Young Lord Yeon Yu-mun took us somewhere unexpected – an academy.
The plaque hanging there read Southern Light Academy.
“Isn’t this an academy?”
At my question, he nodded.
“It is. But we haven’t started accepting students yet, and the grounds are fairly large, so there should be enough space for all of you to rest comfortably.”
“I see. But why an academy? And one this large, at that.”
“Whew…”
Young Lord Yeon Yu-mun let out a sigh.
“Do you remember the great trouble Springview Fortress suffered some time ago?”
“Of course.”
“The greatest reason we struggled back then was because we were isolated.”
At least they’d taken a clear, objective look at their own reality.
“So we built an academy to prevent something like that from ever happening again. If children from here enter the imperial court one day, they’ll be able to stop such injustices before they happen.”
“That’s a good idea. His Majesty will likely keep an eye on things for the time being, and I’m here as well, but no one knows what will happen decades from now.”
“That is why we are preparing to open the academy at the beginning of next month. The furnishings are already in place and the cleaning has been finished, so it should be comfortable enough for you to stay here.”
At that, Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin answered.
“That is more than enough. We would have been grateful for anywhere that kept the night dew off us.”
And so we entered the academy.
The academy had been built with quite a bit of style.
While everyone was unpacking, Young Lord Yeon Yu-mun said to me,
“This is a boarding academy, so there are plenty of places to wash, and there is also a dining hall.”
“Then we can simply gather something to eat and cook it ourselves.”
“I’ll provide the ingredients.”
I waved my hand at that.
“That’s all right. You’ve already given us shelter from the night dew. We couldn’t possibly impose on you for food as well.”
I continued.
“And since our party is rather large, the expense won’t be small.”
“That much is nothing. If it had not been for you, Great Hero, Springview Fortress would have…”
Perhaps the memory of those events rose in his mind, because he could not bring himself to finish.
“So please, allow me to offer at least this much sincerity.”
If he went this far, I could hardly refuse.
“Very well. We’ll gratefully accept.”
I explained the situation to Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin, and she smiled as she looked at me.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I felt this from the first time I saw Young Palace Lord Eun, but the name Handsome Young Hero really does suit you.”
The compliment came so unexpectedly that I found myself scratching the back of my neck.
“We get to share in the repayment for the kindness Young Palace Lord Eun has shown others. Thank you.”
“Please, it’s nothing. Is there anything you cannot eat?”
“No. Our disciples eat just about anything.”
A short while later, Young Lord Yeon Yu-mun brought over a cart loaded with all kinds of ingredients.
We were about to cook with them when a problem arose.
“Uh, what are we supposed to do with this fish?”
“Do we just roast it over the fire?”
The North Sea Ice Palace martial artists had no idea how to cook, and they were all floundering around in confusion.
I let out a sigh and asked Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin,
“Is there really not a single person here who knows how to cook?”
“We only brought elites, so we didn’t bring a separate cook. And since we don’t have many reasons to travel far from home, we don’t have many cooks to begin with.”
Well, the North Sea Ice Palace was rather closed off, so they rarely left the Ice Palace.
“I see. Still, since they’re all women, I thought at least some of them would have cooked before.”
“They would have needed the chance to learn first.”
“Ah…”
I understood what she meant.
The age at which one entered the North Sea Ice Palace was very young.
Young enough that they wouldn’t have had time to learn cooking or anything like that.
And once they entered the North Sea Ice Palace, they would have spent all their time training in martial arts…
“That was a foolish question.”
Preconceptions really were terrifying things.
That was when Palgap spoke.
“Young Master, may I step forward?”
Ah! Right!
We had Palgap!
I clasped my hands together as I looked at him.
“Palgap, I’m begging you. I don’t want to watch all those fine ingredients get burned to charcoal.”
At my words, Palgap rolled up both sleeves and spoke with a grave, determined expression.
“You don’t have to worry, Young Master.”
From that moment on, Palgap began his performance.
Dadadadadada!
He handled the kitchen knife with almost divine skill,
Fwoooosh!
and moved everywhere at once, expertly managing the pot over the cooking fire.
Yet even as he worked, he never once bumped into anyone helping him. His movements flowed like water.
On top of that, he gave out perfectly timed instructions.
Watching him, I found myself admiring him all over again.
He possessed the King of Assassins’ talent, and as Jin Yu trained him in martial arts, his skills were improving day by day.
But for some reason, I couldn’t sense anything assassin-like from Palgap. He just felt like a bear.
Palgap was simply a bear.
But were bears always that nimble and flexible?
A short while later.
The tables were richly filled with food.
“Today’s meal was prepared by Palgap. Everyone, please show your appreciation.”
At Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin’s words, everyone applauded.
Clap, clap, clap, clap!
Palgap looked extremely embarrassed by it.
“Thank you. I’ll enjoy the meal too.”
I thanked Palgap as well, then moved my spoon.
The meal began with a cool yet spicy soybean-paste soup boiled with fish.
Oooh! Ooooh!
Before my eyes, the fish seemed to be flapping wildly inside a sea of soup.
“This is seriously delicious! But this… tastes a lot like the seafood soup from Spring Dream Pavilion in Beijing.”
“That’s right, Young Master. You seemed to enjoy that seafood soup, so I learned it from the cook.”
“Ah, so that’s why you kept disappearing.”
Like that, we enjoyed a delicious and plentiful meal for the first time in a long while.
The next day.
Young Lord Yeon Yu-mun came to see us.
“I hope you slept comfortably last night.”
“Thanks to your consideration, we were able to rest well. Truly, thank you.”
“The North Sea Ice Palace will not forget your kindness either, Young Lord Yeon.”
Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin and I cupped our fists and thanked him.
“Then I hope we meet again someday, under better and happier circumstances.”
“I will also look forward to our next meeting.”
And so we set out for Zhurong Palace, with Young Lord Yeon Yu-mun seeing us off.
Since everyone had eaten and slept well, their complexions were bright.
Seeing that, Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin said,
“Whew. At least this time, they won’t be able to mock us for how miserable we look.”
“Pardon?”
“During the conference before last, they sneered at us when they saw our condition.”
Grit!
She ground her teeth as though the humiliation of that time still burned.
“Ah… I see.”
“But if it was the conference before last, wouldn’t that have been ten years ago? Your age, Young Palace Lord…”
She was definitely the same age as me.
“I visited with my master back then. She said that since I was the next Young Palace Lord, I needed to gain experience, so she brought me along.”
“I see.”
We headed quickly toward Zhurong Palace.
The weather was extremely hot and humid, and the area around us was jungle, but since everyone was an elite at least at the First-rate realm, they did not seem to struggle much.
And all manner of insects could not approach either.
If they had not been elite martial artists, this road would have been terribly difficult.
In any case, including both my previous life and this one, this was my first time visiting Zhurong Palace.
That was because they were even more closed off than the North Sea Ice Palace.
Approach them the wrong way, and you could be pierced to death by daggers or arrows without any questions asked.
As we traveled toward Yunnan, I explained what I knew about them to my party.
Unlike the North Sea Ice Palace, whose members did not marry, they married freely.
However, their method was somewhat unusual.
They practiced something called duel marriage. Men and women alike could spar with someone they fancied, and if they won, they could marry that person.
In a way, it was very fitting for a martial world force.
They also considered themselves descendants of Zhurong, the god of fire and the god of the south.
That was why they were called Zhurong Palace.
Their main weapons were long swords, but they were also quite skilled with throwing knives.
As he listened to the explanation, Escort Guard Myeong Jong asked,
“But does Zhurong Palace not use poison arts? Since they are a sect from Yunnan, I would have thought they were well versed in poison.”
The one who answered that question was Escort Guard Seo Wu.
“Zhurong Palace doesn’t use poison arts. Yunnan’s poison sects are another matter, of course.”
He continued his explanation.
“The Southern Barbarian Beast Sect also uses poison, but their method is to control living venomous creatures and make them poison their targets.”
“I see.”
“I heard that Zhurong Palace couldn’t use poison even if they wanted to. Because their specialty is Blazing Fire Art, the effects of poison are greatly weakened. That’s why the poison sects that use poison arts and the Southern Barbarian Beast Sect never provoke Zhurong Palace.”
“So they’re complete natural enemies.”
Hearing that, Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin nodded.
“You know quite a lot.”
“When I worked as an Escort Chief before, this region was mainly my responsibility.”
“I see. That is rather reassuring.”
“I’m grateful to hear that I can be of help.”
As we continued talking, Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin raised her hand and stopped the party.
“Yeo Jin.”
At her call, a disciple named Yeo Jin stepped forward. She was also one of Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin’s guards.
“Please fire a whistling arrow.”
“Understood.”
The woman named Yeo Jin took an arrow from the quiver on her back and shot it toward the sky.
Piiiiiiik!
The arrow flew, letting out a sharp sound.
And a short while later.
Dududududu!
The sound of horse hooves pounding the ground reached us.
The people who soon appeared were clad in red armor.
In keeping with the hot, humid weather, their armor was light, covering only vital areas such as the head and neck.
However, the decorations on their helmets were extremely ornate.
One of them dismounted and approached us. Then he cupped his fists and said,
“I am Hae Dal-man, Outer Chief Administrator of Zhurong Palace, and I greet the Young Palace Lord of the North Sea Ice Palace.”
“Thank you for welcoming us.”
“You must have had a difficult journey.”
More courteous than I expected.
Then he looked at me and tilted his head. Well, it made sense. My party and I were men.
“And that person is?”
Bing Hae-rin answered his question.
“He is the Young Palace Lord of Snow Wind Palace, guardian of the North Sea Ice Palace, and these are his companions.”
“Pardon?”
He tilted his head with a startled expression.
“I heard that Snow Wind Palace suffered a calamity long ago.”
“No calamity is enough to bring down Snow Wind Palace.”
“…I see.”
A bewildered look.
Was it because a descendant of Snow Wind Palace, which he had thought destroyed, had survived and appeared here?
Or was it because they themselves had failed to destroy Snow Wind Palace?
We would know soon enough.
If they were the culprits, I had to inform Master of this as quickly as possible.
Not so we could hide.
So we could prepare a way to deal with them.
An unknown enemy was frightening, but once you knew the enemy’s identity, they were not nearly as terrifying.
If anything, your range of movement broadened, and you became freer.
Because then, you only had to be careful of them.
I quietly took a deep breath.
It was time to judge whether they were the ones who had destroyed Snow Wind Palace.
Following their guidance, we entered Zhurong Palace territory.
I could see traps installed here and there.
Some of the traps even held dried-up corpses.
At the sight, Young Lady Seohyang’s face turned pale.
“Do not be frightened.”
I whispered in a low voice.
“There is no need to be afraid. They left those there on purpose to scare people.”
“Pardon?”
“They’re showing what happens to those who trespass into their territory. We are their guests. So there’s no reason for us to fear those things.”
“I see.”
I comforted Young Lady Seohyang like that, and we soon arrived at the heart of Zhurong Palace.
“The Palace Lord and the First Madam are waiting.”
“Please take us to them at once.”
At Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin’s words, Outer Chief Administrator Hae Dal-man immediately guided us onward.
Before long, we arrived at a massive stone door.
“Palace Lord, the Young Palace Lord of the North Sea Ice Palace and the Young Palace Lord of Snow Wind Palace have arrived.”
“Let them enter.”
“Yes.”
Ruuuumble.
The rather large door opened.
The huge men standing to either side had turned the handles to open the stone door.
We went inside.
A man and woman wearing crowns decorated with brilliant feathers sat in chairs at the center.
Like people of the southern regions, they had healthy bronze skin tanned by the sun, and their bodies boasted firm, well-trained muscles.
We greeted them politely.
“I am Bing Hae-rin, Young Palace Lord of the North Sea Ice Palace. I greet the Ruler of Fire and the First Madam.”
“I am Eun Seo-ho, Young Palace Lord of Snow Wind Palace. I greet the Ruler of Fire and the First Madam.”
Once we showed our respect, Zhurong Palace’s Palace Lord spoke.
“It is good to meet you like this. Everyone, raise your heads.”
“Thank you for welcoming us.”
“However…”
Zhurong Palace’s Palace Lord looked at me.
“You say you are the Young Palace Lord of Snow Wind Palace.”
“Yes. That is correct.”
“As far as I know, Snow Wind Palace suffered a calamity at the hands of a mysterious group, did it not?”
“It did, but that does not mean Snow Wind Palace was destroyed.”
“How surprising.”
He nodded.
“To think the Deputy Merchant Lord of the Eunhae Merchant Group, known as the Handsome Young Hero, is also the Young Palace Lord of Snow Wind Palace.”
“…!”
I was startled.
I had heard they were closed off, so how had he recognized me the moment he saw my face?
“I did not expect you to know me.”
“You have been rather active here in Yunnan. Last time, you were with the Embroidered Guard, and today, you are with the Young Palace Lord of the North Sea Ice Palace.”
I glanced slightly at Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin.
I thought you said Zhurong Palace had no interest in outside affairs?
Her eyes trembled slightly as well, as though she had not expected this situation either.
I laughed faintly to myself and answered calmly.
“I’ve lived diligently, and in doing so, I’ve come across all sorts of connections.”
“I see.”
The Palace Lord nodded calmly.
That was when it happened.
Ruuuumble.
The stone door opened, and someone entered from behind us while shouting,
“Young Palace Lord Bing Hae-rin! This time, please marry me!”
At the same time, he thrust his sword toward her.
I quickly drew my sword and blocked his blade.
Clang!
What the hell? Who was this lunatic?
–TL Notes–
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