Kidnapping the Hero Party's Second Companion (2)
'This child is the one who will kill me in the future...'
The match-selling girl with eyes full of pure innocence. This girl would one day hold my severed head and laugh like a madwoman? No way. But the Answer Sheet doesn't lie. She would definitely kill me...
The match-selling girl tilted her head at the dazed Lee Junwoo and asked innocently.
“Um, adventurer sir?”
“...”
“Adventurer siiiir~? Are you alriiiight~?”
“Ah? Oh, yeah. I'm fine. Nothing happened.”
Only after hearing the match girl's voice did he manage to pull himself together. Acting as if nothing was wrong, Lee Junwoo asked the girl.
“How much did you say one match was again?”
“One thousand peries each. But since it's you, adventurer sir, I'll give you two as a special!”
Hmm. One thousand peries per match. What would he even use them for? No—rather than worrying about a use, buying them was the correct choice. Lee Junwoo took one thousand peries from his pocket.
“I'll buy one.”
“Wow! You're my first customer today! There's not much time left, but today will be a happy day for you!”
The girl flashed a gentle smile, circling around him while cheering “Fighting!” and offering enthusiastic support. Lee Junwoo felt flustered by her high energy, but he kept his mouth shut and simply observed the situation.
...A companion of the hero. I don't know her class, but she certainly has a bright personality.
Far too bright. Lee Junwoo had seen many bright children like her on the battlefield. Children who faced everything with a smile, who couldn't voice anything negative, who were always laughing. Their endings had never been good, and they all carried tragic pasts.
This match-selling girl might end up the same.
Lee Junwoo stopped the girl who was still orbiting him and spoke.
“Uh, is something wrong...?”
“It's distracting. Stop.”
“Ah, I-I'm sorry... I didn't mean to...”
The girl hung her head like a spent match. She looked utterly deflated.
“...You don't need to apologize that deeply.”
“R-really! Hehe!”
And just like that, she scratched her head awkwardly and broke into a bright smile again. The shift felt strangely alien. Lee Junwoo handed her another thousand peries and said.
“I'll buy one more match.”
“Huh? No, you really don't have to... One box would last six months...”
“Instead, answer my questions.”
He was buying information along with the matches. Matches had a fixed sales limit per person. Anyone with a brain wouldn't let a customer like him—who could buy multiple—slip away. As expected, the match-selling girl was no fool.
“Just... answering questions...?”
“Yes. They'll be simple.”
“O-okay. I'll do it. Here...”
With trembling hands, the match-selling girl offered three matches. The original two plus the one from this purchase. Lee Junwoo pocketed them and began questioning her immediately.
“When did you start selling matches?”
“I didn't sell them before... I only started last week.”
Lee Junwoo handed over another thousand peries.
“Then what did you do before that?”
“Huh? Oh, I sold food on the streets... with my grandmother...”
The girl answered as she accepted the coins.
Grandmother...
Useful information. Lee Junwoo handed over one more thousand peries. This was the final question.
“Then, last of all, I'd like to know your name.”
“What? Huh? Why would you need the name of someone like me...?”
Clear wariness flickered in the girl's red eyes. It was understandable to hesitate telling a stranger your name. Yet even with that caution, she still reached out and took the thousand peries.
“...My name is Hare. Yuriana Hare.”
“Hare...”
He committed it to memory. Yuriana Hare. Lee Junwoo slipped the two boxes of matches into his pocket.
Four days left, so...
That was enough for today.
“I'll put the matches to good use. Goodbye.”
Lee Junwoo turned away as though his business was finished. Startled, Hare grabbed his hand.
“Ah, um...! W-wait!”
“...?”
“Why isn't anything happening...? No, that's not what I meant...! Can I ask why you wanted to know my name...?”
The girl clutched his hand tightly while babbling something incomprehensible. Sensing the longing in her gaze, Lee Junwoo answered simply.
“Just because.”
“Huh...?”
“Just because. I wanted to know your name.”
Hearing those words, the match-selling girl released his hand. Whether the answer was unexpected or not, she stood there with a dazed expression. Lee Junwoo left her behind and continued on his way.
...I probably spent too much money.
There had been no need to buy that many matches. Maybe he should go back and return some. With the heavy boxes weighing on him and realizing quite a bit of time had passed, Lee Junwoo decided to head home.
On the way, a small accessory stall caught his eye. The owner spotted him and greeted him warmly.
“Oh, mister! Good eye! If it's accessories, you've come to the right place! Cheap prices and great quality—our stall is the best!”
“...”
Lee Junwoo said nothing and scanned the displayed accessories. One item immediately drew his attention.
“How much for this red ribbon?”
“A gift for your daughter?”
“...Something like that.”
Not a daughter, but the bright red ribbon would suit the hero perfectly. Long hair could be cumbersome during training, so a ribbon would be convenient. The owner glanced at him and said.
“Hmm, today only—thirty thousand peries! It was originally forty thousand, you know? You must be lucky today! Kahaha!”
“Thirty thousand peries is reasonable.”
It was expensive, but one ribbon for the hero was acceptable. He reached into his pocket to pay. Instead of a wallet, his fingers met a heavy, unfamiliar weight. A matchbox came out.
“...”
It wasn't the money pouch—it was the match pouch. Only matchboxes filled his pocket. He searched every pocket, but all he found were matches. In that instant, Lee Junwoo understood.
“She was a thief. That match-selling girl.”
A thief. The hero's newest companion was a thief. Lee Junwoo hurried back to where the match girl had been, but... the spot was empty. The match-selling girl was gone.
The match-selling girl—Hare—was walking through a dark alley. It was the capital's worst slum, The Trash Can, where those with nothing lived. The place reeked of a vile stench, but it was her hometown.
“Hehe... I wonder how much I made today...”
The matches didn't matter. The real prize was the man's wallet. With an innocent face, Hare opened Lee Junwoo's wallet. Inside was more money than she had ever dreamed of.
“H-how much is all this...? What... is this...? Was that person actually rich...?”
He hadn't looked rich, but his wallet certainly was. Bundles of cash she had never seen before filled it. Hare swallowed hard. A sharp pang of guilt stabbed through her chest and spread through her body. It was far too much money for a petty thief.
“B-but this much is wrong... That person... he was different from the others...”
That person... even after asking her name, he hadn't asked anything strange about the night. He had simply, purely, been curious about her...
Hare pressed the wallet to her nose and breathed in his scent. It was different from the heavy perfume of those men who leered and threw suggestive glances.
Even if you sell your soul, never sell your body, Hare. That means selling both. Even if you steal someone's belongings... feel the same pain as the person you stole from. The suffering of the soul is the only path of atonement for thieves like us...
Recalling her grandmother's words that had never once been broken, Hare thought of Lee Junwoo. She began to steady her resolve.
“...That person. That man is different. I-I have to return this...”
He's a good man. He looked at my heart, not my body. For the first time since I was born, someone was curious about me as a person. The bad child is me...
Hare clutched the wallet to her chest and turned around. If she went back to that spot, the man would surely be there.
“I'm sorry, Grandmother... I'll earn the money again... Hare is a bad child... I have to return this money—”
“Wait, Hare. Did you just say money?”
“...!!”
From behind the girl who was about to turn back came a burly man's voice. Hare quickly hid the wallet. But she knew he had already seen it. The thug of The Trash Can. Nes. He slowly approached her.
“Hare. Looks like you brought in some money?”
“N-no. It's not mine...”
“Hmm, then whose money is that in your hand? Stole it again?”
“...”
Hare stayed silent. She had stolen it, but she had intended to return it. She tucked the wallet deeper into her clothes to protect it. But Nes was merciless.
“Let me see how much you got!”
“D-don't...! I'm going to give it back...!”
“Shut up! What do you mean, give it back, you thieving bitch! Go cry to your sick grandmother!”
“Aack—!”
Slap—! Hare was struck across the cheek and collapsed to the ground. In the moonlight filtering into the alley, Nes's greedy face as he examined the wallet was clearly visible. Even her last shred of hope was being crushed by the thug.
“Whoa?! You robbed a rich guy today?! This is enough to pay off twenty percent of the debt! Damn, you hit the jackpot, Hare!! Hahaha—!”
“...It's not mine.”
“That's right. It's mine now. Since it's in my hand. Like I said, you're smart, Hare. Thinking of robbing a rich man. If it weren't for that old hag, you could've been adopted somewhere nice. Especially with a face like that...”
Grinning, Nes looked down at the fallen Hare. Her red hood had slipped off, revealing cherry-blossom hair that mixed red and pink, cascading over her shoulders. Her face was pure and beautiful like fresh snow. Her slender body was more than enough to stir a man's base instincts. Growing suspicious at the sight, Nes moved closer to Hare.
“It's really strange. With looks like yours, you should've been adopted or selling your body. Yet here you are, living honestly in The Trash Can. It's hilarious.”
“...It's my life. Mind your own business.”
“There's an easy way to live comfortably... Don't you think, Hare?”
Using the alley's shadows, Nes drew even closer.
“I'll finish it in one go. I'll talk to the boss and have him wipe out the entire debt. How about it? There's an easy road, so why do you keep taking the hard one, Hare? Hm?”
“...I don't want to. I-I'm not going to live like that. I promised Grandmother...”
“...Always with that damn grandmother. She won't live much longer anyway. Aren't you sick of using her as an excuse?”
Nes was not a patient man. He could no longer hold back.
“I'm offering to handle everything, so what's the reason?! Huh?! Is it fun stepping on a man's pride like that?! Hare?”
“...You're not the only one with pride, you know...? I have pride too...!”
“Oh really? Then I guess I'll have to see... just how great that pride of yours is...!!”
As if proving his own pride was greater, Nes closed the distance until he was close enough to reach out and touch her. Disgusted, Hare tried to crawl backward while still on the ground, desperate to get away. It was a pathetic sight, but she moved to survive.
Then—
Thud.
“...?”
“What is it, mister?”
Someone had bumped into Hare's back. She looked up, half hoping. There stood the impressive man she had met earlier. He spoke in a cold, low voice.
“I finally found you. My wallet. So you're the culprit.”
As if he hadn't even considered the match-selling girl a suspect, Lee Junwoo's icy gaze was fixed on Nes.
“Return my wallet.”
At that moment, Hare witnessed the light of hope for the first time in her life.