Before I End Up as Rabbit Stew - Chapter 17

It was after Black Dragon overturned the table a couple more times that the innkeeper roughly grasped the situation. Yimae had to gather the sapling bundles again, so the innkeeper supported Black Dragon instead. Fortunately, Black Dragon didn’t cling to the innkeeper. Still, he couldn’t walk on his own, so he was practically carried on the innkeeper’s back up to the upper floor.

The room upstairs was very spacious. A wide low table and two cushions were prepared for two people to face each other and eat, and the bed was also large. Between the bed and the low table hung a screen made of individual wooden beads strung together.

“Then, please rest comfortably.”

The innkeeper, who had lifted one side of the screen and placed Black Dragon on the bed, was sweating profusely. Anxious that he might be asked to do more, he hurried out of the room.

Yimae also took off her veil and took a breather. Black Dragon, who was sitting with his arms behind him, kept chuckling.

“What’s so funny?”

“You’re funny.”

“Really? In my eyes, husband is much funnier.”

His gat was askew, having been jostled while clinging to the innkeeper. It made the drunk man look even more drunk, so Yimae laughed along with Black Dragon. It was when she approached the bed to pull on the strings of Black Dragon’s gat.

“Don’t.”

Black Dragon grabbed Yimae’s sleeve. Not even her wrist, but just the end of her sleeve, as he spoke in a seemingly firm voice, truly befitting the Black Dragon who only looked the part.

“Why are there so many things I’m not supposed to do today? I can’t even remember them all.”

Because he was still drunk, Yimae continued to untie the strings. Black Dragon helplessly accepted her touch. His hand slipped off her sleeve and grabbed the edge of the bed.

“I have to take this off for you to even lie down.”

“Don’t take it off.”

“Why? I’m going to take off that robe too.”

The edges were stained with food seasoning as if they had been painted. Not only did a sour smell rise, but it seemed like it would dirty the clean bedding.

But it was a lie. No matter how drunk he was, she had no intention of taking off his clothes. Even though he had shown her a lighter side, different from his dignity or reputation, he was still the Black Dragon of the Four Symbols.

When she took off his gat and set it down, she saw his eyes, somewhat dazed and unfocused, yet fixed straight on Yimae. He nodded.

“That’s good.”

“What is?”

Black Dragon’s hand, which had been gripping the edge of the bed, tightened. The wood that formed the base of the bed creaked as if he were exerting more force than he appeared to be.

“Robe, good.”

Yimae stood for a moment with a bewildered expression, then soon realized what he meant.

“Ah, you want me to take off your clothes?”

The edge of the bed made a loud noise again.

“Right? It’s too dirty like this, isn’t it?”

Thinking that he had given permission, Yimae pulled on the strings that fastened the robe. It seemed like pre-washing it now would cause less damage to the fabric. The robe was made to be tied once at the inner waist and once at the outer chest. As soon as Yimae untied the chest strings, the door suddenly burst open.

“I should have brought the washing water and refreshment drink…”

The innkeeper, who had entered, was terrified. Before he could even put down the water, Black Dragon got up and violently pushed the door shut. The door slammed shut, and the sound of the innkeeper hastily descending could be heard.

“What are you doing! What if you break the door!”

Yimae scolded Black Dragon, who was standing unsteadily. She reopened the door and brought in the water that the innkeeper had brought. Half of the water in the basin had already spilled.

“Take it off completely.”

Black Dragon immediately shook his head. Yimae frowned.

“You said a moment ago that taking it off was good?”

“Something else is good.”

Something else what? Yimae didn’t want to argue at length with a drunk person, so she immediately reached into Black Dragon’s waist. Perhaps because of the alcohol, she felt heat from his body. It was so warm that it felt like hatching an egg would produce a chick.

Black Dragon, who had said he didn’t want to take it off, obediently left Yimae’s hands alone. Yimae untied even the inner strings and took the robe off him. Seeing him standing still again after saying he didn’t want to take it off, Yimae let out a hollow laugh. She wondered if his drinking habit was to be so fickle.

“Want a glass of water?”

“Yeah.”

He sat cross-legged on the floor. Yimae picked up the water pitcher behind her. It was the refreshment drink that had been brought up. In that short time, she suddenly heard a splash of water, and Yimae was shocked.

“No, no! You can’t drink that!”

Black Dragon had his head buried in the basin. Bubbles were forming at the tip of his nose. Yimae went behind him and lifted his upper body.

“Come here, come here.”

She put her hands between his arms as they were. While dragging him to the table, Black Dragon kept giggling as if he were ticklish.

“Here you go.”

Yimae filled a glass with water from the pitcher on the table. Black Dragon, who was leaning against the bed, obediently received the glass. And without incident, he drank the water in the normal way.

“It would be easier to make another field.”

Yimae said as if to herself. She didn’t know that taking care of a drunk person would be so exhausting. Black Dragon, looking back at her, had droplets of water on his chin.

“He’s completely turned into a child.”

She shook her head, then grabbed his sleeve as if she had thought of something. Yimae, who had wiped Black Dragon’s chin clean, smiled lightly as if she had an idea.

“Come to think of it, isn’t it true?”

Black Dragon stared at her. His face was curious about what she would say next.

“Aren’t you a child, compared to me?”

The Black Dragon she had met at the Oreumgwan graduation ceremony was a young boy. Yimae was already close to twenty in human years at that time. In rabbit years, she was an adult, not to mention. Baekho, who had only lived two years less and acted like they were all adults once they graduated from Oreumgwan, naturally came to mind.

“Should I call you ‘older sister’?”

Since he looked much younger than Baekho and Jujak, Black Dragon was at least two years younger than Yimae, and possibly up to five years younger.

“I’ve been called ‘wife,’ so why can’t I be called ‘older sister’?”

Black Dragon put down the glass. He waved his finger in the air. She wondered what he was doing, but a blue light trailed after the tip of his finger. Yimae knew exactly what that blue light was.

“Okay! Okay! I understand!”

It was Black Dragon’s spirit weapon. Iyeongdo. The sword was briefly visible through the blue aura before disappearing. Yimae shuddered at the sight of Iyeongdo emitting its aura after so long.

“You could just say you don’t like it, why summon your sword?”

What a petty person. Yimae clicked her tongue. She felt like embroidering the word “petty” in large letters on the robe she had taken off.

“I don’t need an ‘older sister.'”

He said very coldly. Yimae checked to see if Black Dragon had sobered up, but unfortunately, his languid eyes, which couldn’t focus properly, were still the same.

“Yes, yes, then just call me ‘wife.'”

“I will, wife.”

And then his smiling face was so beautiful that it was a shame to see it alone. Yimae felt like gathering all the Bipamung people and showing them the sight, regardless of the dignity of the Great Four Symbols.

Black Dragon suddenly climbed onto the bed. Just looking at the way he lay down, she could tell he was still very drunk. He lay face down, burying his cheek in the pillow. And he tucked his arms under the pillow.

“Are you going to sleep? Not going back to the palace?”

“Hair.”

Black Dragon mumbled, turning his head towards Yimae. Yimae pressed down a sigh rising from her core and reached out to him. He meant for her to fix his hair, which had become disheveled from lying down. Yimae gently arranged his black hair that had fallen onto the pillow.

“Wouldn’t it be better to go back to the palace and sleep?”

Black Dragon blinked his dark eyes a few times, then quickly fell asleep. His breathing was regular and even. Yimae was about to shake him awake, but stopped. Seeing that he had become more docile than when he was trying to feed her dumplings while calling her “wife,” it seemed like his drunkenness would soon subside on its own.

“Should I wash his clothes?”

Since Black Dragon wasn’t leaving anyway, there was no way to return to the palace. He had to open the door again through the chief of the secret guard.

Yimae gathered up the robe and opened the door. She heard the sound of someone coming up the wooden stairs. The old wood creaked. Yimae, who was about to go down those stairs, stopped abruptly when she spotted two figures rounding the corner. The ones coming upstairs were people she knew well.

“Baekho, Jujak…?”

Baekho and Jujak stared intently at Yimae from a few steps below. No words were exchanged as their gazes busily collided with each other. Only then did Yimae remember that she was transformed into a human.

“Can’t you recognize me?”

Baekho and Jujak exchanged glances. A light flashed in their eyes as if they had realized something.

“Ugh, what! What!”

Soon, Baekho and Jujak moved first. They came up the stairs like the wind and grabbed Yimae from both sides. And they quickly pushed her back into the room where Black Dragon was.

Baekho stood with his back against the door, panting.

“Did, did, you see a troublemaking moon rabbit!”

Support Before I End Up as Rabbit Stew