Chapter 29

“What is the name of your assassination group?”

At Dan Woo-sung’s question, the assassin pursed his lips before reluctantly answering.

“The Gold-Silver Murder Society. We’re divided into Gold Killers and Silver Killers. I belong to the Silver Killers.”

The name of the group was so utterly ridiculous that Dan Woo-seong let out a hollow laugh.

“What were you thinking when you came up with that name?”

“It simply means we kill for money.”

Dan Woo-sung laughed again.

“Gu Yangsheng, how much did you pay to hire all these men?”

Gu Yangsheng replied in a calm tone.

“Why do you ask?”

When he showed he didn’t want to say, Dan Woosung wiped the smile from his face.

“Is it because you still have plenty of intact body parts left? Halt the carriage for a moment.”

Knowing the Crown Prince’s temperament, Gu Yangsheng had no choice but to answer.

“Eight hundred each, totaling three thousand two hundred taels.”

Dan Wooseong, arms crossed, asked the assassin.

“Does the count add up?”

The assassin replied.

“What do you mean?”

“Is that the average pay you receive for a single job? Didn’t you say you paid eight hundred nyang per person?”

Sal-su retorted, glaring at Gu Yang-saeng.

“It’s more than usual, but still excessive.”

Dan Wuseong laughed again at Salsu’s answer. This time too, it was a laugh of utter bewilderment.

“Salsu.”

“Yes.”

“Your life’s price is included. Your group’s leader sold you all off for money. A price was set where even if Gu Yang-saeng kills you, no one will protest. How does that feel?”

Salsu’s eyes widened instantly.

The two coachmen driving the horses seemed to have heard Danwooseong’s words; they exchanged glances briefly before fixing their gaze forward again. One man spat by the roadside.

Danwooseong sneered at the assassin.

“Eight hundred for a life… What a cheap existence. Should’ve trained harder. If you were skilled, you wouldn’t be sold off for such a pittance. No, wait. They’re just mercenaries who kill for money. We shouldn’t treat them like human beings.”

Dan Woosung clapped toward Gu Yangsaeng and the assassin.

“What splendid lives you lead. You bastards…”

Clap, clap, clap.

Salsu, washing his face with one hand, stared blankly at Gu Yang-saeng sitting beside him.

Gu Yangsheng frowned and looked back at Salsu. In that instant, Salsu struck Gu Yangsheng’s face with the elbow of his right arm. Gu Yangsheng instinctively tried to block it as usual, but realized his hand wasn’t normal and took the blow to the face.

Thud.

That was the end of it. Dan Woosung was watching, after all.

Dan Woosung chuckled softly.

“The underdog striking the superior. Life is truly unpredictable. Have you seen the leader?”

“No.”

“What kind of man was he?”

The assassin, now an internal informant, reported everything he knew.

“He’s a wealthy man to begin with, and there’s even talk that the Gold and Silver Assassination Society isn’t run as a hobby. It’s a cell organization where each member has their own rank, and we can only meet our immediate superior, the squad leader. We don’t know who’s above the squad leader, how many there are, or where they are. We could use the money we earn to train assassins ourselves, but each person takes responsibility for themselves.”

Dan Woo-sung replied.

“It’ll be difficult to catch the leader.”

“Yes.”

“Understood.”

Dan Wooseong returned to being the silent man and did not speak. The assassin, who had been staring blankly at the long-dead comrade, asked Dan Wooseong.

“Are we going to die too?”

Dan Woo-seong answered after a long pause.

“Why are you asking that, assassin?”

The assassin had no real answer.

.

.

.

“We’ve arrived.”

They barely ate one meal a day, changed horses three times, and buried one corpse along the way.

Yet the three surviving assassins and Gu Yangsheng arrived at the Murong clan’s residence alongside Dan Wuxing, unable to escape.

“Enter.”

Stepping out of the carriage, Danwooseong addressed the assassins and Gu Yangsaeng from the rear. When the assassins knocked on the main gate, servants emerged. Upon spotting the haggard-looking Gu Yangsaeng, they gasped in shock.

“Master Gu Yang!”

A man ran off to inform the Murong family head.

Arriving at the Murong family, with whom he still had some connection, Gu Yangsheng felt as if a glimmer of hope had appeared.

After all, blood is thicker than water…

The three assassins sighed before leading Gu Yangsheng into the Murong family compound. Dan Wuxing glanced around once before entering the Murong family compound, renowned for its high-minded pride.

Dan Wuseong sent his traveling companions into the main hall first, then strolled alone, taking in the Murong clan estate. When the outsider entered, those training like soldiers halted their movements and stared blankly at Dan Wuseong.

Though some say his ancestors were Xianbei, he now seemed no different from the martial artists of the Central Plains, as if that was merely an ancient tale.

When Dan Wuseong entered the main hall, the assassins stood in the corner like sacks of barley placed there, while Gu Yangsheng sat in a chair as if he were a guest.

The guards had been wearing expressions of utter intimidation by the might of the Murong clan all the way here.

Amidst the crowd surging out from the inner hall, one man exclaimed in alarm.

“My lord, what on earth is happening?”

Before Gu Yangsheng could say anything, the crowd fell silent, parting to the left and right to wait quietly. Last of all, the head of the Murong clan, Murong Bin, stepped out.

He was only thirty-two, much younger than Gu Yangsheng, and had not held the position of head of the Murong clan for very long. His appearance was neat and composed, his temperament calm; even upon receiving urgent news, his expression remained unchanged.

Murong Bin, unable to sit down, asked Gu Yangsheng.

“Senior Gu Yang, what has happened? How did your hand come to this?”

Though Gu Yangsheng was his senior in the martial world, Murong Bin held a higher rank within the Imperial Council.

Gu Yangsheng hesitated to speak himself, glancing involuntarily at Dan Wuxing.

Murong Bin’s gaze then turned toward Dan Wusheng.

“I am Murong Bin. Pleased to make your acquaintance.”

Dan Woo-sung was inwardly flustered, but introduced himself briefly in a calm tone.

The Murong family head Dan Woo-seong knew was not Murong Bin, but his presumed father, Murong Choo (慕容秋). However, Murong Choo was nowhere to be seen; it seemed his son, Murong Bin, was the family head. Having suddenly brought Gu Yang-saeng along, he couldn’t ask about his family circumstances in such a setting.

Murong Bin asked.

“You two should explain how you came to be here.”

Dan Woosung replied.

“First, let’s hear what the Gu family head has to say. Speak.”

Dan Wuxing looked at Gu Yangsheng.

Murong Bin grabbed Gu Yangsheng’s shoulder and looked down at his arm as he spoke.

“This needs treatment quickly. Senior Gu Yang, tell me what happened.”

Gu Yangsheng was speechless, looking like a person who had lost his mind. Sensing something was off, Murong Bin turned to look at Dan Wuxing.

“You’ll have to explain. Why did the Grand Prince of the Merchant Guild personally escort Senior Gu Yang here?”

Dan Woosung briefly explained the key points of the earlier incident, then looked at the three members of the Golden Silver Assassin Guild waiting nearby.

“…These are the men hired by Gu Yangsheng.”

As the Murong clan warriors listening murmured, Murong Bin spoke.

“Be quiet.”

Murong Bin asked Gu Yangsheng.

“Senior Gu Yang, is it true?”

Gu Yangsheng seemed utterly flabbergasted, closing his eyes and bowing his head. How could he possibly deny what he had done? And now that it was out in the open, how could he possibly seek help from the Murong clan?

Unless Murong Bin decided alone to kill every outsider present, there was no solution.

Opening his eyes, Gu Yangsheng looked up at Murong Bin and said.

“It’s true. Won’t you help me? I will make you the next Emperor of the Imperial Clan. The entire Gu family will support you. Please consider this matter carefully. I endured the humiliation of making this request and came all the way here.”

Murong Bin looked at Dan Wuseong with a flustered expression.

Dan Wuseong had been listening to Gu Yangsheng’s words with a sneer on his lips.

Murong Shao, the second-in-command of the Murong Clan who had been listening silently until now, spoke up.

“What exactly are we supposed to help with? The situation has reached this point. The Martial Alliance will laugh at us. Brother.”

Murong Bin did not respond to his younger brother’s words, instead gazing at Danwuseong.

“What brought the young master of the Eunha Trading Guild here? Was it to report the situation, fearing future repercussions?”

Dan Woosung slowly approached Murong Bin and asked.

“What would Lord Murong have done? Had I been in his position.”

Murong Bin watched Dan Woosung approach, his thoughts racing.

‘If someone plotted to exterminate them and frame me… there’s no solution but to kill him. But the eyes of the Gu family and the martial world remain. I would have saved Gu Yangsheng first and reported the situation to the Martial Alliance or the Imperial Council.’

Moyong Bin, quickly grasping the situation, replied.

“I would have done the same as you. Killing was not the answer.”

Dan Woo-sung nodded.

“Then it seems the long journey was worthwhile.”

Murong Bin looked at Gu Yangsheng and said.

“······Senior, why on earth did you do that?”

Gu Yangsheng retorted with a dazed expression.

“Didn’t you just mock me?”

“When did I ever laugh at you?”

Gu Yangsheng bellowed.

Upon hearing news of the martial contest! Upon hearing rumors that the young master of the merchant guild had been defeated! Did not all the clan heads laugh at the gathering? How could the young masters of the Sega clan possibly lose to the son of a merchant guild! I have sinned! Because of your mockery!

Gu Yangsheng leapt to his feet, then thrust his head forward as if to throw himself against the wall.

At that moment, Murong Bin suddenly appeared and grabbed Gu Yangsheng’s shoulder.

“If you do that, this Murong Bin will be the one pointed at.”

Murong Bin pressed Gu Yangsheng’s pressure point, putting him to sleep, then addressed the Sega warriors.

“Take him away and lock him up. Watch him closely to make sure he doesn’t die. And Murong Xiao.”

“Yes.”

Murong Bin pointed at the three assassins.

“Take them away. Same as before. Keep watch.”

“Yes.”

Murong Xiao subtly revealed his prayer beads as he approached the three assassins alone. He gestured with his head and said,

“It’s easier for both you and me if you come along unharmed.”

Murong Bin waved his hand dismissively, sending the men away, then addressed Dan Wuseong.

“Your Highness, please sit. My hospitality has been wretched. I apologize.”

As Dan Woosung approached and sat at the table, Murong Bin sat opposite him and stared intently.

‘Where on earth did this fellow suddenly appear from?’

Murong Bin seemed equally intrigued by Dan Woosung. Murong Bin spoke.

“Your Highness, if my actions seem out of line, please instruct me. I cannot kill Gu Yangsheng with my own hands. Doing so would mean I bear the burden you feared. But I will handle it within reason. The Imperial Council is no place for such a man to cling to. You have suffered greatly.”

“What do you intend to do?”

Murong Bin sighed.

“In any case, the Martial Alliance is better suited to handle this than we are. Shifting the Gu family’s resentment onto the Martial Alliance is the way for the Young Master and me to find peace. I will consult with the other family heads as well. The Imperial Association will certainly suffer a blow, but it is not a matter more important than honor.”

At the mention of “Gaju,” Danwooseong asked about something that had been puzzling him.

“Though it may not be the most appropriate question…”

“Please speak freely.”

“I wonder if the former head of the Murong clan, Murong Chui, performed the golden basin ritual (a martial artist’s retirement ceremony).”

Murong Bin stared at Dan Woosung. A strange silence flowed before Murong Bin spoke.

“Your Highness, are martial world news slow to reach you?”

“Indeed.”

“Father has been missing for over a year now. Not quite two years yet. There are more people stationed at the main house than usual. They’re still sending people out to search. I live as an unfilial son.”

Danwooseong let out a sigh so long it was rare to see. The timing of the disappearance coincided with the moment Danwooseong was reborn. That meant it wasn’t a disappearance at all—it meant that Murong Chui had died alongside the King of Gwon at that time.

ⓒ Yoo Jin-seong

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