Namgung Geom recalled what he knew about the Yi Family Manor on Mount Huang.
Between training sessions, he had made sure to familiarize himself with the Namgung Family's sphere of influence.
That included information about the Yi Family Manor on Mount Huang.
He recalled that the Yi Family Manor's primary business was tea.
"Could it be that something has happened with the Yi Family Manor's tea business?"
When Namgung Geom pinpointed the issue just from hearing the name Yi Family Manor, a glint of interest sparked in Namgung Pae's eyes.
It was the kind of detail one could not know without having thoroughly studied the Namgung Family's forces beforehand.
Namgung Pae could tell that Namgung Geom was not simply strong in martial arts—he had also studied the Namgung Family's sphere of influence.
"That's right. The Yi Family Manor was raided while transporting tea."
"I doubt it was just once."
There was no way they would request support from the Namgung Family over a single raid.
"They've been raided four times already."
"Is the identity of the raiders unknown?"
Namgung Pae nodded.
"The mission is to uncover the raiders' identities and bring them to justice."
"Are there no leads that might reveal the raiders' identities?"
"The Yi Family Manor assigned martial artists as escorts, but they still couldn't stop them."
In that instant, Namgung Geom's eyes flashed.
"So they're trained in martial arts."
That meant a faction of the murim was involved.
'If they're martial artists stronger than the Yi Family Manor's own, then they belong to a force more powerful than the manor itself.'
Who could it be?
Namgung Geom recalled the power structure of Mount Huang.
Two factions were competing for control of Mount Huang.
One was the Yi Family Manor.
And the other was—
The Black Bear Gang.
The Black Bear Gang was a faction belonging to the Evil Tyrant Alliance, the unorthodox coalition, and ran gambling dens and pleasure houses as its primary businesses.
Originally, the Yi Family Manor held the upper hand over the Black Bear Gang, but as the gang's martial strength grew, the manor now found itself walking on eggshells around them.
Had the Yi Family Manor not been under the Namgung Family's protection, the Black Bear Gang would have crushed them long ago.
'I should start by investigating the Black Bear Gang.'
Namgung Geom suspected the Black Bear Gang was behind the tea raids.
"Has anything else happened between the Yi Family Manor and the Black Bear Gang recently?"
Namgung Geom asked.
"You think the Black Bear Gang raided the Yi Family Manor's tea?"
"At this point, isn't that the most likely possibility?"
Namgung Pae nodded and spoke.
"Come to think of it, I heard the Black Bear Gang Leader recently proposed a marriage to the Yi Family Manor and was turned down."
The picture was coming together.
The Black Bear Gang Leader must have proposed the marriage with his sights set on the Yi Family Manor's wealth and business.
Once he became the Yi Manor Lord's son-in-law, he would have a legitimate claim to inherit the manor's wealth and business.
He could have seized them by force, but too many eyes were watching.
The Namgung Family, above all, was not something he could afford to ignore.
So it was highly likely he had taken the approach of becoming the Yi Manor Lord's son-in-law to claim the manor's wealth and business through natural succession.
On top of that, the Yi Manor Lord's daughter was said to be a rare beauty.
And the Black Bear Gang Leader was a notorious lecher with an eye for women.
"The Black Bear Gang Leader must have planned to win both the beauty and the Yi Family Manor's wealth and business through marriage."
It was a plan to kill two birds with one stone.
"But the Yi Manor Lord rejected his proposal, so that plan fell through."
Namgung Geom shook his head.
"Even with his proposal rejected, the Black Bear Gang Leader won't give up so easily."
"So you're saying he decided to take the Yi Family Manor's wealth and business by force?"
"The Black Bear Gang can't use force openly—not with the main family watching. That's precisely why they hid their identity while carrying out the raids."
Of course, all of this was under the assumption that the Black Bear Gang was behind the raids.
"But raiding alone isn't enough to seize the Yi Family Manor's wealth and business, is it?"
Namgung Pae raised the question.
"The stolen goods are one thing, but if the Yi Family Manor can't meet its delivery deadlines, they'll have to pay an enormous penalty."
Namgung Pae immediately saw where this was going.
The Yi Family Manor did not just produce and process tea—it handled distribution as well.
They signed contracts with buyers and had to deliver the finished tea by set dates.
If they missed a deadline, they had to pay a penalty for each day of delay.
A few days of losses might be manageable, but the longer it dragged on, the larger the sum would grow—possibly enough to bankrupt the Yi Family Manor.
"Facing catastrophic losses, the Yi Manor Lord would have no choice but to take the Black Bear Gang Leader's hand if he offered it."
"At that point, even if the Black Bear Gang Leader made marriage a condition, the manor would have to accept."
"But the Black Bear Gang Leader must know the main family would intervene before it came to that. Would he really go through with it?"
Namgung Pae raised another doubt.
"The amount of tea the Yi Family Manor produces in a year is limited."
Namgung Pae thought for a moment at Namgung Geom's words, then nodded as if he understood.
"Since the Black Bear Gang stole their supply, they won't have enough to send to their buyers."
"Exactly. Unless the main family recovers the stolen stock by force, the Yi Family Manor won't be able to refuse the Black Bear Gang Leader's offer."
"If the Black Bear Gang hands over the stolen goods, wouldn't that be proof they were the ones who stole them?"
Namgung Pae raised yet another question.
"They could simply claim that someone else stole the tea, and the Black Bear Gang merely recovered it."
Namgung Pae immediately grasped the explanation.
"Without proof that the Black Bear Gang carried out the raids, we can't hold them accountable."
"That's why finding evidence that the Black Bear Gang is behind the raids is what matters most."
"So do you have a plan?"
Namgung Geom thought for a moment, then spoke.
"The simplest and surest method is to find the tea the Black Bear Gang stole."
"But the Black Bear Gang wouldn't have stored it somewhere easy to find."
Namgung Geom had already anticipated that.
"That's why I plan to lure the Black Bear Gang into making a move."
"Lure them?"
At Namgung Pae's question, Namgung Geom smiled and revealed his plan.
After hearing the explanation, Namgung Pae spoke with an intrigued look.
"I'm curious whether the Black Bear Gang Leader will really act as you predict."
"I'll make sure he does, one way or another."
Confidence filled Namgung Geom's face as he spoke.
***
That day.
Namgung Geom and his peers from the Azure Dragon Pavilion slipped out of the Namgung Family estate in secret.
The key to the plan was ensuring no one knew the Namgung Family had deployed forces.
Namgung Geom and his peers traveled toward Mount Huang disguised as wanderers to conceal their identities.
They pushed forward with haste, cutting their sleep short.
As a result, they reached Mount Huang in just three days after leaving the Namgung Family estate.
Considering the journey from the Namgung Family estate to Mount Huang normally took five days, it was clear just how fast they had moved.
Upon arriving at Mount Huang, Namgung Geom left his peers behind and headed to the Yi Family Manor alone.
When he reached the Yi Family Manor, he infiltrated the estate grounds in secret.
Then he made his way toward the Yi Manor Lord's quarters.
Martial artists stood guard and patrolled every corner of the Yi Family Manor, but not a single one detected Namgung Geom's presence.
It was Namgung Geom's first time at the Yi Family Manor, but finding the manor lord's quarters was not difficult.
The most heavily guarded area within the estate—that was where the Yi Manor Lord's quarters were.
Namgung Geom slipped into the manor lord's quarters undetected.
He had never formally learned stealth techniques.
But he could employ the basics, and that alone was enough to fool the Yi Family Manor's martial artists.
Once inside the quarters, Namgung Geom moved straight toward the presence he judged to be the Yi Manor Lord.
Two guards stood before the Yi Manor Lord's room.
Namgung Geom subdued them in an instant, then knocked on the door.
"Manor Lord! I am Namgung Geom of the Namgung Family. I humbly request an audience."
Yi Geom-baek, the Yi Manor Lord inside the room, was momentarily startled by the voice from outside.
"Namgung Geom of the Namgung Family?"
Yi Geom-baek found it strange that Namgung Geom had come to see him in secret.
Above all, he had no way of knowing whether the person outside truly was Namgung Geom of the Namgung Family.
"That is correct. I have come in response to your request for support, to aid the Yi Family Manor."
Yi Geom-baek deliberated briefly, then let Namgung Geom in.
"Come inside."
When Namgung Geom opened the door and entered, Yi Geom-baek was sitting on his bed.
"I am Namgung Geom of the Namgung Family. I apologize for the late hour."
"If my memory serves, the name of the Namgung Family's eldest grandson was Namgung Geom, was it not?"
Yi Geom-baek studied Namgung Geom's face as he asked.
"That is correct. I am the Namgung Family's eldest grandson."
Yi Geom-baek doubted Namgung Geom's identity no further.
He had met Namgung Geom's father, Namgung Il, before.
Namgung Geom's face was the spitting image of Namgung Il's.
Anyone could tell that Namgung Geom was Namgung Il's son.
"I didn't expect the Namgung Family's eldest grandson to come in person."
"This concerns the Yi Family Manor—it is not something to be taken lightly."
Yi Geom-baek gave a wry smile at the flattering words and asked.
"But what is the reason for coming in secret in the middle of the night?"
"Because there is a reason to keep the main family's involvement hidden."
"And what might that reason be?"
Yi Geom-baek asked with a puzzled expression.
"I suspect the Black Bear Gang is behind the tea raids on the Yi Family Manor."
Yi Geom-baek nodded.
He, too, had suspected the Black Bear Gang.
"The problem is that we can't find any proof it was them."
Yi Geom-baek had conducted his own investigation, but he could not find evidence that the Black Bear Gang had stolen the tea.
"That is why I intend to force the Black Bear Gang into acting on their own."
"How so?"
"It is simple. The Yi Family Manor sends out a tea shipment."
Yi Geom-baek understood immediately.
"You want to bait them into raiding again and catch them in the act."
"Exactly. The simplest and surest method."
"And if the Black Bear Gang knew the Namgung Family had moved, they would lay low—so you kept it hidden?"
Yi Geom-baek guessed the reason behind Namgung Geom's covert entry and asked.
"Correct."
"But if we send out a shipment without any apparent countermeasures in this situation, won't the Black Bear Gang find it suspicious?"
When Yi Geom-baek raised the concern, Namgung Geom answered as if it were no issue at all.
"We just need to say that support from the Namgung Family did not arrive in time, so wanderers were hired in a rush."
The sudden mention of wanderers made Yi Geom-baek tilt his head.
"Wanderers?"
"The people who came with me will join as wanderers."
Namgung Geom planned to disguise his peers from the Azure Dragon Pavilion as wanderers to deceive the Black Bear Gang.
"How many are there?"
"A little under thirty."
Yi Geom-baek furrowed his brow at the smaller-than-expected number.
"Are they from the Three Great Sword Corps, by chance?"
If they were from the Three Great Sword Corps, the Namgung Family's elite, then even a small number would be reassuring.
But Namgung Geom's answer was not what Yi Geom-baek hoped for.
"No. They are my peers from the Azure Dragon Pavilion, about to complete their training."
Not the Three Great Sword Corps—cadets who were only just finishing at the Azure Dragon Pavilion.
Yi Geom-baek asked, clearly unconvinced.
"Will they be enough?"
Yi Geom-baek's reaction was entirely understandable.
Namgung Geom smiled and said, "Would it reassure you to know they won a sparring match against the Celestial Wind Sword Corps' Third Sword Company?"