I took the last sip of my corn water, savoring it in my mouth.
Reluctant to swallow this delicious morsel all at once, I took my ti to relish its flavor.
"It's delicious."
The taste of the corn was overwhelming.
Just one more spoonful made such a difference.
Perhaps as I aged, my taste buds had beco more sensitive.
Or maybe a part of my body had turned into an animal, heightening my senses.
Whatever the reason, I was happy.
I decided to enjoy this as much as I could.
'Should I add just one more spoonful when making corn water in the future?'
I pondered seriously before shaking my head.
Such luxury was not sothing I could afford now.
"Uh... is that enough for you?"
The girl approached as I was enjoying my corn water.
I wanted to keep it in my mouth as long as possible, but I needed to answer, so I swallowed it.
I had no intention of indulging in pleasure in front of this young girl.
"Yes. After drinking this, I don't need to eat anything else for the whole day."
The truth was, I needed to eat more.
For both lunch and dinner.
Vegetables that I grew myself and the occasional minnows I caught needed to be roasted to maintain a balanced diet.
Nevertheless, I lied, implying that I was full and didn't want to be forced to eat.
Unless she was a mad witch who enjoyed torturing with food, she wouldn't force to eat here.
"You can have more, like bread or soup. Shall I order a steak?"
"Ah."
She really was a mad witch.
Frightened, I cast my eyes down.
She was more dangerous than I imagined.
"Don't be scared. You look like you need more than just what you drank."
"No, it's not that. Corn is nutritious and rich in flavor..."
"Really? Can I try it just once?"
The girl reached out her hand, asking for my corn water.
I was sad to see my al disappear, but I decided to give it to her here.
"How much flour do you put in it?"
"Just as much as you saw."
Cough.
I added an extra spoonful so she wouldn't take for a fool.
The thought of wasting precious corn flour almost brought to tears.
---
---
Han Yeoreum looked at the corn water in her hand.
How could soone live on such a nutritionless drink?
With mixed feelings, Yeoreum took a sip.
Gulp-
"Ah."
The taste of ground corn mixed in water.
After one sip, she couldn't bring herself to drink more and set the bottle down.
It was bland, lacking in taste and nutrition compared to real corn.
'Horrible.'
A child, who should have been loved, had only received adults' curses and criticisms.
After fighting for her life against horned rabbits, her al was water mixed with corn flour.
It was a life no eight-year-old should have to endure.
Yeoreum couldn't even begin to imagine how horrific and hellish the child's life had been.
'What have I done?'
What had she said to the child, bleeding and begging for help?
Yeoreum felt nauseous from her own disgust.
'How did it co to this?'
The child's body lacked mana, sothing essential for life.
This might have led to early puberty as a side effect.
It was reason enough to be abandoned by her parents.
A body that couldn't be healed by potions or recovery magic due to the lack of mana.
In an uncommon situation, Yeoreum had no choice but to use a last resort to save the child.
The Blessing of the Beast God.
A unique high level item that bestowed the power of the Beast King upon its consur.
It was a powerful item, but nobody in the guild had used it due to its drawback of having to 'start everything from scratch'.
It was the perfect item for the physically impaired girl.
The blessing reconstructed the body from scratch, regardless of mana.
It was an item that couldn't be bought for any amount of money, yet no one in the guild opposed its use.
They were well aware that they were the ones who had tornted the eight-year-old child to the brink of death.
'I'm glad it worked out.'
At first, I was worried about turning an adult into a child, but looking at how she knew neither her na, age, nor school, I was certain.
She was indeed a young child.
'If she had died that day...'
Don't think about it.
Yeoreum repeatedly shook her head and then gave the child a smile.
"Thank you for the delicious food. Do you want to try so of mine?"
"No, it's okay. I don't want to eat..."
The girl's white ears drooped.
Her eyes only stared at the ground.
Everywhere she looked, she saw a child scared stiff.
What had she endured to be so wary of people?
Yeoreum suppressed the urge to sigh in front of the child.
She couldn't show any negative emotions.
"You've been calling 'unnie'..."
Ah.
I realized I had been calling her 'you' all this ti.
Yeoreum decided to give her na to the girl, who didn't even know who she was.
"...My na is Yeoreum, Han Yeoreum. Can I na you?"
"A na?"
"Yes."
A girl as white as a snowflake.
A girl who would only receive love from now on.
Yeoreum decided to give her a beautiful na.
---
---
Han Gyeoul.
That was the na the girl had given .
'This is crazy.'
Not only had she modified my body, but now she arbitrarily nad .
Anger surged within at her attitude of treating like a possession.
It was my fault for lying about not knowing my na.
From now on, I resolved not to say anything that could cause problems.
Just then, a spoonful of soup approached my lips.
"My arm's going to fall off. Just one spoonful, okay?"
The girl pressed the spoon against my lips.
Refusing to eat, I kept my mouth tightly shut, and soup sared all over my lips.
Even the scent was tempting enough to make want to lick it off.
"No, I don't want to...!"
The mont I opened my mouth to refuse the soup...
The girl pushed the spoon into my mouth.
"Ah...!"
The intense flavor of the soup made my eyes widen.
I could feel my ears perk up.
The soup was so much thicker and had big chunks compared to it.
It was undoubtedly the best thing I had eaten in the last eight years.
"Wow..."
Was there really such amazing food in the world?
Even after the soup was gone, I found myself smacking my lips several tis in delight.
"How is it? Tasty, right?"
The girl scooped another spoonful of soup, smiling.
Instinctively, I opened my mouth, then realized the predicant I was in.
"I said no..."
Falling into the witch's trap and eating soup.
I couldn't have been more foolish.
Ignoring the girl pretending to be surprised, I calculated the cost of the soup in my mind.
My daily inco was between two and three thousand won.
The price of soup at a fancy restaurant would surely exceed ten thousand won.
It was an amount I could only afford after several days of hard work.
'I'm ruined.'
Ten thousand won could do so much.
I could buy thread and needles to nd my torn clothes and bags, and tape to patch up my worn tent.
All of it was lost due to the girl's trickery.
'Sigh.'
How much more did she intend to tornt ?
Unable to bear the absurdity any longer, I spoke curtly.
"I want to go ho."
"Ho? Do you have a family or sothing?"
She always took the opportunity to ask about my personal details.
In a way, she was quite extraordinary.
"I don't know. I'm not going to tell you."
"Ah, okay. That's fine."
Despite my fierce response, the girl remained unexpectedly calm.
Maybe she was the kind of psycho who didn't get angry easily.
Scared but determined, I pushed back a bit more.
"I have to go ho to water my tomatoes."
"Hmm... Can I co with you then?"
"Why...?"
"I just want to see how Gyeoul lives."
It sounded like she wanted to know where I live to keep under her thumb forever.
"It's really dirty there. Even centipedes co out."
"That's okay. I can handle that."
Her smile was awkward.
She didn't like bugs and dirt but forced a smile to find out where I live.
I decided to scare her a bit more.
"Sotis wild boars co out. And stray dogs at night?"
"Really? Where do you live exactly?"
She seed scared of wild boars and stray dogs.
I felt triumphant, having found her weakness.
"I live in a tent in the woods. There are poisonous mushrooms near it, so it'll be tough for you."
"Oh my..."
Her gaping mouth revealed her shock, and I couldn't help but smile triumphantly.
Now that I knew her weakness, there was no need to act humbly.
"How about it? Can't co, right? Should I just go alone?"
"No, let's go together. I like dangerous places more."
"Really...? Why...?"
"Because I'm a high level adventurer?"
Ah.
Right.
She was indeed a high level adventurer, capable of managing beginner hunting grounds.
I couldn't understand why I had forgotten such an important fact.
It was quite strange, but for now, I decided to focus on the girl in front of .
"Are you really going to co? There are cockroaches too."
"Yes. I'm curious about how Gyeoul lives."
She seed determined to follow no matter what.
That's so serious obsession.
Feeling defeated, I closed my eyes tightly.
'I lost.'
There was no way to make her back down anymore.
Although I really didn't want to, I decided to bring the girl to my house.
---
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