Chapter 144
Chapter 144
Chapter 144
Baekyang's story was both short and long. The content itself wasn't extensive, but the narrative kept breaking off as she seemed to lose her words intermittently.
After listening to that lengthy tale, my conclusion was simple.
"It's not your fault."
It wasn't Baekyang's fault.
"It's not the children's fault either."
Nor was it the children's fault. There was only one problem.
"They were just too young."
They simply couldn't establish a foundation of understanding.
Baekyang hiding the fact that she was a goblin could be seen as wrong. Her initial intention for approaching them was playful, after all.
But in the end, she chose to genuinely play with the children.
Was that really wrong?
"That kind of lie isn't much different from me secretly stashing away a few potatoes to eat later when I'm peeling them."
"Give me back my potatoes."
"Don't be so petty. We're having a serious conversation here."
Anyway, Baekyang's lie was nothing more than that.
Concealing her identity.
That was all.
And the children were the same.
When Baekyang's goblin identity was exposed, they couldn't believe her. They simply saw her as a goblin, got scared, and ran away.
But they were just children, weren't they?
A child is easily influenced by the stories told by the adults around them.
That's why the conclusion was simple.
"It was just a misunderstanding that arose because they were young; it's no one's fault."
"Still, Wolha fell into the Samdo River because of me."
"That was an unforeseen accident. Besides, you tried to save Wolha, didn't you?"
"..."
Baekyang timidly nodded. Deep down, she was grateful that I said it wasn't her fault.
"I understand why you're so afraid."
Baekyang's fear was Soyeon's rejection.
This is fundamental. But if you delve deeper, you can see.
She had striven to blend into the human world.
She avoided lies more than humans and took care of others more diligently than humans.
Such efforts were the path she had walked until now.
After all that effort.
She wouldn't be able to bear being rejected again. This corresponded to the fear she harbored even while wandering the Samdo River, a fear of "what if?"
A single word that negates life itself.
Soyeon could utter that word.
Only Soyeon, the source of Baekyang's regret, could invalidate every path Baekyang had walked.
That's why she's afraid.
"I've heard the whole story..."
"Where are you going?"
"I have an appointment."
Baekyang silently grabbed my sleeve. Still, unlike before, her grip was quite weak.
"Don't worry. I'm not going to Soyeon right now to ask about this. I have business with someone else."
"..."
Still afraid, Baekyang released my sleeve at my words and then huddled, hugging her trembling body slightly.
It's an unfamiliar sight.
Is this timid person really the Baekyang I've known all this time?
"Ow, that stings."
I tried to pat her head because she looked anxious, but I got pricked by her horn.
It's sharper than I thought.
"What are you doing?"
Baekyang looked at me with half-closed eyes, reverting to her original manner of speaking.
"No, you looked anxious, so I thought I'd pat your head. Still, seeing you back to your old self, I guess my thoughts weren't entirely wrong."
"I guess it's because I'm dumbfounded."
Anyway, if the outcome was good, then it's fine.
"Then I'll be back. Don't worry, and take care of your condition for now. The children are worried too."
The statement about having an appointment was not a lie. Though no direct conversation had taken place, I had indeed made an appointment with someone.
"Are you coming to meet me, Bihyeong?"
"Why are you so late? If you vaguely understood, you should've come out quickly."
Earlier, while being dragged away by Baekyang, Bihyeong kept giving me subtle hints.
Whether he wanted to hear the full story of the incident or had something to say.
He was waiting for me.
"How about it? This old man's magic. You didn't even know I was here until I spoke to you, did you, you rascal?"
"Would anyone acknowledge a strange goblin drinking alcohol in the middle of the street?"
Bihyeong was tilting a glass.
He's not crazy, so why is he having a drinking party in the middle of a street where people are walking around? Even if I had noticed, it wasn't a situation I wanted to acknowledge.
"Judging by your expression, you seem to have heard the story, correct?"
"If it's about Baekyang's past, I heard it."
"You actually managed to hear it? So this one is different, huh?"
Bihyeong wiggled his giant pinky finger and grinned slyly.
I want to break that finger.
"Anyway, if you've heard it, the story will be quicker."
Bihyeong chuckled and poured alcohol into his glass. He manages to hold a soju glass with such a large finger.
More importantly, I wonder if drinking like that even has any effect on his liver.
"The children of the Federation grow up listening to fairy tales."
Bihyeong gulped down the small glass of alcohol in one go, then tilted his head and smacked his lips.
Indeed, that size doesn't seem to affect his liver at all. If that's the case, he could just drink from a larger glass...
"Since monsters live in the Federation, stories dealing with monsters have a very high proportion."
"Or things like immortals or tigers, right?"
"You know well."
Bihyeong laughed heartily, as if pleased with my answer, and shoved the entire bottle into his mouth.
No, what is that? Is he drinking it straight from the bottle? Why? Is it some kind of performance?
"The alcohol tastes bitter today."
"I think the bottle has a higher proportion than the alcohol itself..."
Whether the alcohol was bitter or the situation was bitter, Bihyeong frowned.
"Goblins in fairy tales are always the villains."
The treatment of monsters in the Federation is usually like that.
It's natural.
In Imperial territory, where monsters don't exist, such negative perceptions are less prevalent, but it's different in the Federation.
To them, monsters are harmful beings that have deeply infiltrated everyday life.
No matter how much goblins try to change now, their past actions have ingrained the perception that they are harmful monsters.
Not a different race, but a monster, because they cannot be understood or perceived as the same.
They cannot escape that derogatory term, that they were beings who caused harm to humans.
"The children who ran away from Baekyang in fear. Yes, it must be because they grew up listening to such fairy tales."
"They were just young."
"Really?"
"..."
"You probably said that when you were persuading Baekyang, didn't you? But you, of all people, must know that the influence of childhood can surprisingly follow you throughout your life, right?"
That's true.
Although it's often dismissed as a childish tale, it can surprisingly become deeply embedded in one's life.
It's the same principle as a child who fell into water being afraid of the beach even as an adult.
"I think this: they should never have gotten involved in the first place."
"Then why did you tell Baekyang to go out and see the world?"
"Because I thought the children in the West would be different. And look. They are definitely different, aren't they? You appeared before me."
"Then there's no reason why the East shouldn't work either. They're the same people."
"But they are people who live differently. Being human isn't what's important. The way they live is important."
"What are you trying to say? If you're so negative about interactions with humans, then why don't you stop humans from coming in from outside?”
"After that incident, Baekyang's face was in a terrible state. The kid looked like she was about to die."
Bihyeong chuckled at my chiding and continued his story. This time, it was Baekyang's story, the main point.
"This old man knew that child would get hurt. After all, I had a similar experience."
"If you knew that, why didn't you, as an adult, stop her?"
"Would she have listened if I stopped her? So I just let it be... but things got strangely twisted."
Bihyeong pressed his forehead. He probably thought the outcome would be a sharp lesson from childhood.
He never thought it would become a major incident, the disappearance of a child.
Baekyang was young, and Bihyeong, who watched over Baekyang, was not yet an adult either.
"I thought it would just work itself out, because I did, so she would too. I took it lightly. And then something that would become a lifelong wound happened."
Baekyang at that time seemed quite precarious. That's why Bihyeong forcibly appointed Baekyang as an Imemangryang.
"I was the leader, so I had to do something. I tried various things, you know? Giving advice, giving her work, and among them, the most effective was making Jeokmae Baekyang's rival, I guess?"
"So that's why they were so hell-bent on devouring each other. That was your doing. What a great thing to do."
"Hahahaha! But don't they look somewhat alive when they hate each other? This old man made them compete to achieve that."
While the result may have been good, it ruined human relationships.
He's trash, without any room for excuses.
"Still, I wasn't eloquent, and I couldn't understand that child's heart at all. I kept failing."
Baekyang's leisurely demeanor and strangely drawn-out way of speaking seemed to stem from Bihyeong's advice.
"I wanted her not to be impatient."
Nevertheless, Baekyang's behavior didn't improve. Bihyeong couldn't stop Baekyang from going in and out of the Samdo River.
Logically speaking, there's no chance for a child lost in the Samdo River to survive.
"But it turns out, I was the one being impatient."
Bihyeong knew, and Baekyang probably knew too.
Nevertheless, Bihyeong condoned Baekyang's actions, which were akin to self-satisfaction.
"If that makes her comfortable. If it puts her mind at ease, then yes, that's enough. That's what I thought."
"You weren't very adult-like."
"That's just how goblins are. No matter how much we grow, fundamentally, we can't help but be children. That's the goblin identity."
Eventually, when Baekyang's time in the Samdo River became more frequent with each passing day, Bihyeong reportedly drove Baekyang out under the guise of interacting with the outside world.
He had no choice. Prolonged exposure to the Samdo River's spiritual energy, which twisted one's organs, would only lead to no good.
It meant getting closer to Death.
"I was happy to see her bring so many friends, even if they were just children."
But once again, his foolish past mistake caught up with him.
The child Baekyang missed might have become a moon maiden. The result of letting her act for her own self-satisfaction appeared before his eyes.
He regrets it.
He regrets not stopping her when he realized it was wrong. He cursed his own rash judgment.
"How far can you go for Baekyang?"
Crunch.
Bihyeong crushed the glass into powder with just his grip.
He looked quite frustrated.
"Can you guarantee that that little kid won't get hurt any further?"
Bihyeong scrutinized me.
Cautiously, this time, to ensure he wouldn't casually dismiss it.
Now, he held nothing in his hands.
No bottle, no glass, just his bare hands.
"First, let's clarify one thing. Fairy tales featuring goblins. I still know a few that end with happy endings."
"What?"
"Such fairy tales already exist. So, with precedents already set, what's so difficult about it?"
In front of his genuine feelings, stripped of all pretense, I had but one thing to say.
"If it's a perception born from fairy tales, then a perception of goblins as friends must also exist."
You asked how far I could go for her?
"I can go as far as it takes. Just like the goblin in the fairy tales."
Bihyeong stared blankly at my determined answer, then raised his ring finger.
"Is it because it's this one that it's different?"
"..."
I tried to break it, but I didn't even have the strength to break his pinky finger. He's unnecessarily strong.
I gave a serious answer for once, and what kind of stunt is this?
"Hahahahaha!"
Bihyeong burst into laughter, watching me try to bend his finger.
I really want to kill him.
"Oh, and by the way, hating each other means understanding each other better than anyone."
"What are you suddenly talking about?"
"When you look for flaws, you see that much more. It means Jeokmae probably knows about this incident too. But I don't know how she'll react."
"Indeed, it means there's another wall to overcome."
This Bihyeong is truly useless. It's maddening how everything he does turns into a mess.
"Oh, and this is my personal curiosity, but once this is over, let's have a match. I want to see your real skill once."
"With Alexios?"
"Allosaurus?"
"Yes, anyway, he'll also be looking forward to a rematch, so you two can resolve it yourselves."
"Hmm... That sounds good too."
Competitive spirit.
A good word.
But it would be great if it wasn't directed only at me.
I feel bad for foisting it on Alexios, but he'll understand.
"..."
No, thinking about it, I don't actually feel sorry at all.