TWSV 10

(Chapter 10)

Kang Yu looked at Namgung Sahwa with a blank expression.
It wasn’t the face of someone staring down a sharp sword.

This was a situation where begging for one’s life wouldn’t even be enough—yet she looked inexplicably calm.
That odd composure grated on Namgung Sahwa’s nerves.

“Look down.”

“No.”

“I said, look down.”)

“No.”

“I told you to look down.”

“I said no.”

“Look down.”

“No.”

“Look down.”

“I said no.”

“Look. Down.”

“No. Way.”

“Look… down…”

“No… way…”

Namgung Sahwa gripped her sword hilt.

Kang Yu had been waiting for this moment.
As crazy as the woman was, he didn’t want to be the first to hit her.
And, true to form, her sword was disgustingly slow—just like every other weak martial artist.

He thought he’d just dodge it and knock her out when—

“W-wait!”

“Miss, please calm yourself!”

The men who’d been watching from behind jumped in.
They grabbed Namgung Sahwa’s arm before she could swing.

“M-my lady, people are watching! If you must handle this, do it outside—”

Namgung Sahwa shook their hands off.

“So what! Let them watch! Who cares! Do they even know who I am? What family I come from?! Huh?”

While she was ranting, the men sent a sound transmission to Kang Yu.

『Run. We’ll buy you some time—just go and don’t look back! Quickly!』

Unaware of their telepathic plea, Namgung Sahwa continued to rage.

“Let go.”

“Please calm down first—”

“I said I get it! Now let go. Let go, I said! You’re not letting go? Let go! Let go!”

『What are you doing! Go, now!』

A woman flailing a sword and two men trying to restrain her—
It was a farce in broad daylight.

Kang Yu sighed and slung his bundle over his shoulder.

‘What a pain.’

Well, you avoid shit because it’s dirty, not because you’re afraid of it.
He adjusted his pack and started toward the stairs, eager to finish the errand the villagers had given him.

Namgung Sahwa’s eyes went wide with fury when she saw him leaving.

“Hey! You! Don’t you move! Let me go! Let me go, you bastards! I said let go!”

Kang Yu stopped halfway down the stairs, then came back up.
He couldn’t just leave—it would feel unfair.
He was angry too, and if he’d been mad, then she should be too.
Luckily, he knew just the thing.

He recalled something the old man Bang from the village once told him:

“You know why that foul-mouthed granny Yoo treats me like royalty?
Simple—she knows picking a fight with me only hurts her.
When we argue, it always ends with words, and that’s where I win—because I’ve got a divine weapon right here.”

“A divine weapon?”

“Yup. The mightiest word in the world. The moment a woman hears it, she’ll freeze in fury.”

“What is it?”

“Ah, but you have to use it carefully. Even the gentlest woman will spit frost in midsummer if you say it.”

“So what is it already?”

“It’s…”

Kang Yu decided to test if the old man had been right.

“Ma’am.”

Namgung Sahwa froze instantly.

“Ma’am, you’re not that pretty that people would be sneaking peeks at you. Pull yourself together.”

“…”

“See you later, ma’am.”

Kang Yu finished and started down the stairs.

He wondered if it had worked and peeked up through the stair gaps—
when suddenly, the sound of breaking objects and a furious scream erupted above him.

Startled, Kang Yu bolted from the inn.

Moments later, a window shattered, and Namgung Sahwa came crashing out onto the street, followed by the two men.

Her eyes were blazing as she searched the crowd, but with so many people, she couldn’t find him.
Then, the two men who had followed her slapped her cheeks.

Smack! Smack!

Her expression turned icy cold.

“If you ever interfere again, I’ll burn your entire clan to ashes.”

“…”

The men bowed their heads, avoiding the crowd’s gaze.

Whether they liked it or not, their fates were bound beneath the name Namgung.
Their own minor families only gained entry into the martial academy thanks to the Namgung clan.

Namgung Sahwa shot them a death glare, then turned toward the crowd.

“That bastard… If I ever see him again, I’ll kill him.”

* * *

“Phew.”

Kang Yu, who had sprinted far from the inn, kept looking back nervously.
He was scared.

That insane woman—whom he’d completely underestimated—had, for a brief moment, radiated the aura of a celestial beast.

The old man was right—it truly was a divine word.

“I’d better never say that again.”

Still anxious, Kang Yu glanced behind him one last time and ran off.

* * *

Following directions from some high-level martial artists, Kang Yu finally arrived at Tianzhu Mountain in Anhui—
the seat of the Namgung Clan.

The sight was magnificent.

Dozens of grand pavilions stood across a vast estate carved into the mountainside.
The outer wall alone was enormous—five jang high and stretching endlessly along the mountains.

The fortress-like layout and the rugged terrain inspired awe.

Kang Yu stopped before the massive gate built into the wall.
A martial artist in a light-blue uniform blocked his path.

“What business do you have here?”

“Is this the Namgung Clan?”

The guard gave him a look as if to say, You came all this way just to ask that?
Still, it was his job to answer.

“Yes, it is. What business do you have?”

“Ah, well, I was sent here to pick something up.”

The guard’s eyes swept over him—
dirty clothes that hadn’t been changed in days, messy hair, a young face, thin limbs.

After a quick mental calculation, the guard concluded:
low posture, shabby look—definitely not anyone important.
Probably a delivery errand boy working under some merchant.

He tilted his head dismissively.

“The supplier’s entrance is at the far end of the wall. Go there.”

“Supplier?”

“This is the main gate. You’re not supposed to come through here. Didn’t your boss tell you that?”

“Hmm. I’m not here to deliver something—I came to pick something up.”

“Whether you’re delivering or picking up, go through the side gate, kid. Can’t you understand plain words?”

“Hmm.”

Kang Yu scratched his head.
Then he remembered—the villagers had told him to show something at the gate.

He set down his pack and rummaged through it.
But there was so much junk inside he couldn’t find it easily.

“Damn it, where’d it go?”

The guard sighed and kicked the pack lightly.

“Hey. I said go.”

“Wait a sec. They told me to show this at the entrance.”

“Then show your delivery pass at the supplier gate.”

“Ah—found it.”

Kang Yu pulled something out and showed it to the guard.

“Here. With this, I can go in, right? They said this would work.”

“Like I said, go show it there—huh?”

The guard froze.

It was that.

A rectangular golden plaque strung with blue silk threads—
The Heavenly Azure Dragon Plaque, given only to the direct bloodline of the Namgung clan.

The guard stared between Kang Yu’s face and the plaque, his expression stiffening.
When he finally spoke, his tone had completely changed.

“M-my apologies! I didn’t realize you were holding the Heavenly Dragon Plaque… I’ve only just been assigned to gate duty—please forgive my rudeness!”

“It’s fine. Mistakes happen.”

“Th-thank you for your understanding.”

The guard swallowed nervously.

“But… may I ask why you came through the main gate instead of the family entrance?”

“Oh. There’s another gate?”

“Eh? Y-yes, there is…”

Something about that answer felt off.

Even the most distant branch members knew about the private entrance.
Yet this person had no idea—and his face didn’t bear the strong features typical of the Namgung line.

Suspicious, the guard flipped the plaque over.

‘One, two, three…’

The back of the Heavenly Azure Dragon Plaque had a carved dragon head.
The number of dragons indicated the bearer’s rank.

Five or fewer for low ranks.
Five for outer masters, six for unit heads, seven for elders, eight for the vice-lord or grand elder,
and nine for the current lord himself.

But the one before him—

There were too many dragons.

‘Seven, eight, nine… ten? Ten?!’

The Namgung lord’s plaque had nine dragons.
But this filthy boy’s plaque had ten?

“…”

The guard suddenly grabbed Kang Yu by the collar.

“You little bastard! Do you know where you are?!”

“??”

He shoved the plaque in Kang Yu’s face.

“Where did you get this? Where did you forge it?”

“Huh? F-forge it?”

The guard flipped the plaque again, pointing to the back.

“Do you even know what’s carved here?”

“A snake, right?”

The guard turned it back and forth, incredulous.

“A snake? You call this a snake?”

“Yeah. It’s the Heaven-Earth Serpent, right? And seriously, why are you so mad all of a sudden?”

“Do you have any idea what this thing means?”

“A snake’s a snake, isn’t it?”

The guard nodded slowly, smiling thinly.

“Right. Sure it is.”

Convinced it was a forgery, he grabbed Kang Yu and dragged him inside.

“H-hey! What’s going on?!”

He handed Kang Yu over to the inner guards.

“Captain, look at this punk. He’s either insane or fearless—trying to fake a Namgung plaque of all things.”

“…”

Moments later—

“I told you, I didn’t do anything!”

Kang Yu was dragged off into the estate.

The gate guard, feeling proud of himself, watched with satisfaction.

“Forgery and illegal entry… that’s a big score. I might even get promoted for this.”

Feeling quite pleased, he returned to his post.

Half an hour later—

In the Namgung Clan’s Grand Main Hall.

“What… what on earth is going on?!”

A dozen elders with graying hair hurried across the thousand-pyeong hall, walking almost at a run.

Servants and guards quickly bowed and cleared the path as they passed.

One elder straightened his robe anxiously.

“What’s this nonsense about a Ten-Dragon Plaque? It must be a fake!”

“They say Hall Master Chang personally verified it. It’s genuine.”

“What? But as far as I know, the Ten-Dragon Plaque belonged to…”

Another elder interrupted.

“To Namgung Sung, the Seventh Lord of the Namgung Clan—the Divine Sword.”

“…”

At the words Divine Sword, everyone fell silent.

Namgung Sung—
the only man in five hundred years of Namgung history to be recognized as the Number One Under Heaven.

The Ten-Dragon Plaque was a special emblem created to honor his unmatched legacy.
According to clan records, both he and the plaque vanished together one day—
a hundred and fifty years ago.

Long before any of the elders present had even been born.

“L-let’s go. We’ll find out when we see it for ourselves.”

The three leading elders quickened their pace, followed by six more elders behind them.

The Elder council of the Namgung clan had be convened.