26. Fulfilling the Promise
26. Fulfilling the Promise
26. Fulfilling the Promise
"And so, Hong Gil-dong became a king and lived happily ever after."
The end.
Why is it this long if it's a fairy tale?
After reading a fairy-tale book to Ban Ha-na, my lips felt as dry as a desert.
I'd underestimated it as just a picture book, but reading every single word aloud was tougher than I'd thought.
"...Is it over?"
Ban Ha-na asked me, her voice tinged with disappointment.
She had been completely absorbed the entire time I was reading, clearly enjoying it.
'Well, no wonder she's disappointed. It is a fairy tale.'
The story of Hong Gil-dong had been adapted into a children's book, so the content was heavily condensed.
Hong Gil-dong, born of a concubine and forbidden from calling his own father "Father."
He lived the life of a righteous outlaw, and one way or another, he eventually invaded another country and became its king.
In some ways, the story of Hong Gil-dong ran parallel to Black Dawn's own narrative.
Their plan for success bore similarities to his tale.
I stroked the disappointed Ban Ha-na's hair.
"Hong Gil-dong's story is over."
"Then... what about other people's stories...?"
"Mm..."
Ban Ha-na showed genuine fascination—she'd clearly taken a real liking to the book.
Let's just hope she ignores the pile of Hitler's biographies stacked over there.
I wanted to keep reading her other books, but my body refused to cooperate.
My mouth was bone-dry, and my pathetically low stamina had hit its limit after holding the book for so long.
"That's it for today. I'll read more next time."
"Whyyy...? How come...! Let's read this one...!! Just this one... just one more...!!"
As if she'd had a specific book in mind for a while, Ban Ha-na sprang from the sofa and pattered off to grab it.
If she'd wanted to read that badly, couldn't she have asked another member of the group?
I posed the question when she returned clutching a book.
"Why don't you ask the others to read to you? Can't everyone in your group read?"
"Th...that's..."
Ban Ha-na started to explain, slowly.
"Kim Chun-sam is money-crazy and ugly, so I hate being near him..."
"Angela reads, but she does it with an annoyed tone, so I hate that too..."
"Uncle Pil-du talks way too slow, so I hate it..."
"Da-il starts reading, but then she gets so absorbed she stops speaking altogether..."
"Grandpa Hae-il always brings weird books, so I hate it..."
"And Yu-wol... I just hate her!"
It seemed Ban Ha-na genuinely had her reasons for not reading on her own.
The members of Black Dawn were all missing a screw or two, so they probably weren't a good fit for her anyway.
Not that I was saying Ban Ha-na was the picture of sanity.
Her screw was merely a little loose.
It hadn't fallen out yet.
Once my question was out of the way, Ban Ha-na shoved the book toward me again.
"Just read this one! Pet! Do what your master says, quickly!"
"I'm not a pet. My name is Han Si-jun."
"I...I get it! I won't call you pet! Si...Si-jun! Read it!"
Her fingertips, as she pushed the book toward me, practically trembled with desperation.
How badly had she wanted to read, to act like this?
Once I finished the book, I'd have to look around for something that could help her learn to read.
"Just this one, and we're done? No more today?"
"Yay! Si-jun is the best! Hehe..."
Ban Ha-na let out a triumphant cheer and threw herself into my arms.
The way she nuzzled her face against me, she was the spitting image of a pink bunny.
And this went on for much longer than I'd expected.
'...She must have been starved for affection.'
Growing up without proper parents, Ban Ha-na might well have felt isolated among villains who roamed freely outside.
Based on how she acted with me, she was clearly desperate for attachment.
"Hehe... things have gotten a little more fun since you came here..."
Why is she clinging like this?
This is a bit unnerving.
Surely not?
'It can't be... the Fate, right?'
The Womanizer's Fate.
Could it be that she had fallen for me?
No way.
There's no way.
Ban Ha-na was just starved for affection. She was simply acting on a momentary impulse, being honest with her feelings. That was all.
I gently detached Ban Ha-na from my arms.
It was time to read her the book.
The title of the book she had brought back was Rapunzel.
It's the tale of a prince who rescues a woman imprisoned in a high tower, and the two of them fall in love.
Ban Ha-na stared intently at my face, then settled back between my legs with a grin.
"Now! Hurry up and read it! Si-jun!"
"...Fine."
Ban Ha-na, beaming from ear to ear, urged me to start the story.
With a sense of unease still lingering in my chest, I opened the book.
Hoping my suspicion was wrong,
I began to read the fairy tale to Ban Ha-na, nestled in my lap, right into her ear.
***
Dinnertime, with all the members of Black Dawn gathered.
Even though a top-grade steak was right in front of me, I couldn't taste a thing and was the first to finish my meal.
"...Thank you for the food."
The presentation was so exquisite that I almost regretted losing my sense of taste.
For a moment, I wondered if picking taste had been the wrong choice.
'Still, it's better than giving up my lifespan. Live three years longer, and I'll get to eat something even better later.'
I offered myself a half-hearted consolation about the past.
"Hold on a moment."
Just as I stood up from my seat and started toward my room, the leader of Black Dawn, Shin Hae-il, spoke to me.
What did he want?
As the question lingered, he spoke.
"I have something to discuss. Go to my room at the far end and wait."
With me?
What could he possibly want to say?
It had been just over a day since I arrived here.
I had no idea what he wanted to talk about.
"Yes, sir. I'll go ahead, then."
I was a bit uneasy, but I did as he said and walked toward the door at the far end of the hallway.
The room with the taxidermied deer head.
'...And this is Han Yu-wol's room next door...'
Right beside Shin Hae-il's room was the door to Han Yu-wol's room, which I was supposed to visit.
Compared to the other members' quarters, her door was unadorned, but a somewhat eerie aura seemed to seep from it.
Ugh, just looking at it is terrifying.
I tore my eyes away from her room and stepped into Shin Hae-il's.
"...It's more normal than I expected."
His room was strikingly ordinary, carrying the cozy, distinctive scent of an elderly person's space.
Deep, basic-colored wallpaper and flooring.
Difficult-looking books lining the shelves.
A desk and a rocking chair that appeared to be made of expensive wood.
A plush leather sofa and a small table in front of it.
And a bed crafted from what looked like solid stone.
It was the quintessential Korean grandfather's room.
I sat down on the leather sofa and decided to wait for him to finish his meal and return.
'For a villain, he seems way too normal...'
The unsettlingly ordinary nature of Shin Hae-il's room frightened me more than if it had been full of monstrous decorations.
Isn't a psychopath pretending to be normal the scariest of all?
If you see someone who's clearly insane, you can just say, "Oh, that person's crazy," and steer clear.
But Shin Hae-il, on the surface, was practically the image of a kind old grandfather.
Sure, if you turned him inside out, a heinous criminal was probably living inside him.
But unless you dug deeper, you would never uncover the fact that he was deranged.
Click.
Just as I was thinking about Shin Hae-il, he opened the door and entered, having apparently finished his meal.
Uneasy about spending too much time alone with him, I tried to get straight to the point.
"What did you want to talk to me about?"
"Let's have some tea first. It might take a while."
Unfortunately, Shin Hae-il told me it would be a long conversation.
Left with no choice, I accepted the teacup he poured for me.
"These are leaves from the Yeosu S-rank Gate. They're said to help with mana recovery."
"Ah... I see..."
Except I don't have any mana.
I took a sip of the tea, which tasted like nothing at all to me.
Yeosu.
In the lore of V. AGE, an S-rank Gate had once opened in Korea.
Gate Erosion.
Many heroes and hunters who specialized in Magic Beasts were dispatched, but they lacked the capability to conquer it. In the end, their attempt to clear the S-rank Gate ended in failure.
The boss monster that possessed the Gate's core eventually broke free and swallowed the region famous for its night sea—Yeosu—turning it into its own territory.
The Gate Erosion stopped there, spreading no further.
After that fateful day, the heroes and hunters who had been consumed by its horror lived on as if they'd simply forgotten the place called Yeosu even existed.
Shin Si-hwa, currently a teacher at Hero Academy, had been among the forces deployed that day.
And Shin Hae-il... was one of the architects who had created that Gate in the first place.
"...So, what was it you wanted to tell me?"
"You have quite an impatient nature. I hear you've been spending time with Ha-na. What do you think? Isn't she a good kid?"
...Did he call me here just to brag about his granddaughter?
There was no way Shin Hae-il would call me over just to say that.
I let a hint of sharpness creep into my voice.
"She is. A pure kid, not yet tainted like the rest of your people."
"Indeed. She possesses a goodness that doesn't quite suit this Black Dawn."
Shin Hae-il had raised her since infancy, so he seemed to have an accurate grasp of her character.
Without a doubt, Ban Ha-na possessed an inherent innocence that didn't fit in with villains.
"So, here's the thing. One week from now, on the promised day. Could you do me a small favor?"
"...A favor?"
"I won't ask this of you for nothing. I'll see that you are compensated most generously."
Shin Hae-il was indicating that the day I would leave this place was one week away.
What in the world did he intend to ask of me?
At the same time, the blind Shin Hae-il placed the promised 'compensation' on the desk.
At the sight of it, my eyes widened.
'This is...'
How in the world did this thing fall into his hands?
A single handgun nestled snugly inside a box.
It was no ordinary firearm, not the kind I'd known from my old world.
'Crow's Wing.'
A name derived from the pitch-black pistol's appearance, which resembled a crow's wing.
It was an item in V. AGE, ranked between B and A, and typically used in the early to mid-game. If properly enhanced, it was a fine weapon that could remain viable all the way to the late stages.
The Crow's Wing could fire using magic without any physical bullets.
It was a firearm that even received bonuses to muzzle velocity and destructive power.
This was clearly a dropped weapon, obtainable only by defeating one of the mid-boss villains.
"Is this not enough?"
Shin Hae-il said to me with a benevolent smile.
I found that unsettling grin deeply uncomfortable.
If I were to acquire this weapon, I'd be able to achieve a dramatic surge in combat strength.
Combined with the Golem Core, I'd stand a fighting chance even against a C or B-rank villain who challenged me.
First, I decided to hear what his favor actually was.
"So. What is the favor?"
"It's nothing much. Simply open this letter and read it aloud on the promised day, when I give you the signal. Is that not simple enough?"
"..."
This reeks of trouble.
All I have to do is read a letter?
It makes no sense to offer a weapon like that as payment for a task that easy.
If I were dealing with a truly fair partner, they'd give me nothing more than a magazine for the pistol.
It was impossible not to be suspicious.
'A favor from Shin Hae-il makes it even more problematic...'
His favors came with generous rewards, but they also meant the world was inching that much closer to its destruction.
I glanced briefly at the Crow's Wing sitting before me, then shut my eyes tight.
"I apologize, but I don't think I can grant that favor."
"...Why is that? I ask out of simple curiosity, so please, answer freely."
Shin Hae-il seemed not to have expected my refusal.
There was the faintest tremor in his voice.
'Why did I refuse?'
The answer to that question was already set.
"I don't trust you, not for a second."
Sure, he was an honest villain, but did he really think I'd be swayed by a single weapon?
I'd accepted the kidnapping under semi-duress, but this time it was purely a personal matter.
Shin Hae-il really seemed to think I was a complete pushover.
His expression hardened at my reply, but then he opened his mouth to speak.
"...That was an interesting answer. You may leave now."
"Then, pardon me."
I walked out of his room feeling a wave of relief.
I could always get the weapon later anyway.
From what I could remember, there were plenty of weapons far better than the Crow's Wing.
'I won't ever let things go the way they want.'
That resolution was for the sake of the world's peace, and it was also for Yu Ha-yeon—who was likely worrying herself sick right about now.
***
Creeeak.
Slam.
The door with the taxidermied deer head.
Once I had closed it behind me, I paused, briefly lost in thought.
'What's his angle?'
Simply reading a letter was exceedingly easy, but the fact that he'd put up such an expensive weapon as the reward meant doing so would bring the world significantly closer to ruin.
I had no clue what Shin Hae-il was plotting with that offer.
I'd find out one week from now, on the promised day he had mentioned.
As I was momentarily absorbed in that thought, a small creature came scurrying up in front of me.
"Si-jun! There you were!"
Patter-patter-patter.
Ban Ha-na came dashing over, clutching her rabbit doll as always.
She'd clearly been searching for me.
"What is it? I gave you that book earlier, didn't I? To study with."
After I'd finished reading Rapunzel, I had handed her a Korean pronunciation book for foreigners that I'd found tucked away in the library.
I suspected it had once been used by the non-Korean member of Black Dawn.
I'd promised her that if she memorized all the consonants, I would read to her again tomorrow.
Ban Ha-na fidgeted and gave me her reply.
"I...I don't get it! Help me! I can't do it alone!"
All she needed to do was look at the pictures and see how the letters were shaped based on the pronunciations.
But she was insisting she couldn't figure it out.
She tugged at my sleeve, shouting for us to go to her room.
Just as she was about to drag me off with the sheer difference in our strength,
Han Yu-wol's door—the one right next to Shin Hae-il's—creaked open with an ominous groan.
Creeeak...
'What the—why is she coming out now?'
A chill seeped from the room as Han Yu-wol stepped out.
Without a moment's hesitation, she placed her hand on my waist and pulled me through the open door.
"I'm sorry, Ha-na, but Si-jun has a prior engagement. I'll be taking him with me."
"Huh...huh...? What do you..."
Bam!
The door slammed shut, cutting off Ban Ha-na's words.
And so, leaving Ban Ha-na abandoned in the hallway, I was sucked into Han Yu-wol's room, where the air was freezing cold.