IH Ch 136

Chapter 136

Rubbing his face lightly against Dohwa’s thigh, Jae-i muttered quietly,

“Everyone’s weird.”

“They just like you, Jae-i.”

“……”

“They trust you because you’re a good person and a great guildmaster.”

Jae-i silently shifted, turning on his side and pressing his face deeper into Dohwa’s thigh.

Being told someone liked him… In the past, he would have let such words pass straight through one ear and out the other. He never cared about the emotions of others, and being liked had always felt uncomfortable—an unwanted imposition. He didn’t want feelings he never asked for pushed onto him. Looking back now, he wasn’t sure why he’d gone that far.

Then Dohwa gently touched his head. Feeling that hand stroke his hair, Jae-i slowly closed his eyes. He had been trying to search far away for the reason he was able to change—yet it had been right here all along.

Holding Dohwa’s small knee—which fit easily into one hand—Jae-i opened his mouth. He barely got as far as “Do—” before something abruptly stepped on his head.

“…….”

A beat later came the startled, sharp intake of breath—“Hhk!”—but Jae-i only tightened his closed eyes before slowly lifting his head.

There stood the beast, one arm slung over Dohwa’s shoulder as if it had been there the whole time. Dohwa quickly grabbed its short legs.

“You can’t put your foot on Jae-i’s head.”

Even after Dohwa’s warning, the beast didn’t move its foot. Instead, it pressed down harder and held out its other hand—tiny and adorable, opening and closing like it wanted something.

“Tha—”

“……”

“Thah!”

Tha… what?

But Jae-i had a very clear idea what the creature wanted. Grinding his teeth, he shot to his feet.

Grabbing the beast by the ankle, he lifted its dangling body with one hand. Dohwa panicked, quickly trying to stop him, telling him not to be rough—yet even while hanging upside down, the beast kept stretching its little hand toward Jae-i, chanting thah, thah.

It was a complete mess.

Where the village hall once stood was now an empty lot. The original building had been blown up by a hunter sent by Chairman Jang. After clearing the area to rebuild, villagers had laid wide wooden platforms and set up netting over them. Piled atop the platforms were dishes fit for a holiday feast. In one corner of the vacant lot, the villagers continued cooking.

It looked almost like a festival—full of lively chatter and warmth as everyone busied themselves helping one another. Moving about nonstop among them was the youth association leader, Lee Kwon-su. Children who had stayed up late came laughing, running past him in a crowd.

“Hey, there’s fire here. It’s dangerous—go wait at your uncle’s house—”

“Oh, let them be. All the adults are out here tonight; of course the kids want to join.”

“……True.”

Mumbling, Kwon-su lifted his eyes to the night sky.

In all the time he’d lived in this village, he’d never seen so many people outside this late. Usually, once the sun went down, everyone rushed home to lock their doors. The villagers took shifts—armed and patrolling through the night.

But tonight, there was no need.

Looking back, he saw the towering building standing close by. When it first appeared, it had seemed surreal. Now, he was getting used to the sight. And even if he had adapted, the excitement still bubbled beneath the surface.

He approached the elders cooking by the fire.

“Um… about the Jae-i Guild. How long do you think they’ll stay here?”

“As long as they stay. Who knows?”

“……It’d be hard for them to… stay permanently, right?”

The elder didn’t answer at first—just sent him a sharp glare. Startled, Kwon-su bit his lip. The elder clicked his tongue.

“Those people live in a different world. They came here because they needed to. Once everything’s sorted out, they could leave tomorrow if they wanted. And if you make it obvious you want them to stay, that’ll only cause trouble.”

“……Yes. I know. I’ll be careful not to say anything unnecessary.”

It wasn’t purely good fortune that the entire Jae-i Guild had come here. But that massive building—something previously seen only on television—was reassuring just by existing. They had once needed multiple locks on their doors each night just to feel safe. Now, it felt like they could sleep with their doors wide open.

But he knew such days wouldn’t last long.

Whatever happened, he wanted the guild to stay here peacefully for however long they needed—and return only after their complicated situation was resolved. Until then, he hoped both sides could coexist without discomfort.

He was thinking that when commotion stirred outside. He didn’t even need to step out to guess what it was. Adjusting his cap, Kwon-su took a deep breath.

Before relocating the guild base, representatives of the village had been consulted. It was because of that prior agreement that such a move was possible at all. Still, dropping a massive building into the village landscape and pretending not to notice each other was impossible. No one knew how long the guild would remain, but at the very least, greetings had to be exchanged.

So Guildmaster Hwang Jae-i, along with several guild members and staff, headed together to formally introduce themselves, reassure the villagers, and express that they would do their best not to cause any trouble while staying.

But somehow… it had turned into a village feast.

The mistake—if it could be called that—was taking lightly the village’s elderly kalguksu-shop owner when she said, “Stay for at least a meal.”

“Here, eat as much as you want. I’ll bring more if it’s not enough.”

“……”

Set before them was an enormous mound of rice. The plates were stacked high with various seafood and fish dishes—expected for a seaside village—but the highlight was the heaping bowl of spicy beef soup.

Jae-i wasn’t sure whether to call it soup or meat with soup added. After staring at the pile of ingredients, he lifted his head.

Even with her hair completely white, the kalguksu-shop owner, Soon-im, stood sharp and sturdy as ever.

“What.”

“……I’ll eat well.”

Protesting the quantity would be pointless. The last time he and Dohwa visited, he had been forced to finish both bibimbap and banquet noodles she prepared. Today would be no different.

So he bowed his head. Sitting beside him, Dohwa followed with his own polite bow.

“Thank you for making so much delicious food. We’ll enjoy it.”

Soon-im looked between the two, slapped her hand lightly on her lower back, and left the room.

Food was still being cooked nonstop at the old community hall site. While villagers and some guild members ate together at the outdoor platforms, Jae-i and Dohwa were guided to the youth leader’s home—likely because they attracted too much attention, and the villagers wanted them to eat comfortably indoors.

Having been here once before, the place felt familiar. As Jae-i surveyed the lived-in room, he felt warmth brush his arm—Dohwa had scooted close as soon as they were alone.

“There’s so much food. Are we supposed to finish all this?”

“We’ll leave some. How could we possibly finish it all?”

Just eating the rice and soup alone would burst their stomachs. Jae-i placed small portions of each dish onto Dohwa’s side plate. Seeing it fill up quickly, Dohwa looked at him. Even taking only a single bite of everything filled an entire plate. And yet, there was more he couldn’t fit.

As Jae-i hesitated, trying to figure out how to serve the rest to him, Dohwa leaned gently against his arm.

“……Are you tired?”

“No.”

Rubbing his head against Jae-i’s arm a couple of times, Dohwa finally pulled away and picked up his spoon.

“Let’s eat.”

Taking a big spoonful of the spicy beef soup, his eyes widened.

“It’s spicy and really good.”

Hearing that, Jae-i took a sip himself. Indeed—it had a sharp kick, but it wasn’t overwhelming. The depth was satisfying. He took another spoonful.

Overwhelmed at first by the sheer quantity, he eventually found himself focusing solely on the taste.

When they were about halfway full, another elder appeared.

“You’re not short on anything, right? Try this too.”

He placed a hefty platter of pan-fried beef right on top of the already overflowing table. Pulling over a plate of scallions, he said they should wrap it and try it, then walked out—only to pause and turn back, staring hard at the two of them.

Why did he stop to stare? Jae-i swallowed his bite and was just about to ask when—

“Make sure you finish everything out there today. You’re both so skinny—nothing but bones.”

Clicking his tongue disapprovingly, the elder left.

Dohwa turned to look at Jae-i.