Chapter 50
Could there be any fate more tedious yet familiar than this?
Ye-il let the corner of her lips rise, unable—or perhaps unwilling—to stop the faint smile.
“Since I ascended the throne, I have built temples and compiled sutras. How great must my virtue be?”
The rough yet steady voice reading that passage brought back distant memories—of the days when she had not even known guilt, the zenith and twilight of a life drenched in sin.
Perhaps that was why—
Namgung Jeok-myeong’s laughter surfaced in her mind once again.
[Ha-ha! What nonsense is that, Soyo! You haven’t even dealt with the biggest stone among those that rolled in!]
[…]
[In fact, I have something to propose to you regarding that very matter…]
[A proposal?]
[This object I’m holding was found in the home of a secret inspector from Hubei Province. It was originally meant to be sent to me—but it was completely blank.]
[If it had been a real message, the assassins would have found and burned it long ago.]
[No, that’s not it.]
“To this, the Great Monk Bodhidharma replied—”
[A blank letter was his final code. It was a cipher known only to him and me. It means: ‘This place is under constant surveillance. There is a traitor within…’]
[A blank page holding meaning… yes, a code subtle enough to deceive assassins. So the traitor you speak of—is it Namgung Chumyeong?]
[…Only two people in this world knew of their existence. No—three now. You, me, and…]
Namgung Pae, his uncle.
“There is no virtue.”
Ye-il opened her eyes.
[…I’ve long suspected that my uncle had allied himself with outside forces. The reason I acted like a reckless fool all this time was to observe his movements. Chumyeong started acting strange not long after that.]
[Suspected? Are you saying your uncle was the one who did this to your father?]
[No. …Or maybe. Funny as it sounds, I don’t really know my uncle. I simply followed him from childhood, watched how he changed… and in the process, realized his betrayal.]
[So the starting point was merely intuition.]
[You doubt it?]
[No. Intuition is terrifying—especially a child’s.]
[…Then here’s my proposal, Soyo. Find the link between Uncle Pae and Yeonghwang Yuse. Any evidence or witness will do, as long as it can be made public. If you succeed, I’ll show you the Kill List you so desire.]
[…]
[We must drive my uncle out of the Namgung family.]
[…]
[He never shows a weakness before me—but perhaps before you, it’ll be different.]
Watching the incense curl upward, Ye-il smiled faintly again.
Indeed, Namgung Jeok-myeong was blessed with fortune.
Barely days after Ye-il accepted his request, Namgung Pae had exposed his own sins.
“The Emperor Liang once asked Bodhidharma, ‘Since I have built temples and compiled sutras, how great is my merit?’ To which Bodhidharma replied, ‘There is no merit.’”
That phrase was the secret passcode of Salmak, the Assassin’s Veil.
Only those qualified to stand before the leader, Cheon Mu-ryeong—the First Evil—knew it.
From time to time, Ye-il had tested assassins around her with that phrase, wondering if any trace of the organization still lingered near her.
This time, it seems the other side is the one testing me.
But her reply was not quite what they expected.
A poem echoed softly within the ancestral shrine:
“On Phoenix Terrace, the phoenix once danced.”
“…”
“Now the phoenix is gone, and only the river flows.”
“…”
“The flowers of Wu Palace are buried beneath the road,
The robes of Qin have turned to dust within old tombs.”
A long silence followed, before the other voice spoke.
“You didn’t finish it.”
“I can’t recall the rest.”
“You like Li Bai, then?”
Ye-il turned slightly toward the man standing a step behind her—Namgung Pae. Their gazes met.
“No. I don’t know much about Li Bai. Poetry’s simply one of the few amusements left to a blind woman like me.”
Even as her eyes met his directly, clear and unclouded, Namgung Pae’s expression remained calm.
“With eyes that sharp, I doubt you need poems to pass the time.”
“My throat’s still damaged—I can’t speak much. Each day is rather dull.”
“So dull that even reciting poetry bores you? Would screaming help relieve it?”
“How could a young woman possibly scream before an elder of the family?”
A brief chuckle escaped him before his gaze shifted toward the ancestral tablet inscribed with Namgung Chumyeong.
“Hongyu… quite the rare poison.”
“…”
“There are only two ways to survive it—either through an antidote, or because one’s body is immune to all toxins.”
Ye-il now understood why Namgung Pae had come probing so directly.
The false Namgung Chumyeong must have told him everything that happened that night.
Namgung Pae had likely already known she wasn’t the real Namgung Soyo—but surviving Hongyu’s poison had convinced him she was connected to Salmak.
He sacrificed that imposter’s life just to test me.
The poison plan could have been changed in a single day, but he hadn’t cared. He was merciless to both kin and allies alike.
“Would you believe me if I said I was immune to all toxins?”
Namgung Pae raised a brow.
“If so, why did your guard feed you something while you were unconscious?”
“Then let’s call it an antidote.”
“Hongyu’s antidote is rarer than the poison itself. And even with it, recovery takes weeks.”
“Then immunity it is.”
Namgung Pae fell silent, seemingly lost in thought, before turning his gaze back to her.
It had been a long time since Ye-il had faced someone head-on like this—aside from Seol-yeong, Chang-a, and Jin Cheong-ak.
Even Namgung Jeok-myeong, who had shared a ship with her, believed her blind. If he learned otherwise, would he feel betrayed?
Still, Ye-il saw no reason to act coy before Namgung Pae.
She was not alone now. She had Seol-yeong and Chang-a. Showing a few of her cards would keep others from meddling around her.
And Namgung Pae—who was he, truly?
Even Jeok-myeong, who’d known him for over twenty years, admitted he couldn’t tell. Ye-il, after only a few months, could hardly hope to understand him.
But one thing was certain:
Namgung Pae was both a member of Salmak and an agent of Yeonghwang Yuse.
That alone proved he was a heartless butcher—someone unbound by guilt or morality. Ye-il, once of the same breed, needed no further proof.
“Namgung Soyo.”
Enunciating every syllable with deliberate precision, Namgung Pae smiled for the first time since their acquaintance began.
“Interesting.”
“No matter how clever I am, I can hardly compare to the Namgung family.”
“I can roughly guess what it is you came here seeking.”
“…”
“But I assure you—it won’t come easily.”
With those final words, Namgung Pae quietly left.
Namgung Pae—
the unknown man she would have to unravel, piece by piece, to obtain the Kill List.
And…
The shameless fool who doesn’t even fix his seat cushion before leaving.
Next time, she decided, I’ll be the one to walk out first.
Time passed swiftly.
At last, daylight broke on the day of departure for the Martial Alliance.
