It’s the Black Snake Gang’s fault.

The boy, who entered through the open doors of the Black Snake Gang, stopped. He gave a glance at every gang member around him, before turning to look at Noh Wongil.

Soon enough, one of the gang members noticed the boy and stopped moving. One by one, the gang members came to a halt, and in the end, everyone froze in their place.

Noh Wongil tried to speak.

“U, u, um.”

The boy whispered something quietly.

“You know, don’t you?”

All the gang members shook their head in one fluent motion.

The boy whispered again.

“You totally know.”

Noh Wongil let out a desperate shout.

“Y-young lord! The thing with Mrs. Nam was a mistake made by a newbie! I didn’t know anything about this!”

The boy called Zhang Hu clenched his fist with a grin.

“Yeah? That means I can make a mistake too, right?”

***

Babababang!

The buildings of one of the biggest organizations in Canglixian began falling down one by one. Fire began to spread, and screams began to resound everywhere.

“We didn’t know anything about this!”

“Sir! Please! Just once! Uaaaaah!”

The people of Canglixian all got out of their homes, and looked at the bright flames that colored the night with a dumb look.

One of the people cluelessly asked a neighbor a question.

“What happened?”

“Mrs. Nam got hurt by one of the newbies in the Black Snake Gang.”

“Ha?! H-how badly?”

“She scraped her arm.”

“Yeah? Her arm got scraped?”

The man looked on at the flames as he said one thing in a very obvious tone.

“Yeah, they deserve it.”

***

There was one person in Canglixian who was not to be touched, no matter the circumstance.

A middle-aged woman who was often referred to as Mrs. Nam.

Her name was Nam Junghye (南定蕙).

She was a very normal woman. She was born in Canglixian, and she hadn’t stepped outside this town for a whole 43 years of her life. There was nothing abnormal about her, nor was there anything strange about her.

The reason why she became untouchable was because of this one thing.

It was because of her son, Nam Zhang Hu.

Zhang Hu was a geniu.. no, no.

A monster.

He was a filial monster who would destroy the entire town if anything happened to Mrs. Nam.

Strangely enough, though, the only one who did not know about this fact was Mrs. Nam herself.

All the Black Snake Gang members, along with Noh Wongil, stared at the pile of ashes that used to be their base with blank gazes.

One of the gang members made his way to Noh Wongil on his knees, and whispered something in Noh Wongil’s ear.

“Sir, we can’t keep living like this. We should strike that monster down at once. Even if it’s the Filial Demon (孝惡鬼), if we all run in at once....”

The term “Filial Demon” was what the people of Canglixian used to refer to Zhang Hu. It meant that he was an evil being who was dead set on being a filial child.

Noh Wongil said this to the gang member beside him.

“Have you heard of the assassin Shaohen (燒恨殺客)?”

“Of course! Wasn’t he one of the Ten Great Assassins of Jiangnan, who is said to be willing to kill even the emperor just for cash?”

“I made a request to him two years ago with all the money I had. All of it. I asked him to kill that Filial Demon.”

“And?”

“Did you hear anything about that assassin in the last two years?”

“Come to think of it, no. W-wait, there’s no way that the Filial Demon would be able to do anything to that assassin, right?”

“Right? I think so too. But it’s true that the assassin disappeared right after I made my request. And that demon’s still alive, burning my house down just like that.”

Noh Wongil began to sob.

“Just what did I do to deserve something like this?”

Around then, footsteps were heard from the front gate. Soldiers began to stream through one by one. There were around about fifty of them in total.

The governor of the town walked in after these soldiers. He seemed almost exasperated.

“I can’t take this anymore! Just what do you people think you’re doing!?”

Noh Wongil’s face brightened.

“Oh, sir! Why’d you take so long!”

It seemed that the governor himself came to deal with the Filial Demon. Zhang Hu, after setting a fire to the last building in the area, walked over with a curious look. The governor looked at Zhang Hu with absolute fury in his eyes.

“You! Do you know what you have done?!”

Zhang Hu simply stared. Then, he narrowed his eyes in annoyance.

Following this, the governor’s eyes of fury changed targets right over to Noh Wongil.

“Didn’t you hear what I said? Do you understand just what you’ve done here?!”

“What?”

Noh Wongil blinked. The governor shouted again.

“Hah! You! Did you really think you’d be safe even after touching Mrs. Nam?! Soldiers, what are you doing! Arrest these thugs at once!”

“Sir? Sir? Sir! You can’t do this!”

The governor firmly gripped Noh Wongil’s shoulders. He leaned over to put his head right next to the gang leader’s ears.

“Come on man, I want to live too.”

Noh Wongil began shouting as he got dragged off to the carts.

“Wow! Just wow! I didn’t think of you this way, but holy hell! And I threw so many sacks of cash at you too! You son of a..!”

As the soldiers rounded up the rest of the gang members, the governor turned to Zhang Hu with a smile.

“Please forgive us, young lord.”

Zhang Hu let out a snort.

“You better watch what you’re doing.”

The governor bowed.

“Yup, yup, of course. Hehehehe.”

Zhang Hu threw away the torch and walked away.

When he walked out of the Black Snake Gang, and went past the downtown of Canglixian to the South for the town, the lights dimmed. The houses next to the road became fewer and further in between as well.

In the end, he reached a tiny house at the end of the road.

He straightened his clothes in front of the door, and put a bright smile on his emotionless face. He opened the door, and entered with a polite voice.

“I’m back, mother. I’m pretty late, aren’t I?”

He was unable to see his mother waiting for him in the front yard as usual.

“Is she sleeping?”

Zhang Hu walked into the house saying this. The lights in Mrs. Nam’s room was turned on. Zhang Hu walked over to the door.

“Mother, I’m back.”

Only now did Mrs. Nam respond.

“Oh my, is that you, Zhang Hu?”

Mrs. Nam opened the door to get a peek. She looked around with a nervous face, as if she was guarding something.

“Mother?”

Mrs. Nam waved Zhang Hu over.

“Come in.”

Zhang Hu carefully opened the doors to quietly enter the room.

His eyes narrowed.

In the corner of the tiny room, there was a woman laying down on the bed. Mrs. Nam spoke hurriedly.

“This miss fell out of the sky a few minutes after you left. Just look at her. Have you ever seen someone this pretty? She must be an angel.”

“Really?”

Zhang Hu pretend-smiled as he looked over the woman. There was a red stain on her hips. An injury.

“To think she’d just fall out of the sky, what a troublemaker..”

Zhang Hu’s eyebrows shifted as he said this.

***

Han Liyuan (韓李淵) was already awake. But since she felt that pretending to be unconscious would be better for her, that was exactly what she did. It was hard for her not to be found out, though. After all, it was very hard for her not to burst out laughing when she heard the conversation between the couple next to her.

‘Me? An angel?’

Right.

She might look like an angel. She was pretty beautiful, after all. The boy seemed to think otherwise, though.

“But she’s a little too dirty to be called an angel.”

Han Liyuan’s lips twitched. That’s just because I haven’t washed myself, damn it! I was still this pretty, even though I haven’t slept for ten days, washed myself for ten days, and haven’t eaten for ten days. Isn’t that pretty impressive?

..was what she wanted to say, but she couldn’t do anything since she was pretending to be unconscious.

The middle-aged woman spoke next.

“Even so, isn’t she really pretty? Oh dear, look at me. I forgot to take in the laundry.”

“You should go do that, then. I’ll watch over this lady.”

“Right. Give me a moment.”

The middle-aged lady left the room. The boy walked over to the girl, and stretched out his hands towards Han Liyuan.

Liyuan’s lips twitched again.

‘Oh? Look at him? He’s trying to touch me?’

Did this country bumpkin lose his mind after seeing a pretty girl like her? She wondered briefly if she wanted to open her eyes, but then Zhang Hu’s hands went right under her body.

He lifted up Liyuan to step out.

‘He’s taking me somewhere? Could it be?’

Liyuan couldn’t take it anymore, and decided to open her right eye. The boy was taking her to the front door of the house.

‘So he’s trying to rape me in a shady place outside. Country Bumpkins really are quite scary. This boy.. he dares!’

Liyuan’s eyes scrolled up to scan the boy’s face.

‘He dare.. oh, he’s handsome.’

The boy was totally her type, actually.

‘He’s a bit young, but he looks alright. Actually, he looks really alright.’

But you can’t forgive someone for his actions just because he’s handsome!

‘I should punish him.’

While she was thinking all this, the boy had stepped out the front gates already.

Liyuan finally opened her eyes, and opened her mouth to say something. The boy managed to speak before her, though.

“Bye.”

Mn? Who was he saying that to?

But before Liyuan could even figure that out, the boy dropped her on the floor and left. Liyuan immediately jumped up with a frown, but the boy had already gone back inside.

The doors closed on her with a bang.

Liyuan blinked.

“Did I just get thrown away?”

She was able to hear the middle-aged woman inside the house.

“Zhang Hu? I don’t see the angel from before! Where did she go?”

The boy responded with an innocent voice.

“She flew away.”

Liyuan glared at the gates as she whispered under her breath.

“She didn’t fly away, you threw her away.”

She angrily stomped her feet a few times, composed herself a little bit, then knocked on the doors.

“Excuse me? Hello? Is anyone there?”

She could hear the middle-aged woman speak inside again.

“Zhang Hu, I think someone’s outside.”

“They say there’s a crazy woman roaming the streets these days. Don’t worry about it.”

‘What? A crazy woman?’

Liyuan ground her teeth before shouting at the top of her lungs.

“Oi! You bastard!”

***

The six shadows that were busily moving towards the Southern part of Canglixian suddenly came to a halt. These were the five verdant forest experts and Jin Yanhui from before.

“You heard, right?”

The five experts nodded.

“It was that bitch Liyuan, right?”

The experts nodded again. Yanhui turned to where the sound came from.

“Let’s go.”

One of the experts opened his mouth.

“But didn’t we scout that area before already?”

Another one of the experts voiced his opinion.

“Perhaps it’s a trap?”

Yanhui smirked.

“You know the girl isn’t that smart.”

The five experts nodded simultaneously.

“True, true.”

The experts turned to shadows again, and moved towards the location of the voice.

***

Liyuan made a regretful face.

‘Ah, damn it! My personality really is a problem.’

That Yanhui and her experts were already close to her.

‘They might’ve heard you, you idiot!’

Liyuan didn’t know what to do. But at this moment, Mrs. Nam opened the door to look outside.

“Ah? It’s the angel lady?”

Zhang Hu was behind Mrs. Nam, letting out a frustrated sigh. Looking at this made Liyuan feel her fears rushing away out of her. Rage came flooding in to replace it instead. But when her rage managed to make its way right up to her throat, she noticed Mrs. Nam smiling in front of her.

“So you woke up. That’s good. So why are you outside?”

When Liyuan came in contact with Mrs. Nam’s innocent face, she couldn’t dare say anything mean. So she responded nervously instead.

“I.. I just wanted to get some fresh air.”

“I see. Are you alright? It looked like you were hurt. It’s not good to get cold air like that. Come inside, I’ll get porridge for you.”

“N-no, I mean..”

Liyuan was hesitant. She couldn’t afford to move, especially when the Verdant Forest experts were so close by. It might be better to just leave the area altogether. Zhang Hu chipped into the conversation.

“Mother, it looks like this lady better be on her way quick. Now then, miss, goodbye.”

He tried to close the door on her– again. And Liyuan became filled with rage– again.

‘Wow! How can someone be so rude?’

Mrs. Nam made a disappointed face before muttering to herself.

“Well, I suppose you’re right. Her parents must be looking for her.”

Liyuan almost shouted.

“Nope! No one’s looking for me, and I’m not busy at all!”

Her voice calmed down a little.

“Would it be alright if I could stay for one day? If that doesn’t bother you at all?”

Zhang Hu threatened her with a vicious look. Of course, Liyuan hit him back with a glare of her own.

Mrs. Nam, oblivious to all of this, waved her in.

“Of course it’s not a bother. Come on in, lady, quick.”

Liyuan moved next to Mrs. Nam, and grabbed her by the arm.

“Thank you, mother. Ah? It’s fine if I call you that, right? You remind me of my deceased mother.”

She then made a face that was about to cry. Mrs. Nam stroked her head softly.

“It’s fine, of course it’s fine. Come inside, it’s cold out here.”

“Thanks mother.”

Liyuan came inside whilst hugging Mrs. Nam. Zhang Hu glared at her intensely. She just smirked in response.

The two went inside the house, and Zhang Hu, left alone, sighed towards the sky.

Then, he began to walk towards the gates.

He closed the doors, and walked to the left doorpost. He pressed the 封 symbol on the post, and a small button appeared out of it.

Zhang Hu spun that button three times to the left, and twice to the right, then pushed it back in. The roof of the gates then began to emit fog out of it that surrounded the house.

Zhang Hu turned back in satisfaction.

He could hear his mother laughing from inside. It seemed that Liyuan had just told her a funny story. Zhang Hu shook his head in defeat.

“I’ll let her be till morning.”

He spoke with a hushed tone as he walked over into his room.