Chapter ~ 06
“Good. You should have done this from the beginning.”
General Maeng smiled with satisfaction as he looked at the warehouse filled with coal.
‘Since it’s spring, they’ll be neglecting inspections anyway. All I have to do is find some fault with the soldiers during training and reduce their coal rations.’
The corners of his mouth lifted at the thought of selling the diverted coal at a good price.
“General, but what if His Highness the King finds out about this……”
“What can that mute king do? He can’t even conduct a proper interrogation.”
General Maeng snorted at the warehouse keeper’s concern.
‘Then I’ll finish the ledger properly and head to the tavern tonight to unwind.’
He had just arrived at the Muk King’s Palace and was lost in pleasant thoughts about the heavy purse that awaited him when—
Thud.
“Oh!”
A woman who suddenly came around the corner collided with him.
“Where are you looking when you walk?!”
Just as irritation surged through him—
‘Huh?’
Skin that gleamed like white jade.
Eyebrows as distinct as though they had been painted with a brush.
Clear eyes like crystals.
‘This isn’t an ordinary servant.’
After turning the matter over in his head for a moment, he realized.
‘Oh-ho, is she the jaein that the King of Muk supposedly brought back from the Imperial City?’
Despite her plain attire, an air of elegance could be seen in her bearing.
‘I expected him to bring back some nobody, but she’s quite something.’
General Maeng softened his previously distorted expression.
“To think I would encounter such a beauty in the Muk King’s Palace. I am General Maeng Tak of the Western Guard.”
He extended a hand in greeting, but the jaein clasped her hands together and bent her knees.
“I am Jaein Jin Soa.”
General Maeng awkwardly rubbed his hand, which had been left hanging in midair, against his thigh.
“But why is the jaein wandering around the palace alone?”
“Well, I was looking around by myself and lost my way.”
“What are you looking for? I’ll escort you.”
General Maeng spoke as though he were doing her a great favor.
Heroes are fond of beautiful women.
Keeping a beauty by one’s side was practically a virtue of a hero.
“Then, could you guide me to where His Highness the King is?”
Tsk. Looks like even this jaein wants to enjoy some royal favor.
Even a cursed mute can attract women once he wears a crown.
Hiding his true thoughts, General Maeng readily accepted the jaein’s request.
“His Highness the King does not usually allow people to get close to him. You must have felt lonely.”
He lowered his voice and adjusted his clothes in a refined manner as he led the way.
“Is that so?”
“Haha. If anything ever troubles you, come find me at any time. There is nothing in the Muk King’s residence that I do not know.”
“Nothing that General Maeng does not know? That is reassuring.”
Soa smiled faintly.
After returning from the Imperial City.
Seo Heon dealt with the mountain of state affairs that had accumulated without even having time to recover from the fatigue of the journey.
As Chief Steward Noh followed behind him as he left the outer audience hall, he cautiously glanced at his master’s face.
Beneath the black iron mask.
His lips were firmly sealed, just as they always were.
‘I heard there was an attack by a monster on the way back.’
Yet His Highness never showed the slightest sign of exhaustion.
Just as Chief Steward Noh swallowed a sigh—
Seo Heon stopped walking.
In the distance, Jaein Jin Soa was walking beside General Maeng.
“How are those two together……?”
The wrinkles on Chief Steward Noh’s face deepened.
Everyone in the Muk King’s residence knew that General Maeng was fond of women.
Chief Steward Noh suppressed his uneasiness and glanced to the side.
Seo Heon, who had been watching them, silently resumed walking.
Just then, the two approached and greeted them.
“Why are Jaein Jin and General Maeng together?”
“Haha. She did not know her way around the Muk King’s Palace and had gotten lost, so I helped her. She said she wanted to see His Highness.”
Leaving Maeng Tak’s smooth smile aside, Soa bowed respectfully.
“I have come to make a request of His Highness.”
Seo Heon quietly looked at her.
“I came from the southern region, so I am very sensitive to the cold. Would it be possible for me to receive just a little more coal?”
Soa asked while tightening her cloak around herself, and Chief Steward Noh smiled kindly.
“For such a trivial matter, you could simply tell one of the maids. Why did you come personally?”
“Well, the maid told me that there was not enough coal in the warehouse.”
As Soa lowered her gaze as though embarrassed, General Maeng’s expression stiffened.
Chief Steward Noh adjusted his glasses, looking utterly bewildered.
“How could that be? Although the Muk King’s residence is a harsh and barren place, when it comes to coal, we have the finest supply in the entire empire.”
“But when I passed by the barracks today, I saw the soldiers shivering in the cold because they did not have enough coal.”
“Pardon……?”
Chief Steward Noh hurriedly adjusted his glasses again, greatly flustered.
The supply of coal was directly connected to the soldiers’ health and morale.
He had certainly made sure that the soldiers were supplied with more than enough coal……
“Even the soldiers are conserving coal to help the finances of the Muk King’s residence. How could I recklessly take some for myself?”
Soa lowered her head deeply.
General Maeng, who had been listening beside her, bit his dry lips and stepped forward.
“Haha, that is because I reduced the rations for the past few days in order to restore discipline. So, Jaein, do not worry and simply do as Chief Steward Noh said……”
“His Highness the King is here.”
Soa cut him off, looking at him coldly.
“I will follow His Highness’s wishes, not the General’s.”
General Maeng’s face flushed bright red.
At that moment, Seo Heon, who had been silently observing the situation, turned around and began walking.
Toward the barracks’ warehouse.
“Your Highness!”
Chief Steward Noh and Soa immediately followed him.
‘Damn it. Surely he isn’t going to check the coal himself!’
Growing anxious, General Maeng also hurried after them.
“Your Highness, why would you personally go all the way to such a shabby warehouse? If there is a shortage, could we not simply transfer coal from another warehouse to make up for it?”
General Maeng hurried alongside Seo Heon, desperately filling the silence with words.
The gaze beneath the mask briefly turned toward General Maeng.
“You have only just returned and must be tired, Your Highness. If you need anything, why not leave such trivial matters to me?”
General Maeng deliberately laughed heartily.
But Seo Heon gave no answer.
The silence was cold and oppressive.
Cold sweat appeared on General Maeng’s forehead.
Seo Heon said nothing and simply continued walking.
“Y-Your Highness, why have you come all the way here?!”
The barracks’ coal warehouse.
The flustered warehouse keeper hurriedly bowed his head.
The officials and soldiers who happened to be in the warehouse also lowered their heads one after another.
The warehouse keeper spotted General Maeng following behind them and glanced around uneasily.
Seo Heon gave a small nod.
Chief Steward Noh immediately conveyed the silent command.
“Open the warehouse door.”
Creeeak—
The stone door opened, and Seo Heon’s heavy footsteps echoed inside.
Chief Steward Noh followed him in, and his eyes widened.
“N-No, how can there be so little coal……?!”
The warehouse was visibly empty.
The warehouse keeper panicked and hurriedly began making excuses.
“Th-that is because this winter was so cold, and we distributed plenty of coal to the soldiers……”
His lengthy excuse caused Seo Heon’s gaze to shift toward the back.
“We-I, we never asked for more coal, Your Highness!”
The soldiers lowered their heads deeply, insisting on their innocence.
At that moment, General Maeng stepped forward, raising his voice.
“Didn’t you recklessly burn coal until yesterday? Wasn’t that why I reduced the coal rations as punishment?!”
At General Maeng’s thunderous shout, the soldiers could not even open their mouths and simply lowered their heads.
Seo Heon’s eyes narrowed as he watched him.
Then—
“Considering how much coal was supposedly burned recently, the weather is surprisingly clear.”
Someone spoke as though they had read Seo Heon’s thoughts.
It was the jaein, Jin Soa.
If this much coal had truly been burned until yesterday, the air should have been thick with soot and smoke.
Yet the air around the Muk King’s residence was nothing but cold and clear.
“So you’re saying I’m lying now?! What would some jaein from outside know about this?!”
Rather than backing down, General Maeng raised his voice even louder and pointed aggressively at Soa.
Amid the chaos, Seo Heon quietly opened the warehouse’s inventory records.
‘The numbers do not match.’
Someone must have been diverting the coal.
And it had not happened just once or twice.
At that moment, Soa tilted her head and pointed toward one corner.
“……What is that?”
A small piece of metal had fallen in the corner of the warehouse.
At Seo Heon’s glance, Chief Steward Noh immediately picked it up and handed it to him.
It was a small copper insignia shaped like half of a tiger.
A tiger tally given to generals.
The character ‘西’—‘West’—was engraved upon it.
Seo He’s gaze slowly turned toward General Maeng.
“Why would that be here……? Ah, a few days ago, I ordered the soldiers to clean my room……”
As General Maeng spoke, the atmosphere gradually grew colder.
Not a single official standing behind him dared to defend him.
Then Soa cautiously opened her mouth.
“That is rather strange.”
Her brows furrowed as though she were genuinely concerned for General Maeng.
“If you lost your tiger tally, General, does that not mean that the military authority of the Muk King’s residence was left unaccounted for several days?”
“N-No, that is……”
“If someone had carried that tiger tally and entered and exited the military camp during that time, it could have led to a serious incident.”
Soa covered her lips with her fingertips, looking worried.
General Maeng shook his head.
“Wait, that isn’t what I meant!”
“But……”
Soa quietly looked at the tiger tally.
“Are you truly saying that you did not realize your tiger tally was missing for several days, General?”
Thick beads of cold sweat formed across General Maeng’s face.
