HKWM | Chapter 45

There was a woman.

She was a maid who spent a night forced by her master and conceived a child. To prevent any repercussions, she fled from her master who planned to kill every seed that could cause trouble.

She gave birth in a crumbling toolshed and could only name her child ‘Noah’, without a surname. In order to save him, she willingly abandoned her peaceful life and hid in the slums.

In her final moments, she wished that the luck she never had would bless her child, and she died unnoticed by anyone.

Born in a warehouse and raised in the slums, and eventually sold into slavery as a gladiator, Noah harbored no particular regrets about his bleak life.

While some live without any troubles, others endure horrific days. Instead of endlessly blaming or resenting his fate, he chose simply to survive.

Like the day when he let his hair grow long to cover his face, Noah remained stoic, unlike his continuously apologizing, weeping mother. He viewed their struggles as the flailings of the powerless, not as something to despair over.

That was when he realized he was born different. If neither joy nor sorrow were distinct, his unfortunate life could oddly seem a stroke of luck.

Perhaps even the day he killed many as a slave gladiator wasn’t much different.

Noah was a perceptive child, understanding everything despite his lack of education. He knew that those who bought him wouldn’t provide medicine for his mother as they threatened, nor would his sister’s situation improve.

His mother was suffering from an incurable disease, and his sister, who had been abandoned near their home as a baby and whom he had raised, was not related by blood, so her fate mattered little to him. However, his compliance until then was merely a tactical wait for an opportunity to escape his inevitable circumstances.

Knowing something and facing the reality were different; he felt rage upon learning of his mother’s and sister’s deaths, yet he didn’t destructively seek revenge.

It was as if a wall that had been holding him back had shattered, and he took revenge when the opportunity arose. If he had been powerless, he wouldn’t have bothered—his anger was just that.

Then he met ‘him.’

Had he ever seen a being so beautiful in his life?

Not even the distinguished patrons who bet on his life or death in the arenas could compare. So he thought he was an angel, as people often equate angels with the most noble and beautiful things.

But they were wrong. The most beautiful being in this world was in fact a demon.

“If you sin, might you meet the opposite?”

Perhaps a demon appears as striking as a masterpiece, bewitching you before stealing your soul. If so, a demon could easily take souls without needing cunning words or even facing unbearable despair.

Contrary to his firm belief, the demon he met next was hideously ugly.

“Let’s meet in the Demon Realm. Before you rip my mouth, I’ll rip that pretty face of yours first.”

Ah, I see. If even a demon finds him attractive, then he must indeed be special. It was an unimportant realization.

“If you don’t know how to live without sinning, then learn from other humans. Let’s go.”

Even the monstrous demon treated ‘him’ with disdain and did not take his life or soul; instead, he offered to teach him how to live ordinarily.

Noah was internally conflicted for a while, wondering if there was an ulterior motive, but it didn’t last long. He lacked the power to flee from a demon, so knowing the answer wouldn’t change anything.

As he always did in an unstoppable situation, Noah kept observing and waiting for the right moment. But even if it wasn’t just for that reason, his gaze kept drifting back to him. Like when starvation turned into excruciating hunger and he caught sight of food inside a passing restaurant.

And from observing, he found him to be a very strange being.

“Close your eyes now. You might get seasick.”

Despite being known for pride, he paid attention to the minutiae and,

“Eugh, bugs!”

He was terrified of harmless bugs.

“Demons have a strong aura, so just being around them can rub off magic. That’s why it’s better not to use magic. It’s less trouble than being mistaken for a devil worshipper or contractor.”

“Does that mean it’s because of me?”

“It’s not for me…”

He even cared about things Noah would never have noticed otherwise. Of course, Noah didn’t completely drop his guard. He was a demon, after all, capable of taking his life and soul at any moment. There was no guarantee this behavior wasn’t just to lower his guard.

Agreeing to live together was also an extension of his observation, to understand his traits and habits, maybe finding a weakness one fortunate day. It was presumptuous for a young human to try to understand a demon’s intentions.

But the more he learned, the more trivial they seemed.

When they walked together, he tried to hold hands and make an effort to smile when their eyes met, despite his authoritative and brusque manner. He was so tender-hearted that he kept putting off the ‘consumption of souls’ necessary for a great demon. Which only made him want to offer help overbearingly, even knowing he was stronger than most.

Holding hands while walking was impractical against surprises, and when they reunited, the throbbing pulse beneath their touching skin. And he hoped he wouldn’t do those things with anyone else but him. The teachings Jin gave were nothing short of a denial of his entire life, yet he quickly agreed because he didn’t want to see Jin disappointed.

These were utterly useless things in dealing with a demon. He had stopped suspecting him just because he was a demon.

However, after accepting that all of Jin’s actions were for him, paradoxically, he realized that their separation was inevitable. Jin had often said that demons are humans’ greatest enemies and harmful above all else, so he wouldn’t make an exception for himself.

During a confrontation with a blacksmith, a particularly irritating figure, the blood-red mist that gathered in the blacksmith’s eyes at the moment of their transaction seemed to connect him with Jin in an indescribable way, and it was intolerably envious.

He wanted to kill the blacksmith who had taken Jin’s magic.

Even though he didn’t want to disappoint Jin, if the transaction had ended and Jin hadn’t sent him home, leaving just him and the blacksmith together, Noah would have strangled the blacksmith without hesitation.

Of course, Jin might have been shocked by his sudden action, but since Jin’s priority was always himself, a flimsy excuse might have sufficed.

Perhaps that’s why, when a summoned spirit forced him to admit his soul was close to that of a demon, he was actually glad.
Even if the spirit’s words were a terrible curse to a human, the fact that he couldn’t become like Jin with just a word from a spirit made him inexplicably happy—the day he realized he didn’t want to part from Jin.

‘So, how can I avoid parting from Jin?’

Should he act vulnerable and weak, like when he chose a house frequented by monsters, so Jin couldn’t easily leave him, or should he appear strong enough not to break just because he was with a demon?

Even with his usually quick-witted mind, he couldn’t easily find the answer.

But he would soon obtain it.

“I’m different from you; I’m a demon, so I can do as I please. And what I want to do, regardless of right or wrong, is to be on your side.”

Jin’s words burned into his mind like the hottest flame, leaving a mark that wouldn’t fade. Of course, the promise to always be on his side was a delightful surprise, but that wasn’t what caught Noah’s attention.

The statement that he could do as he pleased because he was a demon gave Noah a new realization. He felt he vaguely knew how he could stay with Jin. Being happy about the spirit’s comment about his soul being similar to a demon’s made sense now.
Yes, he already knew the answer.

Noah promptly extracted a promise from Jin to forgive him for a big mistake he was bound to make, knowing it would disappoint Jin. Jin always seemed to want him to live like other humans, but sadly, that was a wish he could no longer fulfill.

‘Still, it’s what Jin taught me.’

If his choice turned out to be a mistake too significant to ignore, Jin, who had given him the answer, couldn’t be blameless either. Noah decided to rationalize it that way.