"Would you believe me if I said 00?"
[Ep.1]
A village was completely destroyed. It looked as if a typhoon had swept through it. The only reason the village ended up like this was none other than the mad king.
When the previous king died and his son, the prince, ascended the throne, he, as if waiting for this moment, razed the entire village of Felicida, the closest to the palace. He plundered the wheat and corn, as if he were simply trying to destroy Felicida. He was a king driven to madness.
And now, a terrible plague was raging in the town, killing 80 percent of its inhabitants, and when the royal palace realized this, they sealed off the town even further.
It was certainly the village of Felicida, a place where laughter was unending until just a few years ago. Any criticism directed at the king was met with a beheading, and the king dismissed his subjects as filthy, annoying objects, like dust.
And among the 80 percent of the villagers who died were my family members. My father, who was the first to contract the disease, passed away early, and my mother was now suffering from the disease, struggling to breathe, lying helplessly on the cold floor. But I kept by her side, hoping that she would get better, and I held on until this evening.
"Mom, I brought you some water."
"Even though it's muddy, drink this."
"Hey, Mom's okay, so drink some."
"What are you talking about? Don't you know that Mom is more desperate than me?"
"Even now, everyone is dying..."
"If you don't plan on leaving me alone, drink this."
Yeoju forced water onto her mother, who drank the muddy water with a bitter smile. As she drank, her mother looked gaunt, her face devoid of flesh, her ribs clearly visible. Witnessing her mother's appearance, Yeoju was deeply wounded and scarred. But, knowing that she was the only one who could move, she remained steadfast by her mother's side.
After confirming that her mother had finished drinking the water, Yeoju extinguished the candle by her mother's bedside, which had become smaller and smaller, and lay down next to her. After confirming that Yeoju was lying down, her mother opened her mouth.
"Hey, shall I tell you an old story?"
"Yeah, it's been a while since I've heard it."
Since Yeoju was little, her mother liked to tell her old stories from the village. However, she stopped telling her stories after the mad king wiped out the village.
"Is there a tree on the hill where we used to go and play?
"Oh, there?"
There used to be a tree on a hill where my mom and dad used to go and play. But when a plague broke out and the village was devastated, we haven't been there since. Now, I think the tree has burned down or is almost dead.
"Yeah, there's a saying that used to be around for a while."
"There was a legend that a monster lived in the tree on that hill."
"What monster?"
"Lies~ We went there a lot back then, but we never saw each other."
"Is that so?"
"But you never know, maybe the monster went on a trip."
"Travel? Hahahaha"
"Hey, it's just a rumor~"
"Let's go to sleep"
The girl hugged her mother and quickly fell asleep.
"I'm sorry, heroine."
"I don't think I can be by your side anymore... So please..."
I thought he said something more, but his voice was so hoarse I couldn't understand it. I closed my eyes and fell into a long, deep sleep.
The next day, Yeo-ju, whose sense of time was fading away, woke up later than usual. As soon as she woke up, her stomach growled, as if it wanted food. Yeo-ju rubbed her eyes and got up.
"Ugh... I'm hungry"
"Mom, I'll go outside and look for something to eat."
"..."
"mom?"
When her mother, who usually greeted her whenever she went out, didn't respond, her heartbeat quickened. Feeling dizzy, she hurried to her mother.
"Mom!! Speak.. No, at least open your eyes!!.."
Yeoju continued to shake her mother to wake her up, but there was no reply, and at that moment, her mother's arm that Yeoju was holding on to fell limply with a "thud." And the circuits in Yeoju's head had no choice but to stop. Until yesterday, they had talked together and stayed by each other's side, but now that her mother was gone, Yeoju's wounded heart was torn even further.
And as if to prove it, a teardrop flowed from the female protagonist's eye, and then tears flowed down like rain. However, not a single person came to visit her after hearing her cry. It was just that for them, the sound of crying in someone's house had become normal, and because their situation was the same as theirs, they could not offer words of comfort to them. Because the sound of crying in someone else's house could be heard in their house tomorrow. After crying for a long time like that, the female protagonist realized that it was already night outside. After stopping crying, the female protagonist wanted to cry, but no tears came out because of the dryness of her tears. There was only the female protagonist's unfocused eyes.
"That crazy king took it all away..."
The heroine walked straight outside. As she looked at the dark night sky, she realized how many hours she had been crying.
Yeoju walked aimlessly, gazing at the twinkling stars in the night sky. No matter her destination, she simply walked. Along the way, houses similar to Yeoju's house, seemingly ready to collapse at any moment, lined the streets. There were also houses where the sound of weeping could be heard. But Yeoju, who had lost everything, saw nothing, heard nothing. She simply walked and walked.
After walking and walking, she finally arrived at the village entrance. Outside, soldiers from the royal family stood guard. But they didn't even glance at Yeoju. As if they were used to it, as if it were just the way the villagers were, Yeoju climbed the tree on the hill her mother had mentioned yesterday. The fact that this was the last place she'd visited made her think even more of her mom and dad. As soon as she reached the tree, she collapsed. Perhaps because of the long walk, exhaustion washed over her, and she felt like she could collapse at any moment.
I sat there like that for a few minutes, feeling powerless. Then I heard a sound like someone was coming towards me, stepping on the grass, and the female protagonist looked in that direction.
This hill was a place that people rarely visited, and only those who had lived in the village for a long time would know about. It couldn't have been a member of the royal family, but probably someone who lived in the village like him. And the sound of footsteps got closer and closer, and he could tell who it was.
But contrary to expectations, the person walking toward me was none other than a man with a clean appearance and a face as beautiful as cherry blossoms in full bloom. Then I asked if he, too, had sensed the presence beneath the tree.
"Who's there?"
The man slowly walked towards her and flinched when he saw her.
"human being?"
The woman bowed her head in greeting, and the man who had received her greeting looked at her, even more flustered. She thought the man was strange. He had a face she'd never seen before in this village, and his clean-cut features made her think he might be from the royal family. But judging by his attire, she didn't think he was. After watching the man stand there dazed for a while, she finally spoke first.
"Who are you?"
"Do you come here often?"
"Uh... not often, but you could say that, right?.."
"Oh, I see.."
The female protagonist felt strangely uneasy because it had been a long time since she had spoken to anyone other than her mother. However, although this person did not come here often, hearing that he was coming made her think that she would have to reconsider her plan to collapse and die here. The man seemed to have calmed down a bit, stared at the female protagonist, and spoke to her.
"Why are you here?"
"This is a place where it is difficult for humans to come."
"I came because I have memories."
The female protagonist gave a vague nod to the man's words, but then became curious about the man's strange speaking habits and asked him a question.
"But you keep saying 'human, human'"
"Why do you say that?"
The man who heard the female protagonist's question seemed to be thinking deeply and then answered.
"Um... I'll tell you that if you answer my one question."
"What is your question?"
"Why is your face so deadly?
"..."
"I lost everything."
The man, hearing the female protagonist's answer, had his pupils dilated and spoke in a flustered tone, just like before.
"Oh... You must be having a hard time..."
He offered simple words of comfort. They were feeble, perfunctory consolation, but it had been a long time since I'd heard such comfort, and those words brought tears to my eyes again.
"I answered your question, so now answer my question."
"Oh, but even if I answer this question, there are many people who don't believe me."
"yes?"
The man said something incomprehensible, then came over to the female lead and sat down, speaking with a smiling face.
"Would you believe me if I told you I was a monster?"