"Can't you hear me?! Bring the old hag here right now!" As we descended, a drunken man was throwing things around and causing a scene.
Beside him were some thugs with no distinguishing features, grinning as they harassed the women.
"Hey, hey, Heo Il. If you keep this up, we’re going to be in trouble."
The troublemaker’s name was Heo Il.
He was the son of the late Elder Heo.
The small, middle-aged man flustered in front of him was the manager of the Jeokhwaru Pavilion.
Heo Il grinned as he looked at the manager.
"Manager Jang. How long have you been working here?"
"Over twenty years. Since you first started coming here."
Heo Il didn’t look older than forty.
That meant he had been frequenting brothels since he was sixteen or so.
It was clear what kind of person he was.
"Right. So, who do you think will inherit the old man’s fortune? Who do you think will own this brothel? Huh?"
"......"
Heo Il pressed his finger against Manager Jang’s forehead, laughing wickedly.
"Kid. If you want to keep working here, you better know which side to stand on. Got it?"
"Can’t you stop this!" Madam Son, who had come down with us, stepped forward and shouted sharply.
Heo Il, reeking of alcohol, walked toward her.
"Well, well, well. Old hag. Why were you pretending not to be here?"
"...... If you came to drink, then just drink quietly. Why are you causing such a scene?"
"Huhu. It’s my brothel. Can’t I have a little fun?"
"Your brothel? How dare you...! Jeokhwaru is mine!"
"Pfft. That was when the old man was alive. Can’t you see the situation?"
"...... Just find it...! What are you all doing?! Get this guy out of here!" Madam Son shouted, looking around.
It wasn’t that the brothel lacked security.
Normally, brothels hired strong men trained in martial arts.
But everyone was just standing by, unsure of what to do.
"Who’s kicking out who? You’re kicking me out? Servants kicking out their master?"
The reason was simple.
Heo Il was the only son of the late Elder Heo.
Although the inheritance issue hadn’t been settled yet, it was highly likely that the authorities would pass the fortune to the only son.
Heo Il knew this, which was why he was so bold.
He grabbed a woman by the waist and pulled her into his arms.
"Huhuhu. Pretty girl. Come here."
"P-Please don’t. I’m not a prostitute...!"
"Would you still say that if I stripped you naked and threw you out?"
"Ugh......"
I clicked my tongue at his despicable behavior. 'If a guy like that runs the brothel, it won’t last long.'
The late Elder Heo was a notorious loan shark, but his son was even worse—a piece of trash that even the loan shark would disown.
The thugs with Heo Il were also causing more trouble.
They were eating food meant for other customers, harassing the women, and even pulling out knives to threaten people.
"Podu-nim."
I turned at the cold voice and saw Akyeonho glaring at Cheongcheon Podu with fiery eyes.
"Are you just going to keep watching while this is happening?"
"...... It’s a family matter. It’s not something the authorities should interfere with."
"But...!"
"However," Cheongcheon Podu said, looking at the knives hanging from Heo Il and the thugs’ waists, "if a martial artist who can’t stand injustice sees this, it’s enough to start a fight."
"Huh?"
Unlike Akyeonho, who didn’t understand, I immediately grasped his meaning.
"Officials don’t interfere in disputes between martial artists. Since those guys have knives on them, they’re martial artists too, right?"
"That seems to be the case."
Cheongcheon Podu nodded with a face that wouldn’t flinch even if stabbed.
It was a kind of permission, so I smiled and turned to Akyeonho.
"Yeonho. Did you hear that? As members of the righteous martial world, can we just stand by and watch these black-hearted thugs harass helpless women and civilians?"
"Absolutely not."
At this point, it was impossible not to understand.
Akyeonho nodded vigorously and jumped into the fray.
"You’re all dead, you bastards!"
Wham!
Akyeonho’s flying kick landed squarely on one thug’s jaw.
What followed was a one-sided beatdown.
Every move was exhilarating.
"W-What’s with that guy?"
"Why’s he...!"
"P-Please, spare me...!"
As I watched the fight quickly wrap up, Cheongcheon Podu asked from beside me, "Aren’t you going to fight, young hero?"
"I’m a bit frail. I’m not good at fighting."
"...... Didn’t you come from the Martial Alliance?"
"Not all martial artists are good at fighting. My strengths lie in my sharp mind and deep knowledge of martial arts."
"Ah, I see......"
In less than a moment, Heo Il and all the thugs were kneeling respectfully before us.
"Hey."
I crouched in front of Heo Il and pressed my finger against his forehead.
"W-Who are you...?"
Heo Il, his face swollen like a steamed bun, asked with a frightened expression.
It seemed the beating had sobered him up.
"Did you kill Elder Heo?"
"W-What are you talking about! Who’s spreading such nonsense!"
I looked straight at the flustered Heo Il and smiled coldly.
"You’re the one who benefits the most from Elder Heo’s death. Just look at what you’re doing today."
"That’s ridiculous! The old man was going to die in a few years anyway! Why would I kill him?!"
"Disowned and holding a grudge, with your money cut off, it’s not hard to imagine you making that choice. So... you did kill him, right?"
"I really didn’t!"
"Hey. It’s better for your health to confess now."
"I, I, I really didn’t do it!"
I deliberately created an atmosphere of fear and pressed him hard, observing his reactions.
Having spent years as an instructor in the Blood Sect, I’d seen countless liars.
The movement of his pupils, his hand gestures, his tone, and the changes in his voice—even if he could consciously control his physical reactions, Heo Il was, at best, a third-rate liar.
It was easy enough to tell when he was lying.
'He’s hiding something, but...'
It was subtle.
If he had directly killed his father or hired someone to do it, there should have been a clearer reaction.
Heo Il genuinely seemed wronged, insisting he hadn’t killed Elder Heo.
"And do you think I’m the only bastard the old man sired?!"
"There are more children? I heard you were the only one."
Heo Il snorted at my question.
His tone was filled with hatred for his dead father.
"Besides the legitimate children. That old man had affairs with countless women. Do you think I’m the only one?"
"You! How can you talk about your father like that...!"
Madam Son trembled with anger, and even Cheongcheon Podu’s expressionless face hardened.
Akyeonho was no different.
If I hadn’t signaled with my eyes, Heo Il would have been severely injured.
"What about me! I’ve seen plenty of old hags like you! How many times have bastards come asking for money?!"
"Just shut up!"
"You shut up!"
My voice cut through their bickering.
"It’d be great if both of you just shut up."
"......"
At my words, both of them clamped their mouths shut.
I sighed, looking at the two of them, red-faced and fuming.
"We’ll stop here for today. Both of you, don’t go far and stay at your residences."
"But who are you...?"
Whack!
Heo Il, who had just been slapped on the back of his head, collapsed to the side.
Honestly, I’d wanted to hit him for a while now.
"None of your business, punk."
Turning around, I saw Cheongcheon Podu looking at me with a bewildered expression and Akyeonho staring down at the unconscious Heo Il as if he were a bug.
"I think we’ve heard enough here. Let’s go. Madam Son. I’ll be back, so don’t go anywhere."
"......"
Leaving behind the pale-faced Madam Son, we exited Jeokhwaru.
Akyeonho gritted his teeth and said, "How can a son talk about his father like that?"
"It’s all about money."
Most problems in life ultimately come down to money.
Parents sell their children for money, and children kill their parents for money.
Decades-long friendships turn into enmity over money, and couples who swore eternal love become desperate when faced with poverty.
So, if you don’t want to live such a miserable life, you need to have a lot of money.
"Why does it have to come to that? Just find a woman who loves you without caring about money."
"You naive fool. Where would you find such a woman?"
"There are! Definitely!"
"Sure. Keep looking."
Anyway, if I want to make money, I need to pass the entrance exam for the Cheongryong Academy.
To do that, I need to catch the culprit of this case and secure a solid advantage during the interview.
Sigh.
As I let out a light sigh, I found myself walking through the city streets at night.
"Let’s go meet the last suspect."
"I didn’t kill him."
The late Elder Heo’s bodyguard was a tall, middle-aged man with a fierce appearance.
His left eye was covered with an eyepatch, which was quite striking.
'He’s probably killed dozens of people in his life.'
His tanned skin bore several scars, hinting at a rough life.
You shouldn’t judge people by their appearance, but just by looking at his face, he was the most likely suspect.
'Out of the three, his martial arts seem the strongest.'
He was the only first-rate expert among the suspects.
Noticing my suspicious gaze, the one-eyed bodyguard spoke with an uncomfortable expression.
"Don’t judge people just by their looks."
"Mr. Bok Man-chun. Your past as a wandering mercenary is quite impressive."
Wandering mercenaries were martial artists who sold their skills for money, moving from place to place.
In a bad light, they were thugs with swords; in a good light, they were romanticists with restless spirits.
Most of them were mediocre, but Bok Man-chun was a fairly skilled expert among them.
"...... It’s true that I used to wander as a mercenary."
Given the nature of their work, mercenaries often got involved in crimes and all sorts of dirty business.
That’s why they were often suspected when crimes occurred.
"But a few years ago, I got married and settled down here. Now, I’ve turned over a new leaf and live diligently day by day."
"Turned over a new leaf? As a loan shark’s lackey?"
I deliberately provoked him with a sarcastic tone, but the seasoned mercenary just nodded with a calm expression.
"I know this isn’t the most honest job. But as you can see, with this face and at this age, finding a decent job isn’t easy. I’ve tried manual labor before, but the other workers were scared of me and I got kicked out quickly."
"......"
"It was Elder Heo who offered me the bodyguard position. He was my benefactor. Do you think I’d kill my benefactor?"
Who knows? There’s no guarantee that everything he’s telling us is true.
But if my judgment isn’t wrong, Bok Man-chun was the most honest among the three.
"I swear, I’ve never done anything to shame my wife and child."
"Where were you at the time of the incident?"
"I was at home after work. My contract only requires me to guard him when he’s out......"
"Besides your family, is there anyone who can confirm you were at home?"
I asked Bok Man-chun a few more questions, and he answered earnestly.
"But speaking of which," one of his stories caught my interest.
"About the culprit... did you find the will? I heard it says to leave the entire fortune to someone."