Chapter 27 - I Heard It

A few days later, I formally assumed my post as Pavilion Master of Yellow Springs Pavilion.

Early that morning, martial artists from the pavilion arrived at my residence. Leading them was Seo Daeryong, the special investigator who had worked with me on the Demon Army investigation.

"We've come to escort you, Pavilion Master."

"Investigator Seo. So you came."

"I volunteered."

In truth, this small, gloomy-looking man standing before me had played a major part in my becoming Pavilion Master.

"Shall we go?"

I decided to take Yi An with me.

"Yi An, come along. You need to learn how to run an organization."

"Thank you!"

She looked ready to fly with joy, perhaps having expected me to leave her behind again.

"We're not going there for fun. Go and learn how an organization operates and how to treat your subordinates. Learn everything, without missing a thing."

"Yes!"

When we arrived at Yellow Springs Pavilion, all the investigators were lined up outside the entrance. Apparently, this was how they welcomed a new Pavilion Master.

As I passed, they all cupped their fists in salute and greeted me loudly.

"Greetings, Pavilion Master!"

I had expected them to resent my appointment, but their eyes were friendlier than I had imagined.

So I quietly asked Seo Daeryong, who stood beside me,

"Did you tell them you'd cut their monthly pay if they didn't pretend to welcome me?"

"No."

"Then why is everyone in such a good mood?"

Seo Daeryong lifted a foot and mimed stamping down on the ground.

That told me why they were so welcoming: Go Dang, the Demon Army's First Squad Leader. He had murdered the investigator first sent to investigate them, and this time he had injured another.

By smashing his head and killing him, I had given them a satisfying measure of revenge. My blood ties to the Heavenly Demon would have offset some of their objections to a Pavilion Master so young, and killing the Demon Army commander had already proved my martial prowess.

"Would you say a few words?"

At Seo Daeryong's suggestion, I turned toward my subordinates before entering the building. Slowly, I looked at each of their faces, then offered a few brief words.

"I don't know whether having me as Pavilion Master will make you happier or unhappier. But one thing is certain. Your hearts will beat faster than before."

With that, I turned and entered the building.

Murmurs rose behind me. There was no need to worry about how they would interpret my words. They would find out soon enough.

After showing me to my office, Seo Daeryong was about to leave, but I kept him there.

"Investigator Seo, you never expected us to meet again like this, did you?"

"Honestly, I was very surprised."

"I came because I missed you."

His expression did not change at all, as though flattery wouldn't work on him.

"Yi An, you must steer clear of taciturn men like him. You'd be bored for the rest of your life."

"But he might be a man of real substance."

Yi An took his side.

"No, this fellow is thin broth without a single solid morsel in it."

This time, Seo Daeryong spoke up for himself.

"I may not be rich broth, but I'm not bland, either."

"Oh, you've got some spirit. We'll be needing plenty of that from now on."

Quick-witted as he was, he immediately understood what I meant.

"No. I'm bland broth. Please don't come looking for me when there's dangerous work to do."

"I'll mix rice into that thin broth. And stir in plenty of hot seasoning."

Seo Daeryong backed away. He was merely pretending to be frightened; he was a brave man. I knew that great courage and spirit resided in that small frame.

"Now, tell me about our pavilion. I don't know a thing."

As though he had been waiting for the question, he began explaining.

"As you know, Yellow Springs Pavilion is responsible for upholding and enforcing the Cult's rules and laws. We root out corruption, of course, and handle various incidents within the Cult. We have a total of one hundred personnel: thirty investigators and seventy enforcement martial artists."

The enforcement martial artists assisted and guarded the investigators, and were responsible for arresting offenders.

"That's fewer than I expected."

"This isn't an organization that needs large numbers."

Yellow Springs Pavilion was an authoritative organization everyone feared. There were exceptions, such as the Demon Army, but most demonic martial artists were afraid of it.

"Five of the thirty investigators are special investigators. They mainly handle cases deemed difficult or important, but otherwise you can consider them ordinary investigators. Enforcement martial artists aren't assigned to individual investigators; they provide support whenever needed."

After hearing his explanation, I asked,

"Investigator Seo, what do you consider Yellow Springs Pavilion's greatest problem?"

He hesitated for a moment before answering.

"No organization in the Cult can escape the influence of the Eight Demon Supremes."

He hadn't singled out Yellow Springs Pavilion, but he clearly meant that the Eight Demon Supremes were its greatest problem.

"Are you under their influence, too?"

"No. As I told you, I'm a loner."

At the very least, that meant he hadn't entered Cult politics for money or promotion.

"But that doesn't mean I'm a man of great convictions. Just think of me as a grumbling malcontent."

"That's what I like about you. I don't like people who get too carried away with ideals, either."

I glanced at Yi An as I spoke.

"I like sensible people. People who look after themselves first."

Knowing I meant her, Yi An merely smiled faintly.

My gaze returned to Seo Daeryong.

"You said the Cult would never change, didn't you? How about it? Shall we change it together, starting now?"

"What if you throw yourself into it with all that passion, then leave? As suddenly as you came?"

"When it's time for me to go, I'll have to go."

"And after burning with that passion alongside you, I'll be left alone in the ashes?"

"That's not my concern. You said you were a loner anyway. So? Are you in?"

At my shamelessness, Seo Daeryong let out a conspicuously heavy sigh, but his answer belied his behavior.

"I'm in."

"Why?"

"Didn't you already show me why when we handled the Demon Army case?"

"I'll be counting on you."

"Yes. Leave it to me."

Pleased, I offered my hand, and he clasped it firmly.

'What will become of you when I leave? What else? You'll take my seat.'

In any case, I had taken office to a warmer welcome than expected. Now I needed to make them understand exactly what sort of person I was.

For that, I needed someone to make an example of. Someone truly vicious and rotten.

"Are there any recent cases involving the Eight Demon Supremes that I should revisit?"

"Should revisit" was a roundabout way of saying "had been handled unjustly."

Seo Daeryong understood at once.

"Of course... there are."

His "of course" underscored the problem with Yellow Springs Pavilion that he had mentioned earlier.

"Bring one here."

A short while later, he brought me a file.

After reviewing the case, I let out a long sigh.

"You're deliberately trying to get me killed, aren't you?"

Of all people, the case he had brought involved the Blood Heaven Saber Demon.

"I don't want to do this either... but it's a recent case, and it meets your requirements."

"But why did it have to be the Blood Heaven Saber Demon?"

Yi An, who had been watching, quickly interjected.

"Young Master, you must hold back this time. The venerable Saber Demon must be on the verge of exploding."

I handed her the file.

"The injustice described in there is too great to bury the case for that reason. Read it, Yi An. If you can close the file after that, go ahead."

After reading it, she couldn't bring herself to close the file. She sighed.

"I can't let this pass."

I sprang up from my chair.

"Let's go. If destiny calls, I must answer."

In truth, this was nothing like destiny. It was simply the inevitable result of an old man leaving the scum around him unchecked.

* * *

Gwak Su was drunk.

He was sunk in a despair so deep that even alcohol could do nothing for it.

His son, who attended a martial academy, had been beaten by a group of his friends. The boy had suffered a head injury and still hadn't regained consciousness after ten days.

Jo Chunbae, the owner of the Merry Life Tavern, knew his circumstances well. He sat down across from him.

"Is it true those boys were released?"

Gwak Su downed drink after drink.

"Damn it! Goddamn it!"

An investigator from Yellow Springs Pavilion had investigated the incident. Gwak Su had naturally expected the culprits to be imprisoned. Instead, all three had been found innocent and released. The case had been treated as an injury sustained while sparring with a friend.

"It's all over. They say the father of the boy who led the attack is a Hundred-Saber Fiend."

A Hundred-Saber Fiend was a leader of one hundred Saber Fiends.

"Oh, no!"

Jo Chunbae sighed in dismay. If the boy's father served the Blood Heaven Saber Demon—and was a Hundred-Saber Fiend rather than merely a Ten-Saber Fiend—then that was the end of the matter.

"The investigators at Yellow Springs Pavilion are all the same. Those bastards are even worse."

"Shh! Keep your voice down. What if someone hears?"

Looking around, Jo Chunbae tried to calm him.

"Let them hear. Tell those sons of bitches at Yellow Springs Pavilion to kill me first! Tell the Hundred-Saber Fiend to come kill me himself!"

BANG!

Gwak Su slammed the table. Jo Chunbae quickly caught the liquor bottle as it wobbled and nearly fell.

"Please, man! Restrain yourself."

"If my son doesn't wake up, my wife won't live out her days."

Jo Chunbae knew that was no exaggeration. The boy was Gwak Su's only son, and he had watched for years as the couple raised him with loving care.

"He'll wake up."

"If he doesn't, I'll kill that bastard and take my own life."

Just then, a voice came from behind them.

"Could you actually kill me?"

They turned to find three young men standing at the tavern entrance.

"You?"

The young man in the middle had spoken in that mocking voice. He was Yang Ho, the very boy who had led the assault.

"Who do you think you are, talking about killing someone else's precious son?"

Gwak Su sprang to his feet.

"You! You!"

Encountering Yang Ho so unexpectedly left him shocked and flustered. But soon he roared,

"You bastard. Because of you, right now... Give me back my son! Give him back!"

His emotions were so fierce that he scarcely knew what he was saying, but Yang Ho was indifferent.

"You bastard! We haven't heard a single word of apology from you!"

Yang Ho stepped forward and bowed politely.

"I'm sorry. I've truly committed a sin worthy of death. It won't happen again. There. Satisfied? I clearly apologized. So stop calling me a bastard every other word."

"What? What did you just say?"

"It's not as though I'm your brat, is it?"

The two beside him snickered, and Yang Ho himself was struggling to suppress a smile.

Overcome by drink and anger, Gwak Su tried to draw his sword. Jo Chunbae rushed in and desperately restrained him.

"Hold back. Hold back! Think of your family, if nothing else!"

If Gwak Su drew his sword here, Yang Ho would surely kill him. Gwak Su was a low-ranking martial artist of the Outer Hall, while Yang Ho, though young, had received proper martial training since childhood.

"Have you gone mad? You told me to apologize, so I did, and now you're trying to kill me."

Yang Ho could simply have left, but he kept provoking Gwak Su, as though he had come with that very intention.

"You've got no conscience at all. Go on, kill me. Kill me if you can."

How could a human being be so shameless? Gwak Su wanted to stab him right then and there.

But he couldn't. He couldn't win, and even if he somehow killed Yang Ho, that would be an even greater disaster. Everything would end the moment he did. Yang Ho's father would kill not only him, but his unconscious son and grief-stricken wife as well.

"You boys should leave now. Go on."

Jo Chunbae tried to usher Yang Ho and his friends out, but Yang Ho behaved as though he had abandoned all claim to humanity.

"I'd wondered who our little Dong took after, being such a coward. Turns out it was his father."

At that moment, Gwak Su lost all reason.

He drew his sword, and Yang Ho's fist flew at him as though he had been waiting for it.

Struck in the face, Gwak Su crashed into a table behind him and fell.

"He clearly drew his sword first!"

The two standing behind Yang Ho shouted that they had seen it, as though offering witness testimony.

Yang Ho lunged at Gwak Su and began beating him.

THUD! THUD! THUD!

"A mere warehouse guard dares report me to Yellow Springs Pavilion?"

That was why he had stayed to pick a fight. Being reported to Yellow Springs Pavilion had earned him a severe scolding from his father. Unable to contain his anger, he had come to vent it.

Only after punching Gwak Su to his heart's content did Yang Ho get off him.

"This is all your fault. I told him to steal some money from home, and you know what he said? He couldn't, because his father had earned it through blood and sweat. The little retard, acting like he's the only decent one. Am I the only piece of trash? How could I not hit him? This is all your fault. Got it?"

"... You've confessed it yourself!"

Gwak Su's lip was split, and blood ran from a cut beneath his eye, but in that moment he found a glimmer of hope.

"Confessed what?"

"Everyone here heard you! They heard why you beat my son. You confessed that it was an assault, not a sparring match!"

Yang Ho looked around menacingly.

"Well? Did anyone here hear what I said?"

There were several customers present, but none dared speak up. Not even Jo Chunbae, the tavern's owner, could step forward. If he did, he would not only have to close his business; his life would be in danger. The same was true of the customers.

"Looks like nobody heard anything. Hee hee hee."

At Yang Ho's laughter, the tears Gwak Su had held back finally spilled over.

"Huh... hhh...!"

He was too furious to contain himself. The bastard who had put his son in a coma was laughing and toying with him, and the reality that he could do nothing was utterly devastating. As a father, he felt ashamed and desperately sorry. He didn't want to cry, but the tears kept falling.

"A grown man crying like a retard. Like father, like son, all right. Ha ha ha."

The boys with Yang Ho cackled along with him.

Just then, a young man's voice rang out clearly from the tavern's second floor.

"I heard it."