EP.23.5 The Price of a Mistake

Suobi Village. A place fated for tragedy, annihilated by the Vrykolakas.

Unaware that we were surrounded by vampires, my Companions and I had ended up lodging there by a stroke of luck, and that night, we fought them.

After a fierce battle so intense it nearly blew away the entire village, we succeeded in defeating the Vrykolakas, the source of all the trouble.

And so, by laying to rest the grudges of the sacrificed villagers, that case was closed.

Even now, I still thought of it as a perfectly plausible story.

But reality was harsh.

"Ugh...!"

The villagers, whom I had all thought dead, had actually all survived and were safely evacuated to a nearby area.

While the villagers themselves were unharmed, their homes had all vanished into black ash. And the cause wasn't the vampires—it was me.

No matter how much Ruthven and the vampires had seized control of the village, in the end, I was the one who destroyed it entirely.

There were bound to be plenty of villagers who hated me more than they hated ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the vampires.

"How does it feel to write the very first statement of apology in your life?"

"This is seriously tough. I'm supposed to record the course of events, but somehow, it keeps sounding like I'm making excuses."

"That's how it always is at first. The bigger your screw-up, the harder the statement becomes to write."

"Is that so...? Anyway, how do you know this so well, Da-hye senior?"

"Th-That's...!"

"That's because Da-hye's a repeat customer for these things~!"

"Writing statements of apology is basically part of her daily routine."

"Both of you, be quiet!! Do you think I wanted to make those mistakes? They were all mistakes, I said! Mistakes!"

Her final word gouged at my heart.

Mistake. A convenient word used to rationalize one's own fault.

But I decided I would absolutely never use it, at least for the time being.

A mistake was still one's own fault. I came to believe that instead of making excuses by calling something a mistake, it was far better to simply bow your head and admit you messed up.

"Anyway! It's your first statement. So try writing it with some real flair! If you need, I'll even give you a review!"

"Da-hye."

"Huh?"

"I'm sorry, but you have to write one too. A statement of apology."

"Huh...?! Why?"

"When the Director issued orders to guide the residents to a smooth evacuation, you went back to the lodging saying you forgot your valuables, right? That's a clear charge of disobeying orders."

"B-But that was an extremely important item...!"

"He asked if that was more precious than the lives of the residents, and told me to tell you to write out three pages' worth and submit them."

"Oh, no...!!"

Watching my senior personally prove that her reputation as a repeat statement-writer was true, I felt genuinely amazed.

She was a living cautionary tale, a perfect example of what I must never become.

At any rate, being forced to write a statement like I was on the same level as her left a bad taste in my mouth.

So ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I cut out all unnecessary content, concisely summarizing only the necessary parts, and finished it in a single page.

All that remained was to submit this statement to Director Edwiner.

Leaving my despairing senior behind, I turned my steps toward the Director's office.

"Haaah...!!"

The hallway heading to the Director's office.

Exhausted in more ways than one, I couldn't hold back the sigh that escaped me.

The Yeti, the Wendigo, and then Hraesvelgr.

Already utterly worn out from dealing with those three Divine Beasts, I'd had to respond to the Divine Beast attack without a moment's rest.

Having fought another Divine Beast without any proper break, my body had naturally been marinated in the seasoning of sheer fatigue.

And on top of all that, I now had to immediately report on those events and my fault, just like now. Working life as a member of society was truly, disgustingly difficult.

Of course, I thought expecting only easy work was the wrong mindset, but still, I couldn't help feeling I was getting hit with far too much hardship.

"Director, this is Agent Yoo Seon-ju. May I come in?"

"Come in."

Before opening the door to the Director's office, I lightly kneaded my face with my hands, trying to adjust my expression to look as pitiful as possible.

Thanks to Director Edwiner falsely announcing to the residents that the village had been destroyed by the Divine Beast, we had managed to avoid the worst-case scenario.

I had at least done this to show him that I harbored no complaints.

But the moment I opened the door and he saw my face, Director Edwiner gave a soft, bitter smile.

"You look quite exhausted."

"Oh? Is it that obvious?"

"There is no need to force such an expression. The dark circles under your eyes speak clearly of your condition."

"Ah... I should have at least put on some powder before coming."

"Haha, yes, then I might have indeed been fooled. Anyway, I take it you've come to submit your statement?"

"Yes, here it is."

I placed the statement on the Director's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠desk and slid it toward him.

The Director took it and immediately began skimming through it.

Even as he did, he casually tossed questions my way.

"It seems there are quite a few omitted details between sections. Is this information you cannot disclose?"

"Yes, I'm sorry. I'm supposed to write down the entire course of events honestly, without leaving a single thing out, but I have my own circumstances..."

Aside from Tia, I had not informed Director Edwiner of a single thing about my other Companion Divine Beasts.

Because of that, the statement I had written inevitably contained some contradictions.

If I were a genius novel writer, I might have been able to erase even those contradictions, but regrettably, my literary talent was below average.

"Is that so..."

"Though I cannot tell you the story I'm hiding due to an unfortunate coincidence, I swear on my heart that everything recorded in that document is the truth."

"Hmm... Very well. I shall accept that you have certain circumstances and choose to believe you."

"Thank you for understanding."

I had said I couldn't tell him, but Director Edwiner likely had a rough idea by now anyway.

That there were Divine Beasts besides Tia helping me.

If that weren't the case, there was no way he could have climbed to his current position.

Moreover, since he had already caught on to a certain degree, he probably chose not to press me further.

"This will suffice. Normally, I would have to return a statement like this, but since it's you, I shall take responsibility and destroy it."

"Thank you again."

"And as for your disciplinary action and disposition..."

Gulp...!!

Since becoming an agent, I had received rewards countless times, but I had never once received a proper disciplinary measure.

A severe punishment from a central government agency. I began to tense up, wondering what kind of penalty I'd be handed.

"If you successfully complete one critical mission, I shall grant you amnesty for this incident."

"Huh...? Th-That's it?"

"Indeed. After all, I can hardly order you to rebuild Suobi Village from scratch, can I?"

"W-Well, no..."

It wouldn't be impossible if we borrowed the strength of my Companions, but I decided against scratching at a scab and simply kept quiet and agreed.

If I shouted "Totally doable!" here, it was obvious I'd get tangled up in something troublesome.

"Therefore, I decided to settle it with a single mission you are capable of. In the first place, wasn't this destruction of Suobi Village damage that occurred while you were fighting a Divine Beast? Normally, this would be an incident worth compensating you for."

"Is that so."

"It is. So I shall assign that critical mission once your condition returns to normal."

"You mean...?"

"Take a good, long rest for the time being. So that the next time we ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠meet, you will have erased those dark circles first."

"Ah...! Yes, sir!"

This was the first moment I felt that Director Edwiner actually seemed like a human being.

He had understood my circumstances, noticed my exhaustion, and even handed down a disposition with such tact.

A leader who looks after his subordinates.

It was a concept that should be obvious, yet was surprisingly hard to find in this society. The Director's actions were, in a word, a ray of light.

So much so that I even felt a surge of loyalty I'd never had before.

For the first time, I bowed my head to him and left a stream of thanks.

"Then take care, Director!"

"Yes."

With that heartwarming parting scene concluding, I yanked the door open, wanting to hurry home as fast as I could.

Behind the door stood Da-hye senior, who had been making the exact same expression as me before I entered.

"Oh? You're done talking with the Director already?"

"Yes!"

"Yeah? How'd it go?"

"It ended more satisfyingly than anything I could have hoped for."

"Oho! That means the Director's in a really good mood right now, right?"

"Hmm, I can't say for sure about that, but that's how he felt to me."

"Great! Then I'll probably get off with a light punishment too! Director~!"

Da-hye senior brushed past me and dashed straight toward Director Edwiner, clutching her statement.

Curious whether things would work out as well for her as they did for me, I quietly peeked inside through the crack in the doorway.

After a moment, Director Edwiner hurled the statement Da-hye senior had written back at her and began to glare at her coldly...

I only watched until that point and carefully closed the door.

I realized that even for a leader who tries to look after his subordinates, when a subordinate isn't human, the attitude he takes is completely different.

***

Having escaped the detestable working world and returned to my sanctuary, I headed straight for my room without a backward glance.

Ever since spending that night in Hraesvelgr's nest, I hadn't slept a wink.

More than anything else, I had to satisfy my need for sleep first.

"Huh?"

So I had stripped my clothes off carelessly and leaped into bed, but for some reason, I didn't feel the fluffy sensation of the mattress.

Instead of the mattress, a heavy yet soft sensation pressed against my body. I immediately threw back the covers.

Underneath them was the familiar face of a fox woman whose face had already flushed bright red.

"Welcome home, dear husband. ♡"

"Sorry, I came into the wrong room by mistake."

There was no doubt that this was my room. Yet even so, I tried to cautiously pull the covers back over her and leave the room.

But a fox tail shot out from under the blanket and coiled around my ankle, keeping me from escaping.

"You didn't come to the wrong place. This is most certainly your room, isn't it?"

"Strange... I remember Miho's room being separate from mine?"

"I'm sorry about that. I came to tidy up your bedroom, but I ended up catching a deep whiff of your scent...♡"

A transparent liquid told the story of what Miho had been doing in my room.

It was trickling down her thighs.

"Hey, it's okay. It was a mistake, right? Right?"

"No? It wasn't a mistake. I was getting ready in advance, waiting for you to come."

"Ah..."

If only she had said it was a mistake... she was so cruel.

"M-Miho? I'm really tired right now, so today..."

"One night with the rabbit."

"Ah...!"

"Did you enjoy your night with the rabbit you had near Hraesvelgr's nest?"

"Th-That was! An uncontrollable mistake... Kuhk?!"

Miho used the tail wrapped around my ankle to yank me right in front of her.

She threw me onto the bed just like that and climbed on top.

Then, planting both hands beside my face, she stared down at me...

"Whether it was a mistake or deliberate doesn't matter, husband! What matters is the simple fact that you, in the end, spent a night with the rabbit."

"Well, that's true but..."

"What's done can't be undone. But I am deeply displeased right now...! I am so unbearably displeased by the fact that your body has been overwritten by another wench's!!"

Miho's red eyes were a chaotic swirl, brimming with madness, love, and hatred.

She was in a state driven mad by extreme jealousy. In a state like this, no matter what I pleaded, it would be utterly useless.

"So my beloved husband? You need to stay still for just a moment, alright? Because I'm going to overwrite it right now... with my own body. ♡"

The day my very soul was wrung dry by the fox because of a single night's mistake.

The price of a mistake was so brutally steep that I became unable to ever use the word 'mistake' again.