I had no clue.
The woodcutter even wasn't sure whether his younger brother had left of his own accord.
If he hadn't...
The woodcutter clenched his fists.
He quickened his pace.
"You found your younger brother?"
The woman sounded fairly certain.
"In the mountains."
The woodcutter nodded.
He wasn't surprised that she had guessed so quickly.
"Mm."
"I heard my younger brother's voice."
"Then I found him."
The woman smiled with relief.
"That's wonderful."
It seemed his younger brother had been relatively easy to find.
It hadn't taken much effort.
"Is your younger brother all right?"
The woman asked.
It was really just an instinctive question.
She didn't think anything had happened to him.
But then...
The woman froze.
She noticed something was off about the woodcutter's expression.
Her heart skipped a beat.
"Your younger brother..."
The woman lowered her voice without realizing it. "Did something happen to him?"
The woodcutter knitted his brows.
A flicker of irritation crossed his face.
"The same old problem."
The same old problem?
His younger brother's old problem?
Oh...
After a brief moment of confusion, the woman's face cleared with understanding.
"...The Black Monster..."
The woodcutter nodded.
That was right.
It was the Black Monster.
"His younger brother saw the Black Monster..."
"He saw it again?"
The woman couldn't help exclaiming.
"Hadn't it been ages since he last saw it?"
He'd even been losing sleep over it.
"Mm."
The woodcutter nodded.
That was why his younger brother had chased after it without hesitation, once he'd finally seen it.
"His younger brother chased it all the way into the woods..."
The woodcutter curled his lips into a wry smile. "I made the right choice."
The woman smiled too.
Should she say the woodcutter