I Kidnapped the Hero Party – Chapter 7

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“I finally found you. My wallet. So you were the culprit.”

He looked at the man across from him.

A moderately muscular male.

Judging by his appearance, he looked like a thug from the trash heap.

In his hand was my wallet.

“Give me back my wallet. If you do so, I’ll let you go unharmed.”

“Tch, acting tough. Why is this your wallet? It’s in my hand.”

The thug smirked and ignored his words.

Meanwhile, he checked Hare’s condition, who was touching his legs.

“Mister…?”

Whether she had been slapped by that man or not, her cheek was flushed red.

Whether she had scraped herself falling, blood was flowing from her knee.

“…Match-selling girl.”

“It’s Hare… My name is Hare…”

“…Hare. Are you alright?”

Hare hesitated to answer for a moment.

As if her chest hurt, she seemed to have difficulty breathing.

“I’m, I’m fine… There’s nothing particularly wrong…”

She was visibly lying.

Was it to prevent me from fighting?

Hare’s eyes were consumed by fear.

Her inability to breathe properly seemed to be due to psychological factors.

He stepped forward to protect her as she lay fallen.

At that, the scruffy thug spoke as if having a fit.

“Hey, why don’t you just ignore this and leave? I’ll return the wallet. Stay out of our business.”

“I’m afraid I can’t do that.”

“Ha, I said I’ll give you the wallet? You’re making a fuss even though I said I’d let you go?”

“If you stole my wallet, you should face the consequences.”

Karma.

He knew that the thug hadn’t stolen his wallet.

The thief must have stolen it while selling matches.

But as he said, my wallet was in his hands.

So, he decided to think that he had stolen it.

“I won’t even need to draw my sword…”

“Huh?”

A thug from an alley like this would be manageable with just fists.

He walked slowly with an arrogant demeanor, without taking any stance.

“You bastard. Alright, let’s do this.”

At that, the thug put his hand inside his clothes.

When I blinked once, he was holding a dagger.

“Ah, mister..! Be careful..! He has a knife in his hand..!! Just pretend you don’t know and run away..!!”

“I can’t do that.”

“What…?”

“I have my reasons.”

“What are you whispering about-!! You son of a-!!”

The thug started approaching me, shouting loudly.

With eyes that looked like they would stab me without any hesitation.

Eyes that had lost their screws.

With eyes like that, he must have stabbed many people already.

‘He’s the kind of guy you wouldn’t feel bad about killing.’

His dagger approached to dig into my flesh.

We were at a distance where he could touch him if he stretched out my fist.

As the dagger entered that range, time seemed to stop for a moment.

And then, a choice appeared before my eyes.

The appearance of a choice meant there was a dangerous possibility.

Even a superhuman would naturally die if stabbed with a knife, so it made sense for a choice to appear even with this weak thug’s dagger.

‘Then, my choice is…’

Number 2.

He clicked on choice number 2.

One might think that subduing would be the better answer since it showed a ‘result’.

Nevertheless, he chose number 2.

There wasn’t much reason for it.

‘No matter what I choose, the result for that guy will be the same. Whether he’s subdued or beaten like a dog.’

Having rolled countless times in this other world, nearly died, and participated in wars.

With such a past, whatever he did to this alley punk, the result would be the same.

My body had begun to move according to my choice.

Automatic combat.

Automatically designating vital points, my fist moved towards that point.

It was an attack that would decimate his liver with a 0% chance of missing.

It was a liver blow.

An attack described as ‘hitting the soy sauce’ in Korea.

He had struck under the thug’s lower ribs and precisely hit his liver.

The thug couldn’t breathe and fell to his knees on the spot.

It was a simple but powerful attack.

“Huh- heurgh.. I, I can’t breathe-”

Clang-

Along with the thug’s body, the dagger he was holding rolled on the ground.

Looking down at him, kneeling, he asked.

“Why did you steal my wallet?”

“Heurgh- That- I didn’t-”

“I don’t tolerate lies. Why did you steal it?”

“I- I didn’t-”

“…I see we can’t communicate.”

He didn’t need to say anything more.

With that meaning, he struck the fallen thug’s body.

Thud- Thud-

He screamed for mercy, but I had no intention of doing so.

“Pl-Please spare me-”

“If I had been a weak person, I would have lost my life to your dagger. Having the intention to kill someone. Isn’t it unconscionable to beg for your life?”

“St-Stop- Heurgh- Spare me-”

He ignored his words.

While people died easily, if you hit them just enough without crossing that line, they wouldn’t die.

And, he knew that line well.

The thug just had to stay still and take the beating.

‘So that he can’t touch the thief again.’

He had to instill fear.

Though I would kidnap her after 4 days.

He was doing this unnecessary act because nothing should happen to the thief until then.

Just as my fist was about to extend, someone stopped my fist.

“St-Stop..!!”

“Hare?”

“Please stop… I was the one who did wrong… I’m the one who stole the wallet, mister…”

“…”

Tsk, I was trying to pretend I didn’t know.

Hare grabbed my arm and seemed like she wouldn’t let go.

Her eyes were mixed with guilt and regret.

She looked as if she felt responsible for the thug’s beating.

‘…If I keep hitting this thug. The one who might be hurting more is the thief.’

Since she would interpret this as the punishment she should’ve received.

Continuing this act would be nothing short of torture for the psychologically intimidated thief.

He had no choice but to withdraw my fist.

“H.. Sp-Spare.. me..”

“Shut up and leave. If you run into me next time, you’ll die then.”

“I.. I understand..”

Unlike his initial bravado, the thug had hurriedly left the place.

He probably wouldn’t think of messing with the thief for a while.

I put the wallet that had fallen on the ground into my pocket.

Then, I met eyes with the thief who had stolen my wallet.

“I knew.”

“…Pardon?”

“I knew from the beginning that you had stolen it.”

“…”

At those words, Hare’s expression darkened even more.

As if she had fallen into an inescapable sense of guilt.

With a gloomy smile, she offered an excuse-like explanation.

“A-Actually, I was going to return it..! I-I did steal it..! But there was too much money, so I was going to put it back-”

“Why don’t you stop with the useless lies?”

Hare’s words didn’t continue any further.

Probably because of my expression.

My expression must have been sour from the lies she didn’t even mean.

He spoke calmly.

“If you had intended to return it in the first place, you wouldn’t have stolen it.”

“Ah…”

Leaving behind that exclamation, I left the alley.

We would meet again within 4 days, but.

He didn’t particularly want to talk to her right now.

He hated lies to death.

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Stale air circulated in the room.

Damp molds gathered in one place, asserting their right to survive.

Yuriana Hare looked at that place and said.

“I’m back, Grandma.”

A shack that looked like it would fly away if a typhoon blew.

Calling a wooden plank a door, Hare entered the house.

On the bed inside, her unwell grandmother greeted her.

“Yes, you’re back. My granddaughter…”

“Yes, I came back after selling some matches. It doesn’t make as much money as when we sold food… but if I don’t want to steal, I have to sell something.”

She was a bad child.

After stealing, to lie again to Grandma…

Hare barely held back her tears.

She didn’t want to show a sad face to her grandmother.

So, she spoke with a smile.

“I sold 4000 peri today. Hehe. If we save a bit more! We’ll be able to buy medicine for Grandma!”

A positive tone.

In contrast, Grandmother Helen’s complexion was pale.

Unable to see, she felt the air and found her granddaughter.

“Yes, save it up. So it won’t be taken away. In a good place…”

“…”

Grandma doesn’t have any intention of living on.

Hare realized the meaning of those words.

It meant to save the money instead of using it on her, and to leave this place.

If her only family died, Hare would be left alone.

Recalling that lonely feeling, Hare held her grandmother’s wrinkled hand.

“No, Grandma.. You can definitely live..! I.. I will save you..”

“Hare.. People die when their time comes.. I have to go now-”

“No..!! Grandma will never die…”

“…Hare. Accept reality.”

Helen felt sorry for Hare, who had a kind personality but was born into the wrong environment.

If she died, Hare would be left alone.

Hare, who had lived by stealing.

Could she really live properly in the world?

Helen was so worried.

‘She’s too worrisome to leave alone…’

If it weren’t for Hare, she would have let go and gone to heaven by now.

Perhaps it was because of that lingering attachment that she was living in such pain.

Helen held Hare’s hand warmly and thought.

“Hare. It will be painful, but try to imagine how you’ll live after I’m gone. That way, the shock will be less…”

“…I understand, Grandma.”

Hare had no choice but to nod.

Since it was time to sleep, she laid down on a newspaper spread on the floor.

And she started to imagine what her grandmother had said.

‘…After Grandma is gone, I…’

How would I live?

Could a bad person like her continue to live?

Was it okay for her to keep living after causing people pain…

Hare had negative thoughts.

She felt a pain as if her chest was being stabbed.

“How should I live…”

Hare closed her eyes thinking about this.

Suddenly, she remembered the man who had saved her.

That man who was different from others.

When Hare thought of that man, her chest hurt even more.

“He was so kind to me… But I did such a terrible thing to him…”

He gave her 4000 peri…

And she stole his wallet…

Hare held back the tears that were about to flow.

“…But. When I think of that person.”

Something.

Something made her heart flutter.

It was an emotion she had never felt before.

Feeling the trembling, Hare closed her eyes and tried to sleep.

She couldn’t define what to call that emotion.

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