Chapter 79

“Then, I’ll go look for Mommy and Daddy, okay?”

A short statement from Yuna.

At the sound of those words, Seorin and I froze on the spot, starting to glance at each other nervously.

‘I don’t know what to say to Yuna…’

While there’s a slim chance her parents might still be alive,

having read the original novel, I knew that possibility was near impossible.

What’s more, even if they were alive, chances were high they’d be in less-than-ideal conditions.

As I fell into confusion, unsure of what to say,

Seorin tried to speak up despite her obvious flustered state.

“Y, Yuna, if you want to find them, we should… But…”

She hesitated, her lips trembling as she struggled to form words.

Finally, unable to continue, she bit her lip hard and covered her face with her hands.

Just as I decided to step in and help,

Han Arin approached us quickly from afar.

“Hey kiddos? I’m here.”

Arin opened her arms wide to greet us, but upon noticing our serious expressions,

she awkwardly lowered her arms and asked what was wrong.

“What’s going on?”

After a nearby counselor quickly explained the situation,

Han Arin stiffened, crossing her arms tightly.

“… Hmm.”

Even Han Arin seemed at a loss, deep in thought as she remained frozen in place.

As the surroundings grew increasingly silent, I decided I had to say something—

“Woof! Should we go look then?”

Chae-a grabbed my hand and Yuna’s, smiling brightly.

“I’m really good at finding things! We’ll definitely find them!”

At her words, Yuna’s eyes lit up and she nodded enthusiastically.

I closed my eyes tightly, feeling the soft flick of my tail against my face.

‘What if the outcome isn’t good?’

While I could easily help search for her parents,

the real issue was the ominous result I already anticipated.

But I couldn’t bring myself to say no. As I hesitated,

Yuna spoke up.

“But Yuna has never seen Mommy or Daddy before. Can we still find them?”

“Huh?”

“I’ve never seen them since I opened my eyes.”

At this revelation, Han Arin’s expression hardened noticeably.

Realizing this, I calmly asked Yuna to confirm.

“Never seen them?”

“Yeah, that’s why I want to look.”

In a way, it was merciful. Loss only truly hurts when you’ve had something to begin with.

As unease settled in my chest, Chae-a tilted her head curiously and asked Yuna,

“Why do you even want to find them? I don’t have parents either, and I’ve never felt the need to look!”

Every adult nearby immediately began coughing violently and turned away.

I chuckled dryly at the scene, patting Chae-a’s back.

‘Well, when you think about it, it does make sense. Chae-a is a spirit beast after all.’

Given her fundamentally different way of thinking as a non-human entity,

her perspective wasn’t entirely surprising. Just then,

“Because… Chae-a has Haeuni, Yuna, Seorin-nee, Arin-nee, the teachers, the Spirit Masters… family!”

came the pure-hearted reply.

Hearing this, Yuna’s eyes sparkled as she questioned,

“Family?”

“Yep! When someone cares this much, they’re family!”

“And if you find your parents, they’ll be family too.”

It seemed Yuna’s desire to find her parents stemmed from wanting what she perceived as “family.”

As she held Yuna’s hand tightly, Han Arin watched silently, eventually giving a wry smile and nodding.

* * *

Back in the ward, we gathered for an impromptu meeting.

The topic? “What is family?”

A profoundly deep and philosophical subject we decided to tackle.

Naturally, Chae-a was the first to speak up.

“Chae-a knows! Family means hugging, cuddling, and giving kisses!”

With that, Chae-a took turns hugging me and Yuna tightly while giggling.

Finding her actions adorable, I laughed along—until

Yuna chimed in with her own definition,

“When we were trapped in ice, family meant sharing food and holding hands.”

With that, she handed out snacks to everyone and grabbed our hands.

Uncertain how to respond, I gave an awkward laugh,

only for Chae-a to ask me what I thought family meant.

‘Family…’

Honestly, having never experienced it myself, I didn’t really know.

After fumbling for words, I voiced a longing born from never having had it.

“Someone who always believes in you…”

At this, Yuna gently stroked my tail and said,

“I’m good at that.”

Looking at me with trusting eyes, she nodded firmly.

Apparently, “believing” meant stroking backs and giving trustworthy gazes.

Feeling slightly embarrassed, I chuckled awkwardly as Seorin joined the conversation.

“Will you let me be part of your family too?”

At this question, I nodded.

Sighing in relief, Seorin sat beside us and suggested,

“Let’s talk about something else then.”

Clearly, family-related topics made her uncomfortable.

Noticing her quick change of subject, I blinked.

‘Come to think of it, Seorin has never talked about her family.’

Neither the original story nor her time at the association mentioned anything,

and Seorin showed no signs of seeking them out.

I suspected she too had suffered some kind of familial loss.

Deciding to leave such heavy topics for when we were older,

I hugged my tail and made soft noises.

‘This is something better discussed when we’re adults.’

Even as an adult, I found these subjects difficult to broach.

As I watched Seorin, she continued speaking,

“Didn’t Chae-a mention wanting to go to the playground earlier?”

At the word “playground,” Chae-a’s eyes lit up as she nodded vigorously,

then ran over to grab Seorin’s hands and pleaded,

“Chae-a wants to play at the playground! It’s been my lifelong dream!”

“R, really? Shall we go then? There isn’t one at the association, so we can head to the park across the street.”

“Really!? Let’s go!”

Chae-a immediately started dragging both Yuna and me along,

when suddenly Somtul appeared, his fur covered in snacks, grinning confidently.

Bounding around excitedly, he began chirping,

“Pii! Piii!”

(I know how to play at the playground!)

We hadn’t realized Somtul was so knowledgeable about playground activities.

Delighted by this revelation, everyone turned to watch him,

as he leapt around signaling for us to follow him outside.

‘Is it okay to go out?’

Since Grandma Leseia’s hairpin was safely in place, I figured it would be fine,

and followed Somtul as he led the way.

*

The park was just across from the association, so we arrived quickly.

Though I’d passed by a few times, this was my first proper visit.

Pointing toward the center, Seorin said,

“The playground should be over there.”

At this, Chae-a bounced around excitedly, exclaiming,

“Woo-hoo! Chae-a is so happy! Let’s hurry up and go!”

Then she rushed ahead.

Not wanting to lose sight of her, Yuna and I ran forward together.

Upon reaching the playground, we were greeted by various colorful equipment.

Among them, the seesaw caught my attention.

‘How interesting…’

Thinking about how much things have changed recently,

I turned to ask the now visibly nervous Chae-a,

“What should we try first?”

After scanning the area, Chae-a pointed to the swings and said eagerly,

“That one! I’ve always wanted to try it, but never had anyone to push me!”

Thinking it would be fun, I nodded and moved closer,

only to encounter a new problem.

‘…Too high.’

Even stretching my arms as far as they’d go, I could barely reach.

Though I wanted to climb onto the swing seat,

its constant swaying made me worry about falling off.

As I pondered what to do, Seorin offered a solution,

“The swings are dangerous, so let’s take turns, okay?”

She then tried to help me sit down,

but I declined, saying,

“Let Chae-a go first.”

Since Chae-a clearly wanted to try it much more than I did,

it seemed right to let her go first. Surprisingly,

she shook her head, insisting,

“It’s fine! Haeuni should go first!”

Raising her hands high, she grinned determinedly,

declaring she’d push me instead.

Relenting, I decided to take a few turns before letting her try,

and sat down on the swing seat.

As I did, Chae-a began reminiscing about the past.

“Chae-a always wanted to try the swings, but never had anyone to push me.

But now I do, and I’m so happy!”

With that, she began pushing my swing energetically,

wearing a genuinely happy smile.

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