203

Chapter 203 - Return - 1

I had become the wind.

Where am I? The place I fell asleep was surely a bedroom in an inn, yet upon opening my eyes, I find myself in a room that invoked a sense of déjà vu.

Why am I here? Where is this place?

As I tried to recall, afraid that my thoughts would dissipate like smoke, I couldn't continue with that line of thinking.

Before my eyes was a table set with extravagant delicacies. Dishes I had never tasted before in my life.

How could I, as the wind, partake in food? There was no time to entertain this minor query. Regardless of my own will, the wind started to gust between the dishes and began to feast.

While I was enjoying the meal contentedly, a voice came from behind.

"I wish to see you once more."

"I will live on."

"S...Gong…"

Who could it be? Why are they crying? I wanted to turn around to check, but the wind couldn't turn its body.

"S...Gong…"

The sorrowful voice was so full of grief, it resonated with the wind's own spirit. Anybody who heard her voice would not be able to stay away.

Who could it be?

Who are you, with a voice so hauntingly familiar? The wind attempted to turn around to check.

"Gong...!"

The voice rang out again.

You are...

"Master Kang!"

"Huh!"

What was that? Startled by the shout near my ear, I jolted awake.

"It's morning, you should eat."

Upon opening my eyes, instead of an unfamiliar ceiling, I saw a familiar face. Purple hair and green eyes - a martial artist from the Tang clan who had been escorting me all the way to Yichang.

It was the Tang clan's warrior who had woken me by shaking my body.

You could have woken me more gently. It's morning. Just morning. Sister Bracom, who shouts "Brother," would be the only one to wake me up with physical contact in the morning.

"Did you have a nightmare?"

Seeing me disoriented, the Tang warrior asked with a look of concern.

"A nightmare?"

"It seemed like you were having a nightmare because your expression kept changing while you were asleep."

Had I been having a nightmare?

I sat up from the bed and pressed my forehead, trying to recall last night's dream.

Night. Food. And there was something else. Clinging desperately to the dreamlike memories trying to fly away like smoke, but that's all I could remember.

"It seems like I dreamt of having a meal at a well-laid table."

It seems there were all kinds of gourmet dishes on the table. I can't remember the contents, but it was like a royal meal introduced in a documentary where an announcer is talking about China, as lavish as a Man-Han Imperial Feast.

Feels like there was something more important, but I can't remember. It's unsettling.

"Haha. They say dreaming of eating to your heart's content is a sign of becoming wealthy. With the new year and the weather warming up, perhaps it's a sign that business will be better this year."

"I didn't know that such an interpretation could be applied to dreams about eating."

"Stand up, wash up and let's go to breakfast."

"Maybe it's because I dreamt about eating, but I'm not feeling particularly hungry. You go ahead and eat with the others."

I definitely had dinner early yesterday evening but I'm not hungry. Is it because I ate in my dreams? It feels like my spirit has been fed. Or maybe it's just because I've just woken up.

"Master Kang. Even if we go hungry, we must ensure that you have your meals."

The Tang warrior spoke to me with a troubled expression. I suppose it's because they serve me that they must look after my health too. Or is it because once you fall out of favor with the Chief Steward, there's no going back? They must be worried.

"Understood. Then I will wash up and head out."

I refrained from refusing a second time.

Arguing with the Tang warrior who I owed a month and a half's worth of gratitude seemed tiresome, and it would be inconvenient to stubbornly refuse to eat only to waver by the doorway.

"We're only about ten days away from Yichang. Not being able to sleep soundly and dreaming, and the lack of appetite, are symptoms from the accumulated fatigue of a long journey. Please bear with it a little longer."

"Yes, I understand."

"There is a restaurant here that serves food from eastern nations. Since you are from Joseon, Master Kang, it might help lift your spirits. So for today's meal, let's not dine in the inn but go there instead. I'll be waiting outside."

With a bright tone and a smile, the Tang warrior left the room.

It would have been fine to eat at the inn. The Tang warrior could have easily harbored ill feelings towards me, yet instead, they volunteered to offer their protection. There's no helping it since they are caring for me.

I glanced up at the ceiling momentarily.

What kind of dream was it? It seemed insignificant, and yet it left a strange impression on my heart. Perhaps it's because it was the first dream of the New Year.

"I think I had a similar dream last year too."

They say dreams are heavily influenced by one's experiences. Did the libertine Kang Yoon Ho ever sit down to a spread of gourmet dishes? Is it the toxin from a long journey?

I shook off the dream that led to no conclusion with my washing and stepped out of the door.

------- 

Kang Yoon Ho, 22 years old. The new year had come, and it had been nearly two years since he had arrived in this world.

"It's still chilly."

In three years, will I be old enough to make a half-century joke? As I entertained such insignificant thoughts and left the inn, a bracing winter wind that seemed reluctant to give way to the incoming spring brushed against my cheeks.

Looking down the slope where the inn was located, I could see the Yangtze River. To anyone seeing it for the first time, the scene, veiled in morning mist and clouds like a landscape painting, would be awe-inspiring.

I am used to it because I live in Yichang, a city along the Yangtze River.

Where I am right now is a small city called Wusan. In about a fortnight's travel, I would reach Yichang.

The end of our long journey of more than a month was in sight.

"Let's go."

The Tang warrior, upon spotting me stepping outside, led the way to the restaurant.

An eastern food restaurant. It must be a Joseon restaurant, right? At the inn, they even sell pizza, beef stew, and spicy pork, so why would there be a separate Joseon restaurant?

Filled with anticipation, I arrived at the restaurant only to be met with an unexpected sight.

A canvas with characters, sliding doors, round lanterns with writing. It was a familiar-looking restaurant. But this was...

"I thought it was going to be a Joseon restaurant since they said it was an eastern food establishment, but it turns out to be a Japanese restaurant," the Tang warrior said, pointing to the restaurant with an apologetic expression.

"That's fine. I like Japanese food too."

If it tastes good, that's all that matters. To show that I wasn't bothered in the slightest, I confidently opened the restaurant door first.

As the door swung open, I met the gaze of a waitperson dressed in traditional Japanese attire.

"Irasshaimase! Kochira e douzo."

Huh? We all froze at the sudden sound of a foreign language.

Is that their concept? I quickly grasped the situation and regained my composure, but it seemed like my companions had not.

The Tang warrior sent me a nervous glance, as if to ask whether we stumbled into the wrong place and should leave.

No, this is exactly what places like this are like. Once I sat down where the waitperson directed, with familiar movements, the rest hesitantly followed suit.

The Ninja and Pirate wooden figure decorations felt strangely familiar. This must be a high-class Japanese restaurant.

"Master… Do you perhaps speak the language of Wa (Japan)?"

As I looked around, pleased by the Japanese restaurant's typical interior, a warrior asked me with an uneasy voice.

"I speak it roughly. Why do you ask?"

"We will tell you what to order. Can you translate it into the language of Wa for us?"

Aha, so that's the issue? Of course. Walking in and hearing everyone speaking a foreign language can be intimidating.

"Waitperson, here."

"Hai!"

"Please give us a Tonkotsu Ramen, Miso Ramen, and Special Ramen."

I ordered some of the dishes mentioned by members of our group.

Not in the language of Wa, but in Middle Kingdom's tongue.

"Yes, yes. Tonkotsu Ramen, Miso Ramen, and Special Ramen, correct? What will the rest of you have?"

"You, you knew Middle Kingdom's language? Weren't you a person of Wa?"

"Yes. I am from the Middle Kingdom, so I speak its language."

The waitperson replied, as if questioning why the warriors were sounding so perplexed.

"Then why did you speak in the language of Wa when we first came in?"

"I don't know. The chef told us to do so."

It's just the usual protocol in a Japanese restaurant.

"Is that so? We thought for certain this was a restaurant catering only to Wa's people."

"And how would people from Wa come here? Please place your additional orders."

"I'll have a Soy Sauce Ramen."

"Same for me."

Everyone glanced at the waitperson with dazed expressions before continuing their orders.

"What would Master Kang like?"

"Not sure I'm in the mood for ramen this early…"

I had no appetite, and certainly didn't fancy ramen for breakfast.

"Ah! Now that I see, you're from Joseon. We also sell donburi. As you're from Joseon, how about a Kalbi-don?"

The waitperson scrutinized me before deftly recommending an alternative option.

"Then, I'll have the Kalbi-don (beef rib rice bowl)."

"Hai! The order is confirmed. That will be 2 silvers and 50 coppers, please."

A Japanese restaurant. Speaking the mixed language of Middle Kingdom and Wa in a world where transactions are in silver and copper. Yet I'm the only one here with the black hair of a barbarian.

It was a peculiar feeling.

------

"The food is here. As you've ordered a lot, we're including some pickled radish as a service."

This place is tastier than expected. After a long time, eating rice with the sweet and salty flavor unique to ribs seemed to satiate my hunger, even though I wasn't feeling particularly famished.

"When do we plan to leave this place?"

I asked the Tang warrior after nearly finishing my meal.

"According to the Tang clan, the Seocheon Express Company they operate will arrange for a boat. They said it will take some time, so we should rest for a day or two more to recover from the journey and then depart."

"Traveling by boat is heartening news I've heard in passing."

From Wusan, where I am, to Yichang, the Yangtze River forms a connecting waterway. If I could travel by boat, nothing could be better.

"They said they're trying to secure a large, comfortable boat, so you'll reach Yichang after a little more hardship."

"I see."

Yichang, huh? It's been left alone for too long.

There shouldn't be any problem since I left the back matters to the Head Supervisor of the Hundred Families' Workshop, but worries are far from just one or two.

"Do you have some concerns? You've seemed down lately."

The Tang warrior asked with a worried look.

There are a lot of worries. Too many of them, that's the problem.

"We were two when I left, but I'll return alone."

I responded with a light excuse and a bittersweet smile.

"Ah..."

Perhaps a certain person had crossed the minds of the party as the atmosphere became slightly heavy.

"Haha. That's not what I meant. It's just that there's cleaning to be done upon returning."

To lighten the mood, I forced a laugh as if to say I was alright.

"Even after our arrival, if there's anything you need to be done, please don't hesitate to tell me."

"There's no need to go to such lengths."

I don't want to get too deeply involved with the Tang clan.

"I was strictly instructed to bring back the third volume of 'Tang Clan Adventures,' so even if you reject, I plan to stay around for a while."

"I was also strongly instructed by my younger sibling and friend..."

"Author Ho Pil, could you show us the third volume ahead of everyone else?"

So that's what it was? Well, that changes the story.

"I will show it to you first once it's published. In exchange, please help me out."

"Of course."

I nodded as if it were obvious, watching the determined martial artists and smiling to myself.

Free labor. They will help with inventory checks, cleaning, printing tasks, and all the tedious work before I let them go.

------------------

After finishing a satisfying meal, I returned to my room and lay alone on the bed.

"There are too many worries."

Although I had simply attributed it to Hwarin in front of others, the concerns were not limited to one or two.

"First, the operational issues."

We were two when we left, but now a solo return. Apart from feeling lonely, it immediately creates a problem with staffing.

Managing the employees of the Daseogak, inventory checks, bookkeeping, printing work... I helped, but Hwarin mainly took charge of it.

Though it may seem like Ho Pil revitalized Yichang's Daseogak, it is with confidence I can say it was Hwarin who supported it from behind the scenes.

Now that Hwarin was staying with the Tang clan, there will inevitably be substantial operational challenges.

"Then there's the issue of gaining fame points to change the fate of those afflicted by the Heavenly Poison and Cheon Saseong."

Writing books will increase my fame points, but I worry whether just writing novels at Yichang's Daseogak would be enough to save the lives of my loved ones.

"There's also the matter of debt and money."

It was good to receive the premises for Daseogak from Hwarin, but I inherited debt as a condition for operating the bookshop, so the financial issues remain unresolved.

If the heroines I met earlier aren't the true heroines, I must also work on increasing both the fame points for the martial arts dating sim and relevant financial statistics.

"The best solution would be to open a branch of Daseogak, but it won't be easy."

Running one store is hard enough, becoming a franchiser is even more daunting. It's not just a matter of doubling concerns; it's growing them endlessly.

And then.

There's one concern more serious than the others.

"Because of me, a serious trouble has arisen."

Putting aside the conquest of the true heroines, there's a truly significant issue.

An issue so vital.

One that has troubled me since meeting Moyong Sanga.

I deliberately ignored it when it came to Cheon Sohee, but it was a problem that I was aware of.

Since Tang Hwarin has somewhat overcome the f

ate of the venomous person, the issue has now become a monumental one that I must face head-on.

I wish someone else knew about this problem and could take care of it instead.

But it's a problem that only I, in this world, am privy to.

Now, I must confront it.

That problem is.

"The original protagonist. What should I do."