Sacred Relic (6)
At that moment.
Haechul was in his office.
He'd only set it up to mimic the other clan heads who had their own, but in truth, he hardly ever used the place.
He left most matters to his steward anyway.
His days were spent eating when he felt like it, playing when the mood struck, indulging in idle pleasures.
The reason he'd come to his office now was the box sitting on his desk.
Inside it lay something close to pitch black.
'So this is a spirit elixir?'
He'd handed it over as requested by the man who'd approached him promising to settle his debt.
But they surely had no idea how much elixir was actually there.
It wasn't neatly formed pills—just a lump.
Spirit elixirs were priceless.
Greed took hold, and he'd siphoned off half. The man who'd come to him accepted it without a second thought.
"Hmm..."
He considered selling it to raise funds, but quickly dismissed the idea.
If he got caught peddling it, the Shaolin Temple's pursuit would be the end of him.
Besides, if those who'd approached him found out, they'd demand the money back.
'What to do with this...?'
Come to think of it, the man who'd given it to him had said something.
Eat it, and even a martial artist would gain a decade's worth of inner power; even those ignorant of martial arts would awaken to it.
Living near Shaolin, he often saw their warrior monks or passing martial artists.
He'd envied them soaring through the skies or outrunning horses.
Of course, he knew those abilities came not from nothing, but grueling, bone-shattering training.
Still, he wanted to wield martial prowess without that ordeal.
'Right—it grants inner power!'
He'd heard enough tales to know inner power was prerequisite for martial arts.
In the end, he steeled himself.
'Yeah! I'll eat it myself!'
With that resolve, he ordered his servant to bar all entry, then secretly began consuming it.
Spirit elixirs demanded great care when ingested, but his mind brimmed with greed—no such caution crossed it.
'Why does it taste so weird?'
The flavor was odd, but he chalked it up to the elixir's nature.
Had he but asked a bodyguard if it was genuine, he might not have touched it.
The monk Jong-o from Jigakdang asked me to wait just a bit longer.
I readily agreed.
I had no clue what was causing the delay, but I wasn't in any rush.
Staying longer here suited me fine.
We'd dealt with the unorthodox fiends targeting Grandmaster Heulgonsungseung's sacred relic, but that didn't resolve everything.
And we still needed to settle things with Haechul, Jisang Monk's uncle.
One stone, two birds.
I planned to handle Haechul while ensuring those scum couldn't touch the grandmaster's relic.
Two days passed, then three.
But the ones promising thirty thousand nyang showed no sign.
As the debt deadline loomed, Haechul started to panic.
"Damn it! Damn it! Why haven't they shown up yet?"
Then his servant approached.
"S-Sir, a guest has arrived."
"A guest? Who?"
"He said you'd know him as the one with the thirty thousand nyang."
"...!"
He shot to his feet.
"Bring him in at once!"
"Yes, sir."
He hurried to the reception room. After a short wait, a man entered.
But it wasn't the previous visitor.
"Are you Clan Head Hae?"
"Y-Yes, that's me. But where's that Yeon Daehyeop...?"
"Ah, he's dead."
"What?"
"He botched the job. Failed to notice half the elixir from Grandmaster Heulgonsungseung's relic was missing."
"..."
"So I came instead. Looks like you swallowed that half."
Haechul's eyes trembled under the man's calm gaze.
'They noticed I skimmed the elixir!'
By his words, the man who'd approached him was dead because of Haechul—but no remorse stirred in him.
'Idiot got caught acting dumb! Damn it! If you're gonna die, do it alone—why drag me in?'
The mysterious man in black robes and bamboo hat spoke coldly.
"That face confirms my suspicions."
"Th-That is..."
"You broke faith first. But we're merciful. One more chance: bring the elixir. Squander it, and your head rolls."
Thirty thousand nyang was no longer the issue.
His life hung in the balance.
'Wait—I've eaten the elixir. Doesn't that mean I can use martial arts now?'
Then he could turn the tables and subdue the man before him!
With that thought, he drew an ornate dagger and lunged.
"Raaah!"
Thwack!
But his dream was too bold.
The dagger never reached—the bamboo-hatted man kicked him mid-stride.
Bam!
"Guhk!"
His gut took the hit, slamming him into the wall. The impact made him spew blood.
"Clan Head!"
The bodyguard at the door rushed in at the noise but was flung out sword undrawn.
The bamboo-hatted man dragged Haechul over, dumped him on the floor, and pressed a foot to his head.
"Got some nerve."
"P-Please spare me! I must've lost my mind for a moment."
"I see the situation now. Quite the sudden confidence—ah, you've eaten the elixir, haven't you?"
"..."
"Fool. It takes at least a month for the effects to manifest. This is a problem..."
He continued.
"Shall I gut you and extract it? That elixir lingers undigested in the gut for a month, slowly absorbing into the body."
Haechul's face drained to blue.
"P-Please, spare me! I'll do anything! Please!"
Terror had unhinged him.
"Fine, here's a deal. Gutting you for it is a hassle too. Substitute it with an equivalent elixir."
"Equivalent?"
"Golden Ginseng or Nine-Leafed Purple Ginseng... that sort. Elixirs granting a full decade's power aren't common."
"..."
"You have two days. Bring one, and you're spared. Fail, and I'll carve it out."
"Y-Yes! Understood!"
Haechul nodded frantically.
His mind raced: Send this guy packing and flee!
Then the bamboo-hatted man drew a pill from his sleeve, seized Haechul's collar, forced it into his mouth, and pressed a spot on his throat.
Gulp!
It went down against his will.
"This is our organization's special tracking incense. Lets us find you anywhere."
"..."
"Think I'm lying? Try running. Next time, no kick—just a slice."
Thud.
He released his grip; Haechul crumpled limply.
"See you in two days."
I sent a sound transmission to Yeo Eung-am Warrior as he emerged from Haechul's residence.
"Well done."
Yeo Eung-am Warrior had performed beyond expectations. Voice modulation was one of his specialties, making him perfect for this.
"I'll check for tails. Wait at the rendezvous."
"Understood."
My group and I observed Haechul's residence. He'd gone pale, utterly dazed.
But oh well. This was just the beginning.
I tasked Jin Yu Warrior with surveilling Haechul, then headed to the rendezvous.
Yeo Eung-am Warrior had already shed his disguise and changed clothes.
"Wow, your acting is top-notch."
He chuckled at my words.
"Truth is, I was in a famous theater troupe back in my youth."
"A theater troupe?"
"Yes. My parents were wandering performers. Learned voice modulation from an uncle in the troupe as a kid. But they didn't want me in that life, so they handed me to a martial school."
"I see."
His talent must run in the family.
Truly chilling acting chops. The theater world missed out on a gem.
Suits me fine, though.
"Why demand an elixir, young master?"
Lee Pil Warrior beside me asked, and I gave a wry smile.
"Anything else would be useless to Jisang Monk."
Haechul needed to atone to Jisang Monk.
But would a man like that ever apologize sincerely? Unlikely.
A hollow apology would only deceive the victim.
So atonement demanded something tangible, fitting the crime.
But Jisang Monk was a Buddhist disciple.
He owned no property, living on modest monthly stipends from the temple.
He'd even scrimped from that to give to Haechul.
Damn...
Might as well carve out a flea’s liver.
To such a monk, land or money meant nothing. Even if I offered, he'd donate it.
Pointless.
Hence, the elixir.
One of the few things a warrior monk could truly possess: inner power.
Of course, guiding him after he consumed it was another matter for later.
For now, squeeze every last drop from Haechul.
"Young master, was that tracking pill real?"
"No. Just molded mud."
Horse dung, mud... might cause a stomachache, but it wouldn't kill him.
Honestly, he deserved worse for the heartbreak he'd inflicted.
.
.
.
Two days passed.
Jin Yu Warrior reported Haechul's tearful scramble for an elixir.
And he'd succeeded.
As promised, on the second day, Yeo Eung-am Warrior returned to Haechul's residence.
The estate looked far emptier now.
To procure the elixir, he'd sold everything sellable and dismissed most staff.
He'd given the suddenly jobless modest severance.
The diligent ones could scrape by till new work.
I slipped into the reception room through a roof gap.
"The promised item?"
"H-Here it is."
Haechul proffered the box deferentially.
Yeo Eung-am Warrior took it, set it on the table, and opened it.
A purple ginseng with nine leaves.
Nine-Leafed Purple Ginseng.
Unlike others, it grew between cliffs, sprouting one leaf per century.
At ten leaves, it vaporized, returning to nature.
Nine leaves marked peak potency.
One root granted a typical martial artist a decade's power.
"Is this real?"
"Seems genuine."
I examined the ginseng closely and replied to Yeo Eung-am Warrior's transmission.
The energy emanating from the Nine-Leafed Purple Ginseng was authentic.
Insanely expensive.
No wonder he'd liquidated everything and staff to get it.
"Mm, genuine."
Yeo Eung-am Warrior closed the box and stood.
"Th-Then the thirty thousand nyang...?"
"What nonsense?"
"Didn't you say you'd cover the debt?"
"I did. But after you skimmed half the elixir, that promise was void."
"What?"
"I said I'd spare your life if you returned the skimmed elixir or an equivalent—not pay thirty thousand nyang."
"..."
Now he remembered.
His face crumpled like the world had ended.
"Then I'll be off. Don't swindle others again. You won't last long. Haha."
"W-Wait, just a—"
He reached for Yeo Eung-am Warrior, but the warrior's lightness skill was swift.
Haechul grasped only air and face-planted.
"No... no..."
As he lay there in stunned despair, a group entered his estate.
Clad in green robes.
At the sight, all color fled Haechul's face.
"Are you Haechul, head of this estate?"
"..."
"No need to answer. We know your face."
They were the Green-Clothed Ghosts of Geumsan Treasury.
Seizers of assets from those who borrowed and defaulted.
.
.
.
That day, Geumsan Treasury's Green-Clothed Ghosts confiscated every asset Haechul had.
In a way, it was fitting retribution for squandering the wealth born of his sister's sacrifice.
Having emptied his emergency funds for the elixir, he was truly penniless now.
No fields left either—back to square one.
But Haechul would beg Jisang Monk for aid if left here.
So exile him far away.
"Palgap, look into Clan Head Hae's in-laws' location?"