I Have a Favor to Ask
The dawn after the Blood Shadow Tower incident.
In Kang Yeon's room at the West Lake Number One Inn, a single candle burned low. He ground ink with a slow, measured hand, lost in thought. Outside the window the dark still lay thick, broken only by the occasional crow of a rooster announcing the coming day.
"Hah… This is complicated."
The truth was that, sealed gate or not, relations between Kang Yeon and the three faction leaders were not hostile. If anything, they had respected and accepted his choice. The real problem was simply his nature — asking for favors of this sort did not sit easily with him.
But what needed doing had to be done.
Kang Yeon lifted his brush and began to write the first letter with careful care.
To His Excellency Cheon Mu-jin, Leader of the Martial Alliance,
You will remember what happened years ago at the Heavenly Demon Palace.
At that time I did what was necessary for the martial world. Now I wish only to live in quiet.
Yesterday's clash with the Blood Shadow Tower was an unavoidable choice made solely to protect the inn where I work and the people who stand beside me. I remain nothing more than a retired cook.
I ask you most earnestly:
Please use the power of the Intelligence Pavilion to ensure the name Absolute Martial God is not spoken again. Let the events at West Lake be recorded as nothing more than a quarrel between inns.
Should a true crisis ever fall upon the martial world, I will quietly lend my strength. Until then… please, forget that I exist.
— Kang Yeon, Head Chef of the West Lake Number One Inn
Kang Yeon sealed the letter and began the second.
"Young Master. It's Nang Hyeon."
A low voice accompanied Nang Hyeon's entrance. Even at this hour his appearance was neat and composed.
"You called for me, Young Master?"
"Yeah. I've got a favor to ask. Deliver this letter to the Martial Alliance."
Nang Hyeon's gaze settled on the letters spread across the desk. Kang Yeon smiled and held out the finished first letter.
"Take this and you'll be able to meet the Alliance Leader."
Nang Hyeon started.
"I… I am to meet the Alliance Leader?"
"Mm. The seal stamped on that letter will get you escorted straight to him."
Nang Hyeon accepted the letter with a grave expression. He had once operated under the Martial Alliance's banner, but only as a common wandering swordsman. The thought of standing before its leader was enough to leave him stunned.
"Understood. I will deliver it without fail."
Just then a tremendous yawn announced Ak Hu as he staggered through the doorway.
"Ugh~ Hyung, what are you doing at this hour? Don't you sleep?"
After the fight with the Blood Shadow Tower, Ak Hu had remained at the inn for a while. Kang Yeon had entrusted him with the disposition of Mak Ri-u and the Ten Blood Shadows, and they were still locked in the inn's storeroom.
"Ak Hu, perfect timing. Think you can do me a favor too?"
Kang Yeon held out the second letter. The moment Ak Hu saw the addressee, every trace of sleep fled his face.
"The Sado Alliance Leader… my father?"
"Yeah. I figured he could help."
Ak Hu took the letter, tilting his head.
"This is rare — you asking my father for something… Can I read it?"
"Of course."
Ak Hu read the letter and snorted with laughter.
To the Leader of the Sado Alliance,
This is Kang Yeon, a friend of Ak Hu's.
I will be direct.
I have no interest in power or renown. All I want is to cook and live at the West Lake Number One Inn.
If you will mobilize the Dark Pavilion's information network to suppress rumors of the Absolute Martial God, then when the day comes that the Sado Alliance truly needs aid — and the nominal seal upon me is broken — I will lend my strength as well.
It may sound like a transaction. I mean every word.
I wish to remain an ordinary cook, so that Ak Hu may continue to boast that he has a good friend.
P.S. Ak Hu has been eating his vegetables lately.
"Pfft—! Hyung, what's with that postscript?"
"Figured your father would want to know."
A cough sounded from beyond the door.
"Young Master. Jang Mu-eon."
"Come in."
Jang Mu-eon entered and offered a formal bow. His expression was more solemn than usual.
"I saw the light in the study before dawn… I wondered whether there might be something I could do."
Kang Yeon sealed the third letter as he spoke.
"Perfect timing. Could you… deliver this letter to the Heavenly Demon?"
Jang Mu-eon's face stiffened.
"I have already severed all ties with the Demonic Cult…"
"I know. Just this once. For all of us."
Jang Mu-eon hesitated, then nodded.
"If it is for you, Young Master… I will go to the Demonic Cult one more time."
Kang Yeon handed him the letter with quiet gratitude.
To the Heavenly Demon,
It's Kang Yeon.
I don't know if you remember the promise from back then.
You said you would grant me one request, someday.
The time has come to keep it.
Mobilize the Demonic Pavilion and keep any rumor of the Absolute Martial God from spreading through West Lake.
— Kang Yeon, Head Chef of the West Lake Number One Inn
Once the three had departed with their letters, Kang Yeon gazed out the window and let out a long breath. The eastern sky was beginning to pale.
Will this be enough…? No. I'll make it enough.
A few days later.
Martial Alliance Headquarters.
"Alliance Leader! An urgent dispatch!"
As Cheon Mu-jin returned from his morning training, a strategist hurried toward him.
"What is it?"
"A messenger from Him has been waiting since dawn."
Cheon Mu-jin's eyes sharpened. There was only one man the strategist would refer to that way.
"Is that so? Bring him to my office at once."
When he entered the office, Nang Hyeon rose and bowed.
"Alliance Leader, forgive the intrusion."
"You carry a letter from Him, I hear."
True to form, the Alliance Leader showed no curiosity about Nang Hyeon's identity. Steadying his trembling heart, Nang Hyeon offered the letter with formal care.
"This is a letter Young Master Kang Yeon of the West Lake Number One Inn asked me to deliver."
The moment Cheon Mu-jin accepted it, his hand trembled almost imperceptibly. He recognized the handwriting on the envelope at a glance.
This is without question Young Master Kang's hand.
Cheon Mu-jin carefully opened the letter and began to read. The further he went, the more complex his expression became — surprise, regret, and respect all tangled together.
"Hah…"
With a long sigh he set the letter down.
"That this is all he wants…"
"Alliance Leader?"
"A man with the power to seize the world under heaven, and all he asks is to live quietly in an inn."
Cheon Mu-jin rose from his seat and looked out the window as he spoke.
"A few years ago, without him, the martial world would already have become a sea of blood."
Nang Hyeon listened in silence.
"If all such a man desires is an ordinary life… shouldn't we grant it?"
Cheon Mu-jin turned and gave his order.
"Summon the Master of the Intelligence Pavilion."
Shortly after, Zhuge Gak of the Intelligence Pavilion stood before him, hastily summoned.
"From this moment, the order I give is the Martial Alliance's highest secret. Suppress every scrap of information concerning the Blood Shadow Tower incident at West Lake."
Zhuge Gak looked puzzled.
"But Alliance Leader, the rumors have already begun to spread. They say the Absolute Martial God—"
Strength entered Cheon Mu-jin's voice.
"By any means necessary, block every piece of information that so much as mentions the name Absolute Martial God. Mobilize every informant the Intelligence Pavilion has if you must."
The Pavilion Master bowed his head.
"I will obey. But… may I ask the reason?"
Cheon Mu-jin hesitated a moment before answering.
"It is time we repaid the debt we all owe him. All he wants is one thing — to live in quiet."
At the same hour, Sado Alliance Headquarters.
Ak Hu stood before his father. Gone was his usual playful air; his expression was serious.
"Father. This is a request from Yeon hyung."
The Sado Alliance Leader accepted the letter and read it. An intrigued smile played about his lips the entire time.
"Hahahaha! What a fascinating man he is."
"Father?"
The Alliance Leader read the letter through once more. At the postscript especially, he could not hold back his laughter.
"You're eating vegetables now? Hahaha! As I thought — he's the one who handles you best."
"Father… that's not the important part—"
The Alliance Leader's expression grew grave.
"I know."
He clapped his hands. At once a figure in black appeared.
"Relay this to the Master of the Dark Pavilion. From this moment, mobilize every information network we have. Seal every piece of intelligence regarding the West Lake incident — especially anything connected to the Absolute Martial God."
"I will obey."
The Alliance Leader added one more order.
"Ah, and… should anyone attempt to spread the name Absolute Martial God… silence them permanently."
Ak Hu looked startled.
"Father, that's going too far—"
"It is for your friend. If what he truly desires is peace, then I shall gift him that peace."
The Demonic Cult's main stronghold — the Heavenly Demon Palace.
Standing once more in that place, Jang Mu-eon felt his entire body go rigid. The overwhelming pressure of the Heavenly Demon Palace was as crushing as ever.
"Yeon sent you?"
A low, deep voice rolled through the hall.
"Yes. Young Master Kang asked me to deliver a letter."
"A letter?"
With trembling hands Jang Mu-eon held it out. One of the Heavenly Demon's subordinates received it and passed it along.
The moment the Heavenly Demon opened the letter, the air inside the hall shifted — like the stillness before a storm. After a long silence, the Heavenly Demon suddenly burst into laughter.
"Khahahaha! What an incredible brat!"
Jang Mu-eon flinched. He had never seen the Heavenly Demon laugh so freely.
"To spend a promise on something so trivial. Truly an incomprehensible creature."
The Heavenly Demon raised a hand, and dozens of figures emerged from the shadows.
"Relay this to every information organ of the Demonic Cult. Immediately destroy all intelligence circulating at West Lake regarding the Absolute Martial God. From this day forward, any who speak that name shall be regarded as enemies of the Demonic Cult."
"We will obey!"
The Heavenly Demon looked at Jang Mu-eon.
"Tell him this: the promise is kept, and his peace is guaranteed by the Demonic Cult."
Nang Hyeon, Ak Hu, and Jang Mu-eon returned to West Lake.
"Wow, this is really strange!"
Jo Seol said, her voice bright with excitement.
"This morning the place was packed with gawkers asking if the Absolute Martial God was here — but by the afternoon it's just regular customers coming for a meal! What kind of magic is this?"
Kang Yeon answered evenly as he cooked.
"Yeah. Pretty weird, huh."
Yeong-ho came in with a report.
"Young Master, it's truly astonishing. I went to the market, and no one is mentioning that… that name. It's as if the whole thing never happened."
Cheol-san nodded as well.
"I saw the same. People who were talking about the inn and the Blood Shadow Tower this morning are only gossiping about other things now."
Myeong-wol could not hide her amazement.
"How is something like this possible? Every rumor vanishing in a single day…"
Jang Mu-eon spoke with a meaningful look.
"The Martial Alliance, the Sado Alliance, and the Demonic Cult… when the three great powers move at once, this is what becomes possible."
Nang Hyeon poured tea as he added,
"To think Young Master's influence reached this far… truly remarkable."
Kang Yeon shrugged.
"I just wrote three letters."
Ak Hu burst out laughing.
"Come on, hyung! Do you have any idea how incredible those three letters are?"
Jo Hwan regarded Kang Yeon with a complicated expression.
"Yeon… just what are you…"
"Uncle, I'm just Kang Yeon. Head chef of the West Lake Number One Inn."
Kang Yeon spoke with complete sincerity.
"That's all I've ever really wanted."
Just then the inn's door opened and customers walked in.
"This is that famous West Lake Number One Inn, right?"
Jo Seol greeted them brightly.
"Welcome! Let me show you to a table!"
Kang Yeon smiled with quiet satisfaction and picked up his knife once more.
Chop. Chop. Chop.
The familiar sound of the blade rang through the kitchen — as if everything had returned to the way it was meant to be. Nang Hyeon, who had come in to help, spoke softly.
"But Young Master… someday the truth will come out again, won't it? There is a limit to how long something like this can be hidden."
Kang Yeon answered without looking up from his cooking.
"I know. But until that day comes… I want to live like this."