Chapter 220
My name is Choi Leejun.
I used to be an ordinary high school student.
The reason I'm using the past tense is because I was chosen by a god and transported to another dimension.
'Ah~ This is so boring.'
Even while attending classes at school.
Even while hanging out with friends.
Even while playing games at home.
I was bored.
I needed some new kind of stimulation.
― Hello! I'm Maya, the god of stories!
That's when she appeared.
A god who would take me away from this tedious daily life into an extraordinary world.
― You've been chosen! As the hero who will save the continent!
― Please come to my world and defeat the devils that threaten humanity!
― Oh! Don't worry! Your determination will surely have great power in my world!
The god asked me to come to her dimension and defeat the devils.
Here, I was just an ordinary high school student, but because I had a stronger will than others, she believed I could wield a special power in her world.
"Me?"
I didn't believe it at first.
As I said, I was just an ordinary high school student.
But I was so tired of that ordinary life.
"Fine!"
So I decided to take her up on her offer, thinking what did I have to lose.
― An escort will find you when you arrive in my world.
― He'll help you adapt to my world.
― Once again, I'm counting on you! Hero!
Wuuung!
"!"
Then, just as I felt my body floating, my consciousness faded.
And when I opened my eyes, I was in a dark cave.
"Ugh."
I don't know how long I was unconscious, but my whole body ached.
Forcing myself up, I followed the faint light to the cave's exit.
What I saw then was—
"... Wow."
Grasslands stretching to the horizon.
A village far away with smoke rising into the sky.
And a vast, endless sky.
"I really have come to another world!"
A landscape unlike anything in Korea.
Just seeing it made my heart beat faster.
"But... where's my escort?"
The escort who was supposed to help me adapt to this world.
I couldn't see anyone who looked like that.
Growl.
"Uh... I'm hungry too..."
My stomach grumbled, and hunger hit.
"For now... should I head down...?"
I couldn't just wait endlessly until my escort showed up, so I decided to go to the village where I'd seen smoke earlier.
But even that turned out to be difficult—
"... There's no path?"
The cave was halfway up the mountain.
Unlike the mountains in Korea with their neatly maintained hiking trails, there was no path leading down from here.
I looked at the slope overgrown with weeds and pressed a hand to my forehead.
"This is insane. I have to go through that?"
I didn't want to go through places like that—my clothes might get torn, or bugs might stick to me.
Growl.
"... I have no choice."
But I was hungry, so there was nothing I could do.
With a sigh, I began descending the pathless mountain.
"It—it's slippery."
"Ah! Aagh!"
"My ankle hurts..."
I faced many hardships, but managed to get down without any major injuries.
"But... uh..."
It was fine that I'd made it down the mountain, but now there was a new problem.
"Was it always this far...?"
It had looked walkable from halfway up the mountain, but now that I was down, the village seemed unbearably far away.
Growl!
"Ah... I'm starving to death..."
All I wanted was something to eat.
My stomach and my throat were both dry and aching.
"I guess I have no choice."
With a sigh, I began walking toward the village.
The sun had been high up in the sky when I left the cave, but by the time I reached the village, it was already night.
"Haa... haa..."
By the time I arrived, I was drenched in sweat.
"I'm hungry... I'm thirsty... I want to wash up..."
That was all I could think about.
Then, I noticed people nearby.
"%#@#$@%@#"
"?"
They spoke in an incomprehensible language.
In stories, isn't it normal for the main character to automatically understand the language?
Even though I didn't get it, my hunger made me desperately gesture for food.
They led me to what seemed like a restaurant.
What they served me was something like watery porridge and roughly roasted potatoes, without any seasoning at all.
But, being so hungry, it all still found its way into my mouth.
"Haa... I finally feel alive again..."
Feeling a fullness I hadn't felt in ages, I clutched my belly with a satisfied expression.
Then, the same people who'd spoken with me before came up, chattering and holding out their hands.
"They want money, right? But I don't have any..."
Of course, since the god had suddenly sent me here, I didn't have any money.
Still, I searched my pockets.
"Seven thousand won and change... They probably can't use this here, right...?"
Trying my luck, I offered them the cash, but it was obvious they didn't want it.
"What do I do...?"
While I was worrying, I noticed those people starting to pick up something like clubs.
"Uh... uhh...?"
Their faces were clearly twisted with anger.
I tried getting up and backing away, but someone was already blocking the exit.
"W-wait! I'm here because your god—"
Crack!
I tried to explain, but before I could, the back of my head grew hot, and I lost consciousness.
When I woke up again...
* * *
"That's... the protagonist..."
Luca watched with a bitter expression as Choi Leejun was being beaten by the villagers.
There was a shackle on his leg, and his clothes were little more than rags.
His skin was grimy, as if he hadn't even washed.
'Unbelievable.'
Luca didn't know exactly what had happened to him in the past few months, but obviously, it hadn't been anything good.
'He had a refreshing, dignified presence in the original story, a classic otherworld protagonist type... I can't believe he's ended up like this.'
In the original, protagonist Choi Leejun always seemed relaxed and strong.
Or at least, until Sieria, the heroine, died fighting the Devil of Life.
Seeing him now—cringing, curled up as he was beaten, his eyes burning with anger—it made Luca's heart ache.
"You there. What are you doing?"
Luca could not stand it any longer and approached, speaking to them.
The villagers—presumably the original residents—glared at Luca.
"Another outsider?"
"Damn. Are you just going to eat all our food and hand us garbage in exchange, too?"
"Hey, but that one's dressed fancy. And his face isn't bad, either."
The villagers, who had been brimming with anger, calmed down as soon as they saw Luca's face.
Carefully, one of them spoke.
"Um... are you perhaps... a noble?"
The Hernan Academy uniform was extremely high quality.
An ordinary commoner couldn't buy such clothes even after a lifetime of work.
And Luca possessed some of the continent's finest looks.
Naturally, their demeanor grew much more cautious.
Even a backwater hick knew better than to antagonize a noble.
Luca clicked his tongue at their sudden change in attitude.
"My name is Luca Traverse. I am the second son of the Traverse family, who guard the empire's eastern front."
This was the eastern region.
Naturally, they must have at least heard of the Traverse family, who defend the eastern front.
Sure enough, their eyes widened in shock.
"Gasp! T-the Traverse family!"
"My lord, it's an honor to meet you!"
"Oh dear, how could such an esteemed person be in so humble a place..."
The villagers instantly kneeled and bowed their heads to Luca.
Looking down at them, Luca sighed inwardly.
Then he turned to Choi Leejun, who lay collapsed, twitching on the ground.
"Why are you treating that boy like livestock?"
"T-that one..."
As Luca took interest in Choi Leejun, the villagers grew flustered and watched him nervously.
The eldest among them spoke up cautiously.
"He arrived about two months ago, and he looked hungry, so we fed him, but he just showed us some worthless trash in return. He can't even speak the continental common tongue... and he doesn't even seem to have any special strength..."
The elder trailed off, meeting Luca's now icy gaze.
He flinched, then continued in an even more cautious tone.
"We were just... making him do some odd jobs."
"Odd jobs?"
"Yes, like... tending cattle, or... something like that..."
Luca replied levelly.
"Looks like in this region, even getting beaten is considered part of odd jobs."
"Well, that's because... he's really terrible at it..."
"I see, so if you're bad at work, you deserve to be beaten."
The old man glanced nervously at Luca, whose voice had gone cold.
"S-sir... um, if you need something with... no, I mean, if you have business with this boy...?"
At this, Luca pulled a gold coin from his pocket and tossed it to him.
The elder instinctively caught it, his eyes widening.
"A g-gold coin...!"
"That should be enough to cover his food."
In a rural village like this, a gold coin was worth a fortune.
Smiling with delight, the elder answered,
"M-more than enough! More than enough, my lord!"
"Then I'll be taking him with me. Before that,"
Luca said with a cool face,
"I'd like for you to take off his shackles, wash him up, and put him in new clothes. That should cover the cost, right?"
"We'll prepare it immediately!"
The villagers hurriedly took Choi Leejun away somewhere.
Luca let out a long sigh, and Ottbo approached with a puzzled expression.
"Who was that just now?"
At his question, Luca's expression grew faintly complex.
Then, as if remembering something, he smacked his lips and replied,
"If I had to say, I suppose he's an old friend."
"You had a friend before?!"
"..."
Ottbo was startled, but seeing Luca's sullen face, he stammered nervously.
"A-ah, that's not what I... No, not that it isn't... Um, so..."
"... Let's leave it at that."
"... Yeah."
Somehow, it all felt a bit melancholy.
"More importantly, hand over what I asked you to prepare."
"Oh, right!"
Trying to change the mood, Luca held out his hand to Ottbo.
Ottbo promptly took something from the subspace pouch.
"The translation magic bracelet! You prepared it for that guy, right?"
In the original, the protagonist was able to communicate after Ben Dwight gave him a translation magic bracelet.
Later, he learned the language from the heroine and could use the continental tongue without the bracelet, but for now...
"My lord! We're ready!"
Before long, Choi Leejun emerged, washed and wearing what was likely the nicest outfit available in this village.
He looked dazed, as if he still didn't understand what was happening.
The elder led him to Luca and bowed deeply.
"We are always indebted to the Traverse family! May endless ho—um, ho... honor and glory come to you and the Traverse family!"
"... Alright."
Leaving behind the old man, who seemed exhausted from using such uncommon words, Luca took Choi Leejun and headed toward the outskirts of the village.
Choi Leejun followed, shaking, a look of utter confusion on his face.
"Am I... am I being sold as a slave? To this kid who looks younger than me? Damn it! What is he planning to do with me?"
"..."
Choi Leejun muttered to himself.
Luca glanced at him.
'The protagonist often mumbled to himself in the story, but... does he think I can't hear him?'
He considered it, but quickly dismissed the thought.
What mattered now was putting him at ease.
Once they were a fair distance outside the village, Luca looked at Choi Leejun and spoke in Korean.
"Relax, Choi Leejun. I'm the person sent to guide you."
"!"
Choi Leejun's eyes went wide with shock.
Finally, someone was speaking words he could understand.
He trembled visibly, then tears began flowing down his face.
"Why... why so... why so late... I... I was really... having such a hard time..."
"... You've suffered a lot."
Seeing him unable to speak properly, Luca felt pity well up inside.
After crying for a while, Choi Leejun finally calmed down and looked at Luca.
"You're... you're the one who'll guide me?"
"That's right."
When Luca confirmed it, Choi Leejun's eyes snapped open and he shouted,
"Then go kill those bastards right now!"
"?"
Before Luca could react to Choi Leejun's sudden outburst, a notification appeared before Luca's eyes.
[Conditions met. A hint has been created.]
[The Hero of Wrong Choices]
― A hero chosen by the god, XX.
― He failed to live up to the god's expectations and made the worst choices.
― The god now commands you to strip the fallen hero of the granted authority, and save the continent from a hero doomed to corruption.
― Encounter the being from another world, Choi Leejun. (○)
― Meet with Saint Amelia of the Order and prepare the ritual. (X)
― Absorb the authority of 'storage' from Choi Leejun. (X)
"?"
Unlike previous hints, all the content was visible this time.
But that didn't matter.
What mattered was that this was a 'hint'.
Luca twisted his lip.
"So this is how it's going to be."
The god of stories, Maya, had designated the hero Choi Leejun as the 'villain'.