I Was Kidnapped By The Strongest Guild
Chapter 147: My Clothes!

Sophia petted Gyeoul's head for a while.

She also hugged Gyeoul's upper body, which was lying on her thigh.

'It's all the fault of the adults.'

How could it be the child's fault that she doesn't understand the world?

Sophia showed affection to Gyeoul until she felt reassured.

Gyeoul didn't seem to mind, as she lay still.

"Ahem..."

Their eyes met, and a smile formed involuntarily at the sight of the child's pure eyes.

The child was so lovely that it could make the heart of someone emotionally barren beat faster.

It was only unfortunate that Gyeoul herself didn't know this.

'She hasn't been loved for a long time.'

When children are treated kindly, they look to receive even more love.

However, since Gyeoul had never experienced love, her personality was unexpectedly tough.

She knew how to end a life without hesitation and didn't care if her body was damaged.

She tried to solve most hardships on her own.

It was only after getting seriously injured that she would reluctantly ask for help.

'Even receiving help isn't something she has much experience in...'

She was a child who felt awkward receiving help from others.

It was natural for her to try to handle everything alone.

While other children had a severe dependency problem, the child didn't even have the slightest dependency.

Sophia, who was pondering this, decided to teach Gyeoul how to depend on others.

"Gyeoul, you did very well last night."

"Last night?"

"Yes, didn't you wake everyone to help Levinas?"

"Yes. I couldn't do it alone."

That was the only way to save Levinas.

It wasn't something that particularly deserved praise.

Gyeoul awkwardly played with her tail.

"From now on, if there's something you find hard to do alone, try asking those around you for help."

"Family, you mean?"

"No, it doesn't have to be just family. You can ask the adults around you for help."

Help requested by a child like Gyeoul had a significant impact, as she was a child who evoked a protective instinct in adults.

"Unknown adults... won't help me..."

"Why wouldn't they? Surely, someone will want to help."

"They're strangers..."

It wouldn't be easy to help someone they don't know, would it?

As Gyeoul tilted her head, Sophia gently pressed her nose.

"The words 'please help' are more powerful than you think."

"Um... okay."

Indeed, the Yeomyeong Guild did help.

There might be someone who would help if she was lucky.

Gyeoul decided to trust Sophia.

"Now, repeat after me. 'Please help.'"

"P-please help?"

"Well done."

Sophia petted Gyeoul's head.

Gyeoul's white ears twitched lively.

"Oh my, I must help."

Yeoreum appeared from the kitchen, smiling.

Gyeoul wagged her tail in greeting.

"I'll help you if something happens too."

"Hehe, thank you."

Yeoreum, who sat on the sofa, grabbed Gyeoul's ankle and placed it on her thigh.

Gyeoul's small, white toes wriggled.

"I'll ask for help if something happens, but... honestly, helping people isn't easy."

It's not an easy task, yet you always manage to do it.

Sophia, who muttered this to herself, showed a faint smile.

"Still, make sure to ask for help."

"Okay..."

You never know with people.

Asking for help might be a good idea.

Gyeoul nodded in understanding.

For now, she decided to lie down like this until it was time to eat. The warmth she felt was just too comforting.

---

---

The children woke up and ate together.

After digesting for a while, we went out to play in the park.

We dug in the ground and rode the carrot boat, following Levinas' lead.

Even though it was a game we always played, Levinas jumped around excitedly.

"King! It's fun!"

"Yeah, did you enjoy the boat ride?"

"No! Playing with the King and the Dark King was fun!"

"Oh..."

So it wasn't the game, but playing with us that was fun.

It felt like a realization hit me hard.

"King, do you know? Levinas loves playing with the Kings the most?!"

"Yeah. I love playing with Levinas too."

I reached out and petted Levinas' head.

For some reason, beast-kin felt happiness when their heads were petted.

Was there something different about beast-kin?

I'll have to ask Sophia later.

Just then, Saebyeok poked my waist.

"······."

She didn't say anything, but I knew what she wanted.

I used my free hand to pet Saebyeok's head.

"Of course, I love Saebyeok the most too."

Rrr.

A sound came from Saebyeok's throat, like a cat purring.

I knew it was a sound cats made when they were happy.

"As I always say, Saebyeok is really like a cat. She even makes cat sounds."

"Yeah. But Gyeoul makes cat sounds too."

"Uh, yeah..."

They all claimed they heard cat sounds from me, even though I never did.

When did I ever do that?

Rrr.

I mimicked Saebyeok's sound for no reason.

It didn't sound particularly like a cat. Were the kids just imagining things?

As I pondered this, Levinas waved her hands around.

"I can't see...!"

Levinas' long rabbit ears were pressed down, covering her eyes.

It was because I was holding them down with my hand.

"S-sorry."

When I quickly let go, Levinas grabbed my wrist faster and put my hand back on her head.

"King! Don't let go!"

"Uh, okay..."

It was better to have her head petted than being able to see, at least for Levinas.

I petted the children's heads for about two more minutes like that.

Thanks to my hard work shooting the bow, my arm didn't hurt.

"This time, Levinas will do it... King, there's something on your clothes."

Levinas reached towards my shoulder.

Because my clothes were very worn out, the stitching on the patched fabric had come undone.

"It looks like the stitching came loose."

"Oh no! Do we have to sew this again?"

Levinas grabbed the thread and started pulling.

With her dexterity, the thread kept coming out without breaking.

"Levinas, you shouldn't pull. You need to grab it firmly and snap it."

"Like this?!"

Snap!

Levinas tore the thread with such force that the entire seam on the left side of the shirt came apart.

"······!"

From the left shoulder to the thigh, the separated shirt naturally fell down.

Since I was wearing an adult male's shirt as a single piece of clothing, it slipped off all at once.

"Ah!"

With quick reflexes, I grabbed the shirt, preventing it from exposing my body.

It now resembled a torn cheongsam dress, revealing my side.

"S-sorry..."

"It's okay. I was planning to sew it again anyway."

"Really...?"

"Yes. Why don't you two play for a bit? I'll be back quickly after sewing this."

I estimated that I just needed to sew the side and the shoulder.

"Levinas made a mistake, so shouldn't she come with you...?"

"It's fine. It's really no big deal. I'll be right back. Can you two play together?"

"Well... okay! Levinas always listens to the King!"

"Yes."

I petted Levinas' head and headed home, holding the clothes tightly to keep them from falling.

One step.

Then two steps.

Just when the children were out of sight, the clothes started to come apart.

Rip-!

The remaining threads began to snap one by one.

Like a building collapsing after one pillar falls, the clothes began to fall apart.

"Oh..."

This can't happen here.

I need to make it home.

As the clothes started to separate front and back, sweat trickled down my face.

I couldn't move.

Instinctively,

I knew that a few more steps would completely disintegrate the clothes.

What should I do in this situation?

Sophia said to ask for help from the people around me.

I hid in a nearby bush and looked around.

There were few people around since it was after lunchtime, but there were some.

I spotted an adventurer I recognized passing by.

Carefully, I called his name from the bushes.

---

---

I'm going to rest in the park for a bit.

It was when adventurer Gu Ja-seong was heading towards the park.

"Excuse me..."

A child's voice came from inside the bushes.

The frail, teary voice sounded familiar.

"Hmm?"

Adventurer Gu Ja-seong looked towards where the voice came from.

A famous child was crouched inside the bush, looking at him with pitiful eyes.

What on earth happened?

As Gu Ja-seong approached, his mouth dropped open in shock.

"P-please help..."

Gyeoul, dressed in completely torn clothes, was whimpering as she asked for help.

Although she wasn't actually crying, to Gu Ja-seong, he looked like she was.

"What..."

Did someone do something terrible to Gyeoul?

How could that be possible in this park?

Gu Ja-seong's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Your, your clothes... What, what! Which bastard did this!"

"······!"

Maybe it was because of his sudden loud voice, but the child trembled.

Ah.

He realized he had made a mistake.

Gu Ja-seong felt a dizzying sensation come over him.

---

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