Living Dangerously with a 999-Year-Old Gumiho – Chapter 112

The moment Nomi’s small voice echoed through the forest, it felt as if everyone’s heart had stopped.

However, with Yoonhwa’s quick response, the situation wrapped up without any major accidents, and the tension eased.

Nomi slowly raised her body from Yoonhwa’s arms and looked up at her face.

Contrary to Yoonhwa’s worried gaze, excitement gradually lit up Nomi’s face.

“Whoah, this is fun, sister! Let’s try again!”

“This time, I will succeed!”

Hyun sighed in relief as he watched Nomi’s excited demeanor.

But at the same time, he hoped that their future activities would be safer and inclusive for everyone.

He cautiously turned his gaze toward Yoonhwa and asked for her advice.

“Yoonhwa, is there a safer and easier exercise we can do…?”

Hyun’s voice was a mix of worry and anticipation.

He wanted to find an activity that both Nomi and Yoonhwa could enjoy, without overexerting themselves.

Yoonhwa briefly sank into thought at Hyun’s question.

Having undergone various exercises and training in nature for hundreds of years, most were based on a monster’s physical abilities.

Yoonhwa wore a thoughtful expression as she pondered Hyun’s request.

After a moment, she made a decision and looked around.

Spotting a large rock in the forest, Yoonhwa gently lifted it with both hands.

Hyun and Nomi watched her every move.

Carefully placing the large rock in front of Hyun, she said, “How about this?”

“What if we try lifting this?”

Hyun felt a little taken aback seeing Yoonhwa effortlessly lift the big rock.

He compared Yoonhwa’s strength to his own and wondered if he could lift it at all.

But encouraged by Yoonhwa, he decided to reach out for the rock.

Nomi stood confidently in front of the large stone. She grabbed it tight with her little hands and exerted all her strength to lift it.

Initially, the rock didn’t budge, but Nomi refused to give up, continuing to try.

Finally, she managed to lift the rock off the ground, albeit with great effort.

Sweat beaded on her forehead, and her eyes sparkled with a sense of achievement.

“Wow! I did it!”

Hyun and Yoonhwa watched Nomi lift the rock, feeling tense.

But when Nomi successfully raised it, both let out a sigh of relief and applauded.

Yoonhwa smiled at Nomi with admiration.

“Wow! Nomi, you did great!”

Hyun marveled at Nomi’s success and cheered her on.

“Wow… you actually did it!”

As Nomi carefully set the rock down, she felt even happier, bolstered by Hyun and Yoonhwa’s encouragement.

Her face was filled with a satisfied smile.

Hyun took a deep breath and stood in front of the large rock that Nomi had just lifted.

Despite Nomi and Yoonhwa’s encouragement, he was skeptical about whether he could lift it.

As his hand touched the rock’s rough, cold surface, he started seriously doubting his strength.

“Umm… this is a bit…”

Hyun mumbled as he began struggling to lift the rock.

Tension flowed through his arms, and beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

Yet, the rock didn’t budge.

The signs of struggle were clear on Hyun’s face, but the rock remained unmoved by his power.

Yoonhwa and Nomi quietly observed his attempts.

Yoonhwa understood the difficulties Hyun was experiencing, while Nomi watched him with eager eyes, hoping he would succeed.

After several tries, Hyun ultimately realized he couldn’t lift the rock.

He sighed and stepped back.

“No, I don’t think I can…”

“This is too heavy.”

Yoonhwa saw Hyun’s disheartened expression and thought of a new idea.

She walked toward Hyun and Nomi and said, “Let’s put this rock aside for now and try exercising with just our bodies!”

“I’ll show you one of the exercises I used to do a lot…”

Yoonhwa stood in place, opened her arms to shoulder width, and lowered her body with her palms on the ground.

As she straightened her body, she slowly lowered and raised herself in a repeated motion.

Though Yoonhwa’s movements resembled push-ups known to humans, she seemed unfamiliar with the name of the exercise.

Hyun nodded as he watched Yoonhwa’s movements.

“I’ve seen Kangtae do this!”

“It’s called push-ups, right?”

Nomi began to mimic Yoonhwa’s movements and started doing push-ups beside her.

Despite her small stature, Nomi’s imitation of Yoonhwa was surprisingly precise.

Hyun cautiously laid down and attempted to follow along with Yoonhwa and Nomi’s push-ups.

However, his first attempt felt off.

His arms trembled, and his body was skewed at an awkward angle.

Hyun’s push-ups were as unstable as a rocking boat.

Yoonhwa noticed Hyun’s awkward movements and approached him.

“Okay, okay, I’ll help you out…!”

Yoonhwa gently came beside Hyun and lightly grasped his arm.

“Hyun, don’t spread your arms too wide.”

“Just shoulder-width!”

She carefully adjusted his arms.

Hyun’s body began to find a slightly more stable position.

Next, Yoonhwa assessed Hyun’s back.

“Keep your back straight and don’t raise your hips too high!”

“Your body should be in a straight line…”

Hyun gradually corrected his posture following Yoonhwa’s direction.

His body started aligning into the proper shape.

Yoonhwa seemed satisfied with Hyun’s effort and stepped back with a smile.

“Shall we give it a try now?”

Hyun took a deep breath and began to lower his body slowly, just as Yoonhwa had taught him.

His movements felt much smoother than before.

As he lowered and raised his body, Hyun felt the changes within himself.

His arms no longer trembled, and his whole body found a sense of stability.

Following Yoonhwa’s advice, he began doing push-ups.

He managed the first few well, but as he increased the repetitions, his arms began to quiver, and his breathing grew rapid.

Sweat pooled on Hyun’s forehead, and his face turned increasingly red.

Above all, it seemed his arms were losing strength, making it hard to support his body properly.

“Ahh… one more…!”

Hyun pushed himself to lift his body once more, but this time his arms completely gave out.

His body collapsed helplessly onto the ground, and he lay there, panting heavily.

Yoonhwa observed Hyun’s struggle and approached him when he appeared utterly exhausted.

“Hyun, you did so well! Let’s take a break. You’ve overexerted yourself.”

Yoonhwa spoke gently, patting his shoulder.

She carefully helped Hyun rise to his feet.

Hyun was catching his breath beneath the shade of the lush trees, while Yoonhwa and Nomi played joyfully nearby, tossing stones and branches.

Yoonhwa laughed as she created various games with Nomi using the stones.

Meanwhile, from the shade of the forest, the grandfather quietly approached her.

His movements were so silent and nearly imperceptible that even the sensitive ears of the fox demon Yoonhwa couldn’t detect him.

Hyun was smiling at Yoonhwa and Nomi’s playful antics when he noticed the grandfather stealthily approaching Yoonhwa from behind.

Feeling the quiet but knowing demeanor of the grandfather, Hyun grew uneasy.

He didn’t hesitate to shout a warning.

“Yoonhwa, behind you—!”

Yoonhwa, startled by Hyun’s warning, turned around in surprise.

Reacting instinctively, she swung her arm defensively.

Despite Yoonhwa’s quick reaction and powerful swing, the grandfather effortlessly blocked her arm with his cane.

Yoonhwa could hardly believe her attack had been stopped.

Her eyes remained fixed on the grandfather, her heart racing.

The grandfather slammed his cane down on the ground, focusing on Yoonhwa.

There was a hint of anger in his voice as he spoke.

“How dare a human play in my mountain, fox demon.”

The grandfather’s words revealed that he knew Yoonhwa’s true identity, which left her even more astonished.

She couldn’t grasp how he recognized her as a fox demon and why he was angry at her, Hyun, and Nomi.

Just then, an unexpected cute distraction appeared in the forest.

A small, fast squirrel dashed down from a branch, directly charging toward Yoonhwa.

“Can’t you duck—!”

The squirrel shouted loudly as it came flying through the air.

With an enormous burst of energy from that tiny body, the squirrel kicked toward Yoonhwa’s face.

Yoonhwa instinctively reached out her hand to catch the squirrel.

The grandfather sighed deeply as he witnessed the squirrel’s absurd action.

He shook his head while looking at the squirrel trapped in Yoonhwa’s grip.

“Again, again—getting all riled up…”

The grandfather tsked softly.

The squirrel struggled in Yoonhwa’s hand, frantically demanding its freedom.

“Let me go, fox…!!”

Intrigued by the squirrel’s tiny wriggles, Yoonhwa cautiously opened her hand to set it free.

As soon as the squirrel was liberated, it dashed like the wind onto the grandfather’s shoulder.

Once the squirrel perched on his shoulder, the grandfather visibly relaxed, a comforting smile spreading across his face.

His hand gently stroked the squirrel’s small body, and it seemed to find comfort in his affectionate touch.

Hyun observed this scene from a distance and quickly got up to run over to Yoonhwa.

Yoonhwa cautiously opened her mouth in front of the grandfather.

Curiosity mixed with a hint of surprise laced her voice.

“How did you know I’m a gumiho…???”

The grandfather glanced at Yoonhwa while petting the squirrel.

The deep lines of age crinkled around his eyes, and his white beard still swayed full and free.

With a soft tsk, he answered her.

“Tsk, your qi has been making quite the stir in the neighborhood. How could I not know?”

Understanding began to dawn on Yoonhwa as she listened to the grandfather’s words.

She looked at him again, throwing out another question.

“Then… are you a demon as well…?”

The squirrel hurriedly shouted toward Yoonhwa.

“Foolish! Our master is a guardian spirit!”

The grandfather squinted his eyes at the squirrel’s outburst and shifted his gaze back to Yoonhwa.

“Indeed…, I am the guardian spirit of this mountain.”

In an instant, Yoonhwa’s eyes widened.

A long-buried piece of memory surfaced from the depths of her heart.

“Ah!… I see. Eunho mentioned…”

“You’re the guardian spirit who lives at the top of the back mountain…!!”

Trust and relief began to flutter across Yoonhwa’s face.

The grandfather lowered his head for a moment at Yoonhwa’s words, then lifted it up with a glint in his eyes.

“Ahh—so you are referring to the Darkness Demon.”

While Nomi was listening to the conversation between Yoonhwa and the grandfather, her attention shifted to the squirrel on his shoulder.

She was captivated by the tiny, adorable creature and reached out toward the squirrel.

“Wow! So cute!”

But the squirrel, seemingly displeased by Nomi’s approach, retorted angrily.

“Don’t do that!”

Hyun quietly watched the entire scene.

The grandfather sighed, looking at Hyun as if he didn’t particularly like humans.

Then he directed his gaze back at Yoonhwa, posing a question.

“Why, as a demon, are you wandering around with humans without eating them?”

“Have you forgotten your true nature?”

Yoonhwa was taken aback by the grandfather’s question, yet she calmly replied.

“I’m not that kind of demon!”

“I-I like humans…”

Feeling a bit flustered at the grandfather’s inquiry, Yoonhwa cautiously expressed her feelings.

“I… I apologize if it was rude to bring Hyun here…!”

At that moment, the squirrel chimed in.

“You should apologize!”

Waving its tiny body vigorously on the grandfather’s shoulder, it pointed an accusing finger at Yoonhwa.

The grandfather let out a deep sigh and looked back at Hyun.

His gaze felt piercing, as if seeing right through him.

“Hmm, observing your attitude and actions, you don’t seem like an evil human.”

“If that’s the type of human you are… then there’s no problem.”

Yoonhwa felt relief wash over her with the grandfather’s words and looked back at him.

Her eyes were full of curiosity.

“Grandfather, do you feel that I have a lot of qi??”

“I’m curious how strong I really am…”

The grandfather nodded at Yoonhwa’s question and replied.

“Yes, from within you—no, even outside, your qi is overflowing.”

“Do you not know how to control your qi?”

“You should have learned this from your parents…”

Yoonhwa’s expression grew dark at the grandfather’s words.

She hesitated, lowering her head.

“I… I haven’t learned such things from my parents…”

“In fact, I’m… not on good terms with them…”

“So I left home…”