Chapter 12

Chapter 12

* * *

During his childhood, Jang Sam-tae, who had lost his parents and become an orphan, had a younger sister two years younger than him.

Although his family was poor, so they could not even eat meals on time and had to walk around wrapped in rags instead of clothes, he was still happy.

He put his whole heart and soul into raising his younger sister, thinking that after living like that and marrying her off to a good place, he could live his own life from then on.

However, the problem occurred within a few years.

Jang Sam-tae had a habit of stealing since childhood and felt no guilt about stealing other people's things. He had wanted to give his sister good things even if it meant doing that.

Then, one day, he stole a suit of clothes.

The merchants who visited the neighborhood where he lived for the first time in a long time possessed quite a few precious clothes.

Since the quantity was so large that stealing even one suit would not even be noticed, his hands were relentless, and he eventually committed the deed.

He could not make her wear the stolen clothes right away.

Because if anyone among the merchants saw it, they would be caught immediately. He hid it away while repeatedly warning her not to wear it outside.

However, he thought that it might also be his sister's fate that she eventually found that suit of clothes, put it on, and went out.

Even when it became late at night, his sister did not return, so he went out to search for her. He searched the entire neighborhood and called her name, but there was no response.

Eventually, he did discover her.

In a narrow alley, a place where there was not even a sign of presence, lay his sister sprawled on the ground.

Her clothes were stripped bare, and bruises covered her entire body.

It did not seem like one person had beaten her, but rather that several adult men had repeatedly kicked her. The blood that had flowed from her mouth and nose was dried.

From that time on, he disliked children.

Because they did not listen.

However, he did not want a child to die because of him again.

For that reason, he shielded Hwa So-mi even more and took the men's kicks with his entire body.

“Gasp, gasp! Look at this bastard's endurance?”

“That must mean the child is that important to him. Drag her out. I will slice her flesh off piece by piece right before his eyes.”

“Aaaargh! You bastards! What are you trying to do to the child…… ugh!”

He screamed and went wild. He brushed off the hands of the men trying to forcibly drag Hwa So-mi away. However, another kick struck his face once more.

Thud!

An intense pain, enough to push his body backward in an instant, washed over him.

“Servant Uncle!”

Hwa So-mi's scream was heard.

With blurred vision, he looked at the child. She was causing a ruckus in a man's arms, and then, as if it was not working, she bit down hard on his forearm with her teeth.

“Aaagh!”

The man screamed roughly and slapped Hwa So-mi's cheek.

Hwa So-mi's body crumpled to the ground like a sheet of paper. But instead of crying, she stood up proudly on the spot.

She also seemed to suppress the pain.

The child blocked the way in front of Jang Sam-tae and stretched out both arms.

Her cheek was swollen bright red, to the point of looking pitiful.

Although her entire body trembled, she did not step back.

Even while watching the man approach with a sword in hand.

“Ru…… Run away!”

“No!”

“Run away, you stupid girl!”

“No!”

“Please go! If you stay, you will die too!”

However, Hwa So-mi did not listen. While still trembling, she stood blankly in that spot. Then, turning her head, she smiled slightly at Jang Sam-tae.

“If you die, Uncle, how are we supposed to eat? And…… this happened because of So-mi anyway!”

“……Tch, damn it…….”

It was absurd, but now was not the time to be lying down.

This was because the man who had approached in the meantime swung his sword toward Hwa So-mi.

Slash!

“Aaaargh!”

Crash!

Throwing himself forward, Jang Sam-tae embraced Hwa So-mi as they collapsed. In that instant, the blade grazed his shoulder and passed by.

“Haha, look at these two? Are you guys playing around?”

From here and there, the men chuckled and mocked them.

A thief and a stupid girl who could not grasp the situation.

From the men's perspective, it was merely a comical farce.

Contrary to that, Jang Sam-tae realized that they truly intended to kill So-mi.

It was certain that if he had not thrown his body, a fountain of blood would have erupted by now. Just thinking about it made his teeth grind.

No matter what, how could they try to kill a little child.

“You don't need to kill the child!”

“Since everyone associated with you will die anyway, what does it matter if one child dies?”

“You crazy bastards……”

The moment Jang Sam-tae ground his teeth while looking at them.

The man's sword was lifted high. It seemed he intended to pierce both of them at the same time.

Only a cruel smile hung on the man's mouth.

However.

“Ugh!?”

Something was strange.

His arm would not move, as if it had turned to stone.

Suddenly, his entire body trembled.

Cold sweat poured continuously.

He forced his unmoving eyes to turn.

It was the same for the others around him.

As if time had stopped, they stood stiffly with deathly pale faces, not a single one able to open their mouth.

Whoosh!

A chilly wind blew.

It cooled down their heated bodies, and it felt as if it would freeze even their flowing blood.

The air entering their mouths also changed. Every time they breathed, they felt a pain piercing their lungs, as if they had swallowed blades.

‘What on earth is this!’

While they shivered in fear.

Step, step.

The sound of someone walking was heard.

The people's gazes gathered in one place. Their heads, which had been frozen as if paralyzed until a moment ago, turned.

As their stiff necks turned, dry saliva was swallowed and their eyes shook.

They saw a man.

Approaching without even an expression, as if steeped in ghostly energy, his eyes shone with a blood-red crimson flame.

An unidentifiable aura was rising around the man.

It was like looking at an Asura who had descended upon the human world.

Tremble, tremble.

The shaking of their bodies did not stop.

Even a shriek of terror could not leak out.

“What a mess.”

Before they knew it, the man standing in front of Jang Sam-tae and Hwa So-mi muttered.

Jang Sam-tae immediately realized who it was that exerted this mountain-like weight.

Dan Woo-hyun.

The one in front of him was unmistakably Dan Woo-hyun.

“M…… Manor Lord…….”

Even uttering words was difficult. Although he knew Dan Woo-hyun was strong, he did not expect him to possess this level of presence.

He was on a different level from the martial artists he had seen so far.

Was this truly a human being?

“If you cannot get up, die together, Jang Sam-tae.”

He understood the meaning behind those words. Dan Woo-hyun was telling him to take Hwa So-mi and get out of here right now.

Because if he could not do that, it meant he was no longer useful and would be buried together, so Jang Sam-tae ultimately had to stand up.

Wounds and fear were nothing.

He had to get up quickly.

He had to run away.

No matter what, he had to take So-mi and go.

Forcing his body up, he slung the unconscious Hwa So-mi onto his back. Even though it was a situation where taking even a single step was difficult, he clenched his teeth and endured.

He bowed his head deeply.

“Go.”

At Dan Woo-hyun's chilly voice that followed, he gathered his senses and dashed away. Not a single person blocked Jang Sam-tae's path.

Although they held swords, their will to swing them had been crushed, and with deathly pale eyes, they merely stared at Dan Woo-hyun.

Leaving that scene behind, Jang Sam-tae threw himself forward.

Soon, Dan Woo-hyun's voice spread out.

“You all…… will not die a peaceful death.”

* * *

Jang Sam-tae ran while on the verge of tears.

He had never dreamed that he could be this weak. So what if he had some confidence in his lightness art? Since he only knew how to steal and use the lightness art, he could not even protect a single little child.

Even while running, it kept coming back to him.

A mere seven-year-old child. That child had not backed down, determined to protect him. Although she had a very different personality from his deceased sister, he was starting to feel an inexplicable sense of apology and affection.

“Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!”

Jang Sam-tae shed tears.

Tears, which he had thought dried up, dripped down. The crying did not stop at the thought that another child might have been sacrificed because of him.

What was the point of being good at stealing?

When he could not even protect a single child by his side.

In what way was he better than this child?

He cried while writhing in his own weakness.

Perhaps that was why it was even more precious.

Before he knew it, Jang Sam-tae arrived at the manor.

Opening the gate and going inside, he saw the empty space.

A large manor where only three people lived. It could not help but be a grand yet humble space.

However, the moment he stepped inside, it felt as if a warm energy seeped into his entire body.

Sighing with relief, he moved.

Entering the room, he laid So-mi on the bed first.

Caressing her red, swollen cheek, he scowled.

“Stupid thing…… why did you step in, step in…… you could have just run away.”

Just then, Hwa So-mi's eyes fluttered.

Slowly opening her eyes, she stared straight at Jang Sam-tae.

Then, turning her eyes to scan her surroundings, she smiled brightly.

“Is it home?”

“Yes, you dummy, it's home.”

“Hehe, are you okay?”

“You are more of a problem than me.”

“So-mi is okay. I didn't die. Because I was sure you would protect me, Uncle.”

Where did this confidence come from?

Since he was a human who could do nothing but run away, this child truly did not seem to know that the phrase "protecting her" was an absurdity in itself.

If Dan Woo-hyun had not appeared in the first place, she would have really died. Whether she knew that or not, she was wearing a truly innocent smile.

Jang Sam-tae inhaled a sharp breath in spite of himself.

“Never do that again. One's own life is more precious than anyone else's.”

“No. We are family. So So-mi will do the same in the future. Because I never want to experience something like that again.”

Hwa So-mi's eyes welled with tears. The faces of her deceased parents flickered before her eyes.

The eyes of her parents dying at the hands of those clad in iron armor were still vividly engraved.

The screams, the bloodstains when the villagers were massacred.

Remaining as a nightmare she could not forget even if she wanted to, it held So-mi back.

For that reason, she could not ignore someone dying.

It was probably for that reason that she tried even more desperately to protect Jang Sam-tae.

Jang Sam-tae let out a deep sigh and stroked her head.

“Hehe.”

Whether that sensation felt good, Hwa So-mi laughed again.

She was truly a funny child.

But he felt a warm heart full of sincerity.

Finally, Jang Sam-tae had a reason to stay in this manor.

“Yes, I will surely protect you.”