The Foreign Woman and Our Choices
About an hour had passed since I received what could only be described as service from both Mom and Seunghee. At this point, I wasn't even sure anymore whether they were serving me or if I was the one serving them.
“Haa… haa……”
On my left, Seunghee lay completely spent, gasping for breath. On my right, Mom was in the same exhausted state, nestled against my arm with a dreamy, hazy expression as if she were floating through a pleasant dream.
After spending every day tangled up with Mom these past few days, I'd learned one thing: in this state, she fell asleep almost instantly.
“Mom.”
“Mmm…?”
When I called her, her moist eyes turned toward mine.
“Before you fall asleep, finish telling me what you were saying earlier.”
“What I was saying…?”
“Why you suddenly decided to give me this service today.”
“Ah.”
She seemed to remember. But instead of answering, Mom glanced over at Seunghee. Was this somehow connected to her?
When I turned to look at Seunghee as well, she suddenly spoke up.
“Oppa. You got yourself another woman, didn't you?”
“Another woman?”
It was such an out-of-left-field question. Where would another woman even come from on this deserted island?
“I already know everything, so just be honest. That woman who came looking for you earlier—you followed her and made her your partner, right?”
“Aaaah… I see what this is about now.”
Come to think of it, there was another woman.
“Um, let me explain about her first.”
This was perfect timing. This was something I needed to discuss with both Mom and Seunghee anyway.
“You both overheard most of my conversation with her, right?”
“Yeah. Something about giving her medicine?”
“That's right. That woman came to this island with one family member, just like us. Except hers was apparently a seven-year-old son. The kid got sick, so she came looking for medicine.”
“Seven years old……”
Mom let out a low groan at the number. I'd first met Mom when I was ten. Seven was three years younger than that, which meant starting from an absolutely impossible position if you were trying to survive normally.
“But I'm not even sure if that's true. I couldn't confirm whether she actually had a son or not.”
“Why not? Didn't you follow her to check on that, Oppa?”
“I did. But it didn't work out. By the time I got there, the kid was already dead.”
“Gasp!”
Seunghee made a cartoonish sound as she sucked in a sharp breath.
“Actually, I couldn't even confirm if the child had really died. People don't leave corpses behind when they die here, remember?”
“Ah……”
As I explained it to them, I organized the story in my own head as well.
“It's possible the woman noticed me following her and set up the whole act from the beginning. So whether that son of hers really existed and died, or whether she was lying about a son who never existed in the first place—none of it is certain.”
In the end, there was nothing solid to go on. What the hell had I even accomplished? It was all a waste of effort.
“What did you think, Changjae?”
Mom, who had been quietly thinking after listening to me, asked.
“About what?”
“Did it look like she was acting to you? Or did it seem genuine?”
“It didn't look like acting. She probably didn't even know I was following her, so there wouldn't have been any reason to put on a performance.”
“So you're saying there's a 'what if' possibility that it wasn't an act?”
“Yes.”
It was hard to believe it had all been fake. But I couldn't make any guarantees based solely on my personal impression. A hasty judgment could put Mom and Seunghee in danger.
“If we assume it was an act, what would she gain from it?”
“Well, maybe earning my sympathy to lower my guard?”
“And then?”
“……While I was off guard, she could kill me and steal my supplies……”
If she had other male companions, Mom and Seunghee would become part of those 'supplies.' I didn't say that part out loud.
“But doesn't that method seem way too complicated if that's the goal? There's no guarantee she'd earn sympathy, and no guarantee she'd be able to lower your guard. If she really wanted to hurt us, Mom thinks there would've been much simpler ways.”
“You're right… that's definitely true.”
“See?”
Mom shrugged her shoulders and lifted her chin proudly, as if saying, See? Your mom can do this level of reasoning too.
Maybe my thinking had become too narrow because of my anxiety over Mom and Seunghee potentially being put in danger. If I kept considering every tiny possibility, I'd end up delaying important decisions. Maybe it was time to be a little bolder.
Clap.
Seunghee, who had been listening with a pouty expression, suddenly clapped her hands and spoke.
“So, Oppa. Was that woman pretty?”
That was actually a difficult question.
“Pretty… I guess? Honestly, I didn't get a good look at her face.”
“Ugh. Liar.”
“It's true. And she was kind of a peculiar person.”
“Peculiar? In what way?”
“Well, for starters, she was a foreigner.”
“A foreigner?”
This time it was Mom asking.
“Yes. American or European? She was a white woman, but she seemed to speak Korean pretty well.”
“I see. Well, it's not like only Koreans would end up here.”
“So, Oppa. Was she pretty or not?”
Seunghee seemed strangely fixated on whether the woman was pretty. Hmm. Could I really call her pretty? She definitely didn't fall into the 'pretty' category. Impressive, maybe. But she was quite disheveled, and that desperate atmosphere added to it.
“Honestly, I didn't think she was pretty. You're prettier, Seunghee.”
“Hmmm~.”
Seunghee narrowed her eyes skeptically.
“And she was incredibly tall. Looked like she worked out too. She took down a wild boar by herself without much trouble.”
“She was that tall? How tall?”
“I'd say at least 190 centimeters. Maybe close to two meters?”
“Whoa.”
“Come on, how can a woman be two meters tall?”
“She was definitely taller than me. Maybe it was the proportions, but she looked about a full head taller than me.”
“A full head taller than you, Oppa?”
Seunghee held her hand above my head to measure and let out an exaggerated gasp.
“Hiii~ No way! Is that for real?”
“It's real. You can check for yourself later. We might meet her soon anyway.”
“Huh? Really?”
That was exactly what I was worrying about. If I never saw her again, there'd be nothing to worry about.
“Since her son died… yeah. That makes sense……”
Mom seemed to understand. Seunghee, however, still had question marks floating above her head.
“To save her son, she'd need to collect coins, right?”
“Ah!”
Seunghee finally seemed to get it.
“Since we helped her once, I think she'll come to us first. So… how should we respond, Mom?”
“Huh? Me?”
Mom's eyes widened. It was irresponsible of me, but I honestly wanted to leave all the decisions to her.
“To be honest, I don't know what the right thing to do is.”
A woman who could fight. If this were a game, she'd be an absolute must-recruit talent. But relationships between people weren't that simple. There was no telling what kind of trouble might arise.
“I thought if she joined our side, she'd be helpful. A woman who can take down a boar bigger than me with just a spear. I don't know how she'd fare against people, but she'd definitely be more reassuring than not having her.”
Right now, the only one among us who could actually fight was me. That fact weighed heavily on my shoulders.
“But that same fighting ability could make her dangerous in the opposite way. We might be inviting a threat right into our base.”
The problem was that unlike Mom or Seunghee, this woman wasn't someone we could completely trust.
“If we decide not to accept her… simply sending her away won't be enough. She knows where our base is, and she might hold a grudge for being rejected……”
I didn't want to, but if we weren't going to accept her, it would be safer to just eliminate her.
Sigh. I really didn't want to do that.
Had my heart grown softer after spending these past few days rolling around with Mom and Seunghee? When I first arrived on this island, I'd thought that if Seunghee or Seungpil caused any problems, I'd get rid of them without hesitation. Now, the idea of laying a hand on an innocent person didn't sit well with me at all.
“Changjae.”
Maybe Mom sensed how I was feeling. She gently stroked my cheek with a tender hand.
“With that woman… could you do it?”
“Huh?”
Her unexpected question made me chuckle.
“Mom. I'm twenty-one years old. A twenty-one-year-old guy would stick it in a knot hole in a tree if that's all there was.”
“You little… You shouldn't say things like that.”
Smack. Mom lightly tapped my shoulder.
“……Twenty-one?”
Meanwhile, Seunghee reacted to a completely different part.
Oh crap.
“Twenty-one in full years.”
I quickly corrected myself. The truth was, Seunghee and I were the same age—both twenty-one. Yet up until now, I'd been hiding my age and letting her call me Oppa.
“Hmmm~?”
Seunghee narrowed her eyes suspiciously and glared at me. To dodge the issue, I reached over and kneaded her ass.
“Kyaa!”
“Doing it with her is fine. I'd actually enjoy it. But then the coins would get split.”
“Ugh!”
“And I'd have fewer chances to be with you or Mom.”
Seunghee lightly bit my forearm from the side. Was this some kind of acupressure?
“Mmm… I understand what you're struggling with, Changjae. It's definitely not an easy problem.”
“What do you think we should do, Mom?”
“Mom wants to tell you to do whatever you want.”
Mom gave a bitter smile. Just as I expected. In the end, this was a decision I had to make and take responsibility for.
“But there's no guarantee she'll even come here, right? If she really does show up, I think it would be best to meet her in person and decide then.”
Mom didn't seem particularly bothered by the idea of accepting another woman. But what was she really thinking? Was she truly unbothered? Wouldn't her jealousy level go up again if we took the woman in?
……Maybe it really would be safer to just get rid of her.
It was a difficult problem.
“Oppa. Why aren't you asking me?”
“Because you're just freeloading at our house.”
“Ugh!”
Seunghee's opinion didn't really matter anyway.