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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: TushChen
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“Bu-rin, do you know what Gang Jun of the Taegyeong Sect did to me at the Gyeongsu Market?”
“The field work is your responsibility! Don’t try to pin it on me! I received all the money I had to receive from the Taegyeong Sect!”
“Right, so spit out all the money you received now. Don’t understand? Bu-rin, I’ll say it again. You received a request from a sect that lacked basic standards, a request that hadn’t been properly verified, and handed it over to me without any warning. Thanks to that, I suffered immensely, and that guy named Gang Jun tried to kill me by stabbing my face with his sword.”
“When doing intermediary work, I don’t say anything even if you receive intermediary fees. But in this case, you were nothing more than an errand boy. I don’t know how much money you gleefully pocketed as your share, but even if you add it all up, it’s far from sufficient as full compensation for what happened at the Gyeongsu Market.”
“You brought the money? You, who couldn’t even properly receive the compensation that should have been duly received, are an intermediary? A guy who couldn’t even secure my share properly is talking about fees? Since we have a history, I won’t ask you to make up for the share you failed to receive, so just take the compensation for your leg work between the Hwang Gold Clan and the Outcast Inn and leave.”
“How dare you! How dare you spout such nonsense in front of me, Hwang Geum-go Bu-rin of the Hwang Gold Clan!”
“You have two choices. Either go back and receive proper compensation, fill in my losses, and take the intermediary fee, or spit it all out right here and just leave.”
As Bu-rin panted, getting worked up, I maintained a calm attitude.
This was business.
It was a reasonable demand.
I stared at Bu-rin, not giving him a single bit of leeway.
Bu-rin seemed to notice that my words were not just to pressure him but were sincere, so he somewhat calmed down from his agitation.
“Even if you, Ho Cheon-an, are popular among intermediaries, to think you can continue being an outcast after messing with an intermediary…”
“My money.”
I cut off Bu-rin’s words.
“The money in your bosom, or go get the money from the Taegyeong Sect. Until then, you are not an [intermediary] to me. You’re just a debtor who needs to collect money.”
“And if I can’t do that?”
I laughed.
Bu-rin’s appearance, putting on a bold front with a pale face, was ridiculous and…
“I’ll make it so you can’t rest until you pay up. Including all the labor costs for my debt collection.”
It was the start of the Bu-rin hunt.
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Rattle. Rumble.
“Is this normal debt collection?”
“Huh? No.”
Even though the Black Shadow Qi Technique was active, I could feel Black Cat looking at me.
She had an expression that seemed to question if this would even work, but she was doing the task well, so I just clicked my tongue.
“But in the end, friction with intermediaries is unavoidable while doing outcast work. Intermediaries operate in a structure where the more they cut into the outcasts’ share, the more money is left for them. You have to secure your own share.”
“Openly setting up a confrontation with intermediaries like this is not a wise choice.”
“That’s true. But it’s partly your fault that I’m doing this now, you know?”
“Senior Ho, it’s a bit unseemly to stir things up as you please and then blame me.”
Busted.
“Was yesterday’s incident really that big of a deal?”
“If you put a price on it, it’s actually average. Even if you add up all the compensation, it’s not even half of a big case.”
“Then why are you going this far?”
“Because there’s no time. I need to discipline the intermediaries so that I can be comfortable.”
“What time? Time to go gambling?”
“…Where did you hear that?”
“My colleagues told me.”
Wow, those bastards Jeong Sam and Yeo Jin-sang talked behind my back in the meantime?
Why do I feel embarrassed every time my colleagues do something stupid?
“Senior Ho, tell me honestly. What am I to you?”
“Hey, why do you distrust me so much? I’m giving out tricks that I can’t even learn anywhere, so just focus on absorbing them with gratitude.”
“What part of this mess is there to learn from?”
Black Cat waved the flyers, grabbed a handful, and scattered them in the air.
Seeing the flyers clumping and rolling, I wanted to say something but let it slide, thinking it was good enough that she didn’t stop.
“First, you can see the true nature of the intermediaries who act like nobles at the Outcast Inn.”
Only those with prestigious bloodlines can become intermediaries.
Bloodlines of prestigious families engaged in civil service, officialdom, or commerce unrelated to martial arts.
Only the bloodlines of families with a solid reputation that wouldn’t be tarnished, even by the scandal of associating with outcasts, can become intermediaries.
But let’s think rationally.
In the end, the activities of intermediaries negatively affect the family’s reputation.
The intermediaries may boast that their bloodline and family cannot be touched by mere rumors, but would their family view such intermediaries favorably?
The profits of intermediaries are generally not insignificant.
Still, those profits could be more attractive for a prestigious family that can engage in intermediary activities.
They probably just think of it as providing a job to a family member and leaving them be, even if it’s inconvenient.
“Second, you can learn how to feed unavoidable techniques to intermediaries who run rampant like Lu Bu, limited to the Outcast Inn.”
“Hmm.”
Black Cat’s unruly attitude slightly improved.
“I didn’t like that person named Bu-rin, but… Still, if he’s an intermediary, a type of information broker, it’s bad for such guys to instill negative preconceptions that information brokers are being taken advantage of… Those who ruin the perception of information brokers need to be dealt with…”
“What did you say?”
“Nothing. Alright, senior. I’ll learn well.”
Swooosh!
Black Cat suddenly became motivated and mixed hidden techniques and footwork while scattering the flyers.
The flyers pulled high into the sky clumped together like a ball in midair and then exploded, scattering.
I heard people murmuring, probably seeing the flyers falling like snow from the sky.
“By the way, what are these bizarre characters?”
“They are special symbols that can attract people’s attention and leave a lasting impression. They are so effective that countless people have adopted these symbols.”
“Ooh…”
We arrived at the Hwang Gold Clan.
A merchant family befitting the name Hwang Gold (黃金).
The number one family in Sacheon’s commercial world, holding the wealth of Sacheon in one hand.
Standing in front of the gate and looking at the palace-like mansion, one could feel its affluence.
An imposing gate large enough for sixteen horses to enter in a row and numerous buildings comparable to a palace visible through the open gate.
I stopped the cart I was pulling and stood in front of it.
“Prestigious family or not, they can’t do anything once the truck, no, the cart arrives.”
Goblin hunting is best done by roadkill.
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The Hwang Gold Clan.
The Hwang Gold Clan is indeed a long-standing merchant family.
‘But that doesn’t mean it was without crises.’
Although the Hwang Gold Clan owns the Hwang Gold Trading Company, known as the best in Sacheon, looking at its history, the marks of being swayed by various trials and tribulations were evident.
The side effects brought about by dirty money-making and indiscriminate expansion based on capital, despite being a wealthy family.
In the face of greedy investments, they borrowed funds from here and there, made enemies, and committed many dishonorable deeds.
Yeo Il-ye felt as if the magnificent scenery of the Hwang Gold Clan was stained with filth.
A foul odor seemed to flow behind the general manager walking ahead.
‘It’s unexpected to be able to meet the clan leader directly.’
The power of the Hwang Gold Clan extends throughout Sacheon.
As the number one merchant in Sacheon, they invest a lot of wealth to maintain friendly relations with martial arts sects.
The Jeomchang Sect also received numerous gifts from the Hwang Gold Clan.
It is common for Sacheon’s celebrities to interact with each other appropriately.
Yeo Il-ye, who had bullied a disciple entrusted with delivering a letter and came to visit the Hwang Gold Clan, was still surprised that the clan leader would meet her directly.
Is this the treatment befitting her rising reputation these days?
Or is he really related to that incident back then?
‘It’s a meaningless assumption.’
Yeo Il-ye shook her head.
The leader of the Hwang Gold Clan was not in a position where unqualified individuals could meet him so quickly.
She had gained the qualification to meet him because she had proven her skills by defeating one top expert after another in Sacheon and reaching the transcendent realm.
Even if the clan leader was related to that incident back then, if Yeo Il-ye were merely at the peak realm, she wouldn’t have had the opportunity to meet the clan leader face to face.
Reversal at the Extreme, Tempering with Fire and Cold.
Yeo Il-ye once again reflected on the teachings given by her benefactor and purified her mind.
Even without closing her eyes, the inner imagery unfolded before her.
A colossal structure made of refined and forged metal.
The structure, too large to be called a mere building, looked sturdy and solid, not inferior to the vast Hwang Gold Clan’s palace.
However, there was a vast hole left at the bottom.
‘Obsession? Delusion? Regret?’
Simply because she had burned with anger, she had indiscriminately directed her hatred towards outcasts and had gone astray.
Because of that, no one was by Yeo Il-ye’s side now.
Since losing her parents, Yeo Il-ye had not let anyone close, merely baring her teeth and swinging her claws so no one could approach her.
The hole created on the day her mansion burned down remained in place, revealing itself even though Yeo Il-ye’s heart had been newly refined and cooled.
Revenge.
Yeo Il-ye didn’t know if revenge could fill that hole in her heart.
However, Yeo Il-ye truly loved her parents and, at the same time, loved that mountain villa.
The maid who secretly put sweets in her mouth behind her mother’s back.
The servant who followed behind her, not knowing what to do, worried she might get hurt when she ran around the gardens and climbed trees.
That had burned and disappeared, and Yeo Il-ye could not bring them back to life.
She had no choice but to offer blood to appease their resentment.
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Waiting for the plan