Winter Journey - 3
Mount Hongseong was a place where spiritual energy gathered — and so, chasing that very energy, countless ghosts gathered there as well. For that reason, disciples of the Hongseong Sect who trained in the Hongseong Divine Art reacted to ghostly energy far more keenly than practitioners of any other school, and the same held true in Cheonsang Myeongwol.
To take on this event, everyone else had to clear several prerequisite quests on top of earning recognition from the administration or the military. First they had to acquire gear that could detect ghostly energy, and on top of that, they needed to procure things like peach branches to fight the ghosts with.
But Sa Yun was different. The Hongseong Divine Art she had mastered reacted to the Maek's defining trait — the ghostly energy it commanded — letting her pinpoint the creature with ease, and she could bypass the required preparations entirely and proceed straight to the event.
Perhaps that was why. Hong Ryeon, Hyeon Hwi, and Sa Yun — all of them versed in the Hongseong Divine Art — responded to the ghostly energy seeping from within, quietly drawing their divine art to the surface.
"Huh? What is it?"
Chae Ryeon, who trained in the Moonlight Blade Technique built upon the Moonlight Art, would likewise have had to run the prerequisite quests in Cheonsang Myeongwol. The same went for Chae Jin, who had mastered the Moonlight Art just as she had.
"All I feel is some vaguely creepy energy, honestly."
Like me, she could only faintly sense the ghostly energy one might feel on Mount Hongseong, and Chae Jin simply looked puzzled. So Hong Ryeon said, cool and level:
"Stay beside the innkeeper."
"Huh? Okay."
Chae Jin wasn't foolish enough to bicker even in a situation this serious. She nodded, gripped her blade tight, and drew up her internal energy.
"The Maek, you say? Might you be referring to the demonic creature — the one that latches onto a person, summons ghosts to plague them with nightmares, and drinks away their life force?"
Jang Goeng asked in a frightened tone. Even so, perhaps because he had served under Mun Ha-gong, he seemed to know a fair bit about demonic creatures.
At his question, Hong Ryeon gave a small nod, then looked to Hyeon Hwi.
"Hyeon Hwi, guard the innkeeper alongside Chae Jin."
"Yes."
Hyeon Hwi answered with a stony expression and took up position at my side.
Watching me, now escorted by two martial artists in Chae Jin and Hyeon Hwi, Hong Ryeon considered something for a moment before speaking.
"You stay here. Sa Yun — can you help me?"
"Of course."
Sa Yun said this as she took hold of her sword, and Hong Ryeon closed her eyes. Then, a moment later — the instant those eyes flashed open — an aura so fierce it set even Hong Ryeon's hair on end blossomed up from Sa Yun.
— Kyaaaaaaak!!
A ghostly wail tore through the silent estate. In the same breath, the bone-chilling aura swelled until even Jang Goeng was breaking out in a cold sweat, and screams burst from the inner chambers.
"Darling! Darling!"
"Aaaagh! Aaaaaaagh!"
The nightmares inflicted on whoever the Maek parasitized came from the ghosts it summoned. Those ghosts were now fleeing in terror from the Hongseong Divine Art — which must be why Mun Ha-gong's wife was thrashing awake from her nightmare and screaming like that.
"Sa Yun!!"
"Yes!!"
At Hong Ryeon's cry, Sa Yun drew her sword and lunged. And then—
— CRAAASH!!
The door, shut fast until now, splintered apart, and something came bursting out of it.
It was an elderly lady — the very picture of gentle dignity, in the most literal sense.
The sight of the woman, of an age with Yohwan, floating up into the air as agonized screams tore from her throat made Sa Yun draw her sword.
Together with a riot of five-colored light spilling from her blade, a crimson sword qi shot forth — and what that qi cleaved was the black smoke crouched behind the lady.
— KEEEEEEH!!
A grotesque, horrible shriek. As the black smoke, split apart by the sword qi, scattered and began melting away into the sky, Sa Yun caught the lady as she dropped from the air.
"Mmmmm..."
With the black smoke gone and the nightmare broken for good, the lady groaned and raised her head.
Watching this, Hong Ryeon ceased radiating her energy and offered a cupped-fist salute to the old man standing frozen there, his face blank with disbelief.
"Are you Mun Ha-gong?"
"W-who are you people! What is the meaning of this!? That thing just now..."
At the old man's flustered state, Hong Ryeon faltered for a beat, then glanced my way. Facing a former high official — one who was said to shun martial artists, no less — must have been a touch daunting for her.
Right. Well, this sort of thing is my job.
I stepped forward, cupped my fists in a salute, and spoke.
"We heard of the trouble that has befallen you, Mun Ha-gong, and came to lend what small strength we could."
"Ah..."
"I am called Yu Wol of Seomhwachon."
For now, I introduced myself as our representative. Then I presented Cheon Il-hwa's letter of introduction, and Mun Ha-gong, flustered as he was, accepted it and heaved a long sigh.
"Cheon Il-hwa... Well then. Do come in, do."
He may have shunned martial artists, but Mun Ha-gong was hardly so discourteous a man as to turn away those who had come to help him.
Perhaps that was why — his face noticeably eased as he looked upon his sleeping wife — he received us with warm courtesy.
"I am called Mun Ha-gong. Just call me Scholar Mun, and be comfortable."
"I am Hong Ryeon, First Disciple of the Hongseong Sect and an Inspector of the Murim Alliance. And these are my junior martial sisters."
"Hyeon Hwi of the Hongseong Sect."
"Sa Yun of the Hongseong Sect."
"Chae Jin — First Disciple of Moon Lotus Pavilion and a Senior Combat Officer of the Murim Alliance."
With the brief introductions done, Mun Ha-gong nodded. A short silence followed — and it was Hong Ryeon who broke it.
"The ghostly energy had built up so heavily that we were forced to disperse it all at once. I beg your forgiveness for the fright it must have given you."
"Oho, no. No, not at all. It has been a long, long time since I last saw my wife sleeping so peacefully. You said Hongseong Sect, yes? I've heard a great deal about your sect. Surely the Sword Saint herself..."
"Yes. That is correct."
"I see. Back when I served in the Imperial Palace, the Sword Saint roamed the realm performing good works without number... She even graced the palace with a personal visit once."
"Is that so."
Having eased the air with this light small talk, he let out a heavy sigh. It seemed he was edging toward the heart of the matter at last.
"Do you have any guess as to why this should have happened?"
"Yu Wol, was it? Very well, Master Yu. There is one thing that has been preying on my mind."
Just as in Cheonsang Myeongwol, he seemed to know at least how his wife had come to be parasitized by the Maek.
"It was a few months ago. Certain persons appeared, seeking to purchase a mountain that belongs to our family. But that mountain is our ancestral ground — how could I sell it? And not long after that..."
"Your wife began to suffer nightmares, I take it?"
"That is so."
He nodded with a somber face and sighed, heavy as lead.
"To stop my wife's nightmares by any means, I summoned a few Taoist masters and monks and even held rites — but nothing had much effect. And now you honored ones have come all this way and resolved it thus. I am grateful. I shall never forget this debt."
"If you had inquired at the Shaolin Temple or the Wudang Sect, you could surely have found help..."
Shaolin's martial arts carried the power of demon-subduing, after all, and the Wudang Sect counted among its own those who battled ghostly energy. When Chae Jin raised the point, Mun Ha-gong nodded.
"My relations with them soured long ago, so I could hardly bring myself to beg their aid. My wife knew it as well, and she strenuously forbade it... But as her condition worsened, I was resolved to go to them before long and bow my head. And instead, help has found its way to me like this. Truly, I thank you."
Mun Ha-gong rose from his seat and bowed low. Hong Ryeon shook her head at him.
"We haven't caught the Maek yet. So please, save your gratitude for later."
"'Yet,' you say?"
"Yes. The Maek is a creature that shows itself only at night... We must wait for nightfall. So we shall call upon you again this evening."
"I see... If it pleases you, you are welcome to remain here."
"That's quite alright."
"If you so insist..."
Mun Ha-gong, whose weariness showed plainly now, took his leave as well. With the affair wrapped up, we returned to the inn; everyone gathered in my room, and Hong Ryeon asked me.
"What do you think?"
"If it's my opinion you're asking for... there's only one answer, as ever. And I rather suspect everyone here has arrived at much the same one."
I glanced at Chae Jin; she nodded too. And so we spoke as one.
"The Demonic Cult."
In this event, it was the Demonic Cult who had set the Maek upon Mun Ha-gong's wife — and the Demonic Cult who had demanded he sell his mountain.
In Cheonsang Myeongwol, whenever something went wrong, you could safely assume that a third of the time it was the Iron Blood Dan's work — and another third, the Demonic Cult's.
In other words, this too was the Demonic Cult's doing.
"But why would the Demonic Cult want to buy that mountain?"
"Well... you could spin any number of theories... but there's really only one that fits, wouldn't you say?"
I smiled at Sa Yun, and Hyeon Hwi answered in dead earnest.
"Something is hidden on that mountain? But if they weren't searching for it in secret — if they needed to buy the land outright..."
"Then it must be something findable only through major construction or excavation, or a heavy investment of manpower. And things like that are, almost always..."
It was Chae Jin who picked up where I left off.
"A secret realm?"
"Then just what kind of secret realm could it be, that they'd strike at a man as good as Mun Ha-gong to get their hands on that mountain?"
As Hyeon Hwi muttered flatly, every eye turned to me.
"It's not as though I know everything."
"Still, I'm hopeful. Might you happen to have a good answer?"
Hong Ryeon's lips curved in a bright smile; Chae Jin nodded; Sa Yun's eyes gleamed.
Hyeon Hwi was as impassive as ever, but her gaze was threaded with trust.
"Demonic Cultists they may be, but they are still people. People move because each of them wants something. So tell me — what is it the Demonic Cult wants most, right now?"
Hong Ryeon and Chae Jin had both served in the Murim Alliance, so they would know at least the broad strokes of the cult's current state.
Sure enough, their eyes sharpened at my question.
"...The seat of the Cult Leader."
"Just so. But the cult's five great families are locked in bitter opposition at the moment, and no one can step forward to claim the leader's seat. The instant one family tried to run ahead, the other four would band together and tear it down. But there is one way to smother that strife in a single stroke — and ascend to the leader's seat all the same."
Hyeon Hwi raised her hand slightly.
"The Traces of the Heavenly Demon...?"
I nodded, smiling.
"I heard this once, in conversation with Ha-no. Even without the consent of all five families, whoever holds every one of the Traces of the Heavenly Demon — or completes the half-finished Heavenly Demon Divine Art — can take the leader's seat. But the cult still hasn't gotten a grip on the Divine Art itself, so the five families — evenly matched in power, and loath to go to war — are said to be bleeding themselves mad to lay hands on the Traces."
Grand as the name sounded, the Traces of the Heavenly Demon were, in truth, nothing more than a symbol.
They'd been an item with no real effect in Cheonsang Myeongwol, either.
But the Demonic Cult was, at bottom, a religious order — and religious orders had a habit of fixating on symbols like that.
At any rate, the Traces of the Heavenly Demon seemed to be a story Hong Ryeon and Chae Jin already knew.
When they nodded, I rapped the table lightly.
"There must be a secret realm holding one of the Traces on that mountain. That's why they want it in hand."
"But an ancestral mountain belonging to a man of Mun Ha-gong's standing would have plenty of caretakers, and with them around, even Demonic Cultists would struggle to search quietly. So they tried to buy it outright and investigate at their leisure...? Wouldn't that draw far too much attention?"
"It would be fine so long as they didn't start digging the moment the deal was done. Whether it's the Murim Alliance or the government, manpower is finite — no one can spare watchers to guard that one place and comb it forever. And with the cult's five families at a standoff, even a slow win is a win: find the secret realm at leisure, secure the Traces, and the profit is theirs. They meant to move slowly, once the eyes watching had thinned."
"Huh. Fair enough..."
Either way, that settled what we had to do.
"When things get tangled, untangle what's right in front of you first — so they say. Whether our deductions hold or not, let's put felling the Maek tonight at the top of the list. The rest can wait its turn."
— Knock, knock.
Just then came the sound of knocking at the door. Who on earth...? No one should be looking for us here.
Bewildered, Chae Jin opened the door — then flinched hard at the figure standing in the corridor.
"...Why are you here?"
"Huh? Well, why not?"
Standing at the door was Chae Ryeon. Beaming, she waved at Sa Yun inside.
"I read the letter the Hongseong Sect sent — 'stopping by the Murim Alliance before heading over,' it said? My best friend gets to experience the Murim Alliance, and I'm supposed to just sit at home?"
"Um... right?"
Well, this worked out nicely.
"It's been a while."
"Hehe. It really has, hasn't it? Have you been well?"
To her cheerful greeting, I held out my hand.
"Since you're here, you can earn your keep. Let's get some work done together."
"...Huh?"
And so the bewildered Chae Ryeon joined our ranks at full strength.
Excellent.
Our forces now overflowed with strength — more than enough. Breaking the Maek-hunting event would be a breeze.