Who Are You?
Seira had changed, just a little, over the past few days. It was such a subtle shift that it was almost impossible to notice. She hadn’t stopped coming near me entirely.
When I called her name she still approached with that hesitant shuffle, and the rustle of the candy pouch still drew her eyes. The way her small throat bobbed at the sight of the bright red strawberry wrapper remained exactly the same.
But she no longer pressed herself flush against my side like before. If our eyes met, she would suddenly find something interesting on the ground and look away. If I reached out without thinking, she would flinch and freeze. And yet the moment I glanced elsewhere, she would quietly drift closer again.
What is this? Had I teased her too much for being cute? Maybe I had pinched those soft cheeks one too many times.
When I thought about it, even a young child had her own sense of dignity. If I kept treating her like a little kid, it might have started to sting. Constantly hearing “cute, cute” could bruise a person’s pride in its own quiet way.
…I should probably ease up for a while.
I fiddled with the candy pouch and reflected on my behavior. Still, it wasn’t as if Seira had pulled away completely. Her eyes still tracked the sweets, and when I spoke with others she waited nearby in silence.
The girl who once clutched my sleeve now simply fidgeted with her fingers right beside it. Every time I noticed, it tugged at something in my chest.
“Ria unnie.”
Seira’s voice was small.
“What is it?”
“Um…”
Her gaze dropped to the candy pouch in my hand. I gave it a little shake.
“Want one?”
Her throat moved. Then she shook her head.
“…It’s okay.”
Her face said it was anything but okay; her eyes were still glued to the pouch. I let out a soft laugh and rolled a strawberry candy between my fingertips.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“You won’t regret it?”
“…I won’t.”
Even as she spoke, those round eyes followed the wrapper with heartbreaking longing. She was so adorable I nearly teased her again, but I caught myself. Moderately. I had decided to do things moderately.
“All right.”
I dropped the candy back into the pouch without hesitation. For the briefest moment, regret flickered across Seira’s face. Then her shoulders drooped and her head sank.
They said the next village wasn’t far. The caravan halted at a quiet roadside clearing before entering. They needed to check the wagon wheels, water the beasts, and set aside sample goods to show potential buyers first.
The rest stop was nothing fancy—just a wider patch of open ground beside the road and an old moss-covered well on one side. Behind it, tucked into the deep shade of the trees, a ramshackle hut hid half its body.
The door leaned at an angle and the wall planks looked as though wind could slip between them. Hidden behind the wagons and cargo, it was easy to miss if you weren’t looking.
The merchant leader called everyone over.
“Sort the display items before we enter the village. Only flawless silks. Tie the spices separately. Put the glass bottles deep inside where they won’t break.”
The porters moved with practiced hands. Bolts of cloth were unfolded, small glass cases set down, bundles of dried herbs and spice sacks arranged. Seira watched in silence, fingers tight on the hem of her skirt.
“Seira?”
The merchant leader glanced down at his daughter. Her shoulders jumped.
“Ah, yes…”
“Did you have something to say?”
Seira’s lips moved. Then, as if steeling herself, she spoke in a tiny but clear voice.
“I… want to try too.”
The merchant leader’s eyebrows rose slightly. Seira hurried on, stumbling over her words.
“Sorting the display items before we go into the village. I… I can do it.”
Her voice was small, but it carried a stubborn strength. I watched her. She wanted to look good in front of her father.
The merchant leader studied her for a moment, then gave a low nod.
“Very well. Decide which items to show first.”
“Yes!”
Her answer was quick. But once she stood before the pile of goods, her hands wouldn’t move. Dyed cloth. Small glass bottles. Dried herbs. Spice sacks.
It must have looked simple at first—pretty fabric on top, bottles placed carefully, spices beside them. Yet Seira picked up one piece of cloth and froze. Her eyes darted from fabric to spices, from spices to glass. Her fingers tightened.
I observed quietly from beside her. Seira stole a glance at her father. The merchant leader continued instructing the other porters, but his attention kept drifting back to her. That gaze seemed to weigh on her even more. Her lips pressed into a thin line.
When his eyes shifted elsewhere for a moment, I leaned down and whispered so only she could hear.
“The spices will pick up the scent if they’re next to the cloth.”
Her fingertips twitched. I continued in the same low voice.
“The glass bottles would be safer inside. They might break if someone bumps them.”
“……”
“Take your time. No one’s rushing you.”
Seira didn’t look at me, but she must have heard. The cloth in her hand moved a fraction.
Right then, a nearby porter nodded.
“Ria’s right. Spices next to cloth will transfer smell.”
Another porter laughed. “Ria’s got sharp eyes. Only been a few days and you’re already noticing things like that?”
I froze. Ah.
“I worked at a noble house for a short time. I just remembered.”
“If you picked that up just from watching, that’s impressive.”
Even the merchant leader turned and offered a weighty compliment.
“You read the situation with remarkable calm.”
I couldn’t reply.
Right in front of me, Seira stood like a statue, red cloth still clutched in her hands. The merchant leader’s gaze moved to her.
“Seira, did you hear?”
Her shoulders stiffened almost imperceptibly.
“Do it one by one, calmly, like Ria. There’s no need to panic.”
It wasn’t a scolding tone—just simple advice from a father to his daughter. But Seira’s fingertips turned bone-white.
“…Yes.”
The answer was barely louder than an ant’s footsteps.
That was when it happened.
“Ria noona… you’re amazing.”
It was Noah’s voice. Seira lifted her head. Noah stood behind us holding an empty box. When our eyes met he quickly looked away, ears flushed red.
Seira stared at those reddened ears, at the evasive eyes that kept drifting back. I watched her face harden like stone.
Ah. I had made a mistake.
She had clearly said she wanted to try. She had wanted to do well in front of her father. But I had stepped in and complicated everything. I had only meant to help, yet the result was the opposite.
Seira quietly set the cloth down.
“I… I’ll be back in a moment.”
“Seira.”
The merchant leader called after her, but she kept her head down and stepped back. I followed quickly.
“Seira.”
She didn’t answer. She walked until she reached the long shadow cast by a wagon, then stopped. Her lips were pressed tight, fingers still gripping her skirt.
I approached carefully and crouched in front of her. She wouldn’t meet my eyes.
“Are you upset about the sorting earlier?”
“…No.”
Lie. Her eyes were scarlet; anyone could see she was a breath away from tears. I tried to lighten the mood, holding up my index and middle fingers like rabbit ears.
“Then why are you so stiff?”
“I’m not stiff.”
“Really?”
I poked gently at her soft side. “Shall we check?”
“Eek…!”
Her shoulders jumped. Normally the prank would have made her burst into laughter. She would have protested, pouted, then eventually curled her lips in a pretty smile at my touch.
But not this time. Seira shrank away and whispered, “Don’t.”
I pulled my hand back immediately. “Okay. I won’t.”
Even so, her expression didn’t soften. Her lips stayed pressed together, eyes strangely red.
Ah. She really was angry.
“Sorry. I was just trying to cheer you up.”
That might have been the wrong thing to say. Seira’s fingers clenched the hem of her skirt until the fabric wrinkled.
“…Cheer me up?”
Her voice trembled.
“Seira?”
“You don’t know anything, unnie.”
I had no answer. Seira hung her head and tears began to fall.
“I really hate you, unnie.”
The words dropped between us. Even Seira looked startled, but once they started they wouldn’t stop.
“I never want to see someone like Ria unnie again.”
Her voice shook.
“Don’t come looking for me!”
The moment the last word left her, Seira’s breath caught. I couldn’t speak either. She wouldn’t look at my face. Head lowered, she spun around.
“Seira!”
She didn’t turn back. Her small back grew smaller and smaller. I remained crouched, staring at the place where she had vanished.
…She was angrier than I thought. Playing the same silly prank on a child already wound tight had been a mistake. I flexed my fingers. I would go after her in a little while. If I followed now she would probably just cry harder.
At first I believed she would return soon. No matter how sulky she became, she would eventually crouch somewhere nearby. When I shook the candy pouch she would peek out, eyes rolling. So I waited a little longer.
The others didn’t worry at first.
“The young lady must be hiding because she’s embarrassed again.”
“Did Ria tease her too much?”
“Kids fight. It happens.”
I tried to think the same. But time passed and Seira still didn’t appear. Only then did a dark premonition begin to crawl up my spine.
“Seira?”
I scanned the clearing.
“Seira, where are you?”
No answer. When his daughter remained missing, the merchant leader finally frowned and approached.
“Seira hasn’t come back?”
“No. She went that way earlier…”
As I trailed off, someone staggered out from the roadside. At first I thought the man was drunk. He lurched forward, dropped to his knees, tried to rise, then planted a hand on the ground.
One of the porters muttered, “Isn’t that… blood?”
The clearing fell silent. The man clawed at the dirt, crawling desperately. His clothes were torn, his side soaked dark red. His face was deathly white, his breathing ragged and metallic, as if it might stop at any moment.
The merchants rushed forward.
“Are you all right?”
“Bring clean water and bandages, quickly!”
The man grabbed someone’s arm. Bloody fingers stained the fabric crimson.
“Monsters…”
The cracked voice scraped out. The merchant leader’s face turned to stone.
“What are you saying? Where did you come from?”
With a trembling hand the man pointed down the road we had been traveling.
“The village… monsters attacked.”
At those words the entire clearing froze.
“The people… all…”
The man gasped for air.
“Run…! They’re coming this way…!”
With that, his body collapsed. Silence blanketed the clearing. Everyone looked at one another; no one could speak.
Seira was nowhere to be seen.
My heart plummeted. Blood drained from my fingertips.
“Seira.”
The name slipped from my lips. The merchant leader turned to me in horror.
“Seira!”
My heart hammered.
“Seira, where are you!”
No answer.
“Seira!”
I ran to the edge of the clearing. Behind the wagons. By the well. Beneath the trees. Beside the tarps covering the cargo. She was gone.
“Seira! Answer me!”
Inside the hut lay old straw and a few broken arrow shafts. There were traces of a fire from long ago. Perhaps hunters had used it.
Seira closed the door carefully and slid down against the wall. The old planks creaked faintly whenever the wind brushed past. She curled into a ball, arms wrapped around her knees, face buried there.
It was darker inside than she expected. Thin slices of light slipped through the gaps in the walls. At first she had only meant to hide for a little while—just until Ria unnie came looking with a worried voice. Then she would pretend she couldn’t hold out any longer and open the door a crack.
She had told her not to come looking, but she believed Ria unnie would come anyway.
Yet once she sat alone, her chest began to ache. Scary father only praised Ria unnie. Noah, whom she liked, only looked at Ria unnie. Everyone in the caravan liked Ria unnie.
Everyone liked Ria unnie.
Ria unnie really was amazing. Seira had liked her so much. So, so much.
She didn’t understand why it hurt.
They would all be fine with just Ria unnie. Seira didn’t need to be seen.
The thought made her eyes burn again.
Then a voice called from outside.
“Seira!!”
Seira sucked in a sharp breath. It was Ria unnie. Her heart sank, then rose again, fluttering.
She really had come looking. Even after being told she was hated. Even after being told never to come looking.
Ria unnie had still come.
Seira pressed her lips together. She should answer. But she didn’t want to answer right away. She remembered Ria unnie smiling as if she understood nothing. She remembered the hand that had poked her side in play.
It had really hurt then. But Ria unnie hadn’t known at all. So just a little longer. Ria unnie should feel a little troubled too.
“Seira! Where are you? Please answer!”
The voice grew more urgent. Seira hugged her knees tighter. She was still searching. Even after being told she was hated. Even after being told not to come. The thought made her strangely happy, and the tears threatened again.
After crouching there for a long time, her stomach let out a small growl.
Seira froze, hand halfway to her eyes. It was embarrassing. Even though no one had heard, her face burned. She reached into her pocket. Her fingertips brushed a small wrapper.
Rustle.
She pulled it out. A strawberry candy. The red wrapper. The candy Ria unnie had given her. The one that was supposed to give courage.
Seira stared at it for a long time.
“…I said I didn’t like it anymore.”
She whispered, but her hands were already peeling the wrapper. The moment the candy touched her tongue, sweetness bloomed. It was delicious. Sweet from the first touch, strawberry scent spreading as she rolled it, so good she wanted to keep it in her mouth forever.
Ria unnie must have known how good it tasted. She must have swallowed hard, wanting one too. Yet she had always given them to Seira. The prettiest ones. The sweetest strawberry ones. Even if Seira only glanced at the pouch, Ria unnie would pretend not to notice and fish one out.
Seira rolled the candy across her tongue. It was so sweet it hurt. The words she had thrown earlier rose in her mind.
I hate you, unnie. I never want to see someone like Ria unnie again. Don’t come looking for me.
Her lips trembled. She hadn’t meant to say those things. She hadn’t really hated her. She had only been so upset, so hurt, that the words had slipped out.
“Seira!”
The voice was much closer now. Seira lifted her head. Ria unnie was still searching. She had thought it wasn’t real magic, but somehow it gave her courage anyway.
She wiped her tears with the back of her hand. She would tell her she still liked the candy. That saying she didn’t was a lie. That she had been happy when unnie came looking. She would say it with courage.
Then—
Knock.
The door made a small sound.
Knock. Knock.
Twice this time. Careful, hesitant knocks. It must be Ria unnie standing outside. Seira hurriedly wiped her eyes.
“…I’m coming out now.”
Her voice was thick and wet, but it didn’t matter. When she opened the door, Ria unnie would hug her. Seira clutched the wrapper tightly. The magic that gives courage. Holding those words close, she grabbed the latch and slowly pulled the door open.
Ria unnie was not there.
A hot, damp breath washed over Seira’s face. She looked up.
Something dark and enormous stood in the doorway.