Chapter 345
Chapter 345
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 353
Chapter Title: The Devil's Bargain
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“What did you drag so much of here?”
Nangung Hyeok snickered as he swept his gaze over the people from the Hwangbo Clan entering the guest hall.
The ones catching his eye flinched and averted their gazes slyly.
Nangung Hyeok dusted off his sleeves and grinned crookedly.
“You said you were looking for me?”
“…….”
“Why seek out a busy man like me?”
Gasp.
Go Dong-gil, who had been guiding the Hwangbo Clan members, and everyone else stared at Nangung Hyeok in shock.
‘This madman! Who talks to the Hwangbo Family Head like that?!’
‘Is he gonna get smacked? Why that stance…….’
‘Uh, ugh. Has he lost his mind!’
‘That crossed the line!’
To speak that way to the lord of the mighty Hwangbo Clan!
Forget decorum—it was outright provocation.
Was that how a young master of a prestigious orthodox sect should act?
Everyone watched the two men tensely, figuring even if Hwangbo Sung ran him through with a spear right then, there’d be no grounds for complaint.
The moment they thought Hwangbo Sung might erupt in thunderous rage.
“Oh my, you must be Hyeok!”
……Huh?
“Has it been five years? No, ten? Wait, fifteen years since I last saw you.”
“That long? I don’t even remember how old I was fifteen years ago.”
“I can still picture you as a little kid. Don’t you remember me? Ha, hahaha!”
Everyone’s jaws dropped at Hwangbo Sung’s reaction.
What was that response?
No, he was practically begging to get decked?
Not gonna hit him?
You’re seriously not?
Ignoring the bewildered stares, Hwangbo Sung laughed it off.
“Hahaha! Seems there’s some misunderstanding we need to clear up. Let’s talk together…….”
“Nah, I’m not buying.”
“Huh?”
“I said I’m not buying. What’s the point of a contract? You’ll ignore it and do whatever you want. Just go home. A contract’s no joke. Even our house mutt doesn’t flip its food bowl.”
Nangung Hyeok shook his hands and clicked his tongue.
Foam bubbled at Go Dong-gil’s mouth.
“Y-Young Master!”
No matter what, comparing the Hwangbo Family Head to a mutt!
A mutt’s food bowl?
Doing whatever he wants?
Was that even a thing to say!
He wasn’t begging for trouble!
‘Look at those elders’ faces hardening! What if the Hwangbo Clan comes at us with blades drawn!’
Walking on thin ice wouldn’t feel this precarious.
No, when someone talks like that, you at least pretend to listen.
Oh god, he’s already turning away!
Go Dong-gil tried to rush forward desperately, but Hwangbo Sung strode over briskly.
His approach was intimidating, like an enraged lion pouncing.
The sheer pressure froze everyone in place.
“D-Danger……!”
Whoosh!
“Y-Young Masterrrr!”
Hwangbo Sung grabbed Nangung Hyeok’s sleeve and made a pitiful face.
Urgency and desperation mixed on his features, making him look utterly pathetic.
The lord of the great Hwangbo Clan, wearing that expression!
“I-I’ll give up Hangzhou, so please just help me once! I’ll starve to death at this rate!”
The Hwangbo Clan elders behind him bowed deeply as well.
“Please help us!”
“Help us, I beg you!”
“Urgh! Just once, please!”
Their fervent pleas echoed through the guest hall.
Go Dong-gil and the Changcheon Merchant Group traders’ eyes bulged wide.
Blink. Blink.
‘……What in the world is going on?’
Go Dong-gil’s gaze shifted to Nangung Hyeok, where Hwangbo Sung clung desperately.
An evil grin spread across Nangung Hyeok’s face over Go Dong-gil’s trembling pupils.
“Aigoo, I’m so busy.”
Nangung Hyeok crossed his arms, feigning helplessness as he eyed Hwangbo Sung with a sly smirk.
Then he crossed his legs and spoke.
“Still, you came all this way, so maybe I’ll hear you out?”
“…….”
“Go on, speak.”
Hwangbo Sung flashed a sales-pitch smile at the swaggering Nangung Hyeok and quickly beckoned.
“I brought gifts on the way—let’s start with those!”
Hwangbo Sung urged.
At his prompt, Chief Steward Hwangbo Cheol dashed off somewhere and dragged back a burly man turned into a bloody pulp.
People recognized the battered face and jumped in alarm.
“N-Nangung Cheong?!”
“W-What happened to that guy’s face?”
“Why did the Hwangbo Clan capture him?!”
“I wondered where he vanished to—turns out he was with the Hwangbo Clan!”
Murmurs rose as everyone stared at Nangung Cheong.
Hwangbo Sung rubbed his hands gleefully and chuckled at Nangung Hyeok.
“Before we start the talks, I should explain first.”
“Explain?”
“Exactly! About the culprit behind all this—the root of our mutual misunderstanding!”
People looked puzzled.
What did this battered Nangung Cheong have to do with the gathering?
He hadn’t even been near it.
Hwangbo Sung paused dramatically before announcing loudly for all to hear.
“I, Hwangbo Sung, captured this wretch who was inciting rebellion at the main house to sabotage the gathering! Ahem!”
People who’d been eyeing Nangung Cheong with pity and confusion gaped.
“That filthy bastard! Involved in another rebellion?!”
“He led it this time?!”
“You mad son of a bitch! Outrageous scum! We spared his life, and he plots treason again!”
“Wait, so the Hwangbo Clan didn’t break the contract—this guy schemed it?!”
Hwangbo Sung inwardly beamed at the reactions.
‘That’s right, that’s right! Exactly this!’
He’d groveled from the start for precisely this effect.
The Hwangbo Clan had been unaware.
This guy orchestrated it all, sowing confusion midway.
Thus, we Hwangbo Clan prevented the Nangung Clan’s rebellion in advance—we’re allies.
Plant that perception.
Even a half-bow would grant absolution, allowing renegotiation on better terms……
Thud!
Before Hwangbo Sung could finish his thought, Nangung Hyeok leaped from his seat.
“You filthy dog!”
Huh?
Nangung Hyeok charged before anyone could stop him, lunging straight at the bloody Nangung Cheong.
“U-Uwaaak!”
Splat!
It started with a jaw-turning punch, followed by Nangung Hyeok’s merciless beating.
“Stabbing me in the back again?! Again? That’s why traitors need their heads chopped off and rolled in the dirt! Why’d I spare you!”
Uh, uh……
Thud thud thud thud thud!
“Kwaaaak!”
Huh?
“Die! Die! Die! You traitor scum! Die!”
“Kwaaaak!”
Wait, hold on.
Is that meant for me to hear?
Not just Hwangbo Sung and his clan, but even Go Dong-gil watching let out a groan.
“J-Just kill me…….”
Nangung Cheong’s death rattle chilled the guest hall.
Twitch twitch.
Nangung Hyeok returned to his seat calmly, as if nothing happened.
“Why drag him here? Just sever his tendons and toss him to the dogs.”
……What, what food?
Hwangbo Sung’s eyes quivered.
The Thunder Dragon Squad trio muttered.
“Young Master? Shall we dice him up and bury him?”
“Let’s skewer this shithead and roast him.”
“Just burn him. Dirt’s too good for him.”
Was that really orthodox sect talk!
Drag drag drag……
They naturally hauled off the limp Nangung Cheong somewhere.
No one stopped them—some even nodded as if it were obvious.
Hwangbo Sung broke into a cold sweat.
“W-Where are you taking him?”
“We’ll handle traitors per our policy.”
“…….”
“Oh, right—anyway, take this.”
Before Hwangbo Sung could recover, Nangung Hyeok shoved a stack of documents at him.
Nangung Hyeok grinned.
“You need to stamp it.”
“……S-Stamp?”
“That’s why you came, right?”
Right, that’s why we came.
But not like this……
“Check it quick.”
At Nangung Hyeok’s urging, Hwangbo Sung rolled his eyes, then cautiously took and opened the documents.
His brow veins bulged as he skimmed them; his hands shook.
Bloodshot eyes bored into the paper.
Rub rub rub.
He rubbed his eyes.
The words stayed the same.
What he’d read was exactly as interpreted, not a syllable off.
Blink blink.
He blinked repeatedly, rubbed again—nothing changed.
His eyes widened gradually.
“……Y-You want to do this?”
Hwangbo Sung stared at Nangung Hyeok across from him.
Slurp slurp slurp!
Nangung Hyeok vigorously sucked on a pipe offered by servant Kim Cheom-sang beside him.
A faint spicy aroma wafted……
‘Liquor?’
He’d been sucking so hard earlier—that was booze?
Crunch crunch.
Nangung Hyeok munched the snacks Kim Cheom-sang offered, shrugged, and replied.
“Any problem?”
……Problem?
Problems everywhere—where to even start? What would this brat say?
“Here, um, it specifies selling eighty percent of the iron mine…….”
“Don’t like it?”
“E-Eighty percent, plus granting the Nangung Clan exclusive supply rights…….”
“Oh, so that’s the issue?”
Hwangbo Sung’s fists twitched.
The iron mine was one of the Hwangbo Clan’s key assets.
Their iron ore was top-quality in the world!
Eighty percent ownership of that mine, all supply rights to the Nangung Clan?
This?
Really do this?
Hwangbo Sung trembled and glanced sideways slyly.
Chief Steward Hwangbo Cheol clenched his fist and nodded fiercely.
Ah, fuck.
“Haha, hahaha. Why wouldn’t I like it? I-I love it!”
But it didn’t end there.
“……H-Here, thirty thousand pyong of farmland and a hundred thousand pyong for building sites…….”
“Why? Don’t like it?”
“…….”
“So, you hate it?”
“……N-No reason to hate it. Ha, hahaha!”
Color drained from Hwangbo Sung’s face.
His sturdy frame seemed to sag.
One corner of his mouth quivered pitifully.
Hwangbo Sung gazed at Nangung Hyeok with an expression on the verge of tears.
“……I-Is this everything?”
Nangung Hyeok tilted his chin high and glanced down.
“Pfft, we’re just getting started.”
“……W-What?”
“You wanted a gathering, right? You know. You backstabbed us unilaterally—the victim’s still got a sore head.”
Nangung Hyeok grinned wickedly at Hwangbo Sung.
“The iron mine? That’s pocket change. Think that’ll soothe me? My heart huuuurts so much.”
“…….”
“Don’t like it? Should I scrap the gathering?”
“……N-No way…….”
“But your face looks awful?”
‘This dog bastard’s acting like a highway robber……!’
The value of that iron mine!
Rip out that glib tongue, smash that jaw?
‘Do we really have to go this far?’
Hwangbo Sung turned his head; Hwangbo Cheol and the elders shook theirs vigorously no.
Do it, absolutely do it.
‘Damn it all! Fine, endure, endure!’
Hwangbo Sung swallowed bloody tears and faced Nangung Hyeok.
Nangung Hyeok rubbed his chin.
‘This is too lenient?’
It was—way too soft.
Because of this damn Family Head prick, I went through unnecessary hassle?
‘But ending with some iron lumps and rice paddies is absurd.’
I rolled in fury, so you roll too.
‘What more to squeeze?’
Tough choice.
Back then, I’d just lop off traitors’ heads—no such dilemmas.
Dead men’s stuff? Scatter to dust or pocket it, whatever.
“Whew, I’ve gotten so merciful.”
Indeed.
People grow, after all.
“……W-What?”
Nangung Hyeok waved it off.
“Nothing. Just pondering what else to suck dry—and how.”
This punk?
Saying his true thoughts outright?
Hwangbo Sung glared, seething.
“Why?”
“Oh, never mind.”
“Nothing comes to mind, so let’s hear your pitch. Hate it?”
“……Ha, haha.”
Hwangbo Sung forced a smile.
“Th-Then, may I state the main house’s conditions?”
“Conditions?”
“……N-No, may I speak?”
Hwangbo Sung inwardly patted his chest and cleared his throat.
He spoke calmly.
“Regarding Hangzhou…….”
“Oh yeah! Hangzhou!”
Nangung Hyeok slapped the table; Hwangbo Sung’s mouth fell open.
‘Right, if he has any conscience, he’ll yield some Hangzhou interests!’
We yielded mine shares, farmland, sites—yielding on Hangzhou development and Zhejiang Province was only fair.
Even in an unfair gathering, basic propriety.
“Support the Hwangbo Clan for Hangzhou development?”
“Of course! I’ll send the Hwangbo Clan laborers!”
“Oh, we’re communicating. Need to clear land for sites, so support that too.”
“Naturally, haha! Start from Oga Village?”
“Yes, and expand slowly to build a pier.”
“Hahaha! Now we’re talking! Don’t worry!”
A genuine laugh escaped Hwangbo Sung for the first time.
‘Advancing only into Zhejiang is actually profitable.’
Clap clap clap!
Nangung Hyeok clapped and laughed.
“So proactive for the Nangung Clan’s business—love it.”
……Huh? Nangung Clan’s business?
Hwangbo Sung blinked.
“……Weren’t you giving Oga Village to the main house?”
“Are you nuts? Why give away my land?”
“……Huh? What?! Then why demand our laborers and construction costs! That’s not negotiation…….”
“You broke the contract on your whim—so this is compensation for damages?”
……Ah?
Nangung Hyeok smirked lazily at the dumbfounded Hwangbo Sung.
“Don’t like it?”
“T-That’s too much…….”
“Exactly—who told you to betray?”
“…….”
Silence reigned.
To think betraying trust would boomerang this hard!
Hwangbo Sung recalled a murim adage that cut to the bone and swallowed a groan.
“Understood.”
His voice, laced with defeat and despair, echoed in the hall.
Nangung Hyeok spoke magnanimously.
“Going easy ’cause we’re fellow Five Great Clans. You know that, right?”
……This is going easy?
“Back in the day, I’d have stripped your pockets clean, dust and all—but for harmony, I’m yielding this much.”
Tremble tremble.
Hwangbo Sung bit his lower lip watching conditions pile up on the paper.
No, when does it end!
Hey, hey!
Stop writing, stop!
Hwangbo Sung groaned at the dozens of new pages and densely packed terms.
“Phew, just looking at it fills me up.”
Hwangbo Sung ground his teeth.
But the tide had turned.
Nangung Hyeok smirked.
“This is a one-time mercy.”
“……R-Really.”
“Live righteously to earn blessings. That’s how worries vanish. You’re getting what’s due. In these times, going missing? Scary stuff.”
Hwangbo Sung’s brow veins bulged at Nangung Hyeok’s gleeful words.
‘This bastard’s holding my son hostage and brazenly……!’
One reason the Hwangbo Clan couldn’t act rashly.
Isolation aside, their heir and elders were in enemy hands!
Nangung Hyeok smiled.
“But it’s all fate, right? You vanished in Hangzhou—we’ll help look. Should find him quick.”
“Ha, haha…… Th-Thank you.”
“Just pay up.”
“What?”
You filthy scum!
Hwangbo Sung’s face trembled.
Nangung Hyeok said with a devilish look.
“So, one more contract.”
Hwangbo Sung finally realized.
‘I…… invited a devil.’
To chew and spit out even in hell!
Hwangbo Sung and his clan despaired.
Go Dong-gil, witnessing it all, was speechless.