Living with the Dangerous Beast-Chapter 62: Cotton Candy Punch

At her sharp retort, Woongsik quickly closed his mouth.

“I almost caught it, but it got away. But tell me, are rabbit’s hind legs always so strong and painful?”

So, it had kicked her with its hind legs.

‘That explains the small scratch near her eye....’

Feeling sorry for the tiny lady, Woongsik made a pained expression as if he had been the one kicked.

“They’re incredibly strong, ma’am. Even I sometimes avoid them out of fear.”

“Really? Even you?”

Sohwa looked Woongsik up and down, from his toes to his head.

He was as huge as a mountain and as solid as a rock.

Despite looking like an ordinary servant, Woongsik was actually the largest and fiercest bear in Mount Taeryong.

After being supported by Woongsik, Sohwa pouted and grumbled.

“That rabbit looked like a piece of cotton tufts, but its hind legs were so strong... I almost ended up in a grave.”

“You’re very brave, ma’am.”

“Really?”

Woongsik, now reformed and serving Sohwa, had once been the second-in-command under a notorious tiger ruling Mount Taeryong.

Discovering that even such a fierce bear sometimes feared rabbits, Sohwa clicked her tongue in amazement.

“Rabbits here in Mount Taeryong are no ordinary creatures. I won’t even look at them from now on.”

‘But what should I hunt now, then?’

Seeing Sohwa so downcast, Woongsik pulled out a bundle from his back.

“Ma’am, I anticipated this and prepared something.”

“What is it?”

Unwrapping the bundle, he revealed a pheasant already lifeless.

Sohwa’s face lit up as she looked up.

“You’ve been saying your legs hurt lately, and even the greatest hunters have their off days.”

“Woongsik...!”

Touched, Sohwa’s face brightened instantly.

At home, her lovely children and gorgeous husband were eagerly waiting for her return from the hunt.

Woongsik had prepared the game in advance to help her save face in front of them.

Feeling deeply moved by his thoughtful gesture, Sohwa quickly took up the bundle.

“Thank you, Woongsik! If I ever become famous as the greatest hunter of Mount Taeryong and receive the Jade Emperor’s call, I’ll never forget you.”

“My pleasure, ma’am.”

Woongsik really longed to pat her cute little paws and perked ears.

However, he had been sternly warned that if he so much as laid a finger on her, his huge body would be chopped into pieces and be sold at the market.

“You know, lately... I’ve been so worried.”

“What? What are you worried about, ma’am?”

Sohwa’s voice dropped to a whisper.

“What if word gets out that I’m a failure? As the guardian of this great mountain, losing my reputation would be disastrous....”

She recalled her first arrival at Mount Taeryong.

The grand mansion with its ninety-nine rooms that Dohwi had prepared for her was impressive, but what amazed her more were the dozens of servants lined up at the gate.

They were the half-beasts, long-time residents of Mount Taeryong.

The endless roster of beasts, each capable of flying and running, bowed their heads in unison before Sohwa.

Stories of the brave silver fox Sohwa, who defeated seventeen tiger hunters with her bare fists, had spread far and wide, even to Mount Taeryong.

It was even said that the fierce tiger of this mountain had fled in fear of her fiery punches.

Thanks to these exaggerated rumors, even fierce spirits like Woongsik revered her as their master.

But Sohwa knew she was not a predator strong enough to command dozens of servants.

She constantly feared that her true inability to hunt, her failures even to catch a tiny rabbit, would be exposed.

Woongsik looked down at the worried Sohwa with affection.

“Don’t worry. I’m here to serve you, ma’am. If anyone asks, I’ll tell them you’re so fearsome that anyone who would see the mighty fox would end up wanting to hug her to dea-... I mean, would flee immediately in fear!”

“Thank you, Woongsik. I owe you a lot.”

Sohwa’s mood quickly lifted as she slung the bundle over her shoulder and walked cheerfully up the mountain path.

The painful memory of getting her butt kicked by the little rabbit, Ryeonhee, was long forgotten.

“Having you by my side is the greatest fortune I’ve had at Mount Taeryong.”

“It’s an honor, ma’am.”

Woongsik resisted the urge to pat her tiny head.

Our adorable lady.

There were even spirits at the palace who wished they could be smacked by her soft paws just once.

Sohwa herself was unaware of her reputation as the Cotton Candy Punch of Mount Taeryong.

* * *

Five years ago, in the midst of a harsh winter.

While eating rabbit stew, Sohwa coughed up the orb.

That was the sign that she was pregnant.

And the following spring.

Sohwa gave birth to two beautiful twins.

One was a fox, and the other was a tiger.