~Chapter 08~
. In Search of a Wet Nurse (1)
Gangseo’s Heungguk.
If you head a little further north from there, the southern entrance of Baegunsan reveals itself.
Of course, to call it a “southern entrance” is an exaggeration—Baegunsan is vast, and there are countless trails that climb from the south.
At the entrance of the broadest trail, the one most commonly taken, a man and a woman stood restlessly, glancing around.
Whooooosh—
“Excuse me.”
The woman spoke, her tone edged with annoyance. The rough mountain wind kept undoing the hair she had taken such care to style, further souring her mood.
“How long exactly are we supposed to wait? You said just a little while, but it feels like ages already.”
“I don’t know either.”
The middle-aged man in black, who had brought her here, replied curtly to her complaints.
“I was only told someone would come to pick us up if we waited here.”
“What? That’s how you handle things? Really?”
His half-hearted answer set her temper flaring.
“You’re the one who insisted there was some good job lined up, and now you waste my time like this with no guarantee? I even have to meet someone from Ui-hyeong Manor later this eve—”
“Hey.”
The man’s brow twitched. His cold voice cut through her words like a knife.
“If you want to walk away from this in one piece, stop yapping. You think I’m here to entertain your whining?”
“What—what’s that supposed to mean? First you come begging because you need me and now—”
“Yes, we need you. Out of all the women in debt to our Baek-in Society, you’re the only one who’s worked raising a child in a prestigious family. But…”
He took a step closer, curling one corner of his mouth into a mocking smile.
“…to us, you’re still nothing but a debtor. What, you want to start paying back your interest right here with your body? Hm?”
“I—I get it. I’ll just wait quietly, alright? Quietly.”
Cowardice instantly replaced her bravado.
When they offered to introduce her to work in exchange for writing off some of her debt, she thought she could push back a little, maybe even get the principal canceled if they were desperate enough.
Well… at least the interest is gone. Could be worse.
So she adjusted her thinking and waited. But then the man from the Baek-in Society grew restless instead.
“This is ridiculous… Still no sign of them?”
“…”
“Damn it, I’m done waiting. We’re leaving.”
“Wha—? What do you mean?”
“I said we’re leaving. Even if the Lord himself gave the order, there’s a limit. I won’t sit here all day with no end in sight.”
“Then… then what about my interest?”
“You think I care about that right now? Hell no. Whoever set up this farce of a request—I’ll deal with them personally if I find out.”
“Ah…”
“What are you standing there for? Move!”
His voice sharp and rising, he began striding off. The woman only pointed weakly at something ahead.
“Um… but over there…”
“Hm? What is—”
Thud.
“What the—!”
He stumbled to a halt, bumping into something. Looking up, he found himself facing a hulking brute, built like a bandit chief, glaring down at him with fierce eyes.
“Who… are you?”
“Who am I?”
“Don’t tell me… you’re the client?”
Whether the man raised his tone from professionalism or pure survival instinct, no one could say. But the giant gave a slow nod.
“You from the Baek-in Society?”
“Y-yes…”
“Yes?”
“Ahem… Client or not, isn’t this too much? You don’t even give us a clear time or place, and just leave us here?”
Normally, he would have barked at the man, but the sheer pressure radiating from this brute, and the instinct screaming do not cross him, made him tread carefully. Still, for the Baek-in Society’s pride, he had to at least lodge a protest.
“You tell us to wait, but you weren’t even here first. Shouldn’t the client arrive early?”
“…Hah. This one’s got some nerve.”
The brute—Gwangpae—twisted his head with disbelief, then looked him square in the eye.
“Your boss didn’t tell you anything?”
“Tell me what?”
“Nothing at all? Hmph. Guess he knows when to keep his mouth shut.”
Amused, Gwangpae lifted a massive hand and clapped the man’s shoulder.
“Good work. For your boss’s sake, I’ll let this one slide.”
“Wh-what?”
“Now go.”
Without another word, he turned his back and strode toward the woman.
Only then did the man realize he’d just been dismissed outright. His face twisted with anger as he lunged forward and grabbed Gwangpae’s shoulder.
“Hey! You think you can just ignore—”
BOOM!
Whuuuump—
Crash, crash, crash!
“…Guhhh.”
In the blink of an eye, Gwangpae’s fist sent him flying, landing sprawled out, staring blankly at the sky, jaw slack.
“…Tch. Reflex, damn it.”
The man had grabbed his shoulder so suddenly that Gwangpae’s body reacted before he thought. At least he hadn’t put much strength in it—the fool was still alive.
“You there.”
“M-me?!”
“Let’s go. And when we come back down, pick that thing up on your way.”
“That… thing? You mean—Waaah!”
Before she could make sense of his words, he hoisted her over his shoulder like a sack of rice. She shrieked, but before the sound had even ended, his form blurred into the mountains with the speed of the wind.
“Uurrghhh! Uuueeeghh!”
“For crying out loud, are you done vomiting yet? Are you going to see the baby or not?”
The moment they arrived at the manor, the woman emptied her stomach. Even when there was nothing left, the dry heaving didn’t stop. Tears and snot streamed down her ruined face, her carefully set hair now a wild mess.
Gwangpae clicked his tongue from a safe distance, keeping out of range of the splatter.
“Tch, pathetic.”
“Hic…! I—I want to go home… Please, just let me go home… sob.”
“What? Home?”
“Eek!”
Another man’s voice came from right beside her. She whipped her head around to see Heukpyo, arms crossed, glaring.
“We’ve all been waiting for you to see the baby, and instead you just puke and then whine about going home?”
“N-no, I mean… my body…”
“What about your body? You were fine when you left the house, suddenly you’re ill?”
She bobbed her head frantically. She really had been fine earlier.
“M-my stomach’s upset. I’ll… I’ll come again next time, I swear.”
Of course, she had no such intention. Even if they canceled her whole debt, she wouldn’t so much as piss in this direction ever again.
“Damn it. This is hopeless. Brother, where did you even find this woman?”
“Baek-in Society. The Black Path gang.”
“Should I kill her?”
“Hiiiiek!”
Appearing silently at her back like a ghost, Baekryeong’s cold voice sent her into hysterics.
“How dare they send us someone this useless? Why should we let her live—”
“I’ll do it! I’ll see the baby! Sob sob sob, please, don’t kill me!”
Now sobbing uncontrollably at the thought of dying, she reduced the three men to awkward silence, scratching at their heads.
“This isn’t working. We’ll just send her back and—”
BOOM!
CRASH!
“…Hiccup.”
Just as she moved to step toward the manor, the door—or what passed for one—exploded overhead, nearly killing her.
While she hiccuped in shock, Heukpyo yelled at Seokdu, who had burst out holding a wailing baby.
“Hey! That was our door! We barely found that plank!”
After Seokdu had smashed the original door their first day here, they’d set up a makeshift wooden board. And now he’d kicked that away too.
“Waaaahhh!”
“She’s crying! Get in here!”
“She’s crying because you scared her, idiot!”
“No, she was already crying!”
“Whatever—fine, let’s go… Hey, lady! You know how to cook for babies, right?”
Heukpyo shot her a glance.
But the woman stood frozen, staring blankly.
“…What now?”
“…”
“…Ahem.”
A dark stain spread across her skirt. Heukpyo coughed, glanced at Gwangpae.
“Guess we’ll have to send her home.”
“…Yeah, I suppose.”
“…I’ll cook today.”
Baekryeong accepted his fate quickly, darting inside. Heukpyo and Seokdu followed.
“Ahem… Should I escort you?”
“…No, I’ll go alone.”
“You sure? Your skirt—”
“…I’m fine.”
“…Alright.”
“Then… goodbye.”
“…Safe travels.”
No pleasantries about “seeing you again.”
She staggered off, clutching her soiled skirt, and Gwangpae only watched for a moment before his stomach reminded him it was dinnertime, and he went inside.
“Haha, ah… so she wasn’t to your liking again?”
“It’s not about liking or not.”
Baek-in Society’s leader smiled weakly at the towering figure before him. Gwangpae’s tone was sharp with irritation.
“That makes four. Each one pukes upon arrival, quakes at the smallest task, and never returns the next day.”
Well, that’s because you carry them here with lightfoot martial arts! At least slow down a little!
The thought was on his tongue, but he dared not speak it. For a small gang of barely a hundred men, the man before him was far beyond their weight class.
“Hehe… It seems women’s bodies are too frail for the strain.”
“Then find someone with more stamina. Are you telling me you have no one?”
“Ahem… If it’s only childcare and housework, perhaps a man could—”
Gwangpae’s eyes narrowed immediately.
“These days, men can be wet nurses too?”
“Ah—no, no, of course not… I only meant… without breastfeeding, perhaps a man could… fulfill a similar role…”
“…”
“…But yes, that was only a jest. A male wet nurse—ridiculous, right?”
“I’m not here for jokes.”
Scowling, Gwangpae rose. The Baek-in leader bowed quickly.
“Very well. Tomorrow I’ll prepare another candidate at the meeting place.”
“No. Forget it.”
“…Sir?”
“Take your time. But find me someone solid. Just one will do, but they must be reliable.”
His eyes burned as he delivered the warning.
“When you’re ready, send them to the manor. But if you bring me another useless one…”
Crunch.
“…you’d better be prepared.”
“…I understand.”
“I’m leaving.”
“F-farewell, sir.”
By the time he raised his head from his bow, Gwangpae had vanished.
“Aaaaah! Steward! Steward, where are you?!”
“Here, sir!”
The frantic leader barked orders.
“From now on, full mobilization! Drop everything! I don’t care what it takes, find a woman who can work herself to the bone! Even if you must, hire information brokers!”
“B-but what about the other contracts?”
“Cancel them all! Do you want the Baek-in Society wiped out in a day?! Move!”
“Yes, sir!”
Whenever that bearded brute visited, the leader always grew tense. But this time, his reaction bordered on madness. At his desperate shouting, the steward sprinted out, gathering every hand for the hunt.
