Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 355

355. Saving Grand Scholar (1)

After practicing driving all day, Rembrary and Ardor parked the car near the convenience store by the driving range and went inside.

With a jingle, the door opened, and the part-time worker behind the counter, gripping a large baseball bat with both hands, greeted them.

“Welcome.”

*Why the baseball bat while saying welcome? Is he an enemy? A robber occupying the convenience store?* Rembrary looked puzzledly at the baseball bat, then at Ardor.

However, Ardor walked calmly to the sales counter without any sign of surprise.

“Ardor, why does that person have a weapon…?”

“Because it’s a non-city area. The security isn’t as good as in the city.”

“A monster?”

“Monsters appear, and robbers appear too. It’s okay as long as we don’t attack first; they won’t swing it.”

Rembrary followed Ardor, glancing back at the part-time worker. As Ardor said, he held the weapon but didn’t chase after them or swing it. He just stayed behind the counter in a defensive posture.

The world has really become dangerous. Seeing that, Rembrary realized anew how much this place had changed.

At the same time, his heart ached. The people from the other world came here to survive, but thanks to them, this place, which had been maintaining balance, was also thrown into chaos.

“Rembrary, what flavor should we get?”

“I don’t have an appetite right now, so you choose.”

Ardor picked up two cup noodles and walked to the counter, and Rembrary could see from where he stood that the part-time worker tensed up even more.

Even though it’s for defensive purposes, it’s understandable to be nervous when someone is gripping a baseball bat right in front of you. Ardor calmly placed the cup noodles on the counter and asked,

“How much is it?”

“Twenty thousand won.”

Rembrary, who had been feeling sorry for the situation, was now surprised by the price of the cup noodles. Twenty thousand won for two?

But unlike the startled Rembrary, Ardor once again paid without much reaction, as if he was used to it.

After paying, Ardor tore open the lid of the cup noodles and went to the water dispenser to get hot water. Only then did the part-time worker put down the baseball bat and wipe the cold sweat with a handkerchief.

Holding the two cup noodles filled with hot water, Rembrary and Ardor got into the parked car. Rembrary closed the car door and lamented,

“Prices have risen a lot.”

“Yes, but non-city areas are especially severe.”

“I can’t even afford a cup noodle without you, Anchovy, or Grand Scholar.”

Rembrary sighed and took the cup noodle. And when he looked to the side to get chopsticks, he saw Ardor smiling like a dog with a piece of meat next to him, so he inadvertently retracted his hand that was about to take the chopsticks. He even wanted to open the car door and leave.

When Rembrary frowned, Ardor quickly composed himself and handed over the wooden chopsticks he had torn apart himself.

“I’m sorry, Rembrary. I’m so honored that you said you can’t live without me… my heart is pounding…”

“When did I say that?”

“Isn’t that what you meant?”

“No.”

Rembrary said firmly, but Ardor was still smiling like before, not even listening.

While waiting for the ramen to cook, Rembrary looked out the window. Inside the convenience store, the baseball bat-wielding part-time worker from earlier was talking on the phone with someone. *What was so sad?* The part-time worker was crying while talking on the phone.

Rembrary felt uncomfortable for no reason and looked to the side. He wanted to say something like, ‘Look at that, I wish the world would stabilize soon.’

But Ardor wasn’t interested in the convenience store. He was just looking at Rembrary as if he were a desert mirage, with both hands on the ramen lid.

Feeling burdened, Rembrary turned Ardor’s face towards the opposite window and asked,

“How is my driving skill now?”

“Um…”

“Tell me honestly. You have to tell me honestly about things like this.”

“Great Divine Official is good at moving forward. Your forward skills have already reached the realm of mastery.”

“What about reversing?”

“Reversing is also important, of course. But isn’t moving forward essential? Do you drive backward on the road? No, you drive forward. If moving forward is like taking your first steps, reversing is like dancing.”

“Ah.”

“They both have in common that Great Divine Official can’t do them.”

“…”

Rembrary touched the cup noodle container and looked at Ardor.

He had been looking at him the whole time. This time, Ardor fixed his gaze out the window and avoided Rembrary’s gaze. But when Rembrary stared intently, Ardor quickly apologized.

“I’m sorry. I was trying to make small talk…”

*How does he know I can’t dance? Does he know about my idol days?* Rembrary narrowed his eyes with suspicion.

But this wasn’t important right now, so he moved on and returned to the original topic.

“That’s beside the point. I’m a bit confused about the accelerator and the brake.”

“Then after you eat the ramen, shall we take one last lap around this non-city area?”

“Okay. Let’s do that and go back.”

After finishing the ramen, Ardor threw away the empty container, and Rembrary sat in the driver’s seat and started the engine.

“…The road is a bit rough.”

But unlike the driving range, the general roads in the non-city area were in poor condition.

Traces of battle remained everywhere, and the road, which was originally paved with black asphalt and was flat, was broken in places, and some places even had deep potholes. It was clear that the car wheels would get stuck if they went over them. The large traffic lights were completely blocking the road, so unless the car could jump over the traffic lights, they had to go around the side road. But the side road wasn’t in good condition either.

Still, Rembrary somehow found his way and moved forward well. Ardor refrained from interfering as much as possible in order to accurately assess Rembrary’s road driving ability. Then, when Rembrary safely navigated one section alone, he was impressed.

“It’s really fortunate that the roads and traffic lights are broken, Rembrary.”

“What do you mean? Isn’t it more convenient to have them?”

“If they were there, it would have been obvious that Great Divine Official was violating all the signals. Since they’re not there, it’s not obvious.”

When Rembrary stopped the car on the side of the road and stared, Ardor sulked and apologized.

“I’m sorry.”

Rembrary felt offended. Although he hadn’t driven himself, Rembrary had ridden in cars a lot during his idol days. *Go on green, stop on red, people cross on the crosswalk.* He knew everything. But when Ardor said that next to him, his pride was hurt.

In the meantime, Rembrary, who found an unbroken traffic light, decided to let Ardor know that he wasn’t ignoring traffic because he didn’t know it, but because the traffic lights were all broken and he was confused.

Just as a monster was crawling slowly across the crosswalk like a snail, Rembrary decided to use the monster and the traffic light to show Ardor his skills and instructed him.

“Watch carefully. I’m going to follow the signals properly from now on. Got it?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll show you my skills.”

Rembrary said confidently. He was going to treat the monster as a pedestrian and follow the traffic signals properly to impress Ardor.

“Oh, no. It’s going to pass.”

Rembrary quickly stepped on the pedal before the monster crossed the crosswalk.

But at that moment, the car lurched forward and hit the monster as it was, and the monster made a strange sound, ‘Kuek,’ and flew away. It wasn’t the picture Rembrary had expected.

“!”

Ardor’s eyes widened, and Rembrary, surprised, quickly stepped on another pedal. Only then did the car stop, and Ardor looked at Rembrary and exclaimed.

“Did you deliberately catch the monster, Rembrary?”

“…”

* * *

Redrin.

I’m almost done learning how to drive. It wasn’t as difficult as I thought. I’m a little confused about the accelerator and the brake, though.

But it’s okay. I’ve developed a very good method. Do you know what it is? If you’re confused about the accelerator and the brake, turn the steering wheel towards the monster.

Then you can either stop or deal with the monster with a 50/50 chance. I’ve dealt with five monsters lurking in the non-city area using this method.

Actually, it was a coincidence that I caught a monster using this method at first, but please keep this a secret between you and me. Ardor doesn’t know.

Anyway, at this rate, I’ll be able to get my license soon!

* * *

Redrin. It’s late at night now. With Ardor’s help, I can now perfectly execute forward movement and curves.

I’m no longer confused about the accelerator and the brake. Parking is difficult, but it’s okay. Ardor says there are no parking lots in the non-city area anyway.

Now I can take the license test tomorrow morning. As soon as I pass, I’m going to go save Grand Scholar.

Oh, did Grand Scholar offer a separate prayer to Redrin? Is it really a dangerous situation?

* * *

Rembrary, who successfully obtained his license, packed his car with Ardor and set off for the non-city area where he guessed Grand Scholar had gone.

But it was Ardor who took the wheel.

After the upheaval, license issuance became easier, so you could receive your license as soon as you passed, and Rembrary also got his license right away, so he could drive himself.

However, Rembrary had to keep trying to contact Grand Scholar, so he entrusted the steering wheel to Ardor.

“…He’s not answering.”

But it was the same as before. Grand Scholar couldn’t be reached.

In the meantime, except for short breaks, Ardor didn’t let go of the steering wheel to the point where it was amazing, and the two passed through long roads and several tunnels and finally arrived at their destination.

To the place where Grand Scholar was presumed to have gone.

“Shall we stop around here?”

When Ardor entered the non-city area and stopped the car on the side of the road, Rembrary got out of the car and looked around, frowning.

“Doesn’t this place have a lord…?”

The place was a small and desolate village, so much so that he doubted whether it was abandoned.

Of course, the situation was almost the same in other non-city areas, but Rembrary had never seen a place like this. This place was so desolate that he felt like he should take the word ‘city’ out of the non-city area. It was hard to find a building that was intact, and there wasn’t a single person on the road. There was no trace of anyone living here, so it seemed completely abandoned.

But on the contrary, it was easy to find frog eggs here and there because of this. If you have a little bit of an eye for it, they’re just lying around in secluded places.

“It’s a place where Grand Scholar would come… but doesn’t anyone live here?”

At that time, an egg that didn’t seem to have been broken for too long came into Rembrary’s eyes, so Rembrary approached it.

It was an egg. But the egg didn’t look like a frog egg like the other eggs. If you had to say, it was more like a quail egg.

*Why is this egg the only one that looks so different…?* As he was thinking, he heard a loud ‘Kieuk’ sound from above his head. It was a sound that would only be heard when a bird’s cry was amplified about 24 times.

Wondering if it was a flying monster, he raised his head and was startled.

A huge and shiny bird that seemed to know why the cry was so loud. A bird as big as an airplane was flying away. And what was caught in the bird’s feet was…

“Senior Maeng!”