The Tyrant’s Favorite
In Joseon, the criteria for evaluating whether a family is prestigious or not is quite simple. "Based on the third son, the subject of our investigation, his great-grandfather served as a State Councilor." "A prestigious family, indeed." Did they pass the state examination? This is the threshold and the benchmark. After all, every social evaluation in Joseon is based on the state examination. Passing the exam brings wealth, power, and honor. Depending on how high one climbs in the government hierarchy afterward, the prestige of the family is further categorized.
"However, there hasn't been a single successful candidate since then."
"Not one since the great-grandfather?"
"That is correct."
"Then it becomes a bit ambiguous."
They say even a fallen rich family lasts for three generations, but as the generations pass, their influence inevitably wanes. "Why, then, is such a family being considered for the position of the Queen?"
"I understand that the current head of the family, Master Jo Yun-hyang, has a good reputation among both the commoners and the elite."
"Is that all?"
"...That Master Jo Yun-hyang studied under the same teacher as one of the State Councilors."
"As expected."
"'As expected,' you say. You are—"
"Investigator, please go a little slower. The swaying is severe."
We were moving toward Yangju along the road. Ultimately, I was sitting on O Jayeon’s back. "...You are truly a wicked man."
"How could a lowly man like me be wicked?"
"Then you are a seducer. Do not speak to me anymore."
"I apologize."
When I truly kept my mouth shut, a desire slowly floated up behind O Jayeon.
'Truly, a warrior to the bone.' People of this type were the easiest to handle.
"Where is your hometown, Investigator?"
"Did I not tell you not to speak to me? For now, it is Naju."
"Naju has many plains, so I understand many Banmain reside there."
"That is true. I often ran around there when I was young. Among my peers, no one was faster than me. And that includes other Banmain, of course."
As we chatted, O Jayeon raised her hand and pointed to a magnificent tiled house. "That is the main residence of the Pungyang Jo clan."
"The house is large. Would the third son, our target, be hidden in the deepest part of the inner quarters?"
"How did you know that?"
"Because that is what I would do."
O Jayeon looked a bit embarrassed. "Anyway, since he is hidden so deep, the problem is how to investigate. If there were even a shred of evidence, I could just say I was from the Uigeumbu and storm in... but if I did that recklessly and found no issues, I wonder what the Right State Councilor would do..."
"Hehe."
"Why are you laughing?"
"It is because you are cute, Investigator."
"...How is it that as time goes on, your teasing toward me only increases?"
O Jayeon’s inner desires crossed chaotically once more.
"Anyway, in my opinion, we should observe for a few days first. How many people are in the house, if there is anything strange recently, what they think of the marriage proposals going back and forth..."
"No, Investigator, why would you want to drag out something that can be finished quickly?"
I smiled and gently stroked her back.
"Hyaat!?"
Truly, she is adorable. We entered a nearby tavern to eat and struck up a conversation with a peddler sitting at the next table. Within a few minutes, the bored peddler began to spill all the information he knew.
"The Jo household? It's a very prestigious family with a great reputation."
"If so many people live there, the amount of food entering daily must be significant."
"Of course!"
"I wonder if such a house has any special delicacies they enjoy."
"Hmm, let's see? They seem to have been looking for beef liver quite often lately."
"Beef liver, you say."
We moved to another location and found a local butcher. "The Jo household? They have indeed been looking for beef liver lately. Could there be a sick person in the house?" The female butcher, who had two horns on her forehead and muscular arms, replied while deboning meat.
After finishing the chat, I returned to O Jayeon and relayed everything I had heard. "To suddenly be looking for beef liver... I can guess what kind of monster it might be."
"..."
"Investigator? Why have you lost your soul?"
"...I am surprised by your capability." O Jayeon lowered her voice. "Are you not afraid of the butcher? They can snap a person in half with their bare hands..."
"How could a lowly entertainer be picky about who he speaks to?"
"But..."
"I have heard enough, so let us move on."
"Move on...?"
I smiled brightly. "To catch a tiger, one must enter the tiger's den."
In Joseon, if you had no place to sleep at night, it was natural to request a night's stay at the home of a local influential figure. "Excuse me. I have been caught by the night; might I stay for a night?"
However, a man wandering the road alone was viewed unfavorably. "Why is a young man traveling the road alone?"
"Originally, I was scheduled to meet the master of the house this evening, but perhaps things went awry or we missed each other. So, I am forced to..."
The head of the family, Jo Ha-yun, was an old man in his 60s. As a commoner woman, her age matched her face. And.
"...I understand the situation. I will provide a room for the night, so stay."
"I am grateful for your kindness."
And that night, at dawn. When everyone in the house was asleep, I rose from my bed. 'Where...'
If I were an ordinary person, I would have to carefully check if everyone in the house was asleep. But I didn't need to. I only had to look at whether desires were floating around. The desires felt in dreams were different in appearance from those when awake, so they were immediately distinguishable.
'...Everyone is asleep.' Where could the third son's room be? I rose and headed toward the inner quarters. Fortunately, the moonlight was quite bright tonight. Modern people do not know the darkness of the night. In this era, without the moon, you truly cannot see anything. It is at the level of entering a cave without lighting.
Walking stealthily, I infiltrated the inner quarters based on the information I had gathered until evening. It was deep in the house, where the gender of the person I needed to protect resided. 'Here is... the eldest son. That is the second son. And...'
Found it. There was someone sleeping in an unnatural place, in an unnatural way. They were curled up on the bedding like a beast, such as a dog or cat.
'This should be enough.' My role is only to be the eyes and the mouth. Not the hands and feet to beat them down. From here on, the Uigeumbu, the police bureau, or the Soma-won would take over—
The third son’s eyes snapped open. Golden eyes that flashed on their own in the darkness.
'Ah.' Fuck. I'm screwed.
"SHAAAAAA!!"
Thud! Before I could even react in the darkness, the thing that was the third son pounced on me. "Ugh...!"
"Where do you think a rat is sneaking around?"
The voice changed. The physique also changed from a man to a woman. Fox tails sprouted from behind her waist. One, two, three. A Sammiho (three-tailed fox). Weaker than a Gumiho (nine-tailed fox), but certainly not an enemy I, an ordinary man, could handle.
"Hehehe...! What is this? Looking closely, you are a very beautiful and pretty man?" The Sammiho's hand touched my shoulder. "If I apply force like this, your collarbone will break like a twig. What would your meat taste like? What would your liver taste like?"
In a hurry, I grabbed whatever I could reach and threw it. The Sammiho didn't even dodge. The object I threw didn't even get close to her; it pierced the paper screen and flew outside.
"Hehehe!! Do not resist. If you do not make a loud noise, instead of tearing you apart while you are alive—"
"That is the direction."
Since ancient times, Joseon was a country that valued archery. Even scholars were ashamed if they couldn't shoot a bow. As for a warrior, it goes without saying how accurate the arrow of someone skilled enough to be selected for the Uigeumbu would be.
O Jayeon’s arrow, which had pierced the paper screen, struck the back of her head. The house, which had been fast asleep, turned upside down.
"Ho, I see. So it was not a human, but a Yoho (demon fox)."
The King, while listening to the report of the Uigeumbu investigator, scooped up rice with one hand. It was breakfast time. She was listening to the report on what happened at dawn last night while eating.
"The demon fox in question was killed on the spot."
"Are there any dead or injured?"
"There are none."
"What did the Pungyang Jo clan say?"
"They said they had no idea the third son had been replaced, and that it was a great relief to be able to avenge their child thanks to the passing Uigeumbu investigator."
The King snorted. "Of course they would say that."
"..."
"Understood. Give Han Sujin and O Jayeon appropriate rewards, and you may withdraw."
The investigator bowed his head deeply. "No, wait."
The King’s spoon stopped. After a moment of thought, she said, "You may handle O Jayeon’s reward as you see fit, but bring Han Sujin to me."
"Right now, your Majesty?"
"That is correct."
Because she wanted to see him right now. To see if he was truly unhurt.