Abolition of the Wicked - Chapter 245

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#Chapter 245

Ma-o-ryang’s face crumpled like parchment.
“In all my years, I’ve never taken a commission for a single silver coin!”
“One silver coin and your life—that’s the commission fee. You think that’s cheap?”
The youth held the strings of his life in his hands, so the words weren’t wrong.
“If I accept the commission, you’ll let me go without complaint?”
“Only after you succeed.”
“The moment I accept a commission, success is all but guaranteed.”
“And yet you couldn’t escape from me.”
Ma-o-ryang’s face flushed red, but he found no words to throw back. The youth turned and spoke.
“Come to the inn where I’m staying within three double hours. You can take your time this round—no need to rush.”
With that, the youth vanished. It was a movement so ghostly it caught even Ma-o-ryang off guard.
‘Should I just run? Make a break for it?’
That the youth had simply walked away meant he had confidence he could catch him again.
“Sniff, sniff!”
Ma-o-ryang knew well that one could track a person by scent. It was a method he himself used often enough.
But though he caught the scent of the youth’s body, his bundle, and its contents, nothing lingered on the air.
“Does he really possess some divine technique?”
There was no other way to explain it. Though unexplained mysteries were as mysterious as divine techniques anyway.
“Ha! My nose has been completely fooled.”
Ma-o-ryang put the Golden Buddha Statue and the Palgak-gyeong that he’d taken out back into his bundle. Then, struck by a sudden thought, he retrieved the Palgak-gyeong again and set it on a flat rock.
He knew that finding Hwa-ryong Seonin’s secret techniques using only the Palgak-gyeong was impossible.
He needed the Cheon-gwang-an to fit into the Palgak-gyeong’s aperture. Yet in the past four hundred years, not a single person had laid eyes on a Cheon-gwang-an directly.
So he didn’t know what that object looked like. He could only infer its shape from the Palgak-gyeong that occasionally appeared.
“I feel like I’ve seen this pattern before somewhere…”
Ma-o-ryang touched the sharp-edged hole in the center of the Palgak-gyeong and reached back through his memories.
After turning the problem over in his mind for a quarter hour, a sudden gasp escaped his lips.
Long ago—so long he couldn’t remember when—he had once stolen a jewel.
Truth be told, he hadn’t meant to steal it; it had just ended up in his possession alongside something else. And he wasn’t even certain it was a jewel at all.
It gleamed, but not with the character of diamond or amber. Hard, oddly shaped—it had merely stirred his curiosity. He’d never managed to determine what it truly was.
“I threw it somewhere in the warehouse, I think.”
The shape of that forgotten jewel stirred vaguely at the edge of his recollection.
When he held that half-remembered form up against the hole in the center of the Palgak-gyeong, it seemed to fit.
Of course, the memory was hazy; he could be wrong. But the possibility slumbered somewhere in his warehouse.
“I might actually obtain Hwa-ryong Seonin’s Heavenly Dragon Sword Technique!”
The flush of hope evaporated in an instant, drained by despair. There was no way to keep the Palgak-gyeong. Within three double hours, he had to surrender it to that mysterious youth.
‘But it’s not as though I have no chance at all.’
Once he saved his life, he could steal it again. He’d failed once, but if a second opportunity came, he was confident he could succeed.
‘I just need to learn how that cursed boy tracked me down.’
For now, he’d move according to the youth’s wishes while searching for the answer. Ma-o-ryang turned and retraced his steps.
He couldn’t deploy his Lightness Technique at full power like he had in flight, so three double hours wasn’t as generous as it seemed.
Only after running quite hard did Ma-o-ryang arrive at the inn where the youth was staying.
They’d chased through the night, and by the time he returned, the sun was high and clear in the sky.
“Good—you arrived right on time.”
The youth stretched like someone who’d slept deeply all night, then descended to the dining hall.
“You must be famished. Let’s get some food into you first.”
“I’m not thinking about food. I want to finish this business quickly.”
“We do this work for our daily bread, but you still have to eat.”
Ma-o-ryang gulped down his meal as if chewing sand. The youth carried himself with the ease of a seasoned Murim martial artist who’d wandered the Gangho for half a century.
Back in the room, Ma-o-ryang had to hand over the Palgak-gyeong and the Golden Buddha Statue from his bundle with due reverence.
“Wait here for me. I’ll be back within one double hour.”
With that, the youth—Geom U-bin—left the inn and set his course toward Kil Sang-do’s estate.
As he walked, the scent of Beast Scent Marking drifted to him. Even though he’d applied the scent in two other places besides the Palgak-gyeong, he could sense the distance it carried.
What Geom U-bin detected was wafting from ten paces away.
There was only one person who could be giving off the Beast Scent Marking now—Ma-o-ryang. Geom U-bin had slipped it onto Ma-o-ryang during their fight.
Having circled around the stone-built wall, Geom U-bin slipped inside the estate, then descended behind Ma-o-ryang, who was following him.
“You don’t believe me when I say I can find you anywhere?”
Ma-o-ryang’s heart seized with fright—he feared it might stop altogether.
“Ah, no, that is… I wasn’t following you, Master. I simply had some business in town—”
“Let’s make this simple. I get what I want, you keep your life. Fair?”
“Of—of course, Master. Your words are absolutely right.”
Geom U-bin turned his steps back toward the estate, and Ma-o-ryang dared not follow him again.
When Geom U-bin met Kil Sang-do, he produced the Palgak-gyeong first.
“You’ve truly brought it back.”
“Of course. And—”
As Geom U-bin withdrew the Golden Buddha Statue from his bundle, Kil Sang-do’s eyes widened to the size of lanterns.
“You found the Golden Buddha!”
The moment Kil Sang-do reached out, Geom U-bin snatched it away.
“When something goes out, something must come back.”
“What do you want?”
“When you purchased this Buddha, you didn’t pay in silver coins, did you?”
A hundred thousand taels, or close to it—far too much to hand over in coin.
“Of course I paid by draft.”
“I want to know which money exchange issued that draft, and its number.”
“Why would—?”
“You get your statue, I learn what I need to know. A simple transaction. No need to complicate it.”
There was nothing in telling him the exchange and draft number that would harm Kil Sang-do.
“The Dong-hwa Money Exchange. The draft number is Bing 370357.”
“And the amount?”
“Eighty thousand taels.”
“You’re certain it was eighty thousand?”
“Without question.”
“Where is the Dong-hwa Money Exchange that issued it?”
“The main branch of the Dong-hwa Money Exchange in Hwa-il-ru.”
Having learned all he needed, Geom U-bin recovered the hundred thousand taels, left the two items behind, and returned to the inn.
Ma-o-ryang, thoroughly chastened, waited quietly in his room for Geom U-bin’s return.
“Judging by the empty bundle, you’ve sold the Buddha and the mirror to someone.”
“I returned them to their rightful owner.”
Geom U-bin spoke the truth. Ma-o-ryang would surely have tried to steal them again, but now that concern was no longer his.
“Now, shall we discuss the matter of your life?”
Ma-o-ryang straightened in his chair.
“What do you want from me?”
“I want you to go into the Dong-hwa Money Exchange and trace a draft for me.”
“A draft?”
“Yes. A draft issued by Kil Sang-do, master of Kil Myeongseong House. Normally, drafts of ten thousand taels or more are recorded with the issuer’s name, date, and time of issue. When the draft is exchanged for coin, both the money exchange where it was converted and the person who converted it are recorded in the ledger. An eighty-thousand-tael draft would certainly leave a mark in their books.”
“The vault where they keep the ledgers is no easy place to breach—”
“I spared your life and told you where the Buddha and mirror are. Now you’re trying to negotiate with me?”
It was only a tentative probe, but Geom U-bin’s stern look made Ma-o-ryang wave his hands in alarm.
“No, I was merely stating a fact. But must I check it myself? Why not simply bring the ledger out?”
Examining the ledger in its vault risked discovery far more than removing it entirely.
“You’d have to return it afterward.”
“That’s better. They don’t inspect such ledgers daily.”
“Then bring me the ledgers from eight—no, seven years ago through six years ago.”
Geom U-bin was generous with the timeframe, not knowing exactly when. Few people issued ten-thousand-tael drafts; the books would number no more than two.
Ma-o-ryang rose from his chair as if to leave at once. “When this is done, will you promise not to come looking for me again?”
“I can’t guarantee what the future holds, but I promise you this won’t lead me to seek you out again.”
“I’ll return within one double hour.”
True to his word, Ma-o-ryang returned well before the double hour had passed, carrying a single ledger.
One ledger seemed odd, but it was thick as a finger and contained what would normally be two or three ordinary books.
The ledger was organized for easy reference, with entries classified by the stroke count of the issuer’s surname.
‘Kil—that’s six strokes,’ Geom U-bin thought.
Kil Sang-do’s name was found without difficulty. He had issued far more drafts than anyone else at the Dong-hwa Money Exchange in Hwa-il-ru.
The eighty-thousand-tael draft caught his eye at once. Bing 370357. After confirming the number, he moved his finger to the right.
There it was: the date and time the draft had been converted to cash, the location where it was exchanged, and the name of the person who exchanged it.

‘A banknote from the Dong-hwa Money Exchange in Shanxi Province Taiyuan was exchanged for cash? And the person who did the exchanging was named Seo-il?’
It wasn’t Kang Chu-seom or Jeon Hwang-gil, but since creating an alias wasn’t difficult, there was no reason to despair prematurely.
Geom U-bin handed the ledger to Ma-o-ryang.
“I believe our business here is concluded, then.”
“Tell me — how did you find me?”
Geom U-bin smiled and spoke.
“Trade secret.”
Ma-o-ryang hadn’t expected Geom U-bin to offer a forthright answer.
“Then just tell me this: if you wanted to find me again in the future, could you?”
“Of course.”
“Truly?”
“I cannot claim to be someone who speaks only truth, but on this matter I speak plainly: if I set my mind to finding you, I could certainly do it within ten days at the latest.”
“How? Ah, that’s another trade secret, I suppose. Damn.”
He bristled at being manipulated by some untested youth whose name he didn’t even know, but in the Murim, strength was law.
“You truly returned the Palgak-gyeong to Kil Sang-do?”
“Along with the Golden Buddha Statue.”
“You haven’t done him a favor — you’ve thrown a calamity at his feet.”
“What do you mean?”
“Have you forgotten that the Palgak-gyeong is such a treasure of the Murim that even I covet it?”
“There aren’t many who know that Lord Kil possesses the Palgak-gyeong….”
Geom U-bin trailed off, shaking his head.
“But I know, you know, and Nam Cheon-yang — the one who gave you the information — knows it too. The secret’s already leaking from everywhere.”
“It won’t take long for misfortune to reach Nam Cheon-yang either.”
Geom U-bin found himself caught in a dilemma. He could have simply feigned ignorance.
But innocent Kil Sang-do might well die simply because Geom U-bin had come looking for him.
Greed for treasures and riches — that was human nature, yet not cause enough for death.
And he couldn’t stay here indefinitely to protect Kil Sang-do.
‘I should at least warn him.’
Geom U-bin headed toward the Kil Myeongseong House. But Ma-o-ryang, who had already finished his business, trailed along after him.
“I thought our business was concluded?”
“Our paths simply happen to run the same direction.”
As they stepped out of the Commercial District and walked along the main avenue lined with houses, three figures blocked Geom U-bin’s path.
All appeared to be in their mid-thirties, and each bore a sword slung across his back.
“We are called the Three Jangsa Sword Masters.”
Judging by the epithet, they were martial artists operating in Jangsa.
“We heard that you possess something that does not belong to you, and came to inquire.”
“Are you speaking of the Palgak-gyeong?”
When Geom U-bin spoke the name so easily, the Three Jangsa Sword Masters nodded only after a moment’s pause.
“Yes.”
“And who is the rightful owner of the Palgak-gyeong?”
“We are, of course — descendants of Hwa-ryong Seonin.”
“You claim to be descendants of Hwa-ryong Seonin?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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