Bait (3)
After that, things proceeded smoothly. "No deals in front of death," Tak So-pyeong spilled every detail of the Hwajeong Merchant Group's intentions and schemes. The moment he showed even a hint of holding back, a needle flew straight at him.
One would think you'd get used to it after taking so many hits, but each stab felt freshly agonizing, resetting the pain every time.
"Ga-bok."
"Yes! Your right-hand man Ga-bok, reporting for duty!"
Cheon-woo ordered him to record the Hwajeong Merchant Group's plans in writing. Surprisingly, Ga-bok could not only write but had exceptional calligraphy. In truth, he'd learned it separately to impress women.
"Have you ever seen such scum? I could chew them up and it still wouldn't be enough!"
"Young master, they must pay a fitting price for this!"
As Tak So-pyeong's confession continued, the deputy manager and merchants grew angrier. This wasn't the first time. Most of the incidents that had harmed their group—even the seemingly coincidental ones—were tied to the Hwajeong Merchant Group.
Some interference was inevitable between competitors. But there were basic rules of merchant decency. The Hwajeong Merchant Group had stolen Jeokgeum's interests not through clever business, but immoral tactics.
Once Tak So-pyeong's head was stamped onto the document, Cheon-woo stepped on his knee.
Crunch!
Kraaaack!
The merchants, thinking it was over, trembled in shock. Yet they felt no pity for Tak So-pyeong.
On the other hand, Tak So-pyeong—having come clean only to have his leg broken—felt utterly wronged.
"...You said you'd let me go. Why?"
"I might kill these guys."
Cheon-woo turned to the dantian-less deputy leader and squad members. The deputy leader, locking eyes with him for a split second, felt chills run down his spine. Having served the young master all this time, he knew better than anyone.
With their dantians destroyed, resistance was impossible. It was like being given poison and then the antidote—saved by Gu Cheon-woo himself.
Tak So-pyeong, sensing the dire turn of events, hurriedly stepped in.
"...Why would I kill the deputy leader and squad? That's absurd slander!"
Tak So-pyeong's belated defense only fueled the Hocheon Corps' distrust. No amount of feigned innocence could erase self-inflicted karma.
They crossed the mountain and secured rooms at a nearby inn. The half-day's events had left the merchants deeply shaken. Looking back, they'd narrowly escaped death.
Given that the Hwajeong Merchant Group and Jeok Baek-sang-hyeop had plotted it deliberately, without the young master, they would have fallen right into the trap and died.
"Who could've known the young master was such a formidable expert?"
"When did he even become one?"
"And that ruthless hand? I nearly pissed myself."
"I already had."
A casual drinking session broke out. They were still on a merchant trip, and lives had been at stake, so they couldn't overdo it—but this was their way of shaking off the tension.
As the alcohol flowed, tales of the young master's heroism grew embellished, flesh added to the bones. Having been saved, they now saw him through rose-tinted glasses.
"When the young master demanded confessions, I got proper goosebumps."
"Me too. Sounded just like Yama's judgment."
"Hwajeong's done for now, huh."
"The compensation won't be small, and they can't stay in the merchant world after ignoring decency."
Compensation could be earned back, but tarnished reputation was hard to restore. No other group would wait for Hwajeong to recover out of loyalty. If anything, they'd use this chance to tear into them.
"Drink in moderation and get some rest."
"Yes, deputy manager."
Unlike the row managers who viewed things positively, Jong Yeo-myeong's mind was conflicted. The incident itself had been defused by the young master's intervention, but the aftermath was hard to predict.
After much deliberation, he headed to the young master's room. No matter how he thought about it, he couldn't understand the young master's handling.
"Young master, may I come in for a moment?"
"Enter."
Opening the door, he saw a guest already there. The deputy leader of the escort team, absent from the drinking, sat waiting.
"I hope I'm not intruding at this late hour."
"Proceed as usual."
"Shall I?"
"It doesn't matter."
Cheon-woo didn't put much stock in hierarchies. In an era of brutal dominance, who could casually yap before such overwhelming power? The heaven-shaking Paewang Qi alone silenced careless tongues.
Can I speak casually?
Just use honorifics!
It wasn't just Jong Yeo-myeong's dilemma. No Ja-cheong was awkward too—casual with age and experience, but as young master, honorifics seemed right. Yet images of him severing Jeok Baek-sang-hyeop's heads, shattering Hocheon dantians, and snapping Tak So-pyeong's legs made it impossible to decide.
You start!
Deputy manager first!
Exchanging glances, they conversed without words, too timid to ask their questions or make requests.
This standoff stemmed from the young master's aura feeling utterly different. The more they looked, the less he resembled the young master they knew.
Scared?
Who's scared!
Without telepathy, their eyes spoke volumes. This wouldn't end without someone hanging a bell on the cat—preferably the young master.
"Coming at bedtime means the deputy manager has urgent business. Heh heh."
Jong Yeo-myeong, about to yield to the guest, frowned at No Ja-cheong's preemptive strike. Should've peeked through the door crack.
Seeing the deputy leader's victorious smirk fueled his blood pressure, fist itching. But he couldn't snap—rising instead, he offered a formal clasped-hands salute.
"If I've been rude in the past, I sincerely apologize. As the heir who must now lead the group, you deserve proper respect, don't you?"
"Speak comfortably."
With permission granted, No Ja-cheong inwardly cursed. They'd been casual until now. If the deputy manager pushed honorifics, what did that make him?
Damn fool!
Think beyond martial arts—use your head!
Jong Yeo-myeong savored his quick thinking. It might seem odd now, but the young master was a Peak Expert who'd subdued Jeok Baek-sang-hyeop. Such prodigies were rare even in prestigious sects, especially under thirty.
Satisfied with the title protocol, he cut to the chase—it was late, as No Ja-cheong said.
"The Hwajeong leader won't admit it easily. He'll deny, claim we threatened them. Deserving death though they are, why spare Jeok Baek-sang-hyeop?"
"Evil deeds bring inevitable retribution. That's the way of the world."
True enough. Retribution and virtue rewarded were universal justice. But reality rarely followed neat paths. It sounded like naive idealism from an unworldly youth.
Now he sounds like the young master.
At that age, expected.
At just eighteen, without worldly experience—likely book-learned—it fit. Books and reality clashed; you had to crash into it to learn.
Having seen this new side, the pair finally relaxed a bit. His prior cold pragmatism had unnerved them. If they could guide his green handling, it would be ideal.
"The dead can't be revived, but Tak So-pyeong's confession needed witnesses and notarization first. Hwajeong could counterattack, dragging it out."
"That's what I want."
"...?"
The two were speechless. Amid beautiful justice lay chilling indifference and cruelty.
Gulp!
Jong Yeo-myeong swallowed unconsciously, retracing the young master's intent. What had he missed?
The young master was certain Hwajeong wouldn't confess easily. Yet he'd broken Tak's legs but released him.
He wants Hwajeong to counterattack?!
Releasing Tak and the squad was bait to stoke the Hwajeong leader's rage. Turning the enemy's ruthless, ends-justify-means nature against them.
"Then no need to sow discord between Tak and Hocheon?"
"What can a dantian-less Hocheon do?"
Betrayal might sting, but crippled warriors had no value. Hocheon would follow the leader's will to survive.
"True, they'd have no choice."
"But once suspicion takes root, humans can't shake it."
Hocheon was disposable anytime. Their past efforts for Hwajeong? Unacknowledged. Same for the leader and Tak.
Discarded then reused—could trust endure? Once suspicion festered, it never faded, ballooning to extremes.
Incomprehensible actions made sense through amplified doubt.
Shiver!
Tremble!
Grasping the full scheme, their spines chilled. No naive hero play—this pierced human nature with icy precision.
Young master, what happened to you?
How can a person change so?
People changed with shocks, but the young master never left his room. No trigger.
Missing a meal wasn't traumatizing.
"If it goes as planned, perfect—but no hard evidence. It could drag into a tedious fight."
"No need to worry. I have a counter."
Cheon-woo told them to trust and wait. Before the trip, they might've doubted, but now they fully believed.
Even if he claimed a clever ploy, they dared not pry.
They'll come soon enough.