Karmic Retribution (7)
Jin Yu Warrior's expression was grave, his voice heavy.
I turned to the others.
"Everyone, please step away for a moment."
But Jin Yu Warrior shook his head.
"No, sir. Everyone needs to hear this... so they'll understand why I'm insisting on taking the lead."
He wasn't wrong, so I nodded.
"In that case, let's find a quiet spot to rest for a bit."
About an hour later, our group dismounted. There were no people around, and a suitable rock for sitting came into view.
I sat on the rock and said, "Everyone, have a seat. Let's hear it—Jin Yu Warrior's story."
Truth be told, I hadn't expected Jin Yu Warrior to step forward like this.
He usually avoided the spotlight.
After a slight hesitation, Jin Yu Warrior let out a sigh and spoke.
"The truth is... the White Thunder Unit bastards... they're the ones who killed my closest friends."
"What?"
Killed his friends? What did that mean?
"Please explain a bit more."
"As you know, my lord, my background... I'm an assassin. But it wasn't always that way. In fact, I hail from the Snow Wind Palace."
As I had suspected.
"Why keep your origins from the Snow Wind Palace a secret all this time?"
"Because... I wasn't mentally prepared yet. But today, I feel I must tell you."
"Does Master know about this?"
"Yes. It had been ages since we last met—nearly twenty years."
Twenty years?
The Snow Wind Palace was destroyed later than that, which meant...
"I was a child entrusted to the Snow Wind Palace, and at seven years old, my uncle took me away."
I'd heard before that if the father's side came to claim a child, the Snow Wind Palace couldn't stop them.
"Back then, I was thrilled at the thought of living with my father. But it was all a delusion on my part."
Jin Yu Warrior clenched his fist tight.
So tight that the white bones stood out starkly.
"My father had already passed away by then. They said he'd left a will about me... He never should have."
"......"
"The clan was in dire financial straits at the time, so they asked the Martial Alliance for help. But the Alliance demanded blood kin as collateral for the loan, and that's when the clan learned of my existence."
"......"
"So I was forcibly sent to the Martial Alliance and raised as one of their hidden swords. It was endless grueling training."
From Jin Yu Warrior's expression, I could gauge the extent of his hardships.
Of course, not being him, I couldn't know it all.
"When I got there, there were other kids in the same boat as me—about a hundred of them. And... more than half died at the hands of the White Thunder Unit."
Jin Yu Warrior's tale was utterly horrific.
They'd release the children into the mountains and have warriors hunt them down and kill them.
The White Thunder Unit had carried out those hunts.
Supposedly to teach hiding techniques, but...
"If it had just been killing them outright, I wouldn't speak of revenge. They were just following orders, after all. But..."
Jin Yu Warrior turned his head, gazing into the empty air as he continued.
"They'd toy with the captured kids... before killing them."
That "toy with" wasn't the innocent kind of play I might imagine with children.
"My closest friend among them..."
Jin Yu Warrior calmly described what had happened to the children, making me realize anew just how cruel humans could be.
"Back then, I was powerless, unable to seek revenge. But not anymore."
Jin Yu Warrior looked back at me and bowed his head.
"I beg you."
I turned to Seo-u Warrior.
This wasn't just between me and Jin Yu Warrior.
"Scum like that deserve death. Very well. Today, let's settle Jin Yu Warrior's long-standing grudge."
Seo-u Warrior gave his assent as well.
"Thank you."
Watching him, I thought to myself.
The Martial Alliance has been rotten for longer than a short while, it seems.
"Ah, by the way, what clan was your father's family from?"
"It's been wiped out now. Destroyed by some mysterious group, they say."
Jin Yu Warrior didn't seem particularly saddened as he said it.
No surprise there—I wouldn't grieve for scum like that either.
"Whoa, whoa!"
Neigh.
The group arrived at the Ma Clan Manor.
They were the White Thunder Unit, one of the Martial Alliance's armed detachments.
The Martial Alliance's forces were divided into two main types: brigades and units.
Brigades had over a hundred members—large-scale outfits—while units were much smaller.
The White Thunder Unit had about twenty members.
They had no fixed duties, moving only on the Alliance Leader's orders as needed.
Half of them—ten men—had come to the Ma Clan Manor.
"Welcome. I am Ma Jeong, lord of this Ma Clan Manor."
In response to his introduction, the Martial Alliance representative presented the White Thunder Unit's vice commander.
"This is Sa Gu, vice commander of the White Thunder Unit."
"Pleased to meet you."
Sa Gu merely nodded curtly.
"We're leaving for the capital tomorrow morning, so please take extra care in hosting us."
"Of course."
Then Sa Gu spoke up.
"I hear the escorts working here stole a chest worth ten thousand nyang of gold?"
"Ah, yes. That's right. It was a struggle to scrape together replacement funds."
At that, Sa Gu's eyes gleamed.
"If I find it, may I take half?"
It was little more than banditry.
But from the clan lord's perspective, it was a fine deal.
Money they couldn't find anyway—recovering half would be ideal.
"By all means."
"Then let's head to the county office. It doesn't seem far from here."
"This way, please."
Soon after, they arrived at the Taekyeong County office.
At the visit from the vice commander of one of the Martial Alliance's units, the county magistrate hurried out to greet them.
Even if the martial world and officials kept to their lanes, life was precious, and no mere county office in Henan—the Alliance's heartland—could afford to offend them.
"Welcome."
They exchanged names and greetings.
"We came because the thieves who stole Ma Clan Lord's gold are here."
"Yes, we're interrogating them as we speak."
"Show us."
"Ah, yes."
Officials dispatched from the Provincial Inspectorate of Henan were handling the interrogation.
Since the crime happened here, and the goal was recovering the gold chest.
As they headed to the prison cells, the stench of blood grew thick.
"Arghhh!"
"You bastard! Still not talking?"
"I really don't know! Arghhh!"
An interrogator from the Provincial Inspectorate approached upon seeing Sa Gu's group.
"Where are you from?"
"Sa Gu, vice commander of the Martial Alliance's White Thunder Unit."
"Ah! I see."
Sa Gu glanced at the warriors, none without wounds.
"Not much progress, I take it."
"My apologies."
"No matter. You've done your best. But their meridians in hands and feet are severed."
"They were first-rate warriors, so we had to."
"Good call."
He explained what they'd learned so far.
"They say a trio in smiling masks got them. But come on—ten thousand nyang in gold? How do three people carry that?"
"True."
"No traces of horses or carts. Seems they hid it, fought among themselves, and hallucinated the rest."
"Hallucinated?"
"Yes. They had a poison called hallucinogen. The one carrying it said it's Mangahwangakdok."
"Hm? That's a hallucinogen that erases memories from the hallucination state. Why have that?"
"For raping village women, apparently. Utter scum!"
Ma Clan Lord jumped in, venting rage.
"To think I employed such filth!"
It could have spelled negligence on his watch.
No issue normally, but now with provincial officials and Martial Alliance men present.
"Wearing the mask of righteousness while committing such atrocities! I ought to tear them apart!"
"......You're right."
Sa Gu nodded awkwardly.
He had Mangahwangakdok himself, for much the same purpose as these battered warriors.
He cleared his throat and stepped forward.
"Ahem. Let me interrogate them."
"Understood."
That day, the warriors under Ma Clan Lord endured torments unlike anything in their lives.
It was all the more maddening because it wasn't their doing.
But did they know?
Their suffering was laughable compared to what Taekyeong County's people had endured.
Swinging swords at a mere glance, robbing goods, raping on whims.
Despite interrogating the warriors, Sa Gu gleaned nothing new and thoroughly searched the theft site.
But he found neither the chest nor a single coin.
Swallowing his regret, he had no choice but to give up.
He couldn't linger for days investigating.
A bit tired?
Sa Gu rubbed his nape.
Well, I searched the area all last night.
The unit members were just as weary. Still, transporting ten thousand nyang in gold was straightforward.
Most bandits or brigands wouldn't touch a cart flying the Martial Alliance flag.
And this was Henan, the Alliance's home turf.
So this job was practically a pleasure trip.
Far from tense, they joked crudely, straying from the path at will.
It was inevitable, given the White Thunder Unit's nature.
A dumping ground for ne'er-do-well sons of loyal Alliance clans, existing for face-saving.
Of course, their martial skills weren't lacking.
They wouldn't be in an Alliance unit otherwise.
"Hm..."
Sa Gu, who had recently reached the Peak realm, looked down at his left chest and rubbed it.
For some reason, it throbbed today.
It hasn't hurt since then?
Long ago, as a unit member on mission, a child had targeted his heart.
The kid wielded a crude stone knife.
Had it been a properly forged iron blade, he'd be dead.
And that child had fled.
Why'd that little shit try to kill me back then?
Sa Gu remembered nothing of what he'd done.
Then a nearby Alliance man spoke.
"We should find a campsite soon."
"Yes."
I gazed at the campfire.
Ten... no, eleven including the Alliance man sent for the contract.
Turning my head, I saw Jin Yu Warrior with eyes closed.
At Seo-u Warrior's request.
"But if Jin Yu Warrior doesn't heed my advice, I can't agree to him taking the lead."
"What is it?"
"Master your mind. Treat this not as personal revenge, but as one of my lord's orders."
"Pardon?"
"Blind revenge blinds you to what you must see. Failing to spot a blade aimed at my lord? Unacceptable. If harm comes to my lord because of you, I'll cut you down."
At his firm tone, Jin Yu Warrior nodded readily.
"......You're right, Seo-u Warrior. I can't endanger my lord, who gave me this chance."
"Stay vigilant to the end. You can celebrate after it's done."
"Understood. Thank you for the advice. You've helped me see what's important."
Since then, he'd kept his eyes closed.
Among my guards, Seo-u Warrior was a steadfast pillar.
Perhaps lying bedridden so long, fighting his own battles, had forged him unbreakable.
His words enlightened me too.
Yes—focus on steadily building the Eunhae Merchant Group into the world's greatest, without drowning in revenge. Vengeance against Baekcheon Merchant Group and the Martial Alliance would follow naturally.
Camping with that huge sum, boozing no less... what a bunch.
Convenient for us, though.
Soon, they began dozing off one by one.
I donned my mask and sent a sound transmission to the two.
— Let's go.