Chapter 29
It wasn’t just dark; without the sun, it was extremely cold.
Soya huddled under a tree trunk, shivering.
Seolyo approached Soya, rubbing his head against her.
“Kkiing, kng…”
“Are you cold too? Come here, I’ll hug you.”
Seolyo didn’t approach Soya because he was cold. He wanted to warm Soya, who was shivering.
However, Soya, unaware of Seolyo’s feelings, smiled gently and wrapped her arms around him.
“Kkiing?”
Suddenly, Seolyo found himself completely enveloped in Soya’s small embrace.
Feeling the warmth from her tiny body, he unconsciously relaxed and let himself be held—but then, abruptly, he jumped out of her arms.
“Kng!”
“Huh? What’s wrong? Did I make you uncomfortable?”
Soya tilted her head, but her lips were pale blue. Seolyo had drained her warmth.
He had wanted to make her warm, but instead, he had made her colder.
With his beastly body, he couldn’t warm Soya. Feeling dejected, Seolyo’s ears drooped.
Feeling upset, Seolyo paced around Soya for a while before suddenly disappearing, returning with two large, thick leaves in his mouth.
“Huh? Leaves?”
The leaves were as big as Soya herself.
Seolyo offered the leaves, but Soya didn’t understand what he wanted her to do and stared blankly.
“Kng! Kkiing!”
Seolyo placed the leaves on the ground, slipped underneath them, and poked his head out, calling out.
“Kng, kng!”
“…?”
“Kkiing…”
Failing to communicate, Seolyo let out a deep sigh and grabbed the leaves again with his mouth.
Then he approached Soya and draped the two large leaves over her shoulders. Just like putting on a coat, she instantly felt warmer.
“Ah…! You brought this because you were worried I’d be cold?”
“Kkiing! Kng!”
“Thank you so much.”
Seolyo’s previously drooping ears perked up again.
He lifted his tail, hopped a few times, and disappeared once more. This time, he returned carrying some berries and set them in front of Soya.
“Kkiing, kng!”
Seolyo tapped the ground with his front paws, urging her to eat.
“Are you giving me these to eat?”
“Kkiing!”
“Then let’s eat together!”
“Kkiing, kkiing…”
Soya split the berries in half and offered them, but Seolyo shook his head.
“You want me to eat alone?”
“Kng, kng!”
“But…”
At that moment, Soya’s stomach rumbled.
Seolyo snorted as if to say, “See?”
Then he pushed his belly out and thumped his protruding stomach with a proud expression.
“Oh… right, you’re not hungry. Then I’ll enjoy eating.”
Embarrassed, Soya chewed the berries quietly.
Seolyo watched her with a proud expression before curling up a short distance away.
“I’m glad you’re here. If I were alone, it would’ve been too scary.”
Soya spoke softly.
Seolyo tilted his head, unsure of her meaning, but stayed by her side, guarding her.
However, as the night deepened, the smile on Soya’s face gradually faded.
What would happen if they couldn’t descend the mountain like this?
She had broken her promise to Yeonjeong-nim, who was supposed to return before sunset, and hadn’t been able to give flowers to the Second Young Master.
As Soya gazed into the basket of flowers, her expression darkened.
Boom!
The ground shook with a loud noise.
Soya’s eyes widened as she looked up.
Seolyo bristled his fur and leapt in front of her.
Thud!
Thud!
Boom!
Seolyo growled toward the direction of the sound.
After a moment, the noise stopped.
Could it be another wild animal?
Soya swallowed nervously and looked in the direction Seolyo was facing.
Swish—
A cold wind blew from across, shaking the branches.
Tap, tap, tap, tap.
Amid the wind, urgent footsteps could be heard.
“Huh…? This is…”
Soya’s lips parted.
“It’s not a wild animal! It’s human footsteps!”
Even so, the tension on Soya’s face didn’t disappear.
Some people she had met before were scarier than wild animals.
The footsteps grew closer. Soya clenched her fists tightly.
Soon, a boy slightly taller than Soya appeared, breathing heavily.
“Soya!”
Unlike his usual gentle smile, his pale face showed no trace of happiness. The boy was none other than…
“The Little Young Master…?”
It was Gahyeon.
Gahyeon had run across the mountains searching for Soya.
He had come to the mountain with Gayul earlier today, but Soya’s scent was nowhere to be found.
It was as if she had completely vanished.
‘What if she got lost? What if she fell off a cliff because it’s too dark…’
His heart trembled in fear.
[Enough. I don’t need that worthless stone…]
His last memory of her was when she had run away with wide eyes, startled by his harsh words.
It wasn’t like that.
I never meant to hurt you or dismiss your efforts.
I never even got the chance to apologize. The thought that I might never see her again made his heart sink.
At that moment, a faint scent brushed past his nose.
Gahyeon crouched, sniffing the ground.
It was the soft scent she always carried.
The smell was so faint that young Gayul wouldn’t have been able to detect it.
Gahyeon followed the scent deep into the mountain.
Eventually, he stopped at a certain point and carefully reached toward the air.
‘This…’
He touched an invisible barrier.
‘A barrier…?’
The unfamiliar barrier felt thick and solid, as if protecting someone.
‘She’s inside this.’
There was no time to question why she was inside.
If Soya were inside, she would be trembling in the dark, unable to leave the barrier.
Gahyeon threw his body against the barrier.
Bang!
Although he was now in his first growth stage past childhood, eleven-year-old Gahyeon was not yet fully grown.
His body bounced off the barrier and fell to the ground.
But he got up and struck the barrier again.
The ground shook, and small animals scattered.
He kept hitting the barrier repeatedly.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
After several attempts, cracks slowly appeared…
Clang!
Finally, the barrier broke, and he fell to the ground, reverting from his beast form.
But he immediately stood up.
Inside the broken barrier, he found Soya.
“Soya!”
“Young Master…!”
Relief spread across Soya’s face as she recognized Gahyeon.
Gahyeon paused.
Soya had never shown such an expression before.
She always wore a faint smile, watching his reaction.
She must have known from the beginning that he was cautious of her.
And yet, in this dark, cold forest where she was left alone, she was still so happy to see him.
Gahyeon strode toward her, draped his coat over her shoulders, and hugged her small body tightly.
“Uh… Young Master?”
Soya’s eyes widened in surprise.
Gahyeon’s shoulders were trembling.
What should she do now?
She remembered Sara-nim, who had patted her back not long ago.
Soya gently patted Gahyeon’s shoulder with her small hands.
His trembling gradually stopped.
“I’m sorry. You must have been very scared when I suddenly disappeared.”
“You…”
Gahyeon started to say, “Why are you apologizing in this situation?” but hesitated and bit his lower lip.
He realized that he, who had always been critical and displeased with this child who had nowhere to go, was the one at fault.
He made her apologize even though she had been left alone in the cold, scary mountain.
At that realization, a rush of emotion came over him.
“Yes, I was very scared, Soya.”
Gahyeon swallowed hard and spoke to her.
“It’s not because of you, but because of me. You got lost in the mountain, and I foolishly wandered around, unable to find you. That’s why you were scared.”
“Yes…?”
Gahyeon adjusted the large coat draped over Soya’s shoulders and said firmly:
“I’m sorry, Soya. I came too late.”
