𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟔𝟓
Leaving Seocheon behind, we followed the rumors of the water god, sacrificing our sleep to continue our investigation.
“The matter you mentioned does indeed seem to be of concern.”
The possibility that if our bodies and minds were taken, we would be deprived of the right to return.
After hearing our thoughts, Shin Pyo-eul nodded, her expression somewhat serious.
“It seems we don’t have time to spare.”
“Even so, it won’t be easy to find all five of the remaining ones. . . . . . .”
It certainly took more than a month just to meet Cheong Juhwa.
Considering that it was a result of great luck, simply gathering information and following rumors might not be the best course of action.
It was Shin Pyo-eul who suggested an idea.
“How about asking for the help of Daehwa-rym?”
“The Taoist priests of Daehwa-rym?”
“Yes. Their abilities may be unknown, but they are certainly a force to be reckoned with in this area. If we can get their help, it would greatly reduce our suffering, as they are a group of Taoist priests.”
It was certainly a sound plan.
As Cheong Juhwa and I expressed interest, Shin Pyo-eul continued, a sly smile on her face.
“As it happens, the headquarters of Daehwa-rym is located to the north of here. We could pay them a visit while we’re tracking down the water god.”
“But wouldn’t it be difficult to pique their interest with just a casual proposal?”
To that, Shin Pyo-eul responded as if it were a silly question.
“If necessary, we should consider taking over the entire Daehwa-rym. Your mission is that important.”
“. . . . . . .”
“Oh my, that’s quite an enticing proposal.”
Somehow, she seemed to have become more radical than we were, after hearing the secret.
However, it was certainly worth a try, so we decided to visit the headquarters of Daehwa-rym if the opportunity arose.
As we moved from town to town, continuing our journey, we gradually gained more concrete information about the water god.
“The town where the rumors first started is Youngrim, two days away from here, and there are two other places where her activities have been detected.”
“It feels like she’s wandering around this area rather than heading somewhere.”
The two of them were right. The water god had been sighted in places that almost formed a circle around the city we were in, Yangamji.
If it was Seo Ji-an, I felt like I could roughly guess her thoughts.
“Rather than blindly searching for her party, it seems like she created an information network in a certain area and is waiting for one of her colleagues to visit.”
It was certainly a method that the ever-cautious Seo Ji-an would choose. Shin Pyo-eul asked a question after hearing this.
“Does that mean her informants are somewhere nearby?”
“I can’t be sure, but I think that’s probably the case.”
In that case, we might not have to go out of our way to find her.
If we could just reveal our presence, she would surely contact us.
With that in mind, we began to drop bait by asking about the water god here and there in the city, or by exorcising nearby yokai.
And soon enough, we got a response.
“Are you the ones looking for the water god?”
A young man with a bamboo hat on his head and strangely expensive-looking clothes.
He said to us,
“Follow me. The water god is staying with my family.”
We followed the young man and were finally able to confirm the identity of the one who had been called the water god.
However, it was not Seo Ji-an.
The girl who greeted us was a reddish-brown-haired girl whom we had never met before.
“Nice to meet you. I may not look it, but I am Sang Ayun-you, the one called the water god.”
“. . . Are you really the one the rumors are about?”
“Do you want proof?”
As Sang Ayun-you raised her hand, a stream of water rose from the pond in the corner of the garden and circled around us.
She was certainly a user of nature-type spells as well, but I could sense a familiar scent from it.
“You’ve met Seo Ji-an, haven’t you?”
“. . . . . . .”
The nature spell she was using was definitely the same as the one I had taught Seo Ji-an, and after hearing my words, she blinked her eyes and opened her mouth again.
“. . . I thought that might be the case, but you really are the colleagues she was looking for.”
Sang Ayun-you then began to give us a brief summary of what had happened so far.
“As you guessed, the real water god is her. I have been acting as the water god under her instructions, waiting for her colleagues to find me.”
“Where is she now?”
“She left a while ago. With a mysterious young man named Jin Won-bu.”
My and Cheong Juhwa’s expressions darkened at those words, and Shin Pyo-eul tilted her head, reading our reactions.
“Isn’t Jin Won-bu your colleague?”
“No. It’s a name I’ve never heard before.”
“Why does it get more and more complicated. . . . . . .”
We asked Sang Ayun-you about his identity, but she too said she didn’t know the details.
“I also thought he was one of her colleagues, but judging by your reactions, that doesn’t seem to be the case.”
“Did she tell you anything about her destination?”
“Yes. She just left, telling me to take care of things. I heard her say something about heading west, but I’m not sure. However, she did leave a message for you.”
Seo Ji-an had said this:
She would find us when the time was right, so don’t look for her.
In the end, we had no choice but to part ways with her after obtaining a few more pieces of information.
“Why would she tell us not to look for her?”
“Well, she didn’t sound forceful, so she must have had something planned.”
Seo Ji-an is a clever person.
If that was what she had said, it seemed like it would be better to leave her alone for now and go after the other colleagues first.
“Then our next destination is set. Let’s go to the headquarters of Daehwa-rym.”
That would certainly be the best course of action in the current situation.
We had decided to gain their cooperation, and after four more days of travel, we finally arrived at Cheongpyo, where the headquarters of Daehwa-rym was located.
“I don’t know about the ordinary members of Daehwa-rym, but the beings who represent them are definitely skilled Taoist priests. If it becomes necessary to use force, you better be careful.”
Jang Ri-gyeong, whom I had met before, must be here as well.
We nodded at Shin Pyo-eul’s words and headed for Hwangsan, Cheongpyo, where the Taoist priests of Daehwa-rym were staying.
As we climbed the mountain path for a while, Taoist priests of Daehwa-rym appeared from nowhere and immediately blocked our way.
“Who are you? You don’t look like ordinary clients.”
“We have other business here. Can you call your superiors?”
“Nonsense! No one can enter this mountain without being a client or an invitee.”
As he said that, Shin Pyo-eul sighed and was about to summon her spiritual power when I stepped in front of her, glanced at the man, and said,
“I received an invitation from Jang Ri-gyeong, a Taoist priest here, to visit the headquarters. Isn’t that enough?”
“What, from Jang Hyung-nim? Wait a minute. Let me check.”
The man left a few of his men behind and went up the mountain, and about 10 minutes later, he returned, greeted us, and led the way.
“So you’re the young Taoist priest that Hyung-nim admired so much! We always welcome the visit of a hero like you.”
Cheong Juhwa tilted her head, looking at the surprisingly easy way we were being let through.
“What happened?”
“I worked with one of their colleagues a while ago. It was during the Gonha incident of the Nine Children of the Heavenly Dragon that I told you about last time.”
“Ah, that quack. . . . . . .”
Cheong Juhwa quickly covered her mouth as she recalled the memory.
Fortunately, the people around us didn’t seem to hear, and Cheong Juhwa’s eyes lit up as she said,
“Now that I look at him, he seems to have quite a bit of influence here. Would it be possible to just swallow him whole if it’s only to that extent?”
“. . . That’s too conspicuous, so let’s just think of it as a last resort.”
However, I had no intention of returning with just vague results either.
I planned to finish everything here today and use all their power to advance the search for my colleagues.
As we went up the mountain and passed through several checkpoints, the headquarters of Daehwa-rym finally spread out before us.
“. . . It’s much larger than I thought. I didn’t know Daehwa-rym was this big.”
“If we can get their help, it might really be possible to make progress in the search?”
It was exactly as they said.
Daehwa-rym was a much larger force than we had heard, and the most daunting thing was that most of them were exorcists who had mastered sorcery.
Coming to this familiar place, I was finally convinced.
If we could get their full support, the task of finding our party would no longer be a vague one.
As I felt that way, I noticed a young man approaching me from afar.
“It really is you! I’m glad you came.”
“It’s been a long time, Mr. Jang Ri-gyeong.”
He seemed to have been staying here and training since he visited the Pyeong Clan, and I could certainly feel that his energy had changed a bit from before.
His level had also increased by 2, and now it seemed like he would have no problem acting as an exorcist anywhere he went.
“Come on. The elders and the others of Daehwa-rym want to meet you too.”
At Jang Ri-gyeong’s words, we exchanged glances and followed him to the center of the headquarters.
We entered a building and walked for a while before finally reaching a luxurious-looking room that seemed to be for receiving guests.
“Elders, I have brought the Taoist priests I mentioned.”
Waiting for us there were two middle-aged men, an old woman, and an old man who seemed to be of higher rank than them.
The old man sitting in the highest seat stood up and greeted us.
“Welcome, I am Young-wan, the head of Daehwa-rym. I have heard much about you.”
“You flatter us.”
“Kukuk, is that how it feels? But I think you deserve enough praise to have defeated one of the Nine Children of the Heavenly Dragon and eradicated the entire group of demons in Seocheon.”
From his words, I could tell that the old man before me had a surprisingly good intelligence network.
He was definitely not an easy opponent, but considering our future goals, he was someone we had to win over to our side.
And the old man, Young-wan, seemed to sense something from my gaze and soon let out a low chuckle.
“Oh my, it seems you have come with quite a blatant purpose.”
“. . . . . . .”
“You want to get your hands on Daehwa-rym?”
At those words, the eyes of everyone in the room were sharply focused on us.
Leave a Reply