Call Of The Spear [EN]: Chapter 22

Nangseon’s Romantic Tale – 21

A bright afternoon, the sun blazing high in the sky.

At the foot of Mt. Baek, a rabbit and a little girl were kneeling. The rabbit looked particularly displeased.

“Hey! I told you not to pick my clover!”

The rabbit’s nose twitched, its expression stern. The object of its ire was the little girl kneeling before it.

“B-but, the chickens like clover…”

“How dare you talk back! You’re just raising them to fatten them up and eat them! You nasty humans!”

“N-no! If we eat the laying hen, it’ll be a disaster!”

The girl shook her head, sobbing.

Eating the laying hen that lays eggs! If that happened, they couldn’t sell eggs, and if they couldn’t sell eggs, she couldn’t afford to continue her studies.

“Hmph! Anyway, all these clovers are mine, so don’t even think about taking them! Not even a blade of grass can be taken from this mountain lord’s territory!”

The rabbit raised its lip, snatching the clover the girl had gathered.

“B-but still…”

“Huh! Do you want to feel my claws?”

“N-no. Mountain Lord! I was wrong!”

The girl clasped her hands and tears streamed down her face.

She had diligently gathered clover since morning, only to have it stolen by the self-proclaimed mountain lord, who was now threatening her with its claws. She had no choice but to submit.

The girl glanced up at the rabbit, which was smaller than her. She had heard that the Mountain Lord of Mt. Baek was a house-sized tiger, but that was clearly a lie.

Her hand stung slightly from where its long claws had scratched her, and it was so painful that tears welled up. Since it had such fierce claws, the rumors must have been exaggerated.

Just as the girl was thinking this and preparing to flee down the mountain,

“Wah! Wh-what! Do you want to feel my claws too!”

Suddenly, the Mountain Lord was lifted into the air!

The girl’s eyes widened, dumbfounded.

“Who’s calling themselves the Mountain Lord of Mt. Baek?”

A man, seemingly in disbelief, smirked, catching the girl’s eye. His long hair was tied back, and he wore a stylish black robe, like a nobleman from a high-ranking family.

“Ah! N-no, Young Master! Th-that’s the Mountain Lord of Mt. Baek!”

“That’s right! This body is the owner of Mt. Baek! The Mountain Lord of Mt. Baek! How dare a mere human grab the Mountain Lord’s ears! This guy, this guy!!”

The man immediately raised his fist and punched the rabbit on the head.

Thwack!

“Ugh!! That hurts! Y-you! Aren’t you afraid of the Mountain Lord!”

Another thwack!

“Aaaah! My head! My head is going to break!”

“Are you still the Mountain Lord of Mt. Baek?”

“Th-that’s…”

The rabbit rolled its eyes, watching the man raise his fist. It was hesitating and glancing around, probably worried about the lies it had told.

The man nodded and punched it on the head again.

Thwack!

“Agh! It’s splitting, splitting! Rabbit is going to die!!”

“If you’re the Mountain Lord of Mt. Baek, I’ll personally cut out your internal organs, chop off your rabbit feet, and make them into ornaments.”

“Hic! I-I was wrong! I-I’m not the Mountain Lord, sir!”

Only then did the man nod and punch it on the head once more.

Thwack!

“Kugh!! I-I told you the truth, so why!”

“You’re the one spreading the nonsense that the Mountain Lord eats poop, aren’t you?”

He thought he had seen it somewhere before, and it seemed to be the same guy who had spouted nonsense to the Mountain Lord back then.

“Hic! H-how did you know!”

The rabbit gasped, as if it was indeed the same guy from back then.

The man rejoiced, ‘Oh, I’m glad I caught you!’ and kept punching it on the head.

“You son of a bitch.”

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

The man stopped only when the rabbit was so dazed that it couldn’t come to its senses, then looked down at the girl and said.

“You can pick as much clover as you want.”

How much could this little kid pick anyway?

“R-really!?”

“Yes. The Mountain Lord of Mt. Baek is not one to get angry over such things.”

“Th-thank you, Young Master!”

The girl filled her basket with the clover she had picked, raised her eyes at the rabbit, and said.

“You bad guy!”

Thwack!

“Ggwaek!”

She kicked the rabbit in the stomach and ran away.

“You got what you deserved.”

The man took out his amber necklace, retrieved a water pouch from it, and sprinkled water on the rabbit.

“Euheot!”

The rabbit finally regained consciousness after being splashed with water.

The guy stared at the man with a blank face, then screamed, ‘Hic!’ and backed away.

“Wh-who on earth are you, sir……”

The man who appeared in front of the rabbit was, of course, the Mountain Lord disguised as a human.

“That’s none of your business. You have good ears, so I have a few things to ask. If you say you don’t know with ears this long, I might as well cut them off, right?”

Cutting off the ears, which were the rabbit’s defining feature!

The mountain rabbit spirit trembled, its short forelimbs shaking in fear, and swallowed hard.

“Have any men appeared in the Mountain Lord’s Cheonhogun [Heavenly Fox Army, referring to the Mountain Lord’s forces] and searched around?”

“Y-yes! Th-that’s right! Two Taoists and swordsmen appeared and searched around Mt. Baek before returning three days ago!”

As expected.

The Mountain Lord squatted down, stroked his chin, and nodded.

He thought the shamans would be chasing him, but three days ago…. That was around the time the Mountain Lord came out of Mangsudan [a fictional location, likely a place of cultivation or healing].

When he was a spirit, it was ten miles from Mt. Baek to Mangsudan, but after becoming a human, it only took him three days if he hurried a little.

“Then, did the Taoists have a Chuchimban [a type of compass or tracking device used by Taoists] with them?”

“Chuchimban? Well…. I don’t know about that, but I did see them carrying a square plate about the size of a human palm.”

Chuchimban.

It was a type of treasure used by Taoists to track enemies.

The Mountain Lord had been mindful of it because it was often used in novels, and sure enough, they were using it to chase him.

The Mountain Lord nodded repeatedly, thinking he was lucky.

‘It was a divine move to come quickly.’

Whether it was coincidence or fate.

Thanks to his quick arrival, their paths diverged, which was good for the Mountain Lord.

‘I bought some time.’

The Mountain Lord smiled contentedly and ordered the rabbit to spread the rumors as he had instructed.

“Eh?! I-is that true?”

“Are you talking down to me?”

“Ah! Is that really true?”

“Why would I lie to you? If you don’t want to get hit again, you better tell those who like to chatter!”

“Hic! O-okay!”

After giving the order, the rabbit hopped away, glanced back, and quickly disappeared into the bushes.

“Okay, one down.”

The Mountain Lord smiled faintly as he felt the gentle breeze and ran towards Mt. Udun.

* * *

Three days later.

Udun Village on Mt. Udun became bustling again.

That was because, since three days ago, strange rumors had spread faster than feet around Mt. Baek.

“Have you heard the rumor? The Mountain Lord has been captured by the Taoists and is coming to Mt. Udun!”

“Why would he come to Mt. Udun with the Taoists!?”

Murmur, murmur.

“He must be thinking he won’t die alone.”

At that moment, the Great Elder of Mt. Udun, Udan, muttered in a low voice, filled with anger.

“What are you talking about?”

“He probably hid the Dobonghwan [likely a valuable artifact or treasure] somewhere else. Otherwise, the Taoists wouldn’t have left the Mountain Lord alive.”

Not killing the Mountain Lord, who had already attacked a Taoist? That was absurd!

If the Taoists, who hated and tried to kill monsters, didn’t kill him, there must be some reason they didn’t know.

“Then….”

The reason could be known without having to think about it.

“He lied that the Dobonghwan was with the elites of Mt. Udun!!”

Otherwise, there was no way the Mountain Lord would come to Mt. Udun with the Taoists.

“What a despicable……!”

“Then what do we do! We’ll be annihilated!”

Udan closed his eyes to the terrible reality and remained silent for a moment before opening his mouth.

“How many Taoists are there?”

“They say there are two who look like Taoists and six swordsmen.”

Udan thought.

There were not many elites left on Mt. Udun.

All twenty elites who first ambushed the merchant group and the twenty elites who were ordered to chase the Mountain Lord had died.

‘There are forty-four left.’

If all of them came forward, could they kill the Taoists?

‘It’s different from then. Mt. Udun is our territory.’

Even a dog gets half a meal in its own house [a Korean proverb meaning one has an advantage in their own territory].

‘If it’s a long-term battle…. It’s possible.’

No matter how much of a Taoist they are, their stamina and spiritual power are not infinite. If they use hit-and-run tactics and a war of attrition on Mt. Udun, it’s not impossible.

‘Even if we run away to another mountain…. The result won’t be much different.’

It was absurd for the elites of Mt. Udun to abandon their mountain and run away.

Even if they ran away, the Taoists would chase them as they had found the Mountain Lord.

So, all that was left for them was to risk their lives to protect Mt. Udun.

Udan looked down at the elites with serious eyes, as if he had made his final decision, and ordered.

* * *

Meanwhile.

The Wudang Sect was approaching Mt. Udun, looking at the Chuchimban.

“Damn it, that damn Mountain Lord. He’s so fast!”

When they went southeast from Mt. Baek, the Chuchimban pointed back to Mt. Baek, and then to Mt. Udun, so Apyeong was frustrated to the point of madness.

If he had just stayed still, it would have been fine, but he had been urged to chase him quickly, so it was only natural that he had made such a futile trip.

“Hey, didn’t I say I was sorry.”

Geummyeong comforted Apyeong, who was grumbling with amusement.

Who would have known things would turn out like this?

In the first place, catching a fast-moving spirit was not an easy task.

Besides, who would have thought that a guy who was seriously injured could wander around like this?

Geummyeong and Apyeong bickered again and headed towards Mt. Udun.

And a moment later.

“Hey, you there! Come over here.”

Apyeong called out to a man leaning against a rock in front of Mt. Udun, resting, in a voice full of annoyance.

“Are you talking to me?”

The man looked like a well-dressed martial artist, but Apyeong called him as if he were a subordinate, as he couldn’t feel any spiritual power or even a bit of internal energy.

“Hey, Apyeong. Even if he’s a commoner, it’s not good to treat him like that. Didn’t Senior Brother say that last time?”

Geummyeong scolded Apyeong, mentioning Senior Brother, as he didn’t like Apyeong’s behavior.

The unknown young man had an innocent face, probably just reaching adulthood.

He was fidgeting and rolling his eyes, and Geummyeong felt bad, as if he had caught an innocent person for no reason.

“Ahem. I called you because I have something to ask. Did a house-sized tiger pass by here?”

“A tiger?”

“Yes. That guy is a monster who eats people and even injured our fellow disciples. Have you seen him?”

The man stroked his chin and thought for a moment, tilting his head, then exclaimed and pointed to the mountain behind him.

“Well…. At first, I wasn’t sure if it was a tiger, but when I thought about it, the back view seemed to be a tiger!”

When the man said that, joy spread across Apyeong and Geummyeong’s faces.

The faces of the swordsmen who had been waiting silently behind them also became more relaxed.

They wondered how long they would have to wander around, but now the tiger hunt was about to come to an end.

No matter how much he had injured a Taoist, he would have no choice but to die if there were two Taoists.

“Thank you! Hey, Geummyeong! Let’s chase him right away.”

“Okay. Thank you, young man!”

“No problem. I’m just telling you what I saw…. If it’s okay, would you like me to guide you through Mt. Udun?”

“Oh? Do you know this mountain well?”

Apyeong and Geummyeong, who were about to climb Mt. Udun right away, turned their attention to the man.

It was a mountain that looked rugged at first glance. If someone who knew the mountain path a little could guide them, the tiger hunt would be easier.

“I’ve been up and down a few times, so I know the way roughly. You seem to be hunting a vicious tiger…. Is that right?”

“Haha, you guessed it right. He’s called the Mountain Lord of Mt. Baek, and even the neighborhood dogs know him. But is it okay for you to do that? He’s not usually a clever guy. I’m worried you might get hurt.”

“I can take care of my body, so don’t worry. I’ve heard a lot about the Mountain Lord of Mt. Baek. He’s quite a nasty guy in Hanam, so I want to help you catch him as soon as possible.”

“Haha! I see! Then please do!”

Geummyeong smiled pleasantly and hurriedly climbed the mountain path.

The man, who volunteered to be the guide, took the lead towards Mt. Udun and slightly raised the corners of his lips.