Sharing the Same Boat (1)
“Stop your petty tricks and release Strategist Sima.”
As always, Ma Bong-Gi expressed his emotions honestly. And today, that expression was a little more violent.
“There is a limit to my patience. I may look like a scarecrow in your eyes, but at the very least, I am a scarecrow capable of cutting off your head.”
“It was not done by our side.”
At those words, Ma Bong-Gi was startled. It was an unexpected expression. As if it had not been a slip of the tongue, Zuo Tie-Long’s expression was calm.
“Our? So you are finally admitting it.”
It was the first time Zuo Tie-Long acknowledged those behind him. At the same time, his attitude changed as well. The previous politeness disappeared.
As if he were facing someone he had met for a transaction, he instead showed an oppressive gaze.
Naturally, Ma Bong-Gi found it deeply unpleasant.
“You know nothing about me. If you thought I would endure this humiliation and spend the rest of my life chasing women, then you are gravely mistaken.”
Ma Bong-Gi decided not to care about Zuo Tie-Long’s attitude. In any case, at the end of this fight, only killing or being killed would remain, so it did not matter whether he cursed, raged, or acted like a mad dog.
“In any case, it was not your side? Then why exactly did the Law Enforcement Hall Master suddenly go mad and run wild?”
“I do not know that.”
“What exactly do you know? You said you sent people into the Hall of Justice, so did you send them into the Law Enforcement Hall too?”
“Perhaps we may have to.”
“What?”
“One guess is that Sima Tian seems to have noticed our existence.”
Zuo Tie-Long used the word “our” once again.
“So? You decided to take this opportunity to cut off my wings?”
“Did I not say that we did not do this? And is Sima Tian not far too shabby a man to be called wings?”
At the word shabby, Ma Bong-Gi’s expression turned cold. That word was also an insult to him. He had kept Sima Tian by his side for a long time and had spent time with him.
Ma Bong-Gi relaxed his expression. He was so angry that a hollow laugh came out instead.
“I am shabby as well, so it is fine. If you do not do it, I will personally give the order and have him released.”
“If the Alliance Lord interferes in the affairs of the Law Enforcement Hall, you will lose the trust of your subordinates.”
“It is fine. There is no one who trusts me.”
“Very well. Then say that directly to that person.”
“That person?”
“I will let you meet the person you wanted to meet.”
The corner of Ma Bong-Gi’s mouth rose. At last, they were saying they would let him meet the person behind them.
“But…”
The condition that followed crushed Ma Bong-Gi’s pride.
“The Alliance Lord must go to see that person.”
Crack.
The armrest of the grand chair was crushed again.
“You crazy bastard!”
Ma Bong-Gi poured out killing intent. No matter how angry he had been until now, he had never released killing intent toward Zuo Tie-Long.
If that person did not come and he himself went, it would mean acknowledging that he stood beneath him. Pride was one matter, but once he went there, there was no telling what might happen to him.
As if saying that doing such a thing would be useless, Zuo Tie-Long spoke coldly.
“The choice is yours, Alliance Lord.”
After bowing politely, he immediately turned and left.
Bang! Baaang! Bang!
While he turned and walked away, the grand chair was completely smashed, but Zuo Tie-Long did not turn his head even once as he left through the door.
Ma Bong-Gi spat out a resolution mixed with ridicule.
“Fine. If this is how you come at me, then I have ideas of my own. Since my wings have been cut, I must put on new wings. You will never like my new wings.”
The Hall of Justice was in disorder.
Sima Tian had been dragged away by the Law Enforcement Hall, and every document in his office had been swept away. Since the founding of the Hall of Justice, an unprecedented event had occurred.
The strategists gathered in groups of three or five, paying close attention to everything from whether Sima Tian could come out safely, to who would become the next head of the Hall of Justice if he did not. Depending on who became the head, everyone’s fate could change.
Amid the chaos, I shared the joy of victory with Gal Sa-Ryang, just the two of us in the office.
“It will be difficult for him to escape this matter.”
As soon as his crimes were revealed, Sima Tian would be locked in the underground prison. Of course, he would not simply suffer it. He would use every method possible to escape.
But it would not be easy. Perhaps he might even be eliminated by Ma Bong-Gi, or by the bastards behind him.
“You handled it truly brilliantly.”
I was proud of Gal Sa-Ryang. With empty hands and no force of his own, using only stratagems, he had dragged the Chief Strategist of the Grand Martial Alliance down to the ground. Of course, he had received my help, but still, the person who had arranged the decisive board was him.
This Gal Sa-Ryang was my Chief Strategist.
Well done, Sa-Ryang.
Gal Sa-Ryang looked at me and said,
“If not for you, I could not have done it.”
It was one of the things I had said most often to him in my previous life. Now I was the one hearing those words.
“It was nothing.”
“No. If you had not helped me, this could not have been achieved. When you first entered, I felt a strange bond. And now I have come this far with you.”
“Thank you for looking kindly on me.”
He had opened the door of his heart to me. But it was not yet open wide enough for me to reveal my purpose and even tell him about Baek Pyo’s matter.
I thought there was still not enough emotional exchange. He was currently running toward his goal with revenge in his heart. For now, he probably still thought he was using me.
We had to become closer. We had to become true comrades who could sincerely share our inner thoughts.
Just then, a presence came from outside the door, and a woman’s voice was heard.
“I will enter for a moment.”
The door opened, and a woman came inside.
“It is my first time meeting you.”
The moment I saw her, I was truly startled. The woman who entered the room was Number Seven.
“I have come to investigate matters related to the Heavenly Palace Corps operation this time.”
“Where have you come from? The Law Enforcement Hall?”
At Gal Sa-Ryang’s question, she answered in a businesslike manner.
“No. This is a direct order from the Alliance Lord. Please cooperate actively with the investigation from now on.”
It was truly an unexpected appearance from her.
As soon as we crossed one mountain, it felt as though a larger mountain had blocked the path ahead.
But I decided to think positively. Another chance had come to uncover those behind them.
I politely greeted her. It was my third meeting with her, but the first under my true identity.
“Nice to meet you. I am the newly appointed strategist, Byeok Ri-Dan.”
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Number Seven was someone skilled at observation.
In other words, if I did not hide myself well, my identity might be exposed.
Fortunately, since this was my third time experiencing her, I was confident in hiding myself.
Worrying about Gal Sa-Ryang, who had gone through all sorts of hardships, would also be looking down on him too much, so there was no need to worry.
The first thing she did was receive the report.
Sima Tian, who should originally have received the report, was under investigation, and the Heavenly Palace Corps had gone outside for special training. The only people she could investigate in the Grand Martial Alliance were the two of us.
She read the report and asked questions.
We explained things exactly as they were. Of course, among those things, my actions were neatly removed. We testified that Jong Cheon-Rak had been the one to kill Charming Poison at the final Life-and-Death Tower. We had agreed on that in advance.
“Did you see anyone else?”
I knew that the person she was asking about was that unidentified old man.
“We did not.”
“No, we did not.”
She looked back and forth between Gal Sa-Ryang and me. She was likely trying to see whether we were lying, but it was impossible to discover that from the expressions and words of the two of us.
“Good. Let us stop here for today.”
“Is it not finished?”
“There has not been enough investigation to write a report. I will tell you when it is finished.”
She rose from her seat, gave a light greeting, and left the office.
I looked at Gal Sa-Ryang and said,
“She does not seem like an ordinary woman.”
I said it hoping Gal Sa-Ryang would not take her lightly.
“The fact that she came because the Alliance Lord sent her already means she is no ordinary woman.”
Fortunately, Gal Sa-Ryang was wary of her. Perhaps he was even thinking that she might be a woman sent by the hidden force.
“You, especially, must be careful with your words and actions!”
“Yes!”
I answered loudly, but I was thinking of a different way to deal with her. It was a slightly more active method than simply being careful.
Number Seven closed the documents and looked out the window.
She had examined them several times, but she could not find anything strange in the contents of the report.
They had been ambushed during the operation and had blocked it. If Number Seven herself had not known the inner details of this operation, she too would have admired them as expected of the Heavenly Palace Corps and moved on.
But the result of this operation was strange.
First, the Heavenly Palace Corps had suffered too little damage. Two people died and five or six were injured. On the other hand, the losses on this side far exceeded one hundred.
And that was despite the fact that troops had been deployed knowing the opponent was the Heavenly Palace Corps. Unless they had been ambushed by the opponent, such a result could not happen.
Therefore, Black Water Sword’s death and Elder Go’s disappearance were both incomprehensible.
She judged that the variable was the two strategists who had supposedly accompanied them that day. That was also why she had come here first instead of to the Heavenly Palace Corps.
“There is definitely something.”
At that moment, someone made their presence known outside.
“Are you there?”
When she opened the door and went out, the newly appointed strategist from earlier was standing there. Was his name Byeok Ri-Dan?
He held out what he had in his hand.
“I was passing by and saw the light on, so I thought you were working. I bought something to eat, so please have some while you work.”
Number Seven received it without thinking.
“Thank you.”
“It is nothing.”
Byeok Ri-Dan bowed and left.
She closed the door, returned to her seat, and opened what he had given her. They were several dumplings, still warm. She threw them on the desk and sat down.
Far outside the window, she could see Byeok Ri-Dan crossing the garden. It was unexpected, but she did not feel any intention from him.
She looked down at the documents, then suddenly her gaze went to the dumplings.
“If I leave them like that, they will get cold.”
She took out a dumpling and bit into it. She did not know where he had bought them, but they tasted good.
The next day, Number Seven came to the office.
“The Strategist is out.”
“I will wait.”
Number Seven sat down in a seat on one side. I brought her a cup of cold tea from the kettle.
“Thank you.”
She lightly wet her throat.
“Thank you for the dumplings yesterday. They were delicious.”
“I am glad they suited your taste.”
“You are the descendant of a martial family, so how did you become a strategist?”
“That is the question I have received the most since coming here.”
She stared at me intently.
“To be honest, I wanted to become a smart martial artist. I told the Strategist the opposite. I said I wanted to become a strategist who fights well. This is a secret.”
In other words, I had come here to learn how to use my head.
“What if I tell your superior?”
“Is that not why I gave you the dumplings in advance?”
She looked dumbfounded. I had expected a faint laugh, but she did not laugh.
Whenever I looked at her, the intense image from our first meeting still came to mind. That lonely figure looking at the pond under the moonlight had been engraved in my heart.
Should I draw her to my side?
That purpose was not to obtain information about those behind her. She was a member of a secret organization raised with emotions extremely excluded. Even if I tried to find out secrets, how much could she know?
It was simply a feeling born from my favorable impression of her. A heart that did not want to make her my enemy. A goodwill that did not want to kill her.
After waiting for about fifteen minutes, she asked,
“Where did the Strategist go?”
Gal Sa-Ryang was entering the Alliance Lord’s Hall.
Ma Bong-Gi was sitting in the grand chair at the end of the red carpet. It was truly an unfamiliar feeling.
Ma Bong-Gi! This red carpet is a path made of blood. You do not know how many enemies were killed to create this seat. While you were spilling semen, you will never know how much blood the former Alliance Lord spilled.
Gal Sa-Ryang bowed his head politely.
“Did you call for me?”
“Welcome.”
Ma Bong-Gi’s voice was gentle. The last time Gal Sa-Ryang had come with Sima Tian, he had been a man who had not properly given him even a word or a glance.
Gal Sa-Ryang knew better than anyone.
When a person’s attitude suddenly changes, it is because they have come to want something.
If that person is someone in power, then the stronger the power they hold, the more they want. And to obtain that, one has to endure even greater sacrifice and danger.
Ma Bong-Gi rose from the grand chair and came down the steps. Then he clasped Gal Sa-Ryang’s hands as he stood before him.
“I did not fail to know that you have suffered greatly all this time. But as you know, I had my own position, did I not? I had to watch Strategist Sima’s mood, so I simply could not look after you separately.”
“Your words alone are enough. Thank you.”
“Now, come this way and sit.”
He led Gal Sa-Ryang to a seat prepared on one side of the Alliance Lord’s Hall.
“Accept a cup.”
Gal Sa-Ryang accepted the liquor from Ma Bong-Gi. Ma Bong-Gi did not beat around the bush and immediately brought up the main subject.
“I know this is shameless of me, but will you help me?”
“What do you mean?”
“I am asking you to become the Chief Strategist of the Grand Martial Alliance again.”
Because they were completely unexpected words, Gal Sa-Ryang was startled. Thinking it might be a scheme, he looked into Ma Bong-Gi’s eyes. But the gaze Ma Bong-Gi was showing now was sincere and desperate.
Gal Sa-Ryang could tell.
Through this matter, Ma Bong-Gi’s conflict with the hidden force had deepened. Because of that, he had resolved to fight the hidden force in earnest.
He intended to use Gal Sa-Ryang in that fight. Of course, Gal Sa-Ryang knew well that Ma Bong-Gi did not trust him. He simply intended to use him. After using him, he would cruelly discard him.
Gal Sa-Ryang’s heart surged. It was truly the opportunity he had been waiting for. But he did not bite the bait hastily.
“This is so sudden that…”
“Forget the disappointment from the past. I apologize.”
Ma Bong-Gi rose from his seat and clasped Gal Sa-Ryang’s hands.
“I ask this of you. Not for me, but for the Alliance. Please step forward.”
“Alliance Lord!”
Gal Sa-Ryang could not hide his joy. While hiding the blade of revenge he had kept concealed deep inside, he rejoiced purely in this moment.
“I will serve you with all my loyalty!”
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