Hongshin quickly activated her light footwork, trying to get as far away from the Black Cat Pavilion as possible. She feared that the madman might suddenly change his mind and issue an order to bring her back. Since she couldn’t predict what that fake senior brother was thinking, her fear of him only grew the farther she ran.

Naturally, her feet carried her toward a place she believed would be beyond the reach of the Black Cat Pavilion.

After running at full speed for quite a while, Hongshin gradually slowed down, a frown forming on her face. At that moment, a single word popped into her mind.

‘Diarrhea?’

Following that, another word surfaced.

‘No way?’

They say “no way” kills people. It felt like “diarrhea” and “no way” had formed a nasty alliance, as her stomach began to churn violently. A bead of sweat rolled down from her forehead.

‘Why here of all places? Is it from the poison?’

She walked for a while with a hand pressed against her stomach.

There are many types of gu poison, but most of them create a parasitic worm in the body after a certain amount of time. If the antidote doesn’t kill the worm, the host dies.

The reason such a terrifying poison isn’t used widely is simple: it’s extremely difficult to make. But since Hongshin didn’t know the true identity of the fake senior brother, she couldn’t be sure whether the poison was real or fake.

Because her life was on the line.

That’s why the sudden stomach pain was even more terrifying. She’d never taken gu poison before, so she didn’t know diarrhea came with the package. But, well, considering she’d taken poison on an empty stomach, the pain almost made sense.

Gulping, Hongshin looked around in desperation, twisting her body left and right.

‘Please… please… I swear I’ll live a decent life. Please…’

No bathroom in sight.

Frustrated to the point of tears, Hongshin forced herself to keep it together. She had a hunch that if she cried, she’d lose control even faster. Clinging to consciousness that threatened to fade, she frantically searched for an outhouse or a secluded patch of bushes.

And as if mocking her, a traveling merchant would pass by every now and then, each giving her a suspicious look. Every time, her face would flush bright red and she’d flee the scene with her light footwork.

‘Someone… anyone… please help me.’

In less crowded areas, she stopped using light footwork.

Because if she kept running, she might lose it mid-step.

On a quiet road, Hongshin took deep breaths while clenching her sphincter with all her might. If she hadn’t trained her body through years of harsh martial arts practice, she would’ve already lost the battle. In the end, it was that hardened physique that barely saved her from disaster.

Just then, she noticed someone approaching from the path she’d come down—a man running so fast he kicked up a cloud of dust.

Truly, he was moving like the wind.

Even though Hongshin’s light footwork was quite advanced, she could tell that even on her best day, she wouldn’t be able to match that speed.

A man dressed neatly in white robes flashed past her in an instant, but not before giving her a brief glance.

When he passed by, Hongshin instinctively swallowed.

‘He’s a master.’

A moment later, the white-robed noble stopped a short distance away and asked her,

“Young lady, is something wrong? Your face is terribly pale.”

His voice was deep and weighted. Hongshin hesitated for a moment, then replied in a weary voice,

“I’ve been poisoned…”

As soon as the words left her mouth, she flinched.

‘Wait, what the hell am I saying?’

He was a martial artist. Why would she blurt out that she’d been poisoned? Still, her condition was so miserable that she just went with it.

“I’m… looking for a restroom.”

The man strode toward her with a completely serious expression and said,

“So to summarize, you’ve been poisoned and urgently need a restroom? Get on my back, quickly. I happen to be heading to a regular spot. If you’re not going to handle this in the woods, I’ll get you there fast. Your face is really pale. Hurry.”

The man showed her his back without a hint of suspicion. What a bold guy.

Hongshin wondered what he would do if she tried to attack him, and asked,

“Is it close?”

“I’ll run full speed.”

“Please… thank you.”

She climbed onto his back and clenched hard. If she hadn’t maintained her training, she would’ve lost control the moment she got on.

The man sprinted like a wild horse and said,

“Hold on tight.”

With a frown, Hongshin managed to respond as the scenery around them blurred by.

“Thank you.”

The speed was astounding, and yet his voice remained calm and composed.

“If you remain calm, you can overcome any crisis.”

A short time later, he entered a small village with a few scattered shops, dashed past a construction site, and arrived at the restroom behind his usual stop. Without hesitation, he gently tossed Hongshin down.

“Go quickly. I’ll be at the shop. Take your time…”

Hongshin, pale as a ghost, finally made it inside. As soon as the man disappeared, she yanked down her pants and resolved the crisis. The sound was explosive—perhaps due to the diarrhea. It was, without a doubt, one of the most humiliating moments of her life.

Plugging her nose with one hand, Hongshin thought,

‘I’m grateful, but… I don’t think I can ever look him in the eye again.’

A single tear slipped down her cheek. She didn’t even know why she was crying. The sound of something wet hitting the ground continued. Afraid she might burst into sobs from some unknown emotion, she shoved her fist in her mouth to keep from crying.

Even so, she was deeply relieved.

Plop— As the sound began to fade, Hongshin wore a look of enlightenment.

“Life’s got nothing special to it, huh.”

***

Having successfully escaped the crisis, Hongshin wandered around the village, taking slow strolls to let the lingering stench fade from her body. Every so often, she let out a long breath to steady herself.

It finally felt like her mind was clearing up.

She intentionally kept her distance as she explored the area, but eventually found herself lingering near the shop where she’d used the restroom. She peeked inside.

The white-robed man sat with his back turned, eating something, occasionally lifting his head to chat with the shop owner.

After much hesitation, Hongshin, now embracing her newfound realization that “life is whatever,” stepped inside the shop.

The clean-cut white-robed man turned his head and asked in a calm tone,
“You all right?”

The shop owner gave a polite nod.
“Welcome.”

Hongshin replied,
“Yes, thanks to you I’m feeling much better. Truly… thank you.”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

Suddenly thinking she should offer something in return, she reached for the coin pouch in her robes—only to remember it had been taken back at the Black Cat Pavilion.

‘Ah… damn it.’

The white-robed man noticed and said,
“It’s fine. If you’re feeling better, have a warm bowl of noodles. The broth’s pretty light—it’ll help settle your stomach.”

“I’m fine. I don’t really feel like eating right now.”

“I won’t force you.”

Hongshin felt her legs going weak and took a seat.

As the man slurped his noodles again, the shop owner remarked,
“Starving or something? You eat well. Hang on.”

The man responded,
“Oh? Should I look forward to something?”

With a warm smile, the owner returned from the kitchen and placed a hefty chunk of meat, glistening with fat, on the table in front of the man.

Rubbing his palms together, the man grinned.
“Jackpot. Eating this with broth? That’s heaven.”

“Eat up. If you hadn’t shown up today, I’d have thrown that in the soup. Guess you’ve got good food karma.”

“Right? My life’s crap, but at least I’ve got that going for me.”

Watching the glistening meat, Hongshin swallowed unconsciously and asked,
“What’s that? I should come try it next time.”

The shop owner replied,
“Pork spine bone.”

As the man tore into a hunk of meat with his bare hands, he glanced at Hongshin and, as if wanting her to remember it, said,
“Pork spine bone.”

“I see.”

The shop owner, now in a generous mood, added,
“Come on now, have a taste. Just one piece.”

Hongshin waved it off.
“Oh, I’m really not…”

“Nah, don’t worry about it. You’ve got to try it to want to come back, right?”

He brought out a small bowl from the kitchen with a piece of pork spine bone and placed it on her table.

“Eat it with your hands. No chopsticks. It’s already seasoned, so don’t dip it in anything. Just grab both ends and tear into it.”

Hongshin, feeling her mouth water, replied,
“You really didn’t have to…”

Was this really the same woman who’d just nearly crapped herself? Hongshin started tearing into the pork spine bone. The shop owner and the white-robed ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) man avoided looking at her directly, chatting amongst themselves to ease any pressure.

“Anything going on?”

“Not really. Been way too quiet all of a sudden—kinda boring.”

“Quiet’s a good thing.”

“True. How about you?”

“Man, nothing beats home. The food’s bland out there. People—young and old—always scheming. A bunch of slippery snakes.”

“Still, guess you fit in.”

Meanwhile, Hongshin had already stripped the pork bone clean and was now sucking off the last scraps of meat clinging to the bone. After flushing her system earlier, she was actually starving.

The shop owner finally spoke up.

“Good, huh?”

Too full to speak, Hongshin simply gave a thumbs-up.

The owner grinned.

“Come by anytime. Though we don’t always have pork spine bone. Next time, try the noodles too. Or the rice soup—it’s not bad.”

With her lips glistening with grease, Hongshin nodded as she glanced around the humble shop.

“This is what you call a hidden gem.”

“If you come too late, the shop might be gone—just saying.”

“You’re moving?”

The owner pointed outside and asked,
“Didn’t you see the construction site on the way here?”

“I did.”

“Once it’s finished, we’re moving there.”

“Ah, I saw something huge being built. What’s it gonna be?”

The shop owner gave a sly grin.
“A large inn. Gonna be the pride of this whole town.”

Eyes wide, Hongshin replied,
“Wow, really? That big? This must be a wealthy town.”

The white-robed man pulled a pouch from his robes, took out three silver coins, and handed them to the owner. The man’s once-plain expression lit up instantly.

“Whoa, now that’s what success looks like.”

“Does that cover my old tab too?”

“More than enough! Hahaha.”

As Hongshin admired the white-robed man’s generosity, her thief’s eyes couldn’t help but track the coin pouch returning to his robes.

In that moment, her face froze.

“……”

In the silence that followed, the sound of Hongshin swallowing was loud and distinct—gulp.

The white-robed man slowly turned his head toward her and stared in silence.

“……”

Only then did Hongshin take another good look into his eyes.

“No way…”

They say “no way” kills people. Shopkeeper Jang Deok-soo, not understanding the tension, looked between the two and asked,

“So… what’s your relationship, exactly?”

With a calm expression and a voice that dropped like an anchor, the white-robed man said:

“Sister.”

The moment she heard the word sister, images and voices flooded her mind in an instant—Zihwa Gu Poison, the fake senior brother, diarrhea, the toilet, splat, pork spine bone, the coin pouch—layering and spiraling into chaos.

Hongshin passed out on the spot.

A temporary state of internal deviation.

Even so, a sliver of consciousness—barely the size of a rat’s turd—remained.

And then, from nearby, the fake senior brother’s voice whispered gently into her ear:

“…Ten days left.”

And with that, Hongshin fully lost consciousness.