The Death Penalty
I pressed my foot firmly onto the neck of the powerless bandit leader. Should I just crush his throat right here? A destructive impulse surged for a moment, but I held it back. I still needed the bastard. Guys like him always had some hidden emergency stash or treasure tucked away somewhere. A person needs to eat well and sleep well, but I’d already given up on the “sleeping well” part. That left only one thing—staying faithful to “eating well.” Not chewing on those rock-hard “stone pears” that knocked my teeth out last time, but real food. For that, my pockets needed to be a little heavier.
I exercised heroic self-restraint and lifted my foot from his neck. The moment I did, the bastard saw his chance and swung both arms at my leg from where he lay. Still hasn’t figured out the situation, huh. I dodged the attack lightly and kicked his already-broken knee again, dead-on.
[Crack!]
“!!!!”
He couldn’t even scream. He just thrashed on the ground in agony, mouth gaping open with only dry, wheezing gasps escaping. Tears streamed down his face.
Should’ve lived decently. Why live like a piece of shit and suffer for it?
While I was looking down at him with contempt, Gapjil Jijon came storming in through the broken main gate, shouting at the top of his lungs.
“Hey! You whore-looking bitch!”
Gapjil Jijon stomped toward me, fuming. “The elders are out there beating down dozens of bandits, and what the hell are you doing in here? Why’s it taking you so long to handle just one guy? Did you set up house in the meantime?”
Wow… listen to this old man talk. After all the hell I went through in here.
“How vulgar. A man your age speaking like that? Really?”
“Hah! In the unorthodox sects, I’m practically a refined scholar. If you don’t know anything, just shut—”
Gapjil Jijon stopped mid-sentence and stared straight at me. More precisely, at my left hand dripping blood. The moment he saw my mangled fist, his face twisted in fury.
“How dare they…!!”
With a thunderous roar, Gapjil Jijon charged at me with terrifying speed. Startled, I tried to stop him.
“W-wait! What are you—”
He blew right past me. He wasn’t coming for me at all. He rushed straight to the bandit leader, who was still groaning on the ground, and kicked the bastard’s head with all his might.
[Thud—!]
“Ghk!”
The leader’s head snapped to the side and he blacked out instantly. But Gapjil Jijon’s rage wasn’t satisfied. He started stomping all over the unconscious man’s body.
[Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!]
“This son of a bitch! How dare you hurt our baby?! I’ll kill you, you worthless scum!”
The old man looked ready to stomp him to death for real. I rushed over in a panic and grabbed him.
“Calm down! We can’t kill him yet!”
I wrapped my arms around Gapjil Jijon from behind, trying to pull him off.
“Let go, you bitch! If I want to kill him, I’ll kill him! What reason do I need? I’m dragging this bastard off as a prisoner today, and that’s final!”
“What if he’s got treasure hidden somewhere? He’s a bandit leader! You’re really gonna give that up? You don’t want the money?”
“Hmm…”
The moment the words “treasure” and “money” left my mouth, Gapjil Jijon instantly regained his composure, as if he’d never been angry at all. He straightened his clothes and spoke with dignity.
“…You have a point. A man can’t just give up treasure.”
“Right? That’s how it should be. A real man’s all about the money.”
Even though I was playing along, Gapjil Jijon gave me a flat look.
“Why? Something on my face?”
“Tsk tsk. A young girl already this obsessed with money… I don’t know what kind of man I’m supposed to marry you off to. My future looks dark.”
What the fuck… marry me off?? Who’s marrying who?
“Enough nonsense. Just drag that guy outside. I’ve still got things to do here. You caught all the small fries, right?”
“Hmph. Already beat them all down. But what are you still doing in here?”
I gestured with my eyes toward a corner of the hall. There, tied to a pillar, sat a woman and several children, staring at the cold corpse of a man with endless tears streaming down their faces.
“Hmm…”
Gapjil Jijon took in the scene and nodded without another word. He grabbed the unconscious leader by the scruff of his neck and dragged him outside first.
I watched his retreating back, then turned my gaze back to the woman and children. The dead man tied to the pillar was probably her husband and their father. I looked at them with a heavy heart. It was a familiar sight. Even the 21st-century Korea I came from was never paradise. After the Great Disaster, the lives of ordinary people became literal hell on earth. Especially in the early days, when the law of the jungle reigned supreme beyond anything you could imagine. Parents boiling their own children to eat, children abandoning or killing their parents without hesitation—there was nothing left to say. If families could do that to each other, what about strangers? Inflicting violence and savagery on others wasn’t a crime. It was a natural social phenomenon, a right being exercised.
In an era like that, the sight of people who sacrificed themselves to protect their families, or those drowning in grief over the loved ones they’d lost… was an everyday scene to me. But just because it was everyday didn’t mean it got any easier to watch.
“....”
I stayed silent, giving them time to mourn. But they couldn’t stay buried in sorrow forever. Especially not with young children to think about. I wanted to offer some comfort, say something encouraging, show some empathy… but …What the hell am I supposed to say?
The words wouldn’t come. I was used to tragedies like this, but I’d rarely been the one offering warm comfort to the victims. What words could possibly console people who’d lost their families and loved ones? In truth, comfort and empathy had been the job of the A-rank Awakeners under me, who handled it with their humanity. My job was protecting humanity’s body from monsters and beasts. Caring for their hearts wasn’t my specialty.
Still, I couldn’t just stand there staring. I needed to wrap this up and get moving. I approached the woman, who was weeping as if the world had ended.
“Um… ma’am? Er… my deepest condolences… Still, you have your children, so please stay strong… The situation’s a bit awkward, but…”
The woman lifted her tear-filled eyes and stared straight at me. Her expression had gone past grief into something that clearly said, What kind of idiot is this?
Ah. Failed.
Whatever. I’d just leave them alone for now and deal with the situation outside first.
“Just stay here for now. I’ll come back later.”
I fled outside like I was running away.
The moment I stepped out, bright sunlight bathed the bandit stronghold’s courtyard. Dozens of bandits were kneeling in a line. The leader had apparently regained consciousness at some point and was squatting among them, his face twisted in pain. He was making a big show of how much it hurt where Gapjil Jijon and I had beaten him.
“What’s that bastard got to frown about?”
I strode confidently toward the bandits and swung my hand without hesitation.
[Smack!]
I slapped the back of the leader’s head hard.
“Keep glaring and I’ll gouge your eyes out. Lower them.”
Only then did he reluctantly drop his gaze. I slowly scanned the faces of the kneeling bandits.
“You all look like absolute shit.”
The same bastards who’d been talking about “eating me” earlier were now hanging their heads in terror. Pathetic. Calling themselves men.
Between the bandits and our group was a decent pile of loot—several bundles of coins, rice, and clothing. A little farther away sat three particularly eye-catching figures: one fat man, one scrawny man, and three women who looked like beggars but would probably be stunning if cleaned up.
The women look like kidnapped victims… but what’s with the fat guy and the skinny one?
I frowned and observed them. Bandit lieutenants? The fat one had three chins from how much he’d eaten. His lazy face was especially punchable. I walked over to them. The fat man was smiling for some reason, completely oblivious. Acting on instinct, I slapped the back of his head.
[Smack!]
“Ow!”
“What the hell are you smiling about? You got a death wish?”
The way he clutched his head and made a fuss was infuriating. Yeah, I need to hit him again. As I raised my hand once more, Cheon Dok No Ong hurriedly stopped me.
“Madwoman! Wait a second…!”
I paused with my hand in the air and looked at him.
“What?”
Cheon Dok No Ong’s expression was extremely awkward.
“Those people aren’t bandits. They’re civilians who were captured here.”
“!”
“And… they’re merchants. Very wealthy ones, apparently.”
“Why are you telling me this now?!”
I bowed my head at lightning speed toward the fat merchant.
“I’m so sorry, sir! I made a mistake…! I misunderstood!”
“N-no, it’s fine! Really. You’re the benefactor who saved us. A little misunderstanding is nothing. Hahaha!”
His generosity matched his generous frame. As expected, people with ample builds rarely had bad personalities. It was science. I apologized repeatedly to the well-built merchant and checked on the other victims before returning to stand in front of the bandits. Gapjil Jijon and Cheon Dok No Ong flanked me like bodyguards. A perfect formation.
“…Why are you standing in the middle?”
Gapjil Jijon grumbled from the side, but I ignored him as usual.
“…Is this all the loot?”
Looking at what the bandits had surrendered, I couldn’t help but sigh. The rice and random junk were too heavy to carry, so the only worthwhile things were a few bundles of coins and some fabric. With this many victims, how was this supposed to help anyone?
I wanted to buy some good food and eat my fill too…
I gathered the bandits’ rusty swords and spears in one place and rummaged through the other items, checking if anything was usable. Digging through the shabby clothes, I found a few decent outfits. There were also women’s clothes, so I tossed some to the women sitting there in rags. My own clothes were torn at the side, so I picked out a practical outfit for myself.
But Cheon Dok No Ong stopped me.
“Madwoman. You should wear that skirt over there.”
“Huh? Why? It’ll be uncomfortable.”
“We’re on the run. Wouldn’t it be much easier to disguise your identity as an ordinary woman rather than wearing men’s clothes?”
He had a point. But… he wanted me to wear a skirt?
“No way. If I wear that, the wind’ll just blow right up between my legs. It’s so drafty and gross.”
“......”
Cheon Dok No Ong gave me an incredulous look. The well-built merchant and the scrawny man, who’d been sneaking glances at me, both turned red and looked away.
…Oh! I’m a woman! I forgot.
“Tsk tsk. A whore-looking girl like you wearing a skirt would just look even more like a whore. Why force it on someone who doesn’t want to?”
Gapjil Jijon clicked his tongue and cut in. I couldn’t tell if he was on my side or just messing with me.
…No, Cheon’s right. Disguise is important.
Thinking it over, Cheon Dok No Ong’s words made sense. I decided to wear the skirt at least until we reached our destination, Cheonju. When I picked up the clothes, Gapjil Jijon grumbled about how he’d gone to the trouble of backing me up only for me to ignore him.
Clothes problem solved.
Alright, time to handle the most important matter.
I approached the bandit leader with a menacing glare.
“Hey. Where’d you hide the treasure or money you’ve been stashing?”
The leader avoided my eyes.
“…There isn’t any.”
I pressed the sword I’d taken from the bandits against his neck.
“Does that make sense? A selfish bastard like you having no hidden wealth? If I find anything when I search, you’re getting three cuts per coin.”
Under that chilling threat, the leader cried out with the most wronged expression in the world.
“There really isn’t any! This isn’t a trade route or near a ferry. What kind of rich merchant would come through here? Besides, we couldn’t even touch a real merchant caravan or escort agency anyway!”
There was something oddly sincere in his face and tone. I looked around and saw all the bandits nodding like, He’s right. Even our generous merchant sponsor nodded in agreement.
…They really are broke.
Then I didn’t need the bandit leader anymore.
“Really nothing?”
“That’s right! This is all of it! If we had real wealth, why would we risk kidnapping people? That fat merchant over there was just a hostage we were going to ransom!”
“Is that true, sir?”
When I asked the well-built merchant for confirmation, he nodded.
“It is. They took everything we had and were going to ransom me as well…”
In that moment, my eyes changed.
“How dare these lawless bastards! How could they lay hands on our ‘sir’ for such a petty reason?”
I shot to my feet and declared solemnly.
“From this moment, this judge hereby announces the verdict.”
“…?”
The leader looked up at me in confusion. I looked down at him coldly and shouted.
“Death penalty!”
As the bandit leader’s eyes widened in shock, I swung the sword in my hand without hesitation.
[Thud—!]
A dull, gruesome sound rang out. The bandit leader’s head separated from his body and rolled across the ground.
[Splat!]
Blood sprayed from the severed neck in all directions, painting the faces and bodies of the surrounding bandits red. Their expressions of shock and terror were quite the sight.
I flicked the blood off the sword and muttered flatly.
“…Why won’t this sword cut properly, though?”