Chapter 110
Hide and seek had begun.
It was a game of hide and seek where you hide from someone scary.
I was playing the role of the scary person and to be fair, I decided not to use my ears or nose.
"I'm going to start looking now. When I find you, I'll beat you up... just pretend to beat you up."
After silently counting to five more in my head, I wandered around near the pond.
I found Saebyeok easily.
"Hmm..."
It was a neatly folded square box.
The flaps of the box were folded, so I couldn't see inside, but I could tell Saebyeok was there because her black tail was sticking out of the box.
'She must not have paid attention to her tail.'
It was because a body part that didn't exist before had suddenly appeared.
It would take some time to adapt.
I approached Saebyeok, pretending not to know anything.
"I wonder where Saebyeok could be."
Saebyeok's tail, which had been swaying at the sound of my voice, suddenly stopped.
As the sound of footsteps got closer, the startled tail of Saebyeok stood stiffly up.
"Uhm."
Saebyeok, always stoic, was honest with her tail.
That cute sight triggered my playfulness.
"...Guess she's not here."
I walked past Saebyeok, pretending not to know anything.
Relieved at not being caught, Saebyeok's tail started to sway again.
I found the genuinely happy Saebyeok adorable.
I was reluctant to catch her but decided it was time to do so.
"I found Saebyeok."
Snatch-
I grabbed the tail that was sticking out of the box.
It felt exactly like my tail, soft and perfect.
"Huh."
Saebyeok peeked her face out as the folded box opened.
Her voice and expression were stoic, but her tail expressed surprise.
"How did you know I was hiding in the box?"
"Your tail was sticking out of the box."
"My tail?"
"Yeah. Tails seem easy but also not, don't they?"
People without tails wouldn't understand this difficulty.
I was glad to have a friend who shared the same inconvenience as me.
"Yeah. Tails are easy yet hard."
Saebyeok's ears and tail drooped.
She was disappointed at being found so early.
I felt sorry for Saebyeok, but rules are rules.
As per the rules of tag, I decided to 'catch' her.
"...But are you really going to pretend to be hit?"
"Yeah. That's how the game is usually played."
Usually, huh.
Is that how hide and seek is played in this world?
Still lacking knowledge of this world's common sense, I wasn't sure.
'...It's a world with mana, after all.'
Even if it's a bit violent, it won't really hurt.
Convincing myself, I showed my fist to Saebyeok.
"Come here. I'm going to give you a noogie. I'll even pull your hair."
"Waah."
Saebyeok made a sound as if she was crying, though without any real emotion.
Someone came up to us then.
"Gyeoul, what are you doing...?"
When I looked beside me, Jung Yu-na was looking at us puzzledly.
I couldn't figure out why she was making that face.
"We're playing hide and seek."
"Hide and seek...?"
"Yes."
"Why would you play hide and seek like that...?"
Why, indeed.
Did we do something wrong?
Looking at Saebyeok, she just shrugged her shoulders in confusion.
"Is there a problem with hide and seek?"
"It's too scary."
"...Isn't this how you're supposed to play hide and seek?"
"How it's supposed to be...?"
Jung Yu-na questioned.
She was not familiar with hide and seek.
"When you're found hiding, you're supposed to be beaten up mercilessly. The one who gets hit begs for their life, saying 'please spare me.'"
"That's..."
Jung Yu-na's pupils shook violently.
She looked like someone who had seen something frightful and terrifying.
"Why are you reacting like that?"
"Oh, no... I just thought that must be how the game is for Gyeoul and Saebyeok."
"Ah."
So that's how the game is for us.
Although I didn't understand, we decided to go find the others.
They must be waiting for me to find them.
"We're going to look for the others now."
"Okay. Can I come with you?"
"Yes."
I was happy to have her join us.
It would be less tiring if there was one more person to play with the kids.
So, we moved together to find the others.
While moving, I didn't forget to playfully tap on Saebyeok's head.
<+>
"Whoa."
While running around the pond area looking for a place to hide, Levinas spotted some tall people and ran towards them.
They were men with scars on their faces and intimidating tattoos on their arms, but Levinas didn't care.
"Help Levinas!"
"Hm?"
Confused, they were led around by Levinas' gestures.
Levinas used them to form walls around her, blocking all sides, and then hid inside.
"What are we doing?"
"Playing hide and seek!"
"Ah..."
So, she made a wall out of tall people.
The men glanced at each other, staying in place.
They stayed still, not wanting to ruin the child's game.
It was then a tiny child approached from afar.
The child was Gyeoul, known by everyone who frequented the park.
Next to Gyeoul were a new child and Jung Yu-na.
"Levi..."
Gyeoul started approaching Levinas but then stopped in her tracks.
Seeing her back away with a terrified face, one of the men awkwardly stood still, unsure whether to move away or stay.
"Mmph."
It was natural for a child to be scared.
The men who formed the wall knew their appearance was intimidating, though they weren't actually part of any violent gang.
"Levinas..."
Gyeoul, trembling, looked back and forth between Levinas and the men.
At this sight, the men closed their eyes as if on cue.
They couldn't move away from the hiding child, but standing still scared the other child.
Caught between a rock and a hard place, they felt suffocated.
"Ahem."
"Cough."
The men cleared their throats unnecessarily.
Despite their scary looks, Jung Yu-na laughed softly at their kindness.
"I found Levinas."
Speaking on behalf of the frightened Gyeoul, Jung Yu-na opened her mouth.
Levinas peeked her head out from between the tall people.
"Did you find Levinas, King?!"
"Yes..."
"Wow! The King is really good at hide and seek!"
"Yes."
Gyeoul glanced at the men and said.
For some reason, they looked relieved.
"The King must be a hide and seek genius!"
"Well, not really..."
Hehe.
Someone entered Gyeoul's gaze.
It was Yoo Sang-ah, who had hidden behind a small structure in the park.
The structure was too small, revealing all of Yoo Sang-ah.
"..."
Worse at hide and seek than even the kids.
Gyeoul and the group silently stared at Yoo Sang-ah for a while.
Only Jung Yu-na knew that Yoo Sang-ah had hidden in plain sight on purpose.
Pretending to lose was the best way to play with children.
"I found everyone!"
Levinas ran towards Yoo Sang-ah and hugged her.
Yoo Sang-ah, who had been crouching behind the structure, stood up with a smile in her eyes.
"Oh, I've been caught."
"Yes! Now Levinas wants to be the seeker! It looks fun too!"
"Should we?"
Gyeoul and the group moved back to where they had started playing hide and seek.
Jung Yu-na looked back and bowed to the men who had played with Levinas.
They felt a sense of pride.
<+>
Repair glue.
It was a repair tool favored by adventurers, made by processing the web of the Blue Moon Queen Spider.
Just apply the glue, and it won't come off for three hours, making it perfect for urgent repairs.
"Hmm..."
Gyeoul would also need repair glue someday.
The moment Yeoreum placed the repair glue on the table, the front door opened, and Levinas ran inside.
"Yeoreum!"
"Did Levinas come?"
"Yes! But what's this?!"
"This is glue."
"Glue?!"
Levinas rushed to the table and sat down.
Scanning the repair glue curiously, Levinas entertained an amusing thought.
"It's harmless to the skin, but you mustn't eat it or get it in your eyes, okay?"
"Got it!"
"Hehe, then I'll be right back from the kitchen."
Yeoreum patted Levinas's head and went towards the kitchen.
Levinas watched her leave, thinking it would be fine as long as she didn't eat it or get it in her eyes since it was said to be harmless to the body.
"King! King!"
Levinas, holding the repair glue, ran towards the entrance.
Gyeoul and Saebyeok, who had just come home, pricked up their ears.
"Why?"
"Give me your hand!"
Gyeoul, forming a question mark with her tail, reached out her hand towards Levinas.
Levinas eagerly sprayed the glue on both of Gyeoul's hands.
"...What's this?"
It was slippery and sticky.
The adhesive strength was increasing in real time.
'What?'
As Gyeoul sniffed at the liquid sprayed on her hands, Levinas firmly grasped her hands.
"Saebyeok, grab the other hand!"
"Okay."
Levinas held the right hand, and Saebyeok grabbed the left.
Gyeoul belatedly realized everyone's hands were stuck together.
"Levinas, this isn't glue, is it...?"
"Yes! But it's supposed to be harmless to the body!"
"Is, is that so...?"
Gyeoul lifted her right hand.
Levinas's hand followed suit.
Trying to shake off the hand only proved futile due to the strong adhesive, which wouldn't come off.
"Oh..."
There must be a way to detach us, right?
Gyeoul broke into a cold sweat looking at the stuck hands.
<+>
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