Chapter 87: Seolyoung, Goes to a Fortune Teller

Baek Seolyoung returned to her quarters and looked at her reflection in the mirror.

The image of Hwa Su, whom she had met earlier, came to mind.

She had acted as if it did not bother her, but in truth, Hwa Su lingered in her thoughts.

She believed that the woman had personality issues. But that was only her opinion. Lee Jaseung’s thoughts might’ve been different.

Or even if there were some flaws, what did it matter?

Men were the type to forgive anything and like a woman as long as she was pretty.

That thought put her in a sad mood.

‘Don’t be like this, Seolyoung.’

But even though she knew that thinking about it meant losing, she could not shake the thoughts from her mind.

‘We are already married, yet I’m feeling like this. I can’t be like this!’

Feeling stifled, she stepped out of her room.

Just then, Lee Jaseung happened to be coming in.

"You look like you’re in a good mood."

Her words carried a slight sulk, meaning, ‘I’m feeling troubled, but you’re the only one looking cheerful.’. Yet Lee Jaseung accepted the remark plainly.

"I did something good today."

He told her about helping Yang Seokwon by rescuing his son. There was no reason to hide that from her.

"So that’s what happened!"

After hearing the full story, Baek Seolyoung was shocked. She had heard rumors of the Murim Alliance’s corruption, but she had not realized it was this bad.

"They went that far just to hold on to power?"

Lee Jaseung nodded.

"If it were me, I would never forgive them."

"Do you really think the Alliance Leader will?"

"You mean he might just let it slide?"

Lee Jaseung shook his head.

"I don’t know."

At least one thing was certain. The Alliance Leader would not act rashly. He would first calculate what course of action would be most beneficial for himself.

"By the way, where were you headed?"

"I was just feeling stuffy. I thought I’d get some fresh air."

"Shall I come with you?"

"Do you want to?"

Truthfully, she had been hoping for that.

The two stepped out into the street.

With bamboo hats pulled low and wearing plain martial attire, no one recognized them. They could browse freely and look at whatever they wanted.

"What did you think of that woman?"

"Who?"

"Lady Hwa."

"She was quite memorable. Very strong-willed too."

"Is that all?"

Even if he was not an expert in women like Mujin, Lee Jaseung could easily sense what kind of mind Baek Seolyoung had when asking such a question.

Instinctively, he knew he had to be careful with his words.

"She was pretty. Not as much as you, though."

It was the best answer he could have given. He glanced at her to check her reaction.

"Why are you watching my reaction after giving such a perfect answer?"

"I wasn’t."

She gave a faint smile.  

His cautious manner after giving that answer amused her. She also thought it did not suit him at all.

"You’re hard to figure out."

Sometimes, he seemed so perfect that not even a needle could slip through. But then moments like this made him feel as ordinary as any other man.

Her steps stopped. Her gaze had fallen on an old fortune-teller dozing off.

She neither sought fortunes nor believed in them. But seeing the white-haired old woman sleeping on the ground made her think of Yim Sayeon. For some reason, she felt like helping her.

However, she thought it would be impolite to simply give her money and walk away, so she crouched down in front of the old woman.

"How do you do your readings?"

The dozing old woman awoke.

Fortune-tellers came in many types.

Some read the stars, some used dreams or visions, others read based on a person’s birth date and time, and some relied on physiognomy or palmistry.

Some used objects like chopsticks or sticks to perform divinations.

This particular old woman was one who read fortunes by physiognomy.

Her eyes grew wider as she looked at Baek Seolyoung.

"Ah!"

An exclamation escaped the old woman’s lips. She straightened her posture and spoke with genuine expression.

"You have the face of a person that’s destined to become someone precious."

The words made Baek Seolyoung feel good.

The old woman’s gaze naturally shifted to Lee Jaseung, who was standing behind her. As she stared at his face, her eyes widened even more.

What crossed her face was unmistakable worry.

She quickly lowered her gaze, unable to continue looking at him. It seemed partly fear, partly as if she dared not meet his eyes any longer.

"What’s wrong?"

At Baek Seolyoung’s question, the old woman said nothing.

"Is something bad going to happen to him?"

"No."

"Then why?"

Baek Seolyoung glanced back at Lee Jaseung.

"Did you scare her with that wicked face of yours?"

He gave her an incredulous look and denied it.

The old woman then spoke to Baek Seolyoung,

"Soon, a great love and great turmoil will both come to you."

The words made her flinch. Turmoil was nothing new to her, but the mention of great love startled her.

Surely that did not mean a new person would appear. Perhaps it meant she and that person would be well together?

Baek Seolyoung smiled and replied.  

"Good thing it’s not only turmoil. I’ll send away the turmoil and hold on tight to the love."

Since there was no atmosphere for Lee Jaseung to have his fortune read, she stood up.

"Here’s your fee. Thank you for the kind service."

Since her desire to help had started this, she gave ten silver coins as payment.

The two walked away together.

"You heard her, right? She said I’ll become someone precious."

"You already are, right?"

"Yet you treated me so poorly knowing that?"

"When did I?"

"Even right now, as you feign innocence!"

"That’s just your imagination."

"I sure hope it is."

Once the two had gone far enough, the old woman stood and gave a deep bow.

It was not out of gratitude for the ten silver coins. The bow was not to Baek Seolyoung, but to Lee Jaseung.

She remained prostrate until the two disappeared completely from sight.

* * *

"The Murim Alliance Leader can be considered an old fox of a thousand years. No matter how much he sees Ban Yeo as a thorn in his eye, he will not get rid of him easily. So our second and third plans to divide them must continue. And of course, we cannot let Ban Yeo fall too easily either."

Dan Woobin’s plan was to use internal division within the Murim Alliance to uncover the hidden strength of both the Alliance Leader and Ban Yeo, exploit their conflict, and establish Lee Jaseung’s position within the Alliance.

Lee Jaseung’s eyes gleamed as he listened.

In truth, he wanted nothing more than to sweep away the Murim Alliance and the Asura Demon Sect in one stroke.

But for now, he lacked the power to do so. No matter how much his martial arts grew, it was not something one man could accomplish.

One man could become the Zenith, but could not unify the martial realm alone. Politics and war were necessary. He could not govern the vast Central Plains by himself.

Even if he built an organization strong enough to defeat the Murim Alliance or the Asura Demon Sect, he would still have to act cautiously.

The problem was latent power.

Defeating only the warriors of the Murim Alliance did not mean taking control of the Orthodox world.

If the Murim Alliance fell, countless martial artists across the Central Plains would join forces to restore it.

Hidden masters would awaken, and even fledgling warriors who had just begun learning martial arts would be drawn by the cause to take up their swords.

This was why unifying the martial world was so difficult.

Clearly, there were many things besides strength that he needed. Two in particular were essential. Righteousness and justification.

He had to become the hero who would protect the martial world in place of the corrupt Murim Alliance and Asura Demon Sect.

That was the core of the grand strategy Lee Jaseung held.

Just then, a subordinate came to report.

"Ban Yeo has been summoned by the Alliance Leader."

Since Yang Jo had died in the Alliance Leader’s hall, it was natural for him to be called.

* * *

When he saw Yang Jo’s cold corpse lying before him, Ban Yeo’s mind became tangled.

‘He would never have been killed by the Bear Tyrant. That’s impossible. Which means there was a third party. Yes, the one who stole from the Treasury.’

With a shocked face, he asked Jang Wonso,

"What in the world happened?"

He did not hide his shock or confusion. In fact, he did not bother concealing his agitation.

"What in the world happened here?"

He acted without the slightest hint of guilt.

Looking down at him from the dais, Jang Wonso asked quietly,

"He severed his own meridians and took his life."

"What in the world happened?"

His expression clearly said, Why are you asking me?, and his voice turned cold.

"According to him, he tried to use the West Wind Captain’s son to win him over to his side. And all of that was ordered by you."

"This is outrageous slander!"

Ban Yeo shouted with a face full of indignation, as though he had truly been falsely accused.

"Do you really believe that’s what happened?"

Jang Wonso stared at him as if to pierce him. Ban Yeo met his gaze unflinchingly without avoiding eye contact.

In that tense moment, Jang Wonso took a step back.

"Of course, I too think there must have been some grave mistake."

As Dan Woobin had predicted, Jang Wonso did not reveal his true feelings. The matter had already occurred.

He could not handle this matter without informing him, which was why he had called him here. If Yang Jo had not died or was not an important figure, he might have quietly covered it up, avoiding any need to provoke him.

But since the dead man was Ban Yeo’s trusted aide, he could not hide the truth.

"Why did Yang Jo betray us?"

Though he asked the question, Jang Wonso was already suspicious of Ban Yeo.

‘It could be some scheme of his.’

If so, it was an extremely dangerous move, one worth sacrificing even a trusted aide for.

He also considered the possibility of a third party’s involvement. But he thought that was less likely. The Ban Yeo he knew was not an easy opponent to read.

It was either his scheming, or an internal problem.

Ban Yeo’s eyes became firm.  

"I will find out exactly what happened and report back."

"That is indeed what must be done."

"I will take care of the body."

"Of course. I’ll have it sent straight to your quarters."

"My apologies for troubling you."

"Think nothing of it. You may go."

When Ban Yeo left, Jang Wonso’s expression turned cold.

He took out the book once again and flipped through it. Drawing so many people into his web meant one thing, but Ban Yeo even had his eyes on his position.

He closed his eyes and murmured quietly,

"I clearly told you to take only your share…"

Meanwhile, walking out of the building, Ban Yeo’s expression was grim.

‘The ledger must have fallen into the Alliance Leader’s hands.’

It was a crisis. When it was first stolen, it had merely been a problem. Now it was a serious crisis.

How much the Alliance Leader had learned was a problem for later.

He was an open enemy after all.

But the unseen enemy, the one who had orchestrated this was far more dangerous.

What kind of bastard could have done this?

Revealing his killing intent toward that unknown foe, he thought to himself.

‘You’ve made a grave mistake in targeting me. I’ll make sure you regret it.’

At the same time, Lee Jaseung and Dan Woobin’s secret conversation continued.

"This will prompt the Alliance Leader to try to reduce Ban Yeo’s power. He’ll likely aim to take the Azure Dragon Hall from him."

"He won’t hand it over easily, will he?"

"Of course not. The Azure Dragon Hall is far too valuable to give up willingly."

"How are they compared to the Divine Sword or the Iron Cavalry?"

"They’re about evenly matched. Though of course, I’d still put my bet on ours."

As expected, it was the strength of one of the Murim Alliance’s core combat forces.

There was another reason to believe he would not give it up without a fight.

"He’s the type who uses people’s weaknesses against them. Don’t you think he might have tried to get a hold of the Alliance Leader’s weakness? He must have at least one card for emergencies."

Dan Woobin nodded. That seemed entirely possible.

"Ban Yeo will now be desperately trying to find this unseen enemy."

Lee Jaseung accurately guessed Dan Woobin’s thoughts.

"So you want to make that unseen enemy the Alliance Leader."

Dan Woobin answered with a meaningful smile.

"This time, it’s Ban Yeo’s turn to be shaken."

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