episode_0006

“Sigh.”

Even after returning to the pharmacy, my head continued to ache.

Fine.

No, really, with the utmost generosity and all my patience, I decided to understand this situation.

If Tia’s safety was to be prioritized, then Ruyef was indeed the right person.

The Village Elder-nim must have sent the two of them with that intention.

But…

I saw it clearly.

When Ruyef came to Tia’s house, the wooden door was open.

“That bastard knew the wooden door’s password.”

Why?

She never told me. Why did Tia tell *him* the password?

“…”

Honestly, it was trivial. So much so that I felt childish for being sulky and upset over something like this.

When you think about it, Ruyef was helping with the house renovation, so it was highly likely she just told him the password for convenience. Tia isn’t the type to care much about such things in the first place.

However…

“Ah, whatever. I’ll just do my own work.”

I should do something instead of thinking useless thoughts. That way, I felt like I’d feel better.

I went back into the shed and checked the inventory. As expected. The Rubus herb was severely lacking, just as I’d anticipated. Rubus herb wasn’t just used for making bandages; it was also needed for compounding medicine, making it a plant always in high demand.

“I should get some.”

Although the villagers would gather and bring things like grass, flowers, deer antlers, and tree sap while traveling the mountain paths, the quantity was small, making it difficult to rely on them.

In such cases, I had to go to a store that handled various goods.

Clank-.

I went outside.

The sun was almost setting. It was time for people to finish work and return to the village. The general store also closed at night, so I had to hurry a little.

As I hurried down the path, a girl wearing a straw hat was crouching in front of the trough.

Ruyef’s younger sister, Marie.

She was a child rarely seen. Marie lived cooped up in Ruyef’s house all day. They said it was because she was weak. She was still a small child, not healthy enough to help with work. She often fell ill, so it was extremely rare for her to come outside.

But for some reason, maybe because the sun was good today and Ruyef wasn’t in the village. She had come out quite far and was sitting idly.

As I passed by, I waved my hand.

“Hello, Marie.”

“Ah. Ritsu Oppa!”

Marie recognized me and waved her thin hand.

Marie was a truly kind child, unlike Ruyef. Pure, soft-spoken, and she followed everyone well, like a puppy. Even though they were siblings, it was truly fortunate they didn’t resemble each other in that aspect.

As I approached, she suddenly held something out.

“Oppa, do you want some too?”

“Huh?”

In her small hand was a single biscuit. It was what Marie had just been munching on.

But this… the color is too familiar.

“Ginger biscuit?”

“Yes!”

“Is it delicious?”

Marie shook her head.

“Then why are you eating it?”

“It tastes bitter, but it makes me feel good anyway.”

Tia had definitely said something like that. Marie said the exact same thing.

Does ginger biscuit have a peculiar taste that only girls can understand?

But how did she get that biscuit? Come to think of it, last time when I went down to Taildon, Ruyef was looking for ginger biscuits. Was it to buy for Marie? But the biscuits were all sold out, so he just went back. Did he end up buying them somewhere else?

I had many questions, but I didn’t want to pry. Because if word that I asked about such things got back to him, it would become troublesome.

“The sun’s setting soon, so go in quickly.”

“Okay- Ritsu Oppa too-.”

“Alright. I’ll be back soon.”

I walked the path again.

The general store was in an isolated spot, a little distance from the village. They said it was located close to Taildon for easy trade, but even so, being in the forest, its accessibility wasn’t very good. That’s why the general store owner, ‘Fosao Ahjussi,’ was a resident of our village but a very hard person to see.

One might wonder if customers would even visit a store set up in such an isolated place.

Surprisingly, that store had been operating perfectly for decades.

When we were young, we often went to that store. It was the perfect place to hide from the elders’ nagging. Fosao Ahjussi also welcomed us warmly. We would take naps there with Tia, then wake up at dusk and go back up to the village.

Even then, I saw a few customers, but it didn’t feel like business was booming. I heard that it was sustained by regular trade with merchant caravans… The villagers didn’t know the details beyond that, so whether it was true or not was a matter of belief.

An old signpost came into view.

[Modaless General Store]

It was written like that, and a picture was drawn along with it for those who couldn’t read. Had the path not been swept even once this year? Last winter’s fallen leaves were piled high, and the signpost was rotting in places, on the verge of collapsing.

Pushing through the fallen leaves, I finally saw the store.

Whoosh-.

A bleak wind blew.

The Modaless General Store was a two-story building. Goods were mainly sold on the first floor, and the second floor was where the ahjussi lived. Truly, even now, it seemed unnecessarily large for a store in the mountains.

Clatter.

A broken brass bowl caught my foot. From the entrance, all sorts of strange junk were piled up, but I had never once seen Fosao Ahjussi touch any of it. Perhaps the ahjussi seemed to have forgotten the concepts of ‘organizing’ or ‘cleaning.’

Carefully avoiding the junk, I opened the door.

Creak…

A dark, damp interior where not a single ray of light entered. There was a musty smell of dust mixed with a peculiar, fishy odor that only permeated this store, creating an unknown atmosphere.

No matter how many times I came, I could never get used to this smell. Should I call it the smell of rotten mushrooms boiling? It wasn’t a very pleasant atmosphere.

And in the darkness, a creature, whether a pig or a bear, lay with its huge belly exposed, loudly snoring.

“Grumble. Snort-.”

“Ahjussi.”

“Grumble! …Snort-.”

“Fosao Ahjussi!”

When I slammed the table, the owner finally opened his eyes.

“Snort! Nnn- huh? Who?”

“It’s me. Ritsu.”

“Ohh… oh! It’s Ritsu! Wh- what’s wrong…?”

A fat lower belly, a pockmarked face, thick, fleshy limbs. Furthermore, he had a timid personality, stammered, and had a habit of trailing off his sentences.

Thus, Fosao Ahjussi was the complete opposite of the strong and cheerful villagers. Because of that, his reputation in the village wasn’t good. My aunts would make contemptuous expressions, saying that just hearing the name ‘Fosao’ gave them goosebumps. According to old anecdotes, he received all kinds of contempt simply for being fat and ugly.

It seemed like that had scarred him, as he deliberately lived a little distance from the village. Even so, to live alone without a wife, even after passing forty… Even if he was a loner, his situation was truly pathetic.

“I came to buy some Rubus herb. I’ve run out.”

“Rubus herb…”

Fosao Ahjussi slowly got up and began rummaging through items. He pulled out a few boxes, and even that seemed like hard work, as he was sweating profusely. Since nothing was organized in the first place, it would take ages to find anything. Even if he found it, there was no guarantee it would be in good condition.

Still, I decided to wait patiently, considering it a gamble.

“Pant, pant… Found it.”

Surprisingly, Fosao Ahjussi found it quickly. Although it had some dirt on it, it was Rubus herb in surprisingly fresh condition. I scanned it, and there were no particular issues. A joyful voice naturally came out.

“Did you dig it up yourself?”

“Uh, uh-huh… I collected little by little whenever I took a walk. Uh-huh-huh…”

“That’s good. You saved me. If you have more, please give it all to me.”

Right. This is why I come to this general store. All the villagers disliked Fosao Ahjussi, but in reality, if it weren’t for the items he collected, the village would have faced quite a lot of trouble.

And when you actually talked to him, he was a kind-hearted person, unlike his appearance. Like a general store owner, he knew a lot of things. Of course, I’d never had a long conversation with him because of his frustrating way of speaking, but anyway, he wasn’t as bad as my aunts found him repulsive.

If he had taken care of himself when he was younger, he might have been able to marry. Now, it seemed he had completely given up on the idea of getting married, as he didn’t seem particularly interested in women.

He’s a pitiful person.

“I’ll look… Wa- wait.”

Fosao Ahjussi panted heavily as he rummaged through another area.

While waiting, I leisurely looked around the store to see what items were there.

There was every kind of item imaginable. Wooden birdcages, obsidian bracelets, long scrolls written in unknown characters. There were also basic tools, and clean silk pieces hanging without dust, which suggested he had been importing things until recently.

Then, in a corner, I discovered something peculiar.

“What’s this?”

A thick branch protruding unnecessarily from above the display case. It looked more suitable for pulling down than for hanging something on. Just like Tia’s wooden door. It felt like it held a secret.

Drawn by it, I reached out and pulled the branch.

Screech!

Then, a series of clicking sounds followed, and the display case itself felt like it lifted slightly. Looking below, there was another space beneath the display case.

When I pushed the display case aside…

Grind- Clank!

The space behind it was revealed. I couldn’t help but be surprised by the items there.

“…Books?”

“Oh, oh-oh. Ritsu!”

Fosao Ahjussi rushed over in a flurry.

Thin books were lined up on the shelf. There were quite a lot. About 30 volumes. Compared to the Tia bought, these were much smaller and only cheap copies. Considering the preciousness of books, they were definitely out of place in this mountain general store.

The ahjussi explained hastily.

“They’re expensive, so I hid them…”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know there were books here.”

“I just got them recently…”

“Are those all for sale?”

“Some are for sale, and…”

“Then, can I just look at one?”

“S- sure…”

I stood on my tiptoes to see what books there were.

They called it a general store, but it really only had miscellaneous books. It felt like they were all just haphazardly brought in from some market floor.

There wasn’t anything particularly interesting to read, but was a title Tia might like.

I stretched out my arm and took out a book.

Flap-.

When I opened it, as expected, its condition was not good. It was full of grime and dust, and many parts of the text were smudged, so I didn’t think Tia would react well even if I bought it for her.

When I returned the book, Fosao Ahjussi asked.

“You don’t like it…?”

“I thought about gifting it to Tia, but there’s nothing particularly suitable.”

“…Tia.”

The ahjussi thought about something for a moment, then asked again.

“T- Tia is… where is she?”

“She’s in the mountains right now.”

“With Ruyef…?”

…!!

It felt like I’d been hit in the back of the head with a hammer. How did he know that?

As if reading my mind, the ahjussi immediately explained. “I, I… I saw them in the daytime. In the mountains… Tia and Ruyef… they were together… Heh-heh…”

“That’s right. They said they were going to Behemor.”

“But… it was a little strange…”

“Strange?”

Fosao Ahjussi testified with a rather serious expression.

“Ruyef… he just… did something to Tia.”

“What? Please tell me in detail.”

My breathing quickened. What on earth did Ruyef do?

Fosao Ahjussi’s dark eyes looked directly at me.

“He just… hugged and t- touched her, it seemed.”

“…Really?”

“Really…”

Suddenly, my head felt like it was spinning. At the same time, the blood throughout my body surged and boiled.

The ahjussi continued to speak.

“Ruyef was holding Tia’s hand…”

“Stop. Just a moment.”

I couldn’t breathe. It was as if I had forgotten how to breathe.

I knew. That much. Tia and Ruyef went to Behemor. I couldn’t cross the line, and since it was the Village Elder-nim’s will, I could accept it. But at the mention that Ruyef had ‘hugged’ Tia, an indescribable sense of unpleasantness surged.

Why? Tia isn’t even mine. Why am I getting so furiously angry?

Likewise, Tia… I don’t know what Tia was thinking, but there’s no rule saying she shouldn’t be alone with Ruyef or that she shouldn’t hold his hand.

…Even so, even so, it’s so filthy, irritating, and unpleasant that it makes my teeth grind. Had I ever felt this much rage recently? It’s not even something to be angry about. Why am I feeling this way…

Do I want to climb the mountain right now and separate the two of them?

Before I knew it, my feet were turning.

“I’m sorry, but I’ll be going now.”

“Nyah- R- Ritsu! What about the Rubus herb?”

“Please bring it to the pharmacy tomorrow.”

“P- pharmacy? Heh-heh… Oh, okay…”

As soon as I left the general store, I immediately ran up to the village.