My gaze snapped to Ryu Sunghyun’s hair on reflex.
The brown hair that usually only came down to his ears was now hanging long, trailing onto the dirt. So his hair had grown out too, just like ours.
Ryu Sunghyun had tied half of it back with a yellow ribbon, and long hair suited him ridiculously well. Of course it did. Our hyung had no style that didn’t work on him.
‘But... you’re telling me they’re going to shave that off?’
Are they out of their minds?
I mean, sure—our hyung would still be handsome even bald, but still!
“Hey. Snap out of it.”
Hyun Dowoon’s voice cut into my tangled, chaotic thoughts. I barely got my head back.
“Wait—wait!”
I shouted urgently without thinking it through and sprinted toward Ryu Sunghyun.
“Hey, Cha Seohu! Are you insane—!”
I heard Hyun Dowoon’s horrified shout from behind me, but it was too late.
I put on the most delicate, sweet face I could manage, looked flustered and terrified, and spoke loud enough for the monks and everyone around to hear.
“Hy-hyung. What is this... what’s going on...?”
Ryu Sunghyun, who’d been debating whether to shove off the Shaolin men pressing him down by force, saw me appear out of nowhere and widened his eyes in shock.
“...Hunter Cha Seohu?”
As he muttered, I winked quickly, signaling him to play along. Then I turned to the startled monks.
“M-Master. What did my hyung do wrong for him to end up like this?”
“My hyung...?”
One of the monks mumbled in confusion.
I forced tears up on purpose, wetting the corners of my eyes. Then I boldly dropped to my knees and shouted even louder.
“Yes, my hyung! He just came back from another village after selling goods just to keep food on the table, and—what sin did my hyung commit for you to persecute him like this?”
When I raised my voice on purpose, the onlookers around us started murmuring.
From a civilian’s point of view, a poor person living day to day was always more relatable than martial artists who felt distant and frightening.
“Oh dear, that’s pitiful. Why would they pick on innocent brothers?”
“Still... those are people from Shaolin. If you make a fuss for no reason—”
“Ah, it’s so sad.”
Among the murmurs, I could plainly hear people clicking their tongues and sympathizing.
Ryu Sunghyun, who was still pinned down as he watched me, had gone past “confused” and was now drifting into sheer disbelief. Hyun Dowoon watching from behind looked the same. Only Kwon Seoyul stood there with his arms crossed, whistling.
“W-what....”
Maybe he felt public opinion shifting, because the monk who looked like the leader glared at me with a face red from humiliation.
“My hyung? You suddenly appear and say such things—do you think we would believe you? This man belongs to our Shaolin. He failed to uphold the conduct required of him. That is why, here and now, we meant to shave his head and teach him, in his bones, how strict the law of the sect is—so step back at once!”
“Sh-shave his head...!”
I echoed his words like I was shocked and let my eyes brim with tears. I used my looks to the fullest.
“The reason my hyung grew his hair out... is because our late mother treasured his hair above all else. When she was alive, every night she personally combed his hair and tied it for him. That hair ribbon is her keepsake!”
I shouted loud enough for the whole world to hear, pointing at the yellow ribbon in Ryu Sunghyun’s hair.
Ryu Sunghyun—who had apparently been forced into a sudden separation from a mother he’d never had—let out a small, strangled groan and smiled faintly, hollowly.
“W-what....”
“That’s....”
The monks who’d been about to shave all of Ryu Sunghyun’s hair hesitated and stepped back. I could feel the force of their momentum break.
“B-but we still can’t just leave it like this....”
The lead monk muttered, clinging to his last bit of stubbornness—only for another monk behind him to hurriedly poke his back and shake his head.
Even if they were going to do it, not here, not with this many people watching.
The “mother” card was a fatal move, and the crowd had already swung hard to my side. The spectators’ eyes were now clearly blaming the monks.
“K-kkhm! Fine... for now, we understand.”
After clearing his throat, the monk slid off Ryu Sunghyun’s back.
Freed without needing to solve it with force, Ryu Sunghyun brushed the dirt off his clothes—tap, tap—and walked toward me. His eyes held a complicated mix of emotions.
“I do not know what misunderstanding has occurred, but he is a disciple of Shaolin who has already chosen to return to the Buddhist sect. There are rules he must undergo accordingly... If you truly doubt this, then follow this monk. You called yourself his younger brother—surely you won’t get scared and retreat?”
“Do not worry. We are monks who follow the rules. We do not commit shameless acts like stabbing someone in the back. Follow in peace.”
Tch.
Clicking my tongue inwardly, I studied their faces.
‘This... feels like even if we bolt, they’ll chase us to the end.’
Of course, we had skills, so even if three monks followed us, we wouldn’t get caught and dragged away.
But things would definitely get messy.
We had no idea how long we’d be stuck wandering in this space, or where the remaining team members were. We couldn’t recklessly turn a major faction like Shaolin into an enemy.
Scratching my forehead, I nodded in a deliberately meek way.
“Ah, of course. I trust you.”
Only then did the monks nod, looking satisfied.
In that gap, I met Ryu Sunghyun’s eyes briefly at my side. Without making a sound, we talked with our eyes.
Ryu Sunghyun asked first.
‘What on earth is going on? Why is Hunter Cha Seohu here? And what was that just now?’
I answered.
‘It’s a long story. For now, let’s do what they say. The risk is too high if we refuse.’
After hesitating, Ryu Sunghyun gave a small nod.
“Follow behind this monk.”
The monks spoke stiffly, like they were trying to recover their dignity, and started walking ahead.
We followed behind them, heading for Shaolin—leaving the caravan owner, who was watching me with pity, behind in the crowd.
We deliberately slowed down like we were tired, opened up a little distance from the monks, then spoke in low voices.
“Can’t we just crack those guys in the back of the head and go our own way?”
It was Kwon Seoyul, trailing at the very back with a bored [N O V E L I G H T] look, who started it.
At the words of a guy who didn’t know the first thing about wuxia, Ryu Sunghyun answered carefully.
“Hunter Cha Seohu’s decision is correct. That ‘Shaolin’ place is likely where I first opened my eyes. It was a very large temple, and there were many people trained with great precision. Unless we plan to knock every single one of them out, running away won’t mean much.”
“Right.”
I nodded at Ryu Sunghyun, and Kwon Seoyul pouted.
At this point, I had to confirm it. I asked Ryu Sunghyun with a serious expression.
“Vice-Guildmaster.”
“Yes?”
“Do you... know anything about wuxia?”
Ryu Sunghyun’s eyes widened slightly. His gaze wavered.
“Have you ever read wuxia novels? Like... Wudang, Mount Hua, the Namgung Clan, the Heavenly Demon—stuff like that. Do you know it?”
“Wu... what?”
At his blank face, I pressed a hand to my forehead.
We’re screwed. He really didn’t know anything. Just like Kwon Seoyul, Ryu Sunghyun didn’t know wuxia from the word go.
‘How am I supposed to explain this from scratch to someone who knows nothing?’
Start with Shaolin? Or tell him this is a world where fists are closer than law, and those “people of the martial world” are sword-carrying thugs who “protect” civilians while extorting them?
I couldn’t guess how much Ryu Sunghyun would understand, or how far he’d accept it if he did.
‘And how is he going to take “martial arts”...?’
Honestly, I didn’t even know yet how much power martial arts carried here.
The guys chasing Hyun Dowoon and the bandits we’d run into in the mountains hadn’t used anything like that. They’d just been normal people with weapons.
After thinking for a moment, I asked Ryu Sunghyun,
“Vice-Guildmaster. Do you feel anything special from those mon—no, those monks up ahead? Any kind of aura?”
“Mm....”
Ryu Sunghyun blinked slowly, examined them carefully, then answered.
“I do feel something. It’s a little different from an Awakener’s presence, but it’s comparable. What I feel from those three is similar to a C-rank to B-rank dealer. The one walking in the middle at the front is B-rank.”
So an S-rank dealer like Ryu Sunghyun really could sense something, as expected.
“That’s probably ‘martial arts.’ They said he was training, right? They train to gain and build up that martial arts. In this space, there are lots of people who’ve honed it like that.”
“Hm. Not dangerous, but... if they swarm us, it’ll be a hassle.”
“Yeah. So for now, let’s follow them and hear what they have to say. We can run later.”
Leaving Kwon Seoyul snorting, we decided to watch and see how things played out, for now.

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