Morning broke.
Warm sunlight streamed through the window.
The 200-square-foot room instantly took on a cozy feeling.
It was a gift from nature.
However, there was someone in the bed who rejected that gift.
"Mmm... Mom, let me sleep a little more... I had a bad dream..."
Hero Lunacia Luna seemed to cry out, *I don't need this kind of gift.*
She pulled her tear-soaked pillow close to cover her eyes.
Having cried heavily the night before, her pillow was still damp.
A small voice reached the ears of the Hero who had covered her eyes.
"Wake up. Hero."
"Mmm... Mom, I'm still..."
"Wake up, Hero. Eat."
"...?"
The Hero suddenly felt something was off.
She threw her tear-soaked pillow toward the ceiling and bolted upright.
A strange man stood before her.
It was that kidnapper she'd met yesterday.
Luna bristled like a cat and shouted.
"Y-you should knock before entering...!! I-I'm a woman...!! You were planning to do something terrible to me, weren't you?! You pervert...!!"
"...No. I was just trying to give you food. I'll knock next time. Is that good enough?"
"R-really...? Okay..."
Why is he apologizing so quickly?
More importantly, why is a kidnapper apologizing?
Haven't our roles gotten reversed somehow?
Luna blinked at this incomprehensible situation.
Then naturally shifted her gaze.
"...What's that on the plate?"
"Food."
"...I know that much. I'm asking because I've never seen this food before. It's not weird, is it? You didn't put something strange in it, did you? Something added..."
"It's a dish called kimbap from my homeland. And I told you. I won't do anything to you. Stay quiet and then leave quietly. Then you'll be able to leave without getting hurt."
"When will you let me go?"
"...I don't know exactly either."
Thwack!
The Hero smacked her forehead at this completely disconnected conversation.
She hit it so hard that it snapped her awake, leaving a red handprint on her forehead.
"Haha, so. You're telling me to just eat and stay locked up here?! Is that it?!"
"...Just eat."
"You keep giving orders! Don't you plan to have a serious conversation with me—"
Bang—!
The Hero's words couldn't continue.
Because kidnapper Lee Jun-woo had set down only the plate with kimbap and closed the door.
"H-he lowers his voice...! Just gives orders...! And runs away...!"
That cowardly kidnapper!
I'll escape from here and definitely throw him in jail!
Luna fumed, raising her hostility toward the kidnapper even higher.
Vowing to definitely get revenge...
"...But before revenge. Should I fill my stomach first?"
I don't know what that round, long-shaped food is.
But I'm hungry, and time passes.
Luna brought the plate over and sniffed it.
Sniff sniff—
"...It smells savory and delicious."
White rice with various vegetables inside.
Savory seaweed rolled up as if swallowing it all.
But this is food made by the kidnapper who abducted me...
"Still, I'm hungry. I need strength to endure, right...?"
Let's taste it first!
I need to survive too!
Luna stabbed one cut piece of kimbap with her fork.
Smelling the kimbap's aroma, she put it in her mouth without hesitation.
Chew chew—
"...! Wh-what is this!"
It's my first time eating this food, but...
It's delicious.
For a moment, it felt like home.
The egg gave comfort and warmth.
The vegetables gave her parents' healthiness.
Luna immediately grasped that care had been put into this kimbap.
"Normally, don't kidnapped people get treated poorly? Giving hay would be typical... What a strange person."
He looks normal, but he's really strange.
Hero Luna stabbed the small kimbap with her fork.
As she put the delicious kimbap in her mouth, her mind grew even more confused.
And she felt a little lonely eating a meal alone, not with family.
Morning passed and lunch came.
To maintain regular meal times, 5 hours after breakfast, at 12:30.
I knocked on the Hero's door.
Knock knock—
"I'm coming in."
"What?! Ah, yes...! Come in...!"
Creak—
I unlocked it and entered the room.
Chains were still bound to the Hero's feet, and she seemed to have been lying in bed killing time.
I placed the plate on the desk and asked.
"First, I'll leave lunch here. The letter?"
"I finished it. It's on the desk there."
"Then I'll send it when I have time later."
"Okay~"
I put the letter on the desk into my pocket.
I planned to read it slowly later and review it.
Since I had nothing particular to tell her, I decided to leave the room.
At that moment, the Hero shouted.
"W-wait a moment...!!"
"...What is it?"
"Um, in an hour. Could you come see me again?"
"...For what reason."
Not knowing what she was thinking, I asked Luna.
Luna hesitated for a moment, then spoke as if gathering courage.
"I-I thought we could talk for a bit... Just a little! Just a little is fine!"
"..."
After eating lunch, an hour later.
I recalled what schedule I had today.
*Hmm...*
Aside from dinner time, there wasn't really anything I'd call a schedule.
It should be fine.
"In an hour. Got it."
"Ah, yes...! Thank you...!"
The Hero bowed 90 degrees to me as I left.
Being polite to a kidnapper.
She was an abnormal woman.
"In the first place, a normal person wouldn't become a Hero..."
Holding the Hero's letter, I closed the door and headed to the living room on the first floor.
Unlike the clean kitchen, trash was scattered around.
Bottles from last night's drinking rolled on the floor.
The habit of not being able to sleep properly without alcohol.
It was one of the bad habits I'd picked up in this other world.
"Tsk, I should read the letter."
Cleaning is annoying.
I lay roughly on the sofa and took out the letter.
The paper was densely filled with writing, with the Hero's free-spirited yet neat cursive.
A letter that seemed noisy just looking at it.
I slowly read it.
*Mom! It's me, Luna! I arrived in the capital! It's... nice here! The streets are pretty, the people are cool, and it's kind of... sophisticated? It's different from Aden Village, but I think I can adapt well! I'm your daughter after all! Hehe!*
Aden Village...?
I've heard of it somewhere.
A village name floating in a corner of my mind.
For now, I decided to focus on the letter.
*And! Tell Dad to stop drinking so much! He always goes to the youngest and rubs his scratchy beard on him!! Stop doing what the youngest hates! The youngest is a baby! You have to protect him!*
The family atmosphere is... good.
Reading through the letter roughly, the Hero has five younger siblings below her.
All boys. Extreme difficulty childcare.
Probably, judging by her sense of responsibility coming to the capital alone.
She was presumed to play a role almost like a mother in the family.
I should put in a bit more money than I thought.
I shifted my gaze back to the letter.
*Tell Grandma and Grandpa to take care of their health too... Anyway! I'm doing well here! The Sylvester Knights said I have talent, so don't worry! They said I could become an apprentice knight in just 1 or 2 years! Just trust me and raise the kids well! Tell my siblings not to cry saying they miss me! Got it?!*
The content after that had writing, but tears had smudged it so I couldn't read it properly.
However, what was certain was that it wasn't a rescue signal.
It was content saying she missed her family and worrying about them.
I placed the letter on the desk with a sense of guilt.
"...Sylvester Knights... and family... Hmm, how much money should I send?"
Even if she's a Hero, she feels anxiety.
I can't keep a Hero in that state locked up continuously.
Thinking of my own family back on Earth.
I began thinking of ways to reduce the Hero's confinement period.
An hour later.
Kidnapper Lee Jun-woo arrived at the room as the Hero requested.
"You have something to say?"
Nod.
Hero Luna spoke with determined eyes.
"Yes, I'd like you to talk with me for a bit."
"Talk?"
"If I just sit alone in the room. I feel like I'll go crazy. Maybe because there was never a quiet day at home. It's too lonely here..."
Loneliness.
Coming to a strange place, getting kidnapped by a kidnapper.
Enduring 24 hours alone in a room—that would be impossible with an ordinary mind.
Even if she's a Hero, she's still a young child.
I nodded.
"Alright, I can have a simple conversation."
"Th-then. Should we start by introducing ourselves...? We don't even know each other's names! We might be seeing each other's faces for a long time... Ah, I'm Lunacia Luna! I came to the capital from Aden Village!"
"Aden Village..."
"Oh, do you know our village!?"
"I know of it. I've been there before."
Beings called "Demonic Beings," known as the Demon King's minions.
An incident where they invaded the village.
When monsters gathered their forces and invaded.
I had gone to support Aden Village as an adventurer.
It was a fierce scene with blood everywhere, villagers dying or getting injured.
I almost died there too, but I also achieved some merit and received generous treatment. It was that kind of village.
"...It wasn't a bad village."
"Right?! Our village's specialty is freshly squeezed cow's milk! The village hero always protects us too!"
"Hero? Is there separate personnel protecting the village?"
"Usually pot-bellied Mr. Krandel next door protects it, but... the hero is always protecting our village! How should I say... like a Guardian? Everyone in the village respects him, including me!"
"...Guardian. I see."
Guardian.
Cold sweat ran down Lee Jun-woo's cheek when he heard that word.
*Surely, that Guardian isn't me...*
No, surely it can't be me.
I just received a mission and defeated the attacking monsters...
Letters of gratitude do come periodically to the Adventurer's Guild, but...
Even if that were the correct answer, Lee Jun-woo had absolutely no intention of saying so.
He didn't think of himself as a hero even 1%.
"Now that I think about it, the Guardian has the same black hair as you, mister!"
"...That's possible. I'm not the only one with black hair."
"Is that so? I think it's unique though..."
"...Anyway. Aren't you curious about my name?"
Lee Jun-woo changed the topic because the name Guardian embarrassed him.
Luna gave an awkward smile.
Luna talked a lot and was the type to relieve stress through conversation.
"Ah, right! I talked too much about myself. Hehe... I can call you mister, right? I'm already calling you that, but... What's your name, mister?"
The kidnapper felt a little ticklish inside.
He was the type to be embarrassed by self-introductions.
Hiding that embarrassed look as much as possible, the kidnapper said his name.
"Lee Jun-woo. My name is Lee Jun-woo."
"...Lee Jun-woo. That's a unique name! Jun-woo mister! I'm Lunacia Luna! I'm not glad to meet you, but...! Anyway, let's greet each other!"
A positive Hero.
Lunacia Luna extended her hand toward Lee Jun-woo.
Though Luna's action was burdensome, Lee Jun-woo had no choice but to extend his hand.
He could feel anger in Luna's clasped hand, but it didn't hurt.
Luna, who gripped his hand tightly, smiled and said.
"I'm not asking you to treat me well. But while I'm here. Even if we're not on good terms. Let's get along, okay?"
"I'll try."
*I'll definitely report you when I escape from here.*
With that thought, Luna smiled and shook hands.
A kidnapper and kidnapped Hero shaking hands.
It was a twisted sight you couldn't see anywhere.