12. The Kidnapped Girl and the Abducted Girl (3)
After Lee Jun-woo left the house,
Hare lay quietly in her room.
"He said he'd be back soon. When is he coming back...?"
Rustle—
Hare got up from the bed and checked the clock.
Only 10 minutes had passed.
"...Time is going so slowly."
Why isn't it going faster?
Clock, you bad thing!
Hare blamed the innocent clock.
She was lonely and bored, so to ease those feelings, she left her room.
"I've never been to the study..."
The study.
Strangely, this house had many books.
Bookshelves and books filled an entire room.
Hare randomly pulled out a book.
"Hmm, how do you read this? Uh...mm,"
She frowned and stared intently at the letters in the book.
But her eyes only hurt, and she couldn't read the letters at all.
Since Hare had never attended school, she couldn't even read basic letters.
"Mr. Jun-woo must have read all of these... I want to read them too... Would he dislike a child who can't even read...?"
Droop.
Hare blamed her own incompetence and let her shoulders drop.
The study doesn't suit me.
With that thought, Hare left the study.
Then she checked the clock again.
"Only 12 minutes have passed. When is he coming back...?"
Tick-tock— Tick-tock—
Hare stared blankly at the moving clock.
The second hand was moving at a constant speed.
She puffed out her cheeks and blew air at the clock, but it didn't flow any faster.
Unable to help it, she decided to explore the house again.
This time, upstairs.
The upstairs where that cheeky child lived.
"There's another room next door..."
Luna.
The name of the girl who trained with Mr. Jun-woo every day.
Yet she was a cheeky child who complained and was never satisfied.
Hare stood in front of Luna's door.
Various locks were attached to the door.
"So Mr. Jun-woo really did kidnap her... He's even confining her..."
Still, I still like Mr. Jun-woo.
It's okay if Mr. Jun-woo is a criminal.
I've committed countless crimes too, so it's okay.
With those thoughts, Hare was curious about what Luna was doing, so she pressed her ear to the door.
"..."
—Th-this! Psycho old man! Why is the food so good again! How annoying! It keeps going into my mouth!
"Mr. Jun-woo isn't a psycho. He's a kind man. She's saying weird things again..."
—Hm? What, who's outside!?
Luna immediately reacted to Hare's presence.
Though startled by Luna's voice, Hare had no intention of backing down.
"M-Mr. Jun-woo isn't a psycho... H-he has emotions...!"
—What, it's Hare... But what are you talking about? Not a psycho, has emotions? That old man is com-pletely mechanical.
"H-he's not a machine! Let me tell you what happened to me..."
To assert Mr. Jun-woo's innocence, Hare explained to Luna what had happened.
He helped her by buying matches.
He helped her with Ness.
He helped her with Kyle.
He helped her with the grandmother's matter.
Now that she said it out loud, Hare realized she only had memories of receiving help.
"See! Mr. Jun-woo is definitely not a bad person!"
—...What, why does he become a sweet old man with you?
"S-sweet...?"
—It means treating someone preciously and sweetly, like they're someone important.
"...Someone important."
I'm someone important to Mr. Jun-woo...?
"Waaah..."
Hare's mind quickly transformed into a flower garden.
A fantastic flower garden that no one could invade.
Just as Hare was imagining with a happy smile, Luna's voice poured cold water on her.
—But why is he like that to me? He kidnapped me as soon as we arrived in the capital, tied my legs so I couldn't escape, and even makes me do incredibly hard training. Why does he treat me so harshly? Isn't that too much? No, it IS too much! It's really too much!
"That... I don't know either. Maybe Mr. Jun-woo has some reason?"
—Ah, right. You're on his side. Tsk, I have no one on my side here! I'm a total loner!
"Loner..."
In the past.
Hare, who had been called a loner in her neighborhood, felt her heart ache at those words.
Even though she had insulted Mr. Jun-woo, that child must be lonely somewhere too.
Kind Hare spoke in a small voice to Luna.
"...Don't say loner. I-I'll talk with you. But in exchange, if you insult Mr. Jun-woo, there'll be no conversation."
—Huh, really?! Really?! I knew it! From the moment I first saw you, I felt like you were my little sister!
Luna shouted something about being excited.
Beyond the door, Luna's cheerful footsteps could be heard.
*Did I say that for nothing...?*
Hare began to regret it.
But since Mr. Jun-woo told us to get along well...
I should try to get along.
And so, in front of the room where the Hero was confined,
The Hero and the Thief formed a subtle friendship.
After talking enough with Luna, an exhausted Hare was waiting for Lee Jun-woo in front of the clock.
The moment the clock's hour hand pointed to 1,
Creak—
The door opened and Lee Jun-woo entered.
Hare greeted him with a bright smile.
"Y-you're back, Mr. Jun-woo...?"
"...Yeah."
Lee Jun-woo answered weakly.
Did something happen?
Hare cautiously approached Lee Jun-woo.
The pungent smell of alcohol emanated from him.
"...Did you drink?"
"A little. I did drink."
"It doesn't seem like you drank just a little..."
You seem as drunk as the people sleeping in the alleys...
Hare supported Lee Jun-woo with her small body as best she could.
Until she laid him down on the living room sofa.
Thud—
"D-don't fall! Sleep carefully! There are glass bottles rolling around on the floor! Okay?!"
"..."
"Mr. Jun-woo...?"
Lee Jun-woo didn't answer.
He had already closed his eyes and was sleeping.
Lee Jun-woo, who had drunk heavily at a bar after talking with Minerva.
Hare looked at him with worried eyes and covered him with a blanket.
"You'll be uncomfortable sleeping like this... It would be more comfortable to sleep in a room..."
There are spare rooms, so why are you doing this here...
Hare stared intently at Lee Jun-woo's sleeping face.
Mid-twenties?
Late twenties appearance.
He had a beard covering his face, but if he shaved it, wouldn't he be handsome?
Hare muttered quietly.
"Not Mr. Jun-woo, but... oppa?"
I wish he were oppa.
Because that would be closer...
As Hare looked at Lee Jun-woo's face, she checked the living room.
"..."
Freewheeling trash everywhere.
I'll definitely clean it up tomorrow.
That will help Mr. Jun-woo.
Hare clenched her fist tight.
Then she moved her gaze to the desk.
There, a small picture frame stood on the desk.
"Why is a picture frame here...?"
Aren't frames supposed to hang on walls?
Hare carefully picked up the frame.
In the photo, two men and three women were smiling harmoniously.
Among them was Mr. Jun-woo from his younger days.
Especially with the woman next to him, they seemed much close—
Thud.
"M-Mr. Jun-woo, you're awake...?"
"Hare. Go inside and sleep. It's time to sleep."
"...Yes."
Hearing the suddenly awakened Lee Jun-woo's words, Hare left the living room and headed to her room.
Lee Jun-woo's expression looked sad for some reason.
*Who was that woman...?*
Throb.
Hare became curious about Mr. Jun-woo's past.
"Today's training is over. Good work, Luna."
"..."
What, is she dead?
The corpse gave no answer.
I carried her and laid her on the bed.
Even though she complained verbally, Luna always followed along with training, which was admirable.
"You're doing well, Luna."
"Zzz..."
I stroked the sleeping Luna's head and left her room.
As usual, Hare was watching the scene.
She puffed out her cheeks and muttered.
"...It's not that different from me. Luna lied."
"About what?"
"N-nothing. Hehe."
Hare laughed it off.
Not understanding the meaning, I stroked her head.
*Now it's time for Hare to receive education too...*
Let me test her first.
"Hare."
"Y-yes..!!"
"You usually watch Luna's training—do you want to do it too?"
"...!!"
At those words, Hare's eyes lit up.
Had she been waiting for training?
It seemed Hare had been hurt that only Luna was training alone.
It was time for Hare to grow too.
"Follow me, Hare. Today we'll do a simple test."
"T-test. Understood...! I-I'll work hard...!"
Good spirit.
I moved to a space for Hare's test.
A space filled with abundant knowledge.
The study.
For the time being, Hare would be educated here.
"Th-the study..."
"Hare, can you try reading this?"
"U-um... well... j-just a moment...! I can read..."
"If you can't read it, you can say so. I won't be disappointed by something like this."
"...I can't read it."
"At all?"
"...Yes, at all."
Droop.
Hare shrank her shoulders as if dejected.
I straightened her drooping shoulders.
"It's natural for everyone to be unable to do things at first. You just need to grow gradually. Always be confident."
A Thief must always be confident.
They must light the way, detect traps, and make decisions for the party.
For that, personality and knowledge are necessary, and what Hare needed now were such basic things.
*To put it negatively, Hare lacks the basics...*
But those basics can be taught.
I pulled out a book from the bookshelf.
The book Minerva gave me when I was learning letters in this world.
It was a 'Basic Vocabulary Dictionary.'
"Hare. From today, you'll study this book with me. Are you disappointed that it's different training from Luna's?"
"N-no. I'm happy just being with you, Mr. Jun-woo..."
Hare lowered her head shyly and muttered.
Since she had lacked human affection, even being with someone like me must be good for her.
I stroked Hare's head.
"Yes, studying will be boring, but follow along for now. Can you do that much?"
"Yes! I can...! B-but, Luna said the reason she trains is for a 'reward'... Don't I get one...?"
"...You call that a reward?"
Reward...
From Luna's perspective, it is a reward.
I answered Hare's question lightly.
"Then if you follow along well with your studies, I'll give you a reward too. How about that?"
"G-good...! Is it a reward I want...?"
Nod.
When I nodded, Hare's eyes filled with enthusiasm.
Does she like rewards that much?
I asked Hare.
"What kind of reward do you want that makes you want to work so hard?"
"Th-that's..."
Hare hesitated.
After thinking for a moment, she covered her face with the vocabulary dictionary and answered in a shrinking voice.
"I-I wanted to ask about things I'm curious about regarding you, Mr. Jun-woo..."
"...I see. I understand."
She's a young child.
It's an age to be curious.
I understood Hare.
In the end, we decided to take a test once a week, and if she got 100 points, I would answer her questions as a reward.
And today, watching Hare study...
"Hare, let's stop studying for today—"
"J-just ten more minutes! I-I have to get 100 points!"
I thought she might be pushing herself too hard.
But watching her study on her own was very pleasing to see.