Chapter 583 A Silver Coin
Liam looked at the frightened woman for a few quiet seconds before slowly shaking his head.
A helpless smile crept onto his face.
Some things about this world simply refused to make sense to him.
From the moment he had arrived here, strength seemed to dictate everything. The powerful spoke however they pleased, while the weak accepted whatever came their way. No one questioned it. No one fought it. It was simply the order of things.
He released a quiet breath before taking a calm step toward the woman.
"It’s alright," he said gently. "You don’t have to be so nervous."
The woman instinctively stiffened when he approached, but after hearing the warmth in his voice again, some of the fear in her eyes slowly faded away.
Maybe...
Maybe this young adventurer truly meant her no harm.
She cautiously studied his expression once more.
There wasn’t a trace of mockery.
Nor superiority.
Nor the arrogant smile she had become accustomed to seeing on powerful adventurers.
Standing quietly behind him was Tatiana, who hadn’t spoken a single word since they stopped. Somehow, simply seeing the beautiful woman beside Liam eased the mother’s heart even further. There was something gentle about the pair that felt completely different from everyone else.
Meanwhile...
Her two daughters had long since stopped paying attention to the adults.
They had been secretly peeking around their mother’s skirt for several moments now, their curiosity growing stronger with every passing second.
Finally...
They couldn’t hold themselves back anymore.
The little girls began struggling to free themselves from their mother’s grip.
"Mama!"
"Let us go!"
"We want to see the pretty aunty!"
The woman looked down at them before sighing softly.
"...Go on."
The moment she released them, both girls dashed forward like two tiny rabbits.
They ran straight toward Tatiana.
Tatiana blinked in surprise.
The two girls circled around her excitedly, looking up at her from every possible angle.
"Wow..."
One of them gasped.
"Aunty..."
"You’re so pretty!"
The other nodded repeatedly.
"I’ve never seen someone this pretty before!"
Tatiana couldn’t help smiling.
A genuine, sweet smile spread across her face as she slowly bent down until she was at eye level with the children.
"Really?"
The little girls nodded so hard that their hair bounced.
"You’re prettier than the princess in Mama’s story!"
"And your hair is so nice!"
"And your eyes!"
"And you’re so tall!"
Tatiana giggled quietly.
"Thank you."
Without thinking, one of the girls reached out and gently touched Tatiana’s sleeve before quickly pulling her hand back, almost as if she had just touched something precious.
Tatiana simply laughed again.
Meanwhile...
Liam finally stopped in front of the girls’ mother.
The distance between them wasn’t far anymore.
He looked directly into her eyes before speaking.
"I’m really sorry."
The woman stared blankly.
Those words...
She never expected to hear them.
Not from an adventurer.
Especially not from one who had just defeated Rowan.
To her, adventurers had always been the same.
Powerful.
Confident.
Arrogant.
Perhaps...
She had even convinced herself that they had earned the right to be arrogant. They risked their lives against monsters. They protected towns. Ordinary people like herself depended on them.
But this young man...
He had just defeated one of the strongest adventurers in town.
Yet here he was...
Apologizing.
Not because someone had forced him.
But because he genuinely seemed to feel responsible.
Her thoughts unconsciously drifted.
He doesn’t...
He doesn’t look down on me?
Before she realized it—
Liam smiled.
"You think you’re beneath me?"
"...Sorry?"
She blinked several times.
Liam scratched the side of his cheek with an awkward laugh.
"You think you’re beneath me, so I shouldn’t apologize to you."
The woman’s eyes widened.
Her lips slowly parted.
How...
How did he know?
That was exactly what she had been thinking.
Her breathing unconsciously quickened.
Can...
Can he read minds?
Before she could even ask...
Liam chuckled.
"No."
"I can’t read your mind."
The woman physically jumped.
"W-What?!"
He did it again!
He answered another thought that she hadn’t spoken aloud, genuine fear crossed her face.
She subconsciously took half a step backward.
Liam rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.
To be honest...
Even he wasn’t entirely sure when this had started happening.
Ever since the system had upgraded...
His understanding of people had become frighteningly sharp.
Tiny movements.
Eye shifts.
Breathing.
Muscle tension.
Even the smallest changes in expression seemed obvious now.
Without consciously trying...
He could usually guess what someone was thinking.
Not perfectly.
But close enough.
He smiled apologetically.
"I can’t read your mind."
"I just..."
"...kind of see it in your face."
The woman didn’t know whether to laugh...
Or cry.
She had never met someone like this before.
After a long moment, she forced herself to calm down before lowering her head politely.
"...I accept your apology."
Then, after hesitating slightly, she asked in a timid voice,
"...Can my daughters and I leave now?"
Her fingers nervously intertwined.
"...Please."
Despite Liam’s kindness...
Despite his calm voice...
Despite the fact that he hadn’t threatened her once...
Years of living in this world made it difficult for her to lower her guard.
There was simply something about adventurers.
Powerful people always wanted something.
Liam smiled.
"...Not yet."
The woman immediately stiffened again.
Her heartbeat sped up.
Liam noticed her reaction and almost sighed.
Seriously... what kind of experiences has this world given her?
Without saying another word, he slowly reached into the pocket of his robe.
The woman’s eyes unconsciously followed his hand.
Liam searched for a brief moment before finally pulling something out.
"I have a parting gift for you."
He looked toward the ruins of the collapsed house behind her before continuing with a faint smile.
"I can’t rebuild your home..."
"But I hope this helps you buy a better one."
He gently took the woman’s trembling hand...
Opened her palm...
And placed a single silver coin into it.
Liam noticed the reactions before he noticed the woman herself.
The people passing through the street slowed their steps, some pretending not to stare while others openly watched the scene unfold. A few exchanged quiet smiles among themselves. From where they stood, it looked like the young adventurer had simply handed the poor woman a single silver coin. It wasn’t enough to replace a collapsed house, but it was enough to keep food on the table for quite some time. In a world where most adventurers wouldn’t even spare ordinary civilians a second glance, that alone was enough to earn silent respect.
Nobody blamed Liam for the destroyed house.
After all, adventurers fought.
Buildings could be rebuilt.
Lives protected by adventurers were worth more than wood and stone.
Yet despite that, he had still chosen to stop, apologize, and compensate the family.
That alone made several onlookers lower their heads slightly in appreciation.
"...He’s different."
"I’ve never seen an adventurer apologize before."
"Especially after defeating Rowan..."
"I thought he would’ve just walked away."
Meanwhile, the woman wasn’t listening to any of them.
Her entire focus was on the weight resting in her trembling palm.
Something...
Something wasn’t right.
She had clearly felt Liam place one coin into her hand.
So why...
Her fingers carefully shifted the top silver coin.
The instant she saw what lay beneath it...
Her breathing stopped.
Her pupils contracted violently.
"N-No..."
Hidden beneath the silver coin...
...was a gold coin.
Her hands snapped shut so quickly that even the sound startled her. She instinctively glanced around in every direction, making sure nobody had seen it. Her heart pounded so loudly she was certain everyone around her could hear it.
A...
A gold coin?
Her entire body began trembling.
One gold coin...
One hundred silver coins.
More money than she had ever imagined holding in her entire life.
Her eyes slowly lifted toward Liam.
He simply smiled back at her.
Warmly.
As though he’d handed her nothing more than an ordinary gift.
"T-This..."
Her lips quivered.
"I..."
No words came.
Liam stepped a little closer so only she could hear him.
"Get yourself a nice house."
His voice was calm, carrying none of the arrogance she’d come to associate with powerful adventurers.
"Start a small business."
He glanced toward the two little girls, who were still happily chatting with Tatiana a short distance away.
"And take good care of your daughters."
That was all it took.
The walls she’d spent years building around her emotions shattered completely.
Tears burst from her eyes.
They rolled down her cheeks uncontrollably as her entire face crumpled. She looked down at the tightly closed fist protecting the gold coin before looking back at Liam, almost as if trying to convince herself he was real.
"For... us?"
Her voice broke.
"You..."
She couldn’t even finish her sentence.
This wasn’t charity.
This wasn’t kindness.
This was a second chance at life.
No more wondering where tomorrow’s meal would come from.
No more begging.
No more watching her daughters go to sleep hungry.
That single gold coin could completely change their future.
Her knees suddenly gave way.
"I-I can’t..."
She tried to kneel before him.
But Liam was faster.
Before either knee could touch the ground, he caught her gently by both shoulders and held her upright.
"It’s okay."
His smile remained as easygoing as ever.
"You don’t need to do that."
The woman covered her mouth with one shaking hand.
"I’m... I’m sorry..."
The apology dissolved into sobs.
Years of fear...
Years of struggle...
Years of surviving one day at a time...
Everything poured out at once.
She cried openly in the middle of the street, no longer caring who watched.
Liam simply stood there quietly, saying nothing, allowing her the time to let it all out.
Not every wound could be healed with money.
But sometimes...
A little hope was enough to remind someone that tomorrow was still worth believing in.