“Of course.”
“Then why?”
Geuru pattered forward in quick little steps. Then she stretched both arms out wide.
“……?”
Serhi, looking as if he had no idea what she meant, took both of Geuru’s hands.
“Nooo—shoulder ride.”
“Shoulder ride?”
Nod, nod.
“Why? Where did Zhenya go?”
He was about to tell her to go pester Jin Siwon, but Geuru stuck out her lips.
“Pwease give Geuru a shoulder ride. I wanna find the acorn hanging up there.”
“…….”
“No?”
When she asked with her head tilted, Serhi finally lifted Geuru up.
‘Heehee.’
Grinning bashfully, Geuru clung close behind Serhi’s neck and urged him to go that way.
Jin Siwon straightened his back. On the oak trees stretching all the way to the end of the farm fence, countless acorns hung in clusters.
‘……This might be hard to find.’
As things stood, he did not even know the difference between an ordinary purification acorn and a special purification acorn.
It might have been different if he had “Baret’s Whisper”…….
It couldn’t be helped. Jin Siwon smiled bitterly and placed the acorns into the cart.
It was then.
“More fwont!”
“Geuru?”
It was definitely Geuru’s voice. Jin Siwon walked toward the commotion.
“Hey, don’t cover my eyes. My eyes.”
They were in front of a large oak tree.
Serhi, who had Geuru on his shoulders, was moving here and there according to her instructions, while Geuru held a duck grabber and worked hard at picking acorns with clack-clack sounds.
“A widdle more fwont, to the side!”
“Which side?”
“Uh, uh, the hand you eat with!”
When Serhi moved to the left, Geuru shouted, No, no!
“You said the hand you eat with!”
“So over there!”
Serhi pointed left, and Geuru pointed right.
“You could’ve just said right from the start! Are you stupid? You don’t know left and right?”
“Geuru not stupid! That’s the hand you eat with! Did you not go to kindergarden either, oppa?”
When the two eventually started fighting, Jin Siwon burst into laughter.
“Yeah! I didn’t go to kindergarten!”
“Gasp!”
When Serhi answered her straight, Geuru sucked in a breath.
“……?”
“…….”
After a brief silence, Geuru patted Serhi’s head and apologized.
“Oppa, Geuru’s sowwy.”
“What the hell. Why are you apologizing all of a sudden? That makes me feel even worse, you know? Even without kindergarten, I’m living just fine like a boss, you know?”
“Uuung, sowwy.”
“You’re seriously pissing me off.”
And so, with Geuru’s apology, the conflict between them was patched up, and soon Serhi adjusted their direction properly.
Geuru made clack-clack sounds as she caught one acorn with the duck grabber.
“Got it!”
When Geuru opened the grabber, one acorn rolled out from inside onto her palm.
“Is that it?”
“Lemme see.”
Jin Siwon approached Geuru. Serhi set Geuru down and bent at the waist.
“This one!”
Geuru spread her hand wide.
Where the three of them looked, one acorn lay on her small palm.
“This?”
“Mmm.”
To Serhi and Siwon, it looked like an ordinary acorn, but Geuru’s eyes sparkled like stars.
“A supreme acorn!”
*
Sitting on a stump in one corner of the farm, Serhi looked at Geuru and spoke in an unusually serious tone.
“This is the last time.”
“Ung!”
Geuru raised her eyebrows as high as they would go and put strength into her eyes.
‘I can get it right this time too!’
Serhi held out both fists, then opened his right hand.
“This one?”
Geuru checked the acorn’s information window.
“Just a regular acorn.”
Serhi opened his other hand.
“Then this one.”
“A supreme acorn.”
“Hmm…….”
Serhi looked back and forth between the acorns as if fascinated.
No matter how many times they checked, Geuru could distinguish the acorns. They looked exactly the same no matter how he looked at them.
“I guess a King Squirrel really is a King Squirrel.”
“Ahem!”
Proud! Geuru put her hands on her waist and puffed out her chest.
Serhi gave a small laugh and lightly pinched Geuru’s cheek.
Once it was confirmed that Geuru really could distinguish the acorns, the next plan was carried out swiftly.
“We should leave now.”
At Siwon’s words, both of them nodded.
Now they had to take the acorn and head to the contamination zone.
The special acorn that could purify the source of the contamination went into the bag Siwon carried.
*
When the party packed their things and came out, the squirrels stood in a line to see them off.
“Squeak!”
“Squeak!”
Receiving the squirrels’ farewells, Geuru waved her hand. Above her head, the white fluffy cloud bobbed along.
Serhi looked around at the clear sky, the squirrels, and the farm that had turned green, then met Siwon’s eyes.
Siwon smiled softly with a gentle face, and Serhi turned his head away to avoid his gaze.
The only station in the area was quiet. It was the villagers’ only means of transportation, but there did not seem to be many people coming and going.
The stationmaster took off his hat to greet the passengers, then approached the party.
“Oh, oh, are you the famous outsider family from the squirrel farm?”
The stationmaster, whom they had never seen before in their lives, spoke to them as if he knew them well.
“I heard you packed your things. Are you leaving for the capital?”
“We’re not a family. Does this place have no prejudice and no privacy?”
Serhi furrowed his brow in irritation. This was the first place he had ever seen that was open in so many ways.
Siwon answered the stationmaster’s question.
“No, not the capital. We’re planning to go to the contamination zone.”
“The contamination zone? The rumors about that place are nasty. They say wolves are heading there.”
“Wolves?”
“That’s right. Be careful not to run into the wolves, if you can help it. They’re dangerous ones, every last one of them. They break the beastkin accord, eat anyone they please, commit all kinds of crimes and cause all sorts of trouble……. Still, it was a relief that they generally never left their territory, but then what do you know? They suddenly came rushing out. And on top of that, the ones who came out this time are said to be the most vicious among the wolf beastkin, aren’t they? They say they knocked down the wolf tribe’s chieftain in one blow and took down all the pursuers too.”
Jin Siwon touched his chin.
If they were people heading to the contamination zone after a sudden departure like that…….
‘Are they outsiders?’
When Jin Siwon sent him a look, Serhi must have felt the same way, because he nodded.
Siwon said quietly,
“It may be Gnosis. It would be best not to run into them.”
“Well…… maybe.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of Gnosis.”
His low tone seemed to have firm roots embedded in it. It carried things like certainty, resolve, and responsibility.
“Uh…….”
Serhi, who answered briefly, wet his lips.
Meanwhile, the stationmaster bent toward Geuru and smiled mischievously.
“They say the leader, the black wolf, is the most wicked and cruel one of all. A tiny little squirrel like you would be swallowed in one bite.”
“Ha!”
For an instant, the sharp teeth of a vicious black wolf flashed through her mind.
‘Tremble, tremble.’
Geuru, her face turning pale, hunched her shoulders and let her ears droop.
Apparently quite satisfied with that sight, the stationmaster burst into laughter and straightened his back.
“Well, this family has a reliable snow leopard dad to protect them, though. Hahaha!”
“I’m getting tired of saying we’re not.”
“Squirrels should hold tight to Dad’s hands so they don’t lose him.”
He took both of Serhi’s hands, held them out in front of the squirrels, and made them grab on, one after the other.
With Serhi in the center, Geuru and Siwon each held one of his hands.
All of a sudden, they ended up standing side by side in order of height.
One large hand, and one terribly small hand, held tightly onto his.
“…….”
Serhi turned his head once toward the owners of those hands, but even when their eyes met, the two squirrels only smiled brightly.
“The boarding area seems to be that way. We should go so we aren’t late.”
“Yay—!”
As Siwon and Geuru went ahead, Serhi, both hands held, was dragged along behind them.