Chapter 29: Public Execution

Because of Inas’s sudden stubbornness, we ended up circling only half of the already small market, but there was still plenty to see.

I had thought Simiga was a closed-off city, yet the marketplace was unexpectedly bustling with energy.

Still, as expected of another world, there were many strange things, and the most eye-catching of them all was a fish whose two eyeballs were bigger than its face.

The system informed me that grilling those eyeballs made them extremely delicious, but I didn’t think I’d ever try it.

“Wow, Inas. Look at that shop.”

Even though I was technically on the run, it didn’t matter if I got caught, so I had both time and money to spare.

Just recently, I had been overwhelmed with worries, but now it felt like everything had been resolved.

Of course, strictly speaking, nothing had actually been resolved…

“Doesn’t that sword look really good?”

Anyway, I was a bit excited.

Not only had I bought more ingredients than expected, but I was even interested in swords, something I had never cared about before.

The sword looked far better than the one I had received from the Imperial Palace, almost as if it were whispering for me to take it.

“Wow…”

Even if it had been for training, the sword I was given back then had been so chipped it needed to be thrown away immediately.

Well, considering they even docked my measly three gold coin salary…

“Inas, do you want to go into that shop?”

I asked as if expecting him to nod, and my feet were already moving toward the store.

After all, equipment makes all the difference.

Wouldn’t I get stronger with better gear?

“I don’t.”

However, Inas rejected me immediately.

The fact that he grabbed the back of my neck and stopped me in place was humiliating.

“Ah, why!”

“Why do you need a sword?”

“It’d be nice to have one.”

“Are you going to fight?”

At his question, I quickly lost my words.

Only then did I realize how my desire for a sword must have looked to him.

“I have to fight.”

Inas’s expression hardened even more.

Since when had he become so expressive?

At first, he always wore a blank face…

“I need to get revenge on that damn yeti. No matter how I think about it, I lost because my sword was garbage.”

“…”

“No, that’s definitely why I lost. So I need to buy a better one. For starters, my current sword is way too heavy.”

“…”

“Why? Did you think I was going to say I’d fight Idel?”

A small laugh escaped me.

I had absolutely no confidence in fighting Idel.

After barely scraping by against the yeti, that much was clear.

Normally, I would’ve given up, thinking I was never meant to be a Hero.

But now that I had decided to protect Inas, it was different.

I had to become stronger.

Of course, thanks to the clone magic, it wasn’t as urgent as before…

“…You couldn’t even draw it from the sheath.”

“Ugh… don’t hit where it hurts.”

“…”

“Are we going in?”

The moment his expression relaxed, I quickly led him inside.

This time, he followed without resistance, which I quite liked.

“Since we’re out, should we buy some clothes too?”

It looked like they sold clothes as well, which worked out nicely.

I should take this chance to replace all my worn-out and tight clothes.

“You spend too much, Seongyeon.”

“You’re just stingy, Inas.”

“Stingy?”

“Money is meant to be spent, you know? You can’t take it with you when you die, so you should use it freely while you’re alive.”

Spending money makes life comfortable.

And Inas had more than enough.

Even if he bought everything in the shop in front of us, he’d still have plenty left, it was overflowing.

“Let’s go!”

Even though he didn’t seem to agree, Inas still followed me obediently.

He really does listen well sometimes…

“Welcome!”

The first shop we entered was the one with the sword I had been eyeing.

The fact that I could step into a place like this peacefully felt new.

I had always been the one running away.

“Wow…”

There was even more to see inside.

The swords and armor visible from outside were only a fraction.

Inside, all sorts of gleaming items captured my attention.

I had never imagined I’d covet a sword in my life, but it had been a long time since I felt this kind of enjoyment, so it didn’t matter.

****

“Wow…”

Life really is unfair.

Things that should’ve been evenly distributed were often dumped onto a single person.

“Clothes really do make the man.”

You could especially feel it when looking at Inas.

Even in shabby clothes, his looks couldn’t be hidden, so I had expected him to look dazzling once dressed properly.

But seeing him now in clean, newly bought clothes…

He didn’t even look human anymore.

His face alone looked like that of an angel.

“Wow… seriously… wow…”

It was such a waste to keep him cooped up in Ens.

If Inas had been on Earth, it would’ve been chaos.

He’d probably be a celebrity.

If someone took a picture and posted it on social media, it would blow up instantly.

There was no way people would leave him alone.

Even just standing still, he looked like a photoshoot.

“…How long are you going to keep that up?”

Watching me circle around him, unable to take my eyes off him and constantly exclaiming, Inas let out a deep sigh and asked.

There was no sign of embarrassment.

He clearly knew he was handsome, so he was just annoyed by my behavior.

Well, his looks were exceptional even in this world.

He must be used to this kind of attention.

“Until I get used to it.”

The phase where I was shocked at myself for admiring another guy’s looks had long passed.

How could anyone not admire that face?

Since Inas himself didn’t make a big deal out of it, there was nothing holding me back.

“Inas, were you perfect since birth?”

“What does that mean?”

“Your parents must have been so proud.”

“…”

“I just changed your clothes, but why do I feel so proud? Oh, and I cut your hair too, right?”

Since I was the one who revealed this hidden beauty, wasn’t it natural to feel proud?

No one could pass by without looking at him.

Some people even stopped completely, unable to take their eyes off him.

“…Am I standing out too much?”

Only after noticing their reactions did I start to feel worried.

What if everyone already knew how striking Inas looked?

What if they recognized him?

Someone might find me suspicious, hiding my face under a robe.

It would be one thing if we were completely unnoticed, but if anyone realized…

That would be a big problem.

I was just a clone, but Inas wasn’t…

“We bought everything, so should we head back?”

Suddenly, the stares became uncomfortable.

I felt like we needed to leave as soon as possible.

If I could, I would’ve taken off my robe and put it on Inas.

“You keep changing your mind…”

Inas muttered as if he couldn’t understand me at all.

Looking at it objectively, he seemed perfectly normal, and I was the strange one.

It felt a bit unfair, but this wasn’t the time to dwell on that.

“Let’s go quickly. At this rate, people will start asking for pictures.”

“Pictures?”

“Ah, it’s a thing. Come on.”

Grabbing Inas, I scanned the surroundings cautiously.

I felt like a manager escorting a celebrity.

Still, I really should’ve gone shopping myself earlier.

If I had, then that merchant…

“Ah.”

My hurried steps came to an abrupt halt.

Suddenly, I wanted to check what had happened to that merchant.

I had wanted to believe he wasn’t dead, and had planned to look into it when I had the chance…

“You said we’re going.”

As I hesitated, Inas asked as if wondering what was wrong now.

“Um… actually, that merchant we traded with. I wanted to check what happened to him. You said he was probably dead, but… you never know.”

I hesitated for a moment, but didn’t bother lying.

There was no need.

“Why?”

Inas looked like he couldn’t understand why I cared.

“Because I’m the cause. I want to confirm it properly.”

“…”

“If an innocent person who never even knew he was dealing with a Hero really died…”

“What if he did?”

“…At the very least, I should pray for him. And apologize.”

If someone died because of me, I needed to see it with my own eyes and accept it.

It was easy to pretend I didn’t know.

I had been doing that ever since the trade stopped.

But nothing would change that way.

It wasn’t like me, someone who was good at running away from things.

But the fact that someone could lose their life because of me wasn’t something I could ignore.

Being in another world already felt unreal.

I didn’t want to lose my sense of humanity on top of that.

“Seongyeon, you’re strange.”

It wasn’t something I wanted to hear from Inas, but I didn’t argue.

This time, he grabbed my wrist and began walking somewhere with long strides.

“The cause lies with the one who killed him.”

Was he trying to comfort me?

Unfortunately, my lips didn’t move.

It just felt like confirmation that the man was really dead.

“…”

We didn’t speak at all as we walked.

Inas was heading toward the opposite side of the market, the side we hadn’t visited earlier.

Unlike the lively area before, this side was eerily quiet.

Most of the shops were closed, and the few people around wore heavy expressions.

The unease tightened my chest, my heartbeat growing louder.

“…Ah.”

And then I saw it.

A familiar corpse hanging in the very center.

[One who aided the Hero that insulted the Castia Empire and fled]

And beneath it, words written in bright red.

“Public execution.”

“…”

“The letters are written with his blood.”

“…”

“This is how this empire executes people.”