## Chapter 94 – Zombie Parade
I felt amazing.
Joy never left me as I followed the girl. She was like a lucky bluebird. I was so happy that I sang the whole way. If you asked what song I sang, I could confidently say it was “Compass” by Seol Woon-do.
“Just tell me the direction; I’ll listen.”
I even held the girl in my arms like a princess. Maybe it was because she hadn’t eaten well, but she was so light. I was getting 10 silver; what wouldn’t I do? She was my master now.
The fact that she stole my money and hid behind the thugs to order my death meant nothing in the face of the huge sum of 10 silver. This was a world where money was everything.
She stole money, but she’s giving it back double.
She told them to kill me, but they didn’t actually kill me.
Therefore, the girl was practically blameless.
Seeing such a pretty girl trying so hard to survive naturally made me, as an adult, feel good. I wanted to help her, support her. That’s why I could forgive her.
“Isn’t it hard living in a place like this?”
I asked as I walked.
“O-Oppa. You don’t have to do this… Um, I mean. I wish you’d put me down… I won’t run away…”
“Come to think of it, what’s your name? Even a fake one is fine. I don’t know what to call you, hey.”
“Huh? P-Put me down…”
“You’re incredibly light, though. Are you even human? How can you be so light, like a feather?”
“A-Are you listening to me?”
“Still, it’s really nice to see a kid living so bravely. It’s really hard for us barbarian half-breeds to survive. You’re better than me.”
“Oppa, please, can you answer me, even if it’s just anything…? You’re not going to kill me, are you? I-I’ll give you all the money, I promise?”
“Kids these days are hopeless. They don’t know gratitude or how to apologize. Compared to them, you’re a really thoughtful kid.”
“…O-Oppa?”
“Of course, of course. The world is about helping each other. Just like I’m helping you, you’re helping me.”
“…Hic, sob.”
“Ten silver, ten ten ten ten silver. Ten! Sil! Ver! Kroooo! Sudden action, dejaaaat!”
Unable to stop my joyful impulse, I kicked off the ground and ran. A cry of joy burst out. I wanted to get to where the girl had hidden the money even faster.
Come to think of it, wasn’t Claudia starving alone in the room? I had wasted too much time. As I ran, I arrived at the place she had indicated.
“Is this a good place to put you down?”
I put the girl down. For some reason, she was trembling, and she looked like she had seen something scary, utterly terrified. What was wrong? As far as I remembered, I had only praised her.
Ah, was that it?
Maybe she was scared when she saw me slicing people up earlier.
I unintentionally did something I felt bad about.
“Haa, haaa… haaa…”
“Are you okay? Are you okay? Can you walk?”
She was trembling so much that I was worried, so I kindly asked and put my hand on her forehead to check her temperature. Of course, I couldn’t check her temperature with that. My hand wasn’t a thermometer; how would I know?
I couldn’t figure it out.
“Ah, I’ll guide you… Please follow me…”
“Okay!”
The place the girl led me to was a box-shaped shack tucked away in the corner of the slums. It looked like it would get soaked inside if it rained. It was just a little better than sleeping on the streets.
“Please come in…”
The girl said as she went in first.
I put my hand on the hilt of my sword and went in cautiously.
ㅡCreak.
The inside was dusty, as if it wasn’t ventilated.
Just as I was thinking of coughing,
ㅡCough, cough!
Someone beat me to it.
I saw an old woman lying there.
“…Hey, Linani? Cough, cough! Linaya, who’s here?”
“H-Halmeoni, please be quiet for a moment!”
The girl laid the old woman back down as she tried to get up. Were they living together in this shitty place? I would rather die than live with my grandmother in a place like this.
“Is that your grandmother?”
“…Yes.”
The old woman was constantly coughing. She was wearing an eye patch and looked unwell, like she could die any day now. I suddenly wondered something and asked.
“Are you… supporting her?”
“…Yes.”
“Alone?”
“…That’s right.”
The girl, called Lina, said with a forced smile.
It was the forced smile that only those worn out by a harsh life could make.
I see.
So that’s how it is.
“I’m sorry, Oppa. I stole money to pay for my grandmother’s medicine. I’ll give it all back, I’ll give you all the money I’ve saved so far… Haa, can’t you forgive me just once…?”
The girl was alone in this place, risking danger for her grandmother, working with that young body.
“Is your grandmother very sick?”
“…She’s going to pass away soon. Probably… But she’s the one who raised me, so I couldn’t give up.”
She was pickpocketing and sometimes even selling her body. She risked her life to earn money for her grandmother, who could die at any moment.
“I wanted to save her… no matter what.”
The girl said.
“If I die, Halmeoni will… No, forget it. Oppa. I was wrong. I shouldn’t have done that…”
“…”
“I’m glad Oppa is a kind person.”
My heart felt like it was breaking.
Since coming to this world, I had been living while forgetting the hearts of people. But the girl, despite living in similar conditions to me, had not forgotten the hearts of people.
“I see.”
That was a very important value.
“Where’s the money?”
Anyway, I had to get the money, so I became impatient.
If she was lying now, I would have to kill her grandmother and everything else. I definitely didn’t want to see that happen. Would I want to kill such a pitiful child and a sick old woman? I wouldn’t be able to sleep properly if I did.
“…”
The girl brought a small box that was tucked away in the corner.
“It’s here.”
Inside the box were copper coins and silver coins.
I counted them slowly. It was exactly 10 silver and 9 copper.
“Heu, heuheuheu…”
I felt good as soon as I saw the money.
“Okay, okay, I’ll forgive you! Live a good life from now on!”
Since I had promised to receive all the money she had, I put all 10 silver and 9 copper into my pocket. The heavy pocket made my heart race. I felt extremely good and ruffled the girl’s hair.
“Huh? You’re so pretty, why would you do something like pickpocketing? Even though we’re barbarian half-breeds, there’s always a way to survive. In the first place, your grandmother would never like you earning money like that.”
“…”
“I’ll give you some advice, stay away from mean-looking guys. No, just stay away from me. Always be careful. And don’t just throw around vulgar words like ‘giving yourself.’ Cipal, do you think that makes sense? Value your body a little more.”
Feeling good after receiving the money, I decided to give the girl some words of wisdom. The girl seemed moved by my words and listened to me without saying a word. Judging by the way her body was trembling, she must have been very touched.
“Then, take care.”
It was clear that her lungs would rot if she stayed in a place like this, so I immediately went outside.
The air outside was refreshing.
Was it because I had done a good deed? It felt like the world was welcoming me.
It seemed like doing good deeds like today was not bad.
By showing mercy, I had saved a girl who was supporting a sick old woman.
Getting 10 silver was a kind of bonus.
Just a while ago, I was on the verge of losing 5 silver and going crazy, but by doing good deeds like this, I had actually earned 5 silver more.
It was a model of rewarding good and punishing evil that even a decent old tale couldn’t compare to.
“Ah, this is really too good. This is real. Heueu, heuheuheuheu…”
I chuckled.
I hadn’t even come out to earn money, but in just a few hours, I had earned a huge sum of 5 silver and 14 copper. I felt like I could fly away at any moment.
My hands were stained with blood, but… well, it’ll be okay.
This is the price of human blood that can never be replaced by anything.
I left the slums with light steps.
This goddamn neighborhood, I’m never coming back.
“Ah, right.”
Come to think of it, I had to buy some food before going back to the inn. I had earned money, so should I splurge a little?
Humming, I bought groceries. To commemorate today’s harvest, I skipped the beer and bought wine. Claudia likes alcohol. I bought enough to eat until tomorrow morning and returned to the inn.
ㅡ…! …!
When I arrived in front of the room, I heard faint noises. It was a good thing the building was soundproof. I opened the door.
“Haaaan, haeuht, aahng! Ka, Katt! Why, why are you so late…! Keueuheuht!”
“Oh my god.”
Claudia, who had completely soaked the bed, was rolling naked on it. Had she been waiting all along, doing it alone? No, how many hours had passed?
Greatly shocked, I dropped the basket and collapsed.
“Haeueuu… Katt? That blood…?”
“Blood? Ah.”
My everyday clothes were covered in blood. It was the blood that had splattered when I killed the thugs. How could I have been walking around like this? I had to wash first…
“Haa… haa…”
Suddenly, Claudia, her eyes shining, began to approach me. Somehow, her hair was also shimmering with an amethyst-like light.
That’s right, cipal! This older sister liked this!
“Take it off.”
“Euaaaak!!”
In an instant, my clothes were stripped off, and I was thrown onto the bed. She, riding on top of me like a beast, extracted my soul. My vision went dark.
***
After the intense lovemaking, it was already dark outside. Claudia, lying next to me, traced the scars on my chest with her fingers.
“So, what happened?”
“I went out to buy food and met a pickpocket.”
“And?”
“I killed them all and earned 5 silver.”
“Hehehe, good job, good job.”
Unlike Claudia, who praised me by constantly kissing my cheek, I felt quite complicated. I told her the feelings I felt without filtering them.
“…Um, lately, when I kill people, um, how should I put it. The hesitation has completely disappeared… It’s just that the situation is what it is, so I killed them impulsively, but I don’t feel any aversion… I can’t really explain it well either. But what’s certain is that it doesn’t feel good.”
The true owners of America, the cruel primordial natives, the Indians, believe that there is a triangle of conscience in their hearts.
That triangle rotates every time they do something against their conscience, piercing their hearts and hurting them. But the more the triangle rotates, the more the vertices wear down.
Finally, when the worn-down triangle becomes a circle, that person is reborn as a true monster who no longer feels any remorse.
The monster, who has no blood or tears, becomes the tribe’s most powerful warrior and reigns as a butcher on the battlefield.
Maybe I had become such an existence.
Rolling around in this world, killing monsters and people, had all the triangles of my conscience worn away?
“Hmm… What should I say, this is… So, how was it when you killed people?”
Claudia said calmly.
“To be honest, it was a little… good. It sounds a little crazy, but when I stabbed the knife in, I felt a sense of satisfaction? Achievement? Something like that filled me up. It was just good at the time, but looking back now, it feels too crazy. So, I just feel a little like that.”
“I see, you were worried about that.”
Claudia, who was lying next to me, grabbed my head and turned it.
She had a firm expression.
“Katt, if you felt good, that’s all that matters.”
“That’s… all that matters?”
“Yes. Actually, who cares about anyone else but you? If a situation comes up where you have to kill, you can’t help it. That’s the same story for the other person. People are ultimately beings who can’t live without killing something.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. That’s how it is. So, you don’t really need to worry when you kill someone. Hel-Kan said that killing is the fate of a warrior. Those worries are all useless.”
Claudia, who said that, hugged me as if she was trying to put me in her chest.
I didn’t know well, but her chest was soft.
“Killing is never a bad thing. So, don’t worry about that. Let’s rest easy and go to sleep, okay?”
Lately, Claudia’s nonsense has started to feel like the right thing to say.
Maybe it was because I was tired, but I fell asleep like that.
