Chapter 97: Confession
I checked the sword hilt once more.
I hadn't imagined it.
The dark corrosion that had clung to the hilt like a stain...
had definitely faded.
Only slightly.
But compared to before, there was no doubt.
“How...?”
On impulse, I rubbed the hilt with my fingertips.
No rust powder came off.
So it didn't peel away....
And yet the stain had grown lighter.
Almost as though the corrosion had vanished on its own.
...What exactly is this sword?
Even one of Kunlun's finest blacksmiths had given up trying to remove that rust.
The sword of True Immortal Cheongun that I'd happened to discover in the Righteous Alliance treasury.
I could feel it now.
There was something about this sword that I still didn't understand.
Then...
“What are you staring at so intently?”
A rough voice came from behind me.
Jin Gwangung.
He strode toward me and jerked his chin toward my sword.
“Why? Did the hilt break or something?”
Only then did I snap out of my thoughts.
“Well....”
I almost explained what had happened.
Then stopped.
Better not say anything unnecessary.
If I told him,
The rust on my sword hilt suddenly faded on its own...
he'd probably look at me like I was insane.
And if I tried to explain further...
I'd eventually have to talk about the sword's origins.
True Immortal Cheongun.
Flow.
That absolute evil.
How was I supposed to explain all of that at once?
Besides...
there was something else I needed to focus on right now.
“It's nothing.”
I kept my expression casual.
“I thought something had gotten on the hilt, so I was just checking.”
Jin Gwangung clicked his tongue.
“Tch. You're sensitive about the strangest things.”
He shook his head.
Then his gaze moved down.
Following it...
I saw Gu Mun's severed head lying on the ground.
Jin Gwangung stroked his chin.
“Still...”
He clicked his tongue.
“What a shame.”
I looked at him.
“What's a shame?”
“We never managed to find out who was backing this bastard.”
His teeth clenched.
“I don't know what kind of damned bastards they are...”
“but they dared pull tricks involving our Kunlun Sect.”
There was clear anger in his voice.
He usually acted as though he couldn't care less about sect affairs.
But at times like this...
it was obvious how deeply attached Jin Gwangung really was to Kunlun.
And I knew exactly who the damned bastards he was talking about were.
The Shadow Corps.
The Soul-Dissolving Pills used by Gu Mun and Gu Hyeon made that obvious.
But I still couldn't reveal what I knew.
I need to tell them only after I have enough strength and influence to bring down Moyong Cheonhwi.
Otherwise...
the people who learned the truth could become targets themselves.
While I was lost in thought, Jin Gwangung spoke again.
“So?”
“What do you plan to do now?”
I approached Myeong Munhyeok, who was still lying unconscious on the floor.
I checked his breathing and pulse.
Fortunately...
there didn't seem to be anything seriously wrong with him.
He had merely been rendered unconscious by the Soul-Dissolving Pill and Trance Powder.
I turned toward Jin Gwangung.
“We've found Young Master Munhyeok, who was being held hostage.”
“I think we should return to the Myeong Family Merchant Group now.”
Jin Gwangung nodded.
“Good.”
He lifted Myeong Munhyeok onto one shoulder.
The man's body looked almost weightless in Jin Gwangung's grasp.
“Let's go.”
“Yes, Master.”
We immediately headed back toward the Myeong Family Merchant Group.
Our destination was the area around Qin Yueshu's inner residence.
Hyeongwon and Myeongjeon had been hiding nearby, watching the surroundings.
While Jin Gwangung and I chased Gu Mun...
their job had been to make sure no one approached Qin Yueshu or tried to threaten her.
As we neared the inner residence...
Hyeongwon and Myeongjeon emerged from hiding.
Jin Gwangung immediately asked Hyeongwon,
“How did it go?”
“Fortunately, nothing happened.”
Then Myeongjeon noticed the person slung over Jin Gwangung's shoulder.
His eyes widened.
“B-Brother...!”
Jin Gwangung waved a hand.
“Don't panic.”
“He's only unconscious. He's breathing just fine.”
Myeongjeon's eyes trembled for a moment.
Then he seemed to collect himself and nodded.
I looked toward the others.
“Let's go see Lady Qin Yueshu.”
We headed straight into her room.
The moment the door opened...
Qin Yueshu shot up from where she'd been sitting at the table.
Her gaze locked onto Myeong Munhyeok on Jin Gwangung's shoulder.
Her face immediately went pale.
“Munhyeok!”
She rushed toward Jin Gwangung.
“Wait.”
Jin Gwangung raised a hand to stop her.
Then he placed Myeong Munhyeok on a nearby bed.
Qin Yueshu's hands trembled as she stroked her son's cheek.
She lifted her head toward us.
“...Wh-What happened?”
Her voice shook.
“What happened to my Munhyeok?”
I answered quietly from behind her.
“He's unconscious.”
“It seems they gave him the same medicine they used on the Merchant Group Head.”
Qin Yueshu immediately asked,
“...He'll be all right, won't he?”
I nodded.
“Merchant Group Head Myeong Chiwon eventually woke up.”
“Young Master Munhyeok should regain consciousness as well.”
I paused.
“It may simply take a little more time.”
Some tension finally left Qin Yueshu's stiff expression.
Then she seemed to remember something.
“Gu Mun...”
She swallowed.
“What happened to him?”
I answered immediately.
“He's been dealt with.”
“The physician who was helping him as well.”
Qin Yueshu's eyes shook violently.
Then gradually settled.
Relief was unmistakable in them.
I continued,
“Gu Mun's corpse is still at the clinic where that physician was staying.”
“Send people to take care of it.”
Qin Yueshu bit her lip.
“...Understood.”
Gu Mun must have tormented her badly.
Even now...
some fear still remained in her expression.
After a brief silence, Qin Yueshu looked at us again.
“...Then...”
She hesitated.
“What am I supposed to do now?”
I answered simply.
“Tell the Merchant Group Head everything that happened.”
Her face immediately darkened.
Of course it did.
She had fed dangerous medicine to her own husband in order to save her son.
Once Myeong Chiwon learned the truth...
there was no telling what punishment she might receive.
Qin Yueshu hesitated anxiously.
Then finally nodded.
“...Understood.”
She murmured as if sentencing herself.
“Everything was my fault.”
“If the Merchant Group Head punishes me...”
“I'll accept whatever he decides.”
Qin Yueshu stood.
We followed her to Myeong Chiwon's room.
“...That's everything that happened, Merchant Group Head.”
Qin Yueshu confessed everything to Myeong Chiwon.
Myeong Munhyeon's kidnapping.
Gu Mun's threats.
And everything she had done to her husband because of them.
She left nothing out.
"..."
Myeong Chiwon remained silent for a long time.
That silence...
felt like a blade to some of the people in the room.
Qin Yueshu knelt and lowered her head.
“Please punish me....”
Tears fell from her eyes.
“I committed a grave sin against you under the excuse of saving Munhyeok.”
“It was all my fault.”
Her shoulders trembled.
“Whatever punishment you give me...”
“I will accept it.”
Myeong Chiwon stared at her silently.
