Daldal: Main story

Chapter 52

"Is Young Master here?"

Eun-oh left a gap wide enough for one finger, just like yesterday, and peeked into the inner room. It seemed empty, given the lack of any presence. Chae Yoon-sa hadn't returned from the bathhouse yet.

I'll have to wait. Thinking so, Eun-oh closed the sliding door and turned around.

"Ah, Young Master!"

Right in front of him, Chae Yoon-sa was standing. Kang-hee was also there.

"What."

Chae Yoon-sa asked for the reason for the surprise.

"Uh, well."

Even though Eun-oh had prepared and practiced what to say in his mind, when the moment came, he faltered. Once the Young master appeared, he became unnerved out of the blue. It seemed like facing fearful situations repeatedly had ingrained a habit.

"I, uh, have something to say..."

"Come in."

Fortunately, permission was granted. Eun-oh followed Chae Yoon-sa into the inner room. Chae Yoon-sa took a seat in the innermost part, and Eun-oh settled nearby.

The proximity, given their master and servant position, felt closer than rules required.

However, the master didn't comment on it. Therefore, the servant remained unaware of the mistake.

Hence, the overly close distance was tolerated and seemed likely to be maintained.

"What is it? Speak."

Chae Yoon-sa spoke first. Eun-oh, with a tense expression, cautiously began to articulate the words he had prepared.

"First, you rescued my Yeoul..."

However, a problem arose from the very beginning. Once he started speaking, he couldn't help but question whether
Chae Yoon-sa truly rescued him.

It was undoubtedly Yeoul's own doing that resulted in his tail being half-cut.

So, Eun-oh found himself uncertain about whether expressing gratitude was appropriate.

He, who was contemplating with a serious look on his face, decided to correct his words as soon as possible.

"Rescuing might be a stretch, but still, thank you for bringing him to me alive."

Despite the injury, he survived. It was just a hurt tail, somewhere. The gratitude expressed was genuine.

"But Yeoul got hurt a bit. I think I'll need to take care of him for a while... It's not a leg injury, but the tail is crucial. Even if your leg is fine, it's hard to move if something else hurts, right? Did he seem to have a stomach ache? I don't have a tail, so I'm not sure if this analogy works, but when my stomach hurts, even walking becomes difficult..."

The words prepared to gain sympathy were quite lengthy, intended to draw some empathy. Yet, the practiced words flowed smoothly. The problem was the reaction of the listener.

"Enough."

Chae Yoon-sa bluntly cut off the words. It hadn't even reached halfway. Nevertheless, without any regret or hesitation, Eun-oh simply replied, "Yes" and omitted the rest.

"So, what do you want? Just say that."

Eun-oh immediately prostrated himself.

"For a while, if you could feed and shelter Yeoul, we would be endlessly grateful."

"Do whatever."

Eun-oh had mentally prepared to beg with tears if faced with rejection. However, the response was so momentary, awkwardness crept in.