Became a tyrant of defense games - Episode 399
◈ 399. [Side Story] Pouring gold coins into a dry well
《…….》
In fact, Mason had long ago been freed from Salome's fascination..
When I fell from the bridge into the village below, I was freed from the fascination. As his death approached him, his instincts threw off the chains that had bound his consciousness..
However, Mason was faithfully following Ash's orders, hiding the fact that the charm had worn off..
“Hey, Gomtaeng! Try your best!”
“He's big! Try moving it cheaply.!”
《…….》
The order that Ash gave Mason at the bottom here was to do as the two highwaymen of the Distress Resurrection Troupe - Sword Demon and Changgui - told him to do..
So the sword demon and the spear demon were having fun pampering Mason..
They were called in to do all kinds of hard work, from cleaning up the village to repairing collapsed houses..
Although these tasks were cumbersome and cumbersome, Mason performed them all without making a show of it..
And was it because Mason was considered a fairly trustworthy and quiet worker?.
Sword Demon and Changgui led Mason to quietly dig up a secret safe buried in the yard of his house..
And Mason took the safe and headed to the corner of the village..
Every time I moved the safe, there was a sound of metal coins scraping inside..
Mason easily realized that the safe was full of gold coins..
Where are we moving this gold coin??
Mason, who was puzzled, soon found out the answer..
There was a small well dug in the corner of the village at the bottom. In the well, a shallow pool of black water, a pile of rusty gold coins had sunk..
“pour.”
“In here, quickly!”
《…….》
As instructed, Mason opened the safe and poured out the contents..
Churrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!
with a plop……!
Gold coins, covered with age, bubbled and sank into the well..
After seeing that the safe was empty and the newly poured gold coins had reached the bottom of the well, Sword Demon and Changgui turned around without hesitation..
《……why?》
But Mason didn't understand.
《Why did you throw away the gold coins you worked so hard to save??》
It was the first time since Mason came to town that he opened his mouth..
The sword demon and the spear demon turned around in surprise, but eventually smiled and answered..
“Even before the Lake Kingdom got to this point, everyone in the village worked hard to save money. There was a rumor that you could buy 'citizenship' by collecting gold coins..”
《however?》
“But, that was a rumor. There was no such system. There was no way for non-citizens to become citizens of the Lake Kingdom in the first place..”
“As soon as my husband and I found out about that fact, the Lake Kingdom sank and was destroyed. We are cursed and cannot live or die..”
Sword Demon and Changgui looked at each other and laughed..
“After that, we went through a lot of hardships and barely managed to gather the villagers back from this pit of hell, but we... … What are you doing here??”
they knew well.
Even if they die and wake up, they cannot become citizens of the Lake Kingdom. Also, the Lake Kingdom can never return to its former beauty..
“In this life where I can neither die nor live, I still have to remember..”
“The goal we had back then, when we still had the drive to dream and live..”
Save money and go to utopia.
Even though I know that it is a goal that cannot be achieved either 500 years ago or now. Even though I know it’s a foolish and vain dream.
“If you don't have this vain hope, how can you live in this hell??”
The body may live forever, but.
If there is no purpose in living, the spirit... … the soul dies.
So people here collected gold coins to survive..
Searching the bottom of this hell, continuing like inertia.
And to maintain that inertia - when gold coins accumulate, they are thrown down here..
The coffers are empty, and people have new goals to fill them again... … Getting through the day again.
《……ha ha ha.》
Mason, who had finally learned a bit about how the village at the bottom worked, let out a laugh. Sword Demon and Chang Demon glanced at Mason..
“Are we funny??”
“This may be difficult to understand for a living friend from the outside world..”
《no.》
Mason shook his head..
《I felt like there wasn't much difference between this hell and the outside world..》
Mason walked between the two old men, carrying the empty safe on his shoulder..
《I learned sword fighting to support my family. My parents and relatives were old and sick, and I was the only one in the family who could function properly..》
“…….”
《At first, it was enough to be able to eat without starving. But when I was no longer hungry, other problems began to arise. It was cold in the winter wearing nothing but a mat, and without a proper home, it was difficult to sleep for fear of thieves..》
I needed clothes. needed a home.
So Mason easily fell into temptation. Instead of being loyal to the MacGregor family who taught him how to use a sword, he started hanging out with others who immediately filled his pockets..
《It was impossible to live as a human just by not starving. So I kept moving, looking for an owner who paid a lot of money..》
And - I met Fernandez..
When he came to his senses, his clothes getting wet in a light rain, Mason had already completely become Fernandez's dog..
but.
《One day, my master said that. Royalties will perish anyway. Everyone will die, but I will try to save the people inside the ecliptic..》
Fernandez had a strong cause of his own..
In the face of world destruction, he tried to save as many people as he could..
He wanted to save at least the people living in New Terra, the imperial capital..
The problem was that Mason's family was not wealthy enough to live within the ecliptic. They lived in a suburb far from the ecliptic..
《I quickly sold my family's house in the suburbs, but the money wasn't enough to move into the imperial capital and live there..》
Mason chuckled bitterly..
《Even though I tried my best all my life, I and my family still couldn't become human..》
“…….”
《So I went to the owner, knelt down and prayed. If you let my family live in the ecliptic, if you make us 'people', I will do anything for you..》
Mason looked down at his hand, which had become that of a beast..
《Then, it happened like this.》
I wanted to live like a human being.
For that simple purpose, I gave up being human..
He betrayed the family that taught him the sword, instigated the death of his benefactor, and pointed the sword at his benefactor's son... … In the end, after receiving the serum, he was reduced to the appearance of a beast..
I ran all my life to become a human being..
When I suddenly came to my senses, I had become something far removed from a human being..
Mason laughed bitterly..
《Maybe living means pouring gold coins into a dry well.…….》
Throw away gold coins to collect gold coins.
Give up being a person to live as a person.
In the end, both gold coins and people lost their original value, and only a series of processes became the goal, like a treadmill.…….
Pondering the irony, Mason looked forward after arriving at the house of the Sword Demon and the Spear Demon.-
“I heard a good story…….”
Ash was standing right in front of me..
Mason's shoulders stiffened in surprise. Ash dug his fingers into his ears and glared at Mason..
“But when did you lose your fascination??”
Mason laughed helplessly..
……It just caught on..
***
Me and Mason were squatting in front of the sewer together..
Even though the charm was gone, Mason didn't seem to have any intention of harming me, and I had no intention of dealing with him either..
We sat side by side and quietly killed time together..
Mason, who was silent for a while, rummaged through his hairy body and suddenly pulled out a pocket watch. I was freaked out.
“Wow, what?! Where did you get it from?!”
No, when I searched before, nothing came up! Where did you get it from?!
《With a body like this, there are plenty of places to hide things thanks to the distorted bone structure and fur..》
Then he handed me the pocket watch. I took a step back in frustration..
“It's not like I just put it in a dirty place.?”
《It is a precious item to me. It was stored in a relatively clean place..》
relatively clean……?
I accepted the pocket watch without any doubts. Mason gestured as if to open it, and I flipped open the metal cover of the pocket watch..
sweet.
A pocket watch that normally tells the time, and… … I saw a portrait of a woman on the cover..
Mason's eyes as he looked at the portrait were extremely sad..
“this person is?”
I asked cautiously. Is she really Mason's wife??
The answer that came back was a bit unexpected..
《This is my girlfriend.》
“Eh.”
Since Mason looked to be in his fifties at best, I didn't expect that they were lovers rather than spouses..
I laughed awkwardly, blaming my own stereotypes..
“I guess he’s been dating someone for a long time? I carry around my portrait so preciously..”
《no. Have you been on five dates so far? It's been a while since we met.》
“…….”
Huh! I cleared my throat and asked carefully..
“Still, it seems like a very precious relationship. How did you meet??”
《During my mission, I had to go to a couple's party, and I was embarrassed because I had never held a woman's hand in my life. I found a service that lets you play a fake lover for a fee..》
“…….”
《After that mission, we met often with good feelings..》
“……pay money?”
《If I don't pay, they won't meet me..》
“What are you talking about, you idiot?!”
This isn't a romantic relationship, it's... … It's something a little more sinister.!
But Mason nodded with a serious expression..
《Our feelings are sincere. Before I came down after receiving this mission,!》
“Just like that?”
《cow… … I even held his hand.!》
“If it doesn't happen like that, you're a real stooge, man.!”
It's okay if the person involved is happy, but it's so unexpected that it's scary! I have a lot of skill, but this guy is even more so.!
《……All my life, I just looked after my family..》
Mason muttered as he looked at the other side of the sewer with empty eyes..
《I had no personal life. Even before I left on this mission, I had to spend every last penny I had to move my family and friends into the imperial capital..》
“…….”
《So this time, I said I didn’t have to meet her because I didn’t have money, but she came out to see me off on the day I left… … She gave me the portrait. When she's having a hard time, she says to think about herself.》
Mason paused for a moment, then continued slowly..
《majesty. i will die soon.》
“…….”
《Due to the excessive use of Beast Forms, I was seriously injured on the way here and was forced to recover. It won't last long and you'll die. I'll probably never see the light of day again..》
“so?”
《If you see that woman in the ecliptic... … Please return that portrait of her to her to her..》
Mason grinned with an animal-like face..
《It's too beautiful to rot like a guy like me..》
“……Why are you asking me such a favor??”
What a good relationship we have. Do you think I'd listen to such an annoying favor?.
Then Mason shrugged his shoulders..
《What should I do? Down in this hell, the only person I can ask for now is you.》
“…….”
《I'm just struggling to grasp at straws..》
I silently took the pocket watch in my arms..
“What to say to Fernandez?”
《doesn't exist.》
Mason shook his head..
《I have completed my mission. His Highness Fernández said that all he had to do was convey the message to the Demon King. If I don't return, the devil will think it's a refusal..》
“…….”
《His Highness Fernández believed that I would succeed in my mission, and I succeeded. Nothing more is needed.》
There was silence.
I was about to say something more as I glanced at the side profile of this hairy civil servant whose thoughts I could not understand..
Tuk.
Suddenly something cold fell on my cheek. I raised my head and looked up. Mason followed suit and looked up..
Thud, thud, thud, thud.-
Raindrops started pouring from the sky.
“This…….”
I put my palm forward.
The color of the water pooling in my hands was black..
“……black rain.”
I jumped up..
Suddenly, I could see the water pooling on the floor slowly flowing toward the sewer. I clenched my fists..
Finally, when the flood.
The time has come to return to earth.
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