Saharanpur ki galiyon mein aaj ek ajeeb si raunaq thi. Noghawa ke us purane mohalle mein, jahan kabhi sirf ek choti si saloon ki dukaan thi, aaj wahan ek shandaar "Academy" khadi thi. Bahar ek bada board chamak raha tha—"Sufiyan Malik: The World's Grandmaster Academy."
Sufiyan ne apni purani sasti kainchi ko ek naye chamakdar sheeshe ke box mein rakha tha. Ye wahi kainchi thi jisne use "Styling System" tak pahunchaya tha. Usne gehri saans li aur academy ka darwaza khola. Bahar 50 se zyada naujawan ladke-ladkiyan khade the, sabke hathon mein apni-apni kainchi thi.
[System Alert: New Quest Unlocked!]
[Quest: Mentor the Next Generation. Goal: Train 10 students to Professional Level. Reward: +5000 XP & Golden Comb Skill.]
Sufiyan ne bheed ki taraf dekha. "Aaj hum sirf baal kaatna nahi, kismat badalna seekhenge," usne kaha. Tabhi bheed mein se ek mahangi car ruki. Usme se ek lamba, gore rang ka aadmi utra. Uska naam tha Vikram Khanna, jo Delhi ke sabse bade salon chain ka maalik tha.
"Sufiyan Malik? Maine suna hai tumne Tokyo mein dhoom machayi hai. Lekin ye Saharanpur ke gawaar ladke mere salon ke standard ko kabhi match nahi kar sakte," Vikram ne tanz (taunt) kiya.
Sufiyan muskura gaya. "Vikram sahab, hunar jagah nahi dekhta, insaan dekhta hai. Agar aapko shaq hai, toh mere kisi bhi ek student ko challenge kar lijiye."
Vikram ne ek maile kapdon wale ladke ko chuna jiska naam Zaid tha. Zaid darr se kaanp raha tha. Vikram ne apna sabse mahanga stylist aage kiya. "Agar ye gawaar ladka mere stylist ko hara de, toh main apni Delhi wali branch tumhare naam kar doonga."
Sufiyan ne Zaid ke kandhe par hath rakha.
[System Skill Activated: Mentor's Aura - Level 1]
[Zaid's Confidence: Increased by 80%!]
Sufiyan ne Zaid ke kaan mein kaha, "Zaid, tum sirf baal mat dekho, uske chehre ki muskurahat dekho jo tumhare kaam se aayegi. Chalao apni kainchi!"
Agre 15 minute tak poori academy mein sirf 'Chik-Chik' ki awaaz goonji. Vikram ka stylist mahangi machines use kar raha tha, lekin Zaid ki ungliyan Sufiyan ke sikhaye huye [Wind Stroke] move par chal rahi thin. Jab kaam khatam hua, toh log hairan reh gaye. Vikram ka stylist sirf ek aam haircut de paya tha, lekin Zaid ne us model ko ek 'Hero' look de diya tha.
Vikram ka chehra utar gaya. Sufiyan ne aage badhkar kaha, "Seekhna hai toh line mein lag jaiye, Vikram sahab. Hamari academy sabke liye khuli hai."
[System Notification: Quest Progress 1/10!]
[Word Count Boost: +1200 words added to Chapter 81]