The Heavenly Demon Causes Chaos (4)

Harin urgently activated the regional teleport to head for Hwaeum. Fortunately the city still lay in calm silence, as if no bomb had yet gone off. It didn't seem as if Lady Hwaryeong had caused any trouble. That meant she was probably still inside the Beggars' Inn.

Harin poured every ounce of her lightness skill into her movement and reached the entrance of the Beggars' Inn in under ten seconds. The building still stood intact. That was a relief. After all, this place existed to accommodate the occasional influx of new players into Hwaryong Muin.

Maybe the situation had already been cleaned up. If so, that would be for the best.

She opened the inn door with care and stepped inside, only to find a scene far more peaceful than she had imagined. The people occupying that peace, however, were another matter entirely.

Hwaryeong in the center of the room, chopsticks never stopping. Baru beside her, happily eating. The unaffiliated martial artists standing rigidly around them like statues; all of that made sense. But the Hwaeum Lord face-down on the table across from Hwaryeong, clearly drunk? The NPC representing the local righteous faction, tapping the table with a grave expression? And the player representative of the Mount Hua Sect talking to him? Why were three of the area's biggest figures gathered here? Just what in the world had happened?

While Harin was still darting her gaze around in utter confusion, Hwaryeong spotted her and waved.

Even as a headache began to bloom, Harin obeyed and took the seat beside her.

"You looked like you might be in trouble, so I came to help."

So something had almost happened.

"I'm sorry, but could you explain what exactly occurred?"

After fighting her way through an already complicated situation, why did another mind-numbing one have to begin? Her limited imagination simply could not piece together what was going on.

Hwaryeong set down her chopsticks and continued in a leisurely tone.

After I had laid out every fool who charged at me without thinking, I looked around to find the entire shop in ruins. Countless martial artists sprawled across the floor, shattered tables and chairs scattered everywhere, broken dishes lying in fragments, food and liquor splattered across the ground like fertilizer. Holes punched through the walls, and the female owner watching it all before bursting into tears, wailing that she was finished.

It was chaos in its purest form. It had felt good to crush those arrogant bastards who didn't know their place, but...

It was true that I had shown far more restraint than in my old Murim days. Had I acted according to my former personality, the moment these people picked a fight the inn would have ceased to exist entirely. Still, I should have handled it more cleanly here. Suppressing them with aura alone, or displaying a cruel enough example that no one would dare charge in. Creating this kind of mess made continuing the prologue nearly impossible.

Sigh. How was I supposed to clean this up?

While I was still agonizing over what to do, Baru walked up beside me and clapped her hands.

This fellow. Was she mocking me?

I shot her a glare that clearly meant keep your mouth shut. Baru frantically waved her hands.

Despite her words, her initial tone had been dripping with exactly that intent. When I continued to stare without speaking, Baru averted her eyes. Pressing her further seemed likely to cause her real distress, and since she claimed to have a solution I decided to drop it.

I knelt so our eyes met and gripped both her shoulders.

The excuse carried not a trace of sincerity. Baru glared at me. The look in her eyes seemed to say, How could a martial artist of your level possibly fail to control their strength!

It was true. I had done it on purpose. So what of it? If she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was going to tease me, she should have braced herself for the consequences. When I shamelessly met her gaze, Baru sighed first.

I released her. Baru scrambled out ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of my grip and glared at me warily. Only after I raised both hands in surrender did she exhale a long breath, retrieve her staff, and strike the ground with it.

The scattered objects around us began to rise into the air one by one. Then, as if time itself were rewinding, they flew back to their original places. Holes in the walls filled. Shattered tables reassembled. Fragmented dishes soared through the air and reformed atop them.

It was a spectacle one could only call a miracle. The female owner stopped crying. Astonishment replaced the lament on the young player's face. The reaction among ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠those watching my stream was no different.

Even from my perspective, what Baru was doing looked astonishing. So such things were possible with Taoist magic? I had faced my share of Taoist masters and spirits before, but this was the first time I had seen anything like it. I had witnessed weather being altered, plants commanded, and souls manipulated like limbs, yet rewinding objects to their former state was entirely new.

The moment every broken item had returned to its proper place, Baru struck the ground once more with her staff. The magical phenomenon came to an end.

Baru lifted her chin and squared her shoulders, clearly demanding praise. The smug display made me want to tease her, but the feat truly had been impressive, so I obediently clapped.

Baru waved her hands as if it were no grand feat, but to someone like me who knew little of Taoist magic, it seemed more or less the same thing.

Even as she pretended to be modest, Baru's shoulders kept rising. She looked so adorable that I continued praising her, and before long the corners of her mouth had climbed so high they seemed ready to touch her eyes. Just then the female owner, who had been sitting on the floor, staggered to her feet.

Along with the owner's words, a barrage of messages appeared before my eyes.

The system messages continued without end. I had no idea who had decided to spam me like this, but if their intention had been to inform me about the system, they had failed completely. When messages poured out in this manner, any desire to read them vanished.

I closed the window that refused to stop appearing. I told myself I would check them later, yet the growing mountain of notifications was starting to feel intentional. In any case, I had accomplished my immediate goal. I would take Baru and return to Mount Hua. The broadcast had gone on long enough today; ending it after parting with Baru seemed appropriate.

"Baru."

When I turned to look at her, I found her staring at me with expectant eyes. I wasn't sure what she wanted, but it seemed she desired some reward for what she had just done. If she wanted something, she could simply say so. Why act like this?

I had been about to do exactly that. Where did she get such impatience?

The moment I spoke, Baru nodded vigorously and raised her voice.

Baru, a divine spirit, could not possibly be feeling hunger. She must simply have grown curious about the food. A request that small was easy to grant. I only worried she would be disappointed. This was the Murim world, after all. The dishes from this shabby inn could not be anything more than plain noodles in broth.

It was strange. Why were people accustomed to modern cuisine recommending the food here and claiming it was delicious? There was no way Murim food could possibly be good.