BWLHF 07

Chapter 7

“Today, we’re going to pick wild raspberries.”

Twenty days had passed since Young-in began living in the forest.

Contrary to his expectation that he might suddenly be torn apart and killed by a wild animal one day, life in the forest had been peaceful.

He liked having his little friend following him around at his feet, and the cabin owner, Mr. Lee, contacted him more often than expected out of concern for him, so he rarely had time to get bored.

Once again, Young-in became convinced that he was better suited to this quiet life in the mountains than the densely packed life of the city.

While taking a walk with the baby rabbit, he discovered a large patch of wild raspberry bushes near a lake not far from the cabin.

In the middle of the spring forest, where fresh green leaves were beginning to sprout, the red berries basking in the sunlight were far more than Young-in could eat by himself.

But that’s exactly why it’s even better.

Of course, he was a little frightened after having just been warned about wild dogs, but he figured it would be fine to make the short trip to the familiar raspberry patch just behind the cabin in broad daylight.

He didn’t know how long he would remain here, but he wanted to pick a whole basketful of raspberries and make jam. He could also dry some fresh berries to keep for the little rabbit and share them together.

Just thinking about it made him excited, so as soon as he woke up that morning, he gathered a small hand hoe, a hat, and a few other things before heading toward the lake.

“You’re coming too?”

“Eek.”

“Why? Stay home.”

Young-in had wanted the little rabbit to stay at home, but it stubbornly insisted on following him.

So he made a place for it inside the pocket at the front of his shirt. The rabbit stuck only its head out and sat there obediently.

“All right, then. Let’s go on a picnic.”

Young-in locked the cabin door securely before setting off, an oddly excited expression on his face.

A cool breeze that had begun somewhere deep within the ravine mixed with the scent of midday grass, becoming pleasantly lukewarm as it tickled the tip of Young-in’s nose.

Rustle, rustle.

Along the narrow trail, grasses that had grown as tall as the tops of Young-in’s feet brushed against his tender skin, almost as though they were singing to him not to venture any deeper into the forest.

Untouched by human hands, the place was surely as dangerous as it was beautiful.

Even when the sunlight flickering through the trees seemed to beckon him closer, Young-in shook his head as if to say no.

“Wow. It’s beautiful.”

But Young-in followed the sweet-and-sour fragrance teasing his nose and went deeper into the forest than he had originally planned before settling down.

There was some leftover fabric in the cabin storage room from when he had made curtains, so he decided to use it in place of a picnic mat.

“You have to stay here. Don’t wander off like last time. If you behave, I’ll give you a name.”

Young-in tied a red ribbon around the rabbit’s neck so he wouldn’t lose it and repeated the same warning several times, as though speaking to a small child.

Fortunately, the baby rabbit seemed to return the affection Young-in had given it by plopping itself down in the warmest, sunniest spot and watching him pick raspberries.

It was even eating tiny carrots threaded onto a string with its front paws.

Wearing a large hat to shield himself from the sun, Young-in crouched beneath the raspberry bushes and filled a small basket with as many red berries as he could gather.

Tap, tap.

The berries, plump and enticing, had grown to about the size of his thumbnail. Each time he picked one, its vivid red juice stained his fingertips.

“Phew…”

It took a full two hours before Young-in finally raised his head.

His shoulders had stiffened and his neck ached from being bent over the entire time, and even the tips of his white fingernails had been stained with berry juice.

By then, the basket was so full of raspberries that it had become difficult to carry with one hand.

Maybe I got a little carried away. Getting back is going to be a bit of a struggle.

Still, it had been a rewarding day.

Young-in picked up a handful of raspberries from the basket and walked over to the rabbit, which had been patiently waiting for him.

Sniff, sniff.

The little creature reacted immediately to the tart berries, leaping up and burying its nose in Young-in’s palm as it gobbled them down.

Honestly, it ate them more enthusiastically than anything Young-in had ever given it.

“Wow, you really like them. I should’ve given you these sooner.”

Young-in repeatedly stroked the rabbit’s head, smiling as though he could burst with pride.

Is it really okay for a baby that should still be drinking its mother’s milk and running through the forest with its siblings to become this accustomed to human hands?

Even if he could turn back time, Young-in knew his decision to rescue the little creature that day would never change.

But he worried about what would happen to the rabbit after he was gone.

He knew it was presumptuous of him to think that way, but he couldn’t help feeling like that.

“You must’ve given me too much idle time, you know.”

Now I keep wanting to live a little longer.

The rabbit, whose mouth and the fur around it had turned slightly red from eating raspberries, raised its head at Young-in’s lonely muttering.

You little thing. You’ve been looking at me like you understand what I’m saying ever since that last time.

Young-in wrinkled the bridge of his nose and shook his head.

“Oh, right. Your name. I said I’d give you one if you behaved. What should it be? Since you’re a rabbit, maybe Hopping? Or Axe, so you sound really strong? Or maybe—”

Young-in suddenly narrowed his eyes.

“…Rabbit? What’s wrong?”

The creature that had been quietly looking up at him from his arms suddenly stiffened, its long ears standing straight up.

Its button-black eyes were fixed not on Young-in’s face, but on something beyond his shoulder.

“……”

It was as though every sound in the forest had been erased at once.

Then Young-in suddenly realized that his own shadow, which had been wavering at his feet only moments ago, had disappeared beneath a massive shadow.

No. It can’t be. Surely not. Not here…

But as if mocking Young-in’s desperate hope, a harsh, wheezing breath rapidly approached from behind his dry shoulder.

“Ugh…!”

Without even having time to turn around, Young-in rolled forward while clutching the baby rabbit.

Sharp claws narrowly grazed his curled-up body.

The fresh red raspberries came tumbling out of the basket in a great cascade.

“……!”

When Young-in rolled across the ground and abruptly lifted his head, what filled his vision was a massive body three or four times the size of a human.

A bear.

The head at the end of his upward gaze was absurdly huge, while the creature’s massive body looked as though someone had torn a piece off the mountain itself and given it life.

Clumps of red—whether crushed raspberries or blood, Young-in couldn’t tell—were smeared across its enormous body.

Sitting helplessly on the ground, Young-in trembled, unable to move even a single step.

A bear… It’s a bear…

Fear crashed over him like a tidal wave.

Could this be the “bear-sized stray dog” Mr. Lee warned me about?

No.

There was no way.

No matter how he looked at it, this was not a stray dog.

It was a bear.

A real bear.

His weak, fragile body froze before the hungry predator as though waiting to become its prey.

The creature, which had been standing on two legs, slowly began lowering itself.

Young-in knew instinctively.

I’m going to die here. Right now.

“…I’m sorry.”

At Young-in’s mutter, the rabbit in his arms lifted its head.

But Young-in’s tear-filled gaze remained fixed on the beast before him.

Then the black beast slammed one massive forepaw against the ground and charged.

The terrified baby rabbit quickly scrambled out of Young-in’s arms.

“Rabbit, no! Hic—hah…!”

Young-in flailed desperately, reaching toward the rabbit.

Then, faced with the jaws of the beast that had come right up to him, he squeezed his eyes shut and curled into himself.

“Aagh…!”

“Grrrrrrgh…!”

Contrary to his expectation that sharp teeth would tear the flesh from his body at any moment, the beast’s harsh roar suddenly pierced his eardrums and receded into the distance.

Boom.

The ground shook with a heavy impact.

Along with the metallic scent of blood stinging his nose, the beast’s ragged breathing gradually died down.

What happened? What on earth is happening…?

Young-in barely managed to lift his trembling eyelids.

It was strange.

The enormous beast that had been charging at him only moments ago, seemingly ready to swallow him whole, had vanished without a trace.

It couldn’t have sunk into the ground or shot up into the sky.

Young-in couldn’t understand how something so huge could simply disappear from right in front of him in the blink of an eye.

Did I imagine it?

As Young-in slowly swallowed and tried to steady his breathing amid the eerie silence, he heard something.

Rustle.

Dry grass being crushed beneath footsteps.

He hurriedly turned toward the sound.

A familiar yet unfamiliar figure stood there.

Young-in narrowed his eyes and quietly stared at the silhouette standing against the light.

Then his lips parted in bewilderment.

“Y-You’re…”

The man who had frightened Young-in by knocking on the cabin door not long ago—the mysterious rabbit hunter—was standing there, silently looking down at Young-in, who was covered in dust.