Episode 294
What did you do to end up like this?
Ramon suddenly became curious.
So, how did he, who was just a goblin, end up making his way through the white snow?
No one can clearly remember their first memory.
However, we can know what our oldest memories are.
Disgusting sewer smell, maggots, and the annoying squeak of gutters… And it was hot. No, was it hot? I do not know.
Anyway, it is clear that he was not in his right mind.
A rotten city, a group of goblins living in the sewers – Ramon was born into that group, but ever since then, he has always had doubts.
Why can they drink Chinese water? Isn’t it dirty to just eat a rat? When a conflict arises, why do you always want to fight to resolve it? Wouldn’t it be okay to make concessions to each other and find a compromise?
I was beaten up for expressing such an opinion. If he hadn’t run away, he might have been beaten to death.
Ramon, who was kicked out of the group, thought.
The place where I was born and raised was not the place I wanted to be.
So where will I be?
Then one day, Ramon, who was covered in scars, got his first glimpse of the world beyond the sewer cover.
“Buy fruit! “The seasonal apples are amazing!”
“The flowers are very pretty! “If you buy now, you’ll get three flowers for the price of one!”
“How much is this?”
“for a moment! “If you’re not going to buy it, don’t touch it!”
“… … .”
Even though I didn’t even understand the language.
Ramon, who was born as a monster, was moved by the sight. He was unable to digest the torrent of emotions that came over him and was swept away with them.
They dressed up, walked down the street with graceful movements, and even though there were so many people gathered around, there was no conflict.
Even in the simple act of taking a bite of an apple, you could feel their dignity as intelligent beings.
Ramon instinctively realized this.
I was on that side, not this side.
Ramon wanted to get out of this smelly gutter and go to them right now.
I couldn’t do that.
When I looked down at my outfit, my face turned red.
That was the first shame Ramon felt.
‘You have to wear something.’
Even before he knew the word clothing, Ramon realized the first element of food, clothing, and shelter.
One by one, they donned human clothing as they wandered through a garbage dump near the city.
It seems like it took quite a long time.
He found clothes that fit, learned the language by reading discarded books, and checked his pronunciation by peeking out from the sewer again.
A year or more.
After completing his preparations, Ramon set out into the city with a trembling heart.
It was a scene he had seen over and over again from beyond the sewer cover, with the expectation that he could finally become one of them.
“I apologize, ha, I, Jusei… … .”
He spoke in clumsy but clear language and held out a precious silver coin.
Of course, Ramon was beaten to death again.
A violence more terrible than anything he had once experienced from his own people struck his whole body.
It was not an instinctive violence to eliminate competitors.
Malice, hatred, disgust.
Those gazes were engraved in Ramon much more severely than the physical pain.
ran away again
And then I thought.
Why can’t I be like them?
What is the difference between me and them?
On a day with heavy rain, I ran and ended up in a garbage dump again.
Ramon found a broken mirror there.
… Wearing a bug-ridden shirt, torn pants, shoes with the soles off, creaky glasses, and a worn-out coat… … .
A monster appeared.
“Hehehe… … .”
I laughed.
I realized this with the first sculpture I made in my life.
A monster is a monster no matter how well you imitate it.
But if neither above ground nor underground are places to belong, where on earth should I belong?
I couldn’t figure it out.
From then on, the dumpster became Ramon’s home. They lived their lives eating food waste, avoiding collisions with other beings as much as possible.
However, I could not give up my interest in the broken clothes, tools, books, and toys that humans sometimes throw away.
Ramon’s head was flying.
I completely learned the language by reading books alone. Even speaking became possible. Fluent pronunciation was now no different from that of a human.
What meaning does it have?
I don’t even have anyone to talk to.
… It was like that for a few years.
One day, I saw a kid being beaten by another kid near the garbage dump.
Ramon was also aware of the concept of ‘play’, but their violence was outside of that category even in Ramon’s eyes.
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Beating someone so hard that blood flows from their nose and mouth is not called play.
When Ramon saw that scene, he remembered his past when he was beaten by his own people.
“Keeeeeeek!”
“Ugh!”
“It’s a monster!”
There was no need to fight.
Just by showing up, all the kids ran away.
Ramon realized that he had committed an irrational act.
Now that I’ve discovered that there’s a monster living in the dump, I might have to leave this place.
Why on earth did I do such a stupid thing?
At that time, the boy who had fallen staggered to his feet and made eye contact with Ramon.
Ramon instinctively tensed and bared his teeth.
It growled as if imitating a wild beast.
The boy shivered, but that was all.
“Thank you… … .”
Eventually, he bowed his head and left the place.
“… … .”
And an indescribable wave rose in Ramon’s heart.
My heart sank, my vision became blurry, and something warm ran down my jawline.
“Ah, ah… … .”
That’s how Ramon’s life finally began.
Since then, he has lived in a garbage dump and helped many people.
A kid who got lost, an old man with a sprained back, a woman who lost something precious… … .
Instead of revealing himself openly, he helped them secretly. He didn’t have the confidence to face it yet.
That was it except for one person.
“Ramon! “You were here!”
It was the boy I first saved.
It was the boy who gave Ramon his name, and his name was Tom.
“I brought bread from Aunt Rosa’s house today! There’s, uh, something in it, and even though it’s a little cold, it’ll suit your taste!”
Ramon nodded after taking a bite.
“It’s apple jam. “It’s delicious.”
“right?”
“hmm. Thank you again today.”
“What, between us?”
Ramon thought that this kind of life was not bad. The dump was a barren and smelly place for humans to live, but it was a pretty good place for goblins.
There was a roof to protect us from the wind and rain, and even though it was food waste, we were able to fill our bellies. It was quite fun to find treasure among all kinds of junk.
And the conversations with this little friend who came every now and then were quite special to Ramon.
However, peace did not last long.
“Well, there really was a goblin, right?”
“oh my god… … ! “You have to kill me right away!”
One day, several city residents armed with weapons came and chased Ramon out.
Ramon was kicked out of the garbage dump like that.
I later found out that it was true, but the cause was Tom, a boy who often came to the garbage dump to play.
To be exact, the boy’s parents.
The mother, who became suspicious because it gave off a foul smell of garbage every time she went out, followed him and caught a glimpse of her son talking to a goblin.
Ramon left the dump, but strangely enough, he felt calm.
Is it because it’s a place that can’t really be called home?
So what is home?
From what I read in the dictionary, it said it was a place to eat and sleep. To put it another way, it would be a nest.
However, Ramon did not feel that the dump was his home. A shelter where a wanderer stayed for a while, that’s exactly the impression.
So what about the sewers filled with their kind?
Was that my home?
First of all, isn’t it the place where you were born and raised?
‘no.’
It wasn’t my home either.
And it occurred to Ramon that he might not have a home until he died.
Although he left the dump, Ramon had no choice but to search through the trash again to survive.
Then, I guess I ate something wrong, and at some point, my condition deteriorated rapidly.
My vision became blurry and my breathing became difficult. Her five organs and six organs seemed to be twisted.
Even then, I felt hungry.
Ramon lost consciousness while trying to take a bite of stale bread.
In my clouded consciousness, such a thought occurred to me.
… Wouldn’t it be easier to just die like this?
* * *
When I opened my eyes again, Ramon was lying on a bed in a shabby house.
“Hello, goblin.”
“… … .”
And then I met Lanfero.
This young man, wearing a sloppy coat, had a body that was elongated rather than tall, and was sipping a teacup in a very awkward posture that did not match his appearance.
“You’re the talking goblin in the dump, right?”
“… … .”
“That’s strange. “I heard you can speak.”
“… “I know how to do it.”
“oh. That’s a cool pronunciation. “You must have practiced quite a bit, right?”
“What do you have to do with me? “I have no money and nothing to give you.”
“this. “You are too tainted by the dark side of civilized society.”
Lanfero, who was laughing heartily, said.
“I didn’t ask for anything in return.”
“That can’t be right.”
“What is it, that reaction?”
“Humans don’t give anything unless they pay for it, right? “I can’t even eat a piece of bread if I don’t have money.”
“hmm… “You’re not wrong.”
“And sorry to the person who saved me, but you didn’t have to save me.”
“what?”
“I thought it wouldn’t be that bad to die like that.”
“That’s not it.”
Ramon raised his head at the unexpectedly firm voice.
“Don’t give up your life easily. Each person has their own role. “It’s not your job to die rummaging through trash cans, is it?”
“… … .”
“And then. There are a lot of idiots in the world who do good deeds without asking for anything in return. “It seems to me that you also have that qualification.”
“yes?”
Lanfero’s smile gradually faded, and his ruby eyes looked at Ramon.
“The reason I saved you was because I received a favor from the city residents. Old lady Olaire said she was worried because she couldn’t see you, who had been helping her carry her luggage. Lambert sometimes entrusts you with repairing household items, right? “When Amy ran away from home, we gave her food.”
“… … .”
“And I heard you saved a kid named Tom from the first time we met. “Did you ask for anything in return from that child at that time?”
Since Ramon didn’t answer, Lanfero grinned playfully again.
“But what is your name?”
That’s how life began.
I got to know Lanfero, I got to know Araksad, and I got to know Corrupted.
It was quite eventful.
It was a time when I couldn’t even open my eyes.
Ramon did his best to somehow run this clan as a clan among clan members who had no sense of economics.
“Hmm… … .”
Ramon stopped walking.
It’s like that day.
The day I met Lanfero.
Just like when I was unconscious, my head was pounding, and I was suffering from a fever, I saw an old knife through my blurry vision.
There was a blizzard so strong that even visibility was unclear, but because I had a compass, I was able to know the direction.
I asked Ymir directly for directions.
When I playfully touched Mjolnir, secretly so that Luan wouldn’t hear.
It was half a gamble, but it paid off.
Ymir only gave directions to Ramon.
After that, I took sleeping pills in the stubborn boy’s car.
It wasn’t a very effective sleeping pill.
There are times during the journey when you have to force yourself to close your eyes, so I packed a little bit of it for those times.
But I think it was enough to put a tired Luan to sleep for a while.
‘Master Luan must live.’
Simply in this ice cave… That’s not what I mean.
He has eyes for people.
The boy with that mysterious charm will grow into a bigger figure in the future and become an indispensable figure not only for Corrupted but also for Heros.
So Ramon’s role today is to open the way.
Hot.
I grabbed the hilt of the sword and pulled.
However, the ice had hardened and could not be easily removed.
Ramon laughed.
They said it was a sword that even a child could easily draw. Certainly, his physical strength right now would be worse than that of a child.
‘A guy like me is like this even at the end… … .’
To the subject who left so nicely and deceived.
– I know that? To me, he looks like a person who desperately wants to die. I just asked… Do you think I look like a small, weak goblin? … .
“… … .”
– I never once thought that way after meeting my senior. On the contrary, isn’t he the one who thinks of himself that way?
It’s as they say.
– It seems like you won’t be able to help through normal means, so didn’t you think you wanted to help in this mission by sacrificing your life?
He was a rough, unruly, sometimes sly boy who reacted emotionally to most things, but there were times when he showed a sharp side.
I saw it through very accurately.
Ramon always had self-deprecating thoughts.
Compared to other clan members, he had an inferiority complex as he only had office skills at best.
So is this the price?
Was it because he disparaged himself as a small, weak goblin or something that he ended up like that?
Is it my last chance to die without being able to hold a sword that even a child could wield, and without being able to be of any help to my colleagues?
‘… no!’
I gritted my teeth.
That can’t be possible.
The past years and my identity as a Corrupted clan member did not allow for such an ugly end.
me too… … .
Because I, too, am a hero… … !
Knock knock!
As I pushed to the limit, my frozen fingers seemed to fall off.
A few pieces actually fell off.
It didn’t matter.
Even the blood vessels were frozen, so no blood came out and there was no pain.
Ramon held the hilt of the sword with bloodshot eyes.
“Aaaah… … !”
Echoes echo through the snowstorm.
That pole, that pole… … !
Although I was no hero.
Although he was not the owner of Mjolnir, a relic of the giants.
Tsk-!
Here,
I was able to pull out an old knife for my comrade.
Ramon saw the drawn knife.
There was joy in the half-opened eyes.
‘It was today… … .’
Ramon smiled faintly.
‘Brother Lanferro, it was today.’
This moment today, paving the way for a young hero who can protect the world in the disguise of this colossal giant.
‘That is… My role… … .’
It’s a wonderful role that is too much for a goblin who fills his stomach with food waste and sleeps in the gutter, and it’s the end.
‘but… … .’
If I had any regrets, it would be that I wasn’t able to introduce the young hero to another family.
I didn’t want to give up that role to anyone.
… Well, if it’s this much of a disappointment, it’s not that bad.
Because no one can get everything they want.
Before I knew it, I no longer felt the cold, and Ramon’s body, which had drawn his sword, slowly collapsed.
Both eyelids slowly close.
Whioooooo… … .
The swirling snowstorm gradually stopped, and gentle snowflakes fell from the sky.
Snowflakes honored the resting place of the great green-skinned hero and covered his body with warmth.
Goblin Ramon.
A C-class hero belonging to Corrupted.
Age 17.
At the end of the giant’s stomach, winter closes.
fantasy,
