Today, I Kidnapped the Hero. Or Maybe It Was Yesterday (1)
I spat out the words in a cold voice.
“You’ve been kidnapped.”
Then, inside my head, I thought: Why the hell did things turn out like this?
Why did I kidnap someone who’s supposed to become the hero in the future? This wasn’t just a minor snag. This was a complete disaster. Like a ball of yarn so tangled it could never be undone… everything had knotted together in the blink of an eye.
Where did it all start going wrong?
I decided to trace my thoughts backward.
The beginning was right after I finished a quest and received my payment.
Lee Junwoo. That was my identity—a Korean man who had fallen into this other world ten years ago. Since then, I had lived as a mediocre adventurer. It was always a life on the edge of death, but it was the most suitable job for a foreigner like me.
“Adventurer Jun! Congratulations on completing your mission! I’m so glad you made it back alive today!”
“Skip the greetings. Where’s the money?”
“Yes, the completion reward is two million peri. Here it is! Please use our adventurer guild again next time!”
The guild receptionist handed me a thick pouch. She was the same helpful, intellectual-looking woman with glasses who always assisted me. I gave her a light nod and left the adventurer guild.
“Two million peri for that difficulty level isn’t bad at all.”
If this world had one advantage, it was that its currency and economic system were similar to South Korea’s. There was no need for pointless conversions.
Yes, I was definitely thinking something like that as I walked down the street with light steps.
That was also the moment those light steps began to tangle.
Groooaaan—!
“Is the train already arriving?”
It was the sound of a magic train stopping, powered by resonating mana stones. The capital city of Grancia where I currently lived was highly developed and had magic trains that ran on magic.
I was walking past the station on my way home.
“Since I finished today’s quest and I’ve got money, maybe I’ll treat myself to some expensive liquor…”
What should I drink tonight? Whiskey? Vodka? Or maybe beer with pork?
I was lost in that happy dilemma, the kind where any choice would be good.
Then, at that exact moment, my damn ability activated.
Sudden Quest! Congratulations! You have discovered an individual who will become the hero in the future! Therefore, your choice is—
1. Ignore the hero.
2. Kidnap the hero.
“Huh?”
In the novels I’d read, people who fell into other worlds were usually given cheat abilities. The kind of broken power that let you bend the world to your will. But not me.
My ability was nothing more than choices.
“I solved the Math Bible like ten times back in Korea. Do I really have to solve problems here too?”
It was an ability that suited a Korean perfectly. If regular test papers had five choices, I had the Two-Choice System. Pick one of two options. Most of the time one was correct, but sometimes both were right, or both were wrong.
Also, three times a day, I could use the Answer Sheet.
“But I don’t even need to look at the answer sheet. The correct answer is obviously number one.”
Why the hell would I kidnap the hero? I wasn’t crazy.
Still, I was a little curious what the hero looked like.
“Let’s see… the hero is… Ah, there she is.”
The hero was coming out of the station and descending a small set of stairs. Long golden hair shimmered in the sunlight, fluttering in the breeze. Her blue eyes still held the fresh innocence of a child. From the look of her, she hadn’t even had her coming-of-age ceremony yet…
Golden hair and blue eyes. A girl who looked like Alice from that strange country was going to be the future hero? As if to remove any doubt, a sign that literally read “Hero” floated above her head.
“Hmm, the hero, huh… Well, she’ll probably defeat the Demon King someday. But that has nothing to do with a mere adventurer like me.”
It really had nothing to do with me.
Or at least… it should have.
If I hadn’t looked at the answer sheet, maybe it really would have stayed that way.
“Still, I’ve only used it twice today. Might as well check the answer sheet.”
The answer sheet could only be viewed three times a day. I pictured it in my mind.
…A thick book opened with a rustling sound, and pages flipped rapidly. The sheets seemed to know exactly where they were going. Finally, they stopped on one page.
“I can see it. The future…”
Before my eyes appeared one possible future—the one that would unfold if I chose ‘Ignore the hero.’
A burning train station. Not just the station—the entire capital of Grancia was engulfed in flames.
What the hell? All I did was ignore the hero. How does the capital end up like this?
It looked like the end of the world. Citizens’ corpses crawled across the ground, and a red current swirled in the sky. And in the distance, I saw the hero descending the stairs.
Her appearance was completely different from moments ago. Those blue eyes now gleamed with emptiness. A depth like the abyss of the ocean. Her face, now mature, stared directly at me.
And then…
Huh?
The view facing her suddenly tilted toward the ground. Before I could even notice, my head had been severed.
The answer sheet closed its pages as if to say that was the end.
Thud—
I muttered in disbelief.
“Number one was wrong…? Ignoring the hero was the wrong choice…?”
Seriously? For real?
If I ignored the hero, I would die in the future?
I tried to check the answer sheet again, but I only had three chances per day. I had already used them up.
“Number two could be wrong too. This is completely fucked.”
If the ‘question maker’ had temporarily lost their mind, both options could be incorrect.
Should I pick the definitely wrong choice, or pick the one that might be correct…?
…The answer seemed obvious.
I had no choice. To avoid dying, I had to choose number two.
“Kidnap the hero.”
I clicked the choice with my hand.
Kidnap. To lure and entice away. The word choice wasn’t perfect, but since I lured her with force and enticed her with force, it wasn’t entirely wrong.
I never dreamed I’d end up kidnapping a child…
The moment I pressed the choice and the hero stepped into a dark alley, I covered her mouth. She was still young and had no strength to resist. After ten seconds, her body went limp.
Guilt surged up inside me, but it couldn’t be helped. It was for the sake of my own life. I had no defense if someone called it rationalization.
“Have you figured out the whole situation now?”
“No… I still don’t understand…”
“Do I need to explain it again? Then—”
“Ah, no! I get it! I was kidnapped because I’m the hero!”
Yes. That was the right response.
I nodded in satisfaction. The hero looked around anxiously. She soon seemed to realize she couldn’t escape.
“Um…”
“If you have something to say, say it.”
“You said you kidnapped me because I’m the hero… So, what are you going to do with me now…?”
I looked at the hero through the sunlight coming in from the window. Her blue eyes were brimming with tears. Her delicate white skin trembled faintly. She was clutching the hem of her skirt with anxious fingers.
Her words are bold, but she’s shaking inside.
Most people in her position wouldn’t even be able to speak properly to their kidnapper. Even if you enter a tiger’s den, if you keep your wits about you, you can survive. Easy to say, but few people actually manage to stay calm once they’re inside.
Yet the hero before me was suppressing her emotions as much as possible and maintaining a firm mind.
“What are you going to do with me…? Are you going to raise me like livestock…?”
“Livestock? I won’t do anything like that.”
Hmm. To check her condition, I looked her up and down. There were no injuries from the subduing process. I decided to answer her honestly.
“I.”
“…”
“Will not.”
“…”
“Do anything to you.”
“…Huh?”
“I won’t do anything to you. That’s it.”
The hero’s anxious eyes widened into perfect circles. Was the declaration that I wouldn’t do anything really that surprising? Apart from her look of astonishment, I couldn’t read any other reaction from her.
“If you didn’t understand, I’ll say it again. I will not do anything to you.”
“…”
Still no reaction. I pulled a chair from the nearby desk and sat down lightly. I wanted to give her brain time to process it.
“Uh, um, that is…”
“Do you understand now?”
“Then… if you’re not going to do anything to me… why did you kidnap me?”
Her question made my eyes blink automatically. I was genuinely flustered.
What was I supposed to do after kidnapping her?
“Good question.”
“…Pardon?”
“I don’t know either.”
“…Excuse me?”
I had kidnapped the hero exactly as the choice instructed. But I hadn’t thought at all about what to do next.
“…Is there anything you want to do?”
“Let me out of here—”
“Anything except that. For now, you have to stay here for a while.”
“Oh, um. Then…”
“I’ll grant any request except escape.”
Anything except escape. A promise born from guilt.
When the hero heard those words, it seemed she had something on her mind. She immediately shouted at me.
“Then, um… could I send a letter?”
“A letter…?”
“Yes. I promised to send a letter to my family back in the countryside… but I got kidnapped by a strange person, haha…”
“Hmm…”
A letter. Letters were dangerous. She could send a rescue signal. Something like ‘I’ve been kidnapped. Please save me.’
However, the hero didn’t seem like the type to use such an obvious trick. It looked like she was genuinely asking out of concern for her family. The earnest emotion toward family showed clearly on the surface.
“Is it… possible?”
“With conditions.”
“What conditions? I absolutely won’t write anything asking for help…!”
“So you were thinking about it. Well, anyone would. The condition is that I have the right to review the letter you send. If you accept that, then it’s possible.”
“T-That…!”
Review. At that word, an atmosphere of despair spread around the hero. It was like the feeling of writing a diary in school only for the teacher to check it—unpleasant. The hero seemed to feel exactly that way.
“P-Please don’t look at it too closely…”
The hero made her small request in a thoroughly depressed voice. Cute. It felt like the fresh innocence of a child was coming through.
“I’ll try my best.”
“Y-Yes… Thank you…”
Thanking your kidnapper sounded a bit off, but if she was thanking me, I supposed I should accept it.
I flipped the switch for the fluorescent light in the dark single room.
Click—
“Ow! It’s bright…!”
“You’ll get used to it soon. I’ll bring the letter paper with your meal. Since I don’t have anything else to say, I’ll leave you alone now.”
I decided to leave the room so the hero could be by herself.
And I also needed to meet the ‘question maker.’
“Rest well.”
“W-Wait…! Um…!”
Did she have more to say? I nodded, signaling her to speak. She hesitated for a moment before making another request.
“When you send the letter… could you also put a little money in it…?”
“Money?”
“Yes. The reason I came to the capital was to get a job and send money to my family… Hehe… Our house doesn’t have any money…”
“Demanding money in a letter from your kidnapper, huh.”
“I-I…! If it’s too much, it’s okay…!”
“I’ll do that much.”
Even after being kidnapped, she was still thinking about her parents. A hero who put others before herself. I could declare it with certainty—this girl was definitely the hero.
I spoke once more to the hero who stood there in a daze.
“Rest comfortably.”
Bang—
I closed the door to the single room, turned the key, and locked it. Then I used magic to seal the gap. Finally, I set the latch. With four layers of security complete, I left the hero’s room and headed for the entrance.
As I went down the stairs, I mulled over the hero’s behavior from earlier.
“Even after being kidnapped, she thinks of her parents. Is caring for others a hero’s trait?”
But.
“A dutiful daughter.”
I, who still carried the blood of Confucianism, found her actions just a little—very slightly—pleasing.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen my family too.”
When was the last time? Ten years ago? I couldn’t even remember.
Recalling memories of my family, I prepared to go out.