Going Mad
There was no need to let such a small task as cleaning delay the Young Scholar's studies.
The Young Scholar didn't insist.
He knew what would be the best way to repay his older brother and sister-in-law.
He lifted his head.
The sunlight was growing brighter.
He seemed to see his future.
It would be just as bright and glorious.
"No."
The woman looked at the clean room, puzzled.
The room hadn't been dirty to begin with.
The Young Scholar wasn't a messy person.
She just wondered how there could have been a cockroach...
But they lived close to the mountains, so it was normal to have snakes, insects, ants, and mosquitoes around.
"It must have gotten away," the woodcutter said casually.
"Good, as long as it's gone."
"I told you, I usually put herbs around the house to drive away insects and ants..."
"How could there still be a cockroach..."
"Even so, one might slip through the cracks..." the woman said with a smile.
"All right."
The woodcutter went over to the Young Scholar. "Your room is very clean."
"I didn't find a single bug."
The Young Scholar smiled.
"Is that so?"
"That's good, then."
The Young Scholar was going to take the examination.
He refused to let his older brother accompany him.
He wasn't a child anymore.
He could manage on his own.
The day before he set off, the Young Scholar watched Little Auspicious Omen devour its food. For the first time, such intense emotions showed in his eyes.
Hope, nervousness, and ambition...
"Little Auspicious Omen."
"I'm setting off to take the examination tomorrow."
"...Little Auspicious Omen."
The Young Scholar stared at the small black figure.
"You'll bless me."
"Won't you?"
"You'll definitely bless me."