IBMAW 06

The Rabbit Like Bride and the Mongoose Like Cute Daughter

The human heart is truly fickle.
Swayed by the village chief’s wife’s words, for a brief moment, she felt as if she had become a member of this village.

But the words that followed made her realize that wasn’t the case.

Holding her hand, the chief’s wife spoke in a falsely warm tone.

“If you hunt, bring the meat to the village. We’ll exchange it for flour or bread. It must be exhausting to go all the way somewhere else from here. You don’t even know how to separate meat and hide yet, do you?”

She went on and on—saying someone in the village could handle tanning the hides, that someone would sell bows and arrows cheaply, and so on.

What the chief’s wife really wanted to say was probably this:

She dressed it up with all kinds of talk, but in the end, the chief and his wife simply wanted to buy meat and hides cheaply—things that could be sold for a higher price in nearby villages or cities.
Instead of paying money, they were likely planning to exchange them for daily necessities and goods.

“Your name was… Lizy, right? Listen, Lizy. When a man and woman live together and have children, affection naturally grows. It’s all about how you think of it. Don’t make it too complicated. From now on, if you have any troubles, come talk to me. Whether it’s married life or buying things—anything.”

The chief’s wife smiled kindly, wearing the face of a good-natured person.

‘That man who’s going to be my husband—the mountain keeper—I almost feel sorry for him. If things had gone as they should, he could have had a much better wife.’

Only the mountain keeper is allowed to hunt beasts in the lord’s mountain.
If anyone else is caught hunting, they receive severe punishment. She had even heard of someone being killed on the spot after being caught hunting secretly.

Originally, experienced professional hunters worked as mountain keepers, but recently, due to war, there were fewer men, making it difficult to find hunters.

So, in some regions, even unqualified people were allowed to take the role. This village seemed to have such permission.

But being a mountain keeper was dangerous. There were beasts—and monsters—in the mountains. Injuries and deaths were common.

Moreover, she had heard that if one failed to properly perform the role, they could be punished by the lord.

No one in the village would have wanted such a dangerous job. But they couldn’t just leave the mountain unattended either. The village chief was responsible for finding someone to manage it.

The man who happened to appear just as they needed a new mountain keeper must have seemed like a stroke of luck to them.

But they couldn’t forcibly detain someone who wasn’t a criminal. To make him take the role, they had to provide some conditions.

In such cases, the best way to keep a man in the village was to give him a woman to marry and build a family. Many villages had done this for generations.

‘It’s simple.’

Since no one knew what kind of person the mountain keeper would be, no one wanted to give their daughter to him.
So Lizy—someone no one would mind even if she were beaten or killed—became the choice.

‘If this mountain keeper dies, I’ll just be given to another one again.’

Even a child could understand that.

Lizy stared blankly at the chief’s wife’s face. Why had she thought, even for a moment, that the woman’s expression was kind? It was filled with greed.

‘I’m such an idiot.’

Knock, knock. Someone knocked on the door. It opened immediately, and a village man poked his head in.

“The mountain keeper has arrived.”

At those words, her body jolted as if waking from a trance. Lizy swallowed hard. Without realizing it, her stomach and shoulders tensed.

The chief’s wife grabbed her shoulders firmly, like she would with her own daughter, and then let go.

“You must be worried since neither you nor your future husband know anything about being a mountain keeper yet, but it’s okay. We’ll help you as much as we can. Once you catch something, come straight to the village. If you don’t process it quickly, the quality drops. Understood?”

She whispered into Lizy’s ear, her stale breath brushing against her.

The chief’s wife smiled, her oily face close as she looked at Lizy.

Come to think of it, her father had also been smiling on the day he parted with her.

“…”

Don’t cry. Don’t cry, Lizy. You must not cry.

She repeated the words to herself over and over.

Just as her father had sold her to the mountain keeper, the villagers had simply sold her to the new one.
This time, the hut and the child were included in the deal—that was the only difference.

There was no need to lament why her life was like this.

‘…’

She didn’t wish for much.
She just hoped her new husband wouldn’t be too violent.
It would be enough if he were the kind of person who would simply leave her and the child alone in a corner of the house.

Before she could fully prepare herself, the door swung open.

Lizy raised her head in tension—and her eyes widened.

A man far larger than anyone else stood in the doorway.

“…”

He was enormous. She had never seen someone so big.
His clothes were strange, layered tightly, making his muscles bulge. He looked like a bear wearing human clothes.

He was so tall it felt like his head reached the sky. Lizy tilted her head all the way up to look at him.

She could understand why the villagers wanted to keep this man as the mountain keeper.

There was no one in the village as large and sturdy as him. Surely, he could do the work of two or three men.

“…”

But he was terrifying.

If that large hand struck her even once, someone like her would have her bones shattered instantly. She might even die.
Without realizing it, the strength drained from her waist.

Kim Juhwan was led by the chief and several men toward the outskirts of the village.

They arrived at a house that looked like it could collapse at any moment.

‘What is this? Can this even be called a house?’

Parts of the roof were crumbling, and mold had spread everywhere. It looked so old it might turn to dust if touched.

Traces of vines that once climbed the walls remained. Even in the middle of winter, they hadn’t disappeared—so by spring, the house would likely be completely overgrown.

Looking down, he saw holes and crumbling edges in the floor.

‘This doesn’t seem like a place people can live in.’

Would he be living here from now on? Maybe he’d live with an old hunter and be treated like a servant.

Kim Juhwan sighed quietly.

The chief gestured for him to go inside, and another man opened the door wide.

Well, it couldn’t be helped. At least he’d have a place to stay in winter. Those men in chains would probably end up as slaves. Compared to that, he was fortunate.

“… ”

He stopped just before entering.

He thought no one would be inside—but there were women.

A middle-aged woman, a younger woman who seemed to be her daughter, and a very small girl.

When the younger woman saw him, her mouth fell open. She stared for a moment before flinching, trembling slightly.

She seemed timid. Her wide, round eyes made her look like a rabbit.

The small girl hiding behind her also had her mouth wide open in shock.

‘I’ve never been good with kids.’

Any child who saw him cried. With his large build, he probably looked like a frightening giant from a fairy tale—not a good one, but the kind that chases and torments the protagonist.

Kim Juhwan stood awkwardly at the door.

If that little girl started crying, he didn’t think he could bring himself to go inside.

As he hesitated, the middle-aged woman forced an awkward smile and gestured for him to come in.

Something about her smile felt very fake.

She gestured again insistently.

The men around him nodded, urging him forward.

As Kim Juhwan stepped inside, the chief and a few others followed.

The armed men and the old hunter stayed outside.

The middle-aged woman exchanged glances with the chief and nodded slightly. Then she pulled the younger woman forward to stand before Kim Juhwan.

She kept talking and smiling.

For some reason, it felt like a matchmaking meeting.

Glancing around, he saw one of the men grinning knowingly.

So that’s what it was.

Despair washed over him.

Kim Juhwan was twenty-nine. Maybe the new year had already passed—if so, he was thirty. Still young.

And yet…

‘Am I going to marry this woman? And take responsibility for two daughters as well?’

It would certainly be better than becoming a slave or servant.

But he had his own dreams.

What he had told Santa wasn’t a lie.

He had always dreamed of a future with a rabbit-like lovely bride and a cute daughter like a mongoose.

“… ”

Looks didn’t have to be exceptional. If you loved someone, they would naturally look cute.

‘But this…’

No matter how he thought about it, he couldn’t imagine finding this middle-aged woman lovable.

‘At least if we were similar in age…’

He felt like sighing endlessly.

Seeing his troubled expression, the middle-aged woman spoke again, flustered, and pulled the younger woman closer.

Then she grabbed both their hands and made them hold each other.

“… ”

Only then did Kim Juhwan realize his mistake.

It wasn’t the middle-aged woman—this daughter was his match.

He looked at her again.

At first, he hadn’t noticed, but maybe she wasn’t even the woman’s real daughter.

She didn’t just seem afraid of him—she seemed intimidated by everyone around her.

‘If she’s being married off to someone like me, her situation here must be pretty bad.’

If her circumstances were better, she wouldn’t be marrying a stranger like this.

“… ”

When the middle-aged woman scolded her quietly, she looked visibly anxious.

With her large eyes, she glanced at him timidly.

Maybe the woman thought he didn’t like her.

But that wasn’t the case.

As he stood awkwardly, the little girl clung to the young woman’s waist, on the verge of tears.

Who was that child?

She seemed too young to be her daughter, but too far apart in age to be her sister.

Kim Juhwan looked at the child.

Her features were slightly close together, and unlike the pale, rabbit-like woman, her skin was a bit darker—she somehow resembled a mongoose.

Suddenly, he remembered what Santa had told him.

[ I’ll find you a wife with a heart as pure as snow and a lovely daughter who truly respects her father. ]

‘No way…’

He looked at the young woman again.

At first glance, she had seemed like a rabbit. Even now, her round eyes and timid expression made her look like one.

A rabbit-like bride and a mongoose-like cute daughter.

‘That Santa… was he real? Did he actually grant my wish?’

It was something he had longed for deeply.

But he hadn’t wished for it badly enough to be thrown into another world for it.

It felt like receiving a gift while being struck on the head with a hammer at the same time.

Memories of fearing death, naked in a filthy carriage, flashed through his mind.

“… ”

If I ever meet that Santa again… I’m definitely going to kill him.