Chapter 255
Chapter 255
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 255
Chapter Title: Brother-in-Law Rescue (6)
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[...What brings the Young Lord of Nine Dragons Fortress here?]
For a moment, I thought it was a spam message.
Nanjing was over eight thousand li from the Nine Dragons Fortress. On top of that, it was a metropolis with a population of over a hundred thousand.
To meet someone who knew my face in a place like this.
It was an event so unlikely that "coincidence" didn't even begin to cover it.
‘Who is it?’
He recognized me after just two encounters.
He might not have gotten a good look at my face during our first brief encounter on the street, so it was practically like he recognized me in one go.
No matter how sharp one's eyes were, no one could memorize a face from just a fleeting glimpse at a distance.
It meant he must have seen me several times, but the problem was, I had no idea who he was.
‘Damn it.’
There was no need to think too deeply.
The answer was obvious.
[You're mistaken.]
Denial.
After all, in a martial world without photographs, who would believe someone claiming the Young Lord of Nine Dragons Fortress was inside the Imperial Palace?
No matter how certain he was, if I kept denying it, there was nothing he could do.
He might even give up, thinking, ‘Did I see wrong?’
A flinch.
The man who received my message seemed greatly agitated and sent another one.
[Is there a particular reason you are concealing your identity? If so, I will seek you out at a later time.]
[Look, I told you, I'm not the Young Lord of Nine Dragons Fortress.]
[I understand. You seem to be in a difficult position, so I will not press further.]
[Seriously, listen when someone speaks. Ever heard of a society built on trust?]
[...]
If I say no, he should take it as a no. He was ridiculously persistent.
‘It's like getting spam messages.’
As I was putting out that fire, I heard shouting from inside the main hall.
I immediately sharpened my hearing and caught a few keywords.
‘Royal Academy... treason... framed...’
A short while later, Left Commander Lee Mu-cheong and Right Commander Ju San-myeong emerged from the hall, shoulder to shoulder.
“Right Commander, your greed will bring great disaster.”
“I wonder if you'll still be saying that with a blade at your throat.”
“...”
The two leaders of the Imperial Guard glared at each other before turning their backs.
“Let's go.”
And so, my eventful first day at work came to an end.
* * *
Two hours later.
We returned to our quarters in Lee Mu-cheong's estate and immediately began a meeting.
“I think they're imprisoned in the Imperial Palace.”
“The Imperial Palace, you say?”
“Yes. There must be at least fifty people framed for treason, and I didn't see any facility in the capital large enough to hold that many.”
“Hmm... That certainly seems to be the case.”
“And since they're accused of treason, they wouldn't be mixed in with other prisoners.”
U Je-jun and Sama Heun nodded.
In this era, treason was treated like a contagious disease.
They might be kept together, but they would never be scattered about.
“Then the problem becomes where in the palace they're being held...”
Even with my Seventh Sense, the Imperial Palace had a perimeter of nine kilometers. There was no way to search it without being discovered.
“We have no choice but to find someone who has information.”
“That's the problem. If we just knew who was involved, we could just grab them.”
“Personally, I suspect it's the Right Commander...”
“Reason?”
“Can't you tell just by looking at him? He's definitely the culprit.”
“As expected of Vice Squad Leader U.”
It seemed he was thinking the same thing as me.
Then again, it was only natural.
The Outer Hall was, for all intents and purposes, the police agency of this era.
What's more, U Je-jun and I had enough years under our belts from the Outer Hall to fill a truck.
With that much experience, you could tell just by looking.
“Then let's go.”
“Yes? Where are you going?”
“Where else? We're going to grab the Right Commander by the scruff of his neck. If we hold him by the throat and ask, what's a guy like him going to do? He'll spill everything, crying his eyes out.”
“Hmm, this seems too sudden. The Right Commander's personal guards looked quite formidable...”
“The guards are nothing...”
Hearing U Je-jun's worried words, I suddenly remembered the man I saw during the day.
“Hmm...”
An aura like a desert lion.
If I were to fight him...
‘It won't be easy.’
I had the supreme War King Arts, so I would win if we fought, but we needed to strike fast and get out.
If the fight dragged on, the Imperial Guard would likely rush in.
“Um...”
As we continued our discussion, Sama Heun raised his hand.
“The risks are this high, yet we're about to act without any solid proof. I don't think we should. Also, there's no guarantee the framed prisoners are even in the Imperial Palace.”
“What do you mean, no solid proof?”
“Do you know something?”
“His face is the evidence.”
“...”
“And if they're not in the palace, that means they're outside the capital. Do you really think they'd keep prisoners accused of treason just anywhere?”
“Vice Master Sama is still inexperienced in the martial world, so please understand, Hall Master.”
As Sama Heun fell silent, U Je-jun stepped in.
“Tsk, can't be helped if you're inexperienced. You'll get better with time, so don't worry too much.”
Just as I was about to console Sama Heun and resume the meeting...
Tap.
A small pebble hit the window.
“...!”
The night was perfectly still. It couldn't have been blown by the wind.
It had to be someone calling for us.
But not knowing if it was friend or foe, U Je-jun and Sama Heun drew their swords and took a defensive stance.
Chk.
“Wait.”
I stopped the two of them.
“I'll go check.”
“You should let us go with you...”
“It's fine.”
“But...”
“Have you forgotten who I am? Besides, if all three of us leave and get caught, it'll arouse suspicion, won't it?”
“...Understood. Then Vice Master Sama and I will monitor the situation from here. Please give us a signal if you're in danger.”
“Yeah, I'll scream my head off.”
Clunk.
I opened the door to find a brilliant full moon illuminating the world.
“Let's see.”
Shaaa.
I sent out my Seventh Sense to scan the area.
After confirming no one was around, I used Flying Heavenly Wind to leap over the wall.
The moment I was over the wall, a sharp presence shot towards me from a distance. The visitor was summoning me to his location.
Fwip.
I used Flying Heavenly Wind once more to reach the spot he was calling me to, and just as expected, the person I anticipated was there.
Chk.
“So it was you.”
It was the Right Commander's guard, the one with the aura of a lion.
He bowed his head and clasped his fist.
“Greetings to the Young Lord of Nine Dragons Fortress.”
“I told you, you're mistaken...”
“It is just the two of us, so you may reveal yourself. I will absolutely keep your secret.”
“You get told you're persistent a lot, don't you? Pathologically so.”
“How did you know? To see through a person's character with a single glance... Truly, you are the Young Lord.”
“...No.”
This was a new type of opponent for me.
I composed myself and asked again.
“Why on earth do you think I'm the Young Lord?”
“Because you are the Lord of Nine Dragons' one and only disciple... Ah!”
The man spoke as if he'd just realized something.
“It would be more appropriate to call you Master of the War King Gate or Hall Master of the War Dragon Hall. My apologies. It has been some time since you struck out on your own, and it slipped my mind.”
“...”
Staring at this man who wouldn't listen to reason, my thoughts deepened.
‘Should I just kill him?’
Without him, capturing the Right Commander would be as easy as flipping my hand.
Besides, he knew my identity, so killing him would put my mind at ease.
Crackle. Crackle.
Mind and energy as one.
The moment I made my decision, the energy of the War King surged through my body.
Right now, it was churning internally, but once it manifested externally, a master of his caliber would surely notice.
I had to take him down in one blow while he was off guard.
‘Battle Lord Arrow.’
The distance between us was merely five steps.
Even a supreme master would be helpless at this range.
If I was lucky, I could send him to the afterlife in a single strike.
Just as I was about to channel energy into my fingers...
“By any chance, are you looking for those involved in the treason incident?”
Unexpectedly, I'd found a trace of Myo San.
* * *
A moment later.
After calming myself, I began to speak with him in earnest.
“First, I need to know who you are. I can't trust the words of a man whose name I don't even know, can I?”
“Ah, my apologies for the late introduction. My name is Yu Ryong. I have yet to achieve anything noteworthy, so I have not earned a title.”
“No achievements with your level of skill...”
“It is because I am practically a newcomer to the martial world.”
“Your origins?”
“I am from the Gravity Sword Sect. It is a school passed down to a single successor, so you likely have not heard of it.”
“...How did you recognize me?”
“I have a rather good memory.”
“If you're going to spout nonsense...”
“When you crossed the wall to come here, Hall Master, you took eight hundred twenty-seven steps. When I saw you this afternoon, your hair was generally parted to the left, and when I first saw you outside Nanjing, you were wearing a black robe and gray shoes.”
“...”
To remember everything that passed by in a flash.
‘So people with photographic memories really do exist.’
I suppressed a sudden surge of envy and asked again.
“How do you know my face?”
“I saw you in Namso-hyeon, Henan, with the members of the Cheong Family.”
“So you saw me at the Righteous Path Alliance.”
“Precisely.”
“...Fine. I'll believe you.”
Very few people knew I had gone to the Righteous Path Alliance with the Cheong Family Head. It seemed unlikely that this man had approached me with some ulterior motive.
“How did you know I was looking for the prisoners from the treason incident?”
“It's simple.”
Yu Ryong spoke with a flourish.
“When I saw you yesterday, there was dirt on the hem of your robe, Hall Master. The only place in the capital without stone pavement is the prison.”
“...”
“And it couldn't have gotten there from outside the capital, because the path from the Left Commander's estate to the capital is also paved with stone, is it not?”
“...I see.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
“Why would you tell me the prisoners' location?”
“Because our goals are the same.”
“Goals?”
“Yes. I, too, wish to rescue the prisoners—that is, the unjustly captured scholars of the Royal Academy. If people with the same goal join forces, wouldn't things be much easier?”
“Your reason for rescuing them? For the good of the country?”
“What reason would a mere martial artist like myself have? It is simply due to the orders of my superior.”
I nodded at his well-reasoned argument, and Yu Ryong smiled faintly as he made his offer.
“Will you join me?”
“Fine. Let's do that.”
“Understood.”
“Let's go.”
“Where to?”
“Where else? To where the scholars are. The sooner we move, the safer they'll be, right?”
“You mean right now?”
“Of course. Is there any benefit to wasting time?”
“...Very well. Let us go at once. But why are you heading toward the Imperial Palace?”
“Because they're being held in the Imperial Palace.”
“...The scholars are currently imprisoned in the ice cavern right next to the estate of the Left Commander, Lee Mu-cheong. This whole treason incident was fabricated under his direction.”
“...So the Right Commander wasn't the culprit?”
“The Right Commander, Lord Ju San-myeong, is regarded as the empire's last remaining loyal subject and a father of the nation. The superior who ordered me to rescue them is none other than him.”
“...No way.”
Then why does he look like that?