TGHD Ch 53

“This will be good for you too…”

As the grandmother mumbled those words while looking at Yeohwi, her eyes gradually lost their light. As soon as the clarity in her eyes faded, she swayed and fell forward. Yeohwi instinctively stretched out his arm to catch her.

Afterwards, he tried to hand her over to Ryubeom with a reluctant look and step back, but the grandmother grabbed his wrist. Her voice, steeped in deep fatigue, was heavily sagging.

“I’m getting sleepy from standing too long…”

“You should lean on that big White Tiger over there, not me…”

“Hey, is that how you were taught to treat an elder? Your sister won’t forgive you!”

“…”

Yeohwi froze. After a brief silence, he looked at the grandmother with a stiff face. He couldn’t understand why she brought up that topic and felt uncomfortable because of it. He guessed it might be due to the temporary exertion from her divine state…

Cheon Ryubeom was watching with concern, so Yeohwi shook his head. He intended to hand the grandmother over to the White Tiger nearby and leave.

However, the grandmother did not let go of Yeohwi.

“Oh, how hard it was for the child to raise a younger sibling. She complained to me every day that you never listened, and she was right!”

“…I never didn’t listen.”

“Indeed, you don’t even remember the mistakes you made as a child, tsk tsk. They say you skipped family lessons to study magic on your own and blew up an entire annex of the mansion! That’s why Yeomyeong’s cherished earrings were destroyed, and she told me how…”

“Wait, don’t talk about that.”

Yeohwi interrupted, flustered. That anecdote was from when he was really young; did Yeomyeong tell her about that too? He felt a mix of subtle shock and betrayal. On the other hand, he was surprised to realize how close Yeomyeong really was with this Tiger God.

To Yeohwi, the Tiger God was almost like the one who opened the door to catastrophe. The Cheon army could infiltrate the fox’s main house through the Tiger God. But by the time he sought revenge, the god’s condition was already poor, so he hadn’t paid much attention…

“And when Yeomyeong said she was marrying her husband, you tore up all his luggage, huh? You brazenly claimed it was a mistake during magic practice.”

“…It really was a mistake.”

“Does it make sense that you cut up clothes hanging on the wall but left the wallpaper behind without a scratch?!”

“…Ha, this is maddening.”

Yeohwi sighed, making a dry washing motion with the hand not held by the god. Why was he unconsciously making excuses to the god? He had no reason to care, yet he was swept into the conversation. Eventually, he was led by the grandmother’s hand to sit on the floor with her.

Seeing that their conversation was likely to go on for a while, Ryubeom stepped back with the others. Baek Young expressed concern, wondering what might happen if they were left alone, but Ryubeom asked for trust, saying it would be fine. Ryubeom was certain Yeohwi wouldn’t do anything wrong.

When their eyes met, Yeohwi gave a slight shake of his head, indicating he’d just go along with the conversation for a bit before leaving, so not to worry. Baek Young could say no more against Ryubeom’s trust and nodded.

Meanwhile, the grandmother’s stories continued. They mainly revolved around the mischief Yeohwi caused in his childhood.

Due to Yeohwi’s research into complex magic, several buildings had exploded, causing much trouble for the clan. They couldn’t scold him too harshly since he was the clan leader’s brother. Yeomyeong grew increasingly embarrassed, leading Yeohwi to eventually practice in a virtual space.

Initially, Yeohwi wanted to avoid this topic as it was uncomfortable, but later he just corrected the exaggerated parts. It wasn’t that bad; he only destroyed nine, not ten, tiled houses, and since he left the pillars, reconstruction was easy, and so on. Before he knew it, he was getting swept up in the conversation.

During this exchange, Yeohwi was gripped by a strange feeling. It was hard to believe that Yeomyeong would share such stories with someone else.

The Yeomyeong he remembered was recognized for her brilliance from a young age, ascended to the position of clan leader, and was a kind and mysterious figure who embraced all members of the clan. But to hear she shared these stories with the Tiger God, it almost seemed like she was complaining about hardships. It felt like listening to stories about a completely different person.

Even in the distant past, the relationship between foxes and tigers wasn’t good, so how did the Tiger God and the fox clan leader form such a friendship? Did their clans’ adversarial relationship somehow make their bond more poignant? Strangely, Yeohwi felt like he could understand that sentiment a little.

Soon, the grandmother chuckled and suggested:

“Shall we go to the waterfall together? Your sister must be waiting.”

Yeohwi looked at the god with a peculiar gaze. Waterfall? He vaguely remembered hearing from Cheon Ryubeom about the god’s peculiar symptoms when he learned about the hermitage. She said the god wandered daily looking for a waterfall…

And when Yeohwi entered the hermitage, the god had spoken of waterfalls too. She had been trying to get to the waterfall but couldn’t find the way, so she was glad Yeohwi came, mistaking him for Yeomyeong. Thanks to the god mistaking him for Yeomyeong, he was easily accepted into the hermitage.

The waterfall…

Yeohwi looked back into the distant past. In front of the fox clan’s main residence, there was a wide river, and following its current led to a waterfall deep in the mountains. He thought it was gone now, but perhaps that was where Yeomyeong secretly met with the god.

“…How many times have you tried to go to the waterfall?”

“I don’t know. I searched for it every day, but strangely, the path wasn’t visible. But with you, I feel like I might find it. Wouldn’t your sister welcome you if you went?”

Yeohwi’s gaze softened. Perhaps because he learned that the one he had resented was close to Yeomyeong, or maybe because he felt a strange kinship with the god’s yearning for the vanished waterfall… or for Yeomyeong beyond it.

After a long silence, he spoke abruptly.

“…My sister didn’t like holding onto the past.”

“Huh?”

“She always said to look to the future, not the past. When I asked if it wasn’t bothersome to take care of the injured members of our clan, she said that while not everything could be smooth, the village we build together with them is beautiful.”

“That sounds just like something Yeomyeong would say.”

“Right. So… if we go looking for the waterfall, she might actually scold me.”

He chose a different topic since saying the waterfall was gone wouldn’t have an effect, but he ended up talking more than he intended. Yeohwi felt a bit of regret and a bitter taste from the words he had let out. Recalling the conversation he had with Yeomyeong after a long time made his own actions seem foolish.

“Ha ha, she’d probably hate me a lot now…”

Unlike Yeomyeong’s words about looking to the future, Yeohwi, like the god, had only focused on the past. If the god was wandering in the past, Yeohwi was bound by it, trying to end everything. Both were in a ridiculous state; he was in no position to laugh at the god.

Yeohwi pressed his thumb against his index finger, hard enough to almost draw blood with this nervous gesture. When he stiffened at the sudden contact, the grandmother silently laughed.

“Do you know how much Yeomyeong adored you?”

“…What?”

“She would complain to me about this and that, but in the end, she always boasted about you. She said your skills were exceptional, that you were a genius who would revive the clan…”

“…”

“She also said it was fortunate she was the clan leader. She could support your research as much as you wanted and was proud to provide an environment where you could exercise your abilities freely…”

Yeohwi looked at the god with his mouth shut. His eyes were cold, concealing all emotions, but the god’s cloudy eyes were full of warmth. The temperature difference gradually narrowed.

“But one day, she started saying you were wandering around too much. She said it was nice to see you free, but she was also worried. It seemed like you were searching for a place to settle your heart…”

“…”

“And when I saw you in the hermitage, you really looked precarious…”

The god recalled the memory of that day. In that place, Yeohwi, with such a cold face, was destroying the warehouse with malice, yet he didn’t look relieved but only precarious. It was as if his true aim was to destroy himself rather than to seek revenge.

How did she feel watching a child who looked like Yeomyeong destroying the storehouse? Perhaps she was worried his hands might get hurt…

“Have you found a place you want to settle down now? Seeing you here again, it seems like you’ve chosen this land as your new home?”

“…Somehow, it turned out that way.”

Yeohwi let out a dry laugh. Initially, he wandered aimlessly abroad out of boredom, and after the great fire, he planned his revenge in a foreign land, having left the land imbued with the tiger’s mythology. The village where his memories resided had burned down completely, so he thought he would curse this land forever.

Yet now, Yeohwi was here.

He had no intention of settling in this land, nor had he ever intended to stay anywhere. But now, Yeohwi realized how futile his will had been. He could only say he was swept here by currents close to an irresistible force.

It clearly wasn’t his will, yet now he was clinging to ‘him’, asking to live here. He laughed at how ridiculous he looked.

The god smiled at Yeohwi, whose expression had softened at some point. Did this child know how gentle his face looked right now?

“You’ve escaped from the waterfall, it seems.”

At the voice that was both affectionate and somewhat proud, Yeohwi turned his head to look at the god.

The phrase “escaped from the waterfall” sounded subtly to him. It meant it was fortunate he wasn’t trapped by the past, but for someone who had been searching for the waterfall, to say that? What exactly did the waterfall mean to the god?

Was her memory so mixed up that she recognized the path to warn Yeomyeong before the army caused the fire? Did she see it as her last chance to set things right, or was she mourning and regretting it? Yet, she smiled as if glad he had escaped…

Suddenly, Yeohwi was gripped by a strange sense of dissonance.

‘When did the waterfall disappear?’

He remembered seeing the waterfall deep in the mountains in the distant past, but he hadn’t seen it recently. However, this wasn’t a natural drying up over a hundred years. When Yeohwi was cleaning up after the great fire, he surveyed the entire main house. That’s when the waterfall disappeared, and the river changed its course.

The timing was suspicious. Yeohwi pondered this, then made a peculiar face at a sudden suspicion that came to mind. He looked at the god and asked:

“…Was it you who got rid of that waterfall?”

“Huh? Me?”

The waterfall is believed to have been where the Tiger God met Yeomyeong. And if the god opened that waterfall, it meant that other zodiac gods could also use that path. Beings of similar status often share paths. But right after the great fire, the waterfall, or the god’s path, was completely closed off.

During the recovery from the great fire, the fox clan did not suffer any attacks from other clans. Yeohwi had managed things so quickly, and at the time, the tension between shapeshifters and humans was high, so other clans didn’t move recklessly.

But no one attacked when the fox clan, a powerful entity, was vulnerable? In an era where the law of the jungle prevailed, expecting sympathy because of a catastrophe was laughable. Moreover, the fox clan was known for possessing numerous mysterious spells and enjoying great wealth…

Did people lose interest thinking everything was destroyed by the fire, or was the ‘path’ completely blocked, making an attack impossible?

At Yeohwi’s question, the grandmother blinked. Her wrinkled eyelids slowly opened and closed several times. Her cloudy eyes were dim. Like someone groping through a dream, she half-opened her mouth, repeating “Uh…”

“That’s right, it seems like that was the case…”

“…”

“Yes, that’s right. I… I got rid of the waterfall…”

The god nodded. It seemed like she had completely forgotten about doing such a thing. Yeohwi stared at the god who had destroyed the waterfall and then spent a hundred years searching for it in worry.

Understanding what led the god to wander like this, he spoke a bit more gently.

“Yes. Since you completely got rid of the waterfall, don’t look for it anymore.”

“Ah…”

“…And the fox clan, it’s doing very well now.”

The last sentence was spoken in a very low voice, almost like a whisper out of embarrassment, but the grandmother heard it easily.

She looked at Yeohwi with a strange expression. Here was the child who survived where everything had burned red. In the past, he had a face that seemed about to break, but now he even gave a slight smile when thinking of someone from the other side.

Tsk tsk… A laugh escaped from the grandmother’s lips.

“So, that waterfall has been gone for a long time…”

Slowly, the grandmother leaned to the side. As if tired from the long conversation or relieved of tension, she leaned on Yeohwi’s arm. Yeohwi flinched but didn’t pull away. A gentle smile appeared on the lips of the sleeping grandmother.

Finally, her face looked peaceful.

🦊🐾

One hour later.

Baek Young looked at Yeohwi with a very curious expression. While Baek Young had watched from a distance as the god and Yeohwi conversed, he was continually astonished, his eyes wide open.

It was inevitable; the conversation between the god and the fox clan leader was surprisingly calm, at one point the fox clan leader even gave a small laugh, and the god even held his hand affectionately. In the end, the Tiger God fell asleep peacefully leaning against the fox clan leader.

This was a great shock to Baek Young. The grandmother always looked uncomfortable even when she slept, so seeing her fall into such a peaceful slumber was strange. Not just recently, but throughout the distant past, seeing such a peaceful face was a first.

The fox clan leader stayed still until the god was deeply asleep, then only motioned to Baek Young when her breathing became steady. Baek Young was unsure whether to be surprised by the gesture acknowledging he had been watching or by the casual way Yeohwi beckoned him over.

Baek Young laid the grandmother down in the room and then openly observed Yeohwi. He scanned Yeohwi up and down as he stood with Ryubeom, then stared at him with narrowed eyes before speaking:

“Well, let me ask you something.”

At this sudden request, Yeohwi turned his head to look at Baek Young. Ryubeom probably anticipated that Baek Young would ask about the conversation between Yeohwi and the grandmother. He had even guessed that Baek Young would ask what kind of conversation led to the grandmother sleeping so peacefully, but…

His guess was completely off.

“How old are you, exactly?”

For a moment, silence spread through the space. Cheon Hoyeon and Shin Yihan, who were examining the flower from behind, quietly turned their heads to look this way.

Given that the fox clan leader was a survivor of the great fire, he was definitely over a hundred years old. But aside from that, all other information about him was veiled, and even Cheon Hoyeon, who had long pursued him, didn’t know the truth.

Shapeshifters can live for a hundred years or more if they manage their spiritual energy well, and there were some in the Cheon family who were three or four hundred years old, so his age wasn’t particularly surprising. And in shapeshifter society, asking someone’s age is generally considered impolite, but…

Considering that Cheon Ryubeom, who was twenty, was his romantic interest, they couldn’t help but listen. Everyone unknowingly held their breath, focusing as Yeohwi’s mouth slowly opened.

“That’s…”

“No, don’t answer!”

“…?”

Unexpectedly, Cheon Ryubeom cut in to prevent the response. Was he stepping in because he thought his lover might be uncomfortable? But he firmly shook his head and shouted, directing his words at Yeohwi, not Baek Young.

“Knowing the number will just create unnecessary distance. And you’ll treat him like a child!”

“…I haven’t treated you like a child recently.”

“You do it whenever you get the chance! Anyway, I don’t want to know now, so don’t say it. I’ll ask when I get a bit older and curious.”

“Hmm, just because the young master gets a bit older, the distance won’t decrease…”

“Quiet.”

“Yes.”

Yeohwi obediently closed his mouth.

The others, including Cheon Hoyeon, were left speechless by the rapid exchange between the two. Even Cheon Hoyeon couldn’t manage her expression and just blinked.

Realizing their reactions a bit late, Ryubeom awkwardly touched the back of his neck. He had gotten excited because he was trying to keep the secret buried.

“Um, anyway, Baek Young, I’d appreciate it if you could avoid such questions. It would be awkward…”

“Ha, ha, ha! You didn’t see the fox’s eyes just now.”

Baek Young let out a sarcastic laugh. When he asked about age, Yeohwi had slowly curved his eyes in a smile, which was quite chilling. He only heard the short phrase “That’s…” but could easily guess what would follow.

‘What are you going to do with knowing that?’

Baek Young shivered. What was even more shocking was how Yeohwi’s expression softened, even giving a smiling look with his eyes as soon as Ryubeom intervened. Baek Young now understood clearly what they mean by the fox’s bewitching smile.

While the way Cheon Ryubeom and the fox interacted was surprising, the shock of seeing the fox’s two faces was greater for Baek Young. He wanted to say they were being deceived, but Yeohwi’s attitude of ‘serving’ Ryubeom seemed so natural that it was subtle. Perhaps the fox had always treated Cheon Ryubeom like this from the start? Had the pretense turned into sincerity?

Baek Young let out another sarcastic laugh before deciding not to miss the interrogation opportunity he had barely managed to grasp. He quickly turned his head to look at Cheon Hoyeon.

“Hey, Elder, don’t you have something to say? You must have many questions for him.”

“No, I don’t, so don’t drag me into this.”

Cheon Hoyeon cut him off coldly. She had anticipated their relationship long ago, and even though she knew Ryubeom was visiting the fox clan leader nightly, she had pretended not to notice.

It was less out of consideration for Ryubeom and more because they needed all the help they could get, even if it meant borrowing the fox’s hands. And since Yeohwi seemed to willingly allow himself to be used, Cheon Hoyeon decided to quickly exit this awkward atmosphere.

Moreover, Cheon Hoyeon was the one who had tracked Yeohwi’s past actions and reported to the army, and Yeohwi must have known this. They were passing over uncomfortable matters in silence, so she had no intention of breaking this tacit peace.

The emotional aspects between the two were not her concern either. Ryubeom was an adult who had grown beyond her expectations and, more importantly, the head of the family, so it would be rude for her, as an elder, to pry into his private life. Although Ryubeom respected her, she had no curiosity strong enough to challenge the hierarchy. She preferred to judge situations based on facts alone.

When Cheon Hoyeon stepped back, Baek Young, disappointed, tried to find another ally but gave up upon seeing Shin Yihan’s face. Even he couldn’t touch that one…

In the end, Baek Young decided to bring up past grievances instead of continuing the interrogation. He had vivid memories of suffering because of the fox clan leader.

“Listen here. Do you remember attacking me when you blew up that hermitage?”

“My memory might be a bit faulty. I only blew up the hermitage’s wall, and you fell asleep as soon as our eyes met. It’s not like I knocked you out for good, so why make such a fuss…”

“What?! Do you know how messed up I was back then?!”

“That was because you fell forward when you fell asleep. Should I have provided a knee pillow or something?”

“Oh, come on!”

But Yeohwi was not an easy target. Even when he went to attack the hermitage, he didn’t harm the White Tiger shapeshifter because he was Ryubeom’s acquaintance. He didn’t blow up the entire hermitage but only broke the wall to guide him outside before putting him to sleep as an act of kindness.

With Yeohwi’s calm responses one after another, Baek Young screamed in frustration. Pointing fingers at him, he asked how someone could have such a mouth, but Yeohwi just shrugged.

Ryubeom laughed awkwardly at their conversation. He had been worried Yeohwi might feel uncomfortable in the Cheon household, but he realized now that his concern was unnecessary. Should he be relieved, or should he ask Yeohwi to stop before Baek Young collapses?

And perhaps what he should really be worried about…

Tap, tap, someone approached from behind and lightly tapped his shoulder.

“Dear.”

“…Ah, Dad.”

“Can we talk for a moment, just the two of us?”

At his father’s words, Ryubeom froze for a moment before nodding with great difficulty. As he followed Shin Yihan, he couldn’t even lift his head properly.

Crossing the back yard of the main house led to a vast garden with trees on both sides and a small pond in the middle. It was a private space where the clan leader often rested, and Ryubeom also frequented it, but today it felt terrifyingly daunting. He had prepared for this moment, but his heart was beating so fast that his stomach churned.

Shin Yihan gave a gentle smile and patted Ryubeom’s shoulder.

“Dear, why are you so tense?”

“…I don’t know what you’re going to say.”

“Do you think I’m going to scold you?”

“That’s…”

Ryubeom felt no shame in loving Yeohwi. He was proud of the love he had earned through great hardship. Age was unimportant. Even when he first confessed, he didn’t care about age.

However, the fact that his lover was older than his father was an undeniable truth, which made it hard for Ryubeom to look up. If his father were a shapeshifter, would it have been okay? In shapeshifter society, there are many couples with significant age differences, so maybe it would be understood. No, regardless, his parents’ combined age was still less than Yeohwi’s…

After pondering, Ryubeom steadied his heart. If he kept shrinking back here, his father might call Yeohwi for a conversation next. He had to settle everything in this talk with him.

Ryubeom closed his eyes tightly and shouted:

“I, I liked him first!”

“…What?”

“I really liked Yeohwi so much that I kept chasing him. Even though he pushed me away, I begged and clung to him, saying I wanted to be nice to him. So if you’re going to scold someone, scold me…”

Despite his bold shout, his voice got quieter as he spoke. By the end, his hands were clasped in front of him, looking rather pitiful.

Shin Yihan blinked slowly… then smiled broadly.

“Hmm, actually, I noticed that.”

“…What?”

“Your feelings for him were so obvious.”

It was clear from Ryubeom’s reaction when Baek Young asked about Yeohwi’s age just moments ago, and from the conversation they had. Or rather, from the moment Ryubeom walked into the main house holding Yeohwi’s hand.

Ryubeom might not have realized it, but he was holding Yeohwi’s hand tightly. Such unconscious affection was evident everywhere, making it impossible not to notice.

He couldn’t deny his child’s feelings, but there was one concern.

“Are you truly happy with him? I don’t know all the details, but… that day, you looked very pained.”

That day, the day of the commotion at the hermitage. After hearing about the fox clan leader from Cheon Hoyeon, Ryubeom went up to the hermitage, talked with the god, and then completely collapsed. He seemed to grieve as if all the time he had built and all the cherished emotions had shattered. Shin Yihan learned late from Cheon Hoyeon that Ryubeom had been deceived and used by the fox clan leader, which worried him.

Yet, despite that pain, Ryubeom said he would go to the Cheon household. He went ahead with a plan so dangerous that Cheon Hoyeon tried to stop him. When Shin Yihan asked why, Ryubeom only said there was something he needed to set right, but from his eyes, Shin Yihan could guess he wanted to meet ‘him’.

And the next morning, many things had changed.

Shin Yihan couldn’t say he knew Cheon Ryubeom well. They had been apart for over a decade. However, he knew that Ryubeom had a will stronger than his own. He knew how dazzling the results of that will could be.

So, he couldn’t criticize the love Ryubeom had fought for. He didn’t know all the time Ryubeom had spent, so he couldn’t judge solely by his standards, nor did he have the right to demand a full explanation. Shin Yihan understood that trusting his child was a way to atone for the years of absence caused by his own shortcomings and the greatest expression of love.

But if there was one worry he couldn’t swallow…

“Isn’t being with him painful?”

“…”

“Even after all that pain, you would choose that love without hesitation?”

It was a question about whether he could overlook everything just for love. Whether he was just enduring it, living on the edge of a precarious feeling day by day.

This was the same question Shin Yihan had once asked himself. Could he truly be with Cheon Eunhwa, the next successor of the tiger clan that had annihilated his family? Could he really find happiness with such an existence…

And now, Cheon Ryubeom smiled brightly in front of him.

“Yes. Without any hesitation, enough to choose him over and over again.”

Shin Yihan felt his heart ache at the answer without a hint of hesitation. Ryubeom’s attitude suggested that without choosing love, he would have been engulfed in pain, a sentiment Shin Yihan found all too familiar.

It wasn’t an escape. Because he chose love, there was no pain; through love, he could escape from the burdensome past.

Shin Yihan pondered silently. Before being with Cheon Eunhwa, there was pain, and after being with her, there was sorrow. He experienced loss again and suffered daily from being unable to visit his distant child.

Yet, knowing all this, if Shin Yihan were to go back to the past… he would undoubtedly choose Cheon Eunhwa again. Even knowing he would flounder in sorrow, he wouldn’t let go of her hand.

“…I see. I understand your heart. I understand it deeply.”

Speaking each word with feeling, Shin Yihan softened his gaze. Perhaps with a smile that resembled tears, Ryubeom looked surprised, his eyes widening before he silently grabbed his father’s hand. The warmth from their touching hands was profoundly comforting.

Shin Yihan recalled the red eyes he had last seen.

If there was anything to be thankful for, it would be that ‘his’ feelings seemed similar. The face of the one who looked happy while being with Ryubeom naturally came to mind.

Even upon entering the tiger clan, he showed no sign of being intimidated, acting with surprising composure, but in front of Ryubeom, he was humble to the extreme. His eyes towards Ryubeom were filled with reverence, as if looking at someone to be cherished and honored.

Shin Yihan didn’t know exactly how their relationship was established, but as Ryubeom’s father, he thought the behavior was natural. When taking away such a beautiful child, one should kneel and serve him properly.

Shin Yihan patted Ryubeom’s head.

“If you’re happy being with him, that’s all that matters. Age, hmm, is still something to think about.”

“That, that’s, I’m okay with it first…”

“Aha ha. I’m not saying anything to you. It’s just something I have to accept on my own.”

From the moment his child was born a tiger shapeshifter, he had to let go of many conventional standards. The child was extraordinary and special in many ways. Shin Yihan decided to include his child’s lover’s age in that category.

Soon, Shin Yihan looked directly into Ryubeom’s eyes and said:

“However, if, really if… being with him brings more pain than joy, come to me anytime. I’ll do my best to stop it.”

Ryubeom blinked slowly. While he was touched by his father’s promise, the word ‘stop’ said with such determination made him laugh because it sounded like treating Yeohwi as a disaster.

Ryubeom laughed out loud. Just hearing such words was comforting. Feeling his father’s presence deeply in his heart, Ryubeom nodded.

“Yes. But before I go to you, I think I can handle it on my own.”

“…That, that would be good if that’s the case.”

Shin Yihan managed an awkward smile. Handling the pain, he supposed. He hoped it would be so. Internally, he had this new realization:

‘In this aspect, he’s so much like her…’

A few days later, Cheon Ryubeom clearly understood what the grandmother’s advice meant.

It was a day when the sunlight was particularly bright. Ryubeom woke up early today and went outside, listening to the peaceful sound of birds chirping.

He checked on the garden flower daily out of habit. After hearing such things from the grandmother, he looked at it with even more affection.

“…?”

But today, he felt something odd in front of the flower. His heart kept pounding. How long had he been staring at the flower when he sensed someone approaching from behind?

“Cheon Ryubeom, there are matters to check… Oh, were you looking at the flower?”

Cheon Hoyeon stopped mid-sentence, holding documents. She knew Ryubeom looked at the flower every day, so she felt sorry for interrupting his morning peace.

Ryubeom, with dazed eyes, alternated his gaze between her and the flower before speaking. His heart had been pounding for a while, making him slightly dizzy. He was also strangely feeling impatient.

“Aunt. Does this flower look strange to you?”

“Hmm? It looks the same as yesterday to me.”

Cheon Hoyeon approached, puzzled. The golden flower, looking like it would burst, seemed no different from the day before.

“What’s bothering you?”

“Well, it feels like… it’s about to burst…”

Ryubeom stammered, moving his hand closer to the flower to explain the subtle anxiety he felt, but suddenly, the flower shook.

“…?”

He stopped, thinking it was moved by his touch, but it shook again, this time even more vigorously, side to side and front to back. There was no wind.

Cheon Hoyeon took a defensive stance, and Ryubeom also looked at the flower with tension. Although he believed nothing strange would come from a gift from his grandmother, the flower’s movement now looked like…

“There’s something inside the flower…”

At that moment, the flower bloomed fully.

Cheon Ryubeom met a pair of golden eyes. They shone brightly under the morning sun, like a concentrated beam of sunlight or melted gold, clear and almost holy…

‘Wait. Eyes?’

Ryubeom, who had been staring at the eyes in a trance, suddenly flinched. ‘It’ was also staring back at him, their gazes so intertwined that it felt like only the two of them existed in the world.

But before Ryubeom could confirm properly, it leaped out!

“What… what is that?”

Even Cheon Hoyeon stuttered in confusion, which was unusual for her. Ryubeom tried to identify the shape in his memory and eventually sighed in shock at the answer he came up with. Though the eyes were much larger than usual, what was sitting in the flower was clearly…

“…It looks like we’ve seen a baby tiger.”

“What? Why a tiger from a flower… anyway, catch it first!”

The small tiger that had jumped out of the flower was already running far away. Its speed was increasing, so Ryubeom agreed with her and quickly got up.

Boom! Thud! Crack…

Even the small tiger showed off its strength by charging forward. When it slammed into a tree, the tree broke instead. It dug big holes in the ground and even tried to break the mansion. Seeing the cracks in the pillars, Cheon Hoyeon groaned. The newly completed Cheon household was now at risk of collapsing again.

As the clan members in the yard turned in surprise, Cheon Hoyeon urgently shouted:

“Grab that thing now!”

Cheon Hoyeon’s order carried the weight of a clan leader’s command. She was the only elder the new clan leader treated with respect, so it was natural. The clan members immediately tried to catch the small tiger.

Moreover, with Cheon Ryubeom also chasing it, there was an expectation that catching it might earn them praise from the clan leader.

Soon, chaos ensued.

“Argh…! Don’t push!”

“Don’t step on my foot!”

Clan members bumped into each other, fell, and staggered while chasing the tiger, sometimes crashing into trees. Despite dozens of tiger shapeshifters going after it, they couldn’t catch the little one.

Ryubeom saw the small tiger climb onto the roof and yawn leisurely. It seemed to find the spectacle of many people chasing it quite amusing.

Whoosh! Cheon Hoyeon threw a capture spell as a surprise attack. A brilliant golden light formed into a dense net and shot out.

But the tiger easily dodged it.

Cheon Hoyeon’s spell was certainly fast, and until it reached the roof, the tiger was casually licking its paw. However, when the net came close, it moved aside as if teleporting.

The clan members were disappointed to miss it by a hair’s breadth, but Cheon Hoyeon and Ryubeom had a different reaction. They exchanged looks, thinking the same thing.

The tiger had ‘passed through’ the net.

The net precisely touched the tiger’s hind leg. The capture spell sticks to its target the moment it makes contact, immobilizing it. However, the tiger moved as if there was no net at all, meaning the spell didn’t work on it.

Ryubeom checked the path the small tiger had taken. It started from the backyard of his room, went around the front yard of the main house, crossed the annex, and headed to the training ground and garden, like it was touring the Cheon estate.

And if there was one place this small tiger hadn’t gone yet… Ryubeom guessed the direction and quickly ran that way.

The last place this tiger that had suddenly appeared from the flower would head to, the center of the Cheon estate – the Great Tiger Hall.

“Master, step on me!”

Just then, Cheon Yeongdo, who was nearby, read Ryubeom’s direction and shouted loudly. He bent down to offer himself as a stepping stone, and Ryubeom, without hesitation, stepped on his back and leaped up.

There was no hesitation in Ryubeom’s movement as he soared into the air. His clothes fluttered wildly in the wind, and an odd gleam shone in his golden eyes.

Swoosh!

[Squeak!]

Ryubeom caught the tiger. He firmly gripped its body on both sides to stop its struggling, then brought it into his embrace. He then spun around gracefully and landed on the ground. His movements were as fluid as flowing water.

“As expected of our clan leader…!”

Cheon Yeongdo clasped his hands in admiration from behind, then made a strange “Eugh!” sound, hitting a nearby rock. Bang! At the loud noise, Ryubeom turned to see him hastily trying to put the split rock back together, an amusing sight.

Ryubeom didn’t linger on him and shifted his gaze.

“…What exactly are you?”

[Meow!]

The small tiger struggled. Though it tried to roar in a threatening manner, in Ryubeom’s eyes, it was just like a kitten meowing. Its strength was considerable, though…

At that moment, Ryubeom felt something familiar about this tiger. Holding it in his hands, the feeling became clear. That strange sensation he felt when their eyes first met, the sense of touching something essential.

Divinity.

He sensed divinity from this small tiger. It was filled with the sacred power derived from the mythology built by the tigers of this land. The unrefined energy was emanating quite sharply.

Cheon Hoyeon, who had approached, also seemed to feel it and said with a peculiar look:

“It seems… we should contact the hermitage.”

🦊🐾

A few hours later.

It took a solid two hours just to clean up the mess in the Cheon estate, which had become chaotic in just ten minutes. Fortunately, by the time they had neatly organized the mansion, Baek Young and Shin Yihan visited. It was their revisit after a few days.

“The old woman’s been sleeping a lot lately; she’s not in a state to come.”

After the conversation with the fox clan leader last time, the grandmother had fallen into such a deep sleep as if she were addicted to it. Recently, she hadn’t been awake for even an hour.

However, when they told the sleeping grandmother that ‘something came out of the flower,’ she smiled and…

“She said it came out earlier than expected. What exactly did you plant there? A parasite?”

“Baek Young…”

Shin Yihan cast a troubled look at this extraordinary statement. And as if understanding it, the small tiger in Ryubeom’s arms bared its teeth at Baek Young. Its baby teeth were so small that it wasn’t threatening at all.

Baek Young chuckled and tapped its nose.

Meanwhile, Shin Yihan carefully looked back and forth between the small tiger and Ryubeom. He was shocked to hear there was commotion at the Cheon estate and rushed over, but the presence he encountered here made him even more confused.

As someone who was once close to the gods as a shaman, he immediately saw through to the essence. Though the energy was faint, this was definitely…

“It seems… this is a divine beast.”

At that statement, everyone looked at Shin Yihan in surprise. Baek Young particularly flinched, covering his mouth, and even took a step back.

Ryubeom blinked and slowly looked down. He had guessed it wasn’t an ordinary creature since he felt the same divinity, but… a divine beast?

Cheon Hoyeon spread out books on the desk with a clatter.

“I also thought it might be a divine beast, so I looked for related records.”

Although the grandmother had handed it over lightly, this flower was undoubtedly a gift from the gods. Moreover, since a creature with the form of a tiger and bearing divinity had appeared from a flower imbued with the clan leader’s heart, she was also speculating it might be a divine beast.

“There’s a story in ancient records that divine beasts disappeared when the family’s vital energy was severed but reappeared when the family was restored.”

Divine beasts are another symbol of the family. If the Tiger God, as one of the twelve zodiac gods, takes care of the family as part of maintaining the land’s balance, then divine beasts are more like embodiments of the family’s strength.

Shin Yihan cautiously extended his hand towards the tiger.

“It seems your energy is connected with it…”

This was an attempt to check the divine beast’s energy, but the tiger tilted its head. Up until now, it hadn’t allowed any clan member other than Cheon Ryubeom to touch it, yet it happily rubbed its head against Shin Yihan’s palm. It was an instinctive liking for a pure energy being.

At this adorable gesture, Shin Yihan’s eyes widened, then he smiled gently, stroking the tiger’s head.

“Dear, how do you feel about this tiger’s state?”

“Hmm, right now… it seems weak. The divinity itself feels strong but rough and unrefined…”

“You’re correct. It seems it can’t control its own power now, so it’s taking energy from you.”

The statement that Cheon Ryubeom and the divine beast were connected meant they could influence each other. But currently, the tiger was unilaterally drawing energy from Ryubeom.

“It doesn’t seem to have fully attained the status of a divine beast yet. They say it becomes a true divine beast only after refining the divinity it holds… Maybe the grandmother’s advice to take good care of it meant something like this.”

“Ah…”

“The more you empathize with it, the faster it will grow. The deeper the connection with the clan leader, the more affection the divine beast will have for the family.”

There are divine beasts that come down in a complete form from the sky, but there are also cases where an ordinary animal grows into a sacred being. The grandmother had given a seed in between, and now that it had just sprouted, it needed to be well nurtured.

Generally, divine beasts are not ‘raised’ by someone. However, due to the Cheon family’s tainted past, the mythology of the tiger on this land was greatly shaken. Therefore, until the divine beast grows properly and gains the true status of a divine beast, assistance was needed.

Ryubeom looked down at the tiger in a daze. After causing the initial commotion, the tiger had nestled closely in his arms, perhaps because it stabilized when receiving his energy.

All this talk seemed strange and unfamiliar. The grandmother had explained that the flower contained his heart, but he never expected it would become a divine beast.

Cheon Hoyeon nodded after visualizing the situation in her mind.

“If you announce that you are with the divine beast, the cohesion of the clan will increase.”

Currently, the loyalty of the clan members towards the new clan leader was high. They instinctively submit and worship because Cheon Ryubeom was overflowing with divinity.

However, there are limits to Cheon Ryubeom. He was young, the changes in the family were radical, and there was a time when the clan members had looked down on him. These factors lingered in the subconscious of the clan members and could manifest as resentment at any time.

Above all, the biggest issue was that he had brought in the ‘fox clan leader.’ Although they had explained the massacre by the Cheon army to gain understanding, there was still an inherent exclusivity among the clan members. These feelings couldn’t be resolved just by justifying the battle.

Especially since the tiger clan had lived in isolation for a long time, fostering a high sense of superiority. So, there was resentment about whether it was necessary to tarnish the family’s honor by making the former clan leader bow his head.

But now, if a divine beast is by Cheon Ryubeom’s side, his actions become ‘the will of the gods.’ The gods support him, and his will aligns with the divine will.

Baek Young burst into a sarcastic laugh.

“Ha, really. Sometimes they pull off such miraculous things.”

When the flower was first given, it was presented as if it was to take care of a pitiful child living in a humble place, but in reality, it was such an incredible gift.

Meanwhile, the small tiger was waving its legs at Shin Yihan. It was as if it was demanding more attention, showing off its charm, making Shin Yihan laugh as he gently touched the tiger’s thick paws.

“By the look of these big paws, it will grow very large.”

Beside them, Baek Young kept glancing at the scene and stealthily poked the tiger’s paw with his index finger. The charm of the pink paw pad was irresistible. But as soon as Baek Young’s hand touched it, the tiger pushed it away.

Baek Young muttered in bewilderment:

“Did I… get marked by a divine beast…?”

“Karma.”

“You said that from the first meeting…”

Cheon Hoyeon responded coldly, and Shin Yihan looked at Baek Young with a pitying expression.

“You lived with the grandmother for so long, how could you not guess her intentions? And she even said the flower was special last time.”

“After serving for decades, you just see her as an old woman, ouch! This thing hit me again!”

At Baek Young’s explanation, the tiger hit his hand again with a loud smack. Baek Young felt very wronged, but no one took his side.

As Ryubeom carefully stroked the tiger’s head, it calmed down. Seeing it relax under his touch was both fascinating and gratifying.

“How can I take good care of this child?”

His heart felt buoyant, having received such a tremendous gift from the gods. And he also felt the tension of being given a significant task. Since the gods trusted him with this child, he wanted to raise it as well as possible.

However, Ryubeom had never taken care of anyone. He was an only child, and even within the family, he was the youngest. The only young ones he had been around were the triplets from the fox clan…

But this tiger was born today. Seeing Cheon Ryubeom’s eyes light up as if he were about to start a parenting journal, Shin Yihan smiled softly.

“Don’t be too tense. Just your care will be enough. If there were things to be cautious about, the gods would have told us…”

“Don’t trust the old woman so much, aargh.”

Thwack! While Baek Young got hit by the tiger again, Shin Yihan spoke.

“How about giving it a name first?”

At that moment, the tiger turned to look at Ryubeom. Its eyes sparkled as if it had been waiting for this moment. The golden eyes of the young tiger met Ryubeom’s eyes squarely in the air.

Even though they were just looking at each other, it felt like a deep communion was taking place. Ryubeom pondered, savoring the heartbeat, thump, thump.

If the first name that came to mind was…

“Hmm… Hoya?”

“…Are you serious?”

“Are you serious?”

“Dear, think again.”

Cheon Hoyeon was the first to turn to him with a question, followed by Baek Young and Shin Yihan speaking simultaneously. Baek Young even made a disgusted face. And the tiger…

[Meoowww!]

It bared its teeth at Ryubeom. The suddenly grown canine teeth were quite threatening.

Whether to be happy about its growth or to be disheartened by the timing, Ryubeom awkwardly averted his gaze. He couldn’t even hold onto the tiger as it left his arms.

It seemed he would need to think more about the tiger’s name.

🦊🐾

That day, Ryubeom contacted Yeohwi early.

Since the grandmother had specifically mentioned both him and Yeohwi, advising them to ‘take good care of it,’ he decided he needed to inform Yeohwi as well.

Upon hearing this news, Yeohwi expressed curiosity, wondering if a divine beast had been born from the flower and suggesting that, given it followed the conventional form of legend, the beast might grow very large.

So, today they met at the villa in the afternoon. And as soon as it saw Yeohwi, the divine beast ran towards him. Seeing this, Ryubeom felt an inexplicable surge of emotion. Since the grandmother had said Yeohwi helped with blooming the flower, perhaps the divine beast recognized its origin.

But…

“…Young master, it keeps biting me.”

The small tiger charged with vigor and bit Yeohwi’s finger. Although the canines that had grown a few hours ago were still soft, not enough to draw blood, the way it held on was quite fierce. It seemed to consider Yeohwi an enemy.