Grasshoppers, Carrots, and Chocolate
Grasshoppers were a no-go, so I went looking for Levi Nas around the outside. She was harvesting carrots from the field we'd worked on together.
"Levi Nas, whatcha doing?"
"Pulling up carrots! Levi Nas is gonna put 'em in shabu-shabu!"
"I see."
Eating carrots we'd grown ourselves in shabu-shabu. Not a bad idea at all. I crouched down beside her to help.
"What’s the King gonna put in shabu-shabu?!"
"Uh, who knows? Whatever's there should be fine, right?"
Han Yeoreum would probably prepare everything perfectly. No need for me to hunt anything down, I figured. That's when Levi Nas patted my back with firm little taps.
"You can put anything in it! This chance doesn't come around often?!"
"Uh..."
What on earth did Levi Nas think shabu-shabu was? You couldn't really toss just anything in. But as an adult, I couldn't fully grasp a child's imagination, so I just kept pulling carrots in silence.
"The King isn't thinking of putting anything special in?"
"Y-yeah. I don't even know what to put in. It's not like it goes with shabu-shabu anyway."
"Really? What did the King used to eat?"
The foods I'd eaten before. None of them paired with shabu-shabu. I just listed a few since she was curious.
"Frog tadpoles, dandelions, cornmeal stuff. When there was really nothing, I caught and ate grasshoppers too."
"Okay! Then let's put that in!"
"N-no..."
Anything but grasshoppers—Han Yeoreum hated them. As I hurried to refuse, Levi Nas's eyes lit up and she bolted toward the grass.
"Grasshopper!"
"Uh, yeah?"
A single grasshopper was resting on the lawn. The shape of its wings and the position of the spines on its legs matched the one I'd caught that morning perfectly.
So you're the guy from this morning.
But could I really tell them apart that well? As I marveled to myself, Levi Nas leaped toward it.
Thud!
She lunged with both hands, but it hopped away just out of reach. Her incredible jumping power had given it the height advantage to escape.
"Eeeh?"
Disappointed it hadn't been caught, she stared at her empty palms. Looked like I needed to teach her how to catch grasshoppers.
"Don't jump so high."
"R-really?"
"Yeah."
I approached the fleeing grasshopper as a demonstration, then thrust out both hands. It was caught easily in my grasp. Years of hunting insects like this had honed my skills.
"You caught it?!"
"Yeah. Swoop in all at once like me and..."
As I started explaining again to Levi Nas, footsteps approached nearby. I glanced over urgently—the middle-aged man who'd helped catch the thief last time stood there with a group of unfamiliar faces. Well, not entirely unfamiliar. I'd seen them around the guild building.
"Ah! It's the Master!"
"...What are you two up to?"
"Looking for stuff to put in shabu-shabu with the King!"
"Shabu-shabu...?"
The Master's gaze shifted to the carrot in Levi Nas's hand. He nodded slightly, then spotted the grasshopper in mine and flinched.
"Levi Nas is putting in carrots, and the King is putting in grasshoppers!"
"Grasshoppers...?"
The Master and everyone around him gaped. They murmured something, but I decided not to worry about it—his reaction had thrown me off a bit.
"Uh, um..."
I knew full well you didn't put grasshoppers in shabu-shabu. It wasn't impossible, but Han Yeoreum despised insect dishes. I wasn't about to do anything she hated.
"Did you used to catch and eat bugs too?"
"Y-yes... Only when I was starving, but I won't put it in shabu-shabu. People hate it."
"I see."
Lips pursed to his chin, the Master nodded and pulled a chunk of chocolate from his pocket—the same kind he'd given me and Levi Nas before.
"Choco!"
"Put this in shabu-shabu too."
"Ah! That's the way!"
Levi Nas hopped excitedly and snatched the chocolate. I could only stand there dumbfounded at the Master's antics.
He's gotta be joking... right?
Shabu-shabu with chocolate? Even more impossible than grasshoppers. I wanted to tell Levi Nas it was a prank, but something held me back.
This world's common sense was different from my original Earth's.
No soybean paste, and they ate weird stuff like naru meat...
Food culture varied, so I might embarrass myself insisting it wouldn't work. Best to keep my mouth shut. At worst, half of it might fly.
"Thanks, Master! Levi Nas will definitely put chocolate in shabu-shabu!"
"Good. Now quit playing and head in. The grown-ups will worry."
"Okay!"
Carrots, chocolate, and a grasshopper. We returned home with ingredients of questionable status.
"Behold Levi Nas's grand entrance!"
Levi Nas shouted as she dashed into the living room. The table was fully set for shabu-shabu.
"You're back?"
"Y-yeah..."
"Yep! Got stuff for shabu-shabu!"
Levi Nas thrust the carrot and chocolate toward Han Yeoreum. I watched from behind, unsure of her reaction.
"Carrots work, but chocolate might be tough?"
"R-really?"
"Yeah. Let's eat the chocolate as a snack at the end?"
"Okay! Got it!"
Han Yeoreum smiled warmly at Levi Nas, then glanced at the grasshopper in my hand. Her amused expression froze solid.
"The King said he's putting grasshoppers in shabu-shabu!"
"Winter, we decided no grasshoppers..."
"R-right..."
It wasn't fair. I'd only grabbed it because Levi Nas insisted. But I couldn't blame a child, so I'd take the fall.
"Normally, no grasshoppers in shabu-shabu. So Winter, wanna compromise?"
"Y-yeah..."
I knew that. No grasshoppers in shabu-shabu. My shoulders slumped in injustice.
"B-but shabu-shabu is super tasty, right? Has Winter tried it before?"
"No, first time."
No one who'd eaten shabu-shabu would suggest grasshoppers. Today, I was the newbie again.
Having heard Jeong Yu-na's full account, the counselor squeezed her eyes shut. Shocked by the hellish ordeal the child had endured.
"So she thought you were a pathetic adult who couldn't even catch a single horn rabbit."
"Yes..."
An adult failing to catch one horn rabbit would be absurd. A mean person might mock it plenty.
The counselor tried to side with Jeong Yu-na, understanding her perspective. Though it didn't seem like outright bullying.
"Did you tease the child too, Yu-na?"
"I laughed when she was chased by a horn rabbit once..."
"Ah..."
They wouldn't have known her body could actually die from a horn rabbit's stab. To those unaware of her plight, it might've looked comical. The truth was far more gruesome.
"You mentioned someone laid hands on her?"
"Yes. In the beginner dungeon..."
Jeong Yu-na trailed off, freezing in her seat. Something felt off in the conversation.
Winter had no mana...
Between mana users, even a smack to the back of the head wouldn't hurt much. But the child had zero mana.
How painful would that have been for a mana-less kid? Jeong Yu-na's mage calculations yielded an instant answer.
Like getting hit with a hammer.
"Ah."
A light tap on the head. A gentle shove. Why had she casually called them "light"?
To mana-less Winter, they were never light.
Jeong Yu-na covered her paling face with both hands.
I thought in my own terms.
For the child, even a casual touch from a person was life-threatening. That's why she'd flinched away so terrified whenever anyone approached.
In Winter's world, everyone was a monster who could kill her.
And yet she's slowly opening up...?
She'd honestly thought it was their doing—that they were doing well, so Winter was warming up. But truly grasping the pain shed endured revealed how pathetic that notion was.
Despite unimaginable agony, she'd opened her heart to those who'd hurt her. Not because they were great, but because Winter had forgiven them first.
"......"
Could I forgive those who'd mock me while I died? Jeong Yu-na shook her head without hesitation.
She'd have become a vengeful ghost, seething with distrust.
Winter really is a saint.
Where in the world was there a kinder child? Jeong Yu-na's guilt swelled larger than ever.