There is a considerable distance between Sichuan Province and Guangdong Province.
However, for first-rate martial artists—especially those who had mastered the Tang Clan's Light-Body Technique, renowned for its speed and lightness—it wasn't a distance worth worrying about.
"Even if we conserve our stamina considering we're heading into battle, we can easily arrive in seven days and nights…"
"What? We're riding horses, young hero. Father said it would take about three to four days, didn't he?"
"…"
Tang So-wol tilted her head as she said this.
When I thought about it, she was right. No matter how fast and enduring a martial artist might be, to outpace a horse, one would need to have mastered a special Lightness Skill or reached the Peak Realm or higher in martial level.
Wouldn't it be far more convenient to ride a mount than to move your body directly?
However, there was one big problem with that.
"I don't know how to ride a horse."
"You don't know how to ride? Why?"
This time, Tang So-wol tilted her head in the opposite direction as she asked back. Her reaction, as if she genuinely couldn't comprehend it, made me the one to be flustered for a moment.
Then, as if something had suddenly dawned on her, Tang So-wol's eyes went wide and she clamped both hands over her mouth.
"Mmph! Mmph mmph mmph."
"You can just take your hands off and say it."
"I'm sorry… The martial artists around me all learned at least basic horsemanship, so I assumed it was just something all martial artists knew."
"I roughly figured that would be the case."
The Tang Clan's warriors received more generous support than those elsewhere, so they would often have occasion to ride horses. And so they would learn.
However, most martial artists would rather ride in a carriage for comfort, and rarely had any reason to travel on horseback.
That made sense—when one was slower than a horse, it was because one lacked the money to obtain one, and by the time one had trained enough to build strength and saved up money to match, one had become faster and more enduring than a horse, leaving no reason to ride one.
Before my regression, I was no different from that situation.
As I let out a sigh, Tang So-wol, who had been pondering something for a moment, spoke in a hesitant tone.
"Um. Young hero Cheon?"
"What is it?"
Her gaze fixed diagonally downward, her index finger twirling the ends of her hair, and her feet scuffing the ground for no reason.
Anyone could see she was embarrassed. Tang So-wol glanced at me and continued.
"If you don't know how to ride… would you ride with me?"
"Huh?"
"A young hero like you would surely learn quickly, but even so, it's not something you can master in a single day. I can't very well leave you behind, so you'll have to ride behind me."
"Is that how it works…?"
"That's how it works."
Tang So-wol, still avoiding my gaze, nodded firmly. We'd be riding pressed against each other for three to four days.
A flicker of anticipation rose within me. Unfortunately, it didn't last long.
Tang Jincheon, having finished his brief speech and ordered the servants to bring the horses and luggage prepared in advance, cut in between us.
"You two aren't even married yet, what nonsense is this? Young hero Cheon, you'll ride behind me."
"Father?!"
Tang So-wol jumped up in surprise. Tang Jincheon let out a hearty laugh at her reaction, but sent me a subtle look.
A silent pressure to nod my head quickly. But the stakes were too high to give in to something like this.
"What do you mean, father-in-law? You are the head of the great Sichuan Tang Clan, an object of admiration for all the martial artists gathered here. There's no need for you to endure discomfort because of me, nor should you."
"Don't call me that yet."
"If Brother Cheong can call you father-in-law, what reason could I have not to?"
"The betrothal ceremony hasn't happened yet."
"You said it would be held once we return."
"So it hasn't happened yet. Come, let's go. My horse is large and sturdy, so it can easily carry the two of us."
With that, Tang Jincheon grabbed the back of my neck and dragged me along. I tried to break free any way I could, but the Harmony Realm was not a level given freely—every one of my attempts was undone by his exquisite technique.
Tang So-wol watched the whole scene with a dumbfounded expression, then let out a giggle a beat too late and waved her hand at me.
I wish she'd have tried to stop him here, though.
Only when I was dragged all the way to the front seat did Tang Jincheon finally let go of me.
I tidied my clothes lightly and grumbled.
"Come now, isn't this a bit much, father-in-law? I could have walked up on my own."
"I'm not your father-in-law yet. And there's a big difference between 'can walk up' and 'willingly walks up.'"
"…"
He had a point, so I had nothing to say. If I had to choose between following behind Tang So-wol for a few days or following behind Tang Jincheon, the former was obviously the better option.
As I kept my mouth shut, Tang Jincheon laughed heartily and patted my shoulder.
"Well, I did it because I want to get closer to you, so don't be too upset."
"…Understood."
As I sighed inwardly, the horses the servants had brought arrived from afar.
***
There were no particular problems on the road to Guangdong Province.
For one thing, everyone was mounted and moving quickly, and as if to prove they belonged to the same organization, they all wore green robes, each of them at least a first-rate martial artist.
At this point, even the most venomous bandits of the Green Forest would pretend not to see us.
However, there was one unexpected commotion.
It wasn't that someone blocked the road and demanded a toll, nor that a quarrel broke out at an inn, nor even that we happened to run into a martial artist with whom we had a Karmic Debt.
We stopped at a suitable village once a day to sleep or replenish supplies…
But in the southern part of Hunan Province—that is, the closer we got to Guangdong Province—the villagers grew excessively frightened.
In the worst cases, they hid behind small barricades and even armed themselves clumsily with farming tools.
The Black Alliance had established itself in Zhejiang Province, but Guangdong had also long been known as territory of the Unorthodox Sects.
They must have mistaken us for Unorthodox martial artists looking for someone to fleece.
Of course, we resolved it through conversation, but having never been treated like that anywhere before, some members of the Dark Soul Squad looked a bit shaken.
"Hm."
"What is it this time?"
Over the three days of travel, I'd grown fairly close to Tang Jincheon. Since I'd learned that he was quite an easygoing person unless it was official business or something involving Tang So-wol, I felt comfortable speaking freely.
"Martial arts have a profound effect on a martial artist's body. For example, the fact that the Paeng Clan's warriors all boast towering physiques may be partly due to bloodline, but the influence of their martial arts can't be ignored either."
"Why bring up something everyone already knows?"
"Is it for the same reason that the Tang Clan's martial artists all have fierce or venomous faces?"
"What nonsense is that…?"
Tang Jin-cheon looked back at me as if I were absurd. But I was serious.
"At first, I wasn't sure either. You see, Tang So-wol is gentle and cute overall, isn't she?"
"Hm. My daughter takes after her mother, so her beauty is exceptional. If there had been no problems on this trip to the martial world, I'd wager the Central Plains' Four Beauties would have become the Central Plains' Five Beauties."
"…"
All I'd done was compliment Tang So-wol's looks, and Tang Jin-cheon was nodding vigorously, swearing she was among the finest beauties in all the Central Plains.
That was one thing I could never get used to no matter how many times I saw it, so I let out a dry laugh and continued.
"And you, Brother Cheong—your distinguished bearing certainly lives up to the title of young master."
"Indeed. Cheong takes after me, so he's quite the figure."
"…?"
Even I couldn't help but be taken aback this time.
Was he being serious?
That's not to say Tang Jincheon was ugly. If anything, he was on the handsome side.
That was only natural. The more a martial artist trains their martial arts, the more their body improves. Even without reaching the Harmony Realm, anyone at the Transcendent Peak level would be hard-pressed to find an ugly face.
But Tang Jincheon carried an inexplicable aura of intimidation overall.
A pressure that came from pure appearance, not from lofty martial arts. And this wasn't unique to Tang Jincheon.
Every martial artist of the Tang Clan tended to have poison energy, or a certain nervous sharpness, standing out on their faces.
This trait grew more pronounced with age and was rarely seen in the relatively young.
So I'd asked whether the Tang Clan's martial arts had such side effects, but…
"To put it plainly, you're half right and half wrong."
"Pardon?"
A somewhat ambiguous answer came back.
"Ah, if it's something difficult to tell me, that's fine. I was only asking out of simple curiosity."
"That's not what I mean. It's true that the Tang Clan's martial arts are the cause, but it's not because of the function of the martial art itself."
"???"
This was getting even more confusing. Could this be some kind of Zen dialogue? I'd heard that unlike the straightforward Unorthodox Sects' martial artists, the Orthodox Sects often used this kind of speech.
While I was pondering whether there was another meaning to his words, Tang Jincheon let out a hearty laugh and tilted his chin.
"You there. Do you know what kind of expression you're making right now?"
"Isn't it a blank expression?"
"More precisely, it's a blank expression with a slight frown. And that's exactly the impression you've left on the Tang Clan's martial artists."
"…Ah!"
After chewing on Tang Jincheon's words for a moment, I finally understood.
"Poison arts and hidden weapon techniques are martial arts that require a lot of attention, after all."
"Indeed."
Tang Jincheon nodded as if I'd hit the mark. The reason was simpler than I'd thought.
Poison and hidden weapons—if handled carelessly, they could harm not just the user, but even friends and family.
That much more than ordinary weapons, they demanded greater care, and this concentration bordering on obsession gnawed at a person's nerves unconsciously.
Naturally, one's face would begin to frown, one's brow would furrow, and one would become oversensitive to even the smallest things.
When that accumulated and piled up, traces would remain on the face, giving off a nervous and vicious impression.
This was not, as Tang Jincheon had said, a function or side effect of the martial art itself.
Just as a farmer who had plowed fields his whole life had skin blackened by the sun, or a blacksmith who had hammered all his days had arms that grew long and thick.
It was simply the traces and habits of accumulated training.
Just as other noble houses had their preconceptions, the Sichuan Tang Clan had a few as well… So this was the reason behind the saying that the Tang Clan's martial artists were more sinister and vicious than those of other Orthodox Sects.
"Then Tang So-wol should be fine."
"I can't be certain this early, but she's better than the others."
Tang So-wol has no reason to handle poison cautiously or to fight while calculating how much poison she has left.
The Poison Spirit Constitution lets her wield poison as naturally as her own limbs—it's a constitution that synthesizes poison within the body itself.
Before the regression, Tang So-wol always covered half of her melted face, and after experiencing the Tang Clan's extermination, she was perpetually gloomy and filled with poison energy.
In contrast, the current Tang So-wol was a bit prickly at first, but lately, how should I put it… the more you get to know her, the more she shows a side like a dog that warms up to people easily.
Of course, she hasn't changed at her core, but her impression is so different from before the regression that I was curious how things would turn out.
If Tang Jincheon's words are to be believed, she won't change much from how she is now. And I won't let anything happen to her that would make her change.
As I made a small vow to myself, Tang Jincheon asked in a subtle voice.
"By the way, you. Are you still just calling So-wol by her name, Tang So-wol? You'll soon be formally betrothed, so how about considering a different form of address? Something like 'Lady' perhaps."
"There are quite a few Tangs in the Tang Clan, so calling her Lady Tang doesn't quite fit."
"Then just attach it to her name. I haven't said anything until now because So-wol doesn't seem to mind your lack of formality, but from now on you'll have occasions to appear in official settings, so it would be good to settle on one in advance."
"That's true. It is true, but…"
"What's so frustrating that you keep hesitating? Just tell me the reason plainly."
"'Lady So-wol,' you say. Wouldn't that be embarrassing?"
"…"
Tang Jincheon looked back with a face that was beyond baffled, as if wondering what kind of man he was dealing with, but there was nothing to be done.
It was far too embarrassing an expression for me.