95 – Third-class play – 4
At my words, Seol-ah put on a face as if she was talking nonsense.
“What are you talking about?”
“Ambush Cordelia under the guise of a test, cheat at a festival in the Deneb estate, and even kidnap this time. There are so many things happening towards us.”
“What does that have to do with the rules you mentioned earlier?”
“That means we are the protagonists of this world.”
She looked at me with a chewed expression. It’s a look that doesn’t make sense.
“You, that is self-conscious.”
“Exactly when it comes to someone watching us.”
“Someone?”
“You must have been thinking about it too. That there must be something that brought us here.”
At this, Seol-ah also nodded her head. I also thought that there must be some transcendent being who brought the two of us to this world. It’s not because of the stupid reason that there will be such a existence as the cliché that often appears in novels simply because I fell into the world of novels. I was certain that the being had a personality like ours – a godhead since it wasn’t a person – I don’t know if it had an ego or something like that, but it had a definite purpose and will. I haven’t personally confirmed its existence, so it’s just an inference after all, but my intuition was screaming strongly. In fact, even before that, I had the feeling that something was trying to pull me towards a big stem. It’s honestly nothing right now, but when she first saw Seol-ah, her heart raced without any countermeasures.
What set a wedge in my thoughts was the day after I kicked out Wilhelm, I showed the same dream to Seol-ah and myself. Especially in the part that shows the landscape of the earth as if it were showing off. As if to soothe a child, isn’t it a sweet dream to me and Seol-ah, who completely destroyed the existing storyline? It was obvious that they wanted to induce me and Seol-ah to act the way they wanted. Here, rather than a simple system or a fixed system, I felt that it was something that existed.
That doesn’t mean I didn’t think of a goddess in the form of a light, light child, which was popular in the past. At least I had a hunch that it was something with a distinct ego. And what is important to him, or her, or her, or them is not a matter of who connects with whom and how. The important thing is whether the ‘story’ continues.
Wilhelm, who was originally the main character in their plan, would no longer have the value of a main character due to runaways. Gao doesn’t like the main character kidnapping and imprisoning a woman he doesn’t even like. So they gave me the position of the next main character and made Wilhelm the villain. After that, they showed me my dream in order to lead me to the story they wanted.
“How is it?”
After hearing all of my story, Seol-ah frowned at her and began to bite her lips. It’s a look that looks like a lot of trouble. After thinking about her for a long time, she finally opened her mouth.
“It’s not an improbable story, but… , After all, it’s all just your guesses.”
“That’s right.”
Seol-Ah had an expression that seemed to be unwilling to argue with me. I simply agreed. As she said, this is all speculation. I’m not a prophet of any kind, and it’s impossible to convince others with abstract intuition. She told me with a disapproving face.
“Are you going to run into an obvious trap by believing in just one hypothesis with holes in it?”
“Seol-ah, I think you are misunderstanding something. I’m not going to believe and run into the hypothesis I just said.”
This can be said with certainty. It had absolutely nothing to do with my going to rescue Hestia and the truth or not of the hypothesis mentioned above.
“Then what do you believe….”
“You don’t have to have a place to believe in to go there, right? To be honest, I would have gone even if it seemed unlikely.”
I thought of living in this world, and the person I like was kidnapped because of me, and I have enough power to save him. Rather, there is no reason not to go. Whether there are traps there or not. The story I just said was just a story I brought up to argue that traps are not very important.
From nob le mt l dot com
My words made her look as if she had been hit. She asked me in a bitter voice.
“Is that because the opponent is Hestia?”
“What are you talking about?”
“It was me, not Hestia… , no. It’s too messy.”
“What are you jealous of?”
“Hey, are you kidding me… !”
Seol-ah didn’t follow through with her words, but she didn’t know that I was stupid or that she didn’t know what she was trying to say. I raised the corner of my mouth. Seol-ah was very annoyed. I put a hand on Seola’s head and put her chin on her head. She stopped talking at my sudden action.
“You, you, this hand… !”
“No matter how you look at it, I’m more like an older brother than you. Originally, where did you learn that you shouldn’t touch women’s hair, but wouldn’t it be okay since you’re not a woman, but a younger sister?”
“What are you doing?!”
“You are really worrying about such nonsense. What, do you think I would have stayed quiet if you or Cordelia were taken? What do you see people as?”
Seol-ah shook her head.
“But…”
“But what, I like Hestia more than you guys?”
She nodded her head very slightly. I snorted.
“It’s true. He’s not a kid at all. Sometimes he looks more like a kid than Cordelia.”
“… Sour.”
“I went to rescue you when you were taken away before. Don’t worry about such nonsense.”
“I understand….”
I put her hand away from her head before she gets angry again. She asked, lifting her head slightly back where she had bowed her.
“Are you going now?”
“I have to go. And you said I’m the strongest in the world. What are you afraid of?”
I dragged Seol-ah and started running toward the place marked on her map.
–
The place marked on the map was, of course, a slum with no people around, and it was also a remote place. I think it was like this the last time I was looking for Seol-ah.
The building was old and shabby. There was no door at all, and all kinds of vulgar graffiti and alcohol bottles were rolling around, probably used as a hideout for the neighborhood bullies. Seol-ah was holding onto my sleeve tightly, probably reluctantly.
I searched the building thoroughly, but no trace of Hestia was found. In the end, the suspicious place was the last room that had not yet been found, a warehouse located in the basement.
I stood in front of the door and took a deep breath. Just in case, Seol-ah put her behind me at a distance. After making all her heart’s preparations….
– Bang!
I slammed the door and went in. I had no intention of quietly knocking. The kick, loaded with my weight and rage, shattered the old rusty hinges in an instant and sent the door flying. The rotten piece of wood, which had already lost its function as a door, fell into the dark basement, raising dust. The room seemed larger than expected.
A familiar coughing sound came through the flying dust. It is Hestia’s voice. I slowly approached her, scanning her surroundings for any surprises.
“Hestia, are you okay?”
And at that moment, the lights in the basement were turned on all at once. Because of the sudden bright light, I squinted my eyes involuntarily.
When she opened her eyes again, a mysterious masked person was standing behind Hestia. I tensed my body and moved my hand toward the sword at my waist. A very strange voice came out of the masked man’s mouth. It was a voice full of noise, as if using a voice changer app. I asked him in a high-pitched voice.
“Who are you?”
“You are here at last. Trash.”
I laughed out loud. Trash? The fart guy said he was angry, so I don’t know who the hell is calling someone trash.
“Your tongue is long when you talk about kidnappers. Who says who is trash?”
“Shut up. I’ve heard all about your atrocities. I can’t let someone like you live.”
A guy like me? The more I talk, the more I feel like I’m sinking into a pit. It feels like reading a novel with all the important parts ripped out. There is no dialogue between each other.
Have I ever done anything so bad in the first place? No matter how much I think about it, there is no corner to catch. However, the opponent is too unfamiliar to say that Mikhail, whom I do not know, has done something bad. Mikhail has no connections other than his family or family (Jin), so I don’t know, but there is no way anyone knows only Mikhail.
“What did I do wrong?”
“Are you really asking because you don’t know that?”
At my protest, the masked man started reciting my crimes that I had never committed.
“Do you have anything to say after harassing innocent women, kidnapping and confinement, and even committing unspeakable things!”
“What?”
Harassment? Kidnapping and detention? What the hell kind of ghost-forgotting sound is that? Whether he knew what I was thinking or not, the masked person continued to spit bullsh*t.
“Do you still have something to say?”
“There are so many left. Do you have any evidence to put all of that behind? On what basis are you spouting such nonsense?”
“The voice of the victim is evidence, and the words of His Highness the Crown Prince are the evidence!”
I covered my face with my hands. Is that Wilhelm again? I’m really fed up now To be honest, I roughly expected it, but the method was more base than I thought. Looking at it, it looks like they got someone who looked like an assassin and filled it with bad stories about me. Why would a nobleman who seemed to have a lot of money tell such a low-level lie? There is nothing to say other than that it is 100% pure malice.
“Let me ask you one thing, would you believe me here denying that I did anything like that?”
“Such an obvious lie!”
I’m dizzy, really. Still, he confirmed that his goal was not Hestia, but a country. I tried to negotiate with the masked person, albeit clumsily.
“You don’t seem to have any plans to talk anyway. Then, gently return Hestia. Isn’t that what I was meant to be from the beginning anyway?”
I think it’s better to think about whether to run away or fight once Hestia is returned. With Hestia tied up in the middle of the room like that, I honestly didn’t have the confidence to wield a sword.
The masked man snorted at my suggestion. Contrary to that attitude, however, he pulled a dagger from his waist and cut off the ropes that bound Hestia’s hands and feet. What? What tricks are you cheating on? Why did he throw away the advantage he had been given by releasing the hostage? Perhaps reading my thoughts, the masked man stunned me with an unpleasant tone.
“She will not return to you.”
“Don’t talk nonsense!”
“If you really don’t believe me, take me with you.”
Hestia regained freedom of her hands and feet and stood up hesitantly. I took her one step towards her and she took one step back from her.
“Hestia!”
“Wait a minute. Give me time to think.”
“Hestia… ? What are you talking about…. Are you sure you believe the words of that suspicious person?”
I fell into an indescribable mood. The feeling of falling alone into a very deep and dark hole, and seeing myself falling like that in the third person. Rather than being angry or despairing, I was first questioned.
“Why?”
“… “
I screamed in a rough voice. I feel like my head will explode if I don’t scream like this.
“Answer me, Hestia. Why?”
“In the end, you didn’t tell me what you were hiding until the end. Where is the guarantee that the secret is not one, but two, not three?”
In desperation, I just slumped in my seat and sat down. Where did I go wrong? If it’s short like half a year, it’s short, if it’s long, it’s a long time. Could it be that all the memories that Hestia and I had accumulated during that time were cheap enough to crumble over a few words of alienation?
No. I should have been honest from the start. After all, it was me who couldn’t repay her trust that she would tell me someday.
Hestia stretched out her hand towards me and began to lick her lips. An incomprehensible sound flowed from her fine mouth as she drew intricate patterns in the air with her hand.
Ah, you’re trying to attack me. I know, but I didn’t really want to avoid it. Is it desperation?
“Mikhail? Mikhail! What the hell is this now… !”
I heard Seol-ah’s voice behind me, as if I had heard my shouting. I feel a little sorry for Seol-ah. She’s the main character and what, she’s been bullsh*t and she’s been dragging along, because in the end she’s never done anything.
Then, from Hestia’s fingertips, a flash of light that seemed to blind her was emitted.
Not towards me, but towards the masked person who has not yet properly grasped the situation.
–