Try Living Well Without Me

“Ah, that person? About two months ago, wasn’t it? They got crushed under a collapsed wall and died.”

“That miss? She’s not here as she’s currently away on a mission.”

“Ah, that woman from the rear village? Her carriage’s wheel fell off while she was riding and she ended up dying, didn’t she? You haven’t heard? It was quite a famous incident around here.”

“He… they say that the dog he raised one day broke its leash and pounced on him. Despite being very cautious, he met his end in that one incident.”

“I heard that he encountered a bandit on a night road. His luck was just bad. The blow happened to hit the back of his head.”

Namgung So So was bewildered.

It had been several months already since she started wandering around to investigate who was plotting against Namgung Cheolbin.

During that time, she had traveled from one castle to another, searching high and low for the so-called victims and witnesses.

‘None.’

They were all dead.

There were various causes of death, but the outcome was the same for all of them.

The few who hadn’t died were all away from their posts.

‘Exactly what kind of fiend is behind this…!’

Such systematic annihilation of witnesses meant only one thing.

It was a way of openly revealing to anyone who grew suspicious, “Yes, there is someone behind this.”

But making it impossible for them to discover who that person was.

They had cut off all avenues of investigation like a network of spies.

‘What should I do now?’

Her brother was still entangled in unjust accusations while she herself felt pathetic for being manipulated by the enemy’s schemes.

She had thought that meeting all the victims and witnesses would lead to something, but they all were said to be dead without exception.

‘Not yet… there is one more, right!’

Hwangbo Ji-yak, the precious daughter of the Hwangbo family.

She was a capable martial artist with whom So So herself had crossed blades in the past.

No matter how powerful the enemy behind this all was, they wouldn’t have been able to assassinate one of the Seven Flowers.

‘But, will Quanhwa reveal the truth?’

What did she receive to betray her principles and take part in defaming Namgung Cheolbin?

‘What does it matter?’

If she doesn’t help, I’ll just torture her a bit.

Didn’t I torment the elders of the Blood Cult to find out the location where my brother was held captive by them in the past?

‘There is no trade in torture.’

With that hopeful plan in mind, she was about to order some food from the waitress when the men sitting nearby caught her attention.

“Have you heard about the Sword Sage and the Three Lords?”

“The Sword Sage went insane and killed the Blade Lord and the Water Lord, right? I heard. It’s said that the Sword Sage has been made the enemy of the entire martial world by the Hahbul Peng family and Su Long River Sect.”

The conversation between the men nearby attracted her attention, having been isolated from current events due to her hectic schedule over the past couple of months.

“Excuse me, what did you just say?”

“Hum, want to hear the story of the Sword Sage? If so, there might be a fee… ahem…”

The man who glanced at Namgung So So shaped his fingers into the form of a coin.

‘An informant.’

“You young lady! I’ll tell you the story for free! Why don’t you come over here! Those people have been trying to charge money for a story that’s several months old…”

“Hey, why are you ruining someone else’s business like that?”

“What? Did you say everything you wanted to say? How dare you make money off such insignificant information!”

“Want to test whose mouth flaps the most?”

“I’m not scared of you! Get up and spitfire, you bastard!”

As the belligerent mood quickly set in, So So, who was already feeling mentally unstable, pulled out some coins from her robe and threw them at the man who had asked for money.

“Don’t waste time and just continue the story you were telling. What did the Sword Sage do…?”

As soon as he received the money, the storyteller sat down quickly and said, “You’re a generous person. Let’s begin right away. It was about four months ago. The Sword Lord appeared at the Martial World Alliance, completely battered. He started saying shocking things.”

“And what was that?”

“While traveling through Anhui Province with the Blade Lord, who was the head of the Hahbul Peng family, and the Water Lord, who was the Sect Leader of Su Long River Sect, disaster struck. By none other than the Sword Sage! At first, nobody believed him, but when the bodies of the Blade Lord and the Water Lord were found at the location the Sword Lord mentioned, the situation began to take an unusual turn.”

“…the Sword Sage? Four months ago?”

Four months ago—wasn’t that around the time when he was with her at the Black Mountain Sword Sect?

Even as her mind became a jumble in that moment, Namgung So So quickly made sense of the situation.

The framing hasn’t ended yet.

“Of course, the martial world was turned upside down! There was even a public sentiment to hunt down and capture the Sword Sage immediately. But what can you do… As you know, there’s no one willing to take the fall for this?”

“Hmm.”

“Unless Master Seung were to step forward, who even knows if it’s possible? But Master Seung has been living in seclusion since renouncing the world, focusing on raising disciples, so no one dares to step up voluntarily in this situation. In fact, even the Hahbul Peng family and Su Long River Sect, though they have publicly declared the Sword Sage as their enemy, seem incapable of taking the lead.”

“Wait a moment, what did you say before? Anhui?”

“What? Yes! While passing through Anhui, where the Namgung clan resides, he died.”

‘Could the mastermind be located in Anhui?’

Perhaps the Sword Lord is the mastermind, she thought, and Namgung So So threw another coin to the storyteller who had told her everything he knew.

With his retainer fee received, the storyteller hastily disappeared, leaving Namgung So So ordering a few more jars of wine and continuing her thoughts in solitude.

…

“I’m Namgung So So, here to meet Quanhwa.”

“You… You Miss Ji-yak…?”

“Is there any problem?”

“Cough… well… ”

Seized by a foreboding thought due to the peculiar reaction of the Hwangbo Sect’s gatekeeper.

Could it be… again?

“Actually… Miss Ji-yak passed away a week ago.”

“…”

“Ugh… what happened this time?”

“Excuse me? What do you mean, this time?”

“Ah, nothing. Anyway, why did Miss Quanhwa pass away? She seemed to be perfectly healthy.”

“While practicing internal energy adjustment, a sudden thunder bolt struck her causing her internal energy to falter and fall into a madness state.”

“Hmph.”

‘An accomplished martial artist like Quanhwa wouldn’t die in a carriage accident. Is this scheme being concocted? What nerve.’

In the end, with the last witness, Quanhwa, gone, her thoughts turned to the Sword Lord.

“Would you like to visit the place where the miss is buried? It’s on the hill behind.”

The gatekeeper held Namgung So So back.

“Excuse me, if you don’t mind, please take care of it for me.”

Initially, she intended to just leave, but something told her there might be clues where the gatekeeper had pointed, so Namgung So So headed to the location.

As it was near dusk, climbing the steep mountain under the light of a single torch was challenging, but compared to the hardships she’d already endured these last few months, it wasn’t that important.

“Here we are.”

The place was eerily uncomfortable, whether due to the night air or the presence of the grave.

Crunch.

With her sword drawn, Namgung So So stood before the grave, her blade glinting faintly in the moonlight.

‘The two lords who died in Anhui and thunder…’

The ominous thoughts wouldn’t leave her mind.

To verify the truth behind Huangbo Ji-yak’s alleged death due to a thunder-induced madness, Namgung So So began to unleash her sword’s energy.

Her body was already weakened from overexertion, but as she summoned the innate energy of the sky, her sword was wrapped in an intense, explosive lightning aura.

“Cough, cough.”

Despite a mouthful of blood and dizziness, Namgung So So wielded her sword with determination, unleashing the lightning-infused attack onto the grave.

Thunder-!

The grave crumbled, exposing the coffin, accompanied by a real clap of thunder in the distance.

“Huff, huff…”

Breathing heavily, Namgung So So collapsed over the coffin.

“An explosion was heard from that direction!”

“Damn! That’s where Miss’s tomb is!”

“Could be a grave robber! Everyone, prepare your weapons!”

Voices from below the mountain echoed.

“…hmph.”

After spitting out a mouthful of thick blood, Namgung So So hurriedly opened the coffin.

Huangbo Ji-yak’s corpse was slowly revealed.

Considering it was just recently buried, the state of the corpse was relatively intact.

Crunch.

Namgung So So sliced into the Huangbo Ji-yak’s abdomen with her sword, free of sword qi.

The putrid smell of decay tormented her nostrils, but her determination for her elder brother was even stronger.

Crunch, crunch.

As the belly was entirely split open, revealing the inner organs, the disarrayed interior exposed itself quite clearly.

Clearly, anyone could tell it was a case of madness induced by energy deviation.

However, what Namgung So So was searching for wasn’t that.

Crunch, crunch, crunch…!

She cut through the disordered energy pathways, rummaging through them.

If what she sought was not present, she would slice apart other organs.

Despite the unexpressive Huangbo Ji-yak seemingly yelling at her to stop through delusions, Namgung So So clenched her teeth and persisted, rummaging and rummaging some more.

After some time,

Finally, upon reaching Huangbo Ji-yak’s lower abdomen, where the dantian was,

“This is…!”

Namgung So So realized that her ominous thoughts had come true.

“Ambit Poison…?”

Huangbo Ji-yak’s dantian was blackened.

It was the traces of ‘Ambit Poison,’ which only a member of the direct line of the Namgung clan would even know existed.

Quanhwa hadn’t gone into madness due to the thunder but rather, the thunder was merely a distraction to mask the cries of agony from the poison’s effects.

The real cause of death lay in this blackened dantian.

“Gr…!”

So, is the mastermind someone from the Namgung clan?

No, the Ambit Poison is so specific that only someone from the direct line of the Namgung clan, herself included, would know of its existence.

Could Namgung Cheolbin have sought revenge?

Given what she knows of Namgung Cheolbin, he’s entirely capable of such an act.

“But that’s not it.”

Regardless of anything else, So So had meticulously gathered all information possible on “White Blade Wanderer.”

He had always been following Sword Flower Jin Gayoung, staying within the Taewon Jin Clan.

“So then… Argh!”

As she tried to continue her thoughts, her head once again throbbed painfully.

Perhaps it was prolonged exposure to the corpse’s foul smell, but she found it increasingly difficult to keep her wits about her.

“I should leave first.”

If she dies here, everything will have been for nothing.

Thinking thus, she hurried to close the coffin and cover it up with dirt when,

“Huff…!”

The aftermath of overusing life force started manifesting.

Her vision blurred instantly, and she lost her balance collapsing to her knees.

Amidst all this, the voices around her were growing closer.

“That way! There’s light!”

“It’s Lady’s tomb! Surround it!”

“Damn…”

It seems like she’s been discovered.

Could she justify herself here?

Most importantly, could she clear her brother’s name?

Her legs wouldn’t move as she attempted to rise.

She couldn’t even open her eyes.

If captured this way, all will be futile, and she won’t even be able to clear her brother’s name.

“Ugh…”

The nausea subsided.

Namgung So So’s will also faded.

…

The footstep of a woman veiled in bamboo hat touched Namgung So So’s body.

The faintly pink-haired woman under the veil was noticeable.

She was in search of the source of the turmoil after hearing the commotion in the Hwangbo Family compound.

“Hey, miss with the sword, if you keep lying there covered in blood like that, you’ll be dragged away.”

The woman nudged Namgung So So.

The unconscious Namgung So So didn’t wake up even with that stimulation.

“Really, I was about ready to just walk away…”,

Flip.

With a light kick from the woman, Namgung So So’s body flipped.

As Namgung So So’s face gradually came into view, the woman’s eyes widened in surprise.

“What…?”

She displayed a look of disbelief.

“You… you’re my sister-in-law!”

And simultaneously, she revealed a look of joy.

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