"Absolutely not," Raon said.
They stood in Jin's private quarters, a modest room with simple furniture and walls lined with cultivation manuals. The evening light filtered through paper screens, casting long shadows.
Jin sat across from him, tea untouched between them. "Why not?"
"Because you're the Young Master," Raon said, as if it were obvious. "If you start training with a random guard's group, people will ask questions. Questions lead to investigations, investigations lead to.."
"Me discovering that you're using corrected versions of our sect techniques?" Jin interrupted calmly.
**He knows.**
Raon's expression didn't change, but internally, he was screaming.
"I've been practicing the breathing method you taught me," Jin continued. "The one where you 'exhale longer and inhale steadily.' It's not in any of our manuals, not exactly. But it's close enough that I recognized the foundation."
He leaned forward slightly. "Then I checked the library. Someone's been there late at night. The scrolls have been moved, reorganized."
**Okay, he definitely knows.**
"Are you accusing me of something?" Raon asked carefully.
"No," Jin said. "I'm thanking you."
That stopped Raon mid-thought.
Jin's expression softened. "Raon, I don't know where you learned these things. Maybe you found a hidden manual, maybe a wandering master taught you, maybe you're secretly a reincarnated grandmaster, I don't care. What matters is that your methods work."
Jin was wary about Raon but he acknowledged his methods, he wants to bring the sect back to it's glory days, increase strenght and status . And the easiest path was right across a table.
He gestured toward the window, where disciples could be seen training in the distance. "Our sect has been declining for decades. We follow traditions that are outdated, techniques that are incomplete. The elders know this, but they're too proud to admit it."
"And you think I can fix that?" Raon asked skeptically.
"I think you already are," Jin said. "Those five disciples you're training? I've been watching their progress. If you can do that for five, imagine what you could do for fifty. Or five hundred."
**He's recruiting you. This is literally the join my party moment.**
"I'm just a guard," Raon said quietly.
"No," Jin said firmly. "You're the person who's going to help me save this sect."
The weight of those words settled between them.
**Friendship route: Maximum level achieved. New title unlocked: 'The Young Master's Right Hand Man (Even Though You're Just A Guard).**
Raon looked at Jin at the determination in his eyes, the hope he was trying to hide, the burden of leadership already weighing on young shoulders.
"One condition," Raon said finally.
"Name it."
"I stay a guard. No promotions, no titles, no formal recognition. I work in the shadows, you work in the light. That's the deal."
Jin studied him for a long moment, then smiled. "You're either the smartest person I've ever met or the strangest."
**Both. Definitely both.**
"Deal?" Raon extended his hand.
Jin clasped it. "Deal."