Chapter 1296. The Magic Tower (9)

“Wow!” I exclaimed.

“Hey, Big Boy! Look at him. The kid is getting all excited...” Big Boy pointed out.

“What do you think, kid? How’s Heren?” Carlton asked.

‘What do you mean? Carlton, you idiot. Of course, it’s garbage. It’s just a slum.’

That was exactly what it was. In the second life, the so-called City of Culture looked far too shabby to deserve that title. The theaters, cafes, and festival streets once famous across the continent were nowhere to be found.

Frankly, I was not even sure that one could call this a small city. To exaggerate a little, it looked more like an oversized slash-and-burn farming village. Worse still, the damage from the long war had yet to be repaired. Some parts were nothing but complete ruins.

Situated between the Imperial capital and Lindel, Heren was unable to escape the war. The fact that it still had any semblance of structure was nothing short of a miracle. In truth... compared to some other cities, its situation wasn’t even the worst.

There was a reason the Small Rock Guild chose to send that item here.

‘So this place has an active marketplace.’

There were guards posted along the rickety wooden palisades, but neither the guards nor the palisades seemed to serve any real purpose.

The entire view of Heren was already laid bare beyond the walls. Unlike Lindel, which was still knee-deep in construction, this place was lively in its own way. After all, wherever one went, there would always be people struggling to live fiercely.

Naturally, from a kid’s perspective, it was impossible not to react in awe.

I had been stuffed inside a crate for most of the journey, so I hadn’t seen much of the world at all.

‘This setup always works.’

Whether it was the bird in a cage trope or the kid in a box trope, the invoked emotions would be the same. Of course, I would take in this garbage heap of a town as if it were something to be happy about.

“H-Heren!” I shouted.

“That’s right, kid. This is Heren. Not quite on Lindel’s level, but still bigger than you imagined,

huh?

” Big Boy asked.

“Wow! It’s Heren! It’s really Heren!” I shouted.

“Didn’t think you’d be this happy. Look at him, grinning from ear to ear. Am I right, Big Boy?” Carlton asked.

‘Well, of course. I’ve been spending days crammed in a tiny space with a bunch of sweaty guys, eating nothing but that damn hambier. Of course, I’m happy to finally see something else.’

“Damn it! You stupid kid! I told you not to stick your head out the window like that!” Big Boy shouted.

“Come on, Big Boy, that much is fine. The kid’s been through a lot... let him enjoy it for a bit. You know how stifling it must’ve been, right?” Carlton said.

‘Good job, Carlton.’

In this first life, there were no griffons or active warp gates, so the expedition was destined to be rough. The so-called well-paved road had to be "well-paved" only by their standards, as the carriage kept rattling and jolting like it was trying to throw us out.

I didn’t even need to look to know that my butt was bruised. And still, this cold-blooded bastard Big Boy wasn't feeling even the slightest guilt about crushing a child’s sense of wonder.

Sure enough, his angry voice echoed. “Damn it. What’s so great about Heren anyway? Don’t go filling his head with stupid dreams. Carlton, you know better than anyone what kind of place Heren really is. Don’t give him false hope, you idiot."

‘This guy... he’s just heartless.’

“We’re not here to fool around, Carlton. This isn’t a vacation. The kid’s excitement is one thing, but you shouldn’t get carried away too,” Big Boy added.

“...”

“Seriously, these guys... aren’t even worth talking to... damn it... Yoojin!” Big Boy shouted.

“

Huh?

”

“You booked the room, right?” Big Boy asked.

“Yeah. I contacted the place we stayed at before. It’s a bit cramped, but big enough for all of us to share,” Yoojin answered.

‘Ah... damn it. Can’t we just have separate rooms for once?’

“You made sure to tell the guards, right?” Big Boy asked.

Yoojin glanced around cautiously before signaling to the gate guards. They exchanged looks and nodded. Only after confirming that everything was already arranged did Big Boy seem to relax.

“Let’s go in,” Big Boy said.

“...”

“Stay hidden inside, just in case,” Big Boy said.

“

Ah...

okay.”

“...”

“...”

‘For someone so worried, we sure got in without any issues.’

“Please refrain from causing any major trouble,” a guard said.

“Of course, of course. You can trust us.

Hahaha

.” Yoojin laughed.

“Go on in,” the guard said.

“Thank you for your hard work,” Yoojin said.

“...”

“...” “That was easier than I expected,” Big Boy commented.

“I told you, Big Boy. This is the real deal. You think I would’ve taken the job otherwise? Considering Heren's condition, of course, they’re flustered. The baron they relied on during the war is dead, and now it’s being run by that greedy fat bastard...

"You really think things are functioning properly there? This place is basically running without any real administrators or nobles,” Yoojin explained.

“Well, it’s good we got into Heren without trouble, but...

tskh

. I don’t know if I should be happy about this or not...” Big Boy grumbled.

“Normally, I’d curse them out, but we’ve got our own circumstances. It is what it is. Sure, the place is rotten to the core, but hey, because of that, we get opportunities like this. Anyway, let’s move to the location quickly. We’ve got a job to take care of, and the kid needs rest as well,” Carlton suggested.

‘This place is really rotten to the core...’

I couldn’t understand why the guards let the carriage pass without even checking it during wartime, but considering that we were in the first life, it wasn’t entirely surprising.

Moreover, Heren's baron had died, and his greedy successor was actively destroying this place. It all made sense.

It was clear why Big Boy was so edgy. This place was basically a lawless city with no functioning legal system. One couldn’t even tell where Heren ended and the rest began.

Somewhere like Kim Hyun-Sung’s cabin, an isolated house no one would ever visit sat alone, while elsewhere, illegal goods were being traded in broad daylight.

I even saw retainers being traded on the streets. It wasn’t illegal here, but apparently, the sight was enough to annoy Big Boy.

Frowning deeply, he grabbed me and pulled me into a rundown inn.

It was only natural that the worn-down inn’s occupants’ eyes focused on us. The tension or perhaps suspicion was directed straight at Big Boy’s group. Even though we had just moved from Lindel to Heren, it was hard to understand why such tension hung thick in the air.

The atmosphere was so thick that it was almost suffocating.

“Hyung... hyung...” I called out.

“It’ll be alright. Don’t be nervous, kid,” Big Boy reassured me.

“...” “Just act like you normally do. Like normal... It's only rough at first. People here don’t really care about outsiders much,” Big Boy added.

“...” “I don’t know who it was in the past, but now Heren’s become a place where all sorts of troubled folks come,” Big Boy said.

‘You sure do tell these backstories suddenly, Big Boy.’

‘Huh?’

“Exactly that. Ever since that greedy scarecrow of a baron showed up... it’s turned into this kind of place. You’ve got deserters, of course... criminals, too. Folks just wanting to disappear from the world... probably some from other nations as well. Maybe even... retainers. Heren’s only law is this,” Carlton explained.

“What is it?” I asked.

“Don’t bother with other people’s business,” Carlton answered.

“

Ahhh...

”

“That’s what this place is. Sure, there are all sorts of reasons, but if you’re a normal guy, this isn’t a place you’d visit. It’s like the empire’s discarded trash. Lindel can’t absorb it, either. Damn... what am I even saying to a kid who won’t get it...” Carlton mumbled.

Just like that, it became a city of losers.

“...”

‘So that’s why Hyun-Sung ended up coming here...’

Of course, Kim Hyun-Sung’s cabin was still far from here, but... I couldn’t help but wonder why Kim Hyun-Sung had chosen Heren of all places.

‘It’s obvious, of course...’

Not everything I heard from Carlton was the whole truth. Sure, this place was a pitiful dump, something that could be called a refuge for the truly desperate, but some of the people here would definitely want to get out if they got the chance.

Otherwise, there’d be no reason to settle in Heren, which was stuck between Lindel and the empire’s capital. Of course, Kim Hyun-Sung was no exception.

‘Isn’t this place a bit small to hide in?’

It wasn’t like he disappeared completely. He just ended up in Heren. It almost felt like he was pouting, trying to get someone’s help.

First Life Kim Hyun-Sung was wearing a mask to hide his wounds, and deep down, he wasn’t so different from the twenty-two-year-old young man who had just arrived in the tutorial dungeon.

He was clumsy, innocent, and had been pretending to be a hero, even though he was just a kid who needed help as well.

‘All of his comrades are dead. I thought he’d take responsibility...’

He survived all by himself. I didn’t know exactly when Kim Hyun-Sung’s plan to forge himself into the masked hero began, but perhaps it was still ongoing. Whether he was kept alive for revenge or to be tested by trials, the outcome would be the same.

“Wait here. No matter who knocks, don’t open the door for anyone,” Big Boy instructed.

“

Ah...

okay, hyung!” I answered.

After nodding at Big Boy’s order, I peeked at the old cabin where Kim Hyun-Sung used to live. Sure enough, there he was, staring quietly at the sky, looking pitiful. His sword, cloak, and everything else seemed to be stashed somewhere beneath the cabin, as I couldn't see any of them.

He was wrapped in a cloak, wearing clothes only fools in Heren would wear.

As expected, he had decided to run away from the fight.

‘He’s still just a kid.’

If one saw him as the Blue Guild Master, this was a scene worthy of criticism. His troops were defeated; he abandoned the plan; and he dodged his responsibilities. There was no denying that he was in the worst, most painful place mentally, but a leader had to act accordingly.

He was clearly avoiding his responsibilities despite being a leader.

‘But you can’t just hate him outright.’

If one saw him as the 22-year-old Kim Hyun-Sung, who was dragged into hell without understanding why, how could one not feel sympathy toward him?

If one saw him as a young kid who swung his sword to kill monsters and people without knowing anything, it would honestly not be hard to understand him. No, one

had

to understand him.

‘This guy has the makings of a shonen manga protagonist.’

He would get frustrated, annoyed, and sometimes even furious, but Kim Hyun-Sung would always stand up again, becoming a little stronger and more mature each time.

His wandering over these past few months would surely become the power to stop the Outer Gods later on. I could feel that, too, and the masked hero could probably... feel it, too.

"..." He looked up at the sky. Then, he lowered his head and sobbed. Whatever was going to happen, I had no choice but to slowly move forward because the thought that I ought to meet Kim Hyun-Sung wouldn't stop popping up in my mind.