episode_0034

My uncle and I returned straight to Hanmaum Church, but coincidentally we were not able to meet the pastor face to face.

I had to see one of the ladies who had been diligently cutting fruit according to the pastor’s instructions lower her head with a look of shame on her face.

“Can you tell me where he went? It’s important business related to the orchard.”

“Pastor often disappears without saying anything…”

I was listening to the story from the man’s side and frowned at those words.

Just say you don’t know. What do we care if those pseudo-religions disappear every now and then?

“There’s nothing I can do.”

The old man said that it was impossible to grab a stranger and ask him to bring someone, and left without any regrets.

“What are you going to do now?”

“I don’t think this is the place to talk about this. Let’s go outside for a bit.”

It’s cold outside.

When I made a trembling expression, the old man gave me an awkward smile and a look of understanding. I sighed.

Okay, I’ll give in.

As I was about to go out, a drug dealer followed me.

“You don’t have to come. Now I know where the orchard is.”

It was basically a euphemism for asking me to get out of here, but the drug dealer pretended to notice for a moment, then leaned down and whispered in my ear.

“Didn’t you say you were looking for a bunker?”

I looked at the pharmacist with a calm expression. I glanced around and saw that there were definitely a lot of eyes watching me. I roughly conveyed my intentions with the shape of my lips.

‘So, do you know where it is?’

The pharmacist looked confident at my words.

What, do you really know?

“I don’t know where the bunker is, but I know the geography of this place well.”

I wondered for the first time whether it was a characteristic of the people here, or whether they could be so confident in saying they didn’t know. I followed the old man, hoping that his confidence would be of some help.

The old man put some firewood into the unlit drum and lit it. There was quite a bit of snow inside, but I don’t know if the firewood had been soaked in oil, but soon a bright red flame rose up to the top of the drum.

“First, since I’ve decided to take care of this, I’m going to look for the bunker. The entrance will probably be inside this church grounds.”

“Isn’t there a chance that things could go wrong? If the client, that pseudo-pastor’s secret is in that bunker?”

The old man laughed at my words.

“Danhwa, that seems too far-fetched. If that were true, you wouldn’t have asked me to take care of the orchard in the first place. And you wouldn’t have done it so publicly.”

When I heard it, it was true.

I tend to always assume the worst, so I might have just made a guess like you said.

“And I overheard what you were saying earlier, and it seems like you have some ideas. Is that right?”

“You’re quick-witted.”

The pharmacist smiled brightly at the old man’s remark. It may have been because of his decadent appearance, but it was a smile that made the onlooker feel uncomfortable.

“That’s a rare compliment. My partner always has something to say about that. Anyway, will you help me?”

“There’s no reason not to help, right? I like you. And moreover, if the orchard is run normally, the people attached to this church, including me, won’t go hungry.”

The old man nodded at those words.

As I looked at it, something felt strange. I even wondered if it was really necessary to seek help from a pharmacist.

“Instead.”

“Are you talking about compensation? I will accept it as long as it is at a reasonable level. Our client also promised a generous compensation.”

The pharmacist nodded at the old man’s words. He felt a little angry at that sight.

I came here to help you solve your own problems in the first place, but isn’t it too unscrupulous to ask for compensation just for giving you a little help?

Well, it’s unlikely that someone who takes medicine would have such basic common sense and manners.

“I wish you would let me follow you when you’re done.”

“Yes?”

“No.”

An unexpected word came out of the pharmacist’s mouth. When I came to my senses, I had already answered reflexively.

I didn’t feel like saying that. Rather, I thought that I said it well.

“No, is it a short story?”

“What, how many people are in the military now? You want to add one more person?”

I was perfectly rational. The shelter was already overcrowded and adding one more person would be a real problem.

“That’s not it. But if you refuse so blatantly…”

“Sir, that’s a bad habit. It’s not like we have the conditions. You know how important it is to get a definitive answer. Or, were you just going to accept the help and wipe your mouth later?”

“Am I about to get scammed?”

“No, that’s not it. No. I never meant to do that.”

At the reaction of the two of us, the old man began to struggle, not only turning his head quickly, but also waving his hands busily.

“Danhwa, I’m not the kind of person who would do that. And I didn’t even say I’d take you to our shelter! So, let’s get angry and…”

“I’m not angry.”

Why are you getting mad at someone for deciding what to do? Even though you’ve been with me for a long time, that doesn’t mean you have the right to control my emotions.

I looked at the old man with cold eyes. The old man rolled his eyes and sweat profusely as he struggled to meet my gaze, and then opened his mouth with difficulty.

“No, I’m not angry! I just wanted you to feel better.”

That’s what I’m saying.

“What am I feeling.”

The old man’s lips were completely dry. The old man’s tongue lightly moistened his lips, which were completely dry, and then disappeared.

“I should have explained the situation right away, but I was stupid enough not to do so, so I made Danhwa answer for you. And it’s true that I made you feel bad by creating a misunderstanding!”

“I’ve never been upset.”

I corrected the errors in what the old man said.

“That’s right. Our team is not the type to be petty about such things. I just think I made you worry a little. Sorry!”

“There’s nothing to be sorry about. You should figure out what to do with this matter and work it out with that pimp.”

Behind the old man was a pharmacist smoking a cigarette with a grumpy expression.

“I am not the type of person who would unilaterally use and discard anyone.”

“I guess so.”

Well, it seemed like the other side was pretty angry too. The playful expression that was always there whenever he opened his mouth had completely disappeared.

“I had no intention of issuing a false promise. Anyway, are you dissatisfied with your stay at Hanmaum Church?”

The pharmacist took a deep drag on his cigarette without answering.

The old man fidgeted and waited for the pharmacist to open his mouth. Then, the pharmacist blew smoke out onto the old man’s face.

“Ahem.”

The old man coughed lightly and I immediately shot the herbalist.

“Hey, where did you learn to spit cigarette smoke in someone’s face? Do you want to get in trouble?”

As I stepped forward with the thought of hitting the drug dealer who was not only not moving but also not showing any sign of remorse, the old man gave me a sign that he was okay.

“There are many shelters where we can stay. The leader also has a good personality.”

“I wish I could live alone, but that won’t happen. As long as there are no men, that’s fine.”

As soon as the specific story came up, the pharmacist immediately listed his demands. For a subject that was very obsessed with men, his demands were quite unusual.

I thought she was trying to change her ways, but then I thought about it again and wondered if she was just trying to get on with all kinds of men.

The old man nodded, and the pharmacist put his cigarettes into the drum and stood up.

“Can you just guide me to all the places where bunkers are likely to be?”

The stiff expression from just a moment ago had disappeared, and a languid face was left in its place.

I followed the herbalist’s instructions and entered the building. The warm air enveloped my body.

“This is the living quarters. Most of the people living in Hanmaum Church solve their food, clothing, and shelter needs here.”

After explaining this, the pharmacist headed down the stairs.

“Maria? Where are you going like that?”

“The people who came to solve the orchard problem said they needed something.”

In the meantime, the old man with a bulging belly pretended to know the pharmacist, and the pharmacist’s expression, contrary to his calm words, was not very good as he responded to the old man’s words.

“Yeah, yeah, helping is important, but you shouldn’t be late for confession, right?”

“Yes… I understand.”

Is this some kind of strong, weak, weak, strong thing?

The pharmacist answered us in a tone of voice we had never seen before and went down the stairs without looking back. I thought I heard a sigh.

“This way.”

At the belated addition, the old man and I also followed him down the stairs.

“Is your name Maria?”

“It’s not my original name, nor is it a word that means a name. There are quite a few Marias in this church besides me.”

I tilted my head. Isn’t Maria like a baptismal name?

“I don’t like that word very much. I hope you don’t bring it up, little girl.”

I didn’t want to keep nitpicking when someone said no, so I just kept my mouth shut.