Episode 208
A wry smile appeared on the corner of Confucius’ mouth.
After quietly observing his reaction for a while, I asked him a question.
“Why is that?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m asking why you accepted the Demon Cult’s offer.”
“You are asking the obvious. “Because I needed their support.”
“If we were going to join hands with an outside force, there would have been many options, even if it wasn’t the Demonic Cult.”
It was a question I had had for a long time.
What is the reason why Shi Gongja colluded with the Demonic Cult rather than any other force?
He must have known.
It is a transaction in which the profit that can be gained is not that great compared to the risk that must be taken.
“The area where the headquarters of the Demonic Cult is located is Xinjiang. “Isn’t it too far from Nanman?”
Of course, it was an undeniable fact that the Demonic Cult was a force with great power.
However, if it is difficult to exchange smoothly, what is the meaning of all that?
“It’s not just that. I know that Mine is ostracized no differently from Jungwon or Namman. “If the fact that Confucius received support from the Demonic Cult becomes known to those around him…”
“It’s a simple story.”
Master Shi sighed softly and buried himself in the back of the chair.
Perhaps it was because of my mood, but I felt like the energy waves that had been irritating my skin had faded slightly.
“Even if it wasn’t a demonic religion, weren’t there a lot of options? “I think I’m doing something wrong, but there’s no other option.”
“······?”
“You look like you don’t understand. The reason is simple. This is because the power of the faction I lead is not as strong as that of other factions. Everyone in this palace knows. It is extremely unlikely that I will surpass my other brothers and ascend to the throne of the palace. “Why do you think my father gave me this place to live?”
“······.”
“Let me make it a little easier to understand. Imagine that I sought cooperation from the Fortune Chang Sect rather than the Demonic Cult. “Have they really decided to support me?”
I shook my head quietly.
It was just as Confucius said.
Jeom Changpa had no intention of taking such a risk.
At the very least, what if the faction led by Prince Shi had the power to overwhelm other factions?
“The first brother is a fool, but he is the best among the brothers in terms of martial arts skills. “Not to mention how much it means in Nanman society, which reveres strength.”
“······.”
“The second brother is not as good as the first brother in terms of martial arts, but he is good at academics and has an outstanding ability to lead people. In fact, if you look at the size of the faction, the second brother is the greatest among the five brothers.”
“······.”
“In the case of the youngest, she is a woman and young, but her background and support are incredible. “She had Dokgokju (毒谷主) as her grandfather.”
I gained unexpectedly useful information.
In particular, it was great to learn that Woo Hwayeon was Dokgokju’s maternal granddaughter.
Woo Hwayeon, whom I actually saw, had a considerably younger appearance than her other siblings.
Even compared to the teacher in front of me, he seemed to be at least fifteen years older than me.
Gender, age, martial arts skills.
It was questionable how she could compete on equal footing with her other siblings under such disadvantageous circumstances, but with Dokgok’s support on her back, it was understandable.
In a way, she was the person who had a higher chance of ascending to the royal throne than the eldest son, Prince Il.
“Finally, the third brother is not as good as the other brothers in terms of his position within the palace, but he is close to the chiefs of large tribes, so his influence cannot be ignored.”
“······.”
“Meanwhile, I have nothing. “There are no flaws or shortcomings, but on the other hand, there are no special aspects either.”
“······.”
“I entered the race for successor out of curiosity, but it wasn’t long before I realized the reality. I realized that I could never beat my other brothers and climb to the top of the palace using normal methods. When I was thinking of such thoughts, the person who reached out to me was Lord Ma. “Is this enough of an answer?”
“That is a sufficient answer.”
It was rewarding to first talk to the teacher.
I was able to understand, to some extent, things such as the principle of behavior of the monks and the balance of power between each faction.
That alone was a great harvest.
“Whoa.”
The Master Shi sighed again.
Soon the heavy energy that filled the room dispersed and disappeared.
He said, placing his clasped hands on the table.
“You must be curious. “Why are you so obediently telling stories that are unfavorable to yourself?”
“yes.”
“I have something to suggest to you.”
“If you are asking me to help someone from Confucius’s faction win the competition…”
“It’s the opposite. “I’m hoping you win the contest.”
“······?”
I narrowed my eyes slightly at the unexpected remark.
I couldn’t figure out what the intention behind this was.
“Before we get into the main topic, there is one thing I would like to ask you first.”
“What is.”
“Are you confident that you will win the competition?”
“of course.”
I nodded without any hesitation.
If I wasn’t confident, I wouldn’t have accepted the Beast Palace Master’s offer in the first place.
Master Shi burst into laughter and emptied the water in his glass.
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“This dance competition will probably be small in size and have a small number of spectators, but the level of participants will be very high. “The competition has not been held for a long time due to the civil war, but more than anything, each faction will invite talented people who have kept it hidden as a secret weapon to participate.”
“······.”
“As I said before, the faction I lead is one of the weaker factions compared to other factions. “It feels a little sad to say this with my own mouth, but anyway, none of the people in my faction have what it takes to win the competition.”
Now I felt like I knew what Confucius had for approaching me.
Presumably, unlike his other brothers, he did not want to accept the bet proposed by the Beast Palace Master.
He was simply afraid that the palace lord would reveal in front of his brothers that he had made a deal with a demonic religion, so he cried and showed his consent by eating mustard.
“So you’re saying you’d rather me win?”
“You understand quickly.”
If I win the competition, a non-aggression pact will be signed between the Beast Palace and the Murim Alliance.
Of course, if that were to happen, Ma Jyoju would no longer want to interact with Shi Gongja.
The reason he supported Sakongja’s faction was because he hoped they would attack the Central Plains’ martial arts faction.
‘As a scholar, such an ending would not be pleasant. but······.’
The lesser evil was better than the worst.
If a warrior belonging to another brother’s faction wins the competition, there is virtually no possibility for the warrior to rise to the throne.
In that context, it wasn’t all that strange for the driver to cheer for my victory.
“Would you like to join hands with me?”
“······?”
“You may have expressed it as joining hands, but in reality, it will be a transaction in which you benefit one-sidedly. “What should the one who is disappointed be the one to bow their head?”
“Please be a little more specific. “What kind of benefit will I get?”
A faint smile appeared on the corner of the Master’s mouth.
It seemed like he thought this person was interested in his proposal.
“Let me ask you one thing. “What do you think will happen if two people from the same faction meet in a competition?”
“Maybe one side will abstain, or pretend to compete moderately and then admit defeat.”
“It’s just as you said. In this way, the warriors representing each faction will advance to the next match with their stamina intact.”
“······.”
“On the other hand, since you do not belong to a specific faction and are not even a resident of Namman, you will have to fight a difficult and lonely fight alone.”
“So, are you saying that you will sacrifice warriors belonging to Master Shi’s faction as sacrifices for me? To achieve equity?”
“I understand correctly. That’s right.
“Are you sure you don’t mind? “You can bet the faction’s fate on me.”
“There is no other choice, so what can I do?”
“That’s true.”
“Honestly, even now that I’m making the proposal, I still feel uneasy. But I guess your father had a reason for making you his representative. “I decided to put my hopes on that.”
“great. “I will accept your offer.”
I answered with a smile and nodded.
From my perspective, it was an offer with nothing to lose.
There was no reason to refuse.
‘That’s fun.’
Laughs flowed out.
They say people don’t know how to do things.
Who would have thought that the person who we thought would be our biggest enemy would volunteer to become our ally?
[Just in case, I would like to tell you that it would be best not to publicly reveal that the fourth guy was in collusion with the Demonic Cult.]
In an instant, the words the Beast Palace Lord had said to me flashed through my mind.
It occurred to me that maybe he even had this situation in mind.
“Then we have formed an alliance. Can I see your skills?”
“Are you saying you want to test my abilities?”
“As a helper, I think it would be okay to ask for this much.”
“Well, that’s good. Confucius would also like to be convinced.”
“It’s nice because it’s refreshing. “After you finish eating, let’s go straight to my personal training room.”
“All right.”
* * *
By the time I returned to my lodgings after leaving Prince Shi’s private training hall, my son-in-law was already immersed in darkness.
“What happened?”
Bo-kyung Hwang, who was out for a walk in the front yard, immediately asked me a question as soon as she saw me.
I thought it was annoying, but I answered brightly without revealing my feelings.
“First of all, we succeeded in appeasing the ruler.”
“Is that really true?”
“yes.”
“Surprisingly. “I thought he would be the hardest person to convince.”
Hwang Bo-kyung’s voice was filled with surprise.
For your information, I did not tell the members of the delegation that I was participating in the bimu competition.
This was because the Beast Palace had asked me not to tell others.
It was not good for it to be known that I, a person from the Central Plains and not a resident of South Manchuria, and a representative of a delegation sent from Manchuria, was participating in the Bimu competition.
Because the warriors participating in the event will probably protest.
Looking at the principles, there was no problem with my participation in the competition, as I had been given the status of a warrior by the palace lord.
However, it was impossible to simply ignore the unwritten rules.
Thinking the other way around, if a Namman warrior were to compete in the Yongbong branch, how would the other participants react?
Above all, the fact that there was a bet between the Beast Palace lord and his five children was a secret to the outside world.
If it were even known that the sacred competition was used as a means of betting, the repercussions would be dire.
Therefore, the matter became a secret known only to the palace executives, including the Beast Palace Lord, Tang Sangjin, and the heads of the five factions.
If a midfielder with a different skin color participates in a competition, wouldn’t he get caught anyway?
Of course, the discussion on that part was ended long ago.
In the future, I was scheduled to participate in the competition as an anonymous warrior, covering my face and skin with a mask and long cloth.
“Gongja Shi also hoped that the fact that he had made a deal with the Demon Cultist would not be spread around. Thanks to this, I was able to appease them more easily than I thought.
“That’s a good thing. “When I heard that I had failed to persuade the Beast Palace Lord, I felt at a loss.”
“To be precise, I succeeded in persuading him. “An unexpected variable just occurred.”
“······.”
“First, I will diligently visit the palace executives and try to persuade them. “It will be a long-term battle, but there is no better option in the current situation.”
martial arts,
