The carriage continued racing toward somewhere.
I was curious. Where in the world would Geugak Soma go first?
I knew about the major incident that had occurred when he left the sect this time, but I did not know the finer details—where he would go first, whom he would meet, and such.
There must have been someone who had offended him during the past two years. Was he going to kill that someone?
Or would he rent out an entire brothel and hold a debauched feast?
Perhaps he might kill someone and then go to a brothel.
Then Geugak Soma abruptly asked.
“Why did that guard become a heart?”
He seemed like someone who wouldn’t ask about a mere guard, but he showed interest because it was someone I liked.
“My guard became my heart because she is alive.”
“Then is the Second Young Master dead right now?”
I stared at him and asked.
“Are we alive?”
To Geugak Soma, who was bewildered about how to answer for a moment, I added with a smile.
“She is also pretty.”
“You have peculiar tastes.”
“In my eyes, she is the prettiest.”
“Before returning to the cult, I shall have to elevate our Second Young Master’s eye for women.”
“Perhaps I will be the one to show you.”
I wished Seo Daeryong were here.
Inspector Seo, who would have imagined you would end up discussing the eye for women with Geugak Soma? The future is a strange thing.
Then, Cheongmyeon’s voice was heard from the driver’s seat.
“We will stop for a meal in the village.”
From the first day of the journey, we had eaten in separate pairs.
Sometimes at different inns, and sometimes Geugak Soma would rent a separate room to eat.
Today too, after naturally finishing a meal with I An and stepping out of the inn, I saw a group of dark-path thugs harassing a merchant down at the end of the road.
I was just pretending not to see and turning to walk toward the carriage when someone spoke from behind.
“You are just pretending not to see and leaving.”
It was Geugak Soma, who had just finished his meal at the inn across the street.
“So it was merely a show of justice to become the successor, after all?”
I smiled at his mockery and said.
“I do have a somewhat pretentious side.”
“I quite like it. That is how a person should be. Pretending to be good is a headache.”
We looked at each other and laughed.
As we walked toward the carriage, Geugak Soma asked.
“Why does the Second Young Master hate evil so much?”
“I just pretended not to see evil and passed by, though.”
“If I clumsily touched those one or two scoundrels and left, those people would eventually face retaliation, so aren’t you just leaving for that reason?”
He had read my thoughts exactly. If one were to intervene, one had to uproot them completely. Right now was not a situation where I had the leeway to do so.
“This journey is for sightseeing in Lord Soma’s world.”
“It displeases me that such scoundrels seem to be my world.”
“You misunderstand.”
“Then let us clear up the misunderstanding before we go.”
He gave an order to Cheongmyeon with a glance. At that, Cheongmyeon strode toward the dark-path thugs.
Having heard our conversation earlier, he would go and clean up even their leader thoroughly. Of course, it wouldn’t be long before new dark-path thugs moved in.
When I signaled I An with my eyes to go together, she moved quickly.
“I shall go as well.”
I An followed behind Cheongmyeon.
Geugak Soma leaped lightly and sat on the carriage roof.
“This is the perfect spot to watch.”
I, too, leaped to his side and sat beside him.
“Did you enjoy your meal?”
“I ate roughly.”
“Watching you during the journey, you do not seem to eat well.”
“I have no joy in eating.”
“Is it because of the mask?”
A slightly displeased look flashed across his face. Talk of the mask always made him flinch. But I brought up the mask without hesitation.
To remove that, I would have to pull the mask that had become a myth back into reality.
“I have never liked eating.”
“It must be because of the mask. If you remove it, I shall treat you to a magnificent meal.”
Geugak Soma tilted his head for the first time. I read this emotion from the gaze within the eye holes.
Just what are you? What is your identity that you grate on my nerves like this?
Then, a scream was heard from afar.
Our gazes naturally turned toward I An and Cheongmyeon in the distance.
The two had soundly beaten the dark-path thugs and were dragging them somewhere with the thugs leading the way.
Watching that sight, Geugak Soma spoke.
“The Second Young Master said before, didn’t he? That the only time evil looks magnificent is when it suppresses other evil. How is it? Do I look magnificent now?”
“You are magnificent.”
“But why do I not feel good?”
“It must be because it feels like strips of my own flesh are being torn away.”
Even at my joke, Geugak Soma laughed. He asked the question he had asked before again.
“Why do you hate evil so much?”
Since he had asked twice, I had to give some answer. After a brief pause, I said to him.
“There are people who deliberately push the person in front of them off a cliff while walking on the road. If they want to go first, they could simply walk faster and pass by the side. I am not saying to help someone who has collapsed from exhaustion. Just go on your own way—why push them? When I see such scoundrels, I want to push them too. That is why I intend to push them all away.”
“Then I suppose I would want to push them too.”
The two eyes within the mask holes were gleaming coldly.
Soma, how many people have you pushed into misfortune in your life until now?
I smiled and said to him.
“So please do not walk in front of me as much as possible.”
“Then must I stand behind the Second Young Master?”
“Then let us walk side by side. I think walking while maintaining the tension that either of us could push the other at any moment is not bad either.”
This is precisely the relationship I desire with him.
Geugak Soma laughed loudly.
“Very well. If it is the Second Young Master, you could be a good companion.”
Shortly after, I An and Cheongmyeon, having finished cleaning everything up, returned to the carriage carrying a faint scent of blood.
The pupils of I An, who looked up at us sitting side by side on the carriage roof, trembled slightly. No matter how much she trusted me, it would not be easy to completely shake off the fear inspired by a being like Geugak Soma.
The carriage set off again.
After racing for several days like that, the carriage arrived at a manor.
A man was waiting in the courtyard.
I put on the white mask I wore at my waist and got off following Geugak Soma. I would reveal my face after seeing how the return situation unfolded.
“It has been a while, Lord Demon Venerable.”
Geugak Soma nodded with cold eyes.
I remembered who the man was.
Im Ho, the tycoon of Ghost Prefecture.
Originally, this place, Ghost Prefecture, had been the region under Geugak Soma’s charge.
The Eight Demon Venerables were each responsible for businesses in their respective regions, intervening in or directly operating all manner of profit-making ventures such as merchant groups, escort agencies, blacksmith shops, brothels, taverns, and so on.
Even Hyeolcheon Doma, for instance, seemed to be leisurely reading books, but he too had a region he was responsible for.
Im Ho was the head of the Great Lake Merchant Group, which represented Ghost Prefecture, and a figure who actively supported Geugak Soma.
“You seem to have lost some weight.”
Im Ho bowed at the curt remark.
“I have lost some weight recently. Thank you very much for noticing.”
Geugak Soma tapped his shoulder once as if in encouragement.
“Thank you.”
Im Ho felt fearful yet humbled.
Then, I An sent me a transmission.
—Did you see that tap on the shoulder just now? Not a slap on the cheek or shattering the shoulder? I thought he was a different person.
—If Geugak Soma were merely a mad slaughterer as the rumors say, he would not even belong among the Eight Demon Venerables. Watch carefully how Geugak Soma treats and handles people. Whether as something to learn from or a lesson by negative example, it will surely help you in operating the Ghost Shadow Unit in the future.
—Yes, young master.
There are many faces within that mask. There must be faces I have seen before, and new faces that emerge upon meeting the present me.
Im Ho asked Geugak Soma.
“Shall we start with a meal?”
“No need. Let us see the guild leaders first.”
“Yes, then please come this way.”
Im Ho did not ask about me at all.
He must have guessed that I was no ordinary servant since I had gotten off the carriage together with him, but he did not dare ask to be introduced.
From that alone, one could tell how much Im Ho feared Geugak Soma.
Of course, that did not mean Im Ho was a man lacking guts or a fearful one. He was a man who ran a merchant company in partnership with the Demonic Cult. Among the merchants, Geugak Soma might very well be just that.
Im Ho guided us to the great hall.
Inside, more than twenty people were waiting; they were all figures who ran large and small merchant companies in this Ghost Prefecture.
As Geugak Soma entered, they all prostrated themselves and bowed.
“We greet the great Demon Venerable.”
Geugak Soma sat in the seat of honor.
Then, one of the merchant leaders who had been prostrated stood up and went before Geugak Soma.
He respectfully presented the ledger he had brought to Geugak Soma. It seemed to be a ritual they always performed when Soma visited.
Geugak Soma slowly flipped through the ledger.
Watching that sight, I An sent another transmission.
—I did not know Geugak Soma could read ledgers.
—He cannot read them.
—What?
—Cheongmyeon standing behind him is telling him the contents via transmission. He is the smartest person in the Valley of Villains, and the brightest at calculations. It is also the reason why he is kept as his right-hand man.
—Ah, I see.
Geugak Soma was well-informed not only about the ledgers but also about the personal affairs of the merchant leaders. He apologized for being unable to attend a son’s wedding, and expressed sorrowful condolences to someone who had suffered a bereavement.
—Does Cheongmyeon inform him of these things too?
—No. This is Geugak Soma remembering everything he has been told.
—Really? He says such things because he remembers all of that? Geugak Soma?
In my past life, there was one thing I had realized.
It was that real villains are meticulous.
Though it could not be generalized, the great villains I had experienced were meticulous. Their observation was good, and their memory was good too.
On the other hand, the great heroes of the righteous faction I met were not meticulous. They forgot easily. They regarded it as a natural carelessness born from valuing great righteousness, but I thought they had already lost to the villains there. Lofty principles floating like clouds could not overcome such finger-counting meticulousness.
In the meantime, Geugak Soma finished brief one-on-one meetings with each of the merchant leaders.
The merchant leaders were deeply moved that Geugak Soma remembered and mentioned their daily affairs, even as they feared him.
—A short meeting held once a year would keep those people from making any moves for ten or twenty years. If Geugak Soma asks after their families with a smile, how could they possibly dare to betray him?
—It is frightening.
—Yes, this is precisely what is frightening.
After the greetings with the merchant leaders ended, Im Ho stepped forward as their representative and reported.
“As you saw, our income has decreased greatly over the past two years. The reason is the Baekgye Merchant Group.”
The newly established Baekgye Merchant Group in Ghost Prefecture had grown explosively faster than any other merchant group. Behind it was the active support of the Evil Path Alliance.
This matter began with the incident where Geugak Soma massacred the martial artists of the Evil Path Alliance.
The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult did not officially apologize or compensate the Evil Path Alliance for that matter. Instead, they placated the Evil Path Alliance by placing Geugak Soma under confinement.
But the Evil Path Alliance considered that insufficient.
The Evil Path Alliance had established the Baekgye Merchant Group in Geugak Soma’s territory on the level of punitive measures, openly stealing his income.
From Geugak Soma’s perspective, as he was being punished by the Heavenly Demon, he could not start a fight, so for the past two years he had no choice but to watch them expand their territory. In the meantime, the dissatisfaction of his affiliated merchant groups had continued to grow.
As if he already knew well about the Baekgye Merchant Group issue, Geugak Soma did not mention it separately.
“Now that I am able to move directly, do not worry too much.”
Only then did the merchant leaders’ faces brighten, putting on joyful expressions.
With those words, Geugak Soma ended the meeting. He was someone who knew better than anyone that such gatherings became targets for enemies. Meetings were secret and brief.
Geugak Soma, having boarded the carriage, spoke to Cheongmyeon.
“We are going to the Baekgye Merchant Group.”
“Yes!”
The carriage began to race.
I spoke casually to Geugak Soma.
“You were kind to the merchant leaders. I thought you were Affectionate Soma, not Geugak Soma.”
“Are they not the ones who earn money for me? People who will earn much more money with just a kind word—why should I treat them coldly?”
They were words that formed a stark contrast with the dark-path thugs who had been robbing merchants and causing trouble earlier.
Real villains are people like this. Tightening the noose around someone while smiling, making them continue to suffer in a pleasant atmosphere.
“Their very name is wrong from the start. It must be the ‘Gye’ of ‘punish one, warn a hundred.’ At the Baekgye Merchant Group, I intend to show them why I bear the epithet Geugak.”
When I showed no reaction, he spoke again.
“Are you not worried? Do you think I am unable to kill them all? That I wouldn’t dare kill them now that my confinement has just been lifted? Is that what you think?”
“No. I can feel that Lord Soma is very angry right now. The air inside the carriage is already different.”
“But why do you not stop me? If an incident breaks out at the Baekgye Merchant Group, the Second Young Master must take responsibility, you know?”
“Lord Soma, please stop the carriage. Vent your anger and go somewhere else.”
“I refuse.”
“I anticipated this. That is why I have been contemplating how to stop you.”
“You will have to contemplate a great deal.”
Finishing those words, Geugak Soma leaned against the carriage and closed his eyes.
He let out a deliberately audible sigh for me to hear, but my gaze looking outside the carriage was incomparably calm. Though the night was deep, the martial world was not asleep.