Chapter 245

Growing Pains (4)

Yu sowol could not relate in the slightest, but hair was extremely important regardless of gender.

Naturally, it played an important role in one’s appearance, but it was especially crucial when it came to first impressions.

No matter how beautiful someone might be, greasy, unkempt hair was bound to leave a poor first impression.

Going one step further, people tended to avoid those who had lost their hair—the so-called bald—because their appearance could even seem intimidating.

The monks of the Shaolin Temple managed to compensate through their clothing and benevolent air, but they were an extremely rare exception.

Furthermore, there was the saying that one’s body, hair, and skin were gifts from one’s parents. In the Central Plains, there was a custom of cherishing even a single strand of hair.

Because of this, people considered it perfectly natural to point fingers at those who had lost their hair and call them unfilial children.

In the end, the severely balding people of the Central Plains were forced to choose.

They could leave the secular world and become monks, succumb to their anger and become villains, or join the Demon Cult.

Those who entered the Demon Cult could at least live without worrying as much about what others thought of them.

The Demon Cult was a place where those rejected or persecuted by the world gathered.

Even there, anyone who cast discriminatory looks at others would be immediately expelled, so they could finally live in peace.

"That said, we still couldn’t do anything about the stares. Instead of seeing us as unfilial children, they simply saw us as people who had lost our hair."

A man spoke in a solemn voice. The others around him nodded.

Their reactions showed their fierce agreement. Then, the man who appeared to represent the group spoke.

"Being pitied was far better than being branded unfilial. Even so, we endured it. At least in the Demon Cult, we could live as human beings."

"I agree."

"I couldn’t even find work at an escort agency when I lived outside."

"Forget escort agencies. I originally aspired to become a physician. But all I heard was ridicule—’How can you call yourself a physician when you can’t even take care of your own hair?’"

Indeed, every person gathered here had once suffered from hair loss.

They had wanted to live as ordinary people, only to be condemned for absurd reasons.

But the most unjust accusation of all was being branded unfilial.

Filial piety held tremendous importance in the Central Plains.

Unless one had formally severed ties with one’s parents, fulfilling one’s filial duties was considered a fundamental principle.

"I never resented my parents. I did everything I could to care for them despite my shortcomings, yet others still condemned me. But not anymore."

"Now we can live with our heads held high."

This gathering had once been filled with the sorrows of bald men.

But that was no longer the case.

Every one of them now possessed hair more luxuriant than anyone else’s.

"Ugh..."

One man stroked his hair and shed tears of emotion.

The person beside him, understanding exactly how he felt, gently patted him on the back.

They had believed they would spend the rest of their lives being mocked.

Those days were over.

"Let us all worship the Heavenly Demon!"

"Long live the Heavenly Demon! May all demons revere her!"

"Long live the Heavenly Demon! May all demons revere her!"

The medicinal herb bestowed upon them by the Heavenly Demon.

When they applied it to their scalps, their hair follicles came back to life!

Hair loss was not merely the shedding of hair. It was a condition in which the follicles themselves completely died.

Even the gods could not resurrect the dead, yet the Heavenly Demon and the Demon Cult had accomplished it.

How could they not worship her? Anyone would have done the same.

"We cannot simply sit here! Shouldn’t we personally express our gratitude to the Heavenly Demon?"

"Indeed! Indeed!"

"I shall bow to her twice!"

"You lunatic?!"

Overcome with joy, one man nearly did something wildly inappropriate, but the others barely managed to stop him.

And so the former sufferers of hair loss—no, the newly luxuriant-haired men—strode proudly into the streets.

"Who are those people?"

"I’ve never seen them before. Are they new members of the cult?"

Since ancient times, a person’s hairstyle had played a major role in determining their first impression.

The residents of the Demon Cult failed to recognize the group who had once been bald or severely balding.

It was only natural. Their abundant hair had completely transformed their appearances.

Their newly confident expressions also played a part.

"Wait. Isn’t that Noja?"

"Noja? That bald guy?"

"But he was bald! What happened to him?"

As people belatedly recognized them, astonishment gradually spread through the streets.

The more people reacted, the more confident Noja—the man leading the group—became.

"The whole world looks different now! Hahahaha!"

"Is this not all thanks to the Heavenly Demon’s grace?"

Eventually, they reached the Heavenly Demon’s residence—the Heavenly Demon Palace—with faces filled with happiness.

"What?! We cannot behold the Heavenly Demon’s divine countenance?"

"Could we not at least see her face? I beg you!"

"Gentlemen, please. You’re putting me in a difficult position. You’ll incur divine punishment at this rate."

However, they were unable to see the Heavenly Demon.

In truth, that was only natural.

Who was the Heavenly Demon?

She was the living god and symbol of the Demon Cult.

Within the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, she held authority that effectively surpassed even that of an emperor. It was only natural that she could not be met so easily.

Though, to tell the truth, Yu sowol simply refused to come out because she was busy tending to her plants.

Wi Seorak repeatedly begged her to at least show her face to the cultists, but Yu sowol cared more about her flowerpots.

Above all, Yu sowol possessed tremendous pride and self-esteem.

She considered it only natural for others to worship her and saw no reason to show herself merely because they had come.

"Hmm... I suppose the Heavenly Demon must care for the other believers as well, not just us."

"Perhaps we were being unreasonable."

"It seems we may have been discourteous for no reason."

In the end, they obediently turned back.

Even so, they did not forget their worship of the Heavenly Demon. They bowed toward the palace before leaving.

"What should we do now?"

"Should we not spread the Heavenly Demon’s grace far and wide?"

"That does not sound bad. It would be nice to leave the Demon Cult’s territory for the first time in ages."

"There are countless others suffering throughout the world besides us."

Many people in the world suffered from hair loss.

That tendency was especially severe in the western nations beyond the Central Plains.

Their faith bordered on fanaticism, and they were overwhelmed by the joy of receiving her grace.

With those two things combined, the motivation to act naturally followed.

"Shouldn’t we post about it in the Gallery as well?"

"I’ll handle that. We’ll also need people to spread the word in person."

"I shall do it."

They divided the roles quickly.

There was nothing they would not do to spread this grace throughout the world.

Soon, they posted about it in the Gallery, and the rumors gradually began to spread.

Only a day had passed, and many still dismissed it as a scam.

But for every person willing to accept the truth, there was another who rejected it and desperately resisted.

"Um... If I come here, can I truly rid myself of the stigma of being an unfilial child?"

"Oh, of course you can. You’ll have to wait a little, though."

The first person to arrive was from the Central Plains.

Those who had already received the blessing welcomed him gladly.

Of course, they could not distribute the hair-loss medicine as they pleased.

It was, quite literally, the Heavenly Demon’s grace.

"Once a day, you must face the palace where the Heavenly Demon resides and shout these words: ’Long live the Heavenly Demon! May all demons revere her!’"

"L-Long live the Heavenly Demon! May all demons revere her...?"

"Brother! You must shout louder! Long live the Heavenly Demon! May all demons revere her!"

"L-Long live the Heavenly Demon! May all demons revere her!"

The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult had gained an opportunity to secure both wealth and manpower.

"Heavens... When will the medicinal herbs be ready?"

"Wait. Why are you so desperate that you cannot show even a little patience?"

"...My apologies."

The unexpected results were gradually burning Wi Seorak up inside, but that was their story.

It did not take long for the rumor that the medicine was not merely effective against hair loss but could cure the condition itself to spread throughout the world.

And then...

"Your Majesty, the movements of the Demon Cult have become unusual. I believe they require strict surveillance."

"Hmm..."

The news reached the ears of the sole supreme ruler of the Central Plains—the Emperor.

Under ordinary circumstances, the matter would have been serious enough for him to mobilize the army.

"...First, it would be best to learn what that medicinal herb is."

"I shall obey Your Majesty’s command."

Before dealing with the Demon Cult, however, it was important to obtain what he wanted.

The Emperor was still young, but his position inevitably subjected him to an overwhelming amount of stress.

Naturally, that left him vulnerable to stress-induced hair loss, and the matter was directly connected to his imperial dignity.

’I am merely observing them. This is not personal greed but an official duty.’

Little by little, the Demon Cult’s influence began spreading throughout the Central Plains.

***

A hair-loss medicine had emerged from the Demon Cult.

News of the medicine’s existence and effects threw both the Gallery and the entire world into an uproar, but many remained indifferent.

Most of them belonged to nonhuman races that had little connection to hair loss.

Surprisingly, however, one race showed a great deal of interest.

The dwarves.

One might wonder why a race that seemed to value alcohol more than hair would care.

└ Does that stuff work on beards too?

└ Judging by what I’m seeing, it looks like it does.

└ Oh. Then can I have some too? I’m the type who can’t grow a proper beard.

└ Come to the Demon Cult in person and they’ll give you some, lol.

It was because of their beards.

To a dwarf, a beard was more important than the hair on his head.

Most dwarves looked more unfavorably upon a clean-shaven dwarf than a bald one.

Furthermore, dwarves who worked in forges often went bald.

The heat was partly responsible, and handling all manner of metals also exposed them to all sorts of illnesses.

’The beard part does interest me a little.’

The Passing Dwarf, Gareth, was also among the dwarves who had taken an interest.

He stroked his abundant beard while browsing the Gallery.

With the hair-loss medicine currently drawing everyone’s attention, discussions about it were raging throughout the Gallery.

Gareth had expressed some interest, but that was all.

He had something more important to deal with at the moment.

"Hey. Can you see me?"

"I already told you, I can’t see a thing."

A familiar voice came from the seemingly empty air.

Without showing any surprise, Gareth answered curtly and took a sip of beer.

"This truly is a fascinating material. I’ve worked with all kinds of hides throughout my life, but this is the real deal."

Rustle—

A dwarf suddenly appeared out of thin air in front of Gareth.

It was Wagner, a dwarf who specialized in leatherworking.

He was the same dwarf who had previously crafted shoes for Grylls in exchange for mandrake liquor.

"You’re telling me this is really dinosaur hide?"

"I told you, it is."

"It’s amazing enough that a dinosaur possessed a stealth ability, but its hide can do the same thing?"

Wagner held a processed piece of raptor hide in his hands.

It looked like ordinary leather, but its performance was absurd.

"You don’t even have to do anything besides drape it over yourself like a cloak. What kind of ridiculous material is this?"

"It came from the Forest of Four Seasons. Anything is possible there."

The hide possessed the ability to turn its wearer invisible.

Even more astonishingly, it did not require any special processing. One merely had to drape it over oneself like a cloak.

Wagner examined the hide from several angles before voicing his doubts.

"I don’t think I even needed to process it. It’s almost as though someone installed the stealth function in it beforehand."

"What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said. No matter how exceptional a hide might be, magic like this is never embedded in it from the start. Do you think you could blend into your surroundings just by wearing chameleon skin?"

"Of course not."

Gareth understood Wagner’s explanation.

As Wagner had said, would stripping the skin from a chameleon and wearing it allow someone to blend into their surroundings?

Absolutely not.

Once separated from its original owner, a hide became ordinary leather. That was precisely why it needed to be processed.

Yet the raptor hide casually shattered that common sense.

The ability itself remained embedded within the hide.

"It feels almost artificial. This is closer to clothing than leather."

"So this is all I need?"

"Wearing it like a cloak should be enough. By the way, don’t I get a little bonus?"

"Here."

As though he had expected the request, Gareth brought out the food he had prepared in advance.

It was the acorn jelly Grylls had promised to give him earlier.

The soy sauce beside it was an added bonus.

Wagner’s eyes widened at the unfamiliar food.

"What’s this?"

"They say it’s jelly made from acorns."

"Hmph. If you think something like this is enough to tempt me..."

Even as he spoke, Wagner casually slipped a piece of acorn jelly into his mouth.

The fact that he had even dipped it in soy sauce made it clear he had already made up his mind.

"...Where’s the mandrake liquor?"

"I knew you’d say that, so I prepared it in advance."

"Now that’s what I’m talking about! Let’s eat first."

The two dwarves began drinking and making merry, using the acorn jelly as a drinking snack.

Meanwhile, in the Forest of Four Seasons—

Thwack! Thwack!

"Argh! Guh!"

"Too slow. Again."

Grylls was still training to master distance control.

His growing pains were not over yet.