Early the next morning, Robert Schmitz and his wife returned to knock on Ga’s door—

  but there was no response.

  “She didn’t… kill herself, did she?”

  Jana Scholz blurted out the thought.

  Robert’s face drained of color. He hurriedly knocked harder, his voice trembling as he called out.

  “Ga! Are you alright? Ga! Ga—”

  “Shut up! Stop knocking!”

  At last, the door swung open along with Ga’s irritated shout.

  The couple both let out a breath of relief.

  The moment Ga opened the door, she turned away and walked back to the bed, continuing to pack.

  There wasn’t much to pack at all—just a small backpack—but she busied herself on purpose, making it clear that her decision was final.

  “Ga, what are you—” Jana pointed at her, her hand trembling slightly.

  Ga snapped back without looking up, shoving things into the bag.

  “What? Still trying to stop me? Don’t even think about it!”

  Jana closed her mouth, paused, then spoke again.

  “That’s not what I meant—what happened to your head?”

  Ga froze for a brief moment, as if something had been struck.

  But since this wasn’t something worth getting angry at Jana over, she resumed packing and shouted loudly,

  “It’s cool! I like it! This is… art!”

  Her bangs were uneven—clumps missing here and there, bald patches on both sides.

  She had even cut into her scalp, dried blood clinging to her hair.

  The “artistic hairstyle” was so brutally avant-garde that it was painful to look at.

  Jana quickly averted her eyes, only to catch sight of a pair of bent scissors lying near the bathroom door.

  It was obvious what had happened: Ga had ruined her own hair in frustration, then snapped the scissors in a fit of rage.

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  Robert stepped closer. Seeing Ga’s bloodshot eyes and heavy dark circles, he knew she hadn’t slept at all.

  He sat down on the edge of the bed, glanced at the luggage, then back at Ga—disappointment and helpless resignation written across his face.

  “So,” he said quietly,

  “you’ve spent the entire night thinking this through… and this is your final answer.”

  Ga stopped packing and sat down, turning her head away from him.

  “Yes.”

  Robert leaned back and looked up at the ceiling, where feather-like stuffing drifted like clouds.

  He let out a deep sigh—then, unexpectedly, smiled warmly and looked back at Ga.

  “Ga, that’s remarkable,” he said. “You’re very brave. I admire you.”

  “Huh?”

  Ga turned back in disbelief. “Really?”

  Seeing that Robert had finally let go, Jana sat down beside Ga and wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

  “Of course it’s real! Look at us—we hide in the hospital and don’t dare go on any adventures.

  But you? You’re even willing to go live with Vikings as wild as bears!”

  Warmth spread through Ga’s chest.

  She suddenly felt a twinge of guilt for having thrown them out of the room the day before.

  “However,” Robert added as he stood up,

  “before we take you there, we still need to report this to Count Felix. Don’t worry—if we explain things properly, he’ll agree.”

  “Okay!” Ga nodded eagerly.

  That was when Jana raised her hand.

  “Hello? Isn’t there something more important we should take care of first?”

  Robert and Ga both looked at her in confusion.

  “We need to save that artistic brain of yours first.”

  So Ga was taken to the barber.

  The barber stared at her disastrous “artistic hairstyle” in silence for a long moment before reluctantly beginning to work.

  In the end, Ga’s hair was cut into a short, military-style buzz cut.

  Her former image—a pretty, long-haired girl—was gone.

  Now she looked like a young boy.

  “I’m sorry,” the barber said, spreading his hands.

  “This is the best I can do.”

  Jana chuckled dryly as she reached for her wallet.

  “I know you tried your best. Getting a dog-chewed head to look like this is already impressive. How much do we owe you?”

  “Why are you paying me?” the barber waved her off.

  “I told you—it’s on the house.”

  “Oh, every time you say that.”

  “It’s fine!”

  Ga stared at her reflection, lips pressed tightly together.

  Seeing her expression, Robert tried to reassure her.

  “Ga, girls’ hair grows back quickly. Until then, we can buy you a nice scarf or hat to cover it.”

  “No need.”

  The corner of Ga’s mouth lifted slightly.

  A spark of pride flashed in her eyes as she studied the buzz-cut boy in the mirror.

  “I look pretty cool now.”

  Jana immediately chimed in,

  “Oh, absolutely! Our Ga has a great face—any hairstyle suits you!”

  Ga shot back instantly, sharp as ever.

  “Oh? Then what about the hairstyle I cut myself?”

  The barbershop fell silent for a full second.

  Then Robert Schmitz, Jana Scholz, and the barber all broke into helpless, awkward smiles.