Normally, Father would’ve handled things without a single slip.
But the unprecedented incident of an assassin trying to murder his eldest son on the very day he became Deputy Merchant Lord had rattled him, leaving a rare gap in his composure.
We had to calm everyone and lift the mood again…
That’s when I saw the man in charge of the drum.
He was floundering, so I rushed to him and said,
“Please, go up to the platform and strike the drum.”
“Huh?”
“Hurry!”
At my words, he quickly ran up and struck the drum.
Boom, boom, boom, boom!
At the sudden sound of the drum, everyone’s attention turned toward the platform.
I turned to Father and said,
“This is your cue.”
“Ah! Of course!”
Only then did Father snap out of it and go up the platform with Elder Brother.
“As you’re all aware, something unfortunate just occurred. My eldest son, the Deputy Merchant Lord, was nearly assassinated.”
“…”
“Thanks to the heavens, he is unharmed. We don’t yet know who orchestrated this, but I and the Eunhae Merchant Group will not let this go unpunished.”
“…”
“However, those of you not involved in this matter need not worry. The Eunhae Merchant Group will continue to treat all of you with honor and trust, just as we always have.”
Elder Brother stepped up beside him and added his bow.
“I’ll do the same.”
“The mood has soured, hasn’t it? Then let us resume the banquet. We’ll bring out more wine and food, so please enjoy yourselves.”
Father called out to the musicians.
“Strike up the music!”
“Yes, sir!”
With their reply, music once again filled the hall, and the dancers began their performance.
People drank and chatted, using the recent incident as fodder for conversation.
The mood turned warm and lively again.
No one had died, after all.
Thank goodness.
In my previous life, the mood never recovered, and the banquet had ended early.
That announcement ceremony had ended up becoming a terrible memory for Elder Brother.
When Father stepped down from the platform, he came to me and took my hand.
“Thank you. You helped me come to my senses.”
“Even without me, you would’ve regained your composure soon enough.”
“No. What just happened was too overwhelming for me. I don’t think I could’ve calmed down that easily.”
His hand was still trembling as he said this.
.
.
.
Night fell.
The banquet went on through the night.
The Central Plains were vast, and very few guests ever managed to arrive exactly on time.
That’s why most banquets didn’t end in a day or two, but ran for several days at least.
The first day, when the official events were held, was usually the grandest. The following days were smaller in scale.
That might be why the assassin chose the first day.
It was the busiest, with the most people around, making it easier to slip through the crowd.
I’m exhausted.
Yawning, I headed back to my quarters.
On the way, I saw Elder Brother coming out from the Medical Pavilion and called out cheerfully.
“Oh? Brother.”
“Ah, Seo-ho.”
I glanced at the Medical Pavilion and said,
“You were checking on Warrior Jeon Wu-jin? How is he?”
“Fortunately, the physicians responded quickly.”
“That’s a relief.”
“Yes, I’m grateful. If Wu-jin had died, I would’ve been devastated.”
Elder Brother let out a deep sigh, then his expression hardened.
“The assassin who targeted me, called the Faceless Assassin—according to the maid from the reception room, he was the guest waiting in the Orchid Room.”
“Really?”
“But Wu-jin said he had a bad feeling, and I also had my promise to you, so I didn’t go.”
Now I understood why he hadn’t acted the same way as he did in my previous life.
But… was it really just because of a promise to me that he avoided the reception room?
He usually prioritized etiquette, so it felt a little out of character.
“If something like that had happened in the reception room, it would’ve been a disaster.”
“Exactly. We were lucky amidst the misfortune.”
“But…”
Elder Brother looked at me and asked,
“Did you know the assassin was going to target me?”
I flinched inside, but kept my expression calm and laughed it off.
“Hahaha, what are you talking about? How could I know something like that?”
“You said you were uneasy. And the bracelet you gave me, the one called Flying Silver Arrow. Then there was the matter about placing physicians strategically. When I put all that together, it just feels a bit too convenient.”
Of course…
He might look soft, but there’s no one sharper than Elder Brother.
And once he starts questioning something, he won’t let it go unless it makes sense.
If I didn’t explain this properly, he was bound to keep digging—and that would get annoying fast.
But I couldn’t exactly tell him I died and came back to life at fifteen.
“And I heard you suggested to Father that we strengthen security?”
“Well, about that…”
I smiled and went on,
“Master said he had a bad feeling.”
“I heard that too. Chief Administrator Go said it was your master’s words that made him increase security. But that’s not enough of an explanation.”
“…Also, ever since I was sick, I’ve been getting strange hunches. And the Flying Silver Arrow bracelet I gave you—I really got that by chance.”
“Really?”
“Honestly, I got it from that elder’s store.”
The old man who’d caught the assassin had been running a general store in the book district, and now that we knew he was the famed Ghost-faced Constable, Elder Brother didn’t press further.
“So he helped you.”
“Something like that.”
Elder Brother nodded, seemingly convinced.
Thank goodness.
Back in my room, I sat in front of the tea table and fell deep into thought.
Unlike in my past life, this time Warrior Jeon Wu-jin didn’t die, and we even captured the culprit.
Which meant—we might be able to uncover who was behind the attempt on Elder Brother’s life.
Still, hiring an assassin…
It really reeks of the Unorthodox Sect, doesn’t it?
It couldn’t be the Baekcheon Merchant Group… could it?
Since I died at their hands—along with warriors of the Murim Alliance—in my last life, it wasn’t too far-fetched to suspect them.
Come to think of it, didn’t Master say the killing intent he felt was like that of the Unorthodox Sect?
Right then, I heard Palgap’s voice.
“Young Master! Young Master! I’m coming in!”
Before I could even give permission, the door burst open and Palgap walked in.
Technically, attendants and escort guards were allowed to enter their lord’s chambers without permission.
If they waited for their lord’s permission during an urgent situation, they might miss their chance to act.
But that wasn’t what mattered now…
Judging by the look on Palgap’s face, something important had happened.
“What’s going on?”
“I found out, Young Master!”
“Found out…?“
There was only one thing he could say with that expression on his face.
“Don’t tell me… You found out who targeted Elder Brother?”
“Yes! That’s right!”
Palgap nodded.
“That old man’s interrogation was incredible. That Faceless bastard spilled everything, from his hideout to the place where the list of clients was kept. The Eunpoong Division recovered that list and found a name.”
Palgap paused to catch his breath, then continued.
“It was Oh Dae-deuk, Pavilion Lord of the Black Wine Pavilion (黑酒幇).”
I recalled what Master had said.
So the culprit really was from the Unorthodox Sect?
.
.
.
As soon as it was revealed that Oh Dae-deuk, Pavilion Lord of the Black Wine Pavilion, had commissioned the assassination of Elder Brother, the Eunhae Merchant Group moved swiftly.
The old man from the general store—Ghost-faced Constable—also mobilized all his connections. In the end, they succeeded in uncovering the rest of the Black Wine Pavilion’s crimes.
What they found was beyond horrifying.
Masquerading as a legitimate merchant group, they’d been forging currency and even trafficking humans.
Every last one of them deserved to be executed.
The Commissioner of Land Affairs moved quickly.
Well, for crimes of this magnitude, it made sense for the Commissioner to step in—but even then, the speed was surprising.
It had to be thanks to the old man using his network.
“Now that the constables are moving, the Black Wine Pavilion are nothing more than rats trapped in a jar.”
At Palgap’s words, I nodded.
Truth be told, the Black Wine Pavilion had always been picking fights with our Eunhae Merchant Group.
In the end, they brought ruin upon themselves by provoking a major faction.
Still, I couldn’t help feeling a bit pleased, remembering the damage they’d caused us over the years.
And thinking of all the people who’d suffered because of them—it was better this way.
But wait…
Something Palgap said was bothering me.
“Palgap, what did you just say?”
“Huh? That the Black Wine Pavilion are like rats trapped in a jar now that the constables are involved?”
“Right… rats! Palgap, what comes to mind when you hear ‘rat’?”
“Rat… hole?”
“…!”
I shot to my feet.
“Rat hole!”
The Black Wine Pavilion may have been wiped out, but I remembered hearing that the Pavilion Lord survived and hid out in a mountain stronghold.
They said a perfect net was cast with no way out, and yet he lived.
There had to have been a rat hole.
I hurriedly unfolded the map of Sunyang County and searched for the Black Wine Pavilion’s base.
“Where is it…?”
My eyes scanned the map quickly until my finger landed on a spot.
I’d found the rat hole.
“Here.”
The problem was time.
The best option would be to send the constables there immediately, but there wasn’t enough time for that.
Which meant—I had to go.
The real issue was Palgap.
If I told him I was going to capture the Pavilion Lord, he’d raise hell…
Looks like it’s time to use the Mirror of Illusory Echoes I picked up at the general store.
.
.
.
I told Palgap I was heading to bed and ushered him out.
Then I took out the mirror.
Its name was the Mirror of Illusory Echoes (虛魅鏡).
It let the user project an illusion of themselves wherever they wanted.
Later, it had ended up in the hands of a notorious serial killer, who used it to fake alibis.
The evidence pointed clearly to him, yet every time a murder occurred, someone swore they’d seen him elsewhere, and he kept getting away.
But as this went on, someone finally noticed something odd.
None of the people who saw him had actually spoken to him.
A suspicious constable kept digging into the case and eventually caught him.
But now that the mirror was in my hands, there was no risk of it being used for something so vile again.
I rubbed the mirror exactly thirty-three times and set it on my bed.
Soon, my image appeared lying atop the sheets.
Hm. I look good.
Especially now that I’d been training hard—my body was lean and firm, and I looked better than ever.
Right, not the time for that.
Shaking my head, I covered the illusion with a blanket and slipped out through the window.
I just had to get over the merchant group’s wall.
Then—
“Young Master.”
“Waaagh!”
I almost fell backward from shock.
“Where are you going at this hour?”
Palgap stood right in front of me.
Where the hell did he come from?
I hadn’t sensed his presence at all.
“Ah, well, uh…”
Palgap was overprotective, sure—but he’d once risked his life for me.
Which made it hard to lie to him.
He was sharp and quick-witted. I wouldn’t be able to keep this a secret forever.
Maybe it was better to just come clean now.
“I’m going to catch the Unorthodox Pavilion Lord.”
“What? The Pavilion Lord? But the constables and External Chief Administrator have already been dispatched. So you, Young Master, should—”
“The secret passage.”
I cut him off.
“There’s a hidden escape route. And right now, I’m the only one who knows about it.”
“Then we should report it—”
“By the time we do that, he’ll already be out of Sunyang County. That’s why I have to go now, myself.”
“Then at least let me summon an escort guard.”
“There’s no time!”
I said firmly,
“Even if you try to stop me, I’m going. He’s the one who tried to kill Elder Brother. Could you live under the same sky as someone like that?”
“…”
“Besides, I’ve been training hard. Master even acknowledged that.”
Palgap let out a long sigh.
“When you get this stubborn, no one can stop you. Alright. But you’re taking me with you.”
“With you?”
“Yes. That way, if something happens, I’ll know who hurt you and make sure they pay.”
“…”
If it took fifty years, Palgap would get revenge.
Which is why I didn’t take his words lightly.
Well, I’ve got no choice.
When it came to my safety, Palgap didn’t know the meaning of compromise.
“Fine. Then keep up. If you fall behind, I’m leaving you.”
–TL Notes–
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