Book 9 Chapter 7

The Pinnacle of Scaffolding! The Secret of 1 Serving and 4 Servings

- Oh, Woman!

"This time, our Ae So-jeo Hoe (Love Young Sister Association) has agreed to expand our search scope for young ladies beyond just Cheonmu Academy to the entirety of Namchang. However, there are currently many problems on the front lines of securing young ladies in the Namchang community that our Ae So-jeo Hoe holds. Firstly, shamefully, the information we have on young ladies across the entire Namchang Province is disgracefully insufficient for our association's name. It is undeniable that supplementing this deficiency in the near future is the direction our Ae So-jeo Hoe must take in the second half of this year. Therefore, we ask for your active cooperation. Please strive to achieve a quota of at least five young ladies per person. We wish you all your best efforts."

This was the long speech by Bi Yeon-tae, vice-director of the Ae So-jeo Hoe, at the regular Ae So-jeo Hoe convention held at the threshold of the season, as the sweltering summer ended and autumn began to set in. It seemed like the operating policy of the Ae So-jeo Hoe was going to change.

"Please do your best."

Bi Yeon-tae said, patting Bi Ryu-yeon's shoulder with a hand as big as a pot lid.

'Why should I do that?'

As always, the Ae So-jeo Hoe was filled with an inexplicable, peculiar warmth and passion, but Bi Ryu-yeon's reaction was as lukewarm as ever compared to the dark passion of the other male guild members. Bi Ryu-yeon's nature was to extremely dislike actively participating in such unproductive matters. This time too, he intended to just sit back and do nothing.

Originally, the Ae So-jeo Hoe never forced members to participate. The club had been operating thanks to the voluntary and active participation of its members. Coercion had never been involved in this matter.

Autonomy! Independence! Self-love!

That was the sole pride of the Ae So-jeo Hoe. Using these good rules, Bi Ryu-yeon had been happily slacking off. Then, an event occurred that changed his peaceful life. It was Bi Yeon-tae's subsequent words that were effective.

Murmur! Murmur!

Chatter! Chatter!

Murmurs could be heard from everywhere, tickling his ears.

Of course, it was natural for the inside of the tavern to be noisy at all times. He had no intention of raising an objection to that. It was an everyday occurrence, so it wasn't particularly surprising! However, if the subject of that murmur and commotion was only one thing, it could be considered very rare and surprising. Therefore, that subject caught Bi Ryu-yeon's attention.

The topic of keen interest that these drinkers were discussing was about a woman. Most of them firmly believed that beautiful women and alcohol were an inseparable pair.

Their speech had become extremely enthusiastic with the help of alcohol.

"Hey! Did you see her? Did you?"

"Of course I did! How could I not see something so precious! Wooooooo!"

One of the burly men let out a roar, drawing out his next words. He probably wanted to express the emotion he felt through his actions.

"She was a truly, truly amazing beauty!!"

The man with the goatee nodded in agreement.

"I almost lost my mind. She was incredible!"

The burly man's words were full of excitement, as if he had gone back in time. He seemed to consider it a crime not to share that emotion with someone.

"Ah… If only I could date such a beauty…"

The goatee man's eyes became hazy, clouded with delusion.

"Hey! Hey! Cool down with some cold water. The world clearly distinguishes between what is possible and what is impossible. Don't you know the saying not to look at a tree you can't climb?"

"Can't you even dream? Don't you know that delusions and fantasies are free?"

"There's a limit to delusions! Maybe not if it were me! Hahahaha!"

The burly man said, laughing heartily. His face was flushed, indicating he had drunk more than a bottle or two.

The man he was conversing with scoffed at his words. It was the same man who had just been lost in delusion.

"You're the one who needs to get a grip! Stop boasting and let's drink!"

"Good! Good! Why is the world so unfair? Ah, damn it… Hey! How about tonight?"

The burly man said, winking one eye furiously. What his strange and lewd gaze was pointing to was clear. It meant trying to resolve this unresolvable desire more economically. Fortunately, they seemed to have some sense, or perhaps they understood the situation, because they didn't actually say 'Let's pounce on her?'

"Good! Let's go! Ang-ang-ah! Wait! Oppa is coming!"

The two were perfectly in sync. It seemed the saying that birds of a feather flock together was true.

Even though everyone was watching, they spoke so loudly that everyone in the tavern could hear, so it was natural to hear it whether they wanted to or not. What caught Bi Ryu-yeon's attention was only one thing! The two words 'beautiful woman'. He wasn't thinking of seducing her because he wasn't a romantic.

What piqued his interest was that he smelled money.

'Indeed, Nalae of Ssangsang was right. Didn't she say information directly leads to money?'

When money was waving its hand in front of him, it was not the way of a true man to refuse that tempting gesture.

"Members who bring information about a top-tier young lady will receive a special prize of five taels of silver. Everyone, please strive hard, not for your beliefs(?) but for money."

Bi Yeon-tae said with a sly smile.

"A peerless beauty? Five taels of silver?"

Money! Especially in silver, Bi Ryu-yeon's ears perked up. Bi Ryu-yeon's eyes, which had been closed throughout the meeting, suddenly opened as if nothing had happened.

'Then that's a different story!'

An unproductive task had become a productive one. It was akin to heaven and earth being turned upside down.

Bi Ryu-yeon had kept this story buried in a corner of his heart and remained silent until that information was unearthed and converted into money. He didn't know if now was the right time. That's why the story might have emerged from his memory bank now. His instincts never missed an opportunity that would bring profit.

Because of such an event, Bi Ryu-yeon couldn't just brush off the murmuring in the tavern about a beauty so stunning she made your eyes pop out. Profitable matters had never succeeded in escaping his ears. Normally, he would have ignored it and focused on eating, but he couldn't do that now.

"Hmm… She's a beauty that makes your eyes pop out."

Rumors that made the entire tavern buzz were likely reliable information. Furthermore, stirring up so many people at once like this was something that ordinary beauty could never achieve.

"If things go well, I might even get an additional prize…"

That would be the icing on the cake.

It wasn't difficult to confirm the source of the rumor.

Following the trail of rumors and commotion, he easily confirmed the source of the disturbance. Seeing her wearing a colorful sash around her waist, the rumored peerless beauty seemed to be a martial artist.

"Is it really that young lady?"

She was indeed a beauty that would make your eyes bulge. It seemed understandable that more than half of the patrons in the inn were drooling and dazed. However, although she was clearly a beauty, Bi Ryu-yeon felt no particular emotion about it.

To him now, five taels of silver were more important than the beauty of the woman, who could outshine even a seven-colored jewel. Bi Ryu-yeon was living in an era of lost romance. For a beauty who could be called a city-toppling beauty, or a country-toppling beauty with a more generous score, it was a very humbling matter for her.

To claim the reward, simply saying "I saw a beautiful woman" wouldn't be enough. More detailed and accurate information was needed. However, the aura emanating from her entire face was clear.

'You riff-raff! Touch me and you'll die!'

She was a woman whose arrogance and pride overflowed from her entire being. Therefore, not being discovered was the top priority.

Information always becomes money and power, but sometimes overly important secrets demand a person's life as payment.

- Nalae of Sungpung Sanbu-i

White mist emanated from her entire body's pores, enveloping her. The woman was currently meditating in a cross-legged position, presumably to soothe her tired body and mind after a long journey. In that case, failing to survey her surroundings before meditating was an extremely careless act. What would she do if someone was secretly peeping like him? Bi Ryu-yeon blamed the woman's carelessness. It could have led to a major incident if it weren't for his kind heart. Most martial artists became completely defenseless while meditating.

Bi Ryu-yeon decided to just watch quietly.

The white mist emanating from her pores began to thicken. However, it was too early to be surprised by just that. The real surprise was yet to come.

'Huh? What is that?'

Bi Ryu-yeon had to maximize his inner sight for a moment. An unbelievable sight was unfolding right before his eyes.

Crack! Splash!

The sound of bone joints moving roughly and forcibly, the sound of flesh moving regularly in a specific direction, a clear indication that the body's flesh, muscles, and skin were moving according to the person's will.

A dance of flesh, flesh shimmering under the moonlight danced joyfully. The slender body of the woman, like a silver fish, suddenly began to grow larger, emitting a white mist-like energy. It felt like a giant mountain appearing before him.

"Is she a monster?"

It wouldn't be unreasonable to think so. It was a sight that could easily be believed as a monster appearing to devour a beautiful woman. Bi Ryu-yeon had to doubt his own eyes to see if she was the same person as the slender beauty from a moment ago.

It was a bizarre and mysterious sight that Bi Ryu-yeon had never seen before in his life. The woman was now in a state of trance, at the peak of meditation.

And so, 1 serving became 4 servings.

'Gasp?'

The heavy transformation of the peerless beauty was surprising enough, but that wasn't the end. As the woman's meditation continued, the flesh that had spread out began to change again. The heavy flesh, which looked heavy and hot, began to dance wildly under the moonlight once more.

Creak!

Along with it, the plump flesh began to shrink as if being sucked into her body. Along with it, the white mist surrounding her body was also absorbed back into her body along with the flesh.

As the plump flesh began to fold back into her body, her body shriveled like a deflated balloon, and the plump, abundant, heavy, immense, and gigantic golden Buddha statue was nowhere to be seen, replaced by a slender and smooth, astonishing beauty. The beauty hadn't eaten the plump one. It was a mysterious sight.

Bi Ryu-yeon couldn't help but gape at this unprecedented event.

'Wow!'

He had to suppress a unique exclamation that was about to escape his gaping mouth.

The woman turning into a plump person was surprising, but the plump person magically turning back into a beauty was even more surprising. For four servings to become one serving again, how astonishing!

'To move the flesh, bones, and muscle tissue of her entire body at will and change her body shape? What kind of martial art was that? It definitely wasn't dark magic…'

He clearly remembered hearing it in the famously boring introductory course, 'Essentials of Martial Arts.' He had half-slept through it, but he hadn't missed anything. That's because Bi Ryu-yeon had never opened a book to study for exams. He found it bothersome to reopen books and study for exams, so Bi Ryu-yeon remembered everything he heard in class. He had a brain that could do that much by just listening casually.

'So… it was… definitely…'

When you suddenly try to recall something, there are times when your thoughts get blocked as if the flow of memory is interrupted. There is nothing more frustrating than when you can't recall what you need. The strange thing about this is that the more you try to remember, the less you can. His body, consumed by worry, tilted slightly to the side.

Crack!

The sound of a supporting beam cracking! In his extreme concentration on recalling the memory, he had momentarily forgotten the most important thing: concealment.

'Oops!'

It was a disaster caused by carelessness.

"Who's there!"

Her closed eyes suddenly snapped open. The woman, who had just returned to her original body (though it was doubtful which one was her original body), let out a roar.

'Shoot, I got caught after all?!'

If one couldn't sense such a loud noise, they would have to close down their martial arts career that day. He could no longer hide his body.

This was the first encounter between Bi Ryu-yeon and Ma Ha-ryeong.