Absolute Regression
Chapter 24: What's Meant to Happen, Happens
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TL: FoodieMonster007
I had some time before I officially took the position of Sanzu Hall Director. In the meantime, I decided to take care of one thing.
I planned to give the best treatment to the Ghost Shadow Squad martial artists who would join in the future. I would reward them with a monthly salary befitting their abilities, instead of wringing out their youth under the guise of loyalty.
It wouldn't matter if they squandered their money living lavishly or bought land and a house for their old age. As long as they didn't gamble, I didn't care.
To do that, I needed a vast amount of funds. I knew a way to earn a lot of money around this time.
I left a letter for Lee Ahn saying I was going out for some fresh air, then secretly left the Cult.
I had lived my life with regression in mind.
I spent most of my time struggling to obtain materials for the Great Art, but I always made sure to remember what I needed. I knew precisely when and where various incidents in the murim occurred over several decades, especially the ones I could use.
The incident was about to happen in a village near Mount Wuyi in Fujian province. It was an event I absolutely could not miss.
I ran the entire way as training, using the Swift Step of the Four Strides of the Wind God. I was only a beginner, but the more I ran, the more its profundity captivated me.
When I rested, I gazed at the distant plains and lost myself in old memories. When the wind blew sand and dust from the horizon, I would jump up and run again.
I timed my pace to arrive on the day of the incident, running excitedly on some days and slowly on others.
After running for a long time, I finally arrived at the village at the foot of Mount Wuyi.
I remembered a story I heard from an old mercenary back when I was wandering as one myself.
He said he once ran a mercenary office and collected commissions. The incident he always spoke of whenever he got drunk, the one he called 'a tragic affair', was happening here today.
I asked a merchant for the location of the mercenary office.
The mercenaries' gathering place was a rundown building at the end of the marketplace.
I stepped inside to find about a dozen mercenaries in a suffocatingly small space. Some dozed against the wall, others maintained their weapons, and a few chatted in small groups. Some glanced at me but quickly lost interest.
I walked over to a middle-aged man writing at a desk in the corner.
A surge of emotion hit me when I saw him. He was Lim Chu, the man who told me about today's events during my mercenary days.
"Is there any work?"
Lim Chu raised his head.
"I haven't seen you before. Who recommended you?"
"Seo Gwang told me to come."
"What's your relationship with Martial Artist Seo?"
"We've worked together before."
"What job?"
"I helped Seo Gwang with a job on Mount Heng."
"That was the Little East Sect matter, wasn't it?"
"No, it was the Southern Veil Sect."
I could tell he asked the wrong question on purpose. Lim Chu was cautiously verifying my identity in this place where all sorts of people gathered, but I had come prepared.
"If it's a recommendation from Martial Artist Seo, I can trust you. Can you work today?"
"Of course."
"You've come at a good time. There's a big job today. Go wait over there. We need more people to gather."
I went to the spot he indicated and sat down. A few mercenaries glanced at me, but I ignored them.
After about two hours, everyone for the mission had gathered. There were fifteen of us in total.
In my past life, Lim Chu said fifty mercenaries were mobilized for this job. Freelancers and their drunken exaggerations.
Even with fifteen people, it was clearly a big mission. Freelancer jobs usually involved two or three people at least, and six or seven at most. They wouldn't use so many of these rough wanderers unless it was a truly urgent matter.
"Martial artist Yang will be in charge today."
The man introduced as Yang Dang had bones hardened by a long life as a mercenary.
"The pay is high, which means the mission is dangerous. Any bastard who does something stupid dies by my hand first, so keep that in mind."
After warning everyone, Yang Dang approached me.
"Recommended by Martial Artist Seo?"
"That's right."
"Can I trust your skills?"
"Who do I have to cut down to be acknowledged? You?"
I came on strong because acting too submissive would make me look like a poor mercenary.
"Hey, don't be cocky. In this world, a neck like yours can be lopped off like a drop of morning dew."
I sensed he was trying to make an example of me to establish discipline, so I didn't pick a fight.
"Don't worry, I'll follow orders well. I just need to get paid, that's all."
"We'll see."
The fifteen mercenaries mounted the prepared horses and carriage and headed off.
We met the woman and the boy only after several rendezvous to determine the final location.
Anyone could see they were mother and son from their strikingly similar faces.
Yang Dang explained the mission only after we met them.
"We have to get these two safely to Nanping. We need to move as fast as possible."
Mobilizing fifteen mercenaries for a bodyguard mission meant the woman and boy had a significant status. It also meant they were in great danger.
The child, a cute and handsome boy, looked at me through the carriage window. I smiled and waved at him, and he bowed his head in greeting.
He seemed well-educated with a good personality. The woman with him gave me a slight nod before closing the curtain, her face filled with anxiety.
The carriage carrying the two of them began to move. We mercenaries rode on horseback, guarding the carriage from the front and back.
The carriage stopped only when the horses were too exhausted to run any further.
While the horses rested, we also rested and ate. Yang Dang distributed prepared beef jerky to the mercenaries. He gave separate food to the woman and child.
The mercenaries received double their usual pay for this mission. Yang Dang, our leader, was probably pocketing several times more. Perhaps that was why he was so on edge, determined to complete the mission safely.
"We don't know when we'll get to eat again. So everyone, eat up!"
After resting for about an hour, the carriage set off again.
Some time after we departed, a mercenary tumbled from his galloping horse.
"Stop!"
The mercenaries stopped and checked the fallen man. His face had turned black and he foamed at the mouth. He was dead.
"He's dead."
The mercenary who reported this looked at his colleague and they both startled. Their eyes were bloodshot, and their faces were also turning black.
"Poison?"
The moment they uttered the word, they clutched their throats and fell backward.
"……"
The mercenaries collapsed one after another, their faces and bodies turning black.
Three people remained standing. Yang Dang, who led us, another mercenary, and me.
I knew from the way the two of them looked at me.
These are the ones who released the poison!
This was something even I hadn't known. Lim Chu's story said an external attack took down the mercenaries and their bodies were never found. I never imagined the leader had poisoned the food.
It seemed they disposed of the bodies to hide that they were the ones who used the poison.
"Why aren't you dead?"
Yang Dang demanded, glaring at me with surprise.
"Because I didn't eat the jerky you gave me. How could I eat food from someone I just met today?"
Many things changed because I regressed, but some things did not. The deaths of these mercenaries today were just like the fate of the cook who mixed Qi Dispersing Poison into the rice, only to die that same day.
Even if I try to prevent unnecessary bloodshed, some things are unavoidable. What can be changed will change, and what's meant to happen, happens.
The two men drew their swords simultaneously.
"It would've been better for you to eat it and die."
Just then, the unexpected happened.
PUUK!
Yang Dang's sword pierced through the other mercenary's back and burst out of his chest.
"Kuhk!"
The man collapsed, spewing blood.
I shook my head and spoke to Yang Dang.
"Are you an idiot? You should've let him fight me first and then killed him. How do you know how skilled I am?"
"This bastard is a calculating and selfish guy, he never would've fought first. If I had to step up and fight anyway… it's better to just kill him while he's distracted by you."
It seemed the two of them were of similar skill.
"What a pathetic life. You live standing in a line, just stabbing the back of the person in front of you. You think your turn won't come?"
"I won't let anyone stand behind me, so save your concern."
"What on earth are you going to do with money earned by killing your own comrades?"
"There's plenty to do. Drink, buy women."
"You'd kill this many people for just that? The ghosts will all cling to you. With that weight, do you think your lower half will even be able to stand?"
"You moronic bastard. Worry about your own life!"
The bastard killed his comrade because he had something else to rely on.
Four men appeared. Three wore masks, while the apparent leader was unmasked. I could tell from their gazes and gait that they were considerably skilled.
"You've arrived?"
Yang Dang greeted them respectfully. Judging by his tone and actions, these newcomers had hired Yang Dang.
The unmasked man ignored Yang Dang and me. He looked at the carriage and shouted.
"Come on out. Before I burn the whole carriage down."
The woman and child got out of the carriage, their faces pale with fear.
"You hide so well, like little rats. It was a real pain finding you."
The woman pleaded with the man.
"Martial Artist Gwon, please spare at least our Yang."
The woman seemed to know the man well. The man called Gwon appeared to ponder for a moment.
"Very well. For old times' sake, I'll let him live."
Joy and hope flickered across the woman's face, but then Gwon revealed his vile true colors.
"Did you really think so? You damned bitch. You should be on your knees begging for your life, not acting like you're my superior."
Gwon guffawed, mocking the desperate mother's love.
The startled child clung to his mother's skirt. The woman's expression hardened at the humiliation from a former subordinate. Still, she pleaded again, desperate to save her child.
"If you spare Yang-yi, I'll give you ten times the money you're being paid."
"No matter how great money is, it can't be more important than my life. Your father has already been subdued and captured. It's all over."
The woman let out a grief-stricken sigh when she heard her father had been subdued.
Just then, the man called Gwon turned his gaze to me.
I was smiling and waving at the child, who looked ready to burst into tears. It was the same way I had greeted him when we first met.
Gwon, thinking my behavior was out of place, asked Yang Dang.
"Who's that guy? Wasn't he one of your men?"
Everyone's attention focused on me. The woman holding her child, in particular, looked at me with desperate hope for an unexpected turn of events.
I slowly walked forward and stood in front of the woman and child.
"I'm the man who was paid to take these two to their destination. I'm also the kind of person who puts those I must protect behind me."
In that moment, a lifeline woven from the Heavenly Silk was placed in the hands of a woman who had been clutching at straws.
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