Aftermath (2)
"Eek!"
Realizing I had been watching, Kongji hurriedly yanked the blanket up over her head. But sitting still like that must have felt awkward, because she soon tugged it back down just enough to peek out with one eye.
"Um... Scholar... Why are you in this girl's room...?"
"Because you collapsed into sleep like you'd fainted. I came to check on you."
"Ah... Thank you."
She rustled about and slowly sat up. I gently pressed her back down so she wouldn't overexert herself.
"I don't remember much... Is the monster dead?"
"It is. We were able to kill it thanks to your help."
"Is it... really over?"
"You and the village are safe now."
"...Sniff."
She must have been holding her tension tight right up until the moment she blacked out. Now that she had slept it off, everything came loose at once and spilled out as tears. I said nothing, simply watching her with warm eyes.
Then, still sniffling, Kongji suddenly scooted toward me. Before I could react she burrowed straight into my arms and began to sob in earnest.
...She lost her parents young. Of course she would miss an adult's embrace.
A whole parade of Joseon-era Confucian scruples flashed through my mind... but in the end I just patted her back. Confucianism or not, helping Kongji calm down mattered more right now.
Naturally I felt nothing special toward her.
She's fourteen. What am I supposed to feel? Nothing, that's what.
In the Kongji and Patji I knew, Kongji was fourteen. And if I remembered right, the story wrapped up within a year... Fourteen put a full nine-year gap between us and my twenty-three.
Just a little sister.
So I waited in silence until her crying stopped. After a while she fidgeted and slipped free of my arms.
"...I'm sorry, Scholar. I made a spectacle of myself."
"Spectacle? I don't see it that way. If it helped settle your heart, then I'm relieved."
"It did. Very much."
"Good."
"...Do you know what became of Stepmother?"
"She's in her room. We came back together earlier."
I expected her to look relieved—or angry. Instead Kongji fixed me with calm, quiet eyes and asked,
"Did anything happen with Stepmother on the way here?"
"Hm? Happen how...?"
"Like if her stamina was so poor you had to carry her on your back, or if she was hurt somewhere and you held her hand..."
"Nothing wrong with her health or stamina. Ah—she did bow to me, though."
"A-a bow?!"
"Why the dramatic reaction...? Ah, right. You should have been the first to receive an apology. That's why I told her so beforehand."
"An a-apology...?"
"Yes. Is there another kind of bow?"
"...N-no! There isn't! I must have misunderstood...!"
She promptly buried her face in the blanket again. Her ears, for some reason, had gone bright red.
.
.
.
"Anyway, the villagers are back to normal. The monster's corpse is... probably still at the government office."
"I see..."
I filled her in on everything that had happened while she slept. The monster was dead, the village was safe, and saving the newly appointed magistrate's life had been a bonus. All that remained was disposing of the corpse and sorting out Kongji's household.
"I'll discuss the monster with the magistrate, so don't worry too much about that."
Unfortunately, as far as I knew, Joseon had no dedicated agency for dealing with monsters. So how should the matter be handled?
Hand it over to the government, of course.
And the person who counted as "the government" right now was that newly appointed magistrate. Especially since he now knew he had nearly died—he would throw himself into the work with extra zeal. So that side was covered.
The real problem was Kongji's family.
"Scholar. Are you... planning to leave right away?"
I had intended to. But after hearing the stepmother's true feelings, and knowing there were still things left to settle, simply walking away felt wrong.
I started this. I ought to see it through.
Even so, if Kongji didn't want me to stay, the whole idea was pointless.
"If you wish it, I was thinking of remaining about a week to help—"
"I wish it!"
"..."
"...Ah! I-I mean...! Y-your help, Scholar...!"
...She nearly gave me a heart attack. She had shoved her face right up to mine before I even finished speaking, and my words stuck in my throat. Luckily she noticed too; she made a little "u-uh" sound and scrambled backward.
Looks like she still needs someone whose interests line up with hers.
I was the only one who knew the stepmother had truly tried to love Kongji. Even if Kongji learned that, it might take considerable time before the knowledge truly reached her heart.
"Then... I'll stay another week or so. And if there's anything you'd like to learn, I'll teach you while I'm at it."
"Thank you...!"
"On one condition."
"...?"
"I want you to have an honest conversation with your stepmother. Promise me."
"I understand."
And so I ended up remaining in the village another week.
"Scholar, I'm off."
"Have a good talk. And if anything happens, call me at once. I'll come running."
"Heh. Thank you."
Kongji smiled softly and set off toward the stepmother waiting in the distance. Judging by the direction they took, they were heading into the village proper, so I didn't need to worry much.
"As for me... time to visit the government office."
I went straight there and found the new magistrate furiously kicking the monster's corpse.
"So this is the bastard that tried to eat me!"
His face had gone beet-red with rage—he looked for all the world like one of those kings of hell you see painted in Buddhist temples.
"Good day to you."
"...? And who are you?"
"I am Kim Shin-ryong. I was traveling to Hanyang for the civil service examination when I stopped in this village."
"Ah—ahhh! It's you! The scholar who cut down this monster! Welcome!"
The moment I introduced myself he came barefoot out into the courtyard and seized my hands.
"Thank you. Thanks to you, not only I but my entire family survived."
Magistrates often played the villain in these tales, but thankfully this one did not seem to be that sort. If anything, he felt like the type who could not abide injustice and insisted on seeing justice done.
"We were able to defeat the monster thanks to the help of Miss Kongji of the Choi household."
"The Choi household... Had I known, I would have arrived sooner."
"Do you have some connection to them?"
"An old acquaintance. I knew they had a precious daughter."
So that was how the threads connected. With this, I could leave without fretting too much afterward.
Nothing quite as reassuring as having the village magistrate for a backer.
Come to think of it, this magistrate's temperament itself felt like a hallmark of folktales. Most traditional stories cast nearly everyone except the clear villains as good-aligned. And right after the ending—in the epilogue—the protagonist always received a grand reward and lived happily ever after. That pattern held here too.
"I came to ask a favor regarding the incidents this monster caused and the disposal of its corpse."
"Of course. I'll report it to the court. Anyone who dared lay a hand on my family will pay the price."
"Thank you."
"Is that all? Anything else I can help with?"
"Nothing else."
"Leaving already, then?"
"No. I'll stay another week or so to help with Miss Kongji's household affairs and teach her a bit of study."
The magistrate's expression turned sly.
"Hmm... I see. So you're tidying up the household so you can take her as your wife."
"Pardon? No. Miss Kongji is fourteen—how could marriage even be considered? She feels like a little sister, and I pitied her, so I'm staying a little longer to help."
"Fourteen? As far as I knew she was definitely..."
"Yes?"
"Never mind. If you ever need help, come find me anytime. You saved my life—I'll do everything in my power."
"Thank you."
With that I returned home to find Kongji and the stepmother already back.
"Miss Kongji."
"Scholar..."
Her face looked somehow both sorrowful and relieved. When I went into her room and we talked, it seemed the conversation had gone well.
"I asked Stepmother not to leave. Even if it was only a short time... I liked being in her arms."
"If that is your heart, then I support you."
"I only ever received torment from her, but Stepmother lost one daughter and tormented another. I can hardly bear to think how wounded her heart must be."
Tears rolled down her cheeks as she spoke. Clearly she still cared for her stepmother.
"Your suffering and the lady's cannot be compared. So you may grieve as well."
"Hic... If I cry again, will you lend me your arms, Scholar?"
Hm?
"...I will."
"...Heh. I'm joking. I've decided to change, after all. ...If I want to stay by someone's side."
"What was that?"
"Nothing. More importantly—may I begin receiving your teachings starting tomorrow?"
"If you wish, I'll teach you anything."
"Anything... you say?"
"...Anything within what I know, that is."
If she suddenly dumped calculus on me I'd be in trouble. The moment I hedged like that, Kongji finally burst out laughing.
"You really do look best when you smile."
"Then I'll try my best to smile more often."
And so a new week began—quieter and more peaceful than the last.