Chapter 230
It was quite some time later that the long-awaited Song Ha-gyun returned.
With an unchanged expression, he reported,
“After interviewing Teacher DiMarco’s three stewards, we confirmed that none of them informed the merfolk or the mountain yokai about matters related to Bishop Renato. Also, throughout the entire underground ark, aside from them, the only one who knew this was Teacher DiMarco himself. They also said they didn’t know whether Teacher DiMarco had told anyone else.”
After a brief moment of thought, Jang Mok-hwa spoke.
“Is it possible to talk to Teacher DiMarco via video call?”
Song Ha-gyun shook his head.
“That’s not possible. Not until the new bishop arrives.”
All four of them looked disappointed. At this point, there was no choice but to turn their attention to other suspects.
Noon, the inn district.
The search-and-rescue team that had returned again began preparing a meal with the ingredients they had purchased.
While they were busily moving about, a man came to visit—Riman, a smuggler from United Industry.
The strawberry-nosed merchant, who looked just like a Red River farmer, rubbed his hands together and spoke in awkward Ashlandian.
“A friend told me you seem to be investigating DiMarco of the underground ark.”
Jang Mok-hwa replied without hesitation,
“We had a previous assignment that involved Teacher DiMarco.”
Riman smiled and answered,
“You may not know this, but the job I wanted to entrust to you also happens to be related to the underground ark.”
At Riman’s words, Jang Mok-hwa—wearing her mask—paused briefly, then laughed.
“What a coincidence. Until now, I thought your request was something related to United Industry that would require us to go elsewhere to resolve.”
Seeing the goodwill shown by this mysterious relic-hunting team, Riman’s face brightened.
“If you’re willing, I can also entrust you with various requests related to United Industry.”
Seong Geon-woo asked with obvious interest,
“What kind of requests?”
At that, Riman was momentarily at a loss for words. He had said it purely out of politeness. He was someone who firmly believed that, when it came to resolving matters involving United Industry, good connections were far more helpful than good skills.
Suppressing a laugh inwardly, Jang Mok-hwa instructed Yong Yeo-hong to keep helping Baek Sae-byeok with the cooking, then asked Riman,
“Tell us what it is you wanted to ask of us. But I can’t guarantee we’ll take it.”
Riman finally let out a sigh of relief and began speaking.
“Well, back when I was still an employee of a certain arms company under United Industry, I once received help from a relic hunter. His name was Lars. He was a bit younger than me, but an excellent shot, outstanding in hand-to-hand combat—a veteran hunter.
After that, we met frequently. He helped me on several occasions, and I also entrusted him with quite a few jobs, helping him maintain a pretty decent life. Anyway, he was my closest friend.”
After briefly recounting his past, Riman summarized it like this.
“So what happened to him?”
Jang Mok-hwa asked.
Yong Yeo-hong, who was helping Baek Sae-byeok cook, was also listening closely. It sounded like a fairly interesting story.
Riman’s expression gradually grew heavy.
“He disappeared. About a year ago, he went missing at Redstone Market.”
“Did he say anything to you before he disappeared?”
That question came from Seong Geon-woo. With one arm folded across his chest and the other hand stroking his chin, he looked just like a detective from a radio program—minus the pipe.
Riman slowly exhaled.
“Lars’s original settlement was attacked by someone. He survived, but his only younger sister was captured and enslaved.
He spent a long time searching for her whereabouts, and then one day he came to me with a face full of joy, saying he’d found a clue. According to that clue, his sister had already been sold at Redstone Market and was very likely serving as a servant in the underground ark.
I thought that buying back a single person from the underground ark wouldn’t be difficult at all. So I told him that if he could just confirm that his sister was there, I’d provide the funds needed to get her back.
Lars immediately set off for Redstone Market. Later, another friend of mine told me that Lars had definitely arrived at Redstone Market, but after that, he was never seen again. That’s how he disappeared.”
Looking at Riman’s gloomy face, Jang Mok-hwa asked,
“So you think his disappearance is related to the underground ark?”
At that moment, Seong Geon-woo proposed another hypothesis.
“Couldn’t he have gotten into a fight with someone at Redstone Market and been murdered without anyone knowing? Maybe tied to a stone and thrown into a lake?”
Outside a few major powers in Ashland, order and chaos coexisted in many regions. In places like that, murder was not uncommon.
Riman shook his head firmly.
“That might be possible in another settlement. But as you know, the people of Redstone Market like to keep to themselves. Unless there’s a business conflict to begin with, it’s impossible for disputes with outsiders to arise. I even sent letters along with Lars, asking my friends here to help him.”
“For example, like Helbig?”
Jang Mok-hwa asked with a smile.
“That’s right.”
Riman didn’t deny it.
Before his death, Helbig had been one of Riman’s main business partners in Redstone Market. It was neither strange nor impossible for Riman to consider him a friend.
Then Seong Geon-woo asked in a slightly excited voice,
“What about the possibility that Helbig killed him? Helbig didn’t get along well with his wife, right? What if Lars, a capable hunter, stayed at their house and got involved with Helbig’s wife, Lady Theresa—and when Helbig found out, he killed him in a fit of rage?”
Jang Mok-hwa’s brow furrowed. She could roughly guess where Seong Geon-woo kept getting these ideas.
‘What kind of stories are they telling on the company radio program? No—why does this story sound so familiar? Is this some mishmash of Weller’s affair with his boss’s wife, Bishop Renato’s apathy, and Helbig’s death from shock inside a ventilation duct due to gout?’
Without a moment’s hesitation, Riman shook his head.
“That’s impossible.”
“Do you have proof?”
Seong Geon-woo asked, clearly unconvinced.
After hesitating for a moment, Riman clasped his hands together.
“There’s no way Lars could have been involved with Lady Theresa. Because that guy liked men.”
Jang Mok-hwa looked at Riman, then shot Seong Geon-woo a look. No—she issued an order with her eyes.
‘If Geon-woo keeps “deducing” things and says something like Lars was involved with Helbig, and Theresa, enraged, asked her lover Bishop Renato to kill him—what then?’
Aside from how absurdly convoluted such a story would be, it would also hurt Riman deeply.
Seong Geon-woo, looking regretful, withdrew his gaze and quietly closed his mouth.
Jang Mok-hwa asked,
“Did you find any other clues after that?”
After a few seconds’ pause, Riman replied,
“I found out that Lars visited a visa trading company and met one of DiMarco’s stewards, a man named Ulrich. Other than that, there were no more clues.
I had my subordinates investigate matters related to the underground ark through various people in Redstone Market, but there were no significant results.
I even went to see Ulrich myself. But he said that Lars learned his sister had unfortunately died of illness and then disappeared somewhere.
Yes, Lars’s sister definitely entered the underground ark. She lived there as a servant, but fell ill and died not long after.”
Died of illness? For a moment, Jang Mok-hwa recalled what Biel had said earlier. DiMarco, with his cruel temperament, greatly enjoyed venting his anger on servants and didn’t care at all if people died.
Riman looked at Jang Mok-hwa, hesitated briefly, then spoke.
“Recently, through Helbig, I heard something. There’s an exit of the underground ark somewhere in Iron Mountain, and people go in and out of it regularly.”
Iron Mountain, located north of the ruined city, was a place where mountain yokai gathered. On the other side of the Iron Mountain range lay Iron Mountain City, a ruin that had been quite famous during the Age of Chaos.
This matched perfectly with what Biel had told them.
Jang Mok-hwa asked, deep in thought,
“How did Helbig find out about that?”
Riman answered without hesitation, as if he had no intention of keeping a dead man’s secrets.
“Through Anghebas. Anghebas heard it from the mountain yokai.”
Right—Anghebas and the mountain yokai had been secretly trading for a long time. Wait, there’s an underground ark exit near Iron Mountain? That’s not far from the mountain yokai’s base. If DiMarco wanted to sell Redstone Market’s information, he could’ve done it without anyone noticing.
Jang Mok-hwa quickly connected several pieces of information.
“Where exactly is it?”
At her question, Riman spread out a hand-drawn map and pointed to a red circle marked on it.
“Here.”
After that, he explained the various symbols on the map so that Team Jeon Ha-yan could find the destination accurately.
When he finished, he took out another photograph.
“This was taken a few days before Lars disappeared.”
Jang Mok-hwa examined the photo. Lars was a middle-aged man with a strong masculine presence.
Short linen-colored hair, a very high nose bridge, pale blue eyes, a short beard around his mouth, and most notably, a small blue mole at the edge of his forehead.
However, from the photo alone, it was impossible to tell his height.
After waiting for Jang Mok-hwa to finish looking, Riman hesitated slightly before speaking again.
“I’m not asking you to agree to my request right away. I just hope that while you’re investigating the underground ark, you’ll spare a little attention for this as well. If you find Lars’s whereabouts—or any clues related to him—you can come to me at any time and demand payment.”
He knows how to negotiate. Well, if he didn’t, he wouldn’t have become an arms tycoon. The only problem is that he only shows this kind of politeness in front of those stronger than him.
Jang Mok-hwa gave a small nod.
“We’ll keep an eye out.”
“And how do you plan to pay us?”
Seong Geon-woo cut in.
This time, Jang Mok-hwa didn’t glare at him. Because she wanted to ask the same question.
Riman smiled.
“For example, the latest model exoskeleton? Though you’d have to wait about a year for that. Likewise, a T1-type multi-mechanical arm would take over half a year. Hmm, implantation not included. There are also armored vehicles, tanks, various types of cannons…”
After listening quietly, Jang Mok-hwa replied,
“Don’t expect too much either.”
