Chapter: 10
Yeonwoo’s lips slowly curled into a grin.
Unhyeon’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
Yeonwoo eagerly untied the bundle he had brought.
“I knew Grandpa would do this, so I came prepared.”
Heh heh.
It was the summit of a different mountain from yesterday.
Unhyeon had brought Yeonwoo here again, saying he had caught another rabbit.
Even though this mountain was higher, rockier, and much steeper than the one before, Yeonwoo followed behind him without a single complaint.
It wasn’t surprising.
The government office had been carrying out Unhyeon’s request to the letter.
“Ever since they reduced his meal portions, he always looked disappointed after eating.”
And after being told they were going to eat rabbit meat, how could Yeonwoo possibly refuse?
But this time, determined not to be tricked again, Yeonwoo proudly opened his bundle in front of Unhyeon.
“Tada… huh?”
His eyes widened.
“Huh? Huh?! I packed it! I really packed it!!”
He was certain he had packed the salt container before leaving.
He had even tucked it into the bundle and patted it confidently.
So why wasn’t it there?
“My, my… Whatever shall we do now?”
Unhyeon raised an eyebrow, his voice as calm as ever.
Of course, before leaving the house, he had quietly removed the salt container from Yeonwoo’s bundle and left it neatly on the wooden porch.
“I suppose we’ll just have to eat it without salt today. Surely I wouldn’t fool you twice…”
“Nooooooo!!”
Meat without salt wasn’t delicious!
“I’m going back!”
Without listening to another word, Yeonwoo shot down the mountain like an arrow.
“Hoho… that child.”
If he had refused, I was planning to tempt him a little more.
Who knew he loved food this much?
Unhyeon gathered the dry branches he had prepared behind a large rock into a neat pile.
After making sure everything was ready to roast the rabbit as soon as Yeonwoo returned, he leisurely followed after the boy.
Tap! Tap!
Yeonwoo raced down the rugged mountain.
Because the summit was filled with jagged rocks, the descent became much easier.
His mind was filled with nothing but thoughts of rabbit meat.
Just imagining the flavor—different from bird or pork—made him feel as if he could fly.
Sniff.
His head turned for a moment.
“That smells nice.”
It smelled like medicinal herbs that would be good for Grandpa.
“I’ll come pick some later.”
Thinking that, he continued running down the mountain.
Then—
“…!”
Suddenly, his head snapped toward another direction.
His eyes froze as they locked onto something.
Even while running, his gaze remained fixed there.
“The smell of blood.”
It was faint, but unmistakably human blood.
He had smelled it only a few days ago.
There was no way he could mistake it.
The scent drifting from that direction was definitely blood.
And it was getting closer.
The shorter the distance became, the stronger and clearer the metallic scent grew.
Rustle… rustle…
Between the trees, a man dressed in black martial robes came into view.
The man disappeared and reappeared between the densely packed trunks, drawing closer with every blink.
Yeonwoo couldn’t take his eyes off him, even while continuing to run.
Rustle!
The man pulled something from his robes.
The instant the object glimmered silver between his fingers—
Thud!
Darkness suddenly covered Yeonwoo’s vision.
A moment later—
Thud!
A heavy impact rang out.
The world around Yeonwoo was instantly swallowed by the thick scent of fresh blood.
Huff… huff…
Large drops of sweat rolled down Unhyeon’s cheeks.
His eyes trembled.
While following after Yeonwoo, he had sensed assassins nearby.
The moment they encountered him, they attacked without the slightest hesitation.
It was as though they had been waiting specifically for him.
After dealing with them, Unhyeon immediately rushed after Yeonwoo.
Yeonwoo is in danger.
That single thought drove him onward.
Rustle.
“Blood…”
What greeted him was a pool of blood staining the bushes a dark crimson.
There was so much of it that he couldn’t tell whose it was.
“Yeonwoo…”
Unhyeon looked toward the direction where the tracks continued.
From this point onward, the child’s footprints disappeared.
Only the tracks of a single adult remained.
That realization made his heart sink even further.
“The tracks lead toward…”
The house.
Thud!
His pace became even faster.
Without stopping once, he sprinted toward home.
Please…
Please let Yeonwoo be safe.
Please let that blood not be his.
Praying over and over again, he arrived at the house in the blink of an eye.
A journey that would normally take Yeonwoo half a shichen had taken Unhyeon only one gak—about fifteen minutes.
Huff… huff…
The house in the distance looked exactly as peaceful as always.
That very silence made him even more anxious.
“…”
Perhaps because he had pushed his not-yet-recovered body too hard…
A loud ringing echoed in his ears as he staggered toward the gate one step at a time.
Steadying his breathing, he stretched out his trembling hand.
His legs felt as heavy as waterlogged cotton.
Just as he finally reached the front gate—
“Huh? Grandpa!”
Yeonwoo came running across the yard, waving both arms excitedly.
In his hand was the missing salt container.
“I found the salt! It was over there. But why did you come back? What about the fire?”
“What about the meat?” he asked, peering behind Unhyeon.
Ignoring the child for the moment, Unhyeon looked toward the man slowly walking behind Yeonwoo.
Fifteen minutes earlier…
Thud.
Something warm and large covered Yeonwoo’s eyes.
At the same time, the strong smell of blood washed over him.
Yeonwoo frowned.
Then he grabbed whatever was covering his eyes and pulled it away.
It was a smooth, spotless hand.
“Not yet.”
The hand remained just in front of his face, still blocking his view.
A moment later, the scents of two or three people briefly appeared before disappearing.
Then the hand moved away.
Naturally, Yeonwoo looked toward where the blood smell was coming from.
But before he could see anything—
Whoosh.
His body was suddenly lifted into the air.
His round eyes looked up at the man carrying him.
It was the masked man who had troubled Unhyeon a few days ago.
“…!”
Yeonwoo immediately frowned.
“What?”
Behind the half-mask, the man’s eyes curved with amusement at Yeonwoo’s fierce attitude.
“You know I just saved your life, right?”
“Why would you save me?”
“Because you almost died just now?”
“Stop lying, you liar.”
He had simply been running home as fast as he could.
Saved him from what?
“You came to bully Grandpa again, didn’t you?”
His eyes were filled with fierce suspicion.
It looked as though he would swing an axe at the man that very instant if he answered yes.
The Shadow Demon Lord spoke as though he had been wronged.
“I already made up with your grandpa.”
“…Really?”
The Shadow Demon Lord nodded.
Behind the mask, his violet eyes looked perfectly sincere.
“I even gave him medicine so he’d recover faster.”
“Hmm…”
Yeonwoo tilted his head.
Come to think of it…
There had been some dried herbs he didn’t recognize.
And they had definitely smelled like something good for Grandpa.
In that case…
Slowly…
Yeonwoo raised his hand.
“Is he going to hit me?!”
Knowing very well how aggressive the child could be, the Shadow Demon Lord instinctively frowned.
Then—
Pat. Pat.
“…!”
His eyes widened.
Yeonwoo was patting him on the head.
“Good job. Don’t fight anymore, okay?”
“…”
The Shadow Demon Lord simply blinked in a daze.
Meanwhile, the child’s small, chubby hand continued gently patting his head.
“Pfft…”
“…?”
“Puhahahahahaha!!”
“Hahahahaha!”
The Shadow Demon Lord burst into loud laughter.
The more he thought about the situation, the funnier it became.
His laughter was so loud that Yeonwoo frowned and covered his ears.
After laughing for quite a while, the Shadow Demon Lord gently lowered Yeonwoo’s arm.
Brushing the child’s hair back, he spoke softly.
“I promise.”
“…?”
“With my own hands, I will never kill your grandpa… nor will I ever hurt him.”
Yeonwoo’s eyes sparkled.
“Really?”
“Really.”
The Shadow Demon Lord hooked his little finger around Yeonwoo’s.
“I’m actually very good at keeping my promises.”
A smile spread across Yeonwoo’s face, brighter than ever before.
He looked immensely proud, as though he had successfully reconciled two quarreling friends.
Seeing that expression, the Shadow Demon Lord chuckled quietly.
“Hey there.”
The Shadow Demon Lord waved cheerfully as he approached Unhyeon.
“You ran all the way here? Why are you so exhausted? Didn’t the miraculous medicine work?”
Tilting his head while stroking his chin, he looked as carefree as ever.
Unhyeon let out a low sigh.
“…What happened?”
“Hm?”
—You said you would deal with the assassins.
Unhyeon’s voice echoed directly into the man’s mind through sound transmission, his gaze icy.
—Ah, you ran into them?
—Yes. All of them were first-rate martial artists.
—Five.
The Shadow Demon Lord smiled brightly and spread all five fingers.
—Including the one who targeted Yeonwoo. Five in total.
“Yeonwoo…!”
Unhyeon hurriedly tried to examine the child for injuries.
“Relax. He doesn’t even have a scratch. I told you before, didn’t I? He’s precious to us as well.”
“You…!”
Unhyeon glared fiercely at the Shadow Demon Lord.
He had been the one who promised to take responsibility for the assassins.
That promise meant ensuring that Yeonwoo would never again face such danger.
Yet despite that vow, today’s incident had still occurred.
Unhyeon could feel his anger steadily rising.
