Bachelor Swordsmanship Remastered [EN]: Chapter 97

097. Lee Seo-yeon

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen this scenery,” Lee Seo-yeon murmured, watching the waves of Dongting Lake [a large, shallow lake in Hunan province, China] shatter under the moonlight.

The Namgung Clan attire she had worn on the boat was gone, replaced by a lavishly decorated, soft silk dress that accentuated her beauty.

“Dongting Lake is best enjoyed in quiet contemplation like this,” she said, almost to herself.

Besides her and a few attendants, the area around Yueyang Tower [a famous scenic tower on the shore of Dongting Lake] was deserted at her command.

There were grumbles, of course, but no one dared defy the daughter of Lee Ho-am.

“But it’s a pity,” Lee Seo-yeon said softly.

“That I can only see such a beautiful sight for a short time.”

She wasn’t here to leisurely admire the scenery. This was merely a brief stop on her journey.

Brief for her, perhaps, but it meant others had to scramble to clear the way.

Rustle.

Lee Seo-yeon turned and slowly walked away from Yueyang Tower. Normally, she would have immediately boarded a carriage, but she had requested a walk, and several attendants accompanied her down the dark road.

That road, too, had been cleared for her alone.

Rustle, rustle.

How far had they walked?

“Hmph!”

One of the warriors guarding Lee Seo-yeon reacted suddenly.

“Be on guard!”

At his shout, the other guards responded instantly.

Clang, clang.

Thud, thud.

The guards quickly surrounded Lee Seo-yeon, forming a protective circle.

Despite their sharp eyes scanning the surroundings, Lee Seo-yeon remained calm.

“What’s wrong?” she asked the warrior who had shouted.

He remained motionless, staring into the woods beside the road, his hand on the hilt of his sword, his lips tightly closed, a picture of intense tension.

Then it came.

Whoosh.

The sudden emanation of aura from the forest changed Lee Seo-yeon’s expression.

It was fleeting, but she didn’t miss it.

No, she couldn’t miss it. The time she had spent in the Namgung Clan over the past few years had not been wasted.

Step.

Instinctively, Lee Seo-yeon took a step towards the dark forest.

“It’s dangerous!” the warrior warned.

But his words were meaningless to her.

“So?” Lee Seo-yeon smirked.

“If someone of this caliber intended to harm us, something would have already happened, wouldn’t it?”

She was right.

However, acknowledging that and acting on it were two different things.

“That’s no reason to invite danger. If a fearsome beast shows no interest, one should be thankful and retreat. Just because they haven’t bared their fangs doesn’t mean we should approach them.”

“Hmph.”

Such common sense didn’t apply to Lee Seo-yeon.

Without risk, there is no reward.

“Don’t follow me,” she said to the warrior, using polite language, but it was clearly an order.

“Someone like you is more likely to cause problems in an emergency. And anyway…”

Lee Seo-yeon smiled, her red lips curving.

“Even if you were there, you wouldn’t be able to handle the opponent, would you?”

The warrior gritted his teeth.

Step.

Unconcerned, Lee Seo-yeon started walking alone.

Step, step.

It was a dark forest, but she didn’t hesitate.

How could she not feel fear?

However, the anticipation for the terrifying being lurking beyond made her eyes shine.

She didn’t even realize that her smile was growing darker in the darkness.

***

Whoosh.

Yun-hyun’s wooden sword cut through the moonlit night sky.

Following the path of the sword, a strange aura left traces in the air like a phantom.

Whoooong.

Like the blowing wind, like the flowing river, Yun-hyun’s wooden sword danced alone in the darkness.

Rustle.

The twelfth form of the White Tiger Training Sword was complete.

However, Yun-hyun’s sword was starting the first form again, for what felt like the hundredth time.

Whoong.

There was no sky or earth anymore.

There was no sadness or lamentation.

All that existed was the path of the sword drawn by a single wooden sword.

Yun-hyun forgot himself in the flow of that sword path.

No, now there was no meaning in distinguishing between himself and the sword path.

Whoooong.

With a low resonance, the wooden sword drew a soft curve, and Yun-hyun split the night sky along with the sword path.

Like an eternally continuing sword dance, Yun-hyun’s sword continued endlessly.

There was nothing else.

***

‘Ah.’

Lee Seo-yeon trembled with excitement.

The scene unfolding before her eyes was shattering her expectations.

Whoooong.

She couldn’t tear her eyes away.

Such swordsmanship was not seen even in the Namgung Clan, known as the Sword King family.

Not even in a carefully staged display of the Namgung Clan’s true colors for the daughter of the Hoam Merchant Group.

Whoong.

Under the dark sky, the wooden sword danced.

When his sword tip pointed to the sky, the sky seemed to hide its face. When it descended to the ground, the ground retreated before it.

There was no place for Lee Seo-yeon to stand there.

Even though she was far enough away to barely make out his figure, she could clearly see the figure of a roaring beast.

A legendary divine beast with fangs and claws that could devour the world.

Rustle.

Lee Seo-yeon quietly and slowly stepped back.

It was a simple movement, but for her, it was an act of risking her life.

The thrill running through her entire body made her feel disconnected from it.

Above all, the fear that she might disturb the mood of that divine beast, the nerves of the beast roaring in sorrow, tightened her.

But she couldn’t stay here any longer.

No, she shouldn’t be here.

Because this place and this sight were never meant for her to witness.

Rustle.

Lee Seo-yeon took another step back.

She had stopped breathing a long time ago, but didn’t even notice.

Rustle, rustle.

How far away had she gotten?

When she felt that the fangs and claws of the divine beast were no longer threatening her slender neck, she finally let out a long sigh.

“Haaa.”

It was more a sense of liberation from overwhelming fear than relief from having saved her life.

Even she, who had never cherished her life, couldn’t help but feel the thrill that rushed in, ignoring her will.

Thud.

Lee Seo-yeon, whose legs gave way, leaned weakly against a tree.

She hadn’t done anything, but her whole body felt exhausted.

However, her red lips were uttering a low voice like a moan.

“Finally…….”

Joy spread across her eyes. In a trembling voice, she murmured.

“Finally… I found it.”

Her beautiful eyes, speaking as if whispering, were emitting a bright blue light in the darkness.

But no one saw that sight.

***

The main house of the Hoam Merchant Group was located in the large city of Changsha [capital of Hunan province, China].

Even within the Hoam Merchant Group’s main house, which ordinary people could hardly even approach, the most secret place was the office of the head of the group, Lee Ho-am.

Anyone who wanted to enter this place had to give up half of their life.

Whether that life was a real life or their wealth and future.

However, there was someone who could enter Lee Ho-am’s office at any time.

It was Lee Ho-am’s daughter, Lee Seo-yeon.

“Father.”

Lee Seo-yeon entered Lee Ho-am’s office.

The elderly Lee Ho-am, who was holding a document written in red, frowned slightly.

“You seem to be abusing the privilege of being my daughter too much. I am currently making an important decision.”

However, Lee Seo-yeon didn’t care.

Step.

Approaching Lee Ho-am, she said confidently.

“Still, it’s not more important than me, is it?”

The elderly Lee Ho-am smiled at his bold daughter’s words.

Rustle.

He pushed the documents aside and replied, “Don’t be too sure. Anyway, you were right this time.”

Lee Ho-am’s eyes were so full of life that they belied his age. Even the fact that he had a daughter named Lee Seo-yeon at a late age seemed natural to those around him.

Click.

Lee Seo-yeon sat down in a comfortable position opposite him.

Lee Ho-am looked at his daughter and asked, “So, what’s the matter?”

She looked straight into her father’s eyes and said directly, “I found a treasure.”

Lee Ho-am replied calmly, “Congratulations. How much is it worth?”

Lee Seo-yeon tilted her head.

“Well? I’m young, so I don’t know exactly…….”

She smiled brightly.

“I think it’s about the same as what Yeo Bul-wi [a merchant and politician of the late Warring States period of ancient China] got.”

“Hmm.”

Lee Ho-am stroked his beard quietly and pondered.

Yeo Bul-wi was a legendary merchant who invested gold and silver in the past Warring States period and reaped the rewards of the Qin Dynasty emperor. In other words, his daughter was claiming to have discovered something that could bring her the world.

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure,” she asserted without hesitation. “It was enough to deceive even my eyes. But there’s a bit of a problem.”

“It’s buried in someone else’s field.”

“A treasure buried in someone else’s field……,” Lee Ho-am muttered.

Whether he believed her or not, the solution was simple.

“Buy the field, or even the village where the field is located, so that no one can touch it,” he said with a smile. “That’s how you invest.”

Lee Seo-yeon smiled at his words.

“Thank you, Father.”

His solution also meant that he approved of her plan.

She got up from her seat and left the room without regret.

Click.

The door to the office closed, and Lee Ho-am murmured quietly, “Not just the village. If necessary, you have to buy even a castle.”

The Hoam Merchant Group was not one of the top three merchant groups in the world, but it was definitely among the top five.

That assessment was a disgrace to Lee Ho-am personally.

Therefore, if he could really hold the world in his hands, as his daughter said, he would be willing to give anything.

“If it really brings the world to the Hoam Merchant Group, as you said.”

But Lee Ho-am was a merchant.

He had no intention of investing in something that had no value, even if it was his beloved daughter.

And Lee Seo-yeon, who knew that well, had just bet virtually everything she had.

Rustle.

Lee Ho-am began to look at the documents with red letters again.

There was no need to be impatient.

After all, investment is bound to bring results.

Whether it’s a brilliant success or a miserable downfall.