She was no different from a beast

Chapter 33

—–CROW—– 

“…Is this right?”

Suyeon wasn’t sure whether to be angry or happy about the situation unfolding before her eyes.

“When you eat, you wait until the oldest or most respected person starts eating!”

“…We learned that at school, too.”

“But you start eating before I do.”

“No, I don’t.”

“I’m more important than you! Who am I?  First in the whole school! And you, Jeongwoo? You’re second.”

“…”

You start eating after the adults pick up their spoons.

That’s correct.

It’s an easily overlooked courtesy, something you might learn at school or from others, but it’s an easy rule to forget and be rude.

Come to think of it, our daughter has never picked up her spoon first.

She always waits for her dad to take a bite before starting to eat.

‘But Yuna, saying that because you’re first in the school is a bit…’

I briefly wondered if Yuna was bullying Jeongwoo, but his expression seemed more exasperated than upset, like he was used to this.

“Oh, then Yuna, if the three of us eat together, and I don’t eat, neither of you can eat either?”

“…Huh?”

“Oh.”

‘Oh, from Yuri’s perspective, that’s…’

Even Yuna, who had been speaking confidently, was speechless, and Jeongwoo blinked in surprise.

That’s right, Yuri is the oldest of the three.

“Ahem! Ahem! N-no! But I’m tutoring Yuri, so I’m more important than her!”

“But I’m older. I’m the unnie!”

“Ugh! What does being older matter?! You’ll be called ajumma a year before me!”

“Hey! That’s mean!!”

‘Wow.’

I didn’t expect our daughter to bring up age.

If Yuri was told that 20 years from now, she’d probably cry.

She doesn’t seem upset now, but if my younger sibling said that to me, I might instinctively lash out.

“…You just have to be mindful when eating with adults, right? Isn’t that right, Ajumma?”

“Yes, that’s right. Jeongwoo is correct.  Don’t worry about it among friends, but be mindful when eating with adults.”

Jeongwoo might be the most mature of the three.

He’s so calm and doesn’t get angry…I almost doubt he’s the same age as Yuna.

‘Jeongwoo’s mother wishes he was half as calm as Yuna…’

I wish our Yuna was half as calm as Jeongwoo.

“Ajumma agrees with me.”

“What?! Why are you asking my mom when *I’m* teaching you? That’s cheating!”

“It’s always best to ask an adult when you’re not sure. It’s much better to ask Ajumma than for you and Yuri noona to fight.”

Yuna puffed out her cheeks and glared at Jeongwoo, unable to argue back… Oh my, she’s so cute.  Our daughter can make that expression too?

At first, I was worried about what kind of trouble she’d cause.

When I heard that her friends were coming over to study, I thought, ‘Oh, since our daughter is good at studying, she must be planning to study with her friends during vacation.’ But…

When I heard it was a “life lesson,” not a school lesson, I couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy.

She’s a lovely daughter, adored by adults and cherished by us, but Yuna has an unpredictable personality.

Not only that, but she’s excessively energetic and acts on impulses that others would only think about.

If her “life lesson” involved something like climbing a rocky mountain or jumping into the sea, like she did when she was younger… Ugh.

“Hmph! Then for the next lesson! Um~ You might not need this now, but it might be useful when you grow up, so I’ll teach you something good to know!”

But seeing Yuna now, noisy but consistently cheerful…maybe I worried for nothing.

Of course, I was startled when she said she’d spank them every time they made a mistake, but even so…

She must have been joking.

…Right?

‘She must have been worried about me being alone at home if she went to Dodong to play.’

So she invited her friends over to play at home.

And they’re not running around but sitting quietly and chatting…I can feel her consideration.

Why did I even worry?

It’s so nice to see.  Seeing Yuna smiling and playing with her friends makes me smile too.

Unlike me when I was young, she’s playing with her close friends every day, just like a child should.

Sometimes, I feel like our daughter is too mature, but seeing her like this, she’s just an 8-year-old…

“Now~ There will be times in your life when you drink with your parents or other adults, so I’ll teach you how to properly kiss ass!”

“???”

“…Huh?”

‘??’

…What did I just hear?

Yuri, Jeongwoo, and I blinked in confusion. Yuna went to the kitchen and came back with a bottle of soju and glasses.

Then she put a glass in front of a large teddy bear with a picture of my brother’s face and opened the bottle.

Huh?  What the…?

“Now~ When pouring alcohol, cover the label with your hand and pour with both hands!”

Yuna, how do you even know that?

My head felt dizzy, as if I’d been hit, by this unexpected alcohol etiquette lesson.

*Glug, glug.*

“And when receiving alcohol, hold the glass with both hands respectfully~  Bring it to your lips as if you’re just wetting them, and then put it down… Ow?!”

*Thwack!*

“Yuna!! Don’t teach your friends strange things… Oh my.”

Seeing my daughter actually pour soju into the glass in front of her and bring it to her lips, I instinctively grabbed the stainless steel bowl of bananas and apples and hit her on the head.

Unlike the usual dull thud of my fist, there was a clear, ringing sound.

Unlike before, when she would roll on the floor after being hit and then smile as if nothing had happened, Yuna trembled and then…

“*Thud.*”

She collapsed and fainted.

Did I go too far?

No. Jeongwoo has become surprisingly mature lately, so honestly…I had nothing else to teach them, so I brought up drinking etiquette.

Yuri’s dad, Jeongwoo’s dad…and my brother all enjoy drinking, so Jeongwoo and Yuri will naturally end up drinking with adults later on, right?

So I was sharing the life hacks and etiquette I learned from my heavy-drinking team leader back in my past life…

I didn’t expect Mom to hit me on the head with a stainless steel bowl.

Honestly, I was expecting to get hit, but…I didn’t expect a full swing with a stainless steel bowl.

My brain and skull were ringing and doing a frantic tap dance, my vision blurring… Ow. I don’t want to experience that again.

“A-are you okay?! Are you hurt?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

Mom checked my head for injuries as soon as I regained consciousness and got up, less than a minute later.

Well, it doesn’t hurt anymore.

It only hurt when I got hit. I feel fine now.

There’s no bruise… If there was a crack or fracture, I would have screamed when Mom pressed on my scalp like a cat kneading.

“…Yuri noona, is that for real?”

“Yeah, Yuna is tough, so she’ll be fine…probably?”

“No, what does that even mean?”

“You don’t know, Jeongwoo? Yuna can poke holes in trees with her fingers!”

“???”

Yuri, even if that’s true…

Even if I have a healthy and invincible TS body, I don’t have physics-defying powers.

How can a person poke holes in trees…trees…

‘…Wait, I did?’

How did I even do that?

I remember just pressing hard with my fingers, and they went right through.

So there *was* a nature-defying beast girl here.

“Hmm.  But then…is there anything left for me to teach them?”

Honestly, Yuri doesn’t seem as motivated as Jeongwoo or me to study hard and be at the top of the class.

And if I only focus on the “Conquering Elementary School Math with Jeongwoo” project, it would feel like I’m leaving Yuri out.

It would be better to teach them something they can both benefit from and relate to.

‘But it’s not easy to find something that satisfies both of them.’

If I teach at Jeongwoo’s level, Yuri will struggle to keep up, and if I teach at Yuri’s level, Jeongwoo refutes everything with textbook answers, as if he’s already mastered it.

I was going to lecture them on how to survive in this harsh society without getting burned by being clueless, but Jeongwoo already knew all that.

Sigh, what should I do?  Is there anything good?

Like the field trips we went on before summer vacation.

Others might just see them as picnics or outings, but those kinds of rare experiences are surprisingly important…aren’t they?

‘Experiences?’

That’s it! Experiences!!

“Are both of you free on weekends?”

“Huh? Us? I’m free!  I can’t come every day, but…I was planning to come on weekends anyway!”

“I’m free too.  Mom said I should hang out with you even if I have to miss Taekwondo.”

Great.  You’re both free?

Dad will be home on weekends, so it’ll be okay to go out for a bit, right?

This is all for Yuri and Jeongwoo’s experience!

“Then let’s meet in Sadong this Saturday!”

I’m not sure, but…I think they’ll allow it.

—–CROW—– 

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