Abolition of the Wicked - Chapter 69

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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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#Episode 69

How could anyone possibly guess the right color when there were so many shades in the world?
Do Pyeong-su slumped in sudden disappointment, and the other three looked down at their hands.
Geom U-bin knew the favorite color of all four of them, yet none of them had any idea what his was.
‘We didn’t know him well enough. Our affection was lacking.’
Cutting through Yeon Geum-hong’s self-reproach, Seo Seok-san’s cautious voice emerged.
“What color do you favor, Master?”
“Purple!”
“Do Pyeong-su, be quiet!”
“Right.”
There was not a trace of resentment on Geom U-bin’s face, only a faint smile.
What a good-hearted master!
“My favorite color is… gray.”
They were all surprised. Gray was a color as rarely loved as the black that Yeon Geum-hong preferred.
“But why do you favor such a dull color?”
Seo Seok-san elbowed Do Pyeong-su in the ribs as he asked.
“It’s our master’s taste.”
“Well, Jang Man-dok likes pink, so I suppose there’s no accounting for preferences… though I’m still curious.”
“Did you know? If you mix the white that Do Pyeong-su loves, the black that Yeon Geum-hong loves, the pale ochre that Seo Seok-san loves, and the pink that Jang Man-dok loves, you get gray. That’s when I started loving it.”
The Bloodwind Four Lions fell silent, staring at Geom U-bin.
None of them had imagined it could be for such a reason.
Until now, they had believed they cherished and loved and cared for Geom U-bin more than he did them.
But Geom U-bin had been loving the Bloodwind Four Lions far more deeply than he let show.
Tears streamed down Do Pyeong-su’s cheeks.
No one reproached him for crying like a man. Not even Yeon Geum-hong.
“Since I lost the wager, you all have to answer my questions honestly now. First, Yeon Geum-hong!”
Yeon Geum-hong, startled, quickly asked with expectant eyes.
“Master, what do you want to know? It seems like you already know everything about me?”
“Come now, how could I know everything? There’s still this one thing. When was your first kiss, and with whom?”
“Master! That’s an improper question to ask a lady! Especially one who’s barely thirteen years old!”
“Improper for an old woman? Nonsense! You made a promise—now keep it! When was it?”
Seo Seok-san asked even more eagerly.
“I’ll never tell you lot!”
Yeon Geum-hong sent Telepathic Communication to Geom U-bin, and he looked startled.
“That soon?”
“I matured rather quickly.”
Seo Seok-san erupted.
“Master! That’s foul play! You have to answer with your words! Not Telepathic Communication!”
“I made a promise with Master, not with you lot!”
“Fine! I’ll only tell Master too! Master, ask me something.”
At Seo Seok-san’s words, Geom U-bin pondered for a moment before asking.
“Of all the women you’ve met, who have you loved most, or do you love now?”
“Well… there have been so many…”
“You can’t have loved the most in multiple people.”
“I suppose not.”
“You promised to be honest.”
Yeon Geum-hong spoke with obvious disapproval.
“Does that man even know what love is?”
“He does. No one in this world has loved as deeply as Seo Seok-san.”
After hesitating, Seo Seok-san finally spoke a name through Telepathic Communication.
“I see. So that’s how it is.”
“What? Master, do you know that name?”
“It’s a secret. I must protect Seo Seok-san’s secret.”
Yeon Geum-hong was disappointed but couldn’t press further.
The gathering that had been arranged to learn about Geom U-bin’s treasure box had quietly become nothing more than a joyful time together.
One corner of Oseong Jang-won echoed with laughter late into the night.

***

“I don’t think you’ve been stealing and drinking the alcohol. But it’s definitely disappearing, bit by bit.”
Hyeolpung Saja was certain, yet Hang Ju-sa-byeon understood nothing—it was maddening.
O Tong-su spoke carefully.
“Could it be natural evaporation?”
“No.”
“I see.”
Once he’d said no, there was no point in saying more—it would only invite a beating.
“Find out what’s happening within four days. That is your task.”
“Yes, understood.”
Hang Ju-sa-byeon’s voice lacked conviction. How could they discover the reason for the alcohol’s disappearance when they hadn’t noticed it themselves?
‘Who’s been stealing and drinking it, little by little?’
If the alcohol was gone, that had to be the reason.
But was it possible that someone could slip into Oseong Jang-won, a fortress like Yongdamho Hyeol, and steal the alcohol without detection?
“Could one of the workers at Oseong Jang-won be stealing and drinking it in secret?”
At Se-hwa’s words, Gang Seo Samak nodded as well.
Though they kept the brewery locked, there were plenty of people who could open a lock without a key.
“Starting today, let’s take turns standing night watch duty.”

***

Geom U-bin rose from his bed.
Jang Man-dok watched him. He trained. Seo Seok-san watched him. He ate. The Hyeolpung Saja stared at nothing but the movement of his chopsticks.
He went to the outhouse.
He trembled with fear that someone might ask him to choose between red paper and blue paper.
He went to bed.
Yeon Geum-hong watched him with a sharp gaze, as if she could peer even into his dreams.
He’d never realized how burdensome it would be to have someone watching him constantly, from the moment he woke until he slept.
Eventually, Geom U-bin called the Hyeolpung Saja together.
“Masters, why are you watching me all day long?”
Do Pyeong-su jumped up in protest.
“Watching? We’ve done nothing of the sort!”
“But you were looking at me.”
“Yes. We were looking.”
“That’s watching.”
“Well… is it? It seems we’ve made you uncomfortable.”
“Very much so.”
“We only wanted to know you better.”
Geom U-bin stared at the Hyeolpung Saja for a moment, then asked.
“There’s something you’re curious about but haven’t dared to ask me, isn’t there?”
As always, Geom U-bin possessed a remarkable talent for reading the human heart.
Yeon Geum-hong decided to ask directly instead.
“Your treasure box.”
Geom U-bin looked confused at first, then suddenly remembered with an “Ah!”
“You heard from the other disciples, then?”
“We’re curious what’s inside it, and we thought we knew everything about you, but learning that you have secrets—it was quite a shock.”
Geom U-bin scratched the bridge of his nose with an embarrassed expression.
“What’s in the box truly is a treasure to me, but I’m too ashamed to tell you all about it.”
“What could possibly embarrass you before us? We’ve seen you naked.”
“Master Yeon…”
“Goodness, why are you blushing like that?”
Seo Seok-san gave Yeon Geum-hong a reproachful look.
“Old woman, stop talking nonsense and be quiet! Brother, so what treasure is in that box?”
“Well… it’s difficult to explain. I’ll show you directly instead.”
They moved to Geom U-bin’s room. Watching him retrieve the box from beneath his bed, Do Pyeong-su remarked.
“If it’s a treasure, you should hide it somewhere deeper.”
“It’s only a treasure to me.”
Geom U-bin placed a box on the table.
“I was planning to show it to you when this box was full.”
The four lions of Bloodwind leaned forward, their eyes fixed with curiosity on the box as its lid opened.
“This is…….”
Despite trying not to, disappointment flickered across their faces. The box contained only a few worn, dingy odds and ends.
“This is your treasure?”
Do Pyeong-su lifted a plain leather pouch. It was heavy with contents, and the jingling sound suggested silver coins.
But fifty taels of silver at most—this couldn’t possibly be Geom U-bin’s treasure.
“Do you not remember this pouch?” Geom U-bin asked, turning to Yeon Geum-hong.
Yeon Geum-hong started in surprise and examined it. It was an ordinary pouch, the kind you could find at any market stall.
“I’m afraid I don’t.”
“You gave it to me when we first met at the peak of Geombong Mountain. You told me to wait at the inn.”
Then it came back to her.
“You’ve been keeping it all this time?”
“It was my first gift from you—how could I throw it away? And this…….”
Geom U-bin drew out a bundle of pipa strings next. Not new ones, but worn strings that should have been discarded—yet Geom U-bin had treasured them.
“These came from the pipa that Seo Seok-san first taught me to play.”
“You bled all over your fingers back then.”
“There’s still some blood on them. And this broken blade—you remember, don’t you?”
Do Pyeong-su scratched his head sheepishly.
“It broke because of my mistake, and you got wounded because of it.”
“I took a small cut, but that day you nearly died at the hands of the other disciples.” Geom U-bin laughed at the memory, then produced a leather gag from the box.
“When I first entered the Daeseong Rashu, it hurt so much that Jang Man-dok had me bite down on this.”
Geom U-bin placed the items back in the box as he continued.
“My greatest treasures are all of you—my disciples. So these objects, which let me relive our shared memories, are naturally treasures too. For now, not much time has passed, so I can remember everything. But imagine thirty years from now, when this box is full. There will be memories that come back all at once, others that take long thought before surfacing, and perhaps some I’ll never recall at all. I don’t want to forget any of it. That’s why I made this Memory Box. It would be wonderful to open it together thirty years from now, wouldn’t it?”
Geom U-bin always found ways to bring joy and emotion that the four lions had never imagined.
Gang Seo Samak had been right.
―At that age, having to serve an eight-year-old as your elder brother must have rankled. But the longer you live together, the more you’ll understand. That child is more than worthy of the title.
There was no elder brother in the world finer than Geom U-bin.
Embarrassed at having shown them the box, Geom U-bin ushered the four lions out of his room.
“Now that you all know, stop spying on me and get out.”
Once the four lions had left, they stood in silence for a long moment.
Geom U-bin was a being constantly renewed—each day better than yesterday, each tomorrow promising to be better still.
“I think I can’t live without him now,” Do Pyeong-su said quietly.
Jang Man-dok gently patted his back in answer.
“By the way, who gave him that ink tablet in the corner of the box?”
They could only look at one another.
“Well, that must be a memory of us too. Hmm, maybe I’ll start making a treasure box of my own today?”
At Yeon Geum-hong’s words, the other three called out, “Me too! Me too!”

Though Se-hwa had slept during the day to prepare for night watch duty, maintaining her usual sleep schedule was never easy.
Se-hwa yawned and stretched as the brewery door opened—Go Seo-bang stepped inside.
“Time to switch. Anything happen?”
“If anything had happened, the whole estate would know by now.”
Hang Ju-sa-byeon and his companions had spent the night standing watch. But once again, the alcohol had diminished.
This time the loss was significant enough that even someone other than the four lions would notice.
“How did the alcohol disappear when we were standing watch?”
Hang Ju-sa-byeon looked bewildered when Seo Seok-san entered. One glance at their vacant faces told him exactly what had happened.
“The alcohol is gone again?”
“Yes. Despite standing watch, we failed to protect it.”
“Are you certain it disappeared while you were on duty?”
“Of course. We even marked the level last night. Look at this.”
A white line had been drawn beside the stacked alcohol jars in the brewery.
“A considerable amount this time. The criminal grows bolder…….”
Seo Seok-san left the brewery as he spoke.
“Two days left.”

“What? You’re not going to help us, Master?”
“I don’t believe our disciples are so incompetent that they can’t catch a single thief stealing liquor.”
I wanted to prove our competence to match Seo Seok-san’s faith in us, but there was simply no way to do it.
The best method we could devise was standing night watch duty properly—and that was all we were capable of.
Of course, none of the four of us managed to stand properly.
“Blast it all—I dozed off without thinking.”
As O Tong-su shook his head to chase away sleep, Gal Ma-pyeong arrived to take the next watch.
“Anything happen?”
“If anything had happened, the estate would’ve been turned upside down.”
But despite everything that had occurred, the estate remained silent.

The liquor had vanished again.

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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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