The World’s Greatest is Dead

Poisonous Flower Tang Yelan.

A direct descendant of the Tang family’s main bloodline.

From what I knew, she was exactly twenty years old.

I had already seen her appearance earlier, a beauty with both grace and a healthy charm.

If I were to compare her with Moonlit Delight, Chun Uijin’s sister, they felt quite the opposite.

In any case, she was a very beautiful woman, reminiscent of Bi Yunjin.

Even Chun Uijin, who grew up watching his own sister, had stared blankly at her for a moment.

The problem was,

‘Why was she here?’

Why had she been hiding?

Even though Do Hyung knew that the person before him was Tang Yelan, he didn’t take his hand off his sword.

Not only his expression but also his vigilance never relaxed.

On the contrary, he heightened his refined presence, making it even colder.

“What is your business here?”

There was a coldness in Do Hyung’s voice.

At that, Tang Yelan showed a sheepish smile and said,

“Hahaha… I apologize. I didn’t mean to watch you in secret… but somehow I ended up hiding.”

“What is your business here?”

Do Hyung repeated himself.

He essentially demanded an explanation.

“Um, well…”

Tang Yelan pursed her lips as if she were troubled.

“I have some business with your companions.”

“Companions?”

“Yes, that’s right. Although…”

With that, Tang Yelan turned her gaze toward my direction and took a step forward.

At that moment.

Srrrng-!

Do Hyung half-drew his sword.

‘This madman.’

I had to stifle a curse internally.

It wasn’t just anyone; she was a precious member of the Tang family.

Drawing his sword even more after realizing that…

I had to take a deep breath, amazed by Do Hyung’s audacity.

“Don’t come any closer.”

“Oh my.”

Tang Yelan raised her hands and backed away at Do Hyung’s words.

Her face clearly showed noticeable confusion.

“Oh… Did I forget to introduce myself? I am–”

Before she could introduce herself, Do Hyung interrupted,

“I know who you are. Young lady Poisonous Flower.”

Do Hyung made his assertion clear.

“… Ah, I see. Right.”

Tang Yelan had to show an embarrassed expression at that.

This meant that he knew who she was and was still acting this way.

“Hmm. Then, what should I… Hmm?”

While contemplating, Tang Yelan suddenly widened her eyes as if seeing something unexpected.

“Oh?”

Without any hesitation, she moved closer.

Do Hyung frowned as he saw that.

Srrrng.

He was about to draw his sword completely.

But then,

“…!”

Tang Yelan grabbed Do Hyung’s hand.

Was it an attack? I was contemplating whether I should draw my own sword when,

“This is a sword of steel, isn’t it? Am I right?”

“… What?”

Tang Yelan started to examine Do Hyung’s sword with sparkling eyes.

“It’s even silver-grade! The blade is somewhat worn, but it’s been well-maintained. And the structure shows a lot of effort. Wow… Who could have made this? Not the sect leader, maybe Elder Tae? No, it can’t be… Given this quality…”

She scrutinized the sword as if she were entranced, and it seemed she might even take it soon.

Seeing her filled with this mania, not just me but even Do Hyung paused.

“Young lady Poisonous Flower…?”

“What kind of iron was used? It doesn’t look like regular iron, maybe a blend? Of course, simple iron wouldn’t qualify for silver-grade. I should try– Oh.”

She stopped herself after babbling a lot.

Then, she quickly stepped back with her signature bright smile.

“I’m really sorry. I tend to get carried away when I see things like this.”

“…”

Indeed. She genuinely got carried away.

“Oh, if it’s not too much trouble, could you show me your swords later…”

“What are you doing?”

Do Hyung, who seemed to have had enough, tried to fully draw his sword.

“…?”

But he froze. It seemed his sword had disappeared.

Realizing this, Do Hyung cast his gaze toward Tang Yelan.

“Sorry about that too.”

Tang Yelan maintained her smile, holding Do Hyung’s sword.

When had she taken it?

Nobody noticed. What was she even planning to do by taking the sword?

“Here.”

Tang Yelan cautiously approached and handed the sword back to Do Hyung.

“I truly didn’t hide out of ill intent. Could you please believe what I’m saying?”

“…”

Do Hyung accepted the returned sword and sheathed it at his waist.

Was that simply an act to demonstrate she meant no harm?

“Young lady Poisonous Flower–”

“Oh, and, I don’t really like being called Young lady Poisonous Flower… Could you please just use my name?”

“… Young lady Tang.”

At Tang Yelan’s request, Do Hyung swiftly changed his address for her. I noticed before, but Do Hyung was surprisingly obedient.

“Thank you.”

“What business do you have with us?”

“Oh, it’s not the three of you that I need to talk to.”

Tang Yelan turned her head to look at me.

“Young master Bang Sung-Yun? I have some business with you.”

“Me?”

She pointed at me with her hand.

“Yes!”

Her reply was accompanied by a smile.

Watching this, I couldn’t help but grimace.

Why were this mother and daughter duo acting like this towards me?

‘Ah, damn it.’

I felt tired.

Since Tang Yelan had appeared, I knew her aim was me.

Her gaze had been fixed on me the whole time, after all.

‘This is uncomfortable.’

It was extremely uncomfortable. Especially given our current relationship.

“Young master Bang, may we have a word? If possible, just the two of us.”

I clicked my tongue inwardly at Tang Yelan’s words.

“This late at night? Just the two of us? You’re quite forward.”

“If you don’t like it now, daytime is fine too. But I do prefer the night.”

Just now, she demonstrated her knack for word choice.

Her intentions were obvious.

Tang Yelan smiled as if she wouldn’t lose this match.

Ah, this woman was not easy to handle.

‘She’s clearly not just an innocent noble lady.’

The feeling was completely different.

Though I hadn’t met her often, people with such strong personalities were uniquely difficult to deal with.

What should I do?

Should I just ignore her and go? I could do that.

‘Hmm.’

After a moment’s thought, I decided.

“Senior, Uijin. May I have a word with her first?”

“Are you okay with it?”

“Yes. I’ll be quick.”

Do Hyung nodded at my words.

Chun Uijin appeared a bit disappointed. Probably because of the sparring match.

But he didn’t insist on holding me back.

As the two started to leave, Do Hyung grabbed my shoulder and whispered.

“Be careful.”

This time I nodded.

Careful? Of course, I had to be. It was something I did better than anyone.

Especially when dealing with the Tang family, I intended to be extra cautious.

Chun Uijin and Do Hyung left after exchanging words with me.

I was now alone with Tang Yelan.

What could she possibly want to talk about? I watched her, curious.

“Apparently, my mother’s first love was your father?”

“This is X!”

She hit me directly with a bombshell.

I cursed out loud without even realizing it.

I quickly covered my mouth with my hand, shocked by my own reaction.

“Oh my!”

Tang Yelan’s eyes widened upon hearing my curse.

“…… I’m sorry. I was just really shocked.”

“It’s okay. It was amusing.”

“What was it?”

“I’ve never had a guy my age curse in my face before.”

“You find that amusing?”

“Yes, it’s funny. Normally, they’d fear for their life and be cautious.”

“……Should I apologize again?”

I was even ready to kneel if needed.

“Haha. No, it’s fine. It was genuinely funny.”

Tang Yelan simply laughed joyfully.

Her personality was definitely strange.

Unlike Tang Jun and even Tang Kyung-Eok, who had cold and sharp natures.

What made this woman so cheerful?

“I brought it up to lighten the mood, but your reaction was really entertaining.”

“People don’t usually try to lighten the mood by saying things like that.”

They usually break or shatter the atmosphere.

But the real problem was.

“……So, is that true?”

Because I had secretly been curious about it too.

Could it really be, as Tang Yelan said, that Lady Bi’s first love was my father?

Tang Yelan tilted her head and spoke.

“You didn’t know?”

“No.”

How would I know? I wasn’t curious about my father’s love life.

Was I? Maybe I had heard too much and let it all slip by unnoticed.

“There’s something my mother often mentioned.”

“……What is it?”

I was curious.

“She’d say, ‘There are many men in the world, but never get involved with a man with a Bang surname, even if it means tearing out your heart. If you do meet one, kill him before you get entangled.’”

“…….”

I shouldn’t have asked. I instantly regretted it.

As soon as I heard it, I realized I’d regret listening.

Tang Yelan, having shared something rather murderous, didn’t seem fazed at all.

“Isn’t my mother just the cutest?”

“……In what way?”

“Isn’t it adorable how she can’t forget her first love?”

“No….”

I didn’t know where to begin pointing out the oddities. If I had to pick one.

“Why are you so certain it’s her first love?”

Why was she so sure that Bi Yunjin’s first love was my father?

There was no mention of a first love in her whole statement.

Tang Yelan looked at me with a baffled expression and said,

“If she remembers him that much, it’s obviously her first love. Haven’t you experienced a first love?”

“…….”

It had been an unbelievably confident reply.

I lost my words for a moment.

“Ah… I see.”

So, I just nodded.

That was the best I could do.

“She said that if I met one, my life would be ruined, so if I ever saw one, I should not get involved or even look at him.”

Hearing this, I ran my hand over my face.

What on earth did my father do to make her loathe him this much?

Enduring my frustration, I spoke.

“… Alright, but what’s your business with this Bang family you’re supposed to avoid?”

Why would she come to me, going against her mother’s words?

“Oh, I don’t really care about that.”

“You don’t need to explain.”

She seemed to notice the thorns in my words, but it wasn’t actually that important.

So, why had she come?

That was more important to me.

What was the main point? When I asked this, Tang Yelan hesitated.

“Oh, no… It’s just that…”

‘What is it?’

Suddenly, her demeanor changed.

She had been talking just fine until now, but she started to look shy.

Even her neck and ears turned red.

What was with this reaction?

She looked like someone about to confess their love.

Her flushed face and excited cheeks.

Affection filled her pretty eyes.

‘… What the.’

Why was she acting like this all of a sudden?

I took a step back.

Was she really about to confess?

As if I wasn’t already confused by what I had just heard.

My mind felt like it had jammed and stopped working for a moment.

Then Tang Yelan spoke to me.

“… Moo…”

Moo?

“Please… show me the Full Moon…!”

“…?”

Her shy outburst was quite bizarre.

The worry I had vanished instantly.

And the only thing left was the repulsion on my face.

“… What?”

“The Full Moon… You have it, right? I know you do…!”

“No…”

I did bring it, but why was she bringing it up now?

“Please, let me see it just once… It’s my lifelong wish. I’ll do anything you want.”

“My goodness.”

It was quite a dangerous statement.

Even her eyes were sincere, which made it even harder to understand.

“So, you’re telling me, you’re bothering me to see a broken sword…?”

“A broken sword…?”

Tang Yelan’s expression changed with my words.

“Calling that a masterpiece is a broken sword, what do you mean by that?”

“What?”

Her face showed she was quite angry.

Her wide eyes and sharpened gaze gave a glimpse of the Poison King’s face.

“It’s a top-grade sword that might be forged once in ten years out of steel. It’s a masterpiece crafted by my grandfather.”

“Ah… Yeah…”

Top-grade steel. I was slightly surprised by that term.

I thought it was incredible since Yu Chun-gil used it.

‘So, it’s top-grade.’

I thought the sword made of fine iron was precious, of course.

Top-grade seemed unexpected.

‘Isn’t there only a handful of people who own those?’

Among the famous swords crafted by the Tang family.

If we consider only well-known facts, there’s the Fragrant Sword bestowed upon the current leader of the Murim Alliance.

The Plum Blossom Sword held by the elder of the Hua Mountain Sect. And the sword used by the current leader of the Wudang Sect.

Apparently, the Full Moon was also top-grade.

‘That rusty, broken sword…?’

No wonder the ghostly senior got furious like a madman. I would be too.

Well, anyhow.

“Is there really no way? I really want to see it.”

Tang Yelan, who started talking about the Full Moon, was now trying to grab my hem.

“Hey, come on…!”

“Please…!”

“Stop…! Let go! My pants are slipping, woman! Go ask your father for permission!”

“Of course he wouldn’t let me, that’s why I am doing this! Since you’re the successor of Elder Yu, you must be its owner…!”

I held tightly to my pants that were slipping down.

God, this was an unexpected situation.

“Why do you want to see it so badly, anyway?”

Why would a lady from the Tang family want to see the sword?

It didn’t make sense.

“Well…”

Tang Yelan seemed like she was about to speak, but my words came before that.

“Don’t tell me, is it because you enjoy sword crafting as a hobby? If it’s something like that, you don’t need to, ah.”

I abruptly closed my mouth as I spoke.

I realized my mistake.

“What?”

A stunned reaction came from Tang Yelan, who was holding onto me.

The grip loosened.

And then.

“Oh my.”

Her eyes, filled with desperation, now held a different curiosity and question.

Seeing that, I bit my lip.

‘I made a mistake.’

As always.

My damned mouth was the real problem.