Chapter 164 - Once You Set Foot on That Path

That night, as Jin Haryeong lay unable to sleep, an unexpected visitor came to her quarters: her grandfather, Jin Paecheon.

"You're still awake?"

"Yes."

"It's been a while. Shall we take a walk together?"

"I'd like that."

She walked through the inner gardens with Jin Paecheon. The martial artists stationed throughout the grounds stepped aside and vanished from sight without being told.

"I've upset you lately, haven't I? I'm sorry, Grandfather."

Jin Paecheon made no comment on that, but he did not seem angry, either.

"I hear you attended a banquet today?"

"Yes. Young Master Jo of True Dragon Manor hosted it."

"How was it?"

Her grandfather had never asked her a question like that before. If he knew she had attended, he would also know that Geom Yeon had been there.

"Grandfather, have you ever looked at someone and had an image come to mind? An animal, or something else?"

"I have. Quite recently, too."

The person Jin Paecheon recalled was Geom Mugeuk. He still could not forget the image that had arisen amid his shock and astonishment when the young man withstood his qi pressure.

"I experienced it for the first time today. I looked at someone, and a snake came to mind."

She did not need to name Jo Sin for her grandfather to know whom she meant.

Sure enough, Jin Paecheon did not ask who it was.

She had expected him to defend Jo Sin, but he showed no particular reaction. Since they had this chance to speak alone, she told him frankly how she felt about Jo Sin.

"Even if I do enter a political marriage, it won't be with Young Master Jo."

Then Jin Paecheon said something unexpected.

"I have no intention of marrying you to Young Master Jo for political reasons."

"Really?"

"I already have everything. What could I possibly lack that would make me do that?"

Jin Haryeong beamed at his firm declaration. Her grandfather truly was wonderful.

"I knew it."

She linked her arm through his.

"What are you doing, a grown girl like you?"

"Let's walk like this for just a little while."

Jin Paecheon looked at his granddaughter with a tender smile. She had been his sole source of joy in the arduous life of an alliance leader. It seemed only yesterday she had been toddling about, yet she had already grown so much.

"Were you hurt by what I did?"

"No. I understand, Grandfather. What grandfather would like seeing his granddaughter spend time with a servant?"

"It isn't because that boy is a servant."

"Then why?"

Jin Paecheon did not explain. He saw no need to discuss Geom Mugeuk's true identity.

Instead, he changed the subject.

"How is the Young Dragon Tournament going?"

"I'm doing my best."

"Are you confident you can win?"

"As you know, I've worked really hard for this tournament. I'm going to win!"

Knowing that all too well, Jin Paecheon hesitated. In truth, he wanted to urge her to withdraw. Even though he knew the Heavenly Mandate Society was involved, he wanted to keep Jin Haryeong out of the affair altogether.

But knowing the effort she had put into this tournament, he could not bring himself to tell his granddaughter to give up.

"Do your best."

"I will, Grandfather."

The two walked beneath the moonlight for a long while. As they strolled, Jin Paecheon noticed moments when his granddaughter's thoughts turned to someone.

Since he could guess who that was... he could only hope it would prove a passing fever of youth.

* * *

Seo Daeryong returned from training flushed with excitement.

"Do you know how many people recognized me on the way back?"

"More precisely, how many women came up to say they recognized you?"

"You're so quick on the uptake. How many do you think?"

"That would depend on how slowly you walked."

On busy streets, especially when there seemed to be plenty of women around, Seo Daeryong deployed his divine tortoise technique. Then, if anyone recognized him, he would come running back like an excited rabbit.

"Five?"

Seo Daeryong flinched.

"How did you know?"

"I deduced it from your current level of excitement."

"No way. Were you watching over me, by any chance? In case I got into danger?"

"Ah! Now that you mention it, that could happen. I never even considered the possibility of our young master getting into danger."

"... Because I'm so dependable, right?"

"... Of course."

"That's not it! You forgot about me, didn't you? How could you leave me on my own when I might get into danger?"

"Well, you get into danger, become a hostage, get injured, and become a true martial artist in the process. What's gotten into you? You know all this."

"I'll pass! I'm going to live quietly as a Yellow Springs Pavilion investigator who trains diligently, without getting hurt or caught up in conspiracies. I'll practice martial arts for my health!"

"Are you hurt? Because I didn't pay attention to you?"

"No."

"Not paying attention might actually help you."

"What do you mean?"

"Suppose someone has found out about us. If I show no concern for you at all, would they think you were useful leverage? They'd figure that messing with you would probably only expose their own identities."

"Ah! You thought that far ahead."

"Of course. It's best if we act like strangers."

Just then, Seo Daeryong looked out beyond the inn and said,

"Here comes our Pavilion Master's patron."

The man approaching was Jo Sin. Seo Daeryong had teased me endlessly about how he had made me shave and even bought me new clothes.

"Well, then, let's split up like strangers."

Seo Daeryong hurried upstairs.

A little later, Jo Sin entered the inn and sat down across from me.

"The noodles here are good. Would you like some?"

He snorted at my offer, his expression asking whether this was any time to be eating noodles.

Watching Jo Sin, I thought that even villains needed time to ripen. The difference between the Jo Sin who had headed the New Dragon Clan and the man before me was as great as the difference between my face with and without a beard.

"Were you supposed to win that match yesterday? Or were you supposed to get beaten to a pulp?"

"I acted without thinking. I'm sorry."

"An apology won't settle this. Miss Jin has fallen even harder for you."

Jo Sin drew a dagger.

"Now I have no choice but to carve that pretty face of yours into a Go board."

Had this been the middle-aged Jo Sin, instead of drawing a dagger, he would have taken me to the finest restaurant in the area and treated me with a bright smile. He would have fed the man he hated even finer food and piled on the praise. Subtle and persistent, he would never have revealed his feelings until he got what he wanted. That would have made him as difficult to handle as the Demon Supremes, but the present Jo Sin was in the palm of my hand.

"If you use me instead, you'll be able to win Miss Jin's heart. I understand women very well. With my help, you'll be able to marry her."

I knew he was determined to marry Jin Haryeong. That would make this offer hard to refuse.

"What could a lowlife like you possibly know?"

"If I knew nothing, how could I have made Miss Jin fall for me?"

"You're saying it was all deliberate?"

"Of course. Every word, every action has to follow a plan. You can't rush matters between men and women."

During my years as a wandering martial artist, I had known another wanderer who had once been a womanizer. Whenever we took a break, he would tell everyone about his experiences. Merely recounting the stories I had heard from him would be enough to pique Jo Sin's interest.

"What's your ulterior motive in helping me?"

"What ulterior motive could there be? It's for the money."

"Well, well. You're quite a piece of work."

I needed to keep Jo Sin from causing trouble until a champion emerged. Once the Heavenly Mandate Society began approaching the winner in earnest, I would be able to tell from his actions whether he had any connection to them.

Until then, I had to become the sort of man who swindled women for money, so that Jo Sin could tell me his secrets. Not because he trusted me, but because he would kill me once the job was done.

"Do you know why Miss Jin is avoiding you right now?"

"Why?"

"Miss Jin values her freedom. Naturally, she's going to rebel when people try to force her into a political marriage. That rebelliousness is why she rejects you and feels attracted to me."

Jo Sin's expression eased a little. That meant her dislike was not his fault.

"Did she say that?"

"Does she have to say it for me to know? I can read the signs."

"And?"

"Right now, she's focused on the Young Dragon Tournament. Do you think pushing her to marry you at a time like this will work? You should be cheering her on to win the tournament."

Jo Sin nodded as though that had never occurred to him. People like him were always that way. They thought only of themselves, not others, and had no understanding or consideration for the other person.

"Go congratulate Miss Jin on the day of her match."

"Congratulate her? Should I buy her flowers or a gift, then?"

"If she'd won the whole tournament, perhaps. But receiving a gift just for winning a quarterfinal would only make her feel pressured. Just go and congratulate her in words."

"Then I'll have to prepare a gift for when she wins the tournament."

"You're clever indeed! Your martial arts, your family, even your looks. You're perfect in every respect, Young Master Jo. If you choose the right approach, Miss Jin has no reason to reject you."

Pleased by my praise, Jo Sin smiled at me. Yet his eyes still held an unmistakable intent to kill. He was probably imagining the moment he would kill me after getting every last bit of use out of me.

"You cunning bastard! If she saw your true colors, she'd run away in horror."

As he rose, I told him,

"Be sure to have the hundred thousand taels ready!"

When I vanished like smoke from the Orthodox Martial Alliance, this petty villain, destined to become a hypocrite masquerading as a gentleman, would vanish from the world along with me.

Because the moment Jin Haryeong reached out to a servant and asked him to be her friend, she had taken hold not of my hand, but of a new life for herself.

* * *

Seo Daeryong won his quarterfinal match two days later.

But in the process, his opponent's sword pierced his shoulder, leaving a serious wound.

The tournament attendants rushed over, hoisted him onto one of their backs, and ran to the tent where a physician was waiting.

I ran after them.

As he was carried along, Seo Daeryong sent me a sound transmission.

—"If I die, be sure to tell our drinking comrades! Tell them Seo Daeryong fought valiantly and died without regrets!"

—"If you have any last words, hurry up. I can give Jang Ho your place as my right-hand man, can't I?"

—"No!"

—"Then who should I give it to? Yi An?"

—"No!"

—"Who, then?"

—"Even if I become a ghost, I won't give up that position."

The physician finished treating him.

Fortunately, his life was not in danger, but the wound was quite deep.

The Orthodox Martial Alliance physician applied wound salve, prescribed medicine for him to take, and advised him to rest for a while.

After returning to the inn, I had Seo Daeryong sit down.

"Sit here."

"Yes."

I channeled a strand of internal energy into his back. My true qi slowly circulated through his blood vessels, soothing the injured area. Whether or not this was done made a considerable difference in how quickly an injury healed.

"Thank you. I feel much better."

"Don't worry. I examined it, and fortunately, the blade missed the major blood vessels and didn't damage the bone."

With Seo Daeryong's original level of skill, the quarterfinals had been his limit. This narrow victory was the result of pouring in every bit of his luck, talent, and effort.

But it seemed he wanted to go all the way.

"Can I compete in the semifinals in this condition?"

Knowing full well how much he wanted to compete, I deliberately refrained from stopping him.

"You have to. Wrap yourself up tight in bandages, go out there, and win. You have to compete even if it costs you the use of an arm. This is far too important."

His response was unexpected.

"Yes."

His meek answer made me jump instead.

"What do you mean, yes? You're supposed to say you can't compete. Why would I risk my arm for some stupid match? You're supposed to argue!"

"There's too much at stake for that, isn't there?"

"What is? What's so important about an Orthodox Martial Alliance tournament?"

"Not that. Your succession test, Pavilion Master. I have to win so we can pursue those people."

I stared silently into his face. His eyes, brimming with loyalty and passion, finally evaded mine. Caught red-handed.

"So you're going to move me with your devotion and turn the tables to wriggle out of this?"

"Was it obvious?"

"Of course. That passion was far too unlike you. You wouldn't sacrifice an arm even if the sky fell."

"That's right. Even if Murim were destroyed, I wouldn't give up my arm. Well done, Seo Daeryong! You're amazing, Seo Daeryong! Making the semifinals is enough! Praise me!"

His banter made me laugh. Seo Daeryong laughed along, then cried out in pain.

"Ow! It hurts. Don't make me laugh."

"You're the one making all the jokes. Rest."

As I was about to leave the room, Seo Daeryong asked from behind me,

"Is it really impossible?"

Unlike before, his tone was serious. I could feel his desire to stay in the tournament.

"You can't."

"Your succession test matters, but I'm doing this for myself, too. I've learned a lot from competing in this tournament. I want to see it through to the end."

A brief silence passed.

"Investigator Seo, once you set foot on that path, it's hard to leave it."

"What kind of path is it?"

"The path of binding your injured arm and stepping onto the tournament platform. The kind of path you keep walking even when blood runs down your whole body, you're limping, and you can't see out of one eye."

That was how I had been when searching for the final ingredient for the great ritual.

Having lived that life, I wanted to stop him. Yet knowing better than anyone how much it could help a martial artist grow, I could not.

But once he crossed that line and tasted that world, he would no longer be able to live as a Yellow Springs Pavilion investigator who practiced martial arts for his health.

"At least this once, I want to try."

"Your next opponent would be difficult to beat even if you weren't injured."

"Show me the way."

"If you push yourself too hard, you might permanently lose the use of your injured arm."

"Then I'll find myself a right-hand man, too. Ah, I suppose mine would be a left-hand man."

"You could suffer an even worse injury."

"Then I'll take the opportunity to rest."

The determination in Seo Daeryong's eyes was no different from my own in the past.

"Then you shouldn't be sitting there like that."

Seo Daeryong sprang to his feet.

"Your fate always changes at an inn."

"And you're always there, Pavilion Master."

How could that be because of me, or the place? It was because of the decision that small, stubborn man kept making not to give up.

I took him out of the inn.

Burning with enthusiasm, Seo Daeryong shouted,

"All right! Hellish training begins now!"

As he strode toward the mountain where we trained, I told him,

"Not that way. This way."

I set off in the opposite direction.

"There's somewhere we need to stop first."

The place we visited together was the Central Plains Bank. I withdrew five hundred thousand taels there.

"Why are you withdrawing so much money?"

"Because we're not going to hell. Hellish training with an injured body would only damage it further."

"Then where are we going?"

"Paradise."

I gave the startled Seo Daeryong a meaningful smile.

"We're going to paradise. A paradise with a very expensive admission fee."