The courtyard was filled with men from Elder Yeom’s estate, including a steward and his four warrior escorts, as well as the residents of Wongakjeong.
“Say that again.”
At the sight of Yeon So-hyeon, who had appeared by kicking the door open, the man who called himself Elder Yeom’s steward unconsciously swallowed a dry lump in his throat.
“I said, say that again.”
Yeon So-hyeon’s low, pressing voice was nothing like the one the steward had heard of in the rumors of the swordless fool. But he trusted in the value of the name of the master he served. The rank of Elder was among the highest in the Sword Clan.
“Elder Yeom has commanded that I escort the honored Medicine King back to his estate.”
At his words, the triplets snorted, and Jeong-ah burst out laughing.
Yeon So-hyeon tilted his head. “Who commanded whom?”
The steward cleared his throat. “Ahem. The command was given to this humble steward, of course.”
Yeon So-hyeon asked again, “This humble steward?”
The steward began to flounder. “No, not this humble steward…”
“Not?”
“I mean to say… that is…”
His fumbling words were so comical that all the handmaidens began to laugh. The sound seemed to be the final spark that lit the steward’s fuse. Or perhaps he simply wished to deny the reality of being mocked by the swordless fool.
“Insolence! How dare mere handmaidens—!”
Yeon So-hyeon cut him off, raising a hand. “You are the one who is insolent.”
He was about to strike him across the face.
“Grand Young Master, stop!”
The four warrior escorts simultaneously put their hands to the hilts of their swords.
“How dare you…!”
Jeong-ah and the handmaidens, led by her example, also gripped their own sword hilts.
And in that instant, the hands of the four escorts, still clutching the hilts of their swords, dropped to the ground. The sword technique was so blindingly fast that the men themselves only realized their hands were gone when they heard them hit the floor.
“U-uwaaack!” The steward shrieked and jumped back in fright.
The escorts, however, true to their training as warriors of the Sword Clan, calmly pressed the pressure points on their wrists to staunch the bleeding and retreated.
“You insane bastards…”
A man in a sentry’s uniform now stood before them, a single sword in his hand. Incredibly, the blade that had just severed their hands was completely clean, without a single drop of blood. More incredibly, it was a bladeless practice sword.
“Did you really just dare to raise your hands to the hilt of your swords against the Grand Young Master of this House?”
The sword in the hand of the Life-Stealing Ghost Sword flashed again. This time, too, it made no sound. It left no shadow. The forearms of the four escorts, who had retreated to a defensive stance, were severed in the same instant. His sword had no blind spots.
“What are you doing, you treasonous, mad dogs?”
At the word ‘treasonous,’ the warriors finally realized the gravity of what they had done. They had grown so used to scorning the swordless fool that they had committed an unthinkable act.
The Life-Stealing Ghost Sword bared his teeth, unleashing a terrifying killing intent, a pressure so great it felt as if the gentle air of the Wongakjeong itself were freezing over.
“If you were warriors, you should have died with your swords in your hands.”
Just as his blade was about to move again, Yeon So-hyeon’s voice echoed, low and calm. “That’s enough.”
The Life-Stealing Ghost Sword froze his attack, but he did not lower his sword. Seeing this, Yeon So-hyeon spoke again.
“No one takes a life within the Wongakjeong. That is the inviolable law set by my mother, the great lady of this house.”
The Life-Stealing Ghost Sword immediately sheathed his sword.
The steward began to foam at the mouth. “G-Grand Young Master! Do you really think you can get away with harming Elder Yeom’s warriors?!”
“Yes.”
Yeon So-hyeon grabbed the steward by the collar and backhanded him across the face. Though he had not infused the blow with internal energy, he was the wielder of the Scripture that Commands the Dark and Quakes the Heavens. As the Medicine King had said, he was no longer human. He was a being capable of ripping a man limb from limb with his bare strength alone.
The steward’s cheek split open, and a shower of teeth flew through the air. Yeon So-hyeon looked down with indifferent eyes at the man, who was now dangling from his grip.
“My mother said not to kill.”
His palm struck the steward’s face again. The few remaining teeth flew out in a fine red mist.
“And I am certain that Elder Yeom will say nothing, even if I cripple not only his warriors, but a steward who doesn’t know his place.”
His palm struck the steward a third time. Now, one side of the steward’s face was a bloody ruin, his cheekbone caved in, one of his eyeballs burst and leaking fluid.
“Do you know why?”
The question was directed at the steward, but the man had already lost consciousness.
“I… I do not know, Grand Young Master.” It was one of the wounded warriors who answered, clutching at his severed forearm.
Yeon So-hyeon smiled at him. “Because Elder Yeom knows the value of his own name. As lacking as I may seem, he is a man more than capable of calculating that his name is worth less than mine.” Yeon So-hyeon bared his teeth at the warriors. “So what is the conclusion?”
The warriors could not answer.
Yeon So-hyeon’s palm struck the steward again. An ear was torn off, and the skin was ripped away, exposing the shattered cheekbone beneath.
“The conclusion is that this man was lying.”
Yeon So-hyeon shook the limp body of the steward at the speechless warriors. “And even if he wasn’t, it doesn’t matter.” A sliver of his killing intent leaked out, and a cold that was incomparable to that of the Life-Stealing Ghost Sword washed over them. “Elder or not, I will turn him into the same state as this man here.”
As everyone stood frozen, it was Jeong-ah who stepped forward. “…Master.”
Yeon So-hyeon sighed and withdrew his killing intent. But he did not release the steward. He spoke to the warriors. “Are you worried I’ll break my mother’s rule? Don’t be.” He chuckled. “Because there are two of the greatest physicians in the Central Plains right here.”
Just then, the Medicine King stepped forward. “It seems Elder Yeom’s subordinate was overzealous, hoping to curry favor.” He approached Yeon So-hyeon. “I have some acquaintance with Elder Yeom, as I have been treating his daughter for a chronic illness.” The Medicine King frowned at the blood-soaked state of the courtyard. “Grand Young Master. For my sake, as an acquaintance of Elder Yeom, or if not that, then for the sake of your late mother who tended this garden, how about you let these men go?”
Yeon So-hyeon could not have failed to guess at the complex and frustrated feelings of the old man, who was trying so hard to act composed despite the shocking transformation of his grandson. He tossed the half-dead body in his hand toward the warriors.
The Medicine King addressed them. “Tell Elder Yeom that because of this unpleasant incident, it will now be difficult for me to look after his daughter any longer.”
For the men who had caused this incident, it was a death sentence. They knew Elder Yeom’s temper all too well. But they could say nothing. They bowed their heads low, hoisted the steward onto their shoulders, and departed. The Life-Stealing Ghost Sword followed them to the main gate, ensuring they had left the grounds completely.
The courtyard was silent.
After a moment, without turning around, Yeon So-hyeon spoke to the Medicine King. “This, too, is my responsibility.”
The Medicine King said nothing, waiting for him to continue.
“Because I was foolish and dull, and I allowed myself to be scorned, four of the Main Clan’s promising warriors had to pay the price for it.”
Their severed hands and forearms still lay scattered on the ground.
The Medicine King sighed and put an arm around Yeon So-hyeon’s shoulder. “…No. They simply paid the price for their own foolishness.” He squeezed his shoulder. “Come. Let’s you and this old grandfather drink until dawn.”
Yeon So-hyeon let out a short laugh. “Really? At your age, ‘drinking until dawn’? How undignified.”
“You brat! And what was that earlier, about two of the greatest physicians? I must have misheard you, right? The greatest is I, the Medicine King, alone, is it not?”
“You heard wrong. The Medicine King is the greatest in the Central Plains. I am the greatest on this continent.”
As the two of them began to bicker and made their way back inside, Jeong-ah let out a sigh of relief. She had been worried that her master’s rage would cause ‘that thing’ to emerge. It had not been long since his mind had found some stability after being eroded by the great slaughter.
She clapped her hands. “What are you all doing? Quickly, clean up this mess and prepare more food and drink for the guests.”
The triplets, who had been frozen by the lingering after-effects of Yeon So-hyeon’s killing intent, sprang into motion.
***
“What did you say?”
A massive greatsword slammed into the ground, again and again.
“Say it again.”
With every impact, the ground shook as if from an earthquake, and a thunderous boom echoed through the hall.
“I said, say it again!”
The pavilion trembled, and dust that had settled in unseen corners rained down from the ceiling.
“Why aren’t you answering?!”
The ground was now riddled with deep craters. The onlookers’ faces were pale with terror.
“My lord Elder.”
“What?”
Unable to watch any longer, his adjutant stepped forward. “As you can see, my lord, he has been dead for some time.”
Elder Yeom was panting heavily. The thing he had been repeatedly striking with his greatsword was the half-dead body of his steward. The corpse was now so horribly mangled it was impossible to tell if it had once been a man or a beast.
Staring down at the paste of bloody meat embedded in the cratered ground, Elder Yeom sighed. He slung his greatsword over his shoulder, and it flew in a gentle arc before landing perfectly in its scabbard, which was fixed to a stand. It was a sword control technique.
He then collapsed onto the floor. “…Damn it, I killed him in a fit of rage. I’m going to get an earful for this.” He looked at the four maimed warriors, who were prostrated on the floor before him. “You four, go to the Law-Enforcing Dame, confess your sins, and receive your punishment. Any of you who feel you have been wronged can request a trial by combat.”
“…We thank you for your grace!” the warriors cried out, but for some reason, they were trembling even more than when Elder Yeom had been raging. It seemed none of them dared to request a trial by combat.
Elder Yeom waved a dismissive hand. “The rest of you, get out. Only the staff officers remain.”
After the room had cleared, he spoke to the few who were left. “So the Medicine King said he will no longer be visiting?”
“According to my confirmation, my lord, his words were, ‘Due to an unpleasant incident, it will now be difficult for me to look after the young lady.’”
Elder Yeom did not bother to point out that they meant the same thing. At his level, he knew all too well how much of a difference a small change in phrasing could make.
“And here I thought the Dragon and Phoenix Assembly was going to be my biggest headache…” Elder Yeom buried his face in his hands, which were as large as a bear’s paws. “…The swordless fool, the swordless fool, that damned swordless fool!” He slammed his bare hand on the floor, and a spiderweb of cracks spread across the stone.
His voice dropped to a low growl. “There is something that these underlings have fundamentally misunderstood…”
His chief of staff prompted him. “And what is that, my lord?”
Elder Yeom answered. “The Grand Young Master wasn’t scorned because he was the swordless fool. He was called the swordless fool because he simply stood by and allowed himself to be scorned.” He looked up at the ceiling. “If he no longer stands by, then he is not the swordless fool. Then what is he?”
“He would be the Grand Young Master, my lord.”
Elder Yeom roared. “YES! THE GRAND YOUNG MASTER! Is there any bastard here who does not know where the Grand Young Master of the Great Sword Clan of Luoyang stands in the official order of precedence?! Is there any bastard who does not know the weight of that name?!”
“…We are deeply ashamed, my lord,” the staff officers said in unison, bowing their heads low.
“Then how are you educating the stewards and their underlings?!” he bellowed at them. “Re-educate all of my personnel on the chain of command! Especially the muscle-headed warriors who have nothing but sword techniques in their skulls! Double their training! If that doesn’t work, triple it!”
“Yes, my lord!” his staff officers replied in a single, loud voice.
“And find a way to bring the honored Medicine King back!” he growled, like a great mountain tiger. “And the next person who brings me a plan that involves a variable they cannot control…” He pointed a finger. All eyes turned to the lump of meat in the hole in the floor.