Chapter 144
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 144
They were in the garage.
“Servant.”
“Hm?”
“You’re supposed to open the door.”
Dokyun stared at Eun-ji, who was standing in front of the passenger-side door with her arms crossed.
His fists clenched automatically at the sight of her sullen face glaring at him.
“Oh my, I forgot again…!”
“Hmph. Try to be more mindful.”
With that, Eun-ji squeezed herself into the car through the door Dokyun held open for her.
Dokyun let out a deep sigh, closed the passenger door, then got into the driver’s seat and looked at her.
“Hey, you have to wear your seatbelt.”
As he said this and fastened the belt for her, Eun-ji huffed again. The corners of her mouth twisted up into a smirk as she let out a little laugh.
“This shows some sense. You pass.”
“What the…”
Was she playing some kind of grading game? The way she’d been evaluating him all morning, declaring him a “pass” or “fail,” was utterly ridiculous. As Dokyun let out a dry laugh, Eun-ji spoke again, jutting her chin at him.
“What are you doing? Aren’t you going to drive?”
Kkwak.
He clenched his jaw tightly.
“Riiight, we’re leeeaving…!”
Dokyun felt a sharp pain shoot up the back of his neck as he started the car.
Somehow, he had a feeling it was going to be a long day.
* * *
As expected of Children’s Day, the roads were completely gridlocked with cars out for the holiday.
Not only the city center but even the outer roads, which should have been wide open, were congested.
After gripping the steering wheel in frustration for some time, Dokyun glanced over at Eun-ji. She was staring out the window, her lips pressed firmly together.
Something about her seemed off.
The kid who would normally be throwing a fit, asking why they were going so slow, was just quietly looking out the window. It made him wonder, ‘Did something happen?’
Dokyun observed her for a moment before turning his gaze back to the road and speaking.
“The traffic is pretty bad.”
“You idiot servant. It’s a public holiday, so of course it’s packed.”
Kkwak.
Dokyun felt his blood pressure rise and gripped the steering wheel tighter.
“Right? I guess since it’s Children’s…”
“The Princess’s Day.”
“Right, because it’s the Princess’s Day…!”
Should I really just hit her once?
The thought crossed his mind, but Dokyun managed to suppress it by picturing Eun-ah’s face.
If he hit her and she got a bump, how much would Eun-ah hurt? Dokyun didn’t want to see Eun-ah’s tears.
‘Besides, crying first won’t work anymore.’
When they first met, she could seize the initiative by bursting into tears, but now that they knew each other so well, trying that would only get him laughed at by this little brat.
Dokyun let out a deep sigh and continued to drive.
They arrived at the zoo an hour and a half later.
‘I thought it would only take forty minutes.’
The outing had taken much longer than expected. Dokyun got out of the car and stared at the zoo entrance, which was swarming with people.
“Whoa.”
Was this a zoo or a people-zoo?
Just the thought of jostling with that crowd made him feel tired already. Dokyun sighed at the sight of the entrance, then opened the passenger door, helped Eun-ji out, and grabbed her hand tightly.
At that, Eun-ji’s gaze turned to him. Dokyun put on a playful smile and said to her:
“We can’t have you getting lost and crying like last time, can we?”
“Idiot servant. You should have taken better care of the princess then.”
“Hah.”
Dokyun let out a hollow laugh at Eun-ji, who turned her head away with a “hmph.” Then, remembering that the incident at the amusement park had indeed been his fault, his face grew awkward.
That was right. When you got down to it, the whole thing had happened because he’d disappeared without a word. He’d tried to tease her but it had backfired completely.
Letting out a groan, Dokyun scratched the back of his head before leading Eun-ji toward the zoo.
Standing at the entrance, Dokyun looked at the map and asked Eun-ji a question.
“Where do you want to start?”
“Hmm…”
Dokyun’s eyes fell on her. She was trying to act all high and mighty, but in the end, she was just a kid. The anticipation written all over her face made him think, ‘Yep, that’s just like you.’
As Dokyun chuckled at the sight, Eun-ji pointed to a corner of the map with her index finger.
“Here first.”
“The ‘Small Animal Friends’ section?”
Eun-ji nodded. Dokyun smiled again at the sight and nodded back.
“Alright, let’s go.”
It was still morning, so they would have plenty of time to see the whole zoo even if they took it slow.
Dokyun held Eun-ji’s hand tightly and started walking. As they passed the particularly crowded entrance area and walked toward the herbivore enclosures, he noticed there were especially a lot of families.
There were fathers with children on their backs, and mothers holding a child’s hand on either side. There was even a child standing between their parents, both hands held.
Dokyun watched the scene with a sense of peace, then belatedly noticed that Eun-ji’s gaze was fixed on one of the fathers carrying a child. He asked playfully:
“What, you want a piggyback ride too?”
Flinch. Eun-ji’s body shuddered. She glared at Dokyun with a prim face and snapped:
“What are you talking about? Act your age, servant.”
Flinch. This time, it was Dokyun who shuddered.
“…If you don’t want one, just say so.”
As Dokyun flinched and mumbled, Eun-ji let out a deep sigh and shook her head.
“Enough. Just walk.”
With that, Eun-ji squeezed Dokyun’s hand and started walking again.
After a while, they arrived at the small animal section. Seeing the fox in the first enclosure, Dokyun let out a small “Oh.”
“It’s a fox.”
A brown fox. It had a slender body and a thick, eye-catching tail.
Even though it was an animal whose appearance he knew well, seeing it in person like this felt strangely fascinating.
‘Come to think of it, it’s been a long time since I’ve been to a zoo.’
In fact, it was his first time since high school. He hadn’t been here in over ten years.
For some reason, he felt like he was returning to his childhood.
Dokyun smiled pleasantly at the fluttering excitement rising within him, then looked at Eun-ji.
Her gaze was stolen by the fox, which was stretching languidly, and her mouth was hanging open in a dopey expression. Just as Dokyun let out a small chuckle, Eun-ji’s body suddenly jolted.
“What’s wrong?”
Dokyun tilted his head and asked.
“Servant… look at that.”
Eun-ji tapped Dokyun’s shoulder and pointed to a woman in the middle of the crowd.
Dokyun’s gaze followed her finger, and then his own body jolted.
A small sound escaped his lips.
“…It’s a fox-fur coat.”
He could see a middle-aged woman in a fox-fur coat, smiling as she looked at the fox.
How should he put it?
‘This is a little…’
It just didn’t feel right.
Dokyun felt a sense of secondhand embarrassment, then shifted his gaze to Eun-ji.
She looked back and forth between the fox and the woman, then gazed at the fox with pity. Dokyun’s expression turned sheepish.
‘What kind of person wears a fur coat in May?’
The atmosphere instantly turned awkward. As Dokyun scratched the back of his head, the woman disappeared.
“Sh-shall we go see the next one?”
“…Okay.”
Eun-ji nodded, and Dokyun started walking again.
The day had gotten off to a rough start.
* * *
The zoo was huge.
That is, compared to the zoo Dokyun had visited more than ten years ago, it was absurdly large.
They must have been walking for over an hour, but they had only seen about half of the ‘Small Animal Friends’ section.
It wasn’t that he was bored. On top of the thought that he wouldn’t have another chance to come here if not for a day like this, looking at the fluffy animals made him feel all soft inside, so he enjoyed it.
Eun-ji’s reactions were also quite amusing.
It was funny how she would blush and get completely captivated when she saw things like raccoons or mongooses, and it made him laugh when she let out gasps of admiration at the horses and roe deer.
And what about when they came across the water deer? For Dokyun, who had lived in the mountains of Gangwon Province, water deer were a familiar sight, but Eun-ji seemed to find them incredibly fascinating. She stared at them for a long time before jumping in surprise at the sound of their cry.
Hehe. Chuckling to himself, he continued walking. When they reached the tortoise enclosure, Dokyun thought, ‘Eun-chae would like this.’
The way it moved slowly, then stretched out its body, then twitched again—it was exactly the kind of animal that would suit Eun-chae’s tastes.
If Eun-chae had come here, she probably would have stood in front of that enclosure all day, just watching the tortoise.
As he continued that line of thought, Dokyun felt as if a voice was echoing in his head.
—Deep Sea Honeybee. Are tortoises tasty?
He flinched.
“Hm? Servant, what’s wrong?”
“Ah, it’s nothing…”
Dokyun shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts.
It was probably just his nerves. Surely Eun-chae wouldn’t covet a tortoise, too.
‘…They are good for medicinal purposes, though.’
Another thought popped into his head. He rubbed his face, trying to shake it off, then turned his gaze back to Eun-ji and spoke.
“Shall we move on to the next one?”
“Fine. Lead the way.”
“Yes, yes~.”
After walking for a while, they came to the monkeys.
“Oh.”
The sound came from Dokyun’s mouth.
As Dokyun let out the sound while watching a monkey climb a tree, Eun-ji looked back and forth between him and the monkey and commented:
“You look alike.”
“What?”
“Nothing, just talking to myself.”
Dokyun’s eyes narrowed.
‘After saying it loud enough for me to hear?’
He suppressed the anger welling up inside him again.
‘Patience, be patient…!’
Today is Children’s Day! Or, in Eun-ji’s words, the Princess’s Day!
Dokyun took deep breaths to calm himself and turned his gaze back to the monkeys.
Some were climbing trees, while others sat on thick branches, munching on something.
After watching them for a while, they started walking again.
“Alright, friend! How about we give our monkey friend a snack?”
At the voice, Dokyun and Eun-ji’s gazes turned to its source.
“Looks like it’s an interactive exhibit.”
“Interactive exhibit?”
“It’s where you get to feed the animals that are outside their cages.”
Dokyun said, pointing to a small monkey perched on a zookeeper’s shoulder up ahead.
“Wanna try?”
When Dokyun looked at Eun-ji, he saw her blushing, not knowing what to do.
He let out a small smile. After a moment, he led Eun-ji to the zookeeper, who handed her a slice of apple and said:
“Would the cool big sister like to try feeding him?”
Eun-ji’s eyes darted between Dokyun and the zookeeper.
Seeing her fidget and shift her gaze, Dokyun smiled again and nodded.
“Go on, give it a try.”
“W-Well, I guess I have to be the one to do it!”
Her face brightened as she spoke. Eun-ji took the apple and held it out to the monkey.
“Here, have a bite!”
Eun-ji said to the monkey with an excited face. The monkey’s gaze turned to her.
It looked at Eun-ji once, then at the apple slice in her hand.
After shifting its gaze back and forth, the monkey climbed down the zookeeper’s arm and took the apple from Eun-ji’s hand.
“Kii.”
A short cry came out, and just as Eun-ji’s expression lit up, the monkey, after sniffing the apple slice, suddenly threw it right at her face.
Thwack-!
The apple slice hit Eun-ji square in the forehead.
The surroundings fell silent.
“Ah.”
The sound came from the zookeeper’s mouth.
Dokyun, who had been staring blankly, shifted his gaze at the sound and saw the zookeeper sweating bullets.
“Um…”
The zookeeper’s face was a mask of pure panic, as if they had no idea what to say.
Looking at them, Dokyun then spotted Eun-ji, her shoulders trembling slightly and her eyes welling up with tears. He gave the zookeeper an awkward bow and left the area.
They found a bench in a more secluded spot.
Dokyun looked at Eun-ji with a sheepish expression.
Her face was bright red as she seethed. She was clearly furious.
“H-Hey, are you okay?”
As the words left his mouth, Eun-ji, who had been fuming, clenched her fist and smacked Dokyun’s arm.
“Ack!”
Dokyun, startled, stared at her with a bewildered face. Eun-ji glared at him and shouted.
“He’s your friend! You should have taken the hit instead!”
It was a completely baseless accusation that made Dokyun feel like he would die from the injustice.