I Quit My Job and Run a Café - Chapter 235



Only Krnovel

Episode 235

After I heard that, a similar sound came again, this time louder. Thanks to that, the conversation among the group stopped.

It wasn’t a loud noise, but everyone heard it because the mountains were quiet.

The sound itself is similar to the group’s footsteps, but the place it is heard is right in front of me.

“Are there any wild boars in the mountains?”

“I don’t know. But isn’t it more likely than the mountain god?”

I said it as a playful joke in response to Su-ah’s question, but it seemed like a failed joke.

Everyone seemed to be completely frozen.

“Haha. It can’t be a wild boar.”

At that time, Elder Kang Seok saw the group and smiled and said.

The old man’s relaxed appearance eased the tension of the group.

As expected, his experience was amazing.

“Then what is it?”

“What are the wild animals in the mountains? They say that when wild boars see so many people, they run away and don’t even make a sound.”

“Oh! Really?”

“Yes. So it’s not a wild boar, but a small wild animal.”

“Oh! A small wild animal? Then… … ?”

There were so many small animals that it was difficult to guess.

But it seems like I definitely have good ears, because I heard it much earlier than other people.

And even now, a very small sound continued to be heard.

If my ears were so good, it would have been noisy, but it seemed as if a function that automatically filters out noises had been activated, and only the sound that I was concentrating on could be heard.

Is it because I hear so many stories from customers at the cafe?

‘Anyway, it’s not a big one, it’s a small one, just like the old man said.’

But I don’t know the identity.

It didn’t come close and just hovered around.

Can I continue going in?

I don’t think it’ll be any bad since it doesn’t feel particularly dangerous or unpleasant.

‘Miho, do you know what it is?’

I decided to send Miho for now.

I can’t understand everything Miho says, but I can still go and see for myself and tell you whether it’s safe or not.

“It’s probably a squirrel-like thing.”

“Huh? How do you know that?”

“The sound is small, but the width is long from top to bottom. And it’s fast.”

“Oh!”

But it seems like the old man has already guessed something.

It’s a squirrel… … .

It certainly made sense.

of course…….

Kiyung!

It wasn’t completely correct though.

‘What did you bring me?’

I asked her to just check, but Miho, who had disappeared for a moment, came back with something that looked like a soft ball in her mouth.

I looked closely because I was curious, and it turned out to be a squirrel with a distinct pattern on its back.

The problem was that this squirrel was no ordinary squirrel.

Because even though Miho was right in front of them and biting like that, other people didn’t seem to notice.

‘You can even see the fallen leaves stuck in Miho’s fur moving.’

What that means is that the squirrel is invisible to the average person.

So, that meant that he was also a kind of spirit-like being.

Now that I have some experience, I can clearly recognize it without confusion. Of course, I am not sure if it is because of experience or because my eyes have improved.

Anyway, that thing wasn’t a real entity.

‘Miho, let go.’

It was funny to see him being caught without any resistance, but I let him go for now.

Then Miho rolled her eyes and soon spat it out.

Bam!

A squirrel that fell to the ground without any resistance.

It looks exactly like a doll. If it weren’t for the ‘open eyes’, I might have mistaken it for a doll.

By the way, why aren’t you moving?

Are you scared because of Miho?

‘Come here.’

I called Miho over here first.

And just as I was about to ask Soo-Jung to sprinkle water on me!

Pavababak!!

The squirrel disappeared in a flash.

‘……what?’

I could see it moving, but it seemed like it wanted to run away, so I just left it alone… … .

It was a little absurd.

There’s another spirit-like guy here too.

And that guy’s reaction too.

Above all… … .

“Huh? What’s here? An acorn? A chestnut?”

Suah squatted down as if she had discovered something.

It was where the squirrel spirit was earlier.

There were various things gathered there that were presumed to have been left behind by the guy.

Even the group was puzzled by the combination, which seemed like it had been put together on purpose.

“Haha. I guess it’s a squirrel.”

“Did a squirrel put this together? Oh my, it’s so cute!”

Hearing the old man’s words, Hansong-i crouched down in front of him and exclaimed in admiration.

I wonder if that’s really the case.

“Small content.”

“Wow, you’ve collected a lot of information?”

Everyone reacted to it.

Is this it?

Is it similar to a lizard running away with only its tail left?

What?

‘No. Let’s just leave it.’

Miho asked with an expression that suggested she should catch him again.

But when I looked at it earlier, it didn’t seem like it was particularly harmful.

I don’t know why the spirit is collecting these things, but I decided to just leave it as it was.

By the way, these people… … I knew they didn’t have a plan, but I didn’t know that their interests would change so spontaneously along the way.

“Aren’t you all going? If you’re late, you’ll have to come down after it gets dark.”

“Oops. I have to go!”

I reminded them once, but no one woke up, just saying things.

The old man just laughed as if everything was fine.

I have no choice but to take it with me.

“Okay. Let’s stop watching and go.”

“Oops! I was trying to stack them.”

Su-ah, who was trying to stack the things the squirrel spirit had spit out into a tower, got up in my hands.

When the child woke up, the adults had no choice but to wake up too.

And again the mountain path.

After meeting a special being called the Squirrel Spirit, I climbed the mountain without much thought. And then I arrived at the place of recovery.

“Huh? Didn’t they all burn here?”

“Really? It wasn’t like this this morning.”

Lee Sun-ah also tilted her head at Su-ah’s words.

Because the place that should have been completely burned down and devastated has been given a green tint here and there with green sprouts.

“Huh! Really? Is the mountain god still looking after you?”

As soon as the old man saw the sight, he straightened his body and asked softly towards the mountain.

Naturally, the mountain had no answer.

Instead, a small chestnut rolled in at an odd timing.

Bam!

A night owl that stopped by hitting my feet.

I made eye contact again with the squirrel spirit hanging from the tree behind the burned area.

This time, he didn’t run away, perhaps because he thought there was quite a distance, but Miho looked wary.

‘I don’t know about the mountain spirit, but that guy seems to want us to leave quickly.’

I actually don’t want to stay any longer, but my group seems to think otherwise.

“Oh, God! Please make this idol a huge hit!”

“Mountain God. I hope you all have a healthy and happy day.”

“I only appeared once for the content… … .”

Each of them prayed in a way that suited their personality, just as the old man had said earlier.

No, is that right?

“Sir. Don’t you make a wish? The mountain god Bamtoli has taken possession of you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“That. That.”

Su-ah opened only one eye and spoke while praying.

Looking at what he was pointing at, it seemed like he was talking about the chestnut that had rolled in earlier.

No, I can’t say that there’s a squirrel instead of a mountain spirit, and…

The squirrel spirit also looked at the group with a blank expression, as if he was confused.

but.

‘Ugh. Let’s just match it.’

If you just say there is no mountain spirit, you won’t get any sympathy, T, etc.

The things Su-ah was going to say came to mind vividly.

In times like this, it was easier to just bury it.

But what should I say? I was at a loss for words because the squirrel was watching.

“Uh, um.”

“Huh? Sir, shhh! There’s something over there!”

No, you told me to talk and then suddenly you told me to be quiet.

I opened my mouth, closed it again, and looked where Su-ah was pointing.

I saw a pretty big tree.

It seems to be the biggest tree around here… …and there was a hole in the middle?

“Sua. If you touch it carelessly, something like a bee might come out.”

“Oh! Then the old man will go.”

“Where did you learn that?”

Suah, who was about to go up to the tree to check, quickly hid behind me and pushed my back at my words.

“Hehehe! At school?”

“That can’t be true.”

I shook my head and approached the tree at the sight of the laughing guy.

Because there might be real punishment.

I tapped it gently and touched it.

Then,

Whoosh!

What came out a lot?

The amount pouring out is incomparable to the chestnuts and acorns we saw earlier.

‘uh……?’

I didn’t mean to do it like this.

My eyes met the squirrel spirit’s, pupils dilated.

‘……sorry.’

This isn’t what it was supposed to be like.

This is really difficult.

* * *

The next day.

The Sanshin content with Lee Seon-ah that I went to yesterday was naturally cancelled.

Instead, content called Squirrel Barn Raiding was uploaded.

‘There’s no particular problem with the place of recovery, so it doesn’t matter.’

It was quite a shame for the squirrel spirit.

It looks like you worked hard to save up.

Of course I tried to put it back.

But I don’t know how they were stacked, but they didn’t all fit.

I only put some in and had no choice but to leave the rest where it was.

‘Is it something like a spirit’s talent?’

Maybe so, considering the spirits in the tiger shelter.

Fortunately, the squirrel spirit didn’t seem to have any particular problems other than having its barn robbed.

And he didn’t even follow.

At that time, I wondered if he had lost his home in a fire or something and was wandering around, but it seemed like that mountain was his original home.

“How long are you guys going to live?”

Suddenly, I became curious and asked Soo-Jung.

So how long do spirits live?

How long did the squirrel live on that mountain?

─It can exist until it disappears!

“extinction?”

─Yeah!

“So when will it disappear?”

─Euuum~ I don’t know about that! They’re all different!

“okay?”

─Yeah, yeah! Sujeong disappears when the well dries up!

“ah.”

Is that so? It seems that the destruction was decided due to something related to the spirits.

Sujeong, that’s a well.

What about Brownie and Miho?

“You guys?”

─Brownie is here! Miho is… … a land!

“Huh? Me?”

Brownie, that’s true, but why Miho… … Ah!

‘I got the fox bead.’

It was definitely like that back then.

So, if I die, will Miho disappear along with me? Or will I be able to take the fox bead out again if I die?

“… … It seems a bit odd to take beads from a dead body. I’ll have to find a way to do this.”

If I could return the fox bead before I die, that would be better.

Of course, I had no intention of dying yet.

Life is just starting to get fun, so that can’t be happening.

‘Yesterday, even Mr. Kang Seok passed away as if he had regained his youth, so there’s no way I, a young person, could do the same.’

Even when climbing a mountain, the elderly person had difficulty moving around, even though he could walk.

But, after coming down from the mountain, he walked really well.

It was definitely different from how young people walk, but it was still a neat movement for his age.

The elder said it was because he got the spirit of the mountain god, but I think it was more like…

‘I think it’s because your mindset has changed.’

It was clear that my body, which had once stood up thanks to my mother, had not just returned to its original state, but had become completely revitalized after climbing the mountain.

In that sense, it didn’t matter whether there was a real mountain spirit or not.

The old man’s mental weakness has improved so much.

“thank god.”

Well, I think the heart is what’s important.

Of course, what I see in front of me right now is more important.

▶Kang Seok’s Manseok (萬石)

It was a talent that my elder gave me as he passed away yesterday.

He gave talent to even this old man along with his mother.

How should I write this… … .