Chapter 1 - Fuck again?

I woke up to the sounds of the bustling marketplace, the vendors shouting their wares and the clatter of coins exchanging hands. I rubbed my eyes, feeling the familiar aches and pains of another hard day ahead.

I got dressed and headed out into the bright morning light, making my way to the marketplace to earn my daily bread. I was just another commoner in the land of Koryo, trying to survive in a world dominated by the powerful and the strong.

As I walked through the crowded streets, I caught snippets of conversation, snippets of news and rumors that flowed through the city like the river that flowed through the heart of Koryo.

"Did you hear about the latest duel between the Sects of the Iron Palm and the Flying Dragon?" said one vendor, his voice carrying across the din of the marketplace.

"I heard that the Sect of the Iron Palm won, and the leader of the Flying Dragon was mortally wounded," said another.

"I don't believe it. The Flying Dragon is one of the strongest Sects in Koryo. They wouldn't fall so easily," said a third.

I shook my head, ignoring their chatter. The struggles of the Sects and Clans meant nothing to me, just another day in the endless cycle of violence that plagued Koryo.

I made my way to my spot in the marketplace, where I sold fruits and vegetables grown in the small plot of land I rented from a wealthy landowner. It was a hard life, but it was all I had.

As I set up my wares, I glanced around at the other vendors, the other commoners like myself, trying to make a living in a world that offered us so little.

And so, my day began, just like any other day in the Land of Koryo. A day in the life of a commoner, struggling to survive in a world dominated by the powerful and the strong.

"Hey, old man! How's business today?" I heard a voice call out, and I turned to see a young man, no more than twenty, walking towards me with a grin on his face.

"It's been slow, my boy," I said with a sigh. "The usual struggle to make ends meet."

"Well, at least you're still trying," he said with a shrug. "I gave up a long time ago."

I nodded, knowing all too well the truth of his words. The Martial Artists, the heroes of Koryo...

"I remember when I was young, I used to dream of becoming a Martial Artist," the young man continued. "I wanted to be like the legends, traveling the land and fighting for justice, for the people."

"And what happened to those dreams?" I asked, knowing the answer.

"I realised that I was just a commoner, born into a life of struggle and hardship. I didn't have the talent, the strength, or the resources to become a Martial Artist. So I gave up, just like so many others before me." He said with a bitter laugh.

"And yet, you're still here," I pointed out. "Still trying, still fighting."

"What else is there to do?" he asked with a shrug. "We may not have the strength of the Martial Artists, but we have our own kind of strength. The strength to keep going, to survive, no matter what the world throws our way."

I nodded, thinking about my own life, my own struggles. I had lost so much, but I still stubbornly refused to die.

"Maybe one day, the world will change," I said. "Maybe one day, the commoners will be seen as something more than just flies buzzing around the heads of the Martial Artists."

"Yeah, maybe," the young man said with a smile. "But until then, we keep going no matter how hard it gets. That's what makes us well, that's what makes us who we are."

And so, we went back to our stalls, back to the struggle to make a living.

"Bandits! Bandits are coming!" I heard someone shout, with it I quickly gathered up my wares. Putting everything away I would then run, trying to get away from the market square as fast as I could.

The young man who had been talking to me was slower to react. He reached for a knife at his waist, a look of determination on his face.

"What are you doing?" I yelled at him. "Get out of here! They'll kill you!"

"Don't worry! I'll make sure you and the rest have time to run!" he said, brandishing his knife.

"You'll get yourself killed!" I warned him, but my voice fell on death's ears as the young man remained.

The bandits descended upon the market like a pack of wild dogs, the young man stood his ground. He was no match for their weapons and their strength yet he still swung his blade but in a matter of seconds he was dismembered, his body left in pieces on the ground.

As I ran I would jump and cowered behind a stall, trying to make myself as small as possible. Hoping that the bandits would overlook me, that they would move on to easier prey.

And when they did, when they left the market, I was the only one left. The only one who had survived. I stood up trembling, and looked at the young man's body.

"This is what bravery gets you," I whispered to myself.

And then I turned and ran as fast as I could, away from the market, away from the young man's body, away from the bandits.

I didn't stop until I was back in my small room, with the door locked and barred.

And then I cried, cried for the young man, for the world that had taken him from me, for the world that had taken so much from all of us.

But most of all, I cried for myself, for the cowardice that had kept me alive, for the cowardice that was the only thing that separated me from the young man, from all the others who had died in the market that day.

For in a world as cruel and harsh as Koryo, cowardice was not just a weakness, but a strength, the only thing that kept us alive. And I was determined to keep hold of that strength, no matter what the cost.

"You're back," my neighbor said as I stumbled into our shared courtyard.

I nodded, unable to speak, still shaking from the attack.

"Bandits again?" she asked, and I nodded again.

"They took everything," I managed to say in a raspy, tired, shaky tone.

She sighed, shaking her head. "It's always the same," she said. "They take what they want, and we're left with nothing."

"I saw someone try to fight them," I told her, still trying to catch my breath. "It didn't end well."

"Of course it didn't," she said, a hint of bitterness in her voice. "Fighting back just gets you killed. That's what everyone knows."

"I know…I know"

She said, gesturing to my empty hands. "Just another trauma to add to the list."

I nodded, she was right. It was just another experience, one of many that we had to endure, just to survive in Koryo.

"Come on," she said, taking my arm. "Let's go inside. You look like you could use a drink."

I followed her into her small part of the land and into her home, I was grateful for her unchanging ways. It was strangely comforting to be around someone so cras, in a world where the wrong word gets you killed.

In a world as brutal and uncaring as Koryo, our friendship was probably the only thing that made it bearable.

"Excuse me, do you have any room for a weary traveler?" a voice asked from the doorway.

I looked up, to see a young man, wearing a long green cloak and carrying a sword. He looked like he had seen better days, with cuts and bruises covering his arms and face.

"Just another her.," She muttered under her breath, sighing as she continued walking. Stopping as she picked up a earthenware clay jars that had a unique shape with a wide body and a narrow neck and two wooden cups

"Of course," I said more or less politely. "Come in, take a seat. What brings you to our home?"

"I've been on the road for days," he said as he fell onto the floor, landing on his side but catching the top of his body from collapsing onto the ground.

"I need a place to rest before I continue on my journey." He said in a ragged voice slowly trying to stand up again.

"What journey is that?" I asked, trying to sound interested as I approached him, hoisting him up from the floor.

"I'm searching for the truth." He said, his eyes shining with determination as he balanced himself on his feat. "I'm going to bring an end to something important to me."

"Good luck with that." My neighbour said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"You and every other hero that's stumbled through our door." She said as she started preparing the drinks inside the clay jars.

"I know it won't be easy, but I have to try. I can't just stand by and do nothing." He would say as I pulled out three seats, offering one to the boy as I sat on my own.

"Well, you won't get much support from us," she said, rolling her eyes. "We've seen enough heroes come and go…They just end up dead, or worse, causing more problems."

"I understand but I have to try, I can't just give up. Not when there's so much at stake." He said in a solemn and firm tone.

"Suit yourself," she said as she shrugged her shoulders. "Just don't expect us to be cheering you on, we have our own problems to deal with."

And with that she finished preparing the drink, putting one of the jars and two cups onto the third seat. She then left to return to her bedroom, bringing the second jar directly drinking from it.

I sighed then turned my head looking at him as he sat down on the second seat, I then picked up the jar and poured myself a drink.

"Can I get you something to eat?" I asked the hero, trying to be at least hospitable.

"Yes please, I haven't had a decent meal in days." He said as he would then pour himself a drink like I did, drinking it as breathed heavily.

I got up and went to the kitchen, pulling out what little food we had. I heated up some rice and vegetables, and brought it back to the hero.

As I approached he would look at the food, drool coming down his pink lips. Placing down the food he would dig through it like a man starved for days, I watched him feeling a mixture of awe and annoyance.

"Heroes…" I muttered under my breath. "They always eat this much every time they come through our door."

It was always the same, A hero would come look all noble and brave. Then proceed to eat a town's worth of food then after they had their fill. They'd be on their way, leaving us with nothing.

"Do you have your own food or at least a place to go after here?" I asked, trying not to sound bitter.

"I'm sorry," he said sheepishly. "I didn't mean to take advantage. I just haven't had a proper meal in so long, and I forgot how much I was eating."

"It's fine," I said, trying to be gracious. "But remember we're just trying to survive here and we need a lot of food especially when Gom comes."

"I understand," he said, looking guilty. "I'll make it up to you, I promise. Don't worry about the snow!"

And with that, he got up and left, leaving me with an empty plate and a bitter taste in my mouth.

It was just another day in Koryo, just another routine for the common folk. But sometimes, it was hard to remember that, when it felt like everyone was taking advantage of us.

***

It's been a few days now and it looks like this time it'll be a peaceful beginning.

'Great! no need to gather materials this time' I thought as I woke up and started to walk out of my room.

I had high hopes until I heard the repeating stomping of feet onto the solid ground…

"What's going on?" I asked as I leaned my body outside my window and looked at one of my neighbours pacing back and forth.

"It's a martial artist, he's come to challenge the hero." He said in a frustrated tone.

I groaned inwardly.

Just what we needed, another fight in our small town. And of course, it had to happen right after the hero had eaten all of our food.

I sighed as I started walking back through my house, I would pick up an axe leaning on my wall. I took a deep breath as I headed out of my home, going to the forest nearby.

I started cutting down a tree, knowing that I'd have to help rebuild whatever was destroyed in the fight. Gathering wood was essential for that, lucky enough we don't have cement or rock houses anymore.

As I struck the tree over and over it would eventually start leaning back, then falling over landing onto the dirt ground with a boom. As I approached the fallen trunk pulling my axe preparing to cut it into logs, but then I heard the clanging of metal together.

'Well that was earlier than expected…I'll check it out to see how many times I have to do this' I thought as I walked back to the village and then sat on a soft patch of grass.

I watched as the hero and the martial artist clashed, their bodies moving so fast I could hardly keep up. I could hear the sound of their bodies impacting, the sounds of their weapons striking against each other.

And then, just as suddenly as it had begun, it was over. The martial artist lay on the ground, defeated. The hero turned to us, looking pleased with himself.

"You're safe now," he said, sounding triumphant. "The threat has been dealt with."

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. It was just another routine for us, after all. Another fight, another rebuild. I guess we could use it this time to remodel.

"Thank you for your hospitality," the hero said, turning to me as he prepared to leave. "I will remember it fondly as I continue on my journey."

I forced a smile, not wanting to offend the man who had just killed the martial artist. But the truth was I was relieved to see him go, there shouldn't be many visitors after he leaves after all.

"Good luck on your journey," I said, hoping my words didn't sound as false as they felt.

The hero nodded, looking pleased, and then he was gone.

I let out a sigh of relief, looking around at the damage that had been done to our home. It was time to get to work rebuilding, but for the first time in what felt like forever, I felt a glimmer of hope.

"Maybe we'll have a few years of peace now," I said to my neighbours. "Maybe the next hero won't come through here for a while."

They nodded, looking just as relieved as I was. It was just another routine for us, after all. But sometimes, a little bit of peace was all we could hope for.

*******************

"Another town meeting," I groaned as I walked towards the town square. "I swear, I hate these things."

My neighbour, walking beside me, chuckled. "Tell me about it, but at least we still have each other to complain to."

I smiled, It was a rare thing in these times to have someone you could rely on. As we approached the town square, I could already see the crowd of people gathering. Most of them were farmers and merchants, like us, but there were a few soldiers and officials mixed in as well.

"Alright, let's get this over with," I said as we joined the crowd, steeling myself for the long boring meeting ahead.

But as the meeting went on, my mind couldn't help but wander. I thought about the heroes and the martial artists, who lived such different lives than we did. I wondered if they ever thought about us, the common folk who just tried to survive in this world.

And then, of course, there was the tax collector. I hated him the most. Every year, he came to our town to collect his share of our hard-earned money, and every year, it felt like a little more of our dignity was taken away.

But as the meeting finally ended and we were allowed to leave, I was reminded that I was lucky to have what I had. My neighbor and I made our way back to our courtyard, and as we worked to repair the damage that had been done, I felt a sense of contentment.

As we continued to work on the damages, I heard a commotion coming from the town square."What now?"

I looked over at my neighbour, who just shrugged and shook her head. "Let's go see what's happening."

I sighed as we both straightened our backs, cracking sounds heard from our spines. We looked at each other, nodded and walked to the centre.

As we arrived I could see a dark-masked figure was in the centre of the square, facing off against the soldiers and officials of the sect that had taken over our town.

"What do you think you're doing here you filthy scum!?" One of the soldiers yelled as he drew out his blade, preparing into a fighting stance.

The figure didn't respond, but instead simply leaned forward and dashed towards the men. I watched as they took down the soldiers with ease, their movements graceful and deadly.

And then just as they had appeared, they vanished without a sight. As they disappeared a giant fell onto the ground, it was filled with all the jeon collected from our taxes.

A voice that was both menacing and kind would be heard from nowhere. "Use it wisely."

I stared at the bag of copper coins, then at my neighbour. "What the hell just happened?"

She shook her head. "Another anti-hero, come to fight against corruption and unfair taxes. It's a common enough occurrence, but still annoying as hell."

I picked up the bag of coins and sighed. "So, what now? Do we use the money to fix our homes again? Or do we save it, in case another sect takes over and taxes us even more?"

My neighbour just shrugged. "Who knows? All we can do is try to survive in this world."

I sighed as I stood up dropping the coins back onto the ground, my neighbour would smile as we headed back.

I went about my day, repairing the damage and trying to make a life for myself, I couldn't help but wonder. Was this all there was to life? Just surviving, day after day, never knowing what the next day would bring?