It Should Be Fine to Take Him Out, Right?
"You want to see my mother?"
"Yeah. Show me the way."
"What are you planning to do after you see her?"
"Ask her for help."
Tang So-gang’s birth mother was the Tang Clan head’s second wife.
If the first wife really did undo the mess she’d caused, then she would be the ideal person to turn to.
...
"I’ll say this now: you need to be respectful to my mother."
"Don’t worry. I’m the sort of person who shows respect to my elders."
"...... Right."
Tang So-gang seemed about to say more to So-yeong, then shut his mouth.
So-yeong did use polite speech with her elders, but the way she spoke was a long way from respectful.
He could only hope—desperately—that she wouldn’t insult his mother.
***
The residence where the second wife stayed.
Tang So-gang knocked on the second wife’s door.
"Mother... it’s So-gang."
"What is it?"
"There’s a guest here who wishes to see you."
"So you brought that young lady here."
Tang So-gang blinked in confusion.
Bringing So-yeong here had been a spur-of-the-moment decision.
So how on earth did his mother already know she had come?
"Move aside. She already knows."
"W-wait!"
So-yeong pushed past the flustered Tang So-gang and opened the door.
Inside was a beautiful woman so elegant it was hard to believe she was the mother of two children.
She did look her age, just a little—but even that had been refined into a kind of dignified beauty.
So that was the Tang Clan head’s second wife.
So-yeong immediately cupped one fist in the other and bowed.
"Greetings, Second Wife. I’m Tang So-yeong."
At the sight of So-yeong’s salute, the second wife narrowed her lovely eyes slightly.
"Mother."
"...... Pardon?"
"Call me mother, you rude little thing."
So-yeong was taken aback by the second wife’s words as well.
Given the atmosphere of the Tang Clan, she had assumed the second wife would dislike her too.
At best, she’d expected indifference.
"Don’t want to? Then get out."
"...... No, Mother."
"Good."
To tell the child of another wife to call her mother?
Was she just a rigid woman obsessed with proper titles, or...
"I can hear the gears turning in your head from here. Did you come just to greet me?"
The second wife clicked her tongue at So-yeong.
It was a signal to cut the nonsense and get to the point.
So-yeong decided to speak up at once.
"I came with a request for the Second Wife."
"That request wouldn’t happen to be for me to stop your marriage, would it?"
"...... It is."
"I see. But a request is only something I’ll hear if I’m in the mood."
The second wife said that, then fixed So-yeong with a sharp stare.
So-yeong understood at once what she meant.
In other words: why should I do what you want?
"Then how about a trade?"
"You came here planning for that from the start, so why bother calling it a request?"
"Because you might still agree."
"....... Is that so?"
The second wife narrowed her eyes.
Then she flicked her hand at Tang So-gang, who was standing there on pins and needles, and ordered him out.
"You, So-gang, go wait outside. I want to talk to her alone."
"M-mother...?"
"I said get out. Do you want your mother to say it twice?"
"... I’m sorry."
Tang So-gang looked like he wanted to say something, but one sharp glance from the second wife sent him packing.
The moment he was outside, the second wife snapped irritably, "And stop hovering outside the door! Go on, get lost!"
"Yes, ma’am!"
At once, Tang So-gang’s presence vanished from beyond the door.
The second wife let out a long sigh.
"He’s still a child, even at that age. This is why I never wanted to have a boy."
"...... Is that so?"
"What? Surprised that the second wife standing against the first wife would say something like that?"
That was exactly it.
Since the first wife was so drunk on power, So-yeong had assumed the second wife would at least have some appetite for it.
But the woman before her didn’t seem that way at all.
No, quite the opposite...
"You saw correctly."
"...... Pardon?"
"I have no interest in the Tang Clan’s power. So if you came here trying to lure me with that, you’ll have to think of another way."
The second wife smiled thinly as she said it.
So-yeong clicked her tongue inwardly.
She was a woman with the body of a teenage girl now, but inside she was an old man who had lived nearly a hundred years.
Because of that, no one could read desire or sincerity as accurately as she could.
And so she could be certain.
Everything the second wife is saying right now is genuine.
The second wife truly wasn’t interested in the Tang Clan’s authority.
"Whatever So-gang wants, becoming young clan head or not, that’s his own desire. I’m not especially interested in such things."
Before So-yeong could say a word, the second wife had already made her move.
That blocked the idea of helping So-gang in exchange for assistance.
"So, do you have anything left to bargain with? What else can you offer me?"
The second wife lifted one corner of her mouth.
So-yeong calmly revised her strategy.
Her opponent was exposing her own cards and trying to tilt the trade in her favor.
Then all So-yeong had to do was show the hand she held.
"Excuse me for a moment."
"...... What?"
So-yeong immediately drew up her internal energy from her dantian.
A moment later, four flying daggers sprang from her right hand.
They shot into the air and began to float there, bobbing lightly.
This was not some transcendent level like controlling objects through the air.
It was a much more realistic feat than that.
Only a master who had reached the pinnacle of Cheongi Hwanmu could guide daggers so freely with the threads linked to their fingertips.
Cheongi Hwanmu.
"I don’t know if the Second Wife already knows this, but the reason I learned this martial art was..."
"Ten days ago. The clan head personally gave you Cheongi Hwanmu."
The second wife cut her off as though it were only natural.
So-yeong no longer even flinched at her words.
Watching the four daggers circle above So-yeong’s head, the second wife murmured, "You mastered Cheongi Hwanmu this much in only ten days? Weren’t you completely without internal energy until two weeks ago?"
"...... You even know that."
"Of course I do. I even know you were poisoned by Cheondok two weeks ago."
"...... Damn."
For the first time in both her lives, So-yeong broke into a cold sweat.
The second wife was too sharp.
Not just clever—there was no word strong enough for it.
That was the second wife.
"Madam. Could it be..."
"Mother."
"...... Mother. Could it be you’re from the Zhuge or Sima family?"
"I’m from the Mi family. Though if you trace the genealogy properly, there’s some Zhuge blood mixed in about eight degrees back through my maternal line."
That was close enough to call her a stranger, at least in practice.
The Mi lady’s brilliance was simply something she’d been born with.
"Asking a question like that—it sounds as if the Cheondok has done something strange to your head."
"That’s..."
"No need to explain. I’m not going to go around spreading rumors."
"...... Thank you."
The Mi lady waved a hand dismissively as if it were nothing.
It was nice not having to drag out a whole explanation because she was so quick on the uptake, but...
This is oddly irritating.
It felt like being Sun Wukong playing in the Buddha’s palm.
The sensation that every corner of her mind was laid bare was strangely unpleasant.
"Showing your skills to me was your way of proving your worth, I assume."
"That’s right."
"I acknowledge that your talent reaches the heavens. You’ll become the Tang Clan’s finest warrior."
"... Thank you."
So-yeong made a sour face.
Originally, she’d intended to show off her martial skill and say something like, I’m this talented, so invest in me!
But if the other side simply recited everything as though she already knew it all, there was nothing left to say.
At this rate, using the Mi lady to get herself out of here looked like a failure...
"Since your talent is exceptional, I suppose I should ask you for a favor."
"...... A favor?"
"Yes. A favor. If you do one favor for me, then I’ll do one favor for you."
This was unexpected.
She’d expected the Mi lady to try bargaining first.
But for So-yeong, that only created an opportunity.
"May I hear it?"
"Fine. First, look at this picture."
The Mi lady handed over a sheet of paper from among the stacks of books around her.
It was a map. A map with X marks scattered over it here and there.
Pointing at a drawing of a huge estate, the Mi lady said, "This is the Tang Clan."
Then she moved her hand smoothly and began explaining with perfect precision.
"This is Mount Emei. This is the Qingcheng Sect. And these X marks show the sites where the incidents occurred."
"What kind of incident?"
"Disappearances."
"Does the Tang Clan investigate disappearance cases too?"
"If it were a simple disappearance, you’d be right."
That meant this was not a simple disappearance.
"Everyone in the marked village vanished."
"Were they taken somewhere?"
"No. They weren’t taken. They disappeared."
The Mi lady looked at So-yeong with a grave expression.
"Their clothes and household goods were all left behind. Traces of life were still there, as if people had been living there until moments before. Only the people themselves were gone."
"...... That’s..."
After hearing the explanation, So-yeong fell into thought for a moment.
If the story was true, then it was something that should not exist according to common sense.
But precisely because of that, the cause was easy to guess.
"A demonic art."
"Why do you think that?"
"Mother. In this jianghu, whenever something impossible happens, nine times out of ten it’s a demonic art."
Things like a village vanishing all at once, or an invulnerable body being poisoned to death.
The Mi lady gave So-yeong a cool, flat look.
"A very simple process of elimination."
"Simple, but reliable."
She used the same words Jinha had once said, throwing them right back at the Mi lady.
At that, the Mi lady let out a small sigh and nodded.
"I thought the same as you—that it was a demonic art. Which is why you must absolutely not rush to find the cause."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Investigate it to a reasonable degree, and if the one behind it looks ready to be caught, come report back."
In other words, she only wanted her to investigate.
Don’t go getting yourself killed trying to play hero and catch the culprit.
So-yeong looked at the Mi lady’s bland, expressionless eyes.
Pity... concern...?
She could sense a faint emotion there that did not seem to belong to someone like the Mi lady.
"So, will you do it?"
"Yes. I don’t really have a choice."
So-yeong tucked the map the Mi lady had handed her into her robes.
And just like that, the conversation was over.
As So-yeong was heading out, she paused for a moment and spoke to the Mi lady as if it were nothing.
"Well... I understand that I’m only supposed to investigate. But it should be fine if I solve it, right?"
"... What did you say?"
"I’ll take that as a yes."
Before the Mi lady could even finish speaking, So-yeong closed the door and stepped out.
The corner of her mouth curved into a sly grin.
If this involved a demonic art, it would inevitably lead back to one organization.
The Heavenly Demon Cult.
A band of fanatics who practiced bizarre arts on Mount Tianshan.
If this case was tied to demonic techniques, then it was surely tied to the Heavenly Demon Cult.
Maybe she could even uncover the demonic art that had killed her.
If the demonic cult made a move to kill me...
Then she would just have to destroy the demonic cult too. What else was there to do?
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