HCYPBTKIRWO Chapter 3

Following the child's blurred eyes, my vision also blurred.

The only thing that became clear was a memory of when I was a child, which I tried to bury deeply.

I still vividly remember. It was the day my world fell apart.

It was when I was in the second year of elementary school. On Mother's Day, I ran to the house with hand-folded carnations in my hand during art class.

"Mom!"

I was thinking of giving it to my mother who is waiting for me at home. But the only thing waiting for me was five ten thousand won bills and a letter lying on the table written for grandmother.

Mom, I’m sorry.

Save the money, use it for what she needs, her favorite side dish is in the refrigerator, so eat well.

She'll listen to her dad until then, because mom will come pick her up later.

But from my mother's last request, I wanted to listen to my father, but I couldn't. My mother had left the house, and my father didn't even come home.

These children, like me, have been abandoned by their parents.

'Oh my gosh…’

My heart swelled. How on earth can you not love these pretty children?

'Wait.'

As I re-examined the children's stories, I suddenly realized and tilted my head.

‘Are they really Hansel and Gretel?”

Although the children's names aren't Hansel and Gretel, couldn't the main characters in this book have different names?

'Isn't this book going to end when they kill me?'

I hoped that this fairy tale would end in a heartwarming and desirable way, rather than a cruel fairy tale like the classics.

So I quickly decided on my role.

As ‘The Good Witch Hazel’, who takes care of the children until their father, who one day repents his sins, comes to find them.

“But the witch…”

While I was thinking, Luna, who ate a slice of apple pie, called me.

“My name is Hazel, not a witch.”

I wiped the stewed apples from the corner of the child's mouth with a napkin, revealing my name.

“Hazel.”

"Yes."

“Are you trying to eat us now that we’re gaining weight now?”

“Huh-”

At Luna's question full of doubt, Luca immediately burst into tears.

“Now you are going to wash us and bake us in an oven. Right?"

Even though I fed and washed the children, Luna's doubts did not stop. She wept again while Luca, who had barely stopped crying, sat and played with his hands.

“Do you see chickens getting dressed up before they get grilled?”

After washing, I comforted the children in towels. However, there were no clothes for the children to wear.

“I have never grilled chicken before.”

Ah. They must be children from very poor families. I'm going to have to cook chicken for dinner tonight.

“I have to clean up this mess now, so you play with the dog and the cat.”

I left the children with the animals and went to work. I washed the dirty clothes, hung them before the sun went down, and re-blocked the walls they ate.

The little ones watched with their mouths wide open as the leftover cake flew into the sky by itself and went into the storage, and the dishes went into the dishwasher and cleaned themselves.

“Ugh, I’m scared.”

“Is this a broomstick? But why doesn't it have eyes, nose and mouth?"

Luca just avoided the broom that was sweeping the floor with tiny mud footprints, while Luna followed and poked it.

For dinner, I made grilled chicken with mushroom sauce after a long time.

Mushrooms were thrown away by a girl who ate my house during one day

I thought it would be a waste if it went bad like that, so I had no choice but to eat it.

But the kids ate the chicken, and left all the mushrooms.

“Oh, it’s delicious.”

‘Yes…’

“Mushrooms are mold, don’t eat mold!”

Unfortunately, this time the strategy with the carrot cake didn't work on the mushrooms.

As I was cleaning out dinner and preparing for tomorrow, night came soon after.

Unfortunately, the only bed in this little hut was my single bed.

It was too cramped for the three of us to sleep together, and the children were still afraid of me, so I decided to put them to bed and sleep on the sofa in the living room.

"Good night."

I put blankets on the children who were still wary with their sleepy eyes and went out. Then I lay down on the sofa and thought about the future one by one.

‘You are a very picky eater.’

It wasn't just picky eating that had to be fixed before the children's fathers came to pick them up.

“Luna, you should be respectful to adults.”

“We don’t have to say respectful things, do we?”

If Luna kissed a frog, it would turn into a prince, and I made a face at the vain thought I had. Without a single hesitation, the eyes were asking what the problem was, so I was rather embarrassed.

‘Aren’t children supposed to be respectful to adults here too? Am I misunderstanding the manners of this world?’

The sound of the owl coming in from the window stopped. As the voices of people who were neither me, nor Daisy nor Lady, slowly permeated into the quiet living room, my heart swelled again.

I was really lonely.

I listened to whispers through the half-open bedroom door.

"Sister."

"What."

“Isn’t it scary?”

“A human-eating witch?”

“...”

“Oh, come on, come on.”

“But how about one staying awake while we sleep?”

“...Then I will stay awake.”

No. Sleep well to grow taller.

I'll be caught secretly eavesdropping, but I couldn't help but intervene.

"I'm full. Did you see that I ate all the mushrooms you left for dinner?"

Huh, they laughed out loud as I shut my mouth in surprise.

“So, sleep in peace.”

Before long, a regular wheezing sound began to be heard from the quiet bedroom. I closed my eyes with a smile at the end of a particularly noisy and enjoyable day.

I never dreamed that I would start a peaceful morning with an accident and crying the next day.

***

“Huh-”

"Shh! Be quiet."

I slept sweetly for a while and woke up to a sudden cry.

'Ummm... Why am I sleeping here?’

I couldn't understand the situation for a while and stared blankly at the ceiling, then I remembered yesterday and got up from the sofa.

"Why? What's up?"

Luca ran into the bedroom with a constant cry of sorrow, and when Luna saw me, she hid something behind her back.

But with that small stature, could she be able to hide a large bed linen?

“No, nothing special.”

Just by looking at the face that is guilty of sinning, I can tell that there is something going on.

“Huh-”

Luca was standing by the bed and crying, rubbing his eyes with his tiny fists.

There was a large area on my bed between the two kids.

“Last night, the water fairy left a lake in the bed.”

After giving an excuse as much as she could, Luna tilted her head. My eyes are also getting round.

“The fairy did?”

Unlike Luna, who was seven years old and quick-witted, who responded directly to my words, Luca was still naive.

“Huh, but...”

“It’s okay, Luca.”

“I’m sorry.”

Did it happen often? If he was five years old and he had never been scolded for that, such words would not have come out of a child's mouth.

‘Was Luca nervous because the bed changed?’

It is common for children to make this mistake when they are psychologically anxious.

I stroked Luca's hair and took the wet sheet from Luna. In the meantime, Luca, who had been sobbing while looking at me, hesitated and came closer, grabbed the hem of my skirt and shook it.

“It’s because Lulu is not here.”

“Even when you were with Lulu, you rested at night.”

“Who is Lulu?”

“My rabbit.”

“He’s a bunny doll. I forgot and left it at home.”

“Where is your home? I'll bring you Lulu."

I know how to use movement magic. Of course, I can't move the big things yet, but it's just an attachment doll, so if I knew the exact shape and location of it, I could put it in Luca's arms with just one finger snap.

"Really? In our house- Ack!”

But for some reason, Luna blocked Luca's mouth as he was about to answer.

“We no longer have a home.”

"No?"

“Yeah, it was on fire.”

"Really?"

“Yeah. Or why would we be here? We would have gone home.”

Well…something is suspicious