“......What did you say I am?”

I froze with my spoon lifted mid-meal.

What kind of “-Saint”?

I frowned, thinking I’d misheard.

Hearing that, Cheon Eujin spoke with a laugh.

“Little Sword Saint. People are calling Young Master Bang that.”

“......”

As if to say I hadn’t misheard, Cheon Eujin said it again.

Because of that, I had to quietly set my spoon down.

“......Little Sword Saint.”

“Yes. That’s right.”

“......Ahh....... I see.”

Maybe he couldn’t see how bitter my reaction was; wearing a thrilled face, Cheon Eujin kept talking to me.

“You’re truly incredible. Not anything else, but Little Sword Saint.......”

“......Uh....... Ah, yes.”

I wanted to say something, but the words wouldn’t come easy.

Countless lines rose up to the tip of my throat, but not one felt easy to spit out.

Just—

‘......An epithet, for me?’

I was dumbfounded that I’d gotten an epithet for the first time in my life.

For a martial man, it should’ve been news to be happier about than anyone.

‘......Is this right?’ 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

For me, it was not only unreal—it was absurd.

Of all things, Little Sword Saint.

There was the influence of having killed Pal Duyeok with my own hands.

And in addition—

‘Because it ties me to the Sword Saint.’

Inside the Tang Clan, the fact that I’m the Sword Saint’s successor would have spread long ago.

It sounded like a way of tying those together to call me that, but—

Even so.

‘Can you just slap “Sword Saint” onto someone that easily?’

Even with a “Little” in front, a Sword Saint is a Sword Saint.

Given the influence the Sword Saint has on the current Central Plains, it isn’t something you can just stick on at will.

‘Unbelievable, really.’

At the fact I was suddenly being called Little Sword Saint, I had to suck in a hollow breath.

“Young Master Bang? Are you all right?”

“......Ah, yes. I’m fine.”

At Cheon Eujin’s words, I forced myself to lift the spoon again.

Meanwhile my stomach was starving, so I had to shovel the rice down anyway.

About the time I was half-forcing myself to eat, Cheon Eujin spoke to me again.

“As for the situation, Senior Do wrote it up and sent a courier letter to the main body.”

“I see.”

About that place called Heaven-Breaking Palace and the raid on the Tang Clan—

It meant Do Hyeong organized it and filed a report to the main body.

‘Right. Not filing a report would’ve been stranger.’

With something this big having gone off, it was the natural next step.

“So—after that, was there anything else in the Tang Clan?”

“They say, including the Clan Head, a number of people are tracking down moles, but......”

Hesitating for a moment, Cheon Eujin told me:

“Whenever a trace is about to be found, they’re either killing themselves, or even if they’re caught, they’re not saying anything.”

“......Mm.”

So they were catching them. From the sound of it, there were quite a lot.

‘Is this all right?’

If the number of moles passes a certain threshold—

‘It might mean a deeper infiltration than expected.’

The Tang Clan is, among the Five Great Clans, a house with its own reach.

Not only did moles surface in such a house, from Cheon Eujin’s words there seemed to be quite a lot of them.

‘If it’s like this—’

Our side’s situation won’t be that good, either.

“Young Master Cheon.”

“Ah, yes.”

“By any chance, has something come up that would make it a problem for us to return to the Blue Moon Sect?”

“......!”

At my words, Cheon Eujin’s eyes went wide. Looked like I’d hit the mark.

‘Great.’

Not only had a mess broken out inside, they were in the middle of hunting and resolving moles.

With that, even if we’d come as guests—

‘Of course we’d be grounded.’

From the Tang Clan’s point of view, we’d be risk factors too.

It was obvious they wouldn’t let us out easily until things were roughly resolved.

‘Given that meals are coming out, it seems we’re still being treated as guests.......’

The neatly laid dishes on the table.

Judging by that, it did seem we were still being treated well by the Tang Clan.

Only—

‘They’ve stationed many martial men around us.’

I already knew there were far more Tang martial men around our lodgings than before.

The pretext was protection.

They’d say they’d stationed many martial men in case there was another raid.

‘That’s just the pretext; the real reason is surveillance.’

A guard against anything unforeseen.

We were risk factors too, so this was what the Tang Clan had done.

‘Pretend to treat benefactors while hiding the essence inside.’

If we said we were returning to the Blue Moon Sect, they’d obviously block us, citing the situation.

“Tsk.”

It had gotten a bit bothersome—so I was thinking, when—

“For now, we’re to speak with the Clan Head as soon as he returns, but......”

At Cheon Eujin’s awkwardly spoken words, I frowned and said:

“So he hasn’t come yet. That it?”

“......That’s right.”

The one expected to be busiest in the Tang Clan right now was the Poison King.

For the moment, it meant we had to wait until he came.

‘Given my body as it is, should I just enjoy the downtime?’

From my position, it didn’t feel all bad.

It was a point where I shouldn’t overdo it anyway until my body recovered.

Honestly, even lifting a spoon was a strain right now.

‘For now, rest and watch the situation?’

If there’s no method, the best is to watch at ease.

Thinking that, I scooped up a mouthful of rice and put it in my mouth.

‘As for the epithet...... well.’

They might be calling me Little Sword Saint in the Tang Clan—

But it was, as the words said, something you’d only hear inside the Tang Clan.

‘Maybe it won’t last long?’

It might die down before long.

Thinking that, I tried to ease my mind a little.

At the time, I didn’t know.

A rumor born inside, of all places, one of the Five Great Clans—

Had far more influence than I thought.

****

“He’s the Little Sword Saint.”

“......That youth is the Little Sword Saint?”

“The one who killed the Demonic Leather Spear and saved the Tang Clan?”

“From the rumor I thought he’d be a hulking brute...... but not so. He looks much younger than expected.”

“And he’s handsome, too.”

“......”

With voices coming from all around, it was hard to lift my head.

I walked, trying my best to ignore them, but it wasn’t easy.

‘......Damn it.’

I pinched the bridge of my nose.

After the incident, a few more days passed in the Tang Clan.

My body still hadn’t healed, but I could manage to move.

So now, I was out in the county seat in Sichuan.

Our business was nothing but this: to find the Martial Alliance branch in the county seat.

“Are you really all right?”

Ignoring the stares as I walked, the woman beside me spoke.

It was Tang Yeran.

She’d come as my guide to the county seat—and in truth, as my watcher.

For the record, of course it wasn’t just her; the Tang Clan’s martial men came along as well.

A glance back showed a little less than a dozen Tang martial men.

‘Quite the splashy escort.’

When else would I receive protection from martial men this strong?

They called it protection, and I knew it was surveillance, but still—it was the same.

“I’m fine.”

When Tang Yeran tried to support me again, I raised a hand and roughly held her off.

Even so, the voices kept coming.

“They said the Little Sword Saint isn’t yet of age...... indeed......”

“With that slender body he beat an absolute-tier?”

“I heard he used sword force.”

“What...... sword force?”

I heard it from all directions as they looked at me.

There were a lot of people, and apparently every last one of them knew who I was.

‘How did it come to this?’

How had the rumor spread this far?

Only a few days ago it had seemed a little noisy only inside the Tang Clan; I’d even hoped it might die down quickly.

The moment I came down into the county seat, I realized that hope had been in vain.

—The Little Sword Saint.......

—Truly the Sword Saint’s......

—That youth......

—His uniform is the Small Moon Unit’s......

Most of the county seat recognized me.

There was also the fact I was accompanied by Tang martial men.

And the clothes I was wearing now represented the Blue Moon Sect’s elite corps—

The Small Moon Unit uniform, which was its own problem, I suppose.

‘Tsk.’

The rumor was much bigger and faster than I’d expected.

Ah—don’t tell me—

‘Is the Beggar Sect going to move?’

They’re one of the Ten Great Sects, the group that handles information in the Central Plains.

In that field, they’re renowned enough that people say if they move, the flow of the Central Plains shifts.

‘No way.’

Would the Beggar Sect really move......?

I wanted to believe not.

Thinking that, I started walking again.

Then—

[Why the long face. If you’ve got an epithet, just be glad. Tsk tsk.]

Floating in the sky, Yoo Cheongil spoke to me.

And—

[This brat....... You could’ve come out alone.......]

Right beside him, the Poison Sovereign was glaring at me with the face of a fiend.

“......”

It was bothersome enough just to come out; now I had to “walk with ghosts.”

Truly not easy.

I swallowed a sigh, forcing myself to ignore them.

‘Ugh.’

Like I came out because I wanted to.

If it were up to me, I would have just stayed in the Tang Clan.

But—

‘What can you do. When they say jump, you jump.’

Something had come up. The Blue Moon Sect had sent a courier letter—that was why.

And they hadn’t even sent it to the Tang Clan directly; they’d sent it to the Martial Alliance branch.

And the notice said I had to come receive it in person, which is part of why the Tang Clan allowed me to go out.

So I was a bit puzzled.

‘Why me, and not Do Hyeong or Cheon Eujin?’

Those two are Blue Moon people, too.

It bothered me that they specifically singled me out.

‘Did something happen?’

It wasn’t anything else; since it concerned me, that’s why they were doing this.

‘......Mm.’

I hoped to heaven it wasn’t anything serious.

As I was walking, wishing that fervently—

“Um, Young Master Bang.”

Tang Yeran, at my side, spoke.

“Yes.”

“Ah....... It’s just, by any chance.”

“Yes.”

“That.......”

“......?”

Tang Yeran couldn’t string her words together and hesitated. Wondering why, I looked over and noticed her face had gone slightly red.

“Later...... for dinner......”

“Dinner?”

“Yes. If you have time......”

Just as Tang Yeran was about to say something—

HIIIIIING-!

A horse’s cry. I saw a carriage barreling up ahead. It was close.

I grabbed Tang Yeran’s shoulder and pulled her in for the moment.

“Uh!?”

I felt Tang Yeran flinch at the sudden contact.

The carriage was veering toward her side, so I pulled her just in case.

“Ah, sorry.”

I let go immediately after.

“......N-no......”

Tang Yeran’s voice came out blank with a startled face, but I was staring not at her—at the carriage that had passed.

“What the hell......?”

Who drives that rough? And in a county seat?

Thinking they were out of their minds, I glared at the carriage.

“......Huh?”

Checking the carriage, my body stopped moving on its own.

It was a large, luxurious carriage.

A blue carriage that looked even finer than the one the Blue Moon Sect had provided.

That it was high-end—sure, that could be. There are plenty of rich people in the world.

The problem was—

“......That...... that’s—”

The flag on the carriage.

And the emblem drawn on that flag.

“Why is that here......?”

That’s what shocked me.

I knew that distinctive emblem far too well.

Of course I did.

It symbolized the most famous house, you could say, in Liaoning, where I grew up.

“......Ah, no way.”

My heart pounded on its own.

For some reason, the carriage stopped.

As if mocking the fact it had been moving just a moment ago, it suddenly halted.

Seeing that and the emblem, a chilling feeling brushed past me.

“No...... no way, right?”

Absolutely not.

There was no way “she” would be here.

I stared, hoping that—

CREEEAK—

The door of the stopped carriage began to open slowly.

TAP.

From within, a snow-white foot stepped out and the person inside revealed herself.

“......!”

Seeing who it was, my body turned to stone.

A woman with white skin and black hair.

The moment she showed herself, she drew everyone’s eyes around her.

A peerless beauty.

Just looking at her made you gasp; her allure was that intense.

Then, lightly stepping down from the carriage—

“Hm.”

She let out a soft nasal sound and looked my way as she said:

“Found you?”

The instant I heard that—

“Dammit—!”

“Young Master Bang......!?”

I spun around and bolted like mad.

Who cares if my legs hurt.

I—

‘Why is that lunatic here......!’

I had to run away from that deranged woman right now.