Chapter : 76
“Hmph, hmph!”
Perhaps because Seong Yeontae’s gaze was too blatant, Lord Jo cleared his throat awkwardly.
Seong Yeontae quickly shifted the atmosphere.
“Those who committed crimes at Danli Biaoguo have been punished. Please understand that they cannot come in person. Also, external missions fall under the jurisdiction of the Head of the External Affairs Department, which is my responsibility. I’ve come personally, so please accept my apology.”
“I…”
Lord Jo could not openly say that he had hoped the Head of the Soga Clan would come personally to apologize to save face. Saying so would look like he was pressuring the Namgung Clan and summoning the Soga Head at will.
“I only asked because I heard that the Soga Head from your esteemed clan visited Danli Biaoguo, and I thought they might come to me as well.”
“Wouldn’t it be uncomfortable for the Soga Head to come to the government office in person? Also, though you, Lord Jo, suffered from this matter, Danli Biaoguo had an even harder time in the middle. The Soga Head, as a fellow martial artist, only stopped by briefly on the way out of compassion.”
Following what Yeonhwa had suggested, an impenetrable defense was enacted.
Lord Jo could no longer find any fault.
When he reluctantly accepted the apology and gave his assent, Seong Yeontae immediately rose.
After a brief bow, he disappeared, and Lord Jo, parched, grabbed the teacup in front of him and drank it in one go, sinking deep into the backrest of his chair.
“I tried to find a weakness in the Namgung Clan this time… but it’s useless, utterly useless.”
Clicking his tongue, he picked up a golden piece from the box, tossing it up and catching it repeatedly.
“Still, gold bears no guilt, hm, indeed.”
Then he hugged the box containing the gold and stood up.
Back at the clan, Seong Yeontae spoke about Lord Jo’s lingering unease.
“It seems he still doesn’t know about Yu Gongja.”
If he had, he would likely have brought it up, as he had mentioned the Soga Head before.
“Apparently, the rumor hasn’t reached him yet,” Yeonhwa said, and Yu Geonmyeong shrugged.
“Even so, it’s just about the loyalty of the governor. Would such a trivial matter be significant enough to reach Anhui?”
“It’s hard to tell whether Yu Gongja is generous or naive. The Namgung Clan has struggled all this time just because of Ji-hyeon.”
“If proper compensation had been made from the start and they hadn’t been given an excuse, Lord Jo wouldn’t have gone so far.”
In other words, it was the Namgung Clan that gave them the pretext.
Seong Yeontae bitterly pursed his lips, but it was fine.
Now, those who undermined the clan and created problems—including the Head of Internal Affairs—were all gone.
“Ah! Soga Head, have you seen and heard? The petitions were truly burned. When I said we found them as you instructed, they went berserk, claiming it was impossible and demanding to know where we found them. It caused quite a commotion.”
“Typical Namgung Hyechan.”
Such malice—hating others enough to sacrifice one’s last card.
Had that zeal been applied elsewhere, they would have surpassed the mediocrity of their current status.
“They tried using the petitions as bait, and now that they are completely gone, let’s exclude them from our future plans.”
Obsessing over what doesn’t exist only wastes time and emotion.
Yeonhwa thought it more efficient to focus that energy elsewhere.
“Even without the petitions, those connected to Namgung Gyu likely aren’t clean. Why consider cooperating with Bando the only crime? If they committed disgraceful acts as members of the Namgung Clan prior to Bando, they must also face justice.”
This would target not just a few, but the entire Namgung Clan; there may be others captured in addition to the Bandos.
“Once that’s all resolved, we’ll escort Namgung Gyu and his son back to the Alliance. The Clan Leader is still in the Alliance, so they should at least have a final farewell. They are such cherished brothers and nephew.”
Having fulfilled her responsibility as the clan’s dutiful daughter and demonstrated her ability as Soga Head, it was now time for her to serve as a member of the Martial Alliance Inspection Corps.
“When we reach the Alliance, we’ll add any penalties from the Alliance to those already imposed by the clan, leaving nothing undone. Don’t worry.”
Since Yeonhwa had already mentioned this in the medical hall, no one would oppose sending clan members to the Alliance even if they had committed crimes.
Seong Yeontae looked at Yeonhwa with pride.
She paused for a moment before speaking.
“I intend to avenge Brother Seonyu.”
At Seonyu’s name, a flash of killing intent appeared in Seong Yeontae’s eyes.
“Of course. We must eliminate all of those demonic cult bastards and erase the name ‘demonic cult’ from this world.”
“…I have something to say about that.”
Yeonhwa checked the surrounding energy, then reinforced her aura to ensure their conversation wouldn’t leak outside.
As she spoke, Seong Yeontae’s expression stiffened.
News of the new Soga Head of the Namgung Clan spread across the realm in an instant.
Especially within the Martial Alliance, the clan leader of the Namgung Clan reportedly screamed in outrage at the news, causing quite a scene…
Knowing that Namgung Gyu and his son had disappeared, the hidden Munryeong Pavilion also began to act, fearing curiosity about Morong Yun-oh, who had been imprisoned at the same time.
Sak Gisoon ensured that all attention of the Alliance focused on Yeonhwa as the new Soga Head, leaving no chance for forgotten heirs of the clan to resurface.
“A Soga Head from the Inspection Corps? Impressive!”
The Inspection Corps was especially in turmoil.
Huinjeong regretted not being able to attend the Soga Head’s appointment ceremony.
Meanwhile, Inspection Chief Dohyeong Rye and Deputy Lee Doojin feared the chaos that might ensue when the Soga Head made a move.
Yet, they couldn’t help but feel a measure of pride.
As the Martial Alliance buzzed with news, reactions erupted across the realm according to each party’s stance.
Most fiercely affected was the Hubei–Jiangxi front, where Tak Museong was located.
Appearing on the Huaping Plains, Tak Museong rescued the outnumbered Suho Corps and the remaining Tenth Division warriors from Bando…
Pushing forward across the front lines, he advanced toward Jiangxi’s territory and beyond to Bongsin. Yet even in the morning report, the news hadn’t fully reached him.
“She’s in Anhui?”
Not only that, but after capturing the Elder and the Bandos, she had ascended to Soga Head herself.
Tak Museong feared no strong warrior.
A skilled martial artist feels no fear, so they don’t use cheap tricks.
A clever, strong warrior knows what they can and cannot do, so no one dares challenge them.
Cowards, however, pursue their immediate desires recklessly or use underhanded tactics.
Who in Samryeong didn’t know that Elder Namgung Gyu was a kind-faced rat?
And how could anyone not realize that his two children were nothing more than offspring of a rat?
Tak Museong worried that some foolish rat might hurt her, and he felt anxious.
Most importantly, Anhui was just across from Jiangxi, past Poyang Lake.
Of course, reaching Huangshan, home of the Namgung Clan, would take a little longer…
But Huangshan wasn’t far from the Jiangxi–Anhui border, and with determination, it was reachable.
“I need to check if she’s injured.”
As Tak Museong murmured, suddenly flames sparked before him.
Bang! Tang! Tang!
Martial cultists rushing at him were struck by short, arm-length rods and fell.
“Muryeong doesn’t die even when stabbed!”
Gu Heeryang was baffled, seeing him calmly preoccupied amid the swarm of cultists.
“He won’t be stabbed, so there’s nothing to die from.”
Tak Museong cut off any further argument and surveyed the area.
After raiding the cultists’ base at Bongsin, they had come crawling endlessly.
“When I finish killing them all, there’s somewhere to go.”
Having split his staff into three and attached chains between them—turning it into a triple-section staff wielded like a whip—Gu Heeryang, who had delighted in this new weapon, now wanted nothing more than to thrash the wolf-like cultists and flay them alive.
