Chapter 186
Chapter 186
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 186
Chapter Title: Je-gal Geun-yeong's Choice
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I took Lim Chun-il, who had belatedly come to his senses, into the room.
No sooner had we sat down across from each other with the table between us than the question came flying.
"So, why'd you come looking for me?"
I didn't answer his question and instead countered with one of my own.
"Before you answer that, what do you plan to do from now on?"
"From now on?"
"Exactly as I said. You can't stay holed up in the Je-gal Clan forever."
"…Ah."
Lim Chun-il's face clouded over.
He seemed to have suddenly become aware of his precarious reality.
"…Well, since you helped out with this mess too, that Je-gal Geun-yeong guy oughta take care of us, right? With that kinda backing… maybe head out to the western regions or Yunnan or something."
"That sounds like you have no plan at all."
"…Aw, hell, what was I supposed to do! You think a guy on the run has the luxury to plan that far ahead!?"
I chuckled lightly at Lim Chun-il, who had burst out in frustration, and began laying the groundwork bit by bit.
"You're planning to flee to the borderlands and live there forever?"
"No way! In a few years, once things quiet down a bit, I'll come back and smash every last one of those damn Pacheon Fortress bastards."
"Your will to destroy Pacheon Fortress won't ever fade?"
"Of course not!"
Lim Chun-il clenched his fist tightly and declared it with conviction, his eyes burning fiercely.
Hmm, at this point, he seems like he'd bite on the offer I'm about to make.
Once I judged that he was hooked, I tossed out the question casually.
"Then, how about this? What if we helped Hero Lim and your men evade Pacheon Fortress's pursuit? No need to head to the borderlands."
"Huh? What're you…?"
Lim Chun-il wore a bewildered expression.
I explained our identity and purpose to him.
When he heard that Hwa-ryeon was the daughter of the former Pacheon Fortress Lord, Lim Chun-il jumped to his feet in shock, but as the explanation continued, he sat back down with a dumbfounded look.
"…So that young lady is the former Fortress Lord's daughter, and right now she's being hunted by Pacheon Fortress?"
"They haven't pinpointed Hwa-ryeon's location yet, but if we keep moving like this, they'll catch on eventually."
"And you're gathering the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Clans to form this Murim Alliance?"
"To bring down Pacheon Fortress."
With that explanation complete, I cut straight to the point.
"So here's the deal: since you're gonna keep fighting Pacheon Fortress anyway, how about joining up with us and doing it together?"
"…And in return, you'll help us dodge their pursuit?"
"Isn't that better than dragging yourselves all the way to the distant borderlands?"
Lim Chun-il blinked blankly for a moment, then crossed his arms and put on a deliberately serious face.
He kept sneaking glances at me, but honestly, I could read his intentions plain as day.
He was already half-sold on it.
Of course. Teaming up with us, who shared their goal, was a hundred times better than blindly fleeing to the borderlands and scraping by.
"What do you say?"
As my questions kept coming, Lim Chun-il groaned lowly as if pondering, then his eyes sharpened suddenly, a flicker of suspicion passing through them.
"…It's definitely a sweet deal, but isn't it too good for us? Why go to all that trouble for a bunch of lowly bandits?"
Ah, he's sharper than he looks.
Sure enough, the terms I was offering were overly generous to the bandits from every angle.
Promising to shield them from pursuit by the Central Plains' greatest sect, all for the price of fighting alongside us.
He was probably thinking we meant to trick them into being cannon fodder.
But that was overthinking it.
The reason the terms were so favorable was, well, a bit of guilt on our part.
We'd framed them, after all, leading to this whole mess—so we were putting in extra effort as compensation.
And there was one more reason.
I'd learned this from exchanging letters with the Changcheon Merchant Guild's Wunan branch: the bandits weren't being hunted by Pacheon Fortress just because of the Dark Heaven Squad.
"Lowly bandits? Who else could wipe out the Blood Light Brigade—one of Pacheon Fortress's fifteen elite units—and get away with calling them that?"
That's right.
The real reason they'd been pursued was that they'd annihilated the Blood Light Brigade.
Apparently, they'd lured them into a mountain stronghold and burned the whole thing down with them inside.
We'd let out exclamations mixed with admiration and disbelief when we read about it in the letter that arrived this morning.
Not to mention, that feat had made the Changcheon Merchant Guild view recruiting the bandits quite positively.
"…Your intel's pretty solid, huh? That hasn't even been a full month yet."
Lim Chun-il narrowed his eyes even further at my words.
I grinned and shot back.
"Doesn't that make it all the more trustworthy? We can definitely shield you from Pacheon Fortress's pursuit."
"…Fair point."
After pretending to mull it over, Lim Chun-il finally nodded.
"Alright! If you're going that far, how can I say no? Count us in!"
I clasped his massive, grinning hand firmly.
And so, Lim Chun-il and his bandits joined the Changcheon Merchant Guild.
*
I handed Lim Chun-il Hwa-ryeon's letter vouching for the bandits' identities and returned to the guest hall.
Not long after, Je-gal Geun-yeong called a clan assembly.
"Young Master Il requests that the guests also come to the Great Heavenly Pavilion to attend the clan meeting. He will announce the punishment for the clan's sinners."
A maid came to the guest hall, delivered the message, and left. Hwa-ryeon spoke softly.
"…Looks like Branch Head Je-gal has made up his mind."
"Yeah. Faster than I expected."
With that brief exchange, we headed straight for the Great Heavenly Pavilion.
A few others were heading the same way.
No need to say it—they were the clan's elders.
As I nodded back at those greeting their lifesaver warmly, familiar faces appeared behind them.
First, a man with an especially burly build compared to the others.
"Hero Lim, Madam Je-gal."
"Ah, y-you all are h-here too?"
Lim Chun-sam and Je-gal Seo-ryeong greeted us gladly as we approached.
Lim Chun-sam looked utterly exhausted for some reason, while Je-gal Seo-ryeong's face was unusually radiant.
Her face gleamed as if scrubbed clean of grime. I turned away from it and looked back at Lim Chun-sam's haggard one.
No, haggard isn't the right word.
That was the face of a survivor from a desperate war.
"You survived…."
"Huh? W-what do you…?"
Lim Chun-sam couldn't hide his confusion at my mutter.
I patted his shoulder silently while gazing at that great man's face.
Meanwhile, Je-gal Seo-ryeong, standing beside him, seemed to grasp my meaning instantly; her cheeks flushed as she coughed repeatedly.
Just then, new figures appeared behind us, sparing her further embarrassment.
"Brother-in-law, sister."
Turning around, I saw Je-gal Seo-hee and the man she was supporting.
It was Je-gal Mu-yeong, Je-gal Geun-yeong's younger brother—who had nearly become a new Blood Explosion Art practitioner.
Je-gal Seo-ryeong hurried to her pale-faced younger brother.
"Mu-yeong, are you sure you should be moving already?"
"Of course. I can walk on my own, but Seo-hee here's making a fuss for no reason."
"Fuss? You keep stumbling!"
As Je-gal Seo-hee said, Je-gal Mu-yeong's steps still lacked strength.
Yet he insisted on walking on his own two feet, full of bravado—until his gaze suddenly turned to me.
He approached me laboriously and offered a polite clasped-hands salute.
"You're Young Hero Goon Ja-seong, right? Pleased to meet you. I'm Je-gal Mu-yeong."
Pleased to meet you.
Come to think of it, he'd passed out right away in the cave, so we hadn't properly greeted each other.
"Yes, Goon Ja-seong."
I returned the salute and introduced myself, promptly receiving his thanks.
"I should have come to thank you sooner, but here I am doing it now. If not for you, young hero, I wouldn't have survived like this. I will definitely repay this lifesaving grace."
I gently lifted Je-gal Mu-yeong by both shoulders as he bowed deeply again in gratitude.
"It was only what had to be done, so don't trouble yourself over it. Focus on recovering first. You can't repay favors without your health, right?"
"…Yes!"
Je-gal Mu-yeong's eyes sparkled strangely as he looked at me.
It was a bit overwhelming, but seeing him alive and well thanks to me filled me with quiet pride.
As I quietly savored the moment, Je-gal Seo-ryeong's puzzled voice rang out.
"But you two are heading to the Great Heavenly Pavilion too? Did Geun-yeong call you?"
"We're direct blood relatives too. We're parties to this, so of course we have to attend."
"He only called me at first, but he insisted on coming no matter what…"
Je-gal Seo-hee glanced sideways at Mu-yeong and shook her head as if helpless.
Je-gal Mu-yeong ruffled his younger sister's hair wildly.
"Ah, seriously!"
Je-gal Seo-hee shrieked in anger and fixed her hair, then flinched at my gaze and glared even fiercer at her brother.
"…We'll be the last ones at this rate. Shall we go?"
Stung by his sister's fierce glare, Je-gal Mu-yeong smiled awkwardly and urged us on.
*
Unfortunately, Je-gal Mu-yeong's premonition came true. By the time we arrived at the Great Heavenly Pavilion, all the clan's elders were already seated.
"Ah, there you are. This way."
Je-gal Geun-yeong, seated at the head seat, lit up at the sight of us and pointed to the empty seats on either side of him.
Counting them, it looked like he'd reserved spots for all of us.
Thanks to that, I ignored the stares from the deputy hall leader and retainers—who were stuck standing—and took my seat.
"Hey."
Im Chun-il was already sitting next to the spot where Hwa-ryeon and I sat down.
"When did you get here?"
"First one. Soon as you left, I met with Young Master Je-gal and discussed compensation."
"You look pleased. Must've gotten quite a bit."
"Heh heh heh…"
Judging by his sleazy grin in response to my question, he'd gotten way more than expected.
Then he glanced at his younger brother's couple across from him, put on the most solemn face imaginable, and muttered,
"You survived…! Well done, little brother."
Damn, my thoughts synced up with that guy's again.
Feeling an odd discomfort, I grumbled inwardly when Je-gal Geun-yeong's voice rang out.
"Now that everyone's here, let's begin the meeting."