Chick 363
by Cristae363
Reprieve: The act of postponing a set date or time for something, or such a period.
Groo sighed heavily after searching the meaning of “reprieve” on her phone.
The only reason she looked up the word was because of her uncle.
He said that, as the head of the Gnosis, he had to pay for his crimes.
Right now, he was in a period of reprieve before facing his punishment.
Groo had overheard talk that, because On Ijo was classified as an extremely dangerous individual, a special prison needed to be built for him.
The rest of the discussion had been too difficult for her to understand.
“Groo-chan, are you bored of pottery now?”
While Groo was lost in thought, Kazuki asked from the middle of the guildmaster’s office, where he was sitting with a newspaper and playing with clay.
“Hm? Nope.”
Tap-tap. As Groo kneaded the clay again, she suddenly fixed her gaze on Kazuki.
“Hm? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Master.”
“What is it?”
“There’s something new for you to teach me.”
“Out of the blue? Why’s that?”
“Well…”
Tap-tap.
Groo held up a fragile little prison made of clay.
“Because both of us have dads in prison! You’re not just my hunter master, you’re the master whose dad went to prison first!”
“Ahahaha…”
Kazuki laughed awkwardly, and Joorim, who was looking over papers and drinking an Americano nearby, suddenly raised his head and jumped in.
“He’s not in prison yet!”
Groo glared, furrowing her brows.
“But he’s going there soon!”
“……”
Joorim shut his mouth, lost for words.
Since Groo was so smart, he couldn’t get away with saying, “Your uncle’s gone to America for business.”
So they’d had no choice but to explain things as they were: On Ijo had to take responsibility for what he’d done.
The whole family had gathered and spoken to Groo together, just in case she was shocked. They’d been prepared to comfort her.
“It’s not a bad place. You can see Uncle whenever you want!”
On Suhyeong, for once, fumbled over his words, gesturing with both hands.
“Right. Princess, come see me whenever you want. I’ll be waiting!”
On Ijo said the same.
“Yep, all right. I promise I’ll visit,” Groo replied.
She accepted it much more calmly than they expected.
It seemed like she truly understood. Since she wasn’t crying or showing any obvious sadness, the whole family began watching her warily.
Who would have thought she’d bring up the topic so suddenly now?
‘Has she been thinking about it this whole time?’
Joorim wondered how the girl was really accepting the fact that the father she’d only just found had to go to prison.
As Joorim watched anxiously, Kazuki asked,
“Groo-chan, aren’t you really sad about being apart from your uncle?”
Joorim pricked up his ears, feigning disinterest.
“Yeah…” Groo replied, sounding deflated, and Joorim creased his brow in distress. Of course, it couldn’t be nothing to her.
But Groo quickly turned back to normal.
“But it’s okay.”
“Really? You’re okay?”
Groo nodded vigorously and returned to working the clay.
“If you commit a crime, it’s only right to receive punishment.”
“……”
Joorim noted how firmly the girl could say such things, while Kazuki nodded in agreement.
“That’s true. Justice has to be upheld.”
“Yep, that’s it. Even for your dad.”
“Right. Even a father can’t escape justice.”
Kazuki and Groo exchanged a look of solidarity and nodded gravely.
Joorim propped his chin in his hand, studying just how well the two of them got along.
For the outer-world “artisans,” it seemed, accepting justice wasn’t a difficult thing at all.
In fact, Groo’s attitude toward this farewell seemed almost more mature than his own.
Joorim let out a sigh and texted On Ijo and On Suhyeong, “Groo’s fine.”
Groo’s fine.
She seems to be taking it better than I thought.
On Suhyeong
Is she really okay? She’s not just hiding it?
On Ijo
I need to see for myself whether she’s all right.
Send a picture.
On Suhyeong
Yes, send one, please.
You both just want to see pictures of Groo, don’t you?
On Ijo
lol
On Suhyeong
?
While Joorim was being pressed by On Suhyeong and On Ijo to upload photos of Groo, Kazuki cocked his head.
“So, what is it you want me to teach you?”
“What do you need to prepare when your dad goes to prison?”
“Ah!”
Groo’s eyes sparkled.
“What do you bring? Toothbrush? Pajamas? Kimbap?”
Did she think it was some kind of picnic? Joorim rubbed his forehead.
“You don’t have to worry about that. The adults will take care of it.”
“Cheh.”
Groo clicked her tongue.
Kazuki smiled, glancing between the two, and changed the subject.
“By the way, Groo-chan, isn’t there a school bazaar coming up soon?”
“Yep! Last time it didn’t really happen, so they’re doing it again.”
Groo shook her head recalling the previous attempt.
The last bazaar had been cancelled after some strange villain created a dungeon in the school.
“But this time, the teacher said we’re not allowed to make filial piety snacks.”
Cheh—Groo clicked her tongue again in complaint. They’d been a huge hit last time…
But if she got caught trading awakened gear again, she’d really be in trouble.
Sending off a photo of Groo pouting, Joorim spoke firmly.
“No, that’s absolutely not allowed.”
No sooner had he sent it than a flood of protests came in from On Suhyeong and On Ijo, insisting Groo didn’t look okay at all.
While Joorim typed back that “Groo’s expression can change dozens of times in a single second,” Kazuki asked,
“Then what are you doing for the bazaar this time?”
“Oh! This time—”
Groo rummaged through her bag and pulled out several toys.
A toy stethoscope and a doctor’s kit.
“Ohh! Groo-chan is a doctor?”
“Yep! This time, I’m a toy doctor!”
Groo put the stethoscope in her ears and opened the doctor’s bag, revealing all sorts of toy instruments.
“Oh! Are you going to fix toys with these? That’s great!”
“Heehee! If you have any toys that need fixing, I’ll take care of them, Sensei!”
Kazuki clapped enthusiastically, and Groo, delighted, beamed and proclaimed her skills.
Watching her, Joorim felt a flicker of unease.
Why was she being so… normal? Was she secretly planning to create some kind of toy chimera like a mad scientist? Was everything really all right?
Still, Groo, now pretending to check Kazuki’s heart with her stethoscope, was cute enough that Joorim snapped an extra picture and sent it to the clamoring ‘monkeys’.
(Photo of Groo using the stethoscope on Kazuki)
On Suhyeong
Seems like she’s having fun.
On Ijo
She’s adorable. Who does my precious princess take after to be this pretty? ❤❤
(Photo of Groo giving Kazuki a toy injection)
(Photo of Groo blowing on Kazuki’s arm)
On Ijo
Cute, cute, cute! I miss my daughter so much ㅠ
On Suhyeong
?
Perhaps satisfied with the extra photos, the phone notifications finally fell quiet.
Enjoying a rare moment of peace, Joorim returned his attention to the documents before him.
By then, Kazuki and Groo had finished playing doctor and were kneading the clay again.
Noticing Groo working intently on something, Kazuki asked,
“Groo-chan, what are you making now?”
“Um, my uncle in prison.”
Joorim shot up, strode over, and snatched the clay from Groo.
“Stop making stuff like that!”
“Hing!”
The child seemed to be handling her father’s imprisonment a little too well.