"Big brother."
The Young Scholar was startled.
"Who told you to space out and not hear me?"
The woodcutter pursed his lips.
"Little brother."
"Have you noticed..."
The woodcutter's brows and eyes held a trace of worry. "Ever since you came back from the capital, you've been spacing out very easily."
"That's not good."
"Is something bothering you?"
Huh?
The Young Scholar froze for a moment.
He instinctively shook his head.
"No..."
Nothing was bothering him—
No.
Something was bothering him.
He couldn't settle down because he couldn't see the Black Monster.
He was restless and uneasy.
His mind was in turmoil.
He felt as though he were floating in midair, with nothing to hold on to.
It was awful.
He wanted to reach out and grab something, only to find there was nothing he could grasp...
"Are you sure?"
The woodcutter frowned.
He didn't really believe the Young Scholar.
After all, the Young Scholar had been caught in so many rainstorms before...
But he wasn't a doctor.
Even if the Young Scholar wasn't telling the truth, he couldn't tell.
The woodcutter considered it...
It was too late tonight.
He'd get up first thing tomorrow morning and go find a doctor to bring home for his little brother.
He'd already thought about finding a doctor back when they were at the inn in the capital.
And he'd put it off until now...
The woodcutter silently made up his mind.
This time, he would definitely bring a doctor home for his little brother.
"No."
The Young Scholar shook his head.
There was nothing wrong with his body.
In the past, the woodcutter believed everything his little brother said.
He knew his little brother was smarter than he was.
And more quick-witted.
But now...
Until his