Chapter 112
Chapter 112
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 112
Chapter Title: Part 12: The House of Schemes
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The next day, early morning.
Elder Council.
Elder Yeom arrived right on time, looking as composed as ever, and handed his greatsword over at the entrance.
“It's heavy, so handle it with care.”
The newbie warrior flashed a smile as if to say not to worry, but the moment he took hold of the greatsword, his knees buckled.
Watching the rookie tremble with veins bulging on his forehead as he struggled to move the blade, the senior warriors snickered.
It was the initiation rite for newbies assigned to the Elder Council.
A voice called out to Elder Yeom, who watched the scene with a smile.
“Elder Yeom!”
“Hold up a moment there, Elder Yeom!”
When he turned around, he saw fellow elders from the neutral faction.
Many elders lacked talent in internal energy cultivation, and these newcomers were no exception—they were all panting for breath.
“So, is that rumor true?”
“What rumor?”
Elder Yeom replied innocently, prompting one elder to thump his chest in frustration.
“The one about you striking a deal with the Eldest Young Master!”
Elder Yeom sensed the eyes of other arriving elders subtly turning toward him.
“Ah.”
A thick smile crept across his lips.
“It's true. A very good deal. The price was a bit steep, though.”
No one needed him to spell out that it was about missions—if they couldn't grasp that, they didn't deserve to be elders of the Luoyang Sword Clan.
“Ooh!”
Some let out exclamations of admiration, while others nodded.
“Doing business with that Eldest Young Master at such a sensitive time. You sure are bold, Elder Yeom. I'm envious of your youth.”
“Rumors said the Eldest Young Master's connections run deep, and it looks like they're true.”
Elder Yeom led them inside.
“Come on, now. Why don't we discuss the details as we go in?”
* * *
Elder Council, Grand Assembly Hall.
Elder Yeom forced a wry smile inwardly at the piercing stares directed his way.
The elders of the Second Young Master's and Third Young Master's factions openly glared at him with displeasure.
He pretended not to notice and casually turned his head the other way.
But he still felt eyes on him from that side too.
It was the Fourth Young Master's faction elders.
Lacking realism but secretly hoping for a new allied elder, they beckoned Elder Yeom with haughty glances.
'Good grief...'
When he turned back, he caught sight of the other neutral faction elders coughing awkwardly and looking away.
They might have exchanged nods on ordinary days, but now they felt subtly uncomfortable around Elder Yeom, whose neutrality was in question.
Even the neutral faction elders he'd mingled with that morning had quietly distanced themselves, avoiding his gaze.
They must have anticipated some reaction, but not this dramatic.
'Just word of a single deal, and it's already this much...'
In the end, Elder Yeom began reviewing the meeting materials he'd scrutinized countless times.
'Had I joined under the Eldest Young Master's banner, I'd truly be treated like a ghost.'
His mouth tasted bitter.
* * *
Break time.
One of the Elder Council lounges.
The other neutral faction elders had made various excuses to slip away, leaving Elder Yeom alone in the lounge.
“Ahem.”
At that moment, an old elder confirmed no one else was inside, sidled up to Elder Yeom, and whispered.
“Congratulations on the fine deal, Elder Yeom. But...”
Elder Yeom nodded.
“It might be wise to lay low for a while.”
The old elder sat beside him.
“They're all terrified that the Eldest Young Master's faction emerging will shatter the hard-won balance of power.”
The old elder clicked his tongue.
“Cowards.”
Elder Yeom gave a wry smile.
“Balance is precious. Isn't it the key to maintaining peace?”
The old elder grinned.
“Indeed. Peace is important.”
His gold tooth gleamed, replacing a missing one.
“...Well then, I leave it to you.”
“Yes, see you at the meeting shortly.”
The old elder vanished as stealthily as he'd arrived.
In the empty lounge, Elder Yeom tucked away the small note the old elder had left behind.
* * *
Late at night.
Luoyang's pleasure district, drizzle falling.
A rundown establishment open until dawn.
A shabby old man in a straw raincoat shuffled in.
The clerk didn't even check who had entered, absorbed in his book of erotic paintings.
Ignoring the clerk's attitude, the old man crept close and whispered.
“...Six reeds weeping in the wind.”
Without looking up, the clerk pointed inward.
“Room six.”
The old man opened the door to room six, where a swordsman was frolicking with a woman.
“Wh-what the hell?! Wanna die?!”
The swordsman yanked up his pants and thrust his blade forward with curses, but the old man ignored him and rapped on the wall opposite.
Two hard knocks, two soft ones, then one more hard.
What had looked like a thick wall slid open.
The old man slipped inside, and the secret door seamlessly became wall again.
“So anyway, like I was saying, bro here...”
The swordsman averted his eyes as if nothing had happened and resumed flirting with the woman.
Stepping through, the old man realized he'd emerged outside once more.
The long corridor was actually a narrow gap between tall buildings.
The woman who had opened the secret door suffered from a vicious venereal disease—hives covered her face, oozing pus.
She pointed shakily in a direction, and the old man navigated the crevice carefully, avoiding contact with her.
Weaving past trash dumped from above, he reached the alley's end and spotted an iron door.
A glint entered the old man's eyes upon seeing it.
The building before him was hemmed in by others, inaccessible by normal means.
He knocked the same code on the iron door, and it opened silently.
A sign of meticulous maintenance.
The old man entered and closed the door behind him.
He smiled at the hulking man who had let him in.
“Security's airtight, Elder Yeom. Impressive. Very impressive.”
The giant was none other than Elder Yeom, who smiled back.
“Come in, Elder Ham.”
The old man was the very elder who had passed the note to Elder Yeom.
“My word, the inside's a world apart from the outside.”
Unlike the dilapidated exterior, the interior was spotless.
“Considering who uses it, naturally.”
“Indeed.”
Past a short hallway draped with curtains, Elder Yeom parted them to reveal a figure seated behind a table.
He looked boyish yet youthful, greeting Elder Ham.
“Welcome, Elder Ham.”
Elder Ham clasped his hands politely.
“Elder Ham presents himself before the Eldest Young Master of the Luoyang Sword Clan.”
The Eldest Young Master, Yeon So-hyeon, smiled.
“So, you wish to do business with me?”
* * *
Elder Ham jumped at Yeon So-hyeon's demanded price, begged, even raged.
But under Elder Yeom's mediation, they reached a suitable agreement.
After bidding Yeon So-hyeon farewell, the old elder left the building guided by Elder Yeom.
By a different route than he'd arrived.
Winding through alleys to a main street, Elder Ham boarded his waiting carriage.
It was his own carriage, positioned at the spot Elder Yeom had tipped him off about in advance.
Elder Ham wiped away the dampness—rain or sweat, indistinguishable—with a silk handkerchief.
“Hmm. Without Elder Yeom, dealing with the Eldest Young Master would've been a disaster.”
Had Elder Yeom not been there from the start, no deal would have happened.
Without someone like Elder Yeom, Elder Ham wouldn't have dared dream of trading with the Eldest Young Master.
It stemmed from trust built through repeated dealings among elders in the council, and specifically from the personal credibility Elder Yeom had amassed.
His steward respectfully took the used silk handkerchief.
“Was the deal to your satisfaction?”
Elder Ham snorted.
“Of course it had to be. Look at the price I paid.”
He narrowed his eyes.
“Right, have you looked into those buildings?”
The steward nodded politely.
“Yes. The moment you entered, I had reliable informants investigate, but nothing turned up.”
Elder Ham narrowed his eyes further.
“Thorough. Worth every penny. I'm quite pleased.”
“I'm overjoyed to hear you're satisfied.”
His gut twisted thinking of the steep price he'd paid, but what could he do?
Paying a high price to the right person yielded commensurate value.
'Yes. First things first—securing my elder position.'
The carriage vanished into the rainy night.
* * *
Elder Yeom and Yeon So-hyeon raised their glasses in a toast.
“One elder today, plus two top figures. Congratulations, Elder Yeom.”
Yeon So-hyeon drained his cup.
Elder Yeom fiddled with his glass, flashing a wry smile.
“I thought I'd end up isolated in the council, but now I have far more 'friends' than before. All thanks to you, Young Master.”
Elder Yeom raised his glass high to Yeon So-hyeon and downed it in one go.
Memories of his visit to Yeon So-hyeon's residence flooded his mind.
* * *
“Young Master.”
Yeon So-hyeon, poring over books in his study, raised an eyebrow.
“Elder Yeom. Didn't we already exchange farewells?”
Elder Yeom extended the greatsword he'd brought in, hilt first toward Yeon So-hyeon.
“...”
Yeon So-hyeon gazed down at the kneeling elder before speaking.
“No regrets?”
Elder Yeom bowed his head.
“I asked myself.”
“What did you ask?”
Elder Yeom's voice was resolute, brimming with conviction.
“Whom do I wish to serve as Family Head in the future? Whose orders do I wish to follow? Whose side do I wish to stand by on the battlefield?”
Elder Yeom looked up at Yeon So-hyeon.
“It is you, Eldest Young Master Yeon So-hyeon.”
Yeon So-hyeon closed his eyes briefly, then opened them.
He approached slowly, gripped the greatsword, and lifted it 'effortlessly.'
“...?”
Meeting Elder Yeom's wide-eyed shock, Yeon So-hyeon accepted his oath.
“Sword Mountain Breaker, Yeom Kwak-chu. Your blade is now mine.”
* * *
That day, his new lord issued his first command.
Become the first to seal a successful deal with Eldest Young Master Yeon So-hyeon—and act as go-between for others seeking secret trades with him.
* * *
“By the way...”
The jar of liquor emptied in no time.
“It's beyond imagination. They're all paying such hefty prices without batting an eye... It feels like they've been bewitched.”
Yeon So-hyeon twisted his lips into a smile at Elder Yeom's words.
“They paid for the certainty of a trustworthy deal—the belief in it.”
Elder Yeom smiled bitterly.
“They need to pay a high price to believe it's worth that much.”
One weighs if a fairly priced offer comes from a reliable source.
But pay dearly to the right person, and somehow, you trust the deal itself, not the counterparty.
Like believing an expensive antique must be genuine.
“When did trust, faith, become so superficial...?”
Yeon So-hyeon replied curtly.
“Ever since I gained power.”