Chapter 30: Second Hero (4)

Lani is the daughter of a lord.

More precisely, she is the second daughter of the Antalia territory, which has a very close relationship with the Norba Kingdom, and also an ostracized bastard.

A daughter born to a woman who was used and discarded by the Lord after a night of amusement.

Nevertheless, the fact that she is the Lord's daughter remained unchanged, so Lani grew up being treated as such.

As the daughter of a Lord, envied by everyone.

However, for her, being the daughter of the Lord of Antalia was like a curse.

Had she been born to the Lord's wife, she might not have felt this way, but Lani was a bastard.

She was bullied by her siblings.

Always, at family gatherings, she had to bow her head and eat. The Lord's wife always looked at her with disgust.

Thus, while she was the Lord's daughter, she lived a life ostracized by her family.

But that was not all.

Needing someone to rely on at a young age, she opened her heart to anyone willing to approach her, but no one accepted her.

Children outside the Lord's castle distanced themselves from her because she was the Lord's daughter.

The servants inside the mansion felt a vile sense of self-satisfaction at her ambiguous status and never tried to approach her.

Ultimately, young Lani was isolated everywhere due to the cursed title of being the Lord's daughter.

However, what allowed her to endure those times when no one accepted her was her father.

Certainly, in that place where everyone could be considered an enemy, Lani's father, the Lord of Antalia territory, treated her kindly.

Because of that, Lani was able to endure,

'Live strong, never show weakness.'

She lived without showing weakness to anyone, repeatedly recalling the words her birth mother left as a will.

Thus, when Lani turned 19 half a year ago,

she suddenly became a 'hero chosen by the world'.

She couldn't understand why she had become a hero.

After all, what Lani liked was not wielding weapons but cooking as a hobby.

But ultimately, the fact that she had become a hero excited Lani.

The fact that she became a hero in a place where she thought she would never be acknowledged perhaps gave her hope that she could gain people's recognition.

However, such hope vanished before long.

No, the hope disappeared, and her pillar of support crumbled.

The reason was that she found out that the Lord, who had supported her until now, tried to sell her to another territory as if it were all a lie.

...She realized that the reason she had been raised until now was merely for the merchandise value of being 'the daughter of the Lord of Antalia.'

The Lord did not change his mind even after she became a hero.

No, rather, he liked it.

He liked it not as a father, but because the value of the merchandise he intended to trade had suddenly increased.

...Thinking that she had at least one pillar of support was merely Lani's misunderstanding.

Three months after becoming a hero and realizing the Lord's true intentions, her father eventually tried to send his daughter to a count of the Norba Kingdom.

Not even as the count's wife, known for his bad reputation, but as his eighth concubine.

Realizing this, Lani fled.

She lived the life of a fugitive, escaping outside the territory she had never properly ventured out of, dodging pursuers sent from the territory.

That lasted for three months.

However.

"Tch, I guess a failing territory like this can't show any favor, huh? I expected too much from a village head who looks so incompetent."

At this moment, Lani fully realized that her life as a fugitive, and even her life itself, had come to an end.

Because the second son of the Lord of Antalia, who is currently engaged in a power struggle with the eldest for the lordship, would never let her go.

"......"

When the time actually came, she felt everything about herself was miserable.

Being born a bastard of the Lord.

Living a life never acknowledged.

...Even becoming a hero and still being treated this way, there was nothing that wasn't miserable.

Her eyes, like those of a frightened animal, involuntarily scanned her surroundings. There was no particular meaning to it. It was merely the desperate act of someone cornered.

The brief moment her gaze lingered on the Lord of Lartania held no further significance.

She knew she couldn't expect anything from this person.

She couldn't receive any help, nor should she hope for it.

But-

"Agh!"

Before she could continue that thought, Lani's body was dangling in the air.

A member of the pursuers, snickering, had grabbed her by the scruff and lifted her up. A blatant look of contempt swept between her and the Lord.

Then, with a slapping sound, her cheek turned. It was a slap intense enough to bring tears to her eyes.

"Why? Because you think that scarecrow over there will save you? From this failing village?"

"Eh-"

Her cheek throbbed from the blow dealt by someone who couldn't even be called a brother.

But more painful than that was the fact that she had to face a miserable future.

"Follow me. Unless you want to be tied to a horse and dragged along."

Gran, the second son of the Lord who had grabbed Lani's wrist and turned, was about to drag her away.

"Hey, mom."

The low voice of the Lord could be heard.

"What...?"

Gran turned around swiftly with a puzzled expression.

And then.

"Hey, mom, fuck."

A curse flew out of Kim Hyunwoo's mouth.

Kim Hyunwoo is a fairly rational person, albeit ordinary.

Fundamentally, if he fails at something he wants to do, he analyzes why he failed rather than getting annoyed.

When something unexpected happens, he tries to quickly find a solution rather than getting angry.

This is not just how Kim Hyunwoo sees himself, but how his coworkers and friends who have spent time with him evaluate him.

Thus, Kim Hyunwoo appears to be a competent social being with only strengths at a glance, but like everyone, he has his weaknesses alongside his strengths.

Kim Hyunwoo has an outburst when he is ignored.

Originally, his personality was the reason he could become a ranker in Arteil by spending almost all his money and time.

For instance, there was a time in the military when he beat up a senior who openly ignored and mistreated him with a helmet until the operations officer arrived.

Thus, Kim Hyunwoo, who hates being ignored more than death, is quite rational in all aspects but has a surprisingly quick trigger when it comes to being ignored.

Especially in cases like Gran, who openly ignores him now.

Before Gran, who had a curse on his lips, could say anything, Kim Hyunwoo picked up a beer mug from the desk of a mercenary who was watching the sudden situation with interest.

"Huh?"

The mercenary looked at Kim Hyunwoo with a startled expression.

But before he could say anything.

Crack-!

Kim Hyunwoo then struck Gran's head with the wooden beer mug he was holding.

"Gah-!?"

Gran, letting go of Lani's wrist and falling to the ground as the beer splashed in all directions.

Kim Hyunwoo did not stop there; he immediately straddled Gran and began to beat his head with the mug he was holding.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

"Ah! Ah! Ah!"

Gran screamed every time the wooden mug hit his head.

Gran raised his guard to block the sudden attack, but each time, Kim Hyunwoo skillfully swung the mug where Gran couldn't block.

Crack!

By the time the wooden mug was about to break from the force.

"Do you know who I am to be doing this kind of thing you-"

"......"

Gran seemed to belatedly try to say something, but,

"I, I am from the Antalia territory-"

Thump!

"Second-argh!"

Thump!

Kim Hyunwoo simply swung the mug without saying a word.

"Uh, ughaaa!!"

Gran screamed and fainted at the same time-

"Young Master!!"

"What are you doing to the Young Master!!"

-The knights who were waiting outside the tavern belatedly noticed and rushed in, but Kim Hyunwoo stood up from his seat with surprising calmness.

"Take this and get out."

He said, nudging the beaten-up Gran.

The knights frowned unanimously at this.

Thud! Rumble rumble rumble!

Soon, a loud noise from behind made all the knights turn around, and they saw a log falling onto the tavern.

"Or, do you want to taste the log too?"

At Kim Hyunwoo's voice,

"......"

The five knights who entered the tavern shut their mouths at once.

As the five knights took away the bloodied Gran, Kim Hyunwoo, who had hurriedly asked Elena, who rushed into the tavern, to chase them out of the village, wore a slightly disillusioned expression.

'Did I go too far?'

The thought briefly crossed his mind, but Kim Hyunwoo soon shook his head.

Honestly, picking a fight with the neighboring territories was not a good choice upon reflection.

However, even if it wasn't a good choice, Kim Hyunwoo did not want to tolerate the insult.

In reality, it was not the worst; considering the grand scheme, the two territories seemed unlikely to significantly disrupt his plan to create a Labyrinth city.

'That's why I didn't go any further on purpose.'

Had I gone further, our relationship could have worsened more than necessary, but since I let them live, even if our relationship deteriorates, it wouldn't plummet dramatically.

'Besides, recruiting Lani would have soured the relationship anyway.'

With that thought, Kim Hyunwoo turned around.

Behind him, Lani was still looking at Kim Hyunwoo, as if enchanted, with a dazed expression, not fully grasping the situation and not even wiping off the blood.

"It seems I have resolved the issue you were facing; do you now feel inclined to accept my offer to join?"

Following Kim Hyunwoo's words, Lani simply stared blankly, taking in his face with her eyes.

Gran regained consciousness two hours after being beaten by Kim Hyunwoo.

Awakening in the forest, he wore a dazed expression, as if piecing together fragments of memory like a broken film, until finally, the film was fully pieced together.

"This, this insolent bastard-!"

As Gran recalled what had happened to him, he rose from the ground, uttering coarse curses.

Feeling dizzy, perhaps due to a rush of blood to his head, Gran forced himself up despite the sensation.

"Ugh-!"

The intense pain he felt.

However, Gran clenched his teeth and glared with eyes bloodshot from a shame that grew the more he thought about it, overshadowing the pain.

"...Huh?"

His anger vanished in an instant.

The reason was.

"Are you awake now?"

"You worm."

"You bastard."

This was because the wolf and the half-demon were looking at him with a terrifying murderous intent.

Each of them flashed a red and a purple eye gleam caused by magical powers.