Tang Jo-ung came to the annex where I was staying.
During the Punishment Assembly earlier, he had looked incredibly nervous, but now that it had been proven a false accusation, his face was full of relief.
He looked at me with sparkling eyes and asked.
“Will you really spend time with me today?”
“Yeah.”
“I thought it wouldn’t be possible because of what happened this morning… but I’m so happy!”
“Yeah, me too.”
The enthusiasm radiating from Jo-ung was honestly overwhelming.
Even the way he looked at me, like staring at a legendary hero, was a bit much.
‘I’m not that kind of hero though.’
The truth is… spending time with Jo-ung today was part of my plan.
My conscience pricked at me.
Sorry, Jo-ung.
But it can’t be helped.
This way, I won’t attract Deputy Commander Tang Yeon-chil’s attention.
If Deputy Commander Tang Yeon-chil is the one who wrote the evidence in my pocket, then he’s also the one who tested it.
Which means… there must be a testing site.
And it has to be inside the Tang Clan.
To find that… I must first avoid attracting Deputy Commander Tang Yeon-chil’s notice.
I plan to act like I’m simply spending time with Jo-ung while secretly investigating Deputy Commander Tang Yeon-chil’s dark secrets.
“Um… Benefactor.”
“What?”
“Would it be alright if Sister Su-bin joined us today?”
“With Lady Tang Su-bin?”
“Yes.”
I almost asked why, but… my gut told me not to.
“Sure. Let’s do that.”
At my answer, Jo-ung immediately sent for her attendant.
After his nanny died, they had tried to assign him a new one, but Jo-ung refused.
It made sense. His old nanny had tried to kidnap him, then died right in front of him. No wonder he didn’t want another.
So instead, the Clan Lord assigned him attendants who could be trusted.
A little while later…
“To think I get to spend time with such a handsome Benefactor! I’m so happy.”
“Do you not have anything else to do?”
“Nope. Even if I did, I’d still come.”
Her face was absolutely glowing.
I took Tang Su-bin and Jo-ung and strolled around various places in the Tang Clan.
At first, people glanced at us with curious eyes like, ‘What’s this about?’
But soon… they just thought, ‘Oh, they’re out for a walk,’ and stopped paying attention.
Exactly what I wanted.
As we walked around, we arrived at a rather secluded place.
Somewhere I hadn’t visited yet.
At first glance, it looked like the entrance to a rear garden… but something about it felt ominous.
“What is this place?”
Lady Tang Su-bin answered my question.
“It’s somewhere we didn’t visit yesterday since we ran out of time. Also… it’s a dangerous place for outsiders.”
“A dangerous place?”
“Did you never wonder where the Tang Clan gets creatures like the Venom-Horned Serpent… or poisonous herbs used in our arts?”
“Wait. You mean this is where you get them?”
“That’s right.”
I looked at the crimson-colored gate before me.
The plaque on the gate read [Treasure-Filled Forest (寶滿林)].
A forest filled with treasures.
To anyone else, it might sound like a place filled with gold and silver… but this is the Tang Clan.
To the Tang Clan, treasure means materials for poison arts.
“I understand why you didn’t guide me here.”
Which means this is a place I should avoid without hesitation.
If even Lady Tang Su-bin calls it dangerous, then it must be truly dangerous.
But… the moment I saw the name Treasure-Filled Forest… something clicked in my head.
In my past life… when the Third Young Master, Tang Yeon-chil, overtook the First and Second Young Masters to become the next Clan Lord, it was a massive scandal.
A lot of rumors circulated about it.
I’d gathered and analyzed as many of those rumors as I could.
Rumors aren’t always reliable… but truth often hides within them.
Among those rumors… was something about the Treasure-Filled Forest.
— They say the Third Young Master improved his martial arts by training alone in a remote forest.
— Apparently, that forest is where the Tang Clan secretly stores its treasures, and he found a hidden manual there.
Whether those rumors were true or not… one thing was clear.
The place where Deputy Commander Tang Yeon-chil used to frequent… was this Treasure-Filled Forest.
A forest where treasures are hidden… and a forest filled with treasures. The connection is obvious.
And if he trained here often enough for rumors to spread… then there’s definitely something inside.
Which means… I have to go in.
Ah, damn it.
It looks so creepy. I really don’t want to.
And after Lady Tang Su-bin’s warning… I want to even less.
But my instincts scream that if I want to rip off Deputy Commander Tang Yeon-chil’s mask… I need to go in.
I asked Lady Tang Su-bin.
“Is it alright if I go in here?”
“W-What?”
She gasped and asked back.
“You’re going in there?”
“Yes. I’m personally very curious about this place. Is it not allowed?”
Lady Tang Su-bin hesitated for a moment.
“I apologize… for making such a selfish request…”
“Oh, no. It’s alright.”
She shook her head.
“As long as we stay in Area One or Area Two… even Jo-ung can enter those safely.”
“Thank you.”
“But… you must stay close to me. And stretch the cord of the special identification token long enough to hang it around your neck and make sure it touches your skin.”
“Why?”
Lady Tang Su-bin explained.
“The special identification token… is actually made from Antidote Resin. Normally, you’d have to bite it to activate it, but even just touching it to your skin is enough to provide detoxifying effects.”
So that’s why they told me never to lose it.
“It can block most poisons just by being on your body, but having it in direct contact with your skin is much safer.”
“Then wouldn’t holding it in your hand be enough?”
“It would. But… we’re martial artists. We fight with our hands. And inside there… who knows what might happen. Keeping both hands free is better.”
“I see.”
After that, she explained a few more things to be careful about.
“Make sure to remember what I said.”
“I will.”
“Alright then. Let’s go.”
We stepped into the Treasure-Filled Forest.
I glanced behind me.
The three escort guards were following quietly.
Escort Guard Yeo Eung-am was currently back at the annex.
There was always the possibility that an uninvited guest would come looking for the real evidence that had disappeared.
Escort Guard Lee Pil.
Escort Guard Seo Wu.
Escort Guard Jin Yu.
All of them were reliable allies guarding my back.
Revealing everything to them was risky, but struggling alone without asking for help would’ve been disrespectful to them.
Palgap had been annoyed for that very reason too.
I decided to accept their help and immediately sent them a voice transmission.
—Just listen.
“…!”
Their eyes briefly widened, then returned to normal.
—I’m currently searching for a hidden space inside this forest.
—Any trace is fine. If you notice anything that seems like it could be a secret entrance, report it to me.
—But you must do this covertly. Don’t break formation. If any of you get into danger, I’ll be really upset.
They nodded slightly in response.
The forest was eerily silent.
Not even the sound of insects.
That silence… felt uncanny.
It wasn’t just me who noticed.
“Huh? That’s weird.”
“Sister, the bugs aren’t chirping.”
I asked in response to their conversation.
“Are bugs usually noisy here?”
“Yes. There are a lot of regular insects here, not just venomous ones. Usually, when you enter, the first thing you hear is their buzzing… but now… this is strange.”
Lady Tang Su-bin furrowed her brows.
“If the bugs aren’t chirping… it means a predator stronger than them is nearby.”
“Sister, even the snakes are gone.”
“There are snakes here too?”
“Yes. Quite a few. They’re really useful for poison research. But strangely… there’s not a single snake in sight. Could it be that some new venomous creature has appeared?”
Lady Tang Su-bin and Jo-ung tilted their heads, puzzled.
But… I felt like I knew the reason.
I remembered how the Venom-Horned Serpent had recoiled in fear and fled the moment it locked eyes with me at the Life Research Hall yesterday.
At the time, I wondered if it was because of Geumryeong hiding in my sleeve… but Geumryeong seemed perfectly content staying inside, not moving.
And the serpent only fled after making direct eye contact with me.
Then… was it really because of me?
The possibility felt very real.
Why though?
The most likely reason… was my Black Dragon Star Body.
A dragon is a king. A ruler.
Could it be that this physique possesses something I don’t even know about?
Now that I think about it… whether it was in Sichuan or Yunnan, I’ve never once seen an insect near me.
Huh…
I like this.
I grinned.
It meant I’d be safe as long as I was in this forest.
But… if Lady Tang Su-bin judged it to be dangerous and insisted we leave, it’d be a problem.
“Well… maybe it’s just one of those days. There’s no rule saying bugs always have to chirp, or that snakes always have to show up.”
“That’s… true.”
“Besides, there’s someone in charge of managing this place, right? If something really happened, they would’ve already reported it to the clan.”
“You’re right.”
The two nodded, convinced, and we continued walking.
After about thirty minutes… a stone staircase appeared in front of us.
As we climbed the steps up the hill, Escort Guard Jin Yu’s voice transmission came.
—Young Master. I have something to report.
—Go ahead.
—I found some suspicious footprints.
His message continued.
—They were near the base of the stairs. But the footprints abruptly ended… right at the side of the steps.
I immediately stopped.
If the footprints didn’t lead forward but ended at the side… that could only mean one thing.
The side of the staircase was the destination from the beginning.
As expected of Jin Yu.
He specialized in tracking and assassination. His observational skills were top-notch.
—Thank you. I think you’ve just helped me find something very important.
I called Lady Tang Su-bin.
“Apologies, but Lady Su-bin.”
“Yes?”
“I think I dropped something back at the stairs. Could we return for a moment?”
“Well… if it can’t be helped.”
We retraced our steps back to the base.
Pretending to search for something, I slowly moved toward the side of the stairs.
Sure enough… there was a faint footprint there.
If there are footprints… there must be a mechanism nearby.
I examined the side of the staircase carefully.
At that moment, Jin Yu pointed to a spot.
—Right here.
It looked like just one of the many stones stacked to build the side of the stairs… but this one was noticeably worn down.
I pressed it.
Suddenly…
Grind…
The stones shifted sideways, revealing an entrance wide enough for two people.
It was natural that Lady Tang Su-bin and Jo-ung were startled.
“Huh? What’s that?”
“I-It’s a cave!”
I played it cool.
“Judging by your reactions… this is your first time seeing this too.”
“Yes.”
“I had no idea.”
“Shall we go in?”
At my words, Lady Tang Su-bin’s maid tried to stop us.
“My lady… you shouldn’t just enter unfamiliar places like this.”
“But… aren’t you curious? It’s fine. We’re still in Area One. There shouldn’t be anything dangerous.”
“Well…”
“Go call for some people.”
“Understood.”
The maid sighed, then left the forest to get backup.
“Alright. Let’s go in.”
“Benefactor as well?”
“Of course. Jo-ung should stay out here since it’s dangerous. But if I leave you to go in alone… what kind of man would that make me?”
At my words, Lady Tang Su-bin’s face turned slightly red.
“Exploring a mysterious place… with a handsome man. This is exciting.”
“…”
I cleared my throat.
“Let’s go.”
We left Jo-ung, his attendant, Escort Guard Lee Pil, and Palgap outside… and stepped inside.
The air was damp.
But the place was lit with Night-Luminescent Pearls embedded in the walls, so it wasn’t hard to see.
Torches would need constant tending and smoke ventilation. That must be why they used these expensive things.
How long had we been walking…?
“Huh?”
Lady Tang Su-bin’s eyes widened.
I smiled.
Looks like… we found it.
–TL Notes–
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