I stayed frozen for a while, unable to move in this absurd situation. When my stopped brain finally started working again, I moved my foot once as if denying reality. Then a squeak sounded.
……Huh, a squeak? My head turned involuntarily. The parallel world Ruvlian, the owner of that gaze, was sitting at the edge of the bed with his legs crossed, running his hand through his hair. His cravat, undone at some unknown point, hung loose and his gaze was directed at me.
Going even further, he slowly unbuttoned his top button and smiled like a ripened fruit. I let out an empty breath at his seductive behavior. He had to be a shameless bastard who didn’t know the meaning of shame.
Watching that insane behavior made me lose the will to confront him. I didn’t even want to exchange words with him.
I left the room just like that. Squeak squeak. Every step I took made a sound. Honestly, even if someone said it was an elaborate strategy to humiliate me, I would have accepted it.
Who could have imagined that at this age I’d be wearing squeaky shoes that I’d never worn once in 22 years of life, including my Hero days? It was lucky there were hardly any servants around, or I would have almost become a laughingstock in this state. Fortunately, the servants that were present didn’t seem to pay much attention. Rather, they treated me as if I didn’t exist.
After looking around once, I immediately erased the uncomfortable sensation. Whether the knockoff ordered it or it was voluntary—did I need to pay attention? It was a waste of emotion.
The only thing that bothered me was their eyes. Among these few people, an extreme minority sent gazes that strangely held anger, anxiety, and contempt. These weren’t emotions to direct at me, someone coming here for the first time.
Then the target of those emotions must be the me of this place, the parallel world Baek Sihyeon. It subtly grated on me, wondering what exactly had happened here. It was like a hangnail on just one of otherwise clean fingers. I usually passed over things indifferently whether they were others’ business or mine, but this irritation was particularly severe.
If he’d taken the same route as me, he should have come to this world as a Hero, then killed the Demon King and become an object of admiration. Not receiving such ominous gazes.
God said the knockoff Ruvlian had beheaded the Demon King. Then what about the parallel world’s Baek Sihyeon? If he was like me, what exactly had he, who should have come to this world as a ‘Hero’ with the mission to kill the Demon King, been doing? Why were people sending him such gazes?
There was little information given. There was woefully insufficient information to find out anything more. The parallel world Ruvlian’s bizarre obsession. The ominous emotions directed at the parallel world Baek Sihyeon. Since both were figures of the parallel world, there must clearly be a connection linking the two.
My thoughts were flowing like water when I felt an approaching presence, and a shadow fell. Before my eyes was an elderly man with graying hair. Judging by his immaculate attire without a speck of dust and his precise movements, different from the servants, he seemed to be the butler of this place.
I stared intently at the person presumed to be the butler. They say the eyes are the window to the soul. His eyes were deep like an abyss and held the traces of weary years intact. There were also the ominous emotions I’d felt from the servants, but they weren’t directed at me. More precisely, he was trying hard not to direct them at me.
That’s why I couldn’t help but realize. This person knew I wasn’t this side’s Baek Sihyeon.
“I am Bay, the head butler of this place. The master has ordered me to guide you, the guest, to the study. Please follow me.”
And that’s also why I couldn’t help but be suspicious. Why was this person the only one who knew I wasn’t the parallel world’s Baek Sihyeon, and why send someone who knew that of all people?
Was it bait, or a simple mistake? I hadn’t seen the parallel world Ruvlian for long, but that bastard was a Ruvlian. Someone for whom the word ‘mistake’ was terribly ill-fitting.
Besides, wouldn’t it be a waste to use someone sitting in the position of head butler as disposable bait? Multiple thoughts flashed through my mind in a short time.
“Okay.”
I decided to accept the guidance for now. Because whether it was bait or not, what I had to do was the same. If it was bait, I could get caught and use it, and if not, I could use it as it was.
Just like I wouldn’t refuse someone sent with the expectation that I would head to the study.
I didn’t feel guilty. I wasn’t kind enough to feel guilt toward someone I’d never met, and I’d gone through a time when I couldn’t let go of the threads of suspicion and vigilance for that.
Maybe it would be different if I were the me from senior year of high school who hadn’t become a Hero. It was a time when I desperately tried to be a good and upright child. It was all a pointless hypothetical.
“Since you are the master’s guest, I ask that you speak informally.”
It was a polite request. I nodded lightly.
This would have been difficult not long after becoming a Hero. It was when I was obsessing over being a good child to receive even a little family affection.
But I gradually adapted. I had to adapt. That place wasn’t Korea, and it was a place where a class system existed.
The Hero wasn’t a noble, but had higher power than them.
This was a matter of scarcity. People needed more of the ‘Hero,’ the only adversary to the ‘Demon King’ who led the world to destruction. However, there was only one Hero bestowed by God. In contrast to there being multiple nobles with many people who could replace them.
So the ‘Hero’ who could uniquely save the world was a position with a much greater weight than expected. One where words and actions had to be carefully delivered. That’s why formal speech was bad in many ways.
“I’d appreciate it if you could tell me where this is. I was suddenly kidnapped so I didn’t have time to ask.”
“This is the mansion in Lihetun, the territory of House Belitent, a ducal family.”
……Belitent? It was an unexpected surname. Then did that mean the parallel world Ruvlian’s real name was Ruvlian Belitent? It was strange. Of course it was, because in the world of Ruvlian where I was a Hero, Duke Belitent was someone else. Furthermore, Ruvlian was known as a commoner.
“I guess he doesn’t have brothers or sisters.”
“He has a younger brother. He is now married to the current Countess Nau and has changed his surname to become Count Nau.”
When I asked probingly, an honest answer came back. Probably this person who was now Count Nau was Duke Belitent in Ruvlian’s world.
Thinking about it, that characteristic composure coming from the parallel world Ruvlian was something you could see from the privileged class. His elegant gestures down to his moving finger joints were also like that.
……Is this why God mentioned the secret of his birth and education? Certainly Ruvlian had the surname ‘Celton,’ but that was a surname used by Masters of the Magic Tower for generations. That’s why everyone from the Empire’s nobles to the marketplace children thought Ruvlian was a commoner.
I was the same. Ruvlian never once spoke about his childhood. He would only smile brightly like a flower bud blooming, saying I’d find out later. So there was no way I could know.
Of course there were cases of abandoning a noble surname when becoming Master of the Magic Tower, but Montrio said that because Ruvlian’s childhood was so unknown, he was tacitly judged to be a commoner.
“I guess he’s not the Master of the Magic Tower.”
“He refused the position of Master of the Magic Tower.”
It was different. It was certainly different from the world I knew.
I didn’t know what had influenced it, but if Ruvlian’s life had been smooth, would it have turned out like this? Even if he’d received quality education and lived a different life, would he still have liked me? My thoughts naturally flowed toward Ruvlian. Meaningless hypotheticals filled my head.
To drive away thoughts that seemed endless, I consciously moved my mouth. Something I wasn’t particularly curious about flowed out between my lips.
“How much time has passed since I fell asleep?”
“Four days.”
From the morning sunlight streaming through the window, I’d thought at most a day had passed. I didn’t know I’d be asleep for four days. It was unexpected. I didn’t know if the flow of time was the same between my world and this world, but if it was, Ruvlian would have woken up long ago. And he’d be turning everything upside down looking for me.
A reason to hurry had appeared. Ruvlian with his strong obsession would find me in the end. I could assert this because I knew him well.
But when Ruvlian found me, if the curse wasn’t lifted? Then it would be back to the blood vomiting and escape ending. I had to plan and execute as quickly as possible. My heart became a bit anxious.
‘Bel……. ……ry.’
……Just now, didn’t I hear something? Stopping my thoughts, I unknowingly stopped in place. Seeing me like that, the butler asked.
“Is something wrong?”
“It’s nothing.”
I gestured forward. It meant to guide me without idle talk.
The butler threw one more glance at me, then moved his stopped legs. The butler’s composure wasn’t false. He truly seemed unable to hear the sound. Or I heard wrong.
But to deny it, I’d clearly heard the sound cutting off. It was a sound that rang in my head similar to when I conversed with God.
I walked while concentrating to see if I’d hear the sound again, but all I heard was the sound of plodding footsteps. No other sounds came from the corridor where conversation had disappeared.
Did I hear wrong? I arrived at the study door carrying a strange uneasiness. As soon as the butler opened the door saying we were here, it felt like a sharp wind pierced through my head. Sound rushed in like a bullet. My head was dizzy.
“Are you all right?”
The butler tried to support me as I swayed. I waved my hand to stop him and nodded. A smaller voice than before whispered again.
‘Kill……. ……it. Kill……it.’
It wasn’t a mistake. The voice was conveying.
To kill something.
