Chapter 44
44.
Are You Crazy?
Just as people have their own characteristics, Heukdo are also diverse.
However, I haven't seen many Heukdo who kill their own subordinates like this.
The fight, which started like a free-for-all at the promise of saving only one person, ended after Dokgo Saeng killed all of his subordinates. He turned to me from the bow of the ship, his face covered in blood.
"I killed them all. Will you spare me as promised?"
This guy didn't trust me until the end. He was the type to assess the situation and jump into the river if he had to.
Dokgo Saeng's mental state was impressive to me as well.
"I will spare you."
Only then did Dokgo Saeng slump down on the deck, breathing a sigh of relief.
"Hoo."
"How's the atmosphere at Black Fan Stronghold these days?"
Dokgo Saeng retorted in a still sharp tone.
"What's it like? Full of idiots. Can I run away now? Or do I have to keep doing your chores?"
"I spared you to guide me, where are you going?"
"Alright. What about those sailors?"
Dokgo Saeng pointed to the trembling sailors with his blood-stained sword. It was a question of whether to kill them all too.
Naturally, I shook my head.
"Don't kill those who work carelessly."
Dokgo Saeng nodded, then, as if his break was over, got up and threw his dead subordinates into the river.
The sound of splashing followed one after another.
I had one question about Dokgo Saeng's bizarre actions.
"You said there are six hundred people? Did you expect me to survive even if I went to Black Fan Stronghold?"
Dokgo Saeng replied while throwing the corpses into the river.
"How would I know that? I just knew you were crazy as soon as I saw you. I expected you to kill us all. I don't know what happens after that."
Indeed, it was the answer of a man who didn't know what would happen next.
A little later, the ship docked near Black Sand Ancient City, and only Dokgo Saeng and I got off the ship and headed to Black Fan Stronghold.
The main base of Black Fan Stronghold was located inside a long fortress wall built by ethnic minorities to resist foreign powers, like a clustered village.
It was said that the old sailors and fishermen here used to gather in groups of three or five on stormy days to pass the time gambling, and surprisingly, the Black Fan Stronghold forces started from that small gambling den. Initially, the first Black Ship Fortress Lord of Black Fan Stronghold organized to protect the fishermen, but in reality, they focused on the gambling business.
The intention to protect the fishermen themselves was similar to the reason I created the Low Filth Sect.
However, the business that started in the gambling den had grown to the point where they controlled auctions, gambling, and some waterways to collect tolls. So Black Fan Stronghold is both Heukdo and a river pirate group.
If you trace back to the beginning of a force that extorts the powerless, you come to the conclusion that they were originally powerless themselves.
Dokgo Saeng held out his sword to the subordinate guarding the crumbling gate.
"I brought Lee Jaha, who the Black Ship Fortress Lord is looking for. Open the gate."
The gatekeeper opened the gate quickly without saying a word. It seemed Dokgo Saeng was quite the loose cannon even within Black Fan Stronghold.
After entering the Black Fan Stronghold compound, Dokgo Saeng asked me.
"How long do I have to escort you? I want to get out of here in advance."
"You'll escort me until I leave Black Fan Stronghold."
Dokgo Saeng frowned deeply and replied.
"Alright."
What was unique about Dokgo Saeng was that even though he feared me like this, he never used honorifics, and he maintained an attitude of unconditionally keeping the words he uttered.
Whenever someone spoke to him or asked about my identity, Dokgo Saeng would present his blood-stained sword first.
"I'm busy, so don't stick your face in here. Get out of the way before I slash your face, get out of the way, get out of the way!"
Dokgo Saeng escorted me like Guan Yu breaking through five passes, piercing straight through the Black Fan Stronghold compound.
There were definitely a lot of people inside Black Fan Stronghold.
Some asked who I was, and some occasionally told me to stop, but Dokgo Saeng stubbornly presented his sword and spewed profanity, making people back away.
The count of six hundred may be correct, but not all of them could be called Martial World people. If all six hundred were Martial World people, Black Fan Stronghold would have been one of the top Heukdo forces in the Central Plains. However, the six hundred that the dead guy mentioned included even those who had occupations within the compound.
Dokgo Saeng finally pointed to the building in front of him and said to me.
"I'll go ahead and inform them, so come slowly. I won't run away. As promised, if you survive and get out of Black Fan Stronghold, you have to spare me."
Should I call it a tenacious will to survive? Or a madman's eccentricity?
Dokgo Saeng's pace quickened. He was probably thinking of informing them that I had arrived in advance and then slipping away nearby.
The person guarding the entrance to the main base said to Dokgo Saeng.
"Chief Dokgo Wi, what's going on?"
"I brought Lee Jaha. Tell the Black Ship Fortress Lord."
"Who's Lee Jaha?"
"The guy who killed Chief Wi."
"Ah!"
I looked around and entered the largest building in the compound. Perhaps because they were making money from gambling, the atmosphere of the building inside the shabby fortress wall was more extravagant than expected.
It felt like they had built it excessively to save face for the Black Ship Fortress Lord.
However, the main hall of the main base was as desolate as the inside of a camp set up on a battlefield. There was a head seat where the commander-in-chief would sit, and chairs were lined up on the left and right, with all sorts of Weaponry displayed on the left wall.
As if a meeting had just ended, the executives of Black Fan Stronghold were chatting. I roughly looked around the interior and said.
"There are a lot of old geezers."
It felt like a gathering of elders rather than typical executives. An executive who received the report said to a subordinate.
"Tell the Black Ship Fortress Lord that he may need to come out again."
"Yes."
The atmosphere, which had been noisy for a moment, quickly settled down, and everyone either sat in their chairs with their mouths shut or moved to the wall and waited like guards.
I looked for a chair and said to an executive sitting in the lowest seat.
"Give me a chair."
I slapped the guy who was looking up at me without a word, sending him flying out of the chair. With a crash, the man rolled on the floor and then jumped up. While I was taking the chair and moving to the center, a man near the head seat opened his mouth.
"Wait in the back."
The guy who had his chair taken away obediently moved to the wall and glared at me silently.
As I sat in the chair and looked around, Dokgo Saeng was also leaning against the wall, standing crookedly.
Soon after, the Black Ship Fortress Lord walked out.
He looked to be over sixty years old, with dark skin and white eyebrows.
The executives all looked at me at once, and the Black Ship Fortress Lord also sat in the head seat and watched me.
"Lee Jaha, thank you for coming."
I nodded and replied.
"I said I would come next time, but your subordinates insisted on bringing me."
"Who brought him?"
Dokgo Saeng, leaning against the wall, replied.
"It's me, Black Ship Fortress Lord."
The Black Ship Fortress Lord looked at Dokgo Saeng and said.
"Dokgo Saeng, you've worked hard. Thank you for your effort."
Surprisingly, Dokgo Saeng replied like this.
"Why are you making such pointless jokes?"
As Dokgo Saeng spewed harsh words, the other executives all cursed at once.
"That rude bastard, will he only come to his senses if we tear his mouth apart?"
The Black Ship Fortress Lord raised his hand and silenced the commotion.
"Lee Jaha of Ilyang Prefecture has come here, what should we do? Let's hear your opinions."
At the Black Ship Fortress Lord's question, everyone suddenly fell silent.
"If there are no opinions, I will handle it myself."
"As you wish."
"Lee Jaha, you killed three people from Black Fan Stronghold. I heard it was because they burned down your house, is that correct?"
"Probably."
My memory was hazy.
It wasn't a big deal, so I didn't dwell on it.
The Black Ship Fortress Lord said.
"Our people caused the problem first, so cut off three fingers and leave."
What kind of bizarre judgment is this?
I held out three fingers and replied.
"I can't carelessly cut off the body my parents gave me. I refuse."
The Black Ship Fortress Lord nodded.
"Then replace each finger with one hundred Gold Coins. Lee Jaha will be under the surveillance of Black Fan Stronghold and will compensate for the damages. That is all."
The Black Ship Fortress Lord must have lived like a king.
He waved his hand a few times as if telling me to get lost now that the judgment was over.
I couldn't help but sigh.
Fellow Martial World people, there are so many crazy people in the world.
The other executives also accepted the Black Ship Fortress Lord's judgment as if the small trial had ended without much trouble.
"Thank you for your hard work."
I sighed and said.
"I don't have that kind of money. And even if I did, I wouldn't pay it back."
The executives who had been getting up from their chairs sat back down and glared at me.
This time, even the Black Ship Fortress Lord glared at me with an unpleasant look.
"Lee Jaha, did you come here without knowing what kind of place this is?"
"I didn't know, so I came by boat."
"Black Fan Stronghold is a place that gets money no matter what. Your family will have to bear the compensation, is that alright?"
"I don't have a family. I miss them today too. I also miss the taste of noodles."
"If you don't have a family, the people in Ilyang Prefecture will be forced to pay the compensation. Is that alright?"
"Tsk."
I called out to Dokgo Saeng, who was leaning against the wall.
"Dokgo Saeng, you son of a bitch, come here."
Dokgo Saeng frowned and replied.
"Why are you yelling at me?"
I reached out towards Dokgo Saeng's sword and said.
"Give it to me."
Dokgo Saeng strode over and handed me the sword, then grumbled and went back to the wall.
I held Dokgo Saeng's sword tightly and said to the Black Ship Fortress Lord.
"You old geezer, are you crazy?"
"......"
Even I, who was Gwangma in my past life, was slightly taken aback by how crazy these guys were. I looked around at the executives and said.
"This is a group of crazy people."
The Black Ship Fortress Lord calmly said in the midst of it all.
"It's been over ten years since the executives and I have directly shed blood."
An executive interjected.
"Not me."
"Shut up. But we have never avoided such a fight. Without suggesting other solutions. Is this how we're going to end it?"
Come to think of it, those sitting in the executive chairs all looked to be well over forty. And those waiting near the wall were mostly young.
Is this a Heukdo that thoroughly respects the elderly? It seems they have thoroughly blocked the outside world and created many laws that they must protect among themselves.
I asked.
"How many executives are there in total?"
Dokgo Saeng immediately replied.
"Twenty-one, including the Black Ship Fortress Lord."
I got up with the sword in my hand and said to the Black Ship Fortress Lord.
"You old geezer, either crawl all the way here on your knees and lick my feet. Or all twenty-one of you die. Choose."
I suddenly felt frustrated because I couldn't remember things from my past life. I heard that Black Fan Stronghold was annihilated by some expert when I was learning Martial arts, but I couldn't remember who it was.
Anyway, it wasn't me. I was being dragged around at that time, learning Martial arts from a problematic person.
These guys were a force that deserved to be annihilated.
It's no wonder they're so unique, their ancestors built a fortress wall near the river to prevent foreign invasions.
The way these guys naturally hand down judgments and punishments to outsiders is not like a Heukdo force, but like a small dictatorship.
I feel like I've come to visit a kingdom full of crazy people.
As the Black Ship Fortress Lord stood up, two waiting subordinates approached and handed him a Wide Blade each.
The Black Ship Fortress Lord held the Wide Blade in both hands and clicked his tongue.
"Young man, do we really have to shed blood like this?"
The remaining elders also got up from their chairs and went to the place where the Weaponry were displayed, each grabbing a War Weapon. I stared blankly at the War Weapon that the elders were holding.
Three-Pointed Blade, Ring Pommel Sword, Straight Sword, Long Sword, Judge's Brush, Iron Rod, Wolf Tooth Club, Hooked Scythe Spear...
And most of them turned around holding a metal skewer that I didn't even know the name of. That was probably a harpoon.
Dokgo Saeng said.
"No, why are you fighting here when it's so cramped?"
At this moment, one of the elders holding a metal skewer threw the skewer at Dokgo Saeng's forehead. Dokgo Saeng dodged with a nod, and with a 'thud' sound, the skewer was embedded in the wall.
Dokgo Saeng widened his eyes and said.
"This damn old man."
The elder who threw the skewer replied with a calm expression.
"Shut up. Before I kill you first."
At this time, Dokgo Saeng said something that caught my ear.
"Try killing me. You only have seven fingers left now."
It seems that if they kill each other within Black Fan Stronghold, they cut off one finger. I couldn't immediately tell whether this was a correct judgment or not.
In any case, I was greatly impressed by all of Black Fan Stronghold's actions.
"Wow, you guys are really crazy."
While the Black Ship Fortress Lord was standing still like a commander-in-chief, as many as twenty old Martial World people rushed towards me.
At the same time, the Weaponry that were rushing in were Three-Pointed Blade, Ring Pommel Sword, Skewers, Straight Sword...
Ah, whatever.
I also swung my sword.