TACBD 03

Chapter 03

Upon hearing that, the elder withdrew the honey-coated terms and raised a knife.

“But if you refuse, we will have no choice but to consider you derelict in your duty and deal with you here…”

“I-I’ll do it! Sorcerer!”

Of course, I had already made up my mind before the knife was even raised.

Come on, I can do this, sorcerer.

I don’t know what it’s about, and I know nothing, but if I use all my strength to not get caught, it’ll work. Then everything I want will be mine.

Of course, if I were a five-year-old baby crow, I’d be caught immediately—but luckily, the core is a twenty-eight-year-old adult woman. I have a good chance of not being discovered.

After all, I can’t die like this anyway, and I’ll be wandering around. What’s the harm in trying once?

“When should I go? Should I go now?”

“You are a very clever child, realizing your situation so quickly.”

The elder, wearing a satisfied smile, suddenly raised his hand.

“Do you have training?”

“Yes, Elder.”

‘Wow.’

The crow that had been flying to his left had, in an instant, become a woman with black hair and dark red eyes.

“You will teach this child the knowledge necessary before entering the Yin-Yang Hall.”

“I will follow your orders.”

It was the first time I saw the crow woman, and she looked surprisingly normal.

I was marveling at how she resembled me yet looked different when the elder’s voice came again.

“Child, though you are still young, you are a clever crow who knows discernment. It’s hard to believe you were considered outcast.”

My white eyes glittered with joy and an inexplicable gleam.

“Therefore, even as a crow, you will endure well. Isn’t that right?”

Huh? What do they expect from a child? If this were truly a five-year-old, she wouldn’t be able to do that.

Still, I answered with a bright smile.

“Yes!”

It’s certainly not something a child’s body could normally handle—but for me, it’s different. I’m not a perfect child.

‘From tomorrow, I can at least eat without being beaten on the streets. That alone makes things much better.’

So I could smile without worrying about the future. I couldn’t even imagine how many hardships awaited me.

I was grateful just to be able to consider how to live, not whether I would live or die. So, deliberately, I mimicked the younger children I had seen in orphanages and stuck out my tongue.

“Dohee is smart, so she can do it! She’ll do everything well!”

Wow, this is the first time I’ve been referred to in the third person—it feels strange. But oddly, the new name doesn’t feel awkward. Why does it feel so familiar?

While I was puzzled, a cold tone sounded.

“Hmm. But for a five-year-old, isn’t her speech a little too mature? I worry it may cause problems later.”

The elder tilted his head at my slightly lisping speech. I instinctively shrank, but thankfully, someone else answered for me again.

“She was an outcast crow from the start. Being from the streets, her development isn’t ideal.”

“Still, apart from her speech, she seems fine. Shouldn’t that be enough?”

“There’s no other choice anyway. She will manage.”

Good, I thought. I wish they’d speak up more in my favor.

I wanted to speak clearly and properly, but what could I do? My oral structure isn’t fully matured yet, so I can’t speak the way I want.

I focused on making my eyes as bright and lively as possible when the elder’s voice came again.

“Yes. She must succeed. Crows show no mercy to those who fail their mission.”

Eerie. Goosebumps ran down my arm as I scratched it subtly.

‘Telling a real child that just scares them, you old man.’

Maybe I misjudged things.

I hesitated at the seemingly threatening words. Should I bite my tongue and run? Or go back an hour earlier and avoid them entirely?

But after thinking it over multiple times, the conclusion remained the same.

“No. This is better.”

I’ll just follow along. Starving is scarier than dying from assassination. If I die, I can go back an hour and prepare.

Ongoing suffering—hunger—rather than a momentary pain. And if that’s being resolved, what’s there to fear? I’ve suffered too long to worry about this.

‘As long as I don’t starve, I can do anything.’

Dying from hunger is better than being beaten to death, and that’s better than assassination. So I decided to follow the destiny they laid out for me.

To avoid the constant hunger that awaited me.

Thus, the crow heir was reluctantly brought to the family estate. Though old, it was grand for a harsh mountain area. From a distance, it looked like an ordinary noble house.

Everything inside was tidy and shining, while I alone looked scruffy. Seeing the household members, who seemed unwilling to even touch me, made me shrink back.

‘Even among crows, not all eyes look the same.’

I lowered my aimless gaze to the floor, fiddling with my hands, when Suryeon glanced at me and handed something over.

Hesitantly accepting it, I noticed she curtly pointed to the end of the hallway.

“Go and wash. If you don’t want to be called a dirty crow.”

“Y-Yes.”

“You only need to answer once. The maids there will help you with washing, so ask them politely.”

“Y-Yes?”

The maids covering their noses and grimacing were shocked. Flailing their hands, they refused to wash me.

“Suryeon-nim! We work here for the elders and the head of the household, not for a tramp!”

“Exactly! Where did such a dirty child come from?”

“Hey, mind your words!”

“That child will surely have lice or fleas if you touch her!”

It’s a misunderstanding, ladies. I may look scruffy, but I’m not that dirty…

‘Even if I look dirty, there’s no lice or fleas.’

Having reincarnated from the modern world, I was always careful about hygiene.

No matter how hungry or cold, I always washed properly even in deserted streams or mountain valleys. Now I looked dirty just because I had been living rough.

“You lot have guts, daring to speak rudely to Dohee-nim! Shall I strike you to make you listen?”

“But…”

“Still—!”

Just as the atmosphere was about to get even worse, I shouted desperately toward Suryeon.

“I can do it myself!”

The bathing must absolutely be done alone.

‘If my identity is discovered while bathing, I’ll be kicked out.’

“Huh?”

Suryeon sighed, looking exasperated, but I forced myself to speak clearly.

From experience, I knew that speaking in a frightened, weak voice would only earn more resentment.

“Dohee wants to bathe alone.”

“How can Dohee-nim, smaller than a three-year-old, bathe alone?”

Suryeon, incredulous, snorted.

“I’m worried you might get hurt if you stubbornly insist, so just accept help.”

“No, really, I can do it. So, please don’t scold them…”

The maids who had just scolded me now looked at me in surprise. They were shocked that I was protecting the ones who had insulted me.

They might think, ‘Doesn’t this child have any respect?’ Of course, I wasn’t acting out of kindness. I just didn’t want to receive more hatred.

‘If they think I’ll be punished for them, they might harass me later. I’m not staying long anyway, so I’ll just keep quiet and go.’

I forced a bitter smile, took what Suryeon handed me, and said,

“Um… I’ll wash at the end. Dohee will go wash now.”

“Wait, Dohee-nim—”

Without letting Suryeon stop me, I ran to the end of the hallway. I had no one to tell my grievances to, so I wanted to wash away my sorrow with water.

‘Even here, I’m still the unwanted one.’

Still, at least I wouldn’t be beaten or chased away, so there was no need to feel too sad.

I comforted myself as I hurried toward the bathroom, ignoring Suryeon’s calls from behind.