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Chapter 03
“Phew—I’m out!”
Ahem. Digging a hole of this scale is a piece of cake for a rabbit beastfolk.
I dusted off the dirt from my tail with a light flick and surveyed my surroundings.
‘Now, let’s take a look around…, huh?’
It was right then.
The moment I tried to take a step forward, a spine-chilling sensation flared up inside me.
‘W-What on earth is this ominous aura?!’
An eerie vibe that was utterly impossible to ignore and walk away from! Startled, I followed the trail, which led to a dilapidated storeroom in a corner.
‘No doubt about it. It’s over there!’
It was strange. For such an ominous aura to linger in a place where Lady Hang-ah might be…
Normally, Lady Hang-ah would have definitely banished it right away….
Could it be that Lady Hang-ah isn’t here?
‘Anyway! Since they let me stay for a day, I can’t just leave behind such a foul aura.’
Scurrying closer, I carefully unlatched the door and stepped inside.
Inside the unkempt, somewhat cluttered storehouse, potatoes were piled up to the brim.
“Woah, potatoes!”
For a brief moment, the fluffy and soft taste of the potato I had sampled earlier came to mind, making my mouth water.
However, the moment I looked closer at the potatoes, my head tilted in confusion.
“Mmh…?”
Looking up close, every single potato was covered in mold.
What’s more, the more I looked, the stranger it felt…….
“Shoo, shoo. Go away.”
That wasn’t ‘mold.’ It was a pitch-black, sticky foul aura stuck so tightly that the area merely looked like mold had grown over it.
Although I didn’t know exactly what it was, I waved my hands around.
“I told you to go away!”
At that, it hesitated for a moment, and… ended up migrating over to the sack of grain right next to it!
“Uh-oh?”
When I chased it from here, it moved over there, and when I chased it from way over there, it moved back again.
Every time I gave chase, this evil aura merely dodged left and right, stubbornly refusing to detach itself from the food.
Seeing that, a realization struck me.
“I get it! You’re hungry, aren’t you?”
I rummaged through the pouch strapped to my waist looking for a special cure. This pouch, brought all the way from the Moon World, was full of items that would help me find Lady Hang-ah.
And as for that special cure…!
“Here, try this. It’s a jade rice cake.”
It was a local specialty of the Moon World and the most popular snack among the Grim Reapers of the Underworld—a jade rice cake.
After all, a foul aura like that couldn’t possibly fill its stomach with ordinary food!
Then, for the first time, it drifted toward me.
“Hee-, you can’t resist either, right? Do you know how delicious this is!”
The dark aura that had been scattered throughout the storehouse gathered in front of the jade rice cake in an instant. Then, its tightly bundled mass grew large enough to touch the ceiling of the storehouse.
The aura immediately received the cake.
“Hurry and try it!”
With a pounding heart, I waited for its reaction.
As the jade rice cake gradually disappeared, curiously enough, the black aura blooming on the surrounding potatoes and other food items also faded away bit by bit.
What’s more, the quality seemed to have improved drastically! Taking just the visible potatoes as an example, their surfaces had been all shriveled up until a moment ago, but now they looked somewhat firm and shiny.
I beamed with pride.
“It’s delicious, right? It’s delicious!”
Eventually, having completely devoured the jade rice cake, the aura vanished from the storehouse as if it were now full.
I waved my hands frantically at that sight.
“Goodbyeee!”
And just as I was about to head back out of the storehouse…….
“What are you doing?”
“L-Lord?!”
I froze solid at the master lord of this house, who was leaning against the wide-open doorway—though I had no idea since when he had been standing there.
To make matters worse, a thoroughly raspy voice—sounding just like a millstone being turned—was coming from the lord’s throat…….
I-I’m gonna get scolded…!
“T-That is…!”
No!
I can’t get kicked out yet!
With a tearful face, I desperately began blabbering excuses.
“…U-Um, so, earlier the uncle gave me a potato, and it was so tasty that after eating it, I came over here, but the potatoes and food were all, like, totally spoiled, so that… I gave it a Moon World rice cake, and it went home…!”
Unlike my intentions, the explanation tumbled out in a jumbled, messy heap, causing my face to contort even further.
Hweeeng, my words are coming out so weirdly…!
Lady Hang-ah always used to compliment me, saying I spoke so smartly and clearly.
What on earth happened to my speaking skills? Ever since coming to the mortal world, even speaking doesn’t seem to come easily, bringing tears to my eyes.
“So, what you’re saying is that you restored the food in this storehouse to a pristine condition?”
“Huh? Y-Yes…!”
…How on earth did he understand that?
Leaving behind a puzzled me, the lord nodded his head a few times, then pulled out a few potatoes and a large cauldron from the corner.
“…More importantly, you think the potatoes are delicious?”
“Yes, super-duper delicious!”
Blinking my moist eyes, I nodded my head passionately.
To tell the truth, back when I was in the Moon World, I didn’t really care for plain, bland potatoes.
However, could it be that potatoes in the mortal world are different from those in the Moon World?
The potato Uncle Jang had given me wasn’t bland at all. The moment it entered my mouth, a savory, salty flavor spread, the surface chewed with a crispy crunch, and with every bite, it was soft, fluffy, and sweet!
It was such a pity that I had only gotten to eat one potato like that….
As I glanced sideways, counting the number of potatoes held in the lord’s hands, the lord—who had stepped closer—stretched out his hand and pinched my cheek.
“Looking at you now, you’re far too skinny to even have anything to eat.”
At that, my eyes turned into full rabbit eyes.
Partly because of the lord’s hand touching my cheek just like before, but also because I thought… ‘He really, really loves this joke, doesn’t he?’
However, if that’s the case… I should play along with his beat!
“T-That is correct! Your words are entirely spot on!”
“Right. Then… I’ll have to fatten you up more before eating you.”
“M-Me? T-Too scary, euaaah…!”
It was right while I was sincerely pretending to be scared for his sake.
A loud shout resounded from behind once again!
The moment Uncle Jang and yesterday’s fierce-looking gatekeeper uncle appeared, I flashed a bright smile first.
We’re close! I was playing with the lord! That was what I wanted to express, but….
“My lord, what are you doing here right now!”
Uncle Jang’s eyes glanced at the lord’s hand holding my cheek once, and at the large cauldron once.
After his gaze darted back and forth several times…….
“To think you’re planning to steam and eat her!”
“That sounds good too.”
“Oh dear, no, it’s not like that….”
“And such a tiny child at that!!”
“Which is why I shall fatten her up a bit more before eating her.”
I frantically waved my hands, but this time too, it wasn’t of much use.
In the end, the food storehouse turned into a scene of utter chaos.
Hing, it’s really not like that….
It was cold-hearted that nobody understood the master lord’s joke…….
And after a round of tug-of-war between the master lord and Uncle Jang with me in the middle:
The lord called out to me.
“Hear me, rabbit.”
“Yes, my lord!”
“Since you restored the food storehouse, your achievement is immensely grand.”
The servant uncles, their eyes wide open, looked around the inside of the storehouse.
“Now that I look… the potatoes are completely fine?”
“The grain is fresh too!”
“Child, did you really do something?”
“Yes! I gave it a rice cake, so…,”
“Enough.”
The lord cut off my words just as I was excitedly trying to explain, but I had no time to feel disappointed.
“In light of that merit, I shall grant you one wish.”
The exact words I had been longing to hear were spoken!
“R-Really?”
“Indeed. Speak it.”
A wish!
My desire was only one thing.
“Please let me stay here for just three more days!”
Within that time, I will definitely find traces of Lady Hang-ah!
A night with a full moon.
I pulled out a piece of savory zucchini pancake I had hidden earlier. Saliva welled up at the rich oil scent wafting up, but holding it back, I quietly opened the storehouse door and went outside.
Then, finding a spot where the moonlight hit nicely, I offered the zucchini pancake to the moon and prayed.
‘Moon. This is the most delicious zucchini pancake from today. Please accept this and let me meet Lady Hang-ah….’
Thinking of Lady Hang-ah made the corners of my eyes sting automatically.
“Haaa…….”
My heart was heavy. I felt a bit lonely, and my feelings were all tangled up.
To think I would feel this way after finding traces of Lady Hang-ah. It was something I couldn’t even have imagined three days ago. But….
‘Why on earth does Lady Hang-ah’s divine aura linger on the master lord….’
That’s right. The trace of Lady Hang-ah I had discovered was her divine aura lingering around the master lord.
What’s more, it was an aura that didn’t fade even a little bit, day after day…!
Seeing that, it seemed that the master lord and Lady Hang-ah had tied the knot as husband and wife.
“Ahhh…….”
My shoulders slumped down limply.
Even when I tried to deny it, saying it couldn’t be, all the circumstances pointed toward their marriage.
The familiar aura of Lady Hang-ah lingering around the lord, the lord entering the inner house alone every night to spend time before coming out….
And by morning, Lady Hang-ah’s aura lingering around the lord grew even denser.
“Ah-huck!”
What if Lady Hang-ah says she won’t return to the Moon World? Then what about us… what about us rabbits….
Just when all the strength drained out of my body from terrifying imaginations and I was trudging past the servant quarters:
Shhh-k, shhh-k—.
‘Huh? What is this sound?’
I trotted along as if spellbound, following the sound. A swishing, grinding sound was coming from somewhere.
And in a secluded corner, I discovered a large silhouette sharpening a long sword.
‘It’s the gatekeeper—no, Uncle Baek…!’
However, my approaching steps came to a sudden halt before going very far. The uncle’s ferocious expression—which normally brought the Great King Yama to mind—was extraordinarily scary tonight.
And at that exact moment, the uncle raised his head. The long blade gleamed brightly in the moonlight.
“Who’s there!”
“Kyaaah-!”
“……What’s this, is that Tori?”
The uncle’s sharp expression relaxed slightly.
“Did I startle ye?”
“Y-Yes…. But, w-what are you doing?”
“…It’s nothin’. Just grindin’ the sword once so it doesn’t rust.”
“Aha…!”
…But at this late hour of the night?
Was it because of the question I couldn’t bring myself to ask? A momentary, awkward silence hovered between us.
“Ahem, by the way, Tori, why are ye wanderin’ around at this late hour?”
“Ah, um, I couldn’t sleep, so just for a bit….”
“Hurry back inside and sleep.”
“Yeees! Good night!”
After answering energetically to Uncle Baek who was wrapping up the conversation, I walked toward my room.
Right after that, I quickly looped around to the opposite side and climbed up a nearby tree. As I had expected, Uncle Baek was clearly visible from here.
‘I’ll hide here for a moment, and once the uncle goes inside to sleep, I’ll go check the inner house. Who knows when there’ll be another chance!’
How long did I wait like that?
Finally, Uncle Baek stood up holding the large sword.
And….
“Oing?”
‘That direction isn’t the servant quarters, but toward the inner house? Why is he going over there?’
…Gasp!
In an instant, an ominous foreboding flashed past.
