WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Oblivious
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Murim in my Hometown ◈
Chapter 17: Murder
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People gathered around the maid. They were workers from Simhyang Pavilion.
They had come over to see what was happening, but their eyes widened when they saw the corpse.
The whispers grew louder, but no one came over to ask what had happened. There were people whose job it was to handle such matters.
A middle-aged escort hurried over, pushing through the crowd.
“What happened?”
“I was on my way to the quarters for a late-night snack when I heard a scream. I came over and found this.”
I slipped off to one side as though leaving the scene in the escort’s hands and explained exactly what had happened.
The escort flinched at the sight of the corpse lying in the bright moonlight, bleeding.
“That... could that be Bang Join?”
“Yes.”
Unable to believe a colleague had died so suddenly, the escort froze in shock.
“...You heard a scream?”
The escort turned toward the maid as I pointed her out.
I had kept my eye on the maid in case she disappeared, but looking at her now, that seemed unnecessary.
The maid had completely lost her wits and could only tremble. She stammered and could barely answer the escort’s questions.
Even in the midst of all this, I was reminded once again of how far removed I was from ordinary people.
The normal reaction upon seeing a gruesome corpse killed by a blade was to be so shocked that your legs gave out and you collapsed.
The people gathered nearby were also overwhelmed by shock and anxiety, unable to leave easily.
What about me?
The moment I saw the corpse, I instinctively drew my saber and watched the surroundings. Without hesitation, I touched the body and searched its clothes.
That was only possible because I was a martial artist.
Martial artists carried swords and sabers because there were times they needed them. So wherever they went, there were only two possibilities.
Either they made corpses, or they became one.
I was fortunate not to be the corpse, but seeing someone else’s corpse was not pleasant either.
After getting answers from the maid, the escort ran to the quarters.
A short while later, Jo Gyeongjik arrived with several escorts.
Before I needed to step forward, the escort from earlier took the lead and guided them to the scene.
“My God. It really is Bang Join?”
“How did that man end up...”
The escorts stirred in horror.
A colleague who had been perfectly fine just moments ago had suddenly been murdered at their place of work. The shock must have been considerable.
Still, perhaps they did not wear escort uniforms for nothing. No one panicked or pissed themselves.
Jo Gyeongjik knelt on one knee and examined the corpse.
After seeing the two characters for Yongcheon soaked in blood, he pulled open Bang Join’s upper garment. The stab wound in the exposed chest was larger than expected.
Once he confirmed the cause of death, Jo Gyeongjik covered the body again and stood. Focus returned to his previously unfocused eyes.
With bloodshot eyes wide open, Jo Gyeongjik barked orders at the escorts.
“What are you standing around for? Chundae! Imgu! Move Bang Join to the quarters. Naengseok! Call in every off-duty escort. Tell them to get here as though their tails are on fire. The rest of you, guard the area around the main hall in pairs. Joyeon! Find the patrol team and bring them back immediately. Choi Sangwon!”
“Yes!”
“Run to the escort agency and inform the Chief Head Escort of the situation. Request reinforcements. We need to strengthen security and conduct a search, so bring as many people as possible. Move! Before the guests in the main hall panic and break up their drinking parties.”
The escorts rushed to carry out their orders.
Having apparently received word of the situation, the pleasure house manager came outside. After speaking with Jo Gyeongjik, the manager warned the servants to watch their tongues and sent everyone back inside.
From the maid’s scream to the gathering and dispersal of people, and then moving Bang Join’s corpse, not even half an hour had passed.
The courtesans were handling things deftly, because music and hearty laughter continued without pause from the main hall.
The escorts formed a wide perimeter around the main hall and guarded the area heavily.
No one knew where Bang Join’s killer had gone. The killer could have fled over the wall or hidden near one of the side buildings.
Jo Gyeongjik’s decision to focus on protecting the main hall rather than searching the area was extremely calm and realistic.
If any distinguished guest suffered harm at the killer’s hands, it would be impossible to bear the consequences.
Every guest here was an influential figure in government or commerce.
If someone died or was injured, the blame would fall not only on the person responsible for security, but even on the escort agency master.
Having received no instructions, I could only stand to one side and quietly watch the situation unfold.
Only after adjusting the escorts’ positions and giving them various instructions did Jo Gyeongjik come looking for me.
“You should speak with me.”
This was my second time entering the office.
The explanation of events and questioning continued amid an atmosphere far more serious than on my first day.
“It seemed that man had come into some unexpected money lately. Do you know where he got it? Even a guess?”
Everyone among the escorts knew Bang Join was a gambling addict. Since he had suddenly taken leave, the reason was obvious.
Jo Gyeongjik also seemed to suspect that the source of the money was connected to why Bang Join had died.
“I don’t know. He usually talked a lot, but he never spoke about money. Though it seemed like he spent all last night playing gambling tiles.”
Jo Gyeongjik let out a heavy sigh with a mournful expression.
“I knew he was beyond saving, but I never thought it would end like this. When I see his father in the next world, I’ll have no face to show him...”
Jo Gyeongjik trailed off after unintentionally revealing that he had a personal connection to Bang Join. He shook his head bitterly, then held out his hand.
“Let me see your saber.”
I had expected this, so without complaint, I removed my willow-leaf saber and placed it on the table with its sheath.
Jo Gyeongjik drew it and held the blade to the lamp. His eyes narrowed as he inspected it.
“It’s new. When did you buy it?”
“I bought it from an ironworks before joining the escort agency. My old saber had cracked.”
“Which ironworks?”
“Dojeong Ironworks.”
“Ah, that place.”
Jo Gyeongjik immediately understood. It was the only ironworks in Seochon that made swords and sabers, so he could not have failed to recognize it.
He pressed his nose to the blade and checked it for the smell of blood. Then he nodded and returned it to its sheath.
He did not seem to distrust me, but once morning came, he would probably send someone to the ironworks to confirm whether I had truly bought it there.
“Do you have any other weapons?”
Without a word, I bent down and removed the dagger strapped to my ankle.
Jo Gyeongjik thoroughly checked the condition of its blade and even its smell before returning it.
“For now, your shift is over. Wait in your quarters. The Chief Head Escort may wish to see you when he arrives, so don’t go anywhere. As long as you don’t do anything that invites suspicion, nothing will happen.”
I was left alone in the spacious quarters.
Even the men on standby had been assigned to security, so the dining room beside the quarters was empty as well.
The Chief Head Escort arrived at Simhyang Pavilion in less than two hours.
I was called in while filling my stomach with thin pancakes and dumplings, then repeated what I had told Jo Gyeongjik.
The Chief Head Escort, Du Jaryeom, did not suspect me.
There was a witness who could attest to my innocence, and by coincidence, my willow-leaf saber was new and had never been stained with blood.
I always washed my dagger with lye water and oiled it after using it.
Even he could not fail to see that it would be unreasonable to accuse me of being the culprit.
“If anything comes to mind about who may have killed Bang Join, speak freely.”
For a moment, I thought of Yi Yunjae glaring at Bang Join. Without needing to consider it, I immediately shook my head.
It would never be wise to name the Prefectural Magistrate’s prized, promising provincial-graduate scholar as a murder suspect.
“I don’t know.”
“Is there nowhere you suspect, even a little?”
Du Jaryeom was persistent. It seemed I would have to offer him something if I wanted this conversation to end.
After thinking it over carefully, I found something suitable.
“The place where Escort Bang fell is the back path leading to the side buildings.”
“That is true.”
“I heard martial artists are staying in the side buildings. They are said to be Simhyang Pavilion’s resident guests.”
“Did Bang Join tell you that?”
“Yes. He said he had suffered an unpleasant encounter while passing through that area before.”
“Hmm.”
Du Jaryeom let out a low hum with a serious expression.
Simhyang Pavilion’s walls were high. The main gate was the only place outsiders could enter. The escorts also patrolled the grounds at set times.
It was more likely that the killer had been inside than an outsider.
Bang Join was a gambler. Recently, he had skipped work and spent time playing gambling tiles at gambling dens. There was enough reason to assume he had come into an unexpected sum of money.
After losing it all, he climbed over the wall again at the side building where he had previously struck it rich. Then, while stealing silver, he was followed and killed.
That theory fit many of the circumstances.
If the killer had withdrawn without recovering the silver because the maid appeared, it would make rough sense.
I had never had a chance to confirm his skill, but Bang Join was also a martial artist who carried a saber.
The fact that he had been stabbed through the heart and died in a single blow meant he had not even had time to resist.
The killer was surely a martial arts master experienced in murder.
Even though there was an obvious suspect, the Chief Head Escort could not easily speak.
It was likely not because the thought had not occurred to him, but because if it were true, the repercussions would shake the entire escort agency.
If one of Simhyang Pavilion’s resident guests had killed a Yongcheon Escort Agency escort, calling it the punishment of a thief would not be a major issue.
The greater problem would be that an escort hired to guard the place had committed theft.
The Pavilion Master, having lost trust in Yongcheon Escort Agency, might terminate the security contract.
Not only would they lose a major client, but the escort agency’s dignity and reputation would be left with an indelible stain.
Yet covering up an escort’s death without explanation would also damage the escort agency’s honor.
It was an awkward situation in every respect.
After a long moment of thought, the Chief Head Escort finally spoke, but he brought up something completely unrelated.
“Do you know that three Black Path members of the Black Night Gang were murdered at once last night?”
Caught slightly off guard by the sudden shift in topic, I nodded.
“How could I not? The market is full of rumors.”
“Do you think it is merely a coincidence that an escort was murdered at Simhyang Pavilion, which Yongcheon Escort Agency guards, the following night?”
I tilted my head and studied Du Jaryeom’s expression.
What was he trying to say? If it was not a coincidence...
“Are you saying that the killer who attacked the Black Night Gang yesterday climbed over Simhyang Pavilion’s wall today?”
“What do you think?”
When I remained silent, Du Jaryeom took a sip of tea and continued.
“There have been no shortages of unpleasant incidents in the two years Yongcheon Escort Agency has guarded Simhyang Pavilion. But no one has ever died or been seriously injured. There have not even been conflicts between the resident guests in the side buildings and the escorts. It is right to assume the killer infiltrated from outside. Most importantly...”
As though to lend weight to his words, Du Jaryeom lowered his voice.
“Escort Jeong saw it as well. Rather than striking the neck or another vital point, the killer stabbed Bang Join right through the two characters for Yongcheon on the left side of his uniform and killed him in one blow. Anyone can see that this is a provocation and challenge directed at Yongcheon Escort Agency. Yesterday, the Black Night Gang. Today, Yongcheon Escort Agency. An unidentified master is picking a fight with the two powers dividing Seochon between them.”
“That is...”
The killer had probably thrust for the heart, and the escort agency’s name happened to be there. Bang Join could have been stabbed from behind.
To imagine an unknown master targeting Seochon over that alone was far too great a leap.
I was about to point out the obvious, but an unsettling feeling I could not ignore made me trail off.
What was this...
Du Jaryeom’s serious expression. He appeared calm and dignified, but there was something deliberately grave about it.
Looking more closely, I was certain. I had not seen it wrong.
It was the expression of someone concealing their true thoughts and intending something.
Men who held a worthless hand of tiles yet acted as if they had taken the pot. Martial artists whose every trick had been exposed, yet bluffed as though they still had a hidden move.
Du Jaryeom wore a similar expression.
This man knew as well. He knew how absurd his own words were.
Yet he had no choice but to say them because he had no better solution.
If Bang Join had died while stealing, he would remain a burden to the escort agency just as he had been in life.
But if he had been killed by the murderer who attacked the Black Night Gang, then he would become an innocent and honorable victim.
The killer had enough skill to secretly dispose of three Black Night Gang members.
It would not be easy to prevent a master of that caliber from climbing over the wall, breaking through the escort agency’s security, and infiltrating Simhyang Pavilion.
Naturally, it gave them a convenient excuse for their security failure.
It did not matter whether it was true.
If they could believe it for now, use it as an explanation, and smooth things over, they could put out the immediate fire.
Even if the hidden truth came out later, by then everything would already have been settled.
Besides, judging by the fact that Bang Join’s killer had vanished, it did not seem likely that the killer would step forward to claim responsibility.
So this was how they intended to cover it up...
It could not have taken even two hours for him to get here after receiving word of the incident.
Yet in that time, he had tied it to the Black Night Gang incident from last night and come up with a solution like this.
Unlike his Daoist-like serene appearance, Du Jaryeom’s scheming was far from ordinary.
It seemed that Jo Gyeongjik had urgently called for the Chief Head Escort not merely because he was his superior.
I clicked my tongue inwardly, then realized that the real purpose of this conversation had not even begun.
Why was the Chief Head Escort having this conversation with me?
At a time when he should be pursuing the killer and resolving the situation...
“Is there something you want from me?”
Perhaps deciding there was no longer any need to keep up the serious act, a smile spread across Du Jaryeom’s lips.
“Just as Head Escort Pung said, you are sharp. People who are quick-witted in a bout or in conversation are always useful.”
He stared at me with satisfied eyes, then got to the point.
“A black-clad, masked figure. When you ran over after hearing the scream and found Bang Join’s corpse, tell them you think you briefly saw a black-clad, masked figure climbing over the wall. Say it was the wall by the warehouses behind the servants’ quarters, not toward the side buildings.”
“Who am I supposed to tell?”
The smile disappeared from Du Jaryeom’s face. He fidgeted with his teacup with an uncomfortable expression before speaking.
“The Pavilion Master. The Pavilion Master will likely summon you soon. Tell them that when the time comes.”
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