Chapter 21
Golden Spider
“Mother, will you please stop already?”
The leader had no desire to invite a troublesome matter.
Judging by her attire and appearance alone, she was clearly a young lady from a noble family, yet she showed no intention of listening to them at all.
“Damn it.”
At last, his patience ran out.
“You’ve had your warning, girl.”
When he gestured, one of his subordinates shot forward.
With his low stance and low center of gravity, his already fast speed seemed even faster.
He might take one blow from a fire poker, but he intended to rush in and subdue her at once.
‘Got her…!’
Jeong-ah’s body moved exactly one step to the side, avoiding the man.
Had she been even a little faster, the man would have corrected his course. Had she been even a little slower, she would have been caught on the spot.
“Urgh…!”
By then, the tip of the fire poker in her hand had already struck him squarely in the solar plexus and withdrawn.
Jeong-ah then brought the fire poker she had raised high down on the man’s nape, knocking him unconscious.
If that had been a sword, it would have pierced his heart and severed his neck.
Her posture was terrifyingly precise.
Only then did the look in the men’s eyes change.
“She’s no ordinary girl! Don’t hold back!”
Men lunged at Jeong-ah from both sides.
She naturally retreated, reducing the angle from which two people could attack her at once.
“Hup!”
The fist of the man who reached her first brushed past her face.
His next swing also grazed right past her nose.
In that instant, the handle of the fire poker shot up from below and smashed the man’s jaw.
A man who had been rushing in recklessly failed to notice his unconscious comrade and tripped over him.
The second man charged in during that gap, but Jeong-ah had already stepped back and widened the distance.
“Damn it!”
When she kept denying him the distance, he changed tactics.
He began swinging his hands wildly, trying to grab the fluttering hem of her clothes.
If he could seize any part of her, he could stop her movement.
But no matter how hard he tried, the hem of her clothes fluttered and slipped narrowly out of his grasp.
‘This is impossible…!’
Just as every strike from the man before him had missed, this man’s hands, too, only cut through empty air as he aimed for her clothes.
The woman before him certainly was not moving at an unimaginable speed like a martial artist.
So why did every attack miss?
‘What…!’
‘How…?’
There was no mistake. This woman had him in front of her and was stepping backward.
Her gaze was fixed on him, so how had she avoided the unconscious man behind her while retreating?
While the man’s mind was thrown into complete confusion, the fire poker flew into the back of his head.
“…Amazing.”
Se-a, who had been watching the scene blankly, let out an involuntary murmur of admiration.
Even if their opponents were barehanded while she held a fire poker, they were not a mere rabble.
They had not learned “martial arts” that required internal energy, but they were elites of the Skull Gang, trained in combat techniques.
As the dozens of skull tattoos showed, they were men who had harmed dozens of lives, accumulated experience, and proven their ability.
“…Crazy.”
Now there was no helping it.
The lone remaining leader drew a sharp, blue-gleaming dagger from his robe.
“Girl, you brought this on yourself.”
If an ordinary person had seen it, they would have seen only a flash of steel.
But Jeong-ah’s “eyes” saw the blade with precision.
Not only the blade, but also the grain of the metal, the stains of use on the leather wrapped around the handle, the black grime packed beneath his untrimmed fingernails, and even the dirty pores of his poorly washed skin.
She saw it all.
When she lightly raised the fire poker and inserted it into the dagger’s trajectory, sparks flew as the blade was knocked aside.
The second strike followed immediately.
Even if she could see it all, there was no way a body without even a handful of internal energy could avoid every blow of a combination attack.
But she was listening to her opponent’s breathing, and she could feel the movement of his muscles.
The senses amplified by her “eyes” were turning the impossible into the possible.
It was fun.
At some point, Jeong-ah realized she was smiling.
When the leader saw her smile, his eyes rolled back in fury.
“You bitch…!”
Thwack!
It was a blow that completely stole his breath.
Jeong-ah, who had remained defensive until now, had instantly slipped through the gap while her opponent was speaking.
The man, struck hard on the philtrum by the fire poker, rolled his eyes back and toppled over.
Psychologically and physically, it had been a perfect single-point thrust.
“Haa, haa.”
Jeong-ah panted roughly, propping herself up with the fire poker planted against the ground.
Sweat streamed down her face and pattered onto the floor.
There was nothing even she could do about her physical limits.
“Jeong-ah!”
Se-ah hurried over and supported her.
In her sister’s arms, Jeong-ah steadied her rough breathing and shook her head.
“Sister, this is hard.”
Se-ah gave a hollow laugh.
“No, did you learn swordsmanship at a swordsman’s house or something?”
Jeong-ah shook her head.
“No.”
“Then?”
Jeong-ah smiled faintly.
“I just watched it over people’s shoulders while passing by.”
Se-ah could not understand what that meant.
“Jeong-ah, what do you mean by—”
Just then, Jeong-ah pulled away from her support and straightened her posture.
“Is it still far from one gak?”
“It is.”
Jeong-ah looked toward the entrance and frowned.
“This time, even I can’t handle it.”
Just then, the door flew open, and the subordinate of Se-ah who had reported earlier rolled inside, covered in blood.
“P-Pavilion Master, r-run…!”
From the corridor came the clear, ringing sound of a woman’s laughter.
The ear-piercing volume clearly meant she was a martial artist possessing internal energy, and a woman at that.
“How utterly boring. Where did everyone go for there to be nothing but pathetic little bugs like this?”
Se-ah knew that voice.
“…Golden Spider.”
The one who strode in through the open door was a beauty dressed in gaudy clothes and heavy makeup.
The woman’s clothes were entirely bright red, and even the makeup coloring her face was all in shades of red, making her impression extraordinarily intense.
Behind her, three people of all different appearances revealed themselves, each armed with weapons.
With even their faces practically covered in black skull tattoos, all three were undoubtedly martial artists.
And the corridor was packed with ordinary members of the Skull Gang.
“What? What is this?”
Golden Spider, who had appeared in high spirits, looked down at her subordinates sprawled unconscious on the floor.
Then, grasping the situation from Jeong-ah and the fire poker in her hand, she raised a hand and pressed it to her forehead.
“To think I fed and raised things like this as elites…”
Among the three standing behind her, the sleeve of the one wearing monk’s robes fluttered.
“…!”
Jeong-ah hurriedly stepped in front of Se-ah , but by then, the monk-robed man’s posture had already returned to its original position.
Fortunately, the attack had not been aimed at them.
The needles that shot out from his sleeve were embedded in the vital points of the unconscious men.
‘As expected, I couldn’t respond…!’
Jeong-ah bit her lip.
Her “eyes” had sensed the signs, and she had even been able to see that what was flying toward them were needles, but the difference in speed was far too great. It was meaningless.
That was the limit of an ordinary person with no internal energy.
If those needles had been aimed at them…
“Golden Spider, what in the world is this?”
Se-ah stepped in front of Jeong-ah, swept her hair back, and asked in a low voice.
“You should at least know that there will be consequences if you do something like this.”
Golden Spider shrugged.
“The hospitality here is truly terrible. You don’t even serve a common cup of tea.”
At that, one of Golden Spider’s subordinates standing in the corridor rushed inside.
Then he searched for tea leaves at the spot where Se-ah and Jeong-ah had been sitting.
They were the tea leaves Se-ah had specially prepared for Jeong-ah.
“…A guest? That’s a joke, right?”
At Se-ah ’s words, Golden Spider let out a snort.
“You usually act so clever, but has your head suddenly gone stiff?”
She crossed her arms and continued.
“If I had come as an enemy instead of a guest, do you think you would still be standing there unharmed?”
Se-ah shook her pipe.
“Seeing as you’re spouting such useless nonsense, it seems you really didn’t come as an enemy.”
She took the teacup from Golden Spider’s subordinate, who had been brewing the tea.
Her attitude was so brazen that even the subordinate could only stare at her blankly.
“Then tell me.”
Se-ah crossed her legs as she sat in the chair and enjoyed the fragrance of the tea.
“Ha, honestly.”
Golden Spider let out a hollow laugh.
“I really wish my brats would learn some of that nerve from you.”
When Golden Spider flicked her hand, the monk robe fluttered once more.
A few needles brushed past, and several severed strands of Se-ah ’s hair fluttered through the air.
But Se-ah did not even blink. She merely glared at Golden Spider with her one remaining eye.
“Tch.”
Golden Spider clicked her tongue as if bored and got to the point.
“Lately, the ones among my brats who are still somewhat useful have been getting attacked an awful lot.”
“Isn’t that the price of aggressive expansion?”
“But for some reason, I have a strong feeling that you’re behind those attacks.”
Se-ah looked at Golden Spider with an expression of disbelief.
“…You caused this whole mess just because of that feeling?”
Golden Spider waved a hand.
“No. I heard something from somewhere, you see.”
Se-ah took a sip of tea and replied.
“Stories are stories. As long as people have mouths, they can be born anywhere.”
At Se-ah ’s calm attitude, Golden Spider bared her teeth.
“Don’t you wonder how I managed to come here at exactly this moment? The moment the defenses around you were empty?”
Se-ah set down her teacup and lit her pipe again.
The smoke she exhaled at length drifted up toward the ceiling.
“A spy, I suppose.”
Golden Spider wagged a finger.
“No, no, don’t change the subject.”
Her voice sank low.
“What I’m saying is, I, Golden Spider, have gained a place where I can obtain proper information.”
At the voice imbued with her internal energy, the tea in the cup trembled faintly.
“It means I no longer have to be swayed by half-baked, childish little organizations like yours.”
The pressure flowing from her weighed heavily over the entire space.
“So?”
Se-ah let out a calm sigh.
“Did that ‘real’ information organization say I was behind it?”
“It’s still a little lacking. But there was something I picked up from what you said…”
Golden Spider rummaged through her wide sleeve and took out a round plaque.
“This place isn’t merely the real thing. It’s the most powerful force in Luoyang, in Henan, and in all the Central Plains.”
On the round plaque, made of metal and gleaming with a polished shine, four characters were embossed.
Luoyang Sword House.
“Sword House Steel Plaque…?!”
The one who shouted the name of the object was Jeong-ah.
Golden Spider looked at Jeong-ah in puzzlement.
“You recognize this? Who are you?”
“Now, do you understand? Why I would cause this much trouble even with only suspicion? Why I’m not worried about consequences even after causing this mess?”
Golden Spider smiled broadly, revealing her white teeth.
“Could I take a look at that?”
A voice suddenly rang out.
At that familiar voice, Jeong-ah’s face brightened.