Chapter 20

“If I hadn’t killed them, the military would have eventually come and wiped everyone out,” Huikyung said coldly.

“Selling Esper flesh? That’s a straight ticket to execution. Even if they hadn’t been caught, it wouldn’t have mattered. Esper blood and flesh are toxic, Jaekani. They’d all have ended up hallucinating and overdosing themselves to death—including your so-called father.”

Jaekani shook his head in disbelief. His father couldn’t have done such a thing. The villagers couldn’t have done such a thing.

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“Don’t cry over garbage.”

Huikyung said, his green eyes burning as fiercely as the flames that had swallowed the village. His gaze was searing, filled with unrestrained fury and an undercurrent of vengeance that couldn’t be hidden beneath his calm facade.

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“Stop crying and think about how you’re going to live. Saying you want to die is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“…Did I…”

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Jaekani’s voice wavered, “Did I ever do something bad to you too?”

Huikyung’s grip on Jaekani’s wrists loosened. Red marks lingered where his fingers had pressed too hard. He let out a heavy sigh, releasing the boy’s hands and pulling him to rest against his shoulder.

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“…Esper flesh sells for a high price. It probably didn’t reach you. Most of it was sold off, and what wasn’t sold, the butchers and that so-called council ate themselves.”

“You could’ve spared my father,” Jaekani muttered, his voice cracking.

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“Why would I?” Huikyung’s reply was immediate and final.

“How can you say that?”

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“He was the one I wanted dead the most. Sparing him would’ve been a joke.”

Jaekani’s strength left him as the words hit him like a hammer. He slumped against Huikyung, unable to fight back any longer. All he could do now was confront the truth—the horrifying reality of it all.

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Pieces of the puzzle clicked into place. Huikyung’s seething hatred, the secrecy surrounding him, the slaughterhouse manager’s strange behavior, and even the cryptic things his father had said—it all made sense now.

Huikyung sighed again, deeply. He hadn’t wanted Jaekani to know the truth about the village. He’d held back, even when he had the chance to reveal it. When he’d knocked Jaekani unconscious earlier, he had hoped to shield him from this knowledge.

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If Jaekani were to feel betrayed, better it be by one person than by the entire world. It was a twisted form of mercy, a way to ensure Jaekani survived by clinging to anger rather than despair.

“Your father exploited you, Jaekani. He abused and used you.”

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But the water had already spilled. The truth was out, and there was no going back now.

Huikyung continued, his tone turning bitter. “Your father saw you as nothing more than a candle—to burn yourself out for others, for him. He didn’t care.”

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“You don’t know anything about him,” Jaekani snapped.

“Don’t I?” Huikyung’s green eyes narrowed. “Your father told me himself while he was carving into my side.”

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Jaekani froze, horrified.

“He said, ‘Feed a stray dog a few scraps, and it’ll guard the house for you. This one cleans, cooks, and works for me without complaining.’”

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Jaekani felt a sickening jolt of recognition. His father had often called him a “little pup,” always with a mocking undertone.

“That’s not true,” Jaekani whispered.

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But deep down, he knew it was.

“Even if he wasn’t much, my father was still better than nothing,” Jaekani muttered, clinging to his crumbling image of Jaebad.

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“Is that the bar for parents? That they’re ‘better than nothing’?” Huikyung countered sharply. “You’ve given up far too much just to keep believing that.”

Huikyung slowly set Jaekani down. The wind had calmed, and the sun now fully illuminated the destroyed village. Jaekani squinted against the brightness as Huikyung brushed the ash from his cheek with clumsy fingers.

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“You can live well, Jaekani,” Huikyung said softly.

The boy nodded mechanically, not truly believing it but finding himself swept up by the finality in Huikyung’s voice.

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“You’ll be fine.”

“I’ll be fine.”

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“Don’t die. Live well, Jaekani.”

…What?

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Jaekani’s head, which had been nodding obediently, stopped abruptly. He snapped his gaze upward as if the words had physically struck him.

‘Don’t die. Live well?’ How could he say that after destroying everything—after killing his father and leaving no one behind? Did he really believe such a thing was possible?

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“Stay healthy,” Huikyung added casually, the tone unmistakably that of a farewell.

That dismissive, lighthearted attitude broke something in Jaekani. It snapped him out of the trance of shock he’d been in, forcing him to confront the surreal, unbearable reality.

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“What does that mean?” Jaekani demanded, his voice shaking.

Huikyung hesitated, caught off guard by the sudden intensity in the boy’s gaze.

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“You’re smart. You’ll figure it out,” Huikyung said, faltering slightly.

“You’re not… You’re not just going to leave, are you?” Jaekani’s voice cracked. “You’re not leaving me here like this, are you?”

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Huikyung, uncharacteristically at a loss for words, stammered as if searching for a way to deflect the question.

“Take you with me? Do you even know who I am or where I’m going?”

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“What does it matter who you are? To me, you’re already a traitor, a murderer, and a piece of trash!”

“Exactly! So why would you want to stick with a traitorous, murderous, trashy bastard like me?”

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Jaekani’s voice trembled with outrage.

“Then what? You leave me behind in this burning wreckage and expect me to survive a week on my own? What about me? Do you even care what happens to me? You burned down my village! You killed my father! You’ve destroyed everything!”

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“Did you not hear a word I said? Your father butchered me alive—right in front of me! He used one of those massive slaughter knives! And yet I’m the bad guy? Your father’s the victim, and I’m the trash? Fine! Go back home, then! See if I care! Go and die there!”

Huikyung’s voice rose to match Jaekani’s, frustration bleeding through his words. He couldn’t hide his irritation, and Jaekani’s indignation only fanned the flames of his anger.

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“No!”

“Then what the hell do you want?!”

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“You owe me a family!”

The declaration hung in the air, heavy and hot. Between sharp breaths, Jaekani’s fury spilled over like molten lava, scorching everything in its path. He didn’t care about the damage—it was already too late to stop.

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“I trusted you! You were the first person I ever trusted! And this is how you repay me?”

“Congratulations, then! If this is your first betrayal, you’ve had a pretty cushy life so far!”

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“Look at my size and tell me that again! Teaching betrayal to a kid barely tall enough to reach your chest—real impressive!”

Huikyung blinked, momentarily at a loss for words. Jaekani’s logic twisted itself in knots, but the boy’s sheer audacity left him speechless.

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“You lied to a kid, a ten-year-old! And now you’re going to leave me here to rot? After telling me not to die? You have no shame!”

“…Hah.”

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Jaekani wasn’t even ten—he was thirteen—but he wasn’t going to let technicalities get in the way of his argument. In a world where size and survival mattered more than age, who cared about facts?

“I didn’t ask for your life in exchange, you useless bastard! You’re worth less than the ash you’ve left behind!”

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Jaekani’s voice cracked, his eyes turning red with unshed tears.

Here we go again, Huikyung thought with a sigh.

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Crying during a fight? That’s cheating.

“You’d think I told you to save the world or something,” Huikyung muttered, helpless against the storm of emotions Jaekani hurled his way.

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Jaekani glared at him, tears streaming freely now. Despite his defiance, his voice carried a hint of desperation, barely veiled behind his angry words.

“You’re impossible!”

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“And what exactly do you want me to do?” Huikyung finally asked, his voice quieter now, deflated by Jaekani’s relentless accusations.

“I don’t know! Maybe you should’ve thought about that ‘before’ you killed my father!”

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The tears came harder, and Huikyung rubbed the bridge of his nose, feeling the last of his patience dissolve.

“Stop crying, kid. A creature might think you’re a well-seasoned piece of tofu and go for a bite.”

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“Do you have to phrase everything like that, you bastard?” Jaekani snapped, his glare sharp enough to cut through steel.

“It means stop bawling,” Huikyung said with a sigh, his tone exasperated.

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Jaekani stared at him, his teary eyes narrowing. A thought struck him—a moment of clarity amid the chaos.

This was his chance. Whatever he asked for now, Huikyung would have to grant it.

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But what could he demand? Telling Huikyung to bring his father back or undo the destruction was pointless. Wishes like that were impossible. If he was going to make a wish, it had to be feasible—something Huikyung couldn’t easily walk away from.

“Take responsibility for me.”

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The words were quiet but firm.

Huikyung’s gaze flickered, his frustration briefly overshadowed by confusion.

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“What did you just say?”

“Take responsibility for me,” Jaekani repeated, his voice unwavering.

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“Stay with me until I’m an adult. You owe me that much.”

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