Chapter 149
Heaven’s Door (15)
***
The day after arriving at the First City.
Jin Yeseo and I sat across from each other, unfolding the blueprint to review our plan once again.
The central district, densely packed with factories. Surrounding it were the four outer districts, almost like a protective ring.
“So, today, I’m thinking of exploring District A first, where the sewage outlet is…”
“…”
I continued explaining while pointing at the map.
But the gaze I had been feeling for a while now was becoming more intense, almost like a needle pricking at my head.
I lifted my head and looked forward.
Her earlobes were bright red, and there was a slight sheen of moisture around her eyes. Her face looked haggard, probably from not getting enough sleep.
The girl with black hair and black eyes was glaring at me, not even sparing a glance at the blueprint.
She looked like someone who held a deep grudge.
“Sigh…”
I had no idea why she was acting like this.
I had asked the old man and secured the best lodging available nearby. I gave her the soft bed while I spent the night in a chair. I even let her wash up first, considering the grime that had splattered on us.
Was that still not enough?
“…”
Jin Yeseo, a member of the Baekgwang Jin family, one of the prestigious Five Families, even if she was from a lesser branch.
When we visited the main houses of Jeokhwa and Heukryeon, I got a glimpse of the unimaginable living standards of the upper class.
She must have lived in such an environment her whole life, so it’s no wonder she’s dissatisfied.
Thinking about it that way, the captain and the others seem even more impressive. They adapted to that kind of environment far more smoothly than I did.
In truth, everything I’ve done since arriving here has been nothing more than imitating them.
Gather information from shops frequented by locals, act openly as a couple rather than maintaining ambiguous relationships, hold her waist confidently, and display a friendly yet distant demeanor…
I’ve seen the captain and the others do such things several times. Unlike the reluctant captain, the others would eagerly compete for their turn.
I even practiced a few times with their help, but it never felt natural, and I ended up being the captain’s laughingstock.
Still, yesterday wasn’t bad at all. Even from an objective standpoint, I was more natural than the captain. The more I think about it, the more satisfied I am with my imitation.
“If you have something to say, just say it.”
“Nothing…”
She shook her head but continued glaring at me. She definitely seemed full of complaints.
But it was Jin Yeseo who volunteered to help and insisted on following me to the First City.
And to be honest, I couldn’t help but feel she wasn’t very useful. The most helpful thing she’s done so far was pretending to be my wife yesterday.
She shouldn’t be complaining about trivial things like sleeping arrangements. I had no intention of coddling her.
“If you don’t have anything to say, then let’s go. You remember what you’re supposed to do, right…”
“I know! You already told me…!”
Then, suddenly, she shouted.
“I’m supposed to gather information at the plaza while you explore District A…! While pretending to be your damn wife…! Got it…?”
“…That’s correct. But… are you sure you can handle it?”
“I said I would do it, so I will. I’ll do it properly, so you don’t have to worry.”
Jin Yeseo, who had been fuming, finally calmed down and spoke.
“Well, that’s a relief.”
“But you… remember this.”
“…?”
“You… Yesterday’s humiliation… Someday, I’ll make sure… sigh…”
Jin Yeseo didn’t finish her sentence and let out a deep sigh.
Then she abruptly stood up, gathered her belongings, and headed outside.
“…”
I watched her retreating figure in a daze.
Her flowing black hair… it really makes me think.
***
The daytime scenery of the First City. It looked much more normal than the orange-tinted first impression from yesterday.
The thick smog and exhaust still covered the city like a fog. Because of that, the sunlight couldn’t reach the ground, making it feel like a perpetually overcast day.
Shops selling groceries and various sundries were bustling. People in hats and coats headed toward the factories in the central district.
Other than the suffocating air, which made it hard to breathe, the scene wasn’t much different from the capital.
But underneath this place, something eerie might be happening. It’s the kind of story that fits the label of an urban legend. The kind of tale people tell in bars.
Until the true nature of what we’re chasing becomes clear, I plan to continue exploring only during the day.
I set my course in the opposite direction of the busy crowds. After walking for a while, the streets became less populated, and the gray brick roads and gloomy alleys started to appear.
The old man had warned me not to set foot in the outer districts, but it wasn’t because this place was some demonic hellscape like the northern Demon Realm.
He was probably just worried that an outsider like me, who’s unresponsive to the dangers of this place, might get caught up in trouble.
Where there’s poor security, there are bound to be lawless types.
Just like now.
“Hey! You there!”
Four large men appeared from somewhere, blocking the narrow alley ahead and behind me. They were the ones who had been watching me earlier.
Thugs who prey on outsiders, threatening them and robbing them of their valuables.
The one who seemed to be the leader approached, pulling out a short knife with a cocky grin.
“Strip. Everything from your gas mask to your underwear. Do that, and we’ll let you live—ugh!”
-Thud! Thud!
“Ugh!”
“Brother…!”
“Get him! All at once!”
There was no need to waste time dealing with these kinds of people.
I twisted the arm of the one who approached me, and the others who charged at me soon found themselves on the ground as well.
“Ugh…”
I picked up the knife the leader had dropped and approached the groaning thugs.
“As much as I don’t like killing…”
“W-What are you doing…? Aaaaah!”
I didn’t need to kill them since they weren’t black magicians or demons. Instead, I severed the tendons in their arms and legs, ensuring they wouldn’t be able to move.
It wasn’t impossible for them to get treatment, but I doubted this place had the medical facilities for it.
Still, I left each of them with one functional limb. One had a left arm, another had a right arm, one had a left leg, and the other a right leg…
‘Why spare them?’
‘So they can learn to help each other.’
Among the painful groans, the captain’s voice echoed in my mind.
“Wow…”
And then, suddenly, I heard a voice filled with awe.
I immediately looked up at the wall where the voice had come from.
A small girl, probably around six or seven years old, was peeking over the wall, her face full of genuine admiration.
“Mister, you’re really strong… You took down four guys all by yourself…”
“…”
She didn’t seem to hold any prejudice against my strange appearance with the gas mask.
For some reason, her innocence made me feel a little more at ease.
I dusted off my hands and held them out toward the girl.
“Come down. It’s dangerous up there…”
-Thud!
Before I could even finish my sentence, the girl leaped down as if she had been waiting for me to say that.
“Hehe~ That was fun! I want to do it again!”
“It’s dangerous, so no.”
“Aww…”
I gently set the pouting girl down on the ground.
She quickly got up as if nothing had happened and started walking ahead of me.
She didn’t forget to talk to me as she went.
“Mister, why are you here?”
“I’m looking for something.”
“Looking for something? Like a treasure hunt? I want to join…!”
She spun around, her eyes sparkling.
She seemed to be quite familiar with the area, as if she lived nearby.
Maybe she could be helpful.
“…Hey, do you happen to know…”
“Hmm?”
But just as I was about to ask her something, a commotion broke out in the distance, as if several people were shouting.
I instinctively pulled the girl close to me, wondering what was going on.
But the girl remained calm, as if this kind of thing was just part of her daily life.
“Do you know why it’s so noisy?”
“Hmm… Maybe the angel took another friend…”
“Angel…?”
Feeling uneasy, I followed the direction of the noise and emerged from the alley.
There, I saw a massive sewage outlet spewing out waste and a crowd of people gathered around, murmuring.
It seemed like I might achieve my goal in District A sooner than expected. After all, the reason I came here was to check this out for myself.
According to the blueprint, all the sewage from the First City is eventually discharged from this outlet. If there was anything suspicious, as the old man had mentioned, there would be traces here.
“Again…”
“This place is terrifying… I need to get out of here, seriously…”
I set the girl down and pushed my way through the murmuring crowd.
Two pale corpses were floating in the filthy water. Their faces were still twisted in the throes of death, a clear sign of an unnatural death.
However, their bodies were surprisingly intact. Aside from their skin being ghostly white, as if all the blood had been drained.
“Kyaaah…!”
“Oh my god…”
Someone waded into the filthy water to flip one of the bodies over, perhaps to retrieve something.
That’s when the crowd erupted in screams.
The front of the face was intact, but the back of the skull was completely gone, as if something had scooped it out.
“…”
Something was off.
Based on the old man’s testimony and the overall situation, I had suspected that demons might be lurking here.
It’s not unheard of for demons to nest in sewers. I’ve seen similar cases before.
But these weren’t the marks of demons. If it were demons, they would have torn the victims apart, not left them like this.
It wasn’t black magic, nor was it the work of mutants. The traces were too strange.
“…”
Suddenly, the girl’s mention of the “angel” came to mind.
When I returned, she was still waiting for me.
“Can I ask you something about this angel?”
“I don’t know.”
The girl shook her head, sucking on her finger.
“But the lady without eyes said that the people who come out of there are taken by the angel as friends…!”
A lady without eyes?
The girl’s words were hard to interpret literally.
-Ah, there you are… Where did you run off to…!
“Grandma!”
At that moment, a voice calling for someone rang out.
The girl immediately reacted and ran toward the voice.
I followed her.
The girl was now in the arms of a short elderly woman, who was scolding her.
“You little rascal, where have you been running off to? How many times have I told you it’s dangerous…”
“I wasn’t alone! I was playing with this mister!”
The girl shook her head vigorously. Was she following me around just to make that excuse…?
The elderly woman looked at me with wary eyes as she held the girl.
“…Who are you?”
“Hello.”
I bowed my head slightly, and the woman’s wariness eased a little.
“…You must be an outsider.”
“This mister is super strong! He fought four guys and won all by himself!”
I felt a pang of guilt. Did she see the whole thing from start to finish? The thought of her watching me cut tendons made me feel uneasy.
“You took down those thugs by yourself? You’re not an ordinary man, I see.”
“…I was lucky. By the way, may I ask you something?”
“What is it?”
“The girl mentioned that the bodies were taken by an angel…”
“Oh, that.”
The old woman responded with a nonchalant expression.
“There’s a lady who sometimes appears to look after the children. She probably got that idea from her. It’s hard to explain things like this to kids, you know.”
“Then, is the lady without eyes…?”
“Yes, that’s her. You’ll understand what I mean if you see her.”
A blind woman? I suppose kids might describe it that way.
Still, something about it didn’t sit right with me.
Maybe it’s because I’ve heard the word “angel” before while tracking signs of heresy.
It wouldn’t hurt to check it out.
“Do you know where I can find her?”
“No idea. She comes and goes as she pleases. But I’ve always seen her coming from the direction of District B.”
“District B… I see.”
“Wait. About those thugs earlier…”
The old woman called out to me just as I was about to turn away.
“What is it?”
“Did you… kill them?”
“I didn’t kill them. Why do you ask?”
Contrary to my expectations, the old woman looked worried.
“Those guys are vicious. I’m worried they’ll come back for revenge.”
“They won’t. I severed the tendons in their arms and legs. They’ll have trouble even moving on their own.”
“Really?”
“Yes. You could probably knock them over with a stick.”
“Pfft… If that’s the case, then I’m relieved.”
The old woman finally seemed at ease.
“If anything happens, come to this address. I’ll help you right away.”
I gave her the address of our lodging, just in case, and turned to leave.
The girl waved at me with a disappointed look on her face.
“Mister! Come back! Next time, let’s go treasure hunting together!”
***
I spent the rest of the day exploring District A, but I didn’t find anything else of note.
As the sun began to set, I headed toward the plaza in the central district, where I had promised to meet Jin Yeseo.
The place was crowded with raggedly dressed people looking for work. They gathered around rusty barrels with fires lit inside, chatting in small groups.
Among them, one person stood out.
Despite her disheveled hair and soot-stained face, her natural beauty was hard to hide.
Jin Yeseo was talking with a group of middle-aged women, occasionally covering her mouth and laughing as if she were genuinely enjoying herself.
“…”
Is this really the same girl who used to talk so much about the lower class and the poor?
Come to think of it, Jin Yeseo got along quite well with the other female students at the Cradle. It was a different dynamic from Yeon Minha, who ruled over them like a queen.
Maybe her social skills aren’t as bad as I thought. But what was she so upset about this morning?
I started walking toward her.
Jin Yeseo, ever sensitive, quickly noticed my presence and turned her head toward me.
She glared at me with a pout, still clearly upset.
But then, after a moment of hesitation, she let out a small sigh.
And suddenly, she started walking toward me with quick, eager steps.
Her face lit up with a bright smile, as if she were genuinely happy to see her husband coming home…
“…?”
Jin Yeseo stood in front of me, still smiling warmly. I couldn’t quite figure out what she was thinking.
Before I could ask, she suddenly stepped to my side and tightly wrapped one of her arms around mine.
As if we were linking arms.
Then, in a voice filled with affection, she spoke.
“Honey, you worked hard today. Are you tired…? Come this way…”
I could only close my eyes tightly.
Her flowing black hair was no longer visible.
End of Chapter