Chapter 154
“......”
“Answer me. Who the hell are you?”
“Gyojin. You sealed his mute point too.”
“Oh. Right.”
Scratching her head, Yang Gyojin pulled off the black-clad man’s mask. Aside from a large mole beside his mouth, he was an ordinary-looking man.
Jang Miryeo’s martial guard blinked in stunned confusion before belatedly drawing his sword.
His reaction had been far slower than even Jang Miryeo’s. Yeon Ryang clicked his tongue.
“Miss Jang should start by replacing her guards. A neighborhood child would’ve reacted faster than that.”
The martial guard flushed, trembling at the merciless assessment.
Yang Gyojin grabbed the man by the hair and hauled his head up, then looked at Jang Miryeo.
“Miryeo, do you know him?”
“He works for my uncle. I remember seeing him at the trading company.”
The instant Jang Miryeo recognized the black-clad man, her gaze turned icy.
“To think he would have me watched. It seems my uncle no longer cares what Father thinks. What did he order you to find out?”
“Gyojin. Release just his mute point. Otherwise, he can’t answer.”
“Okay.”
Yang Gyojin answered cheerfully and punched the black-clad man in the face.
CRACK!
“Cough! Cough!”
“I told you to release his mute point. Why did you punch him?”
“Oh. This is the only way I know how. Mother only taught me this one.”
“...I see.”
Releasing sealed acupoints by punching someone—at least now I knew for certain that Estate Head Yang was no ordinary person either.
Jang Miryeo flinched at the sight of blood pouring from both the man’s nostrils. She covered her eyes and hunched in on herself.
“Miryeo asked you a question. Answer her.”
“......”
When the black-clad man clamped his mouth shut instead, Yang Gyojin cocked her head.
“Did I not release it all the way? Should I hit him again?”
“Stop hitting him. You’re frightening Miss Jang.”
I waved Yang Gyojin off.
Judging by how badly a little blood had startled her, Jang Miryeo seemed to have lived a life far removed from the martial world.
The sight dampened my mood. I, at least, had been able to run. If an assassin came for Jang Miryeo, she looked certain to die without even managing to resist.
I swallowed a sigh and bit my lip. Yeon Ryang gave a soft laugh.
“My sister’s problem is that she has too much compassion.”
“No. I’m not getting involved.”
I shook my head firmly.
The interests bound up in a single trading company had to be more complicated than I could imagine.
Government officials, Yueyang’s local powers, escort agencies, and banks were probably all tangled together like a spiderweb. I had no desire to stick my nose into it and accumulate yet another blood-soaked grudge.
But...
Now that I had seen him, I had no intention of simply releasing someone who might be either a spy or an assassin.
I removed my fur-lined cloak and walked over to the black-clad man, then slowly crouched in front of him.
“If you’ve spent any time in the martial world, there’s no chance you don’t recognize the Tang Clan’s green robe.”
Muttering under my breath, I deliberately waved the green robe in front of his eyes. The blood drained from his face.
“W-why is the Tang Clan...!”
“Judging by your refusal to answer, you must want a new conversation partner. Why don’t you and I have a little talk?”
“Stay out of this! This is trading company business. It has nothing to do with you!”
“It doesn’t. But I hate vermin who hurt their young nieces or stepdaughters to satisfy their own greed.”
I spat the words through clenched teeth and took two small porcelain bottles from my sleeve, holding them out toward him.
“Here. Choose. One: you answer willingly. Two: you take poison, suffer for a while, answer, and then receive the antidote. Three: you keep your mouth shut and die after seven days and nights of feeling your organs dissolve.”
“A-are you threatening me with poison? Y-you shameless...!”
“Of course it’s a threat. Did you think I was asking nicely? You sneaked in here, and now you want to argue about what’s shameless?”
“An orthodox martial artist using poison! Have you no sense of honor? How are your actions any different from those of the unorthodox faction?”
“Uh-huh. Everyone who said that to me died of poison. Would you like me to show you what acting like the unorthodox faction really looks like? This one gives you a particularly vivid sensation as it spreads through your veins. It tends to make people talk quickly.”
I answered absently and drew a Butterfly Dart.
The black-clad man nearly fainted as he screamed.
“O-option one! One! I-I’ll talk! I said I’ll talk!”
“You should’ve done that from the start.”
I rose with a snort. Yang Gyojin stared at me with her mouth hanging open.
“Sohae.”
“Yes?”
“You’re like some great demonic fiend.”
“You’re one to talk. Who releases sealed acupoints by punching people like an ignorant brute?”
I put my fur-lined cloak back on and sat in a chair, crooking a finger at the black-clad man.
“Stop wasting time and start talking. You’re making me want to bring the poison back out.”
Sweat streamed down his face as he looked between Yang Gyojin and me. At last, he slowly opened his mouth.
“The order I received was...”
*****
As I had suspected, Jang Miryeo’s uncle, Jang Hojung, was scum.
He had prepared to poison Jang Miryeo in case the winner of the marriage tournament turned out not to be one of his men.
When the black-clad man revealed that they had already begun adding poison to her meals, I checked Jang Miryeo’s pulse in alarm. I detected a thread of poisonous energy so faint that a physician unfamiliar with poison would have struggled to notice it.
Had it continued accumulating for another three months, she would likely have fallen ill without anyone understanding the cause.
The unfamiliar poison stirred both my curiosity and a strange sense of unease.
Where had they obtained something like this? It was the sort of poison only the Ten-Thousand-Poison Sect, supposedly destroyed a century ago, would have used.
Maybe the Trading Company Master wasn’t sick at all.
“Cane. Come here.”
“Kyu.”
“Hold it for a moment, Miss Jang. This little one draws out poisonous energy.”
“Th-thank you, Miss Tang.”
After placing Cane in Jang Miryeo’s arms, I rubbed my forehead, my expression troubled.
“If they’ve gone so far as to tamper with your food, they’ve probably bought off all your maids as well. Will you be all right?”
“I will have to be. For the time being, I suppose I should eat outside the estate.”
Jang Miryeo tried to sound unconcerned, but her face had gone deathly pale. Her fingertips trembled around Cane.
The home where she had lived her entire life had transformed into enemy territory, with threats to her life on every side. She could not possibly be taking it well.
Perhaps it was because I understood what she must be feeling. My chest felt tight, as though someone had placed a stone on it.
I clenched my fist and tried to steel myself.
You already decided not to get involved. Don’t go any further. You only met her today.
...But if I turned my back now, Jang Miryeo would die.
As I wavered, tapping my fingertips against my knee, the black-clad man watched me cautiously.
“I have told you everything I know. Will you release me now?”
“I’ll release you. But I can’t let you go without taking precautions.”
“W-what are you talking about? I told you everything, just as you demanded!”
“That’s exactly the problem. You could return to your master and tell him everything that happened here. I need some form of insurance.”
I shrugged and held a poison pellet to his lips.
“Here. Open wide. I’ll leave what happens if you fail to take the antidote within ten days to your imagination. And don’t bother visiting an apothecary. You won’t find the antidote there. I made the poison myself.”
“......”
“You don’t have to swallow it. But then she’ll probably dispose of you.”
I jerked my chin toward Yang Gyojin. The black-clad man’s face twisted through several shades of red and blue before he reluctantly swallowed the pellet.
“I trust you’ll act as though you were never discovered. Report any new information to Miss Jang. Gyojin, you keep the antidote.”
“When do I give it to him?”
“When Miss Jang tells you to.”
I handed Yang Gyojin the porcelain bottle containing the antidote. Anger flared in the black-clad man’s eyes, then vanished.
“...Very well. Now release my acupoints.”
“Of course. You may go.”
Before Yang Gyojin could punch him again, I released his sealed acupoints. The man climbed back through the ceiling, breathing heavily with rage.
He fled the annex at speed, apparently putting everything he had into his escape.
Once his presence had faded into the distance, Yang Gyojin came closer and whispered.
“Sohae. Did you really poison him? Will he die without the antidote?”
“No. It was a laxative. He’ll recover after suffering for about fifteen days. Though he’ll be shitting blood.”
“Wow. What a swindler.”
“You complain even when I help. We need information either way. There’s no telling what that uncle of hers might be planning.”
I turned my head as I answered and saw Jang Miryeo’s pitifully pale face. She was clutching her chest, as though her racing heart refused to calm down. Her bloodless lips trembled.
She looked miserable, but becoming further entangled in this would be bad for both Yeon Ryang and me.
I’ve done enough. This is more than enough to satisfy my conscience.
“Cane. Come here.”
When I held out my hand, Cane scampered over and climbed onto my shoulder. I rose and looked at Yang Gyojin.
“Gyojin. Are you really not going to withdraw?”
“No. I’m going to win.”
“...Good grief. I give up. I clearly tried to stop you. I’m going on my way now, so deal with the rest yourself. And pay me back later. Let’s go, Brother.”
As I sighed and prepared to leave, Jang Miryeo rose and bowed politely.
“Thank you for your help, Miss Tang. I will never forget this debt of gratitude.”
“Please don’t concern yourself with it. I hope you remain safe.”
I inclined my head, turned away, and left the reception hall.
But when I tried to leave the trading company, my feet refused to move.
The moment I stopped dead before the main gate, Yeon Ryang folded his arms and chuckled.
“I knew it. There was no chance my sister could hear such a pitiful story and simply walk away.”
“That’s not what this is.”
“Of course it is. You tenderhearted girl. You’ve already helped her this much, so why pretend otherwise?”
My lips moved soundlessly for a long moment before I scrubbed both hands down my face.
“Brother. I don’t want to get involved... I really don’t. But I think I’ll lie awake thinking about it every night if I leave like this.”
I stared down at the half-frozen ground.
I still remembered it vividly—the sleet brushing across my cheeks, the pounding of my heart, the nights I had spent curled into myself with my eyes wide open.
Those moments when I had run and run, praying that no one would find me.
The thought that Jang Miryeo must now be feeling that same day-by-day terror tightening around her throat made my stomach churn.
Yeon Ryang stroked my hair as though he understood everything.
“Only a coward overlooks injustice out of fear of making enemies. Do whatever you want, Sohae.”
“Is that really all right?”
“Of course. Your brother will stay with you.”
His gentle touch gave me a little courage.
Right. Just once. I would help her one more time.
I nodded, took a deep breath, and turned back toward the reception hall.