Akyang Branch Intimidation
The next morning. An early dawn before the sun had even risen.
Only one person clung to my side like a shadow.
It was Seol Muyeong.
"Jakganim, what about Disciple Hwangbo Suyeon and Young Master Jegal Cheom? Why are we going just the two of us?"
Seol Muyeong asked in a very low, secretive whisper.
I pressed my throbbing temples and replied.
"Dragging those two along while poking into the shadows' info network? That'd be like advertising it to the whole neighborhood."
I meant every word.
Hwangbo Suyeon, the pampered jewel of the prestigious Hwangbo family. And Jegal Cheom, who lived and died by his pride and bluster.
Taking those two to investigate the black market? It'd be like hanging a bell around your neck before going out to steal.
By the time the morning sunlight began illuminating Akyang's bustling streets, we arrived at the grand front gate of the Danga Sangdan Akyang branch.
Not quite on the scale of the Nakyang headquarters, but this place too was lavishly funded by the capital of the underworld's queen, Danche Ryeong.
The imposing halls and the fierce aura of the stern guards were more than enough to crush the spirit of any ordinary person.
But I strode right in, kicking open the branch doors, and demanded an audience with the branch manager.
Before long, I was escorted to an opulently decorated office.
And there, greeting us, was a man sprawled arrogantly across a massive rosewood chair.
Byeoinseong, the manager of the Danga Sangdan Akyang branch.
"So. Who the hell are you, barging in here at this hour demanding to see the branch manager?"
Propping his chin, Byeoinseong looked down at me like I was a bug, his voice dripping with annoyance.
His fat fingers glittered with expensive gem rings.
He reeked of the typical upstart underworld thug.
Without a word, I pulled a heavy red plaque from my bosom and tossed it onto the desk.
It was the sub-branch leader's token that Danche Ryeong herself had given me—a guarantee of absolute authority within the merchant guild.
Clang.
The token rolled with a dull scrape, stopping right before Byeoinseong's eyes.
"Danche Ryeong's sub-branch leader token."
I tilted my chin up arrogantly, looking down at him.
Any regular underling from a merchant guild should have flattened themselves on the floor and kowtowed at the sight of it.
But Byeoinseong's reaction completely defied my expectations.
"Hoo. The sub-branch leader's token, eh."
He picked it up, examined it from every angle, then let out a sneer.
"Looks genuine enough."
He tossed it back onto the desk and continued in a haughty tone.
"But this is Akyang in Honam Province."
Greed flashed in his eyes.
"Nakyang's sky doesn't stretch far enough to cover little old Akyang, does it?"
I was momentarily speechless.
This guy's lost his mind?
No matter that he was a branch manager, ignoring his direct superior's token?
In my past life's South Korea terms, it was like a branch head ripping up a document stamped with the company president's seal right in front of him.
Danche Ryeong, you slacker—you haven't been keeping your underlings in line?
So this was the murim underworld. Local power players beyond the center's reach acted with utter impunity.
"So you're saying show some real 'sincerity' besides this scrap of metal..."
Byeoinseong grinned disgustingly, rubbing his fingers together.
Shing!
A chilling, gruesome friction sound sliced through my ears.
And from the right side of my vision exploded a lightning-like azure flash.
It shot straight for Byeoinseong's throat in an instant.
"Eek!"
A grotesque scream burst from Byeoinseong's throat.
His arrogant face had gone pale as a sheet.
The situation was over in a flash.
Seol Muyeong. Her Seola blade, which had been sheathed in her arms, was now drawn.
The transparent, azure sword edge hovered, barely nicking into the thick flesh of Byeoinseong's nape.
Prick.
A tiny wound opened on his neck, a single drop of red blood trickling out.
But before it could hit the floor, the intense cold radiating from Seola froze it midair into a blue shard.
Pitzzzt!
The frozen droplet shattered on the ground.
The office air froze solid at the brutal, surreal sight.
"For the sin of insulting Jakganim."
Seol Muyeong's eyes were pure ice, devoid of any emotion.
"I'll have that filthy neck of yours pay the price."
As her wrist tensed ever so slightly—
"W-Wait! Waaaait!"
Byeoinseong trembled like a leaf, flailing his arms wildly.
The haughty branch manager who'd just dismissed Nakyang's power was gone.
A wet, piss-stinking liquid began seeping from between his legs.
This lunatic actually pissed himself?
I clicked my tongue inwardly.
Physical violence that could slit his throat right now trumped some distant great power.
The classic weakling who bowed to the nearest fist at light speed.
I knew these sniveling types were easier to handle than half-assed prideful ones.
"Seol Muyeong. Sheathe the sword."
My calm, stern command.
"Understood."
Without hesitation, Seol Muyeong withdrew Seola and slid it into its scabbard.
As the blade retreated, Byeoinseong finally gasped for air and collapsed to the floor.
I let out a chuckle at his pathetic sight, then slowly walked to the grand seat he'd vacated and plopped down arrogantly.
"So. Can you hear me now?"
"Y-Yes! Loud and clear, great hero!"
Byeoinseong nodded frantically from his prone position on the floor.
What a flawless attitude switch.
I liked it, curling my lips.
"Then let's get to business."
I tapped the desk with my fingers.
"All the intel you've got on Akyang's black markets. Every last bit. Bring it."
His face paled again at my demand.
"B-Black market info? Th-that's top-level guild secret..."
As he stammered excuses to stall—
Swish.
Seol Muyeong wordlessly placed her hand on Seola's hilt again.
Crackle!
Just her touch, and vicious cold leaked from the scabbard, instantly freezing the corner of the sturdy rosewood desk.
Then, a casual flick.
Ching!
An invisible swift blade cleaved the air.
Crash!
The frozen desk corner sliced off like tofu and tumbled to the floor.
"Hiiik!"
Byeoinseong screamed on the verge of fainting and sprang up like a coiled spring.
"I-I'll get it! Right now! This instant!"
Wobbling on his fat legs, he bolted through the secret door behind the office.
I inwardly admired Seol Muyeong's ruthless efficiency, circulating Hwalcheon Simgyeol to calm my startled heart.
About the time it takes to drink a cup of tea later.
The secret door reopened, and Byeoinseong stumbled in, panting, cradling several thick ledgers in his arms.
"H-Here. All the black market and distribution networks operating secretly in Akyang."
He glanced nervously at me and carefully set the ledgers on the desk.
I snatched them up and tucked them securely into my bosom.
With this, tracking Daeryeok Dobang's tail was only a matter of time.
But I had an even more urgent question.
I glared at Byeoinseong and asked in a low, grave voice.
"By any chance... has 'Uiseon' Jo Myeong-hwan appeared in Akyang recently?"
This was one of the real reasons I'd come here.
The info network of the world's top merchant guild, Danga Sangdan, might have caught even a trace of my master.
But Byeoinseong's answer shattered my faint hope.
"U-Uiseon, sir?"
He shook his head with a troubled look.
"Apologies, but no sightings yet. We'll mobilize every informant in the branch to search."
Haa...
I sighed inwardly.
Life wasn't that easy, even in this novel-like wuxia world. Finding key NPCs required legwork.
Where the hell had my master vanished to?
After getting that horrific clue from Haebuk Paenga, had he gone chasing Daeryeok Dobang alone and run into trouble?
Anxiety slithered up like a viper, but I kept a perfect poker face.
"Fine. Got it."
I patted my bosom where the ledgers sat and stood.
Then flashed a grin at Byeoinseong, still groveling on the floor.
A fatally sweet smile, like a devil closing a soul deal.
"Branch Manager Byeoinseong."
He flinched at my soft call.
"Let's make a deal, you and I."
I leaned in and whispered secretively.
"Handle this one job I give you from now on, nice and clean..."
My lips curled up to my ears.
"And when I get back to Nakyang, I'll put in a good word with the 'higher-ups.'"
That magic word. 'Higher-ups' lit up his face.
The massive ambition of promotion from branch to Nakyang headquarters.
At that crossroads, greed flushed his cheeks uncontrollably.
"Gr-Great hero! No, sir! Just give the order! This Byeoinseong will carve flesh from bone to obey!"
His groveling eyes dripped with greed masquerading as loyalty.
Perfect. He'd bitten the hook completely.
Humans soaked in worldly desires were a hundred, a thousand times easier to manipulate than self-righteous swordsmen.
I leaned into his ear and began detailing his tasks with meticulous precision.