Living with the Dangerous Beast-Chapter 6: The Nightmares

“How could a half-beast forget how to return to its true form, you fool?”

Literally, Dohwi had never returned to his original form during the past few decades.

Sohwa, playing in the stream of water while in her agile fox form, looked pitifully at Dohwi who was sitting far away on a rock.

“Come on in and wash up. Aren’t you feeling hot in this late summer heat?”

“I’m fine, Sohwa.”

Dohwi watched her cute little fox-girl splash around in the water with a contented smile.

“Don’t worry about me. Just have fun. But don’t go too deep.”

“....”

Sohwa often felt that the way he looked at her was more like an adult watching a child, but she couldn’t exactly pinpoint why it bothered her.

‘Hmph, as if he knows how old I am.’

Feeling oddly annoyed, she made a show by splashing into the deepest part of the water.

Dohwi immediately stood up and waded over with his long, strong pair of legs to pull her out.

“I told you not to go too deep.”

The water barely reached his thighs.

By now, Dohwi had grown strong enough to easily lift a full-grown fox soaked in water with a single hand.

He had grown so tall his head nearly touched the eaves, his shoulders had broadened to almost the width of a table, and his thighs had thickened more than the body of a hundred-year-old serpent.

When they went to the human village together, people often mistook them for an older brother and a younger sister. The only thing that remained unchanged was his handsome face.

However, Sohwa didn’t particularly welcome these changes.

“It’s getting dark. Stop playing in the water now, or you’ll catch a cold.”

At some point, Dohwi had started subtly meddling and trying to control her, rather than respecting and revering her as his savior.

“I want to play a little longer. If you’re tired, Dohwi, you can go back home first. I’ll practice fishing for sweetfish for a bit....”

“No. Let’s go home now.”

He always had something to nag about, and whenever Sohwa tried to resist, he would use his strength to subdue her.

When Dohwi held her snugly with one hand under her soft butt, she wasn’t able to escape his strong grip, no matter how much she flailed her limbs.

She had tried to run away several times, but even scratching and biting him didn’t make him flinch. It was as if he didn’t feel pain.

Sohwa soon gave up and relaxed against his sturdy arm, blinking languidly.

“There are all kinds of dangers outside. There’s no way I’d let you wander on your own.”

"What dangers could lurk in this deep mountain?"

“You might get caught in a trap. There are many bad people around.”

Recently, the humans from the lower village had been coming up to the mountains more frequently.

Once, Dohwi had shown her a terrifying snare he had found in the middle of the woods. Since then, Sohwa, who was a bit frightened herself, had restrained herself from roaming the mountains in her fox form, though she had never actually encountered a hunter in person.

However, she still considered Dohwi’s warnings as mere nagging, letting his words go in one ear and out the other.

She was more concerned about her shivering body and wet fur.

“See? I told you it would be cold.”

“I-It’s n-not that c-cold.”

She responded stubbornly, and Dohwi gently stroked her wet back.

His large hand, as big as a turtle’s shell, soothed her with a few strokes, making her feel drowsy.

“A pretty fox like you with such soft fur shouldn’t wander alone. You’ll get caught by humans.”

“....”

Her eyes closed slowly. As usual, Sohwa fell asleep in his broad and warm embrace.

* * *

In her dreams, a huge tiger was chasing Sohwa, ruthlessly biting her leg and then her body, never letting go.

Tossing and turning on the silk pillow, Sohwa screamed as she woke up in fear.

“ACKKKKKK!”

There was a smell of chicken porridge. Dohwi sat beside her with a serious expression, holding a bowl of warm porridge in his large hands.

“What’s wrong? What happened?”

Her pale face was even more ashen than usual.

Dohwi gently wiped the sweat from her forehead and nose with his sleeve.

“Did you have another nightmare?”

“....”

Sohwa was too exhausted to even answer. All she could do was only breathe heavily, her pupils dilated, unable to distinguish her dream from reality.

“A tiger... A tiger was chasing me.”

Dohwi looked at her with worried eyes.

He brushed her sweaty brown hair behind her ear and waited for her to calm down.

“I-It bit my limbs as if it was going to eat me alive... It wouldn’t l-let go. I-Its teeth were this big....”

“Hmm... I wonder why you’re keep having these kinds of nightmares....”

Dohwi gently rubbed her small back with a sympathetic hand.

“It’s OK... Everything will be OK....”

He tried to soothe her as if casting a spell, but it had little effect.

She had dreamt of being eaten by a tiger several times now.

Waking up from such nightmares always left her completely worn out, draining her of any energy she had left, making her exhausted for the entire day.

Her mind was consumed with thoughts of the tiger that was trying to devour her.