Book 6 Chapter 27

An Ambush on Mudeungsan

- An Ambush is Difficult

It was a tedious wait.

So tedious that a boil formed on my back.

It was a time of utter boredom.

After a continuous pursuit,

it was just a thread of a trace.

Namgung Sang waited with an anxious, burning heart for the target to appear. Perhaps due to the anxious tension, his throat felt parched with thirst. The thought of having a glass of cool, cold water suddenly struck him. Moreover, all the muscles in his body were tensed.

Concealing his presence and with the wind at his back, Namgung Sang stealthily hid his existence. He wouldn't be discovered due to his scent. The preparations were perfect.

However, the one who failed to consider this point was his colleague and friend, Noh Hak, a fatal mistake.

'Noh Hak! Farewell!'

Namgung Sang, after a brief moment of mournful silence for Noh Hak, who had already booked his ticket to the afterlife, lifted his head.

Determination!

A flash glinted in his eyes, filled with a grim resolve.

'Mistakes are absolutely impossible!'

"Rustle!"

'It's here!'

Finally, the target revealed its presence. The sound of the target pushing through the bushes was more majestic than thunder to Namgung Sang's ears.

'I won't miss!'

If he missed, he would undoubtedly become a companion to the afterlife, just like Noh Hak.

"Swish!"

Emerging from his hiding place, Namgung Sang forcefully threw the yu yeop bido, which emitted a sharp blue light.

"Flap!"

As if proving the results of his training, the bido, flying faster than the wind and like a ray of light, instantly pierced the target's neck.

There was no resistance. This was also proof of Namgung Sang's improved and clean skills.

A triumphant smile flickered across Namgung Sang's face.

'Success!'

Namgung Sang rejoiced inwardly, as if he could fly.

Finally, he had successfully completed his weighty mission.

With triumphant steps, he descended the mountain, carrying a rabbit with a bido lodged in its neck like an ornament. In accordance with the mission assigned to him, Namgung Sang had successfully completed the grand and solemn task of securing tonight's side dish.

Noh Hak was too careless about his scent.

His complacent thought that the animals, with their dozens or hundreds of times more developed sense of smell than humans, would not detect the foul odor accumulated and ingrained on his entire body, was nothing short of an insult to the developed sense of smell possessed by all animals.

What animal would consider approaching a hunter who was exuding the scent of 'I am here'?

As if to prove they were not fools, all the prey, before even getting close to Noh Hak, would smell him and flee dozens of yards away.

Unless he intended to suffocate the animals with his overpowering scent, Noh Hak was better off giving up hunting.

Due to not properly bathing for the legitimate reason of being a beggar, Noh Hak, who showed no sign of concern for his personal hygiene, reeked of a pungent odor that made one's nose sting. He had completely failed in his hunt for tonight's side dish.

Thus, Noh Hak sacrificed himself to become a stone from another mountain for Namgung Sang's enlightenment.

However, Namgung Sang, who was exultant about his great success compared to Noh Hak's failure, had to eat plain rice, just like Noh Hak.

"What is this?"

Bilyeon, with a suspicious gaze, looked alternately at the rabbit in Namgung Sang's hand and his face, and asked.

"Yes! It's a rabbit."

Namgung Sang exclaimed loudly, as if he were going mad with the desire to boast about his proud record.

"Why did you bring this?"

"Yes? Of course, I brought it as a side dish for dinner."

"Slap!"

As if there was nothing more to see, Bilyeon smacked Namgung Sang on the back of the head.

"Ouch!"

Bilyeon's scolding immediately followed.

"Hey, you timid fellow! What are you going to do with such a tiny thing? Who are you going to give it to?"

Namgung Sang had to kneel beside Noh Hak, who had returned empty-handed, and put his hands over his head.

The rabbit that Gungsung had caught was too small for dozens of people to eat together.

In the end, the rabbit met its fate by ending up on Bilyeon's dining table. The remaining members of the Suzaku unit, unable to do anything, had to chew on grass, resenting Namgung Sang and Noh Hak.

'Why bring the Suzaku unit?'

If anyone were to try to find some deep, lofty meaning here, it would be a 120% misinterpretation.

The reason Bilyeon included the Suzaku unit as an appendage to this joint training was purely for his own convenience. The Suzaku unit members were already experts in all household chores under his direct command, so no further training was needed. They had been perfectly trained two years ago to be able to do anything he asked.

It was due to this convenience and utility that Bilyeon had almost forcibly included the Suzaku unit in the group, dragging them along by a rope around their necks. Expecting any reason beyond the simple fact that he needed maids would be unreasonable.

It could be said that the lives of the Suzaku unit members were also truly tragic.