The Common Enemy
In the Imperial Capital of the Central Kingdom, within the conference hall of the Sixteen Families.
"So then, Second Young Master."
One of the current family heads of the Sixteen Families fixed the Second Young Master with a piercing stare and demanded, "What is the reason you have summoned us all here again at this hour?"
Though the others said nothing, their gazes were every bit as sharp.
Contrary to their expectation that they would have ample time to prepare a response, the news that Yeon So-hyeon had already completed preparations for the Yangtze waterway expansion and maintenance project had been more than enough to leave them raw-nerved and restless.
"For the sake of a response," the Second Young Master answered in that distinctive, gravel-scraped voice of his.
"A response?"
One of the family heads snorted. "Is this not already as good as finished? Sapaecheon will never willingly release the influence over Luoyang they gained through your mother."
At the Second Young Master's words, even the family heads who had kept silent until now erupted in angry voices.
"Which means, in the end, Sapaecheon will have no choice but to approve the project along the lower reaches of the Yangtze!"
"We're already checkmated! In a situation like this, what response could there possibly—!"
"Not yet."
The Second Young Master cut them off, raising a gauntleted hand.
"It is not finished."
Faced with that strangely absolute confidence, the family heads swallowed their tempers and settled deeper into their chairs.
"…We're listening."
"Go on, then."
The Second Young Master rose from his seat and began to pace slowly about the chamber.
"Who stands at the center of all these affairs?"
The events were tangled in complexity, yet the figure at their core was singular.
"The First Young Master of the Sword Family," one family head answered.
Another smirked. "And so? Second Young Master, do you mean to eliminate the First Young Master of the Sword Family yourself?"
It sounded like a solution. In truth, it was pure fantasy.
"We know the Sword Family's circumstances well enough. The moment you remove the First Young Master, Second Young Master—"
"—you yourself will be stripped of your succession rights."
"And the Third Young Master, who has done nothing but sit with his hands folded, will rise to the position of Young Family Head."
"Or the Sword Family's Council of Elders will use the murder of the First Young Master by the Second as a pretext to introduce a 'Council Cabinet System.'"
As befitting the most powerful men in the Central Kingdom, they understood the internal affairs of the Luoyang Sword Family with clinical precision.
"All of that is perfectly true. However…"
The Second Young Master nodded readily, yet his words were not finished.
"What if every foundation he possesses were destroyed?"
A chilling murderous aura bled from the Second Young Master as he paced the room.
"Imagine it. Everything that is his dies and burns, leaving him utterly alone."
A sinister laugh drifted from beneath his golden mask.
"Once everything except him has been destroyed, he will be reduced once more to what he once was—a man who can only turn his thoughts and wag his tongue."
One of the family heads swallowed dryly and spoke.
"…If that were to happen, it would be the best possible outcome for us."
Several others shook their heads.
"But his foundations are concentrated in Luoyang's Valley of Sin, are they not?"
"Striking a holy site proclaimed by the Emperor himself would never produce a good result—even if your extreme measures succeeded."
There was no need for the Second Young Master to answer that.
"Wait."
One family head pulled his chair closer to the round table and spoke.
"The proclamation of the holy site has not yet happened, has it?"
These were the most powerful men in the Central Kingdom—and therefore men of extraordinary political acumen regarding the capital's affairs.
"True enough."
The Emperor was surely preparing to gather every high minister tomorrow morning and proclaim the Fairy Cult's holy site.
"That is tomorrow morning's affair. It has not yet occurred."
The family heads' eyes gleamed. They drew their chairs closer to the round table and exchanged meaningful smiles.
"Something like, 'A sudden fever is sweeping the capital'—would that not suffice?"
"Exactly. A fever epidemic, with ministers collapsing left and right. How could they possibly attend court?"
Once the pieces began to fit, the plan assembled itself with terrifying speed.
"Yes. If they cannot attend court tomorrow—"
"—then the Emperor's proclamation of the holy site will have no choice but to be postponed."
"And the appointment ceremony of that mad old man Gang Sang as Grand Chancellor as well."
From their conversation, a fever that had never existed in the capital would be born, and the principal ministers would pretend to fall ill. Citing the epidemic, no one would approach the palace.
Such was the power of the Sixteen Families, who all but ruled the capital's political world.
"Three days."
Having finished their exchange and reached a decision, the family heads addressed the Second Young Master.
"In this manner, we can buy you three days."
They could not buy unlimited time. The Emperor was no longer alone; after three days, he would gather his ministers by any means necessary.
"If you succeed within that period—"
The Second Young Master laughed softly.
"—then everything that man has set in motion will be as if it never was."
If the focal point named Yeon So-hyeon lost his power, the old horses would break free of their reins and run wild in every direction. Gang Sang would never become Grand Chancellor again. The Yangtze waterway expansion project would never proceed. The Emperor would once more be reduced to a puppet who merely stamped the imperial seal.
"A return to those days when everyone was happy."
Laughter filled the conference hall.
"However, Second Young Master."
One family head wiped the mirth from his face and asked, "If you personally mobilize troops, you will suffer considerable losses no matter the outcome."
The Second Young Master gave a short laugh and turned away.
"That is my concern. The family heads need not trouble themselves over it."
The one who had asked shrugged. "True enough."
"Then I shall take my leave."
As the Second Young Master opened the door and stepped out, one of the family heads called after him.
"Remember this, Second Young Master! Three days!"
"Three days…?"
Muttering the words, the Second Young Master paused for a moment, then simply opened the door and left.
"A single day will be more than enough."
Watching his departing back, the family heads murmured among themselves.
"A single day?"
"Does that mean he has prepared everything in advance for just such a contingency?"
"He must at least have a last resort ready."
"…Even so, it is extreme."
"Where else would the blood of the unorthodox sects go?"
Emerging through the door, the Second Young Master ignored the voices behind him and gazed far into the night beyond the window, where darkness lay thick. The direction was Luoyang's.
Already, his mother—that vengeful madwoman driven by grudge—would be on the move.
She was a woman who never knew how to give up.
Luoyang Sword Family, a certain location.
Just as the Second Young Master had anticipated, Grand Madame Gu-yang was already in motion.
In exchange for absolving my crimes, they mean to wrest the lower Yangtze project from my father, the Lianzhu of Sapaecheon?
If that came to pass, her name within Sapaecheon would be dragged through the mud.
Never. I will never allow it…!
She ground her teeth.
Those dogs of the Supreme Operations Committee will not squeeze a single scrap of profit from me!
The day she had been married off like spoils of war to the head of the Sword Family still felt as vivid as yesterday.
The money I took from the Geomga Jeonjang was money that should have been mine from the start!
She felt wronged. She felt bitter.
It was a thought she returned to constantly: if only Yeon So-hyeon had been born even a little later than her own son—if only that damned Yak So-yu had died a few years earlier—everything of the Luoyang Sword Family would now be hers.
"Truly obtuse. Why launch an attack the moment the idea occurs rather than first identifying the true culprit?"
When the Zhuge Grand Strategist of the Third Young Master's faction clicked his tongue and spoke thus, the representative of the corrupt Yeon bloodline who had come in their name slammed the table.
"We are obtuse? Was it not you of the Third Young Master's side who first tried to seal off Luoyang, ignoring the circumstances of our Yeon bloodline?"
"We did not ignore them—we simply did not know!"
"Did not know? Nonsense!"
"You are the ones spouting nonsense!"
Even in the dead of night, the Third Young Master's faction and the corrupt Yeon bloodline were continuing their fierce political struggle. No blades were drawn and no blood was shed, yet it was war in all but name.
"Gentlemen! Kindly maintain the dignity and decorum befitting your stations."
At Grand Madame Gu-yang's words, both the Third Young Master's side and the corrupt Yeon bloodline fell briefly silent.
"Mm…!"
"Hmph…!"
Yet their faces remained flushed scarlet, as though they might erupt again at any moment.
Tsk tsk.
Grand Madame Gu-yang clicked her tongue inwardly.
The Third Young Master's faction and the corrupt Yeon bloodline—both were enemies as far as the Second Young Master's side was concerned. Under ordinary circumstances she would not have wanted to look at either of them.
In fact, if this were not the situation we are in, I would have applauded while watching them tear each other apart.
But this was not the time.
To employ her final measure, she needed to draw them in.
"Surely neither of you has forgotten?"
Grand Madame Gu-yang raised her hands toward both sides.
"At this moment, our common enemy is Yeon So-hyeon—that man."
At her words the two who had been on the verge of exploding again deflated with a pair of flat sounds. She did not miss the opening and pressed on.
"The Yeon bloodline side may lack hard evidence, but the circumstantial case is more than sufficient, is it not? The one who engineered the friction with the Third Young Master's faction was none other than Yeon So-hyeon."
Struck squarely, the representative of the corrupt Yeon bloodline ground his teeth.
"…We have more than enough circumstantial evidence ourselves, yet we lack proof that the bastard robbed us of our property. We have our own face to maintain."
Grand Madame Gu-yang turned to the Zhuge Grand Strategist of the Third Young Master's side as well.
"If things continue as they are, the only one who will be laughing in the end is Yeon So-hyeon. With the day of the Third Young Master's return to the main house drawing near, I cannot imagine the Left and Right Grand Strategists wish to submit such a catastrophic failure as their first report."
At her words, the Zhuge Grand Strategist, looking thoroughly displeased yet resigned, flicked his white feather fan.
"…Which is precisely why we have all gathered here."
The representative of the corrupt Yeon bloodline smacked his lips as well.
"Yeon So-hyeon is clearly crossing the line. The insolent pup is stirring the Sword Family as though it were his personal property."
"And now he is reaching beyond the main house, seeking to exert influence even over the Imperial Capital."
Grand Madame Gu-yang nodded.
"Exactly so."
She put force into her voice.
"If we leave him be, that arrogant dog will only grow more insufferable. That much is certain."
She spat the next words as though chewing them.
"The only chance we will ever have is now."
Yet men who had spent long years sharpening their hostility toward one another were not about to join hands so easily.
"You say the chance is only now?"
The Zhuge Grand Strategist glanced sidelong at her and gave a short laugh.
"From where I stand, the one for whom the chance is only now is the most desperate party of all—Grand Madame Gu-yang herself."
The representative of the corrupt Yeon bloodline sent her a mocking smile as well.
"You need to smash the First Young Master right this instant if you hope to smother the Central Investigation Department's inquiry that is pointed at you, do you not?"
The greatest force behind the Central Investigation Department's movements was, without question, Yeon So-hyeon.
"If the First Young Master loses his power and the Central Investigation Department is forced to abandon the investigation, the Inner Court—whose investigative authority is insufficient to begin with—will have no choice but to withdraw as well."
Even faced with their cutting words, Grand Madame Gu-yang made no effort to refute them. She simply nodded with serene grace.
"I will not deny what you have said."
She lifted her gaze and looked between the two men.
"So the two of you are saying you are confident you can face the First Young Master after he has grown even stronger than he is now?"
She twisted her lips.
"Even the Chief Administrator of the Inner Court—who once seemed without equal under heaven—has been made to drink bitter water twice in succession."
She raised a finger and pointed at herself.
"When the lips are gone, the teeth grow cold. If I fall here, the next in line will be the two factions before me."
Both men fell silent at once.
Watching their reactions, Grand Madame Gu-yang smiled inwardly.
Yeon So-hyeon. This is the grave you dug for yourself.
As she had said, the First Young Master Yeon So-hyeon had flaunted abilities far too superior for far too long. And precisely because of that, those abilities now loomed as a threat larger and more visceral to his enemies than the reality itself.
"…What manner of cooperation does Grand Madame Gu-yang desire of us?"
The first to speak was the Zhuge Grand Strategist of the Third Young Master's faction. The representative of the corrupt Yeon bloodline followed immediately after.
"…Tell us what you need."
At last, a deep smile bloomed across Grand Madame Gu-yang's face.
Seeing that smile, both men hastily added conditions.
"However, we of the Third Young Master's side will absolutely not cross the line."
"Our Yeon bloodline will not either."
"There is no need for concern."
Grand Madame Gu-yang nodded as though she had already known.
"We will shoulder every burden and every risk ourselves."
Yeon So-hyeon.
That smile was thick with killing intent.
You overplayed your hand.
"In that case, we have no objections."
"None here either."
Even as the two men before her nodded, they could not help but wear expressions of incomprehension inwardly.
Resorting even to methods this extreme? Even if she gets the result she wants, the losses will be catastrophic…
She's lost her mind. Mother and son both—completely out of their minds.
The Valley of Sin.
Yeon So-hyeon, who had been meditating in a full lotus posture, opened his eyes.
"What is it?"
"As the First Young Master commanded," reported Kang Ho, Yeon So-hyeon's new secretary.
"Late-night rations have been distributed to the forces stationed in the valley. We put in plenty of meat, so they will be full of strength."
Yeon So-hyeon nodded.
"Well done."
"…However, First Young Master."
Kang Ho asked carefully, "Every single instruction you have issued to the troops is…"
As Kang Ho hesitated, Yeon So-hyeon prompted him.
"As though preparing for war?"
"Yes. Exactly so."
Kang Ho nodded hastily.
"Does the First Young Master possess certainty that the enemies will take action even while shouldering such burdens and such high risk?"
Kang Ho could not understand it. And he was not alone. In the uppermost ranks of the First Young Master's side, only the Fourth Young Master had offered a remark Kang Ho could not quite grasp—"How are we to know the will of the great roc?"
The present situation was one in which anyone who resorted to extreme measures would, in the end, have to endure massive repercussions.
"I have certainty."
Yeon So-hyeon answered with his eyes closed once more.
"…Understood."
Yeon So-hyeon's manner was as good as a dismissal, so Kang Ho carefully closed the door and withdrew.
"…I will instruct the troop commanders and the strategists to maintain constant vigilance."
At the voice from beyond the door, Yeon So-hyeon answered briefly.
"Do so."
From far beyond the memories of Yeon So-hyeon as he sat in lotus posture, a howling voice reached him.
"Elder Brother! Elder Brother! This younger brother was too foolish, and I fell to them!"
The owner of that remembered voice was none other than the Fourth Young Master, Yeon Bi.
"They destroyed everything I had! Without a drop of blood or a single tear, they killed people who knew not even one martial technique! They slaughtered them!"
Before the regression, the Fourth Young Master—who had posed no threat to anyone, who had merely sought to run a small-scale enterprise—had suffered an attack from the Second Young Master that no one could have imagined.
"Elder Brother! For this younger brother's sake, show your face even once! Elder Brother!"
Even now, Yeon Bi's cry that had once carried over the walls of Wongak Pavilion—that anguished voice—remained vivid beyond endurance.
"Elder Brother!"
Yeon So-hyeon's closed face twitched.
"Come."
It was not a human voice. It resembled the growl of a beast.
"I am waiting for you."