Chapter 5

The house felt cavernous with just one child gone. It had always been a small home, but now it seemed unnervingly vast. Ramona sat there, dazed and unmoving, until a sudden knock broke the silence.

Knock, knock, knock—

Her heart leaped. She wondered if Raon had forgotten something and come back. She flung the door wide, a hopeful smile blooming on her face.

“Sister, is something wrong?”

“Oh… Anna.”

The sight of Anna from next door instead of Raon sent a wave of visible disappointment across Ramona’s face.

“Did Raon get into trouble again?”

“No… of course not.”

“I just wondered. I saw that big carriage nearby earlier and a man going inside, so I thought maybe you’d finally lost the house this time. Anyway, I’m glad that’s not it, but why the long face?”

At Anna’s prodding, Ramona let out a heavy sigh and explained everything that had transpired.

“What? Raon has a biological father? And he left just like that today? No! Sister! Why do you always live such a losing life? You should have made him pay a hefty price for raising that boy.”

“I didn’t raise him for money. I felt it wouldn’t be right to ask for something in return.”

“Even so! Goodness, that father is a piece of work. How can he have no conscience? If someone raises your child for years, you at least offer child support.”

Even with Anna taking her side, the cloud of depression wouldn’t lift. Seeing Ramona so despondent, Anna began to chatter incessantly to distract her.

“Sister, I’m inviting you to dinner tonight. My conscience is pricking me because I’ve been mooching off your cooking for too long.”

Knowing Ramona wouldn’t bother cooking for herself in this state, Anna practically dragged her toward her own house. Fortunately, Anna’s second husband, Brown, earned a decent wage, so they didn’t have to survive on just boiled potatoes and stale bread.

“No, Anna. Even if a feast were laid out before me, I don’t think I could swallow a bite.”

“That’s exactly why you need to eat and find your strength! You probably told that boy to eat well and grow big, didn’t you? How can you starve yourself? What if Raon comes back to see you and doesn’t recognize you because you’re just skin and bones?”

At those words, Ramona finally pushed herself up. Anna took her trembling hand with a bright smile and led her home.

“Is it really okay to invite me without telling Brown?”

“Of course! You’re his ‘Big Sister,’ after all.”

Ramona leaned back into the sofa at Anna’s house and shook her head.

“I’ve told you many times, I’m technically younger than both you and Brown. Just speak casually and call me by name.”

In reality, Anna and Brown were the same age—two years older than Ramona. Yet, they insisted on calling her “Sister” and “Big Sister.”

“No way. Because you’re cool, Sister.”

While boiling a soup packed with plenty of meat, Anna thought back to two years ago—the time after her father passed away and she dealt with her ex-husband and mother-in-law. Her blood still boiled at the memory, but she knew she would still be suffering if it hadn’t been for Ramona.

***

Two years ago, Anna and Ramona didn’t live as close as they do now. Ramona, possessing far more strength than the average woman, was welcomed at various labor sites and took on any job available. Eventually, their workplaces overlapped, and they struck up a friendship.

At the time, Ramona had only just started looking after Raon. People whispered behind her back that she had ruined her life for a random child, but Ramona seemed entirely unbothered.

She never once uttered a word of resentment or regret about taking Raon in. She simply said it was the will of Jue, the nation’s only god. Anna liked Ramona’s lack of complaints and would often chatter away to her.

Anna used to grumble about how, even after three years of marriage and finally moving out, her mother-in-law would burst into the house to interfere with the housework. Ramona would always listen, telling her she was working hard, and during meal breaks, she would share the food she had prepared.

“Wow, this is delicious! Ramona, you have such a gift. I’m starting to get jealous of Raon.”

“You should wipe the olive oil off your lips before you say that. You’re just complimenting me because you want more, aren’t you?”

“Oh, caught me? Man, I tried so hard to be subtle.”

Ramona liked Anna too—a woman who never lost her smile despite a difficult marriage and an indifferent husband. Anna used talking as a way to vent the stress she gathered at home.

Then one day, when Anna didn’t show up for work, Ramona asked someone who lived near her.

“Oh? You didn’t know? Her father passed away suddenly last night. It’s a mess. Anna looks like she’s about to drop dead. Her mother isn’t around, and since Anna’s an only daughter, she has to prepare the funeral all by herself.”

“What? Oh no… what should I do?”

Shocked, Ramona dropped everything, left Raon with a neighbor, and headed straight for Anna’s house. Anna, who had already moved her father to the small village temple, looked hollow and dazed, her usual laughter completely gone.

Seeing her like that, Ramona couldn’t bring herself to ask if she was okay. Instead, she attended the funeral clutching a bouquet of wild flowers that Anna loved.

“I’m Ramona, a colleague who works with your daughter. These are her favorite flowers. I hope you’ll take them with you on your journey. Anna will be happy.”

They were the very flowers Anna had bragged about—the ones her father used to pick to make her flower crowns when she was little. No sooner had Ramona placed the bouquet down than Anna’s hollow expression shattered into a torrent of tears.

“Th-thank you… truly, thank you…”

Ramona comforted Anna, whose black clothes were soon soaked with tears. As night fell, Ramona stayed by her side. Anna’s husband lingered aimlessly before slipping away as soon as it got dark.

It was only later that Ramona learned the truth. Anna’s father had been chronically ill, and she had planned to visit him that afternoon. She had felt an unusual sense of anxiety and tried to leave early, but her mother-in-law had blocked her.

“You have to fix your husband’s dinner. Where do you think you’re going?”

Blocked from leaving until the meal was served, Anna was forced to stay and cook. By the time she finally reached her father, he had already collapsed.

“I didn’t even get to be there when he passed. I’m a terrible daughter, Father… You raised me so gently, and I insisted on marrying a man you were so against…”

Anna wept bitterly, feeling she had driven a stake through her father’s heart. Ramona comforted her in silence before rushing home to whip up some simple food.

“Eat this. If you’re just skin and bones, your father definitely won’t recognize his daughter. Eat and find your strength so you can send him off properly. Do you want to keep breaking his heart until the very end?”

At Ramona’s words, Anna—who had refused to eat—started forcing the food down through her sobs. The night passed, and in the morning, the husband returned, bringing the mother-in-law. Ramona expected a condolence, but what th’e woman said left her speechless.

“The dead are dead, and the living must go on, right?

“…’

“You should be looking after my son’s meals. Don’t you feel sorry for him? He’s lost so much weight since he met you.”

“Mother! Is that really something you say to a daughter-in-law who just lost her father? Is that why you came here!”

Ramona, who had heard Anna vent about her mother-in-law before, never imagined someone could be this senseless. She let out a cold, sharp laugh.

“I didn’t come for just that reason. I swear by Jue, I came to offer my condolences as well.”

“Exactly. My mother came to comfort you, and you have the nerve to raise your voice? Is that all your father taught you?”

Snap—

The string of Ramona’s patience snapped. She stepped in front of the two of them. Without a word of warning, she grabbed them both by the scruff of their necks and hoisted them up. Their legs dangled in the air, swinging helplessly.

“Comfort? Fine. Comfort is great. Why don’t the two of you go up to see Jue today and get some comfort firsthand? Lord Jue, two of your faithful servants are coming up early today. Please accept them. No returns allowed.”

Anna, who knew Ramona was strong but had no idea she was this powerful, watched her husband and mother-in-law hovering on the brink of an “early trip to heaven.” She wiped her tears and spoke.

“S-Sister… you’re so cool.”

Anna, deciding right then that the national rule should be to call anyone that cool “Sister,” had called her that ever since.