novelraw Chapter 43
Chapter 43
Chapter 43
Pyo Inhaeng knew that Ho Jo-yeong wasn’t someone capable of thinking something like that on his own. Which meant this idea had likely come from Ju Jirang.
He had planned to ignore it because it seemed petty, but the freshly taken-out crepe looked strangely appetizing, so Pyo Inhaeng decided to hold back his temper.
Even if he got angry, it would only harm his own health—who would appreciate it?
Right now, he was still energetic, so at least they pretended to be scared. But later, when he grew weaker and fell ill, they wouldn’t even bother acknowledging him.
Grumbling, Pyo Inhaeng ate the crepe, and his eyes widened at the unexpected flavor.
“Tasty, right, Captain?”
Ho Jo-yeong puffed up with pride as if he had made it himself.
“You didn’t even make this. What are you so proud of?”
“Aw, Captain. Why are you being like this?”
When Ho Jo-yeong laughed and spoke, Pyo Inhaeng shook his head.
“I called Vice Leader Ju because I needed to speak with him. But you came along and just blabbered nonsense the whole time.”
Then he got to the point.
“Did anything else come to mind from Jang Doosan’s corpse?”
“I’ve been thinking it over, but my knowledge of martial arts is limited, so I feel like there’s a ceiling to what I can deduce.”
“I see. Then, Vice Leader Ju, who do you think their target was? If they were aiming for the Ak Clan, what do you think they were after? Was the goal to kidnap Young Mistress Ak? Do you think they’ll send more people since they failed to abduct her?”
That was a topic Ho Jo-yeong and Ju Jirang had discussed multiple times.
Even during their private moments together, their attention toward Ak Seol-ah never wavered. Their eyes always drifted toward her, and they could only feel at ease when Seo Mugyeom was standing beside her.
“From what I’ve found, the Ak Clan used to be a very wealthy household. Each of their businesses was a gold mine, and they even held monopolies on certain trades.”
As Ju Jirang started to speak, Ho Jo-yeong occasionally chimed in.
“Didn’t they say Young Mistress Ak’s maternal grandmother was a distant relative of the Emperor? From the Emperor’s side, it’s distant, but with the Empress Dowager, the relation is much closer. Captain, you’ve probably heard just how much power the Empress Dowager holds in the Imperial Palace, haven’t you?”
Pyo Inhaeng nodded, intrigued. Come to think of it, that was spot on.
When it was said she was distantly related to the Emperor, it sounded like she was boasting about some barely-there blood tie.
But when the frame of reference shifted to the Empress Dowager, the story changed entirely. That was because the Empress Dowager wasn’t the Emperor’s birth mother.
“When they said the business had been attacked, I felt the damage reported to the public was probably just a fraction. Now imagine such people having grown their wealth through illicit means. That’s not something they could publicly admit. Even thinking solely in terms of the escort agency, it makes some sense, doesn’t it?”
Listening to Ju Jirang, Pyo Inhaeng fell deep in thought.
If an escort agency run by a relative of a powerful court figure existed, wouldn’t people find it difficult to commission another agency?
And by offering escort fees far above market rate, the agency might have been used as a channel to pass bribes to the Empress Dowager.
The wealth amassed that way wouldn’t be disclosed, so the Ak Clan probably suffered far greater losses than publicly known.
“Where did that money go? Wouldn’t the ones who stole it suddenly see their power or fortunes rise? Was there no sign of that near the Ak Clan?”
Though Pyo Inhaeng asked, Ju Jirang shook his head.
At first, it seemed like he hadn’t investigated that far, but then came a definitive answer.
“There was no such place nearby. It’s either a group that doesn’t compete with the Ak Clan, or they’re trying to hide their involvement by not spending the money for the time being.”
“Whoever it is, they’re extremely meticulous. Jang Doosan alone wasn’t your average master, yet there were two more like him, right? I doubt those three were the entire group.”
Ho Jo-yeong picked up from Ju Jirang’s point, and Ju Jirang nodded.
“I’m most curious about what rank Jang Doosan held within that organization. If abducting Young Mistress Ak was a mission so critical that they sent their best men, then that would be a relief. But if someone of lesser importance was dispatched…”
Ju Jirang trailed off, as if not wanting to even think about that possibility.
And he wasn’t alone in not wanting to imagine that scenario.
“Our task is to safely escort Young Mistress Ak to the Imperial City. Until then, we must do everything in our power to ensure nothing happens to her.”
Pyo Inhaeng spoke and looked at Ho Jo-yeong.
“What do you think about Seo Mugyeom? I’m a bit worried. Once Young Mistress Ak arrives at the Imperial City, he’ll have to return, right? At first, everything was new and he was honest with his feelings, so I left him be. But now I’m concerned about what might happen later.”
Ho Jo-yeong honestly hadn’t expected the Captain to be thinking that way. Ju Jirang was similarly surprised.
“I even wondered whether I should prepare for the possibility that Seo Mugyeom might want to stay by Young Mistress Ak’s side.”
“That could happen. Just look at Mugyeom these days. And if he truly wants that, I think we should consider granting it.”
Ho Jo-yeong said without much hesitation.
Even if this mission ended, he would return with Ju Jirang. But Seo Mugyeom was different.
If he went back now, who knew when—or even if—he’d meet Ak Seol-ah again.
He hadn’t asked whether Seo Mugyeom intended to marry Ak Seol-ah, but even if he did, it would be problematic.
The Ak Clan was a sinking ship. And those trying to sink it were unimaginably cruel and powerful.
“I know saying this now is pointless, but perhaps we shouldn’t have accepted this mission to begin with. Even if we did, we shouldn’t have brought Mugyeom along.”
Ho Jo-yeong spoke with clear regret.
Truthfully, Pyo Inhaeng had thought the same. He worried whether Seo Mugyeom would be able to handle this ordeal.
What if, after completing the mission and returning to the Divine Martial Sect, they heard that something had happened to Ak Seol-ah?
Seo Mugyeom was already deeply infatuated with her—could he pretend not to care upon hearing such news?
Who knew how big that incident might be? Right now, it only involved the Ak Clan, but later, more people would become entangled. The image of Ak Seol-ah caught in a storm of interests and threats was all too easy to imagine.
As Pyo Inhaeng said this, Ho Jo-yeong and Ju Jirang both looked grim.
Then Ju Jirang cautiously spoke.
“Captain, what if we handled this a different way? As long as Young Mistress Ak lives, the enemies may continue sending assassins. So… what if she were declared dead? There are a few places along the way known to house prominent Green Forest Bandit strongholds. We could deliberately pass through those regions. I mean, we’re the Guardian Ten Division of the Divine Martial Sect, aren’t we? It wouldn’t make sense for us to avoid bandits out of fear.”
Ju Jirang made it sound quite plausible, but Pyo Inhaeng immediately shook his head.
“Didn’t the Ak Clan request us not to reveal that we’re from the Guardian Ten Division of the Divine Martial Sect?”
“I was under the impression that you didn’t agree to that request, Captain.”
“I was going to ignore it, out of spite for the Clan Head. I even considered waving our flag high. But thinking about Young Mistress Ak made me reconsider. That’s why we’ve come this far without a flag. Did you not realize that, Vice Leader Ju?”
“Ah… Is that so? I thought you simply forgot because you were busy with other matters.”
Pyo Inhaeng stared at Ju Jirang as if dumbfounded.
“Did you think I was some senile old man?”
“No… That’s not it.”
Pyo Inhaeng gestured for him to go on and finish.
“Our idea was to stage a situation during the bandit attack where Young Mistress Ak is kidnapped or killed. Then, we disband, and Mugyeom secretly escorts her back.”
Ho Jo-yeong said with caution.
“To the Divine Martial Sect?”
“Yes.”
“Hm…”
Pyo Inhaeng pressed his forehead, deep in thought.
He had summoned Ju Jirang, hoping that talking things out would bring clarity. But now he felt he had chosen the wrong person. He hadn’t expected this kind of suggestion.
Still, the idea seemed effective.
Just imagining Seo Mugyeom’s reaction made him want to grant the request.
Otherwise, even after completing the mission, Seo Mugyeom might end up miserable. It was odd—success had taken a back seat to his subordinate’s emotional well-being.
Yet, if he refused Ju Jirang and Ho Jo-yeong’s proposal, he feared he wouldn’t be able to face Seo Mugyeom later.
‘Fine. I’ll just close my eyes and go with it.’
And so, Pyo Inhaeng asked,
“If we take her to the Divine Martial Sect, where would she stay?”
“Of course, the Tenth Division. So I was thinking—what if we claim that we discovered Young Mistress Ak during the mission and, seeing her potential, brought her in as a recruit?”
“What potential does she have? I’ve looked her over, and there’s none.”
At Pyo Inhaeng’s retort, Ju Jirang interjected,
“Then what if we say she helped us? Naturally, she would need a new name and identity, but if we claim she assisted in our mission and is now in danger because of it, wouldn’t that be justification enough to bring her along?”
“If we bring her in as a servant for the Guardian Ten Division, can’t you handle that from your end, Captain?”
The two seemed truly eager to make it happen.