Chapter 926. Gen (5)
“Huh? Where...” I asked.
“Come with me,” Gen said. He definitely found me pitiful. He definitely found the Saint of Light, who was dealt a cruel hand by fate, to be quite pitiful, but aside from that, I had no idea what he was thinking.
Of course, I wasn’t certain whether this current situation was an opportunity created by him, Templar Simon and Father Yohan, but Templar Gen needed to earn my favor. It honestly didn’t matter, but it was pretty exciting to think that he was pitying me.
‘He's too easy to lure in.’
However, who wouldn't find me pitiful? Everyone found me pitiful, but this criminal was the only one who had done anything about it so far; the ordinary people had never done anything about it.
Empathizing with me and actually offering me a helping hand were two completely different things.
As for him...
‘I guess this is just how he is...’
I was not sure whether he was aware or not, but he was probably seeing himself in me.
He was raised in a temple at a young age, and he had been training to become a Templar since a young age, so I was sure he felt like his fate was decided the moment he was born.
He was probably thinking that he was living a blessed life because of his faith, but I wondered whether his subconscious thought the same as him or not.
Although he had been living a free life compared to the Saint of Light, I wonder if he truly felt free. The fact that he took pity on me instead of thinking that I was blessed because Benigoa had chosen me...
‘Makes him look kind of suspicious.’
My assumption could be correct—he could be seeing himself in me, but...
'All of this could also be an act...’
Right now, the important thing was that this criminal was taking me outside.
“I-It’s really late right now, and I don’t want to wake the others up. I’m sorry...” I replied.
“That’s not what I meant,” Gen said.
'So you don’t want to walk around the Vatican, right?'
“Mr. Gen, I’m sorry...” I apologized.
“I would like for you to come with me,” Gen insisted.
At this point, I had to understand what he was saying.
Knocking on the window late at night was a rude thing to do. I told him that I didn't want any visits from him in the meantime, but he still decided to visit me and even suggested that we go on a walk.
I was the incredibly innocent Saint of Light, but I had to catch onto what he was trying to say.
My expression was blank, and I nodded unknowingly.
Then, I stood up as if I had been wanting to leave this suffocating place to feel the comfort of the world outside.
“It’s cold outside,” Gen said.
‘So you're prepared for this...’
“It’s a little dirty, so please forgive me,” Gen told me.
A large blanket was wrapped around me, and I was sure he brought that blanket to hide my identity.
‘It’s definitely dirty.’
However, this much was necessary to hide my identity.
“Please forgive me for my rudeness,” Gen said. Then, he grabbed me with one hand and took me to the sky. I was sure he had gotten his wings later than me, but he was more skilled than me at flying. Of course, he wasn’t as fast as Kim Hyun-Sung.
Amidst the peeling scenery and the cacophonous breeze sweeping across us, I realized something important.
‘Won’t we get caught?’
I couldn't help but think that we managed to get out a bit too easily.
‘I can just let Chang-Ryeol and Lian know...’
I was sure Gen had taken care of the Holy Knights and the guards.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have taken me outside.
Just then, he stopped in midair. I lifted the dirty blanket slightly and was stunned by the night view of the Sacred Democratic Country. The city was illuminated by as many lights as there were stars shining in the night sky.
It was such a typical sight, but my eyes widened upon seeing it.
“Wow... it’s beautiful.”
It wasn’t that beautiful, but I had to say something.
“I agree,” Gen said.
“B-But... Mr. Gen... is this... really okay?” I asked.
“I don't think so. Once the Holy Knights and the priests discover what I've done, they might do more than just scold me,” Gen replied.
“So... why...” I questioned.
“I just... wanted to do this,” Gen answered.
I just smirked and said a cliched line, “We’re... accomplices, then.”
“What?”
“Since we went out together, we’re accomplices. When should we go back?” I asked.
“We only have... about three hours...” Gen responded.
“That’s more than enough,” I commented.
I was free for the next three hours.
For the next three hours, there was no need for me to care about other people.
For the next three hours, I was freed from my suffocating bird cage.
I was temporarily free from my annoying shackles.
I started acting as if I had been locked up my entire life and revealed a genuine smile at Gen.
I was kind of annoyed by the fact that the blanket was kind of dirty, but I still smiled brightly. I needed to be energetic to show that I needed moments like this. I had to be excited and thrilled to the point that he'd think that I was having too much fun.
For the next three hours, I had to be curious about the world.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“Wherever you want to go, Father Lee Ki-Young,” Gen answered.
“I don’t... really...” I mumbled.
“Then, let’s look around the night market first,” Gen suggested.
“The night market?” I repeated.
“Yes.”
It was a good choice.
Rather than going to an extremely safe place, he thought of a place where I could interact with the denizens. Moreover, I had never actually been to the capital's night market.
I never really had any reason to visit it, as it was pretty far from the capital's central district. Moreover, I couldn't really visit such a crowded place due to my special identity.
“We have to walk from here,” Gen informed me.
“Okay!”
I couldn’t take my eyes off the various sights that I was seeing while we were walking to our destination. It wasn’t my first time seeing such sights, but I wasn’t used to seeing them. I was also not used to walking down the streets as my true self.
No one greeted me nor worshiped me.
Everyone was focused on their own business, but honestly...
‘I wish they would give me some attention.’
I had long gotten used to receiving attention, and I would always be happy whenever people were paying attention to me. Of course, I couldn’t make it that noticeable.
My steps became more and more confident as time passed. I couldn't stop seeing many interesting things. I walked faster and faster down the street, and sometimes, I'd stop by a shop and stare curiously at the displayed items.
“Mr. Gen! Look at this!” I called him over.
“Okay.”
“What’s that?” I asked.
'It’s just food that people normally eat. What else?'
“It looks like a ham made from the by-products of a lower-ranking monster. I heard monsters can be used to make food, and they apparently have a unique taste,” Gen replied.
“What? A monster...” I mumbled.
I was definitely raised like a noble. I had been living a rich life in the Blue Guild.
“Would you like to try?” Gen offered.
‘What? Are you crazy?’ I wanted to say this, but I couldn’t say it.
“Yes! Of course!” I answered happily.
I waited excitedly for Templar Gen to bring the mysterious dish over as if I was about to eat it for the first time.
“Here you go,” Gen said.
“Thank you...” I mumbled.
I looked a bit scared as I took a bite of the ham, but it tasted savory and wasn't as bad as I thought. Unfortunately, it didn’t look appetizing, which made it difficult for me to swallow it.
'Don’t back out now, Lee Ki-Young. If you do...'
“I-It’s delicious!” I stuttered.
“Hahaha,” Gen chuckled.
“It’s savory. This is—”
“Would you like another one?” Gen offered.
‘What?’
“Yes, please, Mr. Gen!” I responded.
'You, criminal! I’m seriously going to kill you later.'
“Ah! Look at that, Mr. Gen. There’s a street performance,” I said, pointing at the commotion.
“Let’s head that way, then,” Gen said.
“Okay!”
“Rise! If you do, I’ll give you the future!”
“Ah.”
“Rise! My hero! If you do, I’ll give you the future!”
“...”
I knew what that performance was about even without watching it.
“Is the night market always this loud?” I asked.
“I’m not sure, as I'm not really a frequent visitor of the night market,” Gen replied.
“Hey, try this!”
“Take a look at the items! We sell low-grade potions!”
“We sell various tableware.”
“I sell wooden figures of Goddess Benigoa that I carved myself.”
“Ah!”
“I have wooden figures of the honorary cardinal as well. Would you like one?” a vendor asked.
“I’ll take the wooden figure of Goddess Benigoa...” I requested.
“Here you go,” the vendor said.
“I-I have to pay—”
I was dumbfounded because I had no idea how much was the wooden figure, and I also had no money with me. I thought perhaps I got a bit too carried away with my acting, but Gen approached me quietly and paid for the item before giving the wooden figure to me.
“Thank you, Mr. Gen,” I said.
I ran to a different place with the wooden statue in my arms. I looked at many different shops and marveled at the street performers. I eventually started blending in with the people. I saw drunk people and visited many different street shops. I was exaggerating my reactions and was even clapping sometimes.
I even got a henna tattoo on my wrist.
“Look at this, Mr. Gen,” I said.
“It looks good on you,” Gen complimented.
“I’ll have to wear a long sleeve tomorrow,” I said.
It wasn’t easy pretending to be happy. My legs were exhausted now, and I really wanted to go home and rest. Had three hours always been this long? Really? I had to wake up early tomorrow. Still, I needed to act like I was really happy so that he'd take me out next time.
‘I don’t want this to end.’
I was so happy that I could fly. I was certain that freedom felt like this.
Obviously, my happiness didn’t last long because Gen looked as if he was walking on thin ice.
My acting seemed to have lost its effectiveness on him, as he looked really worried.
However, I didn’t forget my role, and I knew better than anyone that this wasn’t where I was supposed to be. This freedom was temporary, and I appreciated the fact that Gen had given me this fleeting freedom.
All I could do was lighten his burden, so I smiled brightly and asked, “Shall we... go back?”
Gen looked guilty as he nodded at me.