After asking Lord Ak to deal with the assassins, I headed back to Archer God’s house.
We had originally come together, but he’d looked so worried about his father that I sent him back halfway.
Of course, I left Escort Guard Myeong Jong and Escort Guard Chang Un with him, but even then, he still couldn’t help worrying.
When I stepped inside Archer God’s house, I saw Lady Seohyang holding a fan as she brewed medicine.
“You’re here?”
“Ah, Deputy Gwak. What are you doing over there?”
“I’m brewing the Heavenly Spirit Root.”
In truth, the Heavenly Spirit Root was most effective when eaten raw, but Archer God’s father was in no condition to chew and swallow it as it was.
He’d spent five long years surviving on little more than thin gruel his son spooned into his mouth like water.
Honestly, it was only because he was a martial artist that he’d lasted this long. If he’d been an ordinary man, it wouldn’t have been strange if he’d died already.
That was exactly why I gave him the Heavenly Spirit Root.
It was the only Elixir that could restore his father in such a short time.
There were other Elixirs, of course, but recovery wasn’t their main strength.
And there wasn’t really enough time to go searching for something else.
There was no way Geumryeong had gifted me the Heavenly Spirit Root so I could eat it myself.
After all, Geumryeong knew perfectly well that I was healthy enough not to need something like that.
The way Geumryeong nodded when I said I’d put it to good use was proof enough.
For a moment, I wondered if Geumryeong had known ahead of time that I would need the Heavenly Spirit Root here.
If Archer God’s father recovered quickly, then his son would naturally serve me with all his heart.
Asking him to reveal his martial art was no different from asking him to pass down his Clan’s archery.
So before making a request like that, I had to earn enough gratitude that he couldn’t refuse.
Archer God’s Clan archery was a precious martial art that would one day save countless people of the Eunhae Merchant Group and protect wealth beyond measure, and Archer God himself was a valuable talent who could pass that art on.
Still… since when could Lady Seohyang brew medicine?
Brewing medicine was trickier than it looked.
“Have you brewed medicine before?”
“Ah, yes. The families of high officials actually have to do it more often than you’d think.”
“Why is that? Don’t the maids usually handle it?”
“They can’t be the ones brewing tonics bestowed by His Majesty the Emperor or other members of the imperial family.”
“Ah… I see.”
Makes sense. If they did that, people would say they were treating imperial grace lightly.
“So my mother taught me how. I’ve even brewed medicine for my father myself before.”
“I see.”
After drinking the Heavenly Spirit Root tonic Lady Seohyang brewed with her own hands, Archer God’s father fell into a deep sleep.
But it was sleep brought on by recovery, so there was no need to worry.
I turned to Archer God and spoke.
“The matter has been settled. Lord Ak will wipe out that assassination group, and your father should recover soon as well.”
“Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“By the way, what is your name?”
“Pardon?”
“I still haven’t heard your introduction, Young Lord.”
“Ah!”
Startled by my words, he immediately dropped to his knees before me and spoke.
“I was too late in introducing myself to my benefactor. My name is Man Jeong, and I am a descendant of the Yungang Man Clan.”
“I see. As you already know, I’m Eun Seo-ho, the Deputy Merchant Lord of the Eunhae Merchant Group.”
“Yes.”
“Please take this.”
I held out a pouch to him.
“What is this?”
“Open it.”
At my words, he carefully opened the pouch, and his eyes went wide.
There was a considerable amount of silver inside.
“We found it in that fraud physician’s house. It’s probably money he embezzled while bleeding your family dry.”
“Ah…”
“This money belongs to you and your father. So take it.”
“Th–thank you.”
His eyes reddened, and in the end, tears spilled out.
He was probably remembering all the hardship he’d gone through trying to care for his sick father.
“You held on through all of that. Truly, you’ve done well.”
“Hng… hng…”
Of course that sound of crying hit me right in the chest.
Two more days passed after that.
After spending nearly two full days asleep, Archer God’s father finally opened his eyes and rose.
His complexion was incomparably better than it had been two days ago.
On top of that, he could even get up and move around for short periods.
As expected of the Heavenly Spirit Root. The effect really is incredible.
I should give Geumryeong some gold later as thanks.
“This Man has received a great debt from you, sir.”
Archer God’s father tried to bow down before me, and I quickly stopped him.
“No! There’s no need for that.”
“But the grace you’ve shown me is far too great.”
“This was all part of a fair exchange.”
“An exchange?”
At that, Archer God, Man Jeong, stepped forward.
“Father, I decided to offer my talent to him.”
Then he explained everything from beginning to end.
“And so, in exchange for taking revenge on my behalf, I agreed to offer him my skills.”
“I see.”
“So please allow me to do this.”
Then I added my own explanation for his father.
“To be honest, there is something I need your permission for.”
“What is it?”
“The Eunhae Merchant Group has no intention of remaining within this empire alone. We plan to sail far across the great sea and spread the name of the Eunhae Merchant Group far and wide. But the problem is pirates.”
“…”
“To keep those pirates from costing us countless lives and fortunes, I intend to build an archer unit. But if that happens, your Clan’s archery may inevitably spread beyond the Clan. So I ask this of you. Please allow the unit under my command to learn the Yungang Man Clan’s archery.”
Then I dropped to one knee before him.
His father was so shocked he practically jumped.
“N–no! What are you doing? Why would you kneel before a rustic man like me?”
“I’m asking sincerely.”
“Very well. So please, stand up at once.”
“Then you’re giving me your permission?”
“Of course.”
Once I rose, his father let out a sigh of relief.
“Whew, I know a little face reading. And the bearing I saw in you is the face of a Black Dragon that commands all under heaven.”
Huh… considering I have the Black Dragon Star Body…
That’s impressive.
“Not only have you given us the chance to follow in your footsteps, you’ve even saved both me and my son. How could I possibly refuse?”
He continued.
“And besides, wiping out pirates means upholding the will passed down through our Clan, so what would there be to hesitate over?”
“What? Your Clan’s will?”
At my question, he nodded.
“That’s right. The reason our Clan archery, the Heaven-Shattering Bow, was created in the first place was to protect ourselves from pirates.”
Ah…
No wonder it seemed perfectly suited for use against pirates.
And Shandong did jut out into the sea, with maritime trade thriving there for ages, so it had long suffered from pirate raids.
“But people kept coveting that archery and dragging us into one mess after another, until one of our ancestors got sick of it all and moved inland to settle down again.”
“I see.”
Then he said to me,
“My son spoke only of his own talent, but as the Clan Lord of the Yungang Man Clan, I believe this is something that calls for entrusting our entire family.”
His father lowered his head toward me.
“Please, take this Clan under your protection.”
I’d only meant to take the son with me… but somehow I ended up gaining the entire Clan instead.
Once it turned out this way, I could already picture myself serving a massive helping of misery to the pirates who had tormented the Eunhae Merchant Group to no end in my previous life.
Not bad.
“Very well. I, Eun Seo-ho, Deputy Merchant Lord of the Eunhae Merchant Group, accept all of you as my vassals.”
“Thank you.”
“Thank you, my lord.”
I spoke to them.
“Then focus on recovering your health. We’re on our way back to the Eunhae Merchant Group’s main branch in Hubei anyway, so let’s travel together.”
“Understood.”
The name of Archer God’s father, who was the Lord of the Yungang Man Clan, was Man Juk.
He used the character for bamboo, and the more I looked at him, the more it felt like the name fit him perfectly.
While Lord Man recovered, his son repurchased the house they had sold earlier.
“You seem to have spent a great deal of money. Is that all right?”
“Yes. Father said that even if we had to spend every coin you helped us recover, we had to buy the house back no matter what.”
Why?
Was there some reason for that?
Young Lord Man returned and told his father they had bought the house back.
“That’s a relief. Good. Then when did they say they’d vacate it?”
“They said they’ll clear out tomorrow. The Manor Lord’s family that bought it didn’t purchase it to live there. They only wanted to use it as a villa because the scenery was good.”
“Then let’s move back in the day after tomorrow.”
“Yes.”
And then the day they had chosen for the move arrived.
My escort guards helped them with the move. There wasn’t all that much to carry, but a move was still a move.
That was how we ended up back at what had originally been the Yungang Man Clan’s house.
Hop.
But then Geumryeong dropped into the yard and started scurrying all over the place.
“What’s wrong?”
“Kui.”
“You’re getting in the way of the move. Come back here.”
“Kui…”
What? Is there a lump of gold under there or something?
Still, there was nothing I could do about it right then.
By the time we finished moving everything, the sun had fully gone down.
“Jeong-ah.”
“Yes, Father.”
“We’ll need three or four shovels and hoes.”
“Understood.”
Young Lord Man nodded and brought over the shovels and hoes.
Were they planning to dig?
Ah, don’t tell me!
Clan Lord Man spoke to me.
“My lord, may we ask the martial brothers for their help?”
“Of course.”
I nodded and had my escorts take up the shovels and hoes.
“Please dig here.”
The spot Clan Lord Man pointed to was the very place Geumryeong had been scampering around earlier.
Everyone immediately started digging hard at the center of the yard where he’d indicated.
How deep had we dug?
It was when the pit had reached nearly waist depth.
Thunk!
A different sound rang out. Everyone’s eyes sharpened at once, and they carefully dug around the outside of that spot.
What finally emerged was a wooden box treated against decay.
It was a long box, almost like a coffin.
Clan Lord Man personally climbed down with a crowbar and opened the lid.
He had recovered enough by now to manage at least that much.
Inside the box he opened were several smaller boxes, and he opened one of them.
Then he took out an old manual and handed it to me.
On the cover were the words [Heaven-Shattering Bow].
“This is the secret manual of the Yungang Man Clan’s archery, the Heaven-Shattering Bow. I offer it to you, my lord.”
I couldn’t help being startled.
“You’re giving this to me? Isn’t this your Clan’s secret manual?”
“Yes. You saved our Clan, my lord. This is our sincerity, and our gratitude.”
Still, to think the Heaven-Shattering Bow’s secret manual had been hidden here!
Thank goodness those Hidden Sand Assassins never found out about it.
But after staring at it for a moment, I shook my head.
“I can’t accept this.”
“W–why not?”
Clan Lord Man looked completely shaken.
“I appreciate the thought, but the fact that the two of you have become my vassals is more than enough. How could I also take your Clan’s secret manual? That belongs to your Clan.”
I continued gently.
“Please pass that manual down to your descendants for generations. That will be the power that protects the Yungang Man Clan.”
Smiling, I wrapped my hand around the hand of the Clan Lord holding the manual.
“This is my request.”
“Khk! My lord…”
Clan Lord Man broke into tears.
Was what I said really that moving?
I’d only said what seemed obvious to me.
What if one of my descendants turned out to be scum? And what if someone else came to envy the Yungang Man Clan?
When that day came, the difference between having that manual and not having it would be enormous.
I’d only offered that advice for the sake of people who said they would trust me and follow me…
If they ended up being cast aside and butchered later, I’d feel far too guilty.
Now I felt a little awkward.
“Kheung, Young Master really is the Handsome Young Hero.”
“What are you even talking about?”
I lightly chided Palgap, and at that moment, Lady Seohyang smiled.
Come to think of it, when Lady Seohyang came here to help with the move, she had looked a little surprised…
So this was why.
She probably hadn’t told me beforehand because she knew I wouldn’t be in any danger.
Or maybe she just wanted to see the look on my face.
“But Father, what are those boxes?”
There were several other boxes inside that large, long chest, and that was what Young Lord Man was asking about.
Clan Lord Man answered.
“Open them.”
“Yes.”
Young Lord Man opened the boxes, then fell right onto his backside in shock.
“Gasp! F–Father! These are…?”
Each box was packed full of gold and silver treasure.
When Geumryeong had been running around over there earlier, I wondered if there might be gold buried beneath it, and it really was gold.
That really is Geumryeong for you.
“These were brought here by our ancestors when they first came. We never needed them before, so we never opened them.”
So there was a reason Clan Lord Man hadn’t wavered even when the Hidden Sand Assassins offered him a huge sum to persuade him to assassinate Lord Ak.
It wasn’t just conviction. There had been a practical reason too.
Clan Lord Man said,
“I offer these to you as well, my lord.”
I shook my head.
“I can’t accept those either. They also belong to your family.”
“But they would help your great undertaking.”
“Of course they would. But I already have more than enough money. And I’m not so incapable that I need to take my vassals’ wealth just to pursue my dream.”
At my words, Clan Lord Man nodded.
“I understand. To press further would only insult you, my lord.”
“Thank you for understanding how I feel.”
Once again, thank goodness the Hidden Sand Assassins never knew about any of this.
And with that much wealth, there was no chance they’d ever sell me out for money.
In that case, I can probably work them just a little harder than planned… right?
–TL Notes–
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