The Killer Fiend
"There couldn't be any lunatics here hunting for an antidote too, could there?"
There was only one way off the mountain. The Tang Clan traitors must have passed through here as well, and there was no way they had only used poison on the bandits. That was why none of us had gone straight into the inn after getting down from the carriage.
Tang Hye-seo, standing beside me, shook her head. "After poisoning several dozen bandits, there should be almost none of Sakhonsan left."
"What if they have some other poison on them?"
Tang Hye-seo was silent for a moment before she answered. "Only Sakhonsan can neutralize the poison qi and put a leash on them."
So the Tang Clan traitors had stolen other deadly poisons as well. Just how much had they taken for the pursuit squad to be sent after them?
Won Seo-gang, watching the entrance of the inn where the coachman had just gone in, cut into the conversation. "Isn't it fine? I heard this inn belongs to the Haomu Sect."
"Even if it does belong to the Haomu Sect, what good is that if we're poisoned and hanging by a thread?"
Betrayal wasn't something only rotten-hearted scum committed.
A person could fall into someone else's trap, be driven by circumstances, or be ruined by all kinds of unavoidable reasons. There was no shortage of decent, ordinary people who ended up broken because of it.
Won Seo-gang couldn't have been ignorant of that, but he still looked oddly unconcerned.
"Do you really think they'd draw blades on a martial artist just because they poisoned the inn servants? At worst they'd poison the food. There's nothing more laughable than using poison against the Tang Clan."
It was a fair point. The servants weren't bandits.
When I glanced sideways, Tang Do-hun and the members of Jeodok Hall still looked murderously tense.
It was only natural. The Tang Clan traitors had used Tang Clan poison against them, after all. Their nerves would be on edge.
The only monk in the group, the one whose clothes weren't stained with blood, just stared at the sky with indifferent eyes.
The coachman, a man named Mangseok, came back out with a middle-aged man in tow.
"This is the innkeeper."
The middle-aged innkeeper didn't look scared or cowed at the sight of martial artists still reeking of blood and killing intent.
Simply dealing with lots of martial artists wasn't enough to make someone that thick-skinned.
Most likely, it was because he stood safely inside the shelter of the Haomu Sect, which let him look at us the way one might look at a caged beast.
Tang Do-hun asked without ceremony, "Is this inn under the Haomu Sect?"
"Yes, it is."
"How many people are inside?"
"Just me, two servants, and two cooks."
"Have them all come out. I want to check whether any of them have been poisoned."
"As you wish."
Maybe he'd heard about what had happened in the mountain, because the innkeeper didn't panic. He simply moved as instructed.
Tang Do-hun took out his needle case and stepped in personally.
Just as Tang Hye-seo had done in the mountains, he stuck needles into the innkeeper, the servants, and the cooks, examining them one by one.
I had no idea what exactly he was checking, but none of them seemed to be poisoned.
Once it was confirmed that nothing was wrong, the conversation moved on to the next step.
"The target entered this village yesterday afternoon. They didn't stop at any inn and simply drove the carriage straight south. We sent people after them, and it looks like they spent the night in the mountains."
"How many were there?"
"One young lady, one man who seemed to be her lover, and three martial artists hired in Seochon as swords-for-hire."
A love elopement, huh...
The picture formed instantly.
Even in ordinary households, it wasn't easy to marry the person you loved. For a great clan like the Tang Clan, it went without saying.
You were expected to marry whoever the clan head and the elders chose for you, often a person whose face you'd never even seen, because the family's interests came first.
Most people accepted that role willingly, grateful for having been born into a good family and raised in comfort. But every so often, there were those who abandoned the family and chose love instead.
What didn't make sense was that, while running away, they'd stolen poison and hidden weapons from the Tang Clan. That didn't fit if the goal had simply been to shake off the pursuit squad.
If they'd just run quietly, they wouldn't have been chased this far in the first place.
Tang Do-hun took a bank draft from his pouch.
"I'll rent out the entire inn for one night, so don't take any more guests."
After checking the amount written on the draft, the innkeeper smiled with obvious satisfaction. "I was prepared for that already. Dinner will be ready soon, so please wash up first."
The coachmen drove the carriage into the stable behind the inn.
We all went inside. One of the servants lowered the banner hanging from the inn and barred the doors.
"Is there somewhere here where we can wash?"
The servant pointed beyond the back door. "If you go straight that way, you'll reach a river. The terrain there is gentle, so the current isn't strong. It's good for washing off."
I told Tang Hye-seo I'd be back after washing up, then headed for the back door. Won Seo-gang followed me.
Even under the still-blazing afternoon sun, two blood-soaked martial artists walking side by side made me feel like a stray dog.
Once we climbed over a low hill, a fairly wide river appeared exactly as the servant had said, flowing calmly without drying up under the hot summer sun.
"Let's take turns."
"I'll go first."
"What happened to respecting seniority?"
"Do you want to go first when you leave, too?"
I quickly set my long blade beside the bundle, then took off the dagger strapped to my ankle, the money pouch, and even the bamboo tube tied to my wrist.
By then, the blood had dried onto my martial robe so completely that it had hardened like a shell. The moment I stripped it off, crusted flakes of blood crumbled off with a nasty, gritty sound.
I tossed the robe aside and plunged into the river. I immediately regretted it. The water was so cold it felt like it was trying to stop my breathing.
Through that shocking, body-rattling chill, I dived under and swam to the riverbed.
Watching the little fish weaving between the pebbles, I scrubbed at my body with my hands. Dried blood loosened and turned the water red. No matter how hard I rubbed, it kept coming off forever.
I felt both lighter and vaguely uneasy.
I broke through the surface again and checked my body and limbs by running my hands over them here and there.
When you fought in the heat of the moment, you often didn't even realize you'd been hurt.
It was common to think a leg was just sore from a cramped muscle, then touch your thigh absentmindedly only to find wet blood there.
Luckily, I wasn't hurt anywhere. Every drop of blood washed from my body belonged to some nameless bandit.
After washing my hair and scrubbing my face, the area behind my ears, the back of my neck, and every corner of my body clean, I climbed back onto the bank.
I took a strip of cotton cloth from the bundle, dried myself off, and put on the fresh underwear and martial robe I'd brought with me.
My old leather shoes were stained with blood too, and there was a hole worn through the toe.
In the past I would have patched them up and kept wearing them somehow, but now my purse was full enough. I threw them away and took out a pair of cloth shoes from the bundle instead.
There was always something nice about putting on new shoes. They gave me the strange feeling that I might be able to walk a new road.
Of course, it was only the feeling that changed. The road itself stayed the same.
I threw the blood-soaked martial robe and leather shoes into the river. After watching them drift slowly along the current, I turned back and shouted, "I'm done! You wash up!"
Won Seo-gang, who had been lying under the shade of a tree, got to his feet and stretched.
He unfastened his sword, took off his clothes, and strode down to the riverbank.
I could only see his back, so I couldn't judge the size of his body, but the sword scars left across his bronze, sun-darkened skin were impossible to miss.
The sharply carved wounds were so precise they almost looked like flower petals. It seemed he'd once fought some terrifying master and barely escaped alive.
I washed my hands, then lay down in the shade of the tree.
The battle with the bandits replayed itself in my mind.
It always happened like this after a fight. Even if I didn't want to think about it, the memories kept coming back, forcing me to review every move. Maybe that was the only reason I was still alive.
When I butchered the bandits, I hadn't felt the slightest guilt. I hadn't gone easy on them, and I hadn't hesitated.
I had even tested the sword technique I'd learned from Won Seo-gang.
I hadn't enjoyed the killing, exactly, but there was a familiar sensation there, like it had been a long time since I'd felt the weight of a blade in my hand. It was unsettling.
When I took on Tang Hye-seo's escort duty, I hadn't exactly planned on killing anyone.
But looking back, some part of me must have expected something like this to happen. Even so, I hadn't thought much of it. Was it because it was disgusting, but familiar?
Come to think of it, the others were no different.
Leaving aside Won Seo-gang, Tang Do-hun, and the Jeodok Hall men, even Tang Hye-seo—who looked barely twenty—had no hesitation about killing bandits.
She had stayed perfectly calm even while looking at me soaked in blood.
She didn't faint or lose her head when faced with dozens of dismembered corpses stinking with rotten blood. Instead, she had actually gone around sticking in needles to check whether they had been poisoned.
Even in the face of a scene that looked like hell on earth, not one person trembled or acted distraught.
If you asked whether that was what it meant to be a martial artist, I wouldn't have an answer. But if you asked whether that made them human...
I didn't know.
So I've turned into a killer fiend too...
I felt it in my bones all over again: starting life over was an impossibly difficult thing to do.
Just as I had thrown away the blood-soaked martial robe, maybe I could cast this life into death as well and only make it in the next.
After washing up and getting dressed, Won Seo-gang came over, drying his hair.
"Why the long face? Because of the sword path? I told you it wasn't that easy. If you let it slip, your blade technique can collapse too..."
"That's not it. I killed someone."
"Hm?"
Won Seo-gang blinked, clearly not understanding.
"What are you talking about? You were having a great time in the mountain a moment ago, carefully reviewing everything you'd learned..."
"...I wouldn't say I was having a great time. I was just doing what had to be done."
So the thing I was best at in this world was killing people. That was deeply regrettable, but there was no point feeling wronged about it.
There were plenty of fools in this world who were so bad at even that that they died in a scream before they knew what hit them.
"Don't think too hard about it. Just treat it like you were saving sentient beings. Were those bandits harmless commoners? They were evil men who lived by killing travelers crossing the mountain and robbing them. They killed men and raped women. That was their business. Only when they ran into someone tough did they take the toll and send them on their way. I was busy, so I came straight here, but if we'd searched their lair, I'd bet we'd have found plenty of women they'd already captured."
"I know."
It felt like I was being lectured on first kills by some trembling rookie martial artist, which somehow made me feel like an idiot.
In a sulky tone, I changed the subject. "What do you think will happen tomorrow?"
"There'll be more blood."
The ones fleeing were Tang Clan members too. They would know better than anyone how strong the Tang Clan really was.
They couldn't possibly have expected a handful of shabby bandits to shake off the Tang Clan's pursuit squad.
"If they're caught, death is the only thing waiting for them, so they'll be desperate. I don't know what kind of insane thing they'll do next just to buy time to run."
"You said this was just a simple escort job, and it's already covered in blood on the first day."
"Did you really think I'd be handing out three taels of silver a day like this was some charity, in an age when human butchers are crawling all over the place?"
Won Seo-gang had probably come expecting roughly this from the start.
Maybe that was how the world worked. When money came in, money had to go out; when you carried a blade at your waist, eventually you were going to see blood.
After drying my hair and resting a while, I went back to the inn.
The spacious first floor held only Tang Hye-seo and her attendant. Tang Do-hun and the members of Jeodok Hall weren't visible, likely upstairs.
Tang Hye-seo waved me over. "Let's have some tea together."
In the meantime she must have had a bathtub brought in and washed up, because her face was spotless and she was wearing new clothes. Her attendant looked clean too.
We sat facing each other and drank cooled tea water when Tang Hye-seo suddenly pointed at my left arm.
"What's hidden in your sleeve? It's not a wrist crossbow, is it?"
I flinched and looked up over my teacup, only to find my eyes meeting hers. It was too late to pretend otherwise.
"When did you see that?"
"The moment I saw you in the side building. Tang Clan members always check both sleeves first when they look at someone."
So that was why she'd stared at me so hard then. She must have been wondering what kind of lunatic had a bamboo tube strapped to his sleeve.
"It could be a wrist crossbow."
"A wrist crossbow? Hmm. It's a little different from mine."
"How far do you plan to chase the traitors?"
When I quickly changed the subject, Tang Hye-seo answered in a tone that made it sound obvious. "Until we catch them."
"The period you hired me and Won Seo-gang as escorts for was five days. Once today is over, that leaves four. Will that be enough?"
"I heard the contract can be extended, but I take it neither of you is keen on that? It doesn't seem to be because of the bandits, so perhaps it's a matter of cost?"
"It wouldn't do for an outsider to get mixed up in another family's business, would it?"
Tang Hye-seo held up her right hand, then folded down her thumb.
"Four days should be enough. We might be finished before then."
Won Seo-gang studied Tang Hye-seo closely. His eyes grew cold, but his voice remained calm.
"Looks like there are a lot of things we don't know."
"It's an internal Tang Clan matter."
It was Tang Clan business, so I didn't feel like pressing any further. We just drank our tea when the cook brought dinner.
Cold noodles with vinegar in the chilled tea water, stir-fried vegetables and chicken, dumplings...
Similar dishes were carried upstairs as well.
After filling our stomachs enough, we got up. Tang Hye-seo glanced toward the stairs and lowered her voice conspiratorially.
"Both of you, get ready to slip out once the sun goes down and wait."
Tang Hye-seo's attendant knocked on our room door just as night had fallen and the moon was hanging from the eaves of the roof.
When I opened the door, I saw Won Seo-gang behind the attendant's back. The attendant kept glancing at the other rooms as he hurried us along.
"Hurry up and come with us."
We all went down the stairs together and out through the back door.
Tang Hye-seo, now changed into black night clothes, was waiting for us. The attendant went back into the inn.
"Let's go."
Without offering an explanation, Tang Hye-seo took the lead and headed for the village.
The hamlet, faintly lit by the hazy moonlight, was dark and sparsely populated.
As soon as we stepped in, a stray dog that had been wandering nearby barked a few times and ran off.
The alley between the thatched houses twisted and turned. I walked with every nerve on alert, ready to draw my blade at any moment.
A human silhouette flickered at the far end of the alley. A black shape, running fast.
Tang Hye-seo gestured for us to slow down.
We all lifted our heels and slipped quietly out of the alley. Far ahead, a lone figure was running toward the mountain. It was a black-clad man wearing a low brimmed hat.
"That one?"
At my question, Tang Hye-seo's eyes and voice burned coldly out of the dark. "Yes. If we're lucky, it'll all be over tonight."
"Good."
Won Seo-gang muttered softly and looked at me. When our eyes met, I nodded back.
We didn't need to say it aloud. Tang Hye-seo had hired us as escorts for exactly this.
"We won't lose him, but we can't let the trail go cold for too long."
"Wait."
Tang Hye-seo turned back just as she was about to run again.
"Have you ever done a nighttime tail before?"
"A few times."
"Then I'll take the lead. I'm used to this sort of thing."
Tang Hye-seo didn't argue. She simply stepped back obediently.
Won Seo-gang and I moved along in front and behind her, keeping as close as possible to the wall so we could hide ourselves in the shadows.
Keeping a generous distance, we trailed the black-clad man out of the village and toward the mountain.