In Preparation - 3
The moment we descended beneath Cheonghoeru, the goods were already being moved.
A merchant of the Blue Gathering Merchant Guild opened several crates to inspect the medicinal herbs packed inside. Wrapped around the well-dried herbs were fine silk cloth—and paintings of Hongseong Sect disciples.
Chae Jin glanced at them and asked, puzzled.
"Did you hire an artist too?"
"I painted those myself."
Painting something at that level wasn't exactly difficult. Hong Ryeon simply shrugged her shoulders at the astonished Chae Jin.
"Oh my. You didn't know?"
"...So you did know?"
"Hehe. Well, it's nothing much."
"Then, Master Innkeeper—could I commission a portrait of myself sometime?"
Chae Jin asked while naturally taking hold of my arm, and I found myself deliberating. A portrait, eh. It wasn't beyond my skill, but a woman of Chae Jin's standing could surely afford a far better painter?
"I like your paintings, Master Innkeeper."
"Very well, then."
"Oh! Then me too!"
"So it shall be."
As if painting a portrait were some great undertaking.
Still, since I was painting anyway, I supposed I'd have to do portraits for all the Hongseong Sect disciples later as well. And while I was at it, one of Sa Yun too.
By the time I had watched the goods carried all the way into the Blue Gathering Merchant Guild's warehouse, two men came down from above. It was Old Man Gi and Wi Yeol.
"Ah, Teacher. Off somewhere?"
"I'm going to meet someone. But the two of you...?"
"We've received orders to escort you."
Wi Yeol spoke politely, then shot a glance at Hong Ryeon and Chae Jin.
"Of course, with those two here there's no real problem, but still—isn't an escort the kind of thing where more is always better?"
"Haha. Four experts escorting a mere villager—I hardly know where to put myself."
"Hehe. Surely you're a bit too big to call a mere villager, no? Anyway, don't overthink it. Think of it less as an escort and more as just traveling together. Ah—unless you're heading somewhere we can't follow, that is..."
"Nothing like that. I'm just going to visit a pleasure house."
"...Hmm?"
Old Man Gi tilted his head, and Wi Yeol narrowed his eyes. I couldn't guess what they were thinking, but it wasn't that.
"I'm going to Hajinru to meet Hano of the Hao Gate."
"Ah, Hajinru. Well, that neighborhood is a bit... wouldn't it be better to just meet here?"
"He says he feels safer there, so what can I do?"
A pleasure house deep in unorthodox territory clearly didn't sit well with Old Man Gi.
But perhaps because of my relationship with Hano, and the fact that the Hao Gate had once helped the Pavilion, he merely nodded.
"Still, there are some rough-handed types in there. Of course, with the Sun-Falling Sword and the Moonlight Blade present, no one would dare try anything..."
"There may be fools who fail to recognize two such renowned heroines. So, ladies—keep Master Yu well protected."
"Understood."
"Hehe. Of course."
And so, with a larger party than expected, I set out to meet Hano.
We walked the broad streets of Yangwi Fortress toward a more secluded quarter, and the moment we entered the unorthodox sects' territory bordering the back alleys, the bruisers loitering in the lanes shot furtive glances our way.
But perhaps because of Wi Yeol's cold stare, Old Man Gi's mocking chuckle, and the frost-sharp auras radiating from Hong Ryeon and Chae Jin, they all merely turned their heads away and pretended not to see.
Then again, locking eyes with someone here was normally grounds for a brawl on the spot.
Last time I came, there had been no end of men looking to pick a fight.
At any rate, our destination was an old pleasure house three stories tall, flying both green and red lanterns at once.
Half-undressed courtesans sold their laughter right at the entrance, and from within drifted the sound of song and the shouts of drunkards.
As we stood before this textbook image of a pleasure house, two hulking men blocked our way.
"Begging your pardon, but you wouldn't happen to be from the orthodox sects, would you? The Sun-Falling Sword and the Moonlight Blade, the two of you—"
"They are merely my escorts. I've come only to see Hano, so don't worry—just pass word inside."
When I, standing behind them, spoke up, one of the giants turned to look at me. Then he smirked and dipped his head.
"Ah, Master Yu, the honored innkeeper. The elder is expecting you."
Well, it was unorthodox territory after all—they had no choice but to be wary of those two, I supposed. Nothing to be done about it.
Still, it clearly went against their grain to let two famous heroines of the orthodox world walk right in. Only after one of them went inside and returned with permission could we finally enter.
"Please don't take offense."
"Pardon? At what?"
"Is something the matter?"
I shrugged at the puzzled looks from Hong Ryeon and Chae Jin.
Really, though—renowned heroines of a great orthodox sect, turned away at the door by the unorthodox side. Wasn't that just a little humiliat— no, actually, not at all?
At my glance, the two seemed to finally read my thoughts, and they broke into bright laughter.
"Ahaha, we came here to talk, after all."
"And it's not as though we don't know about your relationship with Hano, Master Innkeeper. This much, we can laugh off."
"My thanks to you both."
"Why on earth would you thank us for something like this..."
"Hehe. Then I'll remember it?"
While the two of them giggled together, Old Man Gi and Wi Yeol surveyed the surroundings.
They belonged to the military, after all, so they were presumably checking whether any unorthodox martial artists on the premises might prove troublesome.
"Old Man Gi."
"I know, I know. Just looking, that's all."
We went a little deeper inside, and when a large door swung open, a clean, tidy corridor appeared—nothing like the chaos outside. Walking down the quiet hallway, we entered the open door at the far end, where an old man sat in the corner while several lovely courtesans bustled about tidying the room, preparing to leave.
The moment he saw me, he rose from his seat to greet me.
"Well, well. What a gathering of remarkable people. Normally, when heavyweights like these show up here, my job is to bolt for the door immediately."
"Inviting a guest and then fleeing wouldn't look very good, would it? And as I say every time—I'd appreciate it if the courtesans would clear the room."
"There it is again. You refuse the moment I bring courtesans into the room. What is it you have against them?"
"I'm a man too, you know. It's not that I dislike lovely women. But I come here to talk, that's all."
Talking with Hano was, for me, an invaluable opportunity to gather information.
I got to feast—for free—on intelligence that money couldn't buy.
Which meant that even while drinking, I had to stay as focused as possible, and every time someone fidgeted at my side, it became an unavoidable annoyance and distraction.
So after the very first drinking session, when I'd briefly allowed a courtesan to sit beside me, I asked him to stop calling any to my side—but Hano, as if teasing me, called one in every single time.
He was not my subordinate, so I had no authority to order him, only my repeated requests to lean on. And every time we met here, he'd summon one anyway. I was at a loss.
"I was just telling them to tidy up and head out, having heard we'd have other guests today."
Hano glanced back at Hong Ryeon and Chae Jin. And once the courtesans bowed with smiles and withdrew, he offered us our seats.
"Now, everyone, please sit. I saw the Moonlight Blade last time... A pleasure. I am Hano, branch head of the Hao Gate here in Yangwi Fortress. And those two gentlemen are...?"
Old Man Gi and Wi Yeol gave only a slight nod. Having finished those brief introductions, Hano pondered a moment, then came over to me and spoke in a lowered voice.
"By the way—is it wise to have them here?"
"Everyone will find out eventually anyway. You were going to brief me on the unorthodox sects' movements, weren't you? About how they're targeting Seomhwachon. General Cheon has agreed to dispatch these two to Seomhwachon for a time."
"Wise indeed. As they say—when the lips are gone, the teeth grow cold. If Seomhwachon falls, their strength only swells, and if they were to turn that strength upon Yangwi Fortress, General Cheon's face would be utterly ruined. Besides..."
He crossed his arms and gave a wry smile.
"If there's the Iron Blood Dan lurking behind them—well."
Squeeze. Hong Ryeon's hand, gripping the hem of her robe, tightened. I glanced at her and gave a small shake of my head. Whatever she was curious about, I would be the one to ask—so I signaled her not to step forward needlessly, and after a deep breath, Hong Ryeon nodded.
"Do you know anything about the Iron Blood Dan?"
He held out his palm, and I placed a gold ingot in it. Only after receiving it did Hano begin to spill what he knew.
"Honestly, the detailed intelligence is thin. What I do know is the name—the Iron Blood Dan—that their leaders are divided along the Five Elements, and that they intend to drive the spirit-energy hubs scattered across the continent into a frenzy, throwing the whole world into chaos."
"Ho..."
"Moreover, their power is considerable—beyond what any ordinary sect could hope to withstand. And yet they never show themselves openly, which is precisely why neither the Murim Alliance, nor the Four Black Coalition, nor even the Empire is willing to move against them."
"Have they joined hands with the Demonic Cult?"
That, I suspected, was the question that mattered most to Old Man Gi and Wi Yeol.
If the Iron Blood Dan and the Demonic Cult had allied, then from the Empire's standpoint, their enemies would only be growing stronger.
But that was not the case—and Hano's own investigations had confirmed it.
"I'm quite certain they haven't. The Demonic Cult has suffered losses at the Iron Blood Dan's hands, you see."
"The Demonic Cult is still in the midst of a succession struggle, no? Then surely one of those factions—"
"Ah, no, nothing like that. Traces were found of an attempt to drive the spirit energy of Cheonmaji—the Lake of the Heavenly Demon—into a frenzy. Cheonmaji is nothing less than holy ground to the Demonic Cult. To willingly throw it into chaos would be to court total destruction, so..."
In other words, the Iron Blood Dan could be counted an enemy of the Demonic Cult as well. Hano's account continued.
The Iron Blood Dan's leader, so far as had been revealed, was a man called the Iron Blood Golden Emperor, who manipulated the new Four Black Alliance Leader from behind the scenes—a spear wielder who employed strange, uncanny arts.
"Something like summoning monsters with water?"
"Oh, very similar."
"The one called the Iron Blood Water Emperor attacked Hongseong Sect and was slain by my master, after all..."
"Precisely. The Iron Blood Golden Emperor creates monsters wrought of metal and sends them to attack. His personal martial prowess is considerable as well. But if the Sword Saint defeated the other one... then if she takes the field herself, there shouldn't be any great problem, hmm?"
"The problem is minimizing the damage to Seomhwachon."
I said flatly, and Hano nodded.
"I've been watching their movements all along, as it happens. If anything happens, I'll have word to you at once. And what I've given you is everything investigated to date. The details are written there, so read it through, and if there's anything you don't understand, send word."
Hano held out a thick bundle of papers. I took it, tucked it into my robe, and bowed my head.
"Thank you."
"Well, you give what you give and receive what you receive. Now then—shall we get to the usual talk of how the world's turning?"
"No—forgive me, but I'll have to head straight back today. There are people waiting for me, and much to be done."
"Really? A shame. Conversing with you is one of my great pleasures, you know."
"Come visit Seomhwachon sometime. No courtesans, granted, but there's fine food and good drink, and I'll host you properly."
"Ah—now that you mention it, I hear that Yohwan of yours works at your inn? Splendid. I'll drop by before long."
I flashed a smile at the grinning Hano, then rose from my seat.
By the time we made our way back out and reached Cheonghoeru, I felt gazes pressing in from both sides.
"Something you'd like to say?"
Standing at my left and right, Chae Jin and Hong Ryeon had been staring at me, so I asked at once—and the two of them snickered and shook their heads.
"Do you always meet Hano at that place?"
"If he comes out to greet me when I arrive, we meet at Hajinru. If he doesn't, we meet at the fortune-teller's shop in Haton, the one I visited with Lady Chae Ryeon. But most of the time, it ends up being Hajinru. Is there some problem with that?"
Hearing my answer, Hong Ryeon and Chae Jin's smiles only grew deeper.