Little Palace Lord (3)
My words made his eyes tremble.
"Ah, fine. How much is all this?"
"W-Well, you see..."
Your mouth's parched and your throat's burning, right?
Of course it is.
Everything you've siphoned off so diligently is about to be snatched away in an instant.
"Let's see... Wow, there's even spirit pills? These are extremely expensive ones."
"......"
As my words continued, the faces around me grew darker.
They'd noticed Escort Leader Jeon Il's expression turning paler by the second.
Hmm, time to stop teasing. He might faint at this rate.
"Anyway, looks like we struck gold."
I handed the ledger to the Seo-u Warrior.
"Track down everything listed here and bring it to my office."
"Understood."
As the Seo-u Warrior and the other guards prepared to go retrieve the items,
"I-I'm going to kill you!"
Escort Leader Jeon Il lost his reason, drew his sword, and charged at me.
Ching!
But his blade was blocked by someone else's sword.
"Huh?"
It was my master.
"Escort Leader Jeon."
He flinched at my master's voice, infused with true energy.
"Tell the truth. Whose ledger is this?"
"......"
"Escort Leader Jeon!"
At my master's stern shout, Jeon Il flinched again and staggered back.
"W-Well..."
Unlike before, he was hesitating.
That alone made the situation crystal clear.
"I... well... I..."
"Jeon Il!"
My master's second shout rang out.
Thud.
Unable to withstand my master's aura, Escort Leader Jeon Il collapsed to his knees right there.
Even I felt a chill; there was no way he could endure it.
"Please, just say it's not true."
Jeon Il looked around.
Some had their eyes gently closed, others averted their gazes with deep sighs.
Realizing it was over, he bowed his head and replied.
"I'm sorry."
At that answer, my master squeezed his eyes shut.
The expression conveyed betrayal and pain.
It had been revealed that someone who'd been running toward the goal of rebuilding Seolpung Palace together had harbored treacherous thoughts all along.
How could he not be hurt?
I'd exposed this now, knowing my master would be wounded, because the damage later would be far greater.
And the pain even deeper.
"How long?"
"About... ten years."
"Since you became escort leader, then."
"......"
"The reason... Hoo."
My master took a ragged breath, rubbed his dry face, and asked him.
"What's the reason?"
"Well... you see..."
"What's the reason? Speak!"
Deep fury seeped from every word of my master's voice.
"No hope... I thought there was no hope. No hope of rebuilding Seolpung Palace."
"......"
My master gritted his teeth.
How could he not know that?
Yet it was his position to walk the thorny path of rebuilding Seolpung Palace regardless.
Before long, the atmosphere had turned as somber as a funeral home.
Filled with grief and misery.
Not just my master—any disciple of Seolpung Palace had pondered this.
A goal everyone knew was difficult.
But they'd been encouraging each other to press on, only for this Jeon Il to douse them with cold water.
I don't like this mood.
"No hope?"
All eyes turned to me at my words.
Step, step.
I walked toward Escort Leader Jeon Il and said,
"Who decided that?"
"It's reality!"
"Reality... How ridiculous."
I let out a scoff.
"Of course reality is bleak. So what? Who are you to decide Seolpung Palace's future?"
"......"
"The future isn't set in stone."
That's right—the future isn't fixed.
If it were, the end of the path I'm walking now would be the same pathetic death as in my previous life.
This life's future will differ from my last.
I clenched my fist.
This was a vow to myself as well.
"The future can change as much as we make it."
Saving Lady Hong Geum-so this time had reaffirmed that once more.
"And if you!"
I snatched the ledger from the Seo-u Warrior beside me and continued.
"Hadn't embezzled this massive sum, Seolpung Palace would be in a far better state now! Your selfishness! Your greed! Your arrogance in declaring no hope! That's what has eaten away at Seolpung Palace's future!"
I turned to look at everyone.
"Do you all think Seolpung Palace has no future?"
Not just the disciples, but the escort leaders too—no one could speak.
I stated firmly.
"If you think that, it will be so. But if you believe Seolpung Palace will prosper in the future, then it will."
I continued.
"Which side are you on?"
"......"
"I'm betting everything on Seolpung Palace having hope."
"Why?"
Escort Leader Ha Cheol asked me.
"Why do you think that?"
"Obviously."
I pointed my thumb at myself.
"Because I'm the Little Palace Lord. You think I'd let the place where I'm Little Palace Lord fall to ruin?"
"Hahaha!"
Escort Leader Ha Cheol burst into laughter.
"Indeed, now I see why my daughter spoke of you that way."
Huh? What exactly did my second sister-in-law say...?
Bam!
Ha Cheol bowed deeply to me.
"Seolpung Palace's Protector Ha Cheol pays respects to the Little Palace Lord."
The head of Changin Escort Agency followed suit.
"Protector Yu-seong pays respects to the Little Palace Lord."
So the Agency Head's name was Yu-seong.
Whether their actions sparked it or not, the others bowed to me one by one.
Confirming everyone had paid their respects, I turned to my master.
Clap!
I cupped my hands in salute to him.
"Disciple Eun Seo-ho awaits Master's words."
My master nodded.
"I, Palace Lord of Seolpung Palace Gwak Myeong-hyeon, hereby appoint disciple Eun Seo-ho as Little Palace Lord!"
I grinned.
Thus, I officially became Seolpung Palace's Little Palace Lord.
All that remained was dealing with Escort Leader Jeon Il.
My master approached him.
Pa-ba-bak!
He struck with his palm.
"Gah!"
Jeon Il vomited blood.
"I've crippled your martial arts. Seolpung Palace's techniques aren't for the likes of you."
There wasn't a shred of warmth in my master's eyes as he spoke.
"Lock him in the prison cell. We'll decide his punishment later."
"Yes!"
In an instant, he'd lost his martial arts and all his inner energy, reduced to a pathetic shell.
The other warriors dragged him away.
I offered the ledger to my master.
"Here you are, Master. This belongs to Seolpung Palace."
My master took it, pondered briefly, then asked me.
"But how did you get your hands on this?"
"Ah, well..."
I grinned sheepishly.
"It's a secret."
I hope Master doesn't grab his neck looking at what's in there.
Jeon Il really skimmed off a ton.
"Ugh!"
A short while later,
In the Agency Head's office, Gwak Myeong-hyeon examined the ledger Eun Seo-ho had presented and unwittingly clutched his neck.
The scale of the embezzlement was enormous.
"Heh heh. Heh heh heh, heh heh heh heh."
The Agency Head let out empty laughs, at a loss for words.
"Hoo, if it weren't for the young branch head—no, Little Palace Lord—we'd have suffered tremendous losses."
"It's a blessing we uncovered it now."
Ha Cheol spoke next, followed by the Agency Head.
"That said, what a talent. How did the Little Palace Lord know when even we were completely in the dark?"
Gwak Myeong-hyeon answered the question.
"Being on the inside probably clouded their eyes. And though he's my disciple, the Little Palace Lord's insight is exceptional."
A faint smile played on Gwak Myeong-hyeon's lips as he spoke.
Seeing it, the Agency Head and Ha Cheol looked amazed.
Since Seolpung Palace's destruction, smiles had been rare on Gwak Myeong-hyeon's face.
The burden of leading and rebuilding it as Palace Lord had stolen his leisure and joy.
The two, who remembered his childhood, felt a pang of sorrow.
Yet lately, smiles had begun appearing on his face bit by bit.
They had a good idea who to thank for it.
And so they were deeply grateful to Eun Seo-ho.
"What will you do with Escort Leader Jeon?"
At the Agency Head's question, Gwak Myeong-hyeon sighed.
"I can't just cast him out. With the culprits behind Seolpung Palace's fall still unknown, expelling him would create a liability."
"Agreed. We still need to keep our identities hidden, so that's not an option."
"Then there's only one conclusion."
Gwak Myeong-hyeon rubbed his face dryly and stood.
"I'll end it with my own hands. I can't stain my comrades with a fellow's blood."
Spending time at Changin Escort Agency, evening had arrived before I knew it.
Various people had sought me out, and chatting with them had made the hours fly.
Having eaten dinner, it was time to head home.
As I walked, thinking that, a strange feeling made me look up.
I met eyes with a familiar figure sitting on the roof.
It was my master.
I considered pretending not to see and passing by, but his expression looked downcast.
Sigh.
I told Palgap and the guards to wait, then leaped up to the roof.
"Why are you here?"
"Ah, Little Palace Lord."
"Little Palace Lord is Little Palace Lord—why add the honorific?"
"It's still awkward."
I sat beside him.
"Do as you like. Whether you add the honorific or not, it doesn't change that I'm your disciple and the Little Palace Lord."
"True."
My master replied and took a swig from his bottle.
"No way—that's alcohol?"
The alcohol ban hadn't been lifted yet...
"Honey water."
Ah, right—Master often carried honey water in a liquor bottle and drank it.
The stuff he'd given me before was honey water too.
"Do you know why I drink honey water instead of alcohol?"
Not expecting an answer, I listened quietly.
"The day Seolpung Palace fell, I drank to celebrate finishing a mission. That delayed my return."
"......"
"If I hadn't drunk, if I'd arrived just a day earlier... Seolpung Palace wouldn't have been destroyed. At least we'd know who the enemy was."
My master held up the bottle.
"I vowed then: no alcohol until Seolpung Palace is rebuilt. This honey water symbolizes that vow."
"......"
I listened silently to his words.
"But it turns out there's a benefit to drinking it. It lifts the mood when you're feeling down."
With that, my master let out a deep sigh.
"Hoo, Little Palace Lord."
"Yes."
"Today, I beheaded Escort Leader Jeon Il."
I bit my lip.
I'd suspected as much. A faint metallic blood scent clung to my master.
"I gave him a dagger and told him to end it himself. But he... clung to me. Begged for forgiveness, for one more chance. But he was a risk. For the others' safety... I had no choice but to strike."
My master looked at me.
"This is what a Palace Lord must do. Can you bear it, Little Palace Lord?"
"I..."
But before I could finish, my master continued.
"Truth be told, I hoped you wouldn't become Little Palace Lord. I didn't want you walking this thorny path."
His feelings toward me came through.
He cherished me like his own sons.
"But things turned out this way."
I sighed.
Master...
What if the honey water gets you drunk?
Of course, what made him so emotional now... was today's events.
Not the honey water.
"Hoo... I've said too much. Go on now."
My master's face had returned to its usual impassive state.
What a resolute man.
"And thank you for today. In many ways."
"No need to mention it."
I descended from the roof and said to Palgap and the guards,
"Let's go."
"Yes."
Then my master called from the roof.
"Ah, I almost forgot to give you this."
He tossed something to me, and I caught it.
"This is..."
"The Little Palace Lord's token."
Holding it made it real—I was truly the Little Palace Lord now.
"Thank you. I'll be off then."
I tucked the token away and resumed walking.
From behind, my master's voice rang out.
"Tomorrow at dawn, I'll teach you a new sword technique. Prepare yourself."
"Pardon?"
I turned instinctively.
"Tomorrow will be tougher than today."
Wait, Master.
If it's tougher than today... I might actually die?
For a moment, I wanted to return the Little Palace Lord's token.