Invitation to the Chatroom of the Gods - Chapter 72



Only Krnovel

Episode 72 – The Emperor’s Proposal (2)

I thought that might be possible.

I thought that since it was related to the Demonic Cult, it was possible that the Imperial Family would be interested and even ‘notice’ it.

I thought that it was possible to make concessions a hundred or a thousand times and even rise to the position of emperor.

But the Emperor did not ‘in person’ visit. I absolutely did not think that was possible. It would be more accurate to say that it was impossible.

Naturally, the emperor rarely visited in person, unless he had accomplished some great feat or was planning to bestow some kind of reward.

Of course it was close.

The current martial arts alliance I am in. So, the area right next to Shanxi Province is Hebei Province, where the imperial family is located, and Beijing (北京), so it is not that far away.

If you look at the distance alone, it was about the same distance as Jiangxi Province and Anhui Province. It would be similar or closer to Seonmu-gwan and Namgung Se-ga.

I couldn’t understand it even more because it was so close that if I fell over, my nose would touch it.

All you had to do was call me to the palace.

Then, at least I could have ‘prepared’ for it. However, I was helpless when the emperor’s procession suddenly appeared.

I really showed up like a great sinner.

So, here is a close-up look at the emperor.

He looked quite young. I guess he was in his forties. That is, he didn’t look like he was over forty.

In appearance, he looked like he was just past the age of 18, and at most he looked like he was in his mid-thirties.

However, unlike his young age, his strong and clear eyes were filled with determination and wisdom.

With his thick eyebrows, distinct facial features, and sharp jawline, anyone who saw him would know that he was a handsome man.

He was a handsome man that was hard to find anywhere in the world, but the ‘dignity’ felt from the emperor made it impossible to even think of such beauty.

A presence that makes you feel intimidated just by facing it.

When I looked at him, the word ‘Emperor’ came to mind.

“Are you the one named Cheongun?”

The emperor’s majestic voice spoke to me.

Although he didn’t have much inner strength, his voice had the power to lead those around him.

“The ambassador’s blessing. I greet His Majesty the Emperor.”

I knelt down on one knee and paid the greatest possible respect, but I still had doubts about whether this was the right thing to do.

I had never met the Emperor, nor did I think I would ever meet him, so I didn’t know how to show respect.

“I’ve heard a lot about him through rumors, but seeing him in person, he’s quite a nice guy.”

Fortunately, the young emperor seemed oblivious to the problem.

“How are you? Are you feeling better?”

“Thanks to Your Majesty’s personal concern, I am feeling much better.”

The young emperor nodded slightly at my answer.

Then he nodded to the side, and Ju Gwan-cheon strode forward as if he had been waiting for this moment.

“Listen to the missionary’s words!!”

It looks like what was coming has finally come.

However, the emperor had been waiting for a while, and since the rumor had already spread throughout the world, did he think that there was no one who did not know about my achievements?

“We don’t have much time, so let’s quickly announce the list of rewards.”

With a bright smile on his face, Ju Gwan-cheon opened the scroll and showed it to me.

* * *

The Six Dragons and Three Phoenixes couldn’t understand what was going on.

That would be the case. What is the Golden Guard all of a sudden? What is the classmate? What is the emperor? What is this nonsense about?

I really wondered what was going on······.

“Listen to the missionary’s words!!”

It seemed like he was trying to praise Cheongun for his achievements.

The Yukryongsambonghoe knew what had happened at the Yongbongjihoe and witnessed it with their own eyes.

I knew that it was a merit worthy of praise from the imperial family.

Although it was surprising that the emperor himself had gone on a visit, it was within the realm of understanding.

“We don’t have much time, so let’s quickly announce the list of rewards.”

Soon, the official who had threatened the Yukryongsambonghoe earlier, with a bright smile on his face, unfurled a scroll and showed it to me.

But how long was it?

The end of the folding screen was dragging on the ground, so much so that it was pointing out of the royal palace.

“In recognition of your achievements in subduing the leader of the Demonic Cult, His Majesty personally bestows upon you the following rewards!”

And the emperor’s congratulations, generosity, and rewards continued.

“Gujeonshindan, Taeyanghwajeongyeok, Haeryeongseondan, Hwanwooshipjinju, Gobonjeongyahwan, Byeokgokro, Bominhwan, Daebishindan, Cheolyeongdan, Hoesangjaejodan······”

‘Elixirs’ in the Imperial Secretariat.

But why did it keep coming on without any sign of stopping?

These are elixirs that will increase your internal energy by at least ‘one year’.

‘You’re giving me all of that…?’

‘Three, my goodness···!’

And that wasn’t the end of it.

“Furthermore, there is the Gamridan, Yeonhwadan, Yeollyangsindan, Naengyumsindan, Sohyeoldan, Joyangdan, Sokdan Heukmyeonggo, Saenggisokgeunsan, Cheonryeonhwanjeong, Wooicheongak, Simyanghwan, Hyeolwolgibokdan, Hyeolryeogiryongdan, Cheongmyeongsindan······.”

After that, small elixirs could be heard pouring out.

Compared to the previous elixirs, they were ‘small and trivial’. However, if you look at them individually, they were elixirs that you couldn’t eat without.

Everyone in the Six Dragons and Three Peaks Society was shocked, and among them, Jo Na-rin of Kunlun and Mae Wu-ryeong of Huashan turned pale.

None other than the gifts these two had prepared for Cheongun: the Cheongsongsindan (靑松神丹) and the Jahasindan (紫霞神丹).

This was the elixir representing Kunlun and Huashan. If there were a thousand martial artists, it was the treasure among treasures that all of them would covet.

“Jangbaek-hwan-dan, Baekcho-pi-dok-ak, Ok-yong-hwan, Subori-sim-dan, I-eum-dan, Geum-seon-dan······.”

However, compared to the list of rewards that we are hearing about now, it was a step beyond the ‘small’ level.

It has become useless.

And it wasn’t just Jonarin and Maemulyeong.

“Also! Yinlong Han Geum Sword, Punghyang Sword, Yongchang Yeon Sword, Manya Sword, Wuguang Sword, Cheonin Hon, Mujeok Cheonrye, Seol In Gok, Palgeuk Cheong Sword, Saja Cheong Sword······.”

The ‘Jangbyeonggi’ in the Imperial Secretariat.

Following the elixir, numerous weapons were heard rolling in.

Among them, which numbered in the hundreds, there were many weapons called ‘divine weapons’.

“Furthermore, there is the Cold Jade Sword, the Gwigong Sword, the Bulma Sword, the Seolhyeol Ssang Sword, the Dapa Sword, the Jemageom, the Danhong Sword, the Hanmok Shin Sword, the Chungcheon Sword, the Cheonryeo Sword, and the Johwa Shin Sword,

Compared to the previous ‘new recruits’, they were ‘small and trivial’, but if you look at them individually, they were like a treasured sword.

It was impossible to believe that this was an award given to an individual.

That is why he could truly be called the emperor······.

You could say that they are of different levels and dimensions.

Even though the Gupaebang was a sect that ruled the world, it was truly nothing compared to the wealth and treasures of the imperial family.

And the fact that he was given such a reward not only showed how great Cheongun’s achievements were, but also showed that the emperor greatly adored him.

“I know this may be presumptuous of you to say, but······.”

And so the voice of Cheongun was heard.

“You, you cannot receive the reward······.”

It was not the work of a sane person.

‘······huh?’

‘···uh?’

‘Huh, huh?’

The expressions on the faces of the Six Dragons and Three Peaks changed bizarrely.

No, why don’t you accept that?

Just by receiving the elixir, he could become a master of the ten great swordsmen in the world. Of course, it is not true that one can become a master just by having a lot of internal energy, but it was a different story with Cheongwoon.

But now······.

‘Why, why···?’

‘Why don’t you accept it…?’

I had no idea what was going on with the Six Dragons and Three Phoenixes.

* * *

·········Am I crazy?

It was something I couldn’t dare say to the Emperor, but I couldn’t express it in words how much of a mess it was.

Isn’t it as if they’re going to completely uproot the pillars of the imperial family? No, to that extent, it was no different from uprooting the pillars of the imperial family.

So I couldn’t receive it.

If you get that, you will definitely die.

So I had to come up with a reason to refuse the reward. And the first reason that came to mind was, of course, ‘reward return.’

A reward return request to share the reward I received with those who suffered damages at Yongbong Branch.

······But will it work?

That’s understandable, because Ju Gwan-cheon has prepared thoroughly to give me a reward.

Knowing that I would escape, he suddenly spread out his net of heaven and earth and attacked me. Ju Gwan-cheon even anticipated that I would break through his net of heaven and earth and brought the emperor with him.

He had foreseen every possible scenario to kill me… no, to reward me. How could he not have predicted that the reward would be returned?

I slowly raised my head. And I could see Ju Gwan-cheon’s eyes looking at me, as if he was telling me to say something if I had anything to say.

······As expected, it seemed useless.

Still, you won’t know until you try.

“I am sorry to ask this, but······. I, I··· cannot accept the award······.”

I opened my mouth slowly as if trying to get my luck going.

“Your Majesty’s grace is too much for me-.”

“I knew this would happen and I already took care of it.”

“I haven’t said anything else yet······?”

“Weren’t you asking us to share the rewards with the other victims?”

“······.”

Now, he was a subjective person who could guess what I was saying without even listening to the end.

It was as if he was pretending, and as expected, Ju Gwan-cheon had made all the preparations. Ju Gwan-cheon had made all the preparations to kill me… no, to give me a reward.

“However, there are some who fall into the blind spot of compensation-.”

“The Imperial Treasurer has currently been dispatched. He will receive reports from here for half a year, determine the severity of the damage, and compensate everyone without exception.”

······It was Jukwancheon who countered all my numbers.

Without exaggerating, it was more difficult than the sword debate with the leader of the martial arts world, Deung Gwang-hyeok.

I rolled my eyes, trying to find another excuse. And then, out of the blue, I opened my mouth as soon as a thought occurred to me.

“If that is the case, I am afraid that the blow to the royal family will be too great.”

Even though it was the imperial vault where all the treasures of the world were gathered, it was not a ‘flower pot’ that could grow infinitely.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that the rewards given to me were enough to empty the royal treasury, and it is said that they even compensated all the victims of the Yongbongjihoe incident.

Furthermore, since they said they would receive reports for half a year and compensate without any blind spots, it was a huge loss and expense even for the royal family.

If the imperial finances are damaged, the world will be shaken.

So this could have been a reasonable excuse to refuse the award, or at least a reasonable excuse to ‘reduce’ it.

But what the heck.

“Don’t worry.”

Ju Gwan-cheon had foreseen even this.

“You don’t have to worry about it at all, because the property confiscated by the traitors and the rich will be used to replenish it.”

Cheon San-ja, the lord of Jiangsu Province. When he was dragged down for treason, the wealth he had accumulated was confiscated by the imperial treasury.

And I had been rewarded with a portion of that fortune, and I knew how ridiculous it was.

Even after awarding each member of the Jang Gang Hyeop Gang with a gold reward, there was still a lot left.

Since the portion I received was that much, the remaining ‘nine portions’ that went to the national treasury were needless to say.

······As you said, it was an amount that would be enough to compensate not only the reward I received, but also the damages suffered.

It was truly a subjective heaven that blocked all possibilities for my survival.

In addition, he was also a Ju Gwan-cheon who did not obtain the position of governor of Gangseo Province simply by ‘bloodline’.

“Rather than that, if you give a reward, wouldn’t it be better to accept it by saying, ‘I am very grateful, Your Majesty’? How can you say that in front of Your Majesty?”

Joo Gwan-cheon scolded me, telling me to take it easy now. But that was actually what I wanted to say.

No, if you’ve refused to this extent, shouldn’t you not give it to me? So, wouldn’t it be okay to back off by saying, “If that’s what you really want…”?

Or can’t I just blow my own horn?

Even other officials, including Cheon San-ja, are busy belittling others’ achievements and somehow trying to fill their own pockets.

But Ju Gwan-cheon was busy giving it to others, so I wondered what kind of grudge he had against me that he couldn’t catch me and was so impatient.

It was just then.

“Hahahahahaha!”

Suddenly, a hearty laugh was heard. When I turned my head to look, I saw the young emperor laughing loudly.

“Even when His Majesty the King spoke, I didn’t really believe it······.”

Second cousin.

The young emperor referred to Ju Gwan-cheon as his second cousin, referring to his father’s second cousin.

In other words, the young emperor was related to Ju Gwan-cheon as a seventh cousin, but usually, the term ‘royal relative’ meant the emperor’s ‘ninth cousin’.

As expected, Ju Gwan-cheon was a distant relative and royal relative of the young emperor.

“Actually, Jim was worried about you just a moment ago.”

The emperor looked at me and continued speaking.

“It is said that if a tree is straight, its shadow will not bend, but as it grows, it can bend at any time.”

The young emperor smiled murderously at me.

“However, even if a tree grows crookedly, it eventually grows toward the sky, and its roots are so straight, so how could one worry about its direction becoming crooked?”

It had another meaning, along with the word ‘murderous’, which meant it was dazzlingly cool······.

“The great fortune of the missionary. I hereby confer upon you the position of second-rank official and the temporary governor of Jiangsu Province.”

······huh?

Suddenly, my mind came to a halt. Ju Gwan-cheon, who had been arguing with me, also blinked and looked at the emperor.

The atmosphere around them was also very agitated, and as expected, the military officers of the Royal Guard and the Dongchang clan were also greatly agitated.

It looks like this was a ‘reward’ that wasn’t agreed upon in advance.

In the first place, where in the world is there a case where an official position is awarded in this manner?

Of course, the Emperor was the law, so there was nothing to say, but even so, this was not the case.

And it wasn’t even an ordinary official position, it was a second-rank position and the position of the lord of Jiangsu Province, the ruler of the Gangnam region. What was this······.

Even though it was ‘temporary’, it was excessive.

Although my achievements were great, they were not to this extent. I could not be granted the position of lord with these achievements.

There was bound to be opposition from the ministers, but even putting that aside, it was an instant death······.

This was a perfect ‘instant death reward’ that eliminated even the slightest possibility.

In the first place, he refused the position of the leader of the martial arts world, so what difference would it make if he became the lord of Jiangsu Province?

There was nothing to think about or do.

I had to reject it outright.

“I may be presumptuous, but my convictions···.”

I shut my mouth for a moment. I didn’t know if it was okay to refer to me as ‘Soshin’, but now I know. What’s the big deal?

“Currently, I am operating a military office called Seonmu-gwan in Gangseo-seong. If I were to take on the temporary governorship of Gangseo-seong, I would have to give up the Seonmu-gwan position······.”

“Why don’t we build a large missionary office in Jiangsu Province?”

······It was an answer that left me speechless.

It could be said that I was on a different level from Ju Gwan Cheon, and just like that, the Emperor was also anxious to kill me for fear that someone would say that I was of ‘that’ bloodline.

Now I had no idea what to do. What should I do to get out of this situation? What on earth could I do?

“The missionary office can only operate in Gangseo Province······”

Then, people turned their gazes toward me, asking what the hell I was talking about.

······embrace.

It’s an excuse that I can’t even think of.

But what should I do? I can’t just die like this. I had to come up with some excuse, even if it was a lame excuse.

‘······Should we fight?’

It was something to think about seriously, without any joking.

Since I was born with a destiny that would go against the grain, I thought it wouldn’t be a bad idea to commit a proper rebellion here and now.

It’s all the same whether I die this way or that way, so rather than dying as a ‘reward’, it’s better to fight and die like a warrior.

“Does this mean you won’t take on the role of temporary governor of Jiangsu Province?”

“I am not qualified to serve as the lord of Jiangsu Province.”

“Can I take that to mean that Jim has poor taste?”

······It was the best martial arts in the world that left one speechless.

When Ju Gwan-cheon said it was the emperor’s decree or something, I honestly thought it was true. But when the emperor himself said it, I couldn’t believe it at all.

Just when I was wondering what to do about this.

“Um, but since you ask so earnestly······.”

The young emperor seemed to think for a moment, then said.

“If you ever meet Jim’s sister, you’ll think differently.”

“·········your majesty?”

Then, Ju Gwan-cheon looked at the emperor again as if asking what he was talking about.

The guards and the officers of the Dongchang Guard were not much different, but looking at them, it seemed like the temporary governor of Jiangsu Province had acted unilaterally on the part of the emperor.

“Let’s meet up.”

The words just came out.

I don’t know what the Emperor was thinking, what his intentions were, or who his sister was, but that was the only way out for him to survive.

“ha ha ha!”

The young emperor continued speaking with a hearty laugh.

“Very well. Since your request is so earnest, I will temporarily withdraw the temporary governor of Jiangsu Province.”

Only then could I breathe a sigh of relief.

······But wait a minute.

I also realized that I couldn’t just relax.

It wasn’t just because the Emperor said he would ‘temporarily’ withdraw. No, that was part of it, but there was a more important reason.

“What you just said means that you are also withdrawing the previous awards······Can I understand that?”

“Huh? Surely, that can’t be happening.”

The emperor continued speaking as if asking what was going on.

“That is a fitting reward for the achievements you have made. As your uncle said, there is no need to worry since the property was confiscated from Cheon San Ja. Hmm? Now that I think about it, the property confiscated from Cheon San Ja is also from you-.”

“Your Majesty, that is······.”

Joo Gwan-cheon waved his hands in confusion.

That would be the case, since it was known that the one who brought down Cheonsanja was the Great King of the Yangtze River. And I am now the Cheongun of the Seonmu-gwan, and Ju Gwan-cheon was trying to keep that secret.

“Hmm? Oh, Jim made a mistake.”

The young emperor pretended not to notice and cleared his throat before continuing.

“Anyway, you should receive all the previous awards.”

“······yes?”

“Surely you didn’t think Jim would wipe his mouth just by introducing you to his sister?”

“I didn’t mean it like that, but didn’t you mean to withdraw······?”

“No.”

······Shit.

I barely managed to suppress the words that were rising to the very bottom of my throat. This was no joke, I was almost executed for insulting the emperor right here on this spot.

I don’t know if you know how I feel or not.

“Anyway, I’ll try to find a good day for you soon. You should focus on recovering. I’ve prepared a lot of elixirs for you, so get your energy back quickly.”

The Emperor’s ‘Duduk’ was truly on a different level, but the problem is, does he know that it is killing me rather than helping me recover?

Of course, there was no way I would have known.

Even though I wanted to explain, I couldn’t.

The emperor simply left slowly with a satisfied smile. The royal guard and the soldiers of the East Guard also left after the emperor.

Ju Gwan-cheon seemed to wonder what was going on, but he seemed satisfied with the fact that the reward was fully given, and quickly followed the emperor away.

‘······We’re in big trouble.’

In common parlance, it was all messed up.

My mind was so blank that I couldn’t even think of anything. I hurriedly searched through my pockets and took out the folding screen.

[Conversion Merit] – 0

·········There was none.

The merits of Hwansan, which had been accumulated over 7,000 months and a whopping 585 years… were not left at all.