Chapter 2
“Wow.”
Green skin, a childlike stature, and grotesque features.
They were goblins.
The goblins lay dead on the road, their bodies hacked to pieces. There seemed to be about a dozen of them, and not one was still alive. Given the circumstances, it was reasonable to assume Karin and her party had killed them.
He continued straight on, avoiding the carnage exposed on the road. After walking for about ten more minutes, the trail finally ended.
Upon leaving the forest, he found a vast plain stretching before him.
Perhaps because he was on a fairly high hill, he could see all the way to the horizon. A gentle breeze stroked Jeong Yushin’s hair once as it passed. Looking down, he saw people walking in small groups along the main road.
If he followed that road, he would probably come across a village or two.
Not bad.
Jeong Yushin approached the main road. There were people who looked like merchants, people armed with a variety of weapons, and a traveling troupe of gypsies carrying various instruments.
The races were diverse, and so were their appearances.
He couldn’t collect his thoughts at the unfamiliar sights, the first he had ever seen in his life.
He stood beside the road, staring blankly as they passed by.
A passing cat beastkin tossed out a remark.
“Hey, have you been drinking? Get a hold of yourself. Young fellow, tsk.”
The human walking beside the beastkin grinned.
“Oh. How did you know whether that person was young or old?”
The cat beastkin purred.
“No beard and no wrinkles means he’s young. Don’t ignore him.”
“Huh. What do I look like?”
“You looked a little young last night, but today you look a little old. Go shave.”
The two passed by Jeong Yushin, exchanging pointless banter.
Jeong Yushin smiled faintly and stepped onto the main road.
* * *
That evening, Jeong Yushin arrived at a village.
It was small, but perhaps because it was close to the main road, quite a crowd could be seen even from the entrance. Soldiers in regular army uniforms made up a large portion of them.
One of the soldiers guarding the village gate spoke with a smile.
“Welcome to Arentzville, a highway village.”
“Hello.”
“Is this your first time here?”
“Yes.”
“The toll is five copper coins. The inn is full, so you’ll have to eat there and sleep outside or stay with one of the residents.”
“I see. Thank you.”
Jeong Yushin took copper coins from his pocket, paid, and entered the village.
The inn stood right beside the village’s central square. The sounds of instruments, singing, and boisterous chatter rang out from the building, making it obvious at once.
As soon as he entered, a wave of heat washed over his face. The sight of people of every description talking noisily made him dizzy for a moment.
“Hey, black-haired young man!”
A woman in her thirties carrying food shouted.
“Yes?”
“Alone?”
“Yes.”
“Sit anywhere. Add one more meal here!”
Every seat was packed, so sharing a table was unavoidable. Jeong Yushin sat at the nearest one. Two short men who looked like dwarves and a rabbit beastkin were already seated there.
They ate, drank, and talked without paying Jeong Yushin any attention. They were discussing something serious, but he found it difficult to understand what they were saying.
I need to know how to gather information, too. Jeong Yushin sighed inwardly.
He quickly gave up on gathering information.
He turned his head and watched the people playing instruments in the corner.
Bang!
“Here! Your meal’s up.”
The woman in her thirties from earlier set the food down on the table.
There was white wheat bread, soup containing tomatoes and potatoes, a sizzling chunk of meat, and yellow liquor in a wooden cup.
“How much is it?”
“Your first time here?”
“Yes.”
“Ten copper coins.”
Jeong Yushin took copper coins from his pocket and handed them over politely.
“What a polite young man.”
“Thank you.”
“Cute. Enjoy your meal.”
“Yep.”
Of course I had to be polite.
It had only been yesterday that he’d nearly had his head chopped off by slave hunters after mouthing off and underestimating this other world. When you knew nothing, you had to live humbly.
When he ate the steaming soup, his tension finally eased and he realized how hungry he was. He had filled his stomach with a few scraps of jerky that morning and walked for a long time, so it was only natural that he was hungry.
He cautiously tore off a piece of bread and put it in his mouth. The fragrant scent of wheat filled his mouth. When he cut off a piece of meat and put it in, its juices gushed out.
“This is really good.”
The meat’s juices softened the bread’s dryness and brought out its savory flavor, while the tomato soup offset the meat’s greasy juices with its acidity and stirred his appetite anew. Then more bread followed, covering the soup’s acidity with the fragrance of wheat.
It was a perfect trinity.
He quickly finished his meal, moved by gratitude and delight.
Once his stomach was full, he drank the liquor in the wooden cup. A sticky sensation unique to honey mingled with a refreshing fruit aroma, washing his mouth clean as it slid down his esophagus.
The strong fruit aroma suggested it wasn’t ordinary mead. Did the brewery have some special secret of its own?
The question was fleeting.
“Whew.”
He was truly satisfied.
“You sure can eat, can’t you?”
The brown-bearded dwarf sitting across from Jeong Yushin said with a laugh.
“Yes. It was delicious.”
“The food here in Arentzville is pretty good.”
The other dwarf sitting beside him chimed in. The rabbit beastkin nodded in agreement.
“Is this your first time in Arentzville?”
The rabbit beastkin asked.
“Yes.”
“Judging by your appearance, you seem to be alone. Are you a pilgrim?”
A pilgrim?
“What is a pilgrim?”
All three of them opened their eyes wide at Jeong Yushin’s question.
“Are you a Northern Barbaroi?”
Jeong Yushin furrowed his brow.
The dwarf waved his hands, seemingly flustered.
“Calm down. I didn’t mean to disregard you. People from the north aren’t familiar with religious matters like this, so I jumped to conclusions.”
“Yes. I understand. But what is a pilgrim?”
“How much do you know?”
“I don’t know anything.”
“You’re remarkably forthright. Could one of your parents have been from the north?”
“I suppose they might have been.”
Jeong Yushin stroked his chin.
His father had certainly been a huge, powerfully built man with fierce eyes and a body covered in hair.
A man who showered in ice water at forty degrees below zero, said ‘Ah, refreshing,’ and flashed a broad, easygoing smile.
A man who had kicked a wild boar in the side and sent it flying when they encountered one in the mountains. He still remembered the sight of the boar soaring through the air.
His mother, by contrast, had been the picture of femininity. Quiet and demure. She had always worn a gentle smile as she stroked his hair or hugged him tightly.
His father and mother had made a well-matched pair.
[H...honey, Yushin is watching.]
[Let him watch.]
[Mmm.]
His father was holding his mother’s cheek in one hand and planting a deep kiss on her, while her cheeks bulged from the force of his grip and she stuck out her tongue.
He remembered how affectionate they had been….
“Damn it.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I think my father was a barbarian.”
“I see.”
“So what is a pilgrim?”
“It’s a fairly old story. So...”
The dwarf continued his story for quite some time.
Jeong Yushin drank the last sip of liquor.
He organized the dwarf’s just-concluded story in his head.
In ancient times, when monsters filled the world, a man of the Spirit Church traveled from west to east, gathering up every evil and sealing it in a great city in the east.
The man of the Spirit Church was canonized as a saint, and the road he had traveled came to be called the ‘Pilgrim’s Road.’ The road Jeong Yushin had walked was that very ‘Pilgrim’s Road.’
Those who believed in the Spirit Church wanted to learn its history and the saint’s heart firsthand by walking this road alone.
People regarded them as pilgrims.
By now, since all sorts of people walked the road for their own reasons, its original meaning had faded.
Even so, the Spirit Church had countless believers, and quite a lot of them still walked the Pilgrim’s Road.
The dwarf and his companions finished their story and rose from their seats.
“Black-haired young man. We’ll be going on ahead. We need to sleep before the alcohol wears off, you know?”
“Yes. Thank you for the explanation.”
“Then.”
They left the inn. It was quiet now, since the dwarf’s story had taken quite a while.
Jeong Yushin folded his arms.
The dwarf had mentioned the ‘Great Labyrinth.’
The very city at the end of the ‘Pilgrim’s Road’ where the saint of the Spirit Church had sealed away all the evils.
He said that entering and emerging from the Great Labyrinth could grant one a mysterious ability.
At the most modest level, one might gain the ability to become physically stronger or move more nimbly.
At the most extreme, one’s sex or race could even change.
There was also a small chance of acquiring a talent one did not possess or an ancient secret magic that had since vanished.
Since these abilities were etched into the soul as an ‘imprint,’ people also called it the ‘Inscribed Labyrinth.’
“All right.”
If he was lucky while exploring the labyrinth, he might find a way home. Even if he didn’t, it would be fine. At least he could become stronger. If he grew stronger, he could find a way back quickly while worrying less about others’ reactions and feeling less threatened by danger to his life.
‘I’m going to the Great Labyrinth.’
Jeong Yushin decided what to do next and went outside the inn.
The central square was packed with camping tents. He walked a little farther and left the square behind.
Most people were huddled together, sleeping under blankets as they leaned against the wooden palisade.
Jeong Yushin also found a quiet spot and leaned against the palisade.
It was chilly, but perhaps because of the alcohol, it was bearable. He untied the blanket rolled up and secured to the top of his backpack, covered himself with it, and closed his eyes.
* * *
At dawn, Jeong Yushin opened his eyes.
Spending the night without a roof had been grueling. Thanks to the alcohol, he had managed to sleep a little, but a single blanket was not enough to get through the cold dawn.
Crack.
He stood up and stretched, and the bones throughout his body made bizarre sounds.
People had already gathered their belongings and were heading to the inn. A dog beastkin whose fur drooped from being thoroughly soaked with morning dew grumbled.
“Sleeping rough in this damn place feels new every time.”
“Be grateful there was a palisade to lean against.”
A cleric who seemed to be his companion replied.
“I admit it. Sleeping outdoors all the way to the next village, huh. Sigh.”
Sleeping outdoors all the way to the next village, huh.
He wanted to replenish his supplies if possible, since he didn’t know how long he would have to walk.
Jeong Yushin entered the inn, from which the delicious smell of food wafted.
“One copper coin.”
The hostess he’d seen last night set a wooden bowl down on the table.
It was steaming oat porridge.
“Thank you. Do you happen to sell jerky or travel rations?”
“Sure. How much do you need?”
“How long does it take to get from here to the next village?”
“Hmm, where are you headed?”
“I’m going to the Great Labyrinth.”
“If you’re headed to the Great Labyrinth, you can just follow the highway all the way. It’ll take about three days to reach the next village.”
“Then three days’ worth of rations, please.”
“All right. Cute.”
The hostess gave a small smile and walked away.
Jeong Yushin took a mouthful of hot porridge. Perhaps because it contained meat and potatoes, it had a wonderfully satisfying texture. The warm food loosened his chilled body.
“Here are three days’ worth of food. Twenty-one copper coins, including breakfast.”
The hostess approached when he had nearly finished the porridge. The rations were carefully wrapped in large leaves. Jeong Yushin took copper coins from his pocket and handed them to her.
“Here you are.”
“Got it. Come again.”
He scraped the bowl clean, left the inn, and saw people leaving the village while chatting quietly among themselves.
Jeong Yushin did not hesitate as he had before. His destination was clear.
The Great Labyrinth.
He walked in the direction of the rising sun.