The Strongest Guild Kidnapped Me

Chapter 85

“What were you just about to do to these kids?”

“Well, uh…”

“Stop stuttering and answer clearly.”

Jung Yu-na’s gaze was filled with such intensity that it was almost murderous. It didn’t look like acting at all.

Even standing nearby, I could feel myself trembling, so I could only imagine how terrifying it was for Kwon Arin, who was directly facing her.

I had to stop this. Urgently, I tugged at Jung Yu-na’s sleeve.

“Um…”

“Yes, Gyeoul?”

As soon as she turned to me, Jung Yu-na’s fierce demeanor vanished, replaced by a gentle tone. Her voice was warm, nothing like the way she’d been addressing Kwon Arin. My tail threatened to wag, so I quickly grabbed it with both hands to keep it under control.

“We were just playing Cinderella…”

“Playing Cinderella?”

“Yes. We asked her to play the role of the stepmother…”

“Oh…”

Did Jung Yu-na really think that Kwon Arin was bullying us? She froze, clearly taken aback by the explanation. Only her eyes moved, flicking to Kwon Arin, who looked on the verge of tears.

“It was just a game, so please don’t be angry…”

“Oh, it was just a game? Just playing?”

“Yes.”

As I nodded to Jung Yu-na, a moment of silence fell over the park, stretching out longer than it felt comfortable. It was Jung Yu-na who finally broke the silence.

“...Excuse me, miss, are you perhaps an adventurer? You seem to have a higher mana level than the average person.”

“Yes, though I’m still a beginner adventurer.”

“Oh… Well, I have some items I don’t use anymore—would you like to take them?”

Ahem. Jung Yu-na cleared her throat, clearly feeling guilty for her earlier harshness towards Kwon Arin.

“Oh, no, that’s alright.”

Kwon Arin’s eyes shifted down, still shaken. Jung Yu-na, realizing her regret, gently grabbed her hand in a plea.

“I was going to throw them away anyway. Please, as a gesture of apology, I’d really like you to accept them.”

“Oh… Well, if you insist, I won’t refuse…”

“Haha… There’s no need to feel apologetic; I was the one in the wrong.”

Jung Yu-na chuckled awkwardly. Levinas was still nestled in her arms.

“Ms. Mage, was there a scene like this in Cinderella?”

“Well, uh… the story took an unexpected turn, I guess?”

“Did it?”

Levinas tilted her head, sliding out of Jung Yu-na’s embrace. After a moment of thought, she looked up at Kwon Arin.

“Mighty Supreme Kwon Arin, do you want to be Cinderella this time?”

“M-Me?”

“Yeah! Cinderella’s the best role, so let’s take turns!”

Only someone as kind as Levinas would suggest that everyone get a chance to play the best role.

“Oh… I don’t mind not being Cinderella…”

“Really? But trying different roles is fun too. Levinas also wants to try being the pumpkin carriage.”

“Oh, okay. Then, I’ll be Cinderella.”

Kwon Arin sniffled a bit and laughed, looking relieved.

---

The next morning, following the guild’s policy that even adventurers need to play hard sometimes, I decided to spend the day playing with Levinas.

“Gyeoul, I have to train some new recruits today. Will you and Levinas be okay on your own?”

“Yes, we can play by ourselves.”

As I replied, I looked over at Kwon Arin, who stood beside Yeoreum in some formidable-looking gear.

“This… this is the equipment Jung Yu-na gave me since she wasn’t using it…”

Noticing my gaze, Kwon Arin blushed as she explained. I could only imagine that this was the “unused gear” Jung Yu-na had promised her.

“It looks amazing.”

“Yeah, it’s the highest quality equipment I could ever hope to use. I never thought I’d get to wear something like this…”

Kwon Arin looked overwhelmed with gratitude. I felt a bit guilty for her struggles, so it was nice to see her happy.

“Gyeoul, what should you do if a stranger tries to play with you?”

“I shouldn’t play with them.”

“Right. And if someone offers you treats to follow them, what do you do?”

“I run away quickly with Levinas.”

“Good…”

I was a little embarrassed by how childlike this sounded and looked up at Yeoreum to realize she wasn’t talking to me but to Levinas.

“I’ll be off then. Sophia’s busy working, too, so you two have to take care of each other today, alright?”

“Yes, we’ll have fun. Have a safe trip!”

Waving to Yeoreum as she left, I turned to see Levinas looking at me with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

“Your Majesty, let’s go on an adventure!”

“An adventure?”

“Yeah! Let’s go really, really far and then come back!”

“Really far…?”

We weren’t supposed to go too far, but thankfully Levinas didn’t have anything too distant in mind.

“Let’s go to the department store we visited last time!”

The department store wasn’t too far—about a ten-minute drive, maybe a bit longer on foot.

“Alright, let’s go to the department store.”

“Yay! I’ll go grab my weapon and potions!”

Weapon and potions? Wasn’t that a bit much just for a short outing? Fortunately, Levinas returned with harmless supplies.

Levinas had a long tree branch as her “weapon.” Mine was a slingshot. The “potions” were two chocolate milks.

“Your Majesty, you’ll be the sniper, and Levinas will be the swordswoman!”

“Okay.”

I accepted the slingshot from Levinas, feeling a small thrill at holding one for the first time in a while.

---

Swoosh, swoosh—

Levinas waved her tree branch as she marched forward, and I followed a short distance behind, as if forming a proper adventuring formation.

“Aw, look at the kids walking along.”

“They must be playing adventurer.”

People passing by gave Levinas kind smiles. She had a way of bringing smiles to people’s faces.

“Levinas, remember not to wave your branch when there are people around.”

“Got it.”

With people nearby, Levinas hugged her branch to her chest. The rough bark scratched at her already dirty, tattered clothes, but it didn’t matter much.

“Your Majesty, when we get to the department store, should we look around a bit?”

“Both of us? They might not let us in since we don’t have any money.”

“Oh… really?”

“Yeah. But we can still ask.”

Now that I thought about it, how much money had I brought? Just the bare minimum for emergencies, I figured.

As I rummaged through my pockets, trying to recall, Levinas suddenly stopped, causing me to bump into her from behind.

Thump—

The light impact made my head bob back, but it didn’t hurt.

“Your Majesty! Your Majesty!”

“Huh?”

“I found a scary path!”

Levinas pointed her tree branch towards a narrow alleyway, shrouded in shadow even in the morning light.

“You want to go that way?”

“Yes!”

“It looks dangerous…”

“But Levinas really wants to go down this path!”

The alley looked far too risky for someone as young as Levinas. Maybe a bit of scare tactics would work.

“There might be snakes and stuff…”

“S-Snakes?!”

Eek. Levinas shuddered, and a passerby chuckled at her reaction.

“He said there are snakes.”

“That’s how you know it’s scary.”

The person muttered softly, but I heard it clearly. I’d exaggerated the danger a bit just to spook Levinas, but it must have looked like I was the one scared.

Embarrassed, I felt my face flush as I looked down at the ground.

“Levinas, it’s safer if we go another way…”

Before I could finish, Levinas dashed into the alleyway, branch raised high.

“Hiya!”

She ran off, imitating the hero from the anime she’d watched the night before.

“Levinas!”

I chased after her, the alley twisting like a maze, but her footsteps echoed clearly, helping me keep up.

Then, just as I rounded a corner, I found her—and a group of men gathered there.

“Uh…”

About ten men stood smoking, sporting intimidating koi tattoos on their arms.

“...Are you koi-beast folk?”

Levinas asked, stepping closer to them. One of the men ground his cigarette against the wall.

“Yeah, we’re koi-beast folk.”

“Levinas is a horned rabbit beast folk.”

“That’s impressive.”

“Right?! But Levinas’s Majesty is even more amazing!”

Levinas turned to look at me, and all the tattooed men shifted their gazes toward me as well.

Smoke and intricate tattoos covered their arms—these men looked dangerous. My tail instinctively tucked tightly to my stomach. All I could do was stand there, trembling.

“Hey, Jong-seok, you’re scaring the kid.”

“What? I thought I was good-looking, boss.”

“Oh, shut it, Gwang-deok.”

Crunch—

The man referred to as “boss” stomped out his cigarette and approached me. He towered over me by at least fifty centimeters.

I couldn’t help but introduce myself, voice trembling.

“Hello, my name is Gyeoul…”

“Well, nice to meet you, Gyeoul.”

As he spoke, his gaze shifted behind me. I turned to see a group approaching us.

They held knives

 and bats. It looked like they could charge at any moment.

Were we caught in the middle of a gang conflict? I had to protect Levinas at all costs. I quickly pulled her into my arms.

“Levinas, close your eyes.”

“Huh?”

“Hurry…”

“O-Okay.”

As I stood there shaking, trapped between the two groups, one man with a scar on his face, holding a dagger, approached us.

“Hey, Kim Doo-sik…!”

“Hey, kids.”

The man called Kim Doo-sik pointed at us. The man with the dagger, who’d been shouting, immediately shut his mouth.

“Huh… there are kids here.”

The man holding the dagger looked down at me in confusion before hastily putting his weapon away. The others quickly hid their weapons behind their backs.

“A-Are you going to fight…?”

“No, no, we’re friends, actually.”

He chuckled awkwardly, patting the other man on the shoulder with an intense grip.

For some reason, they were clutching each other’s shoulders tightly. I had no idea what was going on.