The Alliance Leader looked at the Golden Buddha Statue and let out a thoughtful hum.
“Mm… so that is why you brought two statues.”
“That is correct.”
“Then who prepared the fake statue?”
At that, I raised my hand and said,
“I prepared it. I asked the Baekyeom Merchant Group to make it.”
“It is remarkably well-crafted.”
“They’re quite skilled.”
Of course, this had also been something I asked Young Lord Ho Gyeong to arrange, so he had probably already prepared all the evidence showing that I had requested it.
“But why reveal both statues? You only needed to hand over the real one, did you not?”
“The reason I brought out the fake as well is because I thought there might come a time when you would need it too, Alliance Leader.”
As if he understood what I meant, the Alliance Leader slowly nodded.
“Indeed. If we make use of the fake statue, we may be able to protect the real one from those who are after the Artifact.”
“That is correct.”
“To think you even considered what would happen afterward! Thank you.”
“Not at all.”
“By the way, did the Nine Rocks Sect Leader hand over this statue willingly?”
Team Leader Won answered.
“He did.”
“I see. You have all worked hard. You must be exhausted from the journey, so go and rest.”
At those words, I smiled.
It was not time to leave yet.
“Alliance Leader. I understand that this matter was for the Murim Grand Assembly.”
“That is right.”
“But I do not belong to the Murim Alliance. Even so, I acted for the sake of this martial world. In addition, Team Leader Won beside me was given operating funds to carry out his mission, while I used my own money to carry out mine.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“Alliance Leader, I am not a martial artist. I am a merchant. I would like to receive compensation fitting for the mission I completed.”
“Compensation, you say?”
“Yes.”
I nodded.
“Not something like honor. I mean compensation I can actually see with my eyes and hold in my hands.”
After thinking for a moment, the Alliance Leader looked at me.
“To be honest, I had intended to teach you a martial art, but if you insist on walking the merchant’s path, then it cannot be helped.”
Alliance Leader. What kind of nonsense are you trying to sell me?
“A martial art! I’m truly grateful for the thought, but I must decline. As I just said, the best thing for a merchant is something he can see and hold. I have no desire for anything beyond that.”
“Very well. Then how much should I give you?”
“It would not suit your dignity to discuss a specific amount of money, Alliance Leader.”
“It would not suit my dignity?”
“Yes.”
Why are you doing this? It is not as if you would actually give me whatever amount I named.
I brought out what I really wanted.
“What I want is the authority to choose whatever spot I wish in the merchant district during the Murim Grand Assembly.”
“Is that truly enough?”
“It is.”
At that, Team Leader Won said,
“Great Hero, after everything you went through this time, how could that possibly be enough?”
“It is plenty. A good location can bring in that much more profit.”
“But did you not say earlier that you wanted something you could see and hold?”
“I did.”
Still smiling, I said,
“So, a document containing your notarized approval for that matter, Alliance Leader. That will do.”
“Must you really receive it in writing?”
“Merchants like us prefer certainty. I absolutely need a document bearing your notarized approval, Alliance Leader.”
After Eun Seo-ho and his party left, the Alliance Leader stared at the seat Eun Seo-ho had occupied and sank into thought.
What he had demanded was the authority to choose whatever spot he wanted in the merchant district during the Murim Grand Assembly.
On top of that, he had demanded notarized approval for it, leaving the Alliance Leader no choice but to personally write the document for him.
With that one document in hand, Eun Seo-ho had smiled brightly, as if every hardship he had endured until now had been completely washed away.
‘Does he want to gain my backing? Or does money simply come first for him?’
The Alliance Leader knew as well.
There was a considerable difference in profit between a good spot in the merchant district and a poor one.
If he did business from a prime location, he would more than recover the money he had spent on this trip to Mount Tai.
He was truly a remarkably capable man.
‘In any case…’
He turned his head and examined the two statues.
‘To think that man actually handed over the real one!’
He had believed that the Nine Rocks Sect Leader had noticed something strange about him.
That was why he had expected the man to hand over a fake.
Then Eun Seo-ho would realize it was a fake, press the Sect Leader, hear the circumstances from him, and make a choice.
But things had not gone as he expected.
‘For now, there is no need to pay much attention to the Nine Rocks Sect Leader.’
What remained was his evaluation of Eun Seo-ho and the conclusion he would draw about him.
Because things had gone against his expectations, he had been slightly unsettled. But after what he saw today, one thing was certain.
The fact that Eun Seo-ho had discovered and interfered with what he had been doing all this time had all been coincidence.
If it had not been coincidence, if he had realized the Alliance Leader’s hidden intentions and moved deliberately, then even if the Nine Rocks Sect Leader had given him the real Golden Buddha Statue, he would not have simply brought it out like this.
If so, the best course would be to coax him over to his side, but that did not seem easy.
First of all, he was far too greedy.
He was intelligent, but the Alliance Leader’s assessment was that he used that intelligence solely for money.
One might say that since he liked money, all one had to do was use money as bait to coax him over, but that was not the case.
‘He is a born merchant. Using money as bait on someone like that is more complicated than it sounds.’
In other words, he was the sort who saw everything as a transaction, and if that transaction fell through, he could turn away at any time.
‘Moreover, if he is that clever, he would never die alone.’
This was a time to be careful and cautious.
If he tried to draw Eun Seo-ho in for no reason and a problem arose, it would become troublesome.
The Alliance Leader clicked his tongue and shook his head.
“To think someone who learned the Heavenly Flow Art could be so greedy! That is quite the irony.”
He made his decision.
If Eun Seo-ho had not noticed his hidden intentions and was not deliberately interfering, there was no need to take the risk of removing him.
Nor was there any need to actively draw him in.
After all, Eun Seo-ho seemed to regard him strictly as someone to trade with.
Having reached his decision, the Alliance Leader began to extend his hand toward the Golden Buddha Statue, then stopped.
‘No, not yet.’
He could not use it here, inside the Murim Alliance.
He had an outside engagement in a few days, so he could use it then.
Even if he wanted to carry the Golden Buddha Statue out and use it immediately, he could not, because…
“Ha…”
There were piles of documents he had to handle.
For now, he still had to maintain this position. Because of that, he had no choice but to process the documents.
‘The Alliance Leader’s seat was not some position where you could just sit back and enjoy the benefits… damn it.’
After withdrawing from Alliance Leader Hall, I exchanged farewells with Team Leader Won and his party.
“You all worked hard.”
“Please, not at all. Thanks to Handsome Young Hero, we were able to complete the mission safely.”
“You’re making my face itch. Then I look forward to meeting you again another time.”
“Are you leaving right away?”
“Yes. I have many things to do, so it will be difficult to delay any longer. You Great Heroes must be weary from the journey as well, so please rest well.”
“Thank you for your consideration. We will not forget the kindness you have shown us.”
To be honest, the hardships they had suffered during the journey had been because of me, so I did feel a little awkward.
But they were the ones who had caused it in the first place. Well.
If they had treated me with proper courtesy from the beginning, I would not have gone that far either.
I politely bowed and turned around.
“Then I will take my leave.”
“Travel safely.”
With that, my party and I left the Murim Alliance.
“Then are we heading straight to Beijing?”
At Escort Guard Seo Wu’s question, I shook my head.
“No. I plan to stay here a while longer.”
For the plan I had prepared, I could not leave Luoyang yet.
As I headed to the inn I had in mind, I smiled inwardly.
I had deliberately put on an act of being excessively obsessed with money in front of the Alliance Leader.
Right now, the Alliance Leader was probably somewhat confused about what judgment to make of me.
After all, I had brought both the fake and the real one.
But since I had obediently handed over the real one as well, he must have concluded that I was not dangerous.
If so, what he considered the best option would be to recruit me.
That was the dangerous part.
If I refused to be recruited, the Alliance Leader would not leave me alone after realizing that I knew his true intentions.
That was why I had struck first.
By deliberately showing him the image of a merchant overflowing with greed, I made him give up on the idea of recruiting me.
The Alliance Leader was smart.
So he must have realized that I regarded him as a subject of trade.
Recruiting someone who saw you as a transaction partner was harder than recruiting someone with blind conviction.
I smirked as I thought of the notarized document the Alliance Leader had written for me, tucked inside my robes.
This document itself proved that the Alliance Leader had judged me that way.
Although I had gone through hell because of the Alliance Leader’s test, I was satisfied.
Depending on how it was used, the value of this document could vary as much as heaven and earth.
By the way, he did not ask a single word about the people I rescued from the Black Cat Sect’s Underground Prison.
Well, I suppose he wanted to avoid mentioning them even if he had to force himself.
Our party took rooms at an inn near the Murim Alliance.
It was once again a fairly nice inn, the same place I had stayed during the Dragon-Phoenix Martial Gathering.
“It has been a long time. Thank you for visiting our inn again.”
The innkeeper welcomed me warmly.
“Hahaha, for some reason, I feel comfortable here.”
“We will do our utmost to serve you this time as well.”
We unpacked our luggage in our rooms, then all gathered in mine.
“You’re here.”
“Yes.”
I spread Qi around us so that our voices would not leak outside.
“Tonight, I intend to steal the Golden Buddha Statue.”
“Then what should we do?”
Escort Guard Seo Wu asked.
Ordinarily, if someone said they were going to steal the Golden Buddha Statue, one would be startled or express concern.
But without any such reaction, he calmly asked what he needed to do.
That must mean he trusted me that much.
“I thought you would at least ask why.”
“I believe that when you do something, my lord, there must be a reason it has to be done.”
“Thank you.”
I answered with a gentle smile.
I was grateful that they trusted me, but I still needed to tell them the reason.
Unless it was something I absolutely had to hide, explaining that much was proper courtesy to those who believed in me.
“The truth is, that Golden Buddha Statue has the ability to amplify all forms of Qi.”
“When you say all forms…”
“Yes. All forms. And from what I can tell, that Golden Buddha Statue is needed for something other than the Murim Grand Assembly.”
“What is that something?”
“I don’t know exactly either. But it will not be used for good intentions in the Alliance Leader’s hands.”
“I see.”
“That is why I need everyone’s help.”
“Give us any order.”
“We will obey.”
Escort Guard Yeo Eung-am and Escort Guard Lee Pil cupped their fists and lowered their heads, while Palgap grinned and said,
“You can put your worries away, sir!”
“All right, I get it.”
I gave a faint laugh.
Escort Guard Yeo Eung-am asked worriedly,
“But if it is that important, would they not hide it carefully on their side as well?”
“Of course. But I have already prepared for that. I applied the Tracking Incense that Escort Guard Lee Pil made for me before onto the real Golden Buddha Statue.”
“Then I simply have to find it.”
“That’s right.”
At that, Palgap asked,
“Isn’t that Tracking Incense the Tang Clan’s Tracking Incense, sir? Then wouldn’t someone from the Tang Clan in the Murim Alliance notice the scent of that Tracking Incense?”
“You do not need to worry about that, Palgap.”
Escort Guard Lee Pil continued,
“The Tracking Incense I made for my lord is something I modified personally, and only I can detect it.”
Escort Guard Seo Wu raised his hand and said,
“But even if we know where it is, there is no way it will be unguarded.”
“True. But you do not need to worry about that. From that point on, Geumryeong will handle the hard work.”
“Kui?”
Hearing its name mentioned, Geumryeong poked its head out and kui-ed.
Although I would have to pay Geumryeong a hefty errand fee, that was the easiest and safest way.
“And as for me, we will say I fell asleep because the journey exhausted me.”
“But to make them believe that…”
At Palgap’s words, I handed him the Illusion Mirror and said,
“We’ll handle that with this.”
The Illusion Mirror was an Artifact that created illusions.
“Ah! With this, there’ll be no problem, sir!”
.
.
.
The sun had set, and night had fallen dark around us.
Escort Guard Lee Pil and I secretly left the inn.
Our destination was the place where the real Golden Buddha Statue was located.
“I leave it to you.”
At my words, Escort Guard Lee Pil nodded. Then he closed his eyes and seemed to focus for a moment before pointing ahead with his hand.
“It is in that direction.”
“Yes. Please lead the way.”
I followed Escort Guard Lee Pil, and before long, we arrived at the Murim Alliance.
“It is inside.”
As expected, they had not taken it outside yet.
Well, it was probably the safest place.
Escort Guard Lee Pil examined the Murim Alliance and quietly said,
“The security is quite strict. It seems difficult to enter stealthily.”
“Please come this way.”
This time, I guided Escort Guard Lee Pil.
Every place had a dog hole somewhere, and I knew the Murim Alliance’s dog hole.
In truth, this was something I had learned through the Eunhae Merchant Group’s Intelligence Unit in my previous life, and it was a place mainly used by the Murim Alliance’s warriors.
It was hidden in the bushes, making it hard to see from the outside.
“How do you know about this place?”
“There are ways.”
I brushed it off as if it was nothing and went in first.
Then Escort Guard Lee Pil tracked the Tracking Incense.
“It is there.”
The place Escort Guard Lee Pil pointed to seemed to be the Alliance Leader’s sleeping quarters.
Now it was Geumryeong’s turn to shine.
– Go! Geumryeong!
– Kui!
– This is worth three Gold Taels!
– Ku, kuiiit!
Huh… it likes that way too much, doesn’t it?
–TL Notes–
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