I Was Kidnapped By The Strongest Guild
Chapter 234: Play Dead!

Kang Min-ah dredged up a rumor about Gyeoul she'd buried in the recesses of her memory.

It was a rumor about a beast-kin child struggling to survive in the wild.

Good lord. That was real?

As Min-ah recoiled in shock, Gyeoul was already dashing off into the distance.

"Wow."

Clang! Clang!

A soldier hammered military tent stakes with a massive hammer.

Gyeoul's eyes sparkled as she watched nearby.

"...?"

Had she come to watch?

The soldier's shoulders tensed as he worked.

He pretended not to notice, but his pace quickened.

"This tent is as cool as mine."

It was big enough for twenty people to sleep in.

Gyeoul darted inside the tent and emerged on the opposite side.

There was no particular reason for it.

After exiting, she kept running without stopping.

She raced around the training grounds, exclaiming in amazement.

Kang Min-ah chased after her.

"W-wait a second..."

The small child moved unnaturally fast.

Wasn't her adventurer rank the lowest?

Min-ah stopped in her tracks as Gyeoul grew more distant with each step.

The beast-kin child's feet were just too quick.

'What should I do?'

Should I try luring her with snacks?

As Min-ah pondered, someone swiftly approached and snatched up Gyeoul.

Min-ah recognized her as Yeoreum from the Yeomyeong Guild.

"Oh my, I thought you might be here."

"Yep. I was here."

Gyeoul's tail wagged at Yeoreum's touch.

The soldiers watching could see how much Gyeoul adored Yeoreum.

"Were you bothering the soldiers?"

"N-no. I wasn't bothering anyone."

Am I in trouble?

Gyeoul's wild energy diminished slightly.

Her wagging tail slowed.

"You were running around while they were training."

"Well, I want to be a soldier too..."

"Gyeoul wants to be a soldier? Soldiers are cool, but if you become one, you'd have to leave the guild."

"...!"

Oh right, that's true.

As her wild energy faded, Gyeoul's mind started to clear.

"Being a soldier means less time with family. Only adults who can handle that become soldiers."

"I-I don't want to be a soldier anymore."

"It's still too hard for you, right?"

"Yeah..."

Gyeoul buried her face in Yeoreum's embrace.

Yeoreum chuckled at the sight, then turned to apologize to those around them.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

She apologized over and over.

---

---

Reason returned once we got home.

My face burned with embarrassment.

'Why did I act like that...!'

Wild energy numbs rationality while transforming one's personality to be more extroverted.

In my case, I became an entirely different being.

Thump thump thump-

I pressed my head into the sofa.

I flailed my limbs wildly.

Yeoreum patted my back gently.

"G-Gyeoul. Are you okay...?"

"Yes... I'm sorry..."

"It's okay. It was because of your wild energy. Sophia said it's normal that you can't control it yet."

"R-really...?"

I carefully sat up on the sofa.

Yeoreum picked me up and stroked my back softly.

I started to feel a bit more at ease.

"You've improved a lot since the beginning, you know?"

"...What was I like at first?"

"Really scary. But this time wasn't as frightening."

Have I gained some control?

That was welcome news.

I looked up at Yeoreum with a sigh mixing relief and regret.

"I should apologize to the soldiers."

"Okay. I'll help you."

"No, I made the mistake so I'll do it alone."

Just as I was about to head out, Yeoreum grabbed the hem of my clothes.

"Gyeoul, the guild agreed to provide support for the soldiers."

"Support?"

"Yeah. Like water and snacks."

"Ah..."

Is she asking me to help hand out snacks?

It would be a good opportunity to apologize.

"Want to do it together?"

"Yes. I will."

I'll serve dandelion tea on the side.

I should go downstairs and ask if we can make fish-shaped bread too.

I decided to quickly make amends for my mistake.

---

---

Water and drinks.

Snacks to replenish energy too.

I stood beside them, holding a teapot and serving dandelion tea.

"Um, I'm sorry about earlier..."

I apologized while pouring tea.

It was the soldier who had been hammering tent stakes.

"...For what?"

He gave me a puzzled look.

His expression asked what I was apologizing for.

His reaction left me even more confused.

'What's going on?'

As I apologized to people, most had the same response.

They didn't seem to know why I was apologizing.

"Hey, why is Gyeoul apologizing while pouring tea?"

"I'm not sure."

The soldiers glanced at me as they drank their tea.

Embarrassed, I scratched my cheek and greeted the next person.

It was the female captain I'd first met.

"Oh, hello."

"Hi. Done playing soldier?"

"Actually, it wasn't really play..."

"It wasn't?"

She questioned my calmer demeanor, so different from before.

I hesitated, then decided to tell her the truth.

"I lost control of my wild energy during training."

"Wild energy?"

"Yes. All beast-kin have it, but I can't control mine yet."

"Ah... So that's what happened."

She nodded in understanding.

I gave her an awkward smile.

"I was pretty fierce, wasn't I?"

"...Not really?"

"Huh? Wasn't I really aggressive?"

"...Not really?"

She repeated the same answer twice.

She truly meant I hadn't been fierce.

'But I really went overboard?'

If that wasn't fierce, what would be?

Tilting my head in confusion, I poured her some tea.

"I heard this is precious tea. Is it okay to share it like this?"

"Yes. The people drinking it are more precious than the tea."

"That's... Thank you! I promise I'll protect Gyeoul no matter what."

"Hehe."

It would be reassuring to have armed soldiers protecting me.

I smiled with my eyes as I served tea to each person.

There was no need to apologize further.

"Gyeoul, want to take a break now?"

"Okay."

At Yeoreum's call, we sat down to rest in some nearby bushes.

Yoon Chaerin, who had been handing out fish-shaped bread, joined us.

"Whew."

Left, right.

I massaged my sore forearms alternately.

My muscles were quite weak, so my arms quickly became sore.

Though my recovery was remarkably fast.

'It's already healed.'

Is rapid healing a trait of this world's people?

Or just beast-kin?

I marveled at how quickly my arms returned to normal.

As I stared blankly at my arms, Levinas came running urgently from among the soldiers.

"King! King!"

"Levinas?"

She looked terrified.

We who had been resting jumped up in surprise.

"What's wrong?"

"There's a monster over there!"

"A monster?"

A monster here in the midst of all these adventurers and soldiers?

I turned to look where Levinas was pointing.

Someone wearing a monster costume was approaching us.

It was clearly a fake monster that anyone could see through.

"Um..."

What is that?

I looked at Yeoreum.

Yeoreum chuckled and answered.

"It's a training monster."

"Ah, for training."

Levinas must have been startled by the monster mask.

She is a timid child after all.

Just as I was about to comfort Levinas, telling her it was okay,

The frightened Levinas began running circles around me.

"King! A monster's coming! A monster...!"

After dashing around, Levinas suddenly collapsed onto the grass.

With her eyes squeezed shut and not moving a muscle, she looked like she had fainted.

"Levinas?"

She didn't seem to have really passed out.

I gently poked Levinas's cheek.

Levinas cracked open her eyes and whispered softly.

"King, quickly play dead...! We'll survive that way...!"

"Okay."

This looks fun.

I lay down on the grass next to Levinas.

I sprawled out like a dead person.

"King, don't even breathe...!"

"Okay. But what about the others?"

"There are strong people, so it's fine...! If we play dead, they'll catch it...!"

Strong people.

She clearly meant the soldiers around us.

Yeoreum was right beside us too.

Levinas was showing her own trust in the soldiers.

"Oh no, our poor babies are dead."

Oh no, oh no.

Yeoreum wailed theatrically as she placed her hand on my back.

My tail started wagging at her playful touch.

"Huh? The tail's moving even though it's dead?"

Yoon Chaerin poked my tail.

As the two of them touched me, my tail wagged even faster.

"King, quickly stop your tail...!"

"Sorry, I can't stop this. I guess I've failed..."

"No...!"

Grab-!

Levinas, still lying down, quickly reached out and grabbed my tail.

At the same time, the soldier in the monster costume approached us.

"Um, I'm not a real monster..."

He tried to speak as he removed the monster mask.

But Levinas kept her eyes tightly shut, unable to see this.

Levinas just continued playing dead without even breathing.

I had no choice but to keep playing dead along with Levinas.

"...Kids?"

"......"

Don't move.

Levinas gripped my tail firmly, conveying that meaning.

Levinas's arm twitched as she held onto my wagging tail.

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