Chapter 143
Dokgo Jun swallowed hard at the sight of Jeokyeom’s axe and shouted loudly.
“I-I am not unaware of your grudges, but I am here right now not as a Representative of the Dokgo Noble Family, but as a Representative of the Murim Alliance! If you do not put away that murderer right now, I would rather have my neck severed than ever open my mouth!”
Vooom - .
As he said that, he exuded his Aura into the room, and it was quite fierce, perhaps because he held a position in the Murim Alliance.
However…
Swaaa - .
“…Ugh-!”
…Even so, he was no match for me.
When I released my Killing Intent to counter his, his Aura quickly scattered.
After reminding him that he was just a weakling, I nodded.
“Right, I Understand what you mean. Jeokyeom.”
“Yes, Leader.”
“Send him off as he wishes. He says he’s choosing death.”
“Yes!”
Srrng-!
When Jeokyeom raised his axe without hesitation, Dokgo Jun freaked out again, his chair tipping over as he fell flat on his back.
“Phew, what’s with that ugly display? And you call yourself a Representative.”
Clicking my tongue at the sight, I approached him before Jeokyeom could.
“H-Heeek…!”
He was trembling all over, seemingly realizing he could actually die.
“Look here, Mr. Dokgo Jun. Do you not know the reason you came as the Murim Alliance Representative?”
“T-The Grand Strategist told me to shake off all grudges before forming a relationship with the Green Forest…”
“Right, those grudges. What method is there to shake off those grudges?”
Slash.
I continued while making a throat-slitting Gesture.
“You are a gift the Murim Alliance sent to me. Kill this guy and let go of all past anger. Something like that.”
“T-That’s… That makes no sense…”
Was the reason Dokgo Jun was trembling right now out of fear, or out of a sense of betrayal?
Whatever it was, the initiative had definitely passed to me.
“Anyway, you know your life is in my hands, right?”
“…”
“Then let’s talk now. Take out everything you brought from the Murim Alliance. Who knows? If I get in a good mood, I might just let you live.”
“…U-Understood.”
Perhaps seeing a glimmer of hope for survival, Dokgo Jun nodded with a stiff expression.
Before I knew it, his tone had changed to formal speech.
* * *
“F-First…, regarding that fellow Dokgoyeong…, as the Representative of the Dokgo Noble Family, I express my regrets.”
“Hmm? Only with words?”
Tap, tap.
When I tapped the table a couple of times and muttered to myself, Dokgo Jun spoke in surprise.
“T-That fellow was originally a Prodigal son whose infamy was secretly well-known even within our Family! As soon as he caused that incident, our Family removed him from the Family register.”
“No, not that. There needs to be something material.”
“M-Material, you say…”
Hah, this Bastard is frustrating.
Just looking at him, it was obvious he had lived his life without any incidents or accidents, Borrowing Another’s Prestige as a Young Master of a Prestigious Family.
Feeling frustrated by this, I decided to just speak straightforwardly from now on.
“200 Gold Gwan.”
“…Excuse me?”
“If you write a promissory note stating that you will pay 200 Gold Gwan to our Green Forest as the Representative of the Dokgo Noble Family, I’ll let it slide without another word.”
“T-200 Gold Gwan…”
The sudden mention of the huge sum of 200 Gold Gwan.
Furthermore, at the thought of paying with the Dokgo Noble Family’s money rather than the Murim Alliance’s money, he seemed to be in considerable agony.
However…
Srrng - .
“…”
…In front of Jeokyeom’s friendly axe, his agony did not last very long.
“…I will write… the promissory note.”
“Right, good thinking.”
As soon as he nodded, I roughly wrote up a pledge and handed it to Dokgo Jun…
“…Ugh.”
…Even while letting out a groan, he stamped his own Seal, not the Murim Alliance’s Seal, onto the pledge.
“…Here it is.”
“Oh, nice.”
When I received the promissory note from him and looked at it with a pleased smile, Dokgo Jun studied my face and requested something.
“Um…, with this, can I consider that there are no more grudges between the Green Forest and the Dokgo Noble Family? If so, that axe next to me…”
“Ah, this is a separate matter.”
“…Excuse me?”
I patted Jeokyeom’s shoulder and continued.
“Even though I look like this, I’m the General Stronghold Master of our Green Forest. What if you try to harm me? I’ll keep you around as a Guard.”
“No…, what kind of Guard exudes Killing Intent like that…”
“Ah…, why are you grumbling so much… My grudges are about to flare up again…”
“…”
It was practically extortion, but this was my home ground. Dokgo Jun had no choice but to continue the negotiations while bearing the full brunt of Jeokyeom’s axe threat.
And…
“Now, shall we take a look at what you brought from the Murim Alliance? I clearly said that if you didn’t bring the Gongcheongseokyu, there would be no negotiations or anything.”
…Next was the highlight of this negotiation.
The Murim Alliance’s Gongcheongseokyu was already in our hands.
Just what did those guys bring instead of the missing Gongcheongseokyu?
Did they bring a treasure equivalent to it? Or did they hide that the Gongcheongseokyu was gone and make a fake?
[Anything is fine.]
From my position of already knowing the truth, I had nothing to lose no matter what choice the Murim Alliance made.
I waited for Dokgo Jun’s answer with a pounding heart…
“…I will take out what I brought.”
…He took something out of his inner pocket.
It was a key, by the looks of it.
With the key he took out, he began to unlock the giant wooden box behind him.
However…
Clunk -, thud.
Clunk -, thud.
[No, what is this, a series of nested boxes?]
…The wooden box was secured with four or five locks, just like a box with multiple layers of security.
[Just what on Earth did they bring?]
Perhaps feeling my gaze, Dokgo Jun turned his head to me right before the final lock.
And…
“Actually…, what we brought is not the Gongcheongseokyu.”
“…What?”
“…Originally, it was stored in the Murim Alliance’s Secret Vault, but…, it is presumed to have been stolen by the Demonic Cult.”
…He revealed that they didn’t have the Gongcheongseokyu.
At this, I couldn’t help but be momentarily flustered.
To Reveal their own weakness with their own mouths?
“However, what we brought this time is a Priceless Treasure equivalent to the Gongcheongseokyu. It is a token of sincerity from our Murim Alliance, so please accept it gladly, General Stronghold Master.”
His voice even contained a sense of pride.
Click, creeeak - .
At the same time, even the final lock was undone…
“…!”
…Along with the wafting scent, I could tell that it was no Ordinary item.
“We had a hard time bringing it from Shaolin.”
“If you brought it from Shaolin…”
When I asked with a slightly trembling voice, Dokgo Jun answered in a confident tone.
“Yes, it is the Great Return Pill.”
“…!”
The Mount Tai and Big Dipper of the Righteous Murim.
A Supreme Elixir that contains the essence and history of the thousand-year Shaolin…
“The Murim Alliance requests an Alliance with the Green Forest in exchange for the Great Return Pill.”
The Murim Alliance had brought such a treasure.
Just to propose an Alliance with mere Bandit Bastards.
* * *
“…”
Swish - .
Slam!
“You cannot.”
“…Tsk.”
I had unconsciously reached out toward the brilliant form of the Great Return Pill, but Dokgo Jun stopped me by closing the lid of the wooden box.
“You absolutely cannot touch it before making the pledge.”
The flow of the negotiation, which I had been leading until just now, subtly passed to Dokgo Jun.
It was understandable.
Because the Great Return Pill was a treasure well worth that much. No? Looking purely at value, even if their efficacies were similar, the Great Return Pill could be seen as having greater value than the pedigree-less Gongcheongseokyu.
No? Looking purely at value, even if their efficacies were similar, it couldn’t have been easy for Shaolin to yield a Great Return Pill when they only had a few themselves. With their immense pride, it could be seen as having greater value than the pedigree-less Gongcheongseokyu.
“…Shaolin actually handed that over.”
With their immense pride, it couldn’t have been easy for Shaolin to yield it. Honestly, we were surprised as well. However…, after confirming that an Apostate Monk of Shaolin is a Demonic Cult Elder, Shaolin has staked its life on subjugating the Demonic Cult.
“Honestly, we were surprised as well. However…, after confirming that an Apostate Monk of Shaolin is a Demonic Cult Elder, Shaolin has staked its life on subjugating the Demonic Cult.”
“…I see.”
When I nodded, Dokgo Jun took a piece of paper out of his inner pocket as if he had prepared it and handed it to me.
It was the Alliance Pledge Document.
“If you just sign here and stamp your Seal, I will immediately hand over the Great Return Pill. This is all the will of the Alliance Leader.”
“…”
I silently picked it up and read it.
And…
“Hah, fuck.”
…I ended up clicking my tongue after seeing the contents written on the pledge.
And for good reason…
“Is this a fucking Alliance Pledge Document? You’re just telling us to come under the Murim Alliance, aren’t you?”
…The contents of the pledge Dokgo Jun handed over were written almost as if a powerful lord were dictating terms to a vassal.
“What is this? In order to fulfill its duty in the Alliance, the Green Forest will dispatch 100 Martial Artists, including the General Stronghold Master, to the Front Line… Ah, fuck. Hey, Jeokyeom, just Strike him.”
“Yes!”
It was actually meant to scare him, but when Jeokyeom really responded to my words and raised his axe, Dokgo Jun took the key out of his pocket and…
Crack-!
…snapped it right in half as he shouted.
“This wooden box is a special item that can never be opened without the key! And I am the only one who knows the whereabouts of the other key! If you kill me, you will never obtain the Great Return Pill.”
“…This guy has gone crazy with a death wish.”
When I put on a Serious face at Dokgo Jun’s sudden action, he stood up to me defiantly even while his body trembled.
“T-There was a strict order from the Grand Strategist. If I fail to conclude the Alliance with the Green Forest, I am a dead man anyway. Then I would rather die here.”
“…”
…Looking into his eyes, Dokgo Jun’s words were sincere.
Fuck, alright…
The Murim Alliance must have had some sense; they wouldn’t have sent someone here with no guts.
At this, I grabbed my forehead and placated him.
“Huu…, alright. Let’s talk slowly. Even so, I cannot sign this pledge. What I wanted in the first place was a simple Non-aggression Pact with the Murim Alliance, not an Alliance.”
“…If you do not sign the Alliance Pledge Document, I cannot hand over the Great Return Pill.”
However, due to his Stubborn will, the conversation ended up going in circles.
With that level of stubbornness, he wouldn’t listen even if I shoved the axe in his face again.
[Should I just give up?]
No matter how much I coveted the Great Return Pill, I absolutely could not sign this pledge.
It was the moment I thought I had to give up on the Great Return Pill because I had no more cards left to play.
[Ah…?]
Come to think of it, there was another card to play.
Feeling as if I had suddenly found the light, I immediately gave an order to Jeokyeom.
And Jeokyeom, having received my order, went straight to my room and…
“Leader, I brought it.”
“Right.”
…returned with the item I told him to bring.
“That is…”
When I suddenly brought out an item, Dokgo Jun asked, seemingly interested.
And…
“Hehehe.”
“…?”
…I chuckled and began to explain.
“Probably, the Gongcheongseokyu wasn’t the only thing that disappeared from the Murim Alliance Secret Vault. Didn’t something else important go missing too?”
“…S-Surely not.”
Dokgo Jun trembled as if he had predicted something.
And I spoke in a confident voice, just like when he had explained the Great Return Pill. “It’s the Heavenly Demon Sword, the Sacred Artifact of the Heavenly Demon Cult.”
“It’s the Heavenly Demon Sword, the Sacred Artifact of the Heavenly Demon Cult.”
“…!”
“I snatched it from those Demonic Cult Bastards when they were running away with it.”
At my words, Dokgo Jun’s eyes widened.
The significance of a Sacred Artifact is extraordinary. But is such a Sacred Artifact in the hands of the enemy?
That was practically no different from taking a massive hostage.
For example, if Shaolin’s Green Jade Buddha Statue had fallen into the hands of the Demonic Cult, Shaolin would have unhesitatingly accepted the Demonic Cult’s Unreasonable Demand to get it back.
And the same went for the Demonic Cult.
Assuming the Righteous-Demonic War had begun, the Demonic Cult’s Sacred Artifact, the Heavenly Demon Sword, held immense value.
“…”
Perhaps he had realized this too, as his eyes looked slightly unfocused and hazy as he stared at the Heavenly Demon Sword.
I waved the Heavenly Demon Sword in front of that Dokgo Jun and spoke.
“You know how important this item is in the current situation, right?”
“…Y-Yes.”
“10,000 Gold Gwan.”
“…Excuse me?”
“For 10,000 Gold Gwan, I will transfer this to the Murim Alliance.”
“…!”
If he could just recover this for the Murim Alliance, it would be a considerable achievement for Dokgo Jun as well. Because of that, the greed for the Heavenly Demon Sword deepened in his eyes.
However…
“T-10,000 Gold Gwan…! That is a whopping three years' worth of the Murim Alliance’s budget…! There is no way I can pay such a huge sum on my end…”
…As expected, the price seemed to be the sticking point.
And I quietly whispered to that Dokgo Jun as if telling a secret.
“However, if you hand over the Great Return Pill to us and allow me to modify the contents of this Alliance Pledge Document…”
“…”
“I will hand this Heavenly Demon Sword over to you for a mere 2,000 Gold Gwan.”
“…!”
If he was tempted here, this Bastard was a pushover.