I Became A Married Man in Another World
Chapter 40
040 Toward the Village
No more of them were left standing. A few had fled, and those who had been clawing desperately to get inside the house had all been killed. He had done it with his own hands. He had killed every last one of them.
Juhwan panted heavily, scanning his surroundings.
“…”
The area was stained everywhere with blood and the filth leaking from the goblins’ bodies. Even the snow, which had once glowed with a bright light, now looked wretched—like mangled entrails.
The mountain house, once as simple and lovely as a painting, was a shambles. He had only just begun to feel attached to it, finally considering it his home.
Juhwan’s face contorted fiercely. He spat out his breaths.
The metallic tang of blood and the stench of those disgusting creatures filled his nostrils.
Juhwan began to walk along the fence. The blood-slicked earth clung to the soles of his shoes with a squelching sound. It felt as though the blood-soaked ground was trying to seize his ankles with every step.
Ignoring the sensation, Juhwan checked the fallen goblins one by one. He searched for any that might have survived, or any holding their breath and playing dead, waiting for a chance to escape.
Fortunately, none of the goblins appeared to be alive. Every single one of them was undeniably dead.
Only once he felt somewhat at ease did Juhwan conjure a small flame on his fingertip.
He needed to check how much mana remained in his body.
The flame appeared unchanged, but he felt he had used quite a lot. By the time he killed the last goblin, he had sensed his mana weakening. Of course, it was a difference only he could perceive.
Even now, though he couldn’t be certain, he felt a slight sense of depletion. He just felt it, somehow. There was no clear difference, and the flame hadn’t shrunk. It was simply a feeling.
He thought that if they swarmed him again, it might be difficult this time. A sense of urgency began to prick at him.
The fence had also collapsed in several places. The image of the goblins desperately trying to scale the perimeter flashed before his eyes. It wasn’t low enough for a beast to jump over, but a goblin could easily clear it.
After confirming that there were no more goblins in the surrounding forest, Juhwan headed toward the gate.
As he approached, Riji’s voice drifted through the silence.
“Juhwan?”
Before he could answer, there was a frantic rustling from inside, and the door swung open.
Riji came rushing out.
It seemed she had been listening closely to the sounds outside. Even though she must have known the goblins had retreated and nothing was left, she had apparently held back her urge to come out until Juhwan arrived.
Juhwan pulled Riji tightly into his arms as she buried herself against him. He wanted to tell her she’d done well, but his voice wouldn’t come. Instead of words, Juhwan pressed his lips firmly to his wife’s forehead, pouring his heart into the gesture.
Dorothy peeked her face out from the doorway. The child was clutching the horned rabbit in her arms. Half of the rabbit’s body was tucked into a pocket on her clothes.
When Juhwan opened one arm, Dorothy ran over and clung to his leg.
“Riji, Dorothy…”
His voice was thick with emotion as he called his family’s names.
He had been worried. No matter how desperately one tries to protect something, there are times when things are simply out of one’s hands. The reason humans are human is that they cannot control destiny.
Juhwan held them both and took a deep breath. Only when their warmth seeped into his hands and body did the reality sink in. They were alive. They hadn’t died. He had protected them. No, the two of them had held out. And the baby rabbit, too. They had all fought together.
Tears welled in Juhwan’s eyes. He was so relieved he hadn’t lost them. He was so incredibly glad everyone was safe.
“Thank you.”
He said it to Riji and Dorothy, and to the baby rabbit. Thank you for trying. Thank you so much for fighting with me.
Dorothy looked up at him, sobbing, and whispered.
“Papa is crying. Just like Dorothy.”
Of course he would cry. When you think you might lose your family, and then realize they are still safely in your arms, of course you cry. Tears poured like rain from eyes that had been clear only moments ago. The whole family held each other and wept together like children for a long time.
*
After staying like that for a while, Juhwan stood up.
They had to leave the mountain while there was still daylight. He didn’t know the habits of goblins, but many beasts became active at night. Goblins might be the same. Night was a time of disadvantage for humans.
Looking into Riji’s tear-streaked face, Juhwan spoke.
“Riji, we’re going. We’re leaving the mountain. Now. Take only the important things. Quickly, we have to hurry. We need a wagon and a horse. And then, we’re leaving the village.”
Living here, they could make a living by hunting. Considering their trade with the peddler, they might even live quite comfortably. To say he had no hesitation about abandoning all that would be a lie.
But now that he knew such dangerous things as goblins existed, staying on the mountain was no longer an option. He had to go down, warn them about the goblins, obtain a wagon and a horse, and leave.
If they could live in the village, that might be one option. But it likely wouldn’t be allowed. They wouldn’t let a man they had intentionally given a wife and a house to just to make him a hunter live in the village. They seemed to need a hunter.
Recalling the sight of the goblins throwing themselves at the fence, Juhwan’s expression darkened.
Back on Earth, he had been a poor student. For a time, he did nothing but get into fights, and he wasn’t particularly good at his studies. So much time had passed that he barely remembered anything he had learned.
However, he did remember that in medieval Europe, there were manors ruled by lords. He remembered thinking, back when the teacher said the peasants were tied to the land, ‘Is their life more miserable than mine, or am I more miserable?’
In those young days, he had wondered if there could possibly be anyone more miserable than him. He thought there wouldn’t be—that he was the most miserable of all. Now he knew better. There were plenty of ‘more miserable’ people in the world.
The people here might be in a position where they couldn’t leave even if they wanted to. Even after informing them of the goblin outbreak, they might have to keep living here. No, the probability was high that they would have to. That was likely what it meant to be a peasant in this era. Perhaps they were the ones who truly belonged to the ‘more miserable’ group.
But at least, that wasn’t Juhwan right now. He had no reason to be miserable, and no reason to be tied to this village. If they tried to keep Riji bound here…
‘I might have to put up a bit of a fight.’
It would be fine if it was just a simple scuffle, but it could get rougher. Even so, he couldn’t back down. Even if he had to threaten them, he would get a wagon and a horse and leave.
“…”
Riji seemed to understand what Juhwan meant immediately. She hurried to wipe her tears and nodded. Then, as if remembering something, she looked up at him.
“There is a carriage in the village. A very large one.”
Riji forced a smile.
“We can trade the wolf pelts for it, I’m sure. It’s a carriage they don’t use.”
Riji also seemed to know that the people wouldn’t let them go easily. But she was trying her best not to show her anxiety.
Riji looked up at Juhwan with a deliberate brightness, smiling as if to say it was all right. Her small face, which must have been trembling with fear just a moment ago, was now filled with an air of encouragement for Juhwan. Even though she was a woman far weaker than him, incomparable in strength.
Juhwan gently leaned his forehead against hers. He drew strength from her warmth. He hoped Riji would find strength, just as he did. It’s okay, I’ll take care of it somehow. Don’t worry about those people, Riji.
“It’s okay.”
As if sensing Juhwan’s heart, Riji grinned and took a sharp breath, as if psyching herself up.
Dorothy, who had been quietly watching the two, offered her own forehead to Juhwan. She seemed to want the same thing.
While Juhwan bumped his head gently against the child’s, Riji went inside and began packing their bags. She busily gathered items that could be exchanged for money, like furs and fabrics, and packed food for their immediate needs into large containers.
After sending Dorothy inside, Juhwan went out to gather anything that could serve as a weapon.
No matter where they ended up going, the more weapons they had, the better. Knives, iron skewers, axes from the hunter’s workshop—he would take everything he could carry. They were the previous hunter’s belongings, but it couldn’t be helped.
For a brief moment, he thought about just leaving without going through the village.
Then they could go quietly without anyone knowing.
“…”
Juhwan shook his head to clear the thought. If it were just him, maybe. But traveling continuously on foot while carrying goods, with a woman and a child in tow, would be difficult.
He couldn’t just throw away all their belongings and leave, either. This world was different from the modern Earth, where there were ATMs and 24-hour convenience stores at every turn. For now, they had to carry physical goods for food and necessities.
‘Besides, the goblins might pursue us.’
They had to get as far away as possible, as quickly as possible. Recalling the sight of the goblins, Juhwan set his jaw firmly.
’Once I get a carriage, I’ll leave the village tonight.’
Night would be upon them soon. Juhwan’s hands moved faster as he packed.
Gus quickened his pace.
The adventurers had arrived sooner than expected. They were already there when he had gone to the village after luring the goblins to Juhwan’s cabin.
In that case, there was no need to drag out his revenge until tomorrow. It would be better to finish it today. Once he made the decision, things moved quickly. It was a process he had thought about and rehearsed in his mind every day for decades. Gus immediately ran toward the goblin settlement.
It seemed women had been killed or injured during the mutiny. The goblins in the settlement were in a state of high agitation. They were fighting among themselves in fits of rage, and a few were aimlessly pounding on trees.
Gus smeared a little musk powder on several trees. He shouldn’t draw too much attention all at once. Weakly, bit by bit. Just enough so they could track the scent themselves.
One goblin flared its nostrils. Its sense of smell was keen; it seemed to have noticed already.
Gus backed away and headed toward the village, leaving traces of musk along the way. He carefully adjusted the amount of musk powder so they wouldn’t move too fast, but would still arrive before the sun went down.
‘This far should be enough.’
He only needed to lure them close. Gus turned back.
Now it was time to fetch Juhwan. He had to hurry.
‘I hope he’s safe.’
He was slightly worried. No matter how strong he was, or that he could use healing magic, facing agitated goblins was a high-risk endeavor. If he had pulled back at the right moment, he wouldn’t have been severely injured, but one never knew.
‘That man cherishes his wife and daughter.’
However, when he finally arrived at Juhwan’s cabin, a situation he had never imagined was unfolding.
Gus’s eyes widened.
He had expected the goblins to have overrun the house by now. He thought Juhwan would be lying wounded or hiding nearby, waiting for an opportunity.
‘My god.’
The area was littered with goblin corpses.
To think he killed this many alone… It seemed he had completely misjudged Juhwan.
Furthermore, some of the goblin corpses were charred. He wondered if they had been burned with a torch, but the pattern was different. It looked as though the fire had erupted from inside the goblins rather than from the outside.
‘Can he use two attributes?’
Hardly anyone could use more than one type of magic. Healing magicians were rare enough, but a magician with multiple attributes was even rarer.
Perhaps only a first-rate magician belonging to the kingdom could do such a thing.
An involuntary chuckle escaped his lips. Serves him right. The Village Chief’s crime now went beyond trying to sell a healing magician to another noble.
Regarding magicians, there was a law that had been all but forgotten long ago. Of course, it wasn’t a law of the kingdom, but one that applied only within this fief. He had heard it was a law created long ago to prevent magicians from falling into the hands of other lords.
If one sold information about a magician to another lord, concealed information regarding a magician from their own lord, or did anything similar, they would be beheaded.
It was a law that had almost vanished, with no one being beheaded for it in nearly a hundred years. Hardly anyone even knew of it. To people who had nothing to do with magicians, such a law might as well not exist.
Despite that, the current lord had once used this law as a pretext to behead someone.
Gus had discovered this fact while looking for information to work under a noble.
That was why he had gone out of his way to inform the Village Chief about Juhwan. Knowing the Chief’s character, he knew he would naturally become greedy upon learning of a magician’s existence. The Chief had acted exactly as Gus expected. It was so predictable it was almost laughable.
Gus giving up his life as a hunter was directly caused by the goblins. If he hadn’t been attacked by them, he would be the greatest hunter by now.
But the people were worse than the goblins. They had summoned an ignorant young man from far away and sent him up the mountain defenseless. No one had given him a hint, fearing he might leave if he knew the truth. Everyone had kept quiet and deceived him. They were all accomplices.
And among them, the greatest sinner was surely the Village Chief. Because the person in that position had made the decisions for generations. Because the Chief was the one urging everyone to act that way.
Gus took a deep breath to calm his emotions. Now was not the time to be agitated.
After confirming Juhwan’s house was empty, Gus headed down to the village.
Most of the people from when Gus was young were dead and gone, but those living in the village now were of the same breed. They still summoned ignorant people and sent them to the mountain.
‘Die, all of you.’
No one in that village deserved to live. Including himself, they all deserved to die.
