Chapter 70 – The Girl Looking for Them. The Girl Who Came to Visit Her – 2

After a planned event was unexpectedly cancelled, it took a long time for me to relax. Of course, it was only a fleeting moment, but the fact that she had time to rest for a while lightened her heart. I let out a pleasant breath, not even knowing where I was walking.

“Ha…”

In autumn, just looking at the scenery passing by made me smile. High sky. Cool wind blowing. Yellow rice fields and people sweating on them. It may be a scene of everyday life that is not really a big deal to someone, but it felt very special to me.

In the end, do people realize the value of something only when they are deprived of it? It was only after the peace that I was familiar with like breathing was broken that I realized its value.

Of course, that doesn’t mean you have to take something away to realize its value.

“Ah… I’m tired of this…”

As I passed the landscape where people lived and walked through the green forest, my limbs screamed and demanded rest. Since I am a weak-willed person, I nodded obediently to the request of my instincts and lay down in front of a large rock. A shiver ran down my back as the cold rock touched my skin.

“Ahhhhh.

I set down the backpack on my back and threw my arms and legs at random. The warm sunlight shone through the leaves that were entwined with each other and waving their hands toward the sky, and the fragrant smell of soil rose up.

“Ugh…Good…Ugh…!”

As I was shaking my legs meaninglessly, I accidentally hit my backpack. Then, the backpack that had been standing precariously lost its balance and collapsed, and trifles poured out through the open opening.

“Oh, my God.”

I hurriedly ran and put the spilled items into my backpack. While I was putting in a wad of paper, a writing instrument, a small dagger, and a broken arrowhead, an object suddenly caught my attention. In an instant, the fragrant earthy smell disappeared, and the smell of blood mingled in the air.

“…”

Thoughts came to my mind for a moment, but I shook my head to shake them off. Then, he picked up the severed finger that had fallen on the ground and put it in his bag. If Bobby was alive, there would have been two. With that thought in mind, it was time to set up my backpack again.

“Uh.”

“Huh?”

Suddenly, I heard the voice of a child, and when I looked up, the bushes moved with the sound of pattering. What if you see a severed finger? I was restless and cautiously opened my mouth.

“Hey, who’s there?”

“…!”

I heard the sound of cute footsteps again, and this time the tree in front of me swayed slightly. I smiled again and cautiously stood up.

“I’m not that weird…”

“Don’t move!”

The child screamed loudly, and I raised my hand and stood there.

“If you move any further, I won’t let you go!”

“Ah…Yes. Sorry. I won’t move.”

“Reveal your identity!”

“Me? I’m…Just a normal guy passing by. Who are you?”

“Ask your questions here!”

“Yes. I understand.”

I raised my hand even more and made a solemn expression. Then the child shouted in a more confident tone.

“Okay! I’m leaving then, keep your hands up!”

“Yes I will.”

“Don’t do anything weird!”

“Yes.”

It was only then that the bush swayed wildly, and the arms and legs that had been hiding behind the trees popped out. It must have been difficult for her to get through the long bush with her small body. The way she struggled was so cute that I had to try desperately to hold back a laugh.

“Ugh… Ugh…”

“Kheup…”

“Evil!”

After wrestling with the bush for a long time, the child eventually got out of it and fell to the ground at the same time. Seeing his black hair falling apart over his petite body, I put my hand down in worry and ran away.

“Ah… Are you okay?”

“Profit…Profit…”

The child, lying face down on the floor, swallowed his anger by himself, instead of crying, as if the embarrassment was greater than the pain. I don’t know which family she is from, but the girl is very brave. While I was alone with that thought, I patted the child on the back.

“Can it happen?”

“I can do that much alone!”

A thumping sound was heard again. Her ears were on the verge of falling off, but she was a little relieved by her energetic appearance. I replied with a soft smile.

“Okay. Okay, now get up…”

But that smile quickly faded the moment she met her child’s face. I opened my mouth in a daze, forgetting that I should have a serious expression on my face.

“Have you seen it? You can do it… What is it? What’s wrong…?”

The child, who stood up with a confident expression, looked at my embarrassed face and asked in a slightly worried tone. Kindness melted into a personality as bright as sunlight reminded me of a girl. I then shook my head and gave her a fake smile.

“Huh? Ah…No. Are you hurt?”

“I’m not hurt. It’s nothing like this.”

“That’s right. You’re so brave.”

“Of course. Who am I?”

The child twitched the corners of her mouth and smiled, as if she liked being praised even as she confidently struck back. Looking at her pure face, I felt a little at ease.

And at the same time, she shuddered to see the child’s face so much like him.

I forgot. Fate is like a mischievous child, sometimes playing pranks you can never laugh at. I went around all of Beimletter, Erendel, and Myler, but I deliberately avoided Lorenheim. It was foolish. Come to think of it, there’s no way he’d still be living in his hometown after all that happened.

The possibility of a chance encounter like this should never have been ruled out.

“So? Who is Unni? Who came to this deep forest?”

The child was talking to me in a friendly way before I knew it. Does her affable personality resemble her mother’s? Her face resembles him and her personality resembles her. If it had been the opposite, I wouldn’t have been so upset.

“Then why did you come all the way here?”

“Because he lives here. By the way, don’t stay here for too long. Dad doesn’t like it when other people come here. He’s very strong, so it’s going to be scary.”

“…As always.”

Without realizing it, I smiled and threw a word. The child then opened her eyes wide and looked up at me.

“Huh? Unnie, do you know my dad?”

Did you make a mistake If you think about it, it was right to leave this place right now. At this rate, there was a high possibility that he would come looking for the child, and it was not yet time to meet him.

But it was not easy to pass by this child with his face and talking like that girl. Even if his body refused, his heart flirted with him saying let’s talk a little bit. I finally sat down on the spot and gestured to the child.

“Sure. We knew each other a long time ago. Shall we come over and talk to you for a minute?”

“Dad doesn’t have any friends.”

The child hesitated, but he carefully sat down next to me as if he was a little curious. I barely suppressed the urge to stroke the child’s head and opened his mouth.

“We’re not friends. We just knew each other. We met a long time ago and worked together.”

“With my dad? I’ve never heard of that.”

“I bet you didn’t tell me. You and your mother know that well. Does she still smell like mint flowers from you?”

“Uh, how did you know? Do you really know my mom and dad?”

“You really didn’t believe me?”

It’s like being frighteningly cautious. The child then clung excitedly and raised his voice.

“Since when did you know her? What did you and Dad do? But why hasn’t she been in touch? What is she and her sister?”

“Wait…So many questions…”

“Can I ask Daddy about her sister? How did you know her in the first place? Who the hell is Kate? How does she know Mommy again?”

“Ahaha…”

Amidst the flood of questions pouring in, I burst out laughing. Even then, I got a lot of questions. In the end, there wasn’t much of a good answer.

I still have to do that, though.

“Um… I can’t answer all of them, I’ll answer just one. How is it?”

“Oh why! Please!”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think it will work. I have to find a place to stay before sunset.”

“You can sleep over at my house! I heard that you and Dad and Mom both know each other!”

“That’s not allowed.”

“Why?”

The child met her eyes brightly. Like a dark night, I could feel his gaze in the black eyes without mercy. In an instant, I felt as if my whole body was stained with guilt.

“I did a lot of wrong to your dad in the past.”

I finally looked away and dropped a word heavily. The past that I couldn’t forget gnawed at my head like a curse that I couldn’t shake off.

“So I can’t go back until I’m forgiven.”

“Can’t we just go and say sorry?”

“That alone is not enough. That alone…”

Involuntarily, I looked down at my hands. The empty palms were full of new scars from before.

“I can’t see you…Until I’m done.”

“What is it?”

“I can’t tell you that much.”

What am I talking to my child right now? I tried to get my smile back and turned my head again.

“So can you ask just one question? You don’t have much time.”

“Is it so…”

The child hesitated for a moment and pursed his lips. I was slightly nervous about what questions would come out of those little lips.

“Then I’ll ask you later.”

“Huh?”

However, the child jumped up from his seat saying a completely unexpected story. Then he said with a big smile.

“You’ll come back when you finish your work anyway, right? Then I’ll ask you as much as I want then. Isn’t that better for you too?”

“But… Aren’t you curious?”

“Of course I’m curious. But it’s okay because we’ll meet again. Just wait a bit.”

Then, he held out a small hand to me. If you pull on it with a little force, it will fall again. He was holding out his hand to support a body twice his size.

“I don’t know when it might come?”

“You’ll come someday, right?”

“…”

“Then it’s fine.”

The child’s hand was still shaking in front of my nose. Like the white flower that briefly blooms in summer and then lowers its head in anticipation of the following year, she stretched out towards me, exuding a weak but clear will.

“Haha…”

Suddenly, a dejected laugh broke out. Even though I had the power to manipulate time, I always lived in pursuit of time. How do you say the word “Waiting” So easily?

And how can you put your sincerity in it.

Maybe I met this fate because I didn’t understand that.

“Yes. Then.”

I finally nodded her head and took her hand. An unexpectedly strong force pulled me and I easily stood up from my seat.

“Then hurry up, sister. I’ll be waiting for you.”

“Yes. All right. Will you be here until then?”

“Since I waited for you, you should come to find me on your own. Isn’t it natural?”

“It’s not like that.”

Okay. Of course I’ll have to find out. Maybe it won’t take too long. The man’s location has already been identified to some extent, and the only thing left is to face him. If you’re lucky and things turn out well, then…

…

I will have to come to pay off the debt.

“I’ll go. Can you stop talking about meeting me today?”

“Don’t worry. I know that much.”

“Thank you. Uh…”

While I was about to say thank you and turn around, one fact suddenly caught my heart. Maybe he should have asked in the first place. It was only belatedly that I opened my mouth and scratched my head.

“Hey, but what’s your name?”

“What about your sister?”

“Um… I’ll answer you if you tell me first. What’s your name?”

The child then crossed her arms and lifted her chin.

“Huh. The suspicious person is the older sister, so it’s duty to reveal her name first. And I asked her identity first.”

“Ohh. That’s how you’ll come out. But since I’m an elder, I think it’s polite for you to answer first, right?”

“I don’t know about that. So, sister, tell me first.”

Who does this resemble so stubborn? Maybe it’s both Those two are the most stubborn people I know.

“Okay. Then let’s talk at the same time. Is that okay?”

I eventually took a step back and came up with a compromise. The child thought for a moment, then nodded her head.

“Okay. Then we’re talking at the same time.”

“Yes. Are you talking about one, two, three?”

I lowered her head to bring her to eye level with the child. Somehow, the faint scent of mint seemed to flow into my nose. We looked at each other’s mouths and opened our mouths at the same time.

“One.”

“Two.”

Three.