Myst, Might, Mayhem - Chapter 17

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Episode 5: Haggling (3)

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The second young master, Mok EunPyeong, had great ambitions.

Since childhood, he had mastered not only Yeonmok Sword Manor's sword style, but even the fist techniques of the Hui Buk Jang Family, his mother Madam Jang's natal family. His martial talent was considerable.

Thus, he had naturally believed that he would become Yeonmok Sword Manor's next Manor Lord.

Mok YeongHo, the legitimate eldest son, was greedy and addicted to wine and women. As he lacked the qualities of a successor, Mok EunPyeong had believed the succession would naturally fall to him.

But he had been wrong.

‘Mok YuCheon.’

The Manor Lord's favor lay with his youngest son.

It was understandable. At just fourteen, Mok YuCheon had mastered every Martial Art of Yeonmok Sword Manor and reached the realm of an Advanced master. He possessed extraordinary martial talent.

As Mok YuCheon began to stand out, the Manor Lord kept delaying his decision on a successor.

Mok EunPyeong was certain it was because the Manor Lord's heart had turned toward the boy.

‘I cannot miss this opportunity.’

He regarded the Manor Lord's precarious condition as an opportunity.

Fortunately, Mok YuCheon was born of a lowly concubine and had no power base around him.

Unless the Manor Lord personally declared him successor, Mok YuCheon was in no position to become Manor Lord through his own strength alone.

The key, then, was to eliminate the remaining candidates.

‘Neither of them can stand against me.’

Both were utterly incompetent.

The eldest young master, Mok YeongHo, knew nothing but wine and women, while the third, Mok GyeongUn, was a useless coward.

Still, behind Mok YeongHo stood First Madam Lady Seok.

As she came from Jinhua Seok Manor, she wielded considerable influence.

Moreover, many old retainers still insisted that the eldest son should take precedence.

‘Mok GyeongUn...’

Aside from his gisaeng-like pretty-boy face, he lagged behind his brothers in every regard. Yet at some point, he had begun coveting the position of successor.

First Madam had dismissed him as laughable and paid him no mind, but Mok EunPyeong was different.

‘Was it Guard Gam?’

That fellow had a bodyguard beyond his station.

The man called Guard Gam possessed no ordinary martial prowess. The first time Mok EunPyeong saw him, his martial prowess had impressed Mok EunPyeong enough that he had asked the Manor Lord to assign Gam as his own guard.

His curiosity had led him to investigate the man's past, and he had discovered a rather interesting fact.

No, perhaps it was something to be wary of.

That was why Mok EunPyeong had come to believe he could not carelessly lower his guard around the third son, Mok GyeongUn, either.

Then something unexpected happened.

Was heaven helping him?

“You wish to become my man?”

Mok EunPyeong barely kept the corners of his mouth from twitching.

The man kneeling on one knee before him was none other than Guard Gam, Mok GyeongUn's bodyguard warrior.

The man he had wanted so badly had come to him of his own accord.

And at such an opportune time.

“Please accept me, Young Master.”

As he looked at Guard Gam, Mok EunPyeong stroked his chin and said,

“You want me to accept you... That is quite tempting.”

At those words, Guard Gam thought the beginning had gone well.

Guard Gam had intended to observe the Manor Lord's condition and the changing tides a while longer before making a decision. In the end, however, he had chosen the second young master, Mok EunPyeong.

Mok YeongHo was too heavily influenced by First Madam, while Mok YuCheon had nothing but his own martial strength.

‘He is shrewd, but that makes him easier to handle.’

That was why he had chosen Mok EunPyeong as the next-best option to take the place of the dead, real Mok GyeongUn.

Mok EunPyeong was sharp and suspicious, but he also hungered for talented people. Guard Gam had been certain that he would accept him.

However...

“Still, the timing is remarkably convenient.”

“Pardon?”

“As you know, I hold Guard Gam in high regard. Under ordinary circumstances, that would be one thing. But you ask me to accept you just before the succession struggle. Naturally, I have my doubts.”

‘As expected.’

Guard Gam gave a slight nod.

He had expected that someone as suspicious as Mok EunPyeong would not trust him immediately.

“I understand. However, I have a reason I can no longer serve Young Master Mok GyeongUn.”

“A reason you can no longer serve Mok GyeongUn?”

“Yes.”

“What is it?”

“I cannot tell you at once.”

Mok EunPyeong snorted.

What meaning was there in claiming he could no longer serve Mok GyeongUn if he could not reveal the reason?

As Mok EunPyeong looked dumbfounded, Guard Gam smiled faintly and said,

“It is merely difficult to reveal right away because it is one of Young Master Mok GyeongUn's weaknesses. If you accept me, I can tell you all about it.”

“Hah. Are you bargaining with me?”

“Please understand my circumstances.”

“Understand... Fine. Let us say that is for later. Can you tell me another weakness?”

“Of course.”

“What is it?”

“Young Master Mok GyeongUn currently cannot use Martial Arts at all.”

“What?”

One of Mok EunPyeong's eyebrows rose with interest.

“Is that true?”

“There is not a shred of falsehood in it.”

“Did he suffer Ki Rampage or something?”

“...You could say it is similar.”

The fake Mok GyeongUn had never learned Martial Arts in the first place.

However, he could not reveal that fact and needlessly draw attention to the death of the fake Mok GyeongUn, so he gave a vague answer.

“Hah!”

Mok EunPyeong's face brightened at Guard Gam's words.

Yeonmok Sword Manor was a martial household.

If the person meant to lead a group that cultivated Martial Arts could not use Martial Arts, that was no different from losing the qualifications to lead.

“So he has lost his Martial Arts.”

Mok GyeongUn had possessed no martial talent to begin with. If he could no longer use Martial Arts at all, the situation was different.

He was not even qualified to take part in the succession struggle.

Seeing Mok EunPyeong unable to hide his delight, Guard Gam said,

“If you accept me as your subordinate, I can provide more useful information.”

Mok EunPyeong pretended to consider it, then grinned.

“I thought Guard Gam was volunteering to play Hwang Gae at Red Cliffs.”

The Self-Inflicted Injury Stratagem.

At the Battle of Red Cliffs, Hwang Gae, a retainer of the State of Wu's Son Gwon, pretended to be tortured before offering a false surrender to the State of Wei's Jo Jo.

Mok EunPyeong had suspected that Mok GyeongUn, knowing he coveted Guard Gam, might have sent the guard as a spy.

Guard Gam gave a small laugh.

“It pains me to speak so of my former master, but Young Master Mok GyeongUn does not have the caliber to devise even such a scheme.”

“Hahaha. I suppose not.”

“Then will you accept me?”

“Of course. How could I let such talent slip away?”

Guard Gam bowed his head in gratitude.

“Thank you for accepting me.”

“No. I should thank you for making the right choice for Yeonmok Sword Manor. Still, I am sorry to ask a favor as soon as you have entered my service, but there is something I would like you to do.”

Guard Gam thumped his chest and replied boldly,

“Please give the order.”

For now, he needed to make a good impression on Mok EunPyeong.

Then an unexpected statement came from Mok EunPyeong's mouth.

“I believe a man like Guard Gam, who was once an assassin, should be more than capable of it.”

‘!?’

Guard Gam's expression stiffened.

He had not expected Mok EunPyeong to have investigated his past.

He had known the young master was shrewd, but had still considered him inexperienced. It seemed he had let down his guard.

* * *

Near the end of the Hour of the Rat.

Everyone was asleep, and even the bodyguard warriors standing watch before the Medicine house were nodding off.

Rrrk!

‘Oh?’

When he opened the medicinal drawer marked Oyang, a concealed entrance appeared.

Perhaps because it was a secret space, it made less noise than he had feared.

Mok GyeongUn took up a lantern and entered the hidden passage.

Step, step!

He quietly descended the underground stairs.

The stairway went much deeper than he had expected.

‘Deep.’

It had descended more than two levels, which seemed suspicious.

It was far too deep for a space made simply to hide the Manor Lord's seal and a martial arts book.

When he had descended nearly three levels, a chamber about one-third the size of the Medicine house came into view.

‘Ah!’

There were four stone doors in the chamber.

Above them were carved the markers First, Second, Third, and Fourth.

[Medicine house... underground... inside... the stone door marked Ding...]

Mok GyeongUn recalled the Manor Lord's words.

The Manor Lord had said it was inside the stone door marked Ding. There was no need to inspect the other passages first.

Mok GyeongUn approached the stone door marked Ding.

When he opened it, a straight cave passage came into view.

‘About twenty paces?’

That was roughly the distance.

Mok GyeongUn was about to step inside when he stopped just before placing his foot down.

He had suddenly noticed something above the cave passage.

‘What is that?’

The uneven ceiling had holes large enough to fit two or three fingers into.

Had there been only one, it would have been one thing, but these continued inward at regular intervals.

Puzzled, Mok GyeongUn looked around.

Several fist-sized stones lay on one side of the chamber.

‘Just in case.’

Mok GyeongUn picked up a stone and tossed it in his hand before throwing it into the passage.

Click!

The stone had barely struck the ground before it could even roll.

Shk! Shk! Shk!

Sharp, spear-like spikes shot out from both the right and left sides of the floor.

Had he entered without knowing, the spears would have pierced his legs or thighs.

One corner of Mok GyeongUn's mouth curled upward.

‘Interesting.’

Had they installed such a trap because they feared someone might steal the seal and the martial arts book?

It seemed excessive for that.

Were the seal and the martial arts book truly inside?

As he stared into the cave, Mok GyeongUn repeatedly clenched and unclenched his hands.

‘I will find out.’

It seemed he would have to enter first.

Mok GyeongUn clamped the lantern's handle between his teeth and leaped upward without hesitation. He slipped three fingers into one of the holes in the cave ceiling.

Grip!

An ordinary person would have struggled to support their body with only two fingers, but it was not difficult for Mok GyeongUn.

Slide! Grip!

He reached his left hand toward the hole ahead and inserted his index and middle fingers.

He moved along the ceiling for about two paces.

‘Just as I thought.’

His guess had been correct.

He could travel by placing his fingers in the holes in the ceiling without touching the ground.

That way, the cave's trap would not activate.

Having confirmed it, Mok GyeongUn advanced without hesitation, moving swiftly by inserting his fingers into the holes overhead.

Grip! Grip! Grip!

After traveling around twenty paces, the cave passage ended, revealing a space of roughly seven pyeong.

Mok GyeongUn's eyes lit up as he entered.

‘What is this?’

Several sacks lay inside, and countless traces covered the area.

‘Footprints?’

The deeply indented floor was filled with footprints, and the walls showed many places shattered by impacts.

Mok GyeongUn walked over and looked into one of the sacks.

It contained small pellets. After sniffing them, he recognized what they were.

‘Fasting pills?’

Fasting pills.

They were pellets made by binding pine pollen and various grains together, used by Taoist practitioners during closed-door seclusion in places like caves.

They were meant to provide the bare minimum of sustenance, though depending on their composition, they could also purge impurities from the body.

Mok GyeongUn, who was well versed in medical herbs, had often eaten the fasting pills made by his grandfather as snacks.

‘Why are there sacks of fasting pills here?’

They seemed intended for someone staying here a long time.

Had someone practiced Martial Arts alone here?

Mok GyeongUn rolled a fasting pill between his fingers, then turned his gaze elsewhere.

A cabinet stood against one wall, holding several wooden boxes.

‘Are those it?’

He walked over and opened one wooden box that caught his eye.

Inside was a book.

[Yeonmok Sword-Forming Formula]

‘Is this the martial arts book?’

Mok GyeongUn took out the book and quickly flipped through it.

It contained detailed verse formulas and movements for numerous sword techniques.

He had not learned Martial Arts, but he could at least tell it was sword art.

‘This must be it.’

He did not know whether this was exactly the martial arts book First Madam wanted.

There was nothing to be done about that, as he did not even know what kind of Martial Arts Yeonmok Sword Manor possessed.

Mok GyeongUn opened another wooden box.

Click!

Inside was another book.

[Yeonmok Heart-Transforming Method]

Mok GyeongUn took it out and quickly flipped through it, then nodded.

It seemed paired with the Yeonmok Sword-Forming Formula. It detailed breathing methods and energy circulation methods for gathering and controlling internal energy.

‘I should take this as well.’

Mok GyeongUn opened the other boxes in turn.

The remaining boxes held no books related to Martial Arts, but they did contain several unexpectedly interesting objects.

However, the Manor Lord's seal was still nowhere to be seen.

‘Only this box remains.’

There was nothing else around.

Mok GyeongUn picked up the box near the floor.

Unlike the other wooden boxes, this one had an old sheet of paper with a pattern drawn on it attached over its opening.

The paper had been torn in half. It appeared to have been attached as a sign that the box should not be opened.

Without much thought, Mok GyeongUn opened it.

Naturally, he had expected the Manor Lord's seal to be inside, but...

‘!?’