The Hero Is a Pervert

The cold morning air tickled my cheeks. Maybe it was because I'd drunk so much last night, but my head felt a little fuzzy. Or was it the witch's cold wind? Whatever the reason, it wasn't exactly a pleasant morning.

The blanket felt heavy. Whether it was because I was exhausted or still drunk, the thing covering my body refused to budge even an inch.

"Ah, screw it."

It was too early and my eyes wouldn't open properly anyway. Might as well sleep a little more. My head hurt, but I'd probably feel better after some more rest. With that thought, I rolled onto my right side and pulled the bunched-up blanket into my arms.

It was soft and warm. The wind should be coming from the left window, so what was this hot breath brushing against my lips? The blanket felt a bit uncomfortable too. I naturally shifted my gaze.

I forced my heavy eyelids open just a crack.

"Mmm..."

Mmm? Fuck. What the hell?

"...Hero?"

"Oh, good morning, Isabel?"

"It's a bit cold today."

Why is she so calm? I'm completely losing my shit here. No, more importantly—why the hell are you in my bed?

In this situation where my eyes had no choice but to snap open, I carefully examined our current state.

God damn it!

I hadn't been hugging a blanket at all. The warm breath I'd felt was Isabel's sleeping sigh. The cozy sensation I'd mistaken for bedding was actually her back. No wonder the "blanket" felt too light and wouldn't move properly. In the end, I was the one embracing her.

Did she realize it? That the two of us were pressed incredibly close together.

"Mmm... it's cold."

"Ugh."

Isabel pulled me even tighter into her arms. She didn't seem aware at all. What the hell happened last night that she ended up in my bed? Wait. Is this even my bed to begin with?

The more slowly I tried to pull my arm free, the more fiercely Isabel clung to me. It was cozy. I wasn't such an idiot or a eunuch that I couldn't tell what was pressing against my chest. I wasn't Ragner, for fuck's sake!

It might feel a little good... No! If I stayed like this, it would get dangerous. It was early morning, after all. Far too stimulating for a healthy man.

Her breathing tickled my ear.

"Hehe... feels nice."

What kind of dream is this girl having? More importantly, how the hell do I get out of this?

Isabel's arms were surprisingly strong. Her soft hair brushed against my lips. A faint, elegant scent naturally flowed through the air. It really smelled good. I'd noticed it yesterday too—this perfume was extremely high quality. Figures that the big guys have surprisingly good taste and attention to detail. Tirgar's wide, toothy grin flashed through my mind. The guy looked vicious but was secretly pure-hearted.

...None of which was the problem right now.

"Haa..."

My heart wasn't in a good place. In more ways than one, the pounding in my chest was loud. Mornings in Jotunheim really weren't ordinary.

All I could do was pray that no one would come into this room until she woke up.

We both pretended not to notice our flushed faces as we washed up and left the lodging. Those damn Vikings. They'd chugged alcohol like dogs last night, and now they were curing their hangovers with more booze. It reminded me of my days as a loner back on Earth. After drinking until dawn with friends, I'd wake up dizzy and slam down some hangover soup with soju. What had Myung-seok said back then? That hangovers were best cured with more alcohol? Seeing these guys, I thought he might have been right.

"Taesik."

"Good morning, Tirgar."

"Did you enjoy last night?"

His expression was downright lewd. This bastard. Don't tell me—

"Was it you?"

"Uahahaha! I know nothing!"

"How do you even know what I'm about to ask, you asshole?"

I kicked Tirgar hard in the shin. To him, it was probably nothing more than a light tap.

"You should be thanking me."

"Thanking you my ass. Why was Isabel in my bed?"

"Both of you were completely wasted and lying on the cold floor, so I specially laid you down on the bed. I absolutely did not expect 'anything' to happen!"

"...Hah."

Tirgar burst into booming laughter. That bald bastard. Messing with people from the crack of dawn.

"So?"

"So what?"

"So, did you do it?"

"Fuck, of course not!"

Looks like it's going to be noisy from the morning onward. Well, it's not a bad feeling. If this counts as peace, then I guess it's peace.

"The H-Hero is a pervert."

Ah, there goes the peace. Take responsibility, Tirgar, you son of a bitch.

"Isabel, please don't misunderstand!"

"Who wouldn't misunderstand after hearing that conversation?!"

"You know very well I'm not that kind of person. I'm not a bastard like Ragner!"

"...Hmph."

She didn't need to deny it so vehemently... Isabel thought as she turned her gaze away. It was absolutely not because she didn't want to show her reddened face. Absolutely not.

"I really don't know why I'm like this."

As a maid of the ducal house, she was supposed to fulfill her duties, yet these impure thoughts kept coming. Was it because she'd spent so ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠much time with the opposite sex? Having no experience with men, Isabel's heart raced even more. Her body felt hot. She knew her cheeks were flushed and her ears were burning red. She just hadn't noticed that he had picked up on it.

He really was shameless. Couldn't he look at her as a woman at least once? So unnecessarily calm. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠That's what Isabel would think, but reality was different. The moment Taesik had opened his eyes, he'd been incredibly shaken. To calm himself down, he'd frantically recited the national anthem and military cadences in his head. He'd chanted them until Mugunghwa flowers were blooming in his mind.

At the same time, saying he didn't see her as a woman was complete bullshit. What virgin wouldn't get excited with a defenseless beauty lying right next to him for the first time in his life? Let me repeat: he was not a eunuch.

"Hmph."

"Ah, please stop that. You're making me feel like complete trash."

"I think the Hero needs to be a bit more perceptive."

That way, when the young lady chooses you, there might be at least a little room for choice.

"Ugh!"

She lightly patted her own cheeks. These were impure thoughts, actions that went against her lady's orders.

"I feel like I'm aging every single day."

"What are you talking about now? With skin that smooth, you're saying that in front of me?"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

It was hard to believe this was the skin of a hero who'd fought against beings of the void. Tirgar let out a sigh. He looked at the skin with envy.

"Look at me. These spots!"

"Uh..."

"Because our bodies are so large, even clean water turns into muddy water when we use it."

"They say mud is good for the skin, though."

"Oh?"

Tirgar's eyes changed. A face that had awakened to new knowledge and the greatness of nature. Honestly, it looked a bit stupid. Maybe that was why I couldn't stop laughing. It was the kind of laugh I hadn't felt in nearly two years.

I stretched my arms out wide. It felt like my knotted muscles and calluses were coming back to life. A strange yet familiar sensation of refreshment and pain at the same time. I could feel the blood circulating throughout my entire body.

"Even if I feel myself aging every day, when morning comes, I feel alive."

"I agree."

We were different races. We both knew that someday we would have to fight each other. Humans were on the side of the gods, and giants were on the side of the Jotun. The battle between the giant god Loki and Odin. The war of the gods, Ragnarok. Just thinking about that unknown day made me anxious. The idea of us pointing blades at each other.

Honestly, I don't think I could kill Tirgar. And the same went for him. That's why times like these were precious. Every minute, every second was precious. At the same time, I was anxious. The more I didn't know what schemes Loki—who could be plotting something at any moment—might be cooking up, the more frustrated I became.

Did Tirgar know I was thinking these things? He was one of the few people in this world I could open my heart to.

As someone from another world, I couldn't understand why gods and giants were on bad terms. If you traced their bloodlines back, weren't they from the same line of life? The first giant Ymir was born alongside the cow Audhumla. Giants were born from Ymir's sweat, and the first god Buri was born from the salt that Audhumla licked.

From my perspective, it was a hollow fight. Loki's position actually made much more sense to me. It was perfectly reasonable to hate Odin for trapping his three children in places they could never escape from. It was all self-inflicted karma.

"Haa..."

"What's wrong, Taesik?"

I looked into Tirgar's eyes and asked.

"Tirgar. If I told you to kill me, could you do it?"

"Were you having such dogshit thoughts?"

"Yeah. They're dogshit thoughts, but it feels like that day will come eventually."

Ragnarok. Since Tirgar also knew that prophecy, he must have realized why I was thinking this way. Maybe that's why he spoke in a sympathetic voice.

"...If that is your wish."

"Pfft. What the hell is that?"

Maybe there was a way for us not to fight. A way to prevent Ragnarok from coming. But that might be close to impossible.

"Hero. Please don't think such things."

"Isabel?"

At some point, she had sat down gracefully beside us and was listening to our conversation. She opened her mouth.

"The future is unknown."

"...That's true."

"A prophecy is just a prophecy. I don't like stories that someone has assumed."

Do you know the word 'fate'? It refers to a superhuman power that governs the path everything must take. But the same word can be divided into two: Destiny and Fate. Destiny is a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠causal fate where results are determined by actions. Fate means a predetermined destiny that cannot be changed.

"Therefore, I will choose the former."

Unbound. Pure causality that follows one's own actions. Odin, who became afraid of a mere 'prediction' someone had spoken and acted on it. That was why the great war called Ragnarok would occur in the future. From that, we could see that fate was not Fate, but Destiny.

A simple yet complicated relationship. To me, who had been agonizing between them, she gave a clear answer. It felt like my head was clearing up.

"Haha. You're right."

Was it useless worry after all? Come to think of it, it was the kind of concern that didn't suit my free-spirited personality. Thanks to Isabel's words, another path came to mind.

"A fate that changes according to actions. Not bad, is it?"

"Right?"

Yes. Fate. There was no need to worry too much yet. It wasn't like me. Suddenly getting all emotional and throwing a tantrum. Get a grip, Kim Taesik!

"Hey, Tirgar."

"What is it, Taesik?"

"Slap my cheek for me."

SMACK!

"...Huh? H-Hero?!"

"You son of a bitch."

"Why are you freaking out? Didn't you tell me to hit you?"

Ah, this bastard. He didn't even hesitate. Do you know how huge a giant's hand is? It's a good thing my neck didn't fly off. If I'd been a normal human, that would have been murder. Straight-up murder.

"Uahahahaha! Your expression is terrifying!"

On the contrary, this stinging sensation made me feel alive. Blood circulated throughout my body. Uh... why am I like this? Did my brain get shaken? This isn't normal.

"Another morning has come."

"It's peaceful."

"It really is."

The morning wind was cold. As if reflecting my heart, the dark sky revealed clear sunlight. Was the sky watching me? The timing was perfect.

And so we gazed at Yggdrasil bathed in sunlight for a while. It was warm and comforting. Beneath the giant divine tree, Jotun and humans relied on each other. As we were savoring that peaceful morning air—

"Hero! You have a guest!"

"A guest?"

A familiar figure approached. Seria Lionblood. Isabel's mistress and my benefactor gracefully lifted the hem of her skirt and bowed.

"I have been eagerly awaiting our reunion, Hero."

"Seria!"

Have my misunderstandings been cleared? Can I travel freely now? For real? My happiness circuit was running at full power.