Announcement Ceremony of the Vice-Leader (4)
In truth, it was something from when Eun Seoho was very young, so he wouldn't remember it, but Eun Jeong-ho had once made a vow with him.
It was a vow to always keep the promises made to Eun Seoho.
Now, he found himself in a situation where that vow clashed with etiquette toward a guest, and he let out a sigh.
'If I can't even keep a promise to my younger brother, how can I speak of trust as a merchant?'
Eun Jeong-ho spoke to the maid.
"Please tell them I've suddenly been called away by another matter and won't be able to meet with them. And let them know I'll visit in person later to offer my apologies."
"Pardon? Ah, yes, understood."
Then Eun Jeong-ho turned to Jeon Woojin.
"Let's head to the banquet hall."
"Thank you for heeding my advice. Then, allow me to escort you."
***
Meanwhile,
The guest waiting in the orchid room couldn't hide their confusion after hearing what the maid had said.
'Damn! What a mess!'
The guest gripped the sword hidden beneath their skirt.
"Then, I'll escort you to the banquet hall, guest."
It was a subtle dismissal.
Left with no choice, the guest rose and headed toward the banquet hall. Watching the guest leave, the maid tilted her head.
Something about the way they walked was odd.
No wonder.
The guest in the fancy palace attire and elegant hair ornament was not a woman—but a man.
He was an assassin known as the Faceless Guest.
He earned that title because no one knew his real face.
He could manipulate his bone structure at will using bone-shifting techniques and was a master of disguise, employing artificial skin masks.
So at times, he could be a sturdy young man, other times an old woman, or even a child, or a beautiful woman.
However,
Knowing his target had come right to the door and then turned back left him flustered, and he couldn't focus on his walk.
'Tch! To think something like that would shake my composure. My training's still lacking.'
He quickly corrected his gait.
He had taken the job five days earlier.
The request was to assassinate Eun Jeong-ho, the eldest son of the Eunhae Merchant Group, or at least wound him severely enough that he couldn't continue public activity.
He had no idea why someone would request such a thing.
As far as he knew, the Eunhae Merchant Group had a good reputation, and Eun Jeong-ho was also known as a decent man.
But that didn't concern him.
'If I questioned every job, I couldn't do this line of work.'
He had already received a hefty advance. There was no turning back now.
Besides, he didn't have much time.
If the person he had disguised himself as appeared, his identity could be exposed.
The Faceless Guest stepped into the banquet hall.
He scanned the festive scene of music, food, and lively chatter, looking for his target.
After some searching, he finally found Eun Jeong-ho.
He was talking to a guest, then moved to a corner and sat on a rock.
He looked exhausted—perhaps taking a short break.
This was the chance.
The Faceless Guest didn't miss it.
He kicked off the ground and launched himself at his target.
In his mind, his actions were already mapped out.
'First slash, cut down the bodyguard. Second slash, take out the target. Then, ditch the disguise and hide among the crowd. Perfect.'
Just as he expected, Jeon Woojin, the guard who sensed something was wrong, drew his sword and blocked the attack.
"Master! Watch out!"
"Gasp!"
But the Faceless Guest's first strike was swift and precise.
Unable to keep up, Jeon Woojin took the blade to his chest.
Yet he was tenacious.
Despite the pain, he held on and blocked the assassin.
Clang!
'How is he still moving? That wound can't be shallow.'
By then, the Silver Wind Squad warriors guarding the area rushed over.
An assassination required a flawless plan.
Even the slightest miscalculation would result in failure.
And so, it was a failure.
The Faceless Guest turned around without hesitation.
If he delayed any further, escape would be impossible.
The reason he'd survived this long as an assassin was because he never hesitated to flee when failure was imminent.
Just then—
"Urgh!"
Something was wrong.
His legs weren't moving naturally.
'What… what is this? Why are my legs…'
His legs started to stiffen. With them frozen, escape was impossible.
The Silver Wind Squad's encirclement tightened—they were right on top of him.
'Damn it, I didn't want to use this…'
He discreetly pulled out a smoke bomb hidden in his sleeve.
It was expensive, something he carried for emergencies only.
This special smoke bomb had a long duration and wide coverage, enough to obscure vision and let him blend into the crowd, even with his immobilized legs.
Boom!
He threw the smoke bomb, and smoke filled the area.
'If I use this chance to switch disguises… huh?'
He felt a strange emptiness.
The emptiness turned to pain—his right arm had been severed.
"Aaaaargh!"
As the smoke cleared, he came face to face with an old man holding a sword.
He remembered this man as the owner of a miscellaneous goods store in the entertainment district—but the sword in his hand looked familiar.
"Gasp! Y-you… don't tell me… Ghost Mask Officer?!"
"Finally caught you."
***
I wasn't sure what had just happened.
But based on the timing, it seemed to align with when that incident had taken place, so I headed to the Guest Hall to find Elder brother Jeong-ho.
Along the way, I heard something unexpected from a maid.
"The Young Lord said something came up and he couldn't meet the guest in the orchid room."
What?
That meant Elder brother Jeong-ho never met with the guest in the orchid room—did something happen that I didn't anticipate?
Or maybe he took my advice—or followed Woo-jin's suggestion—and avoided the meeting?
I had no idea what was going on, and it left me uneasy.
Ah!
There was something more important.
"Then what about the guest in the orchid room?"
"They returned to the banquet hall."
"What?"
"Is something wrong?"
"N-no, it's nothing."
I urgently set out to find Elder brother Jeong-ho.
There was still a chance the assassin would target him again.
And then—I spotted him sitting on a rock, taking a brief rest.
That moment!
Someone in fancy palace attire charged toward him.
"...!"
As expected, the assassin hadn't given up.
And, just as I anticipated, Woo-jin stepped forward, and a fight broke out between them.
I quickly signaled an emergency alert.
"Everyone, zone five, now!"
Hearing the call, the Silver Wind Squad members nearby rushed toward where Elder brother Jeong-ho was.
They quickly grasped the situation.
"It's an assassin targeting the Young Lord!"
"Don't let him escape!"
The assassin's eyes showed clear signs of distress.
I could tell instinctively that he was about to flee, and I shouted to Elder brother Jeong-ho.
"Elder brother! Flying Silver Arrow!"
"Huh?"
His expression went blank for a moment, but his eyes quickly refocused, and he activated the Flying Silver Arrow.
Shoosh! Shoosh!
The Silver Needles struck the assassin's legs.
Even with a skirt hiding his legs, it didn't matter.
Even if he was an assassin, there was no way a mere skirt could block the Flying Silver Arrow.
"Ugh!"
Thanks to the numbing effect of the Silver Needle, the assassin lost his balance and appeared to be caught.
But at that moment, the smoke bomb went off.
I bit my lip.
'Damn it!'
Even though I'd prepared the Flying Silver Arrow to prevent his escape, it looked like we were about to lose him again.
Just then—
Thud,
There was a sound of something hitting the floor, followed by a terrible scream.
"Aaaaaargh!"
A moment later, as the smoke cleared, I saw a familiar face within it.
The old man from the general store stood holding a sword with a distinctive hilt.
The sword hilt was shaped like a fierce tiger baring its fangs and claws.
The assassin, writhing in pain, looked at the old man and gasped.
"Gasp! Y-you… don't tell me… Ghost Mask Officer?"
"Finally caught you."
At the words of the old man, the Ghost Mask Officer, the assassin collapsed to the ground.
Then, as if he'd had a sudden thought, he began to mouth something, but the old man quickly kicked him in the chin with sharp precision.
"Tch!"
Thwack!
"Guh!"
A poison pill popped out of the assassin's mouth and rolled across the floor.
"You're not escaping to the afterlife that easily."
"..."
Watching that, I could understand why the Ghost Mask Officer was so feared among killers.
He left no openings.
Just then, Father and Chief of External Affairs Go Ilpyung came running. It seemed they had come as soon as they heard the commotion.
"Jeong-ho! Are you all right?"
At Father's words, elder brother nodded.
"Yes, Father. I'm fine. I apologize for causing worry. However, in protecting me, Woo-jin was…"
Elder brother Jeong-ho turned to look at Jeon Woojin.
The physician attending to him said,
"Jeon Woojin will be fine."
"Really?"
"Yes. With about two weeks of rest and recovery, he should be able to move again without issue. Thankfully, we were able to treat him immediately."
Only then did elder brother's face finally brighten.
Father nodded and said,
"It was truly fortunate that we had physicians stationed throughout the area as Seoho suggested!"
"Yes, Father."
"That aside…"
Father turned to look at the main culprit behind this disturbance and the old man from the general store standing before him.
At that moment, Go Ilpyung glanced at the old man, his expression twitching as he politely asked,
"Are you the owner of that sword?"
"I am."
At his answer, Chief Go clasped his hands together and bowed.
"I am Go Ilpyung, the Chief of External Affairs for the Eunhae Merchant Group. A junior from the horse academy greets Senior."
Everyone around murmured in surprise at Go's courtesy.
It was no wonder—Chief Go was a renowned master with the title 'Heaven-Shaking Sword'.
If someone like him was being so respectful, it meant this old man was no ordinary figure.
Which, indeed, he wasn't.
The old man waved his hand.
"Come now. I'm just a retired old relic. That's too much courtesy."
"Please don't say that, Senior."
Chief Go asked the old man,
"Then, may I ask what exactly happened here?"
"I'll explain that,"
The elder brother stepped forward, and Father nodded, prompting him.
"What exactly happened?"
The elder brother explained the sequence of events.
Upon hearing it, Chief Go turned to the old man and said,
"Then you're the one who stopped the assassin who targeted our Vice-Leader. Thank you."
"Not at all, I simply did what needed to be done. If anything, I should be the one giving thanks."
"Pardon?"
The old man looked at me as he spoke.
"Thanks to the youngest inviting me, I came here and, unexpectedly, received a tremendous gift."
At that, Go Ilpyung looked even more confused.
"You knew I was running a general store over on West Street, right?"
"Of course I knew. If I had realized you were a senior, I would've come to greet you long ago. Please forgive my rudeness."
"I kept my identity hidden on purpose, ran that store quietly—because I was waiting to catch this guy."
The assassin was now tightly bound by the Silver Wind Squad warriors.
"I had fulfilled my duties under orders, but there was one I failed to catch. This bastard right here."
"Then that person… is the Faceless Guest?"
"You know your stuff."
"But how did you recognize that he was the Faceless Guest?"
"Because of this."
The old man nudged the severed arm on the floor with his foot and flipped it over. On the inside of the arm was a distinctive scar.
"My sword technique leaves a particular mark on the body. And this scar is one I left when I failed to capture this guy before."
The old man approached the Faceless Guest and roughly tore at his beautiful face.
As the skin peeled away, another face was revealed underneath.
"And this is the face I remember seeing back then!"
In broad daylight, the real face of the Faceless Guest was finally revealed.
So this assassin, who caused chaos at Elder brother Jeong-ho's Vice-Leader announcement banquet, was the very Faceless Guest the Ghost Mask Officer had spent his life trying to catch?
In my previous life, I had no idea they were connected like this—and the absurdity of it made me laugh.
But maybe it turned out well?
Thanks to that, the old man fulfilled a lifelong wish, and we managed to capture the assassin who had targeted elder brother's life.
"We should hand this man over to the authorities… but since all this trouble happened here… let's do this instead. I've got some skill in interrogation—I'll help. What you want is to find out who's behind this, right?"
At the old man's offer, Chief Go looked to Father, and Father nodded.
"We won't refuse your help."
"Then lead the way."
"Yes, sir."
With that, Chief Go and the old man took the Faceless Guest and disappeared somewhere.
But that didn't mean everything was over.
The commotion had been so great that the guests were still murmuring, and the atmosphere hadn't calmed down yet.