Book 20 Chapter 4

Midnight Talkers

-Moon Shadow

Many people overlook the fact that the moon creates shadows just as the sun does. It's just that the shadows she creates don't stand out as much in the darkness of the night.

Self!

Two shadows run stealthily along a high, long wall, where the shadows of the moon and the darkness of the night overlap. Silence is on their feet as they run like the wind, denied even the warmth of the moonlight.

A short distance away was the main gate. Like all manor houses, there would be a flag hanging above the gate, and it would read "Zhongyang Pyo-guk". And there was probably a plaque on the right pillar that read, "Namchangjiguk". There was a door there for people to come and go, but they saw the use of that ordinary front door as an act of submerging their identity in the prevailing conventions of society, and they chose to actively resist it.

Their resolve was, very desirably, immediately followed by action. The idea of entering through an object that was originally set up to deny entry was revolutionary. However, this breakthrough came to an unfortunate end when they turned to the relatively mundane act of wall-talking.

The man in the lead silently covers his mouth with his index finger and leaps over the wall first. Despite what appeared to be a light hop in place, he landed on top of the wall with great ease. After turning his head a couple of times to look around, the first man signaled to the second man with a double motion of his left hand, and the man waiting below reluctantly jumped. Then a long string slithered out of the darkness like a snake. There was a long string between the two men, and the first man had used it to signal the second.

Their movements were cautious and silent, as if they were afraid to break the silence of the night, where the drop of a needle could be heard louder than thunder. Soon they were leaping toward a beautiful tree planted a yard away by the wall. No one spoke a word.

"There it is!

The first man looks around and finds their target, which is still lit up at this late hour.

'That's the State House…….'

It was clear that's where they were going, albeit temporarily.

The two intruders were just about to make their move. Like a bird that fails to take flight(飛翟), the two newcomers are frozen in the position they were about to take off.

"Don't move!"

"Huh!

I wasn't scared, even though it was a woman's voice, echoing behind my back in the middle of the night, but I was creeped out by the long, slender blade gleaming in the moonlight by the nape of my neck.

"Oops!"

Immediately after the first man's movement is blocked, the second man, oblivious to his predicament, tries to pull the cuffs back, but his attempt is also unsuccessful.

"Don't move, unless you want a hole in the back of your head!"

The man's voice had barely echoed before something sharp and pointed was sending a chill down to his marrow, gathering the night's chill. The back of his head tingled.

"Come on, hold still. I'm a small man, and I'm easily startled by the slightest thing. If you so much as flinch, I might be so startled that I might flail my arms wildly, and you and anyone else around you might be seriously injured. I don't want to sit around wiping blood off my sword on a night like this. That would be a shame, wouldn't it?"

In the blink of an eye, the man behind the second man - a self-described timid man - had taken over, and his voice was a mix of nonchalance and a hint of mischief.

"Put the sword away."

The woman instructed in a calm voice. Soon the first man's sword was exposed in the moonlight. If he had taken another step forward, he would have drawn it and scattered his sword energy everywhere. The man who remained seated, his right hand still gripping the hilt of his sword and his left hand pulling back the scabbard to draw his sword, was a masterful footwork, but alas, he was missed by an inch.

"You're just going to have to let go."

The man with the sword pole against the back of the second man's head spoke quietly. There was nothing threatening about it. There was no tension. In fact, his demeanor was confident and relaxed.

The second man could barely push his sword up with the thumb of his left hand. This small fact alone shows the difference in skill between the two men, though both were easily subdued.

The woman, who looked like she was about to slit the first man's throat, paused and asked in a calm voice.

"Are these the same guys who've been hanging around here for days?"

"……."

When he didn't answer, the middle-aged man who had been watching spoke up and scolded him in a low but stern voice.

"Do you not hear the words of the goddess? Answer me now!"

He seemed angry about the woman's lack of sincerity in answering his questions. The answer still didn't come.

"How dare they!"

The silence fueled the middle-aged man's anger.

"Nevertheless, I've been suspicious of mysterious people lurking around for the past few days, so I've been unable to sleep well at night, but now that I've captured you, I'll be able to sleep well from now on. But since you two are so tight-lipped as clams, what can I do about it? It's troublesome, but I have no choice but to find out for myself!"

His tone was one of annoyance.

"Turn around slowly, both of you, but don't play any tricks, because you never know what you're going to get. Now, turn around, now!"

With their bodies tense, the two slowly turned around. The intangible pressure emanating from the tips of the two swords was enough to suffocate them, and they didn't dare to think of any tricks.

Finally, both men turned around.

However, I still couldn't recognize their faces because they were both wearing hoods.

"Take it off!"

Then, in a very shy manner, the first man began to unbutton the front of his shirt, one by one.

"Not there!"

The middle-aged man exclaimed in panic. His gaze quickly turned to the woman. He would rather not look at her……. The man shook his head, filled with regret. The gaze of a woman who suspected him of having an unusual hobby was giving him both the urge to kill and the urge to commit suicide, and he had to fight a fierce battle between them.

"Eh, who told you to take off your clothes? Take off your hood! Your hood! The damned hoods that cover your faces!"

Harsh words spontaneously came out of the middle-aged man's mouth, words he would not normally have uttered, but the two men, though they flinched at the man's words, did not hesitate to carry out the order.

"What's the matter, are you hiding something, what are you holding back that you have so many secrets, take it off!"

Then he hastened to add a word.

"…A bandana, a bandana!"

However, the captured duo's behavior was still sluggish.

Quick!

So much for the middle-aged man's patience.

"You don't have to take it off if you don't want to. With this reward for your determination, you will learn that swords can do more than cut people. Among them might be skills like hooding."

The first man hesitated for a moment, then bit his lip hard, as if he had finally made up his mind, and slowly brought his hands to his hood. The darkness that had been hidden in the shadow of the hood was dragged out into the moonlight.

"Huh!"

The words burst from Qin Shaolin's mouth. She was so stunned that she decided to perform an immediate, swift, and powerful exorcism. She would have cut the body of the first man to remove her black hood into exactly twenty-seven equal parts if Yue Eun-sung, who was nearby, hadn't stopped her. At the same time, her niece would have become a widow before she could marry.

"Yes, how can you……?"

Even this fearless Iron Lady had times when her voice trembled.

"He must be dead, right?"

She called the names of those who should have died, those who should have lost their purpose other than to be inscribed on tombstones.

"…Namgungsang, how did you get here……?"

The face that emerged from under the hood was none other than Namgung Sang, who was said to have died a few days earlier. It's understandable that Qin Xiaoling, frightened by the appearance of a ghost, decided to perform an unprofessional exorcism.

"That's me……."

In truth, the Southern Palace Lord had ten mouths to feed. Moreover, he could not have chosen a worse opponent than the Amu Goddess Qin Xiaoling.

"Are you harassing me?"

It didn't take long for her surprise to turn to anger.

"Oh, no, no, no. How dare the firefighter……."

Namgungsang was indeed wronged. But he wasn't the one to make excuses.

"I've always wondered what stories the dead would tell if they came back to life. Maybe a near-death experience, or an escape from the salt flats, I don't care."

Boom!

Qin Shaolin's sword touched the tip of the Namgung Sang's jaw.

"That's because… that's… that's… that's me……."

Kudos!

Zhang Wuyang, who had rushed out of the temporary residence with such urgency that one wondered if the door was about to break down, crossed his arms and shouted.

"No, no, no!"

His voice was as urgent as a hummingbird's flapping wings, as busy as his arms.

"They're not intruders!"

When they finally reached the base of the tree where the four were huddled, Zhang Wuyang's breath was up to his chin. It was a sight that showed how close they were.

"Then what are you saying, Zhang Guozhu?"

Yoo Eun-sung asked in a slightly suspicious tone.

"They're… heck!"

Zhang Wuyang took two long, noble breaths.

"Please speak slowly."

Yoo Eun-sung calmed him down.

"Go, thank you."

Zhang Wuyang, who had barely calmed his wild horse-like breathing, called out again.

"Uh, these are… my customers!"

Qin Xiaoling and Yoo Eunsung looked at each other in disbelief.

"Guest?"

Yoo Eun-sung had to fight back the sneer that threatened to escape.

"What a unique way to come in, Zhang Guozhu."

And one of them was now laid to rest underground.

"When you say guests, do you mean that you knew they would be here at this time?"

"That's right, Qin Yeohyeop!"

Zhang Wuyang replied, breaking out in a cold sweat.

Qin Shaolin's piercing gaze turned back to Nan Gongsheng. Not sure if he felt his heart fluttering at the depth of that gaze, which seemed to be dissecting him, or if there was something in it for him, he turned his head to look away.

"He's a ghost who keeps his appointments……. So let's see who the dead ghost's companion is."

The tip of her sword pointed at the second man. Qin Xiaolong's voice was as cold as the sharpness of her blade.

"Show your face!"

The second man hesitated at first, but then realized the situation and slowly removed his hood. Beneath the hood, a young man with a slightly older appearance and a dignified demeanor emerged.

"Luckily, I don't recognize you."

His brow furrowed and his face flushed with embarrassment. It was evidence of his immature emotional control.

"Name it!"

"It's called… a clause."

The young man replied.

"What's your last name?"

Again, the young man hesitated, but he had no choice but to answer the repeated question.

"Mr. Gongson."

Qin Xiaoling hadn't realized it, but there was something about her surname that made her more experienced and well-traveled than Yoo Eun-sung, who was rarely seen in Kangho.

Judging by the sword at his waist, the young man was a swordsman, an accomplishment rarely matched in his age group. It took ten fingers to count the clans and families that had the capacity to produce such a young prodigy. Whether it was through doubles, swords, or physical attributes, the master of a house was a force to be reckoned with. If you weren't a disciple of one of the great schools, with their strict organization, there weren't many options left.

"What is your relationship with Gumzon?"

The young man seemed puzzled by Eunseong's question, but he did not want to deny what could be called the very root of existence.

"He's my… grandfather."

The polite way of saying it was true.

"Of course!"

As if he had guessed it, Liu Yunsheng recited in a low voice. Zhang Wuyang was stunned. He couldn't maintain his composure as well as Liu Yunsheng. This young man was also quite a tycoon.

'Damn…….'

Zhang Wuyang cursed inwardly at the one person who had expanded his network so much; nothing good could come of being associated with him in this way.

However, despite the revelation of Gong Gongzhihui's identity, Qin Xiaolong did not bat an eyelid. This young man's genealogical search was not her concern at all right now. There was only one question that was currently filling her mind.

"Now, Mr. Namgung Sang, who was said to be dead, unless you've made a spectacular comeback by denying the power of death, let's hear it for yourself."

It was a voice that didn't take no for an answer.

"I'd love to hear it. Besides, I'm curious to know what happened to tie you two together so tightly."

Yoo Eun-sung added, pointing to the leather straps tied around the wrists of the Namgung Sang and the Gonggeumjeonghwi.

"That's… me……."

Meeting her icy gaze head-on, full of a determination that if his excuses weren't convincing enough, he'd have to pay her for surprising him in a very frugal way, Namgung Sang didn't dare open his mouth.

"So that's what it is……."

While leaving out the name of Bi Ryuyeon, the heart and soul of the case, the cause and originator, because her life was still too precious to waste, Namgung-sang began his story.