Chapter – 12
“Ugh! What are you doing to this Pang No-il? How dare you treat him like this?”
“Pang No-il! Could it really be Pang No-il?!”
“Ha. Yes, I am from the Pang family…”
“I don’t know, man. Who’s that?”
Moyongjin interrupted Pang No-il, even speaking in a casual, almost rude tone.
It was obvious that Pang No-il was much older and a member of the Pang family. Naturally, he was furious.
“You brat! How dare you speak of the Pang family—”
“That Pang family, Pang family… seems like they have nothing else to boast about,” Moyongjin snapped.
Crack!
At that moment, Pang No-il’s anger surged to the top of his head, and his body lunged toward Moyongjin.
“You little runt thinks he wants to die!”
A sword flashed from his waist, drawn in a single swift motion.
But he stopped in his tracks.
It was Pang Yijong, whom Moyongjin had claimed was a top-tier master, standing right in front of him.
Clang!
The clash of sword and saber rang out.
Pang No-il, confident in his physical strength, was stunned to see the man in front of him, called Moyongjong, deflect his strike without even blinking.
‘So this is what a true top-tier master looks like… Moyongjong? So the Moyong family isn’t just about those two guys?’
“If an elder falls for a child’s provocation, that’s foolish. Are you the head of this Hebuk Small Martial Academy?”
“Yes, but… what kind of rudeness is this? You suddenly attacked, and this child mocks an elder! That’s not proper behavior for someone entering another’s property!”
Pang No-il protested, and Pang Yijong bowed in a respectful posture.
“I apologize for that in advance. It was not intentional—just a mistake. I will also apologize for my student’s inappropriate words. He is still too young to understand the world fully.”
“Ahem… Very well. I accept your apology.”
Normally, such a situation could not have been resolved by a single apology, but Pang No-il realized in one move that the person before him was more skilled.
In the martial world, strength is law; he had no choice but to accept it.
“Then, what exactly brings you here? Judging by the child calling you his master, it seems unlikely that you came to join our Hebuk Small Martial Academy…”
Before Pang Yijong could answer, Moyongjin stepped forward, holding out a wooden training sword toward Pang No-il.
“We are from Moyong Academy! We have come to destroy this despicable, filthy, cowardly academy! Master Moyongjong! Let’s destroy it all right now! There is no need for two academies in this tiny Jeongso village!”
[Why are you acting this way?]
“What do you mean?”
[Couldn’t we have resolved this peacefully? We simply came to request a sparring match. If the Pang family hears about this…]
“Don’t worry. That won’t happen. The Hebuk Small Martial Academy, humiliated by an eleven-year-old, with Pang No-il unable to respond while Moyong Academy runs rampant? If that reached the Pang family, it wouldn’t be us they’d punish first—it would be him.”
[That’s… true…]
“Anyway, my actions can be written off as a child’s tantrum. Watch. I have a plan.”
We were now seated in a guest room at the Hebuk Small Martial Academy.
Pang No-il, covered in filth, had been given time to wash up.
Shortly after, Pang No-il entered the room, sighing, and took a seat across from us, glancing between me and Pang Yijong.
“So… you came from Moyong Academy to officially request a sparring match?”
“Yes.”
“And why? If you are martial artists, you should know the unspoken rule: children’s academies are off-limits for dojo challenges.”
Pang No-il was clearly avoiding the match. He had already realized he could not handle Pang Yijong.
“I know, but we cannot back down.”
“Cannot back down?”
“The Hebuk Small Martial Academy has put our Moyong Academy in jeopardy. This is the tyranny of a powerful family, and we have come to oppose it through a sparring match. It is also an opportunity to showcase our academy’s strength through legitimate competition.”
“Ha….”
Pang No-il, finding the claim of “tyranny” absurd, was uninterested, and had no intention of accepting the match.
He was about to leave, clearly seeing the meeting as a waste of time.
But Moyongjin would not let him go.
“Scared, huh?”
“Excuse me?”
Pang No-il froze at the word “scared.”
“Afraid of getting utterly beaten. I thought the Pang family was impressive, but you’re just a bunch of cowards.”
Enraged by Moyongjin’s taunts, Pang No-il turned to glare at him. Pang Yijong was visibly concerned.
If this continued, the Pang family might intervene directly and crush Moyong Academy.
The tension was about to explode.
Moyongjin then tugged on Pang Yijong’s sleeve.
“Master, master.”
“Yes… hm?”
“Why is the Hebuk Small Martial Academy avoiding a match with me? Don’t they have confidence in their teaching? And as for the so-called ‘champions’ of Hebuk… the Pang family isn’t that impressive either.”
Surprisingly, Pang No-il reacted immediately.
“So it’s not you coming to request a match…?”
“Huh? Me? I came to request a sparring match with your students. Surely the Hebuk Pang family knows the unspoken rules of the martial world? My master would never break them, he is a martial man to the bone.”
Pang No-il looked at Pang Yijong, who nodded.
“Correct. The one requesting the match is not me, but my student, Moyongjin. He will challenge your students here.”
At that moment, Pang No-il’s expression changed instantly, and Moyongjin noticed it.
‘Foolish child. He fell right into it.’
Pang No-il stepped out to consider for a moment, then returned with a confident smile.
“Very well. Since it’s a match between children, and sometimes academies hold friendly contests, there is no reason to refuse.”
Seeing that it was only a children’s match, Pang No-il accepted immediately. Though he looked pitiful, the plan was proceeding exactly as Moyongjin intended.
Pang No-il left to prepare, leaving us alone in the guest room.
With the room empty, Pang Yijong exhaled in relief.
“Haah… I really didn’t know what would happen. Grandfather, really…”
“Listen,”
[Grandfather, you could have just said you came to request the match yourself. This act of mentioning the Pang family… it doesn’t seem necessary.]
“Hm? If I can’t say anything about the Pang family, who can? I am Pang Mu-ak.”
[That’s… true, but…]
Pang Yijong could not argue. Moyongjin was Pang Mu-ak, a legend of the family. Even if he insulted the Pang family, no one could stop him.
“Ha… Yijong, the reason I provoked Pang No-il is simple. People should see the forest, not just the tree in front of them. So, just follow your master’s instructions.”
Moyongjin’s authoritative voice made Pang Yijong swallow hard and nod.
In truth, Moyongjin had no grand plan. He had merely insulted the Pang family because he wanted to, and Pang No-il had reacted exactly as expected.
Satisfied with his “forest-and-trees” explanation, Moyongjin left the room when the signal came that preparations were complete.
They led us to the Hebuk Small Martial Academy’s training hall.
The hall, larger and cleaner than Moyong Academy’s, had dozens of children seated inside.
At the far end sat Pang No-il arrogantly.
When Pang Yijong and Moyongjin entered, Pang No-il signaled a child to join him on the hall floor.
“This is Jeon-ak, one of our academy’s top prodigies. Jeon-ak, greet them. These are Master Moyongjong of Moyong Academy and his student, Moyongjin.”
“Hello, I am Jeon-ak,” said the boy, a large sixteen-year-old. He bowed formally.
Age is critical in children’s matches; growth often determines strength.
Moyongjin, though physically trained from climbing cliffs, appeared much younger than his eleven actual years due to his condition.
Clearly, Pang No-il had chosen a child specifically to rough up Moyongjin.
Pang Yijong, slightly embarrassed as a fellow Pang family member, covered his face with his hand. Moyongjin, on the other hand, was thrilled.
‘Even better. This is a big advantage.’
Stepping forward with a bow, Moyongjin addressed only Jeon-ak.
“I am Moyongjin of Moyong Academy. I look forward to this match.”
The strange smile and the word “forward” made Jeon-ak instinctively take a step back, sensing a subtle pressure from Moyongjin.
Moyongjin noticed it immediately.
‘Interesting… a perceptive kid. He’ll be a good first student for Moyong Academy!’
Little did Jeon-ak know, Moyongjin’s face was terrifying as he stood in his fighting stance.
“Is that alright, Master? There is quite a size difference between the kids,” Pang No-il asked, seemingly concerned.
Of course, Pang Yijong wanted to yell that it was shameful for the Pang family, but Moyongjin had already accepted the situation.
For him, the match’s outcome was already certain.
No matter the size or strength of Jeon-ak, Moyongjin, being Pang Mu-ak, could not lose. The probability was effectively zero.
“As this is a children’s match, we will proceed simply. First to gain a point wins. A point is earned if the opponent’s butt touches the floor or if their body goes out of bounds.”
No chance of defeat. Pang Yijong silently prayed for Jeon-ak instead.
[Grandfather, take it easy. Gently! Do not kill him, absolutely not!]
Moyongjin smiled and held his wooden sword. He had no intention of harming Jeon-ak. After all, Jeon-ak would be the first student of Moyong Academy.
“Then, let the friendly sparring match between Hebuk Small Martial Academy and Moyong Academy begin!”
