Twelve years ago
That memory was still vivid in my mind. The servant who had passed me the medicine.
When I was just eight years old I didn’t have a strong enough constitution to handle raw medicine. Even if the effects were reduced, in order for me to consume some, it had to be refined.
But after taking the medication from the servant, I fell victim to medicinal poisoning.
The Mistress had asked her servants to find the culprit, but the case ended without any results, all because this servant had somehow vanished into thin air.
“W-what are you talking about?” shocked, her face quickly paled.
Who hadn’t known that the servant was from the Peony Pavilion? Everyone knew who the culprit was, even her husband, the Lord.
“Did you think I would forget?”
She was shocked at my cold voice and tried to make excuses.
“I think you misunderstood something, but that was…”
“The servant was from the Peony Pavilion and used a medicine that was too raw on the third son of this family, do you think some ordinary person could do that?”
“D-don’t come near me!”
She began to step back. Me expressing my anger must have given her a sense of intimidation.
But it didn’t matter
“Are you afraid?”
“I-I that. That wasn’t me.”
“You are disgusting till the end.”
Trying to get out of what she did was horrible enough. She does all such kinds of things for the sake of her son, and now she acts like a sacrificing mother.
I took a step forward.
“Do not come closer!”
She began to wave her palms telling me to not approach and trying to block my advance.
If she had reflected on what she did and apologized to me that day things would have been better.
After all, one was only human.
“You don’t want me to covet your son’s place? That is quite funny.”
If I was weak or had nothing to do with the Southern Heavenly Swordsman, I wouldn’t have been treated like this.
She would have beaten me and kicked me out again like in the past.
As she stepped back biting her lip she said,
“Do you think you can become the representative of the family if you threaten me?”
Was she finally revealing her true colors?
Right, pretending to be afraid doesn’t suit you. And I told her,
“Do whatever you want. Whether you tell the Lord or not.”
“What?”
“Instead I will also let everyone know.”
“Everyone know?”
“Let everyone know what kind of woman is hiding behind the name of the Ikyang So family. I wonder what the warriors and families of Murim would say if they found out a grown woman tried to hurt a kid who couldn’t even defend himself.”
Her expression stiffened at my words.
She must have thought that I would get angry and do something which she could use against me, but I was not that stupid.
“I am warning you. If you understand what I am saying, do not look for me for such useless reasons.”
Finally, I was about to leave the room when she grabbed my clothes.
“W-wait!”
Pak!
I coldly pushed her away and but then–
Pss
I glanced up as some powder fell down from the ceiling.
‘Hiding.’
The servants were sent out, but a hidden presence was inside the room.
Perhaps her own personal escort. The person who was hiding their presence until now must have felt disturbed and let their presence leak out.
And I spoke to the one hiding above,
“I do not intend to harm your master, so you can come out.”
Madame looked shocked. She must have thought that I wouldn’t have noticed
Well, I was done so I could finally head back now.
Thud!
The floor shook when someone jumped down.
The person had a slender form and a mask on, but looking at their chest it was clear she was a woman.
“Escort Jo.”
Madame was shocked at how I identified her with her appearance obscured.
The masked woman who was called Escort Jo took off her mask and told me,
“Escort Jo Ga who serves Madame greets the disciple of the Southern Heavenly Swordsman.”
She was older than I had thought. She looked to be in her 40s or 50s and from the expression on her face, she seemed to have a lot to say.
Of course, I had nothing to hear.
I was ignoring her and tried to open the door when she said,
“I was the servant who poisoned the Young Master on that day.”
‘…!?’
My hand reaching for the door stopped and I turned to look back,
“What do you mean?”
“… Madame didn’t know until later.”
“… didn’t know until later?”
I looked at Madame.
Her expression was complicated and the escort knelt down and said,
“It was all done by my own thoughts. I couldn’t accept someone who wasn’t of decent birth trying to push the other young masters.”
“Ha!”
There was no surprise to this.
So what had happened wasn’t an order but done on the accord of a mere servant?
I had to doubt this. Even if I didn’t have a decent birth, I was still one of the children who carried the blood of the Lord. Was it possible for a servant to hate it that much?
“You, are you from the Jo family?”
“…”
The escort didn’t answer which confirmed she was.
The Jo family was the home of Madame, and that said, if the escort also had Jo in her name, she must have been an escort brought from Madame’s family.
“Then can it be said that what had happened at that time was because of the Jo family?”
She was shocked at this accusation,
“No. As I said, it was all on my own accord.”
Was this woman trying to take the punishment on her alone? The lack of information made it tough to make a decision.
Perhaps she had said this to protect her Madame,
“I have been with Madame since she was a child in her parent’s house and I couldn’t watch someone who I considered a true sister worry over someone like you. So I did what she wouldn’t do.”
“And you did that?”
“I wanted you to know that this has nothing to do with my Madame. I am sorry and if you punish me, I will simply accept it.”
Thud!
She banged her head on the ground. Was she sacrificing herself?
Well, this was quite the loyal cat.
And Madame covered for her escort and said,
“No! That was something I ordered! Escort Jo is lying to you out of loyalty, there is no need to listen to this nonsense.”
“Madame!”
Surprisingly, both insisted on taking the blame, it seemed like Madame wanted to protect her escort.
-Amazing. Simply amazing.
Short Sword clicked her tongue.
I shared a similar sentiment. She was a woman who was just so horrible to me. Yet, for the sake of her people, she was willing to sacrifice herself?
“Haa.”
I sighed.
Judging from this, it seemed like her wickedness came from malice, and not some innate nature.
She knew how to care for her people, and how to make sacrifices too, and she looked quite comfortable doing it.
Now Madame was speaking with tears in her eyes.
“It was something I did, leave my escort and children alone. If you want to be angry at someone, blame me!”
“No! This is something I did. Madame is lying to protect me!”
“No! Didn’t I say it was me?”
Looking at them I shook my head. This made it look like I was the villain.
I spoke to the two,
“I am the one who will turn into a villain if I do anything.”
At my words, the two of them looked shocked.
As if they could feel that the issue was being resolved, they looked at me with a bit of emotion.
And I said to them with a smile,
“… is what you thought I would say?”
‘…!?’
Pak!
“Huh!”
As soon as I finished it, I pushed them to the side and then kicked the escort in her chin
“Kuak!”
She fell to the ground as she got hit with my internal qi.
Confused, she tried to get back up, but I quickly touched her blood points.
Madame looked a bit shocked,
“W-what are you doing?”
“The friendship between you and the escort seems nice but it isn’t something you should be bragging about in front of the victim.”
“You!”
“The bottom line is that you knew about it right?”
My words made her speechless.
Such a funny woman.
She knew who had done it but decided to close her eyes to the truth. How could such a beautiful friendship be grounded in such evil?
I couldn’t hear the escort move as I sealed her blood point,
“Fine. I believe you. Then you need to pay for it.”
I put my hand on the escort’s stomach making her eyes widen. Madame tried to pull me off but it was too late.
Pang!
“Eummmmm!”
I could see the blood vessels bulge up and her eyes shut in pain.
I had just destroyed her dantian. Well, she was the one who had just admitted to the crimes committed against me, so she had to pay the right price.
“You dirty trash!”
Madame couldn’t hide her anger and her true colors were revealed.
“It is good that you know to take care of your own people.”
There were two guests from the Mount Hyeong Sect here, so everyone would want these private matters to go smoothly.
I pulled something out of my pocket, they were two small beads.
I forced open the mouth of the escort and placed a pill in, and then I covered her nose so that she was forced to swallow.
“You! What have you done?”
I threw the other one at madame who accidentally caught it, and I said,
“Have this.”
“What? Eat it?”
“Poison pill.”
‘…!!’
At my words, she panicked not knowing what to do. In the first place, there wasn’t anyone who could take the role of representing warrior of the Ikyang So family.
And when there is the best solution there is also the second best and the worst one too.
“Y-you are crazy! Are you telling a person to eat poison pills?”
“You should eat it.”
“What?”
“If not, I am about to take this one to the Lord and say that I found the culprit to the past issue. That is nice. At the same time, there are a lot of guests right now.”
At my words, she began to contemplate. If that were the case she knew what would happen.
She hesitated as she held the pill to her lip.
“You, don’t you know what will happen? You are someone trying to take the top place in the world and plunge your own home into chaos?”
I smiled at her and said,
“Then I will be quite happy.”
‘…?!’
At my words, she trembled as if a chill had run down her spine.
I feel really happy now.
For giving me a reason to use the worst thing I had prepared.
