The Patriarch of the Northern Heavens - Chapter 62

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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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Master of the Bukcheon Sword Family – Chapter 62

-What? Is that really true?
‘Yes.’
I knew this thanks to memories from my previous life.
It was right around the time I first learned about Black Night Fortress.
To investigate them, I first dug into the Elders.
During that process, evidence of corruption came pouring out…
In particular, I discovered that Elder Lee Tae-gyeom frequently conducted business with a place called the Qingyuan Escort Agency.
‘At first, I thought it was just a place run by relatives or somewhere to launder money.’
But after several incidents, I uncovered the truth.
He was gradually selling off secrets of the Bukcheon Sword Family through the Qingyuan Escort Agency.
-So, what did you do?
‘I raided the Qingyuan Escort Agency together with an ally who was also pursuing Black Night Fortress.’
But perhaps because Lee Tae-gyeom realized he’d been discovered?
The agency’s director had already destroyed all records and disappeared.
All that remained were clueless escort workers and accountants.
In the end, we had to return without any significant results.
‘Yet in this life, I’ve become entangled with the Qingyuan Escort Agency like this.’
I’m not sure whether to call this good fortune.
I pondered briefly, then smiled softly.
It was directed at Yu Won-hu, who looked flustered seeing me turn serious.
“Ah, it seems I startled you a bit. I know of an escort agency with a similar name to the Qingyuan Escort Agency, so I was momentarily confused.”
“Is, is that so?”
“Yes. It was an escort agency we used to do business with, but they absconded with our payment. Just thinking about it still makes me angry.”
“To do such a thing to the Bukcheon Sword Family—they certainly had nerve.”
“Indeed. By the way, I believe I’ve taken up enough of your time. I’ll return to my companions, so please have a safe journey.”
“Yes. Young Master, I will never forget this kindness. I’ll inform the director so that we may send a gift to the Bukcheon Sword Family later.”
Yu Won-hu bowed once more in gratitude.
I accepted his salute and took my leave.
The Sword Spirit questioned me with bewilderment.
-What? You said it’s a subordinate organization of Black Night Fortress? Shouldn’t you eliminate them or something?
‘Most of the escort agency’s members are innocent people. This Yu Won-hu fellow is likely just an ordinary escort leader. Killing them would only raise their guard.’
-Then what will you do? Are you just going to leave them alone?
‘Of course not.’
If I hadn’t had this connection with the Qingyuan Escort Agency, I might have deprioritized them and left them be…
But now that I’ve encountered them, I wanted to see how they would react.
News that I saved the escort agency’s people would definitely reach the agency director.
‘And he will certainly show some reaction because of this.’
The most likely possibility was that he was trying to approach us under the guise of repaying a debt.
He would bring gifts and naturally try to establish a connection.
Of course, he might have decided against it, judging it too dangerous.
But I had to keep the possibility open.
‘For now, it seems the Qingyuan Escort Agency is out on an escort mission, but fundamentally, their headquarters isn’t that far from the Bukcheon Sword Family.’
In that case, a response would come in a few days.
I would have plenty of time to prepare by then. With that thought, I joined the group.
“How did your errand go, sir?”
“I saw an escort agency being attacked by Green Forest Bandits up ahead, so I helped them out.”
“As expected of the Young Master. You don’t overlook evil right before your eyes.”
I chuckled and spoke to Sa Gong-cheon.
“Enough with the flattery. More importantly, Sa Gong, would you do me one favor?”
“A favor? Please, command me as you wish. What would you have me do?”
“Nam Cheon—do you remember that guy?”
…!
Nam Cheon was the thief who had stolen the fake Windgod Sword and fled—a disciple of the Phantom Thief King.
After being forgiven by us, he had shown us a way to contact him while speaking of repaying his debt, and then left this place.
“If you think about the contact method, he shouldn’t be far. Leave your escort duties and bring that fellow to the family secretly right now.”
“It seems urgent. I understand.”
Sa Gong-cheon didn’t hesitate, simply bowed his head, and departed.
Medicine King looked surprised at his figure.
“It seems something happened with that escort agency you met earlier. The way you’re acting so suddenly.”
“Yes. Could you keep this matter confidential?”
“What are you talking about? I heard nothing.”
He feigned ignorance with the practiced ease of someone who had seen much.
I smiled and escorted him to the Shanxi Yu Clan.
As I turned to leave after exchanging farewells, Medicine King called me back.
“Wait a moment.”
He stopped me and brought out a single elixir wrapped in a precious cloth from the family, then handed it to me.
“Take this with you. Use it if the need arises. Ordinarily it’s used for illness or poison, but it works excellently on wounds as well.”
“Is this… the Medicine King Divine Elixir?”
I asked in surprise.
The Shanxi Yu Clan must have very few Medicine King Divine Elixirs remaining. Yet he was giving me one?
“We are a medical family, so we cannot directly aid you in your struggle against hidden forces. But we can certainly support you from behind.”
….
“From what I see, you will become someone greater than what is currently known. So I hope for your continued success. If you ever need a physician, contact me.”
“I am truly grateful for this.”
I bowed deeply and placed the Medicine King Divine Elixir in my bosom.
Though I received only one elixir, it was as good as receiving the Shanxi Yu Clan’s support.
“Then go carefully.”
“Yes.”
I rode back to the family estate as instructed.
Sa Gong-cheon and Nam Cheon had already arrived at the estate.
They must have been stationed nearby.
“Um, Young Master? Why did you call for me…?”
“Even though I left you a way to contact me, you never imagined I’d actually use it, did you?”
I smiled at Nam Cheon’s bewildered expression, and he laughed awkwardly, caught red-handed.
I handed him a heavy bundle of silver coins.
“This is an advance payment. If you complete the task properly, I’ll give you an equal amount as your success bonus.”
“…!”
Nam Cheon accepted it and was visibly startled.
He looked worried, clearly wondering what kind of task warranted such a generous advance.
“It’s not particularly dangerous work. You just need to rob a single escort agency.”
“An escort agency?”
“Yes.”
I nodded and spoke with a serious expression.
“Infiltrate the Qingyuan Escort Agency and copy any suspicious documents you find. As much as you can manage. Think you can do it?”
“If it were an ordinary escort agency, I could manage it easily… but the place I’m going isn’t ordinary, is it?”
“Of course not. Otherwise, there’d be no reason to do this.”
Nam Cheon’s expression grew anxious at those words.
I smiled and patted his shoulder reassuringly.
“But don’t worry. I’ll give you the signal at the right moment. Besides, their security is only third-rate escort agency level, so as a disciple of the Phantom Thief King, you should be able to slip through easily.”
“A signal?”
“Yes.”
My eyes narrowed sharply.
“The opportunity will present itself soon.”

* * *

And as expected, the opportunity came.
The director of the Qingyuan Escort Agency visited the Bukcheon Sword Family bearing gifts.
His demeanor was respectful.
Anyone could see he had come to repay the debt for protecting his escort guards previously.
I immediately sent Nam Cheon away and welcomed him warmly.
“I am Jin Muyeol, the young master of the Bukcheon Sword Family.”
“I am Chung Ki-un, director of the Qingyuan Escort Agency. It is an honor to meet the renowned Swift Wind Divine Dragon, a rising talent of the martial world.”
“Renowned? I am merely a fledgling who can only rely on my family’s name. But what brings the director of the escort agency to our main house?”
“Did you not save the lives of our Qingyuan Escort Agency’s guards previously? I have come to express my gratitude.”
“Ah, there is no need for this. I simply did what was necessary.”
“No, thanks to you, my family members’ lives were saved. It is only right that I express my thanks. Please, I ask that you accept this humble token of my sincerity.”
What he brought was exquisite silk.
After declining several times, I eventually accepted the gift with gratitude and engaged in various conversations with Chung Ki-un.
“Ah, so the Qingyuan Escort Agency was only recently established?”
“Yes. Since childhood, it has been my dream to establish my own escort agency. I finally realized that dream in middle age.”
“That is truly remarkable. Most people merely think about such things, but you actually achieved it.”
“Haha. It required tremendous hardship. I cannot tell you how much blood and sweat I shed to reach this position.”
Chung Ki-un’s eyes softened with a gentle smile.
“Young Master, if I may ask—would you be interested in establishing a favorable relationship with our Qingyuan Escort Agency?”
“A favorable relationship?”
“Yes. Though we are small now, we dream of growing into the finest escort agency under heaven. With the support of Young Master and the Bukcheon Sword Family, I believe we could grow far more rapidly.”
“Hmm. I apologize, but that is a matter I would need to discuss with the family head, not decide myself. I do not yet have the authority to make such decisions.”
“Of course, I am not speaking carelessly. If you would simply entrust the Bukcheon Sword Family’s escort operations to us, we would offer generous compensation.”
Chung Ki-un wrote the character for eight and showed it to me.
I asked with apparent surprise.
“You mean to give us eighty percent of the revenue?”
“In return, we would be able to advertise to other clients that we conduct business with the Bukcheon Sword Family, the ruling house of Sanseo. While it may seem we lose in this arrangement, we truly do not.”
Of course that would be true.
His real purpose was not truly to grow the business, but to somehow entangle himself with us and extract information.
I pretended to deliberate and engaged him in lengthy conversation.
Eventually, he obtained dinner and drinks at the Bukcheon Sword Family before departing late in the evening.
“I confirmed he left completely. He did not leak information anywhere else.”
Sa Gong-cheon, whom I had sent to monitor him, returned and reported.
Beside Sa Gong-cheon stood Nam Cheon, who had returned after completing his task.
He carried a thick bundle of documents—everything obtained while I occupied Chung Ki-un’s attention.
“Since I did not know what was important, I copied nearly everything from the director’s administrative office.”
“Well done. Here is your reward.”
I handed him the bundle of silver coins as promised.
Nam Cheon happily tucked it into his garments.
“You understand this cannot be revealed, yes? Not only would it create difficulties for us, but if he learns we ransacked his place, your life will be in grave danger.”
“Ah, I’m aware. I’ve already gone through the correspondence and noticed ominous language appearing frequently. It didn’t seem like an ordinary force.”
“Right. Those bastards are dangerous. So keep a low profile for a while.”
As I spoke, I flipped through the documents Nam Cheon had handed over.
True to his word about bringing everything, the pages were densely packed with information arranged haphazardly in cramped handwriting.
Starting with routine administrative matters, there were details about the Wuzhu Sect we’d eliminated previously, information on other business ventures involving Black Night City, and intelligence on the movements of our Bukcheon Sword Family, among other things.
‘Hmm?’
Then I discovered something I couldn’t overlook.
My expression grew serious as I stared at the characters written in the document.
[Candidate for Heavenly Killer Star discovered at Jin Won Gate in Sak Province. Immediate investigation requested.]
‘Heavenly Killer Star?’
It seemed I’d just caught something significant.

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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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