Chapter 8
Note: This Chapter Was Missed While Uploading, this one is Actual Chapter 8.
Everyone has a seemingly perfect plan—until they face the harsh reality that things don’t always go as expected.
I felt a wave of frustration when my scheme to deal with Namgung Hyeo backfired.
‘How did it end up like this?’
I pondered deeply.
Why did I fail?
After sitting idly in my room and brooding over it, I finally came to a conclusion.
It was because I had been too kind to the other party.
‘In essence, it was like providing a diet consultation.’
It’s hard to incite resentment without causing actual harm.
In a way, it was akin to the mischief of a playful rascal.
Maybe I had been too ambitious.
‘I need to be more ruthless.’
The mindset of wanting to achieve my goal without suffering any losses—that was the problem.
Even if it meant becoming enemies with some members of the Namgung family, I had to act boldly.
This time, I resolved to clearly provoke negative emotions.
“I, Yeon-hee, greet the Grand Elder.”
“I, humble servant, greet the Grand Elder.”
“Oh, Yeon-hee, why are you being so formal? Is it because your sweetheart is here?”
“Oh, Grandfather!”
Thus, my next target was the Grand Elder Namgung Hwan.
Although he had stepped down from active duties, he still possessed enough influence to swiftly resolve any mess I created.
Wasn’t it because of his recommendation that I ended up staying in the Outer Quarters?
I intended to provoke him.
Despite his gentle demeanour now, I had heard that in his prime, he was as fierce as any of his sons.
“This is the second time I’ve met you, right?”
“Hoho, indeed.”
“It is an honour to meet you again, Grand Elder.”
After briefly exchanging greetings and engaging in light conversation, I decided it was time to broach the topic.
“I’ve heard that you have deep expertise in the game of Go, Grand Elder.”
“Oh? Who told you that?”
“The Grand Elder’s reputation is well known throughout Central Plains; how could I not know?”
Go.
After his retirement, it was the only hobby that Namgung Hwan truly enjoyed.
**Tl/n: Go (바둑): A strategic board game that symbolizes intelligence and tactics. It is often associated with the wisdom and strategies of martial artists and scholars.**
“With all due respect, I have some talent in Go myself. I would like to humbly request your guidance, Grand Elder.”
“Oh my, Gaga, you can play Go too?”
Yeon-hee’s eyes sparkled with interest.
I looked at her affectionately and replied.
“Of course. I’ll teach you later as well.”
“I’d love that!”
“Hoho, how can I trouble a junior like that?”
Namgung Hwan laughed softly, as if watching his grandson playfully banter.
But would he still be smiling like that when the match ended?
“Aren’t the two most renowned Go players in Central Plains Elder Hwang Bo-chung and you, Grand Elder? Please give this junior the opportunity to be enlightened.”
Crack.
A vein bulged on Namgung Hwan’s temple as he heard my words.
‘I knew it would work.’
Hwang Bo-chung and Namgung Hwan.
The two of them were considered the pinnacles of the Go world in Central Plains.
However, people generally regarded Hwang Bo-chung as the number one player.
‘200 matches, 200 losses.’
It was because of his abysmal record against Hwang Bo-chung.
That single statement was enough.
“If you insist that much, I suppose I have no choice.”
It’s like the petty rivalry between two universities over which one to mention first. Mentioning Hwang Bo-chung before Namgung Hwan was a perfect provocation.
‘I apologize, Elder.’
But what the Grand Elder didn’t know was that in my previous life, I had spent countless hours in a hospital room playing mobile Go and chess.
He might have found me laughable, thinking I was just trying to be polite with a half-hearted Go match, but I had no intention of entertaining him.
‘I want to drive you crazy.’
Namgung Hwan was undoubtedly a master.
But even with decades of experience, he couldn’t match the countless strategic moves developed over a thousand years of modern Go theory.
“Wow, Gaga won? That’s unbelievable! Grandfather is the best player in Central Plains …”
Perfect, Yeon-hee.
Her innocent astonishment was enough to further provoke Namgung Hwan.
“I’ve lost!”
“Thank you for letting me win, Elder.”
“Come again. We must play again.”
From that day onward, visiting Namgung Hwan became a daily routine.
*
Go was everything to Namgung Hwan.
Whenever he engaged in a match on that small board, it felt as if he had returned to his younger days, full of vitality and strength.
Only Go could make his fading heart race again.
“Where’s that guy who plays Go?”
A comment that scratched at his nerves.
It came from Hwang Bo-chung, who was currently playing against him.
‘Damn you…’
The 201st match, which Namgung Hwan had begun with high hopes, was already slipping out of his grasp.
The only reason he hadn’t thrown in the towel yet was his fragile pride, hanging on by a thread.
‘Am I truly incapable of defeating this man?’
Their matches always ended with a narrow margin, but a loss was a loss regardless.
Namgung Hwan had sought out and challenged every Go master who had ever defeated Hwang Bo-chung, and bested them all—but he could never defeat Hwang Bo-chung himself.
It was a terrible matchup.
“I’ve lost.”
“Oh dear. You’ve improved quite a bit. It seems you’re close to reaching the seat of the immortals!”
Hwang Bo-chung’s exaggerated compliments only added to his anger.
“Next time, I’ll win.”
“Yes, yes. I’ll be waiting.”
He was seething.
A sense of helplessness, as if he would never be able to win no matter what strategy he used.
‘Why must heaven create both Hwang Bo-chung and me at the same time?’
His steps were heavy on the way back home.
“Did you win this time?”
“…”
“Victory and defeat are common in war, so don’t be too disheartened.”
Lee Se-woong’s attempt to console him grated on his nerves even more.
Lately, this fellow had been almost as vexing as Hwang Bo-chung.
‘Last time, I just let my guard down!’
It was time to educate his granddaughter’s overly complacent husband.
***
During that period, I used various methods to provoke Namgung Hwan.
“Would you like to take black?”
Starting with offering him the first move.
“How can I take black against a junior?”
At first, he flatly refused, but as the defeats piled up, his resolve weakened, and eventually, he accepted the black stones.
“Shall we play a handicap match?”
“Gaga, what do you mean by that?”
“Oh, it means that black stones are placed on the board in advance.”
“Wouldn’t that make black too advantageous?”
“Black is naturally at an advantage.”
“Ah!”
The next step was a handicap game.
Yeon-hee’s innocent question, born from her ignorance of Go, stabbed Namgung Hwan’s pride.
Unable to refuse, he reluctantly placed three stones on the star points.
‘Not that it’ll help him win, though.’
“Let’s play one more game.”
“I’m sorry, but I have another appointment.”
“I’ll take care of it. Sit down!”
“Elder, isn’t playing consecutive matches the victor’s privilege?”
Running away while basically saying, ‘You lost to me, didn’t you?’
“Oh, can’t I place it here?”
“…”
Pretending to make a mistake and then stopping (It was a bit amusing to see the old man holding his breath in anticipation.)
“Gaga, is it okay to pause like that?”
“Haha, as long as I haven’t placed the stone, it’s fine.”
I continued to repeat actions that were forbidden in Go until I realized something shocking.
‘He’s absorbing my Go skills!’
Despite his continuous losses, his drive to win kept pushing him forward.
His Go skills were improving by leaps and bounds.
Even I had to stay alert when facing him now.
‘Does he still have that much passion left?’
The principles of modern Go that I carried from my past life were fundamentally different from the concepts of Go in this world.
In any era, there are always established tactics and strategies.
For him to break free from these molds and adapt to my style was equivalent to creating something from nothing!
‘Is it right to mock someone who takes Go this seriously?’
It was from that point onward.
That I stopped my silly provocations and began to face Namgung Hwan seriously.
I, too, as a Go player, could no longer toy with him!
But that was my mistake.
***
‘That brat!’
Lee Se-woong.
Even thinking of his name made Namgung Hwan’s head spin.
His first impression hadn’t been bad.
‘A man should have at least this much spirit!’
He had boldly expressed his feelings for his granddaughter during the family gathering.
He was different from the other weaklings who had hovered around his granddaughter before.
That was why Namgung Hwan had offered him some support.
Who knew he would turn out to be an arrogant brat instead of a confident young man!
‘Requesting my guidance?’
His intentions were transparent.
He wanted to win his favour through Go and show off in front of Yeon-hee.
‘Even I don’t play handicap games with Yeon-hee!’
Yeon-hee had been following him around and learning Go since she was a child.
And now this boy had the audacity to offer to teach her?
‘Does she really like him that much?’
She was obviously pretending to be ignorant of Go to make her lover look good.
Watching this scene unfold, Namgung Hwan was at a loss for words.
‘Fine, I’ll go easy on you.’
But he ended up losing.
To a young man who hasn’t even reached the age of thirty, the years Namgung Hwan had accumulated so far collapsed in an instant.
He lost despite putting in his full effort.
More provocations followed, as did more losses.
It was truly the realm of the Sky Beyond the Sky.
‘Is this brat a god of Go or something?’
Lee Se-woong became a thorn in his side.
A detestable fellow who crushed his pride.
‘It must have been like that…’
Click!
The sound of a Go stone being placed made Hwang Bo-chung click his tongue.
“Tsk.”
The 205th match, meticulously prepared with determination.
“I’ve lost.”
With a casual flick, Hwang Bo-chung muttered the words.
Namgung Hwan’s eyes widened in disbelief.
‘Did I… beat Hwang Bo-chung?’
Hwang Bo-chung bit his lip in frustration and trembled all over. His hands busily reviewed the game, as if he couldn’t believe what had just happened.
For a moment, Namgung Hwan thought he was looking at himself in the mirror.
It was the very same look he had after every match he played against Hwang Bo-chung.
“I won!”
“I know, even if you don’t say it!”
“I actually won!”
Overcome with joy, Namgung Hwan hopped around like a child.
What flashed through his mind were the gazes of the Go players in Central Plains.
‘They must have been mocking me as second-rate!’
What the truth was, he did not know.
But that thought was a Heart Demon that had always held Namgung Hwan back.
“It’s ridiculous to see you so happy over just one win.”
“What did you say?”
“Let’s play again. You must prove that your victory wasn’t a fluke.”
Hwang Bo-chung attempted to provoke him, but to Namgung Hwan, who had already been trained by Lee Se-woong, it sounded like nothing more than the whining of a sore loser.
“Consecutive matches are the victor’s right, aren’t they?”
“What?”
“I’ll take on your challenge next time.”
205 matches, 1 win, 204 losses.
You lost to me, didn’t you?
Namgung Hwan used the same method he had learned from Lee Se-woong.
***
‘How did things turn out like this?’
I clearly had many opportunities.
For example, if I had provoked Namgung Hwan more every time he lost to Hwang Bo-chung, I could have easily turned him into an enemy.
‘But I didn’t.’
Sometimes, one must go against what the heart dictates.
Was I, too, captivated by Namgung Hwan, who, even in his seventies, continued to seek improvement, fixated on defeating Hwang Bo-chung?
“Come see me again tomorrow!”
“Elder, Yeon-hee will be out on business tomorrow.”
“Then you should come alone!”
When the title Grand Elder became more familiar as Elder, I should have realized how his gaze toward me grew warmer.
‘I just needed to provoke him one more time!’
I should have steeled my heart…
“Thanks to the move you taught me, I finally defeated that old man Hwang Bo-chung. Oh, his frustrated face… Haha!”
“Congratulations.”
“Now, let’s play until sunset today!”
From the day Namgung Hwan finally defeated Hwang Bo-chung…
I became the beloved youngest son-in-law that the Grand Elder was obsessed with.
This wasn’t supposed to happen…
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