Antifragile

“Are you sure about this? I don’t trust this place, it’s too…fancy.” Eunbi sighed, looking around anxiously.

“Trust me, please. I know it looks like a snobbish neighbourhood, but there’s someone who will be willing to help.” Sakura reassured her.

Chaewon and Eunbi exchanged looks, but neither protested as Sakura led them further up the hill. They were dressed in formal attire, ensuring that they blended in well with the nobles who resided in the area. Nobody spared them a glance, they were all too caught up in their own lives to care about other people.

“This is the house.” Sakura declared, stopping in front of the largest estate on the hill.

“Are you insane? These people would never help bandits! You’re going to get us killed. We have to go, now.” Eunbi insisted, looking outraged.

“Please, just trust me. If anything bad happens, I’ll turn myself in so you can leave.” Sakura promised.

Eunbi sighed and watched warily as Sakura led them around the side of the estate and to some bushes. She gently moved the bushes apart to reveal a small hole in the fence, large enough for an adult to squeeze through. Sakura entered first, followed by Eunbi then Chaewon. Sakura then hid below a window, lightly tapping on it.

“What are you doing?” Chaewon hissed.

“Getting help, duh.” Sakura deadpanned.

A small head appeared at the window, looking around. Sakura sprang up from her hiding place, almost causing the girl to have a panic attack.

“Chaeryeong-chan, is your sister home? I need to ask her for a favour.” Sakura asked brightly as she hugged the girl.

“I’ll go get her, wait right here.” Chaeryeong replied, scurrying off to call her sister.

Chaeyeon soon appeared, embracing Sakura tightly. They exchanged a few pleasantries, catching up on some old news.

“How did you manage to come here? I heard that you ran away from the palace. Where is Kazuha-chan?” Chaeyeon bombarded Sakura with question after question.

“I met some friends. Chaeyeon, meet Eunbi and Chaewon. They rescued me and saved Zuha’s life. Eunbi and Chaewon, this is Chaeyeon. She is my trusted friend and confidant.” Sakua explained.

Eunbi and Chaewon nervously stood up to greet Chaeyeon, eyeing her warily. Chaeyeon pretended not to notice their distrust, flashing them a friendly smile. She didn’t blame them for being hostile, she would’ve done the same in their situation.

“What brings you here? How can I help?”

“I need to borrow some money. An…incident happened and now we don’t have any income for a while. We have many mouths to feed and little ones who are still growing, and it would not be right to deny them the nutrition they need to develop.” Sakura asked.

Chaeyeon wordlessly passed a small bag over to Sakura, with around 100 silver coins inside. Sakura gasped in shock at Chaeyeon’s generosity, trying to return most of the money.

“Keep it. Take this as my thanks for saving my family’s life. And if you need anything else, I’m always here to help.”

Eunbi and Chaewon almost couldn’t believe their eyes. That one bag contained enough money to feed them for nearly a year, let alone a week. Chaeyeon was really filthy rich.

“Unnie, mum is looking for you.” Chaeryeong called from inside the house.

“I’d better go, I don’t know how my parents would react to seeing you here. Stay safe.” Chaeyeon said hurriedly, returning to the house before her parents could suspect anything.

“Bye Saku-chan! See you around!” Chaeryeong mouthed, waving to Sakura.

Sakura waved goodbye and took her leave, a dumbfounded Eunbi and Chaewon trailing behind. It had been so simple. No tricks, no stealing, just a few words exchanged was all Sakura needed to obtain a bag of silver.

They eventually ended up back at the market, where Eunbi was able to purchase enough food for a feast. The silver in the bag never seemed to end, and even after buying enough food to feed the entire country, there was barely a dent in the number of coins left in the bag.

“I think we should just be sponsored by your rich friends from now on. This money can be used to buy some new shoes for the kids, and maybe buy Wonyoung that dress she has been wanting for a while. And Eunchae has had her eye on this cute little charm bracelet for a while…” Eunbi continued rambling on and on about what she could buy with the money.

As she listened to Eunbi list down all the things she wanted to buy, she noticed that Eunbi had never asked for anything for herself. Everything she had listed down was for the others. Sakura appreciated her selflessness. In times of need, she always put the others before herself. Even in times of celebration, she never wanted anything for herself. She only wanted her kids to be happy, and that was enough for her.

Chaewon listened to Eunbi talk fondly, staring at her with adoring eyes. Eunbi was really a saint. Even when she had almost nothing, she had taken in every single kid she could house and always made sure that they were safe and well fed. She recalled when Eunbi used to go days without eating anything just so she could feed the rest of them.

“You’re all still growing, you need it more than I do. Don’t worry about me, I can manage.” She had reassured them.

Chaewon had promised herself ever since that day that one day, she would be the one to look after Eunbi instead. She was too selfless for her own good, and she deserved only the best things. Chaewon would give Eunbi the monarchy if she could, though for now she had to settle for something smaller.

“Unnie…do you mind if I borrow a few coins? I want to get something nice for Eunbi unnie. She works so hard for us and I think she deserves a treat.” Chaewon whispered.

Sakura felt a warm glow spread through her, doing her best to hide her red cheeks away from Chaewon. Chaewon’s face was literally inches from Sakura’s, and she didn’t dare to look at Chaewon in the eye. She’d probably blush so much that she’d look like a beetroot.

“Here, and if you need more just come to me.” Sakura answered, still avoiding Chaewon’s eyes as she pressed a few pieces of silver into Chaewon’s palm.

Chaewon tucked the coins away into a small pocket, moving away from Sakura to avoid attracting Eunbi’s attention. They finished the rest of the journey home in comfortable silence, arms aching from the amount of food they were carrying.

“Did you rob the palace or something? We can’t afford this much food!” Yuri exclaimed as they stepped through the door.

“I have friends in high places.” Sakura replied with a cheeky grin.

“Daebak! We can eat until we’re fat!” Eunchae squealed, her eyes wide.

Yujin and Wonyoung exchanged a celebratory hi-five, gasping as Eunbi unloaded more and more supplies from her never ending bag.

“We’ll have a feast tonight! We will eat like kings!” She declared, getting to work straight away.

Chaewon and Yena helped Eunbi prepare the food while the rest celebrated, unable to believe their good fortune. It was the first time most of them have ever had a proper meal.

“You didn’t really rob the palace right?” Kazuha whispered as she sidled up to Sakura.

“Of course not, I’m not that stupid. Chaeyeon-chan gave me a bag of silver as thanks for saving her family’s life.” Sakura explained.

“Ah~ is that the family that was falsely accused of treason? They were accused of being anti-Japanese right?”

“Yes, her father was the prime minister before the Japanese took full control of the government. After I vouched for them and they were released from prison, he took up another important position in the government. I guess Chaeyeon-chan becoming friends with the kids of various Japanese ministers has its perks.” Sakura revealed.

“Speaking of ministers….we heard some soldiers pass by earlier. They’re still looking for you. Your parents are livid and anxious, your cousin is due to arrive in three days and now they have nobody to marry off. Your grandfather will probably disown you once he finds out you ran away from the palace, hell, he might even have your father killed!”

“Good, that’s exactly what I wanted. I never wanted to be a princess, and I have no affection for my father. He has never once treated me like a human being, let alone his daughter. I hope he dies a horrible, painful death. As for being disowned, have at it. I’m much happier here than I was at the palace. What’s the use of being wealthy if I’m miserable and alone all the time? If I had the chance to go back in time to before all this happened, I would’ve left sooner.” Sakura said coldly, her eyes dark with hatred.

Kazuha dared not touch on the matter any further. Sakura was very stubborn when it came to matters about the royal family, and it was hopeless trying to argue with her.

“Unnie, Eunchae and I are going to harvest some of the vegetables we planted in the backward. Wanna come?” Yunjin called.

Sakura brightened up instantly, bounding after them and out the door. Kazuha sighed as she watched Sakura leave, worrying about her safety. She knew that Sakura was not in any danger, but it just felt so natural to worry about her. She had been doing for longer than she could remember.

“She’ll be fine, don’t worry.” Yuri reassured Kazuha.

“I know, it’s just a habit at this point. It feels odd not worrying about her.” Kazuha admitted.

“How long have you been serving under her? You seem to be around the same age as me, so it shouldn’t have been that long right?”

“Almost my whole life actually. We were playmates when we were younger, and I officially became employed by the palace when I turned ten. Both my parents were staff members in the palace, and so I grew up there. I was assigned to look after the princess as we were around the same age, and the more experienced staff were needed by the king and queen.” Kazuha explained.

“Sounds…harsh. It must not have been easy. I can only imagine how resilient you are.” Yuri mused.

“The princess made it enjoyable. She’s one of the few people who treats all of us with respect, so I’ve never minded working for her. Sure, she can be a troublemaker and she does have a bit of a temper, but at the end of the day she is a very kind and generous person. She used to hide little snacks and tidbits within the folds of her clothes and give them to us, after making sure that they were safe to eat of course. That’s why so many of us are loyal to her. I’d give up my life for her, no questions asked.”

“Well…I can tell that she’d would do the same for you. She refused to leave you behind when you got injured, and I can see how much she respects you. I envy your close bond.”

“Why, are you wishing that you could be as close to a certain someone?” Kazuha teased, glancing at Yena.

“Eunbi unnie, is dinner almost ready?” Yuri asked loudly, making her escape from Kazuha before Yena could notice them.

Kazuha chuckled to herself, watching as Yuri distracted herself by playing with Wonyoung and Yujin. Every so often, Yuri would look up to steal a glance or two at Yena before returning to her game. Yuri was horrible at hiding her feelings.

“Dig in everyone! Dinner is ready!” Eunbi called, proudly showing off the food.

Eunchae was practically drooling all over the table as she stared at the piles and piles of food. The food seemed to never end, and the group dug into it like a pack of ravenous wolves. Eunbi watched them from the head of the table fondly, like a mother watching over her children.

Chaewon noticed that Eunbi was still holding back from eating, letting the others take whatever they wanted first before she helped herself. She could feel the familiar sense of guilt worm its way into her stomach. Eunbi always put others first, during both the good times and the bad. She only wished that she could do more to help Eunbi.

“There’s one more chicken thigh left, who wants it?” Yujin asked, her eyes focused on the sole piece of chicken left on the plate.

“Eunbi unnie hasn’t had any yet.” Chaewon pointed out quietly.

An awkward silence fell over the table. In their excitement to eat, they had all forgotten about Eunbi.

“Let the kids have it, I can eat other things. Here, let me divide it up equally for them.” Eunbi offered.

“No! Eunbi unnie, you eat it!” All of the younger girls chorused.

Eunbi hesitantly accepted the chicken, biting into proper meat for what was the first time in most likely years. A smile dawned on her face as the tender and juicy flavour of the chicken burst onto her tongue. She had forgotten what meat tasted like. Even something as simple as chicken was a privilege.

“You didn’t eat any chicken either. Here, take this before Yujin sees it. I had a little bit if you don’t mind.” Sakura whispered to Chaewon, quietly pushing her plate closer.

Chaewon gratefully accepted Sakura’s offer, finishing the chicken off in several bites much to Sakura’s amusement. For once, she was glad that she was a picky eater. The chicken was just not for her, but it was perfect for Chaewon.

“How are your friends doing? Do they need anything? I still have some money from Chaeyeon-chan.” Sakura asked suddenly, keeping her volume low to avoid distracting the other people.

“They’re fine, recovering well. Business should be back in a couple of days, don’t worry. I know them well, they’ll be back on their feet in no time. Thank you for the offer though.”

“How do you even know them anyway? If you don’t mind me asking. No offence, but you don’t seem like the very sociable type.”

Chaewon giggled, Sakura was not wrong exactly. It was true that she did have trouble meeting new people at least.

“I grew up with them. Eunbi unnie, Suyun, Sohee and I were all from the same orphanage. Dahyun, Yeonhee and Yunkyoung joined the orphanage much later, around the time where Eunbi unnie and I left. They left not long after us and met Juri unnie, and we used to hangout together with Yujin and Wonyoung. We grew apart when they started running their black market business, but we kept in touch every now and then. Once Yuri and Yena joined, Eunbi unnie offered them a partnership. We’d steal the items for them to sell, and we would split the profits amongst ourselves. It’s been that way ever since, thought we do have other connections and dealings separately.” Chaewon explained.

“I see, then how long-“

Sakura was interrupted by a loud and abrupt sound of banging. Shouts could be heard from outside, mostly in Japanese. The group froze as they scrambled to compose themselves.

“Quick, go out the back door and hide where it’s safe! We’ll handle it.” Eunbi instructed the younger ones.

Yena led the younger ones into the kitchen, grabbing Sakura and Kazuha as well. The two of them were liabilities, and if they were recognised then everyone was screwed. Yuri led the way as Sakura, Kazuha, Yujin, Wonyoung, Eunchae and Yunjin snuck out of the house. They could hear the soldiers from around the corner, still yelling and pounding on the door.

“Hurry!” Yuri urged as Yena slammed the back door shut, locking the younger girls out.

Yuri and Yunjin led the group round the back of the neighbouring houses, staying away from the soldiers. Sakura cast one final glance at the house, sincerely hoping that everything would be okay. She had a feeling that something bad was about to happen.