Sniff, sniff.
Lord Bihyeon’s scent was all over me, and it made my mood feel… weird.
I lifted a sleeve and was sniffing it when the mountain spirit came closer with a gentle smile, straightened my clothes for me, and murmured softly.
“…I hope that child heals the wound and remembers how he felt back then.”
That child… do they mean Lord Bihyeon?
Blinking, I let the mountain spirit guide me over to sit in the pavilion. The warm breeze felt nice, and a small smile slipped out.
BANG!
Then the door flew open and the bear came out, and my body shrank back again.
“Hyeonung, be a little gentler.”
“What the hell! Why are you wearing Lord Bihyeon’s clothes? I-it… it kind of suits you a liiiittle, though!”
The bear roared, then furrowed its brow like it was thinking hard—and leaned its head in close to me.
Seriously… I’m going to cry. I’m scared, okay….
“Why do you have that human feeling about you? That’s weird. It can’t be….”
“Th-that human, what do you mean?”
“It can’t be. There’s no way you’re that child from hundreds of years ago whose soul already vanished. Right?”
How would I know that….
I stared at the bear blankly, then smiled awkwardly. I don’t believe in reincarnation, so… if it’s not, it’s not. When I nodded, the bear snorted and thrust a steaming bowl of abalone porridge toward me and the mountain spirit.
“Eat! Mountain spirit, enjoy!”
“Oh my….”
Receiving the bowl, the mountain spirit laughed—Ho ho—and then smiled at the bear after looking down at the porridge.
“Thank you for the meal, Bear.”
“Call me Lord Hyeonung! What do you mean ‘Bear’—bear, my ass!”
“Yes, Lord Hyeonung.”
What… he’s prickly, but somehow his words feel warm.
As I answered with a small smile, the mountain spirit lifted the outer robe I had over my shoulders and Slide. pulled it up over my head like a hood.
Creak—
“Welcome, Lord Bihyeon!”
Just then, the door opened and Lord Bihyeon walked in.
He swept his gaze around—and when his eyes met mine, they widened slightly.
Tap. Tap-tap.
In that instant, raindrops fell onto my hand. Cold rain.
I lifted my head to look up. The sky was clear, but one or two drops fell… and then it turned into a steady pour, shaaaaa, spilling down.
As I stood there holding the outer robe over my head and looking up, Lord Bihyeon walked over to me.
“I’m sorry. Um… I’ll give you your clothes.”
Stopping in front of me, Lord Bihyeon twitched his hand like he was about to reach out—then smiled like he always did.
“Keep it on. It’s raining.”
“…S-sorry.”
The rain was colder than I expected. I was freezing.
Lord Bihyeon smiled, lifted a hand, and tapped my shoulder slowly, tap, tap—. Not just out of politeness. His eyes said he really didn’t care if I kept wearing his clothes.
“You didn’t do anything wrong, so just keep it on.”
“…Okay.”
“Let’s go inside. You’ll get colder.”
We moved under the eaves, and I held my hand out to the rain as it pattered down—tap, tap-tap. The heat slipped away, and a cool breeze blew.
When I’m at home, I hate rainy days, but here it feels insanely refreshing. Is it because even the air is different? Even if it’s cold.
Just then, the fox approached and spoke to Lord Bihyeon.
“Lord Bihyeon, have you eaten?”
“I haven’t. Prepare it together.”
“Yes. Then I’ll set the table in the dining hall.”
The fox took the abalone porridge the bear had brought and led us toward the dining hall. The mountain spirit shrank down in size and went in first with the fox.
Whew. Letting out a quiet breath, I held onto the outer robe. It was such a fine garment—I didn’t want it getting soaked.
When I tried to set it aside, Lord Bihyeon, who’d been standing quietly next to me, reached out and placed it back over my head.
“Let’s go.”
“…Um….”
I looked at Lord Bihyeon, then lifted the outer robe and put it over his head instead.
He started to go, then stopped and looked at me.
His eyes trembled slightly…. A look I wasn’t used to.
Longing? Confusion?
It looked too complicated—too layered—for me to pin down into one clean word.
Then, without saying anything, Lord Bihyeon grabbed my collar and headed for the dining hall. I trailed after him, pattering close behind.
Ding-a-ling—
“…?”
A clear sound rang out, and I turned around. Then I heard a child giggling—high and bright—echoing through the air.
“Huh?”
Lord Bihyeon, who’d turned back at my sudden stop, lifted the outer robe with one hand and held it over my head again. His steady gaze looked like it was asking what was wrong, so I smiled and shook my head.
Something about this… feels really strange. My chest itched, but it also felt tight and heavy.
Hearing that sound just now made me feel like I’d forgotten something precious—like there was a lump in my throat.
With a small sigh, I followed him into the dining hall.
From the outside, the building had looked small, but once inside, the dining hall was enormous. The mountain spirit sat at the center of a wooden table and smiled, gesturing as if to welcome us in.
I sat beside the mountain spirit and adjusted the outer robe, draping it over the chair.
The mountain spirit quietly lifted it and placed it back on my shoulders.
I smiled faintly at the abalone porridge set before us. It smelled rich and nutty.
After making sure the mountain spirit and Lord Bihyeon lifted their spoons first, I finally took mine.
“Thank you for the meal.”
The bear frowned and stared at me.
I took a big spoonful, chewed, and nodded hard. It was really good. When I lifted my thumb with bright eyes, the bear snapped his head away and cleared his throat.
“Endure it even if it’s not enough! There’s another dish after this!”
“Yes.”
Lord Bihyeon, his expression softened, spoke to the bear.
“Where’s Yeonho?”
“He went hunting. I figure he’ll be back in the evening.”
“Alright.”
Lord Bihyeon, sitting across from me, ate a reasonable amount of porridge, set his spoon down, and looked at me.
“Wow. This is seriously good….”
It’s all abalone porridge—so why does this taste like this?
Muttering, I stirred the porridge and looked inside. Perilla oil? Or soy sauce?
As I chewed and examined it more closely, the bear went ahem-ahem-ahem and sidled up next to me.
“I poured soy sauce and perilla oil in. Then I mixed it and drizzled it over the porridge.”
“Oh! That’s why.”
“Porridge is devotion!”
“Of course. That’s why it tastes this good.”
When I nodded along, the bear’s mouth twitched. Like it wanted to smile, but didn’t. I laughed, then drank some water.
The porridge was so good I was already looking forward to the next dish.
With a face full of confidence, the bear brought out dish after dish. Everything was Korean food.
Every time I ate, my eyes lit up, savoring the flavors, trying to make it last. And every time I did, the bear came over and ladled a little more onto my plate.
After eating a decent amount, Lord Bihyeon propped his chin on his hand and watched me eat. I could feel the gaze, but I pretended not to notice.
The mountain spirit, who’d been quietly eating, lifted their eyes to look at Lord Bihyeon—and let out a small snort of amusement.
How long has it been since I ate a meal with this many people?
It was… genuinely a happy, delicious meal.
“…?”
Huh?
Why am I under a blanket?
When did I even fall asleep…?
I remember being chased into a room after the meal—told to stay inside because they’d bring snacks later. Maybe I fell asleep while listening to Lord Bihyeon and the mountain spirit talk.
There’s no way I laid out bedding and crawled in on my own.
Looking down, I saw a fine blanket pulled over me.
Wow… what a nuisance I am.
I sprang up and looked around. The two who’d been speaking in soft voices were gone, and the room was completely empty.
“Oh my, you’re awake?”
“Fox.”
The fox came into the room carrying a large shopping bag, and she clapped lightly like the timing was perfect.
“It’s evening—what do you want to do? Lord Bihyeon said it’s fine, so you can rest more before you go.”
“No. I have to go home.”
“Oh my, why? It’s raining, and it’s dark—being alone at home late at night is scary.”
That’s true, but… I couldn’t just cling to a place that wasn’t mine, after being treated to a whole meal, like I had no shame.
I was already embarrassed and sorry enough that I’d been sleeping here.
The fox smiled softly and set a shopping bag beside my things. I was about to ask what it was when she said, smiling—
“And dinner is beef.”
Beef…?
But I really don’t want to be more of a burden.
Even now, it felt like the smell of something delicious was drifting in from the yard, and my hands trembled as I wavered.
“Eat before you go.”
Lord Bihyeon spoke in a low voice from the doorway, leaning against it like he’d been there the whole time. His face, wearing a lazy smile, didn’t look irritated.
Beef….
It’s not like I’m really being swayed by beef.
But maybe I could just eat dinner and go?
“Then I’ll help with the dishes. I’m good at washing dishes.”
“That works.”
Maybe he noticed how apologetic I felt—because this time, he didn’t try to stop me. He just nodded.
“Where’s the mountain spirit?”
“They left. They said to tell you they’re looking forward to the walnut pie.”
“Oh, I should make it when I go to the café. But how big does it need to be…?”
“Make it while imagining a utility pole eating it.”
I knew they were about the size of a utility pole, but I didn’t expect him to use that as the example.
Blinking, I pictured feeding walnut pie to a utility pole, and it was funny enough that I laughed.
Lord Bihyeon quietly watched my face, then laughed—ha ha—and turned away as he left the room.
He’d changed clothes. Instead of a suit, he wore a fine hanbok.
I fixed the bedding, followed him out, and trailed after him, sticking close behind.
The bear, busy grilling beef and hustling around, spotted me and widened his eyes. The look said, Why are you still here?
“Uh, hello, Be— Lord Hyeonung. Good evening.”
“You’re not going home…? At this rate, Lord Bihyeon’s gonna scold you, you punk.”
He sidled up and whispered it, glancing around like he didn’t want to be overheard. It felt like he was worried about me.
“He told me to eat dinner together.”
“Huh? Then I gotta make a lot!”
At Lord Bihyeon’s low voice, the bear bared his teeth and laughed heartily, clearly in a great mood. He hurried back into the kitchen and started moving even faster, humming under his breath like he was thrilled.
I smiled along as I watched him, then walked over to Lord Bihyeon in the pavilion and sat beside him.
“By the way, Lord Bihyeon. Aren’t you going to work? It feels like you work day and night.”
Every time I saw him at the café, he’d been in a suit, so….
“Ah. I’m fine. It’s been a long time since I took a break.”
“But gods work too, then…?”
In the human world, too.
When I said it carefully, Lord Bihyeon laughed—ha ha.
“Yes. I have to earn money for this world’s currency to circulate. And it’s good to stay busy, too.”
So… this place’s money runs on human money?
And “it’s good to stay busy”…
That sounded just like me, and it left a bitter taste in my mouth.
Does he have circumstances too?
“That must be hard.”
I muttered it quietly, remembering how other customers had been afraid of him.
I didn’t know the details, but it felt like he was carrying everything alone… and like no one even realized.
It made me feel sorry for him for no reason.