Snowlight Chapter 14

“Aaaargh!”

 

Amid screams from all around, whoosh! An arrow fired without warning flew straight into the crowd. As if observing the people scrambling in panic, the arrow whizzed past them in an instant and lodged itself beneath the wall.

 

“W-what are you doing?!”

 

The former village chief, now at a loss, raised his voice. Tae Baek Hoon, who had been checking the spot where he’d shot the arrow by placing his hand on the snow, shrugged his shoulders.

 

“It’s nothing. I thought you might be bored with all that praise that doesn’t suit your temperament, so I tried something a little provocative. How did you like it?”

 

“Oh, something provocative? Is this really the time for jokes?”

 

“A joke? I’m doing my very best to accommodate you all.”

 

“Listen here, Governor! You’ve been going too far for a while now. If you keep trying to belittle the effort we’ve put into coming all this way…!”

 

Before he could finish speaking, one of the scholars let out a bloodcurdling scream and fell backward in shock.

 

“T-t-there! Over there!”

 

The scholar pointed to a corner in a dazed expression. The moment everyone’s gaze turned to where his finger was pointing, a chorus of horror erupted.

 

“Good heavens!”

 

A massive python, its head impaled on an arrow, was dangling from a tree beyond the wall. Its body, about four feet long, was completely covered in bright red scales, a sight that sent chills down one’s spine just to look at it. Blood dripped steadily from its wide-open jaws, and wispy smoke rose from the drops as they hit the ground.

 

It was an iron-thorn snake.

 

This snake, which appeared to be at least four feet long, was a creature typically found only in the deepest mountains of Wonhye. While most snakes are non-venomous, the iron-thorn snake’s blood itself was poisonous; it was notorious for slowly turning healthy people into half-dead madmen. It was highly unusual for such a rare, elusive creature, one rarely seen, to make its way into the city, let alone inside a government office.

 

Tae Baek Hoon approached the snake to assess its condition and clicked his tongue in disapproval.

 

“Whoever you are, you really need to keep a closer eye on your belongings. How could you just let something that dangerous loose like that?”

 

“W-What are you talking about? Are you saying we deliberately let that monster loose?”

 

“Hmm? I thought Chief Jeon had brought that snake here to entertain me, wasn’t that the case?”

 

“Ha! You must have secretly released it in the government office to frame us.”

 

The Chief raised his voice as if to protest his innocence. Tae Baek Hoon shrugged his shoulders.

 

“So are you saying I captured that dangerous demon and released it just to scare you all?”

 

“N-no, that’s not what I meant! Hrmm, hrrm, anyway, I truly know nothing about this.”

 

“Hmm, if it wasn’t me and it wasn’t the village head, then it seems that thing must have suddenly fallen from the sky just as it was ascending.”

 

Tae Baek Hoon smiled nonchalantly and looked around.

 

“Isn’t that right, elders?”

 

Faced with his piercing gaze, everyone looked away, trying to gauge the situation. Tsk, Tae Baek Hoon clicked his tongue and unwrapped the tattered cloth he’d been holding in his hand.

 

“Your interruptions have dampened my interest. Unless you have anything else to say, let’s call it a day.”

 

Turning on his heel, Tae Baek Hoon walked past the village elders with a disinterested expression. No one dared to block the provincial governor’s path.

 

 

The servants who had been feeding and grooming the horses in the stable for quite some time recognized Tae Baek Hoon and quickly lowered their eyes. As he entered the barn, which had a hole in the center of the ceiling, a pair of hawks perched on a perch flapped their wings in greeting.

 

Tae Baek Hoon took a large chunk of meat from the bucket he had brought. He cut it into pieces with his knife and held them out; the hawks took the meat one after another, gobbling it down.

 

“Is it tasty?”

 

The well-fed hawks let out a series of “peep, peep” calls and rubbed their beaks against Tae Baek Hoon’s hand. They looked exactly like baby birds searching for their mother.

 

“I feel much more at ease being with you than hanging out with those noisy, petty old folks.”

 

Tae Baek Hoon gave a wry smile and scratched the bird under its beak. The eagle, its eyes closed, let out a “peep” and opened its beak.

 

“You could just have someone else feed it; why do you take care of it yourself?”

 

Someone standing behind him had struck up a conversation naturally, without warning. Tae Baek Hoon, who had effortlessly perched the bird, almost as big as a calf, on his sleeve, replied calmly as he preened its feathers with his hand.

 

“I’ve been feeding and raising these birds since they were chicks, so naturally I have to take care of them myself. As if that weren’t enough, Magistrate Hwang has been pointlessly sending all his men my way, which has put me in a bad mood since this morning.”

 

“Haha, I’m afraid it wasn’t me; they were guests who came to see the Provincial Governor, so I had no choice.”

 

“Is that so? I thought our splendid and wise Magistrate didn’t want to deal with old men, so he passed the task on to me.”

 

“Oh dear. I thought I’d managed to keep it under wraps, but it seems you’ve caught on. Hahaha.”

 

At this playful reply, Tae Baek Hoon finally turned around. A man dressed neatly in an indigo-colored danryeong was smiling politely. It was Magistrate Hwang Woo Kyung of Wonhye. Normally, the Provincial Governor would be responsible for administration, including military command, but since the northeastern Wonkyung Province borders another country, a separate magistrate had been appointed to handle administrative affairs for the Provincial Governor’s convenience. This, too, served to highlight that the Governor of the Northeast Province was a figure who enjoyed the king’s full favor.

 

He seemed to have just finished his morning duties, as a faint scent of ink and melted beeswax wafted from him. Hwang Woo Kyung gestured to his aide and the sentry, who had been waiting silently behind him, to step outside. Thus, only the two men remained inside the barn. Standing before the washbasin, Tae Baek Hoon rinsed his hands, which were stained with meat fat and blood. Looking down at the rippling foam, Tae Baek Hoon spoke.

 

“So, how is the investigation I asked you to look into coming along?”

 

“As you suggested, Governor, we showed the body to the fence dealers in the black market, and several of them recognized it. Upon interrogating them, the name of Mr. Yoon, a local official from Songsan, came up.”

 

“Songsan?”

 

Hwang Woo Kyung nodded in response to Tae Baek Hoon’s question, which sounded like he was seeking confirmation. Songsan was a small town located about three hundred ri southeast of Wonhye. As was typical of mountainous regions, it was known primarily for its thriving forestry industries, such as logging and mushroom farming, and had otherwise been free of scandal.

 

That a local official from such a quiet town would be involved in transactions frequent enough to catch the eye of a fence was indeed a troubling development.

 

“So did he admit to embezzling military supplies?”

 

“According to Mr. Yoon, some of the matchlock guns were defective, and while he was in the process of retrieving them, they were stolen by bandits. The logbook presented for verification did contain detailed records of the dates and contents, but….”

 

For a moment, Hwang Woo Kyung fell silent. Seeing his somber expression, Tae Baek Hoon sighed as if he already knew the answer.

 

“So, it seems this was never reported to higher authorities at all.”

 

“Yes. I actually tried to casually ask the Magistrate of Songsan about it, but he seemed to not know of it at all.”

 

“How many such omitted records are there?”

 

“Six so far. Four of them appear to have been special supplies, such as tribute goods.”

 

“Any other notable details?”

 

“In Songsan, there’s a family that acts like the local powerbrokers; their second son is said to be addressed as ‘Lord’, even more so than the county magistrate himself.”

 

To address a local official, who hadn’t even passed the imperial examinations, as “Lord” was, to put it mildly, a disregard for the hierarchy and, by extension, the royal court. Yet in the Northern Frontier, such talk was hardly surprising.

 

In the northern regions, including Anpyeong-do in the northwest, commonly known as the “Northern Pass” (Bukgwan), the power of the local aristocratic clans was overwhelming. From food and clothing to even where one slept, nothing escaped the influence of these clans, so it was not uncommon for even local officials to be pushed around by their authority, forced to kowtow and submit.

 

With a term of office lasting a mere three years, and since there were virtually no volunteers, they were effectively forced into the position by lottery; most of the provincial officials, unable to bear being openly disregarded by the hojok, chose to align themselves with them for protection. Given this situation, one can only imagine how much worse it must have been for the local officials drafted from their home towns.

 

“Although the stolen goods were found in Songsan, they were discovered in Wonhye, so we must determine which authority has jurisdiction over this case.”

 

“Hmm…”

 

“While it is customary for the nearest county to handle cases that cross jurisdictional boundaries, given the nature of this matter, perhaps it would be best for Governor Baek to make the decision.”

 

Hwang Woo Kyung unfolded the scroll he was holding and handed it to Tae Baek Hoon. Without so much as a glance at the document recording various legal precedents, he said matter-of-factly,

 

“We should handle the disposition of the stolen goods here, but it would be best to leave the punishment of those involved in the case to the county magistrate.”

 

“By ‘disposition,’ do you mean you’re suggesting we punish the local officials?”

 

Tae Baek Hoon shook his head firmly.

 

“That decision, too, must be made directly by the county magistrate. We must thoroughly emphasize that neither the provincial governor nor I are involved.”

 

“In that case, the punishment will surely be lenient.”

 

“At most, perhaps a minor disciplinary action like ten days of confinement.”

 

Tae Baek Hoon muttered under his breath and raised his right arm, on which the hawk was perched, high into the air. The hawk, perched on his arm, gained momentum and soared upward with a whoosh. The wind created by the flapping of its large wings was quite sharp and chilly. Soon, the hawk glided off toward the mountains in the distance.

 

“If we were to step in personally, the County Magistrate’s standing among the people of Songsan would only become even more insignificant. However, if the County Magistrate were to take an action, whether a suspension, a pay cut, or merely a reprimand, any action or statement he makes will serve as an opportunity to establish his authority among the locals. Therefore, he must be the one to decide the punishment himself.”

 

“Still, we can’t just ignore six cases of embezzlement, can we?”

 

“Embezzlement is ultimately just circumstantial evidence. Aside from a few receivers of stolen goods naming names, there aren’t any witnesses to confirm it, are there? If we blindly label it a serious crime, they’ll push back, claiming it’s oppression, and then Songsan will slip out of our grasp. We’ll also be unable to uncover the reason the guns were stolen.”

 

“Then…”

 

“Pretend to be incompetent and back off, but secretly place a spy within the county office. However, make sure to keep an eye on the county magistrate as well as the local officials. Don’t let anything slip by. It doesn’t seem like this is just a simple embezzlement case.”

 

“Do you suspect him as well?”

 

“It’s not so much that I suspect him, but rather that their side might be trying to secretly mislead us by luring the county magistrate in. Let’s not make any exceptions.”

 

Hwang Woo Kyung nodded at the concise, calm instructions. Even though he had been granted some autonomy as a provincial governor, it wasn’t wise to intervene recklessly in the personnel matters of a single county. Given that the incident had nearly escalated into a charge of insurrection, involving the embezzlement of military supplies and, by extension, the neglect of the militia, his cautious approach was understandable.

 

Furthermore, one of the bandits who had carried out the raid had manipulated a demonic beast. Not only had he used forbidden black magic to control the demonic beast, but he had also attempted to harm people. Perhaps, as Tae Baek Hoon had said, this might not be limited to a simple embezzlement case.

 

Hwang Woo Kyung, who had been mentally sorting through potential candidates to serve as a suitable supervisor, spoke up as if he had just remembered someone.

 

“Oh, by the way, a messenger has arrived from the private residence. He asked if you would be returning home.”

 

“……”

 

Tae Baek Hoon furrowed his brow slightly. He looked as if he wasn’t too keen on the idea. Ever since storming out of his bridal chamber four days ago, Tae Baek Hoon had been staying at the governmental quarters the entire time

Although any official assigned to the government office was technically authorized to stay overnight at the government quarters, the fact that the newlywed had been wandering about for several days must have caused the servants no small amount of worry. Hwang Woo Kyung, gauging his expression, continued.

“In that case, I was going to tell them you plan to stay at the quarters again today….”

 

“Tell them I’m going to the brothel.”