Where the Hell Do You Think This Is? (3)
"...Congratulations, Chung Myung Daoist."
"Oh my! How did you make it all the way out here—"
Chung Myung had already started rushing forward to grab the person in front of him by the hand, but he froze halfway through.
Huh? What the hell?
Did a corpse walk over here?
He knew this man. Yes, he definitely knew him. But the state he was in was so far from the image Chung Myung remembered that it was almost hard to believe they were the same person.
"...Did somebody beat the hell out of you?"
"...No."
"Then did you catch some kind of disease?"
"...I'm fine."
"Then why do you look like that?"
Chung Myung tilted his head.
The person standing before him now was Do Un-chan, once the reputed sub-leader of the Ghost Sect... no, the sect leader himself now.
He had never even shown his face during the Heavenly Alliance's founding ceremony, only arriving at Mount Hua after the celebration had completely ended.
And he looked like he was one breath away from death.
"Yo, are things not going well for you lately?"
For once, a rare note of guilt flickered across Chung Myung's face.
Come to think of it, he had handed work over to the Ghost Sect and then gotten too busy to pay them much mind for a while. It wasn't as if he hadn't trusted Hwang Mun-yak and Hwang Jong-ui to handle things properly, but still...
"Not going well?"
"Hm?"
But then a bright light suddenly lit up Do Un-chan's face. Even with the deep shadows hanging down to his chin, the dry, sallow skin, and the pallor of someone who looked ready to spit blood and die at any moment, it was astonishing that he could still make such a gentle expression.
"It's going too well, that's the problem. Too well... Chung Myung Daoist, I finally understood what you meant when you said a sect needs money if it's going to develop. Once money started piling up in the Ghost Sect, life changed completely."
"W-well, yeah? But why do you look like—"
Why the hell does your face look like that? Like you haven't eaten in days.
"...As I said, the problem is that it's going too well. At first, it was fine. We worked at a reasonable pace and made good money, so everyone was in high spirits."
"..."
"But then the work just kept... No, even saying 'kept' doesn't quite fit. It started growing like a landslide."
"...Ah. A landslide."
"Yes... I can't think of any other way to describe it. The work... it just multiplied like crazy. And then multiplied again. The work... the work..."
A blue fear crept over Do Un-chan's face, as if he were watching that very work swell before his eyes.
"We mobilized every single disciple, then had them hauling freight day and night. That still wasn't enough, so even the elders got dragged out, and even that wasn't enough, so now even I have left the main sect to carry goods myself..."
For once, Chung Myung looked genuinely flustered.
"Y-you're the sect leader, though?"
"...Sect leader, my ass."
"..."
Do Un-chan let out a long, soul-deep sigh, like the earth itself had caved in beneath him.
"So... I was going to attend the founding ceremony no matter what, but then an urgent delivery came up. I used up the last of my strength getting from Beijing to Sichuan, and now I've finally arrived."
"From where?"
"Sichuan..."
"So... you went from Beijing to Sichuan, then came here?"
"Not exactly. Before that, I had already departed from Hainan. From Beijing to Hainan, then from Hainan back to Beijing, then to Sichuan, and then here again..."
"Eeeeeek!"
Chung Myung's eyes shook violently.
No, had the man lost his mind?
"Y-you really do that much?"
"Special deliveries require a very high fee. If it's not a long distance, there's no reason to use us."
"Ah, r-right. I know that, but..."
Chung Myung studied Do Un-chan again.
Looking closer, it wasn't just that his face was a little worn. He had lost so much weight compared to before that his cheekbones were sticking out sharply.
"I-I had no idea you were suffering that much."
If anyone called Chung Myung the embodiment of a demon, the devil of hell himself would burst into tears and start cursing the heavens in protest. But even Chung Myung couldn't help feeling guilty at the sight of Do Un-chan's miserable condition.
"Maybe I can... reduce the amount of work a bit."
"Pardon?"
"Uh... I'll try to cut back on the workload. Talk it through and—"
"What are you talking about?"
"...Huh?"
In an instant, a fierce blue glint flashed in Do Un-chan's eyes.
"Cut back on the work? Then the money goes down, doesn't it? The money!"
"..."
"Our Ghost Sect warehouses are already about to burst! No, we're at the point where we need to build a brand-new warehouse! Money! Money is pouring in like a landslide!"
"...Earlier you said the work was coming in like a landslide."
"The work is a landslide! The money is a landslide!"
Do Un-chan's eyes gleamed wildly.
The aloof image of a martial man from before was long gone. Now he looked exactly like what he was: a merchant who had gone completely insane over money.
"People only understand once they've actually made some money, krrr! Once you have money, this is what happens! This!"
"..."
"Kyaaaah! We should've gotten to work sooner! Daoist, your foresight deserves respect! Honestly, the losses I've suffered just by coming to Mount Hua are no small matter. If I'd spent that time in Shaanxi, I could've done two more runs, and then the payment I should've received would have been..."
Chung Myung looked at the man who had been driven mad by money and let out a small smile.
I really don't know anymore.
Lately, it felt like everything around him had gone even crazier than he had. One way or another, nobody here seemed to be in their right mind.
"Daoist!"
Then, all of a sudden, Do Un-chan's eyes widened as he lunged at Chung Myung.
Chung Myung jerked back in alarm, but Do Un-chan didn't even give him space to retreat before gripping his shoulders tightly.
"Let's expand!"
"...Pardon?"
"I'll take on more disciples! If we increase the number of people who can deliver, let's expand the business! If we can deliver not just to Beijing but also toward Nanjing and even the outside regions, we'll make even more money!"
"N-no, wait a second! Didn't you say you'd make some money first, then revive the Ghost Sect properly afterward?"
"Revive? This is revival! What more revival could there be than this? The people who used to go mad if only dried anchovies were on the table now say they're sick of meat, and you're calling this revival? Revival?"
Calm down, you crazy old bastard.
"We're growing the business! Let's go for it for life, Daoist!"
"I'll do my best."
"Thank you! Thank you so much! I brought gifts piled high, so be sure to check them out!"
"..."
Chung Myung had been rendered speechless, unable to get a single word out, when one of the Cheong generation disciples standing a little way off approached Do Un-chan and said,
"Sect Leader. You should probably go see the Sect Leader, so I'll escort you."
"Would you? Daoist, then I'll go greet the Sect Leader and return. See you shortly."
"...Yes. Um, after the guests leave, we're planning to have a drink among ourselves, so please join us then."
"Hngh. That means more delay. That's no good... then I won't be able to make another run."
"..."
"But if that's what Chung Myung Daoist said, I'll especially absorb the loss. So please hurry."
"...Yes."
"It's a promise!"
"..."
"Then."
Do Un-chan hurried off, pressing the Cheong generation disciple to move along. Watching his receding back, Chung Myung stared blankly up at the sky.
Baek Cheon and Yoon Jong, who had come over without him noticing, placed their hands on Chung Myung's shoulders and comforted him.
"It's all right, Chung Myung. This isn't your fault."
"...No."
"If he's happy, that's enough. What's life, anyway? If it's good, then it's good."
"Hah, hah, hah."
Right. Well.
Then that's a relief. A relief...
Chung Myung quietly surveyed the crowd.
The situation seemed to be settling down now. Those who had gotten drunk enough to turn red were still raising their voices and heating up the atmosphere, but one by one, people were beginning to drift away.
In about another hour, all the guests who had come would be gone, and the Heavenly Alliance's founding ceremony would truly be over.
It was a strange feeling, full of mixed emotions.
Still, at least now they could finally catch their breath.
"Chung Myung."
"Yeah?"
"You worked hard."
Instead of answering, Chung Myung looked at Baek Cheon. It was the sort of thing people said all the time, but there was a weight in Baek Cheon's voice that was more solemn than usual.
"...What's with that all of a sudden?"
"Yes, all of a sudden. But that just means you've gone all this time without hearing what you should've heard long ago."
"..."
"Everyone in Mount Hua knows how hard you've been working. You probably can't bring yourself to say it because you're embarrassed, but I want you to know that everyone is grateful."
"Sasuk... did you eat something weird?"
"...You little bastard."
Baek Cheon, who had been speaking so seriously, twisted his face in outrage.
"Honestly, even when I praise you—"
"It only means something if it's coming from someone worth praising it!"
"Hngh."
Baek Cheon let out a long sigh, looking resigned.
"Anyway, let's wrap this up properly. Once everyone leaves, let's get ourselves so drunk we can't walk straight."
"Wow. Jin Dong-ryong, you're pretty damn bold?"
"Don't call me Jin Dong-ryong, you bastard!"
Chung Myung slipped away from the lunging Baek Cheon like a fish in water and snickered.
It wasn't as though they had achieved anything earthshaking, but the feeling that they had cleared a major hurdle made his heart loosen and settle all on its own.
"Still, at least one thing's good now."
"What's that?"
At Baek Cheon's question, Chung Myung grinned.
"From now on, no one'll be able to look down on Mount Hua anymore, right?"
"...Probably."
"That's enough for now."
Just thinking about it made him feel relieved, and he even nodded to himself.
"I've been going through hell holding myself back from wanting to smash some faces in all this time."
"...When have you ever held back?"
"..."
At Baek Cheon's reaction—as though he had just heard the most absurd thing in the world—Chung Myung's face distorted.
"Want me to show you what not holding back really looks like?"
"...Calm down."
Baek Cheon waved his hand with a slightly exhausted expression. Chung Myung snorted with laughter.
"All right, then from here on out—"
That was when it happened.
"Hm?"
Chung Myung, who had been about to speak, suddenly shut his mouth and tilted his head. He had sensed something strange.
What is it?
His eyes narrowed as he looked over that way.
Toward the mountain gate?
The area near where he stood was still loud and boisterous. But the section near the mountain gate, where stalls had been set up, had fallen into an odd silence.
No, not silence exactly...
Are they... stunned?
They looked like people who had just seen a ghost.
Because everyone had turned toward the mountain gate, Chung Myung couldn't see clearly, but from the glimpses he caught, they seemed to be thoroughly frightened by something.
But frightened?
The people gathered here were the sort who knew how to swing a blade in the jianghu.
And on top of that, Mount Hua was currently hosting even the senior figures of the Nine Great Sects and the elders of the Five Great Families. There was no way a dispute could erupt here.
So what the hell were they afraid of?
"W-wow... it came... it really came..."
Then a moan-like voice drifted clearly into Chung Myung's ears.
One of the people frozen in place with their gaze fixed on the mountain gate spoke, their face looking as though they had seen a ghost.
"Ma... Ma..."
The voice was filled with fear... no, with utter disbelief, as if they couldn't accept what was happening before their eyes.
The voice, heavy with too many emotions to name, trembled for a long moment before bursting out all at once.
"Manin... Maninbang! It's Maninbang! Maninbang is cominggggg!"
Those words instantly turned Mount Hua to stone.
Those who had been drinking without knowing what was going on jumped in shock as if cold water had been splashed over them and snapped their heads around like lightning.
"W-what?"
"Who did you say was coming?"
It was a name that should never have been heard in this place.
Yet everyone who checked the mountain gate confirmed at once that their ears had not deceived them. The people crowding the gate were backing away in a rush, as if they had seen ghosts.
Then, through the suddenly opened line of sight, a group of warriors could be seen approaching.
"...Maninbang."
Someone's groan-like whisper echoed faintly through Mount Hua, now frozen in silence.