I Was Kidnapped By The Strongest Guild
Chapter 400: I Came to Brag

Hidden in Han Yeoreum's embrace, I couldn't see anything. My ears naturally perked up, becoming more sensitive in the darkness. Among all the sounds I could hear, Han Yeoreum's thumping heartbeat was my favorite.

"Arin, why are you eating pine needles for this hundred thousand won challenge?"

"I have to minimize spending for a week."

"Why...? If you need money, I can lend you some."

"No, that's not it..."

Kwon Arin explained the rules of the hundred thousand won challenge. Receiving anything from friends or family was strictly forbidden. Using adventurer abilities was prohibited. However, simple foraging like gathering wild plants was allowed.

"Well... the idea's good, but is it doable? Finding food in the mountains won't be easy..."

"It's just one week. Surely I can handle that much."

"Hmm..."

Kwon Arin paused mid-sentence and tapped something. Though I couldn't see from where I was nestled, the sound told me she was tapping her smartphone.

"If Gyeoul managed for years, I can handle one week."

"Don't underestimate Gyeoul, okay? Not just anyone could do that."

"I know. I'm not underestimating her - I'm just saying I can manage a week."

"Still... it seems tough..."

Han Yeoreum's worried voice carried over. Surely anyone could manage for just a week though. Still hidden in Han Yeoreum's embrace, I encouraged Kwon Arin.

"Good luck."

"Thanks. I'll definitely make them donate fifty million won."

Just as Kwon Arin made her declaration, we heard the children's footsteps approaching from afar.

"King! Kiiiing!"

"Shuin!"

Levinas and Gaeul's footsteps sounded quite urgent. Only then did I finally emerge from Han Yeoreum's embrace.

"What's wrong?"

"Big news! Today's the day for this!"

Levinas held out a performance pamphlet. It advertised a children's show at the city hall we'd visited before.

"Wow."

Another children's performance. Though I wanted to see it, the city hall was quite far away.

'We'd need to drive there...'

The children and I looked up at Han Yeoreum together. Finding our synchronized head tilt amusing, she burst out laughing.

"Alright. Want to go together?"

"Yeah!"

So we drove to city hall in Han Yeoreum's car. We received pamphlets at the performance hall entrance. I wondered what show it would be this time. As I looked over the pamphlet, Levinas was acting strangely.

"Ahem."

Levinas held out her pamphlet toward us. Did she want to show us something? I scanned up and down but didn't see anything special.

"Levinas, what is it?"

"Look at this!"

Levinas pointed to a play called "The Adventures of the Hero Horned Rabbit." After pointing it out, she puffed out her chest proudly.

"Oh, it's about a hero horned rabbit?"

"Yeah! This is the play Levinas requested!"

"Ah...!"

So it was a play based on children's requests. I felt proud of Levinas enjoying various cultural activities.

"That's amazing, Levinas. Thanks to you we'll get to see an interesting play."

"Hehe!"

We bought snacks and drinks and found good seats. But Levinas had two drinks.

"Levinas, are you really thirsty?"

"No! This one's for the Hero Horned Rabbit!"

"Ah."

Levinas seemed quite excited about everything. I watched the performance expectantly with the children.

"That's the fake rat!"

"Woo!"

During the story about the nail-eating rat, the children pointed and shouted at the rat. Not just our children, but all the children watching joined in.

"No!"

"Waaah."

During the story of the grateful magpie, they cried out seeing the dead magpie. Then Levinas's requested "Hero Horned Rabbit" story began. There wasn't anything particularly special about it - like the other stories, it focused on teaching a moral lesson. But Levinas watched with sparkling eyes.

"Wow!"

The show ended with the hero horned rabbit defeating the villain. As soon as it finished, Levinas ran toward the stage area with her drink.

"Horned Rabbit!"

Gaeul ran after Levinas, so Saebyeok and I followed too. We arrived at the performers' waiting room backstage.

"King, there."

"Yeah, it's the Hero Horned Rabbit."

A man in horned rabbit costume sat slumped in a chair. With the heat, he was wilting in front of a rapidly spinning fan. Perfect timing to offer a drink.

"Levinas, let's go give him the drink."

"Yeah...!"

Levinas clutched the drink and approached the Hero Horned Rabbit. Just then, the wilting performer started chatting with his colleagues.

"Ugh, who does shows in this weather."

"Brother, if you skip performing because it's hot, when will you become a great actor?"

"Heh, what great actor from children's shows."

The Hero Horned Rabbit chuckled and hung his head. Sweat dripped onto the waiting room floor. It really was hot.

"Ah shit, I'm dying from this heat."

"Shit" and "dying" weren't words a Hero Horned Rabbit should use. Fortunately, Levinas didn't know curse words.

"What's 'shit'?"

"Ah...!"

The performer looked up. Seeing Levinas standing there with the drink, he visibly startled.

"Oh, how long have you been there?"

"For a while."

Levinas turned to look at us. The man in horned rabbit costume and staff turned too. Seeing us peeking around the wall, his mouth fell open.

"So what does 'shit' mean?"

"Th-that, well, 'shit' is..."

Perhaps flustered about cursing in front of children? I decided to help preserve Levinas's innocence here.

"Levinas, I know what it means."

As I approached Levinas, the performer's eyes widened. I could hear his heart pounding.

"Really? What is it?"

"'Sh' means younger sibling[1]."

"Oh! That kind! Levinas knows it from storybooks!"

"Yeah, and when you add 'it' it's being polite."

"...!"

Together making "shit." Though it was a curse, I pretended otherwise for Levinas's sake.

"Shit! King is Levinas's younger sibling!"

"Shuin younger sibling."

"Huh...?"

Though I'd said it, hearing it from the children felt strange. Wait, why was I their younger sibling?

As I tilted my head at the odd situation, the man in horned rabbit costume approached while fanning himself.

"Y-yes, I was just telling my junior I was hot..."

"Really?! If you're hot, drink this!"

Levinas handed him the drink. He awkwardly accepted it.

"Is this for me?"

"Yeah! Thanks for being an awesome Hero Horned Rabbit! Best acting Levinas has ever seen!"

Levinas gave two thumbs up. The man flinched.

"...Thank you. I'll work even harder."

"Hehe."

He took the drink from Levinas. As he clutched it with both hands, the bottle crumpled slightly. His previously heat-exhausted expression had brightened considerably.

Had Levinas brought about this change in him? My tail wagged gently at the pleasant scene.

**

"Seol, chase those birds away please."

"Meow!"

"Kkamang, there are bugs eating that."

"Kkik-kki!"

Back home, I harvested some crops. With Seol and Kkamang's help, it went quickly.

'Maybe I'll just harvest cabbage today.'

I crouched in front of the well-grown cabbage. As I dug around the base with a shovel, I heard someone trudging toward me.

"Hm?"

Looking up, I saw a spread-out cloth approaching. Behind it, Gaeul's tail swayed back and forth.

Was Gaeul trying to play a trick on me?

Pretending not to know, I called out:

"Who is it?"

"......"

"Who could it be?"

"...Heuk!"

Sure enough, it was Gaeul throwing off the cloth. She held her hands up high, trying to surprise me.

"Oh!"

I raised my hands too, copying her. Gaeul burst into giggles.

"Gaeul..."

Just as I stood to approach her-

"Shuin!"

Gaeul came running from behind, holding the children's performance pamphlet from earlier.

'Huh.'

Why were there two Gaeuls?

I quickly checked the pheromones. Though I only sensed them from the Gaeul behind me, the one in front didn't feel fake either.

"Gaeul, why are there two of you?"

"Ikgo!"

"This is..."

The Gaeul in front pulled something from her pocket. A rectangular photo. It showed me and the children - Levinas riding piggyback on Saebyeok, Gaeul sticking out her tongue, and me with fiercely raised eyebrows.

Though we'd never taken this photo, I had an idea who they were.

"Could this be..."

Were these our counterparts from the other world? Their Levinas must have succeeded in waking me up. Though she looked tired, suggesting it wasn't completely successful, she'd managed it.

But why were my eyebrows...

"Ah!"

Wild energy. The me from that world who had seemed so pitiful had succeeded in awakening wild energy.

Our counterparts were gradually developing. Perhaps Gaeul had come to show this off.

---

[1.raei: sorry this part doesnt make sense in english at all. I tried but it just sounds hella weird. 아우씨 (au-ssi) is a curse word, but Gyeoul is breaking it up to explain 아우 (younger sibling) + 씨 (polite suffix)