This Puts Me in a Difficult Spot (3)
The trigger had been the Prefect of Guiju Castle visiting the palace offices to oversee the construction of a new building there.
"My lord, why the grim expression?"
"It's nothing much... I need to procure some items, and I'm looking for a capable merchant group. Know of any good ones?"
"What sort of items, if I may ask?"
"Eyes. I need some eyes."
"Eyes? In this summer heat?"
"Hahaha. A bit out of left field, eh? Pretend you didn't hear that."
"Ah, would it be all right if I made a recommendation?"
"What do you mean?"
"I know a capable merchant group that could handle even that."
"Where? Which one?"
"They just opened a new branch in Beijing. The Eunhae Merchant Group. You wouldn't believe how insolent... er, how capable their branch manager is. Hahaha."
Upon hearing this, the Prefect of Guiju Castle had gone straight to the Eunhae Merchant Group and placed the commission.
But the real madness was that Eun Seo-ho, the branch manager of the Eunhae Merchant Group, had actually delivered the eyes.
If those eyes made it safely to Guiju Castle, he'd have no face left to show at the salt farms.
Then, by chance, he'd overheard a conversation.
"Hey, did you hear? There's a treasure in that box."
"A treasure?"
"Yeah. Some ornament that spreads a chill around it to keep the eyes from melting."
Those words from the men who'd gone with the Prefect to the Eunhae Merchant Group's Beihai branch sparked a forbidden thought in Pyeongtak's mind.
Steal that treasure.
Without it, the eyes would melt away in an instant under the summer sun.
'Blame their negligence, cancel the commission, and recommend the Oseong Merchant Group instead. Heh heh heh.'
With that in mind, Pyeongtak slipped out onto the deck and scanned his surroundings.
Fortunately, no one was around.
'Well, it's the ugly hour right now—between one and three in the morning.'
The boat was gliding along calm waters, so the crew weren't paying much attention.
He entered the cabin where the cargo was stored. Luckily, no one was guarding it.
And why would they? Everyone aboard was part of the Prefect's entourage.
No worry of theft, so no guards.
Inside the cabin sat the box containing the eyes.
He carefully pried it open.
Creak—
The sound was louder than expected, making him flinch.
Cold sweat beaded on his brow as he glanced around, but he sensed no presence.
'Phew...'
Letting out a sigh of relief, he fully opened the box and spotted the ornament dangling from the inner lid.
'That's it!'
He reached out and snatched it.
He considered splashing water inside to melt the eyes while he was at it, but thought better of it.
The small inner box had a bell attached—touching it would make noise.
'Overly thorough, aren't they.'
Without the treasure, the eyes would melt anyway.
He tucked the ornament into his sleeve, closed the box, and slipped out of the cabin. He was about to hurl it into the river when he paused.
'Too valuable to toss. Yeah, I'll put it to good use myself.'
An item that emanated chill—perfect for these sweltering days!
Especially in summer in Guiju Castle, where the heat was insane.
Pyeongtak returned to his spot, hoping his crime would stay buried in the deep darkness.
* * *
I woke to find it still dawn.
I quickly ran through a brief session of qi circulation and breath regulation.
Ever since reaching the Super First-rate realm, it took even less time—over in a flash now.
But I couldn't skip physical training.
My master always said that as your realm advanced, your physical strength had to keep pace.
Otherwise, imbalance between inner energy and body would cause problems eventually.
I agreed.
Thanks to his teachings, I'd never suffered any backlash from such a mismatch.
That's when Jin Yu Warrior entered.
"Did you sleep well, sir?"
"Yeah. Nice morning."
"I have something to report. One of the Prefect's aides took that ornament last night."
He might've thought no one was around the eye box, but did he really think I'd leave it unguarded?
As if.
I'd pulled the obvious guards and quietly asked Jin Yu Warrior to watch it.
During the day, I'd heightened my senses to guard it myself.
Posting obvious guards would've sparked complaints like, "Don't you trust us?"
Now I had a perfect excuse to guard it openly.
The culprit was one of the Prefect's aides?
"Whoa, never saw that coming."
Why would he do it?
We hadn't done anything to earn his grudge. Risking it all just to screw us over?
No matter how I turned it over, there was only one reason for such boldness.
He'd been bought off.
Probably by one of Guiju Castle's local merchant groups.
The commission had come our way only because of the palace officials. Otherwise, he'd have gone with a local group, like in my past life.
The answer was obvious.
Frame us for negligence, cancel the deal, and snag it for themselves.
But they underestimated me.
I grinned, and Palgap flinched beside me.
"Wh-why're you grinning like that? It's scary, sir."
"Like what?"
"...Never mind."
I rose from the bed.
"Shall we catch the thief?"
"If he tossed it in the river, there's no evidence, right?"
Palgap worried, but I saw it differently.
"He didn't toss it. He thinks it's a priceless treasure."
If he'd ditched it without hesitation, I'd respect that. Might even want to recruit him.
"Alright, let's go."
"Yes, sir."
As I stepped out, Seo-u Warrior and Myeongjong Warrior—on guard duty—followed.
We headed to the cargo cabin, opened the box. Sure enough, the ornament was gone.
I took a deep breath and let out a bellow.
"Arrrghhh!"
People rushed in one by one.
"Sounded like it came from here."
"What happened?"
"Huh? Branch Manager? You okay?"
As they crowded in, I feigned panic.
"Big trouble! The ornament! The ornament's gone!"
"The what?"
"The one that spreads chill—the ornament!"
Word reached the Prefect immediately, and he came sprinting, pale-faced.
"What do you mean? The chill-emitting treasure is gone?"
"Truth is, I had a restless night. Woke at dawn to check the eyes, just in case... and the treasure was missing."
I put on a gloomy face.
"I trusted everyone aboard, so I didn't post guards... and this happens."
I struck first, before they could blame my negligence.
"Too careless. You should've had guards!"
Someone scolded, and I smirked inwardly.
Just as I'd predicted.
"Who was it that complained 'don't you trust us?' when I mentioned guards?"
Who else? You, the one asking now.
"Ahem... ahem..."
He shrank back, embarrassed.
Then someone piped up.
"Maybe river pirates snuck in last night."
"Impossible. The Yangtze here has hardly any pirates."
"Still..."
"Plus, if pirates boarded, they'd grab valuables or attack someone. They wouldn't slip in here just to open a plain-looking box."
The pirate theorist flushed and coughed awkwardly, turning away.
The Prefect looked troubled.
"Either way, my apologies. I'm sorry."
"No need, my lord. This isn't for you to apologize."
"Thank you."
The Prefect sighed, then realized something and shouted.
"Wait—the treasure's gone, so the eyes are melting?"
"They're fine for now."
"Huh?"
He blinked at me.
"Fine? What do you mean?"
"Prepare for the worst. I had backups besides the ornament, so they won't melt right away. But without it, we can't transport them in perfect condition."
"Lucky break, then. But we still need to find it."
"Exactly."
I clasped my hands in a fist salute.
"Forgive my impertinence, but since only the treasure was taken, there are two possibilities. One: targeted theft of the item. Two: sabotage to melt the eyes."
I continued.
"Either way, someone trying to harm you, my lord. We must find the culprit."
"Of course. How desperate I am for these eyes—and they dare!"
The Prefect clenched his fists in fury.
"May we search for the treasure?"
"Granted."
"Thank you."
"Everyone, gather on deck. We'll search your belongings now."
They all assembled on deck. I had my guards watch them.
The Prefect and I began searching luggage.
Or pretending to.
I knew where the ornament was.
During the search,
"Whoa!"
I deliberately tripped.
"You okay?"
"Fine."
"Watch your step."
"Sorry. Felt like my foot caught on something."
Palgap chimed in perfectly.
"Smooth floor—what'd you catch it on, sir?"
Inspecting the floor, he tilted his head.
"Huh? This board's a bit loose."
The cabin floor was long planks fitted together.
The one Palgap pointed to was slightly raised.
Barely noticeable, easy to overlook.
Then Palgap's eyes widened.
"Wait—frost here?"
"Frost?"
I yanked up the board and found the ornament inside.
"What the—!"
"Why's the ornament here?"
"Looks like someone hid it. Who uses this cabin?"
Moments later, ten men entered. The cabin's occupants.
Not soldiers—men with their own roles.
The Prefect stepped forward as they gathered.
"The treasure was found here. And since no one else has access, one of you did it."
He pressed them.
"Who? Confess now, and we'll consider leniency!"
"..."
Silence.
Of course.
No one confesses that easily.
The Prefect wasn't great at interrogations.
I knew the culprit, but that wasn't enough. I needed to convince everyone.
I'd expected it hidden elsewhere.
No fool would leave it in their luggage.
But on a boat, options were limited to personal cabins.
Shared ones had fewer people and busier occupants—gaps to exploit.
The ornament narrowed suspects with a plausible reason.
I had irrefutable evidence.
"My lord, may I say something?"
He nodded, and I stepped forward.
"This treasure emits chill. Meaning it holds intense cold. Fine for a quick touch, but prolonged contact causes frostbite."
I went on.
"Think about it. They open the outer box, grab the treasure. It's freezing. Can't close the box holding it. If seen, trouble. Can't set it down either. So what next?"
"..."
"Roll up your sleeves. All of you."
They did. I inspected.
"You folks from hot lands might not know, but your fabrics come from plants."
Some plants have tough bark, woven into cloth for clothes.
Guiju's hot, humid climate demands breathable garb to avoid skin ailments.
"Key trait: extreme cold discolors and damages the fabric."
I smiled.
"You've probably never exposed these clothes to such cold, so naturally you wouldn't know."
"..."
"Answer to my question: they slipped it into their sleeve."
Wide sleeves for ventilation.
"Damaged the fabric."
I grabbed one man's wrist.
"Like this."
The sleeve was discolored.
Gotcha. Culprit.