Recruit the Craftsman (2)
Soon, Palgap entered the room with a cup of cold water. I took it and drank deeply.
"Young master, are you really all right?"
I nodded at Palgap's question.
"I'm fine, really. So stop worrying."
"It must be because you trained so hard yesterday before coming back."
I let out a laugh at that.
Come to think of it, I'd pushed myself brutally in training yesterday too, barely managing to wash up before collapsing into bed and falling asleep the moment my head hit the pillow.
"It was tough, but I can't skip training."
"You were complaining to me last night about not wanting to train."
"...Forget I said that."
After breakfast, I set out for the Geumseon Long Market with Palgap and two escort warriors in tow.
I'd told Father I wanted to see the markets in Gangseo Province.
No doubt he'd ask the escorts where I'd gone and what had caught my interest.
That's why I'd deliberately chosen the crowded Geumseon Long Market.
Of course, it was a place I'd visited often in my memories of the future, but coming back after so long made it feel surprisingly exciting.
Is it because I've started a new life, or because I'm seeing things with fresh eyes?
Either way, it didn't matter.
This was now, and now was what counted.
Let's see...
There were items that weren't popular yet but would explode in demand a few years from now.
I need to snap those up first.
As I wandered excitedly from stall to stall, hunger soon set in.
"How about lunch at this Geumseon Long Market specialty, the white fish delicacy?"
One of the escorts replied.
"We'll follow your lead, young master."
"Any idea where's good?"
"There's a place called Byeokgang Rice House over there that's decent. I stopped by during an escort mission once."
"Then that's where we'll go."
We entered the restaurant the escort recommended.
Byeokgang Rice House.
Truth be told, I knew this place too. I'd stopped here during an escort run myself.
Their signature white fish delicacy lived up to the local nickname "mother-earth scent"—a perfect match.
It was freshwater fish mixed simply with white rice, no heavy seasonings, yet it was refreshingly mild and clean-tasting, never fishy.
Preserving the natural flavors of the ingredients was the hallmark of Gangseo Province cuisine.
"Your orders are here."
Soon, bowls of white fish delicacy arrived before each of us, and we dug in ravenously.
"Delicious as always."
It tasted even better after so long.
Having toured the Geumseon Long Market all morning, my plan now was to leave the restaurant and seriously hunt for the craftsman.
I knew the artisan lived in Geumseon Village, where the market was, but not the exact location.
The only clue I had was that there were a few paulownia trees beside his house.
That was what I'd learned from a commission to the Hakmun back then—I'd asked them to prepare a proper funeral in his hometown for the artisan and his deceased family.
Of course, the Jin-gyeon Merchant Group had burned all the bodies, so it never happened.
The more I thought about it, those bastards were rotten to the core...
The Hakmun had no further details.
That meant the Jin-gyeon Merchant Group had thoroughly erased every trace of them.
I could commission the Hakmun to find a skilled artisan in Geumseon Village easily enough, but not right now.
I might only be fifteen, but as the son of the Eunhae Merchant Group's leader, every move I made was under scrutiny from rival traders.
The man eating beside me, the one behind us... they were tails on me.
The escorts had noticed too and signaled me discreetly.
With tails like that, commissioning the Hakmun?
It'd be handing rivals a free meal.
Worse, it could bring even greater suffering down on that artisan.
That's the problem with using the Hakmun.
With branches nationwide, they were great for intel the Sangyu Pavilion couldn't provide.
But leaks were a risk.
So when commissioning from the Hakmun, you either hid what you really wanted or your own identity.
If only I had my own private intel network...
That was for later. For now, I needed to shake these tails.
I spoke to Palgap a bit loudly on purpose.
"I want to look around the village a bit."
"Pardon? You're done with the market?"
"I'll check the market again tonight. I heard it's worth seeing at night."
One of the escorts nodded along. He didn't know my intent but was playing it smart.
"That's right. The nighttime Geumseon Long Market is famous too."
"No other business till then, and holing up at an inn feels off."
"Understood."
We finished eating and stood. Our tails stood too, right on cue.
I led Palgap and the two escorts around Geumseon Village.
Outwardly casual, but my eyes scanned relentlessly for paulownia trees.
Once I spotted one, I'd linger, observing the household from afar.
I remembered the artisan's face.
After checking ten, twenty houses like that, I could see the tails tiring.
They had no clue what I was up to—must've been frustrating.
One by one, they started peeling off. Probably figuring I was just broadening my horizons.
Two hours later.
"Whew... this is exhausting."
I sat on a nearby rock.
Two hours of crisscrossing the village, and I'd learned just how many paulownia trees were in Geumseon Village.
About a hundred.
Tall trees, so spotting houses with them wasn't hard.
But no sign of the artisan yet.
Then one escort spoke up.
"The tails are all gone."
"Finally shook them all, huh."
"Hah, so that's why you wanted to tour the village—taking a convoluted route too."
"Hahaha."
I laughed awkwardly.
Truth was, hunting paulownia trees had made the path convoluted by accident...
But I let the misunderstanding stand. Better if the escorts thought it was intentional.
The problem was the sun setting.
This is bad...
It had taken more time than expected.
Tomorrow was a trading day for the merchant group—no wandering freely then.
Today was my only shot to find the artisan.
I'd thought it'd be easy...
Too optimistic.
But I couldn't give up.
If I did, the artisan and his family would fall into the same tragedy I'd witnessed in my future life.
And I couldn't let the Jin-gyeon Merchant Group profit unjustly again.
I stood.
"Let's get moving again."
"Yes, sir."
That's when it happened.
A man's shout rang out.
"Thief! Hey! Grab that thief! That's our family's living expenses! You bastard!"
Someone came sprinting like an arrow. I unslung my waterskin—essential for escort runs.
I froze the water inside with ice arts and timed a toss right as the thief approached.
"Whoa!"
Looked like an accidental drop.
Roll, roll, roll.
The thief stepped on it mid-stride.
A normal waterskin would've shattered.
But this one, rock-hard from freezing, didn't.
Slip.
Instead, the thief skidded, lost balance, and tumbled head over heels.
How'd I time it so perfectly? I just... knew.
I had no idea how myself, but it worked.
"You punk!"
The escorts pounced, subduing him completely.
"M-mercy, milord!"
I smiled at the thief.
"Lucky break. Caught a thief with a dropped waterskin."
"Sure was."
A panting man rushed up then, spotting the pinned thief.
"Give me back my money pouch, you rat!"
"W-what are you talking about..."
The thief denied it flatly. I said,
"Hand it over."
"I-I don't know!"
An escort jabbed the thief's thigh with his scabbard.
"Aaaagh! O-okay! Here! It's here! Ow, I'm dying!"
I took the pouch and asked the man.
"This yours?"
"Yes! Yes! That's mine! It is!"
"How much was in it?"
"My monthly wage from today..."
He described the contents. I opened it and counted.
Exact match.
"Here. Be more careful."
"Thank you! Truly, thank you!"
Patrolling bailiffs appeared just then. I revealed my identity and handed over the thief.
Turned out he was notorious around here.
The bailiffs, thrilled for the collar, headed back to the yamen grinning.
With that sorted, I moved to resume the search.
Or tried to.
The robbed man grabbed us.
"I can't just let my benefactor go like this. Come to my home for a drink at least."
I waved it off.
"No need. We've eaten, and I can't drink anyway."
"Then tea. I insist."
Refusing further would've been rude—disrespecting his face.
"All right, one cup of tea."
"Thank you!"
He led us to his home.
"This is it. Modest, but come in."
The moment I saw the house he pointed to, I froze slightly.
Four modest paulownia trees stood beside it.
"Paulownia... trees."
"Ah, yes."
He nodded.
"Planted them when my son and daughter were born. Thought I'd give each a farm when they grew up and married. Haha."
"..."
Come to think of it, the Hakmun info only said "a few paulownia trees"—no size mentioned.
And time had passed since then...
"It's a local custom too."
Explained why Geumseon Village had so many paulownia trees.
At the same time, a wave of futility hit me.
Hakmun, you bastards.
Even without details, charging three nyang of silver for this as "intel"?
I'm definitely building my own intel unit someday!
This whole affair taught me a lesson.
Info from my past life wasn't always spot-on, and I couldn't assume it'd make things easy.
Then, footsteps from beyond the gate.
"Father! I'm home!"
I turned at the youthful voice and startled.
A boy about ten, carrying a book satchel, entered.
Spotting us, he bowed quickly.
"Hello."
"..."
"That's my boy."
"...He looks remarkably bright."
Why I'd been shocked?
That child was the one from my dream.
The boy who'd clutched my wrist, begging me to save him and his family this time.
He's the artisan who made the self-moving puppets.
Doubt flickered.
Really? This kid made the self-moving puppets?
He looked nothing like the man in my memories.
I'd glimpsed him once, making an excuse to visit the Jin-gyeon Merchant Group.
Catching him alone: bloodshot, hollow eyes in a skeletal frame, muttering endlessly, "New thing, new contraption."
By contrast, this boy before me was chubby-cheeked and adorable.
Wait—that artisan had been in his twenties then, right?
And I'd seen him about a decade after the puppets debuted.
So...
Suddenly, I recalled the merchant lord's words.
"Ah, that kid's got such nimble hands! He whipped up all these weird contraptions like nothing!"
Those sons of bitches.
Exploiting a child like this.
They'd spotted the boy and dragged him off by force—half a year from now.
Meaning this ten-year-old would walk into hell for his family.