The Merchant of Death (4)
The next morning, a visitor arrived at the inn where the merchants were lodging, waiting to set out for the Central Plains.
"Master Nam! W-we've found her!"
"Found whom?"
"The woman! The very woman we've been searching for has come to us of her own accord!"
"...! Is that true?!"
At those words, Master Nam — who led the merchant guild — and nearly everyone else in the inn rushed toward the door. Following the messenger, they found a woman of truly lovely features standing there, her expression dark. Her age, too, seemed to fall at that most perfect moment: the threshold between girlhood and womanhood.
With looks like that, she would surely be enough to soothe the heart of the Western Sea Dragon King!
So thought Master Nam. But the woman had not come alone.
"At last, you've arrived! Now we can have a proper conversation!"
Beside her stood a young scholar, his robes hanging open in disarray, his face flushed red. His looks were striking enough to rival the woman's, but the air he gave off — his manner of speech, his every gesture — marked him as a thoroughly dissipated scholar.
"...And who might you be?"
"Who am I? You lot have been offering a fortune to find a woman, so I personally brought her here — consider me your benefactor!"
At his words, the woman's expression grew even darker.
"And — hic! — I'm also the man who's going to be this wench's husband!"
"..."
The man who would be her husband. That would make them either betrothed, or newly wed. Master Nam's mind raced. Having seen countless people in his years of trade, he reached a conclusion about the scholar before him in an instant.
This stupid, dissipated scholar is trying to sell his wife for money!
No matter how he looked at it, that was the case. The woman's clothes were nothing special. The scholar's robe, by contrast, though rumpled, could not hide its quality — he had clearly spent a great deal of money on it. And then he had either failed the civil service examination, or some other misfortune had befallen him, and he had drunk away every last coin. Hearing that a precious herb would be given in exchange for a woman, he had thought, Perfect! and brought her along.
"Husband..."
"Be quiet! I've finally found a use for you!"
That settled it. But Master Nam did not allow himself to rejoice too soon. There was still one more thing he needed to confirm.
"Regrettably, we are looking for a virgin."
"No problem there! I haven't had my way with her yet!"
The scholar answered Master Nam with a hiccup and a snickering laugh. The drunken spectacle was thoroughly distasteful, but Master Nam did not let it show. He was not a man to be swayed by such feelings.
I can just spirit the woman away, give this fellow a beating, and send him packing.
Hiding his dark intentions, Master Nam ushered the two of them inside. Soon the guild's people brought out a lavish spread of food.
"Please, eat."
"Oho! Is this venison? I never thought I'd get to taste such a delicacy!"
As the scholar began shoveling food into his mouth with a hearty laugh, Master Nam used the opportunity to study the woman.
"What is your name?"
"...Shim Cheong, sir."
"A fine name."
And that was the extent of Master Nam's interest in Shim Cheong. She was a body destined for sacrifice — there was no reason to take any further interest. What he needed to focus on now was the scholar, drunk and eating like a pig.
"Shall I call you Master Nam?"
At that moment, the scholar paused in his eating and posed the question. Master Nam, with all his years of experience, felt something odd. The scholar's cheeks were flushed red, and yet somehow his eyes seemed remarkably sharp. It was like looking into the eyes of a living dragon.
Then, in a flash, those eyes went bleary with drink once more.
"Master, Master! What a splendid title! Hahaha!"
Master Nam decided he had been mistaken, and opened his mouth.
"Call me as you please."
"Then Master Nam it is! Now, I have a few questions, if you don't mind."
It would be about the reward, no doubt. And Master Nam's prediction proved correct.
"If I let you take my wife, you'll definitely give me the Panacea Grass, yes? Worth three hundred sacks of rice... whew, three hundred sacks — how many jars of wine is that?"
"That's right. A precious herb we barely managed to obtain even in the Central Plains. If you sweet-talk other merchants who know its worth, they'll pay you even more."
"Ah, that's a lie!"
The scholar laughed heartily.
"If this herb of yours is so magnificent, you'd sell it to the nobles of Hanyang or even His Majesty himself — why would you be hauling it around a backwater harbor like this? It's a fake, isn't it?"
The scholar slammed his wine cup down with a bang and glared at Master Nam. At the sight, Master Nam's bodyguards reached for their swords, but he raised a hand to stop them. The way the man talked was thoroughly infuriating, but this was the fellow who had the woman they so desperately wanted. He needed to be all the more careful.
"...It is not a fake. We have our reasons for carrying it with us."
"What reasons? Look, this is my wife's life we're talking about — I need to know for certain. What if it turns out to be stolen goods and I end up taking the fall for everything?!"
For a brief moment, Master Nam glared at the scholar. But the man's eyes were still wandering and unfocused — even if he told him, the fellow likely wouldn't remember.
Judging by his behavior, this man's days are numbered and his word is worthless. He won't remember this conversation anyway.
Better to mix in some truth than to provoke him and have the whole deal fall apart.
"The Western Sea has grown far more dangerous these past fifteen years, so we try to take every precaution each time we cross."
"Hmm? So a single herb can save an entire merchant fleet? Or... ah! You were planning to save your own skin while everyone else got hurt and died!"
The scholar clapped his hands and roared with laughter, needling Master Nam.
"It is nothing of the sort. It is the same principle as giving traveling money to the messengers of the underworld, for those bound for the next life."
"So that herb is supposed to be traveling money? Then who exactly are you giving it to?"
"We do not give the herb itself. We intended to use it to obtain a person, and offer a rite to the Dragon King."
"Hmm... but even a herb that fine — I doubt you'd find someone willing to take it in exchange every single time?"
"On other occasions we brought different goods. Those have all been exchanged. This time, we prepared it both as a precaution for our safety and as something to trade for the rite."
"Hmmm... and who told you this information?"
"That came from a monk... wait. Why do you want to know that? I don't believe I am obligated to tell you that much."
Master Nam snapped back to his senses and answered the scholar. The conversation had flowed so naturally that he had nearly spilled everything without realizing it. As Master Nam replied, keeping his guard up, the scholar tossed back another drink and said,
"I just wanted to get a little something out of it later myself — you're being stingy! Still, as long as I know that herb isn't a fake, I don't care!"
With that, the scholar stood roughly, seized the woman's arm with a brutal grip, and said,
"Then I'll keep my wife safe until we make the trade! When will you come to exchange her?"
"...Come to the harbor in two days."
"Understood! We'll be at the harbor in two days!"
With that, the scholar took the woman and left. Her shoulders hung limp as she followed behind him. The back of a woman who had just learned, from a stranger's mouth, the hour of her own death — how could it be so wretched, and yet so beautiful?
...Master Nam had seen such a sight any number of times, and still he had never grown accustomed to the lingering impression it left.
How many times had it been now? How many women had he sacrificed.
For a fleeting instant, the image of an old monk passed through Master Nam's mind. Recalling the face of the woman who would soon die, he leisurely watched the couple's receding figures.
"I'm sorry. I got too into the role and pulled your arm too hard. Does it hurt?"
"I'm fine. More importantly... are you sure you weren't actually drunk?"
"Aigoo, I'm perfectly fine. Looks like my act of being drunk worked perfectly."
Once we had confirmed we were far enough from the merchants, Cheong-i and I headed straight for the cliff. At some point, this place had come to feel like a hideout just for the two of us. It was a spot few people ever visited, which made it convenient for talking about all sorts of things.
"First, if anything I did earlier was unpleasant, I apologize. That merchant didn't seem like an easy man to fool, so I had no choice if I wanted to allay his suspicions."
Throughout our performance, I had yanked Cheong-i's shoulder, grabbed her hand roughly, and the like. It had all been to sell the image of a scholar who treated his wife not as a person, but as a valuable commodity. Looking back, though, I felt I had taken it too far, and I regretted it.
At my apology, Cheong-i's eyes went round, and she let out a little puff of a laugh.
"What happened to that swagger from a moment ago, when you were about to sell your wife? Now only a timid scholar remains?"
"...What did you say?"
"Is a wife not even allowed to tease her husband?"
"Hah! It seems my wife has no idea how fearsome her husband can be!"
With that, I gave Cheong-i a playful shove. I had really only meant to tap her on the shoulder.
"Kyaaah!"
"Ugh! A-are you all ri—"
"Heheh."
For a moment it looked as though Cheong-i was about to fall backward, and I lunged to catch her in a panic — only for her to grab my hand and pull. I lost my balance and tumbled right onto the front of her jeogori.
"We aren't even married yet and you're already trying to have your way with your wife? Kyaaah~."
"You're the one who pulled me down..."
I had thought she was only playing around and let out a sigh — but looking closer, I saw that both of her hands were trembling faintly.
"...Are you all right?"
"Just now, I kept thinking of the way that merchant looked at me. Those eyes, so cold they were nothing like yours... they weren't looking at a person at all."
"...I thought the same."
"That's why I was scared. Quite a lot, actually."
"He won't get what he wants. Don't worry."
When I spoke to reassure her, Cheong-i smiled softly.
"Thank you, Scholar. To go to such lengths for a woman you've only just met... I don't know how I should repay you."
"I didn't do it expecting repayment."
"...Scholar."
"Hmm?"
"Do you have a fiancée or a wife back home? Or... perhaps a woman you've set your heart on?"
Why was it that, in that instant, two faces came to mind? But I shook my head just as quickly. Both of them were special to me, but neither was a relationship of love. A loving relationship, after all, required that two hearts be in accord.
I shook my head.
"Then... what about me? As repayment for your help..."
...What?