Chapter 13
Joo-hee didn’t reply. She glanced sideways, thinking that she wished those people would disappear—never to show up again. No need to call on any spirits; the moment she thought it, vines shot out and wrapped around one hunter’s ankle, yanking him backward.
“Hey, what— Aaaah! Damn it, get this off me! Help!”
As he was dragged away, his fingers gouged long scratches in the dirt. In an instant, all the hunters were pulled deep into the forest as if by a whirlpool.
“Hmm…”
Rowen glanced at Joo-hee, his eyes rolling slightly. He decided it wasn’t a good idea to anger her.
They left the forest’s edge, and Joo-hee asked Mel, “What just happened?”
“They were monster hunters,” Mel explained. “There must be lots of monsters in the Melna Forest, so they came to hunt. You can sell monster parts for a lot of money.”
Joo-hee’s guess had been right. She didn’t ask what happened to the hunters; without weapons or armor, they’d soon be torn apart. Hunters brave enough to enter this deep were rare.
Joo-hee set the thought aside and stepped clear of the trees. Rowen’s wounds mattered more to her now.
“Undine.”
“Call me more often, Joo-hee!” Undine grumbled, but among all the spirits, Joo-hee summoned her most.
“Could you heal his wounds?” Joo-hee asked.
“Oh! I recognize that energy—I healed this person before!”
Rowen’s eyes widened. Undine slipped into his wounds, filling him with cool, soothing energy. He flinched as the cuts slowly closed, vanishing without a trace. Rowen stared at his restored hand in wonder.
Undine hovered around Joo-hee, showering her with kisses before disappearing. Rowen looked at Joo-hee, remembering something the spirit had said.
“Joo-hee, was I hurt before?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because a spirit healed me back then. I knew nothing about you, so I couldn’t explain.”
Rowen understood but still felt a little hurt. He silently held Joo-hee’s hand and said, “Promise me: no more secrets.”
Joo-hee nodded, thinking it couldn’t hurt since there was nothing left to hide. Rowen’s eyes turned dark for a moment, but when Joo-hee blinked, they sparkled again. The forest behind them was calm, as if nothing had happened.
* * *
Joo-hee lay on a hill, staring blankly at the sky. Rowen gently asked, “Joo-hee, when is your birthday?”
Joo-hee thought a moment. “I don’t know.”
“Huh?”
“I’m an orphan. I never knew.”
Rowen fell silent. Joo-hee glanced at him, realizing he regretted asking.
“And yours?”
“Well… I—” Rowen closed his mouth tight. Then he laughed awkwardly. “I don’t know either.”
“Oh.”
They weren’t the same—Rowen had lost his memories, while Joo-hee truly had none. She said nothing.
“By the way, Joo-hee, I feel like my memories are coming back.”
“Really?”
Rowen beamed. “Just snippets, but still… it’s something.”
Joo-hee sat up. “What memories?”
“Um… I remember signing lots of papers.”
“Papers?”
Rowen stopped, mouth sealed again. Then, with an embarrassed smile, he added, “That’s all I recall. Nothing exciting, right?”
“Well, at least it’s something,” Joo-hee said, lying back down.
Rowen had more memories—of giving orders and of many people following him. He hid this, worried Joo-hee would feel distant. Mel, curled up beside Joo-hee, asked, “So if your memories return, will you leave?”
Probably, Joo-hee thought, though she didn’t want to say it aloud. She kept quiet as Mel pressed Joo-hee’s stomach with a wing. “You look chubbier than when you first arrived.”
Joo-hee, who hadn’t eaten well before, was now eating every meal and snack thanks to Rowen’s care. “Am I fat?”
“Huh? No! You need to eat more. You’re too thin.”
Rowen leaped up, objecting to her question. He grabbed her wrist. “See? I can fit my whole hand around your wrist. You must eat more.”
His hand was huge, making her wrist look tiny. Rowen lectured her until she couldn’t stand it and slapped his mouth with her finger.
“Uh!”
“Shh.”
Joo-hee locked eyes with Rowen—her black eyes meeting his pale green ones. He stared back as if peering into a midnight sky.
“Stop nagging.”
“It’s not nagging! I worry about you.”
Rowen gently set her hand free. “When we first met, you were so thin.”
“…”
“If you don’t eat, you’ll collapse. What if no one’s around to find you?”
“…”
“So at least while you’re with me, you must eat every meal.”
Mel groaned, covering her ears. “Ugh, so noisy,” and flew down the hill. Rowen felt something twitch in his hand and looked down. Joo-hee’s finger wiggled. He’d held on too long.
“How long are you going to hold my hand?”
“Oh—sorry.” Rowen quickly let go. Joo-hee stayed put; Rowen lay down beside her. From his returning memories, he only knew he had always been very busy.
Impulsively, he asked, “Joo-hee, what kind of person do you think I was?”
“Who knows…?” Joo-hee wondered who would be so badly injured that they’d flee into a forest. She thought hard but came up empty. “Maybe a noble?”
“Really? Could be. It’s frustrating not to know.”
Since he remembered giving orders, he likely wasn’t a commoner. Joo-hee studied him: his hands were calloused as if from wielding a sword. Even in simple clothes, he looked noble. Surely he wasn’t a commoner.
She worried that if people came looking for him, they’d follow him home. But then again, he might return to wherever he belonged. Joo-hee’s attention shifted when Rowen spoke quietly.
“I hope, even if I was a noble, I wasn’t too high-ranking.”
“Why?”
“Someone too important might intimidate you.”
“That makes sense.”
Joo-hee rolled her eyes. In this world, the gap between ranks could be enormous. She suddenly recalled that the hero in her book had been royalty—but it didn’t concern her much.
* * *
Rian sighed heavily over a map, marking the spot with an X. After a month and a half of traveling through many villages, there was still no sign of Rowen Green’s trail. Only one month remained.
Though a few villages were left, they were far from the capital. Surely Rowen couldn’t be there, but Rian hated to leave without checking. He’d need time to retrace his path if he gave up now.
“I must move faster,” he muttered. Even his stubborn horse sensed his urgency and obeyed.
“Now, we’re at the edge of the Melna Forest…”
Rian frowned at the map. He couldn’t enter the forest alone. He’d start with the village just south of it. If he got no news there, he’d have to cross the sea to the next continent.
Hoping this would be the last village, Rian spurred his horse. Three days later, he arrived cold and tired, having slept outdoors. His clothes were filthy.
“I feel like I might die,” he groaned, brushing himself off as he headed for the inn.
“Hello?” Rian called at the door. Unlike other inns, this one was eerily quiet.
“Customer?”
Startled, Rian jumped. A harsh female voice made him nervous.
“One night is five copper,” she said.
“Right,” Rian replied, handing over the coins.
“Since no one else is here, take any room on the second floor. The bathroom is shared at the end of the hall.”
“Thanks.”
Then Rian asked, “Is there a stable?”
“Behind the inn. Three copper.”
He paid again. The woman left, and hoofbeats sounded outside. Strange, but otherwise ordinary.
Rian shrugged and climbed to the second floor.
