Chapter : 81
In contrast, Majin-seong was negative.
“Three division leaders have already entered Hobeok, along with their subordinates. And you’re saying we need more?”
“Even if ten came instead of three, if the mission fails, we return empty-handed. If twenty came instead of ten, but it leads to success, then at least it wouldn’t be a failure.”
Majin-seong remained silent.
It wasn’t wrong.
At that moment, a cultist from Anhyang ran up and bowed his head.
“We’ve found traces, Division Lord!”
Gang Mun-pyo immediately mounted one of the horses he had taken from the various households along the way.
There weren’t enough for everyone, but it was enough for the main personnel.
“Let’s go!”
Gang Mun-pyo led the way.
It was natural—those who had distinguished themselves were his subordinates.
Majin-seong raised no objection either.
“There!”
A red glow appeared in the distance.
The pursuit began again.
“How dare these cult bastards!”
After Yeonhwa disappeared, when the warriors of the Namgung clan reached Maeng, everyone knew what had happened.
Returning without their leader, the Namgung warriors couldn’t lift their heads, and naturally, the remaining arrows were aimed at Yu Geon-myeong.
“He couldn’t even protect his own woman.”
“No, it’s worse than that. He basically offered her as a sacrifice and ran off alone.”
All sorts of words rained down on him.
But Yu Geon-myeong paid them no mind.
He didn’t feel pride wounded or anything of the sort.
Right now, she was in danger—what meaning did those words hold?
After parting with the Namgung warriors and returning to Daejeongbang, he saw Hong-ri waiting and couldn’t say a word.
Her eyes were swollen from crying so much that she could barely open them. She said,
“Shall I prepare a meal?”
“No need.”
“Still… if the young lady finds out later that you didn’t eat properly, she’ll be very upset. And I’ll get scolded too.”
Though someone as kind as the young lady would never really scold him over this, Hong-ri spoke honestly.
At least the part about being upset was true.
When Hong-ri, who usually never stepped forward, said that, Yu Geon-myeong understood and ate something light.
Sitting in the room for a while, Ji-won-hyeong burst in, throwing the door open.
He stomped over and stopped right in front of Yu Geon-myeong.
“How could you leave your lord in danger and come back!”
“……”
“Speak! If you were alone, you shouldn’t have come back at all!”
As Ji-won-hyeong seethed with furious energy, Yu Geon-myeong answered calmly.
“She didn’t want that.”
“But…!”
“Even Master Ji himself cannot act against her will.”
“I am your subordinate! But you… you should be different from me! You should stop your lord from rushing into danger, and even force him if necessary for his own sake!”
“Master Ji seems to have forgotten that she and I are bound by contract.”
“Is that what you call it now! If you truly considered yourselves bound by contract and treated her that way…!”
Ji-won-hyeong reached out to grab his collar, but Yu Geon-myeong slapped his hand away.
Looking down at his extended hand, Ji-won-hyeong spoke without raising his eyes.
“Are the two of you really… only in a contract relationship? Your lord thinks so too?”
“No.”
“What did you say?”
“If it were only a contract, how could we support and comfort each other with such sincerity?”
Ji-won-hyeong finally raised his face.
“Are you trying to tell me why you said that?”
“Yes. Now is not the time for jokes—how can you act so lightly!”
If the other person weren’t Yu Geon-myeong, Ji-won-hyeong would have already lunged.
He earned the nickname “mad dog” not because he barked until he bled, but because he barked at anyone indiscriminately.
Yet Yu Geon-myeong was unmoved by his pressure.
“Master Ji, how we treat each other and what name we give our relationship has nothing to do with you.”
A warning not to overstep.
And that wasn’t all.
“If you remain a loyal subordinate to her, that is enough. I have already accepted you as her property.”
Not a person, not a dog—but a possession.
A merciless declaration in terms of disregarding anyone’s will. Yet neither side seemed to mind.
It was clear that their values lay elsewhere.
Yu Geon-myeong waved his hand as if to conclude.
“Leave. It’s time for you to define and accept me in your own way. Even if your emotions waver while you understand logically, don’t barge in and make a scene.”
Ji-won-hyeong gritted his teeth at the order.
He knew Yu Geon-myeong was right.
But he had been by his lord’s side when danger struck and confirmed his lord’s wishes.
At Maeng, he could only wait for her. Wait for news, wait for Yu Geon-myeong to return to check the situation. And now, he had to wait again.
When Ji-won-hyeong clenched his fists and refused to leave, Yu Geon-myeong said,
“I won’t tell her what happened today. Go rest. I have much to think about myself.”
“I will withdraw.”
Even Ji-won-hyeong couldn’t refuse.
Of course, if the lord asked, he would answer honestly, but if she could remain unaware, that was preferable.
Having watched his lord for a long time, he knew:
She considered that man very special.
And that man was probably not just a simple heir to a trading house.
‘There must be some hidden status.’
For some reason, it was concealed for now.
‘Well, who in the world doesn’t have personal matters?’
Outside, the cold wind cooled the heat of his face.
Ji-won-hyeong rubbed his face with his palm.
It was shameful to argue over something he couldn’t do himself.
But he couldn’t stay there forever.
He stepped out of Daejeongbang, determined to find something he could do.
After Ji-won-hyeong left, Yu Geon-myeong remained alone, silently enduring time.
“Her position is far too dangerous.”
Luck had favored her before, and he trusted it would again—but for how long?
That luck included her skill, but if the enemy was Samryeong and the cult, it was another matter.
Even the Emperor in Beijing hated treacherous martial artists, yet could not eradicate them at once.
If the martial world crushed her, could he protect her?
His mind grew complicated.
He had vowed to live freely after leaving the imperial palace, yet he had once already accepted help from Lord Mok, the Head Martial Officer.
That person, like a mentor, could smooth things over as a Jeojo-kar officer, but could he endure in the future?
No, no.
If he could act now, he would do anything.
But he didn’t know what variables each action might create, so he couldn’t move.
Thus, he could only hope.
That she would return safely.
To his side.
“I am waiting.”
“This mission is more grueling than I expected.”
“Right? How can she run so well?”
“Still, there were a few times we almost caught her.”
Especially at Gamri, they had come close enough to nearly cut the red horse’s tail in half.
If Namgung Yeonhwa had not risked cutting her arm to swing her sword and momentarily stop the division lord, they would have been caught along with the horse.
“Enough. This is the last time.”
They hadn’t captured Namgung Yeonhwa, but they prevented her from escaping in another direction.
They drove her toward Hambyeoksan and trapped her.
“Now that the division lords from Honam have joined, there’s no excuse. We’ll catch her for sure!”
From tomorrow, instead of creating temporary outposts across Hambyeoksan for searches…
They planned to completely surround Hambyeoksan and sweep upward from the base.
“It would be good if a few more division lords were here for the search. Hambyeoksan is close not only to Honam but also to Gangseo—can’t we get support from Gangseo?”
“Master Dokan-gwi, the great division lord of Gangseo, never lends his people. Besides, Gangseo is currently stirred up by Muryeong, so they have no resources to spare.”
At that moment, while the cultists were distracted by conversation, someone appeared silently behind them.
Without hesitation, the stranger thrust a sword toward the cultists.
“Gasp!”
Yeonhwa covered the mouths of the three and, in one swift motion, disappeared, surveying her surroundings.
And, just like when she appeared, she vanished silently.
The information she had just overheard posed no threat to her at all.
