23
Like Family
“Kid! Are you really okay?”
“When I heard you collapsed, Seol, I was so surprised.”
As soon as dawn broke, the room became noisy with Jangryu and Chaechae’s voices.
“The Young Master has ordered you to put aside all work today and focus on recovering.”
This was possible because Oh Haeng, the Young Master's aide and an elder of the Demonic Cult, had exempted her from work for the day.
‘Seriously, me, mistaking an elder of the Demonic Cult for a powerless old man being exploited for labor….’
It’s practically the same as saying I’d report the Demonic Cult’s dirty dealings to a Demonic Cult authority figure.
Thankfully, Oh Haeng didn’t particularly take issue with my words and actions that day.
‘If it had reached the Young Master's ears, I'd have been beheaded already….’
Judging by the lack of reaction, it seems Oh Haeng didn’t tell him separately.
‘Oh Haeng is an elder of the Demonic Cult, but… maybe he's not such a bad guy after all?’
His gentle impression and kind tone somehow feel nostalgic.
“Why aren’t you saying anything? Did you lose your voice or something?”
Chaechae, unable to tolerate my brief moment of being lost in thought, shook me by the shoulders with a serious face.
“Ugh, dizzy! Don’t shake me! My head hurts!”
“Stop it, Chaechae! Seol is sick. Shaking her like that could strain her!”
Jangryu stopped Chaechae as I staggered, feeling my vision spin.
“Human, are those guys enemies? Or allies?”
At that moment, Geum Seonyeonhwa, who naturally supported my staggering body, glared sharply at Jangryu and Chaechae.
“Allies. So, could you not glare like you’re about to kill them? You don’t even have the strength to make someone a cripple anymore, right?”
“Th-that’s right.”
Geum Seonyeonhwa’s voice sounded displeased as he answered.
‘He must be feeling complicated. Losing his divine power overnight.’
“Okay, tell me. What do you want me to help you with?”
“Protect me.”
“……”
“You.”
It must have taken great courage for Geum Seonyeonhwa, a spirit being, to ask me to protect him.
“Okay, fine. I’ll protect you as much as I can.”
That’s why I couldn’t refuse Geum Seonyeonhwa’s request.
“But to survive in the Demonic Cult, you have to do as I say. Can you do that?”
“Well, fine. Since you're going to protect me, I will deign to follow your lead.”
‘I’ve set those conditions for now, but there are so many things to be careful about, aren’t there?’
I decided to teach Geum Seonyeonhwa one thing at a time, step by step.
“Yeonhwa, first of all, it’s better not to use the term ‘human.’ We can’t let them find out you’re a spirit being, so let’s just call each other normally.”
“To not call a human a human…”
When I gave a look to Geum Seonyeonhwa, who was making an unfair expression, he obediently backed down.
“Then what should I call you?”
“By name.”
Geum Seonyeonhwa tilted his head at my words.
‘Ah, come to think of it, I was so preoccupied that I haven’t told Geum Seonyeonhwa my name.’
“My name is Seol. Let’s keep your name as Yeonhwa, like I called you before. Is that okay?”
“Seol, huh…”
Geum Seonyeonhwa quietly recited my name and nodded instead of answering.
“I was just worried about Seol and wanted to check if her voice was working! Jangryu, I hate you!”
“No, this won’t do. You need to stay away from Seol.”
Even after finishing my conversation with Geum Seonyeonhwa, Jangryu and Chaechae were still bickering.
“Brother Jangryu, I’m okay, so you can stop. Brother Chaechae was just worried about me too, right?”
“As expected, only Seol understands my heart!”
As soon as I finished speaking, Chaechae broke free from Jangryu, who was holding him back, and sat down closely beside me.
“Who’s the older brother and who’s the younger sibling… Really.”
Jangryu sighed deeply, as if troubled by Chaechae acting like a child.
‘Well, technically, I'm nine years older than them, so it's fine.’
Rather than being quiet, I felt more comfortable with things being noisy like this.
“But who is this guy? I haven’t seen him in the Demonic Cult before.”
‘I thought we'd gotten away with it...’
Chaechae asked about Geum Seonyeonhwa, who was supporting me.
“Well… he’s my cousin on my mother's side, Yeonhwa.”
I hastily fabricated Geum Seonyeonhwa’s identity as it came to mind.
“I see, Seol’s cousin.”
Chaechae carefully examined Geum Seonyeonhwa with wary eyes.
“But…”
Chaechae’s gaze, which had been intently observing Geum Seonyeonhwa, suddenly sharpened.
“You two are cousins, but you don’t look alike at all?”
‘Ah, I forgot.’
Geum Seonyeonhwa’s unnecessarily flashy and beautiful appearance!
There was no way I, a human, could match the beauty of a spirit being.
‘Chaechae, he’s got a surprisingly sharp side to him, doesn’t he?’
But I couldn’t let Geum Seonyeonhwa’s identity be exposed!
“Th-that’s… because he’s a cousin from my mother’s side.”
At my words, Chaechae stared at Geum Seonyeonhwa suspiciously for a while, then suddenly clapped his hands together.
‘Did he realize something?’
It was then, as I was getting nervous.
“I see. If he’s a cousin from your mother’s side, you might not look alike. If he’s Seol’s cousin, that makes him like family to me too, so let’s get along in the future.”
The ever-gullible Chaechae seemed to have resolved his curiosity and approached Geum Seonyeonhwa in a friendly manner.
“I am not family with—!”
“Yeonhwa must like you too much. He's just being prickly because he's shy.”
I forcefully muffled Geum Seonyeonhwa’s mouth, who seemed about to retort, displeased with being associated with humans, and smoothed over the situation.
“It seems louder than usual outside. What’s going on?”
“Ah, that!”
‘Smooth.’
I smoothly changed the subject and breathed a sigh of relief.
Geum Seonyeonhwa, looking displeased, resentfully pulled off my hand that was covering his mouth.
‘That guy, he’s sulking.’
But now is not the time to be worrying about Geum Seonyeonhwa’s mood.
‘This building is where only the Young Master and I are staying. But I heard groups of five or six people passing through the hallway last night.’
It must be that those who move secretly in the Demonic Cult have something to report to the Young Master.
Judging by Chaechae’s reaction, he seemed to know about what was happening outside.
“The First Disciple has returned. The First Disciple is really bad with directions, so he periodically gets lost. He disappeared for a few days this time too, and then showed up.”
‘Chaechae's 'First Disciple' is Bi-Wang!’
Listening to Chaechae’s words, it seemed that Bi-Wang was hiding his identity by using the excuse of getting lost because he periodically disappears for Threefold Squad activities.
‘The reason is too flimsy… He should come up with a more plausible reason. Well, anyway, Bi-Wang coming back means the investigation into my claims is over, right?’
I'm finally free from being the Young Master's attendant!
I was secretly smiling at the rising joy when someone’s shadow fell over the paper door.
* * *
“Everyone, step back.”
The one who came to the room was the Young Master.
‘The time has come!’
“Except for Seol, the others follow me out.”
Oh Haeng took Chaechae and Jangryu and went outside.
Even though he clearly knew what 'go out' meant, Geum Seonyeonhwa stubbornly stayed by my side.
“Could you allow Yeonhwa to stay here as he is my family?”
“Family?”
At the word ‘family,’ the Young Master frowned and asked back.
“Yes, he’s a cousin from my mother’s side.”
“Even if he’s from your mother’s side, you don’t look alike at all.”
‘I know that too, okay?’
“He’s a distant cousin from my mother’s side.”
The Young Master's face became even more displeased, but unable to find another reason to drive him out, he turned his gaze from Geum Seonyeonhwa to me.
“Tell me what you want.”
‘Saying ‘tell me what you want’ means what I said was all correct, right?’
I don’t particularly like the Young Master, but I did like that he got straight to the point without an introduction.
“First, to see the future, I need to go to a sacred place every six days and pray for a week. If I become impure, the future might not be seen clearly, so please don’t follow me.”
“I won’t.”
‘I was sure he wouldn’t readily agree because he suspected me of being a spy… To agree so readily like this?’
“Next?”
While I was still feeling bewildered, the Young Master immediately asked about the next condition.
“Officially recognizing me as a member of the Threefold Squad is something you promised in advance, Young Master, so there’s nothing to say separately…”
I turned to look at Geum Seonyeonhwa.
“Please accept our Yeonhwa as a member of the Demonic Cult.”
“Did I not say that the Demonic Cult does not accept those without assigned duties?”
Without explicitly saying it, the Young Master was rejecting Geum Seonyeonhwa with his whole body.
“I understand you already know. Yeonhwa is the only one who can heal my body. I can’t see the future if my body isn’t in good condition, can I?”
“Fine. I'll accept those conditions, but no more.”
The Young Master, reluctantly allowing Geum Seonyeonhwa into the Demonic Cult, seemed to have no intention of yielding any further.
“Now, I will state my conditions.”
“Yes?”
“Since I'm inducting you into the Threefold Squad despite not knowing if you're a spy, it's only fair that I set some conditions, too.”
‘I knew he was being too agreeable.’
But I’ve already gotten what I wanted.
Granting one thing the Young Master wants isn’t difficult.
“Yes, please speak.”
“Threefold Squad members must not let their identities leak to the outside. Therefore, like Bi-Wang, you will live under a false identity.”
Since it was already something I knew, I nodded without resistance.
“You.”
Looking at me like that, the Young Master’s red lips curved up in an attractive semicircle.
“You will be my attendant. And stay within my sight.”
