Episode 116

After agonizing for a long time, Yeo Man-chung abruptly stood up from his seat.

Then he kicked the wooden wall behind him.

Thud—

One of the wall’s planks shifted inward, and a scream came from inside.

“Argh!”

“Come out, you bastard!”

Soon, the wooden wall opened, and a member of the Low Down Sect, clutching his shin, appeared.

“Did you think I’d forget if you kept hiding?”

“T-that’s not it, ah!”

“Stupid bastard! You even got caught! Can’t you do anything right?”

Yeo Man-chung brutally kicked his subordinate.

In fact, Jin Ri-yeon’s senses were extraordinarily sharp, but he hadn’t taken that into account.

“Ouch! I’m, I’m sorry!”

“You should’ve lost an eye.”

Jin Ri-yeon had controlled her strength, so the right eye of the Low Down Sect member, who had been spying, was unharmed. The paper she had thrown only precisely blocked the peephole he was using.

As the leader of the intelligence group, Yeo Man-chung usually had a cold and calculating personality.

However, now he seemed cornered, even breaking out in cold sweat.

“Why hasn’t the guy I sent earlier returned? Surely, he hasn’t handed over everything, has he?”

“We didn’t record the top-secret matters, so it should be fine!”

The subordinate lying flat on the ground said this. Despite being threatened, Yeo Man-chung hadn’t given away all the information.

“It has to be that way. Otherwise, both you and I are dead.”

“O-of course.”

“The governor intervened. And Lee Jeong-hyo is dead, and his riffraff got caught too!”

Lee Jeong-hyo was, in fact, the confidant of the Kaifeng branch manager.

Among the Low Down Sect, he was a fixer who kept his identity hidden.

But he suddenly died at the hands of a “fiend.”

“Until a few months ago, I had nothing to envy.”

In fact, until then, Yeo Man-chung was quite content.

After becoming the branch manager of the Kaifeng division, he worked diligently enough and embezzled just enough funds.

He had gained trust by being sufficiently loyal to the mysterious and elusive sect leader, so it seemed like he was on the road to success.

The problem arose one day when the sect leader ordered him to store a certain item.

‘I should have refused then.’

He had never seen a document with so many top-secret seals before. Even Yeo Man-chung, the Kaifeng branch manager, was not allowed to read it as it was sealed.

The sect leader gave him a fist-sized box along with it.

“Keep this item safe for three months.”

“What…is this?”

Yeo Man-chung couldn’t help but ask.

It was a box embedded with dozens of brilliant gems. It looked like a jewel case.

The sect leader was wearing a white mask, but somehow, it felt as if he was smiling behind it.

“It’s related to a hidden treasure map.”

“H-hidden treasure map? Has the hidden treasure map been found?”

“Yes, it’s still a story submerged beneath the surface. Keep your mouth shut and take good care of the item. Never open it.”

How could he refuse such a responsibility? The box was sealed with beeswax and couldn’t be opened.

But a hidden treasure map? That was, so to speak, a treasure map.

If a legendary martial artist’s hidden treasure map was found, it would cause an uproar in the entire martial world.

There had been a disaster in the past, where after a hidden treasure map marking the location of the Mysterious Tomb was found, hundreds of martial artists, regardless of their faction, fought and perished.

Such an ‘item related to a hidden treasure map’ had come into Yeo Man-chung’s hands.

Though he couldn’t steal and run away with it due to his greed, an event occurred that ignited the flames of Yeo Man-chung’s desire.

In the black market near Kaifeng, the same item was acquired.

It was covered in dirt and the embedded gems were missing, but it was clearly the same type of box.

“Could this be the real one?”

Keep the box given by the Low Down Sect leader, return it later, and just hide and keep the one from the black market.

Who knows what might happen.

Yeo Man-chung might seize the opportunity if a hidden treasure map was indeed discovered.

Perhaps he could obtain a powerful elixir or martial arts technique, becoming the best in the world, or even one of the World’s Ten Grandmasters.

Yeo Man-chung was indulging in such foolish dreams and enjoying his happiness.

“Seo Saeng-won, that son of a bitch!”

One of his subordinates, Seo Saeng-won, ran off with the box. Without knowing what it was, he had seen Yeo Man-chung polish and treasure it every day.

While the Kaifeng branch was turned upside down trying to catch Seo Saeng-won, the first box entrusted by the Low Down Sect Leader was also stolen.

Overnight, Yeo Man-chung lost everything.

It was around this time that the story of the fiend, the Face Plunderer, spread far and wide.

Yeo Man-chung knew that fiend’s appearance was related to the stolen box.

Of course, it would be; he had opened the box himself. The beeswax seal could be redone by a skilled craftsman.

And what happened then…

But, as they say, fortune comes after repeated misfortune.

As he was reminiscing about the past, a subordinate who had just seen off Jin Ri-yeon came running in a hurry.

“Branch Manager! We’ve found it.”

“What, what did you find!”

“Seo Saeng-won, that guy!”

“What!”

The branch manager’s eyes widened.

The subordinate proudly said, “He’s just entered Kaifeng!”

“He’s back? Where was he seen?”

“He was seen entering the Five Golden Bank.”

“The bank, Five Golden Bank, huh? That makes sense!”

Yeo Man-chung had thought Seo Saeng-won had fled with the box, but it seemed like he had hidden it in a shop within Kaifeng.

Grinding his teeth at such audacity, Yeo Man-chung ordered, “Catch him immediately!”

“But… that guy was with two young martial artists.”

“Martial artists? Did he hire them as bodyguards?”

“They didn’t quite seem like that. They looked weak and refined. Maybe he’s charmed some young martial artists from a sect.”

The strength of the Low Down Sect lay in secrecy and strategy. Since their martial arts prowess was not the strongest, they usually did not take the forefront in such situations.

However, Yeo Man-chung clenched his fist tightly.

“We can’t afford to be choosy now. Capture Seo Saeng-won immediately.”

“Yes!”

“If you find the item, you can kill him.”

“What about the martial artists with him?”

“Either persuade them, get rid of them, or… deal with them by any means necessary.”

The Low Down Sect member, upon receiving Yeo Man-chung’s order, hurriedly ran out of the room.

“Hehe.”

Seo Saeng-won would pay the price.

And the young martial artists, who were evidently charmed by him, would meet the same fate if they were unlucky.

Yi-gang held Seo Saeng-won’s cheeks in one hand.

“It’s better not to think about running away.”

“I-I understand!”

Contrary to Yeo Man-chung’s assumption, Yi-gang had not been charmed by Seo Saeng-won.

On the contrary, Yi-gang firmly held the leash on Seo Saeng-won.

“Senior Brother, if this guy tries anything funny, feel free to handle it.”

“I will.”

Dam Hyun answered while trimming his nails with a dagger.

Seo Saeng-won’s complexion turned pale.

This place was the Five Gold Bank in Kaifeng. It’s a well-trusted, large money exchange, where Seo Saeng-won stored Yeo Man-chung’s box and managed the funds of Fort Leader Kang Ho-gul.

Five Gold Bank verified appearances when retrieving items, so Seo Saeng-won was unmasked for the first time in a while.

Yi-gang appointed Dam Hyun to keep an eye on Seo Saeng-won.

“I’ll go exchange the promissory notes for silver coins, Senior Brother. You go ahead.”

Saying this, Yi-gang followed the clerk into a separate room.

There, a middle-aged merchant in fancy clothes, the shop’s middle manager, was waiting.

“You’ve brought a promissory note issued by the Golden Ruler Merchant Group under the name of the Moyong clan.”

“Yes. I want to exchange it for silver coins.”

What Yi-gang had brought was a promissory note he received from Moyong Tak. The note was issued by the Golden Ruler Merchant Group and the Moyong clan, both well-known, so it could be cashed for silver coins at almost any money exchange in the entire Central Plains.

The merchant checked the note and nodded.

“It’s genuine, alright. But…”

“Yes?”

“How much do you want to exchange?”

The promissory note Yi-gang had was worth a whopping 500 silver nyang. And that was just a part of what he received from the Moyong clan, which explained why Yi-gang didn’t have to worry about money.

“Not too much, just about 100 nyang for now.”

“Oh, that amount is no problem at all!”

One hundred nyang was not a small amount of money.

Yi-gang, out of curiosity, asked a question since the merchant’s reaction was unusual, “Can’t you exchange the whole amount?”

“Well, currently we have some irrecoverable debts. The stock of silver coins is…”

Banks also lent money to those with verified identities. Irrecoverable debt referred to situations where borrowed money cannot be repaid.

But usually, they found some way to recover the money…

“A person who borrowed a significant amount is currently… ahem. It’s not that there’s a problem with our exchange. It’s just a bit burdensome to exchange a large amount right now, that’s all.”

“Yes, well, I understand.”

He wasn’t particularly interested, and it didn’t seem like they would tell him more even if he asked.

The merchant handed over the equivalent of 100 silver nyang.

Taking it, Yi-gang was then led by the merchant to where Dam Hyun and Seo Saeng-won were.

“Well, I’ll be leaving now.”

“Thank you for your assistance.”

Yi-gang opened the door to a private storeroom and entered.

Inside the room was a luxurious table, beside which stood Seo Saeng-won and Dam Hyun.

On the table lay a bag of silver coins and an old box. It was obvious what they were.

“So, you’ve retrieved the items.”

“Yes, the silver coins and that item.”

“Senior Brother, this guy didn’t hide anything away, did he?”

Dam Hyun nodded.

Seo Saeng-won, looking like he was dying of regret, handed over the bag of silver coins to Yi-gang.

“This is the embezzled funds of the Fort Leader you talked about, right?”

“Yes.”

Yi-gang enjoyed the jingling sound of the silver coins. It wasn’t a bad sound.

“How much is in here?”

“Exactly…”

Seo Saeng-won answered, soothing his bitter heart.

“Ninty two nyang.”

“Hmm.”

It was a considerable amount, but for Yi-gang, who was carrying promissory notes worth 500 nyang in his pocket, it was not a significant sum.

Unaware of this, Seo Saeng-won inwardly cursed Yi-gang.

Yi-gang opened the bag of silver coins and handed half to Dam Hyun.

Dam Hyun, taken aback, made a strange noise.

“Uh, oh, ah!”

“Keep it, Senior Brother. Buy something tasty with it.”

“A-are you really giving this to me?”

Yoo Jeong-shin had entrusted the management of travel expenses to Yi-gang, not trusting Dam Hyun.

“You should have some money too, Senior Brother.”

“I can’t believe it! Such a large sum…!”

For the first time, Dam Hyun held the silver coins in his hand, trembling with excitement. He looked extremely happy.

Seo Saeng-won watched him with envy.

“And this, you take it.”

“…Me?”

Yi-gang then offered the other half of the silver coin bag back to Seo Saeng-won.

Seo Saeng-won’s eyes fluttered. He couldn’t understand what was happening.

“Why this…”

“Don’t want it?”

“No! Of course, I don’t dislike it!”

Judging from Yi-gang’s actions so far, Seo Saeng-won thought he would undoubtedly be deprived of all the silver coins.

Quickly grabbing the bag of silver coins, Seo Saeng-won looked at Yi-gang with a mix of suspicion and astonishment.

Yi-gang smirked.

“Consider it a reward for not messing around and keeping your promise.”

“Y-young Master…”

Seo Saeng-won was so moved he was on the brink of tears.

Though he had lived a life of betrayal, he had his own circumstances.

The unexpected kindness from Yi-gang, whom he had not trusted at all, deeply touched his heart.

It’s a fact that a bad person suddenly acting kindly can seem endearingly attractive.

Yi-gang, having no attachment to the silver coins, turned his attention to the box.

“So this is the box you stole from the Low Down Sect’s Kaifeng branch manager.”

It was a small box made of an unknown metal.

Sealed with beeswax to prevent easy opening, it had strange metallic decorations.

“What’s this? Were there originally gems embedded?”

“When I stole… when I took it, most of the gems were already missing. The few that remained, I took out and sold!” Seo Saeng-won answered honestly.

Yi-gang continued to examine the box.

“Metal? As in the Five Elements?”

The character for “metal” in the Five Elements was engraved on it.

The box felt as heavy as if it was entirely made of iron. When shaken, there was a faint rattling sound, suggesting it was almost full.

“What’s inside?”

“Uh… I don’t know. I kept it sealed.”

Seo Saeng-won tried to appear calm as he spoke.

Then, Dam Hyun interjected, “Sounds like you’re suggesting we should open it? Should I try?”

“Really?”

To examine the contents, they had no choice but to open it.

Seo Saeng-won flinched at the suggestion, but Yi-gang and Dam Hyun were too focused on the box to notice.

“Well, let’s do it.”

“I want to see too; I’m curious.”

Yi-gang and Dam Hyun leaned in close to the box.

They began to peel off the beeswax seal that kept the box closed.

And at that moment, Seo Saeng-won was plunged into the greatest dilemma of his life.

Seo Saeng-won kept glancing furtively at Yi-gang and the box while breaking out in a cold sweat.

‘W-what should I do…’

The old Seo Saeng-won would have done nothing in this situation. He would have just let Yi-gang and Dam Hyun open the box.

It was Seo Saeng-won himself who had resealed the box with beeswax. He knew what was inside.

‘If it stays like this, for sure!’

Seo Saeng-won tightly gripped the bag of silver coins.

The silver coins returned by Yi-gang felt heavy.

‘Damn it, it’s really a stupid idea, but…’

Finally, Seo Saeng-won made up his mind.

“Wait! Don’t open it!”

Yi-gang and Dam Hyun turned their heads, looking intently at Seo Saeng-won, as if asking for an explanation.

“Opening the box is dangerous! Inside it is…”

“Oh, I was wondering when you’d start talking.”

“Wh-what?”

“Whether you’d speak up or keep quiet.”

Seo Saeng-won felt a chill run down his spine.

Had Yi-gang guessed what was inside the box?

If Seo Saeng-won hadn’t stopped Yi-gang…

“I was planning to do this if you tried to deceive us till the end.”

“Ah!”

Yi-gang thrust the box towards Seo Saeng-won.

Seo Saeng-won, terrified, ducked.