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Chapter: 74

He called me master, but his attitude was like he was looking at a surveillance target.

Stop staring. You\'ll bore a hole through my head...

"He seems quite devoted to you, Your Highness."

Eunuch Han remarked, looking proud for some reason.

"...You don\'t dislike him, Eunuch Han?"

"Why would I dislike a child sent by General So? Above all, he is just a child."

Meanwhile, Jincheon, standing upright in the corner, had an unreadable expression.

I thought the expression of the Jincheon I remembered was easier to read.

Didn\'t people get better at hiding their true intentions as they got older? Anyway, he was a strange one in many ways.

"For a eunuch, you have such poor judgment..."

Did he know how many people this kid would slaughter in the future, that he was calling him a child?

Tsk tsk.

But it wasn\'t strange for Eunuch Han to think that way.

Even though he was my archenemy, he was considered a hero elsewhere, and his outward appearance was quite dazzling.

"You must serve His Highness well. Do you understand?"

Eunuch Han said to Jincheon with a pleased look. Jincheon hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"Yes, elder."

I thought he was a demon obsessed with killing, but seeing him like this, he seemed quite docile.

No, wait. I mustn\'t let my guard down. I mustn\'t forget that this was the guy who took my head.

Honestly, I wasn\'t sure if I could properly utilize him.

Of course, even if I only succeeded in not making him my enemy, it would be a huge advantage for me.

Anyway, now that I had him, I had to try to make him my weapon.

I got up from my seat, taking the letter Gon had brought from the Pyeonggwang Merchant Guild.

I beckoned Jincheon, and he raised his head as if he had been waiting.

"Let\'s go to the training grounds. I\'ll teach you how to handle a sword."

* * *

Of course, teaching wasn\'t my job. Teaching anyone didn\'t suit me.

"Listen carefully."

So I had Yoo Geung do it.

But the strange thing was that Commander Heo had followed us out as well.

He wasn\'t doing anything, though. Just watching.

"Yes, that\'s how you hold it. Straight, so the tip of the sword doesn\'t waver."

Yes, good. He was doing well.

"Captain Yoo is doing a good job."

Then I didn\'t need to watch anymore.

Heo Seokgyeom was diligently fulfilling the role of observer, for some reason.

I settled into the prepared chair, unfolding the letter I had brought from my room.

Eunuch Han poked his head in and spoke.

"Your Highness."

"Yes, what is it?"

"Wouldn\'t your quarters be a better place to read a letter than this dusty training ground?"

I pointed at Jincheon with my index finger and replied, "Surveillance, surveillance."

Eunuch Han withdrew his head.

The letter from the Pyeonggwang Merchant Guild contained the answer to the question I had asked. About what was going on between the current Wolhan Fortress Lord and Son Gye-du.

There weren\'t any specific incidents, but it said that Son Gye-du was the previous Wolhan Fortress Lord\'s son.

And it seemed that the current Wolhan Fortress Lord, Son Cheon-geum, was from a collateral branch of the family.

To summarize, it was Son Gye-du\'s jealousy over having the position of Fortress Lord, which he considered his, taken away from him.

After finishing the letter, I looked at Jincheon. The lesson was proceeding with Yoo Geung demonstrating and Jincheon following suit.

He was following well.

I glanced at the letter in my hand.

There was no reason for me to stay here and watch Jincheon... Should I go to the Pyeonggwang Merchant Guild?

As I jumped to my feet, Eunuch Han asked, "Are you leaving?"

"The sun is harsh. I think I\'ll go for a walk instead of staying here."

"Pardon? Oh, no, but your wound hasn\'t healed yet..."

What was this fuss about something so minor?

"I\'m fine."

I swung my arm around, and Eunuch Han flinched.

"Are you saying you are going out?" Heo Seokgyeom, who had turned his head towards me at some point, asked.

Since when was he so interested in me?

"I am."

"Then I will accompany you."

My body felt stiff from crouching on the chair. I stretched languidly and replied, "Must you?"

"It is not a matter of ‘must’."

Heo Seokgyeom\'s gaze fell on my arm. Seriously, why was everyone making such a fuss over this? Anyone would think I had barely escaped death.

"I\'m not a little kid. Why do you need to follow me when I\'m just going for a short walk?"

"Is there a reason why I shouldn\'t accompany you?"

If he put it like that, I had nothing to say.

"That\'s... not it."

"Then I will accompany you. I will merely stay behind you, Your Highness, so do as you please."

Stay behind? I was just going for a short walk.

But since I couldn\'t stop him, I had no choice but to go with a tail attached to me.

* * *

"Have you arrived?"

Go Yeong-shin, the head merchant of the Pyeonggwang Merchant Guild in Wolhan Fortress, bowed and asked. He seemed to have expected my visit.

"...You ask as if you knew I would come here."

"Isn\'t it basic for a merchant to await his customers?"

Go Yeong-shin rubbed his palms together ingratiatingly. So I was a customer? He must have known I wasn\'t here to spend money.

He glanced at Heo Seokgyeom standing behind me and then seemed to gauge my expression.

He was asking if he should dismiss him.

"The room is too small for all of us."

"Pardon? I believe it is adequate.”

"No, no. It\'s small. Merchant Go, could you provide a spare room for our Commander Heo?"

"Ah, yes. Of course."

Go Yeong-shin poked his head out the door and called for someone, and a servant came and took Heo Seokgyeom away.

"...Then I shall see you again shortly."

Heo Seokgyeom looked displeased, but nonetheless, he left.

"I heard you had a serious incident. Is your health alright?"

"More or less. I can move around, but everyone\'s making such a fuss that it\'s more tiring."

"It\'s about Your Highness\'s well-being. No amount of concern is excessive."

"Alright, alright. By the way, you\'re well-informed. Has it already spread that far? Or do you have spies planted in the inner fortress?"

Go Yeong-sin laughed.

"That\'s impossible. Spies... If I were to do such a thing, I wouldn\'t live long. This is the Northern Region, after all."

"Are you saying you would have planted spies if it were somewhere else?"

Go Yeong-shin waved his hands.

"What a frightening thing to say. Wouldn\'t only someone with considerable influence do such a thing? How could an ordinary merchant like me..."

"I\'m joking."

"Yes, yes."

Go Yeong-shin laughed awkwardly. I laughed along and took out the letter out of my pocket, placing it on the table.

"About this."

"Yes."

I narrowed my eyes and stared at Go Yeong-shin.

"I can trust you, right?"

"I follow Leader Shin. As long as you trust the leader, you can trust me as well."

That was true. I didn\'t know exactly what Shin Gwiryung wanted, but she wanted me to take the throne.

I wish I knew how my ascension would benefit Shin Gwiryung or the Pyeonggwang Merchant Guild.

Anyway, Go Yeong-shin was the one Shin Gwiryung had told me I could trust. I could trust him.

"This must not leak out."

"Yes, Your Highness."

I took a deep breath and said, “Elder Son Gye-du approached me."

Go Yeong-sin\'s eyes widened.

"Such a thing..."

"He made me an offer. Ah, you must have noticed that a battle with the monsters is imminent, Merchant Go?"

"Yes, it\'s not something one can miss. It\'s something almost anyone living in the Northern Region would have heard about."

"Right. But that Son Gye-du called me out late at night and told me to disrupt the preparations for the battle."

"...Pardon? Oh, no, such..."

Go Yeong-shin\'s eyes widened even more than before, and he let out a hollow laugh.

"If that were to happen, Wolhan Fortress would surely suffer a terrible fate..."

"Of course. But it seems he wants to bring down the Fortress Lord even at that cost."

"It seems I have misjudged him."

"Didn\'t he seem like that kind of person?"

"I did think he was ambitious, but..."

Go Yeong-shin\'s face darkened slightly.

"It has been eleven years since I came to Wolhan Fortress and started managing the merchant guild’s affairs. Even though I didn\'t come here willingly, as time passes, one naturally gets to know the people around and build relationships... I\'ve become drinking buddies with the blacksmith down the street. But to think he views their lives as mere flies... When even a few monsters can cause havoc, such is the plight of the common people."

I gave a wry smile.

"Oh dear, I\'ve said too much. My apologies

"It wasn\'t rambling. There\'s no need to apologize."

Even though they weren\'t close, it was clear that Go Yeong-shin didn\'t have a favorable view of Son Gye-du. Then I just had to confirm one thing.

"Do you think he would allow the Northern Wall to fall?"

The answer was practically a given, but...

"I believe you already know the answer."

It seemed there was no need to ponder.

* * *

Back at my quarters in the inner fortress.

The place was in an uproar when I returned after organizing my thoughts.

"Your Highness!"

Many people were gathered, including my entourage who were staying at the pavilion and even Wolhan Fortress soldiers.

Among them, I noticed Jincheon standing blankly.

The cawing of a crow could be heard from above.

As I approached, the soldiers parted to make way for me. The crowd surrounding me like a folding screen moved aside.

"What\'s going on here?"

Then, what was in the center was revealed.

A crouching man was trembling.

"Someone tell me. I asked what\'s going on."

Then, Jincheon, of all people, spoke up.

"That man searched Your Highness\'s room."

The moment I heard those words, I felt my blood run cold. And only one word came to mind.

Bellflower.

I stared at Jincheon, hoping for a more detailed explanation, but he didn\'t elaborate.

Had the bellflower been discovered?

Or was he hesitant to speak because there were too many eyes watching?

"Please give us your orders, Your Highness."

One of the Wolhan Fortress soldiers spoke.

I looked at the small man cowering on the floor. He was covered in dirt, as if he had already been beaten.

I sighed and said, "...Confine him."

The soldiers immediately dragged the man away.

But perhaps I should have been more cautious at this point. I shouldn\'t have thought of it as just a troublesome incident.