Blue wave (3)
When we heard that the kidnappings of women might be the work of Jeonghyeopbang, my first thought was, "Then shouldn't we try to rescue them?"
But Lady Jeong Yeon shook her head, her face heavy.
"It's unfortunate, but we can't get caught up in this right now. If they really are the same ones as back then, they'll be hiding just as thoroughly this time. It would take too much time to track them down. And Senior Sister Jeong In… she doesn't have that much time left to wait."
After saying this, Lady Jeong Yeon lowered her head deeply.
It clearly pained her to have to say such words.
I could understand her feelings.
Of course, rescuing kidnapped women should take priority. But as a disciple of Ami Sect—one of the pillars of the orthodox factions—it must have felt shameful to say that she would ignore others just to save her own senior sister.
So we did not press the matter further.
Instead, we asked her about what had happened before.
"Could you tell us the story of that time? How did you uncover Jeonghyeopbang's trail?"
She replied,
"In truth… we can only say it was luck."
As the kidnappings repeated, Ami Sect had dispatched an elder and many disciples to investigate.
But even after over a month, they had uncovered no leads.
Then, by chance, Lady Jeong In—who had snuck out of the training hall against orders—and these two young ladies happened to witness a kidnapping.
"I think they must have already been monitoring the investigation team's movements. Since we were moving differently from the main team, they hadn't accounted for us—and so we ended up stumbling on them."
When Lady Jeong In saw the abduction, she was about to rush out immediately.
But Lady Jeong Yeon stopped her, insisting they should tail the kidnappers back to their base.
And when they followed them, what they discovered left them aghast.
"The kidnappers entered Guaneum Hall. A venerable orthodox sect, and even a branch family of Ami Sect itself."
Since Guaneum Hall was highly respected in the area and maintained a good relationship with Ami Sect, they could not just charge in recklessly.
So they withdrew and tried to investigate further.
They inquired at the local Hao Clan about Guaneum Hall's recent activities.
And they learned that Guaneum Hall had not engaged in any noticeable activity for nearly a year, and even its master had not been seen.
Moreover, just before becoming reclusive, Guaneum Hall had received a visit from Jeonghyeopbang's White Jade Flood Dragon, Gu Yusang.
"Even recently, people from Jeonghyeopbang were said to visit Guaneum Hall regularly—despite the fact that Guaneum Hall had no other external dealings. That's when Senior Sister Jeong In and we became convinced Jeonghyeopbang was behind it. Especially since the very reason Jeong In received her confinement order was for denouncing Jeonghyeopbang's steady encroachment on Ami Sect's territory. And Guaneum Hall's region was one of those encroached areas."
But just as they resolved to investigate Guaneum Hall's interior, they were suddenly ambushed by unknown assailants and captured.
I muttered under my breath,
"Hao Clan. They gave away the information."
Lady Jeong Yeon nodded gravely.
"I thought so too, while imprisoned. But I don't understand why. Why would the Hao Clan do that? Could they have been subverted by the Blood Cult?"
I shook my head.
"Considering the Hao Clan's vast network across the martial world, it's unlikely. More probable is that they made a deal with Jeonghyeopbang's branch. Something like: 'If anyone investigates us, tell us immediately.' The Hao Clan doesn't discriminate when it comes to trading information."
At that, Lady Jeong An spoke angrily,
"How outrageous! Even if they're not an orthodox faction, to collaborate with the Blood Cult's lackeys!"
"For them, orthodoxy and heresy mean little. Anyway… what happened next?"
Because up until now, nothing was enough to prove Jeonghyeopbang's involvement conclusively.
So if Lady Jeong Yeon was convinced, there must have been firmer evidence.
And indeed, her next words provided it.
Among the attackers… was none other than Jeonghyeopbang's White Jade Flood Dragon, Gu Yusang—the man hailed as Sichuan's Greatest Young Master.
"He wore a mask, but Senior Sister Jeong In had met him several times before and recognized him instantly. His build, his eyes—she was certain. When she cried out his name, Gu Yusang tore off his mask, grabbed her hair, and said greedily that she would regret ever recognizing him."
At that point, Lady Jeong Yeon trembled faintly, overcome by the memory, and could speak no more.
We didn't press her, but urged her to rest in her room.
Later, in our own quarters, I sat in deep thought for a long while.
Bi Sayeong finally asked,
"What are you thinking about?"
I grinned.
"The same thing as you?"
He shook his head with a sigh.
"I figured as much. I also want to rescue them, but as Lady Jeong Yeon said, isn't it too difficult? We don't have enough information. And what she said about needing to save Lady Jeong In quickly—it made sense too."
He was right.
We couldn't afford to waste time here.
But… what if it didn't take much time?
What if it could be done within a single night? Then would it matter?
Besides, I had another reason I couldn't ignore this.
That test spoken of by Lord Mukrang.
Though I didn't know exactly what it was, I realized his voice had only ever come when I acted to save someone.
Couldn't the test be about compassion, or rescuing others?
And he had said I was the most promising candidate he had ever seen.
Surely, he hadn't meant that I was the strongest ever to wield the Mukrang Sword. That would be absurd.
No—this had to be something else.
So I said to Bi Sayeong,
"Of course, we can't waste much time here when Lady Jeong In needs us. But if we just move tonight, wouldn't that be fine? How's your body?"
He blinked in surprise, then chuckled.
"You've thought of something again, haven't you? I'm fine now. Actually, after purging everything earlier, I feel lighter than I have in ages. So, what's your hunch?"
It was good to have a friend whose thoughts aligned with mine.
I smirked and shared my reasoning.
"From Lady Jeong Yeon's story, I thought: the kidnappers must have taken over the most respected local sect and used it as their base. If it's the same group, their methods may be the same."
Bi Sayeong nodded slowly.
"Hmm, that makes sense. But how do we know which sect here is most respected? Ask around?"
I smiled knowingly.
"Didn't that man earlier say where he went, right after the authorities?"
"…Guageom Sect?"
"Exactly. That should mean they're the most trusted around here."
We decided to secretly check only Guageom Sect. If it wasn't them, we would drop the matter.
So we dressed, opened the window, and leapt outside.
Bi Sayeong landed lightly on the ground and dashed forward—only to freeze mid-step.
"Wha—Lady Jeong An?!"
I stopped as well.
For outside the window, waiting for us as though they had anticipated it, stood Lady Jeong Yeon and Lady Jeong An.
Lady Jeong An beamed.
"See, Sister? Didn't I tell you they wouldn't just sit still?"
We were genuinely stunned.
Half an hour later, we were crouched in the shadows of some trees near Guageom Sect, watching its front gates.
Lady Jeong An, flushed with excitement, whispered—
"How shall we proceed now? Are you planning to storm the front gate and demand they hand over the kidnapped women?"
The way she asked it—eyes glittering with expectation—nearly made me blurt out, "Of course not!" I barely managed to hide my exasperated expression as I explained,
"No. First, we must slip inside quietly and confirm whether the women are even there. After all, we don't yet know for certain that Guageom Sect are Blood Cult's people."
"Ah, I see."
She nodded in understanding, only to immediately ask again,
"Then are we going to sneak over the wall and infiltrate, like assassins or thieves?"
Lady Jeong An's eyes shone so brightly at the thought that it was almost uncomfortable.
Her senior, who was still catching her breath after struggling to keep up with us, explained on her behalf.
"My junior has always had this… fantasy about secret missions and clandestine heroic deeds. Please understand."
At that, Lady Jeong An nodded furiously.
"That's right, that's right! I've always wanted to try something like that. Back then, when I was about to infiltrate Guaneum Hall with Senior Sister Jeong In, I was so excited—but before I could even try, we were ambushed and captured. I was so disappointed. I thought, Am I really going to die without ever experiencing that thrilling hero's adventure?"
…Heroic adventure and infiltration are not quite the same thing.
This young lady must have grown her dreams out of some strange stories she's read.
Truly unique.
When I glanced at Bi Sayeong to gauge his reaction, I found him gazing at her with an expression of pure adoration.
I couldn't help shaking my head.
But regardless of that, it was Lady Jeong An who had correctly anticipated, back at the inn, that we would sneak out on our own.
That really startled me.
For her—not the calm and wise Lady Jeong Yeon, but the quirky and childish-seeming one—to predict our behavior so accurately… I had wondered if perhaps she was more remarkable than she appeared, and I had been underestimating her.
But no—it seemed she had simply placed her hopes on us acting in line with her longing for "heroic adventures."
We had originally planned to leave her and her senior behind to give them more time to recover their strength.
But when they caught us, they firmly insisted on coming along.
"We are disciples of Ami Sect. How could we possibly stay behind in such matters? And my nickname in Ami Sect is 'Flying Swallow.' I'm quite confident in my lightness skill, so please don't worry that I'll slow you down."
That had been Lady Jeong An's case.
"Truthfully… when I said earlier that we couldn't help those women because we had to save my senior sister, I felt deeply ashamed. It made me question whether I was worthy of being an Ami disciple at all. If my senior sister knew I abandoned others for her sake, she would be angry. My lightness skill isn't as strong as my junior's, but I will do my utmost not to be a burden. Please allow us to come with you."
Those had been Lady Jeong Yeon's words.
After hearing that, we couldn't possibly tell them to stay behind.
And so, we came together—arriving at last at Guageom Sect, a manor that, while not as vast as the old Black Market Sect's, was still impressive in scale.
Its security was strict as well.
Not only were guards posted at the front gate, but I could sense the presence of patrols moving along the inner walls.
Bi Sayeong asked,
"The defenses are pretty tight. What's the plan? Should we do it like before—one person draws attention while the rest slip inside?"
Lady Jeong An's face lit up at the mere mention of infiltration.
But the idea didn't quite sit right with me.
It might come to that, as Bi Sayeong suggested, but causing a diversion wouldn't be easy here.
And the compound was far larger than expected. Without information, I couldn't imagine finding where the women were held.
We needed intel… but the Hao Clan was out of the question.
Hmm. Should I bluff my way in, claiming I wanted to join Guageom Sect, like I had once done with Bae Jonggwan?
While I was mulling this over, Lady Jeong Yeon suddenly spoke.
"What if I approach them alone? If they are Blood Cult's people, wouldn't they try to kidnap me as well?"
"What?"
Her proposal was undeniably tempting.
If she deliberately let herself be taken, we could quickly confirm whether Guageom Sect was involved, and also discover where the women were imprisoned.
But…
I shook my head.
"Too dangerous. If they capture you, there's no telling what they might do. And if their strength is greater than we expect, we might fail to rescue you and end up with another hostage on our hands."
"Ah… you're right."
Rejecting her idea, however, left us with no better plan.
Time was slipping by.
Then Bi Sayeong suddenly suggested,
"Lady Jeong Yeon's idea itself isn't bad—it's just too risky, right? So what if, instead of her, you pretended to be a woman?"
"…Me? Pretend to be a woman?"
I scowled.
My body, hardened by external training with Bae Jonggwan, had long been solid and muscular. Not bulky, but sturdy enough that no one in their right mind would mistake me for a woman.
But Bi Sayeong wasn't finished.
"You know—that bone-shrinking technique you showed us before. Couldn't you use that?"
"…The Bone-Shrinking Technique?"
Among the odd skills I had learned from Father's study was indeed one such technique.
I had never had cause to use it seriously, but I'd once demonstrated it playfully to Bae Jonggwan and Bi Sayeong. Apparently, he had remembered.
So… use the Bone-Shrinking Technique to reduce my build and disguise myself as a woman?
Not impossible… but—
"No. Even if I change my build, one look at my face or a single word from me would give me away. I don't know how to disguise my voice."
At that, Lady Jeong An's eyes went wide and she blurted,
"No! Seonu Gongja's face would look perfect if you dressed as a lady. You're so handsome already!"
Well, thanks for the compliment, but my voice—
Then Lady Jeong Yeon added,
"If Seonu Gongja went alone, he'd surely be discovered. But if he came with me, it might work. We could say he's too injured to speak."
"No, wait—"
But Bi Sayeong cut me off, face glowing with excitement.
"That's brilliant! If you two go together, you can support each other, making it less dangerous. And if Jin is supposedly injured, they'll be less suspicious of him!"
Cold sweat trickled down my back.
At this rate, I would have no choice but to cross-dress.
"W-wait. I don't think that's a good idea. I have… a better one…"
Bi Sayeong smiled slyly.
"A better one? And what would that be?"
…Damn it.
I had nothing.