Chapter 100: Okcheon Escort Agency (2)

The fusion was perfect—at least in theory.

I would run, and Tang Hwarin would shoot. If this were a mecha anime, the power balance would be so broken that there would be an entire section on the wiki dedicated to Criticism and Controversy under “Hwa-rin-ho”.

Theoretically, that was.

“I’m out of hidden weapons!”

“I’m out of Qi too!”

Damn it. Who would’ve thought running out of ammunition and fuel would be our downfall?

Since I never learned Qinggong, the only movement skill I knew was a rapid-acceleration footwork that burned through Qi like crazy. Meanwhile, the moment we fused, Tang Hwarin immediately ran out of hidden weapons.

I never wanted to experience firsthand why, in mecha anime, the protagonist’s robot always ran on nuclear energy or some mysterious power source—and why their ranged weapons were always beam lasers.

The moment we stopped attacking, the Green Forest Bandits closed in, tightening their encirclement.

“Damn it. If only we had a little more time and budget.”

If I had a centuries’ worth of Qi and enough money to keep Tang Hwarin’s hidden weapons stocked like an infinite ammo cheat, we could’ve escaped right away!

“It’s… all my fault. Damn it.”

Tang Hwarin’s voice was heavy with guilt as if the entire situation were solely her responsibility.

If we were being honest, it was neither her fault nor mine—it was the damn Okcheon Escort Agency and the Green Forest Bandits who caused this mess.

So why the hell was she blaming herself?

“Get those bastards!”

“Yes, sir!”

Before I could even console Tang Hwarin, the Green Forest Bandits rushed in as a group and subdued us in an instant.

With our defeat, the entire Okcheon Escort Agency fell into the hands of Black Tiger Fortress.

How many had died?

Looking around, I saw the corpses of the porters who had been transporting the escorted goods. In a situation like this, porters who didn’t know martial arts—or those with skills too poor—were nothing more than flies waiting to be swatted.

I couldn’t help but feel uneasy. If this had happened just a little while ago, that could’ve been me lying there.

Then what of the escorts?

I looked around, but I didn’t see any fallen escorts among the dead. Some were wounded and groaning in pain, but none of them appeared to have died.

A lot of bandits had been killed, yet not a single escort had lost their life?

Had they been deliberately subdued instead?

Including us, the escorts of the Okcheon Escort Agency were bound and left to await the judgment of the Green Forest Bandits.

“You bitch! Do you have any idea how many of our men died because of you?!”

A Green Forest lieutenant with greasy, unkempt green hair bellowed at Tang Hwarin.

“…”

Tang Hwarin didn’t respond. She only glared at him, her eyes burning with resentment. Judging by the aftermath, it was clear that we had caused the most casualties.

Damn Okcheon Escort Agency bastards. We came here as guests, yet we carried this fight without dying, and you still lost in the end? What rank are these guys even in?

“You’re not going to talk, huh? You leprous bitch—!”

The Green Forest lieutenant raised his sword high, ready to cut Tang Hwarin down on the spot.

What the hell?! That bastard—!

Panic shot through me, and I hastily opened my mouth, “You insolent fool! How dare you run your mouth so recklessly?!”

I threw my entire soul in my voice, channeling the arrogance of a servant from some noble official’s household.

“What the hell? And who the hell are you?”

At my outburst, the Green Forest Bandits near Tang Hwarin all turned to glare at me at once.

Since they all made a living off the blade, their faces were downright menacing.

Seriously, loosen up a little, will ya?

Was it because Tang Hwarin had killed so many of their comrades that their expressions were even more vicious? Either way, it was time to administer an emergency coolant to quickly bring down their boiling rage.

“How dare you speak so rudely! To none other than the esteemed! Great! Si! Chuan! Tang! Clan’s! Golden Child! The disciple! Of the renowned! Tang Geoho! The esteemed master! A prodigy of medicine! Who has captured the undivided attention! Of the elders of the Tang Clan! The one and only! Young Lady! Tang! Hwa! Rin!”

Emphasizing each word like this was exhausting. But since I practically shouted loud enough to shake the mountains, they should have all gotten the message.

“W-what?! S, S-Sichuan Tang Clan?!”

The green-haired bandit who had just raised his sword turned pale as a ghost and immediately lowered his blade.

“What?! There’s someone from the Sichuan Tang Clan here?!”

“Deputy Chief!”

At the sound of my voice, the Deputy Chief of Black Tiger Fortress appeared, dragging the Okcheon Escort Agency’s chief by the collar.

He’s alive, I think… but damn, he looks like hell.

“Purple hair and green eyes? Hey, are you really from the Sichuan Tang Clan?”

“…Tch.”

Tang Hwarin clicked her tongue dismissively, as if the question wasn’t even worth answering, then turned her gaze away.

“She’s got that sharp attitude—definitely a Tang Clan woman. Hey, Escort Chief Ok! Is she really from the Sichuan Tang Clan? Answer me!”

The Deputy Chief shook the Okcheon Escort Agency’s chief like someone desperately trying to get a broken vending machine to dispense a drink.

The nerve of this guy, demanding answers after beating him half to death.

“Ugh… ugh. Yes, that’s correct. She’s a guest of the Okcheon Escort Agency.”

The chief barely managed to confirm Tang Hwarin’s identity.

“Ha… Shit. Of all things, it had to be the Sichuan Tang Clan.”

The Deputy Chief looked at Tang Hwarin’s face for a moment, then lamented toward the heavens in frustration.

It was understandable. The Green Forest Bandits weren’t just some ragtag group of starving bandits—they were organized. They controlled high-traffic areas and ran their own toll booths on trade routes.

Right now, the Deputy Chief must be running through a hundred different thoughts as he looked at Tang Hwarin.

If this were a matter of grudges, he could simply kill Tang Hwarin. The problem was that she hadn’t come here as an enemy—she was just a traveler caught in the crossfire while they were shaking down the Okcheon Escort Agency for money.

What if word got out that the daughter of the Sichuan Tang Clan was killed by bandits? And not just in some distant province, but right here in Hubei, right next to Sichuan?

The Tang Clan never forgets.

That Clan motto was probably already echoing in the deputy’s mind. He could practically see a swarm of Tang Clan warriors storming in and burning this whole operation to the ground.

That was why I immediately revealed Tang Hwarin’s identity. If one was traveling with someone born into a god-tier bloodline, one should milk it for all it was worth.

“Boss! That bitch killed so many of our men! Let’s just kill her right here!” one of the bandits, whose hair was still undergoing the evolutionary process and had a mix of green and another color, shouted angrily.

“You dumbass! Are you trying to get us all killed?! Are you working for the chief or the enemy?”

“N-no, sir!”

As I thought, he was unevolved and clearly lacking in thought.

“Shut up. Take the ones worth keeping. If they look like they’ll die on the way, send them straight to hell.”

“Yes, understood!”

“Aaargh!”

“P-please, spare me!”

“M-Mother…!”

We walked in silence, hearing the sounds of the lives of those we had walked with just moments ago being abruptly cut short as we were bound and taken toward their mountain fortress.

A day had passed since we were dragged into the Green Forest Bandits’ mountain fortress and locked in a cell.

The deputy chief came to see the Okcheon Escort Agency’s chief.

“Escort Chief Ok, you’ve caused quite the mess, huh?”

“Shut up! This mess is your fault for raising the tolls tenfold! How dare you try to dodge responsibility?”

“Kuhahaha! You really thought I expected you to pay ten times the normal fee? That’s just how negotiation works! I was throwing out a high number to start the bargaining. What kind of chief draws his sword instead of talking first?”

…Wait. He pulled out his weapon without even trying to negotiate?

I wasn’t the only one dumbfounded. Every escort in the cell turned to stare at the Escort Chief, disbelief written all over their faces.

“T-that was also our way of negotiating! Who was it that charged at us the moment we drew our swords, huh?”

Yeah, I wasn’t buying that, and judging by the looks on the other escorts’ faces, neither were they. Their expressions practically screamed, “Yeah, that sounds about right.”

“Kuhaha! You always lose your temper and unsheathe your sword too fast. No wonder the Okcheon Escort Agency is infamous for its delayed deliveries. ‘If you send something in the spring, you’ll get it next spring!’ People don’t call you Okcheon Drift Agency for nothing.”

“Wha—?! Who do you think keeps blocking our way in the first place?!” the Escort Chief protested indignantly.

“Enough. I won’t touch the goods. When the Okcheon Escort Agency sends people for negotiations and hands over the ransom, we’ll send you all back.”

“Our agency does not negotiate with bandits—”

“Then that will be the day the Okcheon Escort Agency holds its mass funeral.”

The deputy’s grin vanished. His voice turned ice cold and his killing intent filled the air, making it painfully clear this wasn’t a bluff.

Gulp.

At the deputy chief’s words, the Okcheon Chief swallowed dryly, and the faces of the other escorts grew serious.

“Kuhaha. Well, see you next time.”

The deputy chief, seeing the frozen atmosphere, smiled contentedly before turning and leaving.

“Chief, you really should’ve kept your temper in check,” grumbled an old escort, his arm wrapped in a bandage.

“What?”

“The head explicitly told you not to act rashly. And yet you went and pulled your sword like that?”

“If we let the Green Forest Bandits look down on us, we’re finished! They disrespected us and demanded an unreasonable toll! I couldn’t hold back!”

“With a shipment this big, we could’ve afforded to pay the extra toll.”

“Cough… the agency’s been struggling recently…”

“And whose fault do you think that is? There’s a reason people have started calling you Okcheon Hollow Man.”

“You little—!”

It seemed the nickname was a sore spot for the escort chief because he tried to swing a fist at the old escort, despite his injuries.

“Chief! Calm down! Hey! Apologize to him!”

“And what difference would that make? At least he cares about our treatment!”

The other escorts stepped in to block the fuming chief, while the old escort refused to back down, seemingly unwilling to accept that he had done anything wrong.

What a mess.

I let out a small sigh and moved to the far corner, making sure not to get caught up in their scuffle.

Okcheon Escort Agency, huh?

Even the name sounded like a guarantee that once you entrusted them with a delivery, your package would drift endlessly in Hubei’s lawless triangle, rotting away before it ever arrived.

Judging by what I’d heard here, their reputation had already made its rounds. Okcheon Drift. Okcheon Hollow Man. Who knew they were that infamous?

Yeah, I can’t just sit around and trust these guys.

My faith in the Okcheon Escort Agency had already hit rock bottom. If I waited for them to sort things out, I’d be waiting forever.

The real question was—how do I get out of here?

Even if I managed to escape by some miracle, it wouldn’t be that simple.

I glanced toward Tang Hwarin, who was locked up in a separate cell.

Her thigh wound looked pretty deep.

She was lying on her stomach, completely still. I couldn’t see her clearly from this distance, but I could tell that blood had soaked through the fabric around her leg.

The bandits had said they’d treat her, since letting a Tang Clan member die would be a massive headache for them. But escaping was a whole different matter.

If her injury wouldn’t heal within a day or two, I’d have to carry her out—which would make getting caught even more likely.

If negotiations fell through, I needed a backup plan.

That meant breaking out of this cell, getting to Hwarin, and then escaping the fortress. Just thinking about it felt like a Mission Impossible stunt.

Am I really supposed to just sit here and wait?

“Bwaaah! Escort Chief! I was wrong!”

“Ugh… You’re right! This isn’t the time for us to be fighting! Get it together, everyone!”

Lost in thought, I watched as the Okcheon Escort Agency put on a performance that was neither a comedy nor a tragedy—just something awkward and painful to witness.

I let out another sigh.

Yeah, I need to figure out an escape plan.

Rather than being trapped in Black Tiger Fortress’ triangle of death, hoping the Okcheon Escort Agency would somehow get us out, It would be better for me to take matters into my own hands.