Connecting the Dots
Whoosh!
A sudden, biting chill swept through the room, freezing my muscles stiff.
The already cold room had become downright frigid. It was so cold I half-expected to see my own breath misting in the air.
And it wasn't just the cold.
Am I going to die here...?
My teeth chattered uncontrollably. The sheer pressure radiating from the man in front of me was making the entire room tremble.
His gaze was incomparably colder than before.
The overwhelming presence radiating from him was suffocating. The pressure Dang Gyeong-ak exerted was so intense and terrifying that I couldn't even swallow my own saliva.
"I doubt those were just idle words," Dang Gyeong-ak said, placing something on the table.
It was a dagger.
"If you were merely testing me, I could have laughed it off. But it seems that is not the case. I believe I will have many questions for you, Young Hero Bang."
"..."
Was it just my imagination? The dagger was clearly resting on the table, yet it felt as though its blade was pressed right against my throat.
It was chilling. Once again, I was forced to remember.
This is the Dang Clan estate, and the man sitting before me is the Poison King.
He was none other than the Poison King, one of the Five Kings of the Realm. And he was issuing a direct warning to me.
Saying he had many questions, while drawing a dagger, carried a clear implication: he was willing to extract the answers through torture if necessary.
...Ah, Father. You were right.
He had warned me that Sichuan was a dangerous place and that I should never associate with them. For once, my father's words seemed to hold some truth.
I let out a silent sigh. Ah, I should have just kept my mouth shut. I got too cocky and brought this trouble on myself.
But then again, what choice did I have?
Half of this is their fault anyway.
They were the ones who left all these clues lying around and expected me to play dumb. Nothing was more annoying than that. I decided to blame these people for making it so obvious in the first place.
Creak!
The pressure continued to mount. I felt like I was about to throw up. Then, Dang Gyeong-ak spoke.
"You spoke with certainty."
"You were absolutely certain that the Dang Clan would need the Full Moon. I do not understand. What made you think that?"
His eyes were completely devoid of emotion. It felt as though the dagger on the table would fly up and pierce the space between my eyebrows at any second.
If I kept my mouth shut, the pressure would only intensify. I might even lose the ability to speak at all. I had to open my mouth before that happened.
"There is no need to even ask," I said.
"..."
"The clues I gathered so far were more than enough."
Dang Gyeong-ak remained silent. His gaze silently urged me to continue.
"The information I gathered on my way here, your actions, and the contents of the letter sent to Cheongwol Gate. That was enough to piece everything together."
"...With just that?"
"Just that? You underestimate the value of those clues."
It was laughable that he considered all that information to be "just that."
"You must already know, Clan Leader Dang," I said, meeting his glare.
"Before we arrived in Sichuan, we encountered an incident in a nearby village."
"..."
Dang Gyeong-ak's eyes widened slightly.
"I assume you are already aware of this. Am I wrong?"
"What matters is why you think so."
"Well, after the incident, we submitted a report to the nearest branch of the Martial Alliance. Given the distance, it was only natural to assume the news would reach the Dang Clan."
This was the Sichuan Dang Clan, after all. The Five Great Families were not to be underestimated; considering their vast influence, it would be stranger if they hadn't found out by now.
"Furthermore, I figured the Dang Clan would be keeping a very close eye on that particular incident."
"...Why?"
"Because it is directly related to the Dang Clan."
"..."
The atmosphere grew colder with every word I spoke. Meanwhile, the ghost watching me was staring so intensely that his gaze felt practically scorching. I felt like he was going to bore a hole right through my face.
"Do you happen to know the identity of the bastards who attacked the village?" I asked.
"I wonder. I am not sure. Do you know, Young Hero Bang?"
Hearing Dang Gyeong-ak's response, I couldn't help but chuckle.
"So, you just admitted that you knew we went through that incident."
"..."
That was more than enough of an admission. His clumsy attempt to play dumb afterward didn't really matter.
"I don't know the details, but they are called the Heaven-Destroying Palace."
"...!"
Dang Gyeong-ak's reaction was visibly sharper this time.
"I have never heard of such a group... but let us put that aside."
Now, here was the crucial part.
"They said they were looking for a certain secret vault."
The name of that vault was...
"The Secret Vault of the Poison Sovereign."
The moment those words left my mouth, the air in the room violently fluctuated. Holy crap, so energy can actually make the air warp like that. It was terrifying.
At that exact moment—
Thud!
My knees buckled, and I collapsed. At the same time, my vision began to blur. What the hell is this?
As I panicked, wondering what was happening to my body, Dang Gyeong-ak spoke.
"It is the poison of the Mist-Veiled Grass."
Mist-Veiled Grass?
"It spreads easily through its scent, and once stimulated by internal energy, it quickly paralyzes the body."
"...Ah..."
His explanation triggered a memory. No wonder there was such an unfitting floral scent lingering in the hallway earlier.
Realizing my situation, I let out a dry laugh.
"Am I going to die now?"
When I asked so calmly, Dang Gyeong-ak—no, the Poison King—replied in a heavy, solemn tone.
"That will depend on your next answers."
He was warning me that he could kill me at any moment.
"Did those bastards truly speak of the Poison Sovereign's Secret Vault?"
"I wonder."
"...You impudent brat."
"Stop it. You won't kill me, Clan Leader."
"...What?"
As I spoke with absolute confidence, my vision blurred even further. Now, I couldn't even make out Dang Gyeong-ak's face.
"Are you trying to mock me?"
"...Of course not. Who am I to insult the head of the Dang Clan?"
"Then..."
"I simply gained certainty from your actions just now, Clan Leader."
"...What?"
Gained certainty from his own actions? The Poison King frowned at my words.
"What do you mean by that?"
"I always found it strange. Why did the successor have to come in person? Couldn't they have just sent the Full Moon on its own? That's what I thought."
I pointed toward something as I spoke. It was the wooden case resting on the table.
"During our conversation earlier, you reached for the wooden case before we even exchanged our credentials."
"...What of it?"
"It was highly unusual. The head of the Dang Clan would never forget such basic etiquette."
This was a formal matter between a sect and a clan. Grabbing the item before the agreement with the representative was finalized? It was unheard of.
Yet, the Poison King had almost done exactly that. I focused on that slip-up.
"It was merely a mistake."
Perhaps it was. Anyone can make a mistake.
But...
"True. Anyone can make a mistake. However, the probability of you making such a blunder is incredibly low. Which means..."
I assumed the Poison King was not the type to make careless errors. He was the head of one of the Five Great Families. For such a man to make a basic mistake? Especially the master of the fearsome Dang Clan? It was highly unlikely. If he did make a mistake despite that, there were only two possibilities.
"Either you made the mistake intentionally with some hidden motive..."
Or...
"It was an issue so urgent and important that it caused even you to slip up."
"..."
"If it were the former, I would be wrong. But if it were the latter..."
Creak.
I forced my collapsed body to stand. My strength had completely drained, leaving me exhausted, but I could still force myself up.
"It means you need the Full Moon that desperately."
Thud!
I barely managed to support myself by leaning on the table. If I didn't, I would have collapsed again.
Strangely, even in this state, my voice didn't tremble. I had been terrified at first, but now even that fear had vanished. It was probably because of my certainty.
"But you didn't just ask for the Full Moon; you specifically summoned me..."
I squinted, struggling to see Dang Gyeong-ak's face clearly through my blurred vision.
"Which means you needed both the Full Moon and the successor of the Sword Saint. If I think about why that would be necessary..."
I connected the dots. Even seemingly unrelated pieces of information could reveal something if forced together. And what made this forced connection plausible...
Was information that *only I knew* and the other party did not.
The previous clan leader, the Poison Sovereign.
The Full Moon, and the secret vault that Yoo Chun-gil had hidden away.
The connection between them.
This was information that I possessed, but the Poison King did not.
"The Poison Sovereign's Secret Vault, the Full Moon, and the successor of the Sword Saint. I believe these three are connected. What do you think, Clan Leader?"
"..."
The Poison King said nothing. A heavy silence filled the room.
I waited for his response for what felt like an eternity.
Sssss...
A faint sound of something dispersing echoed, and strength slowly began to return to my limbs. My blood circulated once more, and my breathing stabilized.
Whew... I can finally breathe.
As I caught my breath and composed myself—
"...My word," Dang Gyeong-ak muttered.
"It seems I have let a snake into my household."
It didn't seem like a bad reaction.
"This brat... He is definitely that lunatic's disciple. No, he's even crazier than him."
Though a rather concerning comment followed right after.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The harsh sound of metal being hammered and intense heat filled the air.
Clang!
Sparks flew with every strike, and the sharp scent of iron permeated the space.
In the center of the room, a figure with a cloth tightly bound around her head swung a hammer with all her might.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Her movements were clean, striking in a steady, rhythmic beat.
Each time the hammer struck the metal, waves of heat rolled off, and hot sparks rained down, but she didn't seem to care in the slightest.
Instead, her eyes burned with pure passion. Looking thoroughly delighted and content, she soon began the quenching process.
After she had been working up a sweat for quite some time—
"Daughter."
A gentle voice called out from behind, causing her to halt her hammer. She turned around.
The owner of the voice was a middle-aged woman who looked remarkably elegant for her age.
She was the girl's mother—Pi Yeon-jin, the matriarch of the Dang Clan.
She was the wife of the Poison King, the mother of the young clan leader, Dang Cheon-il.
And, of course...
"Mother," the girl holding the iron replied.
She was also the mother of the young woman standing before her.
Pi Yeon-jin frowned as she looked at her daughter. She had raised her to be a beautiful lady, yet here she was, her face covered in soot and dust. It was precisely to avoid seeing her like this that Pi Yeon-jin rarely set foot in Cheolgang, the Iron River smithy.
"...Why do you never come when I call for you?" Pi Yeon-jin sighed. Her daughter was so stubborn that she had to come find her in person.
"Ah," the young woman reacted to her mother's words. "Did you call for me?"
"I must have called you at least ten times."
"I'm sorry. I was right in the middle of the fun part."
"..."
Tossing the hammer aside, the young woman untied her headscarf. Her sleek, straight hair cascaded down her shoulders.
Tidying up her long hair, she asked, "What brings you here?"
"I heard someone from Cheongwol Gate arrived today."
"Ah."
She had heard about this. She knew a guest would be arriving around this time.
"I see."
That was the extent of her interest.
Seeing her daughter's indifferent reaction, Pi Yeon-jin let out another sigh.
"Your father will likely call for you this evening."
"Probably."
It was a routine occurrence, so she didn't pay it much mind.
"Just in case, I must warn you..."
"Yes, yes, I know," the young woman cut her mother off with a smile.
"Do not mention anything about this matter. Keep your mouth shut as much as possible. And..."
What was the other thing? Ah, right.
"If there is anyone with the surname Bang, never get involved with them. That was it, right?"
"Indeed. You must keep that last part in mind at all times," Pi Yeon-jin warned earnestly, making sure her daughter understood the gravity of the matter.
"Don't worry," the young woman replied with a light chuckle, finding her mother's fussiness rather endearing.
Though she wasn't actually paying much attention to the warning.