chapter 41
41 – Crossing the Wall
1.
“Ugh.. damn it.”
Namgoong Sa-ya knelt down on one knee and groaned.
“……….”
I won. I climbed over one wall. Although I tried not to show it, I was secretly pleased.
Namgoong Sa-ya also accepted her unexpected defeat and giggled.
“I wonder how many admirable people have been eaten up like this. But…”
Namgoong Sa-ya threw her broken sword onto the ground and said.
“If there hadn’t been enough power to support that admiration, she couldn’t have defeated me.”
Yeong-ha received constant training from Jang Myeong-soon and gained experience fighting with Yacha and Mayak’s fingers.
It was a bonus that she practiced occasionally.
It was still difficult to fully handle lightning, but she felt she could definitely grow.
“Now I can give you the position of Gaju.”
“…..?”
Yeong-ha cut off Namgoong Sa-ya’s words to continue the story on her own.
“I have no intention of becoming Gaju.”
“……What?”
“I want to go on a trip.”
“Oh, this woman… she’s fallen for a man. There are lots of men like that in the world if you sit on the Gaju seat.”
Yeong-ha glared sharply at Namgoong Sa-ya.
“They probably look the same to those who cannot sincerely love like you.”
“Is the man you’re crazy about, Yu Ah-dok-jon’s grandson?”
Yeong-ha began to walk away without answering.
The elder tried to stop her.
“Where are you going?”
“I don’t think Namgoong Se-gae is the only place to wait for Eun-ho. I’m going to the Jungwon.”
“Just a minute…!”
Ignoring the elder’s words behind her, Yeong-ha left the mansion.
If she had been satisfied with staying in this place just because she crossed one wall, she wouldn’t have been a good match for Eun-ho.
Aiming for Eun-ho was something even bigger.
Thump!
Namgoong Sa-ya followed her out of the mansion by pushing the front door.
“…….?”
“What are you looking at? I have to go with you anyway.”
“Pardon?”
“To Jungwon. The war is about to break out soon. We must go there.”
“Originally, weren’t each clan and distinguished people supposed to fight in their respective regions?”
“I’m just going to the most suitable place for exterminating filthy witches.”
And so, the awkward journey of the two mother and daughter began.
2.
Ryu Cheon-hee skillfully started preparing the freshly caught fish.
Since there were many other fish caught besides Eun-ho’s, she increased her pace slightly.
Eun-ho waited for her cooking by the warm fire.
The caught fish included catfish and pond loach. They started cooking separately with the utensils available in the large house.
“A delicious smell. What are you cooking?”
“With the catfish, it’s going to be jeongjeongwi, and with the pond loach, I’ll make sui juwi. Do you enjoy spicy food?”
“Spicy food?”
Eun-ho’s eyes sparkled at the mention of spiciness. He hadn’t eaten much spicy food since his previous life. It was a natural result, being with his grandmother who only ate non-stimulating food.
Watching Eun-ho’s taste buds awaken again, Ryu Cheon-hee became enthusiastic.
Whoosh. The fire made an intriguing sound as it boiled the water.
Jeongjeongwi, a steamed dish using the pond loach, required putting the prepared meat in a steaming bowl for the role of the juwi (steamer). Salt, soy sauce, and sesame oil were added.
She used less seasoning than usual. Jeongjeongwi better suited the minimal seasoning, emphasizing the original taste of the meat.
On the other hand, Sui juwi, a dish made with pond loach, was stimulating.
Dried red pepper, a large amount of oil, and plenty of seasoning were used to create a visually appealing dish that would make one’s tongue tingle.
Chun-hee took a bite with the seasoning but didn’t feel the spiciness.
Spice is the pain felt by the tongue. The more powerful the Yacha becomes, the more it must consume venom to experience spiciness.
So, although there are some women who eat pufferfish raw. Ryu Cheon-hee didn’t particularly enjoy such extreme spiciness.
“Do you want to try it? It will confirm if the seasoning is right.”
“Yes!”
Eun-ho cooled down his mouth to prevent burning and fed her the seasoned sauce.
Eun-ho opened his eyes wide and started fanning his mouth.
Fluttering anxiously in shaking hands, they feel a sense of urgency.
“Hot…!”
“Should I make it less spicy?”
“No! It’s perfect!”
“hehehe. Alright. Drink some water here.”
Body immersed in slippery white rice and red seasoning, with freshwater fish placed on top mixed with soy sauce. Thinly sliced green onions and ginger are sprinkled on top.
“It’s done. Eat it deliciously.”
Eunho slowly moves his chopsticks. Since he can’t see, he seems to be especially cautious in his movements, as the food could fall.
Upon seeing this, Ryeocheonhui decides to take away the utensils and feed him.
“…I’m not a little kid, you know.”
“You’re younger than me.”
“Now that I think about it, how old is Cheonhui?”
“I… don’t ask about someone’s age.”
The first thing they eat is the stimulating Su-I-Juwi. Eunho hurriedly finds water and eats it.
It tastes good, but eating spicy food after a long time seems intolerable.
As a result, Eunho ends up eating a lot of rice automatically.
“Eat this~”
“…Ah…~”
When Eunho seems really overwhelmed by the spiciness, they switch to the steamed dish called Chingjeongwi.
The mellow taste of Chingjeongwi, which is not stimulating but mild, helps soothe his tongue.
“You’re good at cooking… Surprisingly.”
“It’s nice that you like it.”
Looking at Eunho gobbling down rice like a baby bird, Ryeocheonhui felt her heart warming up.
Just like this, let’s live while protecting Eunho.
Whether calamity occurs in the distance… or whatever happens, it’s enough to protect Eunho.
.
.
.
Having finished eating, Eunho yawns, suggesting going down to the village.
“To the village? Why go to the village?”
Ryu Cheon-hee didn’t like it very much.
Because she would be revealing Eun-ho’s existence to those unknown women.
“There are heavenly demons on the continent. But here, it is dominated by blood cults.”
Blood cult. Eun-ho’s shoulders trembled at those words.
“Rumors have spread, it seems. Their influence may be smaller than that of witches, but their actions are more vicious. They are insane women who cut off men’s genitals and carry them around their waists. There are rumors that they can put anything into their holes, and they even eat corpses.”
As she revealed each notorious aspect, Eun-ho’s shoulders gradually slumped.
Her heart weakened a little at the sight.
“Well… No way. Still, this place has the least influence from the blood cult. Outside their sphere of activity.”
Because it was near the place where Cheon-hee had lived before she knew Eun-ho had been alive three months ago.
And since her colleagues were there as well, even the blood cult couldn’t find its way there.
Well, unless a blood witch herself came out, Cheon-hee was strong enough to ignore the lower-ranking minions.
Moreover, unlike heavenly demons, she was genuinely confident that she would win if she fought against a blood witch.
“Absolutely not. Why did you want to go down there in the first place?”
“Well… I’m curious about the atmosphere of the village. And I want to gather some information about the blood cult…”
Cheon-hee narrowed her eyes.
“Eun-ho, were you not following me because you wanted to escape?”
“Um… Half and half? I agree with escaping, but if the blood witch absorbs the corpse of the Black Dragon Emperor known by the heavenly demon and the blood witch… it will endanger the whole continent, not just Jungwon.”
“I brought you here so that you wouldn’t be in danger. So don’t get involved with the blood cult or the witches. I’ll take care of it.”
“Okay.”
Seeing Eun-ho’s slumped shoulders, Cheon-hee couldn’t help but say slyly,
“Cover your face and wrap yourself tightly, and I’ll let you take a tour around the village.”
“Really?”
“You probably won’t like the clothes, though.”
….
….
….
“Oh….”
“How is it?”
When Eun-ho touched the clothes and confirmed their shape, his expression became gloomy.
It was an outfit suitable for a woman to wear when she covered her face while going out in historical period dramas from the modern world.
“…………”
“If you wear that, I’ll kick you out.”
“… Got it.”
“Really?”
Cheonhee said it but was surprised. Eunho disliked clothes that showed “masculinity,” so he preferred comfortable clothing no matter who was beside him. However, that outfit… Is he really going to wear it, even though it’s clothing that male VIPs would frequently wear?
“… Changpao… I hate it, but…”
“What’s the reason he’s so obsessed with this village?”
“…Well. Who do you think he’ll kill first when the Heavenly Demon gains power?”
“What…?”
Ryu Cheonhee thought carefully, and surprisingly, the answer came out quickly.
“Oh…”
“Our grandmother. The only one who can stand up against him. No one else besides her.”
“So?”
“Because I’m the only one who can give Eunho a means to help the Heavenly Demon. It’s good to evacuate, but I don’t want to do nothing, even though our grandmother could die.”
With that word, Ryu Cheonhee saw something she hadn’t seen before.
“Not only is it our grandmother, it’s Yeonha, Yahwa, Arin, and many other people. I don’t want to let them die in vain. Although we came here to take refuge, at least I want to do what I can.”
What Ryu Cheonhee lacked was family.
That’s why she didn’t understand the meaning of separating Eunho from her family, from Mooyongse’s members who were always only named family, not people with true families like him.
“……….”
Be strong, Ryu Cheonhee. You know that this is the way to save Eunho.
Is it really true?
Did she bring him just because she wanted to monopolize Eunho?
“Cheonhee!”
“Yeah
Although he could press his injured leg, it was still a tough mountain path for the first time without Cheon-hee’s help.
“Sure. Let’s go, it’s not that far.”
Still…he didn’t know yet. Cheon-hee just wanted to be with Eun-ho a little longer.
“Just a moment. I’ll change my clothes.”
Eun-ho went inside the room and there was a rustling sound. It was the sound of flesh and fabric brushing against each other.
“How does it look? Does it fit me well?”
“Stunning. So much that you don’t want to show it.”
“Huh? Did I wear this to hide something?”
In fact, sometimes covering up makes things more fascinating.
It was an outfit designed to minimize the area of the exposed skin in front of the window and cover the face with a hat and cloth.
“I wonder if we can go down to the village with this on.”
It might grab even more attention…
Cheon-hee’s possessiveness toward Eun-ho grew stronger.