It already looked very similar to the lard soap she had seen when she was little.
It really was going to work.
Haeun widened his eyes in amazement. "Wow, Sis, what is this?"
From behind the beast hide mask, Hayoon's muffled voice answered, "You can call it soap. It is used for cleaning dirt away."
Haeun grew even more curious.
"For cleaning? I want to try it!"
"Wait a little longer. It cannot be used yet."
After saying that, Hayoon carried over the liquid sulfur they had prepared earlier.
Since it was her first time adding it, and she did not know how much would be appropriate, she only added a small spoonful.
The moment the sulfur mixed into the beast oil, a rotten egg smell burst out so strongly that it nearly knocked Hayoon unconscious.
Dizzy from the smell, she still stubbornly continued stirring until everything was fully mixed together.
Only then did she scrape the mixture out and place it onto a clean leaf to cool.
After finishing all of that, she immediately ran off to the side and sneezing heavily several times in a row.
Haeun leaned closer to examine the "sulfur soap," while Minho walked over to Hayoon and asked, "Do you want to wash up a little?"
"I am fine." Hayoon's eyes were slightly red and her voice carried a nasal tone. "I just need a moment to recover. Once the sulfur soap cools down, I want to see how it can be adjusted further with these hands still as they are."
Minho said, "Do not force yourself."
Hayoon smiled, revealing two small canine teeth. "I am really fine. Oh right, could you help me check on the mother Bubalo and the calf?"
Minho agreed readily. "Alright."
But when he went to check, he immediately noticed something was wrong.
A hemp rope had been tied around the calf's neck by Minho and fastened to one of the wooden posts of the grass shed.
With its strength, breaking free would actually have been easy.
But perhaps because its wound still hurt, or because it was full and did not want to move, or maybe simply because of its naturally sluggish temperament, the calf had not tried to escape at all and was instead sleeping soundly in place.
The real problem was the mother Bubalo.
She was gone.
Hayoon's mind instantly filled with thoughts of "My milk is gone. My plow cow ran away," and her face turned pale as she hurriedly looked around.
"The mother Bubalo ran away?!" It was all because she had been too focused on making sulfur soap that she had not even noticed when it left.
Minho looked at her and motioned for her to calm down.
"It is in the forest over there. It did not go far. The calf is still here, so it will not leave completely. It probably just went to eat grass. If you are worried, I can go drive it back now."
Only then did the heavy weight in Hayoon's chest finally settle back down.
"You can sense where it is?" she asked.
Minho gave a quiet hum.
Hayoon thought to herself that beastmen truly were incredible hunters. She had not sensed anything at all.
"Then please keep an eye on it. If it goes too far away, drive it back a little."
"Alright."
While waiting, Hayoon sat on the ground and watched as the setting sun slowly disappeared behind the western mountains.
The sky gradually darkened.
Aside from the sound of the wind, only the chirping of insects could be heard around the grass mats.
Behind her, the firewood burning in the fire pit occasionally crackled softly.
"Moo."
Hayoon heard a low call behind her.
When she turned around, she saw the mother Bubalo returning toward the grass shed with slow satisfied steps.
Her belly was round and full from eating and her udders were swollen heavily with milk.
"Moo!"
The calf opened its eyes and answered happily.
As expected of creatures from the beast world, even though its wound had only just been treated, it was already able to stagger to its feet and lift its head, wanting to drink milk.
The mother Bubalo stood still without moving.
While softly mooing, she used her thick tongue to lick the calf's fur clean.
The warm and peaceful scene finally made Hayoon relax.
Just then, Haeun came trotting over to tell her that the soap seemed to have cooled already, so she stood up and walked back.
She first tested it lightly with her finger.
"A small amount really cools quickly."
Then she used a wooden chip to cut off three small pieces.
Each of them took one piece, translucent and crystal clear.
"Come on, let's go test it by the stream."
The three of them headed there together.
Once they reached the water, Hayoon demonstrated how to use it first by wetting her hands and rubbing the sulfur soap repeatedly.
Very quickly, foam appeared across her palms along with the dry, slightly tingling sensation caused by the sulfur.
The others copied her movements and began washing their hands with the sulfur soap as well.
"Oh wow, Sis." Haeun's already round eyes widened even further. "This feels amazing!"
Hayoon smiled and said, "Once you have rubbed enough, rinse the foam off with water."
"Okay!"
After washing, Haeun kept turning his hands over and over while continuously marveling at them.
"Every time I wash dishes, my hands end up greasy, and I have to rub them with sand for forever before they feel clean. But now they are actually this clean!"
"I do not think I have ever felt this refreshed before!"
"Sis, your soap is way too useful and convenient! Why did you not make this earlier?"
Hayoon: "..."
Because she had not thought of it before.
"As long as it works well." She deliberately skipped over the second question and turned to Minho instead. "What do you think? About the amount of sulfur I added."
Minho looked at her steadily before replying, "I think you can add a little more. The dirt on the hands was cleaned away, but killing insects probably will not be that easy."