“Ah! This crazy author!”
“Why are you yelling again?”
“The hero was killed by the Demon King!”
Killed?
Hanshyun, who had been lying face down on the bed, turned his body and looked at his fiery friend.
“Isn’t that the story you’re talking about?”
“Yeah.”
“You spent 300 episodes building up the hero, didn’t you? You’ll revive him, right?”
“No way! The hero got wiped out without even getting a chance to fight properly!”
“But wasn’t the hero supposed to be insanely strong? How did he die so quickly?”
“I don’t know, man… It’s like those writers who get ‘authoritis’ and suddenly twist clichés for no reason. Aaaah!”
After more than ten minutes of continuous ranting from his friend, Hanshyun decided to change the subject.
“So what’s the deal with the Demon King anyway? Some kind of high-ranking Demon?”
“It seems human-like based on the hints dropped here and there. Just called the Demon King, but apparently has constant trouble with high-level Demons.”
“Human? Why would a human defeat a hero?”
“Maybe you’ve encountered some tough humans before. Damn, damn never changes…”
“Well, judging by what you say, it seems the people in that world are pretty rough too?”
*
Ray gently pressed on the bleeding arm of the unconscious Hans while tapping the chin of another unconscious person, Knife.
Since killing Knife and Hans could escalate into an inter-organization conflict, Ray held back.
However, with no idea when the unconscious ones might wake up, quick action was necessary.
When Ray turned his head and reached out his hand, Luna, who had been standing nearby, flinched and drew her neck back.
Regardless, Ray stroked her oil-drenched hair and offered his back.
“Hop on.”
It was clear that Luna lacked the stamina to keep going much longer.
Frowning as he forcibly hoisted the hesitant Luna onto his back, Ray muttered under his breath.
“She’s really light, but not so light that my nine-year-old body isn’t feeling it.”
“My back is killing me.”
Just in case someone was chasing them, Ray ran hard.
Only after passing through a small forest between two territories did Ray relax slightly.
The villagers, seeing a child carrying another child while panting heavily, couldn’t help but comment.
“There he goes again.”
“Where did he pick this one up from?”
“How does he manage to stick around despite all this nonsense?”
“He’s really clueless, isn’t he? My goodness.”
‘Why do they think I’m some kind of animal hoarder?’
Though Ray felt wronged, from the villagers’ perspective, he indeed was an orphan hoarder.
He sent orphans off to a gang-operated orphanage which, in their eyes, was just a thievery training ground.
“Why does everyone treat this good-hearted kid so poorly?”
At least Jack, the fruit seller, took his side and threw him an apple.
Catching the apple, Ray hesitated for a moment before setting Luna down.
Her breathing against his neck was irregular and weak, indicating she wasn’t in great shape. Given how starved she appeared, Ray figured feeding her anything carelessly might cause indigestion. He brought the apple to his own mouth while looking at Jack.
“If you have any apple juice prepared, could you bring it out?”
“Did you leave it with me?”
“Don’t we owe it to the future generation to invest in a glass of apple juice? Or are you going to be stingy again?”
“You’d be loved plenty if you’d stop opening that nasty mouth of yours.”
“Just trust me. Today’s glass of apple juice will come back twenty years later as a vast orchard beyond the horizon.”
“Shut up and feed her this. She looks like she’s about to pass out.”
Grumbling, Jack handed over freshly made apple juice from that morning.
Luna cautiously sipped it, then widened her eyes and tilted the cup hastily.
“Chew slowly. Don’t make yourself sick.”
Jack tossed another apple to Ray as he admonished Luna.
“So you’ve collected all the orphans in this neighborhood already. Where did you find this one?”
“I went to Dinor.”
“Dinor? Isn’t that a baron’s territory? You didn’t cause any trouble, did you?”
“Well, Jimy will handle it somehow.”
“…You won’t last long doing this.”
“Thanks for the advice, Jack. Put the apple on my tab. Payment term: 20 years.”
“No problem. Want another glass of juice?”
Looking to the side, Ray noticed Luna licking the inside of the cup enthusiastically.
Coolly snatching the cup away and returning it to Jack, Ray waved goodbye.
“See you next time.”
“Alright, go home safely.”
Seeing that Luna seemed to have regained some energy, Ray let her walk on her own.
Passing through the market and the bustling streets, they entered a somewhat run-down and damp-looking street.
Unaware that this area became quite lively at night as the red-light district, Luna began sweating profusely.
Knowing that words wouldn’t resolve the misunderstanding, Ray gripped Luna’s increasingly weary wrist and pulled her along.
“Hey, isn’t that Brother Ray?”
And soon enough,
They arrived at an orphanage where several children were playing in the yard.
Upon hearing that Ray had arrived, more children poured out from inside the orphanage.
“Hmm?”
Then, among the children, a middle-aged woman dressed in a nun’s habit approached with quick steps.
It was Adel, who volunteered at Jimmy’s orphanage taking care of the children.
“Ray, did you bring another new friend?”
“This is Luna. Please take good care of her.”
Adel touched Luna’s dirty body once more and, with a compassionate look, took her hand.
“You’re awfully thin. Let’s clean up and have something to eat.”
Silently gazing at Adel, Luna began contorting her face comically.
Had she been tricked? Was she being taken to a dirty den to endure unspeakable things? Or would she be abandoned on the street again?
Free from the endless doubts and anxieties that had plagued her, Luna finally burst into tears upon stepping into the orphanage where children her age lived happily.
“Sniff, sniff, huuu…”
“It’s okay. Everything is fine. You’ve endured so much.”
“Huuuuuu…”
As Adel consoled her, Luna, unable to control her emotions, cried freely. Watching this, Ray looked disappointed.
‘Hmm… Aren’t these kids a bit ‘ordinary’?’
Secretly expecting Luna to maintain the same cold demeanor even after arriving at the orphanage, Ray couldn’t hide his disappointment.
‘Should I downgrade her evaluation from Unique to Rare…’
He was gradually becoming similar to the race he used to call ‘jjanggan’ in his past life.
*
With the children’s attention focused on Luna, Ray managed to regain a brief moment of respite.
Of course, being an orphanage where troubles never ceased, loud voices erupted almost immediately from the entrance.
“Where’s the director!!”
A man who had jumped over the gate was holding a boy’s ear roughly and fuming.
Recognizing the bruise on the boy’s cheek, Ray scratched the back of his head.
The boy’s name was Mas.
He had been at this orphanage for about three years and was notorious for not listening to anyone.
Still, ignoring him was not an option, so Ray stood up stiffly and walked towards the entrance.
“Uncle, the director here is Jimmy. Could you call Jimmy?”
Startled by the mention of Jimmy’s name, the man, Leo, stammered as he pointed at the orphanage.
“T, that director! Bring the teacher who feeds and teaches these kids!”
“Leo, lower your voice.”
Leo froze in surprise when he heard his name coming from Ray’s mouth.
While Leo might have only caught fleeting glimpses of Ray’s face, Ray knew him well.
Leo was an adventurer who traveled between various cities and villages, doing odd jobs and hunting. Whenever he made a decent amount of money, he visited the brothel.
He had developed an attachment to Lisa, a prostitute who worked under the stage name at “Lilac Evening,” one of the most renowned brothels in the area.
And the most popular prostitute at “Lilac Evening” was-
‘My mom.’
Not biologically, but still.
‘Reincarnating means my mom is now the ace of Dragon Alley.’
He had no complaints about her; she was a good person.
All the complications in Ray’s life stemmed solely from his biological parents.
“Anyway, Leo.”
With Leo’s excitement somewhat subdued, Ray changed his tone and asked.
“What did Mas do to make you so angry?”
“T, this little brat picked my pocket and ran away!”
“Someone pickpocketed you?”
“Yes! And it seems like pickpocketing has been increasing lately according to talk at the taverns. Now I see, it’s all because of these orphan kids!! Ugh!!”
In the middle of the conversation, Mas shook off Leo’s grip and tried to flee into the orphanage.
Ray extended his hand and grabbed Mas by the shoulder.
“Let me go!”
Mas laughed off Ray’s attempt to stop him and roughly shrugged off his shoulder.
Mas was older than Ray and also taller by a head.
Confident in his physical superiority, Mas believed he could easily overpower Ray. However, when Ray intentionally tightened his grip, Mas had no choice but to collapse while screaming in pain.
“Aaaaah!!”
“Hmm, Leo, did you recover the stolen items?”
“W, well, since I caught this guy myself. Still, there are many victims…”
“Sorry about that, Leo. I’ll make sure this doesn’t happen again and properly educate him.”
Although Leo’s face was full of dissatisfaction, he softened upon hearing Ray’s persuasion.
“Could you overlook it this time? Leo, you’re such a righteous and generous person. I’ll make sure to tell Lisa that. You know how the sisters there adore me?”
A tempting offer made Leo cough awkwardly.
“Hmm, r, really?”
“Of course. And Lisa loves your travel stories. So please visit again next week and finish the story you left off last time. She said she’s dying to know what happens next.”
“Cough!”
Unable to conceal the joy that arose, Leo nodded.
After receiving confirmation twice more, Leo left the orphanage. At that point, Mas, who had been wriggling on the spot, shouted irritably.
“Are you not letting go?!”
“…”
Ray rarely used violence when dealing with children, for two reasons: one, he lacked strength, and two, no serious incidents requiring extreme measures had occurred yet.
But now, the situation had changed.
Crack!!
Even a mere slap from a nine-year-old sounded like a whip cracking.
Struck by the shock, Mas swayed unsteadily, and Ray grabbed his collar.
“Head reset.”
“…”
“Head reset.”
“…”
Crack!!
“Head reset.”
“Sniff, sniff…”
“Don’t drag this out and answer.”
As Ray raised his hand again, Mas panicked and raised his arms.
Tapping Mas’s arms aside, Ray leaned in close.
“Did you do the pickpocketing alone?”
“W, well, not exactly…”
“Who else was involved?”
“P, Phillip and Dwain… M, Mari too…”
“Who persuaded you first?”
“Persuaded?”
“Who coaxed you? It doesn’t seem like you guys started doing this out of nowhere.”
Thinking back briefly, Ray recalled why he collected orphans in despair.
The reason was that among them might be a child with the qualities of a hero who hadn’t been properly nurtured or a child who had fallen into corruption due to a harsh environment.
Therefore, Ray was most wary of factors that could negatively influence the children he had gathered.
Given the already difficult environment, if there were people openly encouraging crime among the children?
‘They need to be dealt with.’
Assuming his hypothesis (that a higher being had assigned him the role of both discoverer and assassin) was correct, exposing children to crime from a young age could lead to unpredictable butterfly effects.
For instance, if the seed of a hero grew into a villain due to early experiences in pickpocketing, this world would be doomed.
“Hey, who persuaded you?”
Besides all that,
Ray simply didn’t want to witness the sight of someone he had fed, housed, and taught turning into an ungrateful beast.
Responding to Ray’s emotions, mana mixed with murderous intent pressed down on Mas.
Overcome with fear, Mas began trembling and spoke involuntarily.
“L, Lon and Nacia taught us the method. They said we needed to contribute our share…”
If Lon and Nacia were members of Jimmy’s organization.
Ray understood the situation.
Most of Jimmy’s subordinates disliked the existence of the orphanage.
Since a significant portion of the money they collected through their efforts was invested in maintaining the orphanage, dissatisfaction was inevitable.
Thus, they frequently complained that the children should at least earn their keep.
“Right. It’s time to restore order.”
Whether it was local thugs or reckless kids,
Since he had activated mana, it was necessary to restore order before spreading more negativity.
For the short-term benefit of the children’s future, the long-term stability of the world, and ultimately for Ray himself.
