Typhoon And Ball Stones (3)

The business is out, but there are still things to do.

The storm started yesterday. Since the weather was too rough, I made sure the barn was well protected and stocked enough hay, so I told Mr. Ment, Miltain, and Mrs. Seral not to come today. Instead, I would check on things.

It would be worse if they came to tend the ranch in this bad weather and got hurt.

If even one person gets hurt, it would be a loss for me. Finding trustworthy people isn’t easy.

“Rurin, keep lounging around. I’ll go check on the ranch.”

I shouted to Rurin and then went outside.

As I stepped outside, the wind hit me.

Whooooosh!

The weather was so bad that it made me not want to walk.

To think that this was the weather calming down.

Shouldn’t the eye of the typhoon be passing by now? It’s inconvenient not having a weather forecast.

“The wind is annoying!”

“Yeah, the wind. Huh?”

Rurin was standing next to me. When did she get there? Why didn’t I notice?

“What made you come along?”

“Just, going with you.”

“Okay?”

She nodded.

Is she worried because of the bad weather? This dragon?

No way.

I looked closely at the dragon’s face. She looked at me. As the rain hit her face, she grimaced but still walked steadily beside me.

“Well, if you came on your own, I won’t stop you.”

Rurin’s hair fluttered wildly in the wind. Her long black hair fluttered. I hoped she wouldn’t do anything that would damage her hair.

We climbed the hill and reached the ranch. It wasn’t a massive typhoon, so the water buffaloes weren’t flying around, but it was still necessary to check.

“Huh?”

“Miltain! Hold tight!”

“Yes! Senior!”

An unexpected situation unfolded before my eyes.

At the ranch, Miltain and Mr. Ment were wrestling with a water buffalo that had broken out of the barn, fighting against the wind and rain.

I had told them to rest, but they defied expectations and came out to work. They are good people. Truly.

Of course, it wasn’t a time to just admire, so I immediately ran to help them.

The water buffaloes were subdued by the Dragon Fear, so their wild instincts weren’t emerging. They seemed to be scared by the storm. They didn’t even realize the barn was the safest place.

“First, let’s get them back into the barn! If the three of us pull, it should be fine.”

“Yes!”

Miltain and Mr. Ment nodded at my words simultaneously. As I joined, the balance of power shifted, and we began to overpower the buffalo. Getting the frightened buffalo back into the barn was quick.

The barn we built is quite large. Inside, they can avoid the wind and rain. Water leaking in is inevitable, but it’s manageable.

Rejecting a place that can protect them and running wild instead. What can you say about the intelligence of water buffaloes?

After putting the buffalo back in and securely locking the pen door, Mr. Ment bowed his head apologetically.

“This guy didn’t close the Bereneryk pen door properly. What’s the point of thorough preparation if they can still get out? Accidents are always caused by human error. Got it, you idiot?”

“I’m sorry…”

Miltain hung his head.

“Did you come up here because of that? I told you, you didn’t have to come…”

“No, it’s not that. Of course, we had to come up! We noticed it after coming up. This clumsy guy, always doing well but one mistake makes it all for nothing. And of all days, he makes this mistake in this weather? How will you apologize to Mr. El?”

Bang!

Mr. Ment smacked Miltain’s head. Guilty as charged, Miltain could only cover his head in silence.

“Haha, well, as long as there are no escaped Bereneryks, it’s fine. But don’t be too hard on him; he works hard every day. It’s also my fault for not managing properly.”

Mrs. Seral patted Mr. Ment on the back. Then she also bowed to me with an apologetic look.

Honestly, these people are more important than one escaped Bereneryk.

“Oh, well, yes… But still. You owe it to Mrs. Seral. But more importantly, apologize to Mr. El. Do you know how much damage you could have caused?”

“No, damage? It’s just that you three are safe; that’s the most important thing. But I didn’t expect all three of you to be up here.”

“We heard you told us to take a day off, but how can we? It’s work. Especially in times like these, we need to take good care.”

Mrs. Seral shook her head.

Mr. Ment and Miltain also shook their heads at me.

“Ranch work has become the meaning of our lives. It’s only natural.”

“I was entrusted with this job by the person who saved my son; how could I neglect it?”

“That’s right. And the money comes in regularly, unlike when I was a mercenary. Hahaha!”

Thud!

Miltain, who was adding unnecessary comments, got smacked on the head by Mr. Ment and teared up.

“Well, thank you, but really.”

I know very well that these people put in tremendous effort in their work. Thanks to Mrs. Seral, the number of successfully bred water buffaloes has increased.

Because these people care for the buffaloes like their own children, my allowance has increased, and the cheese supply is good.

Those three started cleaning the barn with smiles. Their clothes were soaked, and their hands and feet were covered in mud.

But they were still smiling. I didn’t know what to do with myself.

“Oh! By the way, have you eaten?”

In that case, I should at least serve them food. Normally it wouldn’t matter, but in this bad weather, gathering in the barn, I couldn’t ignore them. I strongly felt the need to take care of them.

“No?”

All three shook their heads simultaneously.

“Then I’ll go to the restaurant for a moment.”

I thought of going back to the restaurant to get kalguksu. I turned to look for Rurin. She was crouching in front of the water buffalo pen, holding and taking away hay repeatedly.

“Are you hungry? I’m not giving it to you. Hehe.”

“What are you doing now?”

“It’s funny how this guy sticks out his tongue!”

“I can’t live. I can’t live like this. Stop doing stupid things and come to the restaurant with me. Or do you want to stay here?”

She immediately stood up and shook her head.

“It’s meaningless without you. This place.”

Holding Rurin’s hand, I led her to the restaurant. I put noodles in the leftover broth, boiled it, and brought the whole pot back to the ranch.

Swooooosh!

The wind seemed to calm down, but then the rain intensified. As soon as we arrived at the barn, we had to dry off with towels. I handed out the towels I brought to the three and had them sit in the barn.

“What is that, Mr. El?”

Miltain approached with interest. The barn smelled of animals, but the three accepted the pot naturally as if they were used to it.

“It’s Palenque soup. Eat it while it’s hot.”

“Oh my!”

Mrs. Seral’s eyes sparkled as she found my cooking fascinating. Miltain couldn’t resist and tasted the broth first, exclaiming.

“The broth is amazing! Oh, it’s warm. Senior, try it quickly!”

“Really? Then let’s see.”

Steam from the kalguksu rose from one corner of the barn.

“There’s plenty, so eat a lot.”

After preparing the meal, I watched them eat for a while and then looked around the barn again. However, the three were so good at their work that there was no need to check.

If this is the case, there’s no need for me to be here.

I should give them a bonus.

The number of buffaloes has increased significantly, so maybe it’s time to consider hiring one or two more people.

Of course, I’ve entrusted those matters to Mr. Ment.

“Aaah! I want to drink… I got dumped by my girlfriend the other day… Hic…”

“No wonder you were the first to come up.”

“Oh, really?”

“Oh, you got dumped?”

Mr. Ment answered first, and Mrs. Seral looked sympathetic. Finally, I spoke up.

If I remember correctly, Miltain’s girlfriend was the one who said she’d marry him if he quit being a mercenary.

Miltain has a decent face, but he seems to have no luck with girlfriends. Well, I don’t have a partner either, so who am I to talk?

“This is really good!”

At some point, Rurin had joined the group and was sipping the broth from a leftover dish, exclaiming in admiration.

“Mr. El has such a beautiful wife…”

Miltain mumbled, looking at Rurin. But that was something I couldn’t overlook.

Why do both the Greek boy and Berna keep calling Rurin my wife?

“Why does everyone misunderstand that?”

I answered, but Rurin, proudly, added fuel to the fire.

“You have a good eye. That’s right. El is mine.”

“Rurin. Come here.”

“Oh, she’s not your wife?”

Even Mrs. Seral looked surprised. I had nothing more to say. Everyone was so mistaken, it’s ridiculous.

“We’re not married. Marriage! Anyway, go home early today.”

I forcibly grabbed Rurin’s hand and started to retreat.

“Is he embarrassed?”

“It seems like it.”

“They look like newlyweds, hehe.”

I could hear each of the three saying something.

“No, it’s not!”

I shouted desperately, but the three avoided my gaze and started laughing. And Rurin was laughing too.

“Those people have good eyes. You are mine.”

“No, wait, Rurin, ‘wife’ and ‘yours’ have different meanings. Do you understand that?”

“Why are they different? My mother said being each other’s is what makes a couple.”

“So you’re mine and I’m yours?”

“Exactly.”

“You’re mine?”

“Because I’m yours, I’ll listen to you, stay by your side, and want to die with you.”

“……”

I was at a loss for words.

Suddenly, my heart sank. It’s not often that Rurin’s words leave me speechless.

Whooooosh!

The wind started blowing again. Yeah, I should run because of the wind. It’s definitely not because I feel strange.

“Let’s go together! You!”

Rurin started running after me. We ran back to the restaurant like that.

After returning from the ranch, the afternoon had passed.

The rain was still pouring, and the wind alternated between calm and rough. The sky had been dark consistently since morning, and it got darker as evening approached.

As expected, the dinner service was out. So there was free time. Laundry and house chores were done in the morning. In the afternoon, I checked the ranch and finished various tasks.

I just sat at the table blankly and got so bored that I called Rurin.

“Rurin, come here.”

“What’s up?”

Rurin approached with light footsteps. I looked at her innocent face and gave her a devilish smile.