Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 451

451. A Weak Friend

It was Shin Jo-woon, Rembrary was 150% certain. He was convinced.

He didn’t know why Shin Jo-woon was being mistaken for a successor of Lumena, but based on the abilities he used and the way he spoke, there was no way he wasn’t Shin Jo-woon.

Of course, there was a very slim chance that there was another person who raised a talking golden pig and used ice magic.

“Where did he go?”

Rembrary asked quickly. He’d thought Shin Jo-woon would be the last of his scattered companions he’d find because he was so unremarkable.

To meet him first was unexpected, but he felt a surge of happiness at the thought of finally reuniting with one of them.

“Uh… maybe he went that way?”

The landowner blinked, looked around, and pointed in a direction.

“Thank you.”

Rembrary thanked the landowner and quickly ran that way.

“Uh? Rembrary?”

Duran, who had followed him out of the tent wondering why Rembrary was going out alone, spotted him and jumped in surprise.

“Where are you going?”

But Rembrary didn’t stop. Duran blankly stared at his receding figure, dumbfounded.

Perhaps feeling sorry for him, the landowner explained to Duran, “The person who fought here went that way, and he ran right after him. I guess they know each other.”

‘He’s going to find Lumena’s disciple or successor!’ Duran swallowed hard.

‘Then, is he going to bring that scary person back with him? Will there be two scary people?’

Duran missed the leader terribly. And the other members too.

‘But Rembrary, does he even know which inn we’re staying at?’

All their luggage was there, so he would probably come back that way…

‘Damn it. Can he even find his way? Why do I have so little faith in him?’

Duran recalled Rembrary buried in the desert sand when he first found him, and he was very worried about whether he could find the inn on his own.

In the end, Duran slipped back into the tent and cautiously approached the Great Master, who was examining the ice and getting up.

“Um… Great Master.”

“You’re talking to me.”

The Great Master was about to leave, but he chuckled, amused that Duran was trembling and speaking to him first.

As the Great Master strode out of the tent, Duran quickly followed behind him, gathering his courage to speak rapidly in a barely audible voice.

“Great Master, Rembrary suddenly ran off in that direction. I don’t know if he can find his way back. If it’s okay with you, um…”

“Bring him back?”

“No! I’m asking you to bring him back!”

Duran was so flustered that he didn’t notice the Great Master was making eye contact with his guard and chuckling.

“Understood.”

Duran, utterly exhausted, looked up at the voice from above.

The Great Master pointed in the direction Duran had indicated earlier, from a much higher vantage point.

“He went that way.”

“Yes, yes!”

While Duran was bowing, the Great Master turned around and quickly disappeared in that direction with his men.

Duran sighed in relief.

If he had heard the Great Master asking his men, “But why didn’t that musician go himself and instead told me to go?” he would never have been able to feel relieved. But sometimes, not knowing is a blessing.

‘When Rembrary comes back later, there will be one more scary person with him.’

Duran trudged back to the inn, feeling drained.

* * *

Meanwhile, Rembrary, who had been running aimlessly in the direction the landowner had indicated, eventually stopped and looked around when he reached the high walls built around the town.

‘He’s not here.’

Even after coming this far, Shin Jo-woon was nowhere to be seen. He had looked around the entire time he was running, afraid of missing him, but he wasn’t there.

‘Did he already leave from here?’

Rembrary looked at the gate with troubled eyes. They were checking passes at the gate.

When he was traveling with the troupe, it was fine because they had passes, but Rembrary didn’t have one now.

Just then, someone with a strong presence approached him from the side.

He looked to his side and saw the Great Master watching the walls with his arms crossed. Rembrary thought it was a good opportunity and quickly asked.

“Do you have a pass?”

“For the Great Master of the Demonic Cult to not have a pass? You truly are a suspicious fellow.”

“You do? Good. Then lend it to me. Or take me beyond there.”

“What about that trembling musician? Are you going to abandon him? I don’t care, though.”

“I’m not abandoning Duran; I’m looking for my companion. He went this way.”

“That companion, the ice user who says you’re not Lumena’s successor and says I might be related to Lumena?”

“Yes.”

Rembrary nodded and grabbed the sleeve of the Great Master’s robe, pulling him toward the gate.

The Great Master leisurely followed, but soon pulled his arm away, as if annoyed, and said.

“It’s no use looking for him, Rembrary.”

“Whether it’s useful or not is not for you to decide.”

Rembrary said gently but firmly.

Still, the Great Master didn’t bat an eye and replied.

“If what I heard at dawn is true, it would have happened an hour or two before that. Even if he went in this direction, he would have passed by a long time ago.”

“!”

Rembrary was shocked by the accurate statement, though he didn’t like it.

But soon Rembrary quickly recovered from the shock and urgently started running back in the direction of the inn this time.

“Where are you going?”

“To the inn. Either way, he’s in this area. If I keep chasing him, I might be able to find him!”

Unlike Duran’s worries, Rembrary knew the location of the inn.

The Great Master still acted leisurely, but Rembrary ran without stopping.

Finally, when he arrived at the inn, Rembrary immediately ran to the stairs.

“Ah, wait a minute, sir!”

But this time, just as Rembrary was about to go up, the waiter suddenly ran up and grabbed him.

“Just a moment!”

Rembrary stopped, holding onto the railing, and turned around. The waiter asked in a bright and quick voice.

“Are you Mr. Rembrary?”

“I am. Why do you ask?”

“This is for you.”

The waiter took out a pouch from his pocket and held it out.

“A guest asked me to give this to Mr. Rembrary and left.”

“What guest?”

Rembrary tried to ask, but someone came into the inn, so the waiter shouted, “Welcome!” and ran towards them.

Rembrary looked back and forth between the pouch and the waiter, then went up the stairs and entered his room.

Sitting on the bed, Rembrary opened the pouch.

Unexpectedly, there was a handkerchief inside, and unlike the very ordinary pouch on the outside, the handkerchief on the inside was very soft and high-quality. Moreover…

‘It’s the shape I saw on Earth.’

Rembrary was surprised to see the handkerchief unfolded, and he was even more surprised.

Inside, there was a handful of gold coins.

Rembrary put the gold coins aside and examined the handkerchief closely, then jumped up when he found the name ‘Shin Jo-woon’ embroidered on it.

‘Anchovy [a nickname for Shin Jo-woon]!’

Did he come here? When? It couldn’t have been long ago.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have bothered to leave it here among so many inns. Especially with this much money.

Rembrary put the money back in the pouch, made sure it wasn’t visible from the outside, and went back down the stairs.

As he went down the stairs, he saw the waiter carrying five bowls of noodles on a large tray.

Rembrary approached the waiter as he was putting down the noodles and called out.

“Waiter.”

“Yes, sir! Can I get you some food?”

“The person who asked you to give me the pouch. Do you know where he went?”

Even in the short time he was asking the question, someone at the next table ordered, so the conversation kept getting interrupted.

The waiter said, “Just a moment,” and took the order from the next table, then walked to the kitchen and asked Rembrary again.

“The person who left the pouch?”

“Yes. Didn’t he say where he was going?”

“No, he didn’t say anything like that. He just said to ask if anyone with blonde hair and wearing sky-blue clothes was Rembrary and to give them the pouch.”

At the mention of sky-blue clothes, Rembrary realized that Shin Jo-woon had been at the inn not long ago.

He hadn’t been wearing sky-blue clothes yesterday.

“When was that?”

“Well…”

The waiter frowned, looking confused.

He was so busy taking orders and serving food that he couldn’t remember the specifics.

“It was today, but I’m not sure, sir.”

Rembrary didn’t ask the waiter any further, as he didn’t seem to know anything more.

“Oh? Rembrary, you’re already back?”

Duran discovered Rembrary and approached, but there was no time to say he was back.

“Where’s the Great Master? He went to pick you up.”

“I saw him on the way.”

Rembrary answered calmly, and Duran muttered as if he felt sorry for him.

“I guess you didn’t meet him. The person you were looking for.”

“Actually, there’s something bothering me about that… Come here for a second.”

“Huh? What is it?”

Rembrary took Duran to his room and showed him the money Shin Jo-woon had left.

“The person I was looking for left this with the waiter. He told him to give it to me. And he also knew I was wearing sky-blue clothes.”

Duran was staring blankly, then jumped in surprise at the sight of the glittering gold.

“He gave you all this and left? But why did he find you and even give you this and just leave?”

“Exactly. I don’t know why.”

Rembrary muttered, feeling troubled, and Duran stared blankly at the glittering gold before flinching.

He remembered Rembrary being buried in the sand when he first found him.

Sanmyung always insisted that Rembrary’s personality was so awful that his companions had abandoned him.

‘Could it be… is it true? So, when he saw his old companion alive, he suddenly felt guilty and gave him money and ran away?’

Duran’s eyes suddenly became moist.

In fact, Duran sometimes felt the urge to bury Rembrary somewhere, but Duran knew that Rembrary was kind at heart.

He had seen him running around trying to save the troupe members he had only met recently.

But his old companions didn’t know that and put their impulses into action…

“Why are you looking at me with such a tearful expression?”

Duran didn’t know how to say it without hurting Rembrary, so he didn’t answer right away.

Instead, Duran packed the pouch back up and advised.

“It’s better not to show this to others, just in case. Make a separate change purse and only use that in front of people.”

Rembrary tilted his head, wondering, ‘Why is he acting like this?’

But at that moment.

Just as Duran said, “But why isn’t the Great Master coming back when he went to pick you up?”, Rembrary suddenly realized why Shin Jo-woon had left without a word and jumped up.

“Lumena’s disciples!”

“Huh?”

“Didn’t you say my companion fought with Lumena’s disciples? Could it be that they’re still sticking around?”

“Oh… Ah! That could be it. Then that’s a relief!”

“A relief?”

“No, never mind.”

‘I thought it was money your companion gave you when he abandoned you.’

Duran shook his head, embarrassed to reveal his honest misunderstanding.

Fortunately, Rembrary’s attention had already disappeared from Duran.

“My companion is only good at making ice, but he’s weak. I’m worried he might be in a dangerous situation.”