Chapter 40
“Should’ve just done it. That money… my blood and sweat…!”
“Don’t dwell on the past too much.”
“Ugh. I’m just frustrated, that’s all. I must’ve been bewitched or something. Can’t believe I listened to a five-year-old kid.”
Go Taehung let out a deep, chest-sinking sigh. Then, he suddenly recalled the members of Red Wolf Gang (Jeokrangchae) whom he’d met earlier that afternoon.
“Hahaha! Total suckers! All we had to do was guide them on a mountain path at night, and they’re paying that much? Jackpot!”
“The boss said to assess the situation and rob everything if we can. Those naive merchant types didn’t know a thing—strike while the iron’s hot!”
Unaware that the Red Wolf Gang had already been turned down by Pachokchae, they boasted endlessly. The more they taunted, the more Go Taehung’s resolve wavered.
Still, what good was regret? The carriage had already departed.
“Ugh… to think this all started with that guy named Gwangryong or whatever…”
BOOM!
A sudden blast erupted right in front of him with a gust of wind.
The campfire and torches flickered violently before stabilizing into bright flames again.
Go Taehung hiccuped and stared at the figure emerging through the dust.
It was Dok Go-ryong, the man he had just been mocking.
“Hey, you.”
Dok Go-ryong pointed at Go Taehung.
“I-I didn’t say anything, sir!”
Worried that he’d been overheard, Go Taehung stammered nervously.
“Did you take a request from Hongwol Trading House?”
The question came out of nowhere.
“I overheard something about the kid and the Hongwol…?”
“N-No! We didn’t take any request. It’s just… what your nephew said bothered me…”
Dok Go-ryong clicked his tongue, his face deeply furrowed in frustration. He looked strangely anxious, and Go Taehung subtly watched his expression.
“Something happen?”
“The kid was kidnapped.”
“What?!”
Who the hell had the guts to pull that off?
“I think it was the Hongwol Trading House. Did you hear them say where they were going?”
Those lunatics were with Hongwol?
“Those guys?! The ones who knew about Hongwol?!”
At that moment, Go Taehung spotted another man behind Dok Go-ryong.
“My younger brother was taken too! Help us this once, and I’ll surely repay you!”
“And you are…?”
“I’m Dang Jinak. Time is short. Please lend us your strength.”
The overload of information nearly short-circuited Go Taehung’s brain. But soon, he nodded.
‘Whew, thank god I didn’t join hands with Hongwol.’
If he had made enemies of both Gwangryong and the Sichuan Dang Clan… he had a feeling he wouldn’t have survived to see tomorrow.
“Unfortunately, we don’t know their exact destination.”
At his words, a chilling pressure radiated from both Dok Go-ryong and Dang Jinak—enough to scorch the air around them.
“B-But! The Red Wolf Gang accepted their offer. Since it’s an uphill trade route, they wouldn’t have made it halfway up Yongmun Mountain yet. We know all the common paths they use. If they’re headed to Yongmun, we’ll catch them. Boys!”
At Go Taehung’s command, the nearby bandits sprang to their feet.
“Get moving! Search every path the Red Wolf Gang uses. Since they’re hauling goods, they won’t take the back trails. If you spot anyone from Hongwol or Red Wolf, send a signal. Now scatter!”
The bandits dispersed in a perfectly organized manner.
“Alright. You two follow one of my scouts each. We’ll cover more ground split up.”
Dok Go-ryong and Dang Jinak exchanged glances and nodded.
Dang Jinak went with Wonho, and Dok Go-ryong followed Go Taehung.
Above them, the heavy clouds cleared, revealing a brilliant full moon.
Meanwhile…
“Hic… I’m scared… I wanna see big brother…”
Dang Jinmyeong, who had fainted earlier, was now awake and had been crying for hours.
At first, one of the gruff guards threatened him to stop, but Jinmyeong, sniffling, could only cling tightly to Eun Sowol—the only other person in the cage he could trust.
“Sowol… I’m really scared… Can I hold your hand…?”
He reached for comfort, but Sowol had gone completely silent.
She had comforted him at first, saying his uncle and brother would come to save them soon—but at some point, she stopped speaking altogether.
Seeing her curled up with her face buried in her knees made Jinmyeong even more uneasy.
“…Huh?”
Something felt wrong.
“Sowol?”
He shook her shoulder again—and she toppled over limply, her breathing ragged.
“Haa… haa… haa…”
Only then did Jinmyeong realize how burning hot her body was.
“No… this can’t happen… you can’t be sick now…”
His face turned ghostly pale.
“M-Mister! Mister!!”
He waved his arms frantically through the bars.
The cart stopped, and a guard pulled back the tarp.
Tears clung to Jinmyeong’s eyes as he shouted in panic.
“Sowol’s sick! She’s burning up!”
The guard scowled, and soon the captain arrived to investigate.
He saw Jinmyeong crying and Sowol lying limp on the floor.
So the kids weren’t faking.
“She’s really sick…”
“Please save Sowol…!”
The child’s cries, full of fear and sorrow, echoed loud and clear.
“What’s going on?”
A member of the Red Wolf Gang escorting them came over. He’d been told to check the goods and kill the children if they were valuable enough.
He peeked into the cart.
‘Kids? That’s it?’
He figured this was just a case of human trafficking.
No valuables in sight.
‘Tch. Nothing worth taking.’
“It’s nothing. Just one of the kids causing trouble.”
His eyes rested on Eun Sowol, whose innocent face was striking—someone who could fetch a high price.
“Hmm, that one might be important. Might be worth patching her up.”
The captain just stared at her in silence.
Their job was to kidnap Jinmyeong. The girl was just collateral—taken along to shut her up.
Honestly, whether she lived or died didn’t matter.
But with her here, Jinmyeong would just keep crying and screaming to save her.
“Open it.”
The guard opened the cage. Jinmyeong believed they were going to help her.
But instead, the captain tossed her roughly onto the ground.
“Uugh…”
Too sick to even moan, Sowol rolled onto the dirt.
“We’re leaving her behind.”
“W-What?! Why?! Sowol is sick! Mister, you’re mean! Don’t hurt her!”
Jinmyeong screamed and sobbed, begging them to take her back, but his pleas fell on deaf ears.
The captain sighed and struck Jinmyeong’s neck, knocking him unconscious.
Silence at last.
As he walked away—
“Wait! You’re leaving her?”
The bandit grabbed his arm.
“Yes. The boy is all we need.”
“Then… can I take her?”
Greed shone in the bandit’s eyes. The captain nodded.
The bandit chuckled and picked up the limp girl.
She weakly pushed at his back, but she had no strength to resist.
“Heh. What luck. With a face like this, I’ll make a fortune…”
His creepy voice echoed in her dazed mind.
The bandit handed off the Hongwol escort task to another and disappeared into the forest.
Through blurry vision, Sowol saw Hongwol’s cart fading into the distance.
“No… Un… cle…”
Her voice trailed off, and her tiny body went limp.
