Heir (4)
I sent Changwoon Warrior to inform Jin Yeong Daehyeop of the situation.
In the meantime, Palgap treated Namgung I-in's wounds using Golden Spirit Saliva.
The effect was remarkable; not a trace of injury remained on Namgung I-in.
Palgap redressed him in the clothes we'd removed, laid him on the bed, and meticulously wiped away every bloodstain.
Blood Fragrance opened the doors for ventilation and masked the lingering odors with incense from the burner.
It was incense Ha Hwa's squad had brought—perfect for this, as it excelled at neutralizing smells.
But we left the shoulder wound untreated.
That injury was essential to lend credibility to the story that he'd ambushed me and I'd fought back in self-defense.
A short while later.
Thud thud thud thud!
The sound of a group rushing over echoed through. Then—
Bang!
The door to the annex flew open as Jin Yeong Daehyeop burst in, shouting urgently.
"Young Master Eun Seo-ho!"
"Yes, I'm right here."
He rushed to my side, scanning me from head to toe.
"Are you all right? Any injuries?"
"Do you really think a mere second-rate assassin's scratch could touch me?"
"True enough."
Jin Yeong Daehyeop let out a relieved sigh, patting his chest.
"I heard the assassin who killed Poet Na Jeong-su came after you."
"That's correct."
I gestured toward the bed.
"I knocked him out and left him there."
Jin Yeong Daehyeop glanced over and whistled in admiration.
"You're too kind. If it were me, I'd have tied him up and hung him upside down from the rafters."
I just smiled without a word.
In truth, I'd done far worse.
Jin Yeong Daehyeop turned to his subordinate.
"Take him to headquarters!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Oh, and bind his limbs just in case—he might try something desperate."
Especially since we'd fixed his shattered wrists completely.
Jin Yeong Daehyeop nodded at my suggestion.
"Good call. We'll do that."
"And please inform His Majesty the Emperor. I'm sure he'll be quite pleased."
Namgung I-in awoke to the sensation of his body jolting around.
Clank.
The unnatural rattle in his ears, the uncomfortable position, the dank stench—they all told him exactly where he was.
The prison.
"Gah!"
Memories flooded back in an instant.
He'd ambushed the annex at Chunmeng Pavilion to silence Eun Seo-ho, only to realize it was a trap.
Desperate to take his own life, he'd been stopped and knocked out...
When he came to, Eun Seo-ho's handsome face loomed over him, wearing a chilling smile.
"I have some questions. Mind cooperating?"
His broken wrists had been mere child's play.
What followed—interrogation disguised as torture—probed his most sensitive secrets.
"There must be more."
"No more! There isn't!"
"I don't think so..."
At Eun Seo-ho's glance, the guard twisted the sword embedded in his thigh.
"Gaaahhh!"
How did he know? There was no resisting; he had to spill everything.
He passed out from the agony, only to wake and repeat the cycle countless times.
He swore revenge over and over.
He wouldn't let this slide, even if his actions had shamed the Namgung family.
He was still one of them.
The Namgung family should interrogate him—not some lowly merchant.
How dare a filthy merchant lay hands on me?
Separate from his own punishment, he'd report this to Elder Namgung Geonji and ensure Eun Seo-ho paid dearly.
But something felt off.
Why doesn't it hurt?
The pain had been so excruciating he'd blacked out repeatedly, yet now... nothing.
Except the throbbing from where he'd been struck during his failed ambush.
Examining his body, his eyes widened in shock.
This can't be! Impossible!
Not a single mark of torture remained.
Without evidence, he couldn't even claim he'd been tortured before Elder Namgung Geonji.
Footsteps approached as he reeled in horror.
Elder Namgung Geonji and Young Master Namgung Yang appeared before him.
And behind them—Eun Seo-ho, smiling smugly.
Namgung I-in bit his lip at that grin.
I observed Namgung I-in in his cell.
The moment he saw me, his eyes bulged and his body trembled—clear signs of a fiery temper.
But what could he do?
He'd meant to screw me over, only to eat his own trap.
"Namgung I-in!"
Elder Namgung Geonji bellowed at him.
"How dare you commit such an atrocity!"
"......"
He strode forward and slapped him hard across the face.
Crack!
"Do you have any idea how much trouble your idiotic stunt has caused the main family?"
The elder's hand shook with rage.
And understandably so—we'd met with Jin Yeong Daehyeop before coming here.
He'd relayed the Emperor's will to Elder Namgung Geonji.
"A member of the Namgung family brutally murdered a participant in the imperial Poetry Contest inside Beijing's inner citadel. Does the Namgung family intend to defy the throne?"
"N-no, absolutely not! We harbor no such thoughts."
"Is that so?"
Under that grilling, Elder Namgung Geonji prostrated himself.
"It's the truth. This was that man's personal failing—not the Namgung family's!"
Even the lofty elder knew when to grovel.
The Emperor's words implied treasonous intent.
No matter their prestige in the martial world, defying the throne meant annihilation.
With the Gold Guard mobilized, the Namgung family would vanish without a trace.
And rival sects itching to pounce? The end was predictable.
Until now, the throne had lacked pretext to pressure them.
But this? Ironclad justification.
"Then show His Majesty something to earn his trust."
"......"
The leverage we'd lost when Young Master Namgung Yang was cleared could now be deployed.
Humiliated yet unable to retaliate, the elder seethed.
And the culprit? Unbearable.
Thwack! Crack! Thud!
"Guh! Urk! Hack!"
"And I—I, Namgung Geonji—endured that humiliation! That disgrace!"
Whether from unresolved fury or his own aching hand, he grabbed a nearby whip and lashed Namgung I-in himself.
Whip! Whip!
"Hack! Hic!"
Gagged, Namgung I-in couldn't protest, taking the blows helplessly.
He shot me venomous glares now and then, but they meant nothing.
Why pull that stunt, then?
Still... if he died like this, it'd complicate things.
"Elder, please calm yourself. Namgung I-in Warrior is..."
"Warrior? Call him by name!"
"Yes... then."
I'd wanted to from the start, but permission matters.
"Namgung I-in is a key witness even at headquarters. We need him to identify the murder-for-hire client."
"Hoo..."
Elder Namgung Geonji suppressed his rage and demanded,
"So, who was it? Who hired you?"
"He's still gagged."
I held him off briefly and nodded to the guard.
The guard swiftly removed the gag.
"Who was it?"
"I-I'm not entirely sure... But seeing the hand and hearing the voice might jog my memory."
"We'll find them, no matter what!"
"Yes."
Of course.
They needed that culprit to prove—no matter how weakly—to the throne they harbored no rebellion.
It would soften concessions from the Namgung side.
Truth be told, the Emperor had planned to demand Young Master Namgung Yang stay out of the palace over the murder charge.
But clearing him forfeited that.
Now, with this suspect in hand, we could squeeze harder.
Naturally, the Emperor would be delighted.
Two days passed.
Even after the preliminary round, plenty of poets remained.
This was an empire-wide Poetry Contest, after all.
Elder Namgung Geonji had planned to return to Anhui if Young Master Namgung Yang failed prelims—but he couldn't.
Thanks to Namgung I-in.
But the beatings had damaged his eyesight.
Identifying the client by voice alone? No easy feat, even for a first-rate warrior's keen hearing.
Hoo...
Utterly useless.
Back at the Beijing branch office, handling paperwork, Poet Song Lok visited.
"You've arrived."
"Yes."
"Have a seat."
I handed the seated Song Lok a sheet of paper.
"Five suspects, then."
Indeed.
Five poets whose works matched the poem scrawled on the wall.
"Quite the coincidence."
"Tell me about it."
I sighed, gazing at the ceiling.
Still, narrowing from the masses to five? Progress.
Think positive.
Night fell.
Feeling stuffy, I turned to Seo Hyang Sojeo, still working late like me.
"Adjutant Kwak."
"Yes."
"How about a stroll in the rear garden to clear our heads?"
"Sounds good."
We walked the garden paths slowly.
Mid-March now; the breeze was cool, refreshing to me.
"You seem troubled."
"Yes. I am."
She smiled and recited a poem.
"Tomorrow's worries drift away,
Yet today's come floating in.
Tomorrow, and the next tomorrow,
Worries endlessly adrift.
Ah, this is life trapped in the mortal world."
I smiled.
"Yoon Ak's poem."
"Right. One I learned as a child."
She continued.
"It speaks to life's endless troubles. Makes you realize worries never end."
"Hahaha. Spot on."
"So forget them while we walk."
"Pardon?"
"Walking while fretting isn't a proper stroll."
I nodded agreeably.
"True. By the way, who taught you to read, Adjutant Kwak?"
"My brothers. They learned from a tutor our family hired."
Great clans like hers hired private tutors.
Mostly for sons; daughters learned from mothers or kin.
To avoid strange men.
Ah... wait.
A sudden realization.
All five lived in Anhui Province, fellow provincials.
The motive clicked too.
"Adjutant Kwak, sorry—stroll's over."
Back in my office, I dashed off a letter and gave it to Golden Spirit.
"Golden, this is for Father."
"Kui!"
"Hurry back with a reply."
Golden Spirit tied it to its tail and bolted.
I sent it to Father in Hubei, not our Beijing intel network—Hubei was closer to Anhui.
Days later.
I awoke at dawn to find Golden Spirit on my chest.
"Ah, you're back!"
I sat up, petted it, and untied the letter from its tail.
A smile crept across my face as I read.
Just as I thought.
That morning, I sent a letter to Jin Yeong Daehyeop.
Mid-morning duties, he arrived at the branch.
"His Majesty summons you."
"Daehyeop, I have urgent news first."
I briefed him fully. He needed to know before the Emperor.
His shock was evident.
"So that's why you requested an audience."
"Yes."
"Thanks for the heads-up. Let's go."
"Yes."
I followed him to the palace.
After utmost courtesy, the Emperor bade me rise.
"Your graciousness humbles me."
"Out with it—what brings you?"
"I have details on the murder case. And I beg mercy for the culprits."
The Emperor pondered, then replied.
"If you ask, there must be cause. Speak—I'll consider leniency."
I clasped my hands and bowed.
"As you command. Allow me to explain this affair."