Chapter 121

<Healer (2)>

***

Adapting to a changing world wasn’t just a human thing.

As the world changed, even Jang Gun-i adapted to dog food. The owner said he had to eat dog food for the sake of the new generation dog, Hongsi. Even if he’s a big dog, he had no choice but to follow.

The one who feeds you is the king, after all.

Of course, unseasoned ingredients were also boiled as a special treat. Jang Gun-i loved dog food, and there was also the influence of veterinarian Park Bu-ro’s advice that it was good for his health.

Crunch-, crunch-.

After a day of playing with the little one, the mother-dog duo chewed on their dog food.

“Good night, Jang Gun-i, good night, Hongsi.”

Son Yoo-jin, with messy clothes, a dirty face, and disheveled hair, smiled until her eyes disappeared as she bid goodnight to the family in the yard.

Woof-!

Good night to you too, subordinate!

The well-mannered Jang Gun-i knows how to greet properly.

Crunch-, crunch-.

Dog food isn’t so bad after all.

Eating dog food reminds me of that little one.

Grrr-.

I wonder how that little one is doing.

With all that fur, it must be especially hot in the summer.

Our Hongsi goes in and out of the pond twelve times a day.

That’s because it’s so hot.

Jang Gun-i is a smart dog, so he knows these things.

Jang Gun-i hates water.

He hates it so much that he won’t even look at anything wet unless it’s dog food.

So he doesn’t go near Hongsi when she’s wet.

Today, when she tried to come close while wet, he slapped her nose with his front paw.

That time, Hongsi got a cut on her nose, but the subordinate treated it.

What a great subordinate.

I confessed to causing the wound, but the subordinate licked his front paw and then licked Jang Gun-i’s front paw.

That must be a sign of reconciliation and forgiveness.

Dogs lick each other to foster harmony, but humans don’t know how to lick directly, so they use their front paws.

Jang Gun-i is a smart dog, so he knows these things.

Hehehe-.

But during the day, I noticed the subordinate’s younger sibling seemed sick.

Humans might not notice, but dogs can see it.

The gentle one didn’t cry, but he didn’t look well.

I noticed when the auntie was holding him in the shade.

I should bark or press the sore spot with my front paw to let them know, but the auntie said not to bark because it might scare the baby. She also said not to touch it because it might hurt. But she did let me lick it. Such a generous auntie.

That baby won’t live long.

But since we can’t communicate, it’s frustrating not being able to tell them.

Wooooo-.

Wooooo-.

When frustrated, howling like a wolf prevents pent-up anger.

When Jang Gun-i howls, Hongsi follows, and other neighborhood dogs join in.

Copycats.

Even with all this howling, the owner and auntie don’t understand what it means, making it even more frustrating. This means your baby is sick! Woooo-.

*

Son Yoo-jin, entering the hallway, neatly arranged her shoes and headed to the bathroom.

Han Yu-young greeted her daughter with a bright smile. Even if she came home looking like a crow after playing outside all day, or if she got hurt from falling, the country mom didn’t scold her, saying that’s how country kids grow up.

“Did you have fun playing, my daughter? Wait a bit.”

“Yes, hehe-.”

She wanted to play more with Hongsi, but she hurried home for a reason. If she waits while the baby is being bathed, she can go into the bathroom and mom will give her a bath. Now, her brother doesn’t bathe Yoo-jin anymore. He said he’s too busy. After school, he exercises, talks with uncles and aunts, and has long meetings with dad, spreading out papers.

‘Brother has changed.’

But she’s not upset. She vaguely understands how important her brother is. Dad said the household wouldn’t function without him.

She believes her brother when he says it’s not because he dislikes her.

“Mom, are we going to bed early again today?”

“Yes. We should. If mom sleeps, the baby will sleep too.”

Yoo-jin nodded.

There’s something in the baby’s forehead, still okay but growing rapidly. Maybe it’s invisible to mom or other family members, but Son Yoo-jin could see it.

‘It’s better not to say anything.’

Mom’s face would turn sad. If mom is sad, Son Yoo-jin is sad too. What’s in the baby’s head isn’t something a hospital shot can fix. A lump shaped like a quince is growing black and red, but for now, it’s okay since the baby isn’t crying or turning blue.

But judging by the speed the quince is growing, it will soon hurt the baby’s head. So Son Yoo-jin decided today was the day.

Son Yoo-jin counted on her short fingers, recalling the preparations.

‘Jeong Won-i, brother’s heart.’

Is what’s inside the heart called the heart?

Nod-.

The baby and brother. Those two should be enough.

To save the baby, we need brother’s heart.

I’m sorry, brother, but you’ve lived enough, and the baby can’t even crawl or talk yet. Saving the baby comes first. Son Yoo-jin concluded.

If it’s dangerous, I’ll sacrifice my life to save the baby, so brother will understand.

Son Yoo-jin clenched her fingers, making them like eagle claws.

Her nails, lit by the bathroom light, shone sharply. They felt strong enough to pierce anything. Son Yoo-jin’s eyes also sparkled fiercely.

*

After dinner, she grabbed her yawning brother’s hand and pulled him.

Arriving at his second-floor room, she jumped around. Her brother claps, saying it’s cute whenever she jumps. This is the only way to reassure him.

“Brother! Let’s lie on the bed.”

“Huh? Should we?”

Jin Hyuk lay on the bed as his sister instructed.

Sometimes, her cotton-like hands pat his shoulders, which feels refreshing and nice, so he looks forward to it.

“Should I cover you with a blanket?”

“No?”

Yoo-jin climbed onto the bed and patted her brother’s chest.

“Lullaby-, lullaby-.”

“Brother’s not sleepy yet?”

“There’s a little calf in the house-.”

“Huhuhu-, what kind of song is that?”

Oh, is that not it? Jeong Won-i used to laugh and fall asleep when I sang this, Son Yoo-jin tilted her head.

Then I’ll change the method. Pretending to kiss her brother, she placed her hand on his forehead. Then she whispered in his ear.

“Ttandog, Lorb Nim-.”

Kaa-.

Her brother fell asleep.

Putting him to sleep like this keeps him out for hours.

Memories ingrained in Son Yoo-jin’s body since infancy told her so.

After confirming her brother was sound asleep, she made eagle claws. With her other hand, she felt for her brother’s heart, finding the spot with a strong pulse.

‘Here.’

Sss-, taking a deep breath, she aimed at her brother’s heart.

Hap-!

“Akrit Gim Egg-.”

Squelch-, the child’s soft arm bulged with veins and tendons.

“Ouch-.”

Her arm felt stiff, and her fingers were hot, but Son Yoo-jin gritted her teeth and endured.

To save her sibling.

Tears fell, feeling sorry for her brother.

Tears streamed down her brother’s cheek.

Though her eyes closed from the pain, it felt disrespectful to her brother.

Son Yoo-jin opened her eyes wide with effort.

***

In the hospital room, Hong Ki-jun’s family, eating late-night snacks together, all opened their eyes wide.

“Turn up the volume!”

“Remote!”

The couple, startled by the breaking news caption, scrambled for the remote.

Hong Soo-jung shook her head with a grilled eel in her mouth. Adults being so emotional, how can they handle big matters? She sighed and pressed the volume button on the remote she held.

[We interrupt our regular programming to bring you breaking news. This afternoon, an unidentified man called in a bomb threat at Mokpo Airport. Reporter Kim Yoo-duk-.]

The TV screen split vertically, showing a young reporter against the dark airport on the right.

[Yes, this is Kim Yoo-duk at Mokpo Airport. ······ The military and police dispatched are conducting a large-scale search, and all passenger flights are suspended until the situation is resolved. The airport is effectively closed, just a year after reopening in 1972, now a target of terrorism-.]

Despite bugs swarming to the light, the reporter continued, looking at her notebook.

[- Investigators are keeping the perpetrator’s identity secret······. The 31st Infantry Division has set up a wide perimeter to control civilian access, and the police special forces and bomb-sniffing dogs are conducting a full-scale search.]

Hong Ki-jun gulped water like someone choking on food.

Yoo Se-ra tapped Hong Ki-jun’s arm.

“Oppa, what’s that?”

“I don’t know······.”

Muttering blankly, Hong Ki-jun had no idea.

‘Did something like that happen?’

Even if it was a real event, it wasn’t something recorded. Hong Ki-jun’s recorded information was extremely limited.

And no matter how shocking the event, Hong Ki-jun wouldn’t remember the exact date. Anyone would be the same.

‘It’s strange for someone who wasn’t involved to remember.’

It’s not a computer; how can one remember every detail?

There are other reasons too.

‘300 years.’

The time spent alone with the shadow. The shadow told him it was about 300 years in Earth time.

Memories or not, it’s remarkable that Hong Ki-jun’s soul stayed sane and maintained its identity over such a long time.

Sip-, as he tasted bitterness again, Yoo Se-ra made a fuss.

“What if there’s a war? What about our baby? Huh?”

“Nothing will happen. It’s probably a prank call.”

Hong Soo-jung shook her head at the fussing mom. Some idiot must have made a prank call, she muttered.

Hearing Hong Soo-jung’s muttering, Hong Ki-jun nodded.

If it’s not a kid’s prank, so what.

That incident wouldn’t lead to a national emergency.

Hong Ki-jun, who had frequent contact with the current regime, had casually asked about the North-South situation. Perhaps to impress Hong Ki-jun, a government official kindly explained that both sides had agreed to coexist independently. Naturally, neither had the capacity for war, and mutual destruction was an obvious outcome.

Who knows, maybe one political power is staging a distraction for some scheme. That’s common sense.

‘Did I mess up the future?’

Hrrr-, clueless Hong Ki-jun blinked his eyes while sipping warm soup.

Having a source in the government reassured him, but he was also worried.

What if there’s a war? All plans would go down the drain.

***

At Jin Hyuk’s house, six-year-old Son Yoo-jin was fighting her own war.

‘Sigh-, it’s exhausting.’

I thought once would be enough, but the baby’s condition was serious.

But after repeating three times, the red and black quince-like thing gradually shrank.

I need to completely get rid of it, Son Yoo-jin instinctively felt.

So.

“Hut-, hut-.”

She diligently climbed the stairs.

Like a thief cat, she opened her brother’s room door, and stab! She plunged eagle claws into his heart.

“Akrit Gim Egg-.”

Doing this, a bluish smoke-like thing traveled up her hand and arm. A color resembling the blue sea on TV engraved itself in Son Yoo-jin’s heart.

It must be my imagination that brother seems to be shrinking.

The dark circles under his eyes make him look sick.

Tears kept falling, feeling sorry.

I can’t go to school for him, what should I do?

Jeong Won-i doesn’t have to die for the baby. But ‘Dugu Elil,’ an uncle, said he would sleep for a long time. I don’t know who that uncle is. He sometimes called me to play in the middle of the night, but I only heard his voice in dreams, never saw his face.

The reason I feel sorry for my brother is school. He’ll have to miss school because he’s sleeping. My brother, who always said he had to go to school and do homework, dodging uncles, made Son Yoo-jin’s worry solely about that.

The more I repeated, the more strength I could draw from my brother’s heart.

Because Son Yoo-jin’s heart grew stronger and bigger.

“Hut-, hut-.”

Once charged, she went back downstairs to the main room.

Placing her hand on the baby’s forehead, she performed the treatment.

“Radroaev Gaz-, Dalheh Ilb-.”

Who might wake up, she murmured quietly.

She didn’t know what it meant or from which world, just babbling as her soul instructed.

Doing this would make the black and red quince in the baby’s head disappear, and the baby would become healthy.

– “Jeong Won-i is a weak and small baby, so now Yoo-jin has to protect and take care of him.”

Son Yoo-jin was a child who listened well to her brother.

After climbing up and down the stairs twelve times until dawn, Son Yoo-jin placed her hand on Son Jeong-won’s forehead and gently closed her eyes.

‘Hooray-. It’s gone. I’m thrilled-.’

The quince, visible only to Son Yoo-jin, disappeared, and the baby’s unusually pale complexion turned peach-like rosy.

I did it!

She collapsed beside the baby.

She wanted to check on her brother, who had become emaciated overnight, but she couldn’t move a finger.

***

Chirp-. Tap tap tap tap-.

Waking up to the morning sparrows and woodpeckers, Jin Hyuk’s consciousness stirred.

‘Feels like I slept a long time.’

It felt similar to waking up after returning to the past.

Something else was strange.

‘My body won’t move.’

He tried to exert strength, but couldn’t move a finger or open his eyes. He wanted to call for his mom, but his lips wouldn’t move.

Huh-, what to do. If I’m not careful, I’ll be late for school.

Napoleon said it.

There’s no such thing as being late in your dictionary.

Fortunately, air came through his nose, and he felt his heart beating.

He immediately started meditative breathing.