Chapter 36

I met her in the main hall inside the Ink-Needle Hall Master’s residence.

Ju Ok-hwa spoke in an annoyed tone.

“You have no manners. What kind of person asks to meet in the middle of the night?”

“Yet you still came out instead of throwing me out.”

“Because the terrifying Seventh Young Lord might threaten me with my weakness.”

I exaggeratedly raised both hands a little.

“Come on now. Threaten? Why would you put it like that? I only had something urgent to give you, so I had no choice but to come.”

“Hmph, and just how amazing could it be?”

I held out a bundle of oiled paper tightly tied with straw.

Frowning, Ju Ok-hwa untied the straw cord.

Inside the oiled paper was a bear gallbladder extracted from the bear Heuk Un-hwi had hunted.

For a moment, the furrow between her brows smoothed out.

“Why a bear gallbladder?”

“I went through a lot of trouble to get it for you, Hall Master. I thought you might really need it.”

“…I do not need it, so take it back.”

“Really?”

“Yes. I do not want to receive anything from the Seventh Young Lord.”

Ju Ok-hwa folded her arms and turned her head away.

“If that is how it is, I have no choice. Pardon the intrusion.”

I unhesitatingly moved to wrap the bear gallbladder back up.

Ju Ok-hwa glanced at it, then laid her hand on the back of mine.

“Wait.”

“Why?”

“On second thought, driving out a guest is not very courteous.”

I smiled inwardly.

Why bother refusing if she was going to do this anyway.

I took my hand off the oiled paper.

Eyes sparkling, Ju Ok-hwa examined the bear gallbladder closely as if seeing it for the first time.

“Its condition is not bad. Though it is not exactly excellent either.”

“At that level, it is already great.”

At this point, there is information only I know.

That Ju Ok-hwa is obsessed with bear gallbladders.

It is to make a special medicine she takes, and the fresher it is, the better.

This bear gallbladder was taken several hours after the bear died, so it would not be perfectly fresh, but it would still be far better than the dried ones sold on the market.

After all, Heuk Un-hwi had sent it straight over as soon as he killed the bear.

“Hmph.”

Ju Ok-hwa wrinkled her nose as if she acknowledged it yet did not want to.

Then, all of a sudden, her eyes focused on the bandage wrapped around my left arm.

‘She finally takes an interest.’

It seemed subtly sticking my left arm out where it showed had paid off.

Ju Ok-hwa spoke in an offhand way.

“Undo it.”

“Undo what?”

“Do not play dumb and just undo it.”

“Alright.”

I gently loosened the bandage.

My face twisted just from the light brush against my skin.

At this rate I had come to Ju Ok-hwa because I did not think I could even sleep properly, never mind train.

She was the physician within the Demon Cult who could treat me the fastest and most reliably.

“Hm.”

Ju Ok-hwa examined the wound, and her expression immediately turned grave.

“Seventh Young Lord, did you fight the Fourth Young Lord?”

“Yes. I knew you would see it right away.”

“Someone of my level could hardly fail to. I can see traces of Black Sun Qi Art here.”

Black Sun Qi Art is the inner cultivation method of the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan.

Its trait is leaving black marks on the affected area that cause continuous pain.

If the wound is severe and not properly treated, it is said there are cases where the victim loses their life.

“What are you aiming for, Seventh Young Lord? Do you want to turn the entire cult into a beehive? Or are you trying to become heir or something?”

“You have the wrong idea. It is neither.”

“If not, then as I thought, the Lord is secretly trying to purge the cult insi—”

“I said it is not.”

I pulled Ju Ok-hwa out of the swamp of a massive misunderstanding.

She narrowed her eyes doubtfully, then spoke.

“Anyway, you came to get treatment, right?”

“Yes. I have to train with my master tomorrow. Can you make sure it will not hinder me?”

“Do you think I am your personal physician or something? That I will do everything just because you ask?”

“But you will anyway.”

I gave her a sly grin.

I had brought the bear gallbladder for this, so surely she would not just wipe her mouth and pretend otherwise.

Sure enough, Ju Ok-hwa let out a sigh.

“Honestly, like master, like disciple. You both think treatment is far too easy.”

“My master?”

“It is nothing.”

Ju Ok-hwa raised two fingers.

“Twenty taels of silver.”

“Sorry?”

“The treatment fee.”

I could not believe my ears.

What kind of treatment costs twenty taels?

On top of that.

“I just gave you a bear gallbladder.”

A wicked smile flickered in Ju Ok-hwa’s violet eyes.

“The bear gallbladder is the price for agreeing to meet the Seventh Young Lord. The treatment fee must be paid separately.”

Wow, I was at a loss for words.

They say assumptions can kill, and she really was trying to swallow the bear gallbladder whole.

No matter how annoying I might be, this was a bit much.

Given what happened last time, it had been my way of showing some sincerity.

“Hall Master, you put me in a difficult spot if you act like this.”

“I am not the one who will be in trouble.”

“I would not be so sure. Who knows? I might end up solving the greatest wish of your entire life, Hall Master.”

At those words, Ju Ok-hwa’s eyes lit up.

Her greatest wish is to take off her human-skin mask. More precisely, to be in a state where she can do so.

“I have no idea how much the Seventh Young Lord knows. How exactly are you supposed to solve my wish?”

“If you build a good relationship with me, you will gradually find out.”

Ju Ok-hwa can become an incredible helper.

From simple minor treatments to making all sorts of medicines, even improving my body in major ways.

There was a lot I hoped for from her.

“Hmmm.”

Ju Ok-hwa quietly stared at me.

She was probably arranging the beads on the abacus in her head.

If I could, I wanted to tell her outright.

‘There is no need to think it over for long. You will never be able to fulfill that wish on your own anyway.’

Did my thoughts get through to her?

Ju Ok-hwa moved.

“Follow me.”

‘There we go.’

I followed her to the treatment room.

Without a word, Ju Ok-hwa began selecting medicinal ingredients. Some she put into the decoction pot to boil, and some she placed in a mortar and ground.

“Sit here. I will insert needles while the decoction boils.”

Ju Ok-hwa roughly tore open the left sleeve of my clothes and began inserting needles.

It did not matter that she tore the sleeve since it already had a hole, but there was another problem.

“Urgh. Hall Master, this really hurts. You are not doing it painfully on purpose, right?”

“You know me well.”

“Urgh…”

The pain was worse than when Heuk Un-hwi’s attack grazed me.

After being struck by dozens of needles like that, I drank the finished decoction.

“That is it. You will feel light after you sleep and wake up.”

“Thank you, Hall Master. Next time, please make it hurt a little less.”

“Are you planning to get treated by me again?”

“I do not want to either, but something will happen that makes it necessary.”

“That may be. Come whenever you like.”

“Really?”

“No. If you get annoying I will pierce you front and back with long needles!”

Ju Ok-hwa raised a cold, gleaming long needle in a threatening way.

Could you put that down first before we keep talking?

“Seventh Young Lord.”

At that moment, Ju Ok-hwa called me in a serious tone.

“You should be careful how you conduct yourself now. You have drawn far too much attention.”

“That is nothing new. I already am.”

“This is different from before. The Fourth Young Lord has a firm footing. Unlike the Fifth Young Lord and the Sixth Young Lady, he is openly acknowledged as a contender in the succession struggle. Do you think he will sit still after being defeated by the Seventh Young Lord? On top of that, the Elders’ Council Lord has his eyes on you as well. You have become their common enemy.”

I gave a faint smile.

As if it were only those two.

I simply walk forward with only the two goals I set after returning in mind.

Given the nature of the Demon Cult as a den of demons, it goes without saying that people will try to shake someone like me from all sides.

“I have an idea what the two of them are going to pull. Should I tell you, or not?”

Ju Ok-hwa quietly tested me.

“You do not have to. I can guess too.”

In about two months, a special event takes place.

The people of the Demon Cult start preparing various things early for that time, and the Little Demons are also given special roles.

I will probably get entangled with Heuk Un-hwi one way or another then.

“By the way, why are you giving me advice? I thought you hated me.”

“Rather than hate, I dislike you. Whenever I see cocky, rude brats like the Seventh Young Lord, I just want to skewer them with long needles.”

“…I will go. I feel like I really will get skewered if I stay.”

“Seventh Young Lord.”

“What now?”

Ju Ok-hwa stared at me with a meaningful look.

Her lips slowly parted.

“Bring the twenty taels of silver next time.”

“…I thought we were done talking about that.”

“Free treatment is not to my taste.”

I shook my head from side to side.

She really is not easy to deal with.

The treatment was a success.

Thanks to it, I was able to finish my training with the Heavenly Demon the next day without issue.

For some reason, the Heavenly Demon did not mention my fight with Heuk Un-hwi at all.

So I asked.

“Master, are you not going to ask about what happened yesterday?”

“I am not interested.”

The Heavenly Demon only replied bluntly.

I wondered if he simply considered matters between disciples to be nothing he needed to concern himself with, when he added a few more words.

“Three days from now, come to the Ten Thousand Demon Hall instead of the training ground.”

“The Ten Thousand Demon Hall?”

“All the Little Demons within the cult and the heads of every organization will gather there.”

This was it.

The event that had come to mind yesterday while talking with Ju Ok-hwa.

Everyone gathered to prepare for this.

In my previous life as well, every year around this time everyone had gathered at the Ten Thousand Demon Hall on the same day.

Every time, all sorts of commotions had broken out.

Regrettably, in my previous life I had not been able to enjoy either the event itself or the process of preparing for it.

This time, it seemed I would be able to have a very enjoyable time as well.

Though that meant there was just as much I needed to prepare for.

“Sajae, you came!”

The next day again.

I visited Little Phoenix Pavilion to keep my promise with Wi So-rang.

This place was the residence of Wi So-rang, the Sixth Young Lady.

In this charming place, fitting of its name, I sat facing Wi So-rang.

In the middle, as she had said, the table was filled with delicious food. The problem was that most of it was oil-free greens.

“Sajeo, is something troubling you?”

I asked her outright because Wi So-rang had been rambling on for quite a while.

At that, Wi So-rang let out a small sigh.

“The truth is… I have a favor to ask you, Sajae.”

“What is it?”

“Save me!”

My chopsticks, on their way to the greens, stopped for a moment.

She suddenly asks me to save her?

“Sajeo, have I ever tried to kill you without realizing it?¹ Had I absent-mindedly sent an ultimate move flying or something.”

“That is not it, I feel like I am going to die because of the Patriarch.”

“The Patriarch of the Iron-Gold Wi Clan?”

“Yeah.”

“He is your father.”

“Right. I have to call him Patriarch.”

Wi So-rang lowered her gaze. The eyes that usually sparkled looked dim.

For a moment, I could not understand.

What kind of household makes you call your own father Patriarch?

No, that was not the important part.

“What do you mean you feel like you are going to die because of your father?”

“Sajae, you will not laugh if I tell you, right?”

“Of course not.”

“My progress is way too slow.”

I asked again to Wi So-rang, who had spoken carefully.

“Progress in what?”

“My martial arts progress. Because of this, the Patriarch is displeased. So I was wondering, could you maybe teach me some martial arts, Sajae?”

I was almost at a loss for words.

“You want martial arts instruction? From me?”

In a small voice, Wi So-rang continued.

“Sajae, you beat the Fourth Sahyung, right?”

“I did.”

“I want to know how I can get as strong as you. I feel like I am just walking in place every day. Haa.”

Wi So-rang let out a deep sigh that did not suit a ten-year-old child.

She looked not just sullen, but almost depressed.

“The Patriarch has great expectations for me. He said he invested an enormous amount of money to make me a Little Demon. But since I have not been able to train with Master for a while, he asked if it is because my achievements are lacking…”

Is that something you say to a ten-year-old child?

My brow furrowed.