective signature moves, the Elegant One Sword and the Overbearing Heaven-Breaking Saber.”

The Elegant One Sword and the Overbearing Heaven-Breaking Saber were moves that Yu Jae-seop had already explained.

Unhyun nodded as if he had expected it. He thought it was natural for the two men to choose those moves.

But at that moment, the moment of the final battle, which Yu Jae-seop had not yet spoken of, began to appear in Unhyun’s mind like a picture.