Chapter – 19
“I… Hwa-ryun and I saved these for you, Big Sister…”
Lyeon’s face softened with emotion. Then she took one piece of dragon beard candy and gently placed it at Danmok Bi’s lips.
“Ah! No, I saved that for you. It wasn’t for me to eat…”
Even while smiling unconsciously at the sweet taste, Danmok Bi desperately tried to look unhappy. The sight made Lyeon chuckle.
She then beckoned to Hwa-ryun.
Hwa-ryun shook his head.
“No, Big Sister. I’m fine.”
“Oh, come on. Get over here.”
Her tone was the same one adults used to coax children.
Hwa-ryun looked as though he wanted to protest in disgust, but eventually shuffled over.
Lyeon fairly placed a piece of dragon beard candy into his mouth as well.
“There. Is it good?”
“…”
Looking like he had plenty to say but had swallowed both his words and the candy together, Hwa-ryun merely nodded.
Meanwhile, Danmok Bi quickly finished his own piece and rubbed a kiss against Lyeon’s cheek.
His breath carried the scent of sugar.
Seeing Hwa-ryun staring at this display with obvious disapproval, Lyeon burst out laughing.
“Do you not like sweets, Hwa-ryun?”
Now she understood why there had been exactly three pieces.
Danmok Hyeon-u had probably given each child two pieces. If Danmok Bi had eaten only one and saved the rest, then Hwa-ryun must have given up both of his.
Danmok Bi looked at Hwa-ryun as if he couldn’t believe it.
After finishing his candy, Hwa-ryun rolled his eyes.
“No… I do like them. But you should eat the last one, Big Sister.”
“That’s right! You eat it!”
The two boys chattered eagerly.
Lyeon quietly observed them.
Compared to children his age, Danmok Bi was already remarkably mature. Yet whenever he was with Hwa-ryun, he somehow seemed like a spoiled youngest sibling.
Not that Hwa-ryun acted particularly grown-up…
“So you didn’t come all the way here just to give me candy, did you?”
“Hehehe…”
Danmok Bi puffed out his cheeks and smiled mischievously.
Lyeon walked over to a small basket near the stove.
“Wooooow…”
Inside the cozy basket, padded with soft blankets, slept a tiny white kitten with a pleasantly rounded belly.
Completely unaware that three children were staring at it with their faces practically pressed against the basket.
Its fluffy fur made it look like a stuffed toy.
“What name did you decide on?”
“I was thinking of calling her Whitey, but Mother suggested White Lotus instead…”
Because she was something white that Lyeon had brought home.
It was such blatant parental affection that it almost felt embarrassing, yet Lyeon couldn’t bring herself to object.
Even Nanny Jang had enthusiastically applauded the name.
And strangely enough, the kitten only perked up its ears when called “White Lotus,” not “Whitey.”
“I like it too!”
Danmok Bi shouted excitedly.
The kitten’s ears twitched.
Seeing that, Danmok Bi immediately covered his mouth with both hands.
“What about you, Hwa-ryun? Do you like the name too?”
Apparently surprised to be asked, Hwa-ryun’s shoulders jerked.
He looked at Lyeon before quickly returning to his usual indifferent expression.
“Well, it’s better than Whitey.”
“You’re exactly the type of person who earns a thousand taels of resentment with a single sentence.”
For a moment Hwa-ryun blinked blankly.
Then he burst into loud laughter.
Before Lyeon could finish being exasperated, the kitten woke up and began mewling pitifully.
Pushing aside the still-laughing Hwa-ryun, Lyeon scooped up the kitten and soothed it.
Danmok Bi also waved his hands around awkwardly, trying to help.
“You come help too.”
“What exactly am I supposed to do?”
Hwa-ryun hesitated and took a step back.
Grinning mischievously, Lyeon grabbed his hand and dragged him over.
“You pet her gently. Understand? Softly. Like you’re touching flower petals.”
Hwa-ryun looked as though he wanted to ask why anyone would touch flower petals.
Still, he couldn’t bring himself to pull away.
He carefully placed a finger atop White Lotus’s head.
His hand trembled slightly.
That made Lyeon smile.
“Why are you so scared?”
“I’m not scared!”
Hwa-ryun protested with an aggrieved look.
His lips jutted out.
“If I touch her and something happens, you’ll…”
“Nothing’s going to happen. And even if you cause a little trouble, it’s not like I’m going to hit you.”
“Who said I was worried about that?”
Looking utterly dumbfounded, Hwa-ryun glanced at her.
Then, with a sigh far too mature for a child, he began gently stroking White Lotus.
A strange expression crossed his face.
It looked unfamiliar.
Or perhaps bitter.
Is this what makes the future leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult different?
He’s having this much trouble simply caring for a kitten…
The kitten chirped softly and relaxed into his touch.
Soon it drifted back to sleep as though it had never fussed at all.
“She’s asleep…”
“Big Sister, when do we feed her?”
“I fed her just before you arrived, so later. Want to feed her together?”
“Yes!”
“But you can’t spend all your time playing with the kitten. I’m starting martial arts training now. You two should hurry and finish memorizing your lessons so you can learn martial arts too.”
“Oh! Then I’m going to go memorize characters right now!”
Danmok Bi immediately started whining about wanting to learn alongside his big sister.
Meanwhile, Hwa-ryun merely savored the lingering sweetness of the dragon beard candy and plucked white fur from his fingertips.
He looked completely uninterested.
Several days after news arrived that the first snow had fallen in the far north—
“Young Miss! Young Miss!”
“Nanny? What’s wrong?”
“The head of the Mansong Merchant Guild has arrived! Well… the Guild Master himself. The Grand Elder requested that we bring you to meet him immediately.”
“The Guild Master of the Mansong Merchant Guild?”
Lyeon’s eyes sparkled.
Just last week, Danmok Hyeon-u had sent Azure Lotus Water to the Mansong Merchant Guild’s master, and Lyeon had personally helped package it.
While Nanny Jang searched for Lyeon’s cloak, Danmok Bi asked the steward what a “head accountant” was.
The steward explained that it referred to the highest-ranking leader of a merchant guild.
While this was happening, Hwa-ryun quietly approached Lyeon and whispered,
“But Young Miss… are you really going to start learning martial arts now?”
Whenever other people were around, Hwa-ryun always addressed her properly as “Young Miss.”
“Yeah. It’s already been over a month since I finished memorizing the Thousand Character Classic. I’ve also been training my stamina. I was actually supposed to start today, but since we have guests, it’ll probably begin tomorrow.”
“Will you really be okay?”
Lyeon’s eyes widened.
“Me?”
Hwa-ryun nodded.
“Even when we climbed the mountain looking for Black Moon recently, you were the only one gasping for breath.”
“I’m better now than I was then! Besides, I’m…”
She hesitated.
Then finally admitted it.
“I’m still young. I’m… still a child.”
“You’re eight.”
“Well… that’s why I need to start learning now. So I can grow up and become stronger…”
“They said even the Mansong Merchant Guild came looking for you, right? Why not learn business from him instead?”
Lyeon narrowed her eyes.
As usual, Hwa-ryun’s words eventually circled back to one thing.
It wasn’t that he had any real interest in business.
He simply disliked martial arts.
So much that he wished she would study something else instead.
“Hwa-ryun, why do you hate martial arts so much?”
“What’s the point? In the end, it’s just people swinging swords at each other.”
“But we’re a martial clan. We can’t just not learn it.”
“A martial clan or a powerful merchant guild—what’s the difference?”
“…”
Honestly, he wasn’t entirely wrong.
Why was a clan called a clan?
Not because it sought enlightenment through martial cultivation.
Most clans pursued private ambition, family honor, wealth, and prosperity.
Still…
“If you say things like that somewhere else, you’ll get into serious trouble.”
Only because it was her did she simply shake her head.
In another clan, such words might earn him a severe beating.
“Where exactly would I go, and who would I even say it to?”
Ignoring her concern, Hwa-ryun answered sulkily.
Then Danmok Bi grabbed his wrist and dragged him away, enthusiastically declaring that he was going to memorize all his characters and learn martial arts.
The Mansong Merchant Guild was the greatest trading organization in Zhejiang Province.
People often said that one could not tour West Lake without stepping beneath the shadow of the Mansong Guild, a saying that reflected its enormous influence.
At the same time, it had once been one of the pillars supporting the Danmok Clan’s dominance over the province.
The relationship had begun years ago.
When the current Guild Master was still a young boy, he had been attacked by bandits while traveling to Hangzhou.
A young Danmok Cheon-gi happened to be nearby and rescued him.
That chance encounter became the foundation of their bond.
Even as the Danmok Clan declined under a series of tragedies, the Mansong Merchant Guild continued to expand its influence.
And this highlighted the limitations of martial clans.
A family built upon martial strength could not maintain its authority through anything else.
If it could no longer prove its power, no amount of wealth or reputation would preserve its prestige.
When the strongest warriors of a clan fell, the clan itself inevitably fell with them.
A martial family and a merchant guild might resemble one another in worldly affairs, but they could never truly be the same.
When Lyeon entered Moon Shadow Pavilion, she found two elderly men sharing tea.
“Pay your respects. This is the head accountant and Guild Master of the Mansong Merchant Guild. He is an old friend of mine.”
Lyeon hurried forward and performed a respectful bow.
“My name is Danmok Lyeon.”
Geon Eon-jo
Falling Star Twelve Swords: ★★★★★
Current Concerns:
- Unable to decide whether his eldest son, Geon Wi-jeong, or second son, Geon Wi-un, should become his successor.
- Heartbroken while watching his lacking eldest son struggle.
- Worried about his third son’s upcoming provincial examination.
- Waiting for an opportunity to repay the kindness he owes the Danmok Clan.
Lyeon secretly examined the Guild Master of the Mansong Merchant Guild.
Then she nearly stumbled backward in shock.
