What Kind of Crazy Place Is This? (2)
"Wow, a cabin."
"It looks so strange, Sago!"
The Mount Hua disciples gasped as the cabin came into view.
It had been built by stacking round logs without altering their shape at all.
It was certainly a style none of them had ever seen in the Central Plains.
Of course, there were people in the Central Plains who built homes high in the mountains, but it was rare to see one like this, where the logs’ natural form was left so plainly visible.
"Bigger than I expected."
What was strange was that there wasn’t a single other house in sight.
"Is this not a village?"
"Hmm?"
When Jo Gul asked, Hong Yi-myeong tilted his head slightly.
"Are you looking for a village?"
"Ah. Not exactly."
"If you’re looking for a village, you shouldn’t have come this way. This is a remote place, so not many people live here. Did you come all the way here without even knowing that?"
Everyone’s eyes turned at once to Baek Cheon.
"Why? What?"
"...I knew there was something suspicious about how well we found the place."
"Figures."
Baek Cheon bristled and started to object, but his protest was drowned out by a sound drifting from the cart.
"Can we go in?"
Chung Myung, who had already poked his head out from the luggage, and the little marten were both trembling.
Hong Yi-myeong tilted his head, utterly unable to make sense of them.
"Why is the marten shaking?"
"...I’m sorry."
It wasn’t even something to apologize for, yet Baek Cheon found himself reflexively doing so.
Honestly, neither the people nor the beast had a shred of dignity!
"It’s not much, but come in. You’ll be able to warm yourselves."
"Yes, sir!"
Chung Myung, who didn’t know the meaning of restraint, shot into the cabin the moment the door opened, clutching Baek Ah as he went. Baek Cheon let out a bitter excuse.
"He may seem rude right now, but he’s not usually this bad-mannered. He’s just exhausted from the cold, so I ask that you understand with an open heart."
He had enough conscience not to say outright that Chung Myung was normally polite, though.
"Politeness, is it?"
Hong Yi-myeong smiled as if amused.
"People in the North Sea don’t concern themselves much with manners. Such troublesome and fussy things are for those who have leisure enough to worry about them."
"Ah..."
"Come on in."
"Then, excuse us."
The Mount Hua disciples bowed deeply and stepped inside the cabin.
So this is how it is.
It was only a wall made of wood, but it was incomparably warmer than outside. Just blocking the wind already made it a place where a person could survive.
"Ugh... my clothes are frozen solid, Sasuk."
"Eek! Sago! My hair’s frozen too. No! Don’t touch it! It’ll break, I’m telling you!"
Now that they were inside a warm place, they could truly feel just how horrific the cold had been on the way here. None of them had imagined leather could freeze, and they all shuddered as they stared at the crackling, stiffening hides.
"If we’d gone a little farther, we really would’ve frozen to death."
"All because Jin Dong-ryong Sasuk took the wrong turn."
"Who just said Jin Dong-ryong? Get over here."
Even as they groaned and peeled off clothes frozen stiff with moisture, they kept chattering noisily with mouths that had only just thawed.
"Wow. But how is it this cozy?"
"Sago! Look over there. There’s fire."
"Huh?"
Small flames flickered from the brazier set in the center of the cabin. When they leaned in and looked closer, they saw the firewood inside burning brightly.
"Good heavens. They have a stove inside the house?"
"So that’s why it was warm."
"There’s a flue going out through the roof."
"Right. And Chung Myung’s glued to it too."
Huh? Chung Myung?
Everyone let out long sighs as they looked at Chung Myung, who had somehow become one with the brazier, clinging to it as though they’d fused together.
"Chung Myung. You’re going to burn yourself."
"Fire! Fire, fire! This is fire!"
Chung Myung snapped his head around and glared at Baek Cheon. His face, already red from thawing out, was streaked with soot.
"Sasuk, Sasuk! Couldn’t we install one of these on the cart too?"
"Say one sensible thing, you lunatic!"
"Why not? You can put one in a house, so why not on a cart?"
Baek Cheon covered his face with both hands.
People should improve as they get older.
How was it that this bastard had managed to get no better at all as the years went by?
Then Hong Yi-myeong laughed heartily and said, "Hahaha. That would be difficult to install on a cart. It’s quite heavy, and..."
"It’s fine. Our horses are strong!"
"Who are you calling a horse?!"
Unable to hold back any longer, Baek Cheon lunged at Chung Myung, only to be swiftly restrained by Yoon Jong and Jo Gul.
The two sighed as they held him back.
"You can’t go acting like this in someone else’s house, Sasuk."
"Please try to mind the time and place."
"......"
Watching the commotion, Hong Yi-myeong smiled faintly.
"More importantly, it might be better if you changed clothes a little. They seem like good leather and fur, but not quite suitable for surviving this cold."
"...We didn’t expect it to be this cold."
"I imagine not. The North Sea doesn’t often get weather this bitter. This year, in particular, has been especially cold."
The Mount Hua disciples nodded as if they finally understood.
"So it’s not usually like this?"
"It’s a little less cold."
"......"
"Just a little."
"......"
Definitely not a place where people should be living.
"There’s water over there, so wash your hands and feet first, and warm yourselves up a bit. If you don’t wash off the frost, you’re liable to get frostbite."
"Thank you."
"And then..."
Hong Yi-myeong walked to one side of the cabin and pulled back a covering cloth. From inside, he brought out a pile of animal pelts that had been bundled and set aside.
"I think these would be better than what you brought."
"Oh, these are...?"
"The fur of beasts that live in cold regions has excellent insulation. And first of all, you need to cover your head. That’s where body heat escapes."
At his words, everyone glanced at Hye Yeon. Seeing his scalp, red from freezing and thawing, made them oddly sympathetic.
"Ah... to this extent."
Baek Cheon looked completely at a loss, and Hong Yi-myeong smiled warmly.
"There’s no need for concern. North Sea folk don’t mistreat guests."
Baek Cheon was about to thank him again when Chung Myung frowned.
"That one?"
"Hmm?"
"Nope."
Now that he’d warmed up a little, Chung Myung rose and walked toward the place where the hides were hanging.
Then he pulled back the cloth again and grabbed the fur pelt hanging lower down.
"Huh? That looks like marten fur?"
Baek Ah bristled at the mention of fur from its own kind and went on guard.
"Kiiiiiik!"
"Ah! Shut up!"
Chung Myung hissed back at the squealing Baek Ah and tossed it away, then pulled out a much larger pelt from underneath.
"The one hanging here looks way better, doesn’t it?"
Hong Yi-myeong scratched the bridge of his nose, looking slightly troubled.
"I’m sorry, but that isn’t something I can just hand over. If we can’t sell the hides from the beasts we hunt through the winter, my family will starve."
"Come on. Do I look that shameless to you?"
"Yes."
"...Dong-ryong, step inside."
Answering in his stead from behind Hong Yi-myeong, Baek Cheon clicked his tongue and stepped aside.
"You are going to sell this anyway, right?"
"Hm? Well, yes."
"Then don’t bother sending it far away. Just sell it to us."
"That’s North Sea bear hide, so it’s rather valuable, though."
"Ah, don’t worry about that."
Chung Myung flashed a grin.
"We happen to have quite a lot of money. We’ll pay double."
"......"
"In return, can we keep the fire going a little more?"
"......"
"Yes?"
"As much as you like, honored guests."
Hong Yi-myeong had already changed his tone by then.
"Haaah... now this feels like living."
Wrapped in the big bear hide and seated before the brazier, Chung Myung lifted the cup in his hand to his lips. It was little more than water boiled with grass, so crude it barely qualified as tea, but when it came down to it, if it was hot, then he’d gladly accept molten metal too.
"...I never thought a house could feel this good."
"Exactly. We’ve been sleeping outdoors for about a month, so my back feels like it’s about to snap."
"Not having the wind blow on you is enough already."
The Mount Hua disciples were rediscovering the value of a roof over their heads.
And Hong Yi-myeong looked at them with a face full of satisfaction.
"Do you need anything else?"
"...N-no, we’re fine."
"If you need anything, please speak freely."
"...Yes."
Something about his attitude seemed to have changed in a subtle way, but since it was definitely for the better, that was fine.
Hong Yi-myeong took half the value of the hides in gold and the other half in grain. Having been able to sell the whole lot at once, and at an even better price, his face remained bright and cheerful.
"You’ve saved us. In the winter of the North Sea, securing grain is the hardest thing of all."
"That sounds about right."
Thanks to Hyun Young, who had packed plenty of grain just in case, they still had a mountain of it left even after giving up two sacks of rice.
"But do North Sea people eat grain too?"
"Of course they do."
"It doesn’t seem like grain would grow well here."
"That’s why we exchange it for goods from the North Sea."
Hong Yi-myeong let out a sigh.
"Back when trade with the Central Plains was still smooth, we could exchange hides and fish for grain. But lately, even that has become difficult."
"Ah..."
Baek Cheon nodded slowly, his face heavy. Then Chung Myung spoke up.
"Mister."
"Yes, sir!"
"Do you know anything about the North Sea Ice Palace?"
But the moment the words North Sea Ice Palace were mentioned, Hong Yi-myeong’s expression changed slightly. Chung Myung did not miss the fear and unease that flashed across his face.
"I’m sorry, but I can’t say any more about the North Sea Ice Palace. If I carelessly speak of it to outsiders..."
"Sasuk. Add one more silver coin."
"...There’s probably nothing to worry about, is there? So what would you like to know?"
The corner of Baek Cheon’s eye twitched faintly.
This uncle feels a lot different from when we first saw him...
Chung Myung shrugged.
"You can speak casually."
"Ah, is that so?"
"Yes. And I just need the general picture. We don’t know much about the Ice Palace. It’d be even better if you could tell us about recent events in particular."
"Hmm."
Hong Yi-myeong gave a slight nod.
"Well, actually..."
As he spoke, he glanced around again. He must have known there was no one here to eavesdrop, but it seemed his instincts still made him check.
"As you lot probably know, the Ice Palace rules the North Sea. This place isn’t really a country as such, so the Ice Palace has governed the North Sea like a king and taken care of its people."
Yoon Jong and Jo Gul exchanged a look and nodded.
"So it’s like Beast Palace."
"The outer regions are almost always like that."
Hong Yi-myeong let out a low sigh.
"The people of the North Sea have trusted and depended on the North Sea Ice Palace as well. That was the case until about ten years ago."
"So it isn’t anymore?"
"...Do you know what kind of place the Ice Palace is?"
"Not really?"
Hong Yi-myeong narrowed his eyes.
"The Ice Palace is, quite literally, like a kingdom. And the palace lord of that Ice Palace used to be passed down through the generations."
"Hmm... so it’s like a noble clan."
Namgoong, of course, was still a sect in form, but the North Sea Ice Palace seemed to be more like the Sichuan Tang Family—an institution tied by blood, like a clan house rather than a martial order.
"Like how the Sichuan Tang Family rules Chengdu as its king?"
"Watch your mouth, Sago! The Tang Family never ruled like a king. Do you want to get us killed saying stuff like that?"
"Well, it’s basically the same thing."
As Jo Gul shrugged, Dang Soso glared at him fiercely. Jo Gul flinched and shrank his neck like a turtle.
"...That kind of thing."
"Yeah, that kind of thing."
Since Jo Gul was from Chengdu, he occasionally got timid around Dang Soso, the daughter of the Sichuan Tang Family.
Unaware of any of that, Hong Yi-myeong kept explaining after giving them a brief look.
"But about ten years ago, there was an incident where the lord of the North Sea Ice Palace changed in the middle of the line of succession."
"Huh? But you just said it was hereditary?"
"That’s right."
"Then..."
Hong Yi-myeong nodded.
"There was a rebellion."
"Ah..."
At his words, Yoon Jong frowned.
"Was the former palace lord lacking in virtue?"
"How could that be? Didn’t I tell you? At that time, the North Sea people all trusted and relied on the Ice Palace. The previous palace lord was nothing short of a sage king. Not only the people of the North Sea, but even the palace disciples of the Ice Palace believed in him and followed him."
Hearing that, Baek Cheon tilted his head.
"Then was the one who raised the rebellion especially virtuous?"
"The one who led the rebellion was the previous lord’s younger brother, Seol Cheon-sang. He had a narrow, petty nature from the start, so he never won the North Sea people’s support."
"...Then how did the rebellion happen?"
Hong Yi-myeong’s face darkened.
"The North Sea people would never have betrayed the previous palace lord. But that day, Seol Cheon-sang brought outsiders into the North Sea."
"Outsiders?"
"...Yes. People clad from head to toe in black martial robes. They were... they were truly like demons."
A deep fear settled over Hong Yi-myeong’s face.
Baek Cheon stiffened his mouth and turned to Chung Myung.
"Chung Myung."
"Yeah."
Chung Myung’s face twisted as he nodded.
"It’s the Demonic Sect."