Mirror, Mirror - Chapter 31.1

Chapter 31.1

Ara wiped her wet cheeks and furrowed her brows slightly. The scene unfolding before her was utterly unfamiliar now that her vision had cleared.

Seok-kyung stood stiffly, staring directly at her. His face was pale as though he had seen a ghost, and his usually composed lips parted slightly, as if to say something, only to press shut again as if nothing had happened.

“Why are you here so early? You said you wouldn’t be back until late,” Ara asked, but Seok-kyung didn’t respond.

“Where did it get you?” Instead, he directed his voice, now a deep and distant murmur, toward Baekseol.

Caught under his sharp gaze, Baekseol froze.

“Well…”

Ara’s dark eyes flicked over to Seok-kyung’s back. Seol-do shook her head in a subtle yet firm gesture, a silent indication of exasperation, warning her not to make things worse by pushing his already tangled nerves any further.

Baekseol let out a small sigh, her previously animated tail drooping and hiding out of sight.

“At Daeyasan…”

“Did a demon breach the Maze Garden?”

“No, it’s not that. It was just outside the Maze Garden when the path shifted.” A hurried voice elaborated the details in a rush.

Baekseol’s frantic voice hastily added further details.

Listening to their conversation, Ara scowled. Seeing Baekseol—usually bold and shameless—reduced to such a timid, nervous state was strange, almost surreal.

“Why did you go all the way to the Maze Garden’s boundary? You, of all resident here, should know it’s not safe to be there at that hour.”

“I just… wanted to go a bit further out, take a short outing.”

“An outing?” Seok-kyung echoed the word, his voice laced with cold, razor-sharp reproach.

“Why are you being so hard on Baekseol?” Ara couldn’t hold back any longer against the harsh interrogation.

“It was my idea to go. I wanted to visit my grandmother. Her grave is there.”

Still seated, Ara glared directly at Seok-kyung.

Her tone, filled with the same anger he was directing at Baekseol, drew everyone’s gaze to her. Even Cheong-seon, who would typically jump in to change the mood, remained silent, eyes rolling nervously from one person to the next.

“Ara,” Seok-kyung’s voice, stern and unyielding, sliced through the air. “Do you realize your current situation?”

Ara clenched her fists, her hands curling tightly, trembling faintly.

“It’s hardly the time for something as frivolous as an outing…”

“Yes, I know. I know very well.” Ara stood up abruptly but lost her balance, her injured ankle failing her. Thankfully, Hong-seon, who had been kneeling nearby, quickly reached out to steady her.

Seok-kyung cut off mid-sentence, closing his mouth.

In a place out of Ara’s sight, the hand he had instinctively reached toward her quickly withdrew. His fist clenched in the empty air, then he forced it to rest naturally at his hip.

“It’s almost the anniversary of my grandmother’s death, and I don’t know when I’ll have another chance to go. So, I used Baekseol’s walk as an excuse to visit.”

“…”

“I was thoughtless, right? Yes, I admit it. Just like someone said—I should remind myself that didn’t come here to enjoy myself.”

Ara’s gaze locked onto Seok-kyung’s, her words laced with sarcasm. Her mind was too noisy to filter her thoughts.

“Ara. Get a grip. Did you come here to play?”

She didn’t think he was wrong. Even seeing it as cold was a luxury.

Kim Seok-kyung and she came from completely different worlds, and she was just an unwelcome guest here, staying temporarily because she needed his help.

She knew well enough that, to these ancient beings, who would live for hundreds or thousands of years, a human like her meant little.

“So please don’t take it out on Baekseol.”

But for Ara, every being in this house was already family.

Some might call her foolishly sentimental. They might criticize her for coming here out of financial need, clinging shamelessly to a purpose, or label her a weak person relying on their superficial kindness.

She didn’t care.

Ara cherished sharing meals with them. She loved cooking for them, drinking together, playing silly pranks, laughing, and even whining in their company—all of it was precious to her.

“Family is family. When you share a meal, you’re family.”

These were her first true companions since she had lost her grandmother—the woman who had once said those words as they sat across from each other, sharing meals at their small table.

“When I was nearly killed by that strange creature, it was Baekseol who ran to save me,” Ara said, her lips pressed tight. Tears welled up again, blurring her vision.

“It was Baekseol who brought me back from the mountain, helped me wash off that filthy mud, and even called Hong-seon to come treat my wounds. It was all Baekseol.”

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