Chapter 4
“Ivan, why do you keep sleeping there? I cleaned the floor, but the bed is better.”
“I don’t sleep on beds.”
After filling himself with meat, Ivan spread his blanket roughly on the floor and lay down.
The woman, who had been sitting on the bed watching him quietly, suddenly picked up a pillow, came down, and lay beside him.
She had been rubbing her eyes since dinner, looking tired. After a yawn, she blew out the candle.
“You’re sleeping here too?”
“Yeah. Won’t you be cold, Ivan? Should I bring you something to cover up with?”
Ivan shook his head and looked at her.
The woman, already with her eyes closed, was breathing a little heavier.
Is she really crazy?
No matter how he looked at her, she didn’t seem like a crazy person.
She didn’t carry flowers around or talk to the air like that woman with the green-roofed house.
That woman just wandered the streets, but this one cleaned well and cooked well.
“Mom.”
“…Mm?”
Her voice, heavy with sleep, responded faintly.
“Are you sleepy?”
The woman suddenly opened her eyes.
“What is it? Can’t you sleep?”
Her hand gently stroked his hair. Her cool fingers brushed over his forehead in a soothing way.
“We’re going to the bathhouse tomorrow. You should sleep.”
“What are we eating tomorrow? When can we eat what we had today again? The pork.”
Ivan had never eaten anything so delicious in his life.
Not even the candy En gave him, nor the sweet bread he got after being beaten, compared to the pork he had today.
“Was it good?”
“Yeah. Really good.”
The crispy grilled pork wrapped with rice and vegetables—it had been amazing.
Even though his stomach was still full, thinking about it made him regret not eating more.
“We’ll eat it again soon. And tomorrow, we’ll have something delicious too. I bought a lot of groceries.”
She smiled playfully and brushed under Ivan’s eyes.
“So go to sleep.”
Ivan opened his eyes again and looked at her as she closed hers.
Did she live in the capital?
Since she suddenly disappeared, maybe her real family was desperately searching for her.
If they searched and eventually found this place…
They would take her away.
And then…
Thump. Thump. Thump.
His heart began to pound anxiously.
“Mom.”
“…”
“Mom.”
He shook her shoulder when she didn’t respond.
“…Mm?”
“How long are you going to stay here?”
“Huh?”
“I mean… how long are you going to stay with me?”
Her hand returned to gently stroke his face.
Then, in a soft but firm voice, she said:
“As long as Ivan calls me Mom, I’ll stay by your side.”
“…What does that mean?”
“It means, as long as I’m your mom, I’m not going anywhere.”
Ivan stared at her as she kept patting his back.
Soon, her hand slowed… and then stopped completely.
Her steady breathing only made his anxiety grow.
He had never been afraid of the dark.
Sleeping alone at home had always been normal.
But now… for some reason, he felt unbearably uneasy.
He shook her again.
“I can’t sleep.”
“…Mm.”
“I really can’t sleep, Mom.”
She really thinks I’m her son.
She believed me when I called her Mom.
If she finds out it was a lie… will she leave?
She seemed kind—but also firm.
So if she discovered the truth, she would probably leave without hesitation.
Just like when she chased that bear-like man into the shop.
“…Then… do you want me to tell you a fun story?”
Half-asleep, she pulled Ivan into her arms and whispered.
“Long ago, when tigers used to smoke, there was a Dragon King living in the sea…”
She began telling a story softly.
Whenever her voice trailed off, Ivan shook her.
Then her weak voice would continue… only to fade again.
Each time he woke her, the story became more and more jumbled.
When it reached the part about a turtle taking a rabbit into the sea, Ivan stopped waking her.
‘Ivan, did your mom come back?’
‘As long as I’m your mom, I’m not going anywhere.’
Instead, he quietly burrowed deeper into her arms.
* * *
I woke up after falling asleep right after dinner because my back hurt from the hard floor.
“Ow…”
As I groaned in pain, Ivan’s soft breathing settled over me.
It seemed the child didn’t feel any discomfort sleeping on this hard floor.
I glanced at the bed—it would’ve been much softer—but turned my head toward the window.
The room was still dim, as if the sun had only just risen.
My whole body ached from cleaning nonstop all day, and my eyes felt heavy.
Honestly, I wanted to just lie back down next to him and sleep again.
But then I remembered—
The pile of dirty dishes from last night.
Sadly, if we wanted breakfast, those had to be washed first.
“I should get up.”
If I were alone, I might’ve skipped breakfast.
But I had Ivan.
He was clearly smaller and thinner than other children—I couldn’t let him skip even one meal.
And I had just promised to be a good guardian.
Careful not to wake him, I quietly left the house.
Behind the house, there was a small shared well.
People here used it for laundry and washing dishes.
Since it was still early, no one else was there.
Thanks to that, I could use it freely.
I quickly scrubbed the dishes with salt—something I had learned by watching others yesterday.
The pork grease wasn’t easy to remove, but after scrubbing three times, it was finally gone.
“Ah, finally done.”
As I straightened up, my back ached.
Quite some time must have passed, yet I was still the only one there.
“…Am I the only one who left the dishes until morning?”
The small sense of satisfaction I had felt disappeared instantly.
“Are they all this diligent?”
I looked up at the quiet houses.
They all looked just like ours.
Crammed together, plain, with rusty doors.
Anyone could tell this was a slum.
But strangely… many of the houses seemed empty.
Even after going around to the laundry area, market, and well yesterday, I hadn’t met a single person who recognized me.
“Maybe there are more houses than people.”
Because of that, I still didn’t even know my own name.
No one called me by it—and Ivan only called me “Mom.”
I couldn’t even figure out my name, let alone understand this world.
Staring at the tightly packed doors, I muttered:
“…Fine. I’ll just approach people first.”
It wasn’t much of a solution—but it was something.
Putting everything together, I was probably just an extra in this world.
Not particularly pretty, a poor woman raising a child alone—no way I was an important character.
But Ivan…
He was so beautiful it was hard to believe he was my child.
Large, shining eyes like the sea. A defined nose already showing strong character. Slightly upturned red lips.
Anyone would admit he was a beautiful child.
If his hair and eye color weren’t the same as mine, people might doubt we were related.
If this really was a novel…
Ivan, with his outstanding looks, was likely a main character.
At least, that was my conclusion.
—Kyaaaak!
A sudden screech of a stray cat broke my thoughts.
The eerie sound echoed through the empty alley.
“Kyaaak—!”
The street, which had felt somewhat lively during the day, now felt completely different in the early morning.
The continuous, desperate cries of the stray cat sent a chill down my spine.
Feeling uneasy, I quickly picked up the dishes and stood up.
