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Chapter 20
“That’s… just a trivial trick?”
She didn’t know much about martial arts, but it was clearly no ordinary ability.
Yet Ha Do-woon feigned indifference.
“It is merely a technique for gathering the poison energy that was ravaging my body and expelling it outside. What remains is only the scar.”
“Why did you gather it in your arm of all places?”
An arm was important to any martial artist. It might not have been the right arm that wielded a sword, but that hardly made the left arm any less precious.
When she pointed that out, Ha Do-woon avoided Geum Seol-ha’s gaze.
“I wasn’t in a position to be picky.”
“What?”
“There was a time before when I happened to drive the poison into my arm and expel it. The situation was urgent, so I suppose I acted out of habit.”
Geum Seol-ha’s fingers clenched the hem of her clothes.
So despite how casually he spoke of it, it had been a desperate and dangerous situation.
“You said it was poison.”
“Yes.”
“That poison—does it belong exclusively to the Sado Alliance bastards?”
“It does.”
As Geum Seol-ha mulled over his answer, she suddenly stopped breathing.
A thought had flashed through her mind.
The crescent moon tattoo hidden beneath clouds.
The poison used only by members of the Sado Alliance.
A horrifying possibility regarding the identity of the man Madam Baek had tried so hard to conceal.
No way.
In the original novel The Heavenly Martial Emperor, that man wasn’t some insignificant side character like herself. He was one of Yeon So-cheon’s greatest rivals.
There’s no way something so absurd could happen.
Besides, the novel had clearly described his face as being horribly scarred…
Her gaze drifted once more to Ha Do-woon’s arm concealed beneath his sleeve.
“Ha Do-woon, if someone is poisoned by it even once… do they all end up with scars like that?”
The veins on the back of her hand bulged as she gripped her clothes tighter.
“I’ve never heard of anyone successfully detoxifying it completely, but I imagine the results would be similar.”
Darkness clouded Geum Seol-ha’s vision.
The ominous suspicion that had crossed her mind felt as though it had just been hammered firmly into place.
She opened her mouth again, determined to confirm it.
“You said it’s the Sado Alliance’s poison. But poisons have countermeasures, just like martial techniques, don’t they? If someone learned the method, couldn’t others make it too?”
“Poison arts are considered a branch of martial arts as well. Whatever methods they used, I’ve never heard of anyone successfully breaking its secrets.”
“B-But still, isn’t there even the slightest chance that someone besides the Sado Alliance obtained or used it? They could have stolen it, couldn’t they?”
Cold sweat rolled down Geum Seol-ha’s forehead.
Please, let it be anything but that.
“I don’t believe so. It’s a troublesome poison that requires a very specific antidote.”
She kept throwing out questions in an attempt to deny reality, but each answer only solidified her suspicions further.
A curse escaped her lips.
“Damn it.”
The conclusion she had desperately tried to avoid was now undeniable.
The scattered clues had connected into a single line.
The man’s identity, whom she had suspected of being a criminal, was far more extraordinary than she had imagined.
Of all people to get entangled with, why did it have to be a major figure from the original story?
“There was nothing about this.”
Her mind felt startlingly clear, yet she also wanted to cry.
She already knew this world had never been particularly kind to her, but this was simply too much.
“My lady?”
“It’s nothing. I just remembered something. Go on.”
Waving her hand to reassure Ha Do-woon, Geum Seol-ha urged him weakly.
“Now it is your turn to tell me. Is the person poisoned by this currently inside the Geum Household?”
Though phrased as a question, Ha Do-woon was already certain after their conversation.
Realizing that, Geum Seol-ha’s thoughts became even more tangled.
“When all of this is over.”
“…”
“Then I’ll tell you everything.”
The descriptions from The Heavenly Martial Emperor and everything that had happened recently fit together perfectly, but it wasn’t the sort of truth she could reveal yet.
How am I supposed to explain that one of the Sado Alliance Leader’s favorite subordinates is here?
And not just any favored subordinate.
Dam Cheon-woo.
For now, he might merely be a trusted subordinate of the Sado Alliance Leader, but eventually he would become the Sado Alliance Leader himself.
I avoided him because he was such a lunatic. I never wanted to get involved with him.
She had never imagined that before the original story even began, he would have ties to the Geum Merchant Group—and to Madam Baek, of all people.
The chaotic thoughts in her head vanished the moment she saw Yoo Eun-seol.
Seeing Eun-seol neatly folded away every other concern.
“When was I ever in a position to be selective about methods?”
A mocking smile formed on her lips.
Yoo Eun-seol had ended up in this condition, and all Geum Seol-ha had managed to do at the time was grab Hong Madam by the hair.
She had prevented the aunt who cherished her from getting involved, while also sending a warning to others.
That had been the limit.
The man’s identity is far beyond what I imagined.
But nothing changed.
Her plans remained the same.
At least he’s better than a criminal.
A faint laugh escaped her.
“It’s fortunate things only turned out this way.”
The words slipped out unconsciously.
At the same time, a memory flashed through her mind.
[“It’s fortunate things only turned out this way.”
“We should have found and escorted you sooner, my lord. Had we dealt with that wanted poster back then, none of this would have happened.”
“Even those who sought my life couldn’t find me because of it. Do not burden yourself with guilt over something so trivial.”
“We should have made the Five Poison Sect bastards pay a heavier price. This servant’s efforts were lacking.”
“Enough.”]
It was a conversation between Dam Cheon-woo and one of his subordinates who had slaughtered anyone foolish enough to speak carelessly about his face.
A wanted poster.
At first, Geum Seol-ha had assumed the man Madam Baek was hiding was a criminal.
Madam Moyong and Madam Hong had probably thought the same.
If it involved the Sado Alliance, they never would have dared make threats like that.
The clues rapidly fell into place.
The corners of Geum Seol-ha’s lips curved upward.
“So that’s how it all connects?”
This could be used very effectively.
Her fingers slowly tapped against her leg.
There had been a passage stating that Dam Cheon-woo’s life had once been in danger and that his face had been scarred because of it.
Which meant—
“I can make him owe me.”
He might be a complete madman and a member of the unorthodox faction, but he wasn’t the sort of person who ignored a debt of gratitude.
Strangely enough, he was obsessive about repaying favors and grudges.
Watching Geum Seol-ha’s face brighten little by little, Ha Do-woon finally spoke.
“He is not someone you should get close to.”
“Ha Do-woon?”
“He could be an enemy of the Sado Alliance. Or he could be one of their people.”
Geum Seol-ha clicked her tongue silently.
She had felt it before when he introduced So Yeong-yeong and the others from the Geum Household.
His insight was extraordinary.
“Either way, they are people who bring no benefit through association. You should stay away.”
“If I were the precious young lady of the Geum Household, you’d be right.”
Nodding as though she understood everything, Geum Seol-ha smiled casually.
“But I’m not.”
“My lady!”
“I don’t have a single card in my hand. I told you before, Ha Do-woon. I’m never going to let something like this happen again.”
She didn’t mind bowing her head or humiliating herself.
But if someone else was the one paying the price, that was a different matter entirely.
“There is no opportunity without risk.”
“…Are you certain this is an opportunity?”
“Of course. It might be the greatest opportunity I’ll ever get.”
A chance to earn the gratitude of the man who would one day become the Sado Alliance Leader.
Helping him would also allow her to build a favorable relationship with Madam Baek.
And perhaps even bring down Madam Hong and Aunt Moyong.
The former would be easy to deal with after this incident.
The latter would require more time and effort.
“So even if you don’t trust me, just follow my instructions.”
She was confident she could do it.
Smiling as she envisioned her victory, she watched Ha Do-woon raise a hand.
“What would you have me do?”
Geum Seol-ha beamed.
“Ha Do-woon, do you happen to have any money?”
“Money…?”
“Well, I’m not planning on making an expensive request. But the sort of people I need won’t work for free.”
She shrugged.
When it came to matters outside the Geum Household, it was best left to professionals.
“I need you to hide your identity and submit a request to the Hao Clan.”
“What kind of request?”
“The wanted poster.”
Geum Seol-ha spoke brightly.
“Spread word that the man in the wanted poster is dead.”
“…Pardon?”
“Say that you were tempted by the reward, but the moment he died, the poison consumed him so thoroughly that not even his bones remained.”
Recognizing that her description matched the symptoms of the Sado Alliance’s poison, ripples spread through Ha Do-woon’s eyes.
“…So I should pose as someone after the reward money?”
“Exactly. But you must conceal yourself completely. If you leave even the slightest trace, you’ll have unwanted visitors in the middle of the night.”
“They won’t believe words alone.”
“I suppose not?”
Tilting her head, Geum Seol-ha pondered for a moment before nodding.
“Then wait one more day.”
Once she obtained the right object to accompany the story, there was no way those people wouldn’t fall for it.
“Something very useful is about to fall right into my lap.”
Not even an hour after Geum Seol-ha’s mysterious declaration, a visitor came looking for her.
“The lady wishes to see you.”
The servant girl whom Geum Seol-ha had sent with a message bowed her head stiffly.
“Stay here, Ha Do-woon.”
“But—”
“Madam Baek isn’t going to harm me, is she?”
Geum Seol-ha’s gaze fell directly upon the servant girl.
