From what he had heard, Sua still didn’t know Haram’s true identity. Seomun Hyeok came up with an answer that was as close to the truth as possible while keeping it in a direction that wouldn’t startle the child.
“…We’re guild leader and guild member.”
“Pardon?”
“Do you know the guild your uncle started?”
“Yes. Eclipse. It’s one of the top five guilds.”
Seomun Hyeok’s eyebrows went up. He had heard she was six years old, but she knew more and spoke better than he’d expected.
“That’s right. Sua’s sharp. Your uncle is going to be joining my guild.”
He explained the news that Haram would be recruited into Eclipse, along with the fact that he intended to support him — which included improving his living situation.
“So we’re going to be living with Hunter Seomun Hyeok now? Samchon and I?”
“Yeah. From now on, just call me uncle.”
“Um….”
“What?”
Seomun Hyeok had assumed Sua would simply be happy about moving somewhere new, so her hesitation caught him off guard.
“Well, um, the thing is.”
Their eyes met in the rearview mirror. Seomun Hyeok realized the child was suspicious of him.
“What? Something you’re curious about?”
“…Our Samchon is an E-rank Hunter. How is he getting into Eclipse?”
“Hm?”
“Eclipse is one of the top five guilds. I heard it’s so incredible that not just anyone can get in — so why….”
“How insolent. I am incredible too.”
“Yeah, yeah, that’s right. Samchon is incredibly amazing.”
“Don’t say it without meaning it.”
Haram and Sua bickered in the back. Seomun Hyeok held back a smile and chose his words carefully.
“Sua, do you know about the dungeon that appeared in Seoul a few days ago?”
“Yes. The one where people kept getting dragged inside.”
“Right. That’s where I first met your uncle. Your uncle had a re-awakening in the boss room of that dungeon.”
This was the public-facing story that he and Haram had aligned on earlier in the day. There was no way they could disclose the truth — that Haram was the soul of an archmage from another world who could use magic.
“Th, the boss room? Samchon went somewhere that dangerous?”
“It just kind of turned out that way.”
“Are, are you hurt anywhere? Hm?”
“I am a great arch — mm, Hunter. I didn’t get hurt at all.”
“…Is it true that you had a re-awakening?”
Fortunately, Sua seemed to believe it. Seomun Hyeok felt a quiet relief and continued.
“Your uncle helped me take down the boss. That’s when I recognized his abilities.”
“Samchon became that impressive? So does he use magic now too?”
“Yes. Did I not just say so? I am incredible as well.”
“Wow…!”
Haram’s shoulders rose with pride. Sua looked at him with a thoughtful expression, then asked:
“So does that mean Samchon won’t get hurt like before anymore?”
“Hm?”
“Samchon has gotten really powerful. So he won’t get hurt now?”
“…Did Sua’s uncle used to get hurt often?”
“Yes. He’s been coming home hurt all the time ever since I was little.”
She’s still little now — and even littler than that before. How long had it been going on?
Even knowing that the soul inside Pyo Haram’s body was someone else’s entirely, Seomun Hyeok still found himself glancing over at him.
“…He does have to go into dungeons, so I can’t promise he won’t get hurt at all. But our guild has healers, and your uncle will be keeping Pyo Haram safe too — so you don’t need to worry too much.”
Sua nodded at Seomun Hyeok’s explanation. The child already understood. That as long as you’re a hunter, getting hurt entirely is something you can’t avoid.
“I know Eclipse’s healer too. Hunter Eomji.”
“You know a lot about our guild.”
“Yes. Eclipse is so cool. My dream is to become a hunter someday too. And when I do, I’ll protect Samchon, and earn lots of money so I can feed him good food.”
“I like bungeoppang.”
“Okay. I’ll buy you a hundred bungeoppang.”
“Hmph, you can’t even count to a hundred.”
“Yes I can! I know how to count that far!”
Sua’s expression brightened in an instant, as if she’d never been crying at all. Seomun Hyeok was relieved. The topic he needed to bring up next was one that might be a little sensitive for the child.
“Um… Sua.”
“Yes?”
Sua, who had been counting numbers at Haram to prove her point, sat back up straight and turned her head toward Seomun Hyeok.
“So, you heard earlier that you’ll be coming to live at my place, right?”
“Yes.”
“When that happens, you’ll probably have to switch kindergartens too. Since it’s a bit of a distance. Until we find a new one, you’ll keep going to your current one — but ideally we want to move you to somewhere close by as soon as possible. Is that okay?”
He was nervous that Sua might dig her heels in and refuse, or start crying like before.
But Sua reacted in a way he hadn’t expected at all. She nodded willingly.
“Yes! That’s fine.”
“…Won’t you be sad to say goodbye to your friends?”
“Hmm….”
Sua glanced at Haram and took her time before answering.
“…I don’t have any friends.”
“Oh, r, really?”
That’s genuinely not what I expected. To Seomun Hyeok, Sua had a bright personality, talked up a storm, and was remarkably cute. That a child like her had no friends and was actually dejected about it — that was hard to imagine.
“Why… would you not have friends…?”
Seomun Hyeok, having no experience with young children, muttered it to himself without thinking, his eyes shifting awkwardly. He shut his mouth the moment he realized the words might hurt her, but it was already too late.
“…At kindergarten, kids in my class kept making fun of me.”
“Making fun of you? Of you, Sua?”
“Yes.”
And then Sua’s explanation followed.
At first, she said, there had been children who came up to her first and asked her to play with them. But three of the boys among them had pulled her aside separately and confessed they liked her, and Sua had turned them all down.
The bullying started after that. It wasn’t direct or blatant, but they began mocking her — teasing her about her family’s circumstances and her family situation.
“…They made fun of Samchon too, for being an E-rank Hunter…. And I tried to tell Samchon, but he came home hurt, so… I couldn’t bring myself to say anything….”
Tears welled up in Sua’s eyes again. Seomun Hyeok parted his lips to comfort the child, but this time Haram was faster.
“What? Which little brats are they?!”
Haram’s shout rang through the car like a thunderclap. Seomun Hyeok’s eyes went wide.
So even an arrogant archmage gets angry when he sees a young child crying over being bullied, he thought.
But the expression on Seomun Hyeok’s face went flat at what Haram said next.
“How dare they look down on this magnificent body! I’ll go thrash them right now! Turn the car around!”
Ah… that’s the angle he’s coming from….
Seomun Hyeok, having misjudged what exactly Haram was angry about, felt oddly foolish and pressed his lips shut.
All the while, Haram kept rambling — about turning the car around, about needing to go see the faces of those children immediately.
“Please calm down.”
“Do I look like I’m in a state to calm down? I have never suffered such an insult! I’ll feel better once I’ve given each of them a good smack.”
“…You can’t just go around laying your hands on other people here. Especially not children. You’d be arrested for child abuse.”
“What is child abuse.”
“Ha…. Anyway. You can’t.”
As far as Seomun Hyeok was concerned, this wasn’t the kind of thing to be resolved with violence. Either way, those on the other side were six-year-old children, and on this side were adults. Hunters at that — which meant they had to be even more careful.
“Then what am I supposed to do. Just suck it up and let it go? They dared to insult me?”
“The one who was insulted was Sua…. Actually. No. That’s not — never mind.”
Glance. Seomun Hyeok looked at Sua, who was still sulking. He felt sorry for the child — she hadn’t even been able to tell her uncle, and had been mocked alone for so long.
“Is there some way to handle this?”
“…Since they’re still young children, a light talking-to should be more than enough. Since they apparently used your uncle as the reason to tease her, it might be best to show them firsthand just how impressive you are.”
“Which is exactly why I’ll go over there and sweep them off their feet.”
“Please. That’s not what I mean.”
He shook his head firmly and murmured as he turned the steering wheel.
“Just leave this one to me.”
* * *
The next day was Sua’s last day attending her kindergarten. Sua hadn’t been particularly fond of her kindergarten to begin with, so it was decided that until a new one was found, she would be kept at home.
After dropping Sua off, Seomun Hyeok and Haram stopped by a hair salon.
“What on earth is this supposed to be.”
The one getting their hair cut was Haram. Seomun Hyeok asked the stylist to make it as neat as possible, then turned to pacify the grumbling Haram.
“We have to pick Sua up later — wouldn’t it be better to go looking presentable?”
“Does it have to be?”
“We need to show those kids who teased Sua just how impressive you are. If you go looking the way you do now, there’s no face to save.”
“…….”
Fortunately, Haram quieted down a little after hearing that. His mouth was still stuck out a good ways, but he closed his eyes, dipped his head, went over to get his hair washed — he moved along with the stylist’s directions without protest.
He’s being surprisingly well-behaved….
Seomun Hyeok thought back to Haram’s behavior the previous night after they had arrived home — the way he had looked after Sua.
His expression had remained as surly as ever, and his speech just as blunt, but his hands had steadily and dutifully taken care of Sua and looked after her.
“How is it? Do you like it? Should I take the sides a bit shorter?”
“No. This is sufficient.”
“Then I’ll just blow-dry it as is.”
In the meantime, Haram had become unrecognizably different. The shaggy bangs that had been hanging over his eyes were trimmed back neatly, and the messy, curling hair that had been sticking out every which way was all tidied up.
With that, his delicate features came into much sharper focus. The stylist was also clearly pleased with how the transformation had turned out, beaming with satisfaction.
“Your eyes are so pretty. It’s such a shame to keep them covered. Keep getting it styled like this going forward. I’ll show you separately how to maintain it.”
“I’ll manage on my own. Let go of me now.”
“Oh, are you tired? Just this last bit….”
The stylist didn’t back down even at Haram’s peculiar way of speaking. She had an extraordinary sense of professional duty.
“There, all done. I’ll take the cape.”
Haram, now fragrant and with some strange gel pressed into his hair, was finally released from the stylist’s hands and stumbled forward.
“Quick, quick, let’s get out. Quickly.”
