Chapter 19…………………………..

“Yeah. I am an outsider after all.”

Not just Kaelion, but the people of this village didn’t really doubt my lie that I had lost my memories either.

When I said I had lost my memories after being abandoned on the mountain, they didn’t question how I could have been left there alone. Instead, they said things like how terrifying it must have been, and how I must be lucky to have made it safely to the village.

They were kind people who chose to believe and empathize first rather than doubt others, which is why I was able to adapt to this village so quickly.

But it seems the people from the castle are not like that.

Well, if they had kind hearts, they wouldn’t be living safely in a castle and coming all the way down to the mountain villages just to act high and mighty and abuse people.

“Just what is it about those damn relics?”

They call the items imbued with the castle’s authority—items that protect against monster attacks—“relics.” These relics can also be distributed outside the castle.

“There’s a relic in this village’s palisade too, so monsters don’t usually approach.”

The power contained in a relic rapidly depletes once it leaves the castle, so its effectiveness weakens. It doesn’t completely drive monsters away, but merely makes them “not want to attack.”

Even that effect disappears over time, so the relics must be replaced periodically.

Because of this, the castle has been exploiting the villages at the foot of the mountain—providing relics in exchange for taking all sorts of resources like mana stones.

There’s no better example of systemic corruption than this.

“Then where should I hide?”

“I’ll open the back door for you. Go around south to avoid the direction the inspectors are coming from. After they finish investigating here, they’ll probably head north.”

So that meant I couldn’t even return to the antique shop.

I was suddenly about to end up in a midnight chase scene.

“Get out of the way!”

As the murmuring crowd split left and right, men in neat uniforms entered the inn. The villagers here, like those in my original world, had ordinary appearances—but the inspectors dispatched from the castle were all tall, sleek, and handsome young men.

Of course, that didn’t mean they could compare to Kaelion or Senes. Those two were beyond human beauty; these were just what people would normally call “good-looking.”

Of course, I had never once acknowledged what society called “handsome” anyway. My standards are pretty high, after all.

“Hey. Has any suspicious person visited this village recently?”

“We always have travelers coming through.”

The innkeeper quickly pushed me behind her and stepped forward. I had tried to slip out the back door, but it was locked.

Sister. How am I supposed to escape if you don’t even give me the key?

“What I mean is—was there anyone who wasn’t just a normal traveler? Someone suspicious in appearance or behavior?”

“We have so many guests that I really—”

“Why are you pretending not to understand?”

One of the inspectors kicked a chair threateningly.

“I heard an outsider has been staying at this inn recently.”

They were talking about me.

The villagers here were generally kind, but not saints. If an inspector pressured them, someone might get scared enough to talk. Maybe they didn’t even realize just mentioning it could be dangerous.

“Anyone hiding a suspicious person will be treated as an accomplice. If you don’t want to get hurt, talk.”

“There… isn’t anyone like that.”

“Then are you saying the person who reported it was lying?”

“……”

“Daring to deceive an inspector… we should make an example by cutting out your tongue.”

I could feel the innkeeper’s tension even from behind her. She wasn’t obligated to protect me, yet she stood her ground—meaning it wasn’t hard to guess what would happen to me if I were discovered.

“Drag them away, imprison them… maybe even kill them.”

Since they wouldn’t have good intentions, assuming the worst meant death. I checked how much time I had left.

[Remaining time: 3 days]

Just then, midnight passed and the number dropped by one. I sighed and lifted my head.

Whether I die in three days or now, what difference does it make?

“It’s me.”

“Miss Jin!”

As I stepped forward, the innkeeper turned pale and grabbed me, then let go again.

“A woman?”

They must have assumed “suspicious person” meant a man, because the inspector looked slightly puzzled when he saw me.

“You’re not familiar. What’s your name?”

“…Jin. I arrived here about two weeks—no, three weeks ago.”

“Where did you come from? You can’t reach this village without crossing the mountains. You don’t look like you’re from a merchant caravan either.”

I couldn’t say I had just been traveling and settled here. The mountains were full of monsters. Even merchant caravans with escorts sometimes got eaten by them.

The villagers knew I had come with Kaelion and Senes. If I lied about being with a caravan, I’d be exposed immediately.

“I lost my memories.”

“You lost your memories?”

“I was almost killed by a monster, but monster hunters saved me and brought me here.”

“Monster hunters? Who?”

The two of them only stayed for two days before leaving. They didn’t stay long, and they also never visited the same village twice. That meant they left no traces.

I couldn’t reveal their identity.

“I don’t know. They dropped me here and left right away.”

Bill probably thinks Kaelion is my ex-lover, but I never explicitly said I had any relationship with Kaelion, so it shouldn’t be a problem.

I decided to dodge the question for now.

“Suspicious.”

I had felt relieved thinking everyone believed my amnesia excuse, but this inspector seemed suspicious.

Well, I did look suspicious. But I’m just an ordinary useless human. What threat could I possibly be?

“Hmm…”

The inspector narrowed his eyes and scanned me up and down.

“You’re quite pretty. It would be a waste to leave you in a place like this.”

“…?”

Wait. Don’t tell me.

“What are you planning to do with me?”

“If you’re suspicious or considered a threat, immediate execution.”

Of course. Straight to killing people. Typical corruption.

“If you’re deemed not a threat, we may leave you alone… If you listen well, I might let this slide.”

He smiled like a low-level villain and touched my cheek.

I take back the “good-looking” evaluation. He’s trash. No—trash at least had usefulness once. This is nuclear waste.

“Do people like this get mass-produced in some factory? Why is their behavior pattern so consistent?”

This isn’t Earth—it’s another world—but somehow these worse-than-trash perverts seem to share the same brain circuitry across dimensions.

Honestly, Senes’ blunt insults feel better than this.

And these people are supposed to be inspectors from the castle? What a joke.

“There are other people watching.”

“The fact that they’re watching makes it more exciting, doesn’t it?”

Yeah. Logic doesn’t work on this kind of pervert.

If I break his wrist here, it wouldn’t be my fault.

“Should I just kick him where it counts?”

If I resist and cause a commotion, the villagers might get caught up in it… but why should I quietly endure when the problem is clearly him?

“My life’s genre is already survival disguised as a romance game. I have no intention of getting dragged into some mob-abuse side route!”

I glanced out the window. I saw a bell placed on a lookout platform.

In this place, the bell wasn’t hung—it was more like a large bronze drum placed on the ground and struck from above. It had a hollow base to amplify the sound.

“Then… should we start by holding hands?”

“I’d rather hold something else.”

With a textbook disgusting line, the inspector’s hand moved under my shoulder.

He was about to grab my chest.

Oh…

I wish the authority for “immediate execution” belonged to me instead.

[Would you like to reverse the positions of “Castle Inspector” and “Pawn”?]

“…Yes.”

BOOM!

With a dull resonance, a massive bell crashed down in front of me. Ah, not a bell—right, a drum. The people around us recoiled in shock.

“Aaaagh!”

From somewhere far away, I heard the inspector scream. The bell-drum had a hole beneath it, so his lower body probably got trapped.

“Hang in there with your arm strength! You might survive!”

If he neglected his physical training, that’s unfortunate—but this was the guy who tried to grope a stranger’s chest without hesitation. I don’t feel sympathy.

Unless I can think of three valid reasons in under three seconds, I’ll assume there are none.

“Miss Jin! What on earth did you do!”

The innkeeper grabbed my arm in panic.

This was self-defense. I did nothing wrong.

“Everyone get out before the inspectors arrive—run!”

“What’s going on here!”

“Kyaaah!”

More inspectors stormed in, smashing through a decorative cabinet by the door. I don’t understand why they broke the cabinet when the door was already open. Now someone has to clean that up.

“Boss! We can’t find Rumbuk!”

“Everyone down! Anyone acting suspicious will be dealt with!”

So the one I just took out was named Rumbuk, but that wasn’t important anymore.

The leader drew a long baton from his waist—and in the next moment, a blade snapped out from it.

“Hiiik!”

People around us crouched in fear. Even the innkeeper was trembling on the floor.

The man called “boss” pointed his sword at me, who was still standing.

“What did you do? Where is Rumbuk?”

Gone. But he’ll live on in your heart.

I politely answered inwardly and checked my skill window.