Chapter 37: Negotiations (3)
“It was like a massive wave of shadowy hands was crashing down on Wi Yeonho.”
“Kyaaa!”
Mun Eunji also screamed without realizing it.
Wi Yeonho's precarious stance looked as though he might be smashed to bits by the wave at any moment. But even as he watched the scene unfold, he casually hung the wooden broom over his shoulder and tilted his head.
“Hm?”
Despite seeing the shadowy current rushing at him, Wi Yeonho didn't move, as though lost in thought.
Mun Eunji shouted toward him in shock.
Or rather, she tried to.
But before she could get a word out, Nok Mokpung’s shadowy hand engulfed Wi Yeonho.
Mun Eunji squeezed her eyes shut.
‘He... he's dead.’
Anyone would die if they were hit head-on by such a fierce and violent attack. Even someone like her, who didn’t know martial arts well, could guess as much.
Mun Eunji bit her lips.
Otherwise, a scream would’ve escaped.
No, it felt like she might break down crying.
‘Because of me...’
If he hadn’t come here, he wouldn’t have died.
No—if she hadn’t called out and stopped him when he was trying to run, he could have survived.
‘Because of me...’
She couldn't even think to wipe away her tears.
“I’ve seen this somewhere...”
Mun Eunji’s eyes flew open.
It was his voice.
“Huh?”
The scene before her eyes made no sense at all.
Wi Yeonho stood there, looking exactly as he had at the beginning.
As if Nok Mokpung’s attack had been an illusion, Wi Yeonho stood there completely unruffled.
But the look of shock on Nok Mokpung’s face made it clear that it had been no illusion. Nok Mokpung stared blankly at Wi Yeonho for a long while before speaking weakly.
“H-How did you do that?”
Wi Yeonho answered nonchalantly.
“You saw it, didn’t you? Why ask?”
“......”
Nok Mokpung inhaled deeply.
He had definitely seen it too.
In the very moment his shadowy current covered the target, Wi Yeonho had calmly stepped through an incredibly minute opening.
In a situation where thousands of shadowy strikes struck at once, Wi Yeonho had slipped through the narrowest of gaps.
And he had done it so leisurely.
Mun Eunji thought it was unbelievable, the Second Prince was amazed, and Nok Mokpung was horrified.
One can only perceive as much as they understand.
Since Mun Eunji didn’t know martial arts, she simply found it strange. The Second Prince, who did know martial arts, was impressed by Wi Yeonho’s level. And Nok Mokpung, who fully understood the level of martial arts he had just used, was shocked by the depth of Wi Yeonho’s technique.
‘Where in the world did such a monster come from?’
Nok Mokpung couldn’t even begin to fathom the extent of Wi Yeonho’s martial knowledge. Even he, Nok Mokpung, had few equals among his peers in terms of martial prowess.
Yet this much younger Wi Yeonho possessed a level of martial arts that was beyond anything he could imagine.
‘Did he swallow a dragon pearl or something?’
It was ridiculous, but nothing else could explain Wi Yeonho’s martial prowess.
What was certain was that Wi Yeonho’s level was far beyond what Nok Mokpung had expected, and Nok Mokpung himself was no match for him.
With just a single step, Wi Yeonho had broken Nok Mokpung’s fighting spirit.
“This is strange. Really.”
The Second Prince asked,
“What is?”
Wi Yeonho tilted his head.
“I’ve seen that technique somewhere before.”
“That technique?”
“Yeah—the one that guy used—I’m sure I’ve seen it before. But I can’t remember where.”
At those words, Nok Mokpung’s face hardened.
“You’ve seen my technique?”
“I’m telling you, I’ve definitely seen something similar before. But where was it?”
Wi Yeonho stared at Nok Mokpung with a puzzled expression.
“Where did you learn that?”
“......”
Nok Mokpung sighed with a stiff face.
“I can’t tell you.”
“Hm, well, that’s a problem...”
Wi Yeonho continued to ponder. Even as Wi Yeonho appeared deeply absorbed in thought, Nok Mokpung, whose will to strike first had been completely crushed, opened his mouth with a slightly twisted expression.
“I have a request.”
Wi Yeonho lifted his head.
“To me?”
“Yes.”
“Go ahead.”
“If I withdraw here, would you let me go peacefully?”
Wi Yeonho glanced at the Second Prince.
“That won’t do.”
The Second Prince was firm.
“Hear that?”
Nok Mokpung turned to the Second Prince.
He had realized that the one with the authority to decide wasn’t Wi Yeonho but the Second Prince.
“Please let me go, Prince.”
“Have you ever seen a Grand Inspector who let a traitor go?”
“If I don’t return, my father will assume the plan has failed.”
The Second Prince’s lips clamped shut like a shell.
“And he will make his final gamble. Whatever the outcome, the royal family will suffer irreversible damage.”
“...Why are you telling me this?”
“Because I know he will fail. I believe it’s better to create an opportunity to plan for the future.”
“And why should I give you that time to plan for the future?”
Nok Mokpung answered calmly.
“At the very least, Your Highness can prevent the disaster that’s about to befall the royal family. Perhaps a greater storm may come in the future, but you might also gain the chance to turn that storm into a mere breeze.”
“You cunning bastard.”
The Second Prince frowned.
If the Second Prince captured Nok Mokpung here, Nok Gi might take it as a sign that the plan had failed and attempt to overthrow the royal family. Even if that failed, considering the power Nok Gi held, chaos of an unimaginable scale would follow. And even if they managed to suppress that chaos, the royal family would certainly suffer heavy losses.
If things ended at that level, it would be fortunate—but the Nok Gi that the Second Prince knew was someone who could use far more insidious tactics to drive them into a corner.
“You're telling me to sit back and watch traitors run rampant in the royal court?”
“Isn’t that politics?”
“You bastard...”
The Second Prince let out a deep sigh.
Without power, justice meant nothing.
No one knew that better than he did.
Nok Mokpung’s words were utterly twisted—but they hit the mark with cruel precision.
Yes, this was politics.
“If the Royal Inspectorate were to gain a weakness of the Eastern Bureau, I think that would be a decent trade.”
“Is that your own idea?”
Nok Mokpung gave a subtle smile.
The Second Prince ground his teeth.
“People say a eunuch digs ten escape tunnels like a rat...”
He silently glared at Nok Mokpung before opening his mouth.
“Get lost.”
Nok Mokpung gave him a deep bow.
“Thank you. And I trust you'll make sure to keep the mouths of those present here shut.”
The Second Prince frowned and gave no reply. Nok Mokpung smiled faintly and looked over at Wi Yeonho.
The gaze he gave Wi Yeonho was layered with complex emotion. Everything had gone wrong today because of this one guy. If it hadn’t been for him, he wouldn't have had to suffer such humiliation.
Sensing Nok Mokpung’s gaze, Wi Yeonho quietly spoke.
“As thanks for your earlier advice, may I offer one in return?”
“Go ahead.”
“'Flowing Bone Art' is certainly a powerful technique, but if you're using 'Bone Shrinking Art' at the same time, its effectiveness is naturally diminished. If you really want to fight me, you’d be better off releasing that transformation.”
For a split second, something flashed in Nok Mokpung’s eyes.
“I’ll keep that in mind. Next time we meet.”
“I’d rather not see you again.”
“You will. Looking like this, anyway.”
Nok Mokpung stared at Wi Yeonho for a moment, then turned around.
“I’m leaving.”
Black Darkness martial artists followed behind him.
“Hm…”
Wi Yeonho quietly watched Nok Mokpung fade into the distance.
As he did, Mun Eunji approached and asked,
“What are you staring so intently at?”
“Just thought he was an interesting guy.”
“What about him?”
“Well, everyone has different tastes, but I never thought there’d be someone who’d intentionally make themselves look that fat just because they liked the look. People really are mysterious.”
“That’s not his real appearance?”
“Yeah.”
“Then just how does he really look…?”
“No idea.”
“Like the size of a house?”
“Huh?”
Wi Yeonho turned his head to look at Mun Eunji. She was staring at Nok Mokpung with a horrified expression.
It seemed some strange misunderstanding had taken root.
‘Well, not my problem.’
If Nok Mokpung knew, he’d probably pound the ground in frustration, but Wi Yeonho just brushed it off.
“Well, anyway…”
He glanced around.
There was Mun Yuhwan, looking pleased and smug, as if to say, “See?”
The Second Prince, scowling as if he wasn’t pleased in the least.
And the Central Officials, staring at him with a mixture of admiration and shock.
“Hmm…”
Wi Yeonho shrugged.
“Well, I’m gonna go take a nap, so I’ll leave the rest to you.”
And with that, Wi Yeonho tried to quickly escape.
“Sleep again?!”
At Mun Eunji’s outburst, Wi Yeonho replied firmly.
“I have a full board-and-lodging guarantee! You’re not planning to go back on your word, are you?”
“Tch!”
Before anyone could say anything more, Wi Yeonho rushed into the room.
“Don’t wake me! I’m saying this now—I’m sleeping until tomorrow! Don’t wake me!”
Bang!
The door slammed shut, and Mun Eunji muttered quietly.
“What kind of person even is he…”
The Second Prince and Mun Yuhwan both nodded gravely.
“Seriously.”
In any case, Wi Yeonho had successfully resolved the crisis that struck the Great Scholarly Institute.
And he had no way of knowing that this incident would start pulling him into far greater troubles.
* * *
“So there’s the Eastern Bureau, the Royal Inspectorate, and now rebellion…”
“That’s what it’s come to.”
“……”
“What is it?”
“Well, it’s just… It’s true. I understand that. But Young Master Wi Yeonho didn’t really do anything, did he? All of that just happened to unfold when he happened to be there.”
The Divine Mad Dog nodded heavily.
“That’s right.”
“Exactly.”
“That’s what makes it so terrifying. Don’t you get it?”
“Excuse me?”
“He doesn’t particularly do anything, yet wherever he goes, something always happens. He becomes the catalyst, the one who twists the course of events. Somehow, no matter what, he ends up connected to the situation and makes it worse—without even realizing it.”
“This time was the same. If Wi Yeonho hadn’t been there, the influential figures wouldn’t have gathered, and if they hadn’t, Nok Gi wouldn’t have had any reason to make such an extreme move. Wi Yeonho didn’t do anything—but just because he was there, things blew up.”
“Now that you mention it…”
“Scary, isn’t it?”
The Historian couldn’t answer.
“It is scary. Truly terrifying. What if someone like that were around you?”
“I’d avoid him at all costs.”
“Exactly! That’s the right answer!”
The Divine Mad Dog spoke with sorrow.
“But we didn’t know that back then.”
For the first time, the Historian looked at the Divine Mad Dog with eyes full of pity.