Chapter 5

“Stay right here. Don’t move.”

Soso warned her before quickly entering the training grounds.

Arin stayed where she was, awkwardly staring at the entrance.

She was standing beneath a large wisteria tree.

Her already tiny body was completely hidden behind its hanging vines.

A little later, Soso came out with Ahyeon.

Arin was happy to see her older brother after so long, but she didn’t dare approach him.

Then Soso called out,

“Big Brother, my feet hurt!”

“Our Soso shouldn’t have sore feet.”

Ahyeon immediately crouched down with his back facing her.

Arin watched as Soso smiled to herself and climbed onto his back.

They looked exactly like a close brother and sister.

Remembering how Ahyeon used to carry her the same way, tears suddenly streamed down Arin’s face.

His back no longer belonged to her.

It belonged to Soso now.

Just then, Soso noticed Arin watching.

As if to make sure Arin saw, Soso wrapped her arms around Ahyeon’s neck and said loudly,

“Big Brother, I’m your only little sister, right?”

“Of course. Who else would I have besides our Soso?”

A sharp pain spread through Arin’s chest.

His words pierced her heart.

“My little sister is the prettiest girl in the whole world. I’d even bring down the stars and moon for our Arin.”

“Really? You really would?”

“Of course! You’re the only little sister I’ll ever have.”

“You said… I was your only one.”

Wiping away her tears with her dirty sleeve, Arin quietly turned and walked away.

She couldn’t bear to watch them any longer.

She ran as far away as she could, using every bit of strength she had until the two of them disappeared from sight.

She wasn’t watching where she was going.

Just then, she crashed straight into Geum Dogyeong, who was walking toward her.

Bang!

Arin was thrown backward.

She was so light that she simply bounced off Dogyeong’s solid body.

Startled, Dogyeong hurried over to the child who had fallen against his leg.

“Are you alright?”

“I-I’m… I’m sorry… sniff…”

Arin quickly stood up and bowed deeply.

Seeing that she was trying not to cry, Dogyeong’s expression softened.

She looked badly hurt.

“I’m sorry. I’m still unfamiliar with this place. Are you hurt badly?”

“N-No… I… sniff… I wasn’t looking where I was going…”

Arin stammered as she wiped away the tears that kept falling.

Dogyeong looked her over.

She was far too young to be one of the household servants.

And she was unbelievably thin.

Looking at her skinny wrists, he frowned.

Does this family not feed their children?

She looked far too miserable to ignore.

He watched as the little girl trembled like a leaf, her face flushed red.

After a long moment, he sighed.

Arin misunderstood the sigh as disappointment directed at her.

Holding back another sob, she apologized again.

“Sniff… S-Sorry…”

“What are you apologizing for? You didn’t do anything wrong.”

Watching her nervously swallow her tears while carefully reading his expression, Dogyeong rubbed his forehead.

He couldn’t just leave a crying child behind.

“Do you like honey cookies?”

“Sniff… Huh?”

“I asked if you like honey cookies.”

After blinking silently for a while, Arin slowly nodded.

“Come with me, then.”

Without another word, Dogyeong lifted her into his arms.

She was so incredibly light that he couldn’t help muttering,

“This family must really be starving this child.”

Feeling another person’s warmth for the first time in so long, Arin froze like a statue.

“Relax. I’m not going to eat you.”

At his teasing words, she cautiously leaned against him.

Thankfully, she no longer had the strength to resist anyway.

She hadn’t eaten properly for a long time.

After running so much and crying, she was completely exhausted.

Dogyeong carried her to the guest room.

As soon as he entered, he sat her down on a soft cushion.

Then he took out a box of honey cookies from a wrapped bundle and placed it in front of her.

“Eat.”

“Can… can I really eat these?”

“What? Do you think I poisoned them?”

Arin immediately shook her head.

The man in front of her was even taller than her father, which made him a little frightening.

But she didn’t want someone who had been kind to her to misunderstand.

Besides, it had been so long since she’d eaten honey cookies that her mouth was already watering.

Carefully, she picked one up and took a big bite.

The sweet taste filled her mouth.

A bright smile spread across her face.

“So you do like them.”

Dogyeong chuckled and casually popped one into his own mouth.

The honey cookies were actually his favorite snack.

The Golden Tiger Family had them specially made because he loved sweets.

He had planned to save them.

But they were the only thing he had to comfort a crying child.

Dogyeong poured a cup of green tea and placed it in front of Arin.

Even though she kept glancing at him nervously, she quickly drank it down.

Has this child spent her whole life watching other people’s moods? Why is she so cautious?

Everything about her bothered him.

She was so tiny that she looked no older than five.

Her soft reddish-orange hair, like trumpet flowers, was completely messy and covered most of her face.

As he watched her eat, it was hard to tell whether she was chewing the honey cookie or her own hair.

Then he noticed Yeoryeong’s luggage nearby.

Since the Divine Maiden always kept her hair neatly tied, he thought she might have an extra ribbon.

After searching through the luggage, he found one.

He gently pulled Arin closer.

“…?”

Startled, Arin stopped eating.

“I’m just tying your hair. Stay still and keep eating.”

His tone sounded rough for speaking to a child.

But Arin smiled brightly and quietly continued eating her honey cookie.

She really listens well.

Most children would be wary of a stranger.

But Arin wasn’t.

Instead, she looked frightened that he might leave her.

Still, it wasn’t his place to interfere in another family’s affairs.

With clumsy hands, Dogyeong gathered her hair together.

Tying a little girl’s fine, silky hair was much harder than he expected.

In the end, he tied it up the same way he did his sons’ hair, into a high ponytail.

It looked much better than before.

He thought the yellow ribbon suited her perfectly.

“There. It’s done. You can keep this.”

It wasn’t even his ribbon.

But he was certain Yeoryeong would have done exactly the same.

“Really?”

Arin gently touched the ribbon, which was clearly made from expensive silk.

Seeing her slurred words from chewing and how carefully she touched it, as if afraid it would wear out, made Dogyeong smile.

“You little thing. Why are you asking? When an adult gives you something, you just say thank you.”

“Th-Thank you.”

“That’s right.”

Chuckling, Dogyeong gently pinched her soft, round cheek.

It was even softer than he expected, making him blink in surprise.

Arin looked up at him with innocent eyes.

“Ah… Sorry. That was instinct.”

As Dogyeong pulled his hand back and apologized, Arin quickly shook her head.

“I-It’s okay.”

“No, it isn’t. At times like this, you should say, ‘I don’t like it,’ ‘No,’ or ‘Please don’t do that.'”

The fact that she had quietly followed a complete stranger was already worrying enough.

As he wondered where to even begin teaching her, Arin quietly murmured,

“But… I didn’t mind.”

“What?”

Arin had missed human warmth so much that she liked how naturally he treated her.

It almost felt like things had returned to the way they used to be.

“You can do it again.”

Hearing her sincere answer, Dogyeong stared at her with his mouth slightly open.

“You really have no filter.”

Despite his gruff reply, his hand slowly reached toward her chubby little cheek once more.