I gave the area a quick once-over, then let out a breath.
Whew, that was close.
Why do you think I went out of my way to use Voice Transmission?!
Does this man have no sense at all?
He looked up at me, utterly dumbfounded, and I spoke in a frosty voice.
“Were you trying to test me? Sneaking up on me like a coward?”
At the same time, I sent him a Voice Transmission.
– Are you trying to screw this up again? Get a grip and say you were testing my martial skill.
Only then did he seem to realize what was going on. He schooled his expression and opened his mouth.
“Isn’t the Handsome Young Hero also famous for being an exceptional martial artist? I only wanted to see whether the rumors were true, yet you’re reacting rather strongly.”
“Don’t do something like that so carelessly. What if I let a killing blow fly without thinking?”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Come out.”
As I held out my hand to him, I sent another Voice Transmission.
– I know your situation is bad. If you want my help, take my hand. If not, come out on your own.
He hesitated for a moment, then took my hand.
“Careful.”
– I’ll come see you tonight. Say you’re going to sleep and clear everyone out. Then leave the window open.
As I pulled him out, I kept sending Voice Transmissions.
– If you make another mistake, remember this entire Springview Fortress is finished.
“Thank you.”
He answered with a small nod.
“Well, you’ll need to change clothes. It’s a shame, but I think this is where we’ll end the tour.”
“Looks that way.”
We parted ways, and I watched Yeon Yu-mun’s back as he left.
Was it just my imagination, or did his steps look a little lighter than before?
I approached Yeon Yu-mun because I needed his help to rescue Prince Ju Hyeon.
Earlier today, when that bastard met our group, I had sensed a blood-soaked Unorthodox Sect Qi from the Embroidered Guard who had come to keep watch on us.
Maybe it was because I’d crossed paths with so many Unorthodox Sect bastards by now, or maybe it was because my realm had risen, but I could now distinguish that presence to a certain degree.
Among all the Unorthodox Sect people I’d met, the ones connected to the Murim Alliance had always carried a stronger scent of blood.
Which meant this matter, too, was tied to the Murim Alliance.
Damn, what the hell are those bastards plotting?
But one thing was certain.
If this succeeded, the Murim Alliance would get what it wanted one way or another.
So this wasn’t something I needed to deal with only because of His Majesty’s orders.
I needed it for my revenge too.
After looking through the estate with Yeon Yu-mun, I came to one conclusion.
Security was tight enough that this wouldn’t be easy.
And there were more troops than I’d expected.
Still, I had to try.
First, if I wanted to rescue the prince and clear the names of the people who’d been falsely framed in my previous life, I needed someone on the inside, and I chose Yeon Yu-mun.
When I asked him about the Fortress Lord earlier, the emotion he showed had clearly been anger.
That’s why I approached him.
When it came to inside help, the most useful kind was always the kind fueled by desperate anger.
.
.
.
That night.
I slipped out alone.
Moving by myself was far stealthier than moving with the others.
Yeon Yu-mun’s quarters were in the inner residence of the Springview Fortress estate.
Swoosh!
Driving No-Trace Step to its utmost limit, I landed on the roof above Yeon Yu-mun’s quarters.
“I’m going to sleep now, so withdraw.”
“Yes.”
I heard Yeon Yu-mun’s voice, and someone who looked like an attendant stepped out.
But not yet.
There were still eyes watching him.
So I concealed my presence and waited.
After some time passed, I finally felt those watchful gazes disappear.
I didn’t miss the opening and slipped in through the window of Yeon Yu-mun’s room.
Because I was using No-Trace Step at its peak, not the slightest footstep sounded.
I sent a Voice Transmission to Yeon Yu-mun, who was lying on the bed.
– You may get up now.
“…!”
He jolted upright in shock.
The only thing lighting the room was the faint moonlight coming in through the window.
First, I spread my Qi through the room and sealed off any sound from escaping.
“You may speak now. Nothing said in here will carry outside.”
At my words, he bit his lip slightly before speaking.
“Are you truly going to help us?”
“Yes.”
“Why? I’m sorry, but if you’re after money, we can’t give you as much as you may think.”
“You don’t need to say that. I already know what kind of situation Springview Fortress is in. And I don’t need that kind of payment. I came here under His Majesty the Emperor’s orders.”
“What? Y-you mean His Majesty the Emperor…?”
“That’s right.”
“Don’t tell me… you came to rescue His Highness Prince Ju Hyeon?”
Strictly speaking, he wasn’t wrong.
But that wasn’t the answer I should give right now.
“That is only one part of my mission. The order I received from His Majesty was to save the Fortress Lord of Springview Fortress and his family, who have devoted themselves to the Empire for many years.”
“…Ha! His Majesty told you to save us? That’s impossible.”
Looking at him as he stared at me with naked disbelief, I respectfully bowed my head.
“I sincerely apologize for learning only now about the atrocities the envoys committed here in Springview Fortress.”
“Hah. What good does that apology do now? My younger sister took her own life, and my father is imprisoned after losing an arm.”
“I’m sorry I came too late.”
He gave a bitter smile and shook his head.
“Hah, no. I understand that the Empire cannot watch every place this closely. Especially with traitors involved.”
Traitors.
He meant the Embroidered Guard and Eastern Depot dogs who had taken someone other than the Emperor as their master.
“I’m simply grateful you did not forget us and came at all, even now.”
He continued.
“Let me be clear. We never had any intention of treason. We only wanted to live quietly.”
There was a quiet grief in his eyes as he said it.
“I understand the broad outline, but I’d like you to explain the details.”
At my request, he began telling me everything that had happened up to now.
It had all started when Prince Ju Hyeon came here with the envoys.
“His Highness… seemed to realize something was wrong when he saw the food we presented. After speaking with my father in private, he said he would return to the Imperial Palace. But… they found out that His Highness had spoken with my father alone and learned the truth.”
“Then are you saying they detained His Highness?”
At my question, he nodded.
“Yes. Their goal is to put His Highness at the front and have Springview Fortress recognized as an independent nation.”
“But His Highness would never have allowed that.”
“Yes. They even tortured him, but I heard he still refuses to agree.”
“…”
God… those goddamn dog bastards.
So this was the situation.
Prince Ju Hyeon learned the truth about this place.
And because he intended to report it to the Emperor, they panicked and detained him.
If word got out, they would be punished.
And since a prince was someone who might one day become Emperor, if things went well for them, they could avoid punishment and live like true rulers over the Springview Fortress region.
Springview Fortress was already somewhat independent to begin with.
But in the end, that plan required Prince Ju Hyeon’s consent.
And because he refused, they even resorted to torture.
And I thought I now knew why Prince Ju Hyeon had died in my previous life.
They killed him.
To bury their crimes.
Torturing a prince was the kind of crime that could wipe out nine generations.
Still, quite a bit of time had already passed, and the prince still hadn’t agreed…
Suddenly, I remembered something Prince Jinseung, whom I’d known in my previous life, once said about his older brother.
“My elder brother was remarkably intelligent, and he had iron resolve.”
I murmured to myself.
His Highness Prince Jinseung was right.
Now then, the important question.
“But there is one thing I don’t understand. These are men who used to be satisfied with secretly bleeding Springview Fortress dry behind His Majesty’s back.”
I continued.
“It makes no sense that men like that suddenly dared to dream of founding an independent nation. There must be another mastermind behind this. Do you have any idea who it might be?”
Yeon Yu-mun nodded as though someone had immediately come to mind.
“Ah, yes. At some point, a man none of us had ever seen before suddenly appeared. He arrived with around a hundred martial artists…”
Ah, so it was the men I’d seen while touring the estate.
“It looked as though the envoys and the traitors were acting under his orders.”
“Then he must be the mastermind.”
“I believe so. Even the support from the Deputy Merchant Lord was arranged only after receiving his approval.”
That was good news.
I let out a faint laugh to myself. Of course.
So that blood-soaked Unorthodox Sect Qi I sensed wasn’t my imagination after all.
He was the one who persuaded the envoys and the traitors to do this.
And when everything went wrong, he would be the first to flee.
He was definitely one of the Murim Alliance’s sleeper agents.
Yang Eun-jik, the man who had stirred up Prince Chungjin’s treason from the shadows before, had been a sleeper agent too.
Greed really was a terrifying thing.
They had done all of this to satisfy their own greed.
It wasn’t as if I lacked desires of my own.
But I had a rule.
No matter how badly I wanted something, if I fed that desire by sacrificing others, it would never end well.
“Um… by the way.”
Yeon Yu-mun asked me carefully.
“Which one is the real you?”
“What do you mean?”
“The person I saw earlier and the person I’m seeing now feel very different.”
That made me chuckle, and I asked in return.
“Which one feels real to you?”
After thinking for a moment, he answered hesitantly.
“I think… both of them might be real.”
Was my acting really that good?
“But there must be a reason you’re called the Handsome Young Hero. And in your Escort Guards’ eyes, I saw unwavering trust. So… I want to believe the person in front of me now is the real one.”
“Then I suppose I should live up to that trust.”
Smiling, I continued.
“First, where is His Highness? We need to secure him before we can prove Springview Fortress is innocent.”
“In the underground dungeon beneath Springview Fortress.”
.
.
.
I slipped out of Yeon Yu-mun’s room and headed straight for the underground dungeon.
Rescuing the prince came first.
If things went wrong, they would kill him before anyone else.
Though now that I thought about it, in my previous life, had the traitors lived or died?
The fact that Prince Ju Hyeon died and the Fortress Lord of Springview Fortress was subjected to cruel punishment meant the traitors must have falsified the evidence and filed a report that benefited themselves.
Huh? That’s strange.
According to Yeon Yu-mun, what they wanted was to rule this place like Lords…
But I set that question aside for the moment and headed toward the rear of the dungeon.
I went to the entrance Yeon Yu-mun had told me about, a secret passage known only to him and the Fortress Lord.
Good thing I chose him as my inside helper.
The third brick up from the bottom, right?
Shhk.
The moment I pushed the brick, a passage opened soundlessly.
It was a pivoting door that rotated on a central axis.
I stepped through it and went inside.
Dungeons were all more or less the same.
Dark, oppressive places.
And places where sound carried too well.
That was…
“Ughhh!”
…so the others could hear the screams and groans of torture and be terrified.
“Please grant our request already, Your Highness.”
“…”
“How long do you plan to keep enduring this?”
“…”
“As you know, I’m with the Embroidered Guard. That means I’m exceptionally good at torture.”
“…”
“Hah, stubborn bastard! Like father, like son! Stubborn to the bitter end!”
“…”
Bang!
After confirming that every sign of presence had completely disappeared, I quietly approached that direction.
And the moment I saw the man hanging from the dungeon wall, I was struck speechless.
The prince?
I knew it was him because I could see a trace of the Emperor’s face in his.
Damn… it’s a miracle they left his face intact.
Then again, if they meant to make use of him publicly, they had to keep his face untouched.
Still, this was incredible.
Even after being tortured until his body was a wreck, he still hadn’t opened his mouth.
But in that condition, it looked like he might die under torture.
At that moment, a chill ran through me.
Because I had just found the answer to the question I’d been turning over in my head.
According to Yeon Yu-mun, their goal was to reign here like Lords.
But if the prince died under torture?
Then the whole plan of ruling like Lords became meaningless.
Because that plan only worked if the prince stayed alive.
In that case, once they realized the prince had died, they must have changed the story.
Into one where he barely escaped Springview Fortress.
And after hearing that version, the Emperor and his brother must have flown into a rage and crushed Springview Fortress.
After that, had the connection between the traitors and the sleeper agents been severed?
No chance.
That link would have continued.
And the sleeper agents would have kept meddling in the Embroidered Guard’s affairs.
Damn…
I didn’t know which sleeper agent had arranged all of this, but I needed to be careful.
I carefully approached him and checked his pulse.
“…”
A frown formed between my brows.
He isn’t going to last much longer like this.
His stamina was one thing.
But his internal injuries were far too severe.
As I wondered what I should do, a good idea came to me.
I pulled Geumryeong out of my sleeve and dangled a gold tael in front of it.
At once, Geumryeong’s eyes lit up, and drool began dripping from its mouth.
Perfect.
If you knew what it really was, it was a little disgusting, but if you didn’t, it was an absurdly effective healing medicine on the level of an Elixir.
–TL Notes–
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