The Outcast Writer of a Martial Arts Visual Novel-Chapter 260: Wuchang - 4

"You’re telling me the Guild Leader made you start a business to repay your debt? And if you fail, you inherit the whole thing? And you agreed to that?"

Im Ha-yeon was left speechless after hearing what happened between me and the Guild Leader of the Ten-Thousand Gold Merchant Guild.

"Daseogak’s debt would take forever to pay off, even if we sold Storm of the Tang Clan non-stop. But if he’s offering total debt relief—it’s worth a shot."

From a certain perspective, the Guild Leader’s test was a loss for him.

If I succeeded, a massive debt would vanish in a flash—that’s a loss. If I failed, all he’d gain was the original loan amount back.

"I mean, I’ve seen the books... Should I head back to Yichang right now and bring in a load of Storm of the Tang Clan?"

"That’s off the table. The Guild Leader specifically prohibited it."

"Then what do we do?"

Ha-yeon asked nervously.

"I’ve got a little time to plan. I intend to give it some serious thought."

Maybe I should go back to performing as the storyteller. Turn Storm of the Tang Clan into a stage play and sell tickets. If I team up with Ha-yeon, it might actually be a good show.

Should I also sell medicine for extra income? If I call it Tang Clan medicine, the people of Yichang would probably snap it up.

Of course, I’d be summoned back to the Tang Clan immediately. And unless I also sold the book alongside, I doubt the Guild Leader would be impressed.

"Umm... if nothing else, you can... sell my novel..."

"Hmm?"

"My—my novel. You can sell it for profit."

Ha-yeon spoke with an expression like she’d made a huge decision.

"Hahaha!"

"W-why are you laughing! Y-you never know!"

Maybe she was embarrassed that her big moment was met with laughter—Ha-yeon’s face turned red as she looked away.

"I wasn’t laughing at you, don’t get the wrong idea. I just didn’t explain it well. I’m not allowed to run a bookstore."

I laughed because it was endearing.

"Hmph! Then you should’ve said so earlier..."

Ha-yeon pouted like she regretted ever speaking up.

"Haha. I’ve been banned from doing what I’m actually good at, in a city where I don’t know anyone. Let’s think it over together."

Before coming back to the inn, I felt like I had to face this trial all alone in hostile territory. But now that I had someone to care and help—it felt manageable.

I looked at her like an adventurer who had just recruited a powerful support character that passively boosts your stats just by being nearby.

"L-let’s do our best."

Maybe my gaze was too much—Ha-yeon quickly looked away and nodded.

Now where’s that food?

"Brother, I’ve done what you asked."

Just as we sat waiting at the inn’s table, a familiar Korean voice called out behind me.

I turned around and saw a black-haired man—the same one who’d begged at the door earlier.

"Good. If you delivered it properly, where’s the money?"

"Right here. But, brother, uh..."

The man looked down, unable to meet the innkeeper’s eyes, glancing at the runny-nosed kids beside him, who seemed to be his children.

"Tsk. That’s not nearly enough for the trouble... I’ll get you some rice soup. Feed the kids before you go."

"Thank you, brother!"

Looks like the innkeeper, Mr. Ahn, was quite generous. Seems like he gave the man an errand just to give him an excuse to eat.

Are there that many Koreans here in Wuchang?

"Looks like there are a lot of Koreans around. I noticed a few earlier too."

As if reading my thoughts, Ha-yeon whispered to me.

"It’s a Korean-run inn. People probably come for a taste of home."

"They seem more like beggars than customers."

"Hmm..."

Just being black-haired is enough to get you discriminated against in this world. Now that I think about it, another Korean I passed earlier looked stunned by my fancy outfit. I guess life’s not easy for any of them.

"Kang brother! Haha! What’s with all the whispering? Sharing sweet nothings?"

Mr. Ahn plopped food onto the table with a hearty laugh. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

"It’s not like that!"

"The young lady seems shy. Is she like that at night too?"

Mr. Ahn leaned in with a mischievous grin, whispering in Korean so Ha-yeon wouldn’t understand.

"She cries her eyes out at night."

She’d barged into my bed and sobbed like crazy.

"Hahaha! Sounds about right."

"What are you two saying in Korean?!"

"He said you’re the most beautiful woman he’s seen in Wuchang. I agreed."

"...I doubt that."

She seemed suspicious, but as she glanced at me again and again, her shoulders straightened a bit. I guess compliments work.

"Mr. Ahn, are there really that many Koreans in Wuchang?"

I turned to the innkeeper, who was still nearby.

"You know how it is, with all the Central Plains people here, there’s work for folks like us doing grunt labor."

So there were quite a few Koreans doing hard labor in Wuchang.

"Oh! Korean? You know Mr. Ahn?"

The man who had been feeding his kids rice soup came over.

"Ah, yes. We’re from the same hometown. Just happened to meet today."

"Really? Mr. Ahn here leads the Korean association in Wuchang."

"Mr. Ahn does?"

"He’s one of the few Koreans who made it in Wuchang."

"Ahem, this guy..."

The innkeeper lightly smacked the man’s shoulder with a sheepish grin. The inn may have been rundown, but I shouldn’t underestimate it.

This is Wuchang, Hubei Province. It’s not a trading hub with Joseon. It’s not even on the coast. The kind of place only those with personal reasons end up in.

To run a guesthouse here—he’d be like a poor foreign laborer running a successful restaurant in the heart of Seoul.

"Wow. You’ve made it in Wuchang, and I’ve made it in Yichang. Must be something special about us Namwon folks."

I flashed a wide grin, trying to butter him up.

"Didn’t you say you run a small bookstore in Yichang? That is interesting. What is it with us Namwon people?"

"It’s the spiritual energy of Mount Jiri! We grew up with that mountain’s blessings."

I spoke with all the seriousness of an elementary schooler reciting his school anthem.

"Hah! The Central Plains folks wouldn’t get it, but Mount Jiri really is something else."

"Haha! Maybe that’s why Namwon folks always do well, no matter how far from home."

I joked like I was a fourth-generation Namwon native wandering the world after getting scammed at cards.

"Sigh... But I might have to close up shop soon."

"What? Why’s that?"

"I started out in the Central Plains as a kitchen assistant, used what I learned in Joseon, and somehow made it here... but this inn..."

"Business isn’t good?"

There didn’t seem to be many customers.

"Because a black-haired man runs it. People avoid us. Still, being in a residential area helped. Locals who didn’t want to cook at home would drop by. I scraped by. But then... those bastards... Welcome!"

He trailed off as the door opened and quickly shifted into his polite innkeeper tone.

Huh? That person—

He was at the harbor this morning. A member of Hao Clan, under Simun Division.

"The Simun Division Chief summons you."

I hadn’t even lifted my chopsticks yet.

---------------

There is no Branch Leader in the Wuchang Hao Clan.

Instead, major decisions are made collectively by the Fragrance Masters—the leaders of each Hao Clan division. While each branch in Hubei Province follows the commands of these Fragrance Masters, they also operate independently.

This is because the Hao Clan wasn’t formed from the top down like other sects, but instead grew from the ranks of tavern servers, courtesans, carriage drivers, thieves, and gamblers.

We passed through a grand restaurant—one so lavish it would’ve been rare even in Yichang—and were led into an ornately decorated private room where the Simun Fragrance Master resided.

Even the pillars were carved with all kinds of fantastical beasts—looks like the Wuchang Hao Clan really was making good money.

As we nervously opened the door, expecting the menacing face of a typical demonic sect member, we were instead greeted by a warm-looking middle-aged man. The type who runs a franchise restaurant by day and still finds time to lead a guild raid online at night, all while enduring his wife’s nagging.

"Those Domun bastards have lost their minds. Attacking their own?"

The Simun Fragrance Master growled as he crushed the report from Wusan in his hand.

"There’s no definitive proof, but the circumstantial evidence is strong."

The Domun uprising... This was a good card to hold onto for Ha-yeon’s sake.

"So they’ve finally made their move, huh? Fine. Acting Branch Leader Gwak—what do you want in return for this juicy info?"

"Miss Ha-yeon was simply caught up in the Domun's scheme. I ask for your help in clearing her of her fugitive courtesan status."

"No."

The refusal came instantly.

"W-Why not?"

"May I ask the reason?"

Pretending to consider it and then rejecting us like that—if there wasn’t a reason, it would be far too careless for a clan leader.

"I’ve got a guess why those Domun punks acted out like this, but if I poke that nest carelessly, we’ll have a repeat of the incident from ten years ago."

He must mean the blood-soaked rebellion that once rocked the Hao Clan.

"Are you saying we should pretend it didn’t happen?"

"Doing something like this means they’re ready to be exposed. Without solid proof, we might end up on the losing side. For now, the best option is to watch and wait—to make sure they don’t pull another stunt."

"Then are you saying Ha-yeon’s case is unsolvable?"

So we can’t spill blood among ourselves unless the proof is ironclad.

"The Domun are already grinding their teeth trying to find her. If we act now and spook them into tightening up, we’ll only make it worse."

"But Wusan’s Hao Clan already suffered!"

"Take it up with the Gimun girls or go yell at the Domun."

Even with Ha-yeon’s desperate voice, the Fragrance Master remained unmoved.

"Is there really no way?"

"Hmm. A way, huh... Kang Yun-ho, was it? You and this girl—have you done it?"

"W-What are you saying?!"

Ha-yeon’s voice trembled with shock at the unexpected question.

"There’s absolutely nothing between us like that."

"What?!"

Why are you looking at me?

"Haha. So there is something. Alright. For Acting Leader Gwak’s sake, I’ll keep protecting her for now. But the rest is up to you, Kang Yun-ho."

"Meaning?"

"You’re Kang Yun-ho of Daseogak—the top bookstore in Yichang. A shopkeeper and publisher. I’ll admit Gwak sent a talented one to Simun. But that doesn’t mean I recognize you."

"By recognize, you mean...?"

"I don’t consider you one of us. So give me a reason to help. Show me what you can do. Then maybe I’ll step in for one of our own’s woman."

And with that, the meeting with the Simun Fragrance Master ended.

---------------

"So many people want to see what I can do lately."

Should I just pull up a status screen or something?

"Status! Staaaatus window! S-T-A-T-U-S!"

If I had one, I’d show it. But obviously, nothing appeared.

"What’s with the yelling? Are you sick?!"

Ha-yeon had returned from her errand and jumped at the sight of me shouting into the air.

"Goo-goo!"

"All of you, stay back."

"Goo-goo..."

At her command, the dozens of homing pigeons that had followed her reluctantly flapped away into the sky.

"I just yelled out of frustration. And these pigeons—where’d they come from?"

We didn’t bring them with us when we came here.

"They’re the ones I sent from Wusan to Wuchang. They returned them, but since they just turn back into normal pigeons in the wild, I’m thinking of releasing them."

If she keeps them all, she’ll turn into Pidgeot Mom instead of Shadowless Phantom Thief.

"They’re kind of like spirit beasts, aren’t they?"

"Once in a while, one like Goo-goo is born that can understand speech. But most are just durable, clever messengers. That’s why we don’t name them."

So they’re like mass-produced familiars.

I nodded, and we started heading back toward the inn.

"Something that’ll make the Simun accept me, huh..."

First the Guild Leader’s test, now the Hao Clan’s. It feels like I’m being forced into the next question before I’ve even finished the listening section.

"Don’t overthink it. Just focus on Daseogak. And if it really doesn’t work out..."

Ha-yeon trailed off. She was thinking of giving up again.

"I’ll solve both. Don’t even think about giving up—just give me your full support."

Sometimes cheering someone on is nice, but what they really need is to feel needed. To feel like their hand is the one helping you stand up.

I looked at her and reassured her with a steady voice.

"...So you mean—"

"Quit it, you bastards!!! You’re ruining my shop!!!"

Ha-yeon’s words were cut off by shouting in the distance.

"That’s coming from our inn, isn’t it?"

---------------

"What the hell happened?"

We rushed back to the inn to find total chaos inside.

"Aigoohhh!"

Turning my head, I saw the innkeeper, Mr. Ahn, bawling like a child. What on earth happened?

"Ahem. Here, take this for the repairs."

"Why—why is it always my inn?!"

"Well, the first blood was spilled here. Shouldn’t it be paid back in blood here, too?"

"You bastards do it here because you know you won’t get retaliated against!!!"

Looks like martial artists fought in the inn again.

Several swordsmen stood among the wreckage, while others lay dead on the floor.

And clearly, this wasn’t the first time.

"Look at this black-haired savage getting angry! Hey, fork over some cash! We’ll fix it up before the next brawl!"

"You couldn’t buy a single chair with that!"

"Whatever. Let’s go. Fights hit different in inns, don’t they?"

"Totally!"

They left the inn laughing, paying no mind to the shattered furniture or the devastated owner.

"Brother, what happened?"

I asked Mr. Ahn as he dragged a severed limb into a corner, shoulders sagging.

"Today’s the day I’m closing up shop. Can’t keep running this place with martial artists causing havoc."

He turned his head away, maybe not wanting to show tears to someone younger from the same hometown.

So this is why he wanted to close the inn—because of the martial artists. Of course. Martial artists never bring good news.

Honestly, running an inn is one of the worst jobs in wuxia fiction.

Wait—an inn?

My mind began assembling the pieces. Problems and conditions.

What am I lacking? Connections in Wuchang. What do I need to do? Pass the Simun test. Pass the Guild Leader’s test.

What do I have? What can I use? What strengths do I have?

Got it.

"Brother."

I had a way to solve everything at once.

"What?"

"I’ll take ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) over this inn."