Chapter 21

Chapter 21:

I heard later that the bastard had gone to the Scholarly World.

At first, I didn’t believe it.

No matter what, that subhuman bastard wouldn’t fit in with the Scholarly World, even if he died.

So I made inquiries later, and that bastard really had gone to the Scholarly World! What’s more, he had sought out Moon Yu-hwan, who was renowned as the Three Excellence Grand Scholar of his generation.

Thanks to that, I found out.

All those strange rumors that had been circulating about the Three Excellence Grand Scholar were all because of that bastard!

Anyway, wherever he goes, he only causes trouble!

Meeting that bastard was the mistake of my lifetime! A mistake!

***

Moon Yu-hwan slowly lifted his teacup.

Enjoying the Way of Tea while gazing at the blue sky on an afternoon when autumn’s mood had fully settled was one of Moon Yu-hwan’s long-cherished pleasures.

Especially on clear days like this, his spirits would naturally lift and he would often gaze at the sky for a long time.

As the cool air blew and tickled his cheek, Moon Yu-hwan wore a pleasant smile. On days like this, just quietly gazing at the distant sky without doing anything would calm his heart.

Learning is not only found in books. There is also learning in nature.

Just then, a voice that disturbed Moon Yu-hwan’s mood was heard.

“Father.”

Moon Yu-hwan’s brow furrowed slightly.

He hated being disturbed while enjoying the Way of Tea more than anything in the world.

But his daughter couldn’t possibly be unaware of this fact, so surely something had happened that warranted interrupting his Way of Tea. Moon Yu-hwan calmed his briefly agitated heart and spoke.

“Come in.”

The door opened and his daughter Moon Eun-ji entered.

“What is it?”

Moon Eun-ji spoke with an apologetic expression.

“A guest has come to see you.”

“A guest?”

“Yes.”

Moon Yu-hwan tilted his head.

“Is there someone who requested to see me today?”

“There was no appointment.”

“It is improper to treat guests carelessly. However, if it’s a guest without a prior appointment, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to call them an uninvited guest. If they’re an uninvited guest, tell them politely not to be offended and to make an appointment before coming.”

Moon Eun-ji nodded.

“I will do so.”

Moon Yu-hwan lifted his teacup and was about to nod when he asked just in case.

“But what did they say their business was?”

“Well… they said they wanted to engage in Hand Conversation.”

Instantly, Moon Yu-hwan’s eyebrows twitched. For someone who showed little change in expression, such a visible change in his face was not easy.

“Hand Conversation?”

“Yes.”

Hand Conversation meant Go.

Moon Yu-hwan was a person called by the title Three Excellence Grand Scholar in the Scholarly World.

One of the three excellences was scholarship, another was character, and the last was Go.

He had engaged in Hand Conversation with renowned Go players throughout the land, and had now risen to a position where the title National Master was fitting. [TL/N: Go is a strategic board game where two players compete to control territory using black and white stones.

]

A slight smile formed on Moon Yu-hwan’s lips.

While receiving the excessive title of National Master was certainly something to be pleased about, it had made finding someone willing to engage in Hand Conversation with him increasingly difficult for the past few years.

No matter how outstanding one’s ability, wouldn’t it be sad if there was no one to share it with?

The fact that someone had come to play Go after such a long time caught Moon Yu-hwan’s interest.

“I’ve changed my mind. Escort that person in.”

Moon Eun-ji hesitated slightly.

“But Father…”

“What is it?”

“The guest’s attire is…”

Anger flared on Moon Yu-hwan’s face.

“Are you now judging a guest by their attire! How rude it is to judge people by such superficial appearances—I’ve told you this so many times, but what have you learned!”

Moon Eun-ji flinched and bowed her head.

“…I will bring them in.”

“Ahem!”

Moon Yu-hwan let out a displeased cough with a clearly dissatisfied expression.

Even though she was his daughter, he had put so much effort into teaching her the basics of Confucian learning. Yet the fact that she still couldn’t observe the most basic principles made Moon Yu-hwan uncomfortable.

‘She’s not usually that kind of child…’

If only her gender were different, she was a child with the qualities to not only achieve fame and honor but become a great scholar. But why was she showing such a disappointing side today?

After some time, Moon Eun-ji entered the room again.

And someone followed behind her.

Moon Yu-hwan’s eyes widened.

Moon Yu-hwan glanced at Moon Eun-ji. Moon Eun-ji’s face was slightly flushed.

Moon Yu-hwan looked at Moon Eun-ji with eyes full of regret.

He had said not to judge people by their attire, but how could he have imagined it would be someone like this?

The appearance of the person who had entered the room following Moon Eun-ji was exceedingly strange.

His long, unkempt hair covered his face, and judging by how long he hadn’t washed, a musty smell assaulted the nose.

His clothes were no different from rags, so filthy they were embarrassing to call clothing, and even those rags were so blackened with grime they couldn’t be used even as cleaning cloths.

Moreover, the face that showed through the long hair was truly skin and bones, to the point where it wouldn’t be wrong to call it a skull, and his arms and legs were terribly emaciated.

He was truly someone who perfectly fit the description of a strange person.

“Ahem!”

Moon Yu-hwan coughed to calm his startled heart.

Throughout his life, he had never imagined that someone would visit another’s home in such a state.

Still, Moon Yu-hwan did not lose his manners.

“Welcome.”

When he greeted with a smile, the strange person spoke.

“I hope my sudden visit hasn’t been a bother.”

Moon Yu-hwan looked at the strange person with curious eyes.

Unlike his appearance, it was a fairly courteous greeting.

“A bother? How could that be? A guest’s visit is one of a scholar’s pleasures. So, you said you wanted to engage in Hand Conversation with me?”

“It’s about all I know how to do.”

It was a strange answer.

“Very well. Then I’ll prepare.”

Moon Yu-hwan signaled to Moon Eun-ji to prepare the Go board.

But he didn’t have particular expectations.

Looking at the strange person’s appearance, it didn’t seem like he would be deeply versed in Go.

This wasn’t dismissing the opponent based on their attire, but a natural assumption.

Go is not something one can self-study alone.

There was no shortcut other than learning from someone with skill or building ability through extensive play.

But looking at the opponent’s attire, it didn’t seem like he would have spent long periods with someone versed in Go, nor did it seem like he would have played much.

He probably heard his name and was thinking of using Go as an excuse to get a meal.

For Moon Yu-hwan, it would suffice to play moderately with the opponent and then help him a little. While it was regrettable to waste time, it was something he had brought upon himself, so whom could he blame?

The Go board was brought in and Moon Yu-hwan took white.

As soon as the Go board arrived, the strange person picked up a stone without a word and made his move.

Clack!

With a clear sound, the Go stone settled on the small eye.

Moon Yu-hwan straightened his posture.

The leisure that had been prevalent on his face just moments before had already vanished without a trace.

Those with some knowledge of Go could gauge their opponent’s skill level to some extent just by watching them place stones.

While they couldn’t know the exact skill level, they could easily tell whether the opponent was someone who had played Go extensively or was a beginner.

However, contrary to his outward appearance, the way the strange person placed Go stones was definitely not that of a beginner.

A Go player who had experienced countless games through hundreds of battles!

While it was unknown why such a person was dressed in such attire, that wasn’t important right now. What was important was that after an unimaginably long time, a Go player he wanted to face was right before his eyes.

Moon Yu-hwan abandoned his attitude of looking down on his opponent and wore a pleasant smile.

It felt like he would be able to play an enjoyable game of Go after a long time.

Cold sweat beaded on Moon Yu-hwan’s forehead.

‘Hmm…’

Unbecoming of someone called Three Excellence Grand Scholar, Moon Yu-hwan’s face was already rigidly hardened with tension. If those who knew him had seen this sight, they would have rubbed their eyes several times wondering what on earth was happening.

The Three Excellence Grand Scholar breaking into cold sweat, and while playing Go at that!

The person who had made him so tense was naturally the strange person sitting across from him.

The strange person’s skill exceeded Moon Yu-hwan’s expectations.

It wasn’t simply that he was good, but to the degree that Moon Yu-hwan had to admit he found it difficult to predict the outcome himself.

The strange person’s Go skill was tremendous—enough to make even Moon Yu-hwan, whose skill could compete for first in the world, tense.

‘Amazing.’

To speak coldly, in pure Go skill, Moon Yu-hwan was certainly ahead of the strange person. While the strange person’s skill was excellent, it wasn’t yet enough to face Moon Yu-hwan.

But the way the strange person played Go had the power to make even Moon Yu-hwan involuntarily shake his head.

Moon Yu-hwan played Go like a gentle river, not going against the natural order. He never overextended and slowly built up influence. He would step back from the opponent’s threats and unfailingly obtain what needed to be obtained.

Therefore, those who played Go with Moon Yu-hwan would end up playing strange games where they couldn’t find any particular mistakes or major blunders, yet when looking at the results, they had been completely defeated.

But the strange person was the complete opposite of Moon Yu-hwan.

His Go style was like an angry typhoon.

Even when it wasn’t yet time to start a fight, he would attack aggressively like someone crazed for battle.

If he saw even the slightest profit, he would rush in like a demon and bite down like lightning.

Even if others would ignore such tiny gaps, he would charge in without caring at all about damage to his own influence, and he wasn’t the least bit afraid of losing in battle.

Truly a War Ghost!

Moreover, his speed of placing stones was unlike anything seen before.

As soon as Moon Yu-hwan placed a stone, he would immediately make his move as if he had anticipated it, disrupting the flow.

If Moon Yu-hwan was a master of orthodox patterns and influence, then the strange person was a genius of unorthodox patterns and combat.

‘Where on earth?’

Moon Yu-hwan suddenly became curious about where his opponent had learned Go.

It was surprising that he played Go so far outside common sense, but even more surprising was that his skill was by no means at a level to be taken lightly.

While it seemed like he had learned haphazardly, within it could be felt the reading ability of hundreds of battles.

Clatter.

Even now, the strange person rolling Go stones in his palm while glaring at the Go board.

Was it Moon Yu-hwan’s imagination that he felt even murderous intent in that appearance?

Strange attire and appearance.

A Go style that was not just aggressive but tyrannical.

Moon Yu-hwan smiled.

What a unique person.

And of course, the strange person sitting across from Moon Yu-hwan was naturally Wei Yan-ho.

Wei Yan-ho looked at the board with an annoyed expression.