[ Re-translated on September / 11 /2025 ]
Chapter 5: You're Done For
Iberia, outside the Sea Breeze Village.
This rundown fishing hamlet, which had long since banned sailing and thus seen few traveling merchants, found itself hosting two rare visitors that day.
To be precise—two Ægirs.
Perhaps it had simply been too long since outsiders last came, but the arrival of the pair brought a strange freshness to the village's stagnant, decaying air. Before long, a crowd of more than a dozen villagers had gathered to gawk.
The visitors, of course, were Steven and the unconscious Gladiia slung over his back, finally stumbling upon signs of human habitation after searching along the coast all day.
"Uh, hey—mind not staring? By the way, got place we can stay for the night? My friend's hurt."
Steven scratched his head, feeling a bit suffocated under the mix of curiosity and thinly veiled fear in the villagers' eyes.
'Seriously?' He thought to himself. 'Compared to me, you lot with the random beast ears and tails are way weirder.'
Sure, dog ears and cat ears could be considered cute on a pretty girl—but when half-dead old men were sprouting the same accessories, it's anything but cute.
'What, was the god of this world some kind of hardcore furry fetishist?'
"You are not welcome here, outsiders."
The crowd parted as an aged voice cut through the murmurs. A frail-looking elder, propped up by two able-bodied youths, hobbled forward. His words carried rejection.
From the deferential looks the villagers gave him, he was clearly someone important here. Still, with that bird-feather headdress perched on his bald head, Steven couldn't help but smirk inwardly.
'What is this, some knockoff Native tribe cosplay?'
"Even if I pay? I just need a place to rest. That's all."
Steven didn't mind roughing it in the wild. But with Gladiia acting as dead weight, he'd prefer even the shabbiest roof over their heads if it meant she could rest properly.
Ever since she'd felled that sea monster, she'd collapsed into a deep coma. With no potions or healing items on hand, Steven was forced to hope the village might at least sell some supplies.
As for money…
He slipped a hand into his pocket—though in reality, he opened his inventory. Fishing out a gold ingot, he quickly broke it down and palmed a glittering chunk the size of a pigeon egg.
Different world or not, gold had to be worth something, right?
After all, from what he had pieced together, this place had to be modeled on some game or show he'd crossed paths with before. No way anyone would turn their nose up at precious metal.
Sure enough, the elder's eyes flashed the moment the gold caught the light.
Steven knew that look well—he'd seen it countless times in the Minecraft world whenever he waved emeralds in front of villagers.
"Honored guest, it's not… a matter of money—"
"Three pieces."
"…Karl! Clear out the village head's quarters! Prepare to receive our most esteemed guest!"
The elder snatched the gleaming gold nugget from Steven's hand. Its heavy weight confirmed what his greedy heart already hoped—this was no trinket, but genuine gold, beloved by nobles and kings alike.
With just those three chunks, they could barter enough grain in the nearest town to keep the entire village fed and drunk for months.
For a place like the Sea Breeze Village, a decaying village with no steady income, it was nothing short of salvation.
As for the fact that their guests were Ægirs—a troublesome race in itself—well… compared to the fortune glittering in his palm, that was hardly worth worrying about.
The tense stand-off dissolved in an instant, and Steven had to admit—sometimes, money really did solve most problems.
It wasn't almighty, sure. But damn, it was useful.
Of course, that only applied so long as the money stayed in his hands.
He could feel it, those greedy gazes glinting from within the dispersing crowd of villagers. Absent of shame, filled with hunger.
Steven let his fingers brush deliberately against the hilt of the Netherite Sword at his waist. A small, amused chuckle escaped him.
'Here's hoping this sword—made for chopping up conmen and thugs—doesn't have to see action tonight.'
Led by the elder, Steven carried the still-unconscious Gladiia through the parting villagers.
The scenery was… bleak.
Dilapidated huts leaned against each other like drunks. Most of the villagers were little more than skin and bones, standing slack-jawed at their thresholds, eyes glazed over, staring up at the empty sky with no spark of life left within them.
If Steven had to describe it—this place wasn't a village. It was a famine-stricken slum.
Sure, he'd seen poor villages before. But never one where everyone carried the same stench of… death.
Not the necromancer-type "death aura" from games, no. Just the kind that seeped out when people had lost all hope, when they had no reason to keep living.
"Elder."
"Just call me Village Chief Pande."
The old man, leaning on his cane, glanced back with a smile as he introduced himself.
"If there's anything else you need, I'll see to it that someone in the village helps you."
"Nothing urgent," Steven replied. "Though… I am curious. It's the middle of the day. Don't your villagers… work?"
Not that he was pushing some capitalist grindset. But really—from the moment he entered the village, all he'd seen were lifeless husks doing nothing. Less like people, more like corpses waiting for the end.
Even in the poorest villages, that wasn't how it should be.
It only made him even more curious about this world he'd landed in.
Monsters in the sea. Villagers rotting on land. From the start, this world was broadcasting a single message: it's doomed.
"Work? Ah… guest, you must not be from Iberia. Otherwise, you wouldn't ask such a naive question."
Chief Pande halted for a moment, then gave a bitter smile.
Work presupposed that there was something to gain. But after the Profound Silence, when the sea ceased to provide, what else was left for Sea Breeze Village?
Many had tried, of course. In the end, all they could do was watch their home sink deeper into decline.
And the fact the village had even survived until now… was already the result of too many sacrifices.
"Anyway, you'll stay here for now."
The elder ushered him into a surprisingly tidy guest house. Instead of elaborating on his cryptic words, he simply gave a stern warning:
"If you need anything, call for me. Otherwise… it would be best not to wander around the village. And don't ask too many questions."
With that, he turned and hobbled away.
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Note: Character Illustration is in this Google Drive:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1iuyfwNVFHzIi9H4rWNT_lAm7jTSiah_M