Chapter 273
Chapter 273
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 273
Chapter Title: Fox Borrowing the Tiger's Might (1)
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It had been a while since I started using my third eye to track the shifting path of the chest.
Then Jeong-hyeon sent me a telepathic message.
[...Young Master Eon. The Moyong Family Head is heading this way.]
I lifted my closed eyelids.
And greeted Moyong Sang, who approached with my Eon brothers.
"Family Head."
"Sit, all of you. I'm not here to make you uncomfortable."
Moyong Sang waved his hand at us and offered the customary pleasantries.
"How is it? Does the food suit your tastes?"
At that, Cheon Jang-ho paused sucking on his finger and spoke up.
"Slurp slurp. It's delicious! Especially this pheasant tartare—it's exquisite! Sour yet chewy, just out of this world!"
"Haha. It's only served at this head table for honored guests; everywhere else gets chicken. And you noticed? Eat up."
After finishing the formal greetings, Moyong Sang looked straight at me and said,
"Anyway. I'd like a quiet word with our student council president. Is that alright?"
He'd gone to the trouble of showing such refined manners as a senior martial artist, so I couldn't very well refuse.
Besides, I was curious what he wanted to say.
I nodded.
"Of course."
On the way to the rear garden pavilion, Moyong Sang asked,
"You had your eyes closed just now. It couldn't have been meditation amid the feast. What were you doing?"
At the question, my master spoke up.
- This guy isn't noticing the ritual I engraved on the chest and activating it, is he?
'No way he has the skill for that.'
It was just a casual question to ease the awkward atmosphere.
I came up with an excuse and replied,
"The liquor you prepared was such fine brew that I tossed it back and unwittingly closed my eyes. Then the exquisite strains of music reached my ears, so I was savoring it."
I complimented the Eight Immortals Banquet preparations just enough, and a satisfied smile spread across Moyong Sang's face.
"You have an ear for it! No surprise, considering you were known as the Prince of Elegance before entering the Righteous Martial Academy."
"...Yes. There was such a time."
"Ah, that was a compliment. A true man should know how to enjoy the finer things! Anyway, the musician performing now is an artiste who once won gold before His Imperial Majesty. Sent over from Prince Yeon's residence."
"Is that so?"
"Ahem. You saw the eunuch who came to offer congratulations earlier, but Prince Yeon truly holds our Moyong Clan in special regard."
As Moyong Sang subtly boasted of his ties to Prince Yeon, we arrived at the pavilion in the rear garden.
I immediately asked,
"May I ask why you wanted to see me alone?"
"My father was overjoyed with the gift you prepared. As his son, I wanted to convey his thanks. And I have a proposal as well."
"No need for thanks on my account—it's undeserved. But... what proposal do you mean?"
"I'd like to discuss the future of our Moyong Clan and the Pearl Eon Family."
"I'm listening."
"Our clan and the Paeng Family have come too far to turn back. But the Pearl Eon Family is different."
I nodded to show I was paying attention.
Moyong Sang grinned and continued,
"Your father is a man of righteousness. It's good to be close with the Paengs... but there's only one top spot in northern martial arts. There's a military tactic called 'befriend the distant, attack the near.' Surely you, holding the current top rank, know its meaning?"
"Make allies far away and fight those nearby."
"If you apply it to your family, doesn't it sound just like our Moyong Clan and the Paengs?"
"Even so, I'm just someone recently returned to the family after being cast out."
"I'm speaking of the future. Your era will come someday."
"I see."
"For the Pearl Eon Family to return to the Five Great Clans, one of the existing five must step aside. Think carefully about who would be the easier foe."
At Moyong Sang's words, my master clicked his tongue.
- Why not just have their lot step down? That uncle of yours has far better presence and character. What gives him the nerve to say such things?
'Didn't he hint at it right away upon arriving here at the pavilion? He's banking on his ties to Prince Yeon's residence.'
- A fox with a tiger at its back, nothing less.
Fox borrowing the tiger's might.
That was exactly my thought.
But now was the time to let him dream pleasantly.
'Once the ledger falls into our hands, even Prince Yeon's people will cut ties.'
I grinned and clasped my hands in salute.
"I'll consider your proposal positively, Family Head."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ After finishing with Moyong Sang, I returned to my seat and closed my eyes again.
Then I opened my third eye and looked.
'...A warehouse? Luminous jewels embedded in the ceiling—must be underground.'
The warehouse was filled with chests brimming with colorful silks, gold and silver, and treasures like coral.
In one corner stood a bookshelf holding ledgers.
'The shelf labeled by reign year—those books are fixed in place. Sigh, but why did Moyong Sang have to interrupt right then?'
The problem was, because he'd come, I hadn't seen how the chest entered that warehouse.
'But it's worth a shot.'
I didn't know exactly where the door leading there was, but I knew the warehouse's location for sure.
I had Eon brothers exceptional in such matters.
I could track it with them based on the position.
To act on the idea, I opened my eyes and sent a telepathic message to Cheon Jang-ho.
[Cheon Jang-ho.]
[...Yes?]
[Go discreetly to the beggars right now and get the Moyong estate's layout diagram.]
[How, with so many people around?]
[That's for you to figure out. Didn't you eat all that beggar rice for nothing?]
[...Here we go. I knew it was coming, but the good times end so soon. Oh, my fate.]
Cheon Jang-ho looked saddened for a moment, then dramatically called out to a maid carrying food.
"Hey, miss."
"Yes!"
"I heard from your Family Head that the food here differs from outside."
"Not much difference, but pheasant here, chicken outside."
"Sorry to impose again. I feel bad eating alone—gotta share with my beggar division brothers. Where are they eating?"
"Ah, follow me."
Grabbing a full plate of pheasant last, he noisily exited the banquet hall.
'Not for nothing, that beggar experience.'
Flashy actions hid the true intent—discreet enough.
As Cheon Jang-ho left,
the Alliance Leader sent a message.
[Jang-ho's on the move? Did gauging the ledger's location with sorcery go well?]
[Got a rough position, but for certainty, need details. Best to move around dusk.]
[I see.]
[Yes. When Jang-ho returns, please create an atmosphere to send us juniors back to the guesthouse and draw eyes.]
[Understood. I'll do it.]
A while after Cheon Jang-ho left the head table,
when he returned, the Alliance Leader acted right on cue.
"Head of the Cheon Clan, thank you for inviting this unworthy soul to such a momentous occasion."
"Hohoho. Does the Alliance Leader have words for this old man?"
"Yes. I have something that might disappoint you. But not for the young ones' ears. How about treating the juniors to a separate feast at the guesthouse?"
Thanks to that, we juniors returned to the guesthouse from the banquet hall and dove into strategy.
"Cheon Jang-ho. The map?"
"Here."
"Good work. Jang-ho, go stand watch outside."
"Yes!"
"Sister So-jin, pass the brush."
"Here."
Taking the brush, I marked the warehouse's location on the map.
"Chest is here now. Confirmed it left the head table and moved like this."
Jeong-hyeon tilted his head.
"Young Master Eon's sorcery is always uncanny. But isn't this the pond? You don't mean they tossed the chest in...?"
Paeng So-jin answered.
"It's below. Warrior's stride carrying it, return time, distance to warehouse... these three spots look likely."
Yin Ha-yeon took the brush from me.
"I've built basements and safehouses often. This one's out—traps everywhere, no space. This too, iffy."
She X'd one of Paeng So-jin's three halls, triangle'd another,
and circled the last.
"This seems most likely."
"Even there, need entrance and ledgers. So me, So-ryeong, and Yin junior go in. You two, change to night gear."
That was when Professor Chang Ryang's voice rang out.
"Go where? Change into what?!"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Too polite for Eon Yong-un.
The Eon Yong-un Chang Ryang knew wouldn't stand idly for the humiliation at Moyong Clan's gates.
Nor deliver gifts so courteously.
He wouldn't have volunteered as chaperone otherwise.
Thus, observing Eon Yong-un assuming hidden motives from the start,
when the impeccably polite one drew eyes while the other headed to the guesthouse,
"I'll check on the kids."
he followed after a short delay.
"?!"
Spotting Cheon Jang-ho, he dashed with Mount Hua's Dark Fragrance Step, sealed his mouth,
and eavesdropped.
"...go in. You two, change to night gear."
The students' talk was ending, but 'enter' and 'night gear' sufficed to infer.
Chang Ryang burst in with a shout.
But Eon Yong-un calmly greeted him.
"Professor?"
"What talk? Explain."
Calmly, he detailed Moyong Clan's actions' impact on the world, up to the Prince's mansion visit,
and showed the horse tally at the end.
"This is the tally from His Highness then."
"......"
"His words aside, I promised the prince. To aid the people suffering demonic cults."
"......"
"Should've told you sooner, but feared you'd oppose out of worry. If you say stop, I will."
Chang Ryang couldn't say stop.
Infuriating to confess only when caught,
yet admirable a flawless youth pursuing his self-set goal.
And self-reflection: did he seem so inflexible?
In short, convinced.
"Since I'm confessing, if Moyong guests come seeking you, cover for us—perfect."
"......?"
"No one suspects Worldly Professor Chang Ryang of lying. Safer for our return."
Thus, Eon Yong-un and two students donned night gear and slipped from the guesthouse.
Chang Ryang stayed with the rest,
anxious about potential lies outside his fate, pacing,
when an unwanted Moyong visitor arrived: his direct student, Moyong Gil.
"P-Professor?"
"...Isn't this Moyong Gil? Long time."
"Pardon? Didn't we meet at the gate yesterday?"
"...A night is no short time. Cherish every hour."
"Ah, I see."
"What brings you? Amid the bustle."
"Father said spend time with Eon Yong-un student."
"...I see. Anyway, submitted final assignments before coming?"
"Yes? You approved them."
Chang Ryang awed Namgung students from the start; Moyong Gil held no doubt.
But watching, his clumsy lie was nerve-wracking.
Namgung Yun hurriedly opened the door.
"H-How rude! Is Pearl Eon Family dearer than Namgung Clan?"
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ I left the rear to Professor Chang Ryang and headed for the treasure warehouse.
My master remarked,
- But will Chang Ryang pull it off? Easy for those who've eaten the meat, but lying isn't for everyone.
'That's why it'll work. A lifetime's reputation—none'll suspect him lying.'
- That punk drew the short straw. Badly.
'Why treat your disciple like plague.'
Answering, my steps stayed stealthy and swift.
'Halt.'
Woo So-ryeong and Yin Ha-yeon followed my signals calmly.
'Advance.'
Plus Darkening Fusion shrouding us in shadow.
And Yin Ha-yeon's insight.
[Young Master Eon. This brick's color is much faded alone.]
[Push it.]
Rumble—
'Found it.'
We easily found the door to Moyong Clan's treasure warehouse.