Chapter 10
Tang Yuchang
Tang Yuchang had just finished his closed-door training, and none of the recent events pleased him.
"Still no particular reaction?"
"Th... that’s correct."
"He’s not skipping his decoction or anything like that, is he?"
His sharp gaze pierced the woman’s heart.
The woman turned pale and prostrated herself flat on the floor.
She was the maid who delivered the decoction to Woon-hwii every day.
"H-how could I possibly dare to lie!"
"Hmm."
"It’s the truth! You can even call the other maids to confirm it!”
Tang Yuchang glared at the woman for a long while before issuing an expulsion order.
"Fine. Leave now."
"Y-yes...!"
The woman, still trembling, barely managed to stumble out of the hall. It was a wonder she didn’t collapse.
"Muyeong."
"At your command."
At the low call, a voice came from the ceiling.
"Get rid of her."
"Shall it be an accident?"
"Make it look like a simple disappearance. Her family was already trash anyway, wasn’t it?"
"By your command."
Srrrk!
The presence from the ceiling vanished.
In just a few days, the woman would stop reporting to the manor and be filed with the authorities as a simple runaway.
That way, any connection to the poisoned liquor would be completely severed. A clean cut.
"This is strange, far too strange."
Tap, tap—
Tang Yuchang tapped the desk with his index finger, sinking deep into thought.
It had already been ten days since Woon-hwi drank the poisoned liquor.
By now, symptoms should have begun to show, and yet there was nothing unusual at all.
It would be impossible unless he had taken an antidote.
"Which means Woon-hwi’s backing is far greater than I imagined."
For someone who had intended to brainwash him and control him at will, it meant one part of the plan was unraveling.
At this rate, he would have to assume that the mysterious backer was on a much higher level and rework his plans.
In truth, Woon-hwi’s problems didn’t end there.
"He even seems to be getting along with Dangon."
According to the spy planted in Baeksaekjeon, Dangon also seemed reasonably content living as a martial arts drifter.
"Even my sister says that bastard of a concubine-born should be embraced."
Clicking his tongue, he recalled the quarrel between his mother and sister not long ago.
Since then, the two women had been locked in a tense cold war.
"This is troublesome, truly troublesome. Every trap set for that concubine-born is being skillfully avoided."
Whether it was just good luck or proof that his backer’s ability was that formidable—
From beginning to end, not a single thing sat well with him.
"At a time like this, my sister should be stepping forward even more. How can she be so immature? Has she spent too much time shut away in the deep mountains these past five years? She’s ignorant of the ways of the world—far too ignorant."
Tang Gyujin was meant to leave Cheongseong Mountain completely in the year she turned thirty and fully inherit the Guryong branch family.
But in Tang Yuchang’s eyes, Tang Gyujin was not suited for it.
Her martial arts skills might rank among the best of the later-generation disciples, but leading a family required an entirely different kind of aptitude.
With such naivety, how could she possibly lead this vast estate? This Guryong branch family, which was destined not just to remain a branch but to one day become the main family itself!
"In the end, the only one qualified to succeed the Dark Lord is me."
Tang Yuchang twisted one corner of his lips into a sharp smile.
Until now, he had tried to take a step back for Tang Gyujin’s sake, but no longer. He was ready to ignite his ambitions in earnest.
He was confident that only he could lead the Tang Family of Sichuan to the height of glory it enjoyed today.
And soon, he would prove it.
He would trample that concubine-born, rise to become the Dark Lord’s disciple, and even keep his sister beneath his gaze!
As long as he had the covert support of his maternal family, the Namgung Clan, it was by no means impossible—that was Tang Yuchang’s conviction.
"Young Master, a messenger has arrived from Baeksaekjeon."
Just as he was about to reorganize his plans regarding Woon-hwi, the butler’s voice suddenly came from outside.
"From Baeksaekjeon?"
That meant it had been sent by Woon-hwi. But that idiot concubine-born couldn’t have possibly done anything himself—so was the hidden backer finally starting to reveal themselves?
"What news did they bring?"
"They’ve sent a letter."
"A letter? Bring it here.”
Tang Yuchang received the letter and frowned.
—Let’s have a sparring match, you little shit.
The words written on the envelope alone grated on his nerves.
"...So vulgar."
He furrowed his brow and tore open the wax seal, carefully examining the letter.
For a moment, he wondered if it was meant to provoke him into hastily tearing it open and inhaling some hidden poison, but contrary to his suspicion, there was no such trick inside.
The contents were nothing remarkable either.
It simply said that though they had been estranged as brothers and had little interaction, this time they should try to have a proper one.
If there were grudges piled up between them, they should shake them off like martial men through a duel.
Tang Yuchang couldn’t even bring himself to laugh.
"Struggling desperately just to survive, huh. At least he has enough wits to sense his own fate?"
With this, Tang Yuchang was certain.
The fact that Woon-hwi had avoided his traps so far was nothing but luck. The snares were steadily tightening around him.
Woon-hwi must have felt it too—that’s why he was begging like this.
Either he wanted to meet him directly to plead his case, or perhaps his backer was the one pushing for it.
"Reply that I’ve received the letter, and that while I appreciate the proposal, I refuse."
Without even bothering to write a reply himself, Tang Yuchang dismissed the servant from Baeksaekjeon.
But half a shichen later, another letter arrived.
一Scared?
"...From now on, if anyone comes from Baeksaekjeon, don’t even let them set foot inside!”
Tang Yuchang had to forcibly swallow the surge of rage at the fact that he was being toyed with by a mere concubine-born.
But when he finished his affairs and stepped out of the hall—
"Scared?"
—he saw the large notice plastered on the wall, and his temper finally exploded.
"Tomorrow at noon, Second Training Ground! Make sure the message is clear! I’ll shove that bastard’s head straight into the latrine!!"
* * *
The news that Tang Yuchang had accepted the duel was immediately delivered to Baeksaekjeon.
"Stupid bastard. If you were going to do it anyway, why play hard to get?"
As I snickered with laughter, the spirits shook their heads.
「Foolish indeed. To think the young lord’s taunting devil arts could even shatter the composure of the venerable monks of Shaolin.」
「No matter how much that brat, not even of age yet, tries to act grown-up, he’s never tasted spice this strong before.」
「Now all that’s left for him is to get beaten senseless and paraded around.」
The way they spoke, their expressions seemed to say, “Once upon a time, I went through the same thing...” as they recalled their past experiences.
「Still, he’s taking the bait from provocation more easily than expected.」
"That’s because the Tang family are among the most prideful bloodlines in the martial world."
Handling poisons and hidden weapons—though it’s not really so—could easily be branded as “dishonorable” in a martial world that prided itself on fairness.
In fact, until the Tang Family of Sichuan secured its current position, the humiliation and contempt they suffered from the martial world was immense.
Because of that, the Tang family members clung all the more tightly to one another, becoming an increasingly closed-off group, struggling and fighting again and again until they finally reached the prosperity they enjoyed today.
What they had left was nothing but their lofty pride and their relentless fighting spirit.
And that nature hadn’t changed even now.
So when provoked with “Scared? If you’re scared, just go die,” how could they possibly resist taking the bait?
"And once I crush Tang Yuchang with this, my standing within the branch family will change as well. It’ll make it much easier to approach Gwangpungdae, too."
I had already arranged for a letter of recommendation about me to be sent to the Dark Lord from the main household.
Before long, Namgung Sanyeong would fail to retrieve his recommendation letter, and he’d find himself completely cornered.
「How could you even come up with such a plan—」
"It was exactly like this back when I first became Master’s disciple, you know? That brat, the young lord of Heukgol Guigok, would always stir up trouble by provoking us. He even went as far as to harass the women in my guard unit."
Heukgol Guigok was strong enough to be counted among the Seventy-Two Demonic Sects.
Because of that, they strutted around with their shoulders high even inside the Palace of Entry, where all the novice demons gathered.
「Could it be that incident—」
"Looks like you know?"
「Th-that upheaval at the Palace of Entry… was it the Young Lord’s doing?」
"You know what the lesson is here?"
「W-what would that be…?」
"When you strike, you start by smashing the skull to pieces. Got it?"
「Indeed! The Young Lord’s brilliant wisdom is beyond words, and his outstanding insight is something we could never hope to match!」
「Please continue to lead us on the right path!」
The “Palace of Entry Incident” referred to the day when the young lord of Heukgol Guigok was hung at the main gate at dawn, toothless and ragged, after having every last molar knocked out.
「At that time, I heard even the four secret medicinal warehouses run by Heukgol Guigok were completely cleaned out—」
「Heukgol Guigok spent years shitting blood trying to find the culprit, but who would’ve thought it was the Young Lord\~」
「And the only one who might’ve known, the young lord of their sect, had lost his wits so badly he couldn’t even think straight, right? Ha—」
「After that, even the former young lord was cast out of Guigok. From what I know, Heukgol Guigok still hasn’t recovered to this day—」
Now that it turned out I was the culprit behind one of the Seven Great Mysteries of the Divine Cult, they were all abuzz with chatter.
In the end, the spirits’ conclusion about Tang Yuchang was very simple.
「…He’s going to get stripped bare. Poor bastard, how pitiful.」
It was sympathy born from shared experience.
* * *
Tang Gyujin had felt a constant weight pressing on her chest ever since she returned to the manor yesterday.
‘I have to do something, no matter what, I must!’
It was because of the matter between Woon-hwi and her mother.
In truth, when she first received word that the Dark Lord would soon visit the manor and that she was to attend the event, she had been delighted.
It had already been five years since she left the Guryong branch family. She was curious to see how much the clan had changed during that time.
But the moment she arrived at the manor, she was struck by a bolt from the blue.
The way Woon-hwi was being treated hadn’t changed in the slightest.
In fact, she had always felt a considerable sense of guilt toward Woon-hwi.
She had wanted to rescue him somehow from her mother and brother’s torment, but by leaving for Cheongseong Mountain herself, she had left him like a child abandoned on a deserted island.
She had prayed he would be doing well, but he clearly hadn’t been.
Especially after hearing of the many recent incidents surrounding Woon-hwi, the despair in her heart only grew heavier.
That was why Tang Gyujin had gone to confront her mother, Namgung Sanyeong, demanding to know what was going on—only to be harshly scolded instead.
"If you’re thinking of looking after that vulgar concubine-born again, stop wasting your time! Once this clan head’s visit is over, you’ll never have to see him again anyway."
"…What do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what I said."
Namgung Sanyeong shuddered as if the very act of talking about Woon-hwi was revolting.
"After this event, we plan to expel that concubine-born from the clan."
Namgung Sanyeong didn’t even bother mentioning that there was an actual plot underway to drive Woon-hwi out.
At that moment, she truly had no way of knowing what kind of backlash such words might bring.
‘She may have always been softhearted since childhood… but this is going far too far! If only those Cheongseong Sect fools hadn’t filled her head with useless ideas!’
Namgung Sanyeong had never once wanted to send Tang Gyujin—hailed as the next head of the Guryong branch family, perhaps even a candidate for head of the Tang clan itself—to some worthless sect like Cheongseong.
That pathetic Cheongseong Sect might have made a name for itself long ago, but under the Tang family’s prestige, it was nothing more than a faded apricot now.
So when Tang Hosan had unilaterally informed her of Gyujin’s entry into the sect without any discussion, she had gone so far as to refuse food in protest.
But Gyujin’s entry into the sect had been carried out by force.
From that day on, Namgung Sanyeong had severed even the last ties of affection with her husband. In exchange, her obsession with her two children grew all the more intense.
"...Haa! Very well. If that is Mother’s decision, then I suppose there’s nothing I can do."
Had this mother’s heart finally reached her daughter?
Namgung Sanyeong looked at her with hopeful eyes, but Gyujin’s gaze was sharp as a blade.
In that instant, a chill ran down her spine.
"I too will reveal the 'truth.'"
"What? Don’t tell me you—"
"Yes. I believe Mother’s thoughts are correct."
"Jin!!"
"No matter what you say, my thoughts will not change. I thought perhaps things would be different now... but it seems I was mistaken. I’ll tell Woon-hwi directly."
Tang Gyujin had no intention whatsoever of bending her beliefs.
"And you still claim you are truly the child I bore with my own body?"
"Woon-hwi lost the very mother who bore him with her own body. Because of us—mother and daughter."
"You dare—!"
Namgung Sanyeong clutched her chest. Her breath came in ragged gasps.
What was the reason she had always lashed out so harshly at Woon-hwi, who posed no real threat to her two children?
It was to hide the truth. She could not predict how Woon-hwi might react if he ever found out.
If things went wrong, the succession structure she had painstakingly built could completely collapse.
And yet her daughter, who should have understood this better than anyone, was uttering such words without a care...!
"Do you know, Mother? The only reason I was able to cure that illness, the only reason I was able to enter Cheongseong Sect, was all thanks to Woon-hwi. To me, he is a savior of my life. But for you to act like this—this is wrong."
"!!"
"As for what I heard today about Woon-hwi, I’ll pretend I never heard it. So I hope you’ll set your mind straight before Lord Amjon arrives."
Tang Gyujin turned coldly and left the hall.
Thud.
Namgung Sanyeong slowly collapsed into her seat.
Instead of enjoying a long-awaited reunion with her daughter after years apart, the fact that she had been handed an ultimatum left her wounded.
"Indeed... mere expulsion will not be enough."
Biting down hard on her lip as if she had reached a decision, Namgung Sanyeong grabbed her outer robe and summoned a carriage.
Now!
The great spider, which had been lying in wait all this time, immediately followed close behind and clung tightly to the wheel of the carriage.
Clatter, clatter—
Rumble, roll, rumble…
Chronicles of the Reincarnated Demon God
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