episode_0026

Sichuan City.

Located quite deep inland from Shinyun City, it is situated near the very center of the Yeom Kingdom.

Seol-ryun says that, because it is located near the center, many merchant groups have established their headquarters here, managing logistics that extend to each region, making Sichuan a considerably wealthy city.

Indeed, befitting a wealthy city, the Sichuan castle boasted magnificence from its very gates.

It was difficult to tell whether this was the capital of a country or the castle of a typical city.

As I blankly stared at the castle gate, the young master of the Tang clan, Tang Seol-ryun, smiled gently and said to me.

“You have worked hard to come such a long way. This is the region ruled by our Tang clan. Sichuan.”

“….”

“….”

“….”

I didn’t say anything.

Baek-ryun remained quiet after almost ruining her life by acting recklessly.

Even Seol-rin, being in her own home, had no particular reaction.

“…Ahem.”

No one answered Seol-ryun’s words, so he felt embarrassed and headed towards the castle gate.

‘Sichuan….’

It was a long journey.

It seemed to have taken about 2 weeks just to get from Shinyun City to Sichuan.

Originally, if I had just used my footwork to rush there, it would have been a quick trip, but it was much slower than expected because I had to match the Tang clan’s party’s healing and movement speed.

‘Still, building up goodwill with the Tang clan will likely lead to many opportunities for help.’

I won’t go far and get caught again while looking for Great Root Pills.

Anything else is fine, but I’d be mortified to death if I got locked up in a coffin while looking for Great Root Pills.

“We are planning to head straight to the Tang Clan Manor…, would you like to come with us?”

“No, I have a place to stop by.”

“I see. Then please visit the Tang Clan Manor after you have finished your business.”

“….Now that I think about it, your tone has changed.”

At my question, Seol-ryun flinched.

Before, he had a bit more…, well, there was a sense that he was trying to show dignity as the young master, but at some point, he started using honorifics with me.

When was that?….

Ah, was it from the point when I saved Seol-rin?

“Ah, well. You are the Tang Clan’s benefactor. It is the duty of the young master to treat you accordingly.”

“….If that’s the case, then it’s fine.”

It probably won’t be a big deal, so it doesn’t matter.

I moved my feet and headed to the Mara Hall that Granny Wang in Shinyun City had told me to visit.

* * *

“….”

“Is this.., it, do you think?”

“It seems so.”

Do those guys like houses that are all falling apart like this?

That noodle shop there also looked like it was going out of business, and this place called Mara Hall also looks like it’s falling apart.

“For now, it looks like they handle medicinal herbs…, but I don’t know if they’re even doing business.”

I’ll know once I go inside.

I moved my feet inside, and Baek-ryun followed me in.

“Excuse me. Is anyone there?”

I deliberately made a sound to show that someone was there, but there was no answer from inside.

What’s this?

Did it close down because it took too long to arrive?

No, even so, did she tell me to go to a place that would close down in 2 weeks?

Rustle

“…Someone is there, though.”

A sound is heard from inside belatedly.

After waiting for a moment, a young man walked out with an awkward smile.

“Hahaha…, I’m sorry. I was taking care of some work inside….”

“Are you the owner of this place?”

“That’s right. As you can see, I just…, dig up and sell miscellaneous medicinal herbs.”

“Is there anyone else here?”

“There was a grandfather here about 1~2 years ago, but he has passed away.”

Hmm.

Such a story….

“If I show this, they said you would help me.”

Well, anyway, the person who died 1~2 years ago is dead, and Granny Wang said that if I showed this to anyone at the Mara Hall, they would help me, so they probably will.

I handed over the wooden carving that I received from Granny Wang, and the other person carefully looked at the wooden carving before returning it to me and saying.

“I have heard the story from the Shinyun branch manager. Greetings, I am Il-ryun, the branch manager of the Hao Mun Sichuan branch.”

“Jang Chun-woo.”

“Baek-ryun.”

“Then, Great Hero Chun-woo. How may I help you?”

Il-ryun, who had been taking a polite stance since receiving the wooden carving, asked.

….Thinking about it, I’m a hero.

I’ve been treated as an incompetent hero and looked down upon everywhere, and even after coming here, I’ve been running around doing quests like a hamster on a wheel.

This is the first time I’m receiving treatment like a real person.

….Of course, being treated as an incompetent hero was intentional for later.

“I want to find Great Root Pills.”

“You mean Great Root Pills. As you know, just looking for them is a serious crime.”

“I know.”

“You’ve heard about the effects and side effects of Great Root Pills, so you probably know…, why are you trying to find them?”

Damn it, of course it’s to eat them and escape from being small-small.

“Do you need to know?”

“Hmm…, that’s true. Actually, it’s not something I need to know.”

He nodded lightly, agreeing with my words.

Then, he went outside, closed the shop door, and led us inside.

“Actually, I had been doing some investigation before you came. Coincidentally, the Yeom family was also investigating the illegal trading of Great Root Pills.”

“They were investigating illegal trading?”

“Yes. As I said before, just looking for Great Root Pills is a serious crime. Illegal trading is even worse.”

Inside the shop.

When he removed the shabby wooden plank on the floor, stairs leading to the basement appeared.

Il-ryun went down the stairs, and we also headed to the shop’s basement, following Il-ryun.

“This place is?”

“It’s a place where we collect, classify, and deliver information. The information about Great Root Pills is probably…, here.”

He hands me a very old bundle of papers.

I can speak the Yeom Kingdom language, but I’m not good at reading it yet, so I handed it to Baek-ryun.

Baek-ryun silently received the book and read it. Suddenly, Baek-ryun’s movements stopped.

“Baek-ryun?”

“….Young Master Il-ryun. Is what is written here true?”

“Yes. It’s true.”

“What is it? What’s written there?”

It’s not like “To be continued in 30 seconds,” why are you being so frustrating?

“….The sale and purchase of Great Root Pills seem to be mainly taking place outside the influence of the sects and aristocratic families in the Yeom Kingdom. The sales routes are unknown and are being sold in various places in the Fatherland and the Central Continent. It is presumed that the Beastman Alliance is in charge of the overall sales, and they seem to be preparing for war with the profits earned from selling Great Root Pills…. And the preparations for war seem to be…, about 70% to 80% complete….”

“War….”

Indeed. The story of the Yeom Kingdom is gradually taking shape.

I think I’ve said it a few times, but the Yeom Kingdom wasn’t originally like this.

At least, in the era when Leon heads to the Yeom Kingdom, it’s already a country that has been destroyed by the Heavenly Demon. Red Demon was active as the ruler who controlled the Jo country as a reward for contributing to the destruction of the Yeom Kingdom, and chasing after that Red Demon, he heads from Yeom Kingdom to Jo, meets Red Demon at Chui Hill, fights, and is defeated.

If so, then this current point is before the Heavenly Demon destroys the Yeom Kingdom.

It means that this is the time when the Heavenly Demon’s subordinates are plotting the Heavenly Demon’s revival and the destruction of the Yeom Kingdom.

“War cannot be prepared easily. To gather and stockpile war-related materials requires preparation and a place. If the war preparations are said to be 70% to 80% complete, how could we not have known about it until now?”

“The base is probably a place called Cheonsan…. It is the base of the Beastman Alliance. Because of this, there are few people and they try not to be associated with that place as much as possible, so they have been able to act secretly and proceed with war preparations until now.”

“How many people know this fact?”

“Currently…, only the Yeom family knows.”

If it’s the Yeom family…, you mean the emperor and his forces, right? Everyone calls them something different, so I get confused sometimes.

Anyway, I came to get just one Great Root Pill, but why is it getting involved with war?

….How did things get so twisted?

“Anyway…, does that mean we have to head to Cheonsan to get the Great Root Pill?”

“Ah, that’s not the case. It’s clear that the war supplies themselves are being gathered at Cheonsan, but the creation of the Great Root Pills themselves seems to be happening within the Yeom Kingdom.”

“Where is it?”

“I haven’t found out yet.”

….You don’t know the most important thing.

“Okay, then…, tell me when you find out.”

“I understand. How long do you plan to stay here?”

“Until you find out.”

“Ah…, I understand. I will hurry and find out.”

* * *

“Haa…, things are getting delayed more than I thought.”

I was just planning to get the Great Root Pill and return to the Central Continent right away, but things have gotten seriously twisted.

In the Yeom Kingdom, it is forbidden to even look for Great Root Pills, as they are treated as forbidden drugs, and when I try to contact those who are illegally trading Great Root Pills, they say they are the Demon King’s army…, life can’t be this difficult.

“….Red Demon was helping the Beastman Alliance, right? Young Master.”

“Yeah. If what that guy named Oh-gam said at the end was true, then that’s right.”

“….”

After hearing my harsh words, she seems to be thinking a lot in many ways, and she definitely speaks less.

I don’t know if this is a positive change or a negative change.

“….Don’t do that again.”

“?”

“No matter what you do, I’m confident that I can protect you. As long as you’re within reach of my sword, that is.”

“Young Master…”

I raised my hand, took off Baek-ryun’s hat slightly, and stroked her head.

“If you need help, tell me. My sword isn’t so heartless as to abandon a comrade who is calling out for my help.”

“….I’m sorry. Young Master. I was just…, being selfish….”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Perhaps she felt sorry for causing such a commotion and worry, Baek-ryun burst into tears and hugged me.

Because of that, the hat that Baek-ryun was wearing completely fell behind her back, but she didn’t care at all and cried in my arms for quite a while.

When Baek-ryun had calmed down a bit, I remembered that Tang Seol-ryun had told me to visit the Tang Clan, so I decided to go there and moved my feet.

“This place is just…, so fancy everywhere you go.”

I felt it when I passed through the castle gate of this Sichuan City, but people here seem to like fancy things.

The Tang Clan’s gate was also very fancy.

In particular, the unique pattern that symbolizes the Tang Clan was engraved in a cool way, so it seemed to be saying, “This is the Tang Clan. Don’t mess with us.” to anyone who saw it.

“Should I knock on the door?”

“You should.”

Knock! Knock! Knock!

When I knocked on the Tang Clan’s door, the door quickly opened and several people wearing the Tang Clan’s clothes appeared.

“Who is it?”

“Do you know that this is the gate of the Sichuan Tang Clan and you’re knocking?”

“Jang Chun-woo. I made an appointment to meet with Tang Seol-ryun, the young master of this place.”

“Jang Chun-woo?…”

Fortunately, it seems that the Tang Clan’s gatekeeper had been told in advance, so they opened the door without any problems and let us in.

“Hero Il-ryong! You’ve come earlier than I thought.”

“Young Master Tang Seol-ryun.”

Tang Seol-ryun, as expected, changed into clean clothes since it’s his own house and welcomed us.

Seeing that, I couldn’t help but look down at my clothes and Baek-ryun’s clothes.

I had prepared spare clothes, but they were still dirty because I hadn’t been able to wash them properly.

Should I have bought new clothes?

“Ah, your clothes have gotten dirty because of the journey. If you’re okay with it, I can give you some clothes.”

“….No, it’s okay. I don’t want to be indebted to you for clothes.”

“Indebted…”

Seol-ryun smiled awkwardly and led me and Baek-ryun into the Tang Clan’s internal building. The internal buildings, as large as the Tang Clan’s scale, were so vast and complex that I wondered if even someone who had lived here would get lost if they weren’t careful.

While walking through the interior, a pure young lady with a considerable appearance approached.

“Brother?”

“Ah, Seol-ran. Do you know where Seol-rin went?”

“If you’re talking about Seol-rin unni, I saw her at the training ground earlier.”

“That girl…, it can’t be helped.”

Given that young lady’s personality, I thought that she would definitely lock herself in the training ground as soon as she came here.

She seemed to have a very strong pride. She was helplessly pushed back by the toad beastmen that day, so she’s probably gritting her teeth and starting training.

As I was thinking that, Seol-ran, who was talking with Seol-ryun, looked at me and tilted her head.

“Brother. Who is that person?”

“Ah, Seol-ran. Let me introduce you. This is the benefactor who saved my and Seol-rin’s lives. He is Great Hero Jang Chun-woo.”

“Ah!…, Greetings. My name is Tang Seol-ran.”

Tang Seol-ran smiles gently and greets politely.

She is quite polite, unlike Seol-rin.

“Jang Chun-woo from the Yeom army.”

“I’m Baek-ryun. Nice to meet you.”

“Ah, Miss Baek-ryun. I’m glad to see that you’ve recovered.”

“Ah….”

At Seol-ryun’s words, Baek-ryun blushed slightly and covered her face by pressing down on her hat.

“Seol-ran. We’re going to see the Clan Head, so tell Seol-rin to quickly change her clothes and come too.”

“Yes, I understand. Brother.”

“Then let’s go.”

After parting with Seol-ran, I followed Seol-ryun and moved my feet.

And even in the fancy Tang Clan’s building, I found a particularly antique door. I could tell without being told.

The Clan Head is located beyond this door.

‘He has a considerable presence.’

“Clan Head. It’s Tang Seol-ryun.”

“What is it, young master?”

“I have brought the benefactor who saved me and Seol-rin, whom I mentioned before.”

“….Let them in.”

The Clan Head’s permission was given, and Seol-ryun opened the door.

There, I saw an elderly middle-aged man stamping a seal among a large amount of documents.

“Are you the benefactor who saved the young master and my daughter’s lives?”

“Yeah.”