Chapter 26
Come to think of it, the woman who first took care of me also referred to “him.” Who could this person be? She clicked her tongue softly and looked at me with a smile that would melt slowly.
“You don’t need to know yet. Once you adapt to this village and learn to live together with others, you’ll naturally come to know.”
Questions filled up to my throat, but they were all blocked before they could pour out. Seeing the wariness rising in her eyes again, I realized it was time to take a step back. When I nodded my head, the woman smiled with satisfaction.
“But…”Â
Despite this, when I opened my mouth, her eyes grew sharp. But I continued regardless. What I was about to say had nothing to do with her wariness.
“Why is that person the only one not called by name? That person who brings supplies.”
Sure enough, her eyes instantly grew round. The woman spoke with a relieved expression.
“That’s because that man doesn’t tell anyone his name. I’ve asked him several times, but he just ignores me. He’s completely lacking in manners and sociability. These young people these days…”
She then launched into a tirade with a face that had found an opportunity, but her story didn’t reach my ears. I filtered out most of it, and the woman who was pouring out chatter like a waterfall finally collected herself after quite some time. The woman tried to get my attention by belatedly introducing herself, but her introduction was so out of place and the timing was so bad that it just passed by. This made her lips jut out, and the way she looked at me changed as well. In her mind, I was probably no different from the young people she was complaining about.
* * *
It would have been nice if I could have asked one or two more people. After talking with her, I couldn’t even think of approaching anyone else. Everyone was on edge, pointing fingers at me whenever I got close, so I didn’t even dare to approach them.
With everyone being so wary, why did they bring me here almost like a kidnapping? If they had just left me and taken my supplies, I would have understood completely. No matter how much I racked my brain, I couldn’t understand what Han Jong-wook and that man were thinking. When I happened to meet Han Jong-wook in passing and casually asked him, he smiled and said:
“It always takes time to get close to people, right? Everyone’s been burned a lot, so they’re just being cautious. Just wait a little. If you get along well, there’s no better place than here. There’s shelter, food, and medicine. How great is that?”
Then he leaned in and whispered in my ear.
“You want to live too, don’t you?”
I was at a loss for words. When I couldn’t answer, Han Jong-wook patted my back a couple of times as if to encourage me and went on his way. Unable to do anything, I crouched down in a corner of the village.
For people who want to live, could there be a sweeter place than this village? If it weren’t for Kim Doyun, I too would probably be diligently showing my face around to live here.
Honestly, it would be a lie to say I wasn’t swayed by the question of whether I wanted to live. But the moment my eyes unknowingly turned toward the forest, and I thought of him wandering there, my wavering heart quickly returned to its place. I miss Kim Doyun.
“What are you doing here?”
As I was muttering like a drenched monk, a long shadow fell over me. A shadow as big and long as Kim Doyun’s. It was that man.
“…Nothing.”
Having nothing specific to answer, I just said whatever came to mind. His narrowed eyes scanned me up and down. And I also looked him over. His height and build were similar to Kim Doyun’s. Their similar physiques made me think of him even more. Despite having features that were not at all similar except for that, something about his relaxed demeanor made me feel like Kim Doyun was right in front of me. Somehow, the tip of my nose tingled, and I sniffled. At that, the man tilted his head.
“Are you crying?”
“…I’m not crying.”
“Then why are you sitting here like that?”
“…Just because.”
I had planned to think alone, but that became impossible. The man didn’t seem like he would simply leave. Reluctantly, I stood up and dusted off the dirt on my backside. It would be better to go home now. I bowed slightly to the man and started to leave, but footsteps followed closely behind me.
At first, I thought the man was going about his own business. But throughout my walk home, his footsteps continued to follow me closely. A villager passing by stopped and stared at the two of us. And not just that person. Others were also glancing this way, and their gazes were not ordinary.
Ah, now that I think about it, this person… they said he was disliked, didn’t they? I wiped my sweaty palms on my thighs. The unfriendly gazes going back and forth between the man and me were ominous.
“…Do you have something to say to me?”
Finally, unable to bear it anymore, I stopped walking and turned to face the man. A strong premonition that I shouldn’t let him into my home tapped on the top of my head. It’s never good to ignore such premonitions. Safety is paramount in any situation.
“No.”
“Then why are you following me?”
“Hmm, just because?”
Is he imitating me? I pressed my lips tightly together. The man had neatly folded his sharp eyes and was smiling refreshingly. I wanted to say something, but seeing his smiling face, I couldn’t bring myself to say anything mean. Not only am I the type who can’t spit at a smiling face, but the man’s smile also… strangely reminded me of Kim Doyun. I don’t know why, but it kept happening.
As I closed my mouth and stayed still, he approached again and tilted his head. Tilting his head when something is strange must be a habit of his. Handsome people can still look good even with such habits. But how do I shake this person off? I want to send him away nicely. As I was nibbling on my lips, he came closer and tapped my lips with his thumb. Surprised, I hid my lips between my teeth and looked at him.
“Be careful of the people.”
He touches a person and then says something out of the blue. I frowned as I looked at him, but the man playfully patted my back and moved away. What’s with that person? I rubbed my lips with the back of my hand and wrinkled my face.
Meanwhile, from the corner of my vision, I saw someone looking around quickly and walking. The small, thin back was very familiar.
“Ma’am?”
Curious about where she was hurrying off to, I followed her. I had heard things from her, and if it was urgent, I wanted to help. I didn’t want to hear gossip, but it’s true that she had helped me understand the village situation.
But the place I eventually arrived at was unexpected. It was where the young women lived together, which the woman had complained about as discrimination.
Upon arriving at the house, the woman looked around cautiously. Somehow feeling like I shouldn’t be caught, I quickly hid behind a collapsed wall and watched what she was doing.
She knocked on a partially cracked window once lightly, then after a brief pause, twice. Then the window opened slightly, and a hand emerged from the gap, firmly gripping her. The woman grasped the protruding hand in return, bowed her head, and began mumbling something for a long time.
What on earth was this situation? I tried to think it through, but I couldn’t figure it out. After pondering a bit more, I shook my head and carefully moved away. Even though I had heard about the village situation, I hadn’t heard everything.
It seems there are circumstances I don’t know about. Giving up on trying to understand, I bent low and left the spot. Staying there would be pointless; I wouldn’t be able to hear what the woman was saying. Plus, if I were caught, it seemed like it would only cause trouble.
But as I returned home, I realized that the people who had been watching me like they were monitoring me had disappeared. They had been disappearing one or two at a time since I spotted the woman, and now they were completely gone. Where did everyone go? With no one to ask, I was left wondering alone, but later I learned that there were separate meal times. I hadn’t thought about it because someone had been bringing me food all this time. The village man who informed me of this grumbled with a displeased face and loudly declared that he wouldn’t take care of me next time.
* * *
“Are you getting along well?”
A sigh escaped me as I saw Han Jong-wook approaching with a sly smile. Despite seeing that I openly disliked him, Han Jong-wook’s attitude remained unchanged. Instead, he came very close and even put his arm around my shoulders. Since when were we this close for him to act like this? I cringed at his pretense of familiarity, but his arm showed no sign of coming down.
“What are you doing?”
I took Han Jong-wook’s hand resting on my shoulder with two fingers and put it down, and his eyes widened. I dusted off my hands as if I had touched something dirty. Han Jong-wook, looking back and forth between me and his hand, burst into laughter.
“That bastard, acting so prim and proper.”
I stared at Han Jong-wook like he was crazy.
“Talking about a man like that, you really have a strong stomach.”
“No, it’s not that. The village girls are just like you. Their tantrums are no joke.”
I thought they must have acted that way because they genuinely despised the behavior. But it seemed like he wouldn’t listen even if I explained, and he might even see it as another tantrum, so I didn’t want to say anything. A feeling of solidarity surged within me for these women I barely knew, and as I looked toward the central house of the village, Han Jong-wook pressed close to me again.
“So, are you getting along well? How are you with the people?”
I replied curtly.
“How long have I been here for you to ask me that?”
“To me, you seem to be getting along better than expected. You’ve already had long conversations with other people. Are you sociable?”
Cold sweat ran down my back. It seems that my inquiries here and there had reached Han Jong-wook’s ears. Seeing him act suspicious while pretending not to know, the red warning light in my head flickered. I hope my meeting with that man hadn’t been reported negatively. I swallowed dryly but opened my mouth as if nothing was wrong.
“Is talking for a long time the same as getting along well? Then you and I should be blood brothers by now. Nothing to worry about.”
Han Jong-wook burst into laughter. Glancing at him from the corner of my eye, I continued.
“And everyone clearly shows signs of disliking me, so I can’t even attempt to get close to them, let alone look at them.”
I knew that what was in their eyes wasn’t a simple emotion, but I pretended not to know. Han Jong-wook clicked his tongue and explained.
“They don’t dislike you, they’re just cautious. Everyone’s a bit on edge.”
“Why?”
“Six days ago, a new member joined us, but he was a bit greedy. After we saved him, the ungrateful bastard stole a bunch of our stuff and ran away.”
I clenched my fist. I had no intention of stealing; I was planning to ask for supplies after becoming friendly with them, but if such an incident had occurred, even asking might be difficult. Perhaps the moment I brought it up, they would see me as similar to that person.
“…And then?”
“What do you mean ‘and then’? Everyone was angry about it. So I hope you can understand why people look at you that way.”
Han Jong-wook patted my back and nodded. Suppressing my unease, I asked him.
“What happened to that person? Did he just run away?”
“Huh? Ah, that terrible guy? Can we just let someone like that go? Right?”
Han Jong-wook habitually tapped his shotgun and smiled. Even without further explanation, I could glimpse the fate of the person who ran away. I closed my eyes. Even then, I could feel Han Jong-wook’s gaze scanning and exploring me. As I made a mental note to be more careful with my actions, Han Jong-wook’s casually dropped words penetrated my ears.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
