spirited

[9] danhyanggok

"is sari village that scary?" he asked.

"sari village was where mudeok was from" i said.

"naksu's hometown is danhyanggok. that is our destination" she added.

"how far do we have to go?" uk complained, "this bracelet weighs a ton. master, you pupil is exhausted. i am done. i am too tired to go any further" he stopped on his track.

"we are the ones carrying all the luggage" i said, irritated.

"i am your young master and you are my maid. this is your job"

"so i am your master and your servant to your liking?"

"ofcourse" she scoffed. "i did not know such a place existed outside the city.

"this is a place so rugged and remote that even echoes cannot be heard, hence the name danhyanggok" i said.

"aaaahh-" he shouted, his voice followed by loud echoes. "i hear the echoes just fine"

"it was a figure of speech" i snapped at him.

"the name is just a bluff. ah, i am hungry"

"up there is where i used to live. you will eat what i provide for you and sleep where you collapse after a day's hard training" she ordered him.

"what is this? i smell chicken"

i smelled around, "he's right"

"do they sell chicken here?" he asked.

"who would sell chicken here?" she also started smelling.

"you smell chicken too, right? i am telling you, i am sure it is chicken. i love chicken" he started climbing up, "aigoo, how did you climb up here? someone must be cooking chicken nearby. come on down. why are you up there?"

"see i told you it is chicken" he ran towards the cooking food.

naksu was shocked to see her former home like this.

"i told you i smelled chicken. it is so nice here!" he went inside the hut.

i stepped forward.

"i vividly remember, this hut was all burnt. how is it fixed? why are all these things here?"