SYM 87
by Emerlyn“The Martial Arts Alliance hasn’t announced anything about the Hongbaek Sect yet. The leader of the Martial Arts Alliance considers this matter very important and is treating it as top secret. Of course, the leaders of each sect and a few others might know.”
“So, the prince knows that information? But even if it’s confidential, he’s a prince, right? He could have found out through the Dongchang or something.”
The Dongchang was an intelligence agency used by the imperial family. The information they collected was mainly about officials or politics, so it had little connection to the Martial World. However, many in the Martial World were already aware of the Dongchang’s capabilities and secrecy.
But Cheong-un shook his head at Eun-hyeon’s words.
“Even the Dongchang couldn’t know what happened inside Godeok Temple’s formation. Master and I are the only ones who know the details of what happened there. Even the Martial Arts Alliance based their investigation on the information we provided, didn’t they?”
“Yeah… that’s true.”
“We didn’t completely control the formation technique at Godeok Temple at the time, so there must have been people who slipped out unnoticed.”
“Hmm…”
“Judging from what the Third Prince said today, he seemed to know that Master was directly involved with the Hongbaek Sect. This is information that hasn’t even been revealed to the Martial Arts Alliance.”
Eun-hyeon pursed his lips.
The Third Prince’s cryptic words… was it all a warning aimed at him?
“But why me of all people…? What power do I have?”
“What the Third Prince said today was clearly a warning to Master. It’s just my guess, but I think the Third Prince’s words included the kidnapping incident from last time.”
“No, his men were the ones who kidnapped me, so why is he threatening me to be careful…?”
His connection to the Hongbaek Sect was all a coincidence.
No, it was the Hongbaek Sect who targeted him as a means to control the Semi-Reanimated Corpse. The kidnapping last time happened because he was in a Semi-Reanimated Corpse state.
So why did the Third Prince leave such a threatening message telling him to be careful? Did he think that what he was doing was hindering the Hongbaek Sect?
“It seems very dangerous that the Third Prince knows about Master’s connection to the Hongbaek Sect.”
Eun-hyeon bit his lip.
Does that mean the Hongbaek Sect is also connected to the imperial family?
His brow furrowed at the unexpected scale.
“Is the imperial family involved?”
Even though he knew that only Amhon were around, his voice lowered when he mentioned the imperial family.
“Judging from the Third Prince’s involvement, we should assume so. But it’s hard to guess whether it’s just the Third Prince involved, or how far up the line it goes. Come to think of it, it was strange that the Jinyiwei showed up out of nowhere during the Chwihwa Pavilion incident.”
“Chwihwa Pavilion? Yeah, that happened. The Jinyiwei commander, what was his name? He was quite strict…”
Everyone at Chwihwa Pavilion, including the heir to the Danmok Clan, had been massacred overnight. Later, the bodies disappeared, and the Demonic Sect was blamed, but the matter was dropped.
In fact, it was quite shocking at the time, but it had been forgotten because many more shocking things happened later.
“His name was Commander Jang Mu-ryeong. It was a very strange incident in many ways. The sudden murder was bizarre, and then the Jinyiwei suddenly dispatched from Beijing. On top of that, the Demonic Sect was suddenly blamed, and the bodies disappeared… All those bodies must have become Undead.”
“…So the Demonic Sect had nothing to do with that?”
Eun-hyeon glanced at Cheong-un. Then Cheong-un frowned and looked at Eun-hyeon.
“Why would I do something like that? Our Demonic Sect doesn’t do unnecessary things.”
“Then the mastermind behind that incident is, could it be… Beijing?”
“Who knows.”
If the imperial family was involved in the massacre of innocent civilians, it was no small matter.
Eun-hyeon shook his head.
“No, that can’t be. There’s no reason for the imperial family to do something like that. And the Hongbaek Sect too. The Hongbaek Sect is a public enemy of the Martial World, and not only the orthodox and unorthodox sects, but also the government agreed on this. There’s no reason for the imperial family to join hands with the Hongbaek Sect now, is there?”
It was terrifying to think that those bizarre people had joined hands with the imperial family.
He couldn’t imagine how terrible things they could do with the power of the government.
“Master.”
Cheong-un called Eun-hyeon in a low voice.
Eun-hyeon looked at Cheong-un with confused eyes.
“Master, you still have expectations for humanity. That’s why I like you… But the imperial family would probably covet the Hongbaek Sect’s Undead more than anyone else.”
“…Why? It’s not like there’s an invasion from foreign enemies right now, and it’s not like the imperial family is in turmoil. There’s no reason to covet the evil power of things like the Hongbaek Sect in this peaceful era.”
“Humans tend to be more greedy the more they have. It’s not certain yet, so let’s wait for more information. Until now, the imperial family hasn’t been included in the investigation, but from today, I’ve ordered an investigation into the imperial family.”
Eun-hyeon felt nauseous listening to Cheong-un’s words.
“You can investigate the imperial family?”
“We’ve been doing basic investigations all along. That’s how I recognized the Third Prince today. The Third Prince has been neutral between the First and Second Princes, but he doesn’t seem that simple today. I’ll have to dig a little deeper.”
Eun-hyeon sighed as the conversation turned to politics. The scale of the story was becoming larger and more complicated than he had thought.
“I know Master liked Seohan and wanted to spend more time here, but I think we should leave.”
“…Yeah. I don’t want to run into that Third Prince again either.”
Eun-hyeon paused for a moment before speaking.
“But it’s late tonight, so we can’t move anyway. How about seeing Seohan’s Night market? I heard it’s famous, but I haven’t seen it yet.”
Cheong-un burst into laughter at Eun-hyeon’s words. He noticed that Eun-hyeon was deliberately trying to change the heavy atmosphere.
“The Night market has a different charm than the daytime, so it’s worth seeing. They float boats with lanterns on a small lake and famous actors perform.”
“Okay, let’s go!”
Eun-hyeon smiled brightly at Cheong-un’s words.
* * *
Seohan’s marketplace was crowded even during the day, but it was nothing compared to the night.
Lanterns were hung high everywhere, brightly illuminating the area as if it were daytime, and the entire street was filled with cheerful music, laughter, and lively chatter.
“Wow, there are so many people… There’s really no room to step.”
There were so many people that it felt like he was being pushed along even when he was standing still. The combination of people and the early summer heat made him sweat profusely.
“Didn’t you say Seohan’s Night market is famous? Come this way.”
As Eun-hyeon kept staggering in the crowd, Cheong-un wrapped his arms around him.
Eun-hyeon’s face flushed at the scent of Cheong-un that brushed past his nose. He hadn’t consciously done it, but he belatedly realized that moving like this felt like a date.
He felt strange when he became aware of Cheong-un.
Cheong-un’s warmth and scent, everything about it made his body tingle. But even in this moment, he didn’t want to pester Cheong-un to do it, so he swallowed hard.
Perhaps some of his reason had returned as the poison continued to drain.
While Eun-hyeon’s mind was complicated with various thoughts, Cheong-un led him to a deserted lakeside. It was dark here because there were no lights, but it was secluded.
“I didn’t know there would be so many people at the Night market. There are so many more people than during the day.”
Eun-hyeon finally sighed. He had said he wanted to see the Night market, but the overwhelming crowd had taken away his motivation.
Cheong-un chuckled as he looked at Eun-hyeon.
He found Eun-hyeon’s expressions in his arms cute. He wanted to show him many things he had never experienced before and see various expressions.
“Master…”
Just as Cheong-un brushed the sweat-soaked hair back from Eun-hyeon’s forehead and gently hugged him,
“Huh?”
Eun-hyeon jumped up.
“That, that!”
Cheong-un bit his lip as he looked at where Eun-hyeon was pointing.
It was on a bridge quite far from the lakeside where Eun-hyeon and Cheong-un were. There were only a few lights, so the surroundings were dark, but it was enough for Cheong-un to recognize the person on it.
“…Master.”
The dead Taoist Eun-hyeon was watching them from the bridge.