Chapter 98
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 98
Chapter Title: 27. Spoils of War (4)
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Over two hours earlier.
When Flying Tiger arrived at the Locust Brigade's main headquarters with his squad members.
The headquarters, built against a sheer cliff, was truly a natural fortress.
That was why Na-mok had clicked his tongue back then, saying even a massive army would struggle to breach it. In response, Wang Baek-gun had pointed out its weakness: block the front entrance, and they'd be trapped like rats in a sack.
Flying Tiger had tilted his head, wondering why the bandits would choose such a spot. Then, a plausible hypothesis occurred to him.
What if there was a secret passage for escaping the headquarters in an emergency?
The so-called emergency exit.
The reason Flying Tiger thought of a "secret passage" was because he'd encountered a similar case before.
It was back when he operated far beyond the Central Plains.
As a traveler, he'd visited a fortress perched atop a mountaintop with a cliff on one side. The terrain around that fortress was strikingly similar to the Locust Brigade's headquarters.
There, he'd met someone and confirmed a certain rumor floating around in whispers.
"They say this fortress has a secret passage known only to the lord and his direct kin. And that passage runs from the lord's chambers all the way down the mountain... I've got a hunch about its location."
After leaving the fortress, he'd scoured the base of the mountain for a full two weeks. And sure enough, he'd found the secret passage just as described.
That very night.
He infiltrated the fortress through the passage, assassinated the lord, and slipped away cleanly.
He'd been just sixteen then—a mere boy.
Flying Tiger recalled that incident, but the situation at the time hadn't allowed the leisure to verify a secret passage, nor were the circumstances the same, so he'd let it go.
Yet when the White Horse Lantern and the higher-ups below him lingered in the Three Kings Hall despite having time to evacuate, his suspicions deepened.
"What if there really is a secret passage there? For bolting if things go south. Hmm, the Three Kings Hall's isolated position away from the other buildings fits perfectly as a last bastion for that reason."
And his guess turned out to be spot on.
When Flying Tiger pursued the White Horse Lantern and circled behind the three kings' statues, he discovered the passage entrance alongside the corpse of the White Horse Lantern.
There was a hidden door at the base of the central statue.
He might have overlooked it entirely. The secret door was so ingeniously crafted that it blended seamlessly with the statue.
But it wasn't fully closed, and that tiny misalignment gave it away.
How did that happen?
Forcing a guess: Dorung and Pung Bae-dog must have opened the door to flee through the secret passage. Then, it dawned on them to retrieve something the White Horse Lantern carried (whatever it was, Flying Tiger never figured it out).
In their haste to turn back for it amid the chaos, they'd shut the door sloppily, failing to latch it fully.
At any rate, that was how Flying Tiger uncovered the secret passage's existence and location.
It seemed like a confluence of coincidences.
But without his experience, intuition, and keen eyesight, it would have been impossible.
The Face Pursuit Unit Jeong's squad members collected Wang Baek-gun's body, while severing the White Horse Lantern's head and setting it aside separately.
Wang Baek-gun was a comrade, so of course they took him.
As for the head, it served as proof that the unit had handled the job properly—and a surefire way to claim the bounty on his neck.
The head's owner had built a long-standing infamy in life, amassing bounties from various organizations that were staggeringly high.
For comparison, it dwarfed the combined bounties on the four Sichuan Eight Fiends—the fiends the unit had taken down in a previous operation for a nice payout.
That head was worth a massive lump of gold.
More than enough to qualify as spoils of war, no?
Sa-myo, who had been keeping watch outside the Three Kings Hall, rejoined them.
Under Flying Tiger's guidance, the seven of them entered the secret passage leading beneath the statue.
Whoosh.
They lit the torches provided inside the entrance and proceeded in turn. Flying Tiger took point, with Jin Ga-yong bringing up the rear.
The passage would widen enough for two or three abreast, then narrow to barely fit one, repeating the pattern.
As they traversed it, they realized most sections were naturally formed paths, artificially widened or bridged only in spots.
Their trek felt akin to scaling a rocky mountain at pitch-black night. Far stuffier and damper here, but the act itself was much the same.
Not an easy path by any means.
Naturally, their pace was slow, growing slower still.
By the time anxiety swelled in their hearts, giving way to wild delusions—like, Am I walking into hell on my own two feet?—exhaustion was setting in.
In time, about enough for a meal and a cup of tea.
Huuu—
Only then did Flying Tiger, who had been silently leading, let out a long sigh of relief. He'd been tense too, though he hadn't shown it.
He turned and said,
"Everyone, good work. The exit's right ahead."
Ankle-deep water rippled on the floor, while shafts of sunlight streaming in from outside bathed Flying Tiger in a halo.
Still within bandit territory, but they'd successfully escaped its heart.
Two days later.
In that time, the Face Pursuit Unit Jeong had navigated southwest using the sun, moon, and stars as guides.
Per the original plan, they should have met No Song-seo yesterday at the designated spot outside the Locust Brigade headquarters. But they'd blown past the rendezvous time, and their exit point was on the mountain's opposite side—heading there now would mean doubling back into enemy lines. So the unit pressed on independently.
Not that "navigating" was the right word; "lost and wandering" fit better.
In the labyrinthine northern plateau, where they could scarcely distinguish east from west, charting a course while wary of potential bandit pursuit was no simple task.
It was late afternoon amid their struggles when, like a miracle, No Song-seo appeared before them, leading seven horses.
Utterly unexpected—and all the more welcome for it.
"We thought you'd left ahead. How did you find us?"
"That was the plan. But you stirred up such chaos in that bandit den, it was visible from ten li away. What on earth did you do?"
Well, what had they done?
The squad members, ragged as beggars, exchanged glances and chuckled smugly.
Even Jin Ga-yong, ever cool and unflappable during operations, wore a warm smile as he replied,
"Oh, this and that happened. So, what's next?"
"I came to hear exactly what 'this and that' was. You know I can't stand curiosity. Ahem. Not that I was worried about your survival—don't misunderstand."
Jin Ga-yong nodded agreeably at No Song-seo's words.
"Fair enough. Why wouldn't we tell our guide? We'll spill it all. But first, we need to clear their territory."
"Naturally. Let's move."
"Ah, but how did you know we were here? Embarrassing to admit, but we've been stumbling around without a clue ourselves."
"This one's to thank. Took a real shine to him and tracked you down hard."
The "one" No Song-seo meant was the hawk "Chu-hyang" perched on his shoulder right now.
And the "him" was—
Flap flap.
Chu-hyang swooped over, landing on the arm Flying Tiger extended. He stroked it gratefully, and it chirped "Tweet tweet."
...
With the ever-reliable No Song-seo joined, the full Face Pursuit Unit Jeong endured another day and a half of hardship before reaching the northern plateau's boundary.
A small village called Mi-deok-hyeon—which meant they'd escaped bandit territory.
The unit rented out the entire inn, unpacked, and planned to rest the whole next day.
Even Flying Tiger, whose body was unscathed from the forced march, was bone-tired; the severely injured like Dan-geum looked ready to collapse into bed.
It was still too soon to let their guard down completely. Vengeful bandits might come charging recklessly after them.
The Locust Brigade headquarters was a wreck, but their numbers remained vast. Especially with the second-in-command, Gwang-pyo Hyeok-ryeok-chang, and the lesser boss, Mad Dog Ho-tae-a-hu, still alive and kicking.
Those two had led a hundred fifty bandits south in pursuit of Gu-myo and the others disguised as Jeongjo squad members. If they heard of the headquarters raid and turned back—only to run into the unit by ill luck?
With Wang Baek-gun gone and over half the squad nursing injuries, it wouldn't end pleasantly for them.
"Worrying about everything, aren't you? Isn't that why we shelled out top coin for the industry's best guide?"
No Song-seo brushed off Flying Tiger's concern with a boast.
It was late at night.
The table held liquor and simple snacks. Seated were Flying Tiger, No Song-seo, A Jeok-gang, and Jin Ga-yong—a party of four.
The rest—Ye Dok-du, Na-mok, Dan-geum, and Sa-myo—had retired early to their rooms, their bodies too worn.
Jin Ga-yong sipped his drink and added to No Song-seo's words,
"We checked the squad's condition and discussed it. No watchpoints nearby, and the terrain allows surveillance up to ten li out."
"Ah!"
"And even as you say that, Teacher No has agreed to patrol the surroundings tomorrow for any contingencies."
"I see. Sorry for worrying needlessly. Thanks for your thoughtfulness, Senior No."
As Flying Tiger bowed his head in thanks, No Song-seo corrected him with a wave.
"Not thoughtfulness—professional pride. My customer service mindset!"
"Hoo~ Steadfast professionalism... Lesson learned."
"Good, then use my services often. Pricey, but you get what you pay for."
"Will do."
"Actually, I should be the one asking. Future customer."
Flying Tiger and No Song-seo bantered like that, toasting and pouring freely. It stemmed from Flying Tiger's past entanglements with U-i disguised as No Song-seo, plus each harboring their own ulterior motives.
To an outsider, though, it just looked like the two had suddenly hit it off.
Jin Ga-yong watched the scene impassively, fiddling with his empty cup. So absorbed in their chatter, neither noticed his glass had run dry.
Then A Jeok-gang quietly picked up the bottle and refilled it for him.