Chapter 8
Translator: Roshi
When he returned home, the sky was already filled with dark clouds.
He needed to hurry.
He first placed the ingredients he bought inside the house and took out the Dragon Tree.
‘This should do, right?’
He measured the roof size, then took out his sword and peeled off the bark.
He planned to make a roof by layering the bark, which repels both water and insects.
For the pillars, he cut wood to an appropriate size and set them up.
Just as the roof and pillars were completed, it began to rain in light drizzles.
“Perfect timing.”
He stood quietly for a moment, watching the rain fall from beneath the roof.
It was a spring rain, washing away the past winter.
As if it were flowing away his own winter, signaling a new beginning.
Spring was coming here, too.
Calmly, slowly.
“Uung… Ajosshi, what are you doing?”
Just as he was focusing on the rain, Hanuri woke up and came out to the porch.
She was rubbing her half-closed, puffy eyes and approaching him.
“Ah, it’s cold!”
She shrank back, startled by the spring rain.
But it was only for a moment.
“Woaah! It’s raining! It’s raining on Hanuri!”
After confirming it was raining, the child ran out barefoot into the spring rain.
Soaked in no time, Hanuri dashed back to where he was.
“You’ll catch a cold. Let’s go inside and put on warm clothes.”
“Okay!”
He quickly picked her up and went back inside.
With his energy around her, she wouldn’t catch a cold, but he didn’t want to take any chances.
After drying her wet hair and making sure her body was warm and dry, he dressed her in cozy clothes he had bought from the department store.
Then, he hesitated.
‘Even if I do this, if she goes outside again, she’ll just get wet all over.’
Judging by the look in her eyes, she’d probably rush right back out to play in the rain.
“Ajosshi!”
While he was contemplating, the child called him from the porch.
“……?”
“Come over here.”
Sitting on the edge of the porch, she patted the spot next to her, inviting him over.
When he approached and sat next to her, she immediately lay her head on his lap, as if she’d been waiting for it.
“Hehehe! Hanuri like this. As much as Hanuri.”
Then, puffing up her cheeks and arms, she giggled, saying she liked it as much as her own name.
Even looking down at her from above, her adorable expression was heartwarming.
He quietly stretched his arm back toward the room and pulled over a blanket.
Then, he covered her with it.
Shoooosh!
The rain continued to fall from the sky.
He sat there silently, for the child watching the sky.
Building a cabin, cooking, none of it was more important than this moment with the child.
“Oh, right, Ajosshi.”
“What?”
“Where’s Yongyong?”
“Ah.”
While Hanuri was sleeping, he had left the dungeon.
Naturally, he had left the wyvern behind.
"Um... ah, here's Porong.”
He quickly handed her the Porong doll he had bought from the store.
“Wow! It’s Porong!”
Seeing the child jump up and hug the doll happily, it seemed the wyvern would be easily forgotten...
“But where’s Yongyong?”
“…….”
It was easy to divert the child’s attention.
All he had to do was give her another toy.
Of course, if it really stuck in her mind, it might be different.
Hugging the Porong doll, she continued to ask about the wyvern.
“Aren’t you hungry?”
“Yongyong!”
“Should I make some pancakes? Ah, do you want some juice?”
“Juice?”
The child’s interest perked up.
He couldn’t let this chance slip by.
He immediately reached out and took out the Dragon Tree fruit he had kept in the refrigerator.
“Hanuri will peel it!"
Her excitement visibly grew.
“Do you want to?”
Though the fruit was wrapped in a hard and smooth shell, peeling it wasn't difficult.
Of course, it would be too tough for the child to peel, but it gave him a little time, so he just let it be.
“Eek!”
Leaving the child who was intensely focused on peeling the fruit, he decided to quickly finish building the half-done cabin.
Since he only needed to finish the raised platform, it wouldn’t take too long.
‘Maybe I should just leave it as one solid piece.’
The exposed tree rings would actually look pretty nice.
He immediately cut a thick base section of the tree to an appropriate thickness.
It wasn’t a perfect circle, but that made it even better.
When he placed it under the cabin roof as it was, it looked surprisingly fitting.
Once he coated the top surface, it would be complete.
“Ajosshi.”
“Hmm?”
“Hanuri did this!”
“What?”
Startled, he moved over to where Hanuri was.
In front of her was a Dragon Tree fruit, split in half like a watermelon.
The inside looked similar to a watermelon, too.
“How did you do it?”
“Hanuri did like this! And then, crack! It split open.”
The child proudly showed off her little arm.
Though she had gained some weight, she didn’t have enough strength to split open a fruit.
‘Did she use mana?’
Even if she did use mana, could she split it so cleanly?
Besides…
‘Her energy’s tangled, so she shouldn’t be able to use mana, right?’
It was strange.
Oblivious to his thoughts, Hanuri beamed at him and called out cheerfully.
“Ajosshi, juice!”
"Oh? Oh yeah. Right."
He took one half of the split fruit and put it back in the fridge for now.
He’d figure out later how she managed to split it, but for now, he scooped out the pulp from the remaining half.
A dark aura flowed from his hand, completely crushing the pulp, and he poured half of it into a cup.
With just a bit of ice, a refreshing juice was ready.
“Here.”
“Wow! Ajosshi… can I drink it over there?”
“Do you want to?”
"Yep!"
Holding the child with her juice in hand, he moved to the almost-finished cabin.
Carefully, so she wouldn’t get wet in the rain.
The cabin was positioned with a view of a river on one side and a picturesque mountain with a house in the background on the other.
There, he took out a portable burner and the ingredients for making pancakes.
The plan was to make potato pancakes for the child and chive pancakes for himself.
Seafood pancakes would have been nice too, but today he felt like keeping it simple, just like any ordinary day.
“Playing is the best thing in the world~.”
The child’s singing, along with the sound of rain tapping on the roof, created a peaceful backdrop…
Tap- tap- slice! slice!
The sound of chopping chives and grating potatoes harmonized.
Once the batter for each pancake was prepared…
Clack! Clack!
Poof~!
Clang.
He turned on the gas burner and placed a frying pan on it.
The key to frying pancakes was to use plenty of oil.
Ssssss!
He poured the potato pancake batter onto the hot oil.
In the cozy cabin, the savory aroma filled their little world, blending with the fresh scent of spring rain.
“Wow~ Ajosshi, how come you’re so good at this?”
“Hmm? Ah.”
He tilted his head for a moment at her question, but then understood from her expression.
She was asking how he got so good at cooking.
‘I’ve done all sorts of things, so I ended up learning this too.’
It was a very old memory.
After he’d crossed over to that hellish place, at first, survival was all that mattered.
Food was just something he ate to stay alive.
Then, once he’d settled a bit, perhaps as a reaction, he began obsessively searching for food.
He experimented with various ingredients and even recreated flavors from home.
Of course, he lost interest in it once he lost his sense of taste…
But thanks to those experiences, this much was easy.
“If you eat a good variety of food, you can do it too.”
Not wanting to delve into those memories with the child, he glossed over it.
Flip! Sizzle!!
He flipped the potato pancake right on time.
It was golden brown and perfectly cooked.
After making sure the other side was cooked well, he took it off the pan.
Next was the chive pancake.
Once it was also cooked to a golden brown and plated, it was time to bring out the makgeolli.
“Here, cheers.”
“Hehe! Cheers!”
The child clinked her juice glass with his makgeolli cup.
The unique, earthy aroma of rice wine, combined with the fermented taste of alcohol, flowed down his throat.
Krrr!
“Krrr!”
The child imitated his satisfied sound as he drank.
"Here, say ah~"
He tore off a piece of the potato pancake, dipped it in soy sauce, and put it into the child’s mouth.
Then, he tore a large piece of the chive pancake for himself.
The taste was that familiar, comforting flavor that everyone knows.
A crispy exterior with a soft, moist interior.
The strong scent of chives mixed with the oily flour batter made for a satisfying bite.
‘This is nice.’
Smiling, he took another sip of makgeolli.
The setting, the sounds, the aroma, the flavors, and even the choice of dishes.
It brought back memories he didn’t even have.
Sssshhhh!
He and Hanuri sat in the cabin, gazing absently at the rainy scenery.
Memories drifted away with the spring rain, making room for new ones to sprout.
‘Hmm?’
But then.
It wasn’t just memories sprouting—he noticed something peculiar.
It was from Hanuri's body.
One of the tangled flows of energy had slightly untangled.
‘What’s going on? Why?’
While pondering the reason, he realized something.
It was the Dragon Tree fruit juice that Hanuri was drinking!
He’d have to investigate the exact mechanism, but it was clear that the juice had influenced her tangled energy.
Smiling even more brightly at this unexpected discovery, he gently patted Hanuri’s head.
"Hehe. It's as good as Hanuri..."
The child beamed at his touch, smiling blissfully.
Inside, he echoed her sentiment.
He also felt as good as Hanuri.
*
It was a strange change.
Despite having taken an attack that should’ve crushed his whole body, Park Ki-ho was unharmed.
And that wasn’t all.
“Reawakening?”
“Ki-ho, what happened?”
Even when asked, Park Ki-ho didn’t really understand.
Why did he suddenly develop a new ability?
Woooom!!
A white armor, covering his head and part of his torso like a helmet, hummed with energy.
It was almost as if it were alive.
Flash!
But that only lasted a moment.
The armor turned into light and was absorbed into Park Ki-ho’s body.
This was his new ability.
“Does this mean… our team now has two main tanks?”
“Don’t get too excited. We haven’t even confirmed its rank yet.”
“Congrats, Ki-ho!”
“Wow~! I guess we can’t ask Ki-ho to carry our stuff anymore!”
Surrounded by his team members, the Fire Goblin team, Park Ki-ho received their congratulations in a daze.
“For now, let’s monitor Ki-ho’s condition and get a follow-up exam. How’s the dungeon status?”
The team leader refocused everyone by shifting the topic.
As the conversation moved on, Park Ki-ho took a deep breath and, for some reason, found himself thinking of the smell of kimbap.
‘Did someone bring kimbap?’
It didn’t seem to be anywhere in the hospital room, though…
“What? Team Leader!”
“What?”
“They said a wyvern appeared in the Dragon’s Forest dungeon!”
“A wyvern!?”
“It just left the dungeon and is flying eastward!”
Hearing this, Park Ki-ho’s head turned in that direction.
Strangely, he felt an odd tugging sensation, as if something in that direction was calling him.
*
Rustle!
In the pitch-dark mountain night, a small, uninvited guest appeared.
It approached cautiously, but it couldn’t escape Do-yoon’s senses.
Goroong~ Goroong~.
The child’s breathing was steady.
He considered going outside to check on the rustling sound before the child woke, but he lay back down.
The small intruder was moving away from the house.
It seemed to be a small wild animal.
‘Should I build a fence?’
He still had plenty of Dragon Tree wood left.
Building a fence with it would block insects as well, which would be nice, but he felt reluctant.
If he put up a fence, it would block the beautiful view from Hanuri’s eye level.
‘Come forth.’
Swish.
He summoned the Shadow Ogre.
For now, he intended to have it keep watch around the area.
In any case, nothing could escape his senses, but with the Shadow Ogre keeping watch, he wouldn’t need to bother himself with small wild animals anymore.
‘Go on.’
The shadow silently disappeared outside.
The night passed just as quietly.
And morning came again.
As usual, he was the first to wake. He stepped outside, confirming that the rain had stopped overnight.
The air on the morning after a rain felt different.
Perhaps it was that the scent of nature lingered a little more deeply?
Sitting on the porch, he quietly took in the scenery once more.
After some time had passed, he finally noticed the remnants from yesterday that he hadn’t bothered to clean up, lost as he’d been in the atmosphere.
He started by clearing those away.
“Hm?”
The remains of the Dragon Tree fruit that he’d set aside were nowhere to be seen.
It seemed last night’s guest had been after them.
Thanks to that, there was less trash to clean up, so he didn’t mind.
After putting away the dishes, he lit a fire in the stove.
The chilly spring air slowly gave way to the warmth from the Elf Wood logs.
He wished he had more Elf Wood.
The steadily dwindling supply was a little regretful.
But that regret was only momentary.
‘Maybe I should start a small garden.’
Now that spring had begun, it seemed like a good time to plant some seeds.
It would be fun to harvest them in summer or autumn, and it would be satisfying to watch time flow in the garden.
Summer, autumn, winter, and then spring again.
‘Hanuri, too, will grow as time passes.’
That, too, would be a wonderful thing.
Thanks to the Dragon Tree fruit, he’d found a clue to untangling the child’s tangled energy.
Until the time the child grows up and leaves his hands, their time together would be longer.
So, preparing for the long road ahead wouldn’t be a bad idea.
He was interrupted by a song that captured his attention.
And there, in the kids' corner, he spotted a strange dinosaur character doll with glasses.
“…Haha…”
Finally, he realized he’d found 'Porong', the toy Hanuri had been talking about.
*****