Can You Check One Person For Me?

Once they stepped out of the cave, they found the surroundings dark.

It was only natural. They had been inside for over two hours.

The lantern they carried had gone out as well.

“It is late. You should rest.”

“Ah, no. I still have something to do.”

Gyo-ha scratched his head. Seeing him, the Sword Queen figured out what that unfinished business was.

Yeom Hong.

The branch master of the Beggars’ Union was still on the island.

“In that case.”

The Sword Queen dipped her head and departed without another word.

Gyo-ha watched her go, then turned his head. He had to find Yeom Hong before he left tomorrow.

The island might be small, but it wouldn’t be easy.

But his worry turned out to be needless.

Following the scent led him straight back to the Putuo Sect.

“Oh? You came?”

Yeom Hong was stirring together mixed grains and greens in a wooden bowl.

“…Didn’t you say you were leaving?”

“I came out, didn’t I?”

Yeom Hong jerked her chin at where she was standing.

Just as she said, she was outside the sect gate.

Her manner and speech were even more unrestrained than before.

“And a beggar is allowed to do a bit of begging, you know.”

She was not wrong. The mixed grains and greens in the bowl had clearly been brought by the Putuo Sect disciples.

Gyo-ha nodded and glanced to the side.

Someone unexpected was standing there.

“…Big Sis Nun, what are you doing here?”

At his question, Yeon-gyeong answered, looking embarrassed.

“I needed some advice.”

“Advice?”

Gyo-ha blinked, and Yeom Hong replied as if it were nothing.

“What else would you learn from a beggar but how to beg for food?”

It wasn’t an insult. She meant literally how to ask for food.

Gyo-ha was even more lost.

Then Yeon-gyeong spoke, her face flushed.

“…I have never gone on alms round before.”

She seemed ashamed that, despite being a nun, she had never gone out to receive alms.

Alms round.

It was when monks received food offerings.

It was different from begging.

It was a form of spiritual practice.

‘…No, maybe it’s similar?’

Gyo-ha tilted his head. Wasn’t it at least a little different?

Yeom Hong puffed out her chest and spoke.

“When it comes to getting fed, beggars are better at it than monks.”

Was that really something to be proud of?

It was questionable, but it was a skill in its own way.

Gyo-ha knew that well, having lived as a beggar himself.

“The problem is the bastards who pull dirty tricks while saying they will feed you.”

“Has that happened to you too, Lady Yeom Hong?”

“Plenty of times. I cut all of them.”

“Cut… where?”

At Yeon-gyeong’s question, Yeom Hong’s smile deepened.

Gyo-ha could guess where, but he did not say it out loud.

Yeom Hong pointed downward and sliced her hand through the air.

Yeon-gyeong’s face turned bright red.

“Isn’t that a bit too much?”

“Too much? You can actually still say that after what you went through?”

At her words, Yeon-gyeong’s eyes wavered.

“Do you know why there are so few women in the Beggars’ Union?”

Yeon-gyeong shook her head.

“Because female beggars do not live out their natural lives. Something happens to them before that.”

“…”

Yeon-gyeong’s face darkened.

“I had it better than most. I was not allowed to leave the Beggars’ Union headquarters until I reached second-rate. There were girls I knew from when I was little, but every last one was kidnapped or killed. One of them died at the hands of someone from our own side.”

Saying this, Yeom Hong frowned as if remembering something unpleasant.

“I should have cut it clean off back then, but he died too easily.”

She spoke of such terrible things in a perfectly calm tone.

When Yeon-gyeong clamped her mouth shut, Gyo-ha suddenly spoke up.

“Why couldn’t you leave the Beggars’ Union headquarters, beggar sis?”

“Because my dad is the big boss of the beggars.”

“Ah.”

The big boss of the beggars.

In other words, he was the leader of the Beggars’ Union.

Gyo-ha and Yeon-gyeong looked at her with new eyes.

“Well, when I was born, he was just one of the possible successors.”

Even that was an impressive position.

“I was a beggar from birth. Noble blood among beggars, you could say.”

Yeom Hong spoke proudly. She took pride in being a Beggars’ Union disciple.

“Still, it’s a pity. If we had come earlier, the Sword Queen might still be in her prime. Masters like her are hard to find.”

At her careless remark, Yeon-gyeong’s expression darkened.

Seeing that, Yeom Hong smacked her own mouth.

“Sorry, sorry. I’ve been going through too much crap lately, so things just slip out.”

“…No, it’s fine.”

Saying this, Yeon-gyeong snuck a glance at Gyo-ha and pressed her palms together.

“Then, I will take my leave. The two of you should talk.”

As she watched Yeon-gyeong walk away, Yeom Hong smacked herself on the head.

“This damn mouth of mine really is a problem. It’s too free.”

“…Then can’t you just fix it?”

If she knew it was a problem, she should be able to correct it.

It was a matter of effort.

But Yeom Hong shook her head.

“You go try living around old folks all the time. If I didn’t spit things out like this, I would’ve died of pent-up rage years ago.”

It was her own way of staying alive.

Gyo-ha didn’t quite get it, but he nodded.

Yeom Hong glanced around, then plopped herself down.

“Gyo-ha of the Kunlun Sect.”

“Yes.”

Her gaze turned serious, unlike before.

“The fact that you are here means the report from the Lanzhou branch was not just nonsense. It would be impossible even using army couriers.”

Gyo-ha did not know what report she was talking about, so he only listened.

“Although it didn’t travel as far as to the main headquarters, but you made a strange request from Lanzhou to the nearby branches. Something like… gather information related to monsters and spirits.”

Yeom Hong looked at him.

“And then the Murim Alliance and the Lanzhou branch both submitted an absurd report. Naturally, it was ignored. I, too, did the same.”

It was not the sort of report a mere branch master should have been able to see. But she was also the leader’s daughter.

Of course, no one believed it.

At least not until very recently.

“That fog. It is the same fog from the reports, is it not?”

Gyo-ha nodded, and Yeom Hong let out a sigh.

“It’s really hard to believe. Honestly, even now I can barely accept it.”

Gyo-ha looked at her.

If she did not want to believe it, she didn’t have to. There was no need for her to confirm it like this.

Under his gaze, Yeom Hong scratched her head irritably.

White flakes fell away with a soft rasp.

“…The report said you handled that sort of thing well.”

Her voice was weaker than before.

“If so, could you check one person for me?”

At her words, Gyo-ha frowned.

Could something non-human have appeared all the way here in Zhejiang Province?

But considering the fog, it would not be strange.

“…Is that person acting strangely? Drinking human blood, or tearing out hearts to eat.”

“Of course not!”

Yeom Hong shouted.

“Then, have people around them gone missing?”

“…No.”

Gyo-ha tilted his head. Then what was the problem?

Yeom Hong spoke to the puzzled Gyo-ha.

“It is the opposite. She hasn’t woken up from her sleep for over half a month.”

Yeom Hong calmly continued her explanation.

The one who could not wake was neither family, nor even a Beggars’ Union disciple.

A kindred spirit.

She was a friend in Soho, in Anhui.

Fortunately, it was not something that happened in Zhejiang.

This meant the monsters and spirits had not yet crossed into Zhejiang.

‘It might not even be related to this incident.’

It was too early to jump to conclusions.

There were too few clues.

“Then did your friend simply fall asleep? Is there anything that could have caused it?”

“…None that I could find.”

At her reply, Gyo-ha cocked his head.

“Do you mean you looked but couldn’t find it? Or…”

Gyo-ha swallowed the rest. She was a Beggars’ Union branch master.

If she wanted information, she could have gotten as much as she liked.

Yeom Hong let out a sigh.

“I couldn’t even try. I asked for some inquiries around her, but I cannot dig in too deeply.”

Under Gyo-ha’s gaze, she hesitated for a moment, then spoke.

“Ah-ryeong is… a famous art courtesan in Soho. Her stage name is Seol-mae.”

An art courtesan¹.

It meant a courtesan who sold her talents rather than her body.

But Gyo-ha could not see what that had to do with anything.

Yeom Hong told him why.

“…She also belongs to the Hao Gate.”

“Oh.”

A little exclamation slipped from Gyo-ha.

He knew the relationship between the Beggars’ Union and the Hao Gate.

The two of them being friends despite the distance was unexpected.

But before he could ask, Yeom Hong continued.

“I said it earlier, right. The girls I knew when I was young were all kidnapped or killed.”

“Yes.”

Gyo-ha nodded.

“Ah-ryeong was one of them. She was kidnapped, but by luck she was sold to the Hao Gate.”

It was a story you could easily imagine.

“Of course, she does not have great martial talent. If she did, she would have become a Beggars’ Union disciple long ago. It seems she not only has a pretty face, but also excellent musical talent.”

It was a talent the Beggars’ Union had no use for, but the Hao Gate did.

Gyo-ha could understand that much.

“We got back in touch a few years ago and have been writing ever since. Back then, Ah-ryeong didn’t even know I was a Beggars’ Union disciple. Now she does.”

This meant that she had not approached her to steal information from the Beggars’ Union.

“You mean it is hard to act freely because you are a member of the Beggars’ Union?”

She was no ordinary disciple. She was not just a branch master, but also the leader’s daughter.

It was not a position that allowed easy movement.

“That is one reason. But if it were just that, I would have gone already.”

What else was there?

“In the last letter before she fell asleep, Ah-ryeong wrote that an important guest was coming.”

So there was at least a clue. Gyo-ha focused on her words.

“I can guess who that guest was. Geum Pyo-sang. I don’t know if it’s a real name or an alias. All I know is this. He is one of the Hao Gate’s successor candidates.”

At her words, Gyo-ha’s eyes widened.

And he soon realized why Yeom Hong was asking him.

“…So it’s not because of a yokai.”

Gyo-ha only disliked studying. He was not stupid.

“If he is a successor candidate, that means the successor is not decided yet. And this sister, Ah-ryeong, might not be strong in martial arts, but she must have a good reputation in the branch.”

At his words, Yeom Hong’s brows quivered.

That gave Gyo-ha certainty.

“So she might have been dragged into the succession struggle.”

If so, there was no better card than Gyo-ha.

The Kunlun Sect had declared it would stand between orthodox and unorthodox.

The Kunlun Sect Leader had personally declared it.

The higher-ups of both the Murim Alliance and the Evil Heaven Alliance already knew.

And his ability had been proven enough.

“…That is right. But the chances are low. It is true that Ah-ryeong is well liked in the branch. She is known not just in the Hao Gate but throughout Soho.”

Gyo-ha folded his arms. Watching him, Yeom Hong went on.

“But she is not the type to support anyone. She wasn’t the sort who steps up to lead others. If she were, she would already be a branch chief.”

Someone on the level of a Hao Gate successor candidate would not fail to notice that.

“Then why did this Geum Pyo-sang come to see her?”

“…I don’t know. And it is not why I am asking you. Separate from the Beggars’ Union, I asked Elder Wind Physician to examine Ah-ryeong.”

“Wind Physician?”

Gyo-ha tilted his head, and Yeom Hong briefly explained.

“He is not one of the three great physicians, but he is a famous physician.”

“Ah…”

It meant she had moved a man of that level through personal ties.

It was only possible because she was the Union Leader’s daughter.

“He says Ah-ryeong’s condition is strange. When he checked on her, she had already been asleep for over a week, but she looked exactly the same. As if she had fallen asleep just yesterday. He suspected cold-based arts or poison, but there were no traces of poison or internal injuries.”

So it was not something caused by poison or martial arts.

One couldn’t live without eating. Humans did not hibernate like animals.

“It was not just Elder Wind Physician. The Hao Gate also found other physicians on their own.”

She was a useful person, so it was only natural for them to have taken measures.

“But I think they’ve given up now.”

Yeom Hong spoke bitterly.

Another week had passed since then, making it over half a month.

If she had outstanding martial talent, it would be different.

Her looks also fell short of what you would call a beauty capable of toppling a kingdom. Outstanding skill with instruments?

In Soho that might be impressive, but across the whole Hao Gate she was nothing special.

The Hao Gate had done its best for a disciple.

What would happen if she stayed asleep like that with no more support?

The result was obvious.

Then news of Gyo-ha arrived.

That was why she had rushed here.