Chapter 17.1

Chapter 17.1

“Nam Seol-do. What are you doing?”

“Recording.”

“Recording what?”

“Hmm, the king’s history?”

Seol-do lowered her smartphone to check if the photo had come out well.

In the rectangular screen, the image showed Seok-kyung, the sleeping Ara, the twin brothers, Baekseol, and Seol-do himself—all captured in the frame.

“A human woman using the king as a pillow… This absolutely has to be recorded in the annals. Even in the long, long life of a dokkaebi, it’s a rare sight—something that might only happen twice, if that.”

“Once again, with the pointless nonsense–”

“Hong-seon, I’ve sent it. Make sure to keep it safe and show it to Baekmok later.” Seol-do cut Seok-kyung off mid-sentence and waved her smartphone at Hong-seon, who nodded in acknowledgment and finished his wine.

This is driving me crazy. Seok-kyung rubbed his forehead, his face weary.

“Nam Seol-do. Stop with the nonsense and clean this up.” He pointed at the sleeping Ara.

Seol-do stared at Seok-kyung with an oddly mysterious look in his eyes. Then, without a word, she took the remaining bottle of Gaoliang, put it to her lips, and downed it in one go before standing up abruptly.

“Hey, Lee Cheong-seon. Hand me that mirror you always carry around.”

Thud, thud. Seol-do kicked Cheong-seon’s leg and held out her hand. Taking advantage of Ara’s slumber, Cheong-seon had been indulging in drinks and cozying up to Baekseol and Hong-seon. He looked up.

“A mirror? Why do you suddenly need a mirror?”

“Just hand it over.”

With a puzzled expression, Cheong-seon rummaged through his pockets and pulled out a small handheld mirror.

“Here.”

Whoosh. Seol-do tossed the mirror straight to Seok-kyung.

“If you’ve got eyes, take a look. See what the king’s face looks like right now.”

Finally catching on to Seol-do’s antics, Cheong-seon snickered. Even Baekseol, nestled in his left arm, and Hong-seon, clinging to his right, had strangely knowing expressions.

My face? What about my face?

Seok-kyung made a bewildered face. Before he could even retort, Seol-do scooped up Ara and disappeared into the bedroom.

Left holding the mirror, Seok-kyung reluctantly lifted it to see his reflection.

In the small, round mirror, his pitch-black eyes stared back at him. His face was spotless, not a crumb from the snacks in sight, and aside from a slight flush, it looked just as it always did. At least, that’s what Seok-kyung thought.

“….”

What’s so different? Still as handsome as ever.

Seok-kyung grumbled to himself as he snatched up the bottle he had been drinking from and took a swig.

Whether it was the uninebriating alcohol or the room’s inadequate air conditioning, Seok-kyung felt an odd warmth creeping over his face.

***

The next day.

Ara woke up, clutching her throbbing head. It felt like someone was pounding her skull with a hundred-kilogram hammer.

“Ugh… my head hurts…”

Her groaning voice was dry and cracked. Her throat felt parched as if she were burning up inside. Without thinking, Ara rubbed her head, only to realize that something really was drumming inside her skull.

With immense effort, she lifted her heavy eyelids, and the blurry shapes around her slowly began to form clear outlines.

“Baekseol…?”

Filling her entire field of vision was the face of Baekseol, who was staring down at her upside down.

“It’s Baekseol-nim, remember?” Baekseol smacked her lips instead of Ara’s forehead with the soft pink pads of her paws.

“Ouch, that hurts.”

“Get up. How long do you plan on sleeping?”

“I-I’m up. Stop it. Stop. Pah! Pah!” Ara spat out Baekseol’s fur that had gotten into her mouth.

“What time is it…?” She askes as she struggled to keep her eyes open.

Ara gasped. Next to the softly glowing window, an antique wooden clock pointed to eleven. Unless Seok-kyung’s house had somehow moved to the polar regions where the sun never sets, it was definitely eleven in the morning.

I’m scr*wed.

Ara shot up but then groaned and flopped back onto the bed, burying her face in the mattress. Her breath still reeked of alcohol.

That’s right. I had a welcome party yesterday.

Her memory of the previous night began to come back.

She remembered downing soju in embarrassment, but when did she come to bed? The last thing she recalled was Baekseol licking the table, and then… nothing.

“Sorry. I must have slept too deeply after drinking too much last night. Breakfast? Did you eat?”

“I ate, which is why I’m waking you up so gracefully.”

“You… ate?”

How? Who made breakfast? Before Ara could properly ask, Baekseol bit her sleeve and tugged her out of bed.

“Enough questions. Just get out there. Seol-do’s looking for you.”

Ara, half-crawling, followed Baekseol out of the room. At that point, it was hard to tell who was the real four-legged animal between the two.

I was stupid. I should’ve known when to stop drinking…

She crawled along the spinning floor, feeling like she was scaling a rock wall. As she groped her way across the smooth, white marble tiles, a sudden flash of neon pink blocked her path.

“Play with a mad dog, and you become one.”

Ara grimaced and looked up.

“Seol-do.”