MBOMEN 13

Chapter 13: The Conditions for Free Lodging (7)
“Then what?”

“I told you. I’ll only tell you after you get to know me a little better.”

He smiled casually, but Layla could sense an invisible wall surrounding him—stronger and higher than ever before.

A wall so solid that nothing could break through it. The kind that evokes resignation just by looking at it…

Layla furrowed her brows and stared quietly over his shoulder. For a moment, it seemed like a dark wisp of smoke had darted past, mocking her. But when she shook her head and looked again, it was just an illusion.

Yustar spoke.

“Let’s get some sleep now. You’ve paid the price for your stay in full.”

“Paid in full?”

Yustar, who had plopped down on the bed and was preparing to lie down, turned to look at her.

“Why do you ask?”

Layla gave him a look, as if asking if he was serious.

“You’re not going to report Madam Norlan to the city watch?”

Yustar fell silent for a moment.

“I don’t really see the need.”

“She threw that woman’s body into the well—like trash! If Madam Norlan had reported it, the man who killed her might’ve been caught. But she didn’t. That woman… she…”

She was in pain, Layla thought. Some ghosts harm people out of malice, but others—others suffer deeply.

Pain in life can end with death, but when pain and death are fused together, it becomes an inescapable trap.

—They say bad people go to hell when they die. But that’s not always true, Layla.

Layla recalled what her mother had once told her. Back then, she hadn’t understood it—but now she did. You didn’t have to do something bad to end up in hell. Hell could be a place where you linger forever, neither alive nor dead.

“Madam Norlan is guilty too. She should be held accountable.”

Yustar turned fully toward Layla.

“Of course, that would be justice. But there’s no real need. Whatever was here is gone. It won’t show up again. Even if we report Madam Norlan, do you think the body’s still intact? I doubt there’s anything left but bones. You can’t do anything with that. And finding the man who killed her? Impossible.”

“So you think it’s meaningless, don’t you?”

“It’s not that… No, you’re right. I suppose it is. Yes, Layla. In my view, it’s a pointless matter—something we don’t need to get involved in.”

Layla replied, “Justice isn’t only for the living. Sometimes… sometimes we need to act justly for the dead, too. That’s what I believe.”

“Even if the dead won’t appreciate it?”

“Yes. Even then.”

Tense silence filled the dim room. Layla wondered what would happen if the stillness swelled too much and burst.

Would the whole inn blow apart? The rotten floorboards, the moldy beams, even the greasy mirror—would it all shatter and scatter?

That kind of thing had happened before when she was younger. Lost briefly in the memory, Layla returned to the present and saw Yustar still watching her.

His expression was unreadable, though faintly curious. Had he never heard words like hers before? It was a ridiculous thought—but to Layla, it felt strangely true.

“I don’t want to argue with you, Layla.”

Layla blinked silently.

Even in that brief moment, Yustar didn’t look away—as if hoping that she might suddenly change her mind.

No. Layla thought. Not this time.

“I don’t want to go against him.”

A voice echoed inside her—her own, and yet not.

Finally, Yustar raised his hands in surrender and shook his head.

“All right. We’ll do it your way. Tomorrow morning, I’ll have the city watch check the dried-up well. Will that be enough?”

“You must also tell them about Madam Norlan.”

A faint smile tugged at Yustar’s lips.

“They probably won’t find anything to charge her with. But you still think it must be done?”

Layla nodded firmly.

“Yes. Even if they find nothing. Even if nothing changes. Because it’s the right thing to do.”

“Understood. But now, we really need to sleep. We’ll need our strength to use the portal. Lie down, Layla.”

She waited until Yustar turned out the lights. When the room was completely dark, she walked back to the bed and lay down, staring up at the ceiling—gazing into the blackness for a long time.

The next morning

Madam Norlan, dozing at a table, looked up to see Layla and Yustar coming down unharmed. Her face twisted in shock, as if she’d seen ghosts.

“What—really? Nothing happened in there?”

Yustar replied, “Oh, something happened. But whatever was there… it’s gone now. It won’t return.”

Madam Norlan’s eyes widened in disbelief, and her coarse lips parted.

“Praise Kiron! Good heavens—you two really are knights of Tentinella! I thought you were just making that up to get a free room!”

“Good thing we weren’t.”

“Indeed! I was bracing myself to clean up another corpse this morning!”

Madam Norlan was much chattier and more lighthearted than when they first met. Clearly, whatever haunted that room had weighed heavily on her.

If only you hadn’t abandoned her like that, Layla thought. She nearly said it aloud—but before she could, Yustar gently stepped in front of her.

“Well then, we’ll be on our way.”

“Right, right. Thank you again, yes?”

“Don’t mention it.”

Yustar placed a hand on Layla’s shoulder. A breeze blew through the early morning air, carrying the scent of the river and other faint odors. Layla watched his high-tied hair sway in the wind.

“Why did you stop me?”

“No need for us to point out her wrongs. That’s the city watch’s job.”

“What’s the difference?”

Layla muttered under her hood, her face hidden.

“I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I hope you don’t see me as a villain.”

Layla sighed after a pause.

“I didn’t think that far.”

“Good. That over there looks like the city watch building. Let’s go tell them the essentials and be done.”

After leaving town and walking down a quiet path, Layla felt her head clear. Apart from Yustar’s footsteps, there was no sound.

Only rustling branches, the occasional crunch of leaves, and birds taking flight. The kind of silence she had grown up with—so familiar it wrapped her like a soft cushion.

Layla spoke suddenly, as if recalling something.

“A long time ago, a king locked his queen in a room padded entirely with cushions.”

Her voice was clearer here than in town.

Yustar asked, “Why would he do that?”

“She hated him. He thought she might kill herself by hitting her head somewhere.”

“Charming story.”

Layla shrugged.

“My mother used to say—if the queen had been a witch, she’d never have fallen for someone like him.”

“You don’t think that’s love, do you, Layla?”

Her red eyes turned expressionless.

“No. But isn’t that how love is? Controlling? Even if it’s not a padded prison, it still traps you.”

Yustar tilted his head with a soft smile.

“Maybe not all love is like that. There might be love where neither person feels trapped.”

“How? Falling in love means…” Layla struggled for words. After a pause, she said vaguely:

“It means constantly thinking about just one person.”

“I’ve never loved anyone, but if I do, I don’t think I’ll feel trapped. Who knows, Layla. You might not either.”

And that was the end of it. They were too far apart to have a deep talk about love—regardless of only having known each other for a few days.

“Hah, we’re finally here. Good thing we didn’t arrive too late,” Yustar said.

Layla looked ahead. But there was nothing—just an open, round clearing. Beyond it, a cliff.

“There’s nothing here.”

“This portal isn’t an object. This place—this spot itself is the portal. We’ve already crossed its boundary. The branch office should already know we’re coming.”

Layla blinked in confusion. The portal was the ground? Was she supposed to step on some oddly colored grass and get launched into the air? And then magically appear somewhere else?

Ridiculous, she thought. She had never seen one, but she had read about portals in books—usually carved stones or magical items.

“So if this is the portal… what do we do now?”

Yustar grinned as if it were obvious.

“We jump. Of course.”

At that moment, he wrapped his arm around Layla’s waist and sprinted toward the cliff’s edge.

As his foot landed on the brink, Layla looked down into the vast void and stopped breathing. Jagged black rocks stood below like giant needles.

I’m going to die. Layla couldn’t even scream. She shut her eyes tight. Before she could exhale, her body would shatter on the rocks.

But that didn’t happen.

A high-pitched screech rang in her ears. Nausea surged up. As she clutched her stomach, a deep unfamiliar voice shouted:

“Lord Yustar! How many times have I told you that portal is unstable?!”