The 31st Piece Overturns the Game Board

"Take it easy… Making too much noise isn't good either."

"Y… Yes!"

"You, too, tidy things up and return to your places."

Karuna smiled and then disappeared.

There was a rumor that he was a close aide of Smiling Face.

Even though Karuna was smiling, his eyes were as cold as ice.

Despite Karuna making sure things went smoothly and without issue, the supervisor was the type to hold a grudge. Somehow, he managed to give Yurim and me half of our usual amount of food.

If this eased his anger, then so be it—well, if it did, that was good enough.

'Now that I think about it, there might be some trouble.'

The wounds from the whip would probably fester, and I'll probably be thrown into the sea if my condition worsens.

'I can't keep living like this…'

Under normal circumstances, I would have thought that a breeze had passed. But at that moment, something that gave me hope happened.

The Fist Saint Jamad was visiting this place, Melton.

He would likely tour the city after giving a speech in front of the public. Although, I’m not sure if it had any symbolic meaning.

"Yurim, let's go."

"What…?"

"Let's leave this annoying dockyard together, Yurim!"

"…"

"Yurim?"

I explained the plan to Yurim, who couldn't respond.

The city would be turned upside down when Fist Saint Jamad visits, and we would take advantage of that situation. We would stand before the hero and ask for salvation.

"Are you going to take me?"

Yurim smiled brightly.

Although my body was bruised from the whip, my heart was excited.

We were still young and innocent.

Time quickly passed, and the date of Fist Saint Jamad's visit was just around the corner. It seemed the dockyard side was also aware of the issue.

If Fist Saint Jamad saw the state of the dockyard, he would undoubtedly be furious.

"Everyone, stay here for the time being. Work will resume in a few days, so rest until then."

"R-Rest?"

"Shut up, you just need to respond."

"Yes!"

The children smiled brightly.

However, Yurim and I didn't smile.

Especially Yurim—she was hugging her knees in the building where all the children were pushed inside.

"Yurim, what's wrong?"

"Seol, our plan failed… Maybe they realized we were trying to…"

"Fail? Who?"

I didn't tell Yurim too much. She's a delicate friend and would surely be disappointed if our plan failed.

I whispered to her.

"I knew this would happen, so I got the key to the back door."

"H-How did you do it?"

"Sneakily, of course."

"As expected! Seol, you…"

"Shh… The plan will continue."

The plan was simple.

If it was the Fist Saint… Even in this rotten world, the Fist Saint would definitely help them, right?

We waited for the sunrise without losing hope. Although we didn't know exactly when the Fist Saint would tour the city, we had heard it would be during the day. ɌΑƝȫＢËŜ

* * *

Perhaps because Fist Saint Jamad was visiting the city, the daily life in the dockyard was different.

WOAH—!

Please look over here!

The city's noise echoed all the way to where we were.

The children laughed due to being able to rest, even while confined in a place that looked like a pigsty.

It was almost noon.

The guards at the warehouse only stayed at the main entrance, and they often left the place to smoke.

Ding…

Ding…

The sound of the bell announced it was noon.

Most of the staff had gone out to eat, and the dockyard became quiet. This was the perfect moment…

Click…

"Yurim, run!"

"Okay!"

It was our only chance to escape.

The others probably didn't even know what had just happened. Only Yurim and I bravely stepped out.

We were lucky that the wall we checked out beforehand was close to the building.

It was a relatively low wall that had collapsed during a storm.

Maintenance hadn't been done in a while.

However, a child's foot couldn't run as fast as an adult's. If they noticed we escaped, the laborers would come running to catch us.

So first, we had to get out of the dockyard.

'We must go to Jamad!'

We had endured for today.

A new life would soon begin!

However, that expectation was shattered in just a brief moment.

"This can't be… When…"

The wall was surrounded by barbed wire. Our skin would be torn apart, and we would die before we could escape.

"Seol, maybe we should…"

"No, not yet!"

I desperately thought of something.

In the end, there was only one way left.

'There's only the main gate.'

I quickly made the decision.

We sprinted even faster.

The main gate was probably open due to Fist Saint Jamad's visit. Given the desperate situation, our minds worked fast.

"Find them!"

Beep—!

The dockyard was filled with sounds of people searching for us.

Woof!

Woof—!

They even released fierce hunting dogs.

For some strange reason, my mind was calm.

As if I were familiar with this kind of situation.

As if I were someone who always walked inside a storm.

"RUN—!"

The guards had just received a support request from the iron gate and were hurrying over.

We wouldn't have had a way out if we had been even a bit late.

"That way! The Uncle on the left is limp!"

Yurim told me.

'How does she know that?'

Anyway, believing in Yurim's words, we pushed past the guard assigned to this side of the gate and moved forward.

"Ugh… These brats!"

"We did it!"

"Yes!"

Yurim also safely escaped.

Just then, I saw people, including the Fist Saint, flocking in like clouds.

"Stop!"

Someone chased after us.

"Run!"

The face of the Fist Saint became clearer—his thick eyebrows, square jaw, and scars covering his features.

He had the look of a hero.

We ran.

We needed to run.

We had to inform the hero about the lives of the children who lived in this hell.

"AAAHHH—!"

However, our screams didn't reach him.

The noise created by the people erased it instantly.

Then we had to run faster!

With more determination!

We had to get closer.

But somehow, my feet suddenly felt heavy.

It was the moment my eyes made contact with Jamad's.

'My eyes…'

Yurim dragged me as I slowed down.

"Seol! What's wrong?! We must run!"

"Ah, yes!"

It was at that moment…

PAAF—!

"AGH!"

"AAGGHH!"

Tsss…

We slid on the ground.

"You pieces of trash are annoying me."

It was Karuna.

His cold eyes were glaring at us. Our bodies had already been subdued by him.

Step…

Step…

"Hey, what are you doing in the middle of the street?"

"…"

"I asked you what you were doing."

Jamad approached and asked.

Yurim was full of hope. She thought they were finally going to be saved by the hero.

"They're my siblings… I looked away for a moment, and…"

"We aren't…"

Thud—!

Ugh…

Uugghh…

Our mouths were blocked by Karuna's hand.

Jamad, who was watching, said.

"Let me hear what your siblings have to say."

Jamad leaned down to listen to our story. He even made gestures as if asking us to speak quietly to him alone.

I couldn't say anything.

Instead, Yurim spoke.

"S-Smiling Face forcibly enslaves and makes children like us work! We were sold here, forced to work every day…"

Jamad looked at Yurim.

"Every day…"

At that moment, she saw his smile.

Everything I had seen in his eyes, Yurim had now seen it too.

His eyes…

"I see. But what should we do?"

…were no different from Karuna’s eyes.

He lightly placed his hand on our shoulders and quietly said.

"I'm Smiling Face."

"…"

Jamad stood up, making small talk with the public.

"Hahaha! Well, I guess it's normal for siblings to fight. If I had a sibling, I would have also caused trouble all the time."

"Ah, I thought something had happened… To think it was just kids playing."

"I knew it."

Dddd…

Our mouths couldn’t move.

Jamad's power made it impossible for us to speak.

This rotten world was so decayed that even fake heroes like him could be created.

It felt like plunging into pitch-black darkness.

To think the hero I trusted the most was the same person I thought was the evilest.

Ugh…

I wanted to spit out everything inside.

But at that moment…

"You're still the same as always, Jamad! You smell awful! And you're still the same hypocrite!"

When I turned my head toward the direction of the voice, there were two people wearing masks.

'Who are they…'

Jamad tilted his head and asked.

"Who are you?"

"Jamad, you're being watched by the Veil."

"Veil…? Did you just say the Veil?'

Upon hearing the word Veil, Smiling Face Jamad became flustered.

'Is the Veil something amazing?'

If the name was enough to fluster someone like Jamad, who was both a hero and a notorious villain, they must be formidable beings.

"Hahaha… So you're just bluffing."

"What…?"

"The Veil hasn't been active for quite some time. But they suddenly appear and block my path? Why? And even if you were part of the Veil, what reason do they have to do that?"

The muscular giant among the duo trembled.

"The Veil has just been holding back. Now is the time for it to spread its wings again."

"Nonsense."

"Whether nonsense or not, we will find out soon. Anyway, there’s only one reason we came to find you."

Grin…

Everyone here knew that the mouth hidden behind the mask was smiling.

The man was easy to understand.

"It's because you're a villain."

"These guys are always causing trouble… So, what's your name?"

Paaf—!

The muscular man said while highlighting his arm muscles.

"I'm Ziliac, someone who aims to be the strongest martial artist… And this is…"

"You idiot! Why did you say your real name?!"

"Ah, my mistake! Hahaha! Well, who cares? Since I've said it, why don't you do it too?"

"Damn it… I wasn't thinking of doing it. I guess I have no choice."

"See?"

Ziliac.

I think I’ve heard that name before…

And next to him was a slender man.

Just by looking at his exposed eyes, it was easy to see that he was handsome.

While making a cool expression, he raised a longsword.

"I'm Kiri. And…"

Kiri pointed to the sky.

Naturally, everyone's gaze followed upward.

Including mine.

'Ah…'

What I saw in the sky today was something I would never be able to forget.

It felt as if the entire sky was being covered by something black.

KIAAAAA—!

"That guy is Koopa."

"Ugh… Dodge!"

BOOM—!

The dream world was twisted beyond what Shin Rip and Shin Hyun could have anticipated.

After all, they didn't know Seol had too many souls and egos.

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