While reading the mood, I glanced at Bihyeon, and seeing the fox moving dishes alone, I jumped up and ran over there.
“Let me have them.”
“Hmm, would that be alright?”
She seemed to ponder a bit, then gave me half.
Urk. It was so heavy that my body swayed greatly for a moment. Wha, what? She was carrying them like it was nothing, so I thought I could carry them too, but that was quite arrogant. When I stood there blankly with wide eyes, someone took all the dishes from behind. When I looked up, a tiger was lightly holding the dishes while swaying his tail.
“That human from last time.”
“Oh, Tiger-nim. Hello?”
He slowly swayed his tail left and right, then following the fox’s gesture, put the dishes down there.
“Yeonho, go help Hyeonwoong-nim.”
“Okay.”
At the fox’s words, I watched the tiger walking on all fours inside the dining room and scratched my cheek. I almost caused an accident trying to be helpful. I’m really glad I didn’t drop them.
I rolled my eyes around wondering if there was anything else to help with when the bear approached nearby.
“Hey human. Is there anything other than beef you want to eat?”
“Um… yakgwa? The one Bihyeon-nim gave me last time was really delicious.”
When I seriously spoke while touching my lips without hesitation, the bear’s mouth twitched.
“…Ahem, kid. You know how to eat.”
“Pack some yakgwa generously for him later.”
At the bear’s words, I heard a voice from right behind, so I lifted my head. Bihyeon, who had approached close to me at some point, smiled facing me. The bear opened his mouth refreshingly.
“I’ll specially pack it for you. Because Bihyeon-nim! Asked me to!”
“Yes. Thank you. I’ll savor it as much as possible.”
“What, what do you mean savor it? If you want to eat more, you can just come again… Ha, really.”
Even though he’s a bear, I could see his face turning red, which was fascinating. I smiled slightly while looking at him, then peeked around and fidgeted with my hands.
“Is there anything to help with?”
“No! Ah right, I didn’t even know your name until now. What’s your name?”
“Hansol. Yoon Hansol.”
“…Even though I asked, how can you tell me your name so easily?! You need to be careful not to get scammed! Really. Being so naively kind…”
The bear who muttered and looked at me, scratching his head vigorously, moved nervously for no reason and cooked.
“It’s chaotic, so get out! I’ll call you when it’s done.”
“Oh.”
I was kicked out of the dining room. When I staggered from being pushed with strong force, Bihyeon grabbed my arm.
“What an affair.”
When I made eye contact with Bihyeon who smiled and talked to himself, he shrugged his shoulders.
“Ah, right. Bihyeon-nim. Can I not leave the house anymore?”
“Why? Are you worried the door will cause trouble again?”
“No… the, it’s not the door’s fault…”
I think I’ll get scolded. This definitely seems like I’ll get scolded.
His eyes were shining strangely cold, so I smiled awkwardly and quickly shook my head.
He who burst out laughing haha slowly walked through the courtyard and said,
“I won’t scold you. This time.”
So next time you’ll scold me. You… never open the door to my side. Got it?
When I gestured with my eyes while looking at the door, the tree that was around it swayed and petals fell. Somehow it seemed like it answered that it didn’t want to, so I felt uneasy.
“Don’t people usually get scared?”
“Huh? Of what?”
“Being here without fear, not knowing what might happen to you. You don’t want to die though…”
I blinked and looked at Bihyeon.
I should say no, but my mouth wouldn’t open. After making eye contact for a while, I avoided his gaze and exhaled small breaths. And though a bit late, I shook my head.
“…As if.”
It was when we sat like that in the pavilion without words. When I thought it was a bit awkward and we were spending time without conversation, the dining room door burst open and the bear shouted roar.
“Bihyeon-nim, Hansol. Eat!”
“Let’s go. We need to eat and prepare to go to work.”
I nodded and headed to the dining room following Bihyeon.
The beef looks delicious.
“But Hansol. Did you grow up not eating? Why are you so scrawny?”
Since it was true, I smiled awkwardly and sat across from Bihyeon. Then the bear put rice and soup in a bowl bigger than my face and placed it in front of me. The amount was considerable. This would be two days’ worth of meals for me…
“Um… I can’t eat this much. I can only finish it if I take out more than half of this.”
“What? This time it’s not a full course meal, so this is the end! This and beef is the end.”
Oh my goodness. After muttering, the bear eventually took out about half the rice and pushed it back in front of me, then slowly looked me up and down.
“You’re so skinny because you eat so little.”
“I’ll eat well.”
Still, I bowed to the bear who gave me delicious food and glanced at Bihyeon. He gestured as if to eat, then roughly picked up his spoon and took a bite first. After confirming that, I picked up my spoon and took a big bite.
“Wow, it’s delicious. The soup is like…”
“Of course, I’ve been cooking for hundreds of years!”
Hundreds… hundreds?
I was about to scoop more when I clunk dropped the spoon in the bowl and laughed awkwardly, “Ahaha.” Not tens but hundreds. Did I mishear…?
“Hyeonwoong.”
“Yes? Would you like more too, Bihyeon-nim?”
What on earth is Bihyeon who receives honorifics from an ancestor’s ancestor who’s hundreds of years old?
Is he a tremendous god? The highest god among gods.
I diligently scooped up rice and diligently stole glances at Bihyeon, then our eyes met so I turned my head unnaturally.
“Eat and eat more.”
“This is already a lot.”
The bear looked at me from the side. His eyes said he was dumbfounded, as if asking can’t you even eat that small amount?
I usually eat this much, but maybe because my condition hasn’t been good lately, it didn’t go down. Avoiding those eyes, I laughed awkwardly, “Ahaha.” I looked at the bowl that I’d finished more than half of along with the beef, then forced my hands to move.
I’m going to get indigestion…
“Hey, Hansol!”
“…Yes?”
As I concentrated on the bowl and lifted my spoon, the bear suddenly approached in one step and spoke, startling me so I almost threw everything. I placed my hand on my chest to calm down and smiled awkwardly. The bear’s hands diligently started kneading dough while his eyes eagerly gazed at me.
“Do you have any good tips for making cookies?”
Someone who’s been cooking for hundreds of years is asking for tips on cookies? Ah, since he’s from the old days, cookies might be unfamiliar. Come to think of it, the dough and snacks in the bowls were all yakgwa.
“Should I write down a recipe for you?”
“Oh! Would that be okay?”
“Of course. I’ll organize it next time and deliver it to Bihyeon-nim.”
As if that’s difficult.
I smiled slightly and politely pointed at Bihyeon with my hand. He who made eye contact with me slowly tilted his head.
“Hmm, if there’s something coming, there should be something going. Then what should I give? Should I give you a honey recipe for making delicious yakgwa?”
“Gasp, please give it to me…!”
A craftsman’s recipe over hundreds of years old!
Isn’t this more precious than what I’m giving? I sparkled my eyes and was about to nod when I read Bihyeon’s mood. Looking at me like that, the bear laughed heartily, “Ahaha!”
“Yes yes, I’ll give it! I’ll give it! I really haven’t had someone I liked this much since that child…”
The bear’s voice gradually became smaller, then he hurriedly covered his mouth.
The atmosphere became strange in an instant. The fox who was carrying plates and the tiger who was getting bites from the side also read Bihyeon’s mood at that moment.
Thanks to that, I also read the mood, quickly ate my rice, cleanly emptied the bowl, then showed it to the bear.
“I ate well. I finished it all!”
…I’m really going to get indigestion.
The bear laughed awkwardly, “Ahaha,” then placed yakgwa that he’d prettily arranged in a bowl in front of me.
I made eye contact with the bear and picked up a yakgwa with determined eyes and chewed a bite.
When I sparkled my eyes, put the yakgwa in my mouth, chewed and raised my thumb to the bear, this time too he laughed heartily, “Hahaha!”
Then the bear’s expression rapidly darkened.
“I’ve been wanting to ask since earlier… what curse are you under? It smells quite terrible. What is this? The smell of a rotting corpse…?”
I raised my arm and sniffed sniff sniff. As expected, no smell came from me.
“How about just letting him stay overnight? There are many rooms. It would be perfect to feed him breakfast and send him off.”
At the bear’s suggestion, I desperately shook my head rapidly.
“It’s okay. Bihyeon-nim drew a talisman at my house. And I need to go to my part-time job…”
“Part-time? At this hour? Don’t humans die if they don’t sleep?”
I smiled pretending it was nothing and shook my head again. I would die if I don’t sleep much though…
“It’s okay.”
I smiled slightly and answered. At that moment, those who were looking at me with strange eyes glanced at Bihyeon, then soon played dumb and did their own work.
“I was going to make galbitang and jeon for breakfast tomorrow…”
Galbitang? Jeon…?
I was momentarily tempted but came to my senses and organized my thoughts. No, imposing today ends it. Let’s completely end it.
After eating all the snacks and drinking tea, I slowly got up from my seat. As I rolled up my sleeves to help with the dishes, both my arms were grabbed by the fox and tiger.
…Hm?
I flailed my arms in the air and looked at them alternately.
And I was kicked out of the dining room just like that.
“Huh?”
I tried to go back in, but this time Bihyeon grabbed both my shoulders.
“I said I would do the dishes.”
When I spoke with aggrieved eyes, Bihyeon laughed, “Haha.”
“Yeah, next time.”
“At least let me clean up what we ate…”
“That too next time.”
He smiled lowly and pushed me out, then sat me on the veranda.
“Wait just a bit until Hyeonwoong brings snacks.”
“Yes…”
I watched Bihyeon’s back as he went to get food, then soon let out a deep sigh. I was bothered that I couldn’t organize, so I kept sticking my head out toward the dining room and peeking.
Jingle—
Huh? That clear sound again. Along with a young child’s laughter, I heard the sound of running.
That sound was heading toward the door, so I jumped up and followed. Strangely, my heart became urgent. The feeling that I shouldn’t let that child go…
When I tried to go outside, the door that had been slightly open closed with a thud. I blankly left my hand outstretched with my gaze in the air, then looked up. The eyes of the two young haetae drawn on the door were directed at me.
I stared at those eyes, then ha, exhaled the breath I’d been holding and sat down in that spot.
‘What…?’
It wasn’t an unpleasant energy, but I felt suffocated and stuffy.
Sway. A warm wind blew.
“…Ah, right. If Door-nim helped me, I forgot to thank you.”
I spoke quietly and glanced behind me. They hadn’t come out yet.
“But, you don’t have to help me from now on. Next time it really seems like Bihyeon-nim will scold you.”
Uh, did the heads of the haetae drawn on the door just move a little?
