Love Ballad of the Tyrant King

Chapter 43: Jaseung, Has a Drink
The drinking gathering proceeded in a simple manner.

There were only four people. Lee Jaseung, Dan Woobin, Mujin, and Ma Young-gi.

Lee Jaseung had become famous, and many people now recognized him. Unlike previous gatherings, he could no longer bring along all his subordinates to drink.

The gathering had barely begun, but Dan Woobin was already quite drunk.

He had won many battles over the past seven years, but there had never been a day as joyful as this one. It felt even better than the day Lee Jaseung became the leader of the Black Way Alliance.

Lee Jaseung’s wedding date had been set, and the entire sum of one hundred and twenty million silver coins had been recovered from the Righteous Chivalrous Sword Clan.

That money was distributed and entrusted to reliable financial firms. Officially, it was handled as if it had been deposited by fictitious merchant alliances created by the Black Path Alliance, including the Wind and Cloud Merchant Union.

Having ample funds at his disposal as the chief military strategist of an organization meant he could make plans without constraint.

At the very least, it meant there would be no risk of failure due to lack of money.

And of course, that was the biggest reason he felt great today.

"Can you believe it? Our Senior Brother is getting married!"

Dan Woobin spoke with a flushed, drunken face. He had drunk much more than usual.

He was the one who most fervently hoped for Lee Jaseung’s marriage within the Black Way Alliance, perhaps even more than Lee Jaseung himself.

Of course, Mujin didn’t feel the same way.

"Our Senior Brother is now opening the gates of hell."

Worried that Lee Jaseung might be affected by that comment, Dan Woobin quickly added,

"The happiest hell in the world."

"You talk like someone who’s been there."

"It’s a hell you can’t enter easily, but you can still watch."

At Dan Woobin’s remark, Mujin chuckled and turned to Ma Young-gi beside him.

"What do you think, Captain Ma?"

He expected a simple positive reply, but Ma Young-gi responded with a serious expression.

"There will be many things you’ll need to pay attention to. Things you haven’t thought of yet. It might even become the hardest challenge you've ever faced."

"The real observer is right here."

Mujin cracked a joke, and Dan Woobin gave a slight smile, but he couldn’t help but think Ma Young-gi’s words were surprisingly insightful.

He seemed like someone who had never dated a woman. In some ways, he felt even more distant from women than Mook Young.

Dan Woobin glanced at Ma Young-gi and said with a teasing tone,

"You haven’t been with a woman before, right?"

It was meant to pull him off his high horse, but Ma Young-gi threw back a surprising reply.

"There was someone I loved."

Pfft!

Dan Woobin spat out the drink he was sipping. He was so shocked that he stared in disbelief.

"You had someone you loved? You, Captain Ma? Who was she?"

"She died."

The answer came without hesitation, which made Dan Woobin the one who was taken aback.

Dan Woobin looked at Mujin and asked him.

"Did you know?"

Mujin nodded.

Then Dan Woobin turned to Lee Jaseung.

"You knew too?"

Lee Jaseung nodded as well.

Of course, Mook Young, who was always by Lee Jaseung’s side, would have known too.

"Damn! I was the only one who didn’t know."

Mujin grinned and replied.  

"Because you two aren’t that close. You’ve never even had a drink together, have you?"

He was right on the dot. It was true, their relationship wasn’t as easygoing as the one he had with Mujin. There were many reasons, but the biggest one was himself.

It was stupid jealousy. He had resented that Lee Jaseung had tried to recruit Ma Young-gi three times when he didn’t get that treatment. Today, that reason felt especially embarrassing.

Dan Woobin looked at Ma Young-gi and spoke sincerely.

"I was thoughtless. I’m sorry."

Ma Young-gi replied with a calm expression, as if it didn’t matter at all.

"It’s fine. It happened a long time ago."

But Dan Woobin knew. There are wounds in this world that can never be forgotten. Saying you’ve forgotten something doesn’t mean you actually have. It just means you’re saying it for others, and for yourself.

What if his beloved Songhwa had died?

Just imagining it made his chest tighten.

Dan Woobin looked at Ma Young-gi again, now with a new gaze.

What kind of story was buried in him?

Then his gaze turned to Lee Jaseung. Lee Jaseung was quietly sipping his drink. Dan Woobin wondered if perhaps the story between Lee Jaseung and Ma Young-gi was connected to that past love.

He was struck by the thought that nothing in life could be predicted. This world, and this life, was not one where intelligence or strength alone could guarantee safety.

The martial world was vast, and within it lived warriors as countless as grains of sand.

And within those lives, there were just as many different fates. Some happy, some unbearably cruel.

As each of them sat quietly with their own thoughts, sipping a few more drinks, Mook Young’s voice was heard.

"Hae Ryang is here to see you."

They knew Mook Young wouldn’t step in unless it was absolutely necessary, so they simply waited for him to burst in.

A moment later, the door was roughly flung open, and Hae Ryang entered.

He was completely drunk, barely conscious.

"You bastard!"

The look he shot at Lee Jaseung wasn’t just hate. It was filled with utter loathing. When he heard that Seop Mu-pyeong had won, he had nearly lost his mind. He had been blinded by rage.

"You think I’ll just let someone like you take Lady Baek?"

Just the thought of it made him feel like he would go mad. That bastard holding Baek Seolyoung’s hand, kissing her, and then...

He wanted to rush at him and stab him through the heart.

But at the same time, he was afraid.

Whether it was luck or skill, his opponent had defeated the Greatest Swordsman of Central Plains and won the tournament. If he fought recklessly, he would surely die.

"You lowly piece of shit! You do know who I am, right? If my family steps in, wiping out someone like you is nothing. You get that? How dare a country bumpkin like you show off just because you know a few martial arts moves."

His rage at losing Baek Seolyoung wasn’t enough. Now his inferiority complex toward Lee Jaseung exploded as well.

Normally, Lee Jaseung would have sneered coldly, but this time he showed no reaction. Hae Ryang was someone he absolutely needed in the future. He planned to wring him dry and discard him when done.

Dan Woobin, Mujin, and Ma Young-gi also understood this and said nothing, leaving it to Lee Jaseung.

"You bastard! If you want to live, get lost and go back to your hometown!"

As he shouted, Hae Ryang’s bodyguard, Ham Muhong, stepped forward. Hae Ryang’s fury shifted to him.

"If you get in my way, I’ll kill you!"

He glared at Ham Muhong with bloodshot eyes.

Ham Muhong spoke urgently.

"We need to return right away."

"Get out of my way! Move!"

He shouted again. At that moment, Ham Muhong moved his lips, transmitting a silent message.

Hae Ryang’s expression changed in an instant.

"What? What did you just say!?"

He staggered from the alcohol, trying to grab Ham Muhong’s collar, and fell.

Ham Muhong quickly helped him up.

"Are you alright?"

"Let go, you bastard!"

Shaking off his hand, Hae Ryang ran out of the room in a panic. Ham Muhong followed close behind.

Everyone, including Lee Jaseung, could guess what he had heard. It must have been news that Hae Cheon-in was dead.

But Lee Jaseung’s gaze remained cold as he watched him leave.

Dan Woobin quietly spoke.  

"He has an older brother named Hae Gwang. He’s the official successor of the Righteous Chivalrous Sword Clan."

"What’s their relationship like?"

"Not good."

That was to be expected. Hae Ryang’s behavior hinted at a life that would never allow for brotherly affection.

"We’ll use that to shake him."

At Dan Woobin’s suggestion, Lee Jaseung silently nodded.

"There’s still a lot to be done."

Mujin grinned and shook the bottle.

"And still plenty of wine left."

* * *
Lee Jaseung woke up and sat up.

His head ached from the hangover. He had drunk late into the night with his subordinates. Since it had been an enjoyable evening, he had deliberately not expelled the alcohol from his body.

Looking out the window, it was still dawn and the darkness had yet to lift.

He got out of bed and walked over to the table. He picked up the kettle and drank water in big gulps.

As he put the kettle down, he turned his head toward the door. He walked briskly and opened it.

Someone was standing in front of the door.

Just like the first day they met, the person standing there was Baek Seolyoung. That day, she had entered pointing her sword at him.

"When did you get here?"

He asked as if he didn’t know, but he already knew she had just arrived. The reason he woke up was because he had instinctively sensed another presence.

By now, Lee Jaseung had reached the level where he would wake up instinctively if someone approached, no matter how deeply he slept. Of course, if it were someone like Mook Young and on a night when he had been drinking, it might not be so easy to wake.

Still, that was why Mook Young stood guard over him even at this hour.

In any case, if she had come at this late hour, there had to be a reason.

“Come in.”

When Lee Jaseung turned around, Baek Seolyoung followed him inside.

He poured her some cold tea at the table. She wrapped the cup with both hands as if it were hot. Her thoughts were conflicted right now.

"I suddenly woke up and had a thought. That day when I was being chased and your door opened... maybe that was when my fate changed."

She looked down into her teacup with a hazy gaze, then raised her head and looked at Lee Jaseung.

"And today, you opened the door again. Just like that day."

So much has happened since then. She had failed to master the iron chest’s martial arts, failed to recruit the Black Dragon King, hosted the marriage tournament, and Elder Yang died.

A series of events beyond her control or prediction. She felt like she was being swept away by a raging current.

She desperately wanted to swim her way out of that current.

Lee Jaseung didn’t look at her. He stared out the window.

Yes, she was right. The day she met him, her fate had changed.

If she hadn’t come to his room that day, what would have happened?

She might have died trying to learn the iron chest’s martial art. Or she might have ended up in a completely different situation by using it. No one would ever know.

And at least at this moment, Lee Jaseung could return the same words to her.

The moment she opened that door and stepped into his room, his fate changed too.

Of course, the ultimate goal of unifying the world would have remained the same. But the details would have been very different. He wouldn’t have learned the iron chest’s martial arts nor would he have ended up marrying her.

Both she and he had changed. And much more would change going forward.

Lee Jaseung rubbed his chest and spoke.

"My stomach feels upset. Probably from all the drinking."

"There’s nowhere open for hangover soup at this hour."

At that, Lee Jaseung’s eyes sparkled and he replied.

"There is one place."

A short while later, the two of them walked down a dark road and arrived at a place Baek Seolyoung recognized. It was the One Fleeting Dream tavern.

Thud, thud, thud!

Lee Jaseung knocked loudly on the door, and Baek Seolyoung, who was standing behind him, spoke in shock.

"Are you crazy? At this hour? No, let’s go back. You’ll wake the old lady."

"I’m knocking so she wakes up."

When Lee Jaseung tried to knock again, Baek Seolyoung grabbed his arm.

"Stop it."

"Why are you so anxious? This is a tavern. If the door’s closed, you knock. Maybe they’re hoping for a late-night customer."

"That’s not the case."

"Why are you so sure?"

"The old lady is a special person."

Lee Jaseung stared at her for a moment and suddenly spoke.

"Perhaps that’s why she’s waiting more.”

"What?"

"Special people can’t feel lonely? Wouldn’t that kind of special treatment make them even lonelier?"

"...!"

Baek Seolyoung couldn’t say anything in response. Deep inside, she had agreed with his words. She was reflecting on the possibility that it was something she had never considered.

At that moment, the door suddenly swung open and the old woman shouted,

"What nonsense! Lonely, my ass! What the hell are you doing knocking like maniacs in the middle of the night!"