Chapter 143
Chapter 143
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 143
Chapter Title: Three Peaches (3)
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-Wood Heart January Issue: ~New Year's Sister-in-Law's Lower Tofu Special~
-'Brother-in-law, one tonight isn't enough.' Stories of trees with unspeakable circumstances around us. Let's peer into their deep, emerging tales.
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Tree love (Dendrophilia).
A mental illness one would never experience in a lifetime was considered utterly normal here, even a relatively wholesome hobby.
It was so taken for granted that a girl around middle school age could run around clutching a magazine without issue.
"Thank you~ Big brother! I really wanted this!"
Hwangdo hugged a stack of magazines to her chest and grinned from ear to ear.
Her half-lidded eyes as she gazed at them were quite striking.
'Magazines like this are sold to minors...'
The future of this country looked bleak.
Where did they even print this stuff? Reading line after line of those gems made me desperately crave a brainwash.
-Hurry and drill into my xylem.
-They say the tofu vendor's backdoor is all plump and fluffy.
Was this how those who touched the abyss and went mad felt?
I couldn't even laugh anymore.
Just looking at the cover made me feel like I was losing my mind, but Hwangdo, the prime example of this magazine's target audience, was still staring intently at the Wood Heart cover, as if every word suited her tastes perfectly.
"It's so Wood Heart-y..."
Fine, whatever makes you happy. No matter how weird, it's your taste.
Watching Hwangdo's genuinely delighted face made me feel like I was sharing a bit of her energy.
"I'm so happy about this, but... nothing bad will happen tomorrow, right? God might get mad."
"Don't worry about nonsense. Let's just buy some gifts for Baekdo."
"Oh right, that's what we were doing."
Hwangdo slapped her forehead and stuck right back to my side.
Subtly wrapping her arm around mine was par for the course.
"...But aren't you and Baekdo on bad terms, big brother?"
"We wouldn't exactly call it good. Ever since I became the Little Heavenly Demon, she's been picking fights nonstop."
"Do you hate Baekdo, big brother?"
"Nah? I actually like her."
I immediately denied Hwangdo's question.
No matter how much Baekdo and I had been at each other's throats in the past, this was the past.
Baekdo was still young here, and besides, we had no real reason to fight yet.
"I want to get along with her. But something always rubs us the wrong way."
"Ughhh..."
Hwangdo made a groaning sound, mumbling with her mouth.
"Even if you don't, Baekdo hates you, big brother."
"Yeah."
"As long as you're set to inherit Dad's position, she'll probably hate you forever. Baekdo wants Cheondo to take over after Dad."
"I know. She told me last time."
From the Peach Garden's perspective, I was just a rolling stone that showed up.
A massive boulder bringing a storm with it, no less. That's why Hongyeon had been wary of me.
Because of me, Cheondo might not become the Heavenly Demon.
I'd even assured Baekdo that I had no intention of becoming the Heavenly Demon. But apparently, that wasn't enough.
While there were various political issues with me becoming Heavenly Demon, Baekdo was probably driven more by personal feelings.
"What do you think of Cheondo, big brother?"
"Cheondo?"
Hwangdo asked with unusual seriousness.
"Hmm. Cheondo, huh."
I could say it straight.
"Someone with a ton of affection but doesn't show it outright. Cares for those around her in secret, thinks a lot but doesn't let it show. So people see her as stiff and rigid."
We'd hunted ents together, risked our lives in dungeons, done all sorts of crazy things side by side, so I knew her well.
"That personality causes her a lot of losses, but she doesn't mind at all. It happens rarely, but sometimes..."
Hwangdo, who had listened to every word, looked genuinely surprised.
"You have a good eye for people, big brother. What about me then?"
"Pervert."
"...I'm not a pervert."
Hwangdo cleared her throat a few times, her cheeks flushing bright red, before steering back to the main topic.
"Ahem. Anyway, she's similar... But Cheondo isn't as tough as you make her sound. She's way softer than she looks. Like, super soft."
Hwangdo spread her arms wide in a circle.
Cheondo was a soft person.
I had thought this era's Cheondo showed a lot of emotions when I saw her as a kid.
Hwangdo pressed her index finger to her lips and made a shhh sound, telling me not to tell anyone.
"Actually, the biggest crybaby among us is Cheondo."
"Crybaby?"
"She was at seven years old. Cheondo would cry just from a falling leaf. In winter, seeing a frozen rabbit always made her eyes well up."
"I see."
"She sacrificed a lot for us too. Always yielding food... Taking on all the chores. Helping with housework. Everything."
A gentle person with a spirited side.
Cheondo's kind nature from the seedling stage remained unchanged.
Hwangdo's eyes grew misty as she reminisced about those old days.
"Truth is, Cheondo taking over after Dad just kinda happened. Baekdo and I hated training. Dad was super strict and scary during it... He's always scary now, though."
Cheondo becoming Heavenly Demon didn't seem driven by any grand purpose.
But diligent Cheondo must have put in grueling effort regardless.
"After starting training, Cheondo lived separately from us. She lost her name, and no one knew her anymore. Her personality changed a lot too."
She stopped crying after becoming Little Heavenly Demon. Her emotional expressions dwindled almost entirely.
She even acted stiff with me and Baekdo, Hwangdo said glumly.
"Training must've been brutally tough."
It definitely was hard to endure.
Thinking that Cheondo went through the exact same as me, it was undoubtedly horrific for a child.
As I nodded, Hwangdo sighed deeply, her face growing even more downcast.
"...That's probably why Baekdo resents it too. That Cheondo suffered so much in our place. It's true, after all."
"So she doesn't like the look of me?"
"Exactly."
While Cheondo was struggling, someone shows up trying to snatch even the fruits of her labor. No wonder her eyes rolled back.
'What does Cheondo herself think?'
She said it didn't matter.
Hwangdo stared at my face, then gave a wry smile.
"Truth is, I feel a little the same."
"...Really?"
"Yeah."
I was grateful she was being honest with me.
"You don't want me becoming Heavenly Demon either?"
"I don't. But... I do."
"Huh?"
"If you become Heavenly Demon, Cheondo won't have to live that prison-like life anymore. That's good... But all her hard work going to waste? That's not."
Hwangdo was clearly torn inside.
Her drooping figure looked just like a puppy, pretty cute.
"That's why... I fought with Baekdo so much over this. But one thing I'm sure of."
"What's that?"
The moment I asked, Hwangdo set down the gift bag, stretched out her short arms to hug my arm, rubbed her cheek against it, looked up at me, and flashed a bright smile.
"You don't seem like a bad person, big brother."
A sunbeam of a face. With the day a bit chilly, her warmth against my side felt cozy.
"...I can't see Cheondo much. But I can see you often, right?"
"Yeah."
"Then treat her well. She's such an idiot she can't take care of herself."
Well, that's obvious.
I had no plans to succeed as Heavenly Demon, but no need to say it.
Grateful for her honesty, I patted Hwangdo's head.
"Thanks. For telling me stuff I didn't know."
"Hehe. I can even show you my treasure, the first edition Wood Heart."
"Why the hell do you have that?"
"Uncle gave it to me for my birthday... Oh. I didn't tell you about Uncle? The first edition Wood Heart came out in Nineteen Fifty-something~"
I nodded along as Hwangdo proudly recited Wood Heart's history, buying a few gifts for Baekdo and handing them to her.
I even took her to a video arcade she wanted midway, and time flew by until it was time to head back.
"I don't wanna go, hng."
At her house, Hwangdo refused to leave my embrace.
Felt like a puppy trailing after me when I left for work in the morning.
"Let's go together again next time."
"Really?!"
Her face lit up instantly, blooming like a flower.
"Promise."
Suddenly, Hwangdo hooked her pinky out.
I was puzzled for a second, then remembered an old rhyme and hooked mine.
The song I'd sung once before came back easily.
"Promise for real. No backing out later?"
"Yeah, got it. Head inside already."
"Yay! Have a good evening, big brother!"
Hwangdo cheered, bouncing happily into the house.
She turned back several times on the way, waving furiously at me.
I mimicked her joyful waves, watching her go.
-Thud!
The sliding door shut, and Hwangdo vanished.
-Rattle.
Then it opened right back up, her face peeking out.
"Thank you!"
Door shut again.
She repeated this about five times before finally staying inside.
Her brighter, more bubbly self than the Hwangdo I knew made it impossible not to smile.
Alone now, I stuffed my trembling hands in my pockets, stood in front of her house a while longer, then turned back home.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Uncleeee!"
Hwangdo's voice boomed through the room, startling awake Jinsahyang, who bolted upright.
"Wha-, what? What's wrong?"
"I got these!"
Hwangdo beamed, spreading out the armful of magazines. Jinsahyang's eyes widened in shock.
"You can't even go outside, so where'd you get all this?"
"Big brother bought them for me."
"Big brother?"
"Someone like that exists!"
What kind of lunatic buys Wood Heart for such a pretty girl? He'd be forgiven for gifting a gold ring just to impress her.
Jinsahyang's brain couldn't process Hwangdo's story.
"So, he gifted these to you? Uh... Isn't that total pervert behavior?"
"Why?"
"Why? It looks sketchy as hell."
Hwangdo tapped her lips with her finger, pretending to ponder, then shook her head innocently.
"Big brother's not a bad person."
"Oh, really now?"
"Bad people are like the ones you meet on your phone..."
"Shut that mouth."
Facts hit like a slap.
Jinsahyang wiped fake tears and sighed.
"Anyway, be careful with guys. Like your sister... Um, you get it? Wrong one and you're in deep trouble."
"Big brother said the same thing."
"Yeah. Guys like that big brother are the most dangerous."
"...He didn't seem like that."
Hwangdo kept denying it.
Jinsahyang tilted her brow, staring at her.
No matter who had her so smitten, she owed her some advice.
Jinsahyang gave her sincere warning.
"If that guy's not weird, I'll let him snap my wrist."
Hwangdo's eyes went wide, and she immediately spilled about him.
"...He's the Little Heavenly Demon."
"Huh?"
The famously handsome, capable guy from the rumors.
Jinsahyang instantly clammed up.
One wrong word and she might get stripped and flogged for blasphemy.