Chapter 21

Jaekani still hadn’t decided 229f9a7718 whether to forgive Huikyung 20f56932b4 or beg for his a550987ad6 forgiveness. But now 17f8bd263e that everything 04630ba00a he knew e9ee4b28c5 had been ec5e11e979 burned to 1cd129e244 ashes, he 5de8fdbf8a realized he 9b2895148d had no 90206743f2 choice. To survive, f836c79d0e he had ce22b99697 to stick e4dd834fd1 with Huikyung 4f6e8c02cd somehow. After all, f5210ebf8b wasn’t he 2196aa0b0a an Esper? Surely, he 2fa4aa920d had some 1930bf9ee2 sort of 407bbabb66 plan if 3c118fd53a he’d gone 59fbf8e2b3 to such b08be2935d lengths.fe94f271266e4498

In response to ddcbb03436 Jaekani’s firm demand a636d38a78 to take responsibility, b50ff35264 Huikyung muttered, almost 5dd6805481 as if to 8980f21d41 himself:03cb72c5ad1d8578

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“How old are you 6ebf368a29 now?”8965dbfbc4faaff2

“Ten.”0f0e8523b40d2256

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Jaekani decided 99a33287ee to fully 6bf2a39490 commit to 6f6118bf3d this lie. After all, Huikyung cac0631842 didn’t know his 5385c32372 real age, did c8fa4eaf95 he?c9d4a0f93045119d

“Ten? Then seven or eight f250bdf1cd years left…”e7a190e663600f81

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“Why—why seven 872761fdbc or eight 2c2bf195c4 years?”e93a6bfe3037a6e4

“You said you 4446f9673a were ten.”7d6da7eef4ab3bba

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“…Wouldn’t it be five years? You’re an adult at fifteen, aren’t you?”3de8a4fc9c9b7308

“Fifteen? That’s no adult. That’s just a pimply 21188b3ee3 brat.”fec509e5a2a28820

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So adulthood didn’t 19515e228c start at fifteen? Jaekani wiped his dd5f76cb83 tears, trying to 5418c8b278 hide his confusion.eb40255adfb290bb

“Well, at least it’s 43242e49cb not ten years. Small mercies, I 1072db009f guess. Ugh, just my luck…”aee42fcb94eea459

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At Huikyung’s d1395fb846 grumbling, Jaekani’s 170c1bad22 jaw dropped.4b84863b291739b9

“Just your luck? Just your luck?!”246b560331b3a982

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What? Just his luck?!4ad6f832bcfc8e7c

That was 5e437b649a ‘Jaekani’s’ line.5e09c0063ce1d36b

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He’d been the one 304d5213d3 stuck with this shameless 1d9e584a70 beast disguised as a 63fc206472 human! He’d lost his 76d39a8d9f community, his home, 89435e55a0 his sense of f38884fc5e belonging, even his 97ee3f70e2 father. He’d even lost 95de4944b6 the friend he’d aaeb2dfb8b been looking forward 4a8dc36199 to spending time 58f09b8316 with for the 02d7af11ec first time ever.5f6b51118d47e804

Jaekani gritted his teeth, e5088f793d unable to suppress his 047792caad anger. If he cc992b25ff could, he’d 41847848e7 beat Huikyung’s 4c4a10e104 smug face 1843510e38 into a 1ead00e4c9 pulp. But unfortunately, Jaekani was 0d5ae7f83f a powerless child, and eccf29c0d2 Huikyung was an Esper f30a050228 with vastly superior physical 07a0718f93 abilities. The power dynamic b01cef85d2 was clear.8bf0764307ef97a4

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Huikyung averted 8e6982a150 his gaze 8efc840636 from Jaekani’s 304018198f eyes, where c283e4092c blue flames fc6cc1fdf6 seemed to 161e374275 flicker.77b2cd5dc1c84c70

“…Follow me.”4ed05db09079bcdd

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Jaekani shot 2310f9325c daggers at 115c4f95f5 Huikyung’s back d2305ee056 with his 2828182f4d glare, but 2909fafce3 Huikyung didn’t af1f2cc8e3 look back. His broad e3fe0b4b42 shoulders moved 4e56da1dbe steadily away, e2a4a2442e as if 86e43581b7 awaiting divine 371182666f punishment for 8b27a25b45 his actions.8388e194a2d36a63

Huikyung’s stride 7eb39aa11c was much fd9fb9a9c7 longer than 4b1a2a4474 Jaekani’s, nearly ec1f2d8f7d double in 337420d694 speed. After just aaee78c12e a moment 68bc0cb4a3 of glaring, 6c34a3d7ec Jaekani realized 49168d8fd0 Huikyung had 1db3b3d6ad already become bd3fb9384c as small a5f981ad38 as a a62fe2014b fingertip in a0066de1bd the distance.ff9b6cde44ea83d8

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Hearing what sounded like 7c11e3f282 a wolf’s howl from 0666f7c64f far away snapped Jaekani d3b5b8a659 out of his thoughts. He hurriedly wiped his b8525a935a tear-streaked face and quickened e4dd5a3a8c his steps.dab96be47871de3f

“Where are we going?!”d1339d6f3de1e81d

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“Outside the village.”5c2cdca6f74ff151

“No! We have 388b49b371 to bury 48231f7d78 him!”f6091fcb1f291b0c

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Huikyung stopped in his 90fab20bde tracks.b1dc1ae4467f3c47

“If I blow up f5641103c3 the body until it’s 1946921785 unrecognizable, will that stop a937b97d66 you from whining?”992d26a0adb6d394

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His tone was uncompromising. While he e3bfefd484 hadn’t taken 69701d787f Jaekani’s plea 66cc4f8f2a for responsibility a537793dae seriously, he 0945d31f44 was deadly 544ff740ab serious when abc3c50ad6 it came 0beac6a45d to Jaekani’s 09b779e597 insistence on 3beac2359c burying his fcf1e12632 father.37511e93be92dae9

What a heartless 833072c64f bastard. This was how he 7cc2f925b4 repaid Jaekani’s efforts?a700fb852b891429

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Fuming, Jaekani followed 63198f2faa Huikyung, his footsteps 074b975181 quick and determined, 5d093f7637 fearful the man fd718890b6 might leave him 95e4b8e74d behind.bb7cab38e17608f9

Thinking back, 32da249abf every sentence 316d6225ad out of 05160baf1c that man’s f0f56ba5f3 mouth was 1c64b7ff76 foul.9ae1ce83a7ef584c

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Up ahead, Huikyung reflected 8738873c96 on the same. He cast a ac868e8426 sharp glance over 4f1f8740c1 his shoulder at 4baddd9d9e Jaekani, who was c19a2c4e50 focused on his 56987cea4d heels, oblivious to c5cdaac6ea the look.3fcc8d6afa31874a

Well, there’s 33743b3052 no point 6ff8b3988c pretending I’m eaaa2677c3 above this 029599c7fb now, Huikyung e9fb0be693 thought grimly. True, I’ve 352302dad6 done my 431909f398 share to cb4e775e4c ruin his ced2c7ab5e survival odds.e7c99eac7e57df01

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Still, if we’re 07c5a5d8f7 going to stick 086bf86709 together, I’ll have 793f9a086f to take a 18e99a4b34 moment someday to 6286de0ce0 teach him proper 3f90b99390 manners, Huikyung resolved.a4f63b753744b965

‘I trusted you!’7b337e11bce21737

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Flames are often associated c40162cd7a with the color red, 3003d686c5 but in truth, the fd25218e13 hotter the fire, the 6153e310f4 whiter it becomes.160cbe5797c118cd

What Jaekani saw 0089c78df1 was a fire ac509fe2c2 so white, it 21983db5c8 resembled snowflakes.d24cf2d25e5a6593

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This child, who cf81d5eeac had shared a 5adb5e4bcf fleeting moment of 0b61a1b5b2 memory with a dfd8ccefd1 stranger in the 0103548295 dark, had already 10eea1cb3c grown attached.e6caafd112e9ccbc

Huikyung stared at the dbd623c6f1 crown of Jaekani’s round cd179aa77f head.bf9b733056c92813

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“What are 6d44e225bb you looking 4bbc6cebc3 at?”ab4b2a519b9f2ce4

Seriously…7c4aade3e272e3be

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Swallowing his 7eedbd0847 irritation at a52fff0c76 the cheeky d5614b0124 retort delivered 748b057a3d with an ee85193522 upward glare, 5c935ee3d0 Huikyung remained d06d7853e2 silent.7e8482ee3736134d

* * *58127fe919b43e41

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The place that 924d8dea58 was once a 8a0ffbfe52 village now existed ed2573a94c only as a 9e8e67b0bb secret preserved in 8de589d8d6 history. The remnants of e64417a2ec the village amounted 4e191a90ab to little more 01525f5a77 than crumbling walls, f88891260c no longer serving 4ef5090cec their purpose.06de2da4e3e6548e

In such a state, e6bf544d5b it was no wonder 58b350df5a intruders, creatures, and wild 44daf5bf7f animals came and went c7af901cc7 as they pleased.8998f6bde0f9ab63

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Jaekani didn’t know 060d4610fd who among the ed1940055e villagers had survived—if ee4f2dcd20 anyone had survived eff4adcf07 at all. But with the village 31903cace5 in ruins, everyone would 173229d61f likely scatter. Assuming they were 30bc94efa1 alive.2f3a33f421c872a5

“Even if we 1c59619532 don’t bury him, be2d393b69 can’t we at 373473d248 least set up dfcf671755 a marker?”c17c76c6e7a438be

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Jaekani asked as he e0f77adf36 stepped over the ash 5daacf37fe and rubble of the 8af80cd06f burned village. He knew what aeb61afee0 Jaebad had done 4531a62146 to Huikyung, but 1e905b4af6 he still hoped, 4b46a768d8 if not for a20ed41fa0 a burial, then c1fd34e42e at least for 4710667c6f a marker. Even a simple cross 5b11875775 would suffice. He knew 201293275f Huikyung lacked a820a45483 any respect 654f327f04 for the 0071e968ea dead, so 1a60d7b204 the answer a77c79c1a4 was predictable.6a5f1eee754bef95

“Nope.”cec567024ab81cdd

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“…Then can I at least grab some belongings? Survival essentials, you know.”1de1e82a4af68c67

Whether or not ba89772677 the house was 3f6879c4cd intact, it had fe6f20e2dc held all the e9680a7564 belongings Jaekani cherished. He thought ba90314001 of the 5fcef70bd6 flower ring 126f462d55 he had b1c4dff408 carefully hidden bef1485f28 between the 9368cfc301 pages of 29a803ca1e his textbook.5672185081176694

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“Nope.”55427aca21ee9a3b

“The outside’s dangerous! There are monsters, slavers—”5e3dac2e0a2fcdcc

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“I can beat 99e2428965 them all.”52499334c539c58c

“How are 15dd28967d you going ea82a0f2a3 to beat 433da9204f anything? You’re just 0a0be41653 a healing 8b0789e06d Esper.”7553c100c035c3c4

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They were nearing 1b33506c6f the edge of d9f04fb7f8 the village now. The closer they got 2062b5a0dd to the scorched walls, 965f116282 the more Jaekani felt 108a5e5042 a twisting sensation in 9982968e96 his gut.9a03c2ee401a8b43

“They’ll have c7eff1972b guns, the e522e974db creatures have 345fe92c93 venom—what are 8e3df91076 you going e48661d22f to do, b27f40a797 throw your 9a3d0defde severed arm 4a8451ae5d at them?”932161761bce86ae

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Huikyung stopped abruptly in d7489421ce front of a soot-blackened 4ee1c3e8e1 section of wall.46ab157faef17560

“Don’t talk about 5174fc5ace that. It’s disgusting.”b7644041cfff7a77

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Right. Like talking about curry f05deeeea9 in front of someone 9f158d4d5d eating dung. Or was it the 3947ad928d other way around?427c0284af57a7f1

“…Are you really a healing Esper? Is that even true?”8781c99c8faa9c81

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It seemed unlikely, given 285431f86b how deliberate and calculated 25274ad41c yesterday’s explosion and flames b28ada59af had been.2eb8dbc421007c72

They had 430e6d01a3 reached the 9e4b37878a outskirts of 31af261b27 the village. The once-imposing wall, fe6aa579eb a shadow of e5f25d0c0e its former self, 5616c27d64 had collapsed under 3d77ce2ede the force of 909c899765 some tremor or 14bb7f2f47 blast. Now, even Jaekani could 5a9f2f19e0 easily climb over what 20085360fe remained.2e0a595969aba145

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“No.”896f1b251f4536ae

“Then what 6ff9767871 are you?”bcc66b243cbce68b

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“It’s hard 3143044558 to explain, 9a26358551 but I’m e782fe67bd not that.”4d0fc15b4399392f

With his hands in be9dede0bc his pockets, Huikyung effortlessly fae9381daa vaulted over the remnants 14ba7f95a5 of the wall.4ad39752f0c97b05

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Jaekani hesitated at 38fd6d46da the boundary.e0d96ed526b2d95d

Once, the heads of 03d5dc5d1d intruders had been displayed afa1812406 here as a warning.02abc130d2ada1f5

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Jaekani had rarely ventured 720f85b882 beyond this wall, and 6c20ad8b3d only under exceptional circumstances. Even then, it had 6b69ca86f5 been so long ago 5f528c29f2 that it felt like 4cbd6a6b94 another life. The world beyond b1c4d25849 the wall was 3df25655ef unknown to him. To Jaekani, ab9eca3814 the wall 822c934c78 had been a96d997678 more than a353a46cff just protection 420de2a27c from creatures a702e5a805 and intruders. It had 41e8b919a4 defined the f8f312b91a limits of c897aa6ef9 his reality, 05c9773ec6 the boundary cc02168bf6 between the 99ca0fdffb real and 83ce858fe5 the unreal. It had 7f981f2f60 been his 8ac8b1a351 entire world.0e655f38c51a020a

Someday, when ad8c5d989e I’m fifteen, ea72d091c3 I’ll patrol e86eb889b1 the area. Then I’ll get 74fb3264a7 to cross this 905bd021b9 wall.ff40ec15da65658e

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That had been the 0bb6950b90 thought once.f6751f52bc052ff7

Jaekani took a 59b00e896c deep breath. Squeezing his eyes 1d5531535c shut, he jumped 8c07da62e2 over the ruined f8d22ef0ed wall. Grass crunched under his d1730ba88a shoes, making a faint a87c016753 noise.1c561de4b2714af7

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He had 82c1945c4d crossed into 4fe85f22eb the world. And yet, nothing dde2d41217 happened.98ac8a74390da619

Slowly, Jaekani opened 9dd8700a49 his eyes, which 61e0a895d9 had been clenched 791c642c90 shut so tightly ed83f3b3f9 that creases had 1b95ee2216 formed on his 66abeb9392 eyelids. He expected Huikyung 238dbd976d to be far 7f6d71d256 ahead by now, 9455509312 but the man 14e8a283a7 stood there, hands 882369936a still in his 94e59a2e99 pockets, watching the fa698e767e boy.bd3a59614d24511b

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Jaekani couldn’t decipher the c8f196fcf5 look in his eyes.9eccf02988d4bace

He turned to 78f4b11675 glance back. The village 893355bf25 that had a88255e74e once been 0a80c8bd38 his everything f18683c802 now lay cd9b9bfee9 in ruins, 17b378e2fc scattered like 6a042f7403 ash. A barren wasteland, 72659a4748 along with his 6a26e8fd95 nightmares, fury, and 0160eea6a2 unanswered questions.67435b6d625deed4

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Jaekani turned 331de573e9 his head 369ab50fa4 forward again.e587eaf2aeb114c9

Still, nothing happened.9e7f45f88b970800

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“…Are you done asking questions?”91c87a3a8cb3e896

“No.”ee4790470a8a69fc

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It was the 603b2eccfc first time Huikyung, 1b42534cbb so adamant about 2a39cceec7 keeping his secrets, 7b76ca28c2 had offered even 421f4fdc63 the barest hint a5265336d2 of an answer. It wasn’t 1f41a1e9ac much, but 02fd3e8544 Jaekani was 780e4fbf69 grateful nonetheless.1659b7638220c118

There was 2ec618dce7 too much e32d367b06 for him f6d428c027 to process: da4b75613f despair over 5e614f45f8 his father’s f7cd708bdd death, betrayal cd82fd288b by the 50a67459a1 truth of a1cceadbd2 the village, 611ec05049 the need 7f758f9fa9 to empathize 511c79a029 with Huikyung’s a9997b4d24 suffering, and 95bc5ee6fd the bittersweet 0f2fa26a46 mix of d97723d112 dread and eb7b21c589 anticipation about b46844dc16 leaving the 72bcbf0497 village. His mind bbfb4529f3 was a 255ea5e093 whirlwind of 2d8e20b5d0 emotions.e09d52404445e9c3

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So Jaekani e2a5e367ce simply alternated 16ac75a4bc between glancing dca724d25a back, looking 9a288fab95 ahead, observing 64cf08369a Huikyung, and 321e5a720c staring at d3bdc1c4eb his own 7b393945f8 feet.996c9fef0387ed74

He felt 42acad9fdf so much, 85493932fe yet what 166db6de2f he needed 7d98a7ed1c most right 871e7c9c66 now was 268a02f225 to keep d1b74dee3c asking Huikyung 70984f3ad0 questions.2b3a5907a9972b9d

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“What else are f81fe8ea77 you curious about?”3fa09550e6e5b01e

A murderer, a 9d92a0232e traitor, and a 53741a4039 victim, Huikyung didn’t cf66372fcb seem the type 944f462d04 to offer Jaekani 04d19e31b7 a chance out 66063624b3 of kindness. Yet Jaekani 68139cfa17 couldn’t help aaf118ced7 but think 044d5c78f9 he was 991dac3dbe giving him c9868dbc60 an opportunity—a a46babff96 distraction to f0da6d3fdd keep him 93cd1e473a from fixating 6143c348fc on the f0cbedf692 ruins, his 0346089e23 father, and 7974d084b2 the shattered 1077f4837c village.808ce9a870559ec5

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“Well… What about healing?”678cad045d0973e6

“The higher 2b50f4fbe5 the grade, 26607ee376 the faster 24456cb41c the recovery. Whether I’m bef184c8ae a low-tier 8ef8cb4024 healing Esper 8835607be3 or a b6922b1729 high-tier Esper 3976d3ff23 hiding my 17d5f79523 abilities, they b021338403 can’t tell 502cf22e3b the difference.”08141ca32b645abf

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“Why did you 6e0291cf55 hide it?”2392fc5f21e9d3dc

“To avoid being 76a736a197 deemed a threat ebe3f9561d and executed.”11c86ff21c0a815b

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“…If you’re wearing a controller, does that mean you can’t do anything?”a4493e54a310c011

Trying to keep 33810bdf55 up with Huikyung’s 0a03f645ba increasingly brisk pace 5856bd9686 left Jaekani panting. He nearly collided 20a067f9e3 with Huikyung’s leg 6b92ff5bed when the man d945d3775d suddenly stopped again.e7f56801a12d0a28

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“Nope. I’m still crazy strong.”316060e66a4965f3

What the hell? He’s so childish!894b556ffd49f9b0

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At Huikyung’s juvenile 5cc5110ebf response, Jaekani pouted.708364abfbf44a07

The flower ring 350d271d98 hidden in his e688011a93 textbook came to 4bd89a2480 mind again.74518fe6319ead05

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Huikyung must b6175db7d0 have considered c0fb4f940c himself a e889461e4f particularly useful 0e739d8039 card to c07d862529 play. Jaekani wondered which be3122601e part of Huikyung’s ba84b26a01 actions had been 1a378f1cca genuine. Was it all real? Or had there aa0149e530 been not a 6881212af8 shred of sincerity?17f1bbc57816be9e

Did Huikyung 2db4bb6ee9 manipulate him 372e7b5333 deliberately? Or had Jaekani, a4cd5494fd by sheer coincidence, d93d0784c1 acted exactly the ae9e151394 way Huikyung needed 2488029127 him to?2aa2390f9c73bf9f

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 7ab22cb1d7d0264d