| Chapter 6

It wasn’t the kind of impact from hitting or trampling. Something heavy like a curtain covered me, and everything went dark. Surprised, I peeked out, and beyond the cloth that enveloped me, the man’s rough roar echoed.

I know. It’s the sound of violence. With my vision blocked, I breathed heavily and pricked up my ears. Someone was beating and kicking the man out.

The man’s voice, which had been grumbling as if wronged, soon faded away, filled with fear. As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I looked down at the cloth I had unconsciously been clutching. It was a thick cloak with a rough texture like a blanket. It smelled faintly of dust and dry grass.

“Eek!”

I flailed my hands trying to remove the cloak as hands suddenly grabbed both my shoulders and lifted me up, but it wasn’t easy. Even though I couldn’t see, the hands relentlessly pushed me forward.

How long did I walk, led by those hands? A low voice sounded above my head.

“If you don’t want to experience the same thing twice, go out through this passage. Now.”

When the cloak was removed, my back was forcefully pushed. I tried not to fall, but after struggling for a few steps, I couldn’t help but collapse. Fortunately, I quickly caught myself on the ground and didn’t hit my knees too hard.

Blinking, I saw a passage in front of me with a light visible at the far end. Feeling dazed, I looked around and saw a man and woman passing by with drinks, looking at me strangely.

I turned around, but there was no one particularly noticeable. People who had been chattering noisily were all rushing towards the stage, as if the performance was about to begin.

My heart was pounding as if it would burst through my bones. I would probably never set foot in this place again. I hurriedly grabbed my skirt hem and ran down the passage on trembling legs.

As I rushed up the stairs, pushing past people who were entering late, a wave of clean air finally enveloped me. I inhaled deeply, feeling as if my chest would burst. It felt like I had been dragged to the threshold of hell and returned alive.

The street had become quiet, as everyone had gone into the theater. After taking deep breaths for a while, I finally managed to start walking. My whole body was drenched in sweat.

I tried to compose myself, but tears suddenly burst forth, wetting my cheeks. Fear, sorrow, bewilderment, and humiliation swirled within me like a whirlpool.

What would have happened if someone hadn’t helped me then? Would I have been dragged away by that man and suffered a shameful fate like Senar, naked and on all fours?

Suddenly, I realized this wouldn’t be a one-time occurrence. Such incidents would happen frequently from now on. The increase in men throwing flirtatious glances meant an increase in men viewing me in that way.

My whole body trembled. Tears flowed incessantly.

Why do people have to live? There’s nothing good about living.

I couldn’t do anything of my own will. I was no different from a weed on the street. Meaningless to anyone, whether I lived or died, no one would care.

Gritting my teeth and sobbing, I finally stopped in my tracks. The moonlit path was desolate. I stared blankly in the direction of a wild animal’s cry echoing from afar.

Perhaps if something were to eat me, at least that beast would be happy.

Suddenly gripped by such thoughts, I turned towards the darkness off the path. As I listened to the sound of weeds being crushed under my feet, I suddenly flinched.

There was someone other than me in this space.

My shrunken heart started pounding again. The greasy face of the man, flushed red and exhaling disgusting breaths, flashed in my mind.

I quickly picked up a piece of wood that came into view. It had a sharp end, probably split and fallen during a recent windstorm.

If this life is meaningless anyway, I won’t just be a victim. If someone tries to lay hands on me again, I’ll stab them to death and then climb the mountain to throw myself off a cliff.

I have nothing to lose.

Because I have nothing.

As I carefully took a step, I sensed movement behind me. The sound gradually closing the distance made my whole body tense up. Gripping the piece of wood so tightly it might crumble, I swung it like a knife the moment I felt a person’s warmth right behind me.

“Yaaah!”

Unfortunately, my full-force strike didn’t land. The other person easily caught the wood and twisted my arm. As I cried out in pain and dropped the wood, the other person snatched it up.

Now the sharp end of the wood was pointed at me. Shedding tears at this futile outcome, I looked up. Death was closer than I had thought.

“Quite spirited. Though your strength is pathetic.”

A low, resonant voice echoed dryly in the air. Before me stood a man wrapped in a black cloak like a shadow.
After muttering softly, he lightly tossed the piece of wood in the opposite direction. Watching him, I stammered in fear.

“Wh-who…”

“There’s no path that way, little miss. Where were you trying to go?”

The somewhat brusque tone in his casual remark had a strange familiarity. Moreover, the term ‘little miss,’ which I had never heard before, made me feel bewildered.

Because of the cloak flowing down his broad shoulders, he truly seemed like a massive god of death. As my eyes widened, the man’s face, about two heads higher than mine, tilted slightly. Thanks to this, the faint moonlight touched his face.

“Did you forget the way home?”

Beautiful green jewels sparkled. I could vaguely see his deeply set eyes and high bridge of the nose. Only then did his languid voice, as if mixed with air, match the voice in my memory.

“…The priest… Father?”

In an instant, the tension dissipated, and my shoulders slumped. Perhaps reading the joy that appeared in my eyes, he briefly raised an eyebrow and removed the hood he had been wearing. And at that moment, I perfectly understood his words.

If you can see which flowers attract bees, you can also see the opposite reason.

His jet-black hair was slightly disheveled but didn’t look rough. His sharp, slanting eyes gave off a cool impression while simultaneously emitting a light so intense it was unforgettable once seen.

The harmony of his straight nose bridge and firmly closed lips resembled the male gods in the mythology book Laurel had given me.

Although he reminded me more of ‘Parki,’ who was said to bring chaos and despair, rather than the benevolent ‘Gier’ who bestowed kindness, he was the most perfectly beautiful human I had ever seen in my life. It felt as if everything in the world existed just to make him shine.

It was as if time had stopped. Unable to take my eyes off that face that seemed to belong in a dream, he opened his mouth indifferently.

“It’s not the time for a child to be wandering alone.”

With those words, I finally released the breath I was holding. I moistened my parched lips and blinked.

“Father, what brings you here?”

“I was just taking a walk when I discovered a little lamb entering a secluded path.”

His eyes were beautiful but not warm. If I were to describe them, they felt like the chill of winter. As if they could effortlessly pierce through one’s heart.

But that made me feel more at ease. The distance created by his gaze felt rather comfortable.

“Um, I know you’re busy, but could you accompany me home? I’m asking like this.”

I wasn’t used to making such requests, but I mustered up the courage.

Not only did I lack confidence in getting home safely alone, but I was also glad and grateful that he had followed me, and I wanted to talk a bit more.

But his cold expression as he silently looked down at me was as good as saying it was already bothersome. As I was steeling myself, he unexpectedly nodded readily.

“Alright. If I send you alone, you might end up crying and getting lost again.”

For a moment, my face heated up with embarrassment. I shook my head as dignifiedly as possible, trying to maintain a composed face.

“I wasn’t crying.”

“Then what’s on your cheeks, snot?”

He retorted indifferently and strode ahead. I quickly wiped my face with both hands and followed him.

Until just now, this forest path was merely a road leading to endless despair.

A predictable fate. An existence like dust, with no one to mourn even if I lost my life to a wild animal right now. The lonely and solitary wandering of someone with no reason to be born, no reason to live.

However, with just the presence of the person walking half a step ahead of me, the forest path was changing its color. At least I didn’t feel like throwing myself to make a wild animal happy anymore.

As I hesitantly followed him, I suddenly spoke up.

“Actually, I ended up like this because of you, Father.”