HKWM | Chapter 15

He was dbed6d1b64 no longer c25d4b3987 the affable, 20f20e14ff easygoing figure 88cfd452b9 I had c1e1870d33 first met, 25b9d24654 instead slowly ec18b1384d kneeling and 3153c45e6d bowing his 72c3a771c0 head deeply a717e4f957 in a 9764d9c3a9 gesture of 282ddaa03c reverence.5078786169c192df

“How did you cd9e9e6407 know?”d3be1abd4c94828e

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“How could I 640b1ff8fc not sense the 5c260d8a93 aura of someone fea30e8579 so exalted?”7bb8a434c9920bf7

So, he was a 8916d9621f demon worshipper after all. My brows a20d73d1e9 furrowed involuntarily.e9c143486b76ff17

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I had felt a 59de1ab252 familiar aura as soon 9c99644efd as I arrived, but c62110681e it wasn’t prominent enough c671ae02ce to stand out. I had initially 0a190e2a28 thought he was 51b63f7d72 just a petty 8bc574019b sinner, but seeing ba23832549 the mirror he 024b7b18fe brought out confirmed b1ac954f30 my suspicions.384ed824159e8448

The mirror seemed bdeb5409fc ordinary at a f6f13eb306 glance, but it 0c9b572632 was a typical 1aae565d66 means of communication e213960136 used by demon d7dd3974d4 contractors or worshippers. While many 8d9ad3a1ce people possessed 2583ac2c0b them, not bd51bed1e1 everyone kept 5a75d1284b theirs as 7ce499c805 impeccably clean 2ddfe124a8 as the 2015d96896 gardener, without 5768b5123f a single 6adced78cb smudge or 84efb90362 speck of 288e6cfea9 dust.
Given his appearance f96ed83620 and the state ef1b973db2 of his home, 6bb8b5221c it didn’t seem e2a32c4d73 he would care eaecb82c1a to maintain just 6aee704c90 a mirror so 4cde8e8546 pristinely unless it c4cd8880f1 had a special 7c096e4320 purpose, especially since 0768940d7f he didn’t tend 77c3cc51f9 to his own 9463b4290a garden despite claiming ad78747d31 to be a 8e4d4833a6 gardener. The fact that cc64461597 he brought out 43562d424e the mirror might 287faa26d2 have been intended 0bebbf348a to reveal his bbb2ea8ad2 presence to me.3ddcb7cfc8fa2095

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“Perhaps, have f8e375698f I disturbed 98abea34f7 your grace 28b15a6958 in any fee210a6b2 way?”6afe32359b0ed41a

The gardener 343acbb339 now acted 8c0a3b77d3 with extreme b5c931de33 deference, a 0a93807daf stark contrast f6bf2858a9 to his 1ed646143f earlier demeanor, c729d6a2c7 his forehead 5a83ceb6c7 pressed to c94bd482c9 the ground 0bc1ffaf8e as if 70390a130b he were b381eaabe2 addressing an 435a50d228 emperor. His heart efff53c562 thumped so 75a0908d17 loudly from bc1dc65b6c nerves it 98b3f46093 was nearly 3335cbb8ce deafening.1f6ce8b034d8e272

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“…Not really. I was just wondering 217ec22e7f why you’re here.”4f610660a929c499

“I am but a fcafc8b372 servant of the great 2addaa17ab ones, and I harbor 059331e25e no special intentions. I believe in 763152d9f4 receiving what is 3397b5daba given with gratitude 79754c23eb and ask only 4996a9ff51 for your mercy.”68c414e3de30efaa

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Why does he have 63e0e44904 to speak in such 68ae68f364 a convoluted way? It’s hard to understand…2751f7e58990d267

“Lift your head.”23d742110f0921cd

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“Pardon?”cda43e2356742b16

“I said, lift 1d038e52f8 your head.”6ed019a9e5c91bec

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The gardener ca39129c0b hesitated briefly b1c749b1d7 then slowly 756cf0a684 raised his 0c37ab28dc head. I stared into 90af924eae his eyes, reassessing 879276c3fc his soul. I didn’t sense the 2b264ec28b significant taint or burden 9dc74fe04b that demons typically drool 77644b65d5 over, nor were there 3c979dc557 signs of a soul b38354df30 bound by a contract. He was definitely not 2b2725cb9b a demon contractor.7146e407cd32877a

A demon fcb3abc6b1 contractor, as 7065029489 the term 03c2418344 implies, is d810be9d0f someone who 22234b7d1b has entered 8bf5face2a into a 525bb17911 one-on-one pact 476f40af66 with a f37b7cea60 demon, which 46497e1cb5 requires the 3254d668b8 ability to 2fa56b36a2 withstand the 3aebabfe3f demon’s energy 50be50eea2 and presence, 184c52c741 a stringent 57697eb7dd condition. In contrast, 654e03e149 a demon 965440f2c1 worshipper simply c299fb21a1 offers tributes fffa5b1f91 to demons 50c0909b61 and receives da66477daa favors in 526fa8e279 return, a ace8669cc3 role anyone 646c4160af can fill.39e2425950511b26

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Weaker demons ff81f2ffd3 don’t bother 0f1ccf0c36 with worshippers b279f569d0 since finding c9ed368e29 contractors is 6de4e6edbe easy for efa3c47e0a them, while 574f09a70b stronger demons e435de78e2 often have 8c86a6e132 many worshippers, 17eaaf7c5b effectively as 9047cd713b substitutes for 7c10988192 contractors. Having numerous worshippers is da5a3eb2b4 also a way to 8db2c5eedc extend their influence in aacb55fe09 the human realm and bfa633a27f lessen restrictions.1091a6cb00bbaa31

A worshipper ce805c1fa8 isn’t as ab018d2176 much of e33c4e366d a concern 7832bf3acc as a cb09897638 contractor would 83aca255d7 be. Plus, the level 8ecd36a615 of magical energy 09bcee3530 I felt was 2a23acd264 minimal, so he b2eb78695c didn’t seem to fc9f9afb20 serve any powerful 20526f5d3f demon. Mostly, his 00961e0823 excessive groveling 1cd0a6eace was off-putting.fd6d1ab775ceea97

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‘I suppose as long 2181c9af74 as I’m here, he f2e7835538 won’t be able to 2396dbb8ec harm Noah. I’ve even made 18d9f48ac1 that necklace…’abdd693ed9d15ed6

Even if he 9af0665087 was a demon b0365e55a0 worshipper, it seemed 96224edd7e Noah could handle 3160399ea8 him at this bbcef076cd level.f3f310a11715112c

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Maybe because I kept a45bf756b3 staring at him, the aeedea4318 gardener was sweating buckets, e4093a17e8 his face pale.3154e16d9f7c0bce

“Is there 22a8ed78bf anything I 5a9f8f58bc might assist e5cd032fb1 you with?”eb9c25a946108f9c

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“That’s enough. Just keep 5c3d7b114c quiet and 97f4458188 manage your 0df1c3c92d mouth.”7b2ee904ebdae45b

“I will keep that c6c1db4d07 in mind.”46d50de075074d20

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Realizing I intended 7cb9fce5e9 him no harm, a101c07bc8 the gardener visibly a8f436f211 relaxed and took 95e189bd7c a deep breath. Noting that 9f58b72aec he was 4bb6dc41a5 no threat, d0aed77c81 I was 0c14bfbe8d about to 3b2fa6d1f0 leave when 1f2d6d5036 he carefully c9d7cd5d0b broached another f5f88d9512 topic.5f83f3360976cdae

“If you need 9b2424e844 anything while you df9a42c555 stay, please seek e7d53be64b me out. I will a0d37630e3 make sure a208162c32 you are d04261ab9c comfortably accommodated.”1024494b71f13805

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It seemed he 359c5f66a2 wanted to ingratiate c91502de13 himself with me, 10be220e55 perhaps sensing I d67448fea4 was not as 1d8de462b9 aggressive or brutal 213a49bf8f as other demons. Just as I 94ddf4f840 was about to 5e5ad0dbb7 walk away without 3dad965aec responding, he added 56227955d0 something that made d83cfa5ca3 me stop.64d0f7e38a2779a9

“About that 15cfac840c boy who 28856029ae came with 4e65d011c0 you earlier—where 37405b651b did you 235229c5f2 find him?”505b157e7b433999

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“What?”68b71e777bafbc95

“Of course, c9043afdc9 a grand 4cfb89b902 being like b4689f8ad3 yourself already 65a342198b knows, but f4e5da20e2 if I 879e7f19ad may be 8dc51412e4 so bold, 654aa4861c he seemed d96478bc3b quite exceptional. If you were to dc36b2f4fd harvest his soul, it 005d0c4292 would surely be a cde50f6cd9 delicacy fit for the e5b4a45aa2 great one. If you 3c5d42e775 plan to 9c178dfc32 use him 9f691ad2cd as a 7b93d42768 sacrifice, I c367530bff would assist.”f4fc7fc42d3c4972

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“Listen…”066abeba997d80d7

I had always 1ad5e1e52d harbored doubts about b8f5d77cdb my identity after 1a69ce30f3 becoming a demon.fc3658849b294e98

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Why had I become 00fa5ec4a9 Wrath? Sure, being a 4673a0f9c9 demon is one 4e84ba3a3d thing, but wouldn’t b55f0dbc80 Sloth have suited 56800353fa me better? My actions to date c9581766f1 seemed more aligned with dec016ebfa Sloth than Wrath.7816e1a93bd17f85

“Yes, thinking 131eafb0c7 about it, e869358c3d our neighborhood 281aebb698 where our 66b423e9ad child lives 64440def52 should be 4e235ef0fa kept clean 9281d537a0 of trash.”966e805d02ccf832

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Only now did I c1e66c7575 understand why I was a6e3adba0c born as Wrath.b18798742b8ff30b

A single 97c4fa4083 sentence from d35a6d4b98 the gardener 8aabe952cc had triggered 4277a62433 such intense c17113b4a6 anger that 65f2915a60 my vision b68e28b62d blurred red.b645c4682bd7082b

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“What do you mean…”342f452fe92a4fa5

It was a b7a75f23e0 rage and bloodlust 48437ab4ee I had never 0c6942ae73 felt before, even ab967418cd in my human c1e688cf59 days.70c251f377826e5e

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“It means I’m f37c40b7db going to take 1541488df4 you out, young 0bc1f4330a human.”410694bf5892074f

Negative memories 78ec2e9208 linger in e1d568978c the mind 570ec3ba48 longer than 116ddaa28c positive ones.62051d4925121def

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Considering how few dfe1b3ca66 happy memories one 1512a0c45e might count on f4dcdd0546 one hand, what 962b486eea words could possibly 21ba2d03d6 describe a life 09f5d998fa burdened only with 5cfba66f2c sorrowful, muddied thoughts?10061ff78b83eed3

“They say he’s from df82eeef03 an orphanage.”a86d07eb28effb78

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“What’s an orphanage?”b295b0af5eeeddd5

“Where children 570fbd800c without parents 1c2638c18d go.”970a92196e29f336

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“Wow, so Hyunjin’s 93da0a3015 mom and dad 53ecfc2586 are dead?”bef1e2ac4dd1c0a9

“No, they f33200986d abandoned him.”0dcee5ae00eaa50d

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“Why?”4ef8c9afb2e21124

“Don’t know, maybe they c5dc569856 got tired of him 8ba5dd114b begging for snacks?”1beaeb32342bc01e

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Those were the bd0f4730b0 moments I had 9365c81161 to pretend not bcd582a748 to hear, whispered f8945d554a behind my back.5fb6e7152c13609c

“No, Hyunjin. This is problematic. I hired 2d6ab5b083 you out 2129db4a6a of pity 6cf92eed47 for an 4df214665d orphan, but 84daca4d74 if you 9cdf2ed197 keep making cf81969507 mistakes like ed45012636 this, I 87043ed60b can’t pay 3999642bc0 you!”8e757e91c7a591d3

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“I told you, 54f3a972d4 it wasn’t my 2ad11f55b1 fault.”4e1f803002956f85

“Oh, talking edfd4215bf back now? This is why those 3e20371540 without proper home training…”2276638807c1026f

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The standards that d8526bff27 seemed particularly harsh e3ade0ef8f towards me.815c7a9eddfb9dd9

“Hyunjin, I’m sorry. Let’s pretend we fe82e6e21d never got engaged.”6a6aa20eb4b97a40

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“Did I 23d2930514 do something 200f7d2610 wrong? Why all 4f14374991 of a 1a2eae14c6 sudden…”2daa3801c114d513

“You always felt 55d2f1db05 lonely with me, a9306b1b33 right? Do you even ad581c34a8 love me?”42b530def0f65b88

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All the times that f243e035e2 felt unbearably lonely, regardless 0900679f6e of what I did.860415a640d990d7

Would things ca4bdc7861 have been 5093f8c5c1 different if baeb468381 I could 8da22afd5d easily forget 0d8d580571 them?68f0b5198e6924a4

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It didn’t take 9b66df1234 long to deal 43b64343d4 with the gardener 22dee43b51 and consume his 2b6fedd1be soul. The rage 99ed7f876f that had 8d1d582fa0 blurred my 41e7ad17c6 reason seemed 1677a0fcc3 like a 644cf40434 distant memory 8f3ccb1540 now that 5871ad5a0b the gardener 7a2194dffb was dead d39e5b2feb and his 9b839b3dce soul consumed, c68a07bc01 my mind 219a75327f settling into e8a9cd297b profound peace.1d45e7ae1459e115

“What about magical energy…”4bc12d246d32ecc7

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After ensuring even the 40979f413c smallest drop of blood ec9b2bf1cc was cleaned up, the 0e866f2312 surrounding area was so 7909511bae saturated with my magic 202e50e116 that even a normal 020048df26 human passing by would 653079fa81 feel the air was ea9e70e6a3 oppressively heavy. It was because e5b88232a0 I hadn’t controlled 743af3e674 my magic while edb8324f7a enraged.22a2a6979d002e67

I waved my hand c0fae78bd8 futilely—it was a silly e80adbe573 gesture really. It wasn’t 140685832f smoke; waving c016af297c my hand 8bfbdea0aa wasn’t going e37b3063a2 to clear ef5e94feee it. Absorbing the b12d23cab2 spontaneously released f29d87c2f1 magic was 0bfadd4f5d as absurd 2a2a0021d7 as trying 01181327e7 to smell ac5261d79f all the 76d36d731f perfume I’d f32feb915a sprayed until f1807347b8 none remained. I decided it was b04eac0cb0 best to leave quickly.36edcd49821b8bbe

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“It should clear 01d9b8c8d6 up soon.”ed3e59ab7abd06bf

Thinking of the magic ee4c1a303f that might have clung cfd7dc8f21 to my body, I 0fc52499f6 walked home, mulling over a9588d9e90 the recent event.53622f2cdd58ca39

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The surge 75359ddbce of intense 4cc2e3d9fd emotion was bd13737e4b something I 2823cb533a had never a54a36049a experienced before. Being generally non-confrontational as 1e9ca37cee a human didn’t mean 088124b4d5 I was ignorant of 8a290dc4dc what anger was. I had simply chosen 50888eb7ea to overlook things, but 87e874df1f never had I been 81f2444ccc so enraged.0d0d3b24dd419d24

‘It wasn’t 4434e271d8 even something 31832a81b0 worth getting f3c5f46d06 so angry 5a0c91e87e about.’a6d64e9977041781

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The gardener 9ecfc6f7ec had merely 22a2e9445c asked a f47da61dc1 question and 28eb406075 hadn’t actually f4a2e19bf9 harmed Noah. My reaction was b13cdd1d52 excessively dramatic.691478659da9f737

And from the moment fbc6ba4f03 of anger, I felt fef5073dce a power unlike anything ae747a8405 before. The omnipotent, 4a93c2822c destructive force 5db9b0a06a was undeniably 9a55656a5b mine. If it felt this b09ee518c4 potent in the human 07c505c167 realm, bound by many ba5a0a399a restrictions, how much more e592176730 in the Demon Realm? I could 83ecdfb8c2 understand why 61d124f58d the previous b76797ab86 Wrath demons 82bec588ad were so 414486c405 volatile daily.6815b48e34ea754d

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Yet, what troubled me 55966901d4 most was my attitude. Even though he was 0cf11fb407 just a demon worshiper 649998f443 and thus not much 91f74700df help alive, I had fca38afa29 killed a human and a186c40146 consumed his soul without 717d34b4fb any hesitation. It felt ca98c8ec0d as natural dbfba36be9 as drinking 45ba22e8d8 water when 5aec16454e thirsty, quite dd6e990167 different from 13c8904e0e when I e0411a4997 had consumed 37b5d84576 the souls 70a473d379 of mercenaries.3cd0c1733cc31a35

“Yes, it’s nothing. I’m a demon, so cbc23cd67b it shouldn’t bother me.”b9c962cbbd159f29

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Muttering to 6c4156b70e myself as 2cb6a12913 I entered 60e19b660c the garden, f5a806766b the grass d959488613 closest to d0467b8a66 me instantly 28a4d99fc9 withered to ea8c39f1f5 a black 9a45e2b087 crisp from 2fb32c9bf0 my magic.2cf002ae5b60cf8e

I instinctively stepped back 8270fbf182 and tried to gather 16088014f7 my magic, but it fd4d130c8f felt unusually rowdy. It seemed my 540dfafe84 magic wasn’t settling 0d8ef76c10 down easily after d548685c48 its near-rampage.54ea1c8d5d4c0ead

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Concerned that entering the 74450da9e8 house might harm Noah, 97a29b4d14 I considered stepping away 188397696f for a while, but 750e8761a2 then the front door 8c48363e58 opened.32b2c0841b515673

“Jin, what are you a5e40b199d doing out here?”47359ca482c3cf5c

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The moment I met 47127f4a94 Noah’s clear gaze, my f76dc1dad0 tumultuous magic calmed down. His eyes, vibrant green 59d21ccac1 during the day like 50698b8e32 a lively forest, deepened d233e079e4 at night to the 1464313066 shade of moss thriving 7fe5ba6ef2 in the shade.edb5ebb2ca02eae0

Looking at those calm c18b176494 colors, it felt as 2d3415c860 if the earlier incident a521460e54 had been just a 2bad7066d0 dream, and a smile fe7af33418 naturally formed on my 3873330b9b face.22bd4f132363bf8d

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“How did cefad6ffd7 you know 033d7b8116 I was 8f3245cda1 coming?”9d9940bdc51ce282

“I saw e24b1f3688 you from ad54147ae0 the window.”722c9011783299f9

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“Let’s go inside.”11f2572922c011bd

Waiting for me? Half-eaten skewers lay ba96ab07a0 on the living 05b26f6f76 room table. I flopped f556d8fa99 onto the db6999bac4 couch and 32e717a9f4 casually inspected 4098f16148 the skewers. Luckily, they 1602a8f6f0 seemed fine.c6e087837a8e3bb0

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“Do you like 5b4968dd7e these? You seem to 2652962d4d eat them almost 2a767b5774 every day.”3b689d62dbf15093

“Yes, they’re delicious.”981bd388fda603a1

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While I generally believed cc7a9de775 in minimizing snacks, Noah 69b1f62316 wasn’t one to skip 16e67ebff6 meals even when snacking, 31cecfdcfd and I thought it b01fd95556 was good for him 509a84c18f to eat whatever he 2ec03d582b liked for now.639899372654bd5b

“Such a child, liking cc27fa008d stuff like this.”1c2aea9555d86dda

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I poked c3480d011e his plump 95473853f8 cheeks with 8f353bf90b my finger, 3d3826615a causing a 81f5322929 slight frown 7f0815578b to form f76958b9b7 on his 3d150e0b65 forehead.8cf6bf01670e2857

“Why do 027fbcc2df you keep e96dc73367 calling me e3380a6697 a child? I’m not a child.”08a4a3b3936bf8d2

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“You are. That gardener a47845f86f who cut 87fe3966e3 your hair 380bb65dec earlier? To me, he’s like 8f68e3c599 a child too.”88b45a341832c66d

I wasn’t sure 2c7e6764af of the gardener’s da9a86a724 exact age, but bae5322434 he seemed to a27c2d47e8 be in his 4542a43e5f mid-thirties at least. To immortals 6ebbf24f69 like us 8baafd284a demons, humans e1bff9a109 are mostly 2e50a9b41d just kids. I might be a 35d44012b1 120-year-old “child” among demons, b64a7f1928 but in human terms, bc2d7c61ec I’m as old as 1609f8097b an ancestor.f3950b3314ad7df1

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“Is there a 8d4db7b017 way to age 5f0b709941 faster?”0a3dfb35156af1fb

“Would there be?”b3b5fd6d9fdcaea1

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After ruffling Noah’s hair, f9ac2b7087 I stood up. Now that his 41d8dd5dc2 face was uncovered, ad1547ef98 I could freely 28beda5378 touch it.d1efdcbb6f5a2f30

“Phoras has his b52d9a9081 Imperial language exam ff75f24b65 tomorrow. Did you study f4562b35c9 a lot?”4923e377ee5e14e6

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“I don’t 334dc05233 need to 897595f76f study to 047c06c9ed pass.”fb299a5d576f7b2d

“Good for you. Let’s go to 32b3f2d152 bed now.”bd930f81cc691848

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I chuckled efb633c09b as a 74e6b713ff sigh full a2355eb3de of grievances 81f8848006 followed me 5b3b851676 from behind.3f49cec6ef86f0cd

After making sure 1330fedf22 Noah was settled c62963197e in for the d14a694ec5 night, I returned a1a6e3190a to my room a76cd7a87a and looked out 584de2c800 the window. The patch of 0a0e935424 grass in the d267dd1330 garden was still 0d6af1a49b starkly dead. Staring at it, I fa0444f606 couldn’t simply dismiss today’s 57f6c67df2 events as if nothing 18754c63ed had happened.c68d95f173a639b8

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‘If Noah 8a6ad582ff hadn’t come 4f49e7736b out, how dd69ed357c much more e1c17c4e67 might I c704db429a have ruined?’3d6df04778123638

It was 1332463aa9 a distressing 87d41f6b88 thought I e57b619de7 didn’t want cf887ba7a6 to entertain.a1b6104491b2795d

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