Chapter 174

After the fire under the cauldron had finally been lit.

Woon Seong-ha and Do Je-hyeon, driven off again by Yeom Mi-seon's insistence that young blood like theirs had no business resting, were chased right back out to the field.

Sae-i, on the other hand, had been given special orders to take a break, and was carefully scratching the chin of a stray cat that had wandered into the yard.

"……Your mother loved cats too, you know."

Glancing warily at the camera, Yeom Mi-seon came over and sat down beside Sae-i, speaking as she settled.

Her eyes, resting on the purring cat, were endlessly soft and wistful.

"She was just like a cat, really."

"……My mom was?"

"Mm. Sensitive, proud, and yet she secretly loved being touched and fussed over."

Fragments of the past drifted out quietly between them.

Sae-i stroked the cat's soft fur and smiled without a word.

She…