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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Jjescus ]
[Proofreader - Starfall ]
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Chapter: 164
Jawoon pulled the man out of the trap, and his sister smacked him on the back. I watched from a distance.
"How much more of your nagging do I have to listen to?"
The man grumbled at Jawoon and his sister, rubbing the shoulder that had been caught in the rope. Then, he cautiously looked at me and nodded. His eyes were filled with undisguised curiosity. "Who are you? Did Gramps bring you back?"
"Brought me back?" Strictly speaking, that wasn't entirely wrong...
Just then, his sister frowned and snapped, "Hey, you idiot. Brought him back? Didn't you see him coming from the village?"
She clicked her tongue and added, "Oh, wait, you probably didn't. You were too busy doing whatever it is you do."
The man pouted, annoyed by his sister's words. "I was trying to catch a monster that you missed..."
"Oh, spare me. Are you trying to die?"
When his sister snapped at him again, the man shrank back, unable to retort.
"Enough. Be more careful next time," Jawoon sighed, mediating between the two.
"So, who are you?"
"He's going to be staying in the village from now on. Say hello," Jawoon gestured towards me.
I reluctantly greeted the siblings, who were looking at me with curious eyes. "I'm Baek Yeon. I..."
Jawoon had introduced me as someone who would be staying in the village, but that wasn't exactly true. All I wanted was to return to where I belonged as soon as possible. There was no way I was going to stay here. But I couldn't say that out loud.
I simply kept my mouth shut. A simple greeting was enough.
"He must be shy because he's a stranger here. Call me Hwang Danyo. This is my younger brother, Hwang Gongyoung."
"I'm Hwang Gongyoung," Gongyoung bowed again. Then he stared at me intently. His sister, however, seemed to have lost interest quickly.
"Hey, don't stare at him like that."
Hwang Danyo scolded his brother, but I didn't mind his gaze. In fact, I welcomed his genuine curiosity.
Whatever it was he wanted to know about me, I might be able to get some information from him in return.
"Have you met Grandma yet?"
"The village chief? Yes, I have."
"Then..." it seemed to imply that I didn't need to be on guard. And indeed, with just three villagers and one outsider, there was no need for suspicion.
"Now go back. Did you catch anything?"
"Catch what? Look at this mess."
Jawoon nodded and turned to leave. Hwang Gongyoung followed, rubbing his shoulder. Jawoon walked ahead, occasionally glancing back.
When we returned to the village, the village chief was still in the same spot. Seeing Gongyoung walking with a sore shoulder, the chief sighed.
"Did you get into trouble again?"
Jawoon explained the situation. The chief apologized to me and sent the siblings back to their home.
"I'm sorry about that. They're the siblings I mentioned earlier."
"Yes, I understand."
The village chief nodded and gestured to Jawoon. Jawoon looked puzzled but nodded and disappeared.
"There's something I want to tell you,” the village chief said.
I glanced at the direction Jawoon had gone and asked, "Is this something Jawoon shouldn't hear?"
"Well, it's not that he shouldn't hear it, but..." The village chief cleared her throat. "It's best to keep it a secret."
"Why?"
I thought back to the story Jawoon had told me.
They said this village didn't easily accept strangers. So, there must have been a special reason for them to accept me...
Suddenly, I wondered if the chief's acceptance of me wasn't solely based on me being harmless.
“Is it because he's an outsider?”
The chief stared at me with an inscrutable expression, as if she were both reproaching me and trying to fathom my thoughts.
“Partly because he's an outsider,” she replied.
“You know, when I listen to you, Chief, I feel like the word "outsider" means more than just someone who isn't from this village.”
The chief continued to stare at me with an enigmatic expression, silent for a moment. But the silence didn't last long.
Soon, she asked, “Do you know why one's homeland is important?”
It was an unexpected question. I didn't answer immediately. I couldn't figure out why the chief was asking that.
But the chief didn't seem to need my answer and continued.
“Sharing the same roots means sharing the same memories.”
Behind the chief, the village square, where people gathered to do their work, was empty.
But just because the square was empty didn't mean its purpose was forgotten. The tools and unfinished tasks people had left behind were scattered everywhere.
“Memories of fighting the same enemy together, memories of comforting each other's wounds after the danger had passed—these memories become our roots.”
I got goosebumps. I didn't know why, but I realized that the chief had seen through me long ago.
“Just as you want to protect your own homeland.”
That must have been the reason for my goosebumps. Unconsciously, I took a step back.
The chief, who seemed so human despite her stern appearance, suddenly felt as strange and distant as a cold statue. I looked around, but there was no one else.
Then I thought of Aro.
I finally understood where that piercing gaze came from, the one that seemed to see through me yet reveal nothing.
'Who would have thought that a descendant of the Ye royal family would end up in our village?'
My feet shuffled backward involuntarily.
Although the chief was a frail old woman, half my size, the oppressive aura she exuded was stronger than any of my maternal grandfather's generals. Of course, they were not the same kind of aura.
Regardless, I was frozen.
Even in front of those generals, I had said everything I wanted to say, but now, in front of this chief, who was barely half their size, I felt like a mouse before a cat.
“Baek Yeon… that's the name you introduced yourself with.”
I focused all my attention on the chief's movements. I was even aware of her eyelids fluttering intermittently and her eyelashes trembling.
But I had no idea what she would do next.
“But you didn't lie, did you?”
An unexpected question followed. I nodded immediately.
It was true that I had introduced myself as Baek Yeon, not Yegyeong. The warrior Baek Yeon who died in Blood Cloud Fortress was a more familiar name to me than Yegyeong, the first prince of Mokryeo.
And I still believed that was my true identity.
“But I'm confused. Who are you? How should we treat you?”
“I am Baek Yeon.”
I had no desire to be treated like a prince. I didn't even care if I was kicked out of this village. All I needed was a map or some information to help me return to the capital or Wolhan Fortress...
“Be honest. I have no intention of harming you.”
“It's true. I am Baek Yeon. I have no desire to live under another name.”
“As I said, I don't think you're lying. But it's strange. It's very strange for a descendant of the Chilga clan to be living in the body of a Ye.”
I couldn't understand what the chief was saying. And because I didn't understand, I couldn't answer.
I just gaped, dumbfounded, and the chief tilted her head, looking at me suspiciously.
“What's wrong?”
“…I don't understand.”
“I don't understand what you're saying either.”
Oh… where should I start?
“Can I ask you something?”
“Go ahead.”
“How did you know I was a Ye?”
The chief was silent for a moment. Then she sighed deeply.
“'I have a special ability.”
“What kind of…”
Of course, I'd heard about it from Jawoon and Aro. But I hadn't listened closely.
“I can read your memories.”
Ignoring my question, the chief continued.
“But at some point, I couldn't see most of your earlier memories…”
If she meant memories before I first opened my eyes in the palace, then she was talking about my life as Baek Yeon.
So, did the chief realize I had already died once? Even if she knew my past, it wouldn't change anything...
Suddenly, I thought of the Founding King. That crazy old man who threatened to kill me again if I didn't obey. Come to think of it, wasn't I basically a slave?
A shiver ran down my spine.
But my guess was wrong.
“If my ability can't read those memories, then they must be related to the Chilga's abilities.”
“What's that?”
“Hmm…”
The chief coughed lightly a few times and shook her head.
“I can't tell you.”
“Is that because I'm an outsider again?”
The chief shook her head.
“It's not something everyone in the village knows.”
“But you're saying I'm somehow connected to that secret. Then you should tell me.”
“Why should I trust you?”
The chief looked at me with cold eyes.
“There's no reason to trust you.”
I carefully protested, choosing my words.
“I'm not the kind of person who would just go around blabbing secrets.”
“How can I believe that? You've been using this village as a means to return to your homeland from the very beginning.”
I couldn't deny that. When I fell silent, the chief turned and walked away.
“If you really want to know, prove to me that I can trust you.”
With those words, she headed towards her house. I watched her back helplessly.
After a while, I heard footsteps approaching.
“What are you doing just standing there?”
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Jjescus ]
[Proofreader - Starfall ]
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