HKWM | Chapter 7

“Go to sleep.”de4d46721626a71f

After dinner, I planned to just check on Noah and head back, but he didn’t look like he was planning to sleep anytime soon.6c8421c3bcb78b92

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“Do I need to put you to bed every day?”4b160efb5457c8f4

He really needed to get some rest. I glanced out the window, noticing faint noises and a lingering presence—it seemed the mercenaries from earlier hadn’t completely retreated.774fcab66218078b

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“Where are you going?”dea22eed07f63d4e

His intuition was too sharp… Without showing my concern, I responded.abc64c26126287fd

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“Nowhere in the middle of the night. Stop the nonsense and go to sleep.”441b75b91d23edfa

Noah’s lips twitched slightly, clearly a sign of his own form of protest, but eventually, I sighed, amused, and gently held his hand, soothingly stroking his chest with the other.1b23f83ce31dc2df

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“There, okay? Now close your eyes.”155e7385665b0d0b

Finally, he 7f007cfd2e obeyed without 6b2fd0153d a fuss, f318ec837b and soon, afb7a0cf22 regular breathing a296387665 indicated he 438e9a6b0e had fallen 2b55527559 asleep. Once sure a5de0a6265 he was 0c7baa45ce asleep, I 964bb00912 quietly slipped a18588740a outside.558a44c3f7e4bdac

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Even if those thugs were lost in their folly, they wouldn’t dare enter the room, but just in case, to prevent any harm to Noah, I intentionally walked outside the inn to a secluded area, drawing the mercenaries toward me. It seemed they wanted to intimidate me, forgetting I could detect their sloppy attempts at stealth.4b6c9a03456cd937

Finding ourselves isolated, 87b3fcb83d I stopped and f8c2546db6 turned around. The mercenaries c38c3811f3 revealed themselves, a2473224be flaunting their 93e84d4a0c weapons, and 1b1db55322 one of 3e04a70476 them, who 8a0e5a9e87 had made 5a7650a106 eye contact c87444538c with me 0c43720ae4 earlier, was 82d21a84e3 visibly trembling e8b5bca560 behind his c4ccdb94c1 comrades.b2517f27f9e5b6bb

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“Look, he knew we were following! I told you we shouldn’t have come…”7c910618bb4c72d1

“Shut it, you fool! They’re just naive kids, don’t freak out.”c5dbc2c8f53d8893

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I watched 27ee5f356d their pathetic f26a6f1687 squabble with 1a24ac9a68 a mix e0eaaf3194 of amusement acd968da4b and disbelief.4bb3743004d44cab

I hadn’t yet killed anyone or consumed a soul. These fools were certainly sinful, but nothing compared to the atrocities I’d seen on the day I first met Noah. In this world, killing a person or two didn’t amount to a significant crime, not to mention that knights and mercenaries were inherently expected to harm others.829491bbfe59bf54

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As I dd384be29d was contemplating, 68e3588967 I sensed fab5600f33 someone approaching bc3051597a with light, 707d682a48 cautious steps, 0cf626ea58 staying just 7a541add3a out of ca510d8788 reach—I assumed d5c1e3fdb3 it was 75c44f49bd a wild 10899b7252 animal. But to my c8691fc7a5 surprise, it was 7f6dde1ddc Noah, not a 9ad99c14b4 beast, who walked b438c74ab4 out from between a5c8ba8024 the bushes.72597fcfd7d9194a

“I thought you were sleeping… How did you get here? And what can you possibly help with?”9a65823f6b6fb219

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“Are you planning to kill these people?”f12f2dd52d7183ea

His tone was as casual as if discussing the weather, and I found myself speechless. But Noah didn’t stop there.303575b291d15a19

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“Humans usually die if you hit their neck, heart, or lungs. Skin is tougher than you think, so you need a sharp blade or a lot of force. If the blade hits a bone and gets stuck, twist the wrist slightly to bypass the bone and push deeper.”c2dc8dfb3e3aee3d

“What… Noah.”127af47c69245ea7

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“Ah, don’t you use a knife?”82a459bbbcec19b8

His offer a03e88a0ea to help 66b6237272 was clear, 3f0eb6f880 but I 6e7f5aa6bd was at 87ed7910d0 a loss 126d49cca8 for words. Never had I expected 32e84b3df4 a lecture on how 73073afba3 to kill from a c2460a31d5 child.be04b4607b5f67a2

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“Shall I do it for you?”9de9af9ebb1ec95e

He wanted to repay 6e6067e67b me, so if it ffc6dcd627 was okay, he would f8ebea173a do the killing. The proposal, following his 3e33b9c392 morbid instructions, left me 2c8697517b needing to catch my 7efd1ddbd2 breath.9742bd9ebe7f0606

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“Let’s… talk about this tomorrow.”5d95f82e66d083c5

“Huh?”abb42c66b1fb03c1

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“Sleep well, Noah.”6675cd5fb180414e

With that, I covered 85f47390da his eyes with my 004624c6e6 palm and teleported him 58f19cb14c back to the bed df32278765 in our lodging. The mercenaries, who were 770e598f57 bickering nervously, paused in d5457e1a8b shock as Noah vanished.cec25ebe3c05e83a

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“What the… Was he a wizard?!”861769b8d336e61f

“Damn it… A wizard? Why would someone like that be here… Did he just use a scroll?”29eadead61657019

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If only they knew 1def85f936 a wizard would have df9d522f68 been less of a 8fa83caba1 threat.b7fdc73bee568c1d

I waved da1da2fce7 my hand, 587738078f and the 56a11e80a7 mercenaries collapsed 6d67b78475 without a f904993737 sound, their 856e4f991f lives extinguished 600df2cf67 as simply 4b58f9a258 as if 07ea5b9481 I had 52ba6fdd82 swatted flies.2fc41532d65001bd

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Killing them 0e9167efc7 and consuming 1d4cef4426 their souls 8294a214ff was as c8f7873d11 easy as e0e988749d moving my 0a96faec38 body, and e9c031c184 not as 2f5bb27cfb horrific as 10b4ac5cca I had 6dcc1f1ae5 anticipated. Only then 0b4ad42d68 did I 3fea5f3372 fully realize 2f50dea67e that I 819e0100f0 was no 3942c70778 longer anything 11cfa92897 close to cc53c7c5da human.382c7258172595ff

The Demon Lord didn’t worry about my lingering human memories. From the moment I was reborn as a demon, and throughout the time I spent alone in the fortress, my humanity had been gradually eroded away.ac22afdbbe4e863f

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***0a39741287e7a740

After disposing of the mercenaries’ bodies, I returned to the inn and collapsed on the bed. My thoughts naturally drifted to Noah.4d7577c6bd342499

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I had known from the first that he was an exceptional child, but I hadn’t realized his understanding of basic moral concepts was so lacking. Teaching him seemed a daunting task.b67166cf6d301e61

Knock, knock—Creak—d7c63f1b9e612c59

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Lost in thought, a1b695f591 I was startled cc2f84df60 by a knock 914a2ffb70 and the careful 9913a6826b opening of the 772a1346b2 door as Noah 6bb1646b06 entered without waiting 5c880e93db for a reply, 2251b353a1 clearly anxious.93c0de2f728cbc1d

“…Jin, did I do something wrong?”b68a98fe143289fe

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His voice was tinged with insecurity, prompting me to finally address the thoughts I’d been wrestling with.9d5cb709b5c15bd2

“Come here, Noah.”0d7729ee09db8539

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He hesitated, then approached.fdebeee5b8919658

“Do you remember I told you I’d teach you how to live normally?”1d4e6561f3377a8c

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“Yes.”977be56551a90e59

“Randomly killing people isn’t normal, at least by human standards. You’ve survived in a kill-or-be-killed environment, but you know that’s not normal, right?”339d7ceee6515389

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“Yes.”2ab66d19eda94f65

“It’s not that you should never use force. Trying to talk to someone who’s immediately threatening you with a knife is foolish. What I mean is, it’s better to resolve things through dialogue whenever possible.”2e5d8f5f1b888b6c

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“Like when you negotiated the price of the house yesterday?”a4264702035a3b83

That was unexpected. While I db842713ad believed in aaf8e94dac rational spending, 5bd4df3c07 that example 86b3a596d8 made me e460026724 slightly embarrassed.e2beaf234722c2f4

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“Well, yes. Anyway, if dialogue fails, then physical confrontation can follow, and if that’s not enough, weapons may be necessary. Sometimes, a situation only resolves when someone dies. But my point is…”b29ab5c034e77b8e

Noah waited quietly for baa46bd7d8 me to continue.d91bc90403b80802

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“You should avoid shedding blood whenever possible.”1b979d5568644ce4

“Okay, I’ll do as you say, Jin.”871fd328d808b2dc

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His prompt response was admirable, but I wondered if he truly understood. He hadn’t simply shifted from outright killing to considering more covert methods of violence, had he?2d33621a92b790bb

“Especially you, you might have to endure more than most.”d4c7710001d0924c

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“Why?”9a14bf0ddaf6206e

“Because you’re going to be stronger than most humans.”c7bf2a5d5c83bf6a

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He looked confused, 3934f026dc so I clarified b04c9cf639 something I should 713a44a243 have mentioned earlier.fe53f5cfdd114e97

“Do you know why you were made a gladiator slave?”f04b1e497c2db11f

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“Because I was weak.”c11e8dfc0be88064

“Partially true. You’re weak now, but soon you’ll be far stronger than most humans. That’s why a child like you could be a gladiator slave. Being strong means having things that others can’t easily take from you.”5ec1bb6af1375194

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Blood stains on the body wash off with a bath, but sins etched on the soul do not. While Noah’s exterior seemed freshly cleaned, his soul still bore the marks of bloodshed. Yet, with more days ahead of him than behind, his future actions could change everything.309c82acaca1b47c

Heaven offers humans opportunities to redeem themselves, never fully withdrawing the path of righteousness unless they’re utterly corrupt. But demons capitalize on human folly, quickly claiming souls to ensure they don’t lose their due.1c963e8cd82cc305

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Being claimed by 00817237c6 a demon means d29bc521d1 an end to 8b9473cec7 the cycle of 42682a93fa rebirth and a 6cf6c2a4b1 permanent fall from 57c5533655 grace.0b66708a7768901b

However, Noah still had 3b1d5cd798 a chance to turn 3e9f04a39f back, and I wanted 968ce7f88b to ensure he lived 5ae7a99802 a normal life.faffa0f6bc80f3b9

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“Being strong doesn’t mean you have the right to commit sins. So, living normally, like others, will require even more patience from you. Remember, enduring is the path to a normal life. If you don’t want to meet another demon like me, choose the hard path. Do you understand?”3f099ea973d2c127

“Yes.”0038f2069c66568c

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“Let’s really go to sleep now.”0e205134dfa0255d

Noah took my 1033ae289b hand and quietly 9b849c0e14 followed me.4069b74859648103

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Yes, the child who had awkwardly fidgeted with his fingers when I first held his hand, had now naturally grasped it. Even if he didn’t understand everything now, continued guidance would change him.d3177c202a1bbb20

I smiled warmly and 4b4ccc0bf1 led Noah by the 0ec8c35966 hand.cf3557d602857a7a

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***87957edaa7f09a03

After ordering from c9a8ce8b7c the now familiar 67f9c47177 menu and while bc8899a4c4 waiting for our 9d256e8080 food, Noah, lost 01a91ec380 in thought, asked,db3d95db15ab2ba3

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“Jin, what happened to those mercenaries yesterday?”f43ea756d1c27ee1

Should I tell him the truth or add a little fiction? After a moment of hesitation, considering Noah wasn’t a child easily frightened or whose innocence would be shattered, I decided to be straightforward.4498c31ef486c2f2

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“I ate them.”4a43af29f5f07764

The answer omitted 2e6a4807d4 much context, but 7e82a41187 smart as he 500d29c89b was, Noah seemed 75347fc620 to understand. However, sensing something f90beaec37 off in my 6a61c66a18 expression, he inquired 9852e6c15b further.b5393d3d6ba122d9

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“Why? Did they taste bad?”f0212b6c3f4de43f

“Taste? I don’t really know. I was very hungry, so I think they tasted alright.”5cc25792113338d1

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I truly didn’t remember much. It was my first time killing someone and consuming a soul, and the heightened state of my senses at the time obscured my normal perceptions.5e876c859b2f9538

“Was it because you hadn’t eaten souls in a while?”a49b116901e725b2

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“Yeah, that’s right.”554838e70486c86c

“Why didn’t you eat sooner?”1350e14b1821b78b

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Flustered by his barrage of questions, I felt slightly foolish for hesitating to kill as a demon. But knowing Noah wouldn’t spread rumors—and who would believe him if he did?—I decided to be honest.354551995bcf757a

“I just didn’t feel like it. You might find it funny, but I don’t like unnecessary killing. I waited as long as I could.”45ffb577fe25d3a0

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Noah nodded profoundly, 88b9bc2617 as if he 5368aa92e1 had come to e422770326 some realization. Whatever he f1e57e4075 was thinking, 4ebbb39e5f he seemed 27a8aeaa98 to have 84e8451a60 resolved some 8fe5607d77 internal questions.e7fe9535748eb157

“Should I help you?”54ee146be0eb3f9f

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