Duty (6)

“Assassins…”

“Yeah.”

“I’d heard information that Gyeong Do-cheon, the First Young Master, has been quietly drawing in masters for a long time. And that he uses assassins. But I didn’t dig deep into their strength. It would only stir needless wariness.”

“We confirmed it ourselves. The ones watching Patriarch Gyeong aren’t much weaker than your escorts. There were over twenty just around the Patriarch’s Hall.”

“Over twenty at that level… Then the real number is probably at least double.”

“Probably.”

“So you’re asking us to deal with them now?”

“As if.”

“?”

“This isn’t a request or an order. It’s a proposal. Why do you keep forgetting that our relationship is nothing but a deal?”

“It’s the same thing. Don’t cling so hard to trivial words.”

“That’s how we don’t slip up. I think we’re fairly decent to each other, aren’t we?”

“Officially?”

“Why do you keep doing that?”

“Fine. In any case, you want us to take care of the assassins.”

“That’s right.”

“As you know, the Black Society has many assassins. But no matter how many wild dogs you have, they can’t kill a tiger. Meaning, we need assassins on a similar level.”

“Your escorts are good, aren’t they?”

“There aren’t enough of them.”

“Is it hard?”

“First, we need to find out how many assassins are under Gyeong Do-cheon, and where they came from. But…”

“….”

“Why make this proposal at all? With your skill, you could cut through it yourself.”

“If it were just fighting head-on, I wouldn’t ask. I’m doing this because there are people who can’t die.”

“If we refuse this proposal, what will you do?”

“I’ll do the best I can with what I have.”

“So you can manage without us. Then I can interpret this proposal as goodwill toward us.”

“As expected. Talking with you is easy.”

“It’s goodwill, but it’s also a trap. Say there are about fifty assassins. To remove them all, I’ll have to push myself hard. And if the Main Office notices, it could spark an internal war.”

“That’s not my problem. I’m only making a proposal. And I’m prepared to pay that price.”

“….”

“Are you doing it or not?”

“How much time?”

“Two days.”

“I’ll try to cut it to one.”

“I thought you’d complain it was tight.”

“One day or two, it’s tight either way. If it’s work I’m doing anyway, it’s better to force a good result.”

“That’s why I like you.”

“Save it.”

“Contact me as soon as you’re ready. Ah, and the price…”

“I’ll ask for the price later.”

“It’s better for both of us to say it in advance. If you ask for something impossible, I can’t give it.”

“Enough. Let me ask just one thing.”

“Go on.”

“Truthfully, I want to ask two. I’ll ask one later.”

“What is it, dragging it out like that?”

“From the look of it, Divine Iron’s internal matter is a fight of legitimacy. Win with legitimacy first, then bring out force as a card.”

“You saw it right.”

“But Gyeong Do-cheon’s influence is considerable. Even if you win on legitimacy, power is already concentrated on him to the point the clan can’t function without him. If you strike him, Divine Iron itself could collapse.”

“I know.”

“When I asked before if you meant to bring down Divine Iron, you said, ‘Why can’t I?’ It wasn’t a clean answer like you usually give.”

“I still agreed.”

“It was an agreement unlike your usual one.”

“So what’s the question?”

“Is your goal to bring down Divine Iron? Or is it to bring down only Gyeong Do-cheon?”

“The latter.”

“…That’s a clean answer.”

“We can think about the rest after we crush one bug. That answers you?”

“I’ll contact you as soon as I’m ready.”

“Be careful. Don’t get caught by Do-cheon’s side while bringing assassins.”

“I won’t bring many.”

“What?”

“All you need is a cleanup, isn’t it?”

“…Hm. Sounds like you have an idea.”

“See you later.”

The carriage pulled by four fine horses was fast.

Even so, the inside was quiet. Though it ran over a bumpy mountain road, the carriage barely shook, like it was on flat ground.

The Patriarch’s carriage, built with the full force of Divine Iron’s craftsmanship.

Inside, Gyeong Do-cheon stared out the window with a blank face. But unlike his expression, his mind was spinning.

‘An unknown master?’

It was a report that made his vision swim.

The Merchant House’s intelligence was clearly strong, but not to the level of Sichuan’s best. He could shore it up later. The problem was right now.

‘Who the hell is it?’

The very idea that someone could help Gyeong Hang felt strange.

‘Help someone guarded by the Northland Twin Demons? And kill all those masters, on top of that?’

The Northland Twin Demons’ force was tremendous. Among them, Go Ak’s martial arts were so overwhelming that even half the Eight Martial Houses’ heads couldn’t beat him if they rushed him.

If it was a group, it was possible. If one sect among the Eight Martial Houses made up its mind and mobilized its disciples, even the Northland Twin Demons would take heavy losses.

But the repeated reports said the attackers were at most four. In truth, it was likely two or three.

A master stronger than an Eight Martial Houses head intervened? In Sichuan?

‘Could it be the Cheongyang Association?’

Gyeong Do-cheon shook his head inwardly.

He maintained good relations with the Cheongyang Association. If they meant to seize Gyeong Hang, they wouldn’t have made deals in the first place.

Yet if he had to name an organization, only the Cheongyang Association came to mind.

In Sichuan, fewer than five people, including himself, truly knew the Cheongyang Association’s real power.

‘Then from another region…?’

Even the Cheongyang Association, with its strength, would struggle to be counted among the top five in other regions. It was more reasonable to assume outsiders than to search within Sichuan.

And the Northland Twin Demons were a stain on the Maoshan Sect. It wasn’t the truth, but that was how the rumor went.

Did someone target them because they couldn’t stomach their evil? And that master happened to have ties to Gyeong Hang?

‘No way…’

Gyeong Do-cheon organized his thoughts for a moment.

‘It isn’t a master dispatched by a sect tied to the Nine Sects. If it were, they wouldn’t have killed the Northland Twin Demons.’

The Nine Sects are nine and one. The master of Maoshan would not have failed to explain circumstances to the other sect leaders.

‘The Heavenly Will Alliance?’

The sects that move the Heavenly Will Alliance are also part of the Nine Sects, yet many walk a different path from the Nine Sects. Did one of them send a master to help Gyeong Hang?

‘It makes no sense.’

No matter how he thought it through, it was nonsense. It couldn’t be a master of Sichuan Murim. Other than the Cheongyang Association, no head of the Eight Martial Houses could wipe out that many forces with only two or three people.

‘An unknown master… What a joke.’

Gyeong Do-cheon’s eyes twitched slightly.

‘I’ve mapped almost all of the Elder Patriarch’s connections. There’s no one who would come help that old man. It would be hard enough to even know he was exiled there…’

Daoling Palace came to mind again.

Daoling Palace was the true owner of Mount Qingcheng. There were rumors that the mere Daoist hall held terrifying masters, and the rumors were true.

Of course, no one had verified Daoling Palace’s true force. And even if it did, would they interfere at a moment like this? Daoists with no interest in the secular world?

‘Thinking won’t reveal the culprit. There’s too little information. Until the men finish investigating the surroundings, I have to assume the worst and do what I must.’

That was what mattered. Doing what he had to do now.

Purreureuk.

He heard the horses’ snorting.

The coachman shouted.

“First Young Master Gyeong Do-cheon has returned. Open the gate at once……”

Deolkeok.

Before the coachman could finish, Gyeong Do-cheon opened the door, stepped down, and walked to the gate guards.

Startled, the gate guards bowed.

“We greet the First Young Master.”

Gyeong Do-cheon waved a hand through the air as if annoyed.

“Open the gate. Bring the carriage in.”

Kugung.

When the gate opened, Gyeong Do-cheon crossed the outer courtyard and headed straight for the inner court.

He wasn’t running, yet his speed was strangely fast. Using internal energy where guards couldn’t see, he reached the inner court in an instant.

Once inside, he headed for the Patriarch’s Hall.

“First Young Master.”

The Iron King Squad warriors guarding the Patriarch’s Hall bowed.

“How is my father?”

“There doesn’t seem to be any notable improvement yet.”

Gyeong Do-cheon let out a deep sigh.

Pity rose on the escorts’ faces. They knew how much the First Young Master had cherished the Patriarch since childhood.

For years they had clashed over the clan’s future, but there was no issue between father and son. If anything, it was a healthy conflict for the clan’s sake.

Having seen it themselves, the Iron King Squad truly believed Gyeong Do-cheon was sincerely worried about the Patriarch’s illness.

Baek Gyu, the Iron King Squad Captain, spoke evenly.

“The chief physician is inside right now.”

In an instant, cold light flared in Gyeong Do-cheon’s eyes.

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

“Perfect timing. I have something to ask.”

Baek Gyu hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

“Please go in.”

“I will. Ah, and this.”

Gyeong Do-cheon drew a small pouch from his robes and handed it to Baek Gyu.

“It’s a new item I received from the Fragrant Brocade Merchant Guild. I brewed the tea leaves and tried them. They were excellent.”

“Why would you give such a gift?”

“It’s not only for you. I brought it thinking of the escorts. They say the tea helps drive off fatigue, so share it in turns.”

“We’re fine, First Young Master.”

“Your shifts are longer than other escorts’. And you’re guarding the Patriarch. You should be cared for more than others.”

With that, Gyeong Do-cheon went up to the Patriarch’s chamber.

Baek Gyu watched his back in silence.

His gaze was strange. It looked restless, and it looked worried.

A senior escort said to Baek Gyu.

“Truly, there’s no one else like him. Even in a situation like this, he still takes care of those beneath him.”

“…Yeah. Especially lately.”

“It breaks my heart.”

“You mean the First Young Master?”

“Of course. It hasn’t even been a year since the younger brother he cherished more than blood went missing, and in the middle of that, the Patriarch’s illness worsened rapidly. How rotten must his insides be by now.”

“You’re wrong.”

“Pardon?”

Baek Gyu clenched the pouch hard.

“The First Young Master didn’t like the missing Second Young Master that much. No. He hated him.”

The escorts’ eyes widened.

“That can’t be. They got along so well. And the Second Young Master followed him so closely, didn’t he?”

Baek Gyu’s eyes clouded.

The Second Young Master, Gyeong Se-hwi.

Easygoing, fond of jokes, and so gentle he couldn’t kill a single bug. Divine Iron’s finest master craftsman.

Whether it was his nature or not, Baek Gyu liked Gyeong Se-hwi more than the First Young Master.

Looking at them person to person, it couldn’t be helped. Gyeong Do-cheon was polite and proper too, but Gyeong Se-hwi had an inborn charm that easily tore down people’s walls.

And on top of that, the craftsman’s spirit of devoting himself to one path.

“Take it. When you rotate later, share it around.”

“And you, Captain?”

“I’m fine.”

Baek Gyu’s eyes stayed fixed on the Patriarch’s Hall.