Hongryun Sect (2)
Hongryun Sect (2)
Inevitability requires no prayer.
Though I had done nothing, the Sect Leader—oblivious to any threat—was leaving the sect in his finest clothes. I sat at the inn table with Sannyeo, picking at skewers. Sannyeo merely leaned her head forward, her hands hidden in her sleeves.
I brought a skewer to her lips so she could eat more easily, and murmured,
"He left today. We'll start tonight."
Sannyeo tore the meat from the skewer. The way she chewed, her small lips pulling in the meat, reminded me exactly of a wild lynx.
"I'll be cheering for you."
She said it as she swallowed. Was she planning to sprawl out and sleep the whole day at the inn? I nodded, then tossed the skewer roughly onto the plate. With nothing to do until nightfall, I figured I'd do some brief training and catch some sleep.
"Watch my training for me."
Sannyeo nodded and pattered along. Her deliberately audible footsteps and quick little steps made the inn waiter shoot me an envious glance before he averted his eyes.
Something could happen, so I needed to loosen up.
******
"You said you'd cheer for me."
They say you should hear people out to the end. It was a dark night after sunset. Amid the uneasy mood cast by the moon and stars, Sannyeo and I faced each other in the street. Sannyeo blinked, acting as if she didn't understand my words, so I repeated them.
"Didn't you mean you'd be cheering from inside, while resting?"
Sannyeo shook her head. Those red eyes of hers seemed oddly brazen today.
"We're in the same boat. We should go together."
"You're going to barge in while I'm sweet-talking the bastard's daughter?"
If things went south, I might just flip her over on the spot and try to violate her. Sannyeo, watching and cheering while I raped a woman?
"...Not bad. Let's go."
It didn't feel as bad as I thought. A guy watching would be one thing, but Sannyeo was a beauty who stood out wherever she went. Sannyeo looked puzzled when I suddenly changed my stance. The way she tilted her head, hands clasped, was doll-like and even cute.
"What are you doing?"
"Ah, yeah."
Sannyeo, having lost the initiative, stepped forward a beat late at my urging.
Men in Hongryun Sect uniforms roamed the night streets carrying torches. They sighed or sang forgotten old songs to ease the tedium of night duty. We slipped past their noise and moved toward the mansion's outer wall.
"The security isn't that tight."
As Sannyeo had said, security inside the Hongryun Sect was lax. They were doing their best in their own way, but only about two men guarded each major building, and their inner energy was so shallow and fundamentals so poor that they couldn't detect me or Sannyeo.
To me, they were no different from scarecrows. Sannyeo scanned the guards with a deflated expression and said,
"The big guy was at least third-rate. Where is he? Pinpointing his location would make infiltration easier."
I shook my head.
"We need to find the daughter first. Judging by the alert level, a guy like that is probably sprawled out sleeping somewhere."
"Makes sense."
Since no one was moving about, checking the big guy's location was a waste of time.
After we lightly leaped over the wall and got inside, Sannyeo sniffed the air. Bent at the waist and tilting her head like a drug-sniffing dog, she grabbed my hand just as I was about to scan the surroundings and pointed toward one side of a building.
Because of the manacles, she had to use both hands to grasp mine, making it look exactly like she was pleading with me.
"I smell alcohol."
The building she indicated with her chin had its lanterns lit and shadows flickering inside; it seemed they'd started a drinking party the very first day the Sect Leader was gone. Sannyeo focused on the shadows, then said,
"I sense an aura. That big guy is probably in there drinking too."
"Looks like it."
There was some distance between the wall we'd descended and the building where the drinking party was taking place, but the raucous voices carried clearly.
"Now, to the long life and boundless health of our Sect Leader!"
"To his health!"
"To the day the Hongryun Sect joins the, uh, Nine Sects One Gang! Nine Sects One Gang!"
"To that day!"
The toasts they'd just roared told me the atmosphere was heating up. They wouldn't be leaving that place for a while. Sannyeo released my hand and said,
"It would be troublesome if the daughter was in there, wouldn't it?"
A hint of a smile lingered on her lips. I shook my head.
"I heard the Sect Leader keeps his daughter locked up. No matter how bold his underlings are, they wouldn't drag her into a drinking party."
"Then how will you find her in a place with this many rooms?"
The Hongryun Sect's buildings were quite large. Even a rough count gave about seven interconnected buildings, and each had three attached rooms. If I wandered around searching one by one, no matter how lax the security, the chances of getting caught were high.
I narrowed my eyes, scanning the surroundings. Several people were coming out of the building where the drinking party was taking place, bustling about. They repeatedly carried trays of food and drink to and from the rooms, and some servants huddled in corners, eating and giggling.
Dark smoke rose from the kitchen.
I signaled Sannyeo and pressed my body against the wall, then focused on the people coming out of the kitchen.
"Wait and watch."
Sannyeo shut her mouth tight and fixed her attention on the servants. The routes taken by those delivering food were fixed: the direction where the servants ate, and the direction where the disciples ate.
And there was one servant who packed up a generous amount of food and headed in a different direction. He walked toward a quiet building where no party was underway.
"That's the bastard. No matter how much this is a den of beasts, it can't be that only real beasts live here."
It couldn't possibly be a true den of beasts where only those who stuff themselves and live easy live.
Rumor had it the Sect Leader was so obsessive he'd cut his daughter's leg tendons, so she certainly wouldn't be invited to a drinking party. But that didn't mean they'd starve her while everyone else feasted.
It was only natural that someone would bring her food.
Using rooftops, tree shade, and gaps like building shadows to move quickly, we tailed the bastard. He glanced back a few times as if the back of his head tickled, but he never noticed us.
"Young lady. Young lady."
"...What is it?"
The bastard walked halfway around the building and stopped in a blind spot out of our sight. In a lit room previously hidden because his back blocked it, a delicate shadow appeared. She was seated at a desk, holding a brush; the half-turned page cast a rhombus-shaped shadow.
We weren't far away, so their conversation rang clear.
"Please have some food while you work."
"......Did you bring this specially for me?"
"Yes, yes...."
The man, who looked like a servant, scratched his head and let out a loose grin. His cheap fabric clothes rustled loudly as he fidgeted, seemingly embarrassed.
Deolkeong.
The door opened. We crouched lower to avoid being exposed by the reflecting light.
Bathed in firelight, the daughter of the Hongryun Sect revealed herself.
The male servant gazed at her, enraptured, and she smiled, carefully running her fingers over the food he had brought. He seemed satisfied by the simple joy on her face.
"Thank you. For taking such care."
"Um.... N, no...."
"Have you eaten?"
She asked the man. Faint laughter and boisterous shouts drifted through the night. Amid them, the man's face had turned beet-red and his body trembled violently. Even if I weren't sharp-eared, I felt I could tell his heart was pounding madly.
The woman had her black hair neatly braided, a modest yet distinct beauty. Her black eyes sparkled like beads in the firelight, and her simple attire actually accentuated her charm.
Though her clothes were wrapped tightly, the contour of her chest stood out, and the scars on her ankles visible between her skirt were stark. The story about her tendons being cut seemed true. Every time she shifted, her feet dragged limply like tails.
The man quickly scanned her attire and ankles, then shook his head frantically in even greater panic. And he shouted,
"I, I've already eaten! It's, this is, time for work, so I'll be going now!"
She looked slightly startled by his reaction, then smiled again and said,
"Alright. Take care."
She was a woman with a truly beautiful voice. The man fled as if escaping, and the Sect Leader's daughter watched him run off for a moment before covering her mouth and letting out a stifled laugh.
Sannyeo signaled me with her eyes and asked,
"Isn't that a lovely sight?"
"Absolutely."
The way she picked up meat with her chopsticks and chewed with her small mouth was indeed captivating. I agreed with Sannyeo and straightened up.
I deliberately rustled the bushes to make noise. The Sect Leader's daughter, who had been munching her food, flinched her shoulders like a squirrel and looked around, chopsticks still in hand.
Watching her blink and go on guard, I spoke in a low voice.
"Calm down. Don't scream."
Even just a few steps out of the shadows, the firelight from her room let her see my figure clearly. I spread both hands to show I meant no harm and said with a smile,
"It's alright. It's alright. I'm just here to offer you a good proposal."
The girl wore an uneasy expression and edged back slightly, but she didn't scream.
Our eyes met.
Her black eyes were quite captivating.