Chapter 87
Chapter 87
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: Manipulator
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Yeon So-hyeon draped his arm out the window, savoring the cold wind.
Seeing this, the commander seated across from him cautiously spoke up.
“Eldest Young Master, exposing your face outside goes against the agency's guidelines…”
“Shut up.”
“...”
He remembered the warning from the veteran commander, Cheongsu, whom he had taken over from, and promptly closed his mouth.
‘If you get on the Eldest Young Master’s bad side, life in the Sword Clan really gets exhausting.’
He couldn’t understand why crossing the Eldest Young Master would tangle up his life in the Sword Clan.
As the youngest command swordsman to rise so quickly, he had plenty of experience as a warrior, but he still knew far less about the uppermost echelons of society.
That was why a senior’s advice was always worth its weight in gold.
In his experience so far, it might not earn him a fortune, but it would at least keep him from losing one.
“...”
From the command swordsman huddled quietly in the corner, Yeon So-hyeon could read ‘many things.’
The agency’s warriors, who always moved as one with his father, had been his most entertaining ‘playmates’ in his childhood.
How delightful it had been each time he shattered their icy, impenetrable facades.
Perhaps because of that, even now, the sight of the agency’s warriors naturally stirred the urge to toy with them.
“Hey.”
“...Yes?”
His eyes, visible through the peephole, resembled those of a startled rabbit.
“Pass a message to that command swordsman who dragged me all the way to the stone cave earlier.”
He bowed his head.
“But per guidelines, I can’t run personal errands…”
“Shut up. You’re the youngest among the commanders, right? Or maybe second from the bottom.”
“Eldest Young Master, you don’t have authority to access personnel information from the agency…”
“Don’t need authority. I can tell just by looking at you.”
“...”
“That guy’s got some guts, doesn’t he? He must chew you out a lot. Right? Always nagging in that infuriating way?”
For some reason, Yeon So-hyeon’s words, laced with the ‘language of warriors,’ brimmed with persuasiveness.
“...”
“So cooperate with me. Just pass this message, and I guarantee you’ll get to see him squirming anxiously from now on.”
It was the devil’s tongue.
“...”
Understanding the silence as assent, Yeon So-hyeon spoke softly.
“I was practically dragged all the way to that stone cave. My shoulders and arms still ache from it.”
Yeon So-hyeon bared his white teeth in a smile.
“Tell him in a letter that I, Yeon So-hyeon, will personally remember this grudge forever. In cipher, so no one knows who sent it.”
“...”
Glancing around warily, he nodded quickly lest anyone see.
Yeon So-hyeon chuckled gleefully.
Unlike his past self, his current self found settling these petty grudges immensely enjoyable.
He rapped on the ceiling.
“Hey, you lot! Pick up the pace! The sun’s about to set!”
At Yeon So-hyeon’s shout, the commander immediately issued orders via transmission.
Inside the carriage hurtling like an arrow down the empty street, Yeon So-hyeon burst into merry laughter.
The agency that everyone in the Luoyang Sword Clan found distasteful.
Now, scarcely anyone there even remembered him.
And yet, he had,
reconnected with the younger sibling of an old acquaintance, forging a precious bond while securing a vital connection for intervening in agency matters,
imprinted on the minds of the warriors guarding the meeting hall that he could stand against the top committee members without issue,
planted the name of Won-gak Pavilion in the mind of a once-renowned command swordsman contemplating retirement,
instilled terror in the insolent command swordsman who remembered him directly or indirectly and mocked him as the Swordless One,
and made the brand-new youngest command swordsman run his errands and direct his subordinates according to his will.
This young command swordsman, now tasting the thrill of aligning with Yeon So-hyeon, would never forget it.
All this had unfolded in less than half a day since encountering them.
* * *
Jeam Jincheon Scripture, interior.
“What a blast! So much fun!”
The Yeongnak Immortal clapped in delight.
“Since I’ve been trapped here, it’s been ages since I’ve seen such an entertaining show.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it, Elder.”
“And to think you operated successfully while suppressing the Jeam Jincheon Scripture!”
Perched on the stone coffin, Yeon So-hyeon shrugged.
The Yeongnak Immortal’s eyes sparkled as he turned to Yeon So-hyeon.
“Then, the one who’s been exposing the top committee members’ identities from the past and replacing them—wasn’t that you, before becoming the Yeonja?”
“Yes, that’s right. During the Blood History, when Mother’s seal cracked, it was the bare minimum I could do to protect it while serving Father’s clan.”
“Impressive!”
“…At the time, that was all I could manage.”
“Unlike now, right?”
Yeon So-hyeon laughed along with the Yeongnak Immortal, who wore a sly grin.
The corpses in the stone coffin wailed in unison.
“Then, then—here’s the thing.”
“Yes.”
The Yeongnak Immortal asked excitedly.
“From the moment you started spreading those rumors, your ultimate goal was singular: to force the official lifting of the seclusion order!”
“That’s right.”
Yeon So-hyeon nodded and explained carefully.
“As a recluse, I had no way to directly approach the Supreme Operations Council.”
The Supreme Operations Council wasn’t something he could meet just because he wanted to.
“You stirred the Inner Court for that. You made the others wary of your actions!”
“On top of that, I dealt with the housekeepers who pestered me endlessly and created a way to reclaim the budget that was rightfully mine.”
“Right! I saw that too!”
* * *
“Mindful that I fall far short of being a proper proxy, but…”
The chair, having consolidated opinions, addressed Yeon So-hyeon.
“The Supreme Operations Council will spare no effort in support, streamlining all procedures to help Won-gak Pavilion regain full function as swiftly as possible.”
Yeon So-hyeon shrugged.
“Especially, put in a good word with the Inner Court Chief. I need to recover what they’ve skimmed from my share of the budget up to now.”
Moments later, a top committee member’s voice came.
“…Cash or vouchers?”
“Split it half and half. Have the vouchers guaranteed by the Supreme Operations Council.”
“We’ll process it immediately.”
“Appreciated.”
“No trouble at all.”
Yeon So-hyeon continued.
“And relay to the Guard Unit Captain as well. If he detains book merchants entering Won-gak Pavilion without reason even once more, I’ll visit the Guard Unit personally.”
“…We’ll ensure it doesn’t happen.”
Yeon So-hyeon nodded in satisfaction.
“And the martial officers who deliberately make their warriors jog along Won-gak Pavilion’s walls at dawn with the main house troops, singing army songs…”
“We’ll handle that too.”
“And there’s more.”
“...”
* * *
“T-That was hilarious too.”
The Yeongnak Immortal collapsed in laughter.
He toppled backward, squashing the corpses in the stone coffin.
Yeon So-hyeon gave an awkward smile.
“…Issues I would have let slide in the old days.”
“And above all…”
The Yeongnak Immortal wiped away the pus leaking in place of tears.
“What surprised me most was that to achieve your ultimate goal this time, you did practically nothing!”
He exclaimed dramatically.
“All you did to lift the seclusion was summon that one inspection investigator!”
“Gang Ho, you mean?”
“Yeah! You just called in one inspection investigator, and suddenly the Elders’ Council convened!”
The Elders’ Council, deeming Yeon So-hyeon’s matter gravely serious, arranged for his summons to the Supreme Operations Council.
“And the Supreme Operations Council, burdened by their original sins, had no choice but to lift your seclusion order!”
“Because I’d already replaced all the problematic top committee members in the past, I was confident from the start.”
In truth, lifting his seclusion any other way was impossible.
Even if possible, it would take far too long or involve endless annoyances.
Reaching the Supreme Operations Council had been a massive hurdle from the outset.
Yet by merely stirring unease in the clan’s uppermost strata, he had expedited every procedure.
The Yeongnak Immortal smacked his lips.
“But still—that Family Head Seal. Didn’t you regret it? Couldn’t it be useful later?”
Yeon So-hyeon burst into hearty laughter.
“It might sting a bit now. But no one would have allowed me to use the Family Head Seal to lift the seclusion. And besides…”
“Besides?”
Yeon So-hyeon smiled enigmatically.
“Holding onto the Family Head Seal would have caused tremendous headaches down the line.”
“…I see! You already knew what it would bring!”
He nodded vigorously, deeply satisfied.
“That was fun. So much fun. I wonder how many Yeonja before you have wielded their true abilities to this degree.”
Yeon So-hyeon widened his eyes.
“What, already satisfied?”
The Yeongnak Immortal jumped up.
“No! What’s left?!”
Yeon So-hyeon smiled.
“Unfortunately, time’s up. You’ll see everything remaining as it unfolds.”
The Yeongnak Immortal couldn’t hide his regret.
“Just tell me one thing! One! The rest must be from those sporadic things you did ‘outside the clan,’ right…?!”
The Yeongnak Immortal’s voice faded away.
* * *
Returning from the interior to reality, Yeon So-hyeon smiled into the cold wind.
‘The two new top committee members… I’ll observe them a bit longer.’
He had already identified them.
No matter the voice modulation, shadow proxies, or refusal to share personal stories—it was futile.
They followed secret guidelines to conceal their identities.
Guidelines penned by young Yeon So-hyeon himself, back when he assisted his father’s duties.
Could they ever imagine?
Subtle speech habits emerging unbidden, reactions to provocations, responses to past references, sources of commonly used phrases—
Just one or two proper conversations sufficed.
Moreover, as the Jeam Jincheon Scripture’s Yeonja, glimpsing a few memories from the grudge-filled spirits revealed not only their identities but all the secrets they hid.
The roster of the Supreme Operations Council—Luoyang Sword Clan’s greatest secret—was already etched in his mind.
“Yah ho! Run, run!”
“E-Eldest Young Master, it’s dangerous!”
He could hardly contain his excitement.
No more constraints or limits bound him.
The deeds his past self had done out of goodwill now converged with his current malicious acts, bearing fruit.
From afar, the southeast wind was blowing in.
* * *
Every piece was stacking precisely as he intended.
No one would discern the full picture until they were all assembled.
No one but Yeon So-hyeon himself.