Chapter 55

# 55

Regression User Manual Chapter 55

Being poor doesn't make you good (4)

Just thinking about his face made her hands and feet tremble for some reason. She wasn't angry. It was just hard to understand.

'I'm not wrong.'

Of course not.

Helping people is a very natural thing. Yes, a very natural thing.

'You don't know anything.'

No one wants to enter the slums.

Everyone has their own story.

Some haven't received contact from guilds or clans, and some have become disabled while hunting and had no choice but to come here.

Some have been driven to the streets due to sick family members, and some can't find work.

In other words, this society has led them to the streets.

Lindel, the Holy Empire, no, this continent itself is wrong.

A society that doesn't know how to care for the weak. And a selfish society.

There are welfare benefits, but the poor don't benefit from them.

In this continent where people only act for their own interests, someone had to step up.

"It will be dangerous."

"No, it won't be dangerous."

"Well, it's your freedom to think whatever you want. However, it would be good to have at least some safety measures in place. You never know what might happen."

"Why do you think that?"

"Rather, I want to ask why you don't think that."

"You don't understand me because you're not looking at them properly."

"My answer is the same. Rather, it's you who isn't looking at them properly. They are not just pitiful people who need help. Those who need help are those who are trying to stand up, not those who lie down willingly."

"I don't want to hear that sophistry anymore."

"Yes, yes. It must sound like sophistry to you. How could it not?"

"Then, I'll leave now. I hope you keep your promise."

"Yes. Of course. Please have a safe trip."

It's not even worth answering.

No, even if she went to the slums like this, nothing would change.

In fact, there was no need to accept such an absurd proposal.

Still, the reason she was going to the slums alone was one.

'I'm not wrong.'

She wanted to prove that she wasn't wrong.

She wanted to prove that the man was wrong.

There's a clear difference between just watching from a distance and living and breathing with them.

Everyone here is just a bunch of naive people.

There were elderly couples who shed tears of gratitude for even the smallest help, and a little boy who picked flowers as a token of thanks.

She had seen many things over the past two years that the man hadn't. She had communicated and spent a long time with them.

'He could only say such things because he didn't see them.'

He could only say such things because he didn't see them.

As she took a few steps, she could feel the atmosphere gradually becoming darker.

It was a place she visited every day, but it felt a bit unfamiliar.

Even though it was time for a meal, the absence of the usual volunteers suggested that something was amiss today.

This place was always the same.

The stench that stung her nose was something she had long adapted to.

Thanks to her adaptation, she could now walk around without any trouble.

Turning her head to look around, she saw people lying around listlessly.

She saw people chatting, and others looking at different areas.

She saw people taking care of children and couples walking arm in arm.

The man was right.

This was a place where people lived.

Very ordinary people lived here.

There were no convenient facilities, no decent restaurants, and no proper houses, but...

She couldn't help but laugh.

'Good.'

As she moved further in, she saw people gathered as usual.

'Square.'

It wasn't really a proper square. It was just an empty field that naturally became a gathering place as she started visiting.

In other words, this was a symbolic space that the poor called a shelter.

Sitting quietly in one corner, she saw familiar faces.

'Definitely.'

Definitely one of the men the man had taken away.

She didn't know why he was here instead of at work, but there must have been some reason.

As she quietly observed her surroundings, a loud voice reached her ears.

"Mr. Kim! Didn't you go to work today?"

"What's up?"

"That squint-eyed guy said he'd hire you..."

"Ah, I turned it down."

"What?"

"It was so damn hard. He told me to move some rocks, but it's not the kind of work for me."

"What? Didn't you say you were going to start fresh?"

"I did think about it for a moment. But working my ass off there or eating the food she gives here, it doesn't seem to make much difference."

"Someone might curse you, you know."

"Listen. From the atmosphere, it seems like he won't come today... It seems like he made a fuss about working. What if he doesn't come here anymore?"

"He'll probably come. He might be sick today."

"Can a priest be sick?"

"It could be that day. Even a priest can't defy the laws of nature, right?"

"That's a good point."

'Huh?'

It was a statement she couldn't understand.

She strained her ears to make sure she hadn't misheard.

But she hadn't misheard.

Clearly, incomprehensible words were being exchanged.

'Ah...'

"That's disgusting... I'm so hungry... My body feels so heavy..."

"Wait, I don't recognize that face..."

"Ah..."

It didn't seem to be directly about her, but she couldn't help but shrink back.

After roughly covering her face with her hand, she left the square.

She didn't know why she ran away.

She just felt that she shouldn't stay there any longer.

Actually, it was because she didn't want to hear their conversation anymore, but she didn't have the time to think about it.

'You've tamed them.'

The man's voice echoed in her head.

Scenes she couldn't understand kept appearing in her field of vision.

She saw things she had never seen before.

"I'll give you a discount."

"You have a keen sense of smell for money."

"Of course, I know you followed that man... I know, of course."

"Ha ha."

The couple walking arm in arm no longer looked like a couple.

It was a prostitute and a middle-aged man looking for a prostitute.

"Is that all?"

"I... I'm sorry."

"The kids are gone..."

"Aah!"

The man with the children wasn't taking care of them.

The homeless on the street were drinking cheap rum, and the voices of the majority oppressing the minority and men harassing women could be heard.

After vomiting on the street, she saw people leaving the suffering person lying there.

"Hey!"

The curses she heard were so shocking.

'It's natural.'

It's the same everywhere.

There's no reason to be shaken.

There are always bad people in any place.

Judging the whole by a part should be avoided as much as possible.

But the sudden thought made her swallow hard.

'What if the man is right?'

What if I've been wrong all along?

'What if what I saw was just a part, and what he saw was the whole?'

If I hadn't been seeing things properly all this time.

Various thoughts intertwined in her mind.

She saw things she had never seen before.

Things she hadn't seen when she was in the position of helping them.

'They are also perpetrators somewhere.'

The man was right.

People she thought were weak were also perpetrators somewhere. They were perpetrators somewhere.

She hadn't been angry at them because she was above them.

She hadn't been a victim because she was surrounded by the strong and dressed well.

The situation was different now.

She realized why the man had said it would be dangerous.

'I have to leave.'

Now, she was also a part of this society. She swallowed hard and quickly moved her feet.

"Don't move if you don't want to get stabbed."

A voice came from behind her.

It sounded like someone clearing their throat.

What was more concerning was the presence of a blade on her back.

"Y-Yes?"

"Bitch..."

"..."

"You're a big catch. Did you think covering yourself with a hood would make us think you're a man?"

"W-What are you going to do?"

"Are you asking because you know, or because you don't?"

"P-Please don't..."

"Do you know how dangerous it is to wander alone at night?"

"S-Save me..."

"I won't kill you, so don't worry. Killing you would be a waste."

She roughly understood what was happening.

She could feel the blade on her back.

She kept thinking she needed to chant a spell, but her mouth wouldn't move.

The situation was too sudden and new, and her legs were shaking.

Before she could react, she felt a blow to the back of her head.

"Ah!"

Her body naturally fell to the side.

Before she could regain her senses, she felt a strong hand grabbing her hair. She desperately rolled her eyes to seek help, but the men around her were watching quietly, finding it amusing.

"H-Help..."

She saw familiar faces.

She saw people who had shown up during meal times.

People she had laughed and chatted with.

They all had their own stories and were all simple people.

She naturally thought they would help.

It was wrong.

But no one offered a helping hand. Some avoided her gaze or pointed and laughed.

Their reactions were all the same.

"Please don't. S-Save me...!"

A punch to the stomach.

A strong hand slapped her face.

She felt her mouth tearing, but she couldn't even scream from fear.

As she tried to chant a spell and raise her holy power, a large fist came toward her face.

"Ah!"

"..."

"Please don't. Don't... Someone, help me. Please... help me."

"These guys are all like me. What are you asking for help for? You're new, right?"

"N-No..."

"Even knowing that, you came here? Alone. Ha ha. Are you asking to be eaten?"

She wasn't referring to the slums.

She realized the area the man had mentioned was the western part of the square.

She couldn't understand why this area was off-limits.

It was a place she always walked through on volunteer days.

Before she could gather her thoughts, a large face loomed in front of her.

"It seems like you could fetch a good price..."

One side of his face was scarred and looked like it was rotting.

The stench from his mouth and body made her gag.

"Ugh."

"Miss, am I disgusting?"

"N-No."

Her head turned again.

Before she could feel the pain on her left cheek, she felt a strong hand choking her neck.

She felt an indescribable pain all over her body, even as she struggled to breathe.

"Am I disgusting?!"

"Ah!"

"Am I! Am I disgusting?!"

"S-Save me. Someone... help me!"

'I'm going to die...'

"Before you see even worse things, you can't be so weak. You'll be sold to an even worse place. Of course, before that, you'll have some fun with us."

'Help me.'

"Please help..."

"Miss, I don't understand why you keep asking for help... Who here could help you? If you need help, go to the nearby clan patrol. No one here will help you. They're all busy with their own lives..."

"Please..."

"Stupid bitch. Ha ha ha."

'Help me...'

They watched her with a very interested expression, looking forward to what would happen next. They had no interest in saving anyone.

'It will be dangerous.'

"No... no."

'They are also perpetrators somewhere.'

"Please help. Someone... please..."

'Those who need help are those who are trying to stand up, not those who lie down.'

"I'm sorry. Please... help me."

'You're the one who turned them into pigs.'

"Save me. I'm sorry! Please! Ah! Stop! Stop!"

"That's what I said, Priestess."

"Ah..."

"Didn't I say that not all poor people are good?"

Turning her head, she saw the face she least wanted to see.