Tales Of The Nine Dragons [EN]: Chapter 96

Opening

“Is that the site where the Nine Dragons Casino is being built?”

“Yes, Lord Ma. If it operates properly, it can circulate quite a bit of money and greatly help the school’s operations.”

The building was already up on a fairly large site, and workers were busily moving around, seemingly decorating the interior.

“The owner here is the Nine Dragons Chief?”

“Yes, but he doesn’t seem ordinary.”

“Oh?”

“To open a casino like this, you need a certain amount of courage. And since there will be many who aim to take it over, I believe he must have considerable martial arts skills himself, or highly skilled subordinates.”

“At best, he’s only known in Shanxi Province. I should meet the Nine Dragons Chief.”

“I will escort you.”

As the man, seemingly a subordinate, took the lead, the one called Lord Ma followed behind him.

Behind the two, shadows of black figures moved together, appearing to be about ten in number.

As they arrived at the Nine Dragons Casino, slightly away from the construction site, and tried to enter, Hwa-rin and Seo Dae-young blocked their path.

“What’s going on?”

Hwa-rin, who looked young, suddenly spoke informally, causing the leading man to frown.

“We’ve come to see the Nine Dragons Chief.”

“I am the chief. Who are you? I don’t recognize you.”

Hwa-rin looked at Seo Dae-young as he spoke, and Seo Dae-young shook his head, indicating he didn’t know either.

“Could they be here because of the martial artist recruitment ad?”

“Oh?”

Hwa-rin listened to Seo Dae-young’s words, fixed his gaze on the man, and spoke.

“Did you come to work as a warrior for our Nine Dragons Casino?”

“What? A warrior? Just because a young brat is the owner of the estate, you’re acting too recklessly, aren’t you? You need to be taught a lesson to become obedient.”

“A lesson? Judging by your words, you’re not here to work at my place. Judging by the unpleasant energy you’re giving off, it doesn’t seem like you’ve come for anything good.”

The man who had been quietly standing, Lord Ma, asked Hwa-rin.

“Haven’t we met somewhere before?”

Hwa-rin looked closely at the man called Lord Ma at his words and then gave a faint smile.

“You’re the one. The one who stabbed Iron Lion Castle’s Harryson in the side.”

He flinched at Hwa-rin’s words and then nodded.

‘I could at least gauge his martial arts skills back then, but now he has surpassed that level.’

“Did you come to stab me in the side this time?”

“No. I came for a deal.”

He stepped forward himself, feeling that leaving it to his subordinates would lead to big trouble.

“I am Ma Gunj of the Demonic Sect [a secretive and often villainous organization in martial arts stories], also known as Yin Seoma Gunj [Shadow Demon Ma Gunj].”

“Yin Seoma Gunj?”

“Yes. The main sect is creating bases in each province……”

“Wait a minute!”

Hwa-rin interrupted him.

“What kind of nonsense are you spouting? Should I cut off your limbs one by one right now?”

He tilted his head, seemingly not understanding why Hwa-rin was suddenly angry.

“What am I supposed to do with your plans? Are you thinking of threatening me with that? You guys are really determined to be uprooted from the root. Should I uproot you once and for all?”

“I think you’re misunderstanding.”

“Misunderstanding? You’re going to tell me your plans, and if I don’t participate, you’ll say that since I heard the plans, I have to die, something like that, right?”

“No. We are telling you our situation and asking for help……”

“These bastards, do you think the Imperial Army is a joke?”

“That’s not it……”

—Lord, the Imperial Army has nothing to do with us.

Seo Dae-young hurriedly sent a telepathic message to Hwa-rin.

—Then are you going to fight the Demonic Sect?

—That’s not it, but…….

—Then stay still. Don’t interfere.

“Then cut out all the unnecessary stuff and just say what you need.”

“Alright. Give the main sect some money. In return, the members of the main sect will take responsibility for the safety of the Nine Dragons Casino.”

“Safety? So you’re saying you’ll provide security services in exchange for money?”

“Y-yes.”

“No need. If I use you guys for security, the orthodox and unorthodox factions [referring to established martial arts schools and less conventional groups] will be completely destroyed. Do you think I’m crazy enough to use you for security?”

“That won’t happen. They are members of the main sect, but they have nothing to do with demonic arts……”

“That’s enough. You keep trying to tell me your secrets that aren’t even secrets. If you say anything else vaguely, I’ll just kill you, so keep that in mind.”

“This young brat, I’ve been listening and listening, but you’ve thrown your manners to the dogs, haven’t you? Your mouth……”

Slap!

The man’s head turned sharply, and several foreign objects flew out of his mouth.

“Who told you to interrupt when adults are talking?”

‘I didn’t see it.’

Yin Seoma Gunj felt goosebumps and cold sweat running down his spine.

“I don’t have money to help the Demonic Sect, and I don’t need help either. Does the Imperial Army look like it’s running a casino? I can’t tell you in detail, but the Imperial Army needs money too.”

Yin Seoma Gunj couldn’t say anything in response to Hwa-rin’s words.

“If you’re confident in facing eight million Imperial Army soldiers, or if you can escape the Imperial Army’s intelligence network in the Central Plains [a region in China], you can do as you please, but if you can’t, give up and look elsewhere. Chief Seo!”

“Yes, Lord.”

“Send them back and sprinkle salt [a traditional method of warding off evil].”

As Hwa-rin turned around and went inside, Chief Seo chased them away from the front gate.

“If possible, don’t ruin our lord’s mood. He has a terrible personality and might try to kill you without considering the consequences.”

Creak…… Thud!

As the gate closed, Yin Seoma Gunj stood blankly for a moment before turning around.

“Let’s look elsewhere. Don’t even come close to this area.”

“Lord Ma.”

“We can’t fight the Imperial Army.”

“Could it be a lie?”

“I know better than anyone that he was a soldier. I saw him at Iron Lion Castle a few years ago, and I saw him destroy Iron Lion Castle with my own eyes. We’re going to the capital, Xi’an. We’ll secure a base there.”

As Yin Seoma Gunj left the Nine Dragons Casino, the black figures followed behind him.

* * *

“The fact that the Demonic Sect, which had been quiet, has moved means that they have gathered a certain amount of power, doesn’t it?”

Seo Dae-young and Lee Do-moon sat on either side of the table, talking to Hwa-rin.

“As Protector Lee said, the preparations must be over to some extent. The fact that they’re talking about money also means that they’ve absorbed more support than they thought.”

“If the Demonic Sect leaves Mount Tian [a fictional or real location often associated with martial arts sects], the Murim world [the martial arts world] will fall into a whirlpool.”

“That doesn’t mean a war will break out right away. The Demonic Sect can’t face both the Blood Evil Alliance and the Righteous Heaven Alliance at the same time.”

“Yin Seoma Gunj said that there are those who have nothing to do with demonic arts.”

“He was interrupted, but he definitely said that.”

“Could they be using them to incite a fight between the orthodox and unorthodox factions?”

“The Righteous Heaven Alliance and the Blood Evil Alliance?”

“If they can’t face them, they have no choice but to reduce their power until they can, right?”

“That makes sense. Is that why they chose our Nine Dragons Casino, where incidents and accidents are likely to happen?”

“Why do so many incidents and accidents happen at the Nine Dragons Casino?”

“Are there any decent guys among those who drink and gamble? They’ve lived half their lives as scoundrels. They’re the kind of guys who would stab you in the gut if they had the chance.”

“So, Chief Seo is saying that they lose money, get drunk, and cause trouble at my place?”

“Not all of them would do that, would they? It would have to be those who are capable of causing trouble.”

“Martial artists?”

Although he didn’t answer, everyone could guess that he meant the Murim world.

“That’s why I’m going to be a king in the Murim world.”

Seo Dae-young chuckled at those words.

“Why are you laughing?”

“If you become a king in the Murim world with your personality, would there be any Murim people left?”

“Why not? How kind and wise am I? Are you laughing at me right now?”

“No, I’m not.”

“You are laughing, aren’t you?”

“No. I’m definitely not laughing.”

Hwa-rin frowned, pointed to his own eyes with his finger, and then pointed to Seo Dae-young’s eyes again.

It was a silent pressure that he would be watching.

“But, Lord.”

“Why?”

“Aren’t you getting married? A man of twenty-five is quite late.”

“I’m not doing it because I haven’t achieved my goals yet. Once I achieve them to some extent, I’ll do it even if you tell me not to. Stop worrying about me, and if you have someone you’re meeting, bring them along. You don’t have anyone yourself.”

Lee Do-moon sometimes found it amusing and envious to see the two of them fighting as if they were bantering.

“But, as Chief Seo said, getting married and having children to carry on the family line will also help in pursuing great things.”

“I know. But that could also hold me back. Not now. I’ll think about it when I have the ability to protect this estate completely even without me.”

“If you think so, Lord…… Please tell me when that time comes in the future.”

“Why?”

“So I can look for good women around you, can’t I?”

“You don’t have to worry about that. As time passes, there will be many people who fall for my charm.”

The moment he heard those words, Seo Dae-young scratched his ear with his finger and said.

“He wasn’t like this when I first met him, but he seems to be getting more childish as time goes on.”

“Can’t you be quiet? I’ll send you back to the Imperial Palace.”

“You always say you’re going to send me back to the Imperial Palace. Stop with those childish threats.”

“Shouldn’t we come up with our own methods?”

Even while Hwa-rin and Seo Dae-young were having a childish argument, Lee Do-moon asked for the sake of the future.

“We have to. Chief Seo will take care of that. He may seem a little lacking, but he’s capable.”

Lee Do-moon knew better than Hwa-rin that Seo Dae-young was capable.

“How about calling assassins to protect the estate?”

“The moment we call assassins, the Hao Clan and the Beggars’ Sect will find out. It’s better this way for now.”

“But if we get attacked……”

“It’s enough if we can run away quickly. We can always find the estate again if we’re given time, and we can punish those who attacked the estate. But if there are many things in the estate, it’s not easy to abandon the estate and run away.”

“Ah…….”

“Unless we have an overwhelming advantage in force, we should just use the base as a base, not as a main house to settle down and achieve something based on it.”

He didn’t know how the future would change, but for Hwa-rin now, the Nine Dragons Casino was a place that served as a base, not a concept of a main house where he would settle down and try to achieve something based on it.

“So, Protector Lee, tell your subordinates not to risk their lives to fight if they judge that they can’t win when the enemy invades.”

“Wouldn’t that cause more damage? Everyone’s judgment will be different.”

“That’s why Protector Lee and Chief Seo are here. People who can quickly read the flow and make a decision to retreat for a while.”

Whenever he showed this side of himself, he seemed to live carelessly, but he knew that everything was happening within his calculations.

“Protector Lee, tell one of your subordinates to leak to the Hao Clan that the Demonic Sect has started its activities.”

“What if those guys come to the estate?”

Seo Dae-young asked.

“They won’t come. And the Hao Clan won’t reveal it to the outside. They’ll try to secure their own safety first.”

The two nodded.

“That alone will take several months, so the Demonic Sect won’t even be able to guess that we informed them of this fact. That several months will be enough time for the Hao Clan to detect the Demonic Sect’s movements.”