Catching the Thief
It was a hazy world. In what might have been a dream, I was hunting horn rabbits.
One horn rabbit could be taken down if you staked your life on it. With two, you had to run on the spot. Three or more, and survival wasn't guaranteed. And that day, I was being chased by five of them. I'd accidentally disturbed the nest under a tree.
Horn rabbits were small, but they were quadrupedal beasts. No ordinary human could outrun them. To survive, you had to roll on the ground the moment they charged with their horns.
Urk! As always, I rolled across the dirt at the sight of the charging horn rabbit. The pursuing rabbits were terrifying enough, but what was even worse was the mockery from the people just watching me.
"Never thought I'd live to see someone chased by horn rabbits."
"Is he mentally ill or something? Heh heh."
The blatant sneers made me want to cover my ears, but I couldn't in the middle of fleeing. It was humiliating, but to survive, I needed help from someone strong. The person I approached that day was Choi Jin-hyeok, the burly man managing the hunting ground.
Huff! Huff! "Please, just save me this once!" I ran toward him, desperation in every step. But all I got was his cold glare.
"Ah, this is driving me nuts..." I reached out for help but froze in place. For a moment, I thought maybe it would be better to just die like this. Why do I have to keep living like this?
With that question lingering, my eyes snapped open.
"Uh..."
It was a dark room. Seeing Sophia sleeping soundly right beside me brought a wave of relief.
Good, she's okay.
It was just a dream. I placed a hand on my chest to calm my pounding heart—and that's when I realized it. My situation now was twice as good as back when I hunted horn rabbits alone.
I should be a little nicer to Yeoreum from now on. With that resolution, I tried to close my eyes again.
But then I heard rustling inside the tent.
Hm?
Someone was rummaging through the tent. The heavy footsteps definitely weren't Yeoreum's. Could it be a thief?
I wanted to wake Sophia, but once she was asleep, she wouldn't stir easily. Better to handle this alone. I carefully tried to open the container door, but the rusty hinges let out a screech.
Kiiiiiik—
The metallic sound echoed unnaturally in the darkness. The intruder must have noticed too—they went dead silent inside the tent.
Definitely a thief.
I grabbed my bow and arrows and dashed outside. At that moment, a figure bolted from the tent into the shadows. We'd turned off the nearby streetlights for sleep, but my beastkin eyes pierced the dark, letting me see the intruder clearly.
...Who is that?
A man I'd never seen before. And in his hand was the outfit I'd mended yesterday with thread and tape.
"My clothes...!"
Why would a decent-looking guy steal something like that? I reflexively aimed my bow at him, but I had no intention of shooting. Even if he was a thief, I didn't want to shoot a person. He seemed to sense I wasn't serious and started running off into the distance. Maybe his eyesight was bad and he hadn't even seen my bow.
"H-Hey, stop...!"
I chased after him with my bow raised. Normally, I should have been faster, but the dozens of arrows clattering on my back slowed me down, and the bow itself was heavy. The gap wasn't closing.
"Give back my clothes...!"
The distance kept widening. Should I ditch the bow and give chase? But without it, I'd have no way to fight back. Stuck in this dilemma, the thief pulled further ahead. In my despair, I just stared at his retreating back—until a massive figure appeared out of nowhere and blocked his path.
Thud!
The fleeing man couldn't stop his momentum and crashed into the giant. It was Choi Jin-hyeok.
"What the hell are you doing, punk?"
Choi Jin-hyeok grabbed the thief by the collar with one hand and hoisted him up. Stunned by that insane strength, I hesitated before cautiously approaching.
"U-Um, that guy stole my clothes..."
"Yeah. Here."
Choi Jin-hyeok crushed the thief's hand in his grip. The man screamed and dropped the clothes. I snatched them up and stepped back, wary from the threatening vibe I'd seen in my dream.
"Heard you got some clothes stolen. Guess it was this idiot."
Groooan—
Irritated by the thief's groans, Choi Jin-hyeok clamped his massive palm over the man's face. The thief dangled helplessly in his grasp, looking a bit pitiful. Well, people in this world wouldn't die from something like that.
"By the way, what are you doing here in the middle of the night?"
"...On night duty."
"Ah..."
Even top hunters like Choi Jin-hyeok pulled night shifts. I nodded, then stood there blankly, unsure what to say next.
"The guild'll handle this guy, so go back to sleep. It's still night."
"Thanks for the help."
"Yeah. No more danger now—sleep tight."
"Okay..."
I bowed in gratitude, then headed back to the container, thinking maybe Choi Jin-hyeok was trying to be a better person, just like me. Otherwise, there'd be no reason for him to help like this.
Everyone wants to be better, after all.
Realizing that, the Choi Jin-hyeok from my dream no longer bothered me.
The next morning.
I stretched and got up from the mattress, sensing someone nearby the container.
"Mm..."
The cautious footsteps were familiar. Had to be Yeoreum. Rubbing my eyes, I stepped outside.
"You're here..."
"Oh, Winter's up?"
Yeoreum approached with coffee in one hand. I admired her diligence this early.
"You came early."
"Yeah. Heard your place got broken into last night, so I came first thing."
"Ah."
Wonder what happened to that thief. Staring at the tent, Yeoreum patted my shoulder.
"Here, this is what got stolen."
"Whoa!"
It was my most treasured outfit. I took it eagerly and held it up to the rising sun.
Good, it's fine.
No new tears or dirt—it was exactly as I remembered. I'd thought I'd let go of my attachment, but seeing it again filled me with joy.
"Got everything back from the thief last night. Unnie did good, right?"
"Yeah, thanks. But why'd he steal my clothes? They're not even clean."
"...Said he was gonna sell 'em."
Sell these filthy rags? My eyes went wide in shock.
"Who'd buy something this grimy?"
"Heh heh..."
Yeoreum gave an awkward smile—a silent signal she couldn't say more. But I got the hint.
No way, not that... right?
Nah, impossible. It's not like I'm an adult—I'm a kid.
I shook my head to dismiss it, but the suspicion lingered.
"Guess he was a pervert."
"...Where'd you learn a word like that?"
"Dunno...?"
It's not some advanced vocab, is it? Looking up at her in confusion, she patted my shoulder.
"Beastkin stuff is rare, so clothes like that fetch a high price."
"My clothes?"
I glanced down at what I was wearing. How much could these go for to make someone steal them? Now I was curious.
"Just in case—don't sell 'em. Bad people might misuse them."
"Okay..."
I knew exactly what she meant by "misuse." Not something I wanted either.
"Let's drop this. Too much bad talk's no good for your mental health."
"Yep."
Maybe she meant the body influences the mind. Not wrong, so I shifted the topic.
"But you're armed today?"
A sword hung at Yeoreum's waist—unusual, since she usually went unarmed around me.
"Unnie's hitting a dungeon today."
"Dungeon?"
"Yeah. Gate popped up yesterday—top-tier rank. Uh... might be scary for you, Winter."
She scratched her head, looking apologetic.
"Why?"
"Heard the monsters inside are horn rabbits."
"In a top-tier dungeon...?"
"Yep. Checked it out 'cause it seemed weird, and it's really just full of horn rabbits. Normally, that means some hidden gimmick, but no idea what."
Hidden gimmick. Suspicious, but I couldn't be sure. Maybe for someone without mana like old me, a horn rabbit dungeon would feel top-tier. Hopefully not, though.