The Divine And Demonic Doctor [EN]: Chapter 14

The Divine Doctor of the Demonic Path (14)

—Why are you here?

“To help you, perhaps?”

—You? Help me?

Her face remained expressionless, but the telepathic message dripped with mockery.

—A wretch who can’t even take care of himself is going to help me? Should I just hand you over to the Murim Alliance [a coalition of martial arts clans]? I heard they’re desperate to catch you.

“Hmph! You think those morons can catch me?”

—Could they be more foolish than you?

“Of course, they’re much more foolish than me! You can tell just by the fact that they didn’t include you in the Ten Great Evils!”

—Because I’m not evil.

Bum Gyeowi snorted.

“What about the corpses under the pond? Did the Dragon King living in the pond do that?”

He hadn’t noticed at first, but the clash between the two had shattered the frozen pond in several places.

Overturned, the frozen pond revealed the bodies of a dozen corpses.

For a fleeting moment, a chilling light flickered across Han Seolhwa’s eyes.

Each and every one of them deserved to die.

They had recklessly trespassed into the forbidden area despite the warnings.

Trash blinded by lust.

She didn’t feel the need to explain the reason, but she was curious why this idiot claimed to be here to help her.

—Tell me your real purpose.

“I told you, I’m here to help you.”

—Nonsense.

Bum Gyeowi continued, looking frustrated.

“There’s someone who can cure your illness!”

Han Seolhwa paused for a moment.

—My illness?

“Yes.”

Bum Gyeowi hastily swallowed the words, ‘You’re still losing your mind.’

—How?

Bum Gyeowi quickly racked his brain.

“I found the successors of the Divine Doctor and the Demonic Doctor.”

To be precise, it was their children who had inherited the two doctors’ skills.

He couldn’t reveal that the physician who would treat her was a child. He wouldn’t have believed it himself until he had directly experienced their medical skills.

‘Six of one, half a dozen of the other, I guess.’

Han Seolhwa, on the other hand, stood blankly for a long time.

How much time had passed?

—The Divine Doctor and the Demonic Doctor?

“Have you been living a lie?”

Seeing that she was hesitant to believe him, Bum Gyeowi quickly continued his explanation.

“Cho-hyeong [term for older brother] and I are also receiving treatment.”

Han Seolhwa’s eyes sparkled with interest.

There was only one person in this world whom Bum Gyeowi would call ‘hyeong’.

—The Blood Demon Lord?

“Yes.”

—Why is Cho-oraboni [term for older brother used by women] getting treatment?

“He was ambushed by the Murim Alliance.”

As he answered, Bum Gyeowi tilted his head, suddenly sensing something was off.

“Huh? Why is Cho-hyeong your oraboni? Witch, aren’t you much older?”

—Shut up. If you’re cool, you’re always oraboni.

“Then what about me?”

—A foolish baldy.

“Hey!”

Han Seolhwa sent a telepathic message to Bum Gyeowi, who was getting worked up.

—Explain properly. From the beginning. What happened?

“Now you want to know?”

—Yes. I’ve become curious.

“Ha! You crazy bitch.”

Han Seolhwa didn’t get angry at Bum Gyeowi’s curse. Instead, she dragged a chair from in front of the hut and sat down calmly.

Seeing this, Bum Gyeowi clicked his tongue.

‘Alright, let’s be patient for Dan’s sake.’

Bum Gyeowi began to explain.

* * *

Two days later.

Two people entered Harbin (哈爾濱), the capital of Heilongjiang Province.

Harbin means ‘a place for drying nets’ in Manchurian. This was because the Heilong River (黑龍江) was located to the north and the Songhua River (松花江) to the south.

Harbin was also called the ‘Pearl on the Swan’s Neck’ because the Heilong River resembled a swan.

Unlike its elegant nickname, Heilongjiang Province was a very barren place, but Harbin, as the capital, had quite bustling streets and shops.

Bum Gyeowi and Han Seolhwa headed straight to the market.

A street lined with merchant guilds.

Han Seolhwa stopped in front of one of them.

“You left the money here? This is a merchant guild?”

Bum Gyeowi checked the sign that read ‘Black Dragon Merchant Guild’ several times.

—Burying money is for amateurs. Money grows on its own through investments.

“Of course, you would know. So, there’s enough for the treatment, right?”

—Three thousand silver taels [currency] a year?

“That’s a special discount because I introduced you. Just by looking at you, it seems like you’ll need treatment for a long time, so you should have at least fifty thousand taels, right?”

—That’s just pocket change.

Bum Gyeowi cheered inwardly.

‘Is this what they call killing two birds with one stone? I get to make her clean and earn money!’

Han Seolhwa, unaware of Bum Gyeowi’s thoughts, entered the merchant guild with an indifferent expression.

Bum Gyeowi, in high spirits, saw her off and waited for Han Seolhwa to come out.

However, a long time passed without any news.

‘Well, the amount is quite large.’

He didn’t think much of it and continued to wait, but then.

“Huh?”

Bum Gyeowi sensed something was wrong.

Crack!

White frost began to settle on the building of the Black Dragon Merchant Guild, and it began to freeze entirely.

“That crazy bitch!”

It seemed she had intended to rob the merchant guild instead of just leaving the money there.

Bum Gyeowi threw open the doors of the merchant guild.

Whoosh!

As soon as he opened the door, a bone-chilling wind poured out from inside the building. A meaningful smile appeared on Bum Gyeowi’s face as he stepped inside, braving the wind.

‘Since it’s already happened, and she’s the culprit anyway, I’ll just quietly take as much as I need….’

However, when he actually entered, he was faced with an unexpected situation.

Han Seolhwa was emitting cold air as if she was extremely angry.

Opposite her, a stern-looking middle-aged man was confronting her without budging an inch.

“I’m sorry, but I cannot acknowledge this certificate.”

Even though his eyebrows and beard were white with frost and icicles were hanging from them, the middle-aged man stood firmly and asserted his claim.

“Please look at this.”

The middle-aged man took out a document.

“This is the transfer agreement we drew up when we took over the merchant guild. At that time, all debt relationships were settled. The payment for the amount you invested was also completed.”

Even in a life-or-death situation, he showed a terrifying obsession with money.

“The money you are demanding is the responsibility of the former guild leader who handed the guild over to us, not us.”

Bum Gyeowi snatched the document that the middle-aged man handed to Han Seolhwa.

“Where is that person?”

At Bum Gyeowi’s question, the middle-aged man sighed.

“I heard he went somewhere far away to the frontier, but I don’t know the details either.”

Bum Gyeowi looked at Han Seolhwa.

In short, she had lost all the money she had entrusted.

“What is it? You said you were going to grow the money? Did it wear away until it disappeared?”

—…….

Then suddenly, Bum Gyeowi noticed something strange.

It was because of the document he was holding. It was not only old and yellowed but also crumbling in places.

“When was this made?”

Bum Gyeowi’s eyes widened as he checked the contents of the document.

“Hongwu (洪武) Year Two?”

The era name written on the document.

It was a document written a full fifty years ago.

“You invested and came to find it after fifty years?”

Bum Gyeowi stared intently at Han Seolhwa.

“Do you even have the right to call me an idiot?”

—Shut up.

Han Seolhwa, her pride hurt, turned around. However, she couldn’t even take a step because of Bum Gyeowi’s words.

It was because of Bum Gyeowi’s question.

“Then what are you going to do about the treatment fee?”

—…….

Han Seolhwa, after pondering for a moment, approached the guild leader and took out her hairpin, handing it to him.

“What are you trying to do?”

The guild leader frowned at her unexpected action. However, he soon had to widen his eyes.

“T, this is!”

He was also someone who led a merchant guild, so he immediately recognized the value of the hairpin.

Green jade (靑玉).

It was Kunlun jade (崑崙玉), which is rarely produced only in Qinghai.

The phoenix carving with wings spread as if it would fly away at any moment was also extraordinary. It was a treasure that was more than enough to be presented to the imperial family.

The guild leader’s hand trembled slightly as he received the phoenix hairpin (鳳簪).

“Are you saying you want to sell this item?”

Nod.

The guild leader examined the phoenix hairpin several times before saying.

“I think ten thousand taels would be appropriate. If you go to the capital, you can easily get twenty thousand taels, but for us, it involves difficulties in profit and transportation.”

Han Seolhwa stared at the guild leader for a moment before nodding.

While the guild leader went to get the voucher, Bum Gyeowi asked.

“What hairpin is worth ten thousand taels?”

—A fool like you wouldn’t know the value of a Creation Key Hairpin (造化鍵簪).

“Key (鍵)? Does that hairpin act like a key or something?”

Han Seolhwa didn’t answer. Her expression clearly showed that she didn’t want to explain.

Bum Gyeowi didn’t care much either.

His only concern right now was one thing.

“What about the rest of the treatment fee?”

—Mind your own business. I’ll take care of it myself.

Han Seolhwa added.

—Shouldn’t we check if what you said is true first?

“Just in case.”

—……?

“Don’t even think about trying to solve it with threats.”

Bum Gyeowi chuckled at Han Seolhwa’s pause. As expected of someone who was called an evil person, their thoughts were all the same.

At that moment, the guild leader returned.

Bum Gyeowi, who was watching him sign the voucher he had brought, suddenly became curious.

“By the way.”

Bum Gyeowi asked Han Seolhwa, who was receiving the voucher.

“If you left the money fifty years ago….”

Bum Gyeowi tilted his head.

“How old are you now?”

—…….

Han Seolhwa didn’t answer.

* * *

“Let me tell you a secret to longevity.”

A middle-aged man wearing black martial attire.

He was wearing a bamboo hat pulled down low, so his eyes were not visible, but the faint smile on his lips was definitely a sneer.

The man in the bamboo hat continued, speaking to Gwakga, who was standing silently.

“It’s about staying within the lines.”

Gwakga’s eyebrows twitched.

Regardless of age, he was far senior to him in terms of the order of joining the Murim Alliance.

Yet, the man in the bamboo hat was speaking to him as if he were advising a junior.

However, he couldn’t even make eye contact with him right now.

It was because of his position.

Unlike himself, who was just a squad leader of the Pasa Unit, he was an inspector dispatched directly from the Alliance. He was a figure with absolute authority within the Murim Alliance, second only to the Alliance Leader and the heads of the families that supported the Alliance.

“I’ve been hearing stories lately that you’re crossing the line.”

“……I will be careful.”

“I hope you will. We didn’t dispatch you to pick fights with doctors. Isn’t that right?”

“…….”

“Let’s just do our best in the tasks we’re given. You and I are all working hard for the Alliance, and I don’t want to meet like this either.”

Clunk.

The man in the bamboo hat put down the teacup he was holding on the table and continued.

“But what can I do? Rumors that a fox is running wild by borrowing the tiger’s power have reached the Gamso Branch.”

Gwakga had to suppress his boiling anger.

Each word was too insulting. The words alone were unpleasant enough, but the truly unpleasant thing was something else.

It was the fact that he was publicly humiliating him in front of his subordinates.

“Originally, I should make an example of you and set the Alliance’s discipline straight, but considering your past efforts, I’ll stop at this.”

“……Thank you.”

“Thank you for what.”

The man in the bamboo hat slightly curled his lips.

“It’s called dispatching, but isn’t it the same as being demoted to this remote backwater? I’m also human, so I have to overlook that much.”

“……!”

“If you get disciplined here, wouldn’t that mean you have to leave the Alliance?”

Gwakga bowed his head and gritted his teeth at the reprimand disguised as encouragement.

His pride was severely hurt, but he couldn’t refute it. It was as he said. If he could, he wanted to leave the Alliance and start a martial arts school, but that was only possible if he had saved up enough money.

If he was kicked out of the Alliance like this, he would only be able to become a bodyguard for a courier company at best.

‘Damn it!’

He was extremely annoyed by the current situation.