"Where have you been?"

The question was directed at Cheonma, who showed up late, just as morning was transitioning to noon.

"Taking a walk."

The simple answer made me purse my lips.

"Are you saying you spent the entire day walking?"

"Yes."

"Where exactly did you go?"

"Around."

"Your answers are truly spectacular."

It would have been better if they just refused to answer altogether. A sigh almost escaped me, but I managed to hold it in.

‘Not like it matters anyway.’

Wherever they went, or even if they disappeared entirely, it had nothing to do with me. In fact, it would probably be better if they vanished. Worrying about it was just foolish.

"Tsk."

Clicking my tongue, I began to move. As I did, Cheonma silently followed behind. I considered telling them to get lost but decided to ignore them instead.

Walking, I looked up at the sky.

The crimson sky still felt alien. And yet...

‘Hmm…’

Judging by the position of the sun, I figured it was noon. But something felt off.

‘Time feels strange.’

It seemed like noon had already passed, and the sun should have been setting by now, yet it still shone brightly in the sky.

‘Am I imagining things?’

Maybe it just felt like time was moving slowly. But no, that didn’t seem right.

‘The days here are different from Zhongyuan.’

That was the only logical conclusion. If so, how was that even possible? Then again...

‘Time itself is already out of sync, so what's the point of dwelling on it?’

I had more pressing concerns than questioning every anomaly around me.@@novelbin@@

"Haap!"

"Haap, haap!"

The sounds of training shouts, echoing since morning, continued unabated. Their intensity hadn’t waned, even as time passed.

Glancing briefly in their direction, I kept walking.

‘Martial artists, huh.’

They wielded wooden swords with impressive vigor. Their appearances varied, but their demeanor was unmistakably that of warriors.

Beings from another world.

Yet they practiced martial arts from Zhongyuan. The peculiar dissonance was hard to put into words.

Was it just a matter of preconceptions? Or perhaps…

‘Is it something I just can’t accept?’

I scratched my neck, brushing aside a fleeting sense of unease. I tried to quicken my pace to leave the thoughts behind.

"Greetings."

Someone appeared before me, blocking my path. It didn’t startle me—I’d been aware of their presence all along.

"Yes."

My curt reply didn’t erase the smile from the woman’s face.

My gaze naturally shifted to her ears. Like Gubong, she had the ears and tail of a beast. The difference was that she resembled a feline, while Gubong was more wolf-like.

Observing her closely, I asked, "Who are you?"

"I am Seol Yeong, a First Disciple currently responsible for the education of the Third Disciples."

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