Weapon-Eating Bastard [EN]: Chapter 47

Having finished my business at Sungmoo Mountain and reunited with Head Butler Choi,

we set off for Cheonwi Mountain in earnest.

We passed through the city center filled with buildings, and even the scattered houses disappeared, until we reached a place where human presence was completely cut off.

We had arrived at our destination.

‘This is Cheonwi Mountain.’

Before my regression, I hadn’t even completed the cadet training, so I never had the chance to come to Cheonwi Mountain.

‘I’ve seen it in the data, but this is my first time seeing it in person.’

The mountain range stretched high and rugged.

The faint pulsation of the ancient trees with each gust of wind gave a profound feeling, as if facing a giant living being.

If Sungmoo Mountain was a silent mountain where not even the rustling of trees or the cries of beasts could be heard, Cheonwi Mountain felt like all those things had their own vitality.

Moreover,

‘The mana is thick.’

I hadn’t even entered the foothills of the mountain yet, but I could feel the dense mana around me.

If the mana of Jeokcheong Island was a stagnant lake, Cheonwi Mountain was reminiscent of a vast river.

“It’s a truly wonderful mountain, isn’t it?”

Head Butler Choi asked with a pleased smile.

“Yes, it feels different from Sungmoo Mountain or Jeokcheong Island.”

“It is said that the founder of the Lee family recognized the energy of Cheonwi Mountain and made it a place to train his descendants. I am sure that the Young Master will be able to achieve satisfactory results as well.”

Satisfactory results.

Of course.

That’s why I used this important opportunity to ask something of my father here.

It was then.

“These things are noisily swarming around like a pack of dogs again. Ugh, it’s so distracting.”

A strange voice came from behind.

I was startled and turned my head.

“Why, what? What are you glaring at?”

A middle-aged man was standing there as if he had been there from the beginning.

He was wearing fluorescent hiking clothes, had a flushed face, and was even holding a bottle of makgeolli [Korean rice wine].

He looked like a common hiker you could see anywhere.

The problem was that this man had appeared behind me without being detected by any of the Moo Sa [martial arts warriors] of the Soongmoo Lee family or my senses.

‘How did he get here?’

He was within arm’s reach.

Instinctively, my hand went to my waist.

“Who are you!”

Chaang!

The Seven Stars quickly drew their swords and surrounded the man.

“Step back, Young Master. Head Butler Choi. He is strong.”

The captain of the Seven Stars stood between me, Head Butler Choi, and the man with a tense expression.

“Ah, these bastards… are you not putting that away? You really want to die?”

“Everyone, formation…!”

The captain of the Seven Stars couldn’t finish his sentence.

“Seriously, these black-haired guys can’t understand anything once they hold metal in their hands.”

Thwack! Bang! Crack!

Several afterimages flickered like insects flying around.

Before I knew it, the thirty members of the Seven Stars were either dropping their weapons or rolling on the ground.

“Kuh-heuk….”

“Wh-what? What is this….”

I was shocked once again.

‘I missed his movements. I didn’t see his movements after subduing the captain of the Seven Stars!’

He must have moved several times to subdue thirty Moo Sa warriors, but I only saw one or two movements.

“These guys are so useless. Keoeuk-.”

The man pointed at Head Butler Choi with the makgeolli bottle in his hand.

“Hey, you have no morals. You were supposed to let me know at least a month in advance, right? If you come without a bottle of alcohol, you’re dead. Seriously.”

Head Butler Choi sighed deeply at the man.

“I apologize for that. But you were a bit too harsh. They were just trying to protect us….”

“Harsh? You’ve grown up a lot, haven’t you? You’re even talking back.”

“Haha, I’m sorry. But….”

“Are you suddenly giving me work to do and then trying to nag me? Forget it. Did you bring the alcohol?”

The man swaggered over, speaking in a tone like a gangster extorting money.

Head Butler Choi smiled helplessly, as if the man’s behavior was nothing out of the ordinary.

“I brought several bottles of what you said you liked last time.”

“Okay. Good. Then I’ll let it slide.”

“Thank you, Mountain Keeper.”

Mountain Keeper.

The moment I heard those words, I realized who the man was.

The man looked back at me. Then he grinned.

“Is this the guy? The one Tae-shin brought from outside?”

Head Butler Choi looked at me and replied with a bitter smile.

“Yes, this is the ninth, Lee Chul, who will be entering the mountain this time.”

“Ninth, my ass. Ninth is what you call a scholar.”

The Mountain Keeper roughly stroked his scraggly beard and looked down at me.

“You saw some of my movements, right?”

I couldn’t help but be startled.

To think he could even figure that out.

He had amazing eyesight.

“…Yes, I did.”

“Hmm, not bad. You’re interesting. You even have a bit of Tae-shin’s vibe. But your scent is a bit strange.”

The Mountain Keeper wrinkled his nose and stared at me intently.

Pajik!

At that moment, the back of my eyes throbbed, and the Evil Eye activated on its own.

“This guy even has weird eyes.”

The Mountain Keeper’s eyes widened as if he had found an interesting toy.

I was momentarily flustered, but I immediately tried to control my mana and deactivate the Evil Eye.

However, I couldn’t avoid seeing the Mountain Keeper’s appearance for that brief moment.

‘That’s….’

The image the Evil Eye showed was not human.

Before my regression, I had heard about the identity of the Mountain Keeper of Cheonwi Mountain.

At that time, people called the Mountain Keeper’s existence this.

‘Goblin.’

The Mountain Keeper’s deep, dark eyes, as if containing a starry night sky, stared intently at me.

* * *

The Mountain Keeper and the injured members of the Seven Stars began to climb Cheonwi Mountain.

The mountain path was quite steep.

Not only was there no proper path, but the slope was very steep, and the temperature was low, so the ground was frozen.

Even in such conditions, the Mountain Keeper strode up the steep slope as if walking on flat ground, holding a bag full of alcohol in his hands.

“Hey! You young ones are so weak! Hurry up and follow me!”

The Mountain Keeper glanced back and shouted.

The Seven Stars were following behind me in formation.

They weren’t falling behind, but they were constantly groaning due to their injuries.

“Are you alright?”

“…I’m fine.”

The captain of the Seven Stars replied with a contorted face.

His broken arm was painful, but he seemed to be quite hurt in his pride for being subdued without being able to do anything.

‘How pathetic.’

To have your eyes waver over something like this, how pathetic.

Even the cadets of Class 5, who were much weaker and younger than them, weren’t like this.

‘That reminds me….’

I frowned as I diligently followed behind the Mountain Keeper.

‘What is this feeling?’

A feeling that something unknown was following me. The higher I climbed the mountain, the stronger the feeling became.

As if reading my expression, the Mountain Keeper, who had been walking steadily, turned around and grinned.

“Oh ho, you have quite the senses.”

“What do you mean?”

“That strange feeling you’re feeling is the gaze of the mountain’s spirits. They’re just watching you, so you don’t have to be too wary.”

“Spirits…? You mean they’re watching me?”

It was surprising that there were spirits, but to think they were watching me.

“Well, it’s because your scent is foul.”

“Scent, you say?”

I immediately realized he wasn’t talking about body odor.

The Mountain Keeper sniffed the air.

“Yeah, you have a strange scent. It’s not the scent of a human.”

After climbing the mountain for a while,

I could see a hazy steam rising beyond the slope.

The Mountain Keeper finally stopped walking.

“We’re here. You scrawny bastards.”

Beyond the slope was an open-air hot spring with white steam rising from it.

As soon as I heard the Mountain Keeper’s words, I could recognize the identity of this place.

‘This is it. The healing water that’s only found in Cheonwi Mountain.’

It looked like a hot spring on the outside.

However, the Korean Peninsula is not a volcanic zone except for a few regions, so a hot spring that emits this much heat could not exist.

The name of that water was Healing Water.

It was a spring said to be created by the magic of goblins.

Its effects were the treatment of internal and external injuries.

The direct descendants of the Soongmoo Lee family who entered Cheonwi Mountain used to treat their injuries sustained during training here.

“Alright, that’s enough for these guys. You two, let’s go over there.”

Not far from the Healing Water.

The Mountain Keeper came to a tall rock wall with a large hole and guided Head Butler Choi.

“Here it is. Come in.”

After saying that, the Mountain Keeper went into the cave alone.

Seeing him, I doubted my eyes.

‘He disappeared?’

The Mountain Keeper’s figure disappeared in an instant as he crossed the boundary of the cave.

Head Butler Choi smiled and said.

“Let’s go in, Young Master.”

I slowly took a step into the cave.

A feeling of passing through a shimmering surface.

And the scenery slowly began to change.

The rough floor became flat, the humid forest air became pleasant, and a warm energy was felt instead of the cold winter wind.

Before I knew it, the surrounding scenery had turned into a room in a classic Korean-style mansion.

‘Is this also the magic of goblins?’

It was truly like being possessed by a ghost.

It was a different feeling from spells, mana, formations, or magic.

If it were those things, I would have felt some kind of power moving, but the scenery changed naturally, as if watching a flowing stream.

“There are no cushions, so just sit on the floor.”

A swaggering man in hiking clothes sat in front of an antique folding screen.

There couldn’t be a bigger mismatch, but surprisingly, the sight suited him well.

“Alright, let’s hear what you have to say.”

That’s what the Mountain Keeper said, but he didn’t seem to have any intention of listening to the story, as he was just happily opening the boxes of alcohol he had brought.

Penfolds, Bombay Sapphire, Macallan, Armand….

I didn’t know much about alcohol, but the packaging alone made it clear that they weren’t cheap.

“Tae-shin was already the type to not shed a single drop of blood, but to send a kid like you to train. Are you that hated?”

“No, I wanted to come.”

“Oh, really? A kid like you? What’s going on? Tell me a story.”

The Mountain Keeper took his eyes off the alcohol and looked at me directly.

I briefly explained what had happened.

The cadet corps, my father, and the reward.

I didn’t bother to include stories about the Inmyeonju Forest or the brothers’ rivalry.

“Tsk, boring. You don’t have the talent of a storyteller.”

The Mountain Keeper opened a bottle of alcohol, as if he had decided which one to drink, and began to gulp it down.

Then he clapped his knee and his eyes lit up.

“Keu! Good! Alright, it wasn’t fun, but I heard your story, so I should repay you. I know how to tell fortunes. How about I take a look?”

It was a fortune told by a goblin, a mysterious race.

I didn’t really believe in such things, but there was no reason to refuse.

“Then I’ll ask you to do so.”

“Alright. Good.”

The Mountain Keeper’s mysterious eyes, as if containing stars, looked at me.

“Hmm, interesting. You’re still a child, but you’re entangled with all sorts of misfortune and luck. This is….”

The Mountain Keeper tilted his head.

“You have a fate to die young as soon as you’re born, and even if you lived, you’d suffer a sudden accident around the age of ten, but a strange fate is intertwined and avoided the accident. If you hadn’t come here this time, you would have suffered a great misfortune… hmm? Hmm…?”

The Mountain Keeper stroked his short beard and began to tilt his head.

“What’s wrong?”

“Keueung, never mind. It’s meaningless to tell your fortune or read your destiny. Unless it’s to look back on it after it’s all over.”

“What do you mean?”

“Destiny is ultimately about seeing what happens as you are born. But it’s meaningless for guys like you who twist their own destiny.”

The Mountain Keeper took another sip of alcohol and continued.

“In short, your life changes from time to time depending on how you live. You’re an interesting guy, aren’t you?”

I laughed at those words.

Because those words were the most accurate expression of my current life.

“Anyway, that’s that. So? You’ve been given a year, what are you going to do?”

I glanced at Head Butler Choi.

‘My father is listening to what I’m saying now.’