The Impossible Smile
The valley was silent.
Silent in the way of storms after lightning has struck, when the world seems to pause and ask, Did that just happen?
The monks stood frozen, their rigid discipline cracking at the edges, their eyes locked on the impossible sight before them. Their Great Elder—the embodiment of solemnity, of silence, of restraint—had smiled.
Not a twitch. Not a ghost of one. But a smile. Wide, visible, undeniable.
His daughter's giggles danced in the air as she clutched Ahmed's lumpy mud bunny, watching with joy as the mud dog and Nana's towering mud golem played an ungainly game of tag.
Ahmed, by contrast, was a ruin: soaked in mud, hair sticking out at bizarre angles, and clutching Nana under one arm like a live grenade while hugging the mud bunny with the other.
He whispered, horrified, "Oh no… oh no oh no oh no. That wasn't supposed to happen. He smiled. He actually smiled. Do monks… explode when they smile?"
Before anyone could answer, the valley itself answered.
The ground cracked, light blazing from beneath the soil as ancient seals split like glass. A thunderous hum rose, resonating with the Elder's faint grin.
Whorina's voice coiled into Ahmed's mind like silk.
"Oh, darling… you've done it. You've broken something sacred. That smile wasn't permission—it was a trigger. You've just unlocked a disaster older than their entire order."
Ahmed screamed, predictably. Again.
The Seal's Judgment
The cracks widened, earth falling away in chunks. From below, vast stone pillars surged upward, engraved with glowing symbols. The monks scattered into defensive stances, their chants rising like a wall of sound.
Ahmed clutched Nana tighter. "WHY IS IT ALWAYS ME?! I MADE A CHILD LAUGH—NOT A PACT WITH A DEMON!"
The Great Elder, still faintly smiling, raised his hand. The light dimmed at once, though the ground continued to rumble ominously.
"It is as the texts foretold," the Elder intoned, his voice calm yet carrying the weight of centuries. "The Fool of Radiance has arrived."
Ahmed choked. "THE WHAT?!"
Whorina purred. "Oh, that's perfect. A title to match your essence."
The monks murmured in unison, bowing their heads toward Ahmed. The sight would have been majestic, if not for the fact that Ahmed looked like a mud-stained potato sack clinging to a screaming toddler.
The Elder stepped forward. "The Fool of Radiance shall receive acknowledgment… and burden. For though he is absurd, he has broken stillness, and revealed what centuries could not."
Ahmed's jaw fell open. "You're rewarding me? For causing a potential apocalypse?!"
The Elder nodded solemnly. "Yes."
Ahmed fainted for three seconds, then woke up screaming.
Tsu Nan's Gift
From the shadows of the monks' ranks, Tsu Nan emerged—his long white beard swaying like a pendulum of authority. His eyes gleamed with both wisdom and, Ahmed swore, a hint of mischief.
"It is time," Tsu Nan declared, his voice carrying over the trembling valley. "The Fool of Radiance shall be entrusted with a technique befitting his destiny."
Ahmed pointed at himself with shaking fingers. "You're—no, no, wait. You mean me? You're entrusting me with something important?!"
Liuyue, entirely serious, nodded. "An excellent decision. His foundation is weak, but this technique may grant him survival."
Ahmed staggered back. "You're joking. No, you're all insane. I can't even survive mud fights!"
But Tsu Nan ignored him. He reached into his robe and pulled out a scroll, the parchment glowing faintly with seals of concealment. He unrolled it slowly, reverently, and began to chant.
"The Art… of Fading into the Crowd."
Gasps rippled among the monks. A sacred stealth technique, whispered about but never gifted lightly.
Ahmed blinked. "Stealth? You're giving me stealth? Look at me!" He flailed his arms, glowing faintly with residual mud-bunny aura. "I can't fade into a crowd, I shine like a cursed firefly in a cave!"
But Tsu Nan pressed on, his beard trembling in sacred gravitas. "With this art, you may vanish amidst men. You will learn to silence your aura, soften your steps, and blend into the unseen."
Nana, clutched in Ahmed's arms, tilted her head. Then she reached for Tsu Nan's beard and latched onto it like a climbing rope.
"Wheee! Rope!"
Tsu Nan stiffened as the child dangled from his chin hair, swinging merrily. His tone, however, never wavered. "Through discipline, you will learn… to be unseen."
Ahmed's voice cracked. "ARE YOU SEEING THIS?! HOW IS ANY OF THIS UNSEEN?!"
The Irony
Liuyue crossed her arms, nodding with absolute gravity. "This will serve him well. An excellent choice. I will ensure he practices three hours every morning."
Ahmed's soul died a little. "THREE HOURS?! Practicing stealth?! When I glow like a nuclear lantern?!"
Whorina's voice slithered into his head, sweeter than poison.
"Oh, darling… you don't understand. You already have the skill. Here, let me translate it for you."
A status notification popped into Ahmed's mind's eye.
🔊[NEW TECHNIQUE ACQUIRED: Art of Fading into the Crowd].
🔊[PASSIVE STATUS UNLOCKED: STEALTH IMPOSSIBLE ].
🔊[YOU SHINE LIKE A SUPERNOVA OF FAILURE.].
Ahmed gagged. "WHY WOULD YOU EVEN ADD THAT STATUS?!"
Whorina cackled. "Because it's true."
The Beard Incident
Meanwhile, Nana was still climbing Tsu Nan's beard like a rope ladder. She pulled herself onto his shoulders, cackling with toddler glee. "Beard mountain conquered!"
The monks stared in horror, unable to comprehend the sacrilege of someone scaling their most revered elder's beard.
Ahmed scrambled forward, panicking. "Nana! No, no, stop—get down from Beard Mountain! That's holy terrain!"
But Nana tugged again, nearly toppling the old man forward. "Wobble! Fall, beard rope fall!"
Ahmed clutched his head. "We're going to die. This is how it ends. Not by monsters, not by demons—by toddler beard climbing etiquette violation!"
Tsu Nan, unbelievably, remained serene. Even as Nana pulled his beard like reins, he continued his speech:
"With this art, Fool of Radiance, you will learn that to be unseen is not the act of shadows, but the act of… being no one."
Ahmed screeched. "I'M SOMEONE! I'M A GLOWING SOMEONE WHO CAN'T BE IGNORED!"
Nana yanked again. Tsu Nan tilted at a precarious angle.
The monks gasped. "The beard is bending!"
Ahmed's Training Begins
After what felt like a lifetime of chaos, Nana was finally pried off the beard (after she declared herself "Queen of Hair Rope Mountain"). The monks steadied their elder, and Ahmed was forced to kneel before Tsu Nan, scroll in hand.
The elder spoke gravely. "Do you accept this art, Fool of Radiance?"
Ahmed's voice cracked. "Do I have a choice?!"
"No."
Ahmed sagged. "Then… I accept. Whatever. Just teach me how to not be noticed."
The scroll burned faintly in his hands, the seals unraveling. The knowledge poured into his mind—stances, breathing patterns, aura suppression techniques. His eyes widened in shock.
"This is… actually useful."
Whorina snorted. "Until you use it. Then it will be a tragedy."
Liuyue stepped closer, utterly serious. "We begin practice tomorrow at dawn. Three hours. Every morning."
Ahmed wanted to cry.
Epilogue Cliffhanger :
The valley seemed to calm, the seals beneath the earth dimming into silence. The monks dispersed slowly, murmuring prayers. The Great Elder watched Ahmed with inscrutable eyes, still faintly smiling—a terrifying omen.
Ahmed wiped mud from his face, clutching the scroll. "Okay. Fine. Maybe this isn't so bad. Maybe I can actually learn stealth, survive, and—"
The ground beneath him groaned again.
Light seeped from the cracks once more.
Ahmed's voice rose into a shriek. "NO. NO MORE LIGHT! NO MORE SEALS! I DID THE QUEST! I MADE THE CHILD LAUGH! GIVE ME A BREAK!"
From the fissure, something massive stirred.
Stone scraped against stone.
And a colossal hand—made entirely of carved rock, engraved with ancient runes—rose from the depths.
Whorina whispered, giddy.
"Oh, darling… looks like the valley wasn't finished with you after all."
Ahmed screamed.
Again.
[TO BE CONTINUED....]