Side Story 12
Translator: RaidenTL
Side Story 12
“……?”
San-yu stared at Ga-ya with a blank expression.
“Do I have to say it twice?”
“I thought you were going to leave me behind.”
“Should I just go, then?”
“…….”
San-yu had naturally assumed that Ga-ya would abandon him.
Come to think of it, even a moment ago…
When they were ambushed by the demonic beast earlier, Ga-ya had saved him.
Of course, it was only natural for one person to save another, but it was somewhat surprising to see the foul-tempered Baek Ga-ya show such a human side.
“Then, if you’ll excuse me.”
San-yu gave a broad smile and climbed onto Ga-ya’s back.
Crunch, crunch.
Ga-ya walked on in silence, his lips pressed firmly together, eyes fixed straight ahead.
They walked for quite some time in that quietude.
“I don’t dislike you, Lord Ga-ya.”
San-yu finally voiced his inner thoughts.
“I like you. I want to become friends with you. Truly.”
“Well, I hate you. Truly.”
Ga-ya retorted coldly without a moment’s hesitation.
“Hahaha. That’s a shame.”
“My ears hurt. Stop laughing.”
“I’m talking about that nasty way of speaking that pours out every time you open your mouth. You’d be a pretty decent tiger if you just fixed that rude habit of yours.”
As Ga-ya grimaced in disgust, San-yu spoke with a gentle smile.
“……Are you sure you actually want to be friends with me?”
“Yes, I told you, I really—oh?”
San-yu cut himself off and stared somewhere.
Ga-ya’s footsteps stopped along with him.
“……?”
Following San-yu’s gaze, Ga-ya’s eyes widened.
“That’s……”
“I’ve only ever seen them in books, but to see them with my own eyes like this.”
There, beneath the black night sky, was a swarm of fireflies, sparkling as they flew.
“Once the war is over, I want to show this sight to my sister. I think she would love it.”
San-yu spoke in a voice thick with longing.
A small laugh escaped him as he imagined So-ya, her eyes sparkling as she hopped around in excitement.
How peculiar.
Ga-ya couldn’t understand San-yu.
When he saw things like fireflies, his younger brothers were the last thing on his mind.
“Lord Ga-ya, is there something you wish for once the war ends?”
San-yu suddenly threw the question at him.
“…….”
Ga-ya didn’t answer, but he, too, had one wish for when the war was over.
Though she was currently taken by the Blue Dragon Clan… it was to bring his mother back.
The baby tigers weren’t the only ones who missed their mother.
Though he had never expressed it, Ga-ya missed her too.
However, he didn’t want to share a wish he hadn’t even told his father with this guy.
So, Ga-ya changed the subject gruffly.
“By the way, if you have a younger sister, well, what’s different about it?”
In truth, it was something he had been curious about for a while.
Just what was so different about a younger sister that made him act so smitten every single time?
“You said you only have two younger brothers, right, Lord Ga-ya?”
San-yu explained with a serene smile.
“Both younger brothers and younger sisters are cute, but it’s a bit different. It’s hard to put this feeling into words, but…”
San-yu furrowed his brows as if searching for the right terms.
“Hmm… should I say they’re soft? Or maybe fluffy? Squishy?”
“……?”
The more he heard the explanation, the more puzzled Ga-ya became.
However, he felt a vague sense that his brothers were far removed from words like ‘soft, fluffy, or squishy.’
“I know she isn’t a fragile child. She is pure, kind, and graceful by nature. That is why she is strong. Because no evil heart will ever be able to break her goodness.”
What? Is he starting to brag about his sister again?
“And she is of the Vermilion Bird’s direct lineage. Though she’s small, she’s bound to be much stronger than most beastkin.”
Hmm, well, that’s true.
“And yet, strangely, I find myself constantly wanting to protect her. From all the evil things in the world… so that she can only ever see good things and hear good stories, forever.”
Ga-ya quietly chewed on San-yu’s words and thought to himself.
He really, really is peculiar.
Wanting her to only see and hear good things?
There was no way she would grow into a strong beastkin like that.
To raise his brothers to be strong, Ga-ya would show up wearing a terrifying goblin mask to startle them—which earned him Hyeon’s contemptuous glares for a while—or make Yul cry with eerie ghost stories.
Though his own amusement was mixed in behind those justifications, but anyway.
Besides, look at him now, out on the battlefield.
Facing hideous demonic beasts to become an even stronger beastkin.
“And when I see her cry, it feels like my heart is tearing apart even more.”
That was also peculiar.
When Ga-ya saw his brothers cry, he found it funny and had even made them cry on purpose. No, he did it often.
“Ah, come to think of it, I must never show my sister to you, Lord Ga-ya.”
“Why?”
“Because you like shiny things.”
“Huh?”
How had he noticed what Ga-ya liked in just two short months?
Ga-ya marveled at San-yu’s perceptiveness even as he snapped back.
“Your sister isn’t some glittering jewel, so why would I covet her?”
“But she is a jewel.”
“……?”
This crazy bastard was now insisting his perfectly normal beastkin sister was a gemstone.
“Especially her eyes; they’re a lovely pink like spring flowers. Sometimes they sparkle just like jewels…”
The explanation of the difference between brothers and sisters had gradually devolved into San-yu bragging about his sister again.
Ga-ya regretted bringing up the topic and started walking again.
“……Until recently, she was bragging about her upcoming first beast transformation, but lately, the letters have suddenly stopped.”
“…….”
“The person sent from the clan said my father is unwell, so it’ll be difficult to stay in touch for a while.”
“…….”
“To be honest, I’m very worried. About my father, and about my sister who must be worrying as she watches him suffer. If it weren’t for this war, I would fly to the Southern Land this instant…”
San-yu muttered in a bitter voice, then quickly brightened up with a laugh.
“Haha, but don’t worry too much. My sister is a strong-hearted girl, so she’ll cry a little and overcome it well.”
“Worry…? Me, about you? Why?”
Ga-ya asked back as if the idea was absurd, but San-yu didn’t seem to be listening at all.
But how should he put it? Listening to this guy’s stories since earlier, he felt…
I’m jealous.
Only then did Ga-ya realize why he had felt strangely annoyed and irritated every time San-yu rambled on about his sister.
It seemed he was envious of this guy for having a younger sister, something he didn't have.
How pathetic of me.
Ga-ya let out a hollow chuckle as he faced the emotion he didn't want to admit.
All his life, he had believed there was no one better than himself, and thus, he never thought he would ever envy another person.
A younger sister, huh…
That was a little—no, a lot—enviable.
Whatever. It’s not like I’m at an age where I can throw a tantrum at Father for a sibling like some cub.
As he walked on indifferently, a sudden thought popped into Ga-ya’s head.
Wait. Should I try throwing a tantrum too?
Ga-ya thought with a mock-serious expression.
Since he was good at everything, he might be good at throwing tantrums too.
So, just like a cub, he should send a wish letter to the Dragon God, or a stork, or whoever.
* * *
It was three years later that Ga-ya finally got a younger sister.
Opening a letter that had arrived from the clan with a bored expression, Ga-ya froze for a moment.
His father had adopted a girl.
But she wasn't a tiger, nor even a mountain beast… she was a winged beast.
Anyone else would have questioned how a winged beast could become part of the White Tiger Clan’s direct lineage, but such thoughts didn't even enter Ga-ya’s mind.
Simply…
Thump—
“A younger sister……?”
He was captivated by that single word.