Weapon-Eating Bastard [EN]: Chapter 67

The youngest son’s journey as a warrior was bound to attract attention for several reasons.

A son, no less, embarking on a warrior’s journey at the youngest age in history.

Moreover, he had won a duel against his older sister, who was several years his senior, and passed the Council of Elders’ test through this victory.

Even if he had quietly followed the procedure, he would have garnered interest, but since the events unfolded so dramatically, everyone paid at least some attention.

And there were those whose interest went beyond mere curiosity.

In the training grounds behind the main house of the Soongmoo Clan.

Under the warm spring sun, Baek Hwa-yeon, the mistress of the Soongmoo Clan, held a teacup.

At that moment.

A figure emerged from the shade of a tree beside the table.

“Report.”

“…I apologize. I lost him.”

Baek Hwa-yeon’s eyes twitched.

“In detail.”

“…I was careless. The son anticipated the tail from the beginning. I lost him after he left the clan and passed through the bustling streets.”

“That’s impossible. There should be an identifiable appearance and magical signature.”

“It is presumed that he disguised his appearance with equipment received as compensation this time and learned some kind of technique to alter his magical signature. It seems impossible to track him down now. I apologize.”

Baek Hwa-yeon stroked the handle of her teacup.

‘A mere 15-year-old son… evaded the Shadow Sword’s tailing?’

She had assigned a tail the moment Lee Cheol left the clan.

He always took actions that exceeded expectations.

Having officially left for his warrior journey with the head of the family’s permission, she couldn’t directly harm him.

However, she wanted to know in advance what he was doing and planning, so she assigned someone to follow him.

The Soongmoo Clan’s sixth sense for detecting danger was so extraordinary that she had instructed them to be overly cautious, but she never imagined they would lose him in less than a day.

“Well, if he couldn’t even do this much, he would have been weeded out long ago.”

“…”

The Shadow Sword silently lowered his body behind Baek Hwa-yeon.

After a moment of silence, Baek Hwa-yeon opened her mouth.

“Keep an eye on the information. If you see even a slight sign, send someone to follow him.”

“Understood.”

The Shadow Sword’s figure disappeared again in an instant.

Baek Hwa-yeon took another sip of tea.

Despite the warm spring sun, a chilly aura lingered around her.

* * *

What I brought from the Soongmoo Clan was simple.

An identification card for outings to prove my status, four pieces of equipment selected from the armory, and the black sword Heukya hanging at my waist.

And,

‘About 10 million won in emergency funds. They expect me to survive for years with this.’

Considering that I have to live for several years, it was by no means a large sum of money.

It was literally an emergency fund. Earning money was something the direct descendant on a warrior’s journey had to do himself.

‘This should be enough for now; let’s proceed as planned.’

When I decided to embark on the warrior’s journey, I already had some things in mind.

Usually, when starting a warrior’s journey, one would visit various martial arts families (武家) or martial sects (武門) throughout the country.

They would proudly reveal that they were a direct descendant of the Soongmoo Clan to prestigious martial families or sects and request sparring to exchange martial arts.

The other party would have nothing to lose by experiencing the martial arts of the Soongmoo Clan, and the direct descendant who started the warrior’s journey could gain experience and build connections.

The condition of the warrior’s journey was not to use the Soongmoo Clan’s name value, but it wasn’t necessary to hide the fact that one was from the Soongmoo Clan.

‘That’s not bad either, but it’s inefficient for me right now. Let’s get what I need first and then start.’

The first destination I had in mind for my warrior’s journey was the Northern Danger Zone, specifically the area located in Jagang Province.

I had to delay for a while to shake off the tail that had followed me, but it didn’t take long to arrive in the North.

Monster extermination around Jagang Province was mostly complete, but development was hardly done.

Even though it had stabilized, there was no social infrastructure, so no one had moved in.

However, for some, such a place could be used as a haven.

‘The Wanderers’ Nest is here.’

Wanderers.

A general term for criminals who roamed the world’s crime-ridden areas.

It referred to those who committed crimes using martial arts, sorcery, or magic, not just ordinary criminals.

And the villages that such wanderers gathered to form in the slums of safe zones or underdeveloped danger zones were called ‘Nests.’

‘It’s been so long since I’ve been here that I don’t remember well. I think I’m going the right way.’

I looked around.

There was no proper transportation, so I had to walk from the edge of the safe zone.

The underdeveloped danger zone was essentially wilderness with only roads laid out.

I stopped for a moment, took out a canteen, and drank some water. Then, I discovered something, and my eyes lit up.

‘I’ve come to the right place.’

In a corner of the forest across the road.

There was a creaking, leaning wooden sign and unnaturally hung bone fragments.

It was a sign indicating the entrance to the Wanderers’ Nest.

* * *

All sorts of people gathered in the Wanderers’ Nest.

Smugglers, thieves, drug addicts, pimps, and even murderers.

The Wanderers’ Nest was a place where all kinds of villains and all kinds of secrets gathered.

Long ago, people with good intentions worked tirelessly to eliminate the Wanderers’ Nests.

But no one succeeded.

This is because the Wanderers’ Nests are not created by any organization but are closer to spontaneously formed vagrant villages.

Even if one Nest is eliminated, another Nest springs up elsewhere.

If that Nest is also eliminated, the lost refuse spreads and contaminates all directions.

Therefore, the governments and large forces of each country deliberately left the Wanderers’ Nests alone.

They allowed them freedom to be confined in danger zones or slums as long as they didn’t cross the line.

In this place, the largest in Korea among such Wanderers’ Nests, a noisy fight was taking place as always.

“What are you doing, you piece of trash! Where did you cheat from!”

“You son of a bitch! You had a card up your sleeve!”

“What nonsense! Die!”

Two men who had been fiddling with Hwatu [Korean playing cards] cards at the Nest’s tavern suddenly started fighting.

“Hey! The self-proclaimed card sharks are going at it!”

“100,000 won on the bald guy!”

“150,000 won on the cross-eyed guy!”

Whether a fight broke out, a bottle flew, no one in the tavern cared.

From the beginning, the Nest was such a place.

Squeak-.

And in the midst of such a fight, no one cared who entered the tavern.

The man who entered the tavern had a clear scar on his face and looked menacing at a glance.

As soon as he entered the tavern, he strode to the counter and sat down.

“A draft beer. How much is it?”

“Hmm…”

The counter owner squinted and examined the unfamiliar guest.

“I’ve never seen your face before. Who are you?”

“I came from the North. These days, the Kowloon Society in China is giving me too much grief.”

“Are you Korean-Chinese?”

“Do I look like one?”

“Your voice sounds like a teenager going through puberty. And your accent is completely Seoul. If you’re Korean, why did you come from the North?”

“I ran away. I didn’t know anything back then.”

“What’s your name?”

“Do you have to reveal your name in this Nest?”

“…It seems like you’re a Wanderer.”

The owner clicked his tongue as if he was uneasy.

Then the man chuckled and said.

“Don’t worry. I’m not a cop. I’m just hiding for a while to avoid the cops.”

“Tsk! Well, it seems like you’re one of us. Everything’s fine, but don’t cause trouble and die. If you’re going to die, die somewhere else. Don’t make me clean up your corpse here.”

Thump!

The owner slammed a cold beer down.

“20,000 won.”

“Huh, 20,000 won for a glass of beer?”

“Get out if you don’t like it.”

“Alright.”

The man threw two crumpled bills on the table and grabbed the beer glass.

“Kha!”

The man gulped down the beer and exclaimed with a grand sound as if he was drinking alcohol for the first time in his life.

And in fact, it was his first drink in this life.

‘How long has it been?’

I looked at my face reflected in the beer glass.

A hideous scar across his cheek, rough and dark skin, and upturned eyes.

No one would see him as Lee Cheol, the youngest son of the Soongmoo Clan, but as a Wanderer who could be seen anywhere.

‘It’s so perfect that it’s amazing.’

I moved my hand and stroked the scarred area.

Instead of feeling the distorted texture of the scar, I only felt a smooth texture like porcelain.

‘As expected of a masterpiece-level equipment, the effect is good.’

The change in his face was due to the power of ‘certain equipment’ obtained from the armory.

A masterpiece-level mask, Manmyeoncheolpi (万面铁皮) [Ten Thousand Faces Iron Skin].

It was equipment with the ability to create some kind of illusion on the mask when magic power was injected.

It was by no means noticeable on the outside, and it was a very useful item except for consuming a little magic power.

“Hahaha! Cross-eyed won! Hey! Give me the money!”

“What money, you bastard!”

“Where are you lying, you bastard? Give it to me right now?”

“Get lost!”

“You bastard!”

I glanced at the Wanderers who were drunk and fighting again and was lost in strange emotions.

In my previous life, I hid here to avoid the eyes of the family.

‘But in the end, my third brother found me. It was also in a Nest’s inn that I faced the Spirit Sword Troop.’

That was something that would not happen now.

I shook my head and turned my head.

First, I lowered my voice using magic power so that I wouldn’t look too young.

“By the way, let me ask you something.”

“What is it?”

“What kind of organization is managing this place now? Where I used to be, it was the Kowloon Society.”

“What do you want to know that for?”

“I need to know the atmosphere to act accordingly. I might die a dog’s death if I act without knowing anything, right?”

“It’s not hard to tell you. Well, it’s not a secret. But you want me to open my mouth with just one beer?”

I frowned and put 100,000 won on the table.

“Give me some snacks and more beer.”

“You’re a good man to talk to.”

The owner grinned and put nuts and more beer on the table.

“President Baek Cheol-soo has been managing this Nest for 10 years now. Even if you went over to China, you know him, right?”

“Of course, how could I not know him.”

My eyes lit up.

It was as expected.

Baek Cheol-soo, the human butcher.

He was a well-known knife fighter and boss in this industry.

The story of how he killed his master and became a Wanderer while formally training as a warrior in a martial arts school was quite a famous anecdote.

His own martial power is outstanding, and he has good business skills.

Baek Cheol-soo became the boss who dominated the Korean underworld in the past before the regression.

‘He took control of the organization in his early thirties and started operating the black market… Now is the time when good items are coming out.’

What I need to do is not exactly the Nest or Baek Cheol-soo.

‘That’ is in the warehouse where Baek Cheol-soo stores the items he will put on the black market that he periodically opens in the safe zone.

A treasure that no one has yet recognized the value of.

An item that was recovered by the Soongmoo Clan in my previous life.

‘I should take it first this time.’

I smiled and raised my beer glass.