Chapter 45

At the center of the market street.

We stopped in front of an inn bustling with customers.

A young server, wiping away sweat, rushed out.

“Welcome. How many of you?”

“Five. We plan to stay a few days.”

“Ah, I see. Will you be eating right away?”

“Yes.”

“Then I will prepare your meal first. This way, please!”

“We have horses. Five of them.”

“Gu-sam! Jang-il! Take care of the guests’ horses!”

Leaving the horses to the other boys, the young server guided us to an empty table.

We ordered some simple food and took a brief breather.

“Let us eat first and then look for our target.”

“Yes, Young Lord.”

Im Yeon and the guards nodded.

As we waited for our food, various conversations reached our ears.

Most of it was cursing the Demon Cult.

“I am telling you. Those damned Demon Cult bastards are still skulking around Shufu!”

“Every time I see them I grit my teeth. They should all be hunted down and killed.”

“If one shows up in my sight, I will strangle him. Like this, swoosh, swoosh!”

Im Yeon and the escort warriors all shrank their necks at the same time.

It was as if their own necks were being strangled.

In a small voice, Im Yeon spoke.

“Why do they hate us, no, ‘the Cult’ that much?”

Instead of answering, I quietly looked at Im Yeon.

I wondered if she was truly asking because she did not know why.

After everything the Demon Cult had done.

Snatching things at the slightest excuse, killing if displeased.

Every kind of evil deed had been wrapped up and called the Demonic Path.

The previous cult leader had disliked this, so atrocities committed by Demon Cult followers had greatly decreased, but could resentment that had sunk into the bone be forgotten so easily?

‘Of course, venting that anger on ordinary cultists is hardly right.’

Most of the evil deeds were committed by high-ranking bastards with positions or by martial artists.

Since they could not touch those people, turning their arrows on commoners who barely scraped by under the shadow of the Heavenly Demon Cult was far too cruel.

“The Longevity Cult Leader will set everything right.”

“That is right. The Longevity Cult Leader will judge the rotten Demon Cult!”

“The Longevity Cult Leader is our hope!”

At that moment, someone began subtly praising the Longevity Cult Leader.

Then those who had been cursing the Demon Cult also followed that flow.

‘So this is how he shapes public opinion to deify himself.’

A smile came to my lips.

The Longevity Cult Leader definitely knew how to use his head.

To skillfully raise himself up by using the hatred toward the Demon Cult.

The best way to spread a new religion far and wide is to raise the cult leader’s prestige.

And the one putting that into practice was the Longevity Cult Leader.

After our meal, we were led to our rooms.

One room for me and the first-rate guard, one for the other two guards, and one for Im Yeon.

We rented three rooms in total.

After roughly unpacking in each room, we gathered in mine.

Now it was time to begin the real discussion.

“From here on, I will explain about the target we are looking for. As you already know, the ‘target’ wears a mask. But that is only when he stays inside the cult grounds or attends external events. Normally, he spends most of his day outside the cult.”

In my previous life, the Longevity Cult had not met a good end.

Around half a year from now, it was wiped out by the Demon Cult.

Yet on the very day the Longevity Cult was annihilated, its leader had been outside the cult.

There were probably many reasons. One of them was likely the new martial art he had started learning.

“The method to find our target is simple. You just need to confirm two traits.”

“If there are two, what are they?”

Im Yeon asked eagerly.

“First, he has a scar running across his face.”

“Ah…”

Looking troubled, Im Yeon scratched her cheek.

In such harsh times, there was no shortage of people with scars like that, so it was understandable.

“It is unusually thick and long. Once you see it, you will not be able to forget it.”

“He must have gone through a big accident!”

Im Yeon nodded as if she understood.

“Second trait. He reeks of corpse stench.”

“By corpse stench… you mean the smell of a corpse?”

“Exactly.”

Im Yeon opened her mouth silently, eyes wide in shock.

“Wh-why would a living person smell like a corpse…”

“That much, I do not know.”

In truth, I did know.

It was because the Longevity Cult Leader practiced an heretical art called Rotting Corpse Body Art.

Just like its name, in exchange for gaining a hard body like a jiangshi¹, he suffered the side-effect of reeking of rotting corpses.

He had begun practicing this martial art not long before he founded the Longevity Cult.

He had not reached a high level yet, so the corpse smell would still be faint.

“Now, a man who fits these two conditions will be extremely rare. If we search carefully, we will be able to find him. So from now on, we will split into two groups. One will be me and Guard Go, the other will be Peak Master Im and the remaining two.”

“Young Lord, is it not dangerous to split up in enemy territory?”

Unlike the other two, Guard Go was first-rate, but even so, Im Yeon did not seem keen.

She must have felt uneasy about moving separately from the person she was supposed to protect.

“This is the only way to find him quickly. If we dawdle for nothing, things may get complicated.”

The reason we had forced marched all the way to Shufu was Heuk Un-hwi.

He would bring powerful guards, and with our current strength, he would be hard to face.

So I would resolve the big problem first before he attacked.

If he met me after that, he would have a very thrilling experience.

“Understood. I will follow your instructions, Young Lord.”

“Good. One last thing I want to ask. Keep all possibilities open.”

He might have covered his corpse smell with artificial fragrance, or worn a bamboo hat to hide his eyes or face.

After making sure Im Yeon understood these points, I left the room.

It was then.

“Where do you think you are crawling in! This is where customers walk!”

At the inn’s entrance.

A man who looked like the innkeeper, whom I had not seen earlier, was shouting harshly.

In front of him was a girl of about six or seven, dressed in ragged clothes.

The child looked utterly terrified.

“Did I or did I not tell you never to show your face in here? If you make the guests lose their appetite, you will be responsible!”

At those words, a few customers snickered.

“My appetite is already gone, so just cut the price of the meal.”

“I do not need a discount, just let me sleep here one night.”

“Wahaha. Listen to these fellows spouting nonsense after eating hot food.”

The innkeeper laughed heartily.

Buoyed by the customers’ reaction, he put on a mocking expression and poked the girl’s forehead with his finger.

The girl fell on her backside and burst into tears.

“Waaah. Sis…”

Then another girl, looking two or three years older than her, rushed out from the kitchen.

She seemed to have been doing odd jobs, and her clothes were just as shabby.

You could tell at a glance.

These were children without their parents’ care.

“Myeong-ah!”

“Big sis!”

The younger sister cried even more sadly, but the girl called big sister glanced nervously at the innkeeper and the customers.

“I told you to wait outside while I worked. Why did you come in?”

“It was too cold and I was hungry… waaah.”

The younger one held tightly to her sister’s hem as tears streamed down her face.

“Good grief, here we go again. I take in Demon Cult brats and somehow I am the bad guy, is that it?”

Now that he said it, they must have been the children of a Demon Cult follower.

The innkeeper clicked his tongue and glared at the sisters.

“You, get back to work, and you, get out!”

He shoved the older sister back toward the kitchen and jabbed his finger at the younger one to drive her away.

The younger girl sobbed loudly, unable even to wipe her tears, as she was chased out of the inn.

“……”

I frowned.

It was not only because the situation was uncomfortable.

I saw my past self in those children.

I had not had an older or younger sibling, but I had been like that too.

I had lost my parents at a young age and learned all too well how harsh the world was.

If the Heavenly Demon had not picked me up, I might have died on the street.

“Innkeeper.”

“Yes, sir. What can I do for you?”

I called to the innkeeper.

The cruel expression from a moment ago was gone, and the innkeeper wore a bright smile.

Holding back the urge to curse him out, I asked him to wrap some meat dumplings to go.

Beside me, Im Yeon asked quietly.

“Young Lord, surely you are not…?”

“That surely is probably right.”

A moved expression.

Times like this showed how poorly Im Yeon fit with the Demon Cult.

A little later, I received a cloth bundle with ten dumplings and stepped outside the inn.

“Ah. She is over there.”

Under the wall across from the inn, the younger sister was sitting curled up.

Her face was buried in her knees and her shoulders were shaking.

“Mom… Dad… Sis… hwaaah…”

I set the cloth bundle of meat dumplings down in front of her.

“You are hungry, right?”

The girl jerked her head up in surprise. Her face was smeared with tears and snot.

She looked up at me with a face full of wariness.

“Eat. It is hot, so before it gets cold.”

She carefully peeked into the cloth bundle and her eyes went round.

I thought she might ask what it was, but instead she asked something unexpected.

“Are you the Heavenly Demon, big brother?”

“Huh?”

I tilted my head, not knowing what she meant.

The girl spoke again.

“Before Mom disappeared, she told us. That if things got hard, the Heavenly Demon would reach out his hand to us.”

A hollow laugh almost slipped out.

In the Central Plains, the Heavenly Demon was a devil itself, yet here he was a savior.

In any case, to these children he was that much of someone they could rely on.

“Sorry, but I am not the Heavenly Demon.”

Though I was his disciple.

“So you are not.”

The girl looked disappointed.

But strangely.

She did not touch the dumplings. Instead, she wrapped the cloth again and hid it inside her clothes.

“Why are you not eating. You said you were hungry.”

“I want to eat them with my sister. Thank you.”

Even with her stomach growling, she wanted to eat with her sister.

I could not help but think how admirable she was.

I patted the child on the head and turned away.

“Guard Im.”

“Yes, Young Lord.”

“What do you think about leaving one guard here?”

“Sorry?”

“Someone might take her dumplings away. Have them watch over her and help if anyone bullies her.”

“Yes, understood.”

Unlike usual, Im Yeon simply nodded without a word.

“Since when do you not raise objections?”

Im Yeon smiled faintly.

“I think I learned it from you, Young Lord. That a true guard sometimes protects things more important than rules.”

“Oh.”

An exclamation slipped out before I knew it.

The change in Im Yeon, who had always clung to principles, was rather welcome.

“Since when did you start saying such impressive things?”

“I learned this from you as well. That you, who once were a desperate beggar, are someone with such a broad—”

“Let us not bring that up.”

This damned ‘desperate beggar.’

Once again, my hostility toward the Elder Council Lord flared up.

“Now, let us move. We have someone to find.”

“Yessir!”

We stepped out energetically into the streets of Shufu.

Yet those energetic steps were for nothing.

“…Another bust today.”

We ended up empty-handed.

For two whole days.

We combed through every part of Shufu, but no one met the two clues of a thick scar and corpse stench.

I was slowly starting to feel impatient.

Shufu County was not that large a place. How could there be not even a trace like this?

We secretly asked around for such a person, but there were no results.

‘At this rate, I really might meet Heuk Un-hwi first.’

I decided to change my approach.

I would continue searching for the Longevity Cult Leader without his mask, but at the same time look for a chance to meet him at some public event.

“Thank you, big brother.”

The next morning, as we left the inn, I handed dumplings to Myeong-ah.

Since the first day, I had been bringing her dumplings every day.

Each time, Myeong-ah looked at a loss with gratitude.

“I suppose this is what they call the joy of giving?”

Watching Myeong-ah, Im Yeon spoke with a proud look.

For someone who had not paid a single coin, ‘the joy of giving’ sounded a bit rich.

In any case, from that day on I acted more aggressively.

I asked a Longevity Cult believer who was preaching doctrine how to meet the cult leader.

He said there were two main ways.

Either wait for the sermon to be held in ten days, or capture at least four Demon Cult followers and become a formal member of the Longevity Cult.

That night, I shared this information with Im Yeon.

“We can meet the cult leader if we bring Demon Cult people?”

“Yeah. They said exactly four would be enough.”

I said this while looking at Im Yeon and the guards.

At that, they all flinched.

What, did they think I was going to sell them off or something?

“I-I also heard some important information, Young Lord.”

Hurriedly, Im Yeon changed the subject.

“What is it?”

“Did you know there used to be a Demon Cult branch altar in Shufu?”

I had known.

I simply had not paid it any mind because it had long since been suppressed.

“I heard that that altar building is now used as a prison to lock up Demon Cult people.”

“A prison, huh.”

“They lock them up there to convert them to the Longevity Cult. Also, they say the Demon Cult branch leader is imprisoned there as well. Would someone of that rank not know something about the cult leader?”

“Hmm.”

I folded my arms and sank into thought.

To meet the cult leader, I either had to wait ten days or deliver four Demon Cult followers.

Neither appealed to me.

A branch leader might know something I did not.

“Shall we go take a look once it gets dark?”

“That would be best, Young Lord.”

The sun set and the moon rose.

We headed for the place where the Demon Cult branch altar had been.

Just as they said it was used as a prison, Longevity believers were on strict guard, brightly lighting torches.

“It will not be easy to get inside.”

We were outsiders, after all.

There was no one who would grant a request from people like us to enter the prison.

And sneaking in would not be easy either, with such tight security.

While we were studying the building and deep in thought, two familiar children came out through the open front gate.

They were the sisters from the inn.

“…!”

Im Yeon and I looked at each other and then, as if agreed beforehand, quietly called out to the children.

“Myeong-ah! Ryeong-ah!”

“Oh? It is the nice big brother.”

The younger sister, Myeong-ah, spotted us first and called out happily.

Her older sister, Ryeong-ah, recognized us too and gave a small bow.

Perhaps because of the dumplings we had been giving them every day, they were quite friendly toward us.

“What brings big brother and big sister here?”

Ryeong-ah asked calmly, looking over me and Im Yeon.

“What about you two? What are you doing here, when this is where they lock up Demon Cult people?”

“We came to see our father. He is locked up here.”

“Your father?”

It was an answer I had not expected.

So their father was here.

“But you can go inside?”

“Yes. There is a kind person, so they let us see Father for a little while.”

“Could you maybe take me in with you. There is someone I want to meet.”

Ryeong-ah hesitated to answer.

She seemed worried that if she granted the request of someone she did not know well, it might cause trouble, even though she was grateful.

“There is no need to worry. I just have a few questions to ask.”

When I spoke gently, Ryeong-ah carefully asked.

“Who do you want to meet?”

“The branch leader.”

“You mean our father?”

In that moment, I was left speechless.

The branch leader was their father?

What kind of coincidence was this?

‘Things just got much easier.’

In truth, going into the prison with them carried risks.

It could needlessly put the Longevity Cult believers on guard.

But if Ryeong-ah asked on my behalf, the burden would lessen in many ways.

“What do you want to ask him about?”

To her question, I answered carefully.

“I am looking for someone. A man from the Central Plains with a big scar on his face, a middle-aged man whose body gives off a strange smell.”

“Then I can just ask Father that—”

Just then, Myeong-ah muttered to herself.

“I know that mister.”