Myst, Might, Mayhem - Chapter 14

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Episode 4: Demon Monk (3)

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‘How can this be...?’

The old physician, who had been taking the Manor Lord's pulse, could not hide their astonishment.

Just that morning, the Manor Lord's pulse had seemed ready to stop at any moment.

Yet now, it beat with vitality.

And in only a few two-hour periods.

‘His complexion has improved as well.’

Every symptom whose cause had been unknown was gone.

The Manor Lord had grown somewhat weak after lying unconscious in bed for so long, but with proper rest and recuperation, there was a strong chance of recovery.

However...

‘His consciousness is the problem.’

The Manor Lord had been unconscious for quite some time.

It was precisely because he had not awakened that Yeonmok Sword Manor was in turmoil over the matter of succession.

He was recovering, so there was a high chance he would awaken. Still, no one could say when that would be.

If he suffered harm before then...

‘...’

At that moment, a sharp woman's voice reached the old physician's ears.

“How is he?”

The old physician cautiously looked up.

The voice belonged to Lady Seok, the First Madam of Yeonmok Sword Manor.

Her expression differed from usual.

That morning, her eyes had held determination beneath their arrogance.

That was why the old physician had sensed something ominous.

‘Something is going on.’

The old physician felt that the situation was far from ordinary.

When the old physician had rushed here, the Manor Lord's arm had already been severed, and the room was filled with talismans, red threads, and other traces of occult arts.

Yet the Taoist occultist who had performed those arts had been found dead.

And the third young master had been involved in the incident.

‘What in the world happened?’

The old physician carefully studied Lady Seok's eyes.

Her gaze trembled strangely.

It was the sort of reaction one would have when something had gone wrong.

‘Things did not go as planned.’

Although the Manor Lord had lost an arm, his complexion had improved considerably.

Lady Seok was also a martial artist. Having learned Martial Arts, she would be capable of assessing his condition to some extent.

She must have already noticed that his condition was better than it had been that morning.

Yet she was not pleased in the slightest...

‘Could it be that she did not intend to treat him through the Taoist occultist, but was planning some scheme with occult arts instead?’

It was plausible enough.

Everyone knew the Manor Lord had been considering the youngest young master, Mok YuCheon, as his successor.

In First Madam's position, she would rather the Manor Lord never wake up.

“Has his condition improved?”

The old physician hesitated for a moment at Lady Seok's repeated question.

Only the two of them were present.

For some reason, the old physician felt that if they said the Manor Lord would awaken soon, Lady Seok might do something.

After considering it, the old physician answered carefully.

“...His complexion has brightened, and his pulse has improved, but his condition remains poor. His illness has lasted too long. I believe it would be best to regard this as a final burst before death.”

“Ah...”

A final burst before death.

It described the sky briefly brightening before the sun set, and was used to compare it to a brief return of vitality before death.

That was not truly the case, but the old physician had said it deliberately.

Then,

‘Ha.’

The old physician was dumbfounded inwardly.

Lady Seok sighed as though saddened, but her expression and eyes seemed closer to relief.

She clearly did not want the Manor Lord to recover.

The old physician looked at the Manor Lord and thought to themself.

‘Manor Lord... There is no time. You must awaken.’

Otherwise, there was no telling what Lady Seok might do.

* * *

Once outside, First Madam Lady Seok's usual arrogant expression returned.

When she came out from the veranda, Estate Manager Jang MyeongIn, the one-eyed female warrior Ho Aeng, and two maidservants were waiting for her.

Lady Seok approached Estate Manager Jang MyeongIn and spoke.

“Is the cause of death certain?”

Estate Manager Jang MyeongIn nodded and answered quietly.

“It is. He did not die from physical trauma. I have seen countless corpses over the years, but something like that...”

Where Jang MyeongIn indicated with his eyes lay the dead Taoist occultist, Myo Shin.

The corpse was covered by a straw mat, but the veins on its exposed skin bulged out grotesquely.

Lady Seok too had never seen a corpse like that before.

Lady Seok turned away from the body and asked in a low voice.

“What did they say?”

“According to the bodyguard warrior, he came to visit the sick.”

“A sick visit...”

“Yes. Then the Taoist occultist went mad as though possessed, severed the Manor Lord's arm, and tried to kill him.”

“...What a mess.”

“My apologies. I should have at least stood guard at the entrance to the hall...”

Jang MyeongIn bowed in apology.

Lady Seok shook her head.

“What can be done about something that has already happened? But do you truly think that is what happened?”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you truly believe that boy happened to come to visit the sick and discovered it by chance?”

“...Considering the condition of the body and the circumstances, that seems to be the case.”

“That seems to be the case?”

“Young Master Mok GyeongUn even suffered a sword wound through his thigh. The bleeding was severe enough that it could have become dangerous.”

That was how Jang MyeongIn saw it.

It was not the sort of wound one could easily inflict on oneself.

If it had been a slight cut that avoided danger, or if there had been little blood loss, perhaps. But this left no room for doubt.

“...”

Even after hearing that, Lady Seok did not let go of her suspicious gaze.

Jang MyeongIn understood why.

Lady Seok disliked every young master except the eldest.

Then she asked,

“Where is that boy now?”

“Pardon?”

“Mok GyeongUn.”

“Ah. I stopped the bleeding in haste, but I sent the third young master to the Medicine house for treatment.”

“The Medicine house?”

“Yes.”

Her gaze turned toward the Medicine house on the western side of the main building.

Soon, her steps followed.

* * *

‘What a pleasant scent.’

Mok GyeongUn sniffed and smiled.

After coming down from the mountain, it had been a long time since he had smelled the various medicinal ingredients.

Memories of following his grandfather to gather medical herbs came back to him.

As he recalled those fresh, beautiful memories, conflicting emotions rose again from a corner of his heart.

...

A strange light appeared in the Demonic Monk's white eyes.

It had been affected by the dense killing intent.

Ordinary killing intent would not greatly affect a vengeful spirit, but what radiated from Mok GyeongUn was different.

It was dense enough to make even a vengeful spirit uncomfortable.

It was a darkness fundamentally different from the resentment created by one's surroundings.

It felt almost primal.

...

Then Mok GyeongUn asked in a low voice,

“So, did you find it?”

...

The Demonic Monk nodded.

“Where?”

The Demonic Monk pointed toward a wall lined with drawers filled with medicinal ingredients.

At a glance, the entire wall appeared to be nothing more than drawers for storing herbs.

Yet the Demonic Monk pointed there.

The drawer it indicated bore the label Oyang.

Bark from a catalpa tree, dried in the shade for a long time, became a medicinal herb called Oyang. It was not commonly used.

‘It is plausible enough.’

Someone had deliberately chosen the drawer of a rarely used herb.

Mok GyeongUn had made the Demonic Monk check because of the words that had come from the Manor Lord's lips.

[Medicine house... underground... behind the stone door marked Fourth...]

Yet there was no entrance to an underground area inside the Medicine house.

Naturally, Mok GyeongUn had expected that.

If it was an object valuable enough for First Madam Lady Seok to covet, it would not be left where everyone could see it.

‘We will find out once we check.’

Mok GyeongUn looked around.

The Medicine house was currently full of medicine attendants and workers.

There were too many eyes and ears to investigate.

He would have to wait until late that night.

Just then,

Creak!

The person who entered through the Medicine house door was none other than Guard Go Chan.

Go Chan approached Mok GyeongUn.

“You are a little late.”

Go Chan nearly frowned at those words.

What Mok GyeongUn had ordered was not something simple like fetching water.

It was not a task that could be finished in an instant, yet he was being criticized for being late.

“Where are they?”

At Mok GyeongUn's question, Go Chan took two books from his robes.

“Only two?”

Mok GyeongUn sounded disappointed, and Go Chan grumbled.

“I secretly took these before they burned them.”

“Before they burned them?”

“Yes. The bodyguard warriors guarding the main building are burning the book chest the Taoist occultist brought and all of his belongings.”

“Is that so?”

Mok GyeongUn smacked his lips in disappointment.

He had wanted to examine the Taoist occultist's books because he was interested in sorcery.

Yet out of so many books, only two had been salvaged.

‘An Abridged Account of the Hundred Schools: The Yin-Yang School's Fundamental Text? Primer of Aberrations?’

Those were the titles of the two books.

Still, Go Chan had taken the two thickest books among those he had seen.

Mok GyeongUn would have to be content with that.

“You have worked hard.”

“But, young master... Why do you need the Taoist occultist's books...?”

Go Chan stopped mid-sentence.

Then, instead of handing over the books, he put them back inside his robes.

Mok GyeongUn looked at him in confusion, wondering why.

He soon learned the reason.

“Step aside for a moment.”

“Yes.”

As new presences approached from outside the Medicine house and said something, the bodyguard warriors guarding the entrance moved away.

Creeeak!

The door opened, and someone appeared.

It was a middle-aged woman in lavish robes adorned with precious metals.

Go Chan lowered his head in surprise.

“I greet First Madam.”

‘First Madam?’

She was First Madam Lady Seok of Yeonmok Sword Manor.

Mok GyeongUn's eyes gleamed.

She was the woman described in the information sheet Guard Gam had given him.

It said First Madam Lady Seok was more dangerous and required more caution than even the eldest young master, Mok YeongHo.

She was born into Jinhua Seok Manor, a martial family. She had considerable Martial Arts and was said to be a cunning woman.

‘Damn it...’

Go Chan was equally flustered by her appearance.

Mok GyeongUn resembled the real one so closely that they were almost impossible to distinguish, but Guard Gam had repeatedly warned Go Chan to keep him from meeting members of the Mok Family whenever possible.

“By First Madam's order, everyone leave.”

At the command of Ho Aeng, the one-eyed female bodyguard beside Lady Seok, everyone in the Medicine house went outside.

Shuffle!

As everyone was driven out, Go Chan sensed that something was wrong.

Go Chan had never directly clashed with First Madam, so he could not understand why this was happening.

As he wondered about it, Lady Seok approached Mok GyeongUn, who sat up halfway in bed.

Go Chan hurriedly gestured with his eyes.

‘Bow. Bow.’

Understanding, Mok GyeongUn clasped his hands and bowed.

“Please forgive me for being unable to rise due to my injured leg.”

His greeting had gone better than expected.

But the real issue began now.

The clearest difference between the real Mok GyeongUn and the fake was their voice and manner of speech.

Fortunately, the fake Mok GyeongUn's voice was similar to the dead one's, so he had sounded fairly convincing while practicing. Still, Go Chan was worried whether it would work here.

‘Other than the eldest young master, the other young masters rarely meet First Madam directly, but...’

Lady Seok was more perceptive and suspicious than expected.

If they were exposed here, the situation could become truly disastrous.

Then Lady Seok, who had come right before Mok GyeongUn, spoke.

“I did not come merely to receive your greeting.”

‘Haa...’

Go Chan nearly sighed in relief.

Fortunately, Lady Seok did not seem to notice.

It appeared the fake was more difficult to distinguish from the real one than expected.

The situation was still like walking on thin ice, but if he did not make a mistake, perhaps they could get through this moment...

Squeeze!

‘!?’

Go Chan's eyes widened.

Lady Seok had suddenly pressed down on Mok GyeongUn's wounded thigh.

Mok GyeongUn lowered his head and groaned as though in pain.

“Ughhh!”

‘Damn it!’

Go Chan could not hide his discomfort.

It seemed the problem was not whether he was real or fake.

Judging by Lady Seok's manner, she suspected whether Mok GyeongUn was truly injured.

“What did you see and hear in there?”

Squeeze!

“Ugh!”

Lady Seok pressed his wound even harder as she spoke.

Go Chan fidgeted uneasily at the sight.

That madman would not be unable to endure pain.

But if he misspoke in this situation, First Madam's suspicion would go beyond that. They would make an enemy of her.

“My lady! There is some misunderstanding...”

Shing!

As Go Chan tried to intervene, Ho Aeng drew her sword and pointed it at his neck.

“Do not interfere.”

‘That bitch!’

Go Chan did not know what to do.

If he was not even allowed to speak, Mok GyeongUn would have to get through this alone.

For now, he had no choice but to endure and keep his head down to escape this situation.

With Ho Aeng, Lady Seok's bodyguard warrior, glaring at him, he could no longer send signals with his eyes or mouth.

Squeeze!

Then Lady Seok pressed Mok GyeongUn's thigh even harder as she demanded,

“You may not know this, but it is rare for a Taoist occultist of that level to perform occult arts, become possessed by an aberration in return, and die. Yet you are saying you stopped the Taoist occultist after he became possessed, severed the Manor Lord's wrist, and tried to harm him? Do you think I would believe that so easily...”

Snicker.

Lady Seok frowned at the sound from Mok GyeongUn's mouth.

He had been writhing in pain until just now.

But had he just laughed at her?

If she had not heard wrong, that was the sound of a sneer.

“You... Surely you did not just...”

Then Mok GyeongUn slowly raised his head.

Lady Seok was momentarily dumbfounded at the sight of Mok GyeongUn smiling with the corner of his mouth raised.

Had this boy gone mad?

‘What is he doing now?’

Guard Go Chan was equally flustered.

He was under suspicion. Even groveling would not be enough, so what was he doing now?