You Look Beautiful
It had already been twenty minutes since Cheon Yeon-hwa entered the dressing room.
During that time, Iris (Regression) had followed the clerk’s guidance to a waiting area and settled in.
‘She should have finished changing by now. She’s taking longer than I expected.’
Sipping the coffee the clerk had brought, Iris (Regression) let her thoughts drift.
Iris was sitting with her as well, enjoying a cup of tea after being shown to the same spot.
“…Ugh! Haaah!!”
Iris set down her teacup, let out a long groan, and stretched her arms wide.
She had tried her best to endure it, but boredom was impossible to ignore.
After stretching and shifting her body around a little, Iris (Regression) spoke up cautiously.
“You must be bored, Senior?”
“Of course I am. The only reason I’m holding back is because of Grandmaster and Master.”
“Still, it’s nice that we can take our hoods off, right?”
On the streets there was always a chance someone might recognize Iris.
The royal capital was crowded, with heavy foot traffic.
The odds that at least one person who could identify her was present were more than high enough.
But this dress shop catered mainly to nobles.
And those nobles rarely knew the faces of the Heroes.
The places Heroes visited were always swarming with monsters and demonic beasts.
The places nobles stayed were safe and peaceful by comparison.
If they knew the faces of Heroes who operated in such dangerous areas, that would actually be strange.
Therefore, both the customers who came here and the clerks who served them had little interest in or knowledge of the Heroes.
Taking off their hoods caused no problems at all.
“…Now that you mention it, that’s true.”
Iris acknowledged the point and let it go.
Sitting here was still terribly uncomfortable.
But simply not having to wear that stifling hood was enough.
“Um, ladies? Are the two of you not looking for anything in particular?”
Perhaps they had caught the scent of serious money.
The two clerks who had been waiting quietly approached and asked the question.
Iris (Regression) considered it for a moment.
Coming to a place like this made even her want to dress up a little.
But if she left her seat, no one would be left to watch Iris.
If she did that and Iris caused any real trouble, the aftermath would clearly be exhausting.
“Just bring us another cup of tea, please.”
“Ah, yes! Right away!”
As she watched the clerk hurry off with quick steps, Iris tilted her head with a puzzled expression.
“Those clerks. They don’t seem to recognize you, Maknae, or Grandmaster—or even me, do they?”
“That’s right. Regular citizens might not know us, but people whose main job is dealing with nobles have no reason to memorize Heroes’ faces. It’s far more useful to remember the nobles who spend more money.”
“That’s exactly what I’m saying. So they don’t even know who we are—why are they being so nice?”
“It’s obvious. The tip I gave the other clerk earlier as an apology wasn’t exactly small change. On top of that, our whole group consists of beauties who could rival any noble. So they’re just assuming we’re aristocrats.”
“Beauties? I’ll accept that for myself and Grandmaster, but you count as a beauty too, Maknae?”
“What are you saying! I’m quite beautiful myself, you know?!”
When Iris (Regression) shouted in protest, Iris let out a quiet chuckle.
Then, with a vague nod—‘All right, all right! Our Maknae is a beauty too, acknowledged!’—she drank another cup of the tea the clerk had brought and twisted her body this way and that.
“Anyway, I wish they’d finish their business quickly so we could leave this place…”
Just as Iris was about to finish the thought, the Fighter Hero suddenly flinched and shot to her feet.
Before Iris (Regression) could even process what was happening, she had already dashed off.
“Grandmaster!”
She managed to stop Cheon Yeon-hwa, who was radiating enough killing intent to slaughter the clerk on the spot.
If she had been even a moment slower, the consequences were too horrible to imagine.
‘What fresh disaster is this!’
Iris (Regression), who had run after her, quietly moved the bewildered clerk aside.
The woman probably still had no idea what had just occurred.
Had Iris not been there, she would have lost limbs or her head entirely.
“Grandmaster. What’s wrong? Please calm down. Calm yourself.”
While Iris worked hard to soothe Cheon Yeon-hwa, Iris (Regression) approached the clerk and asked what had happened.
“What happened, you ask?”
“Yes. You didn’t say anything strange to her, did you? I specifically warned you to be careful.”
“Of course not! I swear I never did anything like that!”
“Then why is she reacting this way? What exactly did you say or do?”
“I only recommended some accessories before she tried on the dress, that’s all!”
At the clerk’s words, Iris (Regression) thought, Ah, no way. Don’t tell me…
“The ring and earrings you’re wearing seem a little beneath the customer’s beauty. So I suggested trying something else and was simply going to remove them for her—that’s everything!”
“…”
It really was that. The exact thing she had feared had happened!
Damn it, of all the things to try removing—the earrings and the ring!
Why had she forgotten about those two?! Aaaargh!!
From Iris (Regression)’s perspective, all she could do was scream inside her own head.
As far as she knew, there were several things Cheon Yeon-hwa treasured above all else.
She didn’t know every one of them, but she knew two with absolute certainty.
The earrings and ring that her own disciple, Namgung Hyeon, had given her.
To call them inadequate, to suggest swapping them for new ones, and to try taking them off her—it was only natural for her fury to erupt.
“I’m sorry. I should have explained it clearly. Do not touch the accessories that person is wearing. Don’t ask why—there are circumstances involved. Even if they don’t match the dress, it doesn’t matter. Just focus on the dress. Do not lay a single finger on those two.”
“Eh? Ah, um… Customer, I’m truly sorry, but…”
Swoosh—.
The clerk held out something in her hand.
A small, silver, cross-shaped ornament that gleamed brightly.
Seeing it, Iris (Regression) had to doubt her own eyes.
This. Why was this here? This couldn’t be happening.
This was an object that should never have been in that woman’s hands.
“Um, actually, it was getting in the way while I was arranging her hair. Other customers usually remove their earrings first, but since this customer didn’t, I only removed the decorative part…”
“…”
Oh, dear heavens. Muttering to herself, Iris (Regression) slowly turned to look toward Cheon Yeon-hwa.
“M-Maknae.”
Iris came into view, sweating buckets and even stuttering.
The Fighter Hero—one of the supreme experts known as the Peerless—was visibly afraid.
She shook her head as if she had finally reached her limit.
“I-I’m at my limit too. I can’t hold her back any longer.”
Until now she had somehow contained Cheon Yeon-hwa’s killing intent with her own internal energy.
Continuing any further would endanger even her own true qi.
If she stepped back, ordinary people exposed to that killing intent might all lose consciousness or die.
She had endured somehow, but she could no longer restrain Cheon Yeon-hwa, who burned like an inferno.
“You wench. You dare… you dare…”
“Grandmaster. Please. Please calm down…”
What now? How on earth were they supposed to resolve this?
Even for Iris (Regression), the regressor, this was an impossible situation.
This was the first time even she had encountered anything like it.
Neither she nor Iris could stop Cheon Yeon-hwa.
Even if the other seniors arrived, the result would be the same.
The only person who could undo this situation was her own master.
Master. Master! Please! Where are you? Come quickly! This is about to become a catastrophe!
Although Iris was holding her back, some of that killing intent must have leaked out.
At that level, her master might have sensed it.
He needed to come quickly and calm Cheon Yeon-hwa to prevent any further disaster.
Just as Iris (Regression) was screaming inside—Please! Please come here right now!!—a familiar voice cut through the tension.
“…What’s going on here?”
As if he had somehow known, the very person they had been searching for appeared right in front of them.
“Ah! M-Master!!”
Seeing Namgung Hyeon had truly arrived, Iris (Regression) quickly pointed at Cheon Yeon-hwa.
The meaning was clear: neither of them could do anything more, so please calm her down immediately.
“Iris.”
“Yes, Master! Haa! Hah!”
Iris, who had been sweating profusely, withdrew her energy and stepped back.
Namgung Hyeon let out a sigh and approached his master, who still had not withdrawn her killing intent.
“Master.”
“Do not stop me, Hyeon. I must kill that wench and chew her flesh.”
“She meant nothing by it. Please calm down and look at me.”
“This is not something to simply overlook! Are you not angry at all?!”
“…”
If the clerk had been a man, he might have felt some irritation.
But the person standing there without any idea what the problem was happened to be a female clerk.
And while arranging hair, an earring getting caught truly was troublesome.
So instead of removing the earring itself, she had only detached the ring holding the ornament.
Sigh.
Of course, his master had no intention of understanding any of that.
Knowing her all too well, Namgung Hyeon had to find another approach.
How could he calm this Heavenly Demon who was rampaging with killing intent?
“…?”
Then, suddenly, Namgung Hyeon noticed that his master’s clothing had changed.
Instead of her usual dull martial robes, she wore a pure white dress that was impeccably clean and elegant.
He wondered why he was only noticing such a dramatic change now.
That was how overwhelming the transformation of his master—the Heavenly Demon Cheon Yeon-hwa—truly was.
“…What is this outfit?”
At Namgung Hyeon’s question, the energy that had threatened to sweep away everything around them began to fade.
She let out a soft “Hmm?” and examined her own state.
It seemed that in the heat of her anger she had not even realized her attire had changed.
“Eh? Ah, aah! Th-that is… Yes, exactly! This is simply to observe the lifestyle of the people here… So it is not that this seat desired it or anything…”
“You look beautiful.”
One phrase. Just one single phrase. That was all.
Yet the wave it created was truly enormous.
The lingering killing intent, the ominous internal energy, the terrifying glare—all of it vanished completely.
The supremely arrogant Heavenly Demon melted away, leaving only the woman Cheon Yeon-hwa behind.
“H-Hyeon?”
“It suits you perfectly. My master wearing a dress. This really is a rare sight.”
“Wh-what k-kind of… nonsense…”
Instead of answering, Namgung Hyeon held out his hand toward Iris (Regression).
She quickly understood what her master wanted.
She swiftly took the cross-shaped ornament from the clerk’s hand, gently placed it on her master’s palm, and stepped back.
“Please stay still for a moment, Master. Just stay still. There… All done.”
As he had done once before, Namgung Hyeon put the earring back in place and stepped back slightly.
He gazed at his master, who stood there in a pure white dress, completely flustered and at a loss for words.
“This makes you look even more beautiful.”
The moment she heard those words, Cheon Yeon-hwa’s mind turned completely white.
