Chapter 9
Chapter 9
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: An Unexpected Welcome
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The guard, who had been tilting his head at the sight of Neung Un-bi coughing incessantly, suddenly widened his eyes.
“Th-Third Young Master?!”
“*Ahem*, yes, it is I.”
With a thin croak, Neung Un-bi finally stopped coughing and straightened his back, putting on a dignified expression.
“Oh Ryang, a guard of the Snow Mountain Manor, greets the Third Young Master.”
Recognizing Neung Un-bi, the guard Oh Ryang seemed quite flustered. He hurriedly knelt and bowed his head.
“Rise. The ground is cold.”
“It is fine, sir. How could I dare to meet your noble gaze?”
As Oh Ryang bowed his head even deeper, Neung Un-bi frowned.
*Noble gaze?*
*We all have the same kind of human face.*
“That’s enough, rise.”
“It’s making me uncomfortable.”
As Neung Un-bi’s tone lowered slightly, Oh Ryang shot to his feet.
“By the way, why is no one here? I heard Wang Cheon sent word ahead of time.”
“He did. Upon hearing that the Third Young Master was coming, everyone at the main gate of the manor…”
“Hm? The main gate?”
“Yes. But why did you come to the back gate? And without our Young Lord…”
“…”
The Young Lord he referred to was Wang Cheon. Within the Cult, Wang Cheon was Neung Un-bi’s guard captain, but in his family, he was the eldest son.
As Oh Ryang trailed off, cautiously watching his reaction, Neung Un-bi’s face hardened like a stone statue.
*This… was the back gate?*
*But the gate is so large. It even has a plaque.*
No wonder Wang Cheon, who should have been right behind him even if he had started a little late, was nowhere to be seen. It seemed they had missed each other along the way.
“Um, surely… you didn’t know?”
“Hm? Didn’t know? How could I not know?”
“…”
“It was, shall we say, a surprise visit… You know of them, don’t you? Hmm? The kind where you suddenly appear from behind to startle someone?”
“Ah… yes. But why would you make a surprise visit to the back gate of the annex, of all places?”
At Oh Ryang’s words, Neung Un-bi’s head tilted.
*Hm? The annex?*
“Then this place is…?”
“The annex. The main manor you were to visit is that way…”
Neung Un-bi blankly turned his head in the direction Oh Ryang pointed. Far in the distance, a massive estate could be seen floating above a sea of clouds.
*So it was… on that mountain slope.*
*Damn it, why did they have to build the annex so extravagantly?*
“I knew…”
“…you knew, of course?”
“…”
The moment Oh Ryang asked, Neung Un-bi, who had been nodding, saw it clearly.
An irrepressible smile, a rather unpleasant one, touched the corners of Oh Ryang’s lips.
*Ha, this bastard was just bowing his head to the ground, going on about my noble gaze.*
*Is this the way of the Snow Mountain Manor?*
He was no different from Wang Cheon. Pretending to be careful while saying everything on his mind—a perfect copy.
But what could he do? He was the one who made the mistake.
“*Ahem!* I was merely stopping by on my way. Yes, that’s right. Well then, carry on. I’ll be on my way.”
“What? Surely you don’t intend to walk?”
“…And if I do?”
“That is absolutely out of the question! If word gets out that I saw the Third Young Master visit our annex and let him leave on foot, my head will be on the line.”
“Come on, why would your head be on the line for something like that…”
*…It probably would be.*
Wasn’t this the vicious Demonic Cult, which had dragged all the workers from a residence to the punishment grounds just for sweeping the yard?
“Then what do you propose we do?”
“Please wait a moment. I will quickly make preparations to escort you.”
“Hmm, very well.”
As Neung Un-bi nodded, Oh Ryang quickly went inside.
“The Third Young Master has arrived at the annex! Quickly prepare to escort him to the main manor!”
“Yes, sir!”
A chorus of replies followed Oh Ryang’s shout, and soon, the sounds of bustling movement could be heard.
A moment later.
A line of warriors emerged from the open gate and greeted him vigorously.
“We greet the Third Young Master!”
*Sigh, I really hate this kind of thing.*
As Neung Un-bi shook his head, Oh Ryang, now dressed in formal attire, spoke.
“Please, ascend!”
His hand gestured toward a palanquin.
Not a horse, not a carriage, but a four-person palanquin, held steady by four sturdy men.
“You want me to ride that?”
“Yes!”
“This?”
“Our lives depend on it.”
Seeing Oh Ryang’s mournful expression, Neung Un-bi let out a deep sigh.
*Fine. Let’s go.*
*If it puts your minds at ease, I have no choice.*
With a reluctant expression, Neung Un-bi settled himself onto the palanquin that had been lowered to the ground.
“To the main manor!”
At Oh Ryang’s command, the palanquin shot forward with vigor.
Toward the main manor of the Snow Mountain Manor.
*Well, it is comfortable.*
*The bearers must have excellent lightness techniques; the ride is smooth as silk.*
***
“What? What did he ride?”
“A palanquin, sir.”
“A palanquin? Are you saying the Snow Mountain Manor sent a palanquin for the Third Young Master?”
“Yes. My subordinate, who was watching the entrance to the Snow Mountain Manor, just reported that he saw it with his own eyes.”
At his subordinate’s words, Sama Hwi-mun’s hand, which had been trimming a bonsai, froze. His face contorted in anger.
“So the Snow Mountain Manor has finally made its choice?”
*Crack.*
Sama Hwi-mun vented a fury so intense that the bonsai shears in his hand began to bend.
The Snow Mountain Manor.
Among the six families belonging to the Council of Houses, it was the only one that had remained neutral, showing no support for any of the successors.
They possessed formidable power, having single-handedly protected the northern borders of the Demonic Cult for a long time.
While the family head was away on the Cult Leader’s orders, the matriarch, So Seol-ok-su, was one of the most powerful figures in the Demonic Cult. Though she had retired from the front lines, she still had a multitude of admirers, and her influence was considerable.
A woman like So Seol-ok-su would surely know he was monitoring her movements.
And yet, she had blatantly sent a palanquin to fetch the Third Young Master?
“Elder Council Head, what should we do? If So Seol-ok-su and the Snow Mountain Manor have decided to support the Third Young Master, the repercussions will be…”
“…”
He was right. But the situation was not favorable for him to act.
So Seol-ok-su was a formidable opponent, but the bigger problem was that he had already provoked the Cult Leader’s displeasure once.
Not long ago, he had used Neung Un-bi’s act of impersonating a Daoist to pressure the Cult Leader. When the Cult Leader tried to brush it aside, he had insisted it was not a matter to be taken lightly, forcing a test.
But it had been a clear miscalculation.
Neung Un-bi had only blocked three strikes, but the outcome had left him in an extremely awkward position.
They were three strikes from the Cult Leader himself, and it had only been a year since Neung Un-bi had awakened from Qi deviation.
Was it because the Cult Leader, fond of the Third Young Master, had held back?
Nonsense.
The Cult Leader had even revealed his true form.
He had tested Neung Un-bi while emitting a dizzying demonic energy so potent that most would have collapsed just by being near.
Neung Un-bi had blocked those three strikes, boldly proving his aptitude as a disciple, and Sama Hwi-mun had been forced to retreat without another word.
Thanks to that, complaints had poured in from the Elder Council itself, criticizing him for needlessly rebuking the Cult Leader.
*That damn Neung Un-bi, to think he was hiding his true strength.*
In any case, picking a fight with the Snow Mountain Manor in this situation was a poor choice.
In the first place, choosing which successor to support was the prerogative of each family.
Making it a public issue would do more harm than good. Weren’t there packs of jackals everywhere, just waiting for his position to weaken?
“*Hmph*, leave it be for now.”
“Sir?”
“The Cult Leader’s birthday banquet is not far off. This is not the time to create problems with unnecessary disputes.”
“…Understood. I will take my leave then.”
Sama Hwi-mun gave no reply, and the figure who had emerged from the darkness vanished back into it as if melting away.
*Snap.*
The bonsai shears finally gave way, unable to withstand the force of Sama Hwi-mun’s grip.
“Seon Hwa-yeon. Despite my earnest plea, which made me forget my own dignity, you choose to side with an outsider and stand against me?”
Sama Hwi-mun glared out the window, his eyes bloodshot.
In the distance, the Snow Mountain Manor, nestled near the Heavenly Mountains, was faintly visible.
“Fine, I will endure it for now. For now. But you will regret this. Both you and Neung Un-bi…”
*Thud!*
The window slammed shut, and the snowfall outside began to rage violently.
A snow as cold as Sama Hwi-mun’s fury.
***
The main gate of the Snow Mountain Manor.
Unlike usual, the gates were wide open, and a crowd of people had gathered, waiting for someone.
The men, all with beards grown down to their chests and dressed in white fur robes, were the vassals who supported the Snow Mountain Manor.
The woman, dressed in a robe with a collar decorated with the fur of a snow leopard dotted with black spots, was So Seol-ok-su, Seon Hwa-yeon.
Her aura perfectly matched the white snow that had just begun to fall. At sixty-eight, she still retained her beauty. Thanks to her taut, wrinkle-free skin, she could almost pass for a middle-aged woman at a glance.
But for some reason, her eyes were not gentle, and her brow was furrowed in displeasure.
“What happened? Why are you alone?”
“Ah, well, you see. I followed right behind him, but…”
Her gaze fell upon Wang Cheon, who stood with his head bowed low, looking utterly dejected.
“You followed right behind him, so why has the Third Young Master not arrived?”
“Ah, about that…”
Who would have thought he would be so fast?
No matter how high-spirited he was, Wang Cheon had never imagined he wouldn’t be able to catch up with his lightness technique.
But what happened?
He had rushed to the Snow Mountain Manor only to find that Neung Un-bi hadn’t arrived yet. The family elders were all out to greet him, and with the snow just starting to fall, everyone’s shoulders and heads were turning white…
“*Tsk!* And you call yourself a guard…”
“My apologies.”
Bowing his head even lower, Wang Cheon pouted and grumbled to himself.
*Sigh, Third Young Master.*
*If you don’t know the way, you shouldn’t have run off ahead… Wait, could it be?*
Suddenly, Wang Cheon’s eyes, which had been staring at the ground, widened.
*Th-this guy? He didn’t just say he was coming and then wander off somewhere else, did he?*
If so, he was in real trouble.
Hadn’t the family already made its decision based on his report?
If Neung Un-bi didn’t arrive after all the vassals had been summoned, his mother, who didn’t possess an ounce of compassion, would not let him off easy.
“Mother, I will go back and…”
“*Tsk!*”
“…”
Wang Cheon cautiously began to speak, only to fall silent again at the sharp click of her tongue.
Just as Wang Cheon’s shoulders slumped in defeat.
“Huh?”
One of the vassals, who had been anxiously looking out, tilted his head in confusion.
“Isn’t that… a palanquin?”
At the vassal’s pointing finger, everyone’s attention focused on the palanquin rushing toward them through the swirling snow.
*Flutter!*
On the banner flapping vigorously at the front of the palanquin was the distinct crest of a snow leopard.
It was the banner of the Snow Mountain Manor.
“…That’s our palanquin.”
“So it is.”
A sense of bewilderment filled the air.
Who could possibly be arriving in a palanquin?
And to the Snow Mountain Manor, in a palanquin of the Snow Mountain Manor?
“Huh? Young Master?”
“Hmm?”
“What?”
“Eh?”
At the sound of Wang Cheon’s voice recognizing the person on the palanquin, the vassals’ eyes grew wide.
*Wait, we never sent a palanquin, so why is he arriving in one?*
Bewilderment turned to astonishment, which was quickly followed by alarm.
“M-Matriarch!”
The vassals turned their heads in shock to look at Seon Hwa-yeon.
How could she not understand their meaning?
Seon Hwa-yeon quickly grasped the situation.
The attire of the warriors escorting the palanquin belonged to the annex.
He must have taken the wrong mountain path, and the warriors at the annex, unable to simply let the Third Young Master pass, must have prepared a palanquin to escort him.
It was a natural course of action. The Third Young Master of the Demonic Cult was of a status that deserved such treatment.
However.
“Well now, this is an unexpected turn of events.”
Seon Hwa-yeon let out a faint smile.
If Neung Un-bi had arrived with only Wang Cheon, onlookers would have assumed it was his own decision. But since he arrived in a palanquin from the Snow Mountain Manor, everyone would now be thinking the same thing.
That the neutral Snow Mountain Manor had chosen to side with Neung Un-bi.
With things having turned out this way, Neung Un-bi would face even greater scrutiny than before.
Until now, he had been alone, but with the Snow Mountain Manor backing him, he had now formed a faction.
“Matriarch, what should we do? They will surely not let this pass…”
Seon Hwa-yeon gazed at the worried vassals with a cold look.
“What is there to do?”
“Pardon?”
“We are the Snow Mountain Manor.”
“…”
Just one sentence.
For a moment, everyone flinched at her words, filled with pride, but then the vassals straightened their backs, their eyes mirroring Seon Hwa-yeon’s.
They were the Snow Mountain Manor.
Guardians of the Demonic Cult’s northern frontier, who never lost their dignity, even in the face of death.
“What are you doing? Our esteemed guest arrives with such dignity. The Snow Mountain Manor shall receive him with the utmost courtesy!”
“Yes, Matriarch!”
At Seon Hwa-yeon’s command, the vassals and warriors straightened their ranks, their presence as sharp as frost.
Just in time, the palanquin stopped before them.
“We greet the Third Young Master!”
Neung Un-bi stared at the members of the Snow Mountain Manor, lined up and welcoming him with such fanfare, unable to hide his bewilderment.
*Wh-what is this?*
*Why is this so grand?*
*Wasn’t I just supposed to help prepare a gift for the birthday banquet?*
*And I only came because they offered me a secluded training hall…*
For some reason, the gazes fixed upon him were filled with an unfamiliar expectation and resolve… *Ah, this feels ominous.*
*This is fine, right? Right?*