Two more people came after that, bringing the total number of those asking favors of me to four.
If I carried out their requests, not a single turncoat would survive, so I planned to keep putting it off.
They shouldn’t be punished by my hand or my escort guards’ hands, but by the Emperor’s.
Well, I never had any intention of granting their requests in the first place.
Still, when they asked me to eliminate the others, they handed something over as a show of trust.
The locations where they had hidden the wealth they’d hoarded.
They were probably planning to move it all once this was over.
But I had no intention of letting that happen.
That wealth didn’t belong to them. Of course, it didn’t belong to me either.
“Escort Guard Jin Yu. Escort Guard Yeo Eung-am.”
“Yes.”
“There’s something I need you to do. Escort Guard Jin Yu, you heard what they said about the places where they stored their wealth, right?”
“Yes. I heard every word.”
“Clean them out. Every last bit.”
“Is that really alright?”
“Yes.”
I grinned.
“Of course it is. They wrung that money out of Springview Fortress’s people. So shouldn’t it be returned to Springview Fortress?”
“You’re absolutely right, but… how exactly are we supposed to move that much?”
Fair point. The amount was massive.
At that, I pulled Geumryeong from my sleeve and held it out.
“Take Geumryeong with you. It’ll help you move the valuables.”
Then I turned to Geumryeong and asked,
“Do a good job, and I’ll give you a gold tael.”
Not from the money we were taking, of course. I’d have to pay out of my own pocket.
At my words, Geumryeong’s eyes instantly sparkled, and its rear wiggled.
Did it really love money that much?
The moment that thought crossed my mind, I felt awkward. I liked money just as much. Ahem.
And so, a few days passed.
During that time, the Embroidered Guard warriors and my escort guards started planting distrust among the turncoats at my command.
Their trust had already fallen apart, so badly that we probably didn’t even need to do anything, but that only made it work better.
At least once or twice a day, they raised their voices and fought. The cracks between them kept getting deeper.
Gong Ho let out a sigh.
“Ah, seriously… what the hell are we even doing?”
Looking completely drained, he headed for his new quarters.
Mediating the fights breaking out among the turncoats who had started this operation with him had become his job.
At some point, his perfect plan had started to unravel.
‘When did it start?’
Back in his room, he began retracing everything that had happened.
And before long, he thought he knew exactly when things had started going wrong.
‘Deputy Merchant Lord Eun Seo-ho. Did it start when he came here?’
But he hadn’t found anything suspicious about the man, which only made it more frustrating.
If there had been anything to latch onto, he could’ve pressed him over it or investigated him.
Then something strange caught his eye.
Huh? Why is that open?
One of the two chests holding the funds Eun Seo-ho had brought was slightly open.
Maybe someone had shut it in a hurry, because the lid hadn’t closed all the way.
‘I know I closed it properly.’
Tilting his head, he opened the chest, then jolted in shock.
Half of what should’ve been inside was gone.
He rushed outside and called for someone.
“Wh, who entered my room?”
“Yes?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m asking if anyone came into my room today!”
“Oh, now that you mention it… Baek Seon came by. He waited inside until you returned, Strategist, then left.”
There was no doubt Baek Seon was the culprit.
‘That eunuch bastard!’
He ordered the martial artists at once.
“Find Baek Seon and bring him to me immediately!”
“Yes!”
But a short while later, they came back with absurd news.
“Uh… Baek Seon left through the fortress gate earlier.”
Baek Seon opened his eyes.
Then he realized he was hanging in the air with both hands bound.
‘Where is this?’
He couldn’t see a thing, as if someone had blindfolded him.
All he could tell was that the air around him was damp, the smell of blood hung thick, and faint groans echoed here and there.
He nervously swallowed.
Step, step.
He heard footsteps, and then his blindfold was removed.
“…!”
He couldn’t help but be shocked.
The one who had taken it off was the last person he expected.
It was Eun Seo-ho.
“You’re wondering why I’m here, aren’t you?”
He tried to ask what this was supposed to mean, but no sound came out.
“I sealed your throat acupoint, so there’s no need to strain yourself trying to speak.”
“…”
“Right about now, someone in Springview Fortress should be getting ready to betray the others again, so I had you brought here.”
He wanted to ask what that was supposed to mean. As if reading his mind, the masked figure standing behind Eun Seo-ho spoke.
“It means Springview Fortress is in an uproar right now because they think you stole the funds and ran.”
Then the masked man removed his mask.
“…!”
Baek Seon’s eyes flew wide in horror.
It was Gwon Jik, a man who held a fairly high post even within the Embroidered Guard.
“And over there, there’s another familiar face.”
Baek Seon turned his head and looked where Gwon Jik pointed. Hanging in the air just like him was Jin Dae-cheol, the man who had vanished with the Imperial Prince.
Only then did Baek Seon begin to understand what had happened.
Eun Seo-ho had never approached them to provide funding.
Eun Seo-ho smiled as he spoke.
“Hanging there is rough, isn’t it? Bear with it a little longer. The Imperial Guard will be here soon. I’ll let you down then.”
At those words, Baek Seon squeezed his eyes shut.
He could see his future all too clearly.
But Eun Seo-ho wasn’t finished.
“Oh, and thank you for telling me where the wealth was stored. There was quite a lot.”
“…!”
“I’ll make sure it gets put to very good use.”
At that, Baek Seon instantly lost control.
‘N, no!’
As he thrashed, Gwon Jik’s fist slammed into his stomach.
“Ghk!”
Clicking my tongue, I looked at Baek Seon hanging unconscious from the ceiling, gently swaying.
He won’t need that wealth once he’s dead anyway, yet he’s still this greedy.
The reason I kidnapped Baek Seon and turned him into a traitor was simple. I needed to sever the link between the turncoats and Gong Ho.
Watching Gong Ho mediate their disputes had shown me there was still trust left between them.
And if even a little trust remained, then when the Imperial Guard came to wipe this place out, there was a chance they’d resist together.
That could lead to casualties.
My goal was to resolve this whole affair cleanly, without anyone getting hurt.
To make that happen, I secretly sent Geumryeong in and ordered it to move the money from that chest into my Hidden Vault.
Just then, Gwon Jik said to me,
“This has only strengthened my resolve never to make an enemy of you.”
“Hm?”
“Your schemes are terrifying.”
That was a compliment… right?
“So that’s why His Majesty warned me so strongly.”
“Hm?”
“It’s nothing. I was only talking to myself.”
What exactly had the Emperor said about me…? Well, that didn’t matter right now. What came next did.
The Imperial Guard would be gathering around this place soon, and they had to make it inside.
Helping them was the job of the Embroidered Guard warriors working with me.
“Then sneak outside and rendezvous with the rest of the Embroidered Guard and the Imperial Guard.”
“Understood.”
After giving that order, I returned to my room.
“…?”
But the sight waiting for me made me snort.
“Oh, you little bastard!”
“Kui! Kui!”
“Huff! Hah! Just let me catch you!”
“Kuiiit?”
Palgap and Geumryeong were having the time of their lives.
“Geumryeong.”
“Kui!”
At my call, Geumryeong kicked Palgap in the face with its hind legs, shot toward me like an arrow, and lightly settled in my palm.
“Want to go see Young Lady Seohyang?”
Today was the day I was supposed to send Geumryeong to Young Lady Seohyang.
“Kui!”
At my request, Geumryeong nodded, then darted straight out through the window.
I watched it go with a pleased smile, then turned to Palgap.
“So what did you start this time?”
“Start something? I’m being wronged here. I only came to get the teapot, and the moment it saw me, Geumryeong jumped me.”
“How are you two always picking fights with each other?”
As far as I was concerned, they were a match made in heaven. At least they never got bored.
.
.
.
The next day, Geumryeong returned, and I untied the letter fastened to its tail.
The beginning was the usual polite inquiry after my well-being.
And at the end was one short piece of advice.
[Beware the crows.]
Huh? Crows?
The moment I read that, I thought of the black bird that had once carried a letter to the Seowoon Sect after poisoned tea had been sent to kill Young Lady Seohyang, no, Young Lady Dong Jaryeong. Was that really just a coincidence?
Folding the letter, I muttered to myself.
Don’t worry. Fortunately, I have the perfect move to stop that.
Then I pulled out a silver tael, held it out to Geumryeong, and said,
“Here, Geumryeong. Eat this, then do me a favor.”
“Kui?”
“Can you catch some suspicious crows and beat them into submission?”
Yuk Ho belonged to the Imperial Guard.
His days had grown painfully dull from the same routine repeating over and over when some people approached him.
They gave him a well-trained crow along with the name Yuk Ho.
What they wanted was simple.
To use the crow to pass along news about the Imperial Guard.
And so he had been doing exactly that.
If anyone found out, he’d face a brutal punishment, but as long as he wasn’t caught, none of it mattered.
The pay was good, and more importantly, it had made his boring life thrilling.
Then one day, an order came down for the Imperial Guard unit he belonged to move out.
And soon after, he received instructions.
He was to send word to Springview Fortress by crow.
But to do that, he needed to get close enough to Springview Fortress before releasing it.
Once he felt they were near enough, he sent the crow flying toward Springview Fortress.
But… strangely, the crow didn’t come back.
Still, after growing attached to it over time, Yuk Ho started to worry.
“Hey! They’re calling for you at the command tent.”
“Huh?”
Puzzled, he headed toward the tent.
They had borrowed a civilian house to avoid attracting attention nearby, but officially, it was the command tent.
He stepped inside.
“You called for me?”
Thud.
Something was thrown to the floor at his feet.
The moment he saw it, Yuk Ho’s eyes widened.
It was a crow with colored thread wrapped around its leg.
The very same crow he had sent to Springview Fortress.
Looking at the soaked, unconscious bird, drenched in something wet, he swallowed hard.
“Leaking military secrets is a capital crime. Go on, make your excuses.”
“I, I don’t know anything about this.”
“And you call that an excuse? Then why are your eyes shaking?”
At that moment, the crow woke up, fluttered into the air, and landed on Yuk Ho’s shoulder.
Seeing that, his superior let out a dry chuckle.
“And crows are quite clever. They never land on the shoulder of a stranger.”
“…”
The superior held up the note lying on the desk.
“Now then, let’s have a long talk about who this message was meant for.”
“P, please spare me! I’ll tell you everything!”
Yuk Ho, who had wanted a little excitement in his boring life, regretted his choice.
Things had gotten far too exciting.
I stroked Geumryeong, perched on the desk, with a finger.
“Good job.”
On Young Lady Seohyang’s advice, I had sent Geumryeong out, and it had more than earned that silver tael.
It had simply snatched a crow flying in from the village right out of the air with its mouth.
A letter had been tied to the crow’s leg.
When I read it, I couldn’t help going cold.
If that message had been delivered normally, things could have gone very badly.
There was a high chance that letter had been meant for Gong Ho.
And if it had reached him, he would’ve run.
There was no reason at all for him to stay here and fight to the end with the others.
Ah, so that’s what she meant!
Only then did I realize the true meaning behind the advice to check his shoes.
In other words, stop him from escaping.
Which meant that if he did escape, I’d regret it dearly.
If I hadn’t stolen his artifact shoes, he definitely would’ve put them on and fled.
And then the Murim Alliance would’ve learned about my movements…
Without realizing it, my back turned clammy with cold sweat.
If the Murim Alliance found out about this, they’d start questioning everything I’d done up to now.
It would be a problem if my hostility toward the Murim Alliance came to light this soon.
This… I owe Young Lady Seohyang a huge debt.
.
.
.
In the early hours after midnight, once the date had changed,
I led my escort guards toward the fortress gate.
The gate and watchtower were guarded heavily by sentries.
More precisely, martial artists brought by Gong Ho.
The soldiers who had originally defended this fortress had all been disarmed and locked in the prison.
I think they were being held in plain sight if you entered through the proper route instead of the secret passage I used to sneak in.
Which only meant the Imperial Prince had been hidden even deeper in the prison.
More importantly, it was time.
I looked up at the night sky to gauge the hour, then sent orders to my escort guards through Voice Transmission.
They all moved quietly into their assigned positions, and at my signal, they slit the throats of the guards on watch.
Then we opened the main gate.
Creeeak.
The Imperial Guard rushed in through the opened gate.
And at the very front was Warrior Jin Yeong.
Since martial artists were involved, not just the Imperial Guard had come, but the Embroidered Guard as well.
“You’ve worked hard.”
“It’s not over yet. Save the praise for later.”
“Then I’ll give you plenty of it later.”
After exchanging those words, I headed toward the Fortress Lord’s residence with my escort guards.
I had to catch Gong Ho before he realized what was happening and tried to flee.
Breaking his legs a little should do the trick.
–TL Notes–
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