Capítulo 115: Chapter 1003: All of a Sudden (Part 3)
"Heuk, heuk... heuk... heuk!"
The sky was yellow.
Namgung Dan realized that when people said the sky was yellow, they weren't speaking metaphorically. The sky he saw right then was genuinely yellow.
No, it wasn't just the sky.
"Heuk... heuk..."
Everything he saw in front of him was gradually changing to yellow. To be more precise, it felt like the colors of the world were fading away.
"Kkeue..."
At that moment, Namgung Dan's foot stumbled over a rock. Helpless to resist, his body collapsed forward.
No, he was about to collapse.
"Euhtcha!"
However, before his body could fully tilt over, someone who had run up to him grabbed his shoulder, helping him stand upright.
"..."
Namgung Dan looked at the person beside him with vacant eyes. Yoon Jong, was that his name...?
He chuckled and said as if he almost caused a big problem.
"It seemed you still had some strength left. You shouldn't have collapsed so soon. Come on, let's keep running."
"..."
"Hmm? Is there a problem?"
"...Kkii."
"Yes?"
Namgung Dan's foot was weakly stretched forward again.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
And like a puppet with tangled strings, he began to run forward again.
'Why did it turn out like this?'
Yes, it all started very simply...
* * *
"A bet?"
"Yes."
Chung Myung smiled brightly.
"First, you mentioned that you want to be treated with hospitality, but just asking for it without any reason doesn't seem very convincing. Let's check if you have the qualifications to receive this hospitality."
"..."
"If your side wins, I'll pay back all the money I've won. I won't touch a single finger in the future."
"Is that true?"
"In exchange, if we win, your side won't make a fuss and will do as I say. Simple, right?"
Namgung Dan looked at Chung Myung thoughtfully.
"But, Dojang..."
"Ah."
Chung Myung waved his hand as if he knew exactly what Namgung Dan was going to say. It looked like he was shooing away an annoying fly.
"I know what you mean. I have a conscience too. Do you think I'd want to fight you?"
"Well, yes?"
"The kids will do it."
Chung Myung pointed to the Five Swords behind him.
"And doing something like a martial arts contest would be too predictable. Let's make it fair. Fair."
"Fair?"
"Yes."
Chung Myung clapped his hands loudly and said, "A race."
"..."
Namgung Dan's face momentarily froze in confusion, but Chung Myung continued nonchalantly.
"The rules are simple. You start running from your side, and our guys will chase you. The one who gets caught is eliminated. If someone manages to avoid being caught until sunset, your side wins."
"Wait, that..."
"However!"
Before Namgung Dan could say anything, Chung Myung interrupted him.
"That seems a bit uncertain. So, our side will carry twenty-kilogram weights on each arm and leg."
At this, the expressions of Namgung Dan and the swordsmen contorted in dismay.
"...Are you disrespecting us?"
"Hmm? Is it too much? Alright, then we'll add around thirty kilograms to each arm and leg."
"Dojang!"
Namgung Dan yelled without realizing it.
"Hey, why are you yelling?"
Chung Myung playfully picked his ear with his pinky finger and then blew on it.
"If you're scared, don't do it."
"Okay!"
"Dana!"
"Hyungnim!"
Namgoong Dan gritted his teeth.
"Make sure you keep that promise!"
Chung Myung chuckled.
"You're saying what I was going to say. Just make sure you keep your end of the bargain."
The martial artists from Namgung's group looked at Namgung Dan with concerned expressions.
"Are you sure about this?"
"This is..."
"Enough!"
Namgung Dan cut off the others.
"Even if Namgung's strategy isn't a divine law, do you think there's any excuse for being caught by these guys who have trained so hard, even with the weights on? And it's a competition where everyone has to be caught to lose."
"..."
"Will you endure being treated like this?"
The faces of Namgung's martial artists hardened with cold determination.
Watching them resolve themselves, Namgung Dan glared at Chung Myung.
'Even an arrogant person has their limits.'
Perhaps they wouldn't be this angry if Chung Myung had suggested a competition in martial arts. However, they had competed with their inner strength and stamina, not their sword skills. Wasn't that the field in which Namgung, a renowned family, should be most confident?
"Although you're great, Dojang, you've been a bit too arrogant this time."
Chung Myung laughed.
"Kkuh, well, the world is a big place. There are plenty of people to point out my arrogance."
"..."
"But maybe you should save that comment for after you win?"
Namgung Dan glared at him, his teeth clenched, and nodded.
* * *
"That's how it was..."
A sense of unease first crept in when they stood at the starting line. It happened when Mount Hua's Righteous Sword, who had attached heavy weights to both arms and legs, asked Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword a question.
- How are we going to this?
- Screw. you.
- Alright.
It was a strange feeling. Although he didn't know about Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword, they knew Mount Hua's Righteous Sword wasn't someone that could casually ignore them. But from the moment he casually engaged in such a conversation, a foreboding feeling crept into Namgung Dan's heart.
However, Namgung Dan tried to push that thought away. No matter how you looked at it, it seemed impossible to catch up to them with weights weighing over 80 geun (a traditional Korean weight measurement) distributed over their entire body.
Even if it was 80 geun, that weight was equivalent to more than one person's weight. Was it even possible to catch up to someone running ahead with an extra person on your back?
Therefore, Namgung Dan didn't think twice. He considered it an opportunity to humble Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword. Also, a chance to teach Namgung Dowi what is right, without saying a word.
When they had just started, Namgung Dan held on to that belief. It was the same when the disciples of the Mount Hua Sect started chasing them a bit later. The Five Swords had not been able to close the initial gap created by Namgung.
But...
A short while later, Namgung Dan realized why Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword had insisted on the condition that they continue until sunset.
Just after half a si-jin (a Korean traditional timekeeping system), those who were chasing them began to pick up their pace.
Being caught by those who carried 80 geun of weights over their entire body? That was a matter of pride that could not be allowed.
The disciples of the Namgung Family, who felt a sense of crisis, ran desperately, their jaws about to drop.
And from that moment on, hell began.
- Hey, you're too slow.
- Come on, hurry up.
- When did you become so slow?
The crazy seeds of the Mount Hua Sect, who had stuck to their backs, started poking and prodding them as they ran.
It was a madness that could make anyone go insane.
For those who carried the weight of an entire person around their body, these people who clung to their backs and casually made remarks as they ran at full speed - how could anyone be in their right mind?
- No, you shouldn't give up already!
- You still have more left in you!
- Stay strong!
Better to mock and swear at them, damn it.
With that kind of "care"(?) from the Mount Hua's disciples, Namgung Dan ran until his legs felt like they would fall off. This was no longer about winning; it was a matter of pride.
However, from the moment one si-jin had passed, people who collapsed and vomited began to emerge.
"Grrr."
"Hehe, one down here."
"Ugh, ugh!"
"Argh, don't vomit!"
What drove them to run madly was the fact that the disciples of the Mount Hua Sect, who were chasing from behind, seemed perfectly fine, showing no signs of fatigue.
Namgung Dan forcibly raised his head, as heavy as a lump of iron, and various figures were seen scattered everywhere.
Total annihilation. It was a clean total annihilation.
The proud descendants of Namgung, who had survived until the very end in the war against the Su Lo Chae, were now lying in this field like sick chickens.
"How... how could this happen..."
Namgung Dan stretched his foot out with tears, leaning his head back.
They were Namgung's family, after all. They were proud of their lineage, which was not inferior to any other sect in the world. And their determination to endure rigorous training since childhood was incomparable to any other sect.
So why did this result come about?
"Ugh, ugh..."
Vomit gushed out with a spurt. Namgung Dan instinctively covered his mouth with both hands.
No matter how bad the situation was, they couldn't afford to show themselves in such a state.
"I think this is the end now?"
"No. I think he can go a little further, don't you?"
"Then let's make a bet, Sahyung. Whoever holds out a bit longer, or not. I'll bet on 'not.'"
"...I'm betting on 'not' too."
"Come on, what's with that!"
"If it's a bet, we should judge it rationally."
Those words almost severed Namgung Dan's faint last bit of willpower. But even so, he kept running. He had a reason to keep going.
"Try to put in some effort!"
With each step, his familiar face appeared in his changing vision.
'So... So...'
The image of her looking at him and sticking out her tongue turned Namgung Dan's mind upside down.
'How... how could Soso...'
The Tang Soso he knew had nothing to do with Muhak. Every time he had dealings with the Tang family, wasn't her image that of a woman from a distinguished family, dressed in splendid court attire?
Yet this Tang Soso was sticking by his side, cheerfully cheering him on.
'Crazy...'
Crash!
In the end, Namgung Dan's body, which could not hold out any longer, met the ground. He collapsed, his face planted in the dirt. He shivered violently. The rough air was sucked in, and dust billowed, but he couldn't muster the strength to turn his head.
It was as if his entire body had been pulverized with a large club. This was beyond what could be described as difficult or painful. Had he ever been in such a state just from training in his entire life?
"No, couldn't you endure for two si-jins?"
"...We didn't even run that fast."
"Soso, what's going on?"
"Why... Why are you saying that to me? The Tang family isn't like this!"
The voice muttering beside him couldn't even reach Namgung Dan's head.
His mind felt heavy, as if it had been submerged in water. If he closed his eyes now, he felt like he could sleep forever.
But...
Strangely unbelievable as it was, even in this situation, Namgung Dan could still clearly hear someone's approaching footsteps.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
He laboriously raised his eyelids.
"Ugh."
He felt someone's foot nudging him slightly, and then a vivid blue sky filled his vision. The sun was high in the sky.
From one corner of that azure sky, someone abruptly thrust their face forward.
A face covered with grumpiness...
"Hey."
"...?"
"Should I have carried another hundred geun?"
"...?"
"Are you crying?"
"...?"
"Sasuk, why is this kid crying?"
"Don't do it, you idiot!"
"You're not even human!"
"Hey. Cover him! Cover him! Hurry!"
This place... this place was hell.
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