Chapter 39
Chapter 39
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: 39. Guarantee
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Bang Hyeok was not the type to simply stand by and let Yuseong treat Juyeon.
“No, that won’t do. Weren’t you with So-ok, White-Clothed Physician? Ever since then, the House Leader has lost consciousness and fallen into a coma, still not waking.”
Yuseong scanned the expressions of the elders gathered in the room.
Some nodded in agreement with Bang Hyeok’s words, while others seemed hesitant.
He needed to win over the elders to meet Juyeon peacefully.
“Are you perhaps doubting me?”
“You were with So-ok, so naturally, even you, White-Clothed Physician, cannot escape a sliver of suspicion. However, considering our ties with the Murim Alliance, we won’t detain you. We’ll handle treating the House Leader ourselves, so please return for now. If an investigation is needed later, we’ll make a formal request through the Murim Alliance.”
He blocked the way with seemingly reasonable logic and unwavering resolve.
“I stake my name on it—I did nothing that day. To prove my innocence, let me treat her.”
A few elders nodded at Yuseong’s words.
“We’ve heard of the White-Clothed Physician’s reputation. Bang Hyeok, he’s even staking his name on it. It might be worth letting him try. What do you think?”
Some elders voiced their support for Yuseong.
Bang Hyeok ground his teeth.
With Juyeon collapsed and him not yet fully securing all the elders’ loyalty, this was his most politically vulnerable moment.
‘These spineless fools. They all agreed with me that letting Baek Yuseong meet her directly was too dangerous…’
If he just held out a few more days, he could deal with Juyeon naturally without raising suspicion.
Determined to buy time at all costs until then, Bang Hyeok pushed back aggressively, intent on sending Yuseong away today.
“Though you’ve earned some fame, I don’t believe your name carries enough weight to gamble with the House Leader’s life.
In case something goes wrong, let’s have other physicians try first. If they fail, then we’ll ask you, White-Clothed Physician. So please leave for today.”
“…”
Having heard some internal details from So-ok’s confidant, Yuseong could guess at Bang Hyeok’s schemes, but Juyeon’s faction elders knew nothing.
If they were swayed by Bang Hyeok, it would be trouble.
As Yuseong opened his mouth to speak again.
“Then what about my name’s worth?”
A heavy voice laced with inner energy filled the reception hall.
One elder voiced his confusion.
“Who are you to say such—”
Jeong Rip, who had been watching the exchange, removed his bamboo hat.
‘I never planned to hide forever. I just avoided drawing attention to not disrupt the conversation.’
All eyes turned to the man who had removed his hat.
“Demon Subduing Division Leader!”
“No, what brings you here? And what’s with that appearance?”
The elders rose in shock, and Bang Hyeok panicked at the unexpected arrival.
‘The atmosphere felt off, but the one who subdued my men was Demon Subduing Division Leader Jeong Rip? Has the Murim Alliance intervened? Why?’
Regaining his composure, he stepped forward.
Jeong Rip’s appearance was a variable, but if he challenged the justification, the Murim Alliance wouldn’t dare interfere.
After all, wasn’t the Murim Alliance a stiff, precedent-obsessed group?
With the orthodox-unorthodox divide and their recent good relations with the House of Revelry, there was no reason to antagonize them.
“Demon Subduing Division Leader. We never requested aid from the Murim Alliance. Surely you’re not thinking of intervening in our internal affairs? Wouldn’t that violate principles?”
Yuseong was just as startled by Jeong Rip’s sudden move. But he couldn’t let the misunderstanding stand.
“Jeong Rip is no longer with the Alliance; he left today and is now a wanderer. I hired him.”
“Is that true?”
“It is. So speak with my employer, the White-Clothed Physician. I vouch for his words.”
Even without the Demon Subduing Division Leader title, Jeong Rip was a Transformation Realm master in his own right.
A realm all too rare in the jianghu.
No one could claim his name lacked weight when he staked it himself.
Freed from the Murim Alliance’s constraints, he might even get rough.
But Bang Hyeok, having crossed the point of no return, persisted stubbornly.
“You wouldn’t be scheming to intervene in the House of Revelry by having him pretend to leave temporarily, would you…?”
He tried desperately to shake him off.
“Check with the Alliance Leader on that. I declared my departure clearly. Are you doubting my word?”
Now, a sharp aura emanated from Jeong Rip.
There was no doubt who it was directed at.
Seeing Bang Hyeok’s legs tremble, Yuseong thought.
‘I heard he charged at Jo Physician and Moyong Rim, but he’s tougher than I thought. Good to have him on my side.’
“E-even so…”
At this point, Bang Hyeok’s hesitation looked suspicious to anyone watching.
“Bang Hyeok. With Demon Subduing Division Leader—no, Jeong Rip—vouching, shouldn’t we trust the White-Clothed Physician? Even the Alliance Leader was mentioned.”
“Exactly. He’s no longer with the Murim Alliance, right? His name carries weight. Is there another reason you keep blocking?”
As opposing elders pressed with suspicious glares, Bang Hyeok had no choice but to yield.
Even the elders who had pledged loyalty to him now held back, leaving him outnumbered.
“…The elders are right. With Jeong Rip’s name, we can trust him.”
Forcing a block between Juyeon and Baek Yuseong would only breed greater suspicion.
Now, he had only one card left.
A poison bought at great expense from the black market, on a whim that it might prove useful someday.
Its origins were murky, but its effects were guaranteed.
It could slowly poison someone, causing collapse at critical moments and death within days.
‘I secretly consulted several physicians, but none could identify it, let alone its antidote. Even Baek Yuseong won’t figure it out.
Better this way. If he declares it untreatable, I can pin it all on So-ok. Then the House of Revelry is mine.’
Finishing his calculations, Bang Hyeok clasped his hands in salute to Yuseong.
“Forgive my suspicion. It was only out of concern for my master that I took every precaution. Please, treat the House Leader.”
Yuseong studied his expression.
Despite pleading for treatment, a chill lingered in his eyes.
“I’ll definitely cure her, so don’t worry. Even you, Bang Hyeok, will be satisfied.”
“…”
He made no reply.
Their gazes clashed in the air.
The elders and Bang Hyeok escorted Yuseong and Jeong Rip to Juyeon’s room.
A servant guarding the door opened it.
‘They moved her somewhere discreet. If I’d barged in blindly, they might’ve slipped her away while I searched for the House Leader. Good that I went through proper channels.’
A faint herbal scent filled the room, and Juyeon lay quietly in the center of the bed, eyes closed.
Her face was pale and rigid.
“After meeting So-ok, the House Leader showed signs of dementia, then soon lost consciousness. Please examine her.”
Yuseong checked Juyeon’s complexion and began taking her pulse.
Bang Hyeok watched from behind.
‘Several physicians have already seen her. But only one versed in poisons suspected it, without certainty. Even if Baek Yuseong got lucky detoxifying a Murim Alliance warrior once, he won’t identify this—’
“It’s poison. The House Leader is unconscious due to poisoning.”
“Poison? There are no outward signs. Other physicians came, but none definitively called it poison.”
“This is poison.”
Having secretly used his Detoxification skill during the pulse-taking, Yuseong declared it outright, startling Bang Hyeok.
And with such confidence.
Bang Hyeok grew quite uneasy.
‘Divine Arts, was it? How far do his detoxification abilities go with that? It’s not just for simple poisons?’
His assumption stemmed from faulty information.
During the Murim Alliance Medical Pavilion exam, Yuseong had said he merely suppressed the poison in the Shadow Pavilion warrior.
But contrary to reports, he had left only a trace and fully detoxified.
Learning that a Yang physician easily finished detoxifying the suppressed warrior, Bang Hyeok misjudged Yuseong’s Divine Arts as incapable of handling potent poisons.
Yuseong drew a long needle.
“Then I’ll start detoxifying.”
“One-Needle Divine Physician…”
One elder murmured softly.
Yuseong pierced near Juyeon’s heart and activated the skill.
[Detoxification]
This time, he held nothing back.
Full recovery to wake her was priority.
Juyeon’s face, eroded by the insidious poison and slowly dying, relaxed gently.
One elder brightened at the sight.
“Oh! White-Clothed Physician, the House Leader’s expression has eased. Is it working?”
“One moment. It’s not over yet.”
Yuseong withdrew the detoxification needle and took a short one.
If she woke babbling nonsense again, it’d be trouble, so he aimed to treat her dementia too while at it.
Unlike detoxification, this was harder to guarantee full success.
‘I don’t know much about dementia. But it’ll have some effect. Full memory restoration would be ideal, but sanity alone suffices.’
The short needle headed to Juyeon’s crown acupoint.
“Oh no, how can you needle such a dangerous spot…!”
An elder seeing a crown acupoint needling for the first time panicked slightly, but Yuseong ignored him and continued.
He trusted Jeong Rip to handle any fallout.
‘Please mess up!’
Bang Hyeok screamed inwardly, but Yuseong, perfected via Jegal Yeongyeong, wouldn’t err on a crown acupoint needling.
[Healing]
Divine Power only Yuseong could sense flowed through the crown into her head, enveloping Juyeon’s brain.
But.
‘Damn, the Healing skill’s limit? Some parts are already lost.’
Even pouring until his Divine Power bottomed out yielded no further improvement.
Hoping it wasn’t severe, Yuseong finished.
As he retrieved the crown needle.
“Ugh…”
Juyeon groaned faintly and opened her eyes.