WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Alyo
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Memoir of a Regressor ◈
Chapter 21: Farewell
──────
After hastily staunching the bleeding from my abdominal wound, I turned my head.
“Yi Do.”
It was Yi Won.
“Yes.”
“...You’ve worked hard. But are you all right?”
“I’m fine for now, Brother.”
“Good. Go on.”
“Leave the cleanup here to the Yun Clan, and take only the Yi Clan martial artists back to Jangnyeong County.”
“...You don’t intend to stay here any longer?”
“No.”
Yi Won’s expression changed strangely.
“...Do you trust us?”
I answered with a faint smile.
Trust them?
Not a chance.
“There’s only one principle you need to remember.”
“A principle?”
“It’s fine if you take something for yourselves behind my back. But what I want, what I ask for, and the favors I request must be honored. No matter what it takes. Do you understand?”
“Of course. We’ve come this far together. How could I not understand?”
That was enough.
“Gather every spiritual medicine in the Sang-un Trading Company that is at least thirty years old. I won’t say anything if you take one for yourself. Just bring every last one back.”
“Understood. Don’t worry.”
Yi Won then swept up every spiritual medicine in the Sang-un Trading Company.
Unfortunately, there was nothing comparable to Hundred-Year Ginseng.
I heard that several Hundred-Year Ginseng had been among the valuables meant to be sent to the Yan Kingdom back then. I regretted not searching the warehouse more thoroughly at the time, but what was done was done.
After gathering the spiritual medicines, we returned to the Yi Clan.
I recovered from my injuries as much as possible inside the carriage.
Only after an entire day had passed did we make it back to the Yi Clan.
An unexpected guest was waiting for us.
I opened the carriage door and stepped outside.
Jang Un-ryong stood there with a wide grin on his face.
“You’re finally back.”
I silently looked around.
It was like they had robbed an empty house.
Their numbers were...
About two hundred.
They had completely occupied the Yi Clan.
“You never imagined this would happen when you treated our Jang Clan as a joke.”
“...”
“You idiots. If trouble breaks out inside your clan, you should naturally keep an eye on outside affairs as well.”
Jang Un-ryong drew his sword.
“Surrender at once. Do that, and I’ll spare your lives.”
The absurdity of it made me burst out laughing.
* * *
The story shifts back one day.
Lady Sang fed Yi Se-geuk poison, and he collapsed.
Afterward, Lady Sang called for physicians and had Yi Se-geuk moved to his chambers. She tried her best to suppress the news, but that was never going to be easy.
At that exact moment, the Jang Clan and Hyeokri Clan learned that trouble had broken out within the Yi Clan.
Neither clan needed anyone to suggest the same course of action.
Jang Mak-su, the Clan Head of the Jang Clan, and Hyeokri Wonpyeong, the Clan Head of the Hyeokri Clan, sent letters to each other.
Meet immediately.
Time was of the essence. Each man’s letter reached the other almost simultaneously, and the two men quickly held a secret meeting.
“Trouble has broken out in the Yi Clan. Unless I’m mistaken, Clan Head Hyeokri has also been eyeing the Yi Clan’s trading company and funds.”
Hyeokri Wonpyeong did not bother denying it.
“Since we understand each other, there’s no need to drag this out. What do you say we bring down the Yi Clan and split everything between us?”
“Hm...”
“Listen, Clan Head Hyeokri. I know you’re cautious, but this is an opportunity that will never come again. To be honest, haven’t you been waiting for an opportunity like this?”
“That is not wrong.”
“Then why hesitate? I have never liked the term Three Great Clans of Jangnyeong. Only two clans need to rule Jangnyeong County.”
A sinister smile spread across Jang Mak-su’s lips.
“The Jang Clan and the Hyeokri Clan. Let us join hands and soar high together.”
Clan Head Hyeokri nodded.
And so, the two men joined hands.
There was hardly even a plan to speak of.
They only had to lead their clan martial artists and launch a surprise attack on the Yi Clan.
After firming their resolve, they returned to their respective clans. That was when a slight problem arose.
Hyeokri Wonpyeong changed his mind.
He was cautious by nature, and an undertaking of this scale demanded even greater caution.
Even if the Jang Clan swallowed the Yi Clan whole, it would be difficult to digest everything at once.
If they were going to move, it would be better to do so then.
And so, the Hyeokri Clan withdrew.
The Jang Clan moved anyway.
They mobilized every warrior in the clan and launched a surprise attack on the Yi Clan.
They killed the few General Stewards who remained, along with several servants and ordinary martial artists.
The Yi Clan’s forces had all moved to the Sang-un Trading Company anyway.
The Jang Clan completed its occupation with ease.
Jang Mak-su silently headed for the Clan Head’s chambers.
There, he found Yi Se-geuk lying as though he were dead.
He approached him.
Seeing him like this, Jang Mak-su found him truly pitiful.
“Clan Head Yi, can you hear my voice?”
“...Kgh...”
“It seems you can hear me. Really, why did you let ambitions beyond your station bring you to this?”
“...”
“If you had just settled the position of Young Clan Head beforehand, none of this would have happened.”
The Jang Clan had moved faster than anyone else.
There was a reason for that.
They had rehearsed this many times.
It had already been inevitable that trouble would break out within the Yi Clan.
No matter how one thought about it, it was bound to happen.
The eldest and second sons were both nearing their mid-twenties.
They were old enough to have married already, yet neither had even become the Young Clan Head.
Truly.
“How could you fail to foresee this future? You held only two trading companies in your hands. Did you think you possessed the whole world?”
Yi Se-geuk’s bloodshot eyes reflected Jang Mak-su’s smiling face.
“You brought all of this upon yourself, Clan Head Yi.”
With that, Jang Mak-su slowly began searching the chambers.
After a long while, he seemed to find what he wanted, and a smile formed on his lips.
Holding it, he returned to Yi Se-geuk’s side.
“Let’s see... What exactly is written in the Yi Clan’s ledger?”
Jang Mak-su leisurely looked through the ledger.
He slowly flipped through its pages, humming now and then. Then, apparently finding something suspicious, he asked Yi Se-geuk,
“Clan Head Yi, I’m genuinely curious. What exactly is this?”
“...”
“I operate a few trading companies, forges, and inns myself, but this ledger looks... very strange.”
There was no need to look far.
One entry alone was strange.
“‘Material costs.’ What exactly is this? It can’t possibly refer to ingredients for food, and the amount... is no joke.”
Among the Three Great Clans of Jangnyeong, the Hyeokri Clan possessed the greatest martial strength, followed by the Jang Clan.
The Yi Clan lagged far behind those two in martial strength.
But they had money.
“...You have been spending over five hundred Silver Taels every month on these so-called material costs... Huh... How much is this?”
With time to spare, Jang Mak-su went through the ledger from the first page and calculated it all.
“...I’m speechless. In silver alone, it comes to roughly one hundred thousand taels... One Gold Tael is worth twenty Silver Taels, so that makes five thousand Gold Taels...? Clan Head Yi, have you lost your mind? What in the world costs five thousand Gold Taels in material expenses?”
Yi Se-geuk could not answer.
The Soul-Severing Demonic Poison was that potent.
All he could do was express his rage at the situation itself.
“Hmm... I’ll look into that later. You have worked hard.”
It had been quite some time since Yi Won and the Yi Clan forces had departed from the Sang-un Trading Company. A message had said they were taking their time and resting along the way, so they should have arrived around now.
Just as Jang Mak-su rose from his seat, it happened.
Craaaash!
The door to the chambers shattered, and a man flew inside. He rolled across the floor before stopping at Jang Mak-su’s feet.
When Jang Mak-su saw what it was, no, who it was, he was greatly shocked.
“Un... Un-ryong!”
It was Jang Un-ryong, the second son of the Jang Clan.
He was a bloody mess, making choking noises.
“...My God...”
His shock was only natural.
Both of Jang Un-ryong’s eyes had been gouged out. His limbs were crushed, and blood was pouring madly from his lower abdomen, where his dantian should have been.
He had clearly been pierced through with a sword.
Jang Mak-su raised his head.
Short hair, tied back, came into view.
...It was Yi Do.
“You... You did this to him?”
Yi Do gave a short laugh.
“Then who else would have done it?”
“You bastard... I will kill you right here.”
“Anyone can say that. But...”
Jang Mak-su swiftly drew his sword, but Yi Do ignored him and continued.
“I never expected you to give me this many gifts when it isn’t even my birthday.”
“...Gifts?”
“You are handing the entire Jang Clan over to me.”
“You insane bastard...”
“I’m so grateful that I’ll send you off without pain.”
That was when Jang Mak-su’s eyes fell on Yi Do’s abdomen.
It was red.
The redness was even slowly spreading.
He was clearly wounded.
An injury that severe should have made walking difficult. It was slightly surprising.
But that was as far as Jang Mak-su’s surprise went.
Jang Mak-su sprang forward.
The Jang Clan wielded swords.
Their martial art was called the Hidden Phoenix Sword Art.
It was a fairly renowned martial art that unleashed a concealed sword in an instant, like a phoenix taking flight.
Was that not the very art that had allowed the Jang Clan’s eldest son to enter the Emperor Sword Sect?
But Jang Mak-su flinched.
In a fight, that sort of reaction led to certain defeat.
Still, it was understandable.
Yi Do’s eyes were strange.
They had turned completely red, and both of his hands had turned red as well.
Yi Do raised his left hand.
As though guided there, Jang Mak-su’s sword landed in Yi Do’s grasp.
Thud.
The sound rang like thunder.
Jang Mak-su could not understand it.
How?
In an instant, Yi Do’s hand closed around Jang Mak-su’s throat.
“W-wait...”
It was pointless.
Riiip!
Jang Mak-su’s neck tore apart just like that. Blood sprayed everywhere.
Jang Mak-su’s head dropped to the floor, followed by his limp body.
There was no need to say more.
Jang Mak-su was dead.
Yi Do breathed heavily.
Even more blood flowed from his abdomen, and his arms began to tremble.
His body had been pushed beyond its limits.
He did not show it.
If he were weak enough to collapse from something like this, he would never have earned the title Mad Venerable.
Yi Do had lived like this every moment of his life.
He walked on.
His reddened eyes and arms slowly returned to normal.
He readjusted his grip on Jang Mak-su’s sword and drove it down.
Crunch!
The sword embedded itself in the neck of Jang Un-ryong, who had already been on the verge of death.
He walked on.
Yi Do spoke slowly.
“Your clan’s hierarchy had clearly collapsed. I heard you trained almost every day. Training is important, but you should have disciplined your household first.”
“...Cough.”
“I helped you time and time again. And look at this mess.”
Hope kindled in Yi Se-geuk’s bloodshot eyes as he looked at Yi Do.
He could live.
Thanks to his youngest son, he could somehow get back on his feet.
Yet the words that came from Yi Do’s mouth made Yi Se-geuk’s eyes widen.
“I knew Lady Sang would use poison. The only question was when.”
Seated beside Yi Se-geuk, Yi Do continued calmly.
“The Soul-Severing Demonic Poison is impressive. There is hardly any of it in the martial world... I never expected her to obtain it.”
“...”
“I had considered saving you. Whether either of us acknowledged it or not, you were still my father. Blood ties mean something, so I resolved to be as generous as I could. But what did I get in return?”
“...”
“Even when I brought back Cheonhwa Pavilion, you took it from me. Even when I asked for the Hundred-Year Ginseng you promised me, you refused. If I save you, the same thing will probably keep happening.”
“...N-no...”
“I gave you many chances. You know that.”
“...”
“The Soul-Severing Demonic Poison was one of the punishments given to those who committed unforgivable sins against their sect. The sensation in all four limbs fades, the dantian shatters, and the victim cannot even move, yet their mind remains clear. Then they must endure the agony of having their heart torn apart for more than a month before they can finally rest. You never did anything for me, but I will still give you one final gift. I will let you go without pain.”
Yi Do placed his hand over Yi Se-geuk’s heart.
“The Jang Clan attacked the Yi Clan and killed the Clan Head. Yi Won will become Clan Head today, and the Jang Clan will be absorbed by the Yi Clan. I doubt it will take long before all of Jangnyeong County falls into my hands.”
He slowly poured internal energy into him.
Gush. Gush.
Blood spilled continuously from Yi Se-geuk’s mouth.
“You probably won’t get to see it, Father. If only you had been kinder.”
Yi Se-geuk’s hand grabbed Yi Do’s arm.
It was his final spark.
As though it were bothersome, Yi Do shook off the hand and casually said,
“Farewell.”
Before long, Yi Se-geuk’s head fell.
Footnotes:
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