Stepping on the Tail
"So the Comic Sword Master has pulled off another difficult feat. With the Falling Flower Water Sword and the Meteor Sword Masters already among us, the addition of the Comic Sword Master makes the future of the martial world feel as secure as if it rested on solid stone."
"Haha, you flatter me. It was merely good fortune."
Namgung Ho widened his eyes and offered his praise, which I deflected with a faint smile. Behind us, the soft, lively notes of the seven-stringed zither drifted across the water, while sunlight danced in shimmering reflections on Dongting Lake.
When the Sword Immortal gave a quiet cough, every gaze in the room—including Namgung Ho's—turned toward him. I turned my head a beat late. The Sword Immortal was looking at me. Our eyes met, and a brief silence fell.
The Sword Immortal set down his teacup. "May I call you Comic Sword Master?"
"Of course, Sword Immortal."
"Then tell me—did you truly defeat the Heavenly Demon and rescue the Ten Thousand Studies Wise Flower?"
"'Defeat' would be an exaggeration. I simply resolved to fight to the death, and he chose to flee. Perhaps he sensed that the Sword Immortal was nearby."
"Hmm..." The Sword Immortal's eyes narrowed.
Yeom Ho-yun spoke up quickly. "Of course, we helped as much as we could. His presence was truly overwhelming, but with the two of us holding the narrow passage and Lady Dang supporting us with hidden weapons, we managed to endure for a time despite the danger."
"It was not so much my own skill as the secret hidden weapons of my clan that proved useful. I hope you will understand that I cannot disclose the details, even to you, Sword Immortal, due to my family's rules."
Even after Dang Ju-yeon's addition, the Sword Immortal's skeptical gaze did not soften. Then she herself spoke.
"I, too, believed there was no escape. Yet these three fought on without giving up even in the face of mortal peril and saved my life. This must surely be the blessing of the Primordial Heavenly Lord."
The Sword Immortal held my gaze in silence for a while longer before his expression finally relaxed and he let out a sigh.
"Forgive an old man's excessive suspicion. It is simply difficult to believe. Your words are not entirely implausible, but the Heavenly Demon I saw eighty years ago was a truly terrifying existence."
His eyes carried the weight of long-held fear and regret. I could understand why. A being whose bones and flesh stretched and shrank at will, who could tear steel apart with bare hands—that was no ordinary monster. Had the Heavenly Demon attacked with the intent to kill from the start, none of the three of us would be sitting here now.
Namgung Ho turned to the Sword Immortal. "Thirty years have passed since then, and another fifty since you reached the realm of Absolute Master. Even if that man was already an Absolute Master eighty years ago, he must now be nothing more than a frail old man clinging to life."
"That does seem likely. My own body is no longer what it once was."
It was a plausible comfort, but unfortunately, it was not the truth. Or perhaps... was he truly that decrepit? If so, he must have been truly formidable in his youth—perhaps even capable of matching my master. No. Even so, that did not feel right. No matter who my master fought, I could never imagine her losing.
While I was lost in these thoughts, the Sword Immortal called my name.
"Comic Sword Master."
"Yes. Is there something else you wish to ask?"
"Let us set the matter of the Heavenly Demon aside for now. There is something I am curious about regarding your master."
I blinked once, maintaining my smile. "Please, ask. Though I must ask your understanding that I cannot speak of matters internal to my sect."
"Of course. First, do you know where your master is currently?"
"I do not. She is a person who moves like the wind."
"That sounds like her. Very well. Then do you remember the location of the place where you lived with your master?"
"My memory of it is vague."
The Sword Immortal's eyebrow twitched slightly at the answer.
"Then can you at least describe your master's appearance?"
"My master dislikes troublesome worldly affairs."
"Do you know who I am?"
"You are the Sword Immortal."
Our gazes met. There was no weight to it. It felt as light as a casual remark, as if it were simply flowing along with the music. After enough time for the performance to finish one section, the Sword Immortal waved a hand dismissively.
"Well, so be it. It is admirable that you value loyalty to your sect. An old man who does not even drink will only dampen the mood, so I shall take my leave. Enjoy yourselves, young ones."
* * *
With the Sword Immortal—the guest of honor—departing first, Namgung Ho hurried after him to attend to his duties, and the banquet could not last much longer. Within less than an hour, the atmosphere grew dull, and we dispersed, returning to the inn where we had been staying.
Once there were no people around, the dignified gait he had maintained like a well-trained scholar gradually loosened. The moment he entered the room and sat down, the figure who looked exactly like Jegal Ji twisted his neck this way and that, grumbling.
"That bastard only gets more suspicious as he ages. You should have pushed back a little too. I thought we were caught."
With a cracking sound, his neck bent backward. A voice came from behind him.
"And you two—don't stay so stiff either. Act natural. Anyone listening would think you're reciting scriptures."
Dang Ju-yeon and Yeom Ho-yun did not bother to reply. The Heavenly Demon did not seem to expect an answer anyway and continued.
"In any case, with this the net has been lifted. Let us head straight to Luoyang."
"Luoyang?"
"Yes. A friend who knows the Central Plains well sent word that something is suspicious about Prince Han's Palace in Luoyang. A few years ago, they suddenly started promoting scholarship, built an academy, and poured money into it. They are also luring famous figures with talk of immortality. At this point, whether it is the tail or the head is the question, but it is certain they are involved."
"It does sound that way. Is this friend trustworthy?"
"Hmm. Trustworthy is a stretch—he is rather good at lying. Still, he hates those who kidnap people to research corpse techniques even more than I do, so I suppose we can trust him until this matter is settled."
"I see. Then what do you plan to do once we arrive?"
"What else? I will barge in and interrogate that Prince Han fellow."
I was not particularly familiar with Central Plains affairs, but I knew that a prince was someone of great importance, second only to the emperor. I asked, "Is that the best approach?"
"Then you come up with another way."
I glanced toward Dang Ju-yeon. The Heavenly Demon followed my gaze. She spoke carefully.
"What if we approach them by pretending to be interested in their gathering and win them over? Or we could pretend to have been kidnapped and infiltrate from within, or first subdue the place where the kidnapped people are likely held, secure evidence, and then cooperate with the authorities..."
At the word "authorities," the Heavenly Demon's brow furrowed slightly. Dang Ju-yeon quickly added, "If you find it awkward to deal directly with officials, we could anonymously report that they are raising corpse soldiers to plot rebellion. While they are in chaos dealing with that, we could extract Prince Han or those around him. We could also disguise ourselves as laborers or scholars, infiltrate the academy, and steal documents instead of targeting Prince Han directly."
"What do you think?"
"Hmm..." The Heavenly Demon frowned, then relaxed his expression. "To be honest, I have never made complicated plans before. Gathering information, preparing for variables, planning for the aftermath—all of that is fine. But the more I know, the more the other side knows as well. If I prepare, they will prepare too. So usually, to keep things simple, I just find a weakness and charge in. I am confident I can win even if we both have to improvise on the spot."
"If that is how you feel, then there is nothing more to say."
"Still, now that I have heard them, they all sound quite plausible. If we are going to do this, stealing documents from the academy would be better than simply capturing Prince Han, since it would give us a better idea of what the Guyeongmun is up to. Very well. I suppose I should start getting into the habit of making plans..."
The Heavenly Demon fell into thought with the calm, expressionless face that suited Jegal Ji so well. After a short period of contemplation, he finally spoke.
"Two people will approach by pretending to be interested in the gathering. The rest will disguise themselves as laborers and enter the archives to clean them out. Then, when Prince Han sends people to catch the culprits, another person will report it as treason. While his guards are being held by the imperial soldiers, the ones who have been waiting nearby will kidnap Prince Han and meet at a designated location. How does that sound?"
Yeom Ho-yun and I remained silent. Dang Ju-yeon suddenly burst out like someone who had been holding their breath underwater.
"That is ridiculous."
We all turned to look at her. The Heavenly Demon's eyes narrowed. For a moment, Dang Ju-yeon looked as if she had made a mistake, but she met his gaze and continued.
"When making plans, it is an absolute rule that any plan assuming more than three changes in circumstances will never unfold exactly as originally prepared. I say this only because I hope for the plan's success. Please forgive my rudeness. If things go wrong, you can escape, but we cannot."
The Heavenly Demon quietly observed her, then curled his lips into a smile and slowly placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Is that so? Well, you are probably better at this than I am, since I am making my first plan today. You must have learned something from the Dang Clan."
His hand slowly slid past her neck and rested on her shoulder. My hand reached for my sword hilt as Dang Ju-yeon squeezed her eyes shut. The Heavenly Demon asked, "So what do you suggest we do?"
"Pardon?"
"Tell me what you think is the best approach. Lady Dang. We have an expert here, so there is no need for an incompetent fool like me to rack his brains."
The Heavenly Demon laughed mockingly. Had it been his original appearance, it might have been different, but on that face, the expression looked strikingly out of place.
* * *
"...So, we knock out the people visiting the academy and disguise ourselves as them. Is that it?"
"Yes. Even if it is only for a few days, we should be able to gather quite a bit of information. However, I do not think there is any need to kill them, considering the aftermath..."
"Then do not kill them. Why are you still trailing off? I am not the one deciding—this is your decision. Anyway, it sounds fine to me. What do you two think?"
The Heavenly Demon turned to look at Yeom Ho-yun and me. But what did we know about devising schemes? I had only studied a few military texts because my master had forced me to learn them so I would not embarrass her if I ever went somewhere, and while Yeom Ho-yun had some experience with military circles and knew a bit about strategy, she was too straightforward by nature to play the role of a schemer. The reason we were watching so carefully was out of fear that the Heavenly Demon might lose his temper and snap Dang Ju-yeon's neck, not because we intended to debate the plan's merits.
When I nodded first and Yeom Ho-yun reluctantly followed, our plan was decided: we would capture visitors to the Henan Academy near Jeongju or Gaibong and steal their identities.