The father of Escort Guard Lee Pil is the younger brother of the former Clan Lord and the uncle of the current Clan Lord.
When he came to the Tang Clan, he was already part of the Outer Line.
And since he was a child born outside the clan, there was almost no chance he would ever live inside the Inner Court.
Which means… when he was in the Tang Clan, he must’ve spent most of his time here in the Outer Court.
It also means… he was bullied here and tormented here.
This place… is filled with painful memories for Escort Guard Lee Pil.
I quietly approached him and whispered.
“I’m sorry.”
“Huh? What do you mean, my lord?”
“I didn’t consider this. I should’ve realized… this Outer Court is a painful place for you.”
I continued.
“If it’s too hard… you can go back to the annex.”
At my words, Escort Guard Lee Pil shook his head.
“No, my lord. Honestly… it’s painful seeing this place again. But I’ve always wanted to come back at least once. So I’m grateful to you.”
“I’m glad to hear that, but…”
“Please don’t worry. If it gets too difficult, I’ll let you know.”
“Alright. Please do.”
As we continued looking around the Outer Court… a group approached from the front.
It seemed to be a middle-aged woman accompanied by attendants.
Judging by her clothes, she held considerable status.
But the moment Escort Guard Lee Pil saw her… his face turned even stiffer.
Seeing that, I figured out who she was.
Still… I needed to confirm.
“Lady Tang Su-bin… who is that?”
“That’s my youngest uncle’s first wife. While my uncle is stationed at the Murim Alliance, his wives still live here.”
“I see.”
As we got closer, Lady Tang Su-bin lowered her head in greeting.
Regardless of Inner or Outer Line, a first wife was certainly someone of seniority.
“Greetings, Aunt.”
“Oh… my niece. And these people?”
“These are Young Hero Eun Seo-ho, our clan’s benefactor, and his escort guards.”
“I see…”
She smiled. Then her gaze shifted to Escort Guard Lee Pil.
That smile… was subtle.
.
.
.
After touring the Outer Court, we headed to the last destination—the Martial Affairs Grounds.
“Honestly, this is where the most interesting things are.”
I agreed completely.
This was about the spread of the Tang Clan’s poison.
In other words… it would eventually be revealed that someone leaked the Tang Clan’s poison.
The culprit had to pin the blame on someone else. And the easiest place to do that… was the Martial Affairs Grounds, where the most people came and went.
The Inner Court was too limited in its residents. It would’ve been obvious who did it.
We hadn’t found any significant evidence in the Outer Court.
But whoever received the leaked information about the plague from the Thorn Gate Sect to the Murim Alliance… or the Mountain Air Poison that ruined Jin-ho’s Deputy Merchant Lord inauguration… likely stored the evidence here, in the Martial Affairs Grounds.
I prayed it would be here.
If not… I was guaranteed a world of trouble.
Doom doom doom doom…
Just then, the sound of drums echoed from a distance.
“Perfect timing. It’s Shen Shi (申時: 3 PM to 5 PM). If we head to the training ground now, we’ll catch something fun.”
“Is it the warriors’ training session?”
At my question, she nodded.
“Yes. It’s the regular training session. And today… it’s the Crimson Camellia Division’s turn.”
Hearing that, the eyes of the four escort guards sparkled with anticipation.
Honestly… I was curious about the Crimson Camellia Division’s skill too.
“Can we watch?”
“Of course. Follow me.”
We entered the Martial Affairs Grounds.
It was surrounded by high walls, with buildings neatly arranged inside.
It looked… like a Go board.
“Is this layout designed so that if something happens, the area can be quickly isolated?”
“Yes. Exactly.”
Lady Tang Su-bin nodded.
“A long time ago, there was an accident here. It caused a lot of casualties. So they tore everything down and rebuilt it like this.”
We arrived at the training ground on the south side of the Martial Affairs Grounds.
The moment I stepped in… I was stunned.
It was way bigger than I expected.
The size meant… whenever there was an event, the entire Tang Clan could gather here.
The training ground was surrounded by about thirty tiers of stone seating.
Many people were already sitting, looking down at the training ground.
We picked a good spot and sat down.
Just then, a group of warriors entered and began their training.
“Haaat!”
“Hup!”
The atmosphere was strict… and razor sharp.
I wasn’t wrong when I sensed that killing intent in the Inner Court guards earlier.
These people… were definitely trained by Commander Tang Dae-jeong.
His death… must’ve been a huge loss for the Tang Clan.
“Do they train like this every time?”
Lady Tang Su-bin answered.
“Once every three days. Each combat unit holds an open training session. Today’s the Crimson Camellia Division’s turn.”
“I see.”
I could guess the purpose of these open trainings.
To strengthen the unity within the divisions… and to instill pride in being part of the Tang Clan.
And this… definitely wasn’t the full extent of the Crimson Camellia Division’s abilities.
Every warrior has skills they show publicly… and skills they never show.
Same for me.
Just then… I noticed someone sitting further up ahead.
Who’s that?
Maybe because she noticed my gaze… Lady Tang Su-bin spoke.
“That’s my third brother.”
Ah…
The one who became the Young Clan Lord in my past life.
I never heard anything about the Clan Lord changing before I died.
And… he’s the prime suspect behind this entire incident.
.
.
.
“Disband!”
Commander Tang Dae-jeong shouted to the warriors of the Crimson Camellia Division.
They responded with a loud, “Disband!” and the training came to an end.
Clap clap clap!
I clapped, offering my praise.
“That was truly impressive.”
“Isn’t it?”
Even in Lady Tang Su-bin’s voice… I could hear the pride she felt for them.
But then…
“Huh? Why is Commander Tang Dae-jeong coming this way?”
Commander Tang Dae-jeong was walking toward us.
Even though he was her uncle, it seemed like they usually addressed him by his formal title in public.
But… why was he coming here?
He’s… looking at me.
Lady Tang Su-bin quickly stood and cupped her fists.
“Greetings, Commander.”
We all followed and greeted him with cupped fists.
“Eun Seo-ho, third son of the Eunhae Merchant Group’s Merchant Lord, greets Commander Tang Dae-jeong.”
The four escort guards followed my lead and cupped their fists in greeting.
Commander Tang Dae-jeong returned the gesture.
“I am Tang Dae-jeong, Commander of the Crimson Camellia Division. It is good to meet you.”
“It is an honor to meet the famed Crimson Blossom Whip King.”
“No need to call it an honor.”
“I disagree.”
I quickly added.
“Watching the training just now… it felt like my eyes had been opened.”
“Hahaha. I like hearing that.”
Commander Tang Dae-jeong laughed heartily.
“By the way, I’ve heard about you from the Clan Lord. You’re the benefactor who saved Jo-ung, correct?”
“It was merely a fortunate coincidence.”
“Even so, saving someone always takes courage.”
Commander Tang Dae-jeong continued.
“Were you touring the main estate?”
“Yes. Out of my own greed, I made an unreasonable request, and here we are.”
“Then you must’ve already seen both the Inner and Outer Courts. What did you think?”
“It felt… like camellias blooming amidst snow.”
“Is that so?”
Commander Tang Dae-jeong looked quite pleased with my answer.
“The two of you standing together… you look quite good.”
At those words, Lady Tang Su-bin’s face turned bright red.
“Hahaha.”
I chuckled to myself.
‘I need to get out of here quickly.’
Just then, Lady Tang Su-bin spoke.
“My apologies, but we still have quite a bit of the tour left, so we must be going.”
“Ah! I’ve held you too long. Of course, go ahead.”
“Then we’ll take our leave.”
.
.
.
Commander Tang Dae-jeong watched Eun Seo-ho and Tang Su-bin walking away with a satisfied smile.
‘They suit each other surprisingly well.’
And the boy was handsome enough to tame even a face-loving girl like Tang Su-bin.
‘Eighteen, was it? Already at the Peak realm at that age…’
The moment he saw Eun Seo-ho, he immediately recognized his level.
It didn’t matter that he came from a merchant family, not a martial clan.
‘If someone like him became part of the Tang Clan… it would be a great asset.’
In truth, his interest in Eun Seo-ho was entirely because of Tang Su-bin.
Tang Su-bin had been raised for poison cultivation since childhood.
Which meant… she had consumed poisons from a young age to build resistance.
Having resistance… also meant carrying poisonous Qi within her body.
Especially since she trained primarily in poison arts, her poisonous Qi was even stronger.
Of course, she knew how to control it well, and everyone was wearing special identification tokens that blocked the effects of poison.
But close proximity… still exposed others to it.
The reason she never noticed… was because everyone who regularly approached her already had a certain level of resistance.
In other words… this was her first time interacting with an outsider.
Yet… Eun Seo-ho showed no signs of being affected.
Not even a headache.
That alone was fascinating.
‘Could he be even stronger than I thought?’
It was clear the Clan Lord assigned Tang Su-bin as a guide fully aware of this.
‘Just what are you planning, Clan Lord?’
Tang Su-bin had fully abandoned thoughts of marriage after focusing on poison cultivation.
Yet… here was a man unaffected by her poison.
‘If only he could be her partner…’
When Tang Dae-jeong said they looked good together earlier… it wasn’t an empty compliment.
.
.
.
Lady Tang Su-bin chuckled awkwardly.
“Actually, Commander Tang Dae-jeong has a nickname. They call him the Old Man Under the Moon.”
“Old Man Under the Moon… You mean like the god of matchmaking?”
“Yes.”
She nodded.
“He treats matchmaking like his sacred mission.”
“I see.”
“Well… anyway, let’s continue the tour of the Martial Affairs Grounds.”
We began looking around again… and I was once more reminded of just how ridiculously massive the Tang Clan was.
As we walked…
“…!”
I suddenly stopped.
A familiar presence hit me.
The same presence I felt back at the Thorn Gate Sect during that plague.
It’s here.
I turned to Lady Tang Su-bin.
“What is this place?”
“This is the Life Research Hall. It’s where we study poisons.”
“Are any of the Clan Lord’s children working here?”
“Yes.”
She nodded.
“My eldest brother works here.”
I was momentarily stunned.
The eldest son of the Clan Lord… works here?
Not the third son?
This… changes my theory.
But… it’s still too early to jump to conclusions.
“Would it be possible to look inside?”
“Well, there’s no rule against it, but… you’ll need to be careful. If you get bitten by a venomous creature, it could be dangerous.”
At her words, I turned to Palgap and the four escort guards.
I couldn’t let them risk themselves for my personal matters.
“Then… I’ll go in alone.”
“That won’t do.”
“We’re your escort guards. It’s our duty to protect you.”
I nodded at them.
“I know. That’s why… I’m doing this.”
“Huh?”
I stepped closer and whispered.
“If something happens to all of you… then who’s going to save me?”
“Ah…”
Everyone backed off, understanding immediately.
I turned back to Lady Tang Su-bin.
“Let’s go.”
“This way. The entrance is here.”
Following her lead, we entered the Life Research Hall.
Inside… were countless boxes with tiny holes.
Each box had a label… listing things like scorpions, snakes, centipedes…
“Out of everything here… that one is probably the most interesting.”
Inside a densely built cage… something squirmed.
A black snake.
But… it had a horn on its head.
No way…
A Venom-Horned Serpent?
Lady Tang Su-bin spoke.
“Cool, right?”
“Ah… yes.”
Cool…?
The real problem… was that the same presence I’d felt from the plague at the Thorn Gate Sect was emanating from that cage.
Which meant… someone hid the evidence inside the Venom-Horned Serpent’s cage.
“Can I go inside that enclosure?”
Lady Tang Su-bin shook her head as if it were difficult.
“That one’s really aggressive. Only my eldest brother or the old beast handler can manage it.”
–TL Notes–
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