"You want to catch it."
Young Scholar said.
The woodcutter closed his eyes.
As if trying to shut out everything before him.
But what he was seeing had appeared in his mind and was now reflected before his eyes.
He could not escape it.
He finally remembered why he had been so slow to recall this memory, even though it wasn't all that distant...
He had done so deliberately.
Because...
His younger brother's behavior back then...
So...
Some things had shown signs of emerging very early on.
But because he had avoided them and ignored them... he had forgotten.
"That day..."
The woodcutter didn't know how to continue.
Young Scholar smiled knowingly.
"That was the time..."
"I discovered a fact that I found very hard to understand."
"That was..."
"You and sister-in-law—you both couldn't see Little Auspicious Omen."
"Little Auspicious Omen?"
The woodcutter asked in confusion.
After a brief moment of stunned silence, Young Scholar's lips curled.
Those three words had slipped out without him even thinking.
Little Auspicious Omen...
Heh.
A sharp, mocking look flashed through Young Scholar's eyes.
"Little brother?"
The woodcutter spoke up.
He could vaguely sense the change in the aura around Young Scholar.
Young Scholar came back to himself.
He lowered his eyes.
The corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
"...That was what I called the Black Monster."
"I got used to calling it Little Auspicious Omen."
The woodcutter opened his mouth.
"...Oh."
"That's a good name."
A truly auspicious name.
Young Scholar wanted to laugh.
It really was a good name.
"Because I honestly thought it was an auspicious creature."
Huh?
The woodcutter froze.
"It really was an auspicious creature?"
He was astonished.
"I thought it was."
Young Scholar said each word