The village I lived in was called Soeul. Despite its good name, it was a place where I had nothing but nightmares from my past. It was a closed-off rural area with all the disadvantages that entailed, frequent ostracism, and everything was controlled by the will of the all-powerful village chief.
Fortunately or unfortunately, the village chief was quite shrewd, and he brought money into the village by collaborating with the nearby Plum Blossom Escort Agency. The reason why he could get away with forcing pretty housewives to be his concubines and using villagers for personal errands without much trouble was because of this.
A village ruled by a tyrant.
That was my impression of my hometown.
In fact, when I entered the Plum Blossom Escort Agency, I was half able to escape thanks to the village chief's permission. The village chief's influence was strong even in the Plum Blossom Escort Agency, so if things had gone wrong then, I might have been a servant for life. The thought that my life could be controlled by the slightest change in the village chief's mood was chilling.
Thud
As I approached Soeul village, I felt a mix of emotions.
' Should I just cause a ruckus and leave?'
If I wanted to, I could create a massacre here and leave without much trouble. By roughly masking my face and targeting the village chief's family at night, there was almost no risk of being caught. There was no better opportunity to settle my past grievances.
However, I had made up my mind before coming, so I shook my head and walked towards the village chief's house. It was a tense and difficult step.
As I walked along the rural field paths, a few young men approached and recognized me.
"Hey, isn't that Soeul?"
"Wow, it's been a long time, hasn't it? Haha."
"....."
There were about five or six of them, well-fed and robust, the kind of young men who could be considered the village's laborers. These guys had been tormenting me, who had been a servant at the village chief's house, since before three years ago. I used to get beaten up by them and was often sent on errands. They were a few years older than me and moved in a group, making it almost impossible for me to resist.
I laughed coldly and said,
"It's been a while. How have you been?"
The leader of the group looked a bit surprised but soon showed a lecherous smile.
"Hey, Soeul, you haven't been beaten up for three years, so you must have lost your fear, right?"
"Hahaha!"
"Then we should beat you up a bit more to make you listen!"
I just stared at them blankly.
I don't have any psychological trauma from being bullied. On the contrary, I've been sharpening my blade every day, wanting to kill these guys, and my hands are itching. I'm suppressing my killing intent, but I could cut their throats right now and still feel unsatisfied.
These guys are weaker than five bandits with swords. Even ten bandits with swords would be no match for me, who could slaughter them in a short time. They are less than insects to me.
What are they relying on to act so arrogantly?
I thought for a moment but realized that the reason they were acting this way was because they didn't know why I left the village. Otherwise, they wouldn't dare to mock me, who left to join a martial arts school. A martial artist would normally avoid such a situation out of fear. The village chief must have kept the reason for my departure a secret.
Understanding the situation, I smiled. The thought that I could act more freely as I initially planned made me feel much better. One of the young men in front, perhaps disturbed by my smile, threw a punch.
Thud!
"Ouch!"
The sound of impact was heard, but it was the sound of the guy's arm bone bending in an odd direction. At the same time, the guy who received two kicks to the chest vomited and fell forward, trembling. The young men were flustered by the sudden turn of events.
"What... What?"
"What's going on..."
Bang!
I easily grabbed two of their heads and made them headbutt each other. The two guys immediately fainted, their eyes rolling back. The others, not understanding the situation, took a step back, and I sighed.
"Ha, can you see my movements? You probably don't even know what I'm doing, right?"
They probably can't react.
I haven't been idle for the past three years. I had nothing to do but practice martial arts, and I trained with a fierce determination to become stronger. Although my talent was average and I couldn't reach the level of a first-class expert, I still developed skills far beyond those of an ordinary person.
"Y... You... You..."
"Hey, you three. Tell me my name, and I'll let you off."
Hearing my demand, the guys trembled as if they couldn't believe the reality. They seemed to realize that they couldn't possibly stand against me.
"Ugh!"
"If you try to run, you'll just get hit more."
I instantly grabbed the collar of the guy who screamed and ran, and threw him to the ground.
Thud
The guy's face hit the ground first, breaking his nose and knocking out a tooth. My sudden movement must have made them realize the gap in our abilities.
"Tell me."
"......"
The former cruel rural bullies turned pale. They looked at each other but remained silent for a long time. I realized they really didn't know my real name, which was quite shocking.
' I've kept the memory of being bullied by these guys for nearly fifty years, and they didn't even know my name?'
To them, 'Soeul' was just a toy to torment at will. I felt something boil inside me and laughed savagely.
"Haha! This is great. It's really great!"
"What... What's great?"
"If there's a sacrifice, it should be eaten with gratitude, right? Don't you think so?"
I grinned.
"Then die, you bastards!"
Crack
Thud!
"Ah!"
A moment later, the guys' necks were broken, and their chests caved in, making it impossible for them to breathe.
Thud
"Ugh!"
"Ah!"
I kicked the heads of the unconscious guys like a soccer ball, killing them. It took only a few breaths to take the lives of six people.
"Ha ha ha!"
After taking revenge that had been pent up for half a century, a slight sense of emptiness and intense pleasure rose within me. I felt so good that my hands trembled.
I did it!
I killed all those bastards!
' Is revenge meaningless? Bullshit! It's just the empty talk of those who haven't tried it!'
I clenched my fangs tightly.
My blood boiled. I wanted to tear apart and scatter the guts of those who oppressed and bullied me. The feeling of being dragged to a corner and beaten with a stick for over an hour, and the memory of being stripped and beaten like a dog, came back vividly after decades.
Revenge must be taken!
I vowed to make this my life's belief.
After calming down a bit, I walked calmly to the village chief's house.
After walking about five li on the mountain path, I saw the village chief's large residence, which was out of place in the small village. I noticed that there was almost no sign of human activity, and most people seemed to be out.
Creak
As I opened the front door and walked in, I saw the village chief's concubine, Lady Xu, who was fetching water. She looked startled when she saw me. I quickly approached and pressed an acupoint to prevent her from screaming.
"...... Uh... Uh..."
Unable to speak, she tried to escape, but I gently restrained her and sat her down at the threshold. I said coldly,
"You can be considered a victim of the village chief, so I don't want to harm you. But don't interfere with what I'm doing. If you don't, your son's life will be safe."
She had a three-year-old son, born after she became the village chief's concubine, and he was neglected by the main wife and Jinhwanjae.
"......!!"
"Understand? Nod if you do. I'll release the acupoint, but don't scream."
Lady Xu nodded, and I released the acupoint. She coughed a few times and looked at me with fear.
"Baek Woong... What are you doing? I heard you joined a martial arts school, but it's not right to break in without notice."
I said calmly,
"You have no grudge against me. When I was rotting in the stable, you didn't treat me well, but you didn't insult or bully me. If you stay quiet, you and your son won't be harmed, so you can relax."
"What... What are you going to do? You're not going to... the village chief..."
I laughed coldly as her voice trembled.
"Don't worry. I won't kill him. I came back to this village to do what I have to do. Don't make things complicated and stay quiet."
"......"
"Where is the village chief?"
"... He's collecting rent in another village."
She seemed to understand the situation. Realizing that getting involved would only cause her harm, she decided to stay out of it.
"When will he be back?"
"About an hour from now... when the sun sets."
It was the perfect time. I nodded and said,
"Where are the main wife and Jinhwanjae?"
"In the main house... and Jinhwanjae is living in the study."
"Living in the study? Bullshit... At this time, he's probably fooling around with a woman in the brothel."
I was certain. When I was a servant, Jinhwanjae often sent me to deliver food and money to the brothel. At that time, Jinhwanjae was rolling around with a woman, emitting a foul and disgusting smell.
"......"
My cold laughter didn't change her expression much. She probably knew that Jinhwanjae had fallen into a life of debauchery and neglecting his studies. I felt a bit bitter looking at her.
' Lady Xu was a poor but virtuous young woman who was sold to the village chief. She was said to be very beautiful and pure, but the world has a way of changing people.'
Even now, Lady Xu's appearance was so young and beautiful that it was hard to believe she was in her early to mid-thirties. She was a woman who didn't fit with the fat, hairy village chief. I had nothing more to say to her and said,
"I'm going to point your acupoints and do what I have to do. Even if you hear something outside, don't try to come out. If you do, you'll be in danger."
Thud
I pressed her acupoints to immobilize her and put her in a room. She looked frightened but seemed to be listening carefully to my words.
I walked to the main house and headed towards the village chief's main wife. She was sitting leisurely, spinning thread, and looked startled when she saw me. She then shouted,
"Soeul, you scoundrel! How dare you come into this house so boldly!"
"Quiet. If you don't want to die, be quiet."
"Wha..."
Thud
"......"
I threw a dagger from my sleeve and embedded it in the pillar next to her face. The main wife shut her mouth, realizing I was here with a clear intent to kill. She looked around fearfully but seemed to understand that screaming would result in her death.
She trembled and said,
"W... What do you want? If it's money, I'll give you whatever you want..."
"Shut up. I didn't come here to talk to a sow like you."
I growled fiercely and said,
"If you cause trouble, today will be the last day for your family."
"......"
I pressed her acupoints and left her in the room. I quickly subdued the servants who were wandering around and locked them in a room. With my internal energy, I could keep them immobilized for about one to two hours.
I then sat calmly in the main room, leaning against the wall.