episode_0003

[3] More fearful than compatibility.

“Read ‘The Three Wishes Fairy and the Woodcutter’ to me! Please!”

“You read that to me last time….”

“Read it again! Please!”

“Ugh! Hyun-kyung, did Uncle suddenly hurt his eyes?”

“Why, why? Is it hurting a lot? Should Hyun-kyung read to Uncle?”

“No, no. It’s not that bad, but Uncle seems like he should rest his eyes a bit, so I can’t read him a fairy tale.”

“Hmm…. Really? Then Hyun-kyung will read to him~”

“…zzz….”

“Once upon a time~”

.

.

.

“Uncle! So there was this! The woodcutter saved the deer being chased by a bad hunter~”

“Snooze….”

“Sam! Chun! Are you sleeping?”

“Uh.. Huh? Huh huh Uncle, I’m not sleeping.”

“You were asleep! Where did I stop reading? Tell me!”

“Oh Uncle, I wasn’t asleep~ That… the kind hunter saved the deer….”

“You were asleep! I said the bad hunter was chasing the deer! Samchun, I’m mad at you! You’re always just sleeping! Fool! Lazybones! Stupid! I’m going to tell Mom everything!”

“…!!! No, why are you telling Nuna about it~ That… the hunter isn’t bad, so Uncle said that.”

“Huh? No! The hunter is trying to catch the poor deer! So the kind woodcutter….”

“Yeah~ that woodcutter! The woodcutter was really bad. It’s just prejudice to say the woodcutter is kind~”

“Huh? No! The hunter is bad and the woodcutter is good, right? It even says in the book that the woodcutter is kind!”

“Hmm… that? That’s because the author and the woodcutter are friends. Hmm… let’s see… Yes! It’s similar to that concept of ‘moral luck.’ Oh no, is this getting too complicated?

Anyway! The woodcutter and the author made a shady deal behind the scenes~ That’s it.”

“A shady deal behind the scenes?”

“Yeah, yeah, it’s a bad deal.”

“How does Samchun know that?”

“Uncle has a way of knowing everything. Alright, Uncle will show you some evidence, Hyun-kyung, what did we eat for dinner last night?”

“Hmm? For dinner? Dad suggested going out for pork belly.”

“Was it delicious?”

“Yes! It was really delicious! We also had cold noodles!”

“Right? It was delicious, right? That’s all because the hunter worked hard to hunt so Hyun-kyung could eat~.”

“Uh, really?”

“The hunter chasing the deer was all about feeding people tasty meat with a beautiful heart. Oh! But what’s this now? The hunter worked hard all day to chase the deer, and the bad woodcutter hid it away? What’s this?”

“…!?!? …Uhh… that’s not… the hunter is bad… the woodcutter is kind, taking care of his mother… chopping wood…”

“Oh… have you seen a child trapped in such prejudice! Now! Hyun-kyung, think about it. Huh? Did the hunter really not have a mother? The hunter also has a sickly old grandmother, a wife like a rabbit, children like foxes~ He catches deer to earn money, get praise from his wife, buy medicine for his mother, and snacks for his children, oh, what’s this? He failed the hunt? Whose fault is it?”

“……”

“W. Hose. Fault. Is it~”

“……M…Me…the woodcutter?”

“That’s right! Because of the woodcutter! The woodcutter hiding the deer doesn’t affect his livelihood~ But! What about the hunter without the deer?? Ugh… It’s a sad story even if you don’t look at it, right? So! Is the woodcutter who knowingly hid the deer from the poor hunter a good woodcutter or a bad woodcutter???”

“…I…I’m a bad woodcutter….”

“That’s right! A bad woodcutter!”

“…Oh, but…it’s not…”

“No way! People should have a sense of morality when they speak. It’s like a woodcutter working hard to cut wood, and the person next to them keeps picking up the wood that I cut and asks, ‘Where did the wood I cut go?’ When asked, ‘What’s the difference between hiding firewood and stealing it while pretending to be innocent?’ Ah, that’s why you need to see things from a different perspective! That woodcutter has no conscience, no conscience~”

“…….”

“???…..Hyunkyung??”

“……Hik!”

“Huh???”

“Aaaah!! Mommy!!!”

“Whoa whoa whoa! Don’t cry, don’t cry! Uncle made a mistake! He was wrong! Uncle is kneeling down!!! He’s wiping his tears!!”

-A conversation record between uncle and nephew on a clear day.-

* * * *

It’s been three days since leaving home.

Not even a trace of prey has been found.

Now, it seems inevitable that I’ll have to finish up slowly.

I can’t delay any longer here, considering my mother’s worries….

‘I hope she’s not spending another winter in the cold valley…’

Even though she says she’ll be fine, I’m more worried about her.

The cold came earlier this year than last, but I didn’t expect there to be no prey at all.

If Father were here, he might have tried challenging the beasts’ den to find a large animal for hibernation, but it’s impossible for me alone.

Usually, such large prey is caught with a spear, but I didn’t even consider attempting it alone, so I only brought a bow.

Moreover, if I had taken a spear, my sharp-witted mother would surely not have let me go hunting.

Well, anyway, the target of this hunt is deer, so a bow is sufficient.

Deer meat is valuable; it can be sold or used as food directly.

And the leather, if skinned well without damage, can fetch a good price. Once caught, not only will it cover my mother’s medicine expenses, but also ensure worry-free winter.

But in the end, I haven’t seen a single deer, not even a fox cub.

The dens I found were empty, with no traces around.

Now, my last hope lies in the traps set at places where animals might pass by.

I can only hope something gets caught in one of them.

Thud thud!

“Squeak squeak!!”

Fortunately, a rabbit was caught in one of the snares I set.

“Squeeek!”

As I approached, the rabbit struggled frantically to escape.

Swiftly, I twisted its neck to end its struggle.

Initially, it was quite a challenging task, but now I’ve become somewhat accustomed to it.

After a moment of gratitude towards the rabbit, I tied it to my waist.

Capturing even a single rabbit is fortunate, but at this rate, it’s barely enough for a day’s firewood, let alone covering my mother’s medicine expenses.

One might think it’s better to just gather firewood oneself instead of spending money unnecessarily, but things don’t always go as planned.

Here, cutting trees recklessly for firewood without permission leads to punishment.

If anyone could freely cut trees near their homes, why would there be woodcutters?

They must have already cut and gathered all the trees in the mountains.

Woodcutting also requires permission.

Moreover, everyone has their own profession, and risking deep into the mountains to cut firewood avoiding private or communal lands is not an easy task, right?

Of course, if there really is no money to buy firewood, one might have to resort to that, but if you’re going deep into the mountains anyway, it’s much better to hunt and buy firewood.

Selling meat and leather once would cover a month’s worth of firewood easily.

“……Huh? Is this place empty?”

I arrived at the location of the next trap, but there were no signs of any animals.

Normally, this is a spot where you’d catch badgers just by setting a trap, but it’s empty?

Even if the valuable badger skin could be sold, hunting would be worthwhile, but if this continues, it’s a real problem.

Come to think of it, something seems off.

No matter how cold it gets, can there really be no prey at all?

Unless something happened in the mountains….

In cases like this….

….. Huh?

…. Claw marks?

Could it be?

The word ‘tiger’ flashes through my mind.

The yellow fur of a beast that fell while wetting its body on a tree.

Claw marks so large they couldn’t be compared to a cat’s scratch.

A pile of dung mixed with the fur and bones of a badger…

The heart, which had been quiet in the face of undeniable evidence of a tiger, began to beat as if it would burst at any moment when the club started swinging.

It was not a situation to leisurely check traps.

In a hunt that had come out boldly, the only prey was a small rabbit, but saying that it would be left on the mountain where the tiger settled because it was regrettable is no different from saying that I want to become a rabbit too.

“I have to go down. What’s the use if I get killed by a tiger? I have to go down to the government office… But will those kids help me? …Anyway, I have to go down.”

Feeling anxious, I became more alert for no reason.

Two disasters that could not be escaped by human power.

Hwan. Mama.

I now know better than anyone what that is.

…I found out.

The word that used to come out in old stories suddenly appeared before me and became reality, tightening the noose around my neck.

The helpless creature behind the bars of the zoo reversed its position, locking me in with its yellow eyes.

At that time, I was nothing more than prey trembling like a sick chicken in a coop, without even thinking of running away.

Hwan.

The helplessness and terror of humans felt in front of it…

Those yellow eyes were still imprisoning me.

“Hoo hoo.”

No matter how much I tried to take deep breaths, my heart, which showed no sign of calming down, was held tightly, and I slowly stepped back.

Thump thump.

Will my breath escape, or will I soon leave that place as if dead?

That way, I managed to keep away from the tiger’s tracks for a long time.

A familiar fork in the road appeared.

One side is the path down the mountain to return home,

the other is the path where I set another trap.

“……”

My steps, which were only thinking of returning somehow, suddenly turned around in place.

In my heart, I wanted to give up everything, including hunting, and just go home.

On my waist, a rabbit with a broken neck weakly dangled.

This pitiful prey, swaying back and forth, keeps grabbing my feet, which keep trying to go home.

Suddenly, I thought of my sick grandmother alone in the cold room.

I need to get medicine….

“Hu… Huuu….”

Suppressed groans escaped from my mouth.

Caught between fear and greed, I hesitated back and forth for a long time.

In the end, I lifted my foot.

The direction I headed was where the trap was.

There was no courage or strength to confront the tiger.

Just… using the excuse of how unlikely it was to encounter a tiger in this vast mountain as a self-consolation…

Even if it’s a gamble with a low chance of failure, if the stake is my life, it’s just a foolish act.

In front of my mother, I boasted that I wasn’t afraid of a tiger, claiming to be the son of the best hunter in Geumgangsan, but in reality, there was a timid unemployed man who lived without knowing danger or suffering in safe South Korea.

Yet, despite knowing that this cowardly act was foolish, the reason I braved the danger and headed towards the trap was…

Simply put.

Because there is something even scarier than a tiger…