All My Murim Noonas Are Obsessed With Me!

After waking, while Yeo Socheon unpacked food, I tidied the sleeping bag—

Forgetting mine forced her into a rough night, but today'd be the last of it—

We'd reach the treasure today—

Rustle.

Folding her loaned sleeping bag into my pack, something familiar brushed my hand—

Soft, rolled-up fabric—

Slide.

"…"

Peeking inside, I confirmed it—two sleeping bags—

One borrowed from her—

The other…

'…I'm screwed.'

Sweat sweat.

Guess I'd been too sleepy to check properly back then—

It wasn't there before—why now?

"What's wrong? Something up?"

"Y-Yeah?"

Yeo Socheon's question hit me as I stared into the bag, cold sweat dripping—

My brain raced—

What do I say?

I'd even suggested sharing hers since I "didn't have one"—if she found out now, she'd flip—

But hiding it forever wasn't an option—

She'd see it when we unpacked later—

Better take the hit now—

"…L-Listen without getting mad."

"Huh?"

"I dug around and… found my sleeping bag? Thought it was gone—haha…"

Sweating, I forced a sheepish grin at her—

A smile might soften the blow—

Maybe she'd let it slide—

"…"

"…"

Her frozen vibe screamed bad news—

Ten seconds passed—

"Y-You call that an excuse?!"

Her belated shriek echoed through the ruin—

"W-Wait—let's calm down, hear me out—"

"Hear what?! Die! Just die! You perv! You did it on purpose—to mess with me—!"

"W-Wait! Don't hit—ow!"

No killing intent, but her practiced strikes—perfectly painful—slammed my back—

"Ow ow ow…"

"Don't whine! Compared to my humiliation, that's nothing!"

Wincing, I rubbed the spot—

"What humiliation's worth this much…"

Sure, I screwed up—but her emotion-packed smacks stung extra—

Same force, different intent—this hurt—

"Just slept rough once, and you're this mad…"

"S-Shut up! You don't get it!"

"Then tell me! How'm I supposed to know if you don't?! What's got you so pissed?!"

"Ngh…"

My petty jab—born of pain—made her flinch—

"Q-Quiet! It's your fault! If you'd checked your bag, this wouldn't—"

"…Ngh."

She fired back—

"If you hated it that much, why lend it?!"

"Hah—blaming me now?! I gave it up for your frail ass, and you say I shouldn't have?!"

"Who put me in this frail body?! I didn't ask for it!"

"That's a cheap shot! I had no part in that!"

"Your bosses did—so you're liable too!"

The childish spat dragged on—

I'm not usually this petty, but with her, it's constant—

Exhausted, we called a truce and moved on—

"So, you won't say why you're that mad?"

"…"

Her rage's root stayed a mystery—

++++

After trekking further—

We reached a massive chamber—

"Woah…"

Filling it—divine-looking artifacts, worn martial manuals, and—not as much as I'd hoped—plenty of gold—

Less than dreamed, but the most dazzling pile I'd ever seen—

I wanted to dive in—

"Your face screams 'jump in.' Greedy as ever."

"After all this, I deserve some greed."

"All you did was walk and disarm traps you already knew—real explorers'd call that cheating."

"My ability—deal with it!"

If they're jealous, read the heavens themselves.

For once, I felt like thanking the Heavenly Gods—

'How much'd that fetch?'

Drool.

Real gold—no fakes here—

As I fantasized, Yeo Socheon doused me—

"I get it, but forget taking it all. No space, and we should leave some for others. Unless you want to flood the world with gold and spotlight yourself—then I won't stop you."

"…Oh."

My mood sank—I drooped—

"Ugh…"

Seeing me, she relented—

"F-Fine—not all, but I'll handle some. I'll cash it out for you later."

"Really?!"

"Yeah… I'm not strapped for cash."

"Ohh…"

…Wait—

"Aren't you a monk?"

"Monks can have money."

"…"

Could she say that? I let it slide—

Even the Sword Empress didn't live off grass—

Mhm.

"…But for money, Dang Ayeong's loaded. Ask her—she'd bring the Tang Clan's fortune. What's the worry?"

"No way—she wouldn't go that far."

"Not kidding—seriously. Depends on you. Might become 'Tang Yuseong'—names are close anyway."

"…No marriage plans."

With Yeo Socheon, I'd forgotten—but outside, women troubles awaited—

"Haa…"

It'd been nice— carefree for a bit—

Now, I'd have to figure out what to tell Dang Ayeong—

"…Wanna just live here together?"

"W-What?!"

"Kidding…"

She bristled, thinking I was teasing—face red, ready to yell—I backpedaled—

Half-joking, sure—but staying here with her didn't sound bad—

A secret ruin—no visitors—more detached than the mountains—

No food source, though—impossible—

Just a frustrated whim—

"Uh… t-that…"

"…?"

"I-If you're… okay with it… I'd…"

"What?"

"N-Nothing! I'm finding my sword!"

She spun away, marching off—

Tilting my head, I turned to the treasures—

The gold gleamed, but other items matched it—

Maybe something useful for me—

'Like fixing my dantian.'

Too late to master martial arts at my age—but escaping this frail body? Worth it—

A body where medicine barely works—good enough reason—

Flip.

'What's this one?'

I grabbed a book—title like a martial technique—flipped through—

Careful not to chant any incantations—disaster risk—but no worry—

'…No clue what this says.'

My only martial exposure—Three Powers Mind Method—

Barely studied, never practiced—

No surprise I couldn't parse the Divine Thief's stash—

Setting it back, pondering more—

Boom!

"?!"

A bad sound—from where Yeo Socheon went—

"You okay?!"

I bolted toward it—

And found—

"…Why're you down there again?"

"I-I dodged… but it's double—no, triple-trapped…"

Her, in a pit—again—

"…Haa. Get up."

Sighing, I offered a hand—

Peering in—white stuff like cotton or pillows filled it—

White powder drifted—unsettling—but I couldn't leave her—

One hand over my nose, the other outstretched—

"…"

"What're you doing? Hurry."

She stared blankly, then grabbed my hand—

"L-Listen, don't misunderstand—this is serious."

Grip!

Her hand clamped mine tight—

"You good at running?"

Her words clashed with her iron grip—cold sweat broke out—

"Running?"

"N-Nothing big… just think you should run—fast—now."

"Uh… from who?"

Grip!

Feeling Yeo Socheon's tightening hold, I met her eyes—hazy, unfocused—

Instinct screamed danger—

"From me."

The white powder swirling around her wasn't ordinary—I knew it—

"…"

Carefully—naturally—I used my free hand to gently loosen her grip, letting her hand drop, then pulled mine back—

Standing, I stared at the pit she was in, slowly backing away—

Dash dash dash!

'Fuck fuck fuck fuck.'

Once far enough, I spun and ran like hell—

No clue what state she was in, but she wasn't normal—

Her own words—run from her—said it all—

A prank? Maybe—but my gut wasn't laughing—

'W-Where do I go?'