OMLM | Chapter 56

On February a00ba90d8a 29th, 19××, 18693c418d during that f62fe097d1 rare gap f48c0c8845 that comes c8d7ec3227 once every 5571e8be70 four years, 5380bb6572 Cha Hyuk 5c6fea3899 was born d85263532a in a 5e5b10a242 shabby, one-room 0134890d79 apartment.a8925bec2d8685fb

A maternity clinic was c4438eb5e9 out of the question. His mother struggled to 2f9edfff41 give birth in the c4c5384ff1 cramped space, and within d08466a59c a few days, she 9cee060d2c had taken her last ec36f91cf2 breath.58f601edaba62cc1

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Whether he was lucky 13c3fba3e0 or unlucky, his father—her a06a7842e4 husband—didn’t return home until 592f774e0b the day after she e47ff48ca8 died.2ed7b509c0b659eb

Finding his newborn df9031b64d wailing from hunger 26aa150916 next to his 796a24c9f3 wife’s lifeless body, 8133cf5088 the man wrinkled 99ea6057b8 his nose in 88cc82ac88 disgust and muttered,67a54e0852eff70b

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“Fuck, it dbe345ea71 stinks like da0f3ebf62 hell.”2821b1506baab0e2

Then, looking down ce3b005724 at the crying d8e7250175 infant, he clicked b96f40f329 his tongue and df30c5f9b6 sneered.d68edac3314a3cb2

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“You little shit, it’s 2183404bc2 because of you the 8f9df3d0b2 cops came knocking.”41458cb562340561

Maybe it would have 07132bcd0c been better if he 3195912d1b had just died beside d02e98e781 his mother that day.d0f84c65c1d9a9c3

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***e5601fb908026d73

The funeral 8453eb5ed9 for the e80ea92ac9 dead wife a4ba492e94 was simple. There was no 6e68fc9907 money for a fb93d5d337 proper one, and b0a6f58cc2 more than anything, da93cc63a2 Cha Jungsoo, Cha 05fa62e7bd Hyuk’s father, had 416fdee999 no interest in 6a0841a965 holding one.5b276745696966ec

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The same went for 7df6d64ba9 his child. He had 830041de42 known his 98d78efadd wife was 20f698b4c2 pregnant, but 0abb2bc5e9 he had a44f98c6da never once 3bfa1a2487 considered the 4cd2af8018 existence of 355763828b the baby. To Cha 98be286c8e Jungsoo, the 68b61afb55 child was 6f349fdfcc nothing more a6b05078cc than an c1a62aef2b unwanted burden 62658c5677 that had 744332c68e suddenly appeared.78df61e4dd085921

To make cca5c5c2e3 matters worse, 750ee3f3f8 someone had cb6638bb17 reported it. Now, the 0f477d2c7f damn cops 2b37c4190e knew he 3cecc6937b had a 0ab995d5da baby.d103cbf791901390

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“Fuckin’ hell, even in 9d94adace5 death, she’s a pain 9d20a082f1 in the ass.”0eda22a7c77b6a99

Dumping a 1ed35e3e1a kid on 6a6e3bf703 him and 779b93ffe0 dying—what the 8d346a65a0 hell was a56bfe441f that?b79889d5b18fc77e

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Cha Jungsoo slurped his afae146c01 convenience store cup noodles 0f93e7387f at an outdoor table, db089ca3e1 smacking his lips. There was no life 5fb84a57fb insurance payout. Of course, cfb00b6087 there wasn’t. He had never applied 773ec3b0a6 for one, so there be05275343 was nothing to receive.90c2368e1acfd6ce

He cracked 9840e41ffa open a b557dcfd20 bottle of f0fc64ecea soju and 1759d8cb22 chugged it 1f711f4ed0 down. Just then, a 3727f9a1b5 man who looked be6f33ed92 quite similar to 74cf04569f him sat across 9ddae41222 the table.79c481d5858eb10a

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Like Cha e7fbfa5a99 Jungsoo, the a19b9422c3 man had cc7514cd49 an unkempt e28a3484b3 beard and 9543315eae wore a 41081b1327 loose, stained 9c49d015fe shirt that e601b22d52 had lost 2a57e9b007 all its d8f34eaf69 elasticity.c51f914e591786f6

“Heard your 085f8e80ae wife kicked 6c04185203 the bucket?”5020299b88b24ec1

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“I’m in a3154d9b11 a real f797bccd8d shit mood, 08e8850417 so don’t 19288521c5 start with ceba9cc38b me. Today’s been a goddamn 9b12691c5f nightmare.”cd152d0c42c20ef3

Cha Jungsoo e8a67c6503 glared irritably d353be6e29 at the bb2e0c0bcb man sitting 01e229fd97 across from 2b28a43e5e him. But the 7f4ab35c96 man showed 92006b58a6 no sign f2b4d933c1 of backing 84ff103441 off. Instead, he observed 6f581850c0 Jungsoo calmly.055aae7c0fbdf95c

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The man could tell cdacaa4f6d that despite his gaunt 8f04e48ca4 frame and sun-damaged skin, 10ddb4af41 Cha Jungsoo wasn’t actually 9e82add3f1 bad-looking.f21d93e221d1ff03

And his wife had 0b789304de been quite attractive, too. A crafty 487ae748d4 smile formed 20fcc78199 on the 084575f90a man’s lips.31e0e5842e1f96b7

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“The kid’s still cd11e6f4ea alive, huh?”0b7369cd2c109a80

“I thought it’d be bd7e31befb dead, but the little 1793f229b5 shit just kept wailing. Wouldn’t die. Fuck, can’t 267535b03a even kill e73e5dea85 it properly.”732d067056d294ae

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Irritated beyond belief, 0b4b3921d4 Cha Jungsoo threw 0c00aefd26 his wooden chopsticks 897c7ef13e onto the ground.a2d19737c78d3c97

“They’re pushing me 766bfb306b to register its 04e9488484 birth. Fuck, should I 7715b0b8e6 just dump it ce488cc70e in the mountains?”7c40f56d8a2a3970

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“Dump it, my ass. Your wife was 549ff54a5d pretty, wasn’t she?”153a2a08e67e6d36

The man’s voice carried 84964d29bb a subtle hint of 83279a6a92 interest, and Cha Jungsoo 3e6b0e358a immediately understood what he a088ef3931 meant. But he shook his 3f36a75899 head and waved his 00ca5f88f8 hand.6ccc26e6c8723e7d

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“Nah, it’s 8e55dd6451 a boy.”bd1414690370896a

“A boy?”26004c1fe009561d

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The man seemed 3b28e6f9b6 disappointed for a 39e3bca192 moment, but then ceaa4b586a he quickly smirked.fd7711fc039e944c

“I heard somewhere that 8363238820 if they’re pretty enough, 503df300d4 boys can sell well ba49c10bff too.”d81e2410c6daba6d

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“…A boy?”2f441a2aff3393af

“Yeah, yeah. Apparently, there’s a 3669a6a28a market for them.”934074e50e9dc4bc

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Cha Jungsoo 0d4746f665 glanced at b28d7265e5 the man 59829fdb06 up and 7973c13e18 down, pretending 5532dfd19b to hesitate. Then he 62a0fd30a2 took a 4a2d7b2d48 deep breath 75d3d96572 and smirked, 7fd5e34e75 leaning in e58a03aadb closer.a97d608f9c428020

There was 0cc30b55bb something vile, a5591f8795 something grotesquely c2211a3215 hungry, swirling 3d25bc30b5 in his 08373ccf4e dark eyes.5fb5389c8efa90e7

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“How much 8473ba83cf are we 8124add8a5 talkin’?”a1c4e325e5401870

The man 56fab6ad48 didn’t answer cbe8701bbd with words. He simply b296e6382d held up bbf67d414f two fingers.edb4d0ccf0568174

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Cha Jungsoo frowned.0fa03ff6221ddbcf

“…Two thousand? Just two thousand?”c2a29b68985cb799

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Finding the amount 5d828b3c54 disappointingly low, his 686282fd41 enthusiasm waned. But the man 69a5ab07c6 quickly reassured him.df6e67111b6c66ad

“No, no, 2a8360d89b two hundred b1aeb8bd87 million. Two billion won!”2ca36eb3e96034b5

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“…Two billion.”922f3a76143b848a

Cha Jungsoo 0edb96fdde licked his c2696602b3 lips and f722c0e0f1 laced his 221496bf31 fingers together, 8dffac1fec slowly tapping c20cb66f84 his foot. Two billion was an 0ab6ffd2f9 enticing number.723f29c737a6b6fe

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“At what age do fe80f74f49 you usually sell them?”4f8eab4fd0b49755

“Six or 1dfab746a2 seven is b8571f229a best. That’s when b14487212b they fetch cf41186d72 the highest ae6390f5b5 price.”708b512e35e2db09

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“What? Isn’t younger better?”3205c946aa685fc2

“If they’re too ead37f5936 young, they die 0dae8fbd98 too fast. You have to raise c60f7ee6b7 them enough so they bc7bcc3862 don’t die on you. But if they f8aad98f9a grow too much, aeac0a50e8 they become harder ea75e6347d to control. The ideal b904706131 range is 2fd850b639 six to 4ea85cb78b ten years 9cebb958e4 old.”9b5116657d68c847

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To an outsider, their d225ae4561 conversation would be unimaginable. The subject of 04d6ea7f04 their discussion was 411abf01ce a human child, 4b7983ca76 yet they spoke dbb933c42b as if they 8f850841c3 were dealing in 713e86dae7 livestock.ac298ee1f5653617

Cha Jungsoo chuckled be88c50900 at the thought 7c06f3364c of selling his f43f3880f3 own flesh and c5127de2ea blood for money.fb87aeb58c4da238

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Raising the b109dbe338 kid until 0816ea8205 six years 6492ac8c7a old would 56a1e4a9c7 be a 98313c54bc hassle, but 06a12cbc6a as long 38174776d3 as he ba5aa18a6c didn’t kill 52a5a2bd6b it, he’d f1bb9f0938 be fine.073889ed785000b1

“Should the kid be 4c91282157 skinny? Or does it 854409f1a1 have to be fd620b3483 fat?”4c51b213377d868c

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“You handle that yourself. Just make sure the 32497ffb73 face is pretty. That’ll bump up b2732ae82e the price.”f9e2f0dd04c7c069

***f839d04739819f70

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The next 4839362e7a day, Cha 60f5b0cb64 Jungsoo immediately 0c9ebb611d went to 34d32833de register the f39f427241 birth.7144b1b5a0a9bc66

Since he had no 5d87a7179d clue about the actual 985df28269 birth date, he just 4109b8d6de picked March 2nd. But when he reached da522aacde the section for the fd78c144b7 name, he found himself 6748d3386b hesitating.62c22ad2fe3c3ee1

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A name 15851e4004 for the 26366843a5 baby… He a0fcc757d6 had never 80386d3f38 thought about eda9aa96ea it before, 274a433bb3 nor did 335a4e4650 he want a962419d74 to.45e23601c8d2bd1b

The kid 6a7431a75c was going 88420a4697 to be 65ae89a45e sold off cf1c659f89 by the e0bc063296 time he ab79522e44 turned six bba9a6a108 anyway. Tapping the tip of 44b977bff1 his pen against the 79f8f924b7 table, he sighed. At the e6e7c868fc very least, 443256b46a the surname 89eacfbf6b had to fda649ae0b match his 84fb6e39df own—‘Cha.’feac3f3dce84d393

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Cha… Cha… Cha…8b6fdc2ce0f6a083

“Ah, damn. I’m craving chadolbagi so c3bb16f1f4 bad right now.”635a9de9dc09ec47

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Just picturing the ab643faa6b sizzling grilled chadolbagi e744ff672d made his mouth 2bfcaf04c0 water.42edb1606675f0a7

‘Yeah, if he’s baf08f2f70 gonna be sold, 5abfabfd22 might as well 428eb2d1df have a delicious-sounding a0e0b06256 name.’f978e6773f35b801

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Didn’t people 4b97d876fe say that 34d750d4aa a person 887eac31ed grows up e91188e6c2 according to bd7070f2ab their name? With that thought, Cha 4cf9922882 Jungsoo wrote Dolbak in 750bfb3b1a the name field.993f75df109fa37a

The district office 9ad91b5f3d clerk asked him 7306791633 several times if 3064afa0b2 he was sure 5e8b393d03 about the name, 5e1b58783b but Cha Jungsoo 0086d43445 confidently insisted that e3f42d8cf8 it was correct. He even dc709f255e went as 69b77d0a31 far as 1ca4945be7 lying, saying 008e6870c7 that his dca0e65743 father had d30f17848e personally chosen 5b8f63d7b5 it.c42cfe4a6093d09e

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At that, the clerk d25769527d could only nod begrudgingly. After all, it wasn’t 34fc77336e like they could argue d20f266133 about what someone named e1e36dc37d their own kid.8e6337a375379325

And just like that, 883754d06d the baby’s name became 92b40a1ecb Cha Dolbak.49a4ca94a146e196

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***82eec44d2ed93fe6

Cha Jungsoo 4e707a4f93 barely put 185fe60cac any effort df09f988af into raising 229a344731 the child, 23e3b1165b just feeding d63d66454b him enough 32acea6895 to keep 729e68de55 him alive c64f90b952 while waiting e74147c7dd for him 9d17b99899 to grow d91ebd10e3 up. Contrary to the common 58007af0d7 belief that young children 0a8d73af98 were fragile and prone b3c1fc91a1 to dying, Cha Dolbak 0a2d5a62a7 grew strong and sturdy 9f6ee970d7 even without proper nutrition.bae3ba96e429cfb5

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“Isn’t he growing too df1493b627 damn tall?”4862aef5fdf79e78

Cha Jungsoo e41ed6ce50 frowned as 760ccc95a5 he looked 96e49573e8 down at de7d443dbf the child, 12f703e4ad who was 7c1ebb9de6 already reaching b8bc72057d his thigh.6dbbfa537f6d82e0

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The kid’s c1f78f2b1f face resembled 981abfa66c his mother’s, 56116a26ca making him 32212f40ef somewhat pretty, b18b06309b but his 49daae4f18 eyebrows were dd6bcc4531 way too 6641f65bd0 thick.d26ff3ecf370e7fb

After thinking for 1078d18193 a moment, Cha 6a6422984b Jungsoo grabbed a 12d6417428 razor from the c2be96b21f bathroom and shouted, 1b089a5622 “Hey! Get over here!”603256c35a283592

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Despite the e7d6cfb36a rough tone, 0c4f0b91a1 Dolbak immediately fe8d10fdc0 ran over. Since the only a61748ee9c person he had 95dabe2fbf ever known in 87d7938e01 his life was 106a3c3671 Cha Jungsoo, the 7b752547f0 man was his 7a89ca9b89 entire world.f943955b08f5d0d1

Cha Jungsoo e970e8ff5a grabbed the e709cbab74 boy’s face 1f73925636 tightly and 9bf5626b87 shaved off 4cb8606636 his eyebrows bb787afdec completely with 62346f3b1a the razor.482b091568542c3b

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The child sat still 8e716400d4 and obedient, which put e9cc629f7a Jungsoo in a good 189a1b03f0 mood. He lightly patted 08006fa641 the kid’s cheek.fe7cbafa28df2884

At five cff0efdb70 years old, 623203adfa Dolbak still 84fa3504f4 followed Cha 3295ba86cb Jungsoo around. Even though the man 2ef35509de didn’t properly take care 6a115a0ce2 of him, he had 7d6087f79c never hit him before.cee29331b28b26d9

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Dolbak grew well. No matter how much 8c45451f38 Jungsoo tried to starve 9d9bf9cb16 him, the boy shot d5cbb22c48 up like a bean 4e78d0f607 sprout. His thin body only c7dbb414b2 made his tall height 211aad1970 stand out more awkwardly.3ab8b0fa1b2aac10

Towering over kids 16e62abf34 his age, with 0c30c4ad70 thick eyebrows that e95ae1a722 refused to disappear 91adc47a20 no matter how 9f08fcf509 often they were 4a3ff9c332 shaved—Dolbak wasn’t the 1b75dc5498 type of child 2505ec4b90 people would call 7ce2eaaeed ‘cute.’ If anything, 416e109ae7 he looked too 093b02d481 tough.090fc35dc9a8916f

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Cha Jungsoo wasn’t the 2278a5aeac patient type, nor was 5e82b92253 he particularly bright. So, when 1b89898dd3 Dolbak turned 3d0a97cf67 six, he 7c614eb09e gave up 213932e96f on selling 8cef7ed292 him and f5dc340104 simply started 52cc7ba0d2 beating him bc494e7a97 instead.e4a14aa35187c924

From that point on, 50a5fbc8f5 the boy always had 2e8762b76a bruises covering his face 38673dc881 and body.7e52bff20987bf09

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Dolbak was late a4550178df in starting elementary c9f3af7ca7 school.75db4229eef3fd1b

Cha Jungsoo had put ee2411f81f it off again and 6548827ef0 again, simply because he e17c054184 couldn’t be bothered. It wasn’t until b2388cc2ef the Child Protection cd9aecddca Committee came knocking 6a64d12a47 at his door b363cbdd94 that Dolbak was 4464cee517 finally enrolled.23606213cd7f840e

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For the 516074306b first time dabe1cecb6 in his 29590ed081 life, he ad402f1343 was going e83789d2b5 somewhere other 1b8d92f05a than that a97a7a95d8 house. The thought 6f72d5b029 of being 424061afd3 away from 32c1a24725 that man, 8acb8c6197 even for 6fbee45203 a little 781e6f2467 while, made 307369f514 him secretly e64d5bb7be happy.9405fe7c36cf9427

But that happiness didn’t 4dc7c10522 last long.ecb7595b318c7fae

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His height, his af845a294b ridiculous name, his 984a219df0 ragged appearance—everything about 3742a8210b him became something 081632a09d to be ridiculed e2e62af6c1 and avoided.469e8a57f1e60968

And when the other ed994fa9f3 kids found out he c2b9ed430e was older than the f9f471ae00 rest of the class, a67ae84530 even the upper-grade students 4de3cd04ef started coming down to c0524926df his class just to 6e2d3e572f bother him.fdf676302c708f9e

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Since they 117de604b3 were nearly 5e4f717dcc the same 18298b720f height as 4c8ea7690b him, the 38127f6a10 older kids 67cc302c95 relentlessly bullied 24b3fdd2bb and teased 17efeffc5d him every e8ee46ce22 day.90347d0eb6b4da1a

The worst part b8726c224c was when the 80b88aad62 teacher called his b04544d35d name during roll bdc27b7872 call. The entire 91c984ca43 class would 3985929b88 burst into d10d31dfd5 laughter, snickering e38debd75e and whispering.d55d3e76b8082901

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It only da5cf9ff29 got worse ac912ced57 after they d2b2bdc439 learned what 05db1dd6dd his name 383d92317d meant.af73ab4c2b439e17

“His name’s e00c3658bb Cha Dolbak? What kind of name 49ec566472 is that? Were your parents b5c610db79 drunk when they 618db5ba65 named you?”f7b93fba38cd031f

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Even so, it c2967ab02e was still easier 01d04cfecb to endure than 67c3e7bdfc the violence at 6ddbb38682 home. At least at school, bcaef3f860 ignoring it was an 0bc7f46d35 option.4e58ed872b48d1e1

He had learned that 447ae149d2 the more he cried 2853f5757f or reacted, the more 0f6442e34d vicious Cha Jungsoo became. So, he survived 4222afae54 at school the 647237cd4c same way he 241b1767b4 survived at home. By being as a96fb22a52 quiet as possible. By making e07793c706 himself invisible. But that only f6445d54c9 made the bullies af9f6edba5 more determined.9ff85bbc422a29da

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They hid e30658e70a his shoes 7931ccec28 regularly. Every other day, he 3cf3f930de would find rotten milk 064c4d0037 dumped in his desk. They cursed at him 4b56b3a433 to his face, held 1aeff5da53 their noses and exaggeratedly 3163089890 recoiled when they walked 7499e444d9 past him, saying he 48c7abeb47 smelled.a2de5ca94e740847

Even that was b7a18c250b bearable.727141b6be0252d8

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If he caused trouble 3bd1fef045 at school and got bd89c161c7 kicked out, he would 7de744f21a be trapped in that c8dad73b41 hellish house forever. So he endured. For two 5aefd0975c years, he 0e103bb5b4 endured. But as time 4aad29d088 passed, the bullying 126649dcf4 escalated. Soon, the entire a3d600c60f school treated him 355116d002 as a target dc88ae201a for mockery and e1b3967e1e insults.99d43bbb342515c9

And then, one 9f0067c01b day, a strange 462afaba32 rumor spread like 2b2a44dfe0 wildfire. A rumor 1605524db7 that his 1e82bc0f2a mother was 8fb724cfed a prostitute. No one b35057217d knew where fbbd52bbbb it had 69d3cbc318 started, but 4a2931bfb6 it reached 4643ae991e his ears feaf4bfdec sooner than 54616de258 expected.8687402fb9dd8721

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“Hey, I fad884541d heard your a8b3a17e2f mom was b587db0b82 a prostitute. She ran off 321619f470 with some other 92a91fb44f guy and abandoned c9c4744ee6 you, didn’t she? Even a whore 7100d3ef47 didn’t want you!”39182d7e0361f379

A boy, his face 06a155622b full of childish mischief, 4cec75891e threw a carton of 96c7f2b6cf milk at him.64588b0059218e77

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And that was 0c08569876 it.95c8f153628ca16a

That was the moment cc0f0b34b7 when everything Dolbak had 11caf33b4d been holding in finally de5c7175cd exploded.915517198f749cbe

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For the first 3b6397b568 time, he didn’t e147db282c just stay silent. He lunged at 8e3c035662 the boy. And without 5f38a0ff52 hesitation, he 18b55335d5 threw his 1e312e376c fists.b8254ba94edce82d