chapter 55

For some reason, just thinking of the earlier scenarios that had transpired caused my whole body to shake. I wasn’t angry. I just found it hard to understand.

‘I’m not wrong.’

Of course… it was natural to want to help people.

‘He doesn’t know anything.’

No one lived in the slums because they wanted or chose it. Every one of these people had their own sad stories to tell.

Some have not been contacted by guilds or clans, while others had become disabled from hunting in the past. Some were driven to the streets because of sick family members, while others were simply unable to find work.

In other words, society has led them to this place.

Lindel, the Holy Empire… No, this entire continent itself is wrong.

This was a society that did not know how to care for the weak. It was a selfish community. Although they promised welfare benefits to most of its citizens, the poor did not receive any.

On this continent, where people only worked for their interests, someone had to step forward.

“It will be dangerous.”

“No, it won’t be dangerous.”

“Well…As a priest, you have the freedom to choose how you think. However, it would be good to have a minimum of safety devices. I don’t know when and how something will happen.”

“Why do you think so?”

“Rather, I want to ask why you don’t think the same.”

“The reason you don’t understand me is because you’re not looking at them properly.”

“My answer is the same. Rather, it is you who is not looking at them properly. There are not just those who are poor and need help. Who needs help are those who try to stand up, not those lying down.”

“I don’t want to hear that kind of talk anymore.”

“Yes, yes, fine. I’ll stop.”

“Then, I will just leave as you said. I want you to keep what you promised.”

“Yeah. Whether or not. By all means, goodbye.”

It was not even worth answering him. Even if I were to accept his offer and act as one of the slums’ people, nothing would change.

I didn’t even have to respond to such a non-playful offer. Nevertheless, I had one reason as to why I was willing to enter the slums alone.

‘I wasn’t wrong.’

I wanted to prove to that man that I wasn’t wrong. There was certainly a difference between simply watching from a distance and breathing and living with them.

There was an old couple who had given me thanks while weeping for help, and there was a little child who plucked me some flowers in return for my help.

I’d seen so many things that this man hadn’t for nearly two years. The people and I had spent a long time communicating and talking together.

As I continued to step forward, I could slowly feel the atmosphere getting darker.

What was wrong? I always walked down these streets and was very familiar with it, but I could feel that something had changed.

It was the time of the day to eat, yet no one openly loitered around the streets. This place is always the same.

I could feel the familiar, unpleasant smell of the slums fill my nostrils, but I had long since adapted to it, so it did not bother me anymore. As I continued walking around, the helpless people I had always helped came into view. Some of them were chatting, and the rest were just looking around the area.

The people taking care of their children caught my eye, as well as the lovers walking with arms folded together.

The man was at least right in this aspect. This was also a place where people lived, albeit with no convenient facilities, no decent restaurants, and no decent homes.

‘Good.’

As I stepped in a little further, a crowd of people caught my eye.

‘This is the plaza…’

It cannot be deemed as a decent square. It was an empty field with nothing, and it was just called a plaza because it was a space where people naturally gathered together. In other words, it is a symbolic space that the poor called their shelter.

As I quietly settled on one side, a familiar face caught my eyes.

This was one of the men that that man had hired.

I didn’t know why he was here, who should be at work, but perhaps something had happened?

When I was looking around so quietly, a loud voice began to come into my ears.

“Kim! Why didn’t you go out today?”

“Yeah, why didn’t you?”

“Because that guy had hired me…”

“Ahhh. I see.”

“Then…”

“It was very difficult. It’s just moving rocks, but somehow I feel like it doesn’t suit me.”

“What? Didn’t you say you would start your life anew now?”

“Yes, I did say that, but… I really didn’t like working there. I thought about it, and I felt no difference whether I worked there or ate her food here.”

“If someone she knows hears you… Be careful, man.”

“Listen. I don’t think I will come today… I feel like I’m freaking out about working for nothing.”

“I didn’t see the priest today. Is she still coming?”

“Does it make sense that the priest would be sick?”

“It could be that day. No matter how much of a priest she is, she’s still female. She’s probably on her natural monthly cycle or something.”

“That makes sense.”

‘What?’

Blinking, I strained my ears to make sure I was hearing them. I could hardly comprehend the words they so casually put out.

‘Ah…’

“Well, that’s shit… I’ll just go hungry and die… I’m also feeling very sleepy…”

“Well then, that’s an expression I haven’t heard in a while.”

“Ah…”

After roughly covering his face with one hand, the man who should have gone off to work left the square. I didn’t know why they went away.

I just felt like I shouldn’t stay there.

To be precise, it was because I didn’t want to hear their conversation anymore, but I couldn’t afford to think about all these things at once.

‘You tamed them.’…The man’s voice came into my head.

As if his words had conjured a magical spell, I began to notice things I had not noticed before as I continued walking deeper into the slums,

“I’ll make it cheap for you.”

“The smell of money is amazing.”

Lovers walking while holding hands no longer looked like lovers. With horror, I realized that this was a middle-aged man and a prostitute.

“Is this just this?”

“Yeah, sorry…”

“The little ones are missing… .”

“Ahhhh!”

It turned out that the man who I thought had been looking after the children were not looking after them at all.

The bums on the street were drowning themselves with cheap rum, and the voices I heard were either criticizing something or someone. Some men also harassed women.

“Hey!”

A plethora of swear words also rung out from every corner of the street.

‘It sounds so natural for them to utter such words…’

It was the same scenario everywhere I went. People who I thought I knew turned out to have completely different characters and personalities.

However, as this thought suddenly came, my nerves began to pull at me.

‘What if the man is right?’

‘What if I am wrong?’

‘What if what I saw was just part of the slums and what he saw was everything?’

‘Was it me who had failed to see everything clearly right from the start?’ My thoughts were all over the place.

I hadn’t seen these kinds of things before. When I was in a position to help these people, I didn’t notice them at all.

‘They would be perpetrators somewhere.’

The man was right.

Even those who I thought were weak turned out to be harassers to others.

Until now, I had been mad at myself because I had always been above them.

The reason I hadn’t been a victim of that sort of treatment until now was that a group of strong people surrounded me in good clothes.

However, this was a different situation. I had taken on the form of somebody else. At that moment, I realized just why that man said that this endeavor might be dangerous.

‘I have to go.’

With this thought in mind, I made to turn around, but a sinister voice behind me made me freeze.

“If you don’t want to get stabbed, don’t move.”

Chills went down my spine. What made me feel more anxious was the presence of the blade that I felt behind my back.

“What do you want from me?”

“Fuck you.”

At this, I fell silent.

“Did you think you wouldn’t know you were a girl if you were tightly wrapped in a hood like that?”

“What… What do you plan on doing?”

“Are you asking because you really don’t know? I doubt that.”

“This… Don’t do this.”

“Do you know how dangerous it is to wander alone on a night like this?”

“Please…”

“I won’t kill you, rest assured. I have other plans for you…”

I could roughly understand what was going on, even as the cool blade was ominously aimed at my back. I knew I could have easily said a spell to save myself, but my mouth refused to utter the words. It was a very unexpected situation, and my legs trembled in the first situation.

When I did not move for some time, the man behind me struck me hard.

“Ah!”

I was flung sideways from the exerted force, and I couldn’t help but gasp.

Before I could even attempt to get up, I felt a strong hand holding my hair. Although I was desperately rolling my eyes for help, the men who came into view were looking at me as if they found this entire spectacle fun.

“Please… help…”

I could see faces I knew. I had helped some of these men with relief goods. These were the people I had talked with and knew.

Of course, I thought they would help me. Surely they knew how wrong this was.

However, none of them were reaching out to help. They were avoiding my gaze while trying not to laugh, all the while pointing fingers at me. All the reactions they showed were the same.

“Don’t do this. Please save me…”

A fist then hit my abdomen. I couldn’t even scream from the pain because of the immense fear I was feeling. When I tried to utter a divine spell, a large fist shook threateningly in front of me.

“Ahhhhhh!”

“…”

“Don’t do this. Someone, please help. please… Help.”

“The guys here all want the same as me, and you ask them for help? Are you new here?”

“Ah… No.”

“Did you come in here alone, not knowing how dangerous it is? How clueless are you?”

From what he said, I knew he was not referring to the entire slums. I realized that the man was simply talking about the western side of the area.

I couldn’t understand why this area was a place that shouldn’t be entered. It was a place where I always hung around during my volunteer days.

Before I even organized my thoughts, a large face hung right in front of me.

“I think I can sell you at a good price…”

The man who had spoken sported a visibly noticeable burn on his face. It looked like it had not gotten proper medication.

The odor from his mouth and body made me feel nauseated.

“Wow…”

“She seems disgusted by you.”

“Ah! N-No…”

Once again, my head spun. The pain began to blossom on the left side of my cheek.

“Are you disgusted by me?!”

“Ah!”

“Answer me! Am I disgusting?!”

“Please… Please save me! I’m going to die here…”

“You will look more disgusting than me in the future, rest assured. Don’t have such a weak stomach now. It’ll be nice to have fun with you first before we sell you off.”

‘Help me.’

“Please help…”

“Miss, I don’t know what you keep asking for help… Who do you think can help you here? If you need help, you should go to the nearby clan vigilante and ask for help. No one among us here will help you…”

“Please…”

“What a stupid bitch. Tsk.”

“Help me…”

The people who had crowded around us all sported intrigued expressions. No one looked like they were planning to help me out.

‘It will be dangerous.’

“No… No…”

‘They would be perpetrators somewhere.’

“Help me. Someone, please…”

‘People who need help are those who try to stand up, not those lying down.’

“I’m sorry. please… Help me.”

‘You are the one who made them lazy pigs.’

“Save me. I’m sorry! Please! Ah! Stop! Stop!”

“So what did I say, Priest? Just because someone is poor, it doesn’t mean that they’re good.”

“Ah…”

As I turned my head, I saw the face I hated the most.