IGWNI Ch 8

Bang.

As soon as the door closed behind him, Yoon Jaewoo, his eyes wide with a sense of injustice, started explaining with frantic gestures of his hands and feet.

“I was really just sitting still. I was just sitting quietly, and then those bastards suddenly pulled off my hood….”

「The clothes you are wearing cannot have the hood removed by another person before you remove it first. Even ruffians like them know this fact.」

“……”

Come to think of it, the men hadn’t tried to take off his hood at first, but his pants. Saying they needed to check the color of his pubic hair….

“Still, even so, they tried to pull down my pants, those sons of bitches, shit, they were trying to, ….”

Unable to say out loud that they had tried to check his pubic hair, Yoon Jaewoo stammered on, and Eustace, as if annoyed, took off his own outer garment and said one thing.

「Take off your clothes.」

“…Pardon?”

Yoon Jaewoo took off the hoodie he was wearing, folded it neatly, and placed it over a chair.

「The bottoms too.」

“Pardon me?”

「Just take off the bottoms.」

“What, again, why, you, ba, …wh, what….”

Already on edge because of the men who had lunged at him, curious about the color of his hair down there, Yoon Jaewoo couldn’t even speak properly when those words came from Eustace’s mouth.

「Take them off.」

“I won’t!”

Yoon Jaewoo clutched his lower body tightly and shook his head. Eustace reached out and wrapped an arm around his waist.

“Uwaaaaaah! No!”

Yoon Jaewoo struggled desperately, but there was an overwhelming difference in their physiques, and on top of that, his opponent was none other than the god of this world. As if twisting a child’s arm, Eustace easily subdued Yoon Jaewoo and lifted him up in a flash.

With the struggling Yoon Jaewoo tucked under his arm, he opened the window and broke off a nearby tree branch.

“What are you doing! What kind of perverted thing are you trying to do! No! I said no!”

The pants he wore under his tunic were pulled down with a swoosh, easily. Eustace made Yoon Jaewoo lie face down on his lap. His buttocks, firm and toned from exercise, were exposed under the moonlight.

“You perveeeert. Are all the gods in this world perverts! You son of a…!”

Before Yoon Jaewoo could finish his curse, the sound of a sharp smack echoed through the room. A cry of “Ack!” burst from Yoon Jaewoo’s lips involuntarily.

「The sin of taking off your hood first.」

“What, what are you! Dammit, it was those guys….”

Another smack resounded across his buttocks. A sharp, stinging pain made Yoon Jaewoo’s body tense up automatically.

「And thus, the sin of tempting virtuous men.」

“What kind of rotten world has virtuous men lunging at people to see their pubic hair!”

Before Yoon Jaewoo could finish his outcry, a third strike landed. Tears welled up in Yoon Jaewoo’s large eyes on their own. He had been disciplined and even hit with a bat by coaches or seniors while playing sports, but this was on a different level. He didn’t know what magic had been cast on the ordinary tree branch, but it hurt like hell, and more than anything, Yoon Jaewoo found this situation—being spanked with his buttocks bared—unbearably shameful.

「The sin of not obeying my words and causing a disturbance.」

With every word Eustace added, another red mark appeared on Yoon Jaewoo’s fair buttocks.

In the end, Eustace’s spanking didn’t stop until the words, “What sins have I committed that are so great,” and “If you’re going to do this, just turn me into a marble,” and “No, I was wrong about everything, so please forgive me, you fucking damn god,” came pouring out of Yoon Jaewoo’s mouth.

“…Damn it….”

Yoon Jaewoo’s eyes turned red as he checked the wounds on his buttocks in the mirror. The shame was greater than the pain. If he could, he felt like finding a tree, hanging himself by the neck, and just—snap—dying right now.

It was embarrassing enough to be spanked by a man with his buttocks bared, but it had reached a point where he had eventually begged him to stop, saying he was wrong about everything.

Yoon Jaewoo sniffled and rubbed the corner of his eye with the back of his hand. He felt like tears were about to burst out, but he desperately held them back. If only he could see Jinsu hyung right now, he could bury his face in that fluffy tail and cry his eyes out.

“How on earth do you hit someone for it to look like this. …Damn it.”

Yoon Jaewoo’s face scrunched up on its own as he peered at his buttocks in the mirror. Clear welts from the switch were etched on him, as if someone had drawn lines with a red pen. He lightly touched the area with a finger and quickly pulled his hand away from the stinging pain.

「Ramia.」

Just then, Eustace, who was sitting at a desk writing something, called him.

In his heart, he wanted to shower him with curses, but since the other man could understand the general meaning of his words through the air, he answered by biting his lip hard instead.

Yoon Jaewoo straightened his clothes and walked out of the bathroom with a hobbling gait. Eustace threw something at him. Catching it lightly with one hand, Yoon Jaewoo showed a puzzled expression.

「It is medicine. Apply it to the wounds.」

“Ha, …seriously.”

The person who created the saying about giving medicine after causing the disease should have died after witnessing this scene. How could this be! Hitting him and then telling him to apply medicine!

As Yoon Jaewoo let out a hollow laugh with a dumbfounded expression, Eustace slowly turned his gaze.

「Why.」

“No, it’s nothing. I’m so grateful I could cry. Your grace is so fucking boundless.”

Yoon Jaewoo made a motion as if to perform a deep bow, then flinched and swallowed a groan, “Ouch.” Deciding to apply the medicine first and complete his litany of curses against that psycho god in his mind, Yoon Jaewoo walked back into the bathroom.

He opened the lid of the medicine container and scooped up a generous amount of ointment with his index finger. With his other hand, he pulled down his pants to bare his buttocks, but he couldn’t muster the courage to boldly apply the medicine to the wounds.

Yoon Jaewoo, trembling, brought the medicine near the wounded area.

“Aack, why does it sting so much!”

Yoon Jaewoo screamed, jumping on the spot. Even if someone had poured a cooling patch on the wound, it wouldn’t have stung this much. Physiological tears streamed down his face.

Isn’t this poison, not medicine? He wants to turn me into a marble, it’s a hassle to take me around so he wants to turn me into a marble and put me in his bag!

Yoon Jaewoo wiped the streaming tears with his sleeve and chewed on his lips. Then, he happened to look in the mirror, and his eyes widened in surprise. The wound where the medicine had touched had vanished as if by a lie.

“It really is medicine….”

Yoon Jaewoo looked down at the medicine still thickly smeared on his finger. It seemed the intention of that omnipotent bastard who gave him this medicine was for him to experience the pain properly one more time. He had to apply it. If he rode in a rattling carriage in this state…

Shivering at the horrifying thought, Yoon Jaewoo gathered his courage and rubbed his finger on his buttock area again.

“Uwaaaaaah!”

His body trembled as if he had been electrocuted. Just like before, the wound where his finger had passed was cleanly healed and gone. Yoon Jaewoo mustered all his desperate courage, dipped his finger into the medicine container, and repeated the process several times.

Wiping away the streaming tears, snot, and drool was a task in itself. Only after his sleeve was soaked and there was no dry spot left to wipe with did the wounds heal to some extent. A few wounds remained, but they were in a spot his hand couldn’t reach anyway, and he didn’t want to feel that pain anymore, so Yoon Jaewoo closed the lid of the medicine container. As he stood awkwardly to pull up his pants, a low voice came from behind.

「Pull them down again.」

“……!”

「There are still spots left that you haven’t applied it to.」

“My hand can’t reach there. Just leave that much alone. It’ll heal on its own….”

Eustace made Yoon Jaewoo lie face down and pulled his pants down. Then, he unhesitatingly dipped his finger in the medicine and traced over the remaining wounds. Yoon Jaewoo’s body trembled at the tingling sensation. It wasn’t the same pain as before.

When he applied the medicine himself, it felt like someone was slathering a hot compress on the wound, but the medicine Eustace applied was a slow, deep heat that spread through his body. His toes tingled, and feeling a strange sensation, Yoon Jaewoo gritted his teeth.

“Ngh….”

He swore on his honor, on all his pride as a soccer player, that the sensual moan that escaped through his lips was absolutely not from the heart.

Yoon Jaewoo’s face, and even the nape of his neck, turned beet red. It was twice as shameful as when he had been spanked on the buttocks. Eustace’s fingertip brushed against his buttock with a slick sound. To hold back a sound, Yoon Jaewoo clenched his jaw and balled his fists.

When what felt like an eternity ended, Eustace, in his usual bleak voice, told him to pull up his pants and left the bathroom.

As he was pulling up his pants, Yoon Jaewoo witnessed the scene of his last shred of pride shattering into pieces.

…He was hard.

Toss, toss.

Yoon Jaewoo turned his body to the other side again. Eustace in the opposite bed seemed to be sound asleep; not even the sound of his breathing could be heard.

“Haaah….”

A hot breath spilled onto the pillow.

Once he became conscious of it, the heat in his body wouldn’t easily subside.

Let’s see. How long has it been since I took care of that.

Yoon Jaewoo retraced his memory, counting the days, and then let out a sharp intake of breath, “Heek.”

“It’s not like I’m impotent….”

No matter how many things had happened recently, it had been a serious dry spell. It was surprising he hadn’t had a wet dream in his sleep.

But of all times, why did it have to get hard now?

It was all that damn Eustace’s fault. This mess happened because that guy touched his butt in a weird way.

Dammit, dammit, dammit.

“Haaah.”

Yoon Jaewoo turned his body to the other side again. Eustace was asleep. Doing it here with that guy next to him didn’t feel right, but going to the bathroom didn’t feel right either.

He tried closing his eyes to cool his body’s heat with other thoughts, but the more he did, the more his lower half asserted its presence distinctly.

In the end, after tossing and turning for a long time, Yoon Jaewoo carefully got out of bed. He pulled on the hoodie he had left on the chair earlier and checked on the sleeping Eustace.

Good.

Let’s go into the nearby forest, get a quick one off, and come back.

Holding his shoes in his hand, Yoon Jaewoo walked on his tiptoes out of the room and quickly went down the stairs. The lower floor was all tidied up and the lights were off. Thankfully, he was able to leave the inn without running into anyone.

He quickly looked for a place with dense bushes. Fortunately, he found a secluded thicket not far away. He looked around and went inside. After confirming no one was there, he lowered his pants. The generous hood covered his body so much that even if someone saw him, they wouldn’t know what was happening.

“Hnngh….”

As he gripped his lower part with his palm, a ragged breath escaped his lips. He closed his eyes. With every movement of his palm, the sound of skin rubbing against skin echoed, and his mouth went dry. Licking his lips, he pictured an erotic scene in his mind.

Yes, beautiful breasts, and if you lift your ass like that, haah, good.

The sound of his palm brushing grew faster. Yoon Jaewoo’s breathing also grew a little ragged. His whole body shivered with the thrilling pleasure he hadn’t felt in a long time.

He pushed back the front of his hood to avoid getting his clothes dirty. When the cool air touched his bare skin, he could clearly feel how hot his body was.

His lips parted. A thin moan escaped. His legs trembled. The movement of the hand gripping his lower part grew rougher.

Just a little more. Just a little more….

“Haah, nngh…, ah.”

His toes curled. Just as he was about to throw himself into the wave of pleasure slowly rising up his throat.

Rustle.

Something approached from behind.

Yoon Jaewoo, who was on the verge of climax, inhaled sharply and tried to stop, but his body’s reaction was faster than his reason.

Something large rushed toward him like the wind. At the same time, Yoon Jaewoo reached his climax.

“……!”

Hot semen spurted into his trembling palm.

Gush, gush, gush, …gush.

Clutching the piece of flesh that was twitching and ejaculating without stopping, Yoon Jaewoo’s eyes flew open.

There.

“Ji, Jinsu… hyung?”

A beast, a beautiful beast with white fur, was standing there. With an expression he had never seen before.

“Th, I, tha…, tha, …hyung, I….”

His face turned red as he tried to move his lips to make an excuse, but not a single proper word came out.

The beast, the four-legged beast, slowly scanned Yoon Jaewoo. With an expression of bewilderment and disbelief.

“Ji, Jinsu hyung, I mean, you’ll, you’ll understand when you’re older, but men….”

Before Yoon Jaewoo’s pathetic excuse could continue, the beast vanished with a leap.

Left alone, Yoon Jaewoo had to watch blankly as the crumbs of his pride disappeared with that wind.

Because of the outrageous incident in the middle of the night, Yoon Jaewoo stayed up all night, tearing at his hair alone. He finally fell asleep near dawn and barely opened his eyes to Eustace’s voice telling him to wake up.

Eating breakfast with a groggy head, Yoon Jaewoo furtively glanced at Eustace. He was a man with little expression and a cool demeanor to begin with, but this morning he was several times colder than usual. No, rather than cold, his expression was stiff, as if he were angry. It was difficult to even breathe sitting across from him.

Forcing the bread that wouldn’t go down into his mouth, Yoon Jaewoo once again peeked at the man.

The man, sitting like a noble crane alone in the middle of a dirty restaurant, was eating elegantly. When their eyes met, the man clicked his tongue low, as if displeased, and frowned.

“…He’s the one who hit me.”

Yoon Jaewoo mumbled in a small voice and looked around. Fortunately, there was no one within earshot of his voice. Yoon Jaewoo took his hand away from his mouth and chewed the bread again, munch, munch.

「How old are you?」

“Pardon?”

「I mean you.」

Yoon Jaewoo looked up at the man, surprised and blank for a moment. The man had never once asked about the human Yoon Jaewoo. After a moment of hesitation, Yoon Jaewoo showed his age with his fingers.

「Twenty-three?」

“Yes.”

「…So young.」

A clear hint of displeasure was evident in Eustace’s voice as he said that. Wondering why he was suddenly picking a fight over his age, Yoon Jaewoo retorted sullenly out of a surge of indignation.

“What’s so young about twenty-three. And you, just how old… never mind.”

He had been told that Dweord’s reign alone lasted for several thousand years. Yoon Jaewoo gave up on figuring out the age of the man before him. He would be hurling plenty of insults at Eustace in the future, and hearing his opponent’s age might give him a needless sense of guilt.

Because he was a man who knew to respect his elders.

As Yoon Jaewoo nodded, feeling proud of himself, a cold wind grazed the nape of his neck. Startled, Yoon Jaewoo looked forward. Eustace was still eating with a displeased face.

“…The window is closed, though.”

He muttered, rubbing the nape of his neck with his palm.

After hearing that he was a god who ruled the wind and air, he couldn’t help but think that any time the wind blew, it was that man’s doing.

Glance.

He looked at the man. He was still eating with a frightening expression. After the talk about age, the atmosphere seemed to have become even more desolate, and his heart felt heavy.

Throughout all ages and all worlds, this world and that, the topic of age is a sensitive one. Especially when facing someone younger than yourself.

Right, no matter how much of a god he is, how envious must he be looking at young me.

Yoon Jaewoo stole a glance at Eustace’s face. He had an ageless appearance. Does he live his whole life with that face?

When their eyes met, Yoon Jaewoo quickly lowered his head.

The only sound breaking the silence was the clinking of tableware and spoons. Thinking he should say something, Yoon Jaewoo carefully opened his mouth.

“By any chance, Jinsu hyung, I mean a beast with white fur, about this big, with a tail thiiis big, have you seen a beast like that?”

After the incident last night, Yoon Jaewoo had been frozen on the spot for a long time, unable to move. After barely gathering his wits, Yoon Jaewoo remembered that Jinsu hyung had followed him all the way here.

Fixing his clothes, Yoon Jaewoo had wandered around the area for a long time looking for Jinsu hyung. He felt he had done something unforgivable to the beast who had followed him this far.

Besides, Jinsu hyung might just be big in size but could be a child! My good Jinsu hyung who listens to my national anthem so quietly, my cool Jinsu hyung with the magnificent, fluffy tail, that Jinsu hyung, …dammit. It’s a good thing it was Jinsu hyung. He won’t be able to tell anyone. Still, I should tell him to keep his mouth shut, just in case. …First, I need to find him.

But even after searching all the nearby woods, he couldn’t find a single strand of Jinsu hyung’s white fur. In the end, he returned to the inn, lay down on the bed, and from then on, the shameful and outrageous scene he had committed played on an infinite loop in his head.

「What are you talking about?」

“Jinsu hyung. I mean…, he walks on four legs like this.”

Yoon Jaewoo got down from his chair, put his hands on the floor, and made the shape of a beast. But Eustace, having finished his meal, didn’t even glance at him and briskly left his seat.

Yoon Jaewoo, left alone kneeling on the floor, cleared his throat with an “ahem” and got up. As he dusted off his knees, he hurled all sorts of curses inwardly at the god who had no manners and no decency.

Instead of going to where the carriage was parked, Eustace turned onto a different path, and Yoon Jaewoo, sticking close behind him, tilted his head.

“Where are we going.”

Eustace must have heard him speak, but he didn’t look back. Yoon Jaewoo ground his teeth and followed behind him.

Right. What difference would it make if I knew where we were going. It’s a blessing he isn’t dragging me around on a leash. Ah, thank you so very much.

Eustace stopped walking. Yoon Jaewoo, who had been spewing all sorts of curses in his mind, was suddenly terrified but managed to ask with a nonchalant face, “What is it.”

Eustace beckoned with his finger. His pride was hurt. Not even saying “come here,” but summoning a person with a flick of a finger.

Yoon Jaewoo deliberately walked slowly to his side. Eustace used his fingers to lift Yoon Jaewoo’s chin and then spoke.

「Keep your head down. Do not speak with anyone, and do not make eye contact. You must stay by my side.」

“…Yes.”

As Yoon Jaewoo nodded with a disgruntled face, Eustace let go of the chin he was holding. The descending fingertips felt strangely sharp.

He could communicate with Eustace to some extent, but conveying the exact meaning was difficult. Moreover, if Eustace didn’t even try to understand, it seemed the path to communication closed off entirely. A time like this was exactly that.

No matter what Yoon Jaewoo said, the man didn’t even give him a glance. The atmosphere was certainly awkward and uncomfortable, but not knowing the reason was just frustrating.

It didn’t seem to be because of the trouble he caused yesterday. Even before, when he caused trouble, he would be scolded, put on probation, or threatened with being turned into a marble, but Eustace had never given him the cold shoulder like this into the next day.

Then why? Just why? What did I do?!

Yoon Jaewoo threw a silent question at the broad back that looked several times colder than usual today.

Muttering to himself, Yoon Jaewoo began to look around at the street scenery, which was quite different from inside the castle.

The castle where Eustace resided was tranquil and beautiful. To the point where one would think there wasn’t a single part that hadn’t received the god’s blessing.

On the other hand, Raad was a place that brimmed with the feeling of human life. Even though it was early morning, he could feel the vitality of people setting up stalls here and there, preparing for business.

Yoon Jaewoo suddenly turned his head and looked at Eustace. He was a noble-looking handsome man, to the extent that everyone who passed by would turn back at least once. Even with his hair color changed, his characteristic cool feeling remained.

Even without the hair color, he would be an incredibly handsome man by the standards of our world. It’s a waste for his looks to be defined only by his hair color.

If his personality were just a little less prickly, it would be a bit better….

「Head down.」

Eustace said bleakly without even turning around. Yoon Jaewoo hurriedly lowered his head.

Yoon Jaewoo quickly retracted the thought he was just having.

That’s not a personality problem. He himself is rotten. There’s no fixing it!

Eustace, who had been walking along the road, entered a shop. I should take this chance to escape….

As his eyes met the man who was gesturing to him with a sharp face from inside the shop, Yoon Jaewoo neatly folded away the thought he had just had. He opened the shop door and went inside.

When Eustace pointed at something with his finger, the shop owner’s face hardened slightly. It was a cheap-looking hoodie at first glance. Wondering who on earth would wear something like that, Yoon Jaewoo touched the hoodie he was wearing. The fabric fell with a rustle and its texture was soft; even just by looking, it was worlds apart from the one Eustace had chosen.

Yoon Jaewoo buried his face in his hoodie and took a moment to understand why women liked high-end brand, good quality clothes so much. What stole that moment from him was a single cold word from the man.

「Take that off.」

“……?”

「Wear this.」

Eustace said, holding out the shabby hoodie he had just received from the shop owner. Yoon Jaewoo, completely unable to understand the situation, just blinked his eyes. Then, Eustace himself grabbed Yoon Jaewoo’s hoodie and pulled it off.

“What….”

Without even being able to ask what he was doing, Yoon Jaewoo’s eyes widened. As his completely blond hair was revealed, the shop owner’s expression changed. The owner’s eyes shone, like a person with priceless gold and jewels before him.

The shabby brown hoodie was put on Yoon Jaewoo’s body. After making him pull the hood down low, Eustace tied the strings for him. To Yoon Jaewoo, who was staring blankly at the white fingers tying the strings, Eustace spoke in a low voice.

「In truth, there is a better way to not stand out.」

“……”

…It’s the marble, that’s the marble, isn’t it.

「For now, I will endure with this.」

Yoon Jaewoo had no choice but to nod his head obediently. As soon as they left the shop, Eustace threw the hoodie Yoon Jaewoo had been wearing onto the street.

“What a waste….”

Yoon Jaewoo, who was looking at the discarded clothes regretfully, quickly chased after Eustace, who was already walking far ahead.

“Where…. …Ah.”

He told me not to speak.

Yoon Jaewoo closed his mouth and tugged on the hem of Eustace’s clothes. He asked with his eyes where their destination was now. Eustace’s gaze fell on the hand holding the hem of his clothes. His eyes hardened. Seeing that, Yoon Jaewoo thought, oops.

His opponent was a man who vied for the bottom rank in personality among the gods who rule this world. He knew nothing about the other two, but he was confident they would be better than Eustace or Yatenbaum.

Yoon Jaewoo stealthily pulled his hand back and bowed his head deeply. His pride was hurt by the opponent’s reaction of being displeased just by a touch, but surviving was what was important for now. If he survived and met the god who was said to help him, he could get his leg fixed and cross over to that other world.

If so.

If that could happen!

A hum came out on its own.

As he was walking with his head down, humming, Eustace, who was walking ahead, reached out his hand. His hand cupped Yoon Jaewoo’s face. Startled, Yoon Jaewoo froze on the spot. For the hand of an opponent who could turn him into a marble at any moment to touch him without any warning was an unspeakably chilling experience.

Eustace briefly frowned, then spoke in a low voice.

「If you want to sing that much, I can lock you in the Tower of Iklas right now. You can practice your singing there.」

The threat, which had approached as lightly as a gentle breeze, was clean when it retreated as well. When he withdrew his hand, the warmth that had been enveloping his cheek disappeared.

「Walk right next to me. There are many places to look around.」

He had a lot to say, but Yoon Jaewoo lowered his head. Dressed in the shabby, drab hoodie, Yoon Jaewoo followed the god’s footsteps.

「Catch.」

Catching the fruit that came flying through the air, Yoon Jaewoo glanced at Eustace. The sight of Eustace paying the fruit merchant and eating the fruit blended in with the market street without any sense of disharmony.

Looking at him like this, he seems like a normal person, too.

Munching on the fruit, Yoon Jaewoo continued to observe Eustace.

Eustace, who had said he would take a look around Raad, dragged Yoon Jaewoo around to various places. When asked why on earth they were wandering around here when he said they were going to a forest where some seal was placed, there was no answer.

It seemed he would have to give up on communicating with that guy for today.

After that, Yoon Jaewoo also didn’t try to strike up any particular conversation and quietly followed behind Eustace. Walking around like that wasn’t as bad as he thought.

Except for his legs hurting from walking for a long time, it could be called the most ordinary time he had spent since crossing over to this world. Of course, he did hear the threat that if he ran away, he would be turned into a marble in the middle of a crowded street.

“Oh.”

Yoon Jaewoo, who bumped into a person because he was looking around and not at what was in front of him, quickly bowed his head and apologized to the person.

It was a small, thin girl. Because she had bumped into Jaewoo, all the fruit in the basket the little girl was carrying on her head fell to the ground.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

“Oh, ah….”

Yoon Jaewoo knelt with her and started picking up the fruit. In the process, several fruits were kicked or stepped on by passersby, rendering them useless.

The girl’s face looked like she was about to cry. Yoon Jaewoo searched his pockets, but since he had nothing, there was nothing he could give her.

What should I do. This happened because of me.

Yoon Jaewoo’s face also became tearful. Just then, a large hand grabbed the girl and helped her up. It was Eustace.

「How much for one?」

「Pardon?」

「I mean the yatt in the basket.」

Yoon Jaewoo looked down at the fruit he was holding. So this is called a yatt. It was similar to an apple but more tart and juicier, so Yoon Jaewoo particularly liked this fruit.

To the point where he resolved that when he got his leg fixed and went to the other world, he would have to bring the yatt seeds, even if he had to hide them in a brush cap.

I might become incredibly rich with a new fruit variety. No, I should just plant such a delicious fruit in my backyard and enjoy it all by myself.

While he was having these pleased thoughts by himself, Eustace pointed at the fruit in the basket and continued to speak.

「I want to buy all the yatt in the basket.」

「Yes? For one of these, well….」

The flustered girl began to count diligently, picking out the dirty fruits from the basket.

「That’s enough. We don’t have time, so I will just buy them all.」

Eustace took money out of his pocket and held it out to the girl. The girl’s eyes widened, as if she had never seen such a large sum of gold coins in her life.

「Sir. I think you have given me the wrong amount of money.」

「That is to pay for the fruit that was ruined because of this one.」

Eustace’s fingertip pointed at Yoon Jaewoo. Yoon Jaewoo, who had suddenly become “this one,” was a little offended, but he couldn’t say anything because it was his fault.

「But, …the money….」

「It is fine.」

Eustace’s voice as he said that was no different from usual. A soft breeze brushed past Yoon Jaewoo’s cheek. Yoon Jaewoo was certain that it was related to the man.

So this corpse collector, this son of a bitch, has a side like this too. Maybe he’s a little, just a tiny bit, a decent….

「Hold it.」

Eustace said curtly, pointing at the basket to Yoon Jaewoo.

Retracting the thought that Eustace might be a decent guy for a moment, Yoon Jaewoo tucked the basket under his arm.

「Thank you. Sir, thank you so much. May the blessing of Dweord always be with you.」

Yoon Jaewoo barely managed to hold back his laughter. He wanted to ask which Dweord that Dweord was.

The girl kept touching the gold coins with tears welling in her eyes. The girl repeatedly bowed to the two people who were leaving. Eustace walked on without looking back.

Trying to act so cool.

Yoon Jaewoo picked up a fruit from the basket, wiped it on his clothes, and followed along while taking a bite. Just then, a scream rang out from behind. Yoon Jaewoo turned his head. The girl had fallen to the ground, and a man was running away through the crowd.

「My money, he took my money. It’s for my mother’s medicine, please catch him! Please!」

The girl cried out, screaming. Yoon Jaewoo’s eyes flashed. He looked around. A peddler selling brass kettles caught his eye. The size was right, and the weight was right. Without delay, Yoon Jaewoo threw down the basket, picked up the kettle, tossed it in the air, and kicked it with his foot. As he kicked, his center of gravity collapsed, and Yoon Jaewoo fell on the spot.

With a clang, the kettle, flying at a terrifying speed, accurately struck the back of the thief’s head.

People crowded around the fallen thief. Someone tapped Yoon Jaewoo’s head as he tried to get up. It was Eustace. Yoon Jaewoo’s hand fumbled at his head. It seemed his hood had come off when he fell.

While Yoon Jaewoo was fixing his hood, Eustace walked over to the fallen thief.

“Ugh.”

After stepping on the thief’s shoulder with his foot to prevent him from getting up, Eustace bent down and picked up the gold coins.

“Dammit, what are you doing—, uck.”

When Eustace lightly put more force on his foot, the thief let out a single scream and collapsed. It was something he thought yesterday too, but it seemed the force of a blow was distinctly different when the man really meant it.

Yoon Jaewoo resolved that even if he were to run away, he had to make sure he escaped completely so as not to get hit. He dragged his limping leg and approached the girl. He helped the crying child up and brushed the dust off her clothes. The old, worn-out clothes didn’t show much reward for dusting, but Yoon Jaewoo silently brushed off the dust.

He lifted his head and met the girl’s eyes. He wanted to ask if she was okay, but he couldn’t. The girl, reading his concern in his eyes, cried and nodded.

Thank goodness. It seems she isn’t hurt anywhere.

Yoon Jaewoo smiled with his eyes and patted the girl’s back. Eustace walked over. Eustace reached out and took the girl into his arms. The child was not the only one surprised by his sudden action.

Could that guy be trying to make a marble out of a child, Yoon Jaewoo thought, his eyes wide. Eustace patted the crying child’s shoulder and asked.

「If you tell me where your home is, I will take you there. I will also return the money I took from the thief.」

The child stopped crying. A small, thin finger pointed to the end of an alley. Eustace started walking. The way he walked holding the child was so natural that Yoon Jaewoo rubbed his eyes for a long time, wondering if this was really the Eustace he knew.

Eustace frowned and looked back.

「Follow me.」

At that short and firm command, Yoon Jaewoo thought, that guy is indeed that guy, and started walking.

He had seen many houses in his life.

The orphanage where Yoon Jaewoo had spent his childhood was a shabby building that was hardly worthy of being called a house. When it rained or the wind blew, it was hard to sleep through the night because of the creaking sound of the roof. Near the orphanage was a so-called shantytown.

Having grown up in poverty, Yoon Jaewoo knew poverty, its distinctive smell.

A musty and sour smell. A smell that stings the tip of your nose.

The moment he entered the child’s house, he could smell that scent for the first time in a long time.

The old house, which wouldn’t be strange if it collapsed at any moment, was divided into inside and outside by a straw mat. When he pushed aside the mat and stepped inside, something was laid out that made him understand what the words “mother’s medicine money” meant.

A woman in the shape of a person was lying on the bed. The only proof that she was a living person was the faint up-and-down movement around her chest.

The girl ran to the bed. The woman, who barely opened her eyes, touched the child’s face with a hand as rough as a dead tree.

Even to Yoon Jaewoo’s eyes, which had no medical knowledge, it was clear that the child’s mother was on the verge of death. The child explained to her mother what had happened today and introduced the two as kind people.

Feeling awkward, Yoon Jaewoo just bowed his head and gave a vague smile. The child’s mother, in a barely audible voice, said they must serve a meal to their guests.

Yoon Jaewoo jumped up and waved his hands. Eustace quietly held his hand. To send a guest away just like that is an unthinkable rudeness in this country. So just stay still, he whispered in a low voice.

In the end, the two sat at the table and were served a meal prepared by the child. As he spooned the soup, which had no solid ingredients, into his mouth, Yoon Jaewoo kept glancing at Eustace. He ate quietly with his usual face, as if it were any other time.

「Is it not to your taste? I’m sorry.」

The child asked, looking at Yoon Jaewoo who was holding the spoon in his mouth. Yoon Jaewoo shook his head and hurriedly poured the soup into his mouth. The child then smiled brightly and said she would bring him another bowl.

“Oh, ah…, ah….”

Before he had a chance to refuse, the child took his bowl. Yoon Jaewoo looked at Eustace. He should have said something for me, he conveyed with a reproachful look.

「Have about one more bowl. That is polite.」

“No matter how polite it is, …it’s obvious she’ll starve.”

No sooner had Yoon Jaewoo finished speaking than the child brought out a bowl full of soup. Yoon Jaewoo smiled awkwardly and made a gesture to eat together. The child shook her head. Having no choice, Yoon Jaewoo started eating again. The child watched him with a smile by his side.

When Eustace’s bowl was empty, she ran again and refilled it with soup.

This was repeated three times.

To be honest, it didn’t really suit his palate, and since he was drinking only soup continuously, Yoon Jaewoo felt nauseous. More than anything, he felt so sorry for the child. The amount the two of them ate today was surely the child’s and mother’s food for several days. Every time he spooned the soup into his mouth, a feeling of guilt piled up inside his body along with it. He was only able to finish the meal when he reached the point where he couldn’t take any more.

Yoon Jaewoo stood up from his seat, rubbing his very full stomach with his hand. That too was only after Eustace gave him a look of permission to stand up.

「Thank you so much for today, sir.」

“Ah, …uh.”

The child looked at Yoon Jaewoo, who couldn’t speak, with a look of pity. The child smiled and held Yoon Jaewoo’s hand tightly.

「May the young sir also be filled with the blessing of Dweord.」

“…Hah….”

He met Dweord so often it was tiresome, so he wanted to tell her to take that damn blessing for herself.

The child, unaware of Yoon Jaewoo’s burning heart, this time greeted Eustace. Eustace, with an unreadable expression, gave a slight nod.

「May the blessings of the gods be with you on your way.」

The child’s mother raised her body from the bed and offered her greetings. A smile spread across her face, which was full of sickness. Yoon Jaewoo quickly bowed his head to her in greeting.

Eustace had already gone out of the house.

The child came out to the front of the door to say goodbye. Yoon Jaewoo turned back several times and waved his hand to her. Then he ran quickly to Eustace, who was walking some distance away.

“Can’t you heal her?”

Eustace did not answer and walked down the road. Yoon Jaewoo blocked his path.

“Can’t you heal her? You’re a god. Aren’t you able to do anything?”

「I told you to follow behind me, I never gave you permission to block my path.」

“You can heal her, can’t you?”

Seeing Eustace’s attitude toward the child, he thought he might be able to cure the illness. That’s why he had been watching him throughout the meal. Waiting for when he would perform a miracle for the child’s mother.

“Aren’t you able to do it?”

「I will not do it.」

When Eustace’s answer came back, Yoon Jaewoo looked up sharply and asked, “Why.”

“You won’t do it because it’s a hassle? I’m a Ramia, and that child is a person of the world you rule, isn’t she?”

Thinking he might not understand because he was speaking too fast, Yoon Jaewoo pressed his own palm to his chest and said, “Ramia.” And pointing his finger in the direction of the child’s house, he said, “Dweord.”

There was something he wanted to ask if he met a god.

Why he leaves people so unhappy. Why, when some are happy, he can create others to be so unhappy and pretend not to know. If he created people, isn’t it right that he should make everyone happy fairly. If he wasn’t going to treat them fairly, why did god create humans in the first place, Yoon Jaewoo wondered.

“You can do it, so why on earth won’t you?”

It might be meddling, but he didn’t want to just let it go. Even if it was a god from another world, he needed, at least he needed, an answer to that.

“Please answer me.”

Yoon Jaewoo’s voice trembled faintly as he said that.

Eustace looked at Yoon Jaewoo with indifferent eyes and then opened his mouth.

「If everything in the world went according to my will.」

A loose smile was drawn on his lips. His eyes curved softly.

However, Yoon Jaewoo knows that the temperature of the wind that just brushed past him was cooler than usual.

「There would be nothing as meaningless as that.」

“…What does that….”

Eustace withdrew his smile. With an expressionless face, he walked past Yoon Jaewoo.

“What do you mean by that?”

Yoon Jaewoo asked persistently, but Eustace pretended not to hear. As if to say, today’s conversation ends here, he even raised a hand to block Yoon Jaewoo.

“Explain it so I can understand what you mean…, damn it!”

Yoon Jaewoo cursed, kicking the ground roughly.

Because he had lived a life far removed from things like a god’s word or doctrine, he did not know the exact meaning of Eustace’s words.

However, even he could know one fact for certain.

That the gods took it for granted that the world was not fair.

His eyes flashed open.

Yoon Jaewoo examined the face of the man lying asleep in the opposite bed. Just like yesterday, he was deeply asleep.

He had no precise knowledge about the existence called Dweord, but their patterns of eating and sleeping seemed almost identical to those of humans.

Yoon Jaewoo cautiously got up and stepped down from the bed. Holding his shoes in his hand, he glanced at the sleeping Eustace as he went outside.

He had been threatened several times that if he was caught running away, he would be turned into a marble, but he could not miss this good opportunity. Eustace hadn’t noticed when he had stepped out for a moment last night, so he would definitely succeed today as well.

Until he was outside, Yoon Jaewoo did not let down his guard.

Yesterday, because of the bewildering and embarrassing incident, he hadn’t even had the presence of mind to think of escaping. He had been told that from tomorrow, they would be traveling by carriage, so they would have to camp outside or sleep inside the carriage.

Today was the best day to run away.

Moreover, the story he had heard from Eustace on the way back earlier had been tormenting Yoon Jaewoo’s mind like a thorn stuck in his throat.

If the answer had at least been that it was beyond his ability, or that he didn’t have time to care about every single thing, or even just that it was a hassle, he wouldn’t have felt this rotten.

“It’s a damn good thing I’m an atheist.”

Because the orphanage was a Christian foundation, he had formally attended church, but he had never once held a deep faith in his heart. Yoon Jaewoo resolved that even if he returned to that other world, he would not believe in any god.

As he walked deep into the forest, Yoon Jaewoo did not forget to check behind him. Fortunately, there was no sign of anyone following.

Yoon Jaewoo thought about the voice he had heard from the spring.

The four Dweord who rule this world. He had already met two, so it must be one of the remaining two.

According to the head chamberlain, the other Dweord had no tolerance and would have killed a black Ramia on sight, but Yoon Jaewoo no longer believed those words. The old chamberlain was someone who worked for Eustace, and there was no way he would speak well of other gods.

“…The problem is, which of the two is it.”

It was safe to say he had almost no prior knowledge of the remaining two.

One blue guy in the south, one yellow guy in the east.

Which of the two should I go to.

Stopping for a moment to contemplate, Yoon Jaewoo spat on his palm. When he rhythmically tapped it with a finger, thwack, the spit flew in one direction.

…North.

“……”

Yoon Jaewoo spat again. He mercilessly struck his palm with his finger.

North.

“…Third time’s the charm.”

Yoon Jaewoo spat, p-tooey. As soon as his finger hit his palm with a thwack, he saw the direction the spit flew and let out a rough curse.

“Damn it! What grudge do you have against the north!”

Yoon Jaewoo comforted himself that deciding the direction with spit was a very primitive and irrational method and started walking again. First, he had to get out of this forest and find a place to hide.

Yoon Jaewoo picked up a sharp-looking stone from the ground and walked in a straight line, marking the trees as he went. This was all survival knowledge he had learned in the Boy Scouts.

The forest was cold at night. But it was much easier to walk than in the endless snowfield where it snowed. The moon hanging in the sky was still bright and beautiful.

He didn’t know what the future held, but at least for now, there was hope. Yoon Jaewoo walked, humming a tune. The heavier his legs became, the louder his humming grew.

I can do it. I’m going to get out of here and become happy, just you watch.

There was no one to hear, but Yoon Jaewoo hummed diligently. However, physical exhaustion could not be overcome with willpower alone.

“Haah, haah….”

Stopping for a moment to catch his breath, Yoon Jaewoo’s eyes caught sight of a mark scratched on a tree with a stone. A chill ran down his spine.

There’s no way.

Yoon Jaewoo looked back. The path he had walked was far in the distance. He had walked only in a straight line without ever changing direction, …it must be a coincidence.

This is Raad. He had been told it was not the land ruled by that damned Eustace, and that no Dweord could carelessly exert their power here.

Yoon Jaewoo marked an X on the tree he was leaning on. This way, there would be no confusion.

He started humming again. Tapping his right leg, Yoon Jaewoo moved his feet. After walking for a long time, he noticed a tree next to him that looked strangely familiar. He hurriedly checked the trunk of the tree.

“……!”

The color drained from his face with a whoosh.

Yoon Jaewoo fumbled with his hand and confirmed the mark he had carved. It was certain. He had clearly drawn an X earlier to avoid confusion.

“Wh-what is this.”

Yoon Jaewoo looked back. It sounded like he could hear the cry of a beast from somewhere. He was suddenly scared. He looked up at the sky, but because of the dense trees, even the moon was not visible.

Yoon Jaewoo walked, touching each tree with his hand. With every step he took, he checked his direction. However, it wasn’t long before he realized he had returned to that same tree again.

Yoon Jaewoo looked back. There was no one there. It was the same when he looked up and when he looked down.

“Damn it all.”

It felt awful. The feeling of being played with on someone’s invisible palm was too awful to describe in words.

Yoon Jaewoo changed direction. He decided it would be better to just walk as he pleased. As Yoon Jaewoo was walking back and forth, crisscrossing this way and that, the long cry of a beast suddenly reached his ears. At the same time, he saw a bird flutter up and fly away.

After thinking for a moment, Yoon Jaewoo ran in the direction the bird had flown.

Running while supporting himself on one leg was harder than he thought. Thinking that he would develop very strong muscles in his left leg before going to the other world, Yoon Jaewoo ran with all his might. A small, arch-shaped gate came into his view.

There it is.

Instinctively, Yoon Jaewoo sensed that he had found the exit. He ran toward the gate. He ran with all his strength, not even realizing his shoe had come off. The gate grew smaller and smaller. It felt like if he was just a little late, the gate would disappear.

“No!”

Yoon Jaewoo threw his body toward the shrinking gate. With his body floating in the air, he closed his eyes. After a long time, he still didn’t feel the sensation of plummeting, so Yoon Jaewoo cautiously opened his closed eyes.

“Heek!”

Yoon Jaewoo was terrified by the handsome face of the man seen upside down.

Eustace, who was gripping one of Yoon Jaewoo’s legs and looking down at him with an indifferent face, slightly raised an eyebrow.

「You crazy thing.」

“H-how….”

He was definitely sleeping. And besides, he said he left his godly powers behind!

「I put a barrier around the inn.」

“……”

A scene from the first day, when Eustace had gone out saying he would take a quick look around, flashed through Yoon Jaewoo’s mind.

I’m the crazy one. I’m the crazy one for not calculating the meticulousness of this omnipotent son of a bitch!

「I knew you had a habit of taking walks at night, so I turned a blind eye once.」

As Eustace said that, his eyes curved softly.

Yoon Jaewoo’s lips trembled. Eustace had clearly declared that if he tried to run away just one more time, he would be turned into a marble, regardless of the reason.

Now, the only thing left for him was the shitty fate of becoming a marble.

Eustace shook Yoon Jaewoo’s body while gripping his ankle.

“Uwaaak!”

Yoon Jaewoo let out a scream at the sight unfolding below his head. Only then did he realize he was precariously hanging off a cliff.

Below the sheer, steep cliff, sharp rocks jutted out, enough to make all the hair on his body stand on end. If Eustace hadn’t grabbed his ankle, he would have dived off the cliff by now and been impaled like a skewer.

「If you want to fall that badly, shall I grant your wish?」

“S-since when did you ever grant my wishes, eeek!”

As Eustace loosened his grip, his body slid down about a hand’s breadth. Terrified, Yoon Jaewoo flailed his hands. Eustace’s hand barely caught Yoon Jaewoo’s ankle.

Pride be damned, Yoon Jaewoo reached out, grabbed the hem of Eustace’s clothes, and began to beg.

“Don’t let go. Please, d-don’t let go.”

In dizzying terror, Yoon Jaewoo squeezed his eyes shut. Just looking at it made his knees weak, so how on earth did I die once.

Once the hope that his leg could return to its original state emerged, a lingering attachment to life developed. Moreover, he wanted to avoid dying at someone else’s hands, no matter what.

「What Mäden said is true.」

“That’s right! Just hand me over to Yatenbaum instead. Dammit, I’ll find a way to escape somehow, so for now, just hand me over to that beast-like guy.”

Eustace smiled faintly. His palm mercilessly smacked Yoon Jaewoo’s buttock.

“Ugh! Why did you hit me!”

「I told you that once something is in my hands, I do not hand it over to another before it dies.」

“You said it’s meaningless if everything in life goes your way! I’ll make it meaningful for you, so let go of this right now!”

Eustace’s face, looking at Yoon Jaewoo who was yelling his head off with a face red from the blood rushing to it, briefly darkened. After a moment of silence, he opened his mouth.

「I did put up a barrier, but I didn’t know you would come this far.」

“What are you talking about! Ah, seriously, I’m gonna die because the blood isn’t circulating.”

Yoon Jaewoo’s captured ankle hurt, but the blood rushing to his head felt like his eyes were about to pop out.

「Just as Mäden said, there is definitely an interference of power.」

Eustace had found the Ramia at the edge of the barrier he had set up. It was a distance he had thought the Ramia would never be able to reach, even as he was setting up the barrier. A distance that a human could never walk.

He had even thrown his body to get out of the barrier. Of course, if Eustace hadn’t caught him, the result would have been death.

“Interference of power my ass, please, just get me, huff, seriously, just please!”

Come to think of it, the first time he saw this Ramia was also at a hot spring located in a place that no one from the castle could possibly reach.

Eustace looked down indifferently at the Ramia’s face, which was flushed as red as the midday sun.

「I will ask.」

“Ask what…, just ask quickly!”

「Will you become a marble here and now, or.」

Yoon Jaewoo didn’t know what words would follow “or,” but he resolved that he would absolutely follow that second option.

“I’ll do it. I will do it. I’ll do it!”

Even while held upside down, Yoon Jaewoo nodded his head vigorously.

「Do you know what you are agreeing to?」

“I just have to do it!”

He thought anything would be better than becoming a marble.

「Fine.」

Eustace set Yoon Jaewoo down on the ground. Lying on the ground, Yoon Jaewoo rubbed his forehead and waited for the blood to circulate properly. When he finally came to his senses, Eustace was looking down at Yoon Jaewoo with a strange expression.

“What are you looking at. Are you disappointed you couldn’t make a marble… sir.”

He tacked on the polite suffix to the end of his sentence. It’s advantageous at times like this that he can’t understand the exact words. However, as Eustace’s heavy gaze continued, Yoon Jaewoo unknowingly hunched his shoulders and used polite language again.

“What is it. …Is there a problem?”

「How did you get here?」

Since he was asking something so obvious, Yoon Jaewoo blinked his eyes, then tapped his legs and said, “I walked.”

A sigh tinged Eustace’s expression. He pointed with his hand in the direction of the inn. When Yoon Jaewoo lifted his head to check, he saw a light flickering at a distance he couldn’t believe he had walked.

“What is that? That thing.”

「It is the place you came from.」

“No, it’s not, no matter how much I walked, it wouldn’t be this far…. Besides, I was definitely just going in circles….”

That was why he had changed direction and came here. Even considering the distance he ran after changing direction, he definitely hadn’t walked that far.

As Yoon Jaewoo couldn’t answer and just moved his lips, Eustace nodded.

「Right. I already knew you were strange. However, what I do not understand is.」

After saying that and closing his mouth, annoyance crept onto Eustace’s face. Yoon Jaewoo’s heart pounded, afraid that the man might change his mind and turn him into a marble right now.

「Never mind. I can just go and check that anyway.」

“Where are you going. What are you checking?”

「You said you would do it, so follow me without another word.」

“Where to?”

「Do you think you will feel at ease if you know?」

Yoon Jaewoo shut his mouth.

There is definitely a reason why Eustace would go so far as to say that. There’s no reason to know in advance and make myself uncomfortable.

Because I can just run away before then.

「Give me your leg.」

“Pardon?”

Wondering if Eustace had perhaps read his thoughts just now, Yoon Jaewoo’s face turned deathly pale.

「I said, give me your leg. Why do you make me repeat the same words when I went to the trouble of regenerating your ears?」

“Wh-why.”

Yoon Jaewoo could not readily offer his leg to the man who had said it would be better to just break his other leg because it was a hassle.

With a look of displeasure, Eustace snatched Yoon Jaewoo’s ankle.

“Aack! I was wrong. I was wrong, so please, my leg is…. …Huh?”

The foot Eustace grabbed was his right one. He clicked his tongue low as he looked at Yoon Jaewoo’s blood-soaked sole.

「With this foot, you came all the way here?」

“I know, right. Ouch ouch.”

Yoon Jaewoo grimaced as Eustace pressed his sole with a finger.

「You seem to feel pain.」

“Of course I feel it! I feel it too much.”

It was a situation that Yoon Jaewoo himself couldn’t understand.

How could he have walked all the way here when his foot was in this state? As if he were possessed by something.

Eustace took out medicine from his pocket. Yoon Jaewoo’s face turned pale. The moment he saw the medicine container, the pain he felt yesterday came back to him.

“N-no. It will heal if I just leave it.”

Eustace’s cold gaze pierced him. Yoon Jaewoo clamped his mouth shut with a gulp.

It was a situation where he should have been bowing his head in gratitude for the god’s grace of applying medicine to the injured leg of a Ramia caught running away.

“I’ll apply it myself.”

Yoon Jaewoo muttered weakly and held out his hand. A hint of a smirk flashed across Eustace’s face.

What’s with him.

Just seeing his smiling face now made his heart sink with a thud. That guy’s not the type to just smile obediently.

「It would be better if I apply it.」

“Pardon?”

Eustace brought his fingertips to the cheek of the bewildered Yoon Jaewoo. A warm yet tingling sensation spread through his cheek. Yoon Jaewoo rubbed his cheek with his palm and muttered, “What was that.”

Did I get an electric shock or something. For that, it feels a little better. …It feels strangely good. Unsettlingly….

「Just endure it and sleep for today. It’s a hassle to go catch you.」

After saying those incomprehensible words, Eustace applied the medicine to his finger and rubbed it on the sole of Yoon Jaewoo’s foot. Surprised by the thrilling sensation that traveled up from the sole of his foot, Yoon Jaewoo gasped, “Huk.” It was definitely not painful.

His body jumped up with a start at the sensation of ticklishness rising all the way to his throat. Yoon Jaewoo bit his lip.

“Wh-what is this.”

「Cover it.」

Eustace took off his outer garment and threw it onto Yoon Jaewoo’s body. The garment, falling with a plop, precisely covered the space between Yoon Jaewoo’s legs.

Yoon Jaewoo’s face, who knew what that meant from having experienced it once before, flushed bright red.

“…Should I die.”

Yoon Jaewoo was startled by his own muttering voice as he lay there and hunched his shoulders. The man lying next to him must have fallen asleep, as no scolding came back.

Saying it was a hassle to go back to the inn, the man said they should get some sleep here first and move when the sun rises.

Then how on earth did you come all this way, he wanted to argue, but Yoon Jaewoo was in a state of great shock at the time, so he only nodded.

In the end, the two laid down a spot in the middle of the forest overlooking the cliff. Lying with his back to Eustace, Yoon Jaewoo chewed on his endless self-loathing.

The man had only applied medicine, and there was no other act, …but he was hard.