The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Merchant Group - Chapter 386

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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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The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Trading Company Chapter 386

Chapter 386. The Ghost Market (5)

Soon the Auction House Manager arrived, and I posed a question to him.
“So, can we receive the genuine elixirs today?”
“I apologize, but it seems I need to investigate this matter more thoroughly.”
“I see.”
“If you don’t mind, would it be acceptable to conduct a body search to prevent any unfortunate incidents?”
If I refused the search here, he would certainly grow suspicious.
I rose from my seat and spoke.
“To clear up any misunderstanding, I can accept such measures. However, must all of us undergo the search?”
“Yes, given the circumstances…”
“In that case, since this person is a woman, please have another woman conduct her search.”
“Understood.”
Soon the Woman in Red Clothes entered, and we each underwent the search.
Naturally, nothing was found on our persons.
I had arranged for Geumryeong to hide elsewhere beforehand.
After the search concluded, I questioned the Auction House Manager.
“Is the misunderstanding cleared now?”
“Yes. I sincerely apologize.”
“In truth, we must depart this place by the day after tomorrow at the latest. Can we receive the items within that timeframe?”
“I will make it happen. In two days, I will hang a blue cord on the third floor of the Yeongryeong Inn near here. When you see it, simply come to that location.”
“Then I await your signal.”
We rose and exited the building.
We then browsed the merchants’ tents while heading toward the exit of the Ghost Market. Our business here was concluded.
At that moment, I heard someone crying out.
“Please, I beg you! Sell me this sword!”
Turning at the sound, I saw a man bowing his head before a tent selling weapons.
“The money I lack, I will repay however I can in the future…”
“Do you think I don’t know who you are, and you expect me to sell this at half price?”
“I, well… In any case, please, I’m begging you.”
Looking closer, a man was haggling with the merchant over a sword displayed on the counter.
The asking price was one thousand silver taels.
A considerable sum.
It seemed he intended to pay half and leave the remainder on credit.
What story lay behind that sword?
From his appearance and demeanor, he did not seem to be an ordinary martial artist. The way he hesitated to reveal his identity suggested as much.
He pleaded once more, his voice trembling with desperation.
“If I cannot obtain this sword, I will die.”
“Your circumstances are pitiful, but such are the rules of this place. Moreover, we must surrender a considerable portion of our sales to the master of this establishment, so I cannot make exceptions for your sake.”
His tone was gentle, yet his eyes were ice cold.
“Please, I beg you.”
He prostrated himself before the Merchant, but the man remained unmoved.
Well, one couldn’t conduct business in this place without such resolve.
The fact that he’d listened to this much already made him a decent merchant.
But what on earth was this sword that made the man grovel so desperately?
I approached the blade and examined it closely.
Judging by the aura it emanated and its craftsmanship, it was a treasure weapon of considerable quality.
But who was this man, really?
As I turned my head while pondering this, the man’s upper garment shifted upward, revealing a scar across his back.
“…!”
That scar shaped like the character for “之”….
I rubbed my eyes in disbelief, but it was unmistakably that scar.

In my previous life, the Moyong Clan was a family loyal to the Murim Alliance. Their active participation in the Alliance’s endeavors made this abundantly clear.
But it hadn’t always been that way.
Only after a new House Master ascended did they take such a path.
That House Master was not the previous master’s eldest son, but his third son.
Ordinarily, the eldest or second son would inherit, but when circumstances befell them, the third son became House Master.
The eldest son had been more than qualified to become the next House Master, but I heard he was expelled from his position as Small Patriarch due to a disgraceful incident.
And I knew that eldest son well.
In my previous life, while passing through Liaoning, I encountered the Green Forest Bandits and received his aid.
His name was Mo Yong Tae-gyeol.
Expelled from his position as Small Patriarch, he took command of the clan’s martial forces.
Through that connection, we became quite close.
Whenever I passed through Liaoning, we would drink together, and in summer we would wade into the river….
That’s when I saw that scar.
When I asked about it, he said it was a wound from fighting bandits in his childhood.
It was such a distinctive scar that I never forgot it.
Though he wore a demon mask that concealed his face, it had to be him as I remembered.
He had lamented seeing the Moyong Clan being tossed about at the whim of the Murim Alliance.

“What good would it do for me to say such things? The House Master of this family is already… that fellow.”
“….”
“It truly vexes me. If only I hadn’t lost that sword! I wouldn’t have been forced from my position as Small Patriarch!”
“What sword are you referring to?”
“A blade my Grandfather gave me, calling it a sacred heirloom passed down through our family for generations. It was a sword that revealed its true form only in the hands of those carrying the bloodline of the Main House. And then… one day it vanished.”
“It vanished?”
“Yes. I searched desperately for that sword, but ultimately… I could not find it. And having lost the trust of my Grandfather and the elders… I was forcibly removed from my position as Small Patriarch.”

Then that sword must be the very blade Mo Yong Tae-gyeol, the Small Patriarch, had lost.
He must have traced its whereabouts and discovered it was here, coming to retrieve it.
But a fortune of one thousand silver taels stood between him and reclaiming that sword.
In my previous life, I had wondered about this.
If Mo Yong Tae-gyeol, rather than the Third Son Moyong Seong-geol, had become the House Master, what path would the Moyong Clan have taken?
And beyond that, I was delighted that an opportunity had come to repay a debt of gratitude from before.
I approached him and the merchant.
“This sword—is it one thousand silver taels?”
At my question, the merchant selling the sword nodded.
“Ah, yes. That’s correct.”
I withdrew ten anonymous promissory notes worth one hundred silver taels each from my pouch and presented them.
There are two types of promissory notes.
Named notes and anonymous notes.
A named note allows the money exchange house to retrieve funds on behalf of the person whose name is written on it, while an anonymous note is already paid in full at the time of issuance, so one simply brings the note to the exchange house to receive the money.
Naturally, the notes I brought to this place were anonymous ones.
I could not risk revealing my identity.
And in places like this, one typically uses anonymous notes anyway.
“Please verify them.”
The merchant examined the notes and nodded.
“These are genuine notes.”
“Then this sword is mine now?”
“Of course. Thank you for the transaction.”
As the transaction concluded, the young man who had been pleading to purchase the sword—Mo Yong Tae-gyeol—flailed his hands in apparent distress.
“Wait, I, that is, you can’t do this.”
“What do you mean?”
“My transaction with the merchant hasn’t been completed yet.”
The merchant then replied coldly.
“Transaction? The law of the Ghost Market is simple—whoever offers money first becomes the owner!”
“But….”
His voice hollow with despair.
I smiled faintly and handed him the sword.
“Please take it.”
“…What?”
“Now it belongs to you.”
I continued speaking.
“I simply wanted to give you a gift, so I bought it. Please accept it.”
A bewildered gleam in his eyes.
Looking at those familiar features, I smiled.
“Do not lose it again.”
I thrust the sword into his hands and turned away without hesitation, my footsteps carrying me forward.
“W-who are you?”
“It is impolite to ask such questions in this place.”
“But….”
“Simply think of it as being enchanted by a goblin.”
With only those words, I left the Ghost Market and returned my mask.
Then I moved at rapid speed.
I could sense the presence of those following me.
So I pushed my pace to its maximum, twisted my route deliberately, and rushed across Liaoning Land.
After running for about an hour, I no longer felt any sign of them—they had lost our trail.
I spoke to Bing Haerin, Young Palace Master.
“You showed remarkable restraint.”
“The future of the Ice Palace depends on my actions.”
“An admirable attitude. Then let us proceed with one more task in that spirit.”
“What task…are you referring to?”
I smiled broadly and continued.
“I will explain once we return.”

Shortly after, we returned to the Gwangjun Merchant Group.
I stopped by my quarters before heading to Bing Haerin, Young Palace Master’s residence.
“Please accept this first.”
“…?”
She tilted her head curiously and accepted the basket, lifting its lid.
“…!”
Her eyes widened in shock as she looked at me.
“My goodness! These, these are….”
“That’s right. Those are the elixirs the Northern Sea Ice Palace was defrauded of.”
“But you said earlier that they were counterfeits….”
I didn’t answer that and instead spoke of something else.
“I’m going to spread word that you, as the Small Guild Master of the Northern Sea Ice Palace, brought these here to sell them. By tomorrow, the Northern Sea Ice Palace Disciples will arrive, and the rumor will spread like wildfire.”
The fact that the disciples were coming was already known to Bing Haerin, Young Palace Master.
“Someone will certainly approach the Young Palace Master.”
“…Is that person the culprit behind this incident?”
“With high probability, yes.”
Unless he obtained the genuine elixirs and delivered them, he could never escape the grasp of the Ghost Market’s owner.

* * *

A fairly large house next to Im Cheong-mil Merchant Leader’s residence.
The owner of that house was a man named Cho Seok, and he was always prepared to leave this place at a moment’s notice.
One of those preparations was selling the Northern Sea Ice Palace’s elixirs he had obtained through the Ghost Market’s auction.
He despised the Northern Sea Ice Palace.
His family, which had once lived in prosperity because of the Northern Sea Ice Palace, had fallen into ruin.
Living with dreams of revenge, he finally received a good opportunity.
Someone approached him and showed him a way to take his revenge.

“The Northern Sea Ice Palace sells those elixirs to procure food supplies. However, due to the poor harvest, it’s difficult for them to obtain provisions easily right now. What if the elixirs the Northern Sea Ice Palace brought to sell turned out to be counterfeits? Wouldn’t that be amusing?”
“The Northern Sea Ice Palace going hungry! Hehehehe. Just hearing about it brings me great joy.”
“An undertaking of that scale is entirely feasible with the wealth you currently possess.”
Even though his family had fallen, he was still counted among the wealthy.
The man explained the detailed method to him.
“…Simply hand over the elixirs you’ve diverted to the Ghost Market in Liaoning. They’ll take a considerable commission, but even that should be sufficient.”
“I see. But why are you telling me this method?”
“Because I too find the Northern Sea Ice Palace disagreeable.”

He immediately executed the method the Mysterious Man had revealed, and by observing the carts entering the Northern Sea Ice Palace, he confirmed the man’s words were accurate.
The volume of supplies heading to the Ice Palace had noticeably decreased.
In any case, upon hearing that he should remain prepared to depart at any moment, he had consigned the spirit elixirs to the auction at the Ghost Market opening yesterday.

Morning arrived, and the Auction Director of the Ghost Market visited his quarters.
“Haha! Welcome!”
Certain that they had brought the sale proceeds, he greeted them with a smile.
“Please, come inside.”
He led them to the Guest Reception Room.
“Would you care for tea?”
“No. There’s no need for tea.”
Previously, he had always spoken to them with careful, respectful language, but today his demeanor was entirely different.
The Auction Director glanced backward, and one of the Warriors following behind presented a box.
“Take a look.”
Cho Seok examined the contents of the box.
Inside were not the sale proceeds, but spirit elixirs.
However, they were counterfeit spirit elixirs, not the genuine ones he had consigned.
He could recognize this at a glance because he had marked them with a secret sign known only to himself, preventing any possibility of confusing the counterfeit elixirs they had provided him with the authentic ones.
‘No, why are these here…’
Cold sweat broke across his brow.
He had certainly consigned the genuine ones, yet suddenly they had brought him counterfeits.
The counterfeit spirit elixirs had circulated and returned to him!
“It seems you’ve learned how to appraise spirit elixirs.”
“I know little about spirit elixirs. Haha. Those elixirs also happened to come into my possession by chance…”
“Yet you recognized them as counterfeits so quickly. Remarkable.”
“…!”
His eyes widened in shock.
He was trapped.
“Hand over the genuine spirit elixirs you secretly removed while we were being cordial.”
“What do you mean? Genuine spirit elixirs? I certainly consigned the genuine elixirs—I did not consign these counterfeit ones!”
“The fact that you recognized these as counterfeits is proof that you deceived us.”
“…”
“It seems civility won’t work.”
At those words, the Warriors behind the Director seized both his arms and subdued him.
And the Auction Director struck his vital pressure points.
“!”
Even under the tremendous agony of bone-shattering pain and with his acupoints sealed, Cho Seok could not even scream.
“Huff, huff…”
After what felt like ten years of half a quarter hour had passed, the Auction Director released his acupoints and spoke.
“I’ll return this evening.”
And with that, they left the Guest Reception Room.
Cho Seok’s vision darkened, and he collapsed onto the floor in despair.
I had to obtain the genuine elixir no matter what….
He hastily reached out to the person who had taught him how to take revenge against the Northern Sea Ice Palace.
They said that person was also in Liaoning right now.
But….
“Sir, they say no such person exists.”

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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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