Vol 1 Ch 20

After passing Geunjeongjeon and Gangnyeongjeon, the number of tourists diminished.

 

They stopped in front of Gyotaejeon.

 

If Geunjeongjeon was the public face of the palace, this place felt far more private.

 

Yeonho read the characters on the signboard, then spoke to Marteo who was looking up at it as well.

 

“This is Gyotaejeon.”

 

“Gyotae…?”

 

The way his brows furrowed and he repeated the word suggested he knew the usual meaning of “gyotae.”

 

Yeonho let out a quiet laugh.

 

“Not that kind of ‘gyotae.’”

 

“……?”

 

“‘Gyo’ as in companion, ‘tae’ as in comfortable. Gyotae. It’s where the queen lived.”

 

“Ah….”

 

He did not say anything more, but his expression implied that the other meaning also kind of suited this place.

 

Yeonho suppressed another laugh.

 

“For someone who lived here only a short time as a kid, you know a lot of vocabulary.”

 

“…….”

 

“You kept studying Korean? Most people forget if they don’t use it.”

 

“I thought I might need it later….”

 

“Later when. When you become a celebrity?”

 

“…….”

 

Had he dreamed of working in Korea from a young age?

 

Guessing as much, Yeonho sat on the stone steps nearby.

 

Marteo naturally settled beside him.

 

Sitting so close, the hard stone surprisingly felt warm.

 

A lazy breeze drifted over the flower-carved low wall, lightly ruffling their hair, and time flowed quietly like the old tiles resting under the sun.

 

Then—

 

“You said you came here when you were young. How old were you?”

 

Marteo suddenly spoke.

 

When Yeonho turned his head, he saw Marteo wearing a thoughtful expression, as if searching his own memory.

 

“Let’s see. It was a kindergarten field trip, so I was seven?”

 

“Do you remember things clearly from that age?”

 

“Sort of?”

 

“I remember perfectly.”

 

“What. Is that supposed to be bragging?”

 

Blinking at the unexpected response, Yeonho turned to look at him.

 

Marteo smiled faintly, his gaze lingering with some nostalgic longing.

 

But the moment did not last.

 

“Now, this is Gyotaejeon. It’s where the queen lived.”

 

Someone else began explaining the place, disrupting their quiet space.

 

The peaceful mood vanished instantly, and both turned in the same direction.

 

A group of small children suddenly appeared behind the guide.

 

They looked about six or seven, likely kindergarteners on a field trip, just like young Yeonho had been.

 

But that was not all.

 

“Huh? Kim Siwoo. What are you doing? Fold your ears!”

 

“Teacher, it’s hot∼.”

 

“Hey, what did I say about anima in public spaces?”

 

The scolding teacher, the chattering child answering back.

 

Under the hat brim, the child’s droopy animal ears were visible.

 

A morph, an anima-activated child.

 

The moment he recognized it, the teacher noticed Yeonho and Marteo too and hurriedly tried to rein the child in.

 

“Siwoo, fold your ears. Okay?”

 

“Then can I keep my beard out?”

 

“No. Hide that too!”

 

But trouble did not end there.

 

“Teacher, Choi Jiho has his tail out.”

 

As soon as one child was handled, another crisis popped up.

 

A thick furry tail puffed out of a child’s pants.

 

Accused, the boy screeched.

 

“You have claws out!”

 

“Nooo! They’re fingernails!”

 

Excitement on outings was universal across all species of children.

 

One after another, the anima of several kids flared like a contagious reaction.

 

The frazzled teacher’s growing panic almost looked entertaining.

 

Noticing Yeonho and Marteo again, she clapped her hands loudly.

 

“Alright everyone. What do we do with tails?”

 

“Keep them quiet!”

 

“And ears and claws?”

 

“Hide hide!”

 

Of course, it was just words.

 

Chattering loudly, the little creatures did not follow her all at once.

 

“I can run aaall the way over there.”

 

“I can go farther! I can run more!”

 

“No. You cannot climb that!”

 

Trying to manage one area then another, the teacher’s efforts were in vain.

 

At that moment—

 

Tap tap.

 

One child, having wandered off from the chaotic group, came over to Yeonho and Marteo.

 

He let out a strangely adult-like sigh and plopped onto the steps beside them.

 

There were no ears, no tail, no claws, no whiskers showing.

 

Curiously looking up, the child stared straight at Yeonho.

 

“They’re acting like that because they’re babies.”

 

And you’re not a baby?

 

Yeonho wanted to say it, but something else was certain.

 

“Immature.”

 

Still so arrogant and bold.

 

Yeonho’s expression soured instantly.

 

‘This brat… he’s a bird, isn’t he.’

 

As if confirming the guess, the child shook his short neck and spoke with a beak-like mouth.

 

“My mom said wild animals have no dignity even when they grow up. They always roll on the ground. And they always get their tails dirty. Gross.”

 

Really great parenting. Teaching him the word “dignity” but not actually teaching dignity itself.

 

Since it was a child, Yeonho held back the sharp retort.

 

But unexpectedly, Marteo stepped in instead.

 

He slowly bent forward toward the child.

 

With his size and unfamiliar face, Marteo could have seemed intimidating.

 

The child flinched and hunched his small shoulders.

 

Marteo lifted the corner of his mouth.

 

“So you’re a bird-type, aren’t you. What’s your anima.”

He had assumed completely that the kid thought he was a foreigner, but when Korean came out of Marteo’s mouth, the child grew even more startled.

Ignoring it, Marteo waited calmly for an answer and smiled again. Children are originally wary of faces, not places.

With just two smiles, the child loosened up a little and parted his small lips.

“…Cuc…koo.”

A species known for brood parasitism.

Not bullied like chickens, but not particularly respected among birds either.

While Yeonho was thinking that, Marteo spoke softly.

“A bird that sings with a very charming sound.”

The child’s expression clearly brightened.

Encouraged by the compliment, he nodded his head rapidly.

“Yeah! My grandma said spring only really comes when we sing. If cuckoos don’t cry, spring doesn’t come. There’s a song about us too. Do you know it?”

Is that so?

Marteo listened attentively for a moment, then gently patted the child’s head.

Then his smiling face slowly became more serious.

“But… I’m a bit worried.”

“About what?”

“You announce spring, and you make such a pretty sound. But if you say too many mean things, people might stop listening to the cuckoo’s voice.”

“Huh?”

“What you said to your friends earlier. If they heard it, I don’t think they’d like it. What do you think?”

“…Uh… uh-huh.”

Telling a kid to speak properly in such an elegant, child-friendly way.

Sensing the shift in tone, the child couldn’t answer right away and darted his eyes before finally shrinking his neck inward.

“They wouldn’t like it…”

“And would you be okay if people stopped liking cuckoo sounds?”

Shake shake shake.

His head wagged violently from side to side. Marteo gently patted the child’s head again.

“Every species has good things about them.”

“Even wild animals?”

“Even wild animals.”

“Even if they’re not birds?”

“Even if they’re not birds.”

But I think birds are the best though…

Muttering again, he glanced at the teacher who was still trying to gather the children.

“Go on. Your teacher will be looking for you.”

The child nodded and quickly got up. But after a few steps, he turned back.

“Hyung, are you a morpher too?”

Marteo didn’t answer, and the child grinned.

“It’s okay if you’re just a person. Every species has good things.”

Kids really learn fast these days, huh?

He used it immediately.

Yeonho was quietly impressed—until the kid suddenly shouted again.

“Oh, but except chickens! They’re birds but they can’t fly… and they stay in coops all day… and they don’t have anything good!”

You little brat what did you just say?

Yeonho’s upper body jerked violently where he had been resting his elbows on his knees.

Teach one thing, they learn two. It was a smack to the back of the head just when things were going well. Marteo quickly turned to him.

“Are you… okay?”

That sounded like a very loaded “okay,” but… maybe he was imagining it.

“What about me.”

“…….”

“My butt just got sore from sitting on stone. Let’s go.”

His briefly unbalanced posture was blamed on the stone steps as he shot up as if he had intended to stand anyway.

Whether the excuse worked or not, at least Marteo did not ask a second time.

Walking again for a while, Yeonho gave Marteo a sideways glance.

“You’re kind of surprising.”

“……?”

“You’re good with kids. Do you have a younger brother or something?”

“…No.”

“Then you just… like kids?”

“I don’t know about liking them, but I don’t dislike them.”

“Hm. That’s a pretty big difference though. Not disliking them and actually liking them.”

“Do Yeonho, do you… not like kids.”

After a pause, Marteo asked cautiously.

Recalling what just happened, Yeonho agreed without hesitation.

“Yeah. They’re annoying.”

“…….”

“They don’t listen, they’re noisy, you have to take care of everything. How long does it take to raise them into humans. I’d rather work.”

“But still… I think your own child would be cute.”

“Then you go have lots of kids and raise them.”

“…Do you have no intention to have kids at all?”

What is this timing? Why the sudden formal speech? Yeonho tilted his head, but his tone stayed casual.

“Of course not. And I’m gay. Who would I have a kid with.”

He deliberately left out that morphers could conceive.

But regardless of whether someone else carried it or he carried it, he had no desire for children.

At his repeated certainty, Marteo closed his mouth. The air grew heavier. Yeonho frowned.

“What. Are you the type who thinks you must have kids?”

Given his personality so far, a “yes” would have made sense.

But Marteo soon shook his head firmly and spoke with quiet conviction.

“No. I think I can live without them too.”

“Right? They’re just trouble anyway.”

Marteo smiled slowly, bittersweet and soft.

“Where should we go next.”

Then he stepped ahead. But Yeonho’s feet stopped instead.

He truly had no desire for children, but…

The man’s smile lingered vividly in his eyes…

For the good of humanity’s gene pool, wouldn’t it be fine if a bunch of kids looked like him?

The absurd thought flashed through his mind.