Chapter 165: Chapter 165

Waking up early in the morning, Dan So-mi was hungry.

Normally, she would have pestered Jang Sam-tae to fill her belly, but since he left, Dan So-mi and Namgung So-hye had been in charge of the kitchen.

However, with Namgung So-hye also being absent recently, Dan So-mi was all by herself.

She hurriedly opened her eyes, stood up, and stretched herself grandly.

“Kuuung!”

Would this help her grow a bit taller?

Being smaller than other children her age, Dan So-mi wanted to be even a little taller, so stretching deeply every morning was part of her daily routine.

Though it did not seem to make her grow even a tiny bit.

With slumped shoulders, she opened the door and went outside.

The manor was unusually quiet today.

Normally, she should have seen the early-rising Namgung Cheon or Sa Do-hak, but a desolate atmosphere hung over the manor as if no one was there.

“Huh?”

Patter, patter.

Taking quick little steps, she headed toward a place where someone might be. Hearing a sound from far away, it seemed like someone was indeed there.

As Dan So-mi cautiously approached the place, she saw Hoyeon Ji, with hollow eyes, diligently brewing alcohol.

“…”

Should she pretend to know her?

But she felt that if she spoke to her while she was brewing, she would get caught and have to brew alcohol again.

It was very fun when she first brewed alcohol. She remembered making it with a happy heart since even Dan Woo-hyun praised it, saying it was delicious.

But as time passed, she grew tired of it.

Moreover, she had no desire to brew alcohol right now.

So it was only right to quietly ignore her and leave now.

Dan So-mi decided to ignore Hoyeon Ji and turned around.

“Hmm, where did everyone go?”

She trotted off toward the kitchen.

Walking through the quiet manor alone felt strange.

Although there were not many people, the place that used to be noisy was now quiet, giving her a sense of foreignness.

As she was heading to the kitchen with puffed cheeks, she discovered something strange under the wall.

Dan So-mi tilted her head and walked toward it.

“What is this?”

Something was stained on the dirt.

It was bright red.

Dan So-mi turned her head to look elsewhere.

Things that looked like human hair lay scattered on the ground.

Had some beast entered?

Looking closely at the wall, she also saw marks scarred by something like a sword.

Staring at it quietly, Dan So-mi stood right up.

“Yep!”

‘Let’s pretend I didn’t see it.’

Nothing must have happened here.

Believing that was for the best.

This was not the first or second time, and Dan So-mi had already become accustomed to it.

Sometimes, when she returned a few days after being left at Hong Won-chang’s house, she would see strange things stained on the manor.

Every time that happened, Jang Sam-tae made a big fuss while wiping it away, so Dan So-mi thought there was no need to worry about it.

Because digging deep into it did not seem like a good idea.

‘Our house is strange to begin with, so things like that happen often.’

Nabbing that conclusion, she nodded her head.

Turning her steps once again, Dan So-mi entered the kitchen.

There was no leftover rice from what they ate yesterday.

Since scorched rice was the only thing left, she munched on it to fill her stomach.

She did not feel the need to cook when no one was around, and to begin with, lighting a fire was quite a difficult task for a young child.

“Did they go out to play and leave only So-mi behind?”

Surely that was not the case, but if it really was, she felt she would be angry. She walked along while puffing her cheeks out fully once again.

The first place she went was none other than Dan Woo-hyun’s room.

That was because she wondered if he was sleeping late.

Of course, that could not be.

“Dad?”

She called out in front of the door, but there was no response.

As she cautiously opened the door slightly and peered inside, she saw the empty sight of the room.

A table and a bed with nothing on them.

Other than that, it was just that the toys Dan So-mi had brought were scattered all over the room.

Letting out a deep sigh, Dan So-mi stepped into the room.

“You should clean up a bit!”

Grumbling to no one in particular, she began to gather and clean up the toys. She did not seem to consider the fact that she was the one who had brought all of these things in the first place.

She picked up the toys one by one and placed them neatly to one side.

Looking at the room that had become neat in an instant, Dan So-mi pondered over something.

It had certainly become clean, but… the atmosphere felt more desolate than when the toys were scattered.

Tilting her head, Dan So-mi kicked the toys with a thud.

Flying in all directions, they lay scattered around.

Only now did it look like a room where a human lived.

Seeing that, Dan So-mi nodded with satisfaction and left the room.

Now that she had confirmed Dan Woo-hyun was not in the room, she had no more business there. Furthermore, seeing how quiet it was, it seemed that not only Namgung Cheon but even Sa Do-hak was not left in the manor.

Being used to playing alone, Dan So-mi was not discouraged by this.

Opening the large gate, she left the manor.

The scenery of Lake Dongting appeared before her eyes, but she felt nothing special now. It was very beautiful at first, but no matter how beautiful something was, one was bound to tire of it if they kept looking at it.

Dan So-mi ran swiftly and came to a place quite far from the manor.

* * *

She had intended to take a simple walk, but it seemed she had taken the wrong path.

Dan So-mi frowned her tiny face and turned back.

Since she could just go back the way she came, she would not get lost. Moreover, there were footprints, so could she not just follow them?

With those thoughts, she looked down, but…

She could see nothing.

A thick fog had settled around her before she knew it. Since she had not felt the presence of fog at all until a moment ago, Dan So-mi swallowed a groan.

“It… it won’t be far.”

She turned her gaze to examine her surroundings.

No matter how foggy it got, it was near her house. Having lived here for about a year, she thought finding the house would not be difficult if she could just check the scenery properly.

But the surroundings felt as unfamiliar as if she were seeing them for the first time.

The terrain was also quite rugged.

Even for someone familiar with such geography, a single misstep seemed likely to break something. The rocks were as sharp as awls, and the trees were also bent wildly, giving off a strange feeling.

Even the air was different.

Should she say it was lighter than usual? Or should she say it was clearer?

Just by breathing, she felt her body becoming lighter. Filled with energy throughout her body, she felt as if she would not tire no matter what she did.

Dan So-mi looked around with anxious eyes.

“Huh?”

Just then, what caught Dan So-mi’s eye was a tiny creature.

It was about the size of an adult’s palm, and its pure white fur was like looking at white snow.

Its golden eyes were so beautiful that she felt like she would be sucked in just by looking at them.

The appearance, just like a kitten, was so cute that it greatly stirred Dan So-mi’s heart.

The kitten captured her gaze so completely that the thought of having to return home quickly vanished from her mind.

“Come here, kitty-kitty.”

She squatted on the spot and called out while stretching her hand. But the kitten turned its head away as if to mock her.

“You won’t come? Then I’m coming to catch you! You’ll be in big trouble if So-mi goes to catch you!”

Meow.

A small cry was heard.

It seemed to say, ‘Give it a try.’

Although she could not understand the meaning at all, Dan So-mi, whose pride was strangely hurt, clenched her fists and burned with fighting spirit.

Since she had to catch the tiny fellow before it fled, she grew impatient.

She was already running in a rugged place, so she was prone to stumbling, and running also looked highly dangerous due to the thorny trees and rocks.

But Dan So-mi did not give up.

She dashed forward with the sole determination to catch it.

Fortunately, the fellow quietly watched until Dan So-mi drew near.

The moment she rapidly closed the distance.

Swish!

With only a single leap, the kitten that was before her eyes vanished.

She blinked her eyes and searched, but she still could not see the fellow.

“Hmm?”

With a blank expression, she quietly looked around.

Even so, the white kitten was nowhere to be seen.

The moment she squinted her eyes, she felt a weight on her head. At the same time, she saw a pure white tail gently descending before her eyes.

“Hah!”

Shouting energetically, she tried to catch the kitten on top of her head with both hands. But her hands swept through empty air without fail, and the kitten landed lightly and leaped away.

The snow-white kitten landed as lightly as a feather on a sharp rock.

“Hmph!”

Pushing air fully into her cheeks, Dan So-mi stomped her foot on the ground. It was frustrating that she could not catch it when it was right before her eyes.

Once again, a small cry was heard.

Meow.

That sound seemed to mock her. Although Dan So-mi rarely lost her temper, she seemed to do so this time as she dashed forward to close the distance.

The moment she arrived right under its nose and tried to catch the kitten with both hands, the kitten leaped, kicked off Dan So-mi’s head, and landed after widening the distance once more.

Meow!

“Hey!”

She waved her tiny hands around and vented her dissatisfaction.

She felt angry thinking she had been teased by a kitten.

But the kitten stood still without moving, looking at Dan So-mi, and then turned its back as if trying to go somewhere else.

“Wh-where are you going?!”

Startled, Dan So-mi shouted.

But the kitten, only slightly turning its head, looked at Dan So-mi, growled softly, and leaped away.

Dan So-mi quickly reached out to approach, but the fog before her eyes suddenly cleared, and the surrounding scenery transformed in an instant.

“Uh…?”

The fog disappeared, and the strange trees and rocks were also nowhere to be seen.

She could see the forest slightly away from the manor and the sparkling water of Lake Dongting.

Standing blankly, Dan So-mi rubbed her eyes.

Was what happened just now a dream?

She pinched her cheek.

But it only hurt.

“Hing…”

Stroking her sore cheek, she turned around.

‘I should go back first and ask Dad.’

What she experienced today was a story far too strange and mysterious for the young Dan So-mi.

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