Chapter 24

Chapter 24. The First Hero (18)

"By the way..."

Kosdal spoke while they followed Dean and Malko.

Seongchan waited for him to continue.

"Is there a reason you aren't meeting His Majesty Haiman?"

"Do you want to go there right away?"

"No."

Kosdal denied it instantly.

He hadn't visited the Terk Kingdom in two years.

Even though he'd finally arrived, he clearly wanted to delay going to the royal palace for as long as possible.

He was about to storm over there after seeing the lazy knights, but it looks like he came back to his senses. He must really not want to see Serina.

Kosdal had stayed away from the Terk Kingdom for two years because of his conflict with Serina.

Even when he had visited before, the kingdom had already been slowly worsening.

But during the two years of Kosdal's absence, the Terk Kingdom had rapidly fallen into decline.

Seongchan asked him,

"When a kingdom starts to shake, what do you think goes wrong first?"

"His Majesty's safety, obviously! You find the leader of the rebellion and kill him first."

Kosdal answered proudly.

His attitude made it seem as though there couldn't possibly be another answer.

Every time he came to the Terk Kingdom in the past, Kosdal secretly cut off the sparks of rebellion before they could spread. Serina never knew how much work he'd done for her.

Serina had once said something to Kosdal that she never should have said.

After that, Kosdal had avoided the kingdom for two years.

And now things had become like this.

Only Seongchan knew the truth because of his regression knowledge.

Fixing their broken relationship was one of the things he needed to accomplish.

"The people of the territory are suffering."

"They'll have to endure it together. There can only be subjects if there's a king."

"Seriously?"

"Of course. His Majesty Daltan is a magnificent ruler."

As expected of the Knight Commander of the Possitk Kingdom.

Even while discussing the Terk Kingdom, Kosdal had naturally started talking about King Daltan of Possitk.

"Not the Possitk Kingdom."

"Ah. Right. Yes. His Majesty Haiman is also an excellent king, though not quite as excellent as His Majesty Daltan."

"The reason I'm moving around like this is because that excellence hasn't reached the people at the bottom."

"What do you mean?"

"The reason I haven't met His Majesty Haiman first is because restoring vitality to the lives of the Terk Kingdom's people is my highest priority."

Kosdal looked at Seongchan's smiling face.

Then he gave a small nod.

Everything he'd seen from Seongchan supported those words.

He had made Wild Pig Soup and Wild Pig Stew and shared them with ordinary people.

"Actions are enough. Keep proving it through your actions from now on as well..."

Kosdal spoke bluntly.

Then he silently repeated the word to himself.

Actions. Actions...

Memories from two years ago and recent events passed quickly through his mind.

Just thinking about meeting Serina made his head ache and his stomach burn.

His expression darkened, and his gaze dropped to the ground.

He continued following behind Seongchan in that state.

Sir Kosdal will probably be fine once he's finished thinking it through.

Now, let's go meet some talented people.

Seongchan looked toward the long row of houses.

Among them, only one had its door wide open.

"Dean! Malko! What happened to you two?!"

Ella had washed Dean and Malko completely clean.

Compared to the dirty children around them, the two looked almost sparkling.

The orphanage director clearly tried her best to keep the children clean, but she wasn't much better off than they were.

"You're the director, right? I'm Kim Seongchan."

"My name is Hae-reun. I'm the director of the orphanage looking after Dean and Malko. Hero, how did you know about this place?"

Hae-reun was confused.

She had no idea why a hero had come all the way here.

Is he here to take Dean and Malko?

Dean was quick to understand situations.

Malko had excellent initiative.

Once they grew older, both would become capable adults.

"The children seem cheerful."

"Yes. So cheerful that I made them help me serve customers while I was doing business. I gave them meat too."

The children immediately started whispering.

Dean and Malko became the center of their attention.

"Quiet."

The whispers became softer.

A few children still quietly whispered, clearly dying to know whether Dean and Malko had really eaten meat.

Ignoring the two excited boys, Hae-reun spoke.

"Thank you for feeding and washing them."

"They were good workers. It would help me a lot if I could take all twenty children here."

Hae-reun's expression stiffened.

"Would it be all right if I took everyone around lunchtime?"

"Th-That's... so sudden..."

Hae-reun had always known a day like this might eventually come.

She just hadn't expected someone to suddenly arrive and say it so directly.

Does he want to adopt all of them?

Seongchan hadn't actually said the word adoption.

But looking at the impressive knight beside him and the high-grade subspace pouch hanging at his waist, Hae-reun couldn't help imagining it.

She had never dreamed someone might take every child.

Her eyes began to fill with tears as she imagined herself alone in the empty orphanage.

Adoption!

At the same moment, Peuten was shocked.

If he'd thought of adoption earlier, he wouldn't have needed to drag things out like this.

Instead, he'd been trapped in memories of his own past whenever he looked at Hae-reun.

Because of those memories, he'd failed to search for other solutions.

His only plan had been to forcibly take everyone away if the situation became unbearable.

"I don't know what you're imagining, but I came because I'd like the children to help serve food."

"Serve food?"

"Dean and Malko ate Wild Pig Stew in exchange for helping me serve. If everyone helps, I'll pay them too."

The children's whispering stopped instantly.

Then their eyes met Seongchan's.

They looked strangely serious.

"Gasp!"

"Waaaaah!"

"Director!"

The children burst into tears.

Very few children could withstand Seongchan's face.

Still, Dean had some experience.

His trembling voice rang out.

"Seongchan, the kids said they want to eat more."

"Right. I expected that. Peuten, where's the cauldron?"

"How do you know my name?"

"Is that important?"

Peuten had received reports about Hero Kim Seongchan.

They said he has some kind of future-seeing ability.

Peuten didn't know exactly how it worked.

But he'd guessed that Seongchan could somehow see a person's name and glimpse how events would unfold around them.

Just as Seongchan said, it wasn't important.

Peuten spoke.

"I'll show you."

Seongchan looked at the crying children.

"If you keep crying, don't expect even a drop of soup. What should we do if anyone cries from now on?"

The children stopped crying as if someone had flipped a switch.

Those who had tears in their eyes clenched their teeth and held them back.

Strained little noises filled the room as they desperately endured.

Peuten suddenly asked,

"How much do you know about the Terk Kingdom's situation?"

The question came without warning.

Even Kosdal looked at Seongchan with curiosity.

But Seongchan ignored both men's interest.

"Let's cook."

He took the leftover Wild Pig Stew from his high-grade subspace pouch, poured it into a cauldron, and summoned If to heat it.

"Wow! I've never seen a spirit before!"

"It's pretty!"

To some people, spirits were terrifying.

To others, they were beautiful and mysterious.

Seongchan didn't summon only If.

He summoned Ella too.

"It's warm."

"Wow! I'm clean!"

Ella washed everyone clean, filled the cauldron with water, and Seongchan began preparing another batch of Wild Pig Stew.

Several hours later, the stew was complete.

Its rich, savory aroma filled the house.

The children sat in their places, full of expectation.

Then they took their first spoonfuls.

"Mmmph!!!"

"It's sooo good!"

"It tastes tough!"

Each child found their own strange way to express how delicious it was.

Everyone became completely absorbed in eating Wild Pig Stew.

Everyone except Peuten.

His expression remained serious.

Whenever his eyes met Seongchan's, he looked away slightly, but never completely avoided his gaze.

"Doesn't it suit your taste?"

"No. It's delicious."

"Then why did you eat one bite and start staring at me like that? It's uncomfortable."

"After tasting this Wild Pig Stew, I understand. Whatever you intend to do, I will follow you."

Peuten spoke with determination.

Then he grabbed Seongchan's hand with both of his own.

As expected. He figured it out immediately.

When Peuten had asked how much Seongchan knew about the Terk Kingdom, Seongchan hadn't answered.

He also hadn't responded to Kosdal's interest.

There was a reason.

He wanted to show them through action.

The answer was inside the Wild Pig Stew.

Fast.

Peuten had reached his decision incredibly quickly.

Seongchan looked at the man holding both his hands.

Even under Seongchan's gaze, Peuten did not look away.

Hero Seongchan is the one responsible for stabilizing the villages. Sir Kosdal couldn't have done all this.

For the first time in a long while, the eyes Peuten used to look toward the future shone brightly.

The moment he tasted the Wild Pig Stew, he had understood.

There was a way to solve the problems currently affecting the kingdom.

Rather than going directly to the king, Seongchan had traveled through nearby villages and taught the villagers butchering skills.

Even after arriving in the capital territory, he hadn't gone directly to the king.

Instead, he'd sold Wild Pig Stew to the local people.

Peuten had learned that much while listening to the children whisper earlier.

Every clue pointed toward Kim Seongchan.

"Let's talk after everyone finishes eating."

Seongchan smiled and slipped his hand out of Peuten's grasp.

It seemed the conversation would end there.

Kosdal had other ideas.

He had lowered his head and made himself nearly invisible, but now he looked up.

"It's been a long time."

"Ah, Sir Kosdal. It has been a long time. Forgive me. I was distracted."

Peuten had been so absorbed by Seongchan's unusual actions that only now did he bow in greeting.

Kosdal didn't seem bothered.

He immediately spoke.

"It's been two years since I came here. The guards seemed very happy to see me. From what I heard, it had something to do with a rumor. What rumor is going around?"

Kosdal remembered how pleased the guards had been to see him.

At the time, he hadn't been in a situation where he could stop and ask.

"It's nothing important."

Kosdal immediately suspected Peuten was avoiding the question.

Come to think of it, the guards also looked uncomfortable when I asked what rumor they meant.

The expression on the guard's face and the one currently on Peuten's face looked very similar.

Kosdal stared at him.

He had no intention of letting the matter go.

He'd hoped to find a clue if Seongchan explained more about the Terk Kingdom's condition.

Instead, Seongchan and Peuten had understood each other almost immediately, and the conversation seemed to be ending.

That was why Kosdal stepped in.

"It's up to me to decide whether it's important after I hear it."

"The rumor is that more and more people are leaving the Terk Kingdom. The growing number of Wild Pigs has made them afraid."

"Is that so?"

Before reaching the Terk Kingdom, Kosdal had fought plenty of Wild Pigs.

Considering how many had appeared, Peuten's explanation wasn't exactly wrong.

But is that enough to make the guards so happy to see me?

Wild Pigs could be killed if someone truly tried.

Seongchan spoke.

"If Na-ye had to save villages by herself, doesn't that already prove there's a problem?"

"Did you already know the rumor?"

"It's a ridiculous rumor."

"Isn't it related to the Rice Ball Guild? I heard some old men talking, and that's all they talked about."

Dean had apparently become bored while everyone else was eating.

He was now sitting beside Seongchan and listening.

As soon as he spoke, his heart began pounding.

Did I say something wrong?

It felt exactly like the time Malko's favorite toy had been broken.

Dean had told everyone who broke it.

Even though everyone already knew the truth, they had all remained silent.

Now the same thing was happening again.

"Rice Ball Guild? Tell me exactly what rumor you heard."

"Th-That..."

"Go on. I won't get angry. Tell me."

"Really?"

"Really."

Dean was nervous.

He looked around for help.

Seongchan only looked at him normally.

But because Dean was already frightened, he couldn't withstand Seongchan's face.

His body twitched.

Then the words immediately spilled out.

"They said the Rice Ball Guild has taken over the Terk Kingdom and that this is their world now."

"WHAT?! How dare they say something like that?!"

"Aaaah! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

Dean repeatedly bowed his head even though he hadn't actually done anything wrong.

Kosdal stared at the child.

Killing intent filled his eyes.

I may have stayed away for two years, but a rumor that's practically a declaration of rebellion has been spreading?!

The pressure pouring from Kosdal was far too much for a child.

"At this rate, the kid's nose is going to start bleeding."

The moment Seongchan spoke, blood began running from Dean's nose.

Dean looked ready to cry when he saw it.

"Kh... I'm sorry."

Kosdal quickly turned his head.

He redirected his killing intent away from Dean.

Then he stood.

"Where are you going?"

"You expect me to sit still after hearing that? I'm going to beat the Rice Ball Guild Master half to death."

"Under what authority?"

"I'll get the authority from His Majesty Haiman."

Seongchan didn't say a word as Kosdal walked toward the door.

Their eyes met.

Kosdal's expression clearly asked whether Seongchan intended to stop him.

Seongchan gave a small nod.

Kosdal vanished from sight.

Peuten watched him disappear with an uneasy expression.

"Is it really all right to let him go?"

"It's better than leaving him curious forever. He should see the situation with his own eyes."

Seongchan hadn't reminded Kosdal about King Daltan or asked whether he intended to disobey his king's order.

Kosdal was so furious that he was willing to voluntarily meet the Terk king, someone he had been desperately avoiding.

Seongchan had given him permission with that small nod.

If Kosdal was finally choosing to go to the Terk royal palace on his own, there was no reason to stop him.

That went well.

According to Seongchan's regression knowledge, no one had ever dared tell Kosdal the truth about the rumors spreading through the Terk Kingdom.

If Seongchan himself had told Kosdal, Kosdal would have doubted him, questioned a Rice Ball Guild member, and then devastated the entire guild.

That future was now gone.

Should I test him?

Seongchan looked at Peuten's right cheek.