Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Ways to Build Trust - 2
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Cheon Il-hwa's explanation was simple.
A few days ago, people started vanishing from Yangwi Castle. His subordinates had investigated, but no solid leads had turned up.
So, they looked into it further and found similar incidents happening in nearby castles.
"Have you checked the back alleys?"
Where there's light, there's shadow. No matter how hard the Yangwi Castle Lord worked to maintain order, those shadows were never small.
Of course, they couldn't operate too openly.
"Hm. We did investigate Jin Kwon Dang, the group that controls the back alleys here... but they were in a frenzy themselves."
Jin Kwon Dang. One of the evil sects, and a group that had clashed with Sayoon in the past. Later, their leader took a liking to her and offered various forms of help.
"Even the Jin Kwon Dang leader's daughter has gone missing. They're the ones who want to solve this disappearance case more than anyone."
"That makes sense. The Jin Kwon Dang leader, O Chil, dotes on his daughter quite a bit."
"Hm. As expected of Yu the instructor. That's right. O Chil loved his late wife with all his heart, and the daughter they had together is a treasure to him he wouldn't trade for anything."
It was the same in Celestial Moon.
Clear this event, and the Jin Kwon Dang leader comes to express his gratitude, letting you claim extra rewards from them.
His daughter had been on the brink of death back then, right?
Saving her made his reaction understandable.
There was also a follow-up linked event, but that's not important right now, so let's skip it.
After that, Cheon Il-hwa calmly continued explaining the details of the missing people.
"Can you find them?"
"Well... if the Empire puts its full effort into investigating, they could probably find them faster than me."
"Hahaha..."
Cheon Il-hwa let out an awkward laugh.
As I'd said, the Empire's intelligence division could track them down quickly if they mobilized. But relations between the military and intel weren't great, so he must not want to ask them for help.
"Still, if this humble hand of mine can help reduce needless unrest in the Empire, of course I should lend it."
"I'm sorry to keep imposing like this. I appreciate your help."
Chaejin watched from the side, looking worried about whether it was feasible, but there were no real issues.
I already knew who the culprit was and what their goal was in kidnapping people.
In the end, the criminal was an old woman called the Soul Freezing Fiend, Yang Myeong.
True to her name, the hag froze souls, stripping away reason and turning people into mindless puppets who obeyed her commands.
She'd started with animals, then corpses, and now living humans.
She was gathering them to create her soul-frozen slaves.
With nothing more to say, I stood and left the room. Outside, Gi Cha-jo was waiting with a friendly smile.
"Yu the instructor. Did you meet with the branch lord?"
"Yes, Elder Gi. I'll lend what little strength I have."
"Good! Haha. As expected of Yu the instructor. If you need any help, just say the word. This old body of mine may be worn out, but for you, I'd gladly pitch in."
"Oh my. With Elder Gi by my side, what would I have to fear?"
"Hahaha! What a guy!"
"Hahaha!"
Gi Cha-jo laughed heartily, and so did I. Nearby, Wi Yeol snorted as if the old man was being ridiculous again, but the mood wasn't bad.
"With the Moonlight Sword joining you, don't worry too much."
"Mm. Got it. Take care of yourself."
I exchanged farewells with him and headed out. Truth be told, having Gi Cha-jo or Wi Yeol along would put my mind at ease.
They were elite experts from the military, after all.
The problem was, if I asked for their help on this, I wouldn't get full credit for it.
I had to save them up and use them when I really needed to. For now, I'd trust only Chaejin.
"Innkeeper."
"What's up?"
As I left the Blue Tile Inn, I'd bought two bottles of liquor. Carrying them along, Chaejin—who'd been quiet for a while—finally spoke up.
I turned to look at her. She fiddled with her long hair before cautiously asking,
"Honestly, wouldn't it be better to have more people for something like this? It could be dangerous, so shouldn't we bring along more experts...?"
She wasn't wrong. Investigations like this went faster with more heads.
Plus, Yang Myeong's location had been random even in the event, so I'd have to track her down separately anyway.
But why waste points calling in the old man when there were so many ways to find her?
Besides, I had someone who could fight her right here beside me.
I looked her up and down. Her toned body was evident even through the form-fitting robes of Full Moon Pavilion. I cut straight to it.
"Don't feel confident?"
"It's not that."
"If I can't trust you, who can I trust? If I didn't, I wouldn't have asked you to come along."
Chaejin fell silent again. Her eyes widened a bit as she stared at me, then she burst into her signature arrogant laugh.
"Oh hohoho! If you trust me that much, it's only natural I'd repay that trust! Fine! The senior disciple of the prestigious upright sect Full Moon Pavilion, Moonlight Sword Chaejin, will help you out—so don't worry about a thing!"
"I wasn't worried at all, so don't sweat it."
The now-quiet woman stared at me intently. It wasn't a lie, so I met her gaze. Looking exhausted on her own terms, Chaejin shyly averted her eyes.
"Alright. Let's go."
"...But where are we headed?"
"To meet someone."
"Who?"
"The branch chief of Yangwi Castle's Hao Gate."
We walked a path shrouded in deep darkness. Normally, no one would enter such a shadowy alley at this hour.
As if to prove it, piercing gazes rained down the moment we stepped into the back alleys.
The reason they didn't approach was surely the killing intent Chaejin began radiating the instant we entered.
The dread of possibly losing their heads if they slipped up curbed any reckless impulses. Thanks to that, we easily reached the depths of the back alleys—a combat zone even in Celestial Moon, a place where Yangwi Castle didn't send soldiers to maintain order.
We entered Yangwi Castle's pleasure quarter.
Liquor, violence, women. The underbelly of society gathered here, full of those tied to such vices. And most of them prided themselves on dancing close to death.
Those who staked their lives on their trade wouldn't fear a bit of killing intent.
Of course.
-Pow!!
"Gurk!"
...Until they got hit and realized that intent could actually sever their necks.
The moment we entered the pleasure quarter, a hand reached out toward me.
I wasn't dressed fancy or anything, and even in a mirror, I didn't look like easy prey.
Maybe he'd been emboldened by alcohol's allure into foolhardy bravado.
But even so, that didn't make it acceptable—especially not with my bodyguard Chaejin here.
Chaejin didn't spare a glance at the guy who'd passed out from one hit. She merely swept her icy gaze over the stunned onlookers.
"...Do you know where you are to cause trouble like this?"
Was it because a fight might break out? A man sitting next to a shop with red lanterns hanging slowly stood and approached.
He had a fierce look about him.
Chaejin didn't even snort at the hulking brute dragging an even fiercer broadsword as he approached.
-Shing.
A warrior speaks with her weapon alone. By the time the silver blade, drawn unseen, sliced through the air and returned to its sheath, the man gulped hard. His clothes' front hem lay in tatters on the ground. Yet not a speck of damage marred his skin.
"I'm not here to fight. Just to meet Elder Ha."
The brute hesitated. But only briefly.
Without a word to follow, he turned and walked silently.
Deeper into alleys even more remote than before.
How far did we go?
We arrived at a place reeking of foul stench, and only then did he quietly withdraw.
Pushing aside the tattered curtain, we found an old man sitting inside with his eyes closed.
Before him lay tools for fortune-telling.
Had he heard the curtain rustle? Eyes still shut, he turned his head our way and groped for the divination slips.
"Eh? Why'd you come so late?! Still, good timing. Just use one talisman and..."
"No scams between old acquaintances. You can't even make talismans."
"Tch. I heard women's footsteps and thought some sucker came to register a courtesan. Fine. Want me to read your fortune?"
As if he could.
"F-Fortune?"
"Huh? Not that? You're the type who wouldn't bat an eye with a courtesan glued to you, yet you bring a woman and I figured it was some romantic fate-reading."
Chaejin's stare burned into my cheek. I ignored it as best I could. The man, pretending to be a lame blind beggar, snapped his eyes open at the clink of the liquor bottles I'd brought and rose to snatch them.
"Heavens. A miracle making the blind see and the lame walk, all for a mere two bottles of liquor."
Not exactly the Lourdes miracle.
"Ah, can't resist booze."
Grinning ear to ear, he took the bottle I offered. One sip, and his eyes went wide—must've been damn good stuff.
"This is Blue Tile brew? Ahh, it's like watching a courtesan from the Empire capital's Kaifeng dance..."
The old coot could talk. Ha No chugged the whole bottle in seconds and beamed.
"I'm here with some questions. Know anything about the disappearances in Yangwi Castle?"
"Of course. But you're with the Blue Tile Merchant Group?"
"Something like that."
"Tch."
"There's personal reasons too, so take it as my commission and help out."
He pondered long, then extended his hand. I placed a pouch of coins on his grimy palm. He pocketed it lightly and unrolled the large hide covering the back wall, revealing hundreds of holes.
Pulling a string connected to one, a white slip of paper soon slid out.
"Eh. Let's see. Yang Myeong, huh. Looks like she's grabbing folks to make soul-frozen slaves. Ah. You know how to deal with soul-frozen ones, right?"
"Who doesn't?"
"What's that?"
Someone here doesn't.
Ha No and I turned to Chaejin, whose face flushed red in an instant. To cover her embarrassment, she flailed and changed the subject.
"More importantly, you found her this easily?! Wait, innkeeper. Weren't the Blue Tile Merchant Group and Jin Kwon Dang searching too? How does Hao Gate know this?"
"Hao Gate's intel network is the continent's number one!!"
As Ha No proudly raised his bottle, I tapped the paper.
Hm. As expected. The location marked was a wild mountain not far from Yangwi Castle.
"Anyway, thanks."
"Come again. Pay up, and I'll give you all the info you want."
Ha No waved, his wrinkled face split in a grin. I gave a casual farewell and headed out. Chaejin walked beside me before cautiously asking,
"How'd you end up knowing someone from Hao Gate?"
"Ah, it's a story deep as the sea, so I'll tell you later. Not the time for it now. Better over drinks back at the inn, don't you think?"
Whenever she got bored and we drank heavily, I'd share various tales. She always enjoyed them, so she accepted readily.
"Then what about this? Why couldn't the Blue Tile Merchant Group or Jin Kwon Dang buy this info from Hao Gate?"
That I could explain easily.
"In the past, Hao Gate controlled Yangwi Castle's back alleys."
To establish themselves, Jin Kwon Dang had seized much of Hao Gate's territory. Now, only a handful of their operations remained. Even if they handled intel gathering and sorting separately, it was undeniable that Hao Gate had fallen on hard times in Yangwi Castle.
"Even so, Hao Gate would sell info for the right price. A bit steep, sure. But could Jin Kwon Dang trust them?"
"Fair point. What about the Blue Tile Merchant Group?"
"Hao Gate doesn't take government commissions."
"Why?"
"A few years back, the government tasked Hao Gate with investigating the Demonic Cult. They took heavy losses in the process. But what did they get in return? Nothing."
"Huh? Why? Is that even allowed?"
"That's exactly why one of Hao Gate's policies is to never deal with the government."
"Ooh... That must've hurt bad."
"Hao Gate is a gathering of the dispossessed. Hand it out like that, and they'd lose everything. They probably went all-in, steeling themselves for death. Even the Empire can't break contracts with Hao Gate. Something like that, right?"
"Wow... So what happened to that official?"
"He profited big from the breach, but then his rivals dug up his hidden corruption and attacked. Ended up executed, from what I heard. I suspect Hao Gate leaked it, but no one knows the truth."
"Scary stuff."
"Things eased up a bit after his death. Like what I did earlier—based on some rapport and trust, they'll take indirect commissions two or three hands removed. But officially, they refuse government work. If officials approached, they'd shut down the branch and bolt."
"Ah..."
"It's all about trust in the end. You can't work with those you can't trust."
Conversation ended there. We just walked in silence.
We reached the location from Hao Gate's info and spotted a massive cave. Chaejin spoke up.
"...So that means you trust me, right, innkeeper? Seeing how we're doing this together."
"I told you. I trust you."
She stared at me for a moment, then smirked and turned her head away before saying,
"Hehe. Then since I'm learning from someone trustworthy, I'll ramp up training sessions. And since it'll be more advanced, the fee goes up too."
Drifting here?!
We were getting along fine just now?!
Trust level with Chaejin slightly decreased.
"Don't like it? Fine by me. But you know it's helpful, right?"
True enough. Training was tough, but as the Sword Saint said, practicing Subtle Taiji Fist and Five Animals Frolic had improved my health, letting me move more actively.
It protected my body too.
"But is it okay just us going in? Shouldn't we get some backup? Yang Myeong's no pushover."
Even mentioning backup, Chaejin's tone was light.
Catching what she wanted to hear, I replied nonchalantly.
Hey, it didn't cost anything to say.
"With you, catching the likes of Yang Myeong would be easy."
Looks like that was the right answer.
Chaejin flashed a pleased grin, her signature arrogance blooming under the radiant moonlight.