UR Chapter 62

Chapter 62

“Something to say…?”

After thinking for a moment, I-bom moved his lips and finally spoke.

“Uh… thank you for taking care of me when I collapsed…?”

He was pretty sure he had already said thanks earlier, but maybe he had been too tactless. So I-bom repeated his gratitude. He had grown up hearing over and over that “people like you better if you’re always polite and courteous.” In that sense, this man was truly someone to be grateful for.

To see a beastman specialist, you normally had to go to an expensive hospital that didn’t accept insurance. Yet this man had come when called, run allergy tests, checked for side effects, and even prepared food for him to take home. It was like receiving a Christmas present. Better than the welfare center Santas in Aji Village who would just toss an ill-fitting doll or some candy his way.

Handsome and kind, too. He would never be his, of course—but he wasn’t in any position to covet that anyway.

“Nothing else?”

“For now…?”

I-bom thought hard about whether there was more to say. He had already refused as firmly as he needed to, and the man didn’t press the matter any further. That meant it was settled.

“…Alright, I’ll accept that for now.”

The man’s eyes curved beautifully. Instead of ensnaring him with those gleaming yellow irises, he gave a gentle smile and patted I-bom’s shoulder lightly.

At last, it was over.

* * *

“Wow… it’s hot.”

I-bom tossed the small cabbage-trimming knife he’d been holding onto the ground next to the watering hose and plopped down on the spot. The snow that had fallen overnight had hardened the ground until it was more than just firm—it was icy cold.

Across the frozen earth of winter, the thick rubber hose spun like it had been thrown, landing in a loose coil. Water trickled out, leaving dark patches of dampness on the dry soil. The small trimming knife lay where it had been flung.

“Hoo…”

A bead of sweat rolled down I-bom’s forehead. He rubbed it away with the back of his hand, letting his gaze sweep once around the vegetable patch before him.

A small plot covered with vinyl lay ahead, and in one corner, piles of winter cabbages were stacked high. Work was underway to pull the last cabbages of the season from the sheltered corner where the bitter wind couldn’t reach.

The winter hadn’t been too harsh this year. Last year, when he hadn’t covered the crops with vinyl, the radishes and cabbages had frozen solid, but this year, thanks to the small vinyl greenhouse he’d made, not a single plant had been touched by frost. The cabbages had grown full and firm, layers packed tight.

‘What time do you think it is, I-bom?’

The driver had dropped him off at the entrance to the village, so he thought he’d made it home in decent time. But when he slipped quietly into the house, an ambush was waiting. His grandmother.

He had left his younger brother alone at home and had needed to think of someone to watch him. His older brother had apparently borrowed money and disappeared, so he was no help. Grandmother had been in the hospital. After much thought, I-bom had gone to his blind date leaving a request with the elderly woman next door.

‘I have something to take care of… could you watch I-seol for me? The world’s a dangerous place.’

Aji Village was a tight-knit clan community, so strangers were rare, and even if one came, they were quickly noticed. Still, the fact that hyena beastmen prowled along the mountain outskirts was enough to make him uneasy. Hyenas wouldn’t even spare a glance for a child like I-seol.

‘Mm, sure. Go on, don’t worry. You going on a date?’

The neighbor had said this, pulling her vest tighter. She was close with I-bom’s grandmother, and aside from being overly interested in other people’s business, she was kind and helpful. Without thinking too much, I-bom had nodded politely.

‘Yes, please take care of him.’

…So it never crossed his mind that when he got home, instead of the neighbor, his grandmother—who was supposed to be in the hospital—would be there.

‘Oh, Grandma? When did you get here? Weren’t you still supposed to be in the hospital?’

I-bom waved cheerfully. Since she’d been unable to sit or walk straight without a back brace, groaning in pain, he thought her being home meant she was better and felt a bit relieved.

But his grandmother, back brace still on and leaning against the wall, didn’t look happy at all. She brushed off his hand with a cold face.

‘I asked them to discharge me early. Where have you been running around, leaving your little brother alone? The neighbor told me—you’re off on a date and even getting ready to spend the night out.’

‘Huh? Spend the night?’

He had never said that. He’d only mentioned he might be late. And though he had briefly fallen asleep at the other person’s place, he had rushed home specifically to avoid staying overnight.

‘I never said that—’

‘Tsk, you take after your mother, don’t you?’

His grandmother clicked her tongue, frowning. I-bom opened his mouth to explain, but seeing her reaction, he subtly hid the shopping bag behind his back.

She was always criticizing his mother, endlessly. Even though she was gone now, she could still say something kind about her. But in front of young I-seol, she made no effort to stop herself, calling her “a wicked thing who ran off with another dog,” “unfaithful,” “ungrateful.”

He didn’t know the exact details, but from the hints he’d picked up, it seemed his mother had fallen for someone who wasn’t his father. That wasn’t something to say in front of children, and he wished she’d stop—but she never did.

‘Who were you with until dawn! Who did you meet that you were rolling around with! Wagging your tail anywhere you please—are you trying to end up pregnant or something? Shameless!’

Groaning, she struggled to her feet. Startled, I-bom reached out to steady her, but she slapped his hand away.

‘Leave me! And where’s I-jun now?’

With that, she hobbled away on her cane toward the room.

I-bom stood there for a long time, until the warmth from the shopping bag the man had given him finally faded.

“Goodness, we should have covered our vegetable patch with vinyl too. Your crops turned out well.”

The neighbor woman looked enviously at the pile of winter cabbages. They weren’t many—just enough from a small garden—but she kept complimenting them. I-bom rubbed the sweat on his cheeks and smiled sheepishly.

“We were lucky. No wind got in.”

“Didn’t freeze and they’re full, too. I’m jealous. You could sell these.”

“I’ll give you some… I owe your family for yesterday.”

I-bom jerked his chin toward the pile stacked beside the small vinyl greenhouse. They were the last cabbages of the year, grown for kimchi-making. Being a frost-resistant variety, they could grow even through snowy days if covered properly.

“Oh, thank you. All my mother did was watch I-seol for a bit, and you’d share something you worked so hard to grow?”

“We can’t finish them all anyway. Grandma’s sick…”

“True. Your grandma can’t eat much these days… Ah. By the way, I-bom.”

She nodded sympathetically, knowing well his grandmother’s constant back troubles. Then, as if something had just occurred to her, she called him.

“Yes?”

“It’s about I-jun. Is something going on with him lately?”

“Something… going on?”

I-bom pulled up his work gloves and looked at her. Worry was written across her tanned face.

“My husband said he’s been going around asking to borrow money. Says he wants to start some kind of business.”

“Business…?”

I-bom repeated, biting his lower lip.

He was suddenly reminded of the trouble his brother had caused with his closest friend over money, a mess he hadn’t even tried to fix. His face darkened as memories surfaced of how his father had once buried their family in debt over a so-called business venture, leaving their grandmother to suffer for the rest of her life.

“Ah… business, right. How did your husband find out?”

“How else? I-jun came into my husband’s shop asking to borrow money.”

Tsk-tsk, she clicked her tongue with concern. I-bom wiped the sweat from his face and let out a deep sigh.

“Hoo…”

“Well, my husband said he sent him away, saying we didn’t have money. But keep an eye on him—when someone gets foolish ideas, it doesn’t take long to ruin a family. Sigh… I don’t know why he can’t see it’s you who suffers, I-bom.”

In a village like this, where everyone had lived their whole lives together, keeping secrets never lasted long. She clicked her tongue again, brows furrowing.

“…Would you like to pick out some cabbages? If you set them aside, I’ll carry them over to your place.”

I-bom smiled, rubbing his dirt-streaked cheek. As he thought about delivering the cabbages and talking to Soo-hyun again, he straightened his back.