Chapter 30
It was then.
“Kiing! Neng!”
Seolyo bristled its tail and bit at Gahyeon’s shoe.
“That thing…”
Gahyeon’s eyes narrowed into thin slits upon spotting Seolyo.
Its appearance might mimic a tiger, but no matter how he looked at it, it wasn’t a mountain beast.
If it truly were a mountain beast, there was no way he, a direct descendant of the White Tiger who oversaw Horim Mountain, wouldn’t recognize it.
“A demonic beast…?”
The black demonic beast carried an aura like the barrier that had been spread out as if to protect someone.
Could it be that the barrier from moments ago had been deployed by this creature? But from what, and to protect whom?
It was while Gahyeon harbored such suspicions.
“Th-this kid isn’t bad, Young Master! Really!”
Startled, Soya snatched Seolyo up and pulled it away from Gahyeon.
“The mountain beasts attacked me, and it saved me…”
“The mountain beasts attacked you?”
Gahyeon, who had been scrutinizing Seolyo, suddenly lifted his head and asked back.
“Y-yes… Suri told me to stick close to the youngest Young Master, but then the mountain beasts appeared out of nowhere, so…”
Soya recounted the entire ordeal—how the mountain beasts had gone berserk and how she had fled deep into the forest to escape them.
Worried he might not believe her, she glanced at Gahyeon’s expression.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
Gahyeon asked, pale-faced as he checked over Soya’s body.
“Were you bitten or scratched anywhere? Did you trip and fall while running?”
Gahyeon’s head spun at Soya’s words, which made it clear this wasn’t simply a case of getting lost.
“N-no, I’m fine. San-ho lent me the Wind Orb… Ow!”
It was while Soya was calmly explaining in a steady voice to reassure the Young Master, who seemed even more startled than she was.
Suddenly, her legs gave out, and she plopped down onto the ground.
The Wind Orb from the indigo wolf had strengthened her legs and ankles, but pushing her physical abilities to the limit had taken a toll on her body.
Now that she had found Gahyeon and her mind relaxed, the tension that had kept her body rigid finally released.
“Kiing!”
“Soya!”
Gahyeon quickly supported her.
Seolyo, which had bounced out of her arms when she sat down, circled around her and Gahyeon.
“Still, it’s a relief. Thanks to the Wind Orb.”
Gahyeon let out a sigh of relief. Without the Wind Orb, things might have turned out really badly.
“You must have been so scared.”
The beasts of Horim Mountain were docile under the White Tiger Clan’s dominion and never harmed people.
Yet they had tried to attack Soya.
And on this day of all days, when his father was away.
‘Did someone target Soya and pull some strings? But why?’
It might be an overreach.
But in the face of such a suspiciously coincidental situation, as his suspicions solidified, Gahyeon suddenly shook his head.
First, they needed to get down the mountain.
The night air was too cold.
Gahyeon bent his knees and offered his back to Soya.
“Get on.”
“Huh? But…”
“The path is dark, and I’m worried you might trip over a rock or something. Just get on, Soya.”
It felt a bit burdensome to be carried on the precious Young Master’s back. Moreover, the second Young Master…
‘He’ll probably feel uncomfortable with me.’
Soya hesitated, recalling how Gahyeon had treated her so far.
‘What if I’m being a nuisance again?’
Soya, who sensed negative emotions more keenly than anyone, was well aware that Gahyeon found her off-putting.
“Come on, Soya.”
But at his repeated urging, Soya cautiously climbed onto Gahyeon’s back.
Once she was on, his small back felt more solid than she’d expected. It was a sturdy back that seemed like it could protect her.
Soya suddenly remembered seeing such a kind and solid back once before.
The broad, sturdy back of an adult man who had appeared with white silk fluttering, protecting her.
‘Ah, right. The small Young Master’s back resembles Sa-eon’s.’
With that thought, her discomfort began to fade bit by bit.
Recalling Gahyeon’s urgent voice as he searched for her, his pale expression, and his trembling eyes made her feel strangely moved.
She had vaguely hoped someone might come looking for her, but she never imagined the second Young Master would.
Yet thinking that Gahyeon had searched for her with such eyes and such an expression stirred an utterly strange feeling in her.
And well it might, since Gahyeon had seemed so displeased by her presence here.
‘From the very first day, I was a bother to him…’
Soya glanced at Gahyeon.
Being on his back, she couldn’t see his face.
But she remembered how, when he had appeared calling her name, his hair had been damp with sweat, clinging to his forehead and cheeks, and how there were fine scratches visible through the tears in his clothes.
‘Did he get hurt looking for me?’
If so, it would make her feel terrible.
“…About yesterday.”
After walking in silence for a long while, Gahyeon spoke to Soya.
“You misheard.”
“Huh?”
“When I called it a trashy pebble, I was talking about that idiot Ho Jeokah’s thick skull. I absolutely wasn’t referring to that pebble talisman you were holding.”
“Ah…”
“The pebble you had in your hand yesterday—it’s mine, right?”
Soya nodded, then realized he couldn’t see and quickly answered aloud.
“Y-yes.”
“Thanks. The pebble talisman you gave me last time was getting lonely by itself, but now it has a partner.”
“Uh… You didn’t throw it away…?”
“Why would I throw away something you gave me?”
“But last time…”
Soya trailed off, recalling how she had picked up the pebble in the garden and run into Gahyeon.
[Picking up trash in the garden and secretly leaving it behind? Pranks like that are a bit troublesome. It’s inconsiderate to the ones who clean the rooms, too.]
Gahyeon realized what she was remembering and quickly offered the excuse he had prepared.
“Back then, Ho Jeokah didn’t tell me it was a talisman, so I didn’t know! That’s why I said that—I didn’t know!”
“Ah…”
But having said that much, Gahyeon suddenly felt ashamed of his own actions.
He came to an abrupt halt and hung his head low.
“Young Master…?”
Soya cautiously called out to him as he stood there in the same spot, head bowed, not moving for a long time.
“…I’m sorry. Everything I just said was an excuse. The truth is, I disregarded your sincerity. Forgive me.”
At Gahyeon’s apology, Soya startled and waved her hands frantically.
“Forgive you? Don’t say that to me.”
“Anyone who does wrong should apologize and ask for forgiveness. That’s only natural.”
But Gahyeon spoke in a firmer voice.
“I’m sorry for making you uncomfortable when you were already awkward in a strange new place, for disregarding your sincerity, and for saying hurtful things even though I knew it would upset you.”
“…”
Soya’s lips pressed together.
Wrong.
Soya thought Gahyeon’s words were truly strange.
It was only natural for people to dislike her.
She was a bad fledgling not worth loving, and hating or tormenting her could never be wrong.
That was the lesson Soya had learned over the past three years in the Zhuque Clan.
What’s more, Gahyeon hadn’t hit or pinched her, locked her in a kennel, or pushed her down.
Yet here he was, apologizing to her twice.
“And whether to accept the apology is up to you.”
“…”
“When you’re feeling better—not now, but then… forgive me, Soya.”
“…”
Gahyeon started walking again.
Much later, Soya spoke to him in a very small voice.
“I wasn’t upset.”
“Huh…?”
Gahyeon stopped short and turned his head toward her.
“Really…?”
His questioning voice trembled slightly, unlike him.
“Y-yesterday, I was a little—a tiny bit sad, but now I’m okay. Really!”
“…”
“You came running to rescue me like this.”
Soya said with a beaming smile.
“…!”
Gahyeon’s eyes widened round, then softened into gentle crescents.
“I’ll have to come running even more from now on.”
He smiled faintly, turned his head forward again, and began descending the slope.
With each step he took, the basket hanging at Soya’s side swayed gently.
Kiing, neng!
The little black beast hopped along after them.
