The five guards were running, using their lightness skill.
Their muscles had been screaming the whole way, but there was no way they could slow down and take it easy.
Because right now, they were on the run.
Of course, they knew they were in the wrong.
Sneaking off to drink in the middle of their shift was obviously their fault.
But…
“Urgh! This is so hard I feel like everything’s going to come up.”
“I can’t anymore! I swear, I can’t do this anymore!”
They were convinced they’d really die at this rate, so when the supervision got just a little lax, they seized the chance and bolted.
“But, uh… is it really okay for us to do this?”
“Then what else are we supposed to do?”
“If we hide out somewhere until the people from the main caravan arrive to relieve us, then go back, what more can the Deputy Merchant Lord even do to us?”
“If the Deputy Merchant Lord tells the Commander, we could get hit with serious punishment!”
“Hey, hey! Still better than basic training with those iron lumps strapped to our legs!”
“I’d rather get my pay docked for a year!”
“Yeah, same!”
To be honest, they thought getting their pay cut for a whole year was still way better than doing the training Eun Seo-ho had ordered for one month.
That was how brutal and exhausting it was.
Their muscles were still throbbing now, but compared to the beginning, this was a huge improvement.
On the first day, even walking back to their quarters had been painful.
As guards of the Eunpoong Division, they were already people who used their muscles plenty, doing at least two hours of basic training every day.
And yet this training had been so harsh that even they had struggled just to walk.
“Huh? There’s someone over there.”
One of them, running ahead, suddenly pointed forward in surprise.
A strikingly handsome man in flamboyant red clothes.
There weren’t many men that handsome in the whole world, so they recognized him in an instant.
“Gasp!”
“Huff! D-Deputy Merchant Lord?”
At that moment—
Whack-!
Thump-!
“Ugh!”
“Aaagh!”
Escort Guard Seo Wu and Escort Guard Jin Yu swung their sheathed swords at the five of them, just as Eun Seo-ho had ordered.
Already accelerated by their lightness skill, the five guards took the blows head-on and went rolling across the ground.
“Oww!”
“Urrgh!”
Covered in dirt from tumbling over the earth, they looked up to see Eun Seo-ho walking toward them. The five of them scrambled up and threw themselves flat before him.
The impact had been heavy, but they’d taken the fall properly on instinct, so they weren’t actually hurt.
That was exactly why Eun Seo-ho had given his instructions that way.
“S-so, the thing is…”
“If you just let us explain…”
They frantically racked their brains, trying to come up with an excuse.
But Eun Seo-ho was already someone standing way above their heads.
“So the plan was to run off like this, hide somewhere, then show up again only when people from the main caravan arrived?”
“…!”
“And you figured taking a fifty-percent pay cut for a year was still better than doing physical training all day.”
“…!”
As he laid out exactly what they’d been thinking, they stiffened in shock, goosebumps breaking out all over.
“However.”
Eun Seo-ho’s tone shifted slightly.
“You’ve come a lot farther than you realize. And you all still look fine. If you’d been running like this before the training, you’d be dead tired by now.”
“…”
Now that he pointed it out, something did feel strange.
No matter how much they used their lightness skill, there was a limit for people at their level.
But they’d run much farther than they’d expected, and they still weren’t that exhausted.
“Doesn’t it feel like the training I ordered is working?”
“…”
“A warrior’s effort never goes to waste. Even though you made a mistake, I wanted you to be reborn as the elites of the Eunhae Merchant Group. That’s why I gave you that order… Was I expecting too much from you?”
The slightly melancholy look in Eun Seo-ho’s eyes started pricking at their conscience.
“Just five years ago, our Eunhae Merchant Group was barely holding on at the very bottom of the Hundred Great Merchant Groups Under the Heaven. But now we’re proudly ranked fortieth.”
He went on.
“The greatest merchant group under heaven.”
“…!”
“That’s my dream. And to reach it, the Eunpoong Division has to change a lot. The Eunpoong Division’s Escort Guards play an extremely important role. If we just sit around satisfied with reality, we won’t ever reach that dream—no, we won’t even be able to protect what we’ve already achieved.”
“…”
“I chose you five to be the ones who would lead that change… You really had no intention of sharing in that honor?”
The five guards felt like someone had smashed them over the head with a hammer.
‘We thought he gave that order just to torture us…’
‘To think there was such a huge meaning behind it!’
‘We were the ones who lacked patience! We failed to live up to the Deputy Merchant Lord’s hopes!’
‘And I call myself an Escort Guard of the Eunpoong Division? I’m rotten to the core.’
‘Come on, if he wanted to torment us, there were plenty of other ways… Why did we decide this was just bullying?’
They were so ashamed of themselves they felt like they were going mad. They wanted to shove their heads into a mouse hole.
I looked down at the five guards, prostrated before me with their foreheads pressed to the dirt.
“We were wrong. We were fools.”
“Please forgive us.”
“We were trash. Ugh…”
“If you’d take even trash like us back one more time, we’ll give you our absolute loyalty.”
“Please just give us one more chance.”
Yeah, they had to have understood what I was getting at by now.
Seriously. Why do I have to suffer like this?
Honestly, I wanted to beat them a few more times, but I decided to let it slide with the thrashing Escort Guards Seo Wu and Jin Yu had already given them with their sheathed swords.
Still…
“Even so, you did try to run away, so I have to hand down additional punishment for that. Even if I want to go easy on you, if I just let this slide, discipline will fall apart.”
“We were the ones in the wrong.”
“We’ll accept the punishment.”
Good. In that case…
“From now on, you’ll train with one hundred forty catties strapped on instead of one hundred thirty. And I’m increasing your training time as well—each of the three basic training sessions will get another hour.”
By now, they should have gotten used to training six hours a day with one hundred thirty catties attached, so this much should be doable.
“All right, let’s head back.”
.
.
.
And just like that, I led the five guards back.
“You worked hard.”
At my words, Escort Guards Seo Wu and Jin Yu lowered their heads slightly.
“Not at all. We’re your Escort Guards.”
“Following you wherever you go is our duty.”
“Hearing you say that… thanks.”
I muttered, grumbling as I spoke.
“But seriously, I feel like a nursemaid here. It’s like I’m coaxing kids to come home.”
The two Escort Guards laughed.
“You say that, but honestly, we were impressed today. You got those problem children to walk back on their own.”
“We’re lucky our lord is a good person.”
I gave a bitter smile at that.
“I’m not a good person. I use other people for my own goals—how could someone like that be a good person?”
Escort Guard Jin Yu shook their head firmly.
“That’s not true. You are a good person. Everyone uses others for their own ends. Even asking someone blocking your path to step aside is, in a way, using another person for your own purpose, isn’t it?”
“That’s stretching it.”
“I’m just saying you don’t need to beat yourself up over it. Besides, it’s not like you abandon the people you ‘use’ like that.”
Escort Guard Seo Wu nodded, picking up where Jin Yu left off.
“You lead them in a better direction. That’s why you’re a good person.”
Hearing the two of them comfort me like that made something tickle deep in my chest.
So I ended up fiddling with poor Geumryeong’s tail for no reason.
“Kui!”
.
.
.
Morning came.
It was the third and final day of the poetry competition hosted by the Imperial Family.
As of yesterday, sixty-four contestants remained.
Today, the winner of the competition would finally be decided.
I went to see the poet Song Rok.
They were already ready and stepping out of their room.
“I truly hope you get a good result.”
At his wife’s words, Song Rok made an awkward face, and that expression held a lot inside it.
Gratitude, guilt, embarrassment, shame…
He felt sorry for making his wife suffer like this.
There had probably been times when he cursed his own lack of ability. But as time dragged on, that had turned into resignation, and resignation had eventually turned into despair.
“That’s not the kind of face a man should show his wife.”
“Huh?”
I tapped the corner of my own mouth with a finger.
“You should be smiling. You should be telling her you’ll bring back a good result. For someone who writes such good poetry, why can’t you say the right words at times like this?”
At that, Song Rok cleared their throat.
“Ahem, ahem.”
Then they turned to their wife.
“I’m off. I’ll definitely win and dedicate that glory to you.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
The decisive moment had come. We headed to the competition grounds.
“Your clothes look amazing.”
“Huh? Ah…”
Song Rok was wearing the outfit I’d gifted them. It was a simple white robe, but the fine silk gave it a gentle, refined sheen.
“I’m not sure someone like me should be wearing something this nice.”
“That’s not clothing.”
“What?”
“It’s battle gear.”
I continued.
“Right now, you’re heading into a fight with that man called Chu Il-gong. And today, you need to look impressive in everyone else’s eyes.”
“…”
“People say not to judge by appearances, but the first thing anyone sees is the outside. No matter how vile someone’s heart is, if they look polished, people praise them.”
I smiled.
“It’s a rotten world, but what can you do? That’s just how humans are.”
I brushed a bit of dust off Song Rok’s clothes and said,
“Besides, what’s wrong with someone decent like you wearing good clothes? That Chu Il-gong will show up wrapped in silk too.”
At my words, fire burst into Song Rok’s eyes.
The flame of revenge.
“Today, I’m going to end this once and for all.”
Good. That was exactly the attitude I wanted.
.
.
.
A little while later, we arrived at the competition grounds.
Chu Il-gong was in the waiting area as well, and his expression looked terribly dark.
The black smudges under his eyes made it clear he hadn’t slept.
Not that I blamed him—he was probably terrified of being killed by an assassin in his sleep.
According to the servant from Chu Il-gong’s household I’d bought off, he’d woken up to find a dagger stuck into the pillow beside his head, and when he’d tried to leave the house, an arrow had flown straight at him.
Well, serves him right.
That’s what you get for hiring killers…
On top of that, rumors were spreading among the people who’d heard both Chu Il-gong’s and Song Rok’s poems, and suspicion around him kept growing.
Just the death threats alone would have been bad enough, but with those suspicions piling on too, his life had to be miserable.
Just then, Chu Il-gong seemed to spot us. He stood up and walked over.
There was a nasty gleam in his eyes.
Until yesterday, they’d been waiting in different tents, so they hadn’t run into each other face-to-face.
But today, everyone was gathered in one place.
With suspicion closing in around him like this, it was obvious what Chu Il-gong was going to say to Song Rok.
It sure as hell wasn’t going to be encouragement.
“You… This is going a bit far, don’t you think? I can’t believe you copied me this perfectly! Hahaha! I’m honestly shocked!”
The sheer gall.
But the Song Rok who’d grown fangs thanks to me wasn’t someone you could push around anymore.
“You’re saying I copied you?”
“Anyone can see that—”
“Then this is a serious problem.”
Song Rok gave a thin smile.
“Everyone else says my poem is the real thing and Lord Chu’s poem is the knockoff… So does that mean your skills have already deteriorated that much?”
“Urk!”
“In that case, you should probably retire before you humiliate yourself even more with those declining skills.”
“…”
Wow, I hadn’t known Poet Song was capable of lines that sharp.
While I was busy being impressed, Palgap narrowed his eyes at me.
The look in those eyes clearly said, “What in the world did you do to him?”
I’m innocent here, you know.
The competition began.
On this last day, instead of four at a time, contestants would advance in pairs and face each other in true one-on-one duels.
As expected, the matches were incredibly fierce.
And then—
When sixteen people were left, Song Rok and Chu Il-gong finally faced each other.
In a way, that alone was pretty amazing.
It meant Chu Il-gong had made it this far using a poem that still wasn’t completely finished.
That was how outstanding Song Rok’s poetry was.
Today, there were no screens.
So the two of them walked out and bowed before the Emperor.
“I will give you your topic.”
Up until there had been thirty-two contestants, the topics had been drawn at random.
And up through the previous round, four topics had been presented at a time.
Now there were sixteen contestants, and this was the very first pairing.
Starting with this round, the way topics were given out was going to change.
The Emperor spoke.
“Write a poem from the perspective of Yu Gong’s son, as he appears in the old tale behind the idiom ‘Yu Gong Moves the Mountains.'”
At that topic, Chu Il-gong’s mind rang like a gong.
‘Did that brat write any poem like that?’
He hadn’t.
Faced with a topic of such insane difficulty, Chu Il-gong’s vision went black.
Maybe it was because he hadn’t slept at all last night, but his head felt heavy and refused to work.
“Huh?”
When he came back to himself, he realized he’d already written something and turned it in.
“W-what did I even write?”
He couldn’t remember a single word.
And when he saw the assistant official’s face twist in dismay as they read his poem…
He knew.
He was screwed.
–TL Notes–
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