I Became a Foreign Worker Loved by Transcendents

Carrying luggage and performing other menial tasks was not a big deal for me and the other lower-ranked adventurers.

After all, if you were not a hero, most didn’t even make it to veteran status and couldn’t escape being mere laborers.

The reason for their grumbling might be that they started adventuring because they didn’t want to be porters, but… newcomers who were short on everything probably had to do these kinds of jobs without complaint to save money.

“Alright, everyone worked hard. They said the farm would provide us with a meal, so come on!”

At least a small consolation was that these farms didn’t need to distribute their produce, so they were quite generous with their specialties.

Frankly speaking, they said they would slaughter a Korean beef cow right there and serve it. How many would pass up that offer?

“Wow~ The color of this meat is excellent! It’s been a while since I’ve had such a treat!”

“Hey, merchant. Can we crack open a keg of beer here?”

“Did you come to work or to sightsee!? If you’re caught sneaking a drink, I’ll tell the guild and lower your rating, so do whatever you want!”

That was how a small festival unfolded in a village we stopped by on the way to our destination.

It was a pity we couldn’t drink, but just being able to eat the marbled meat was enough. Just as I was thinking this, Merilyn approached me with a plate in her hand.

“Here, Woo Hyo-sung. Have some.”

“Oh, is this sausage?”

“The housewife over there just grilled it and brought it over.”

At that moment, I saw the housewife grilling sausages on a grill not far away.

Given the labor-intensive nature of sausage-making, it seemed the supply being offered was limited to first-come, first-served.

She brought some over to feed me first.

Despite occasionally showing troublesome behavior, she really was a kind-hearted person, wasn’t she?

“Ah, yes. Then I’ll gratefully accept……”

Swish.

But as I reached out to accept her offer, Merilyn pulled her hand back.

Then, as she lifted the sausage in her hand toward my mouth, I could see the mischievous playfulness she had shown several times before.

“Um, Merilyn?”

“Ah~”

“…No.”

“Ahh… ahh~”

Merilyn urged me to eat the sausage she held out.

Her face was smiling, but her steady hand conveyed strong determination to ensure I ate the sausage.

It was a gesture of kindness in its own way, so I wasn’t upset.

The only problem was the overwhelming pressure of someone feeding me and my self-consciousness about others watching.

“Merilyn, um. People around us are watching, so maybe we should avoid conspicuous behavior…. Uh!”

“Hehe, it’s hot, so be careful.”

Merilyn pushed the sausage into my open mouth.

Contrary to her words, perhaps because she cooled it with her breath, the sausage wasn’t as hot as I expected.

Yes, the sausage carrying her breath was now in my mouth.

Gulp!

As I swallowed the sausage and realized this, Merilyn, looking up at me, began to chuckle.

“How is it? Is it okay?”

“Yes, yes. It’s delicious.”

“Then I’m glad. Now, you should continue eating. Ah~”

“Ah, no. Now I should… Uh.”

“Hehe, you look happy eating. It’s nice to see~”

Having fed me all the sausage, Merilyn chuckled.

Although she seemed satisfied that I went along with it, the situation still felt awkward enough that I couldn’t easily let it go.

This cunning lady. Wasn’t it vexing how annoying each of her actions was?

“Then let me taste it too… Huh?”

“Merilyn.”

Let’s see how she handles this.

I took the sausage she was holding and carefully extended the stick toward her.

“Ah, ah… Try it.”

“……”

Merilyn looked at me silently, intently.

Her reaction was faint, but her hesitation to act immediately suggested she found my behavior unexpected.

Yes, she must feel embarrassed about doing it herself.

I thought, if she refused, I’d use that as an excuse to tease her further.

“Ah!”

“Oh, oh!?”

“Ah, hot!”

She bit into the sausage suddenly, was startled, and quickly opened her mouth, beginning to back away.

“Are you okay?”

“Ehehe, I burned my tongue because I ate it so quickly. Sorry, especially since you offered it to me.”

“Ah, no. Well…”

Damn, I had intended for her to enjoy it as well, but I didn’t expect her to take a bite so readily.

Does she not feel any shame at all?

“…You don’t have to eat it quickly. Please, take your time.”

“Okay, then… I’ll eat it slowly. Could you hold it for me for a moment?”

Resigned, she soon leaned forward, brushed her bangs aside, and brought her mouth to the sausage.

Instead of biting it as before, she cautiously extended her tongue and began to lick its surface.

“Sigh, ahh…”

Merilyn, trembling her tongue as though fearful of being burned again, exhaled through her mouth.

Then, after licking the surface, she opened her mouth and began to envelop the front part of the sausage with her lips.

Perhaps because it was still hot, she hesitated to chew and simply held it in her mouth.

“Uh, hmm~”

Merilyn kept sliding only the elongated side of the sausage in and out of her cheek.

“…Uh.”

“Sigh, ahh… Uh♡”

Seeing her actions as somewhat precarious, I tried to speak up, but Merilyn, ignoring me, was absorbed in her actions.

She continued to insert and remove the thick sausage, which barely fit into her small mouth.

The surface was so greasy that saliva had replaced the oil…

Drip. Drip.

Finally, as the oil from the sausage mixed with her saliva and started to drip from beneath her lips, she couldn’t bear it any longer. She removed the sausage from her mouth and swallowed what had accumulated inside.

As though captivated by the taste created from sucking on it, blending the sauce and spices together.

“Phew♥”

With her face flushed, she caressed her own cheek.

Then, in a voice drenched in ecstasy, she murmured softly.

“It’s so, so delicious~ Woo Hyo-sung’s thick, hot sausage…♥”

That expression.

Please, that expression.

“It’s kind of addictive. Can I taste more of it?”

“Ah, yes…”

“Yes, then without refusal…”

Chew, chew.

Merilyn continued to lick the sausage, inserting it and removing it from her mouth.

I probably wasn’t the only one stimulated by that sight.

“Hey, merchant. Can I go to the restroom?”

“Uhm, I’ll go too.”

…Damn.

“This really isn’t something to show others.”

I wasn’t sure if she was aware, but objectively, Merilyn was a very seductive woman.

This was evident from the way all the men crossed their legs when they saw her eating the sausage.

After Merilyn finished eating the sausage, I also had to go to the bathroom, and it was only after relieving myself that I could calm down.

Last night was unavoidable, but this time it was my own will… Damn, I’m really trash.

“Woo Hyo-sung, are you okay?”

“Yes, yes. I’m fine.”

When we got back on the carriage to head to our destination, we boarded a less crowded space after unloading in the village, but even with that space, I couldn’t say my mind was at ease.

No matter how confident I was in my physical strength, in the end, I wasn’t even at level B.

For someone like me, who only had the physical strength of a semi-ace on a construction site, it wasn’t easy to exert myself even after relieving myself multiple times a day.

Add to that the rough forest road, which was causing motion sickness and draining me further. It was almost expected that I would stagger shortly after getting on the carriage.

“…Hehe.”

Seeing me like that, Merilyn, finding something amusing, soon reached out her hand towards me.

Was she planning another prank?

But whatever it was, I could handle it now.

Whether it was her mischievous talk or strange pranks, I no longer had the mental strength to be swayed by such things. I briefly closed my eyes.

Gliding, she, who had placed her hand on my body, drew me closer and began to stroke my forehead, laying only my head down.

No, upon closer inspection, it wasn’t the floor of the carriage.

There was a cloth, something even softer and warmer…

“If you’re going to rest, this would be better, right?”

She had placed my head on her lap.

Effortlessly, as one might with family or a lover, she tenderly stroked my hair.

“…Merilyn.”

“I don’t do this for just anyone.”

Merilyn slowly closed her eyes with her hand.

Though I couldn’t see her face, the tenderness in her voice let me imagine the expression she must have been wearing at that moment.

“I’m doing this because it’s you, Woo Hyo-sung.”

Ever since I first saw her, she was always smiling.

If what she was saying was true, then she would only do this in front of me…

“How long have we known each other?”

But could I really take that at face value?

Relationships with people require a certain amount of time.

“Um, it’s been about a day.”

“Yes, just a day…”

In just the span of a day.

Was it reasonable to regard someone as special based solely on the fact that they helped in a crisis without any proper opportunity to build a bond?

“…Why are you doing this much for me?”

My feelings for her, in many ways and in almost all aspects, were positive.

But that was just because people yearn for connection.

Since coming to this world, most of the people I had met either couldn’t accept me or were largely untrustworthy.

Even those who acknowledged me were mostly beyond human comprehension…

“What do you mean?”

“Your actions right now.”

Unlike me, who would welcome anyone, she had told me several times that her mischievous jokes and bold actions… weren’t just for anyone but were kindnesses extended solely because it was me.

“To be honest, it’s a bit scary. The way you’ve acted towards me, Merilyn, could easily be misunderstood.”

Wasn’t it natural to have doubts?

Why would she treat someone like me, just a foreign worker and not even a hero, with such openness?

“…Yes, I also find that quite intriguing.”

She quietly responded to my question.

She continued to hold her hand over my eyes, gently stroking my head as it rested on her lap.

“People are like leaves encountered along the journey of life.”

Her voice, softer than the gentle breeze seeping in from above the carriage, whispered fragments of her journey.

“Even the most unique and talented individuals leave an impression less impactful than that of a grand landscape viewed from a mountaintop. The more of the world I see, the less value I find in encounters with people, and the memories formed with them also lose their luster.”

“…I thought you cherished connections.”

“They are precious, but there’s a limit to the memories and feelings a person can carry…”

The intensity was only there at the beginning.

As experiences accumulate, familiarity sets in, and the sensations of awkwardness or novelty fade away, rendering everything seemingly pointless after a while.

Even the most beautiful gem, if it falls into a growing pile of gravel, eventually becomes just another shining pebble.

“As the value I place on connections gradually diminishes, I’ve found your presence particularly lingering in my mind.”

That was how she was.

Having amassed experiences where even the most precious and beautiful gems were as insignificant as pebbles by the roadside.

“As you said, we have only met for one day, among countless others that have come before—just another trivial encounter, without any sense of specialness, as you described.”

Yet among them all, my existence stood out as particularly significant.

“…Merliyn.”

“But even when I’m away from you, the memory that should gradually fade doesn’t extinguish. It keeps burning.”

Swish.

The moment her hand, which had shielded my eyes, withdrew…

“Even now, as we face each other…”

When the darkness lifted, what came into view was…

Her eyes, partially opened, revealed themselves.

“Despite my long journey, being this close to you makes a corner of my heart gradually swell.”

Her luminous amber eyes.

Despite the strangeness, I could feel the loneliness that those eyes couldn’t entirely hide.

“Do you feel it? My heart.”

Though the trembling of her hand, as it stroked my cheek, had stopped, the blood flow emanating from within…

…grew stronger, pushing against me, and I felt the warmth transfer to me.

Silence.

Without a word.

Savoring that sensation internally, I closed my eyes, as if to shield myself from her gaze.

The reason was…

Well, I had some guesses.

What I possessed might have seemed insignificant, but it was a power beyond the norms of this world.

The infamy that was forever etched around me…

This power, which was more of a hindrance to a peaceful life, meant something different to her, who wandered the world collecting stories.

“Do you know, Hyo-sung?”

But should I speak of it?

“The reason why I, who should simply pass you by, am so drawn to you.”

The possibility that her kindness towards me might have been forced…

Could I really reveal this truth to her?