Pay‑to‑Win King of Martial Arts (Novel) - Chapter 105 - A Confident Bet (2)

Chapter 105 – A Confident Bet (2)

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Translated by Heavenly Cat

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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“To be honest, I don’t have anything as precious as Azure Radiance with me right now.”

Oh Jong-yo said. Everyone nodded. Azure Radiance was a famous sword and a treasure counted among the finest in the martial world.

The merchants, who had come out in the mood for light amusement, were hardly likely to have brought such treasures with them. Frankly, even if they had, they would not have wanted to stake them on a gamble like this.

Namgung Hwi shook his head.

“When I said precious, I was not talking about what it would be worth if sold. I meant you should bring out whatever you personally think is most precious to you right now. It can be anything.”

At Namgung Hwi’s words, the merchants’ eyes turned strange. Stake what they thought was most precious right now? How abstract. It was a statement with plenty of room to be abused if someone wanted to abuse it.

“I have no intention of quibbling over what object you stake. I would also like you to know it will not affect my clan’s relationship with your side in any way. After all, if my father finds out I gambled with Azure Radiance on the line, he might beat me to death.”

Namgung Hwi drove the point home. He was openly saying he would close his eyes even if they used tricks.

On top of that, he was saying there would be no problem in their relationship with the Namgung Clan, which the merchants had been worrying about. That was practically the same as setting the board for them.

Even so, no one could move easily. At that moment, Oh Jong-yo downed the wine at his seat and poured himself another cup. He poured roughly until the cup was full and the wine spilled over.

Oh Jong-yo raised that overflowing cup.

“Then I shall stake this wine.”

I let out a bitter smile inwardly. I knew Oh Jong-yo was exactly the kind of man who would do something like that.

Even while doing something so shameless, he showed no excuse and no change in expression. And Namgung Hwi was the same in that regard.

The merchants read the room and began staking cheap trinkets. A few of them babbled, pricked by their consciences, but no one paid attention.

Of course, not every merchant was like that. A few of them really did bring out valuable things.

“This is a bracelet made from jadeite from Yunnan. As you can see, it is flawless, without a single impurity, so it should be worth about four thousand taels of silver. It cannot compare to Azure Radiance, but it is the ornament I treasure most.”

“I have prayer beads made from Hainan huanghuali. I trust you all know that Hainan huanghuali is nearing exhaustion these days.”

Watching the merchants stake their belongings, I was seized by a rather strange feeling. The people here were all names I had heard even in my previous life.

Yet the ones who staked truly valuable things would later be praised as great merchants, while the ones who sold their consciences would become unimpressive merchants or end up in prison for corruption. Knowing that future made watching them rather entertaining.

“What are you going to stake?”

Namgung Hwi turned toward me. At some point, everyone but me had staked their own treasure or conscience.

“Hmm. What should I stake?”

I rummaged through my robes. I did not really have any suitable treasure on me, nor anything of value.

“You have nothing you consider most valuable? That is rather unfortunate.”

When I failed to produce anything easily, Namgung Hwi spoke. I shook my head.

“I do have something precious. It just doesn’t seem like the prices match.”

“Prices? Are you saying you have something more precious to you right now than Azure Radiance?”

“Far more precious.”

At my words, everyone looked at me. They seemed amazed that I could so confidently say I had something more valuable than Azure Radiance.

“Then let us see what it is.”

“You are looking at it right now.”

“What?”

“Me.”

Everyone, including Namgung Hwi, blinked, as if trying to interpret what I had just said.

“If I lose, I will help each of the people who staked on the other side once. Of course, absurd requests are not allowed. It is truly not a common opportunity.”

“Even so, that is a bit much. Are you trying to make a joke of this?”

One of the merchants frowned. I gave a hollow laugh. He was the man who had staked a cheap gem that might have been worth fifty taels of silver.

“This is practically no different from highway robbery.”

“He is already learning nothing but bad things.”

Some of the merchants began speaking ill of me. Namgung Hwi shook his head.

“If that is truly what he considers valuable, then let him do it.”

“Yes. Still, at least it is not embarrassing. Judging by what has been staked, it is about the middle in value.”

“The middle? Did you not say it was worth more than Azure Radiance?”

“Some people here have staked their consciences. Compared to that, mine is worth far less. After all, theirs is something that cannot be undone.”

At my words, the merchants’ faces reddened. Namgung Hwi was silent for a moment, then burst into loud laughter. The merchants who had staked cheap items immediately protested.

“Are you not the most shameless one here? In truth, have you not staked nothing at all? And on top of that, you say absurd requests are not allowed, which leaves you plenty of room to change your words later.”

“Then I would be the one selling my conscience at that time. But do not worry. I am not a merchant bold enough to sell off the last conscience I have left.”

“And that is worth that much?”

“Yes.”

“Shameless.”

“Whether or not someone has acted shamelessly is something only he himself knows. Ask yourself. At the very least, I am not ashamed.”

I shrugged. The merchants could not say anything. Namgung Hwi was still laughing.

“Ah, this is amusing. Merchants fighting among themselves is every bit as vicious as a martial match.”

Namgung Hwi laughed so hard that he wiped at the corners of his eyes with his fingers.

“Fine. Let us go with that, then. If that is what he says, what can we do? As that merchant company head said, whether it is shameful is his burden, not ours.”

“But what kind of board are we staking these things on?”

“If we stake them on each individual bout, the pot will not last. There cannot be that many precious things. Let us stake them on the people instead. On whoever each of us thinks will be the overall victor.”

Namgung Hwi said. It was a fair point. And it was also a statement that lowered the difficulty of the gambling enormously.

“I will stake mine on myself. Naturally.”

“I, I will stake mine on Young Master Namgung as well!”

“Me too!”

Naturally, every stake was placed on Namgung Hwi. It was enough to make one wonder whether this gamble had any meaning at all.

Meanwhile, I hesitated. Looking at Namgung Hwi, I could not properly gauge his skill. He was naturally strong, since he was one of the rising stars I knew by name.

“Hmm. Come to think of it, does this mean it is not even gambling anymore?”

Namgung Hwi muttered with satisfaction. I thought that perhaps he had never intended to stake Azure Radiance in the first place. No matter how promising a rising star he might be, putting a treasured heirloom of his family on the line was an act beyond his station.

“If everyone stakes on me, this gamble has no meaning. A few merchants have ended up doing nothing more than selling their consciences.”

Namgung Hwi chuckled.

Only then did I realize what Namgung Hwi had been aiming for. He had simply wanted to toy with the merchants.

He had taken away the martial artists’ pride, so as compensation he intended to take away the merchants’ consciences and make them learn shame. It was a method so refined that even I had to admire it.

The other merchants who had grasped Namgung Hwi’s intention also reddened. To be merchants who had been openly tricked by a martial artist, that too was a loss of pride. But since they had brought it on themselves, they had no grounds to protest.

“Then let us pretend this gamble never happened and go back to amusing ourselves by staking salt as before.”

“One moment.”

I raised my hand. Everyone looked at me.

“I will stake mine on myself.”

At those words, everyone fell silent. The expressions they gave me were an added bonus, as if they were looking at a madman.

This was a snap judgment. Of course, as I had told the merchants, I was completely confident. My help, armed with knowledge of the future, would be worth more than anything staked here.

And it was practically common knowledge that Namgung Hwi would win. I might be eliminated midway. So if one thought about it rationally, it would be right for me as well to quietly let myself be taken in by Namgung Hwi’s scheme.

But there was just too much staked on the other side for that. Certainly, there were a few worthless things like wine and trash that was not worth money, but there were also many costly items, and there was even the sword Azure Radiance.

“Did my Azure Radiance tempt you that much?”

Namgung Hwi spoke in an irritable tone. He had every reason to be irritable.

His plan would only be complete if the board became invalid. That way he could mock the merchants who had been blinded by Azure Radiance and sold their consciences for nothing.

“That is not it.”

“Then what? Are you saying you can beat me?”

“That is not it either.”

“Then what is it?”

“It is true that the merchants who staked those trashy objects have no conscience. Even so, how can I just stand by and watch a martial artist take away a merchant’s pride like this? That would be shameful.”

I smiled. The merchants wore blank expressions. They, too, had only thought that they had been had by Namgung Hwi and had never dared think of turning it back on him.

“Interesting. You are going to protect the pride of the merchants who were speaking ill of you?”

“It happened that way unintentionally. I simply do not want Young Master Namgung to go back and say that merchants were exactly the kind of people he thought they were.”

The merchants who had been speaking ill of me could not meet my eyes. In the end, the one who had preserved their face had become me. Of course, the consciences they had sold would not come back, but at least they would no longer be completely toyed with. For that alone, they ought to have been grateful.

Even Son Yeong-ui, who had always been hostile, nodded at least for this moment.

Martial artists may have their sense of comradeship, but merchants are no less strong in their sense of community. There is a reason there are so many things like Huizhou merchants, Shanxi merchants, trading houses, and merchant associations.

“Fine. I admit that I had been looking down on merchants a little.”

Namgung Hwi admitted it readily.

“Even so, that does not change the fact that this is a foolish choice.”

“I hear heroes often hear words like that.”

“I cannot beat you in words.”

Namgung Hwi smiled. I smiled back.

With the board thus overturned, the second half began.

The martial matches after the board changed all ended anticlimactically. Under this rule, where people only staked on the final victor, the only ones chosen were Namgung Hwi and me.

The other martial artists had no particular desire to become spectacles, so they wrapped things up quickly, and Namgung Hwi and I also ended things as fast as possible. I do not know whether Namgung Hwi was thinking the same thing, but I was trying to hide as many of my cards from him as possible.

It was different from usual, when after every match they would have to settle the salt and rattle the abacus. The course of the matches was truly like slicing through tangled hemp with a sharp blade. In less than half a shichen, every match had ended, leaving only the final bout.

“So it has come to this after all.”

“So it has.”

As expected, the only ones left at the end were Namgung Hwi and me.

The fact that Namgung Hwi and I met in the final could be called rather dramatic in itself. Normally, we might have met somewhere in the middle.

“Never in my life did I imagine I would cross swords with a merchant.”

“It is an honor for me as well to cross swords with Young Master Namgung, a famous rising star.”

“Your martial skill was impressive. Among the merchants I have seen, you are the second best fighter.”

“Who is the first?”

“Why even ask? Senior Golden Sword, of course.”

Golden Sword Na Han-geol. A legendary figure who was the head of the All-Under-Heaven Merchant Company and one of the Five Great Sword Masters Under Heaven. To be mentioned immediately after that man was a rather gratifying thing. He was a senior I respected as a merchant as well.

Lightning qi flowed from Namgung Hwi’s body, and pale white mist poured out from mine. A different light flickered in Namgung Hwi’s eyes.

“So you were hiding your attainment until now.”

“There was no need to reveal it all.”

“Then shall we begin?”

“Gladly.”

Namgung Hwi’s Azure Radiance and my Ancient Pine-Pattern Sword left their scabbards at the same time.