Dorothy’s Very Important Mission
Dad built a fence around the house. It’s still small for now, but it will grow bigger soon. Just like the rabbits, we’ll have a house too!
“…”
Huh? That’s strange.
We already have a house… so why are we making a fence?
Dorothy tilted her head. Something felt odd. She didn’t understand why Dad was building a fence. She decided she would ask him later.
But that wasn’t important right now.
Dorothy had a very, very important job.
She had to feed the rabbits, clean their poop, feed them again, play with them, then clean the poop again—and oh, give them water too. Anyway, she had to do all those things for the rabbits.
Dad had explained it to her, stumbling over his words.
The rabbits would have more rabbits, and those rabbits would have even more rabbits, and those rabbits would have even more rabbits…
And then the fence would be filled with rabbits.
If Dorothy fed them well, they would multiply like that.
And then—they would become rich.
Very, very, verrrrrry rich!
They would have so much meat.
They would be rich in rabbit meat.
Dorothy had never eaten it before, but Lizzy said rabbit meat was very delicious.
Lizzy hadn’t eaten it either—but she had heard that it was.
Maybe it was even tastier than wolf meat.
Dorothy quietly looked at the baby rabbit sleeping.
It still slept all the time.
Sometimes it opened its eyes—but then it slept again.
It still couldn’t move.
Dad had said it would take a little more time before it could move. It had been hurt badly.
That was sad.
It must be bored.
Sleeping all day sounded really boring.
Before, she could see its bones—but now she couldn’t.
Lizzy said new flesh had grown.
Was that magic?
Meat just growing like that—it was amazing.
Maybe it was a magic rabbit.
“Rabbit, wake up quickly. Aren’t you bored? Dorothy will play with you.”
She whispered, but the baby rabbit didn’t wake up.
So boring.
Should she wake it up?
As she thought that, Lizzy, who was busy preparing to go out, suddenly spoke from behind.
“Dorothy, that’s not food.”
Huh?
Mom is silly.
The baby rabbit isn’t food, so why would she say that?
Dorothy blinked in confusion—but Lizzy came closer and wiped her mouth.
Drool had run down to her chin.
Looking at Lizzy’s face, Dorothy suddenly remembered something.
“Ah! Rabbit food!”
This wasn’t the time to stand around.
She had to feed the rabbits!
Today they were going to the… haengsaeng? haengsang? Anyway, they were going there.
The village head’s wife had come yesterday and said it was happening.
So they were going to the village.
They had to go!
“Mom, Dorothy will go feed the rabbits!”
She jumped up and ran outside.
The rabbits shouldn’t be hungry while they were gone.
Dorothy gathered bamboo leaves that had fallen while Dad cut bamboo and went to the rabbit pen.
When she opened the bamboo door, the rabbit was sitting quietly in a corner, its ears and nose twitching.
“Rabbit! Eat your food! Dorothy is busy today, so you have to eat by yourself and behave, okay?”
She neatly piled the bamboo leaves in one place.
When she gathered all the scattered leaves together, it looked like there was more food.
The rabbit would be happy.
More food was always good.
“…Wait. Is this magic? The food increased!”
She gasped in surprise.
Maybe she could use magic too!
She would tell Dad later.
Dad, Dorothy can use magic too!
Maybe she could even use magic on wolf meat…
“So fun!”
In small villages, traveling merchants came once every one or two months—or sometimes even less often.
In Lizzy’s old village, they came about once a month.
For villages far from cities, where goods were hard to obtain, the merchant’s visit was extremely important.
If you couldn’t get what you needed while the merchant was there, you had to endure without it until the next time.
If it was something non-essential, that was fine.
But if it was something like salt—something necessary—it would be a big problem.
“…”
Lizzy stared at the wolf fur in front of her, picking it up and putting it down several times as she hesitated.
Merchants didn’t just sell—they also bought.
Often they traded goods instead of using money.
If you had something valuable, you could exchange it for many things.
She had never sold anything before, but furs and leather were always popular.
She gently stroked the wolf hide.
At first, she had made mistakes, but after learning from Gus, she had processed it properly.
Even though she wasn’t sure, it seemed like decent quality.
Selling it to a merchant who came to a small village like this felt like a waste.
And this was Juhwan’s first hunt.
She wanted to keep it if possible.
Even though Juhwan had told her to sell it, she didn’t want to.
But there’s so much we need to buy…
Clothes for Juhwan.
Shoes—especially important for walking in the mountains.
A pot.
A water container.
Ingredients.
Another knife or axe for Juhwan.
And things for Dorothy, since children grow quickly.
For some reason, the village head had given them more goods and fabric—but accepting things from him felt unsettling.
It felt like he was trying to tie Juhwan down.
She didn’t like that.
Her husband seemed willing to accept it for survival—but he wasn’t someone meant to stay in a small village like this.
Even if she didn’t know much, she felt it.
He was someone who could go much higher.
And they’re trying to bind him to this mountain…
Of course—
The strongest chain binding him… was her.
Lizzy sighed and lightly slapped her cheeks.
She didn’t want to become a burden.
She looked at the rabbit hide.
One wouldn’t be enough.
After hesitating, she sighed again and picked up a pair of scissors.
She gathered her hair and tied it with a piece of cloth.
A woman’s hair could sell for a good price.
It was used for wigs and decorations for nobles.
Lizzy’s golden hair was especially valued.
She had been asked to sell it before.
Now, her hair was even healthier—she could get a good price.
As she gripped the scissors—
Tears welled slightly in her eyes.
Juhwan often gently stroked her hair.
He never said it—but he clearly liked it.
A lot.
“…”
One of the reasons he liked her would disappear.
Snip.
As her hair was cut, a tear slipped out.
It’s okay.
She had grown it for times like this.
It would grow back.
But her heart still felt sad.
After organizing her hair, she packed the rabbit hide into a cloth bag and prepared to leave.
She reviewed everything she needed to buy—from essentials to optional items.
“Dad!”
Dorothy’s voice came from outside.
Juhwan had returned from hunting.
“Rabbit! Dorothy has another rabbit!”
She sounded thrilled.
When Lizzy went outside, Juhwan was putting two rabbits into the pen.
Dorothy ran around again, gathering bamboo leaves—dropping more than half, but still trying hard.
“You’re back.”
Lizzy spoke.
Juhwan turned—
Then froze.
His eyes widened.
From a short distance away, Dorothy dropped all her leaves and shouted:
“Mom! Your hair is gone!”
She ran over in panic, looking around the ground for it.
Lizzy smiled gently.
“I cut it myself.”
“…Why?!”
Dorothy looked upset.
Her sparkling golden hair had been beautiful.
She even started to cry, saying the hair was pitiful.
Juhwan seemed to understand.
He stepped closer and gently touched her shortened hair.
“Sorry.”
He said quietly.
Lizzy found it strange.
Why would he apologize?
This was normal.
Many women grew their hair to sell it.
It was just survival.
But his voice was so gentle that tears filled her eyes—not from sadness, but from warmth.
She wanted to say it was okay—but couldn’t speak.
Juhwan hugged her and softly stroked her hair.
Children changed moods quickly.
Dorothy suddenly said:
“Dorothy will feed the rabbits!”
She ran off again, leaving a trail of bamboo leaves behind her.
It was easy to see where she had been.
Lizzy smiled.
After that, they quickly prepared to go to the village.
Lizzy wore her old coat.
She dressed Dorothy in a padded outer garment, much larger than her size.
Dorothy happily spun around to show Juhwan.
Though the outside was new fabric, the inside was patched with old cloth.
Seeing it made Lizzy’s heart ache a little.
If they had more resources, she could line it with rabbit fur.
Maybe someday.
Juhwan prepared the wooden carrier for bringing back goods.
Dorothy went to the rabbit pen and told the rabbits they were going to the village.
She spoke seriously—even though they couldn’t understand.
She kept saying haengsaeng instead of merchant.
Lizzy corrected her pronunciation, and Juhwan quietly repeated it too.
As they walked down the mountain, Dorothy kept staring at the carrier.
Juhwan lowered himself and let her climb on.
She was thrilled.
Lizzy felt nervous watching her.
Holding Juhwan’s hand, she walked beside him while Dorothy chattered endlessly.
Birds cried loudly, as if telling her to be quiet.
“Mom! You ride too!”
Dorothy insisted so much that Juhwan offered.
He stopped and lowered the carrier.
Lizzy hesitated—but gave in.
As soon as she sat—
The world rose suddenly.
“Aaaah!”
She screamed.
Dorothy laughed loudly.
Juhwan chuckled.
In the end, Lizzy got down and walked again.
As they approached the village, her mood sank.
She worried about what people might say after Juhwan’s fight with the village men.
Her chest felt heavy—
As if weighed down by a stone.