Chapter 3
“What did you just say?”
Namgung Hyuk’s words.
It was a low murmur, but it carried a weight that made the entire building tremble.
“I wish to marry Yeon-hee. I seek the Lord’s permission to promise our future together.”
“You’re taking this joke too far. If you beg for forgiveness now, I’ll let this matter go.”
Namgung Hyuk’s eyes were filled with anger and disbelief as he spoke.
“How could marriage be spoken of as a joke? I sincerely love Yeon-hee. And Yeon-hee also—”
“Enough!”
Namgung Hyuk cut me off as if he didn’t want to hear another word.
Subtly, he raised his aura, pressing down on me.
He rose from his seat at the grand table and walked toward me.
“You don’t know your place.”
Namgung Hyuk was firm and unyielding.
And now, that very firmness was the only key that could save me.
‘I can’t be dragged into this just like that.’
I still didn’t know what happened last night.
But regardless of the circumstances, the fact remained that I had seen Yeon-hee’s bare body.
In the martial world, matters of chastity were taken very seriously.
It meant I had to take responsibility.
But come on.
Right now, I’m just a gatekeeper following my master’s orders, but I have so many things I still want to do.
I couldn’t become a married man already.
Besides—
Would Namgung Hyuk really allow his precious daughter, whom he raised with such care, to marry a mere gatekeeper?
Impossible.
As the Lord of the Murim Alliance, he might even send his secret shadow unit, Secret Shadow Squad, to assassinate me.
So, the only way was to ensure that the engagement didn’t go through in the first place.
‘I have to stand my ground, no matter what!’
I needed to exploit Namgung Hyuk’s fiery temper.
From this moment on—
I was the insolent fool defying the greatest martial artist, Namgung Hyuk.
I had to get on his bad side to escape this engagement trap!
“Father, why are you speaking like that?”
“Stay out of this!”
“Gaga and I love each other.”
**T/n: Gaga (가가): A term of endearment or familiarity, similar to “Oppa,” but with a much more intimate or affectionate nuance. It is considered somewhat childish and overly sweet.**
“Gaga…?”
Just then, Yeon-hee, who had been watching quietly, jumped in.
No, why not just call me ‘Oppa’ like usual?
“Gaga” is way too sticky-sweet.
“Gaga? You shouldn’t call just anyone by that name!”
“He’s not just anyone! And no matter how much you oppose it, Father, we have already…”
“Already?”
“We’ve already promised our future together, Father!”
“Who said you could call me Father!”
When the Lord of the Murim Alliance pushed, Yeon-hee seemed ready to drop a bombshell.
She was probably going to say something like, “We’ve already spent our first night together.”
I had begged her not to say that… Was she planning to kill me from the start?!
It felt heavy.
Namgung Hyuk’s gaze as he looked down at me, and the words that pressed down on me.
But I had to endure it.
“Please, give your blessing! Until you do, I won’t move an inch!”
I had to go all in.
The unwanted son-in-law, and the father-in-law unwilling to give permission.
Two men locked in a contest of wills, neither backing down an inch.
And for the record, there would be no winner!
“You insolent wretch!”
That was the moment.
Namgung Hyuk roared like a lion, raising his inner energy.
It was the perfect opportunity.
If I could appear as a coward who couldn’t withstand his aura…
‘Huh?’
The moment I sensed Namgung Hyuk’s aura, my vision blurred.
Until just a second ago, Namgung Hyuk had his arms crossed, but now his hand was at his waist.
“I see. So, you had the courage to speak such words in front of me.”
“?”
“To think you withstood my aura without blinking. I’ll give you credit for your courage. But…”
No, you’re misunderstanding something.
I fainted with my eyes open.
At least give me a chance to kneel down!
Namgung Hyuk’s piercing gaze, as if to say, “This kid, huh?” felt foreboding.
“I hate you, Daddy! I can’t stand the sight of you!”
“!”
Just then.
Namgung Yeon-hee, who had been speaking formally all this time, suddenly shouted.
It was merely a complaint, but it seemed to be a fatal blow to Namgung Hyuk.
“Gaga, let’s go. There’s no point in talking anymore; it’s just a waste of breath.”
Namgung Hyuk’s expression didn’t just distort—it completely crumbled.
‘Just a little more…!’
No, you can’t stop like this.
Push through a bit more!
But Namgung Hyuk, looking like his soul had been drained away, simply stood there dazed as Namgung Yeon-hee grabbed my hand and led me away.
***
“Yeon-hee, don’t you think you were too harsh?”
“Not at all. He deserved to hear that.”
“Haah.”
“More importantly, I didn’t expect you to withstand my father’s aura.”
I didn’t really endure it.
I was actually planning to collapse, but your father’s aura was way stronger than I anticipated.
“To think Gaga’s martial prowess is at that level.”
“When will you stop calling me ‘Gaga’?”
“What’s wrong?”
“I mean, ‘Gaga’ just doesn’t feel right…”
“You’re going to be my husband, so it’s only natural. Or should I start calling you ‘Dear’?”
I couldn’t get through to her.
“I did swear to take responsibility, but are you really okay with this?”
“My mother always said that when you live together, love naturally follows. Or are you having second thoughts already?”
“No, it’s not that…”
Her intense gaze made my face burn with shame.
Right, I’m the one at fault here.
I shouldn’t have gotten so drunk that I lost my memory.
“By the way, the Lord of the Alliance seemed very stubborn.”
“It’s not the Lord of the Alliance—it’s Father-in-law.”
“Right, Father-in-law.”
“I knew he would oppose it, but I didn’t expect it to be this bad.”
Contrary to her concern, I was worried about the opposite.
Just before Namgung Yeon-hee interrupted, Namgung Hyuk’s eyes had glimmered.
I’m a martial artist myself, so I could sense it.
It was a look of satisfaction at the display of spirit from a junior.
A faint trace of approval.
‘If that’s the case, then so be it! I’ll test you to see if you’re worthy!’
He looked like he was about to say something like that at any moment.
Now that I think about it, I’m glad Namgung Yeon-hee stepped in.
‘What should I do?’
The supposedly fearsome Namgung Hyuk had become an unreliable card.
My plan to provoke him had backfired, earning his favour instead.
Wait a minute.
“Yeon-hee, let me ask you something.”
“What is it?”
“What does your mother like?”
“My mother?”
“Yes. There’s a saying: to bring down the general, first shoot the horse.”
“Hmm?”
“What if we convince your mother first?”
“That’s a great idea!”
It was a brilliant move.
Even if Namgung Hyuk suddenly changed his mind, if Yeon-hee’s mother opposed it, it would all be over.
After all, no husband in the world can win against his wife.
‘I’ll make sure to become a thorn in your side!’
Wait for me, Mother-in-law.
I’m coming.
***
“Phew…”
The quiet silence enveloped the Murim Alliance.
Namgung Hyuk, seated at the grand table, let out a deep sigh, filled with frustration.
There was no one to console him.
—I hate you, Daddy! I can’t stand the sight of you!
The piercing words of his only daughter.
They struck Namgung Hyuk’s heart like a dagger.
‘I never thought Yeon-hee would say something like that…’
It was a shock.
She was his precious daughter, one he cherished as if she were made of gold and jade.
—Daddy is my favourite! When I grow up, I want to marry Daddy!
Her bright, smiling face had been so beautiful.
The daughter he raised with immense love and care adored him.
She had never caused trouble and always behaved maturely.
Namgung Hyuk had felt a pang of regret as she started addressing him formally, but to think that the first words he’d hear from her in a long time would be such harsh resentment.
‘It’s all because of that brat!’
Rage flared within Namgung Hyuk’s chest.
Lee Se-woong.
He was the problem.
Just thinking of that pretty boy’s face made Namgung Hyuk’s blood boil.
That detestable face must have seduced his innocent daughter.
‘If he wants to be my son-in-law, he has to be strong enough to beat me.’
It was an utterly ridiculous thought, but…
Namgung Hyuk was sincere.
Family background and wealth didn’t matter.
‘Without power, you can’t protect anything.’
The widely known temper of Namgung Hyuk was like a raging fire.
If things didn’t go his way, he was known to smash everything to pieces—a complete brute.
But that was the impression Namgung Hyuk deliberately cultivated.
There had been numerous events before Namgung Hyuk became the Lord of the Murim Alliance.
“A needle in the pocket eventually reveals its sharp point.”
Namgung Hyuk’s emergence as a dominant force in Murim, where all sorts of interests were tangled, was not welcomed.
The opposition against him didn’t distinguish between the righteous and the wicked.
Before Namgung Hyuk was called Heavenly Undefeated, his wife and first son were once kidnapped.
Thanks to his swift response, a tragedy was averted, but since that day, Namgung Hyuk changed.
To be precise, he decided to show a changed version of himself.
‘No one can touch my family.’
Everyone involved in the kidnapping—whether from Righteous or Demonic sects—were mercilessly slaughtered.
He even eradicated the clans and sects they belonged to.
Using the pretext of protecting his family, Namgung Hyuk’s actions became ruthless and unrelenting.
Since then, a particular saying spread throughout the martial arts world:
‘Never provoke the Lord of the Murim Alliance.’
Namgung Hyuk would not tolerate even the slightest provocation.
The story of how the Eighteen Water Gates of the Yangtze River became the Eleven Water Gates of the Yangtze River just because they mentioned his family is still well-known.
Namgung Hyuk acted like a time bomb that would explode at the slightest touch.
All of it was to protect his family and those close to him.
If he truly had a fiery temper, he would have slapped Lee Se-woong across the face on the spot.
The seat of the Murim Alliance Lord is not for someone who cannot control their anger.
‘I can’t entrust Yeon-hee to just anyone.’
Therefore, he had no choice but to reject Lee Se-woong.
‘I do acknowledge that he withstood my aura.’
Namgung Hyuk was a force that dominated the world.
Yet that boy, Lee Se-woong, stood his ground against Namgung Hyuk’s pressure.
‘They called him the Fighting Ghost, didn’t they?’
Once a figure who stirred up a storm in the martial arts world.
He was known for cutting down anyone who got in his way, regardless of whether they were righteous or evil.
It was a mystery why such a man chose to become a mere gatekeeper.
‘Should I watch him a little longer?’
The martial artist Namgung Hyuk acknowledged him to some extent, but Namgung Yeon-hee’s father could not accept it.
“Dear?”
As he mulled over this for several days, his wife, Tang Ah-ryeon, appeared.
“What troubles you so deeply?”
“There was a matter…”
“Is it about the man Yeon-hee brought home, wanting to take him as her husband?”
“How did you know about that?”
It hadn’t even been five days since Lee Se-woong and Namgung Yeon-hee visited.
How did news already reach his wife?
“Just give them your blessing.”
At Tang Ah-ryeon’s nonchalant remark, Namgung Hyuk’s eyes widened.
“What did you just say?”
“I said, give them your blessing.”
“What nonsense is this?”
Before he realized it, he found himself shouting.
“Are you raising your voice at me now?”
“No, dear, that’s not it…”
Even a grandmaster like Namgung Hyuk was no match for his wife.
As he sat there, listening to Tang Ah-ryeon’s reprimands, his heart sank.
First, his daughter’s resentment; now, a single statement from his wife.
‘That boy must have done something!’
It felt like the sky was collapsing around him.
—
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