The Clever Field Mouse
"What?"
Yeop Pung turned around. Brother Tiger, Old Man Gap, Samrang the wild boar, and the black leopard came bursting out of the cave in a frantic scramble. The moment their eyes met his, all four beasts bristled from snout to tail, then bolted in four different directions.
What the hell? Why are they running?
Yeop Pung had always figured Brother Tiger's crew for a pack of idiots. He'd given them plenty of chances to escape on purpose, and they'd never even thought to take them. Today was different. Maybe they'd finally grown a brain.
"Yeop Pung, why were all those animals in one cave?"
Yeom Woon-hwan asked, her eyes bright with curiosity.
"I'll tell you later… What are you doing all the way out here this late at night?"
Yeop Pung had spotted the real problem.
"Huh? I was chasing a little animal…"
Yeom Woon-hwan stared blankly for a moment, then told him the truth.
A minute later, Yeop Pung and Yeom Woon-hwan leapt into the air together and gave chase after Brother Tiger's gang.
The mountain valley fell silent once more.
Then the muddy earth beside the Fire Spirit Flower suddenly heaved. A faint furrow rose from the soil and shot toward the flower at startling speed. Something was coming from underground.
The furrow raced forward until it reached the very base of the Fire Spirit Flower. In that instant, Yeop Pung appeared from nowhere and drove his palm straight into the earth.
A palm of golden lightning slammed into the earth.
A thunderous crash erupted, and a geyser of dirt and dust shot into the air.
Squeak-squeak-squeak!
Dragged from the ground by Yeop Pung's palm amid a terrified scream was a black shadow about the size of a man's forearm. In the faint light, a streamlined body, glossy skin, and a long tail came into view. The creature was a giant field mouse.
Whoosh!
Even as it was hauled into the air, the field mouse wrenched its body around and sprayed Profound Qi, trying to dart sideways to freedom. Yeop Pung gave it no chance. He snatched its long tail with perfect precision and unleashed a jolt of electricity.
Zzzzt!
And that was that.
The oversized field mouse went limp in midair. Its four short, powerful legs were still twitching, and aggrieved tears welled at the corners of its eyes.
You treacherous human bastard!!
An hour later, the cave glowed bright with firelight.
The giant field mouse came to and found a familiar set of beasts waiting for it. Brother Tiger, Old Man Gap, and Samrang had all come back. Near the cave mouth, a black leopard hung from a wooden rack. Originally the fourth member of their little cave crew, it was now everyone's midnight snack.
That's so cruel!
The field mouse shuddered on instinct. It bulged its tiny eyes and glared at Brother Tiger's gang.
"How are you all so stupid? You let a chance that good slip right through your paws!"
Brother Tiger swatted the field mouse with a front paw.
"You damn rat! You had the nerve to use Brother Tiger as bait and go steal the Fire Spirit Flower all by yourself? You've got some guts!"
Thud.
The field mouse slammed into the wall and slowly slid down it, eyes brimming with tears.
How? How did these idiots figure it out?
That was when Yeop Pung walked into the cave with Yeom Woon-hwan, smiling. He set the water bowl he'd been carrying down in front of the dazed field mouse.
"Here. Drink some water."
"I'm not drinking that!"
The field mouse instinctively sensed something wrong with the water and stubbornly shook its head.
Grrrr.
Brother Tiger lunged over at once and opened his enormous jaws above the field mouse's head, looking fully prepared to bite it clean off the moment Yeop Pung so much as glanced his way.
Gulp, gulp.
The sight of a rat holding a bowl and drinking was hard to picture, but the creature drained the whole thing in a single rush.
Pfft.
Watching from the side, Yeom Woon-hwan burst out laughing.
"Yeop Pung, what on earth are you doing? Are you keeping pets?"
Brother Tiger's gang showed no reaction at all. They hadn't understood a word of it. Yeop Pung, however, clearly saw the field mouse's eyes roll in thought. It immediately set the bowl down and offered Yeop Pung and Yeom Woon-hwan a polite little smile.
The field mouse, as it happened, was not ugly. It looked much like any other of its kind, except for two things.
First, it was clean. Yeop Pung had dragged it out of the dirt, yet there wasn't a speck of dust on it, and its fur gleamed. Look closely and there was even a violet sheen running through the coat.
Second, it was clever. Its eyes were small but sharply intelligent, and when it put on a show of charm those modest ears fluttered. In particular, it had clenched its tiny paws into fists, as if to say, Please spare me! I was wrong!!
This little guy's interesting.
Yeop Pung was in no hurry. Before explaining the situation to Yeom Woon-hwan, he crouched down and studied the field mouse with genuine curiosity.
"You. You understand what I'm saying, don't you?"
The field mouse instinctively shook its head, trying to play dumb. Then it realized that if it truly didn't understand, it wouldn't be able to shake its head at all — so it switched to a miserable nod.
"You talked those three into running, didn't you?"
The field mouse whipped its head from side to side, trying to wriggle out of it.
"Brother Tiger!"
Yeop Pung looked at Brother Tiger, who had only just shut his mouth.
Grrrr!
Brother Tiger's jaws yawned open again in an instant. The bloody stench of his breath brought fresh tears to the field mouse's eyes.
"Okay, okay, I did it…"
The field mouse clasped its front paws to its chest and rubbed them together anxiously, as if terrified Yeop Pung might kill it in a single blow.
"You sent them running to lure me away, then went to steal the Fire Spirit Flower by yourself. That's right, isn't it?"
The field mouse kept nodding, confessing to every charge.
"Did someone teach you that trick, or did you come up with it yourself?"
A gleam flashed through the field mouse's eyes. It lifted its head and thumped its chest with its front paws.
"Of course I thought of it myself! You think those other idiots have brains like this?"
It had been caught red-handed, so it might as well salvage a little pride. Not that pride meant much in front of this particular human…
"Good. Impressive!"
Yeop Pung nodded in satisfaction and stood. He turned a killing look on Brother Tiger, shook a fist at him, then pointed at the fragrant leopard meat laid out on the wooden rack.
"Don't you ever run away again. Got it?"
Brother Tiger nodded with vigorous enthusiasm.
He hadn't understood a word Yeop Pung said, but Yeop Pung's eyes transcended every language there was. From the moment he'd been dragged here in a daze, Brother Tiger had accepted his fate. The only thing he wanted now was a sincere conversation with the field mouse that had played him for a fool.
Yeop Pung led Yeom Woon-hwan out of the cave.
Behind them came the sound of a heart-to-heart between the field mouse and Brother Tiger — or rather, the field mouse's endless screaming.
"Woon-hwan, do you know Elder Yeok Chang-hae of the Herb Hall?"
Yeop Pung put on a serious face and started spinning a story. Inside, though, he was chanting, This is the last time. The last time. This is really the last time I lie to this girl.
"Grandmaster Yeok? Of course I know him! He came to Gangun Peak not long ago to eat the temple cuisine my sister made. Oh, right — Yeop Pung, when are you coming to Gangun Peak? I'll ask my sister to let you have some too. It's so good!"
"I know. It's really delicious."
"Huh? You've had it?"
"Ah, no — I've heard about it… Anyway, back to the point!"
Yeop Pung discreetly wiped a bead of cold sweat.
"Woon-hwan, you absolutely cannot tell anyone you saw me tonight. Not a soul. This is a very important secret mission Grandmaster Yeok entrusted to me!"
"Really? Really?"
The way she asked, eyes round as saucers, was genuinely adorable.
"Mm-hmm. Yeop Pung, I won't tell anyone!"
"Good."
Yeop Pung smiled.
"On Grandmaster Yeok's orders, I've been researching a new method of growing spiritual herbs out here. I caught those beasts to help with the work. I'll say it again — when you go back to Cheonun, you cannot leak this secret!"
"Don't worry. I'm smart!"
Yeom Woon-hwan laughed, playful as ever.
Yeah. Smart. She just hasn't got a shred of suspicion.
The two of them walked through the forest. Since Yeom Woon-hwan had snuck out, Yeop Pung escorted her toward the Cheonun Sect. The gloomy, silent woodland path took on a strangely romantic air with the two of them walking it together.
"Yeop Pung, how did you catch all those beasts?"
"I laced the water they drink with a taming art. It's the most basic method — within a kilometer, they can't use their strength…"
"Wow! You know beast-taming arts too? Yeop Pung, how far have you gotten with the Falling Star Sword Technique? Have you already reached Minor Achievement?"
"About a month?"
"That fast? That's impossible. I heard even my sister trained for over half a year before she reached Minor Achievement!"
"Ah, no — I meant it's been a month since I reached Minor Achievement. How could I possibly be stronger than Senior Sister Jin-ri?"
"Oh. Then isn't sword training boring?"
"It's fine. You just do it."
"I thought it was so dull. Eating's the best, after all. Especially the Sweet-Scented Osmanthus Cake my sister makes. It smells so wonderful…"
"Mm. It does smell good."
"The leopard meat you roasted was tasty too…"
"Was it? It was alright, I guess."
They walked on like that, talking as they went.
Yeop Pung felt no boredom at all, and the feeling struck him as strangely wonderful. When he was with someone he liked, even a trivial debate over whether to eat meat dumplings or vegetable dumplings for dinner was a pleasure. With someone he disliked, even an important conversation felt awkward and dull. Yeop Pung found this side of himself strange. Why is everything Woon-hwan says so interesting? Perhaps it was because he had lived too long in loneliness.
Before they knew it, the lights of the Cheonun Sect glowed ahead of them.
"Yeop Pung, can I come visit again?"
When they parted, Yeom Woon-hwan turned back to him and smiled. In the moonlight, the sight of her enchanting crescent-moon eyes made Yeop Pung's heart lurch in his chest.
There's no way I can refuse her.
He knew perfectly well that keeping this up with the girl would gain him little, and that there was a real risk of being discovered by the Cheonun Sect. But he was only a sixteen-year-old boy, and he could not reject the excitement welling up in his chest.
"Alright! But you can't get caught coming here. I'll tell you a spot — wait there when you come at night. I have a way to come get you."
"Okay, hehe. You're so careful. Don't worry, I can use the Star Spirit Body Art. The sect leader hasn't been around lately, so my sister won't even notice I've gone out!"
With that, the girl went hopping and skipping back toward the Cheonun Sect.
Yeop Pung stood still and watched until her figure vanished from sight. Then he shook his head, smiled, and turned away.