Chapter 187
Chapter 187
“……You are truly ruthless.”
Hyeongang looked at Youngho with a weary expression. An insolent emotion could be felt in Hyeongang’s gaze, but Youngho ignored it as if he were accustomed to it.
“More importantly, have you finished the treatment?”
“Yes, but how in the world can you cut into flesh without even using anesthesia?”
After a brief quarrel with Hye-gak, Youngho entered the tent and received treatment. But even that could not be done peacefully.
“There are packs of wolves aiming for my life. How could I possibly sleep comfortably?”
“Even if you don’t press the acupoints for anesthesia, there’s a perfectly good method called medicine, you know?”
“If I use medicine, my senses become dull.”
To think that someone so young was already living while constantly guarding his life… Hyeongang suddenly felt pity for Youngho.
“By the way, if they had ambushed you during the treatment, they might’ve had at least some chance of killing you… Something feels strange. Should I deal with the few outside leaking Killing Intent?”
Hyeongang had paid many sacrifices to become a hero of the war, but seeing Youngho casually speak such cruel words made him bury the feeling of worry deep within his heart once again.
‘Better worry about myself. They say worrying about your superiors is something you bring upon yourself….’
Even if Youngho were to fail, he would certainly live a far more comfortable life than Hyeongang ever would.
“Anyway, since the treatment is finished, I should see the people who helped me as well. First, bring Horyeung.”
“You called for me?”
Thanks to Horyeung’s superhumanly developed senses, he heard Youngho’s voice and came without needing to be summoned.
“First, let’s sit down and talk. Since I’m a patient, bring drinks—tea instead of alcohol.”
Hyeongang blinked a few times before pointing at his own face with a finger. Youngho gave a small nod, and Hyeongang began brewing tea with a face as if he had bitten into something foul.
“Young Master, believe it or not, I am a Divine Physician. You’re really using such high-level manpower for something like this?”
“I’ve finished my treatment, so rest a little. Even if you want to sleep, stay awake. You’ve experienced war—you need time to settle your mind.”
For a moment, Hyeongang was so shaken that his hands trembled, but he soon regained his composure and muttered.
“Yes, yes. I really ended up with such a wonderful lord.”
While Hyeongang brewed the tea, Youngho spoke to Horyeung, who was staring at him with a serious expression.
“Horyeung, the time you’ve spent with me isn’t short. And during that time, you’ve done far more for me than I deserved. So let me ask you something.”
Leaning his arm on the table and resting his chin on his hand, Youngho asked,
“Is there something you want?”
The tone was different from Youngho’s usual manner of speaking, but that only made the sincerity behind it clearer.
If Horyeung were to ask for help avenging his grudge right now, Youngho would accept without even asking for details.
This was not a conversation between lord and subordinate.
It was a conversation built on trust between two people—Youngho and Horyeung.
Youngho trusted Horyeung. That was why he changed the atmosphere. He showed that he was confident he could grant any request.
Thanks to that, Horyeung was able to speak comfortably. Unlike Youngho’s determination, his wish was very small and simple.
“I want to become the General Overseer.”
“……The General Overseer?”
Caught completely off guard by the request, Youngho asked with a baffled expression.
“If it were retirement, I’d understand. But you want to become the General Overseer? You mean that boring job where you sit in the office all day holding documents?”
“Yes. I very much want to do that boring job.”
“Why? Wouldn’t working for the Imperial Palace be better? That’s practically a huge promotion.”
“What I desire isn’t promotion.”
“Then what exactly is it that you want?”
At this point, even Youngho grew curious about Horyeung’s intentions. And when the next words came, Youngho had no choice but to fall silent.
“One must prepare a place for a lord who might leave for somewhere unknown to return to.”
Seeing Youngho flustered like someone his own age for the first time in a long while, Horyeung smiled faintly.
“…….”
Silence drifted through the tent for a moment. Even Hyeongang looked bewildered, as if he had never expected such an answer.
After grasping the situation, Hyeongang tried to say something.
“When did you figure it out?”
But Youngho spoke first before Hyeongang could. The heavy emotion in Youngho’s voice made Horyeung show a bitter smile.
“I thought about many things when I noticed you never considered what would happen after the war. Would my lord intend to die in the war? Or even if he survives, does he intend to die afterward? Would he leave the Unorthodox Alliance? If he leaves, would he at least give us a word?”
Horyeung looked at the sword resting beside Youngho with eyes that were not sorrowful, yet carried a trace of disappointment.
“I even wondered if you were someone who saw himself as a weapon meant to stop the war.”
Youngho stared at Horyeung with a stiff face for a moment before letting out a small laugh.
“As expected, I might fool the little brats, but I can’t fool you. Even Master didn’t notice.”
“Well, he hasn’t spent much time with you.”
“That’s true.”
Youngho moved his lips slightly before speaking again with a confident smile.
“I’ll tell everyone next time when the others are here too. I haven’t even decided my next destination yet.”
“I thought as much. Then I’ll take my leave. Since you have clearly promised to grant my wish, I won’t worry about that matter.”
Horyeung gave a light bow befitting a bodyguard and left the tent. Youngho chuckled and looked at Hyeongang.
Youngho asked Hyeongang, who looked like he had many things he wanted to say.
“Aren’t you going to ask?”
“You said you’d tell us next time, didn’t you? Besides, you haven’t even decided yet.”
“That’s true.”
Letting out a small laugh, Youngho summoned Nam A-pyeong. Their conversation was mostly about money.
Youngho simply nodded along when Nam A-pyeong talked about taking advantage of the end of the war to increase his wealth, but he showed interest when he heard that Nam A-pyeong intended to extract money even from the Imperial Family.
“So you’re saying you’ll lend money to the Imperial Family and squeeze money out of them?”
“I mean, as part of a business venture…”
“When did loan sharking become a business?”
“…….”
“I knew you were crazy about money, but I didn’t think you’d go as far as squeezing money out of the Imperial Family.”
“I plan to speak with the Emperor first.”
“You already scheduled it?”
“Of course! At most I’ll retire in twenty years, so I need to earn as much as possible before then!”
“You lunatic. Next time at least inform Master first.”
“I already spoke with the Fifth Young Master, so I was planning to go see the Alliance Lord next…”
“And pick one way of speaking. If you’re going to use respectful speech, at least do it properly.”
“Then I’ll just talk casually. There are plenty of people aiming for your neck right now, so guard it well. That body of yours will become a sack of money for my disciple—if you die here, that’d be troublesome.”
“I know, so get out. And worry about your treasury instead. You’ll need it a lot in the future.”
“That’s terrifying. I’ll be going now.”
Nam A-pyeong gave a proper bow and left the tent. Finally, Youngho summoned the Wandering King who had come to help him.
Jeong Guyu entered the tent with Muyeon hanging from one arm. The scent of alcohol flowed from Jeong Guyu’s body, as if they had already caused quite a drinking commotion.
Seeing Muyeon’s face flushed red as she swayed drunkenly, Youngho clicked his tongue.
“Didn’t I tell her not to drink?”
“Don’t scold my little sister too much. I forced her to drink because I was happy to see her after so long.”
Youngho looked up at Jeong Guyu, who was bigger than him, and smirked.
“About six cheok and a bit? Seeing you up close, you’re enormous.”
“No one has ever beaten me with sheer intimidation.”
Jeong Guyu laughed heartily while boasting about his size, and Youngho chuckled.
“First, the reason I called you here is to thank you and give you appropriate compensation.”
“We don’t need anything else. As long as we have money, that’s enough. If we want to drink, we pay and drink. If we want women, we go to a pleasure house and pay. So just give us money.”
“I like how straightforward that is. I’ll replace my thanks with a generous sum.”
“Kuh! You know what you’re doing!”
“Good. Then let’s move to the next topic.”
“Hm? Is there more to say?”
“Would you be interested in maintaining a long-term deal with me?”
“Oh?”
At Youngho’s proposal, Jeong Guyu set the wine bottle on the table. After scanning Youngho with the eyes of a predator searching for weakness, he grinned.
“So you want to make a deal not with the Unorthodox Alliance, but with you—the Sword Demon.”
“You’re good at grasping the key point. That makes the conversation faster. The compensation will vary depending on the request, but I’ll always pay one Gold-Blood Hall gold ingot as advance payment. After that, the reward will depend on how the job is handled.”
Jeong Guyu smelled money.
An intoxicatingly sweet scent of money flowed from Youngho—yet at the same time, a thick smell of blood accompanied it.
Dangerous money.
Or rather, the person giving the money was dangerous.
His thoughts did not last long. Snapping his fingers, Jeong Guyu said,
“Sounds great! I don’t care what kind of man you are—as long as the money is safe!”
“You must care a lot about your people.”
“Of course! The Fungnang Unit are my children!”
“I’m not talking about those children. I mean the little brats who aren’t even fifteen yet.”
At that moment, Jeong Guyu’s body froze. As his mind processed the meaning, his gaze slowly turned toward Muyeon.
An undeniable sense of betrayal appeared in the way he looked at her. Seeing that, Youngho chuckled like a villain.
“Muyeon didn’t tell me. I obtained that information through my own personal network, so there’s no need to feel betrayed.”
“Isn’t Muyeon the only one in your information network?”
“Didn’t you consider that I might’ve investigated before Muyeon even came?”
Jeong Guyu bit his lip briefly and glared at Youngho with wary eyes.
“What exactly are you trying to say?”
“It’s simple. I want an exclusive contract with the Fungnang Unit you lead.”
“……What?”
“I want you to accept only my requests from now on.”
“……And what do we gain from that?”
“As expected of a businessman—you clearly distinguish between gain and loss. What you gain is protection from grudges in the Martial World and immense wealth.”
“You think that’s possible? Wealth is one thing, but protection from grudges? The number of people who hold grudges against me is not small.”
“It’s possible. Because I’ll make it possible.”
“Confidence without evidence is not good.”
“Then I’ll give you evidence. Because I belong to the Unorthodox Faction, I can easily interfere with the Orthodox Sect’s influence. You’ve made enemies among them too, haven’t you? I saw it myself just earlier.”
“Hah! That argument has even less basis! If we hadn’t been there earlier, you’d be a dead man!”
“I know. That’s why I’m offering compensation. And if I fully recover, I will never die again.”
“That’s nonsense.”
“It’s the truth. I’m strong. You didn’t see it, but everyone who participated in the war witnessed my power.”
“As long as you’re human, you have limits.”
“That’s true. But it doesn’t apply to me. So just watch.”
“Watch what?”
“My path. I’ll do my best to give you a reason to trust me. Leave the answer for later.”
Youngho smiled mischievously as usual.
“Wait one month. If I fail to earn your trust after one month, I’ll completely give up on a talent like the Wandering King. But if you change your mind, come to the Gold-Blood Hall anytime. I’ll welcome you.”
Seeing Youngho’s expression, Hyeongang suddenly thought to himself.
‘Even if our Young Master becomes a hero who saved the world, he never forgets that he belongs to the Unorthodox Faction….’
He just wished that face would be used for something good.