Wabul (2)
A moment later.
Seol-hwa wrote her name on the iron coin.
Having first written hwa (flower), she hesitated for a bit.
Han Bin chuckled at the sight. She seemed to be agonizing over whether to use hyeol or seol.
"Seol-hwa."
"Yes, Young Master."
Seol-hwa tilted her head, waiting for his next words.
"No need to decide right now. Just write whatever feels right to you. It's not the character itself that's important—it's the fragrance the character represents, Seol-hwa."
"Ah, the fragrance of the character?"
Seol-hwa blinked, as if chewing over his words.
Han Bin gave an awkward smile at her reaction.
What he meant by the "fragrance of the character" wasn't some abstract concept—it was a literal scent mingled in the ink, one only he could detect.
"Yeah, pretty much."
"Got it, Young Master."
Seol-hwa smiled faintly and set down the brush.
Tok.
Only a single character adorned the coin.
Han Bin picked up the iron coin.
"I'll place it for you, so head outside and make your wish. And…"
He whispered the rest so only she could hear.
Then, gazing at the Wabul outside, he recalled a technique.
Baekbal Baekjung
Seol-hwa quietly slipped out and vanished into the crowd waiting to offer prayers at the Wabul.
It was when she had drawn almost right up to the Wabul without anyone noticing.
The crowd began to stir, starting from the front rows.
The commotion began with a shout from one of the people at the very front, offering coins to the Wabul.
"A miracle!"
"What's this about a miracle?"
A middle-aged woman from the back asked with eyes full of curiosity. The man who had shouted pointed to the Wabul's palm.
"Look over there—the iron coin…"
The man pointed at the iron coin on the Wabul's palm, his hand trembling slightly.
In that instant, everyone's gaze converged on that single iron coin.
The middle-aged woman, upon confirming it, clapped her hands.
"Oh my goodness!"
Murmurs rippled through the crowd in her wake.
"How is an iron coin standing upright on the Buddha's palm?"
"Right? It's a miracle. A real miracle."
Seol-hwa pushed through the buzzing throng to check the coin herself.
"Ah."
Even she let out a soft gasp of admiration.
Among the countless iron coins, one stood perfectly erect, as if it had sprouted legs.
Seol-hwa narrowed her eyes and focused on the coin.
Her mouth fell open slightly.
Etched on the coin was none other than the character hwa (flower).
It was undoubtedly the iron coin Han Bin had tossed from the second floor of the Daru.
At that moment, someone remarked,
"The owner of that coin's wish is definitely going to come true."
"Yeah, must be nice to be them."
"The Buddha must have made it stand."
Amid their murmurs, Seol-hwa turned her head to look up at the second floor of the Jangha Daru.
Han Bin was there, beaming with a friendly face and waving her on.
His gesture seemed to urge her to make her wish.
Seol-hwa quietly clasped her hands and offered her prayer.
The time it took to sip a cup of tea passed before she raised her head.
The commotion at the Wabul showed no signs of dying down.
Spectators had now gathered, all peering at the iron coin atop the Buddha's palm.
Ignoring the uproar, Seol-hwa returned to Han Bin at the Daru.
He was gazing casually out the window as if nothing had happened.
His left hand, however, continued tapping the table in steady rhythm.
Tok tok.
Seol-hwa tilted her head at the sight, then sat down and immediately demanded an explanation.
"Young Master, how did you do that?"
"Looks like a coincidence."
"A coin standing like that is a coincidence?"
"Placing it on the palm was my skill, but I had no idea it'd stand up straight like that."
"Ah."
Seol-hwa's mouth fell open.
Han Bin chuckled at her expression.
"So your wish is gonna come true. Whatever it was."
"Then I'm glad. Hehe."
Seol-hwa grinned vacantly.
At that, Han Bin propped his chin on his hand and scanned the area around the Wabul.
Of course, his left hand kept tapping away.
What on earth was he doing?
Han Bin was timing how long it took for someone to approach the statue.
His tapping fingers stilled only after the server brought another cup of tea.
"Your ordered tea, sir."
Han Bin, who had stopped tapping out the rhythm with his fingers, looked at the server.
Their eyes met, and the server flashed the biggest smile he could muster.
Before that smile could fade, Han Bin pulled another iron coin from his bosom and smoothly handed it over.
The server's eyes widened.
"You don't need to keep tipping…"
Despite his words, the coin vanished into the server's pocket. Han Bin picked up right where he left off, as if he'd been waiting.
"I'm new around here and curious—any good sights nearby?"
"Sights?"
The server blinked in surprise at the question, but Han Bin continued.
"Nothing special. Crowded spots like that are fine, but I'd prefer somewhere quieter."
Han Bin placed another iron coin on the table.
The server snatched it up like lightning and launched into an explanation as if a waterwheel had been fitted to his mouth.
"Well then…"
The server's rundown went on for quite a while, and Han Bin committed the locations to memory.
After a long spiel, the server caught his breath and opened his mouth again.
"Whew… That's all the famous spots in Jangun-hyeon, sir. But please don't go testing your courage at places like those abandoned mansions or haunted wells I mentioned."
The server rattled off not just scenic spots but all sorts of curiosities.
"Haha, got it."
Han Bin laughed good-naturedly, and the server bowed his head before retreating.
As the server departed, Seol-hwa spoke in a low voice.
"No matter how I looked, there weren't any suspicious folks."
This had been Han Bin's request to her.
"Thanks, Seol-hwa."
As Han Bin nodded at her, the server returned with a plate of snacks.
"Sir, this is on the house."
"We're about to head out…"
"Still, have a taste before you go."
"Sure thing."
Han Bin grinned, and the server bowed before leaving again.
A moment later.
After sampling the snacks on the plate and the fresh tea, Han Bin said,
"Seol-hwa, shall we get going?"
With that, he left the Jangha Daru and began strolling down the main street.
Unable to contain her curiosity, Seol-hwa asked,
"Young Master, what's your angle here? I can't figure it out no matter how hard I think."
"Oh, nothing major. The Wabul just seems fishy."
"Fishy how?"
"Think about it—how do you buy that a reclining Buddha statue suddenly started sitting cross-legged one day?"
"The villagers believe it."
"That's what's even fishier. What if someone made them believe it?"
"Made the people believe?"
"I caught a glimpse earlier—there were some pretty unique coins mixed in among the offerings."
Changing the subject, Seol-hwa tilted her head.
"Unique how?"
"Some iron coins with a different color mixed in."
"Isn't that normal? Coins change color from handling."
"The ones I saw were crushed."
"Is that weird?"
"Not many people crush their coins like that."
"What would you even do with crushed coins?"
"Plenty. I know a friend who used to gather info by collecting tossed coins in a beggar’s bowl…"
"Okay, stop right there, Young Master."
Seol-hwa waved her hands.
Han Bin was talking about her—back when she disguised herself as a beggar, trading info via coins in her bowl.
Seeing her expression, Han Bin's smile deepened.
"To me, the Wabul's doing the exact same thing. Just more elaborate and on a bigger scale."
"Bigger scale… you mean…"
"That 'maybe' is probably right on the money, Seol-hwa."
"So it's an information network for some murim organization? Which one? Does that mean they planted that belief in the people?"
Seol-hwa's eyes sparkled brighter than ever.
"That's what we find out from here."
Han Bin unfurled his fan and strode ahead.
Chalruk.
Gazing at the open fan, Han Bin's eyes quickened.
In truth, Seol-hwa's coin standing ramrod straight on the Buddha's palm hadn't been a coincidence.
Han Bin had targeted the lines on the palm with pinpoint precision.
Thanks to Baekbal Baekjung, the coin struck the most suspicious crease dead-on.
Once it lodged there, the commotion erupted.
The uproar was deliberate, of course—to see who would come inspect the statue.
Yet strangely, no one did.
That left only one possibility.
The person Han Bin was looking for was already keeping watch over the statue.
At that moment, Seol-hwa, following behind, tilted her head.
"Young Master, where are we headed?"
She spoke loudly at first, then whispered so only he could hear.
"Someone's tailing us, Young Master."
Han Bin signaled to her alone with a hand gesture.
He already knew.
He shouted loud enough for others to hear.
"Guess we should go sightseeing!"
"Sure thing!"
Seol-hwa played along.
How far had they gone?
Han Bin said to her,
"Not here after all. Let's head back."
"What're you talking about?"
Despite her words, she signaled with her eyes that she understood.
Han Bin murmured softly.
"Man, they're persistent."
"Didn't you shake them?"
"Shook the first one, but these new tails are trouble."
"Why not cut them loose, Young Master?"
"Trying that might just dull my blade for nothing."
"That strong?"
"A cut above that Residual Blood Demon we saw last time."
His expression as he finished speaking was more serious than ever.
"…"
Seol-hwa stared at Han Bin wordlessly.
She knew the story of their clash with the Residual Blood Demon.
That monster was what folks called a Hwagyeong master.
And stronger than that?
As her eyes widened, Han Bin smiled and continued.
"Don't worry. It's two people, not one."
"Why aren't you worried then?"
"One would have me agonizing over options, but two? No choice."
"No choice?"
"When a master like that swings, you just hit the dirt—what else you gonna do?"
Well, half of that was a joke.
With the speed attributes from Gugeol Ship-pal-bo and Yongrin Sword Art, he could at least escape.
Besides, from the way the two were acting behind them, they had no intention of attacking Han Bin or Seol-hwa.
Unlike Seol-hwa's concern, Han Bin eyed the distant mountains with eager anticipation.
There was one reason Han Bin had left the Jangha Daru and was wandering like this.
To scout the map-marked locations while searching for people.
The people Han Bin needed to find fell into two categories.
First: those guarding the treasure.
Second: those trying to steal it.
The first group—tied to the Wabul—had tailed him right from the Daru.
But with his Thousand-Li Pursuit Fragrance, he'd shake them eventually, so he ditched them without issue.
Their realm was First Rate, as he'd sensed.
As he and Seol-hwa toured Jangun-hyeon—whether by luck or not—he'd also spotted the second group: the treasure thieves.
A presence eerily like the mysterious freak from the Huangbo Family.
Hwagyeong realm, he estimated.
Definitely the crew after the treasure.
He hadn't told Seol-hwa, but Han Bin was thrilled.
As the art of war said: Know your enemy and know yourself, and you'll emerge from a hundred battles unscathed.
Now that he'd found the enemy, it was time to prepare the hunt.
Han Bin smiled where no one could see.