69.
Mountain Manor — The Appearance
As the two men approached the thicket, two figures suddenly revealed themselves on the very path So-un had cut open.
They appeared the moment he was about to set the brush alight.
"Stop."
So-un did not stop.
He had already expected them to show themselves.
"To whom do you speak so rudely?"
Gun-myeong, who had sensed their presence first, stepped forward.
"Stop. Do not light the fire."
"Will you continue speaking down to us? And who are you to command me?"
"Do not set it alight."
The tone softened slightly, but So-un was already standing close enough to ignite the dry brush with a mere stretch of his hand.
He clearly sensed the change in their manner.
This strange formation seemed powerless before fire.
So-un withdrew his hand.
"Who might you be?"
One was tall, the other smaller.
Both wore plain white garments and held long swords in their hands.
They were martial artists.
"We live on this mountain. In a season this dry, a single spark could spread across the entire forest."
They did not admit to having set up the formation, nor did they acknowledge fault.
So-un stepped forward.
"Would you explain why the forest must not burn, yet it was acceptable for us to suffer here all day?"
His tone was polite, but the question struck directly.
Though they had not confessed, So-un had already concluded the strange formation trapping them was their doing.
To endure no harm oneself yet dismiss harm done to others—such thinking was selfish.
Had he not threatened fire, they would never have appeared.
"There were unavoidable circumstances."
"Your 'unavoidable circumstances' justify binding us here? Then our 'unavoidable circumstances' would justify burning your dwelling to ashes. Would it not?"
The clarity of his reasoning left them visibly unsettled.
"We apologize for the hardship you endured. We believed you would find your way out."
The man in white, his forehead bound with a cloth, looked pale in the moonlight.
"An apology seems insufficient. If I set this place ablaze and later say I did not foresee the result, would that suffice?"
The white-clad man raised his brows in irritation but found no answer.
"How, then, shall we atone?"
"It is simple. Compensate us for the harm done. Clear a path wide enough for two horses to pass before this day ends. Remove this formation so others do not suffer the same. I speak as one who has eaten the state's grain. There must be no ambiguity."
The man looked troubled.
The demand was reasonable, yet impossible to fulfill so easily.
"That is excessive, is it not?"
Still no true remorse showed in his face.
"You erected a formation on imperial land without permission and obstructed travelers. You watched as we lost a day and night here. If we now burn it away to make a road and end your formation, step aside."
So-un raised his arm.
The brush was dry as tinder, the wind whispering through it.
Fire would surely erase a formation built of wood and leaves.
Just as he moved to ignite it, the smaller figure stepped forward.
"Young master, we were wrong. We sincerely apologize for the trouble we caused."
The voice was that of a young woman.
Dressed in men's clothing, she had seemed a boy, yet her tone was clear and refined.
"Please do not light the fire. We had reasons we could not reveal. It was not to take pleasure in your suffering. We intended only to guide you out without revealing ourselves. When you threatened fire, we had no choice but to appear. For disturbing your peace, we apologize again. This mountain has long been our home. We know it is imperial land. Our desire to sever ties with the world led to this folly, nothing more. Few hunters or woodcutters ever come this deep. Had it been a busy road, we would deserve punishment. Please, set aside the fire."
Her words flowed like a clear stream, and at the end she knelt on one knee, bowing her head.
"I sincerely apologize."
The man beside her was flustered.
"Miss, how can you kneel before them?"
"He speaks rightly. We were wrong. Our wish to live in seclusion does not excuse ignoring the inconvenience of others."
Even kneeling, her command to him was firm.
She was accustomed to authority.
So-un lowered the torch.
Gun-myeong stared in surprise.
A fifteen-year-old boy had drawn an apology through pure reasoning.
"So long as you acknowledge fault, it is enough. I had no true intent to burn the forest. We only sought a way down. Please rise."
She stood.
"My name is Yu So-un of the Yu family of Tae-won."
The man whispered softly near her ear, "Not a martial clan."
"And this is Yu Gun-myeong, formerly of the Imperial Guard."
Gun-myeong nearly gave a military salute before awkwardly forming a fist-and-palm greeting.
A flicker of sharpness passed through the other man's eyes at the mention of the Imperial Guard, then vanished.
"I am called Su-rim. I regret that I cannot reveal more."
So-un assumed it was not her true name.
"There is no need to explain further."
"This is my uncle, Choi Deung-chun."
"Choi Deung-chun."
Formalities ended.
Likely neither the name nor the uncle's relation was genuine.
"Please show us the way down."
So-un crushed the remaining embers underfoot.
"It is late. Would you consider staying the night at our residence?"
Deung-chun began to protest, but Su-rim silenced him with a gesture.
"We are grateful, but someone waits for us. We are already late."
"The night road is dangerous. Your speech and conduct reveal a righteous character. And your martial skill—cutting a path through trees—was astonishing."
So-un hesitated.
He glanced at Gun-myeong.
"We cannot, can we?"
"No. There is likely already an uproar. Especially the General… ah."
Gun-myeong covered his mouth, realizing his slip.
They had heard, yet pretended not to.
Su-rim studied So-un more closely.
"Boy general," she had called him in her thoughts.
Stories told of a young warrior who felled Ga Teuk-rip in a single stroke, who spoke with maturity beyond his years.
Could it be him?
Surely not.
So-un flushed slightly.
"We must return."
Su-rim led them forward.
Her mind moved swiftly—
a learned youth with immense skill, a former Imperial Guard, the word "General."
There was only one man presently called that.
The vanguard of General Jin Mu-gwang's Northern Expedition.
Why were they here?
In flight?
She thought:
The enemy of my enemy is not my enemy.
If we save them, we may gain them.
What choice does Jin Mu-gwang have?
She guided them not down the mountain, but deeper through trees and stone.
Under the bright moon she walked without hesitation.
After some time, a vast manor emerged deep within the mountain.
No lights burned, yet under moonlight long walls and a great gate appeared.
Several houses rose in tiers along the slope, roofs climbing higher toward the rear.
A grand estate, impossibly hidden in the depths of the forest.