Chapter 21

Jaekani still hadn’t decided 0c65a2be12 whether to forgive Huikyung 8d02f575b4 or beg for his e5c4288eb2 forgiveness. But now 649fa57a5f that everything 519373d5b2 he knew fcd70241b1 had been 1b0b9e63ac burned to b4ca454f49 ashes, he b0336918fc realized he 875696790e had no 0c1d18e538 choice. To survive, he had 5b017f1028 to stick with Huikyung 6e5b266053 somehow. After all, wasn’t d909efe651 he an Esper? Surely, he had 2eeceda7d4 some sort of 92d156b74a plan if he’d 9bf9b9d752 gone to such 66dcc4be4e lengths.046dde0551fcefe1

In response to 39fd0fc033 Jaekani’s firm demand adf86edd62 to take responsibility, 676a164365 Huikyung muttered, almost 587bb06d76 as if to 1c3a003ef9 himself:0e3c8da1464292f5

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“How old are a1a38af498 you now?”7c7c36e435d4a4b5

“Ten.”37c6e50400592fbd

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Jaekani decided to 808f9091ea fully commit to 35243e3aa2 this lie. After all, efc6cb9a78 Huikyung didn’t 6682a41789 know his 4f10a0f0e9 real age, 2b8cb0c428 did he?f7b168c260b22314

“Ten? Then seven 68e9fb0767 or eight 3271a6680b years left…”7ba6a14cf5345e5b

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“Why—why seven or eight 96cc0417de years?”14c97d50b55994a2

“You said you were b2fa3244c5 ten.”659d1b8a6e80ef99

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“…Wouldn’t it be five years? You’re an adult at fifteen, aren’t you?”7414cdf5fb6667d6

“Fifteen? That’s no adult. That’s just a 4aaeadb304 pimply brat.”297e05e8082ca2bd

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

So adulthood didn’t 55fdf43b88 start at fifteen? Jaekani wiped his tears, d7296eda9f trying to hide his 23aa6a32f6 confusion.a98898507f119837

“Well, at least it’s aa98fc427e not ten years. Small mercies, I 1256f23e11 guess. Ugh, just my luck…”c01249c744fe4ade

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

At Huikyung’s grumbling, Jaekani’s f7ae0ff8c3 jaw dropped.878a0946459dea22

“Just your luck? Just your luck?!”6258a3f2c8b30441

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

What? Just his luck?!9aa2de25c2106252

That was ‘Jaekani’s’ line.0fc4b7aa085d235c

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

He’d been the one a3bf16f54a stuck with this shameless 1388f37aac beast disguised as a 3ce2aab511 human! He’d lost 4062fa5a77 his community, 6a502b5add his home, c68f98c146 his sense af4ff63e52 of belonging, 82488cc402 even his c954375a24 father. He’d even lost e060124fe7 the friend he’d 6b7d962cfb been looking forward 70251dfc3f to spending time aab49fa8e8 with for the 6adfd70e44 first time ever.15c849c411a178ba

Jaekani gritted his teeth, 3d63e57989 unable to suppress his 92cdaef210 anger. If he could, he’d f1169869f2 beat Huikyung’s smug face a4f24c3f8e into a pulp. But unfortunately, 61c92c0ab4 Jaekani was b6a84f7a0a a powerless 1df63c6b67 child, and 1ecdfc0dbd Huikyung was ed800103d1 an Esper d9c9f2c17e with vastly 60c5056df5 superior physical 288ffb8328 abilities. The power dynamic a9b7911841 was clear.32eff697b01469f9

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Huikyung averted his gaze 3e2b502f77 from Jaekani’s eyes, where f288edf86b blue flames seemed to e8553c5eb9 flicker.3049d01e9666599f

“…Follow me.”b5b95356595ff58a

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Jaekani shot 4034495a32 daggers at 3a96f7a819 Huikyung’s back 4bdb5a06f5 with his 33c4706db3 glare, but 06726f0ff5 Huikyung didn’t c7456009e4 look back. His broad 3212b927f3 shoulders moved f0b004baa9 steadily away, b6a1583dd7 as if 7ac0c31686 awaiting divine a2c3d41d94 punishment for fa9547170a his actions.d13e0381cae0f5c7

Huikyung’s stride ad4f132265 was much fb329032b8 longer than 47c89966ee Jaekani’s, nearly 1641c447d4 double in 0e53b6f12e speed. After just f485ea3eaa a moment af6b22a158 of glaring, aca5eee3d5 Jaekani realized e93177f079 Huikyung had ebf4123219 already become a18d27dd6a as small f487d40f81 as a 5118dde376 fingertip in d96524fd84 the distance.1a170c09850c746d

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Hearing what sounded fce8fa51f4 like a wolf’s 31ca4a8f2b howl from far 2612e70214 away snapped Jaekani 814864f568 out of his d49b57b825 thoughts. He hurriedly e6ca7f51c2 wiped his ec88e21561 tear-streaked face 3b5748af51 and quickened 6d49fa7762 his steps.3af6128f2432e4ce

“Where are we 5347a440ed going?!”5e78145f68ecc73c

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“Outside the village.”7b2188074a64da48

“No! We have to ec9f00c857 bury him!”453341748244729c

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Huikyung stopped in his f0fabca7e8 tracks.040e7722e5d6ba0f

“If I blow up 527364f7ec the body until it’s 64c255a27c unrecognizable, will that stop 323ce8c63d you from whining?”e61cf7cf8a0a5acb

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

His tone was cf110bf8e7 uncompromising. While he hadn’t ae98842bb0 taken Jaekani’s plea 1ea33387c9 for responsibility seriously, e54076c30a he was deadly 3bcde6099f serious when it 7b72ee95a5 came to Jaekani’s 5547350ddc insistence on burying afdaeaef5a his father.bb4c8aa1958ace03

What a heartless 7d91ebbaca bastard. This was f564e16edc how he b2c047aa4a repaid Jaekani’s 9991292921 efforts?55e2b7b195045110

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Fuming, Jaekani 48253c78a6 followed Huikyung, 1afb9e09a7 his footsteps b27799bf08 quick and 34670c1199 determined, fearful b3bbd10810 the man 8aea637683 might leave 7067c92773 him behind.0ad6232effdfadd6

Thinking back, every sentence 90ec9f54d6 out of that man’s 5667fa3096 mouth was foul.9a3fcf5ecae697d4

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Up ahead, Huikyung a7adcec5a7 reflected on the 8b224e6bc7 same. He cast a 0227719c14 sharp glance over 7287b01d81 his shoulder at 08687264e3 Jaekani, who was 52cf2f0e4d focused on his bf2d304a61 heels, oblivious to b1e313055a the look.46cd604cc875f786

Well, there’s no 1f2cb36e71 point pretending I’m dd97898231 above this now, f7d9ed0ca4 Huikyung thought grimly. True, I’ve done 4bff17118c my share to 4c8dc87b5b ruin his survival 1cf73c3d9a odds.02cf39f213e7323d

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Still, if we’re a1082d4680 going to stick 2b54537c43 together, I’ll have cac7aa1be9 to take a 9004bb3939 moment someday to 422dd3f32c teach him proper 6fb5ef87f3 manners, Huikyung resolved.715b75139d17883d

‘I trusted you!’8ff3bd20aac0afad

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Flames are often associated 77b3164e21 with the color red, 60add72537 but in truth, the b36d46a0d2 hotter the fire, the 4249f3436f whiter it becomes.051138b442a0552a

What Jaekani saw was d7d3c0830e a fire so white, f60c4c182d it resembled snowflakes.231b37d932c2fa69

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

This child, 9e6793d3c5 who had 2b24d5c63c shared a 540c5ab835 fleeting moment 3d477dd881 of memory 0744111a96 with a 33ea47c0b2 stranger in 4ecfdec0ad the dark, 42dc5cc964 had already 702c712957 grown attached.e92b14e9fbf1bd10

Huikyung stared at e25e7ef0d1 the crown of 9467479615 Jaekani’s round head.eb60c05556d09256

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“What are you looking 8076fad0be at?”40816c878d475298

Seriously…cf90d7c50bb597ff

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Swallowing his irritation at 1bd1f75f33 the cheeky retort delivered 8f74e73b9e with an upward glare, f1664fc98e Huikyung remained silent.95cc3d4a8442fe5e

* * *921ba8f13ffe9146

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

The place that was 3123ed57c6 once a village now 4a41ea60d5 existed only as a c6b6406aa6 secret preserved in history. The remnants 8902c1a866 of the 28433f56b6 village amounted 2543a2f9ef to little a007f2f199 more than ab6c61bc54 crumbling walls, 886abdbcca no longer 0c53c5d3c9 serving their a5b6a68b69 purpose.06deb7849462148d

In such a state, 0e889654b9 it was no wonder c4f824f962 intruders, creatures, and wild 166c87d228 animals came and went 8ad830bf87 as they pleased.fbc66cc673d1770b

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Jaekani didn’t know who 8915d9bf41 among the villagers had 214887da3d survived—if anyone had survived 1e259c6641 at all. But with the village 9a27f5121c in ruins, everyone would c7827dd09b likely scatter. Assuming they were f438e1fd2e alive.358906a516b0e01a

“Even if 1ae4d85798 we don’t 00e2172984 bury him, ebe3d983ce can’t we 6a2a1ca5e8 at least bf77f2df46 set up dbef3ab4d8 a marker?”53e2c2f95f6411ad

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Jaekani asked 27c56480e7 as he d4d98b4fae stepped over f35e0ab922 the ash f5a8fb237d and rubble f9788f3685 of the 6f806bbd52 burned village. He knew what Jaebad 5e489bda1f had done to Huikyung, 809e467e59 but he still hoped, dd79398d79 if not for a e9673fd857 burial, then at least 3d5468d80d for a marker. Even a simple 2122b446a9 cross would suffice. He knew Huikyung 56282d8e12 lacked any respect 8371199498 for the dead, 2f00d64366 so the answer 304f40a3e5 was predictable.c058fe06bc805462

“Nope.”2c0def3648de4cd8

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“…Then can I at least grab some belongings? Survival essentials, you know.”7b8c6117aa25cce3

Whether or not 047ecd906e the house was 57e685211d intact, it had e24112cb0c held all the 4f618af4a6 belongings Jaekani cherished. He thought of the bc10f30e12 flower ring he had 34b050ac90 carefully hidden between the e7bcbab3fe pages of his textbook.b215b21db60aad5f

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“Nope.”a99bdfbca7e49a20

“The outside’s dangerous! There are monsters, slavers—”f75dc1b2c3f3bef1

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“I can beat 740151d61b them all.”e4508014cf77d6fe

“How are you f7c6f65c95 going to beat 0580cbefdf anything? You’re just a 3843bec32b healing Esper.”6579182bb4cab0e9

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

They were nearing the 422c94fdd5 edge of the village e17d66f71e now. The closer d0c5318413 they got ae9c674f66 to the 535f896bcb scorched walls, 39f9a36ddd the more 217941d4a9 Jaekani felt ceca78349f a twisting 470d0412f2 sensation in 7f261c2e5e his gut.d8b7d110ecaeeba2

“They’ll have guns, ba00c91da4 the creatures have 60038db066 venom—what are you fb47b93a75 going to do, 2c0e822987 throw your severed 6a389fbb50 arm at them?”829dbac5a09e230c

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Huikyung stopped abruptly in bc0718c361 front of a soot-blackened 5d443b78ec section of wall.2f6732af5e1e3deb

“Don’t talk about 82ad46c98e that. It’s disgusting.”df9719a3737f8c06

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Right. Like talking about curry 3ae8515bad in front of someone 80c97c6e58 eating dung. Or was it the 384ba81a46 other way around?daadbc4e92f4e3b1

“…Are you really a healing Esper? Is that even true?”1c767a51eec73e4b

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

It seemed unlikely, ab885cec56 given how deliberate 2ebc4ac441 and calculated yesterday’s 31b9780e3b explosion and flames fb34ea1802 had been.bb1dc9499087fca5

They had reached aeb0cbb7f3 the outskirts of 08cb08647d the village. The once-imposing 277435ef8e wall, a bcc338698f shadow of d028303ef7 its former c67f9384c7 self, had 7329ac11c2 collapsed under a9d6ad24d7 the force bbe6201981 of some c4106dac92 tremor or 0ad71a39de blast. Now, even Jaekani af2d4d3e92 could easily climb 6d015a7e8b over what remained.b1097613d699535d

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“No.”ddc98750c6530048

“Then what are 335a2db4ab you?”0427293c5d7fa028

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

“It’s hard to 2a800ba560 explain, but I’m c0c8f51178 not that.”12d4992a7691ee65

With his 1d14bb9549 hands in 48c331b5a0 his pockets, a3d4f8d69b Huikyung effortlessly b32e469d3f vaulted over 5fb104326c the remnants 8d6df73329 of the 9cfe46ea08 wall.f70433a7686c7cb0

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Jaekani hesitated at d02005e670 the boundary.d4db29e62bd4859b

Once, the heads of 7b3cae517a intruders had been displayed bae904cb4f here as a warning.1b11c01bb46e1996

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Jaekani had c0155daa07 rarely ventured 34926de3ce beyond this a0a272d45f wall, and b44fcb473c only under aad1847580 exceptional circumstances. Even then, b333c5ea22 it had f9a34478de been so 037e3969e7 long ago 4c6be4cfee that it cda497c539 felt like 831c7cccf7 another life. The world beyond the 7be0e286a4 wall was unknown to bc5b09b0a6 him. To Jaekani, the wall d95e63e780 had been more than 3cc019ee5b just protection from creatures 28207c5abd and intruders. It had defined the 200aea677e limits of his reality, fd74eed590 the boundary between the 17d4c6dffd real and the unreal. It had been 0526e07537 his entire world.248590158715d046

Someday, when I’m 2cd70e3592 fifteen, I’ll patrol f483539c03 the area. Then I’ll 56051738fc get to 98d415aed2 cross this 56e77de33a wall.a323eb28cb2e86c3

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

That had ed2bb7153b been the 5d9403422a thought once.668f7867ccd9ef6a

Jaekani took a 66f2884c84 deep breath. Squeezing his eyes d0e22f3161 shut, he jumped 647e21fcce over the ruined 74a413de63 wall. Grass crunched 7a8b7c0733 under his b5e99ea281 shoes, making 1043fd9d65 a faint a2f4249dd8 noise.ee1af7f1149bad02

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

He had crossed into 47a7addacf the world. And yet, f8fe847b3d nothing happened.5233a9682baae813

Slowly, Jaekani opened b172dda1cd his eyes, which 6e27f75455 had been clenched 5e225d2fb5 shut so tightly eb268821fe that creases had 9ab6d50f3a formed on his f6543f2b0a eyelids. He expected 1628b34200 Huikyung to 48528c2e8b be far b85923ea8a ahead by c0d674a673 now, but 33c7502d78 the man bbc66620bc stood there, 71f5b0e176 hands still 9c04dce844 in his 8861130e04 pockets, watching d3f3beff3e the boy.f3d9522971a1dc94

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Jaekani couldn’t decipher 33c45b7f09 the look in 39e3a133a9 his eyes.4bbdda2ed81db25d

He turned to 715570ccfd glance back. The village that df91b54a34 had once been e59254d689 his everything now 334ec0e2c4 lay in ruins, a4340b117b scattered like ash. A barren wasteland, a76d8f188b along with his ea55b6e0a3 nightmares, fury, and 542e41dfec unanswered questions.e7d6cdd6b839bf2a

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Jaekani turned his 4aa42da51e head forward again.bbc7d4518cebe6d5

Still, nothing happened.6802434305169fc5

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“…Are you done asking questions?”712565859ea15694

“No.”153887fd90209664

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

It was ede89824d5 the first 50e4073dea time Huikyung, 35d593e727 so adamant 998d070c40 about keeping 58d74b8f56 his secrets, 26fff42cc3 had offered 98074dec5d even the 8f5e2cdecd barest hint 1294c50236 of an b296f255bd answer. It wasn’t much, but 996ea27896 Jaekani was grateful nonetheless.bc6c306cafde32b5

There was too c0cd74782c much for him 9dceef80f6 to process: despair e389920f53 over his father’s 062e20279c death, betrayal by e252e75e0a the truth of 1db76dc3bf the village, the bf022e377f need to empathize b9143221b7 with Huikyung’s suffering, 6f8ec05131 and the bittersweet f543137481 mix of dread 13d6b4e63b and anticipation about d12e54bfd0 leaving the village. His mind c6e81e6237 was a 24ad305313 whirlwind of 41255fa1fd emotions.bb2ab804b53cf253

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

So Jaekani simply 3ed36d4156 alternated between glancing 3b43728dbc back, looking ahead, 54adadbdf9 observing Huikyung, and 1c432cfecf staring at his f66ac7bee6 own feet.3b7d0efee1ea8924

He felt 1bceb52843 so much, 8fb6e7b374 yet what ddbf216950 he needed 47c897aa6f most right 2127fca1bf now was 9f07599354 to keep f594f76c3c asking Huikyung 500363dadd questions.36a781a1687595b0

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“What else are 30396ad773 you curious about?”ce24dff81d372593

A murderer, a traitor, 003dc100b0 and a victim, Huikyung 1d04f688b4 didn’t seem the type 5bbbba59a1 to offer Jaekani a 405bd29b23 chance out of kindness. Yet Jaekani 1639558421 couldn’t help 619c8bba4e but think 4c80c486bd he was c96b1a207c giving him ae1dbe5ed0 an opportunity—a bdd935bf7a distraction to acf7e90634 keep him 2e667eb8ae from fixating 8870f2a0b0 on the 4e705194ee ruins, his aa5432e4dc father, and 593ced5566 the shattered e89d82d62e village.6cd9a29670b10a35

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

“Well… What fe39935338 about healing?”8a82f77bb3e01e2c

“The higher the grade, ffa6b1fa02 the faster the recovery. Whether I’m a low-tier f3d869adaf healing Esper or a 1405e0cc96 high-tier Esper hiding my cef0bcdb29 abilities, they can’t tell 232def9eb8 the difference.”2d750229e95e9979

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“Why did 64e4a53a19 you hide 59728cf021 it?”0cbef9ff00a87fc4

“To avoid being deemed d6ac66acd6 a threat and executed.”e0c91ed9cd2174ed

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“…If you’re wearing a controller, does that mean you can’t do anything?”1399d9b2b0925955

Trying to keep up 7735b61d7a with Huikyung’s increasingly brisk 8b51f37f5d pace left Jaekani panting. He nearly collided with 49ac1be0dc Huikyung’s leg when the 6944391901 man suddenly stopped again.69114f5082ae2aec

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“Nope. I’m still crazy 5f82451d0b strong.”9695f7a0c1ee56c4

What the hell? He’s so childish!25005e73759fe5df

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

At Huikyung’s 18b3f009f1 juvenile response, 1e8aeea64e Jaekani pouted.675bf4788e5c4cce

The flower ring 8c8dce223e hidden in his 6b1ae260fd textbook came to 7789ea7ceb mind again.0b912b36bbc9295c

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Huikyung must have considered 981ce2ec17 himself a particularly useful acb3a20a81 card to play. Jaekani wondered which de9615d5b3 part of Huikyung’s a049b4a035 actions had been a1995d15fd genuine. Was it all real? Or had 84b0561a89 there been df1ff3b720 not a d9f5b7eadd shred of 534f5ce283 sincerity?ce78a56ebee32ab9

Did Huikyung manipulate him dc0bc5d47e deliberately? Or had Jaekani, 3313ed06aa by sheer coincidence, bd77c0733b acted exactly the 6e934ea286 way Huikyung needed ed5a0ff4e0 him to?06da34cfcce417aa

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

 82d9412277d31b85