Book 26 Chapter 14

The Correlation Between Studying Abroad and a Local Wife

―Jang Hong, Cornered

"Are you sure about this?"

Jang Hong's voice was low, and his usual goofy expression was replaced with a serious one.

"About what?"

Ok Yu-gyeong looked at Jang Hong with a puzzled expression and asked back.

"Betraying Macheongak."

"Hmph, that's an unpleasant thing to hear. Betrayal? I'm not trying to betray Macheongak."

"You're not…?"

What wasn't she doing? If her current actions weren't acts of betrayal, pointing a knife at Macheongak, what would be? But Ok Yu-gyeong didn't seem to think so.

"As one of the captains of the Macheong Thirteen, responsible for Macheongak's discipline, all I'm doing is trying to correct what's wrong. Kidnapping women is a cowardly act, and that is a betrayal of Macheongak. Isn't it?"

Jang Hong had no adequate answer to Ok Yu-gyeong's sharp retort.

"Well, you could see it that way…"

But that was just her personal judgment, and it was clear that others wouldn't see it that way at all.

"I don't care what others think. What matters is what I think. I'm just trying to find the traitors of Macheongak. For that, I have no choice but to use somewhat rough methods."

The rough methods here meant taking down the captains and other members of the Macheong Thirteen one by one.

"Thank you, Yu-gyeong."

Jang Hong was so grateful for Ok Yu-gyeong's help that he could hardly lift his head.

"No, you don't need to thank me. Just answer my question. I have something I'm curious about."

Whether it was his imagination or not, her voice was a little sharp.

"Ask me anything. I'll answer anything I can."

"Then I won't refuse."

And then, as if she had been waiting, she began to bombard him with questions.

"You said you went to Fusang Country for a while to gain knowledge?"

"Yes. It can be called studying abroad. Especially there, a unique stealth and infiltration technique called ninjutsu has developed due to long wars. Nowadays, people in the Central Plains sometimes use ninjas from Fusang Country, so I needed to acquire their skills."

"I've heard stories about those ninjas. Especially the female ninjas there, they say they cultivate special secret arts to lure men using their bodies."

"Yes. They are truly amazing."

Jang Hong was just giving his honest impression. But at that moment, Ok Yu-gyeong's eyes shone like sharp daggers.

"How about you?"

"Wh-what do you mean? What are you talking about?"

Jang Hong was flustered by the sudden, dagger-like question.

"Were you tempted by a young female ninja?"

Ok Yu-gyeong took a step forward, pressing him.

"Wh-what are you talking about…"

Yet, Jang Hong found himself unconsciously taking a step back.

"They say men, even when they go to another province for work, create a 'local wife' there. And it's even more so overseas, across the sea, isn't it? Especially since you were there for years?"

At the mention of a local wife, Jang Hong retreated three more steps. The atmosphere was quite threatening.

"Well… I don't know about that. It's a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding. Nothing like that ever happened."

Jang Hong vehemently denied it, waving his hands.

"I was just talking about other men, why are you reacting so sensitively?"

"No, who said I was reacting sensitively? It n-never happened."

His attitude wasn't very convincing.

"So, you're saying you never met female ninjas?"

Jang Hong nodded his head so hard his neck bones might have broken.

"No, it was a study abroad trip to learn ninjutsu, so of course I met female ninjas…"

Ninja or female ninja, a ninja was a ninja. It would have been more unnatural not to meet them when going to learn ninjutsu. But Ok Yu-gyeong didn't care whether it was natural or unnatural.

"Then you must have trained with those women, right?"

"Well, yes, but…"

"Then you must have also served as a training partner for the female ninjas."

"Well… yes. But the training systems were different, so not that many…"

"See? It's just as I thought. Especially for the seductive arts, you need a partner to practice, don't you? It's similar to some techniques in the Black Path, so I know well how those methods are practiced."

Her eyes were already as cold as a seasoned detective interrogating a criminal.

Cold sweat poured down Jang Hong's back.

"Th-that… that… it's a misunderstanding. Nothing like that truly…"

"Was there really, really, really nothing that happened?"

"No, that incident was not like that…"

Jang Hong’s mouth snapped shut.

"Oh, you say 'that incident'? I'd really like to hear about it. Come on, tell me. You just said a moment ago that you would answer anything you could."

Jang Hong was pushed to the brink. Ok Yu-gyeong was pressing him from all sides, demanding he confess the truth.

Jang Hong wanted to cry but could only hold back. And then he started walking faster towards the gate to the Northern Sea. It was as if he was shouting to be discovered. And as he wished, two Macheong members guarding the gate to the Northern Sea, who saw Jang Hong rushing towards the gate, raised their weapons to stop him. For Jang Hong, it was an answered prayer.

"Cough…"

However, the two members of the Eighth Dormitory, who were guarding the entrance to the Northern Sea, collapsed to the ground in a single second, unconscious, without knowing what happened. Indeed, as a captain of the Macheong Thirteen, their skill was flawless.

The two who had been tense and bowed in respect upon seeing the Captain of the Seventh Unit, Ok Yu-gyeong, pursuing the suspicious person with terrifying ferocity, fell in the blink of an eye.

"Now that the obstacles are gone, shall we continue our conversation?"

"Ah, no, shouldn't we deal with these people first? Let's talk about that later, later."

In fact, Jang Hong wouldn't have minded if that "later" was his entire life. And before he could get an answer, he quickly moved.

Drag, drag.

Jang Hong's actions of dragging the two fallen sentries aside to hide them clearly indicated his refusal to converse.

"Are you refusing to talk to me now?"

"There are things that must be done first. This is not the appropriate time to bring up this kind of topic."

Jang Hong chose a direct attack using justification. Ok Yu-gyeong paused for a moment at his words.

"All right. Once this kidnapping incident is resolved, then I will bravely defeat the Cheonmu Academy fair and square. I'll show you how strong the children I've carefully nurtured are."

"Oh, I would really like to decline that."

He felt that if he were to experience such a thing, he wouldn't come out unscathed.

"Oh, no need to decline. The opponents are young, attractive women, just as you like. They are also beautiful. So you will definitely like them. Yes, of course."

Sensing the sharp thorns embedded in her words, cold sweat ran down Jang Hong's spine.

"Wh-women? I like mature ladies with large chests rather than unripe girls…"

Jang Hong was so flustered that he didn't even know what he was saying as he rambled. His attempt at an explanation only worsened the situation.

"Do men think women only have breasts and hips?"

"No. Instinctively, my eyes are drawn to those first, but I also look at their faces properly, the curve of their waists, and the lines of their legs…"

"Be quiet! Even beasts can live by their instincts. It is only because we can control our instincts with our minds that we are human. That is why men are called beasts. It's not out of malice that I teach our children that men are beasts; it's because it's a clear fact."

Jang Hong, realizing that trying to argue against such extreme education would be futile, raised the white flag.

"I have nothing to say. It's all my fault, madam."

Only then did Ok Yu-gyeong's fierce gaze soften.

"Well, fine. But I'll be watching you. Whether you choose the path of a beast or the path of a human. If you stray…"

As she bent her right index and middle fingers into a hook and pointed them at Jang Hong, Jang Hong instinctively flinched and averted his gaze. He felt a fear as if that hook would pierce his eyes. It was a warning not to carelessly look at young women.

Then, Ok Yu-gyeong strode into the gate leading to the Northern Sea. Jang Hong hurriedly followed behind her.