I Became A Married Man in Another World
Chapter 6
#006 A Bride Like a Rabbit and a Daughter as Cute as a Mongoose
The human heart is truly fickle. Shaken by the village chief’s wife’s words, for a brief moment, she felt as if she had become a member of this village.
But she realized that wasn't the case as soon as the woman continued speaking.
The village chief’s wife held her hand and spoke with a pretense of affection.
"When you hunt, bring the meat to the village. I’ll trade it for flour or bread. It would be such a struggle for you to go all the way elsewhere from here. Besides, you don't even know how to separate meat from hide yet, do you?"
The village chief’s wife rattled on about how there was someone else to handle the leatherwork so she should just bring it in, and how someone in the village would sell her bows and arrows for cheap.
What the village chief’s wife really wanted to say was likely this:
She spun a long, plausible tale, but in the end, the chief and his wife simply wanted to acquire meat and hides—which could be sold for much more in neighboring villages or cities—at a bargain price.
They likely intended to exchange them for daily necessities and goods instead of giving cash.
"Your name was Lizzie, right? Look here, Lizzie, when it comes to being a couple, affection grows once you have children and live together. It’s all in how you think about it. Don’t overthink it. That’s right, if you have any difficulties in the future, come discuss them with me. Whether it's about married life or buying things, anything is fine."
The village chief’s wife said with a smile, wearing a face of feigned benevolence.
'I feel sorry for the mountain keeper who is to become my husband, too. Normally, he could have taken a much better woman as his wife.'
The mountain keeper is the only person permitted to catch animals on the Lord's mountain. If anyone else is caught hunting recklessly, they receive a severe punishment. She had heard that some people were killed on the spot after being caught poaching.
Originally, experienced professional hunters served as mountain keepers, but recently, with the shortage of men due to the war, hunters have become difficult to find.
Thus, it was said that in some regions, even unqualified people were permitted to be used as mountain keepers. This village seemed to have such permission.
However, the work of a mountain keeper is dangerous. There are wild beasts and magic beasts in the mountains.
Cases of death or injury are frequent.
Furthermore, though she didn't know the details, she had heard someone say that if one fails to perform the mountain keeper's duties properly, they could be punished by the Lord.
No one in the village would have wanted to do such a dangerous job. But the mountain couldn't be left alone. The village chief was also tasked with finding a mountain keeper to ensure the forest was managed properly.
The man who appeared just when a new mountain keeper was needed must have been a stroke of luck for the chief and the villagers.
However, they couldn't forcibly make someone stay if they weren't a criminal.
To make him work as a mountain keeper, they had to meet certain conditions.
In such a case, the best way to detain a man in the village was to give him a village woman and have him start a family. Many villages had been doing that since long ago.
'It’s a simple story.'
No one would have wanted to give their daughter away without knowing what kind of man the prospective mountain keeper was. So, Lizzie—whom no one would lose anything over even if she were beaten or killed by the mountain keeper—became the target.
'If this mountain keeper dies, I’ll probably be given to another mountain keeper again.'
It was a story even a child could understand.
Lizzie stared blankly at the village chief’s wife’s face. Why had she thought, even for a fleeting moment, that the woman's expression was kind? It was so full of greed.
'I am truly a fool.'
Thump, thump. Someone knocked on the door. The door opened immediately, and a village man poked his head in and spoke.
"The mountain keeper has arrived."
Her body jolted as if snapping back to reality at those words. Lizzie swallowed hard. Her stomach and shoulders tensed up instinctively.
The village chief’s wife hugged her shoulders tightly and let go, as if she were her own daughter.
"You and your husband-to-be must be worried since you know nothing about mountain keeping yet, but it’s alright. We’ll help you with all our might. Once you catch a beast, come to the village immediately. The quality drops if you don't process it quickly.
Understood?"
The village chief’s wife whispered into her ear. A musty smell of bad breath wafted from her.
With a greasy, glistening face, the village chief’s wife peered into her face and smiled.
Come to think of it, her father had also been smiling on the day he parted with her.
"...."
Don't cry. Don't cry, Lizzie. You mustn't cry.
Lizzie repeated the words she had constantly told herself in her mind.
Just as her father had sold Lizzie to the mountain keeper, the villagers had simply sold her to the new mountain keeper. This time, a hut and a child were just sold along with her; there was nothing new about it. There was no need to lament why her life was like this.
'...'
She didn't hope for much. She only hoped that her new husband wouldn't be too violent. She hoped he would be the kind of person who would just leave her and the child alone in a corner of the house.
Before she was even fully prepared, the door swung wide open.
Lizzie looked up in tension. Her eyes grew round.
A man much larger than anyone else stood towering at the door.
"...."
He was incredibly huge. She had never seen such a massive person. His clothes were strange, too. He was wearing layers of small garments, making his muscles bulge out. He looked exactly like a bear wearing human clothes.
The man was so tall that it felt like his head was up in the distant sky.
Lizzie tilted her head back as far as it would go to look at the man.
She thought she understood why the people wanted to keep this man in the village as a mountain keeper.
There was no one this large and sturdy even if one looked through the entire village. Surely, this man would be able to do the work of two or three ordinary people.
"...."
But he was too terrifying. If he struck down once with those massive hands, a woman like her would have her bones broken in an instant. She might even die. Without realizing it, the strength drained from her waist.
***
Joo-hwan was led by the village chief and the men toward the outskirts of the village.
The chief took him to a place quite far from the center of the village.
The place they arrived at was an old house that looked like it might collapse at any moment.
'What is this? Can this even be called a house?'
Parts of the roof were crumbling, and mold was growing all over the house. It felt so old that it might turn into sand if touched.
Traces of vines that had grown up the walls remained. Seeing that the vine marks hadn't disappeared even in midwinter, the entire house would likely be covered in weeds and vines by the time spring arrived.
As he lowered his gaze, he saw the floor and corners where small holes had formed from crumbling.
'It doesn't look like a place fit for humans to live.'
Was he supposed to live here from now on? He might be used like a servant while living with the old hunter. Joo-hwan let out a sigh hidden from the others.
The chief gestured for him to go inside.
Another man swung the door wide open for him.
It couldn't be helped. Getting to live even in a house like this in the middle of winter was something. The men who had been in chains would likely live as slaves.
He decided to consider himself lucky for not being in that position.
"...."
Joo-hwan, who was about to step inside, paused. He had thought no one would be there, but there were women inside the house.
There were three: a woman who looked slightly past middle age, a woman who appeared to be her daughter, and a very small girl.
Upon seeing Joo-hwan, the woman who looked like the daughter let her mouth hang open blankly.
She stared at Joo-hwan for a moment, then flinched and trembled. She seemed very timid. Seeing her large, round eyes wide open, he somehow thought she looked like a rabbit.
The small girl standing behind her as if hiding also had her mouth wide open—wide enough for a fly to fly in.
She seemed quite shocked to see him.
'I've always had a hard time getting along with kids.'
Most kids were the same. They cried when they saw Joo-hwan. Since Joo-hwan was already massive, he probably felt like a scary giant from a fairy tale to small children. Not a good one, but a bad giant that chases and bullies the protagonist.
Joo-hwan wore a troubled expression while standing at the door. Thinking that the little one might cry made it difficult for him to step into the house readily.
While he was standing still at the door wondering what to do, the middle-aged woman smiled awkwardly and gestured grandly for him to come in. She was wearing a smile that somehow looked very fake.
"#####."
The middle-aged woman gestured with her body once more for him to enter.
Checking the reactions of those around him, the men also nodded and made gestures as if pushing his back to hurry inside.
As Joo-hwan took a few steps inside, the chief and several men followed him into the house as well.
The men with weapons and the old hunter did not enter and stood outside.
The middle-aged woman exchanged glances with the chief and gave a slight nod. She gently pulled the hand of the woman who looked like her daughter and stood before Joo-hwan.
"## ####."
She kept smiling while saying something. Was it just his imagination that the atmosphere felt like a blind date?
Turning his gaze to check the reactions of the men nearby, the man who had been thrusting his hips back and forth earlier was smirking. It seemed that kind of atmosphere was indeed correct.
He felt dismal. Joo-hwan was twenty-nine this year. Had the New Year passed by now? If so, he was thirty—still young. But... Joo-hwan looked at the middle-aged woman before him with a devastated heart.
'Am I supposed to marry this woman? And take responsibility for two daughters on top of that?'
Marrying this woman and living with her might be better than becoming a slave or being used as a servant. No, it would definitely be better.
However, as someone who was still single, he had a life he had dreamed of in his own way.
The wish he told Santa wasn't a lie. He had sincerely dreamed of a future with a lovely, rabbit-like bride and a daughter. For a very long time. Of course, even now.
"...."
She didn't need to have extraordinary looks. He believed that if he loved her, any woman would look beautiful.
'But this is...'
No matter how much he thought about it, he didn't think he could ever find this middle-aged woman that lovely. Honestly, there was no hope. It felt like it would never happen in a lifetime.
'If she were at least close to my age, I could try to make an effort.'
Sigh after sigh seemed to pile up. Perhaps because his expression looked quite unsatisfactory, the middle-aged woman said something while appearing slightly flustered.
Then, as if frustrated, she grabbed the daughter's hand and pulled her closer to Joo-hwan. She took the daughter's and Joo-hwan's hands and joined them together.
"...."
Joo-hwan, who suddenly found himself holding the older daughter's hand, only then realized he had been mistaken. It seemed the daughter, not the middle-aged woman, was his partner.
Having realized that, he looked at the young woman again.
He hadn't noticed at first because he was focused on the middle-aged woman, but perhaps she wasn't that woman's daughter.
He had thought she was simply scared of him, but looking at her now, the young woman seemed intimidated by everyone around her.
'Since she's being married off to a man like me, her situation here must be quite poor.'
If her circumstances were decent, she wouldn't be marrying a man who appeared out of nowhere. Though not intentional, he felt he had done something he should be sorry for.
"## ####."
When the middle-aged woman spoke to her in a low voice as if blaming her for something, her expression became visibly anxious. With her large eyes, she glanced at him timidly, looking terrified.
Perhaps the middle-aged woman had scolded her because he looked like he didn't like her. That wasn't actually the case, though.
While he wore a troubled face, the little girl who had been standing as if hiding clung to the woman's waist with a tearful face.
Come to think of it, who exactly was that child? The woman was too young to be her mother, and they were too far apart in age to be sisters.
He stared at the short child. Her eyes and nose were clustered slightly close together. Unlike the woman whose skin was as white as a snow rabbit, the child was slightly swarthy, making her somehow resemble a mongoose.
Suddenly, the words Santa had said to him after he confessed his wish came to mind.
[I will arrange a bride with a heart as pure as snow and a beautiful daughter who truly respects and follows her father.]
'No way.'
Joo-hwan looked at the young woman's face once more.
He had thought so the moment he first saw her. Even looking at her now, her round eyes and slightly frightened face were like a cute rabbit.
A bride like a rabbit and a daughter as cute as a mongoose.
'That Santa... was he for real? Did a real Santa actually try to grant my wish?'
It was certainly a wish he had yearned for for a very long time. However, it wasn't something he wanted to the point of going to another world. It felt like receiving a gift and being hit on the head with a hammer at the same time.
The days he spent fearing he would die in a filthy carriage while naked flashed through his mind.
"...."
That Santa—if I ever meet him again, I'm definitely going to kill him.
