Chapter 8 - A Night Spent Alone (2)

Truth is a kind of law.

Just as gravity and time flow without regard for human feelings, truth exists as fact, utterly indifferent to human emotions.

The truth we faced was a pathetic and feeble story, so much so that we almost wished it had been cruel instead.

So many people had suffered at his hands, and even while being deceived, they had no choice but to grit their teeth.

I was one of those people.

To honestly describe the Hero's impression as a representative of his victims, he was like a natural disaster.

Just as people become utterly powerless in the face of disasters like storms or tsunamis, I spent my days mired in helplessness against the ever-widening gap.

Others probably weren't much different.

If he had decided to be a natural disaster, we wished he'd remain one until the very end.

Because if the opponent isn't human but nature, we can give up and resign ourselves to it as much as we want.

At least we wouldn't feel resentful.

However, the being that had tormented and deceived us all this time wasn't the godlike entity we had imagined.

He was just a childish kid who mistook a toy someone had thrown to him for his own power.

Realizing that we had been played by an immature child who had just entered puberty, a burning rage rose from deep within me, making my insides feel hot.

Suppressing the boiling anger, I asked him:

"Didn't you think it was strange?"

"...What do you mean?"

"If it was a godlike being, couldn't they have just erased the fact that you died, or changed it so that you miraculously survived?"

Even I could at least provide first aid with healing magic if it wasn't instant death.

It should be much easier for a goddess.

"Yet you didn't have any doubts when she said she'd send you to another world?"

It has to be nonsense.

He must have some reason to hide his encounter with Bel Zuma, some circumstances we don't know about.

I continued speaking, trying to find some loophole, but deep down, I had to reluctantly admit.

That everything he said was true.

Kim Yeomjin wasn't particularly clever, nor did he have any talent for lying.

Though there was a slight tremor in his voice, probably from fear, the look in his eyes was that of someone telling the truth, with a unique conviction and confidence.

"...No, people usually believe it. It's that kind of cliché."

"Cliché?"

"No, it's nothing."

Even as he mumbled, throwing out unfamiliar words, it didn't feel suspicious because I had figured out what kind of person he was.

In a sense, he was one of the common human archetypes.

Certainly not a good one, but if you looked, you could find plenty like him.

But what should I ask next?

To be honest, I was starting to doubt the meaning of this interrogation.

To Bel Zuma, Kim Yeomjin was both a trial and a game piece.

Nothing could be more ridiculous than asking a game piece about its master's thoughts and intentions, and even if he did know, the problem would still remain.

"...Well, was that any help?"

"No, not at all."

My true feelings slipped out unintentionally.

After all, while I had learned about Kim Yeomjin's background, there was no other gain beyond that.

What was the point of following the law, and even before that, could we deal with it even if we knew?

I wanted to know that, but thinking about it now, there was nothing we could do even if we knew.

Our opponent isn't a godlike human, but a god.

If a god itself becomes our enemy, how could human efforts possibly stop it?

"Um..."

As I was lost in thought for a moment, a weak voice from beside me reflexively turned my gaze.

The former Hero, Kim Yeomjin, was calling me in a voice that seemed somewhat frightened.

"...Do…Do you have anything else to ask?"

His strangely cooperative attitude made me suspicious for a moment, but seeing his trembling body, I could somewhat guess what was on his mind.

"No, I don't. And let me tell you, just because your information isn't of high importance doesn't mean I'm going to do anything to you."

"......"

Because deciding his treatment isn't something I can do at my own discretion.

Omitting words that would unnecessarily make him anxious, I conveyed a truth that barely escaped being a lie.

It wasn't out of simple compassion that I said such things.

It was out of concern that making him unnecessarily anxious might cause him to do something unpredictable.

"...Then what happens to my assets?"

"Assets?"

"...You know. I honestly worked hard. I defeated the Demon King, achieved a lot. Even if I can't keep my position as the Hero, shouldn't my assets be protected?"

For a moment, I couldn't understand.

In a situation where it's uncertain whether he can even save his life, he's worried about his assets?

I felt an enormous disconnect from his attitude, which didn't doubt his survival for a moment.

Perhaps in the world he lived in, human life was much more valued than in this world.

But unfortunately, in this world, human life is as light and fleeting as autumn leaves.

Kim Yeomjin had made far too many enemies, and the kingdom wasn't compassionate enough to evaluate his past achievements.

"Who knows? If you're eloquent enough, you might be able to protect your assets, I suppose?"

Having neither the confidence nor the desire to persuade him, I finished speaking and moved to the tent.

"I'm going to turn in first. If any of you have anything you want to ask him, feel free to do so."

*****

As Elang returned to his room, the campsite with two tents circling around a campfire turned into the most awkward place in the world.

In the awkward atmosphere where no one spoke or looked at each other, Holy Saint Alencia slowly raised her head to look at Kim Yeomjin.

To Alencia, who, despite her lustful nature, had a heart more sincere than anyone in serving the goddess, Kim Yeomjin was sin in human form.

It wasn't simply about the sins he had committed.

His very existence was the clearest evidence proving that the goddess's existence was a lie.

His existence was a greater sin than all the crimes that came from Bel Zuma's mouth.

"Um..."

At the voice breaking the silence, the three reflexively turned to its source.

Meria with her blunt, expressionless face.

Karin with a disinterested expression.

And Alencia with a frightened look.

As their individual personalities stood out just from their reactions, the owner of the voice was looking at Alencia, who was about to lower her head again.

"...About earlier, I'm sorry."

"What?"

"That... what I asked the goddess."

The request to the goddess, to Bel Zuma.

He was referring to that absurd story about asking her to alter Alencia's mind.

"You know my name?"

The cold voice that seemed to dig deep into the heart, heard when Bel Zuma appeared.

At first, she denied it, but faced with the divine manifestation, Alencia had no choice but to acknowledge her existence.

To protect her mind, she endlessly prayed as if brainwashing herself, ignoring and denying everything that happened there.

That's why Alencia didn't know about the Hero's request, Kim Yeomjin's ugly desire.

If there was one thing she knew, it was this:

He dared to call that ugly evil god by the title meant for her own deity.

"...You."

Alencia stood up.

In her hand was a blade made of holy power, but she never ended up swinging it.

Sensing the dangerous aura, Elang poked his head out of the tent, and Meria, who was nearby, silently grabbed her hand to stop her.

Eventually, the holy blade in her hand crumbled as feebly as her faith.

"...Never call that evil god a goddess again."

That was the end of it.

She glared at Kim Yeomjin once with eyes full of murderous intent, then entered the tent.

"...I can't say anything in front of her."

Karin stood up, dusting off her dirt-covered bottom.

Then she glanced at Kim Yeomjin and said:

"I didn't dislike you that much. I like strong men. Well, I guess that's not the case anymore."

It was a detached attitude showing neither resentment nor interest, but Kim Yeomjin honestly didn't know whether to consider this fortunate or not.

One thing was clear: Kim Yeomjin had now fallen to being nothing in Karin's eyes.

He had been abandoned by Karin, whom he had thought was his from the moment they first met.

"This bitch..."

Was it an outburst of self-esteem to offset the humiliation of being abandoned? Despite Meria still being nearby, he carelessly uttered such words.

"Ah, ah, this...!"

Belatedly realizing his mistake, Kim Yeomjin desperately tried to come up with excuses to smooth it over, but Meria didn't seem to care at all.

Meria, who had been staring at the campfire as if in a daze, glanced at him and spoke as calmly as ever.

"There's no need to be so concerned. It's not that wrong, actually."

"W-What?"

"...Do you know the difference between a princess and a prostitute?"

Before Kim Yeomjin could grasp the intent behind this sudden question, Meria continued.

Princess and prostitute.

These two beings, completely opposite in status and value, are literally different in every way.

But in fact, there are no two existences more alike.

At least, that's what Meria, known as the paragon of noble women, always thought.

"The difference between a princess and a prostitute is just whether they marry or not. Other than that, there's no difference. It's just whether they spread their legs for a hero or for commoners."

"No, what are you..."

"Don't think Karin's attitude is too much. That one might be the worst as a woman and as a human, but she's the best woman as a nobleman's daughter."

In every era, daughters of noble women have been used as tools of political strategy, and this was neither special nor unusual in aristocratic society.

A prostitute who sells her body for money and a princess who sells her life for the benefit of her family and country.

These two are fundamentally no different.

The only difference is whether the cumbersome process of marriage is involved in selling their bodies or not.

With this understanding, even when Meria learned about Karin and Elang's circumstances, she thought Karin was a trashy woman, but she appreciated that one action.

If you're a nobleman's daughter, that's how you should live.

Abandoning your own will and living solely for the benefit of your family, following only the family's orders.

That is their duty.

Recalling that horrific scene she had once witnessed, Meria continued:

"As you said, we are prostitutes. I'm a prostitute sent by the duke's family. The Holy Saint is a prostitute sent by the temple. And Karin is a prostitute sent by the margrave. You, if we must compare, would be like a customer at a brothel."

The Hero possessed the power and symbolism they desired, but now he has lost everything and become a mere criminal.

This isn't even cruelty; it's just the end of what was a business relationship from the start.

"So don't try to flatter us. We have neither the will nor the power to help you. It's troublesome to rely on prostitutes who strut around borrowing the authority of their patrons."

"...!!"

Kim Yeomjin's true intentions.

His shallow attempt to gain their sympathy and turn the fight to protect his assets in his favor was seen through all too easily.

It wasn't just Elang who had figured out Kim Yeomjin as a person after being tormented by him.

"I'm going back too. Don't think unnecessary thoughts and just go to sleep."

As Meria entered the tent, amid sounds of "I'm not a prostitute, though" coming from inside, Kim Yeomjin froze in place.

A campsite where a single small campfire alone emits light.

Left alone there, Kim Yeomjin thought as he faced the gradually cooling night breeze:

...Where am I supposed to sleep tonight?

The Hero's party had only two tents.

One large tent used by the three women and Kim Yeomjin, and a small tent used by Elang.

He couldn't enter the large tent.

Remembering the face of the Holy Saint who had just created a sword with holy magic, he simply couldn't bring himself to enter.

But Kim Yeomjin wasn't brave enough to ask Elang to let him sleep in his tent either.

In the end, unable to enter either place, Kim Yeomjin faced a lonely night in front of the campfire.