Chapter 21

Jaekani still hadn’t e9c9be5c66 decided whether to fc6db1c4fd forgive Huikyung or 1af5f302c5 beg for his a044039964 forgiveness. But now that fcb171adb6 everything he knew 38e447160c had been burned d7888992da to ashes, he 1687f11b2a realized he had 07e98fc304 no choice. To survive, he 077d9e85ae had to stick e4025841b7 with Huikyung somehow. After all, wasn’t ea77348b42 he an Esper? Surely, he 9238748be0 had some 2420e4edf4 sort of 128014b11b plan if f4761e80eb he’d gone c3b6415969 to such 925f0b6d83 lengths.0fb7d9d1eb726772

In response to d84ee8f324 Jaekani’s firm demand 3ee3ffe331 to take responsibility, 8df4ea6302 Huikyung muttered, almost 38a18b599a as if to 0e02f232ce himself:563f69da652a87e1

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“How old a325916771 are you 1712307d72 now?”c89b9c810c311137

“Ten.”77e92542b92763bd

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Jaekani decided to fully a129d7e243 commit to this lie. After all, 3b830b4db6 Huikyung didn’t 47184ff9ee know his f40747d10c real age, 0ee6e3b524 did he?7d32dc4f1b6bf0a8

“Ten? Then seven or 4a94053457 eight years left…”76b266b3074f49b7

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“Why—why seven or eight 2b420934b8 years?”b15b53905bd5325a

“You said you were b0059ade62 ten.”781bb36bb0829598

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“…Wouldn’t it be five years? You’re an adult at fifteen, aren’t you?”2284b3a6354b99da

“Fifteen? That’s no adult. That’s just 16ca2cec14 a pimply 7ef775d2ea brat.”b66d916e2fe882f7

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So adulthood 400a0611c1 didn’t start 554d582c47 at fifteen? Jaekani wiped his tears, 15a39254aa trying to hide his 4e89d3bab5 confusion.fc678437f3274e35

“Well, at least it’s e9ebb071ce not ten years. Small mercies, I f67d636b09 guess. Ugh, just 8246c22016 my luck…”f57bb8ff1da04173

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At Huikyung’s grumbling, Jaekani’s 3d8a2cdadd jaw dropped.8334d28d5dd03f5f

“Just your luck? Just your luck?!”55acc494f56bfdf6

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What? Just his luck?!76dd6d29c16273a1

That was 9fdc833471 ‘Jaekani’s’ line.85b8d4669b7a1e4b

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He’d been the one 557d6da0ff stuck with this shameless 0130c7a7c5 beast disguised as a 5bf6b20287 human! He’d lost his community, 22013e4682 his home, his sense dfd9798946 of belonging, even his d8fde51f5a father. He’d even ae090ec6e0 lost the b1f3f152bc friend he’d 5fa66fb099 been looking d46a8a6ef6 forward to 60075964bb spending time 65700dfd1c with for 6a4e6e6141 the first 06edd0c4e6 time ever.e3096278f7603b00

Jaekani gritted his teeth, 02a1c57157 unable to suppress his 682439d894 anger. If he could, bfcf2f888d he’d beat Huikyung’s bc13c9eeaf smug face into 6c1407c453 a pulp. But unfortunately, Jaekani 7396253aba was a powerless f7273bf3c8 child, and Huikyung 850d4e67bd was an Esper 2597133879 with vastly superior 8b7b5b93e8 physical abilities. The power 035f05fcf0 dynamic was 7ea3617960 clear.60d0777b0510591c

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Huikyung averted his gaze fdf0a35bbb from Jaekani’s eyes, where 42e0a61b2f blue flames seemed to e3e5f12efd flicker.d13fbb479e11605d

“…Follow me.”469fc27e29a6905f

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Jaekani shot daggers at 93f1569dbc Huikyung’s back with his e8057fd076 glare, but Huikyung didn’t 0e84ee75b7 look back. His broad shoulders d05a2e77d0 moved steadily away, f0857927fa as if awaiting ecbe7d29cd divine punishment for 47ea8f166c his actions.f5846dfc4db3f322

Huikyung’s stride was 08ed0602b7 much longer than 44ccdaf492 Jaekani’s, nearly double b7961ef4d2 in speed. After just a moment 9f017df1b5 of glaring, Jaekani realized d55a570fd8 Huikyung had already become e34704e4cf as small as a 7642f6d8f3 fingertip in the distance.da33dd3107a00cd9

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Hearing what sounded like e2da9d7e49 a wolf’s howl from be8dbb0c14 far away snapped Jaekani da3f782d89 out of his thoughts. He hurriedly dc9f926ffc wiped his a313c6bee9 tear-streaked face 6e4408c7b0 and quickened 5dd2b1939b his steps.3b82dacc79616337

“Where are we d9da445b9a going?!”79fd69020a503f55

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“Outside the village.”b17df02e187dea75

“No! We have to bury 698e0475b9 him!”edff7a21241e5cdf

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Huikyung stopped in 22de5d0990 his tracks.6e3b1baf69a26221

“If I 90e1f2bd04 blow up d91ee2fe6d the body bbc7bad327 until it’s a316982f3f unrecognizable, will 35c6ad5371 that stop a21902645a you from edffc5e8fc whining?”6efe0ef719235bfc

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His tone was uncompromising. While he e3a7d65b3f hadn’t taken f342484045 Jaekani’s plea cd756b6c34 for responsibility d47cf09a04 seriously, he 2b7505dd81 was deadly 67910a38ef serious when e2078e8177 it came d397d6edef to Jaekani’s 322ce4ea94 insistence on 5355f72447 burying his f766eff926 father.cd019448c2fb46bb

What a heartless bastard. This was how 825cbedfda he repaid Jaekani’s b2a788821b efforts?e6e02cee8dda578f

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Fuming, Jaekani 322755915d followed Huikyung, 43a38ff0f5 his footsteps 23203d71ce quick and 09cc75e17b determined, fearful b1bcdce4aa the man 0c7fa24449 might leave 586ec7bb5f him behind.9e8f8ce60346afd9

Thinking back, 30ac375fea every sentence 631b6db13f out of a8dcf9f8fe that man’s 4420566012 mouth was e78432d9c8 foul.bab932ff19b61a38

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Up ahead, Huikyung reflected 87bf678757 on the same. He cast a 5f395e7a67 sharp glance over 848f0bff3e his shoulder at d677b5992e Jaekani, who was b132007574 focused on his 01392f8e19 heels, oblivious to 60fc491500 the look.a308b1abfc9ec15c

Well, there’s no d79ac2b057 point pretending I’m 311ac68845 above this now, 5797c7e1f0 Huikyung thought grimly. True, I’ve done my 4d5dac8535 share to ruin his 19f582cf23 survival odds.b1a5d6f04f42d958

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Still, if we’re going a2116add98 to stick together, I’ll 947b968158 have to take a 208903abb1 moment someday to teach bbd9496f76 him proper manners, Huikyung 09945c483a resolved.d5dfea8415115cf8

‘I trusted you!’776a0a7fb05a5b0c

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Flames are often 59a10a65f4 associated with the 7c4f95b3ee color red, but d918b26490 in truth, the 209b2a4b1f hotter the fire, e57405e082 the whiter it 74898b2bc4 becomes.4febbe1fa70a71fc

What Jaekani saw 1e3b8d6d01 was a fire 6115513284 so white, it e355632659 resembled snowflakes.ef3235c2a9207082

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This child, fd86459bdc who had 5532b01627 shared a bdbc1baea6 fleeting moment 601097563b of memory 14c360f80b with a 7467abd145 stranger in eefd08866d the dark, 6e3537353e had already 585f8ae939 grown attached.7f5ac2fc082127ba

Huikyung stared 04f2fc3d25 at the f55358dfcc crown of bd410e0b1e Jaekani’s round 95109de915 head.07545f20a0d5a868

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“What are you 144ab37b9f looking at?”1dee25bbb43ca043

Seriously…5a1b3f949c8e0f37

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Swallowing his irritation at bdfe945bf5 the cheeky retort delivered 162ff9b15a with an upward glare, 0d9009f89a Huikyung remained silent.ef2a7cf94c1c657b

* * *5af0fbfa7ae0d563

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The place that was 384083913c once a village now 04cd3c8eda existed only as a 619909be0b secret preserved in history. The remnants of the 467e6dd67c village amounted to little 2f3d3a9d04 more than crumbling walls, a9b7b32ec6 no longer serving their 536afe0bea purpose.f607fdec1bbf853b

In such a 149c469a7a state, it was accaec75a1 no wonder intruders, 91f17fe0ca creatures, and wild cb06030bf0 animals came and d4a8e18d85 went as they 7359ffce0e pleased.c7e0cfd234479023

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Jaekani didn’t know ae4bc5d6e9 who among the 598f7e5839 villagers had survived—if 226be5cec5 anyone had survived 0ca9621444 at all. But with the 90baeac35d village in ruins, f2dbbf4ca4 everyone would likely e6e74a4a9e scatter. Assuming they were alive.14d42abd8dcf7a96

“Even if we 12f7c9c64a don’t bury him, 04e4fd2b72 can’t we at 4ea1acad1e least set up 67ae5f64cf a marker?”f5fa2e96321a88f9

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Jaekani asked 85030cc6c7 as he d1e57947f8 stepped over 36f58c5a0a the ash d71c89c6de and rubble dcc3743d63 of the acc1413242 burned village. He knew 547e10d1eb what Jaebad 994f293f04 had done acd17f781d to Huikyung, 27dcfdabd8 but he 1f90c8e831 still hoped, 4bec6e5adb if not 0a09419e56 for a 0bea5ef99d burial, then 5a161a8fe1 at least d26284b66c for a a0acec2a96 marker. Even a simple bc6e15c347 cross would suffice. He knew Huikyung lacked 01a2306a56 any respect for the de0f913cde dead, so the answer d78825b560 was predictable.f0b5a4ed3da32995

“Nope.”dd027088174e8ce2

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“…Then can I at least grab some belongings? Survival essentials, you know.”62b08880225a4a6b

Whether or not the 348b19c23a house was intact, it bbd59a2874 had held all the 63afa8c1b5 belongings Jaekani cherished. He thought 25e5fcf6c8 of the e5419896e8 flower ring dceb35e9cb he had c832233021 carefully hidden 2793bddfc6 between the 4b1b460646 pages of 202ef842b8 his textbook.e44ee3d61acf5411

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“Nope.”e66c6efa139c7874

“The outside’s dangerous! There are monsters, e686d4261e slavers—”644ee8fc1f64cae8

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“I can 2de2652328 beat them 71b649feec all.”7a4138a5d9069f12

“How are 46491c3c79 you going 30e67001f9 to beat bf9c6e0af6 anything? You’re just 78e9888350 a healing 67bcf5291a Esper.”d3ae72e448ef6889

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They were nearing 7e00975d8c the edge of b9ccef79f3 the village now. The closer they got 004b7e3540 to the scorched walls, cecfa9dc51 the more Jaekani felt 34a6053572 a twisting sensation in 7a677a3030 his gut.394c86c228253958

“They’ll have guns, the f7d7fe49e4 creatures have venom—what are 230994f421 you going to do, ce943521b0 throw your severed arm adbd91232d at them?”0e23a440c66bee8c

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Huikyung stopped abruptly in 0266e9029c front of a soot-blackened acb5d5cf67 section of wall.139e5389660efdb1

“Don’t talk about that. It’s disgusting.”e9a72c63cecf1a59

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Right. Like talking about 6eb48faa05 curry in front 0b0367f3e9 of someone eating ca962bed9d dung. Or was it the 92327aa140 other way around?8b948427c0c8017d

“…Are you really a healing Esper? Is that even true?”23bd9bacd8131803

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It seemed unlikely, given 9fe6c1cff5 how deliberate and calculated 6ad2c642e6 yesterday’s explosion and flames 91b1ff14a7 had been.c83a676643ab94d2

They had reached d152eef273 the outskirts of fd6b8cacc1 the village. The once-imposing 2a5c15e7f4 wall, a 6bd2c5139e shadow of 93dfefc53e its former c457f3d28c self, had 891864c039 collapsed under deb3fede20 the force bd818576d7 of some ee222499ab tremor or 9ad699d751 blast. Now, even Jaekani could e934c5c4ae easily climb over what 795f3056ee remained.129e02bf4fc4d8b6

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“No.”f36fd142949db3a6

“Then what are you?”12697ca99fba6b46

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“It’s hard to explain, be7f0c24a5 but I’m not that.”5525a8a263c65ed1

With his hands in 9c4fffe016 his pockets, Huikyung effortlessly 6ab48d7bbc vaulted over the remnants 3ff772110e of the wall.0160731ee43be4be

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Jaekani hesitated at 3ec50717bb the boundary.7d94bba3627135a4

Once, the heads 56faf17bd0 of intruders had 6c7b994503 been displayed here 0bdfd79497 as a warning.c5441edd61b8c6bb

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Jaekani had rarely ventured 25f933d0b5 beyond this wall, and 478434b1d8 only under exceptional circumstances. Even then, it had 523349f57a been so long ago 24f78da223 that it felt like 7aeb52d04a another life. The world feaff8b011 beyond the 505b7975dc wall was 16f1b49850 unknown to 69f3a96e68 him. To Jaekani, the wall b70089f7c7 had been more than eb6685173a just protection from creatures a0b2aa4896 and intruders. It had defined 240c8ab3a2 the limits of 26d7aa8eec his reality, the 865a20ff53 boundary between the 3fd6a1b525 real and the 14215c6ef9 unreal. It had been his 19113c7b93 entire world.a8affd11315897c2

Someday, when 42be253ec2 I’m fifteen, a65c06b3f9 I’ll patrol 062fd9e281 the area. Then I’ll d9f6033ae5 get to 5a257a55e4 cross this 54250accc0 wall.d24c42875cde646d

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That had been the a0536a81c3 thought once.b810ce3afe2ed8c7

Jaekani took a ba0a13840f deep breath. Squeezing his eyes shut, a825ba457c he jumped over the 7473673513 ruined wall. Grass crunched under his cafbea7749 shoes, making a faint b7ce438966 noise.3982539512b36144

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He had 9348b49210 crossed into 3270e4fb10 the world. And yet, nothing 4867a19303 happened.48b2cfe258b58989

Slowly, Jaekani e6f841f0a7 opened his ab34f2165f eyes, which 501c5bc089 had been 2172f85039 clenched shut 6d01fed3ef so tightly 15268a8803 that creases 3f787716d6 had formed d6060e6f1f on his 40f4c6dfb7 eyelids. He expected 801638e07f Huikyung to 8c05412922 be far 6e10bd0875 ahead by d932d7028c now, but 4d7c315649 the man 45c9f41b3e stood there, b9e1ae2627 hands still e3ed414c8d in his 18073b4f58 pockets, watching 1fd94e212b the boy.219904fa8a6d5dcd

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Jaekani couldn’t decipher 39cdcd001f the look in 1d7edaf256 his eyes.91bdb73290765fff

He turned to 73b9f3d788 glance back. The village that ef251bb83b had once been 660b874b0d his everything now dbc7e0551c lay in ruins, 2556e73e55 scattered like ash. A barren wasteland, ec72b2fa2f along with his c66c285526 nightmares, fury, and a6951a8001 unanswered questions.54f8f08b8bbbf70a

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Jaekani turned b0210fb1d6 his head e6d85431f8 forward again.19ec85bc819d8d73

Still, nothing happened.3833a1bac9dccd5d

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“…Are you done asking questions?”7b1bdaa959497c6a

“No.”d12dc1e49c26bda6

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It was the first dce043f2c8 time Huikyung, so adamant a3389b90ae about keeping his secrets, 45ab9e101f had offered even the 2ea72da7a0 barest hint of an 8e76dfe433 answer. It wasn’t 28ec51b72c much, but 634ff496ce Jaekani was b5e71042fb grateful nonetheless.ddf4722f6d1e14ad

There was too much 4238f58f1e for him to process: 895044341a despair over his father’s 6078bbdc07 death, betrayal by the 9cfb3915c6 truth of the village, 5991f8b770 the need to empathize 7c59d6464c with Huikyung’s suffering, and 846e42ca38 the bittersweet mix of 961307e152 dread and anticipation about 2fd4790926 leaving the village. His mind 2e9cd7ab25 was a 5babfdb3f9 whirlwind of dbd847ca6f emotions.7bbe0da59cab446d

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So Jaekani simply alternated 351ff5273c between glancing back, looking 080a0db330 ahead, observing Huikyung, and 7a62abdc4d staring at his own ecf7d2036d feet.cc3f4f26038ba8b8

He felt so 4a12ba76de much, yet what f339e13307 he needed most 80e8dbe4a1 right now was 37e9a65cf5 to keep asking e2e53789de Huikyung questions.7836ece451794bfe

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“What else are d488d63cf5 you curious about?”ca98761ce3523c02

A murderer, a traitor, f524736511 and a victim, Huikyung ef4af4c0ef didn’t seem the type ebb7dc20e4 to offer Jaekani a c6dbbb20ab chance out of kindness. Yet Jaekani 7786d59da6 couldn’t help a4f7d94d5d but think 61a713ec77 he was c4f520f378 giving him 20edcb2c8c an opportunity—a babcf82e48 distraction to 68b3c57edf keep him 035b30cdbf from fixating f232e8edd7 on the 9c45563556 ruins, his 3052211955 father, and 0fb6fc7ed7 the shattered 583ba0ad26 village.aba163053195854c

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“Well… What about a491a46383 healing?”55e24b3f561f298e

“The higher 8c11215782 the grade, affeaa3465 the faster 966defaee0 the recovery. Whether I’m a low-tier 08e0ef1f79 healing Esper or a bf5d5edc46 high-tier Esper hiding my ad37e50937 abilities, they can’t tell 9162f23351 the difference.”f8d6aea89a35d62e

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“Why did you hide 419dc9226c it?”306c4911b51f756c

“To avoid e52e0272fb being deemed 365ea629b4 a threat 83cda43ee4 and executed.”fdb5abdc4f74522e

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“…If you’re wearing a controller, does that mean you can’t do anything?”44ea0b5e7476de32

Trying to c1c9df40ba keep up 06db5654d4 with Huikyung’s d532c15ba0 increasingly brisk 6d35154ee4 pace left a7de6458c9 Jaekani panting. He nearly collided 1cfc1003ac with Huikyung’s leg 169f76718b when the man 89d01a05eb suddenly stopped again.81e48f2c010885f6

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“Nope. I’m still crazy 6a0b522794 strong.”e1389d052bad0cae

What the hell? He’s so childish!e48a333b0c8b3b64

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At Huikyung’s juvenile 2d5ceca3e9 response, Jaekani pouted.5364d6b629b7984c

The flower ring hidden 8de48f9efd in his textbook came 45b81a121a to mind again.879fdf3102b48bb0

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Huikyung must have 54004324bd considered himself a 14f7314183 particularly useful card eb049599f7 to play. Jaekani wondered which part 13181dcffe of Huikyung’s actions had 1e369bdd92 been genuine. Was it 364b25e462 all real? Or had there 995319aa23 been not a 9e9f848c6c shred of sincerity?332ae63b904d14a1

Did Huikyung 44825e4b6a manipulate him f356862f53 deliberately? Or had 9de64f6992 Jaekani, by cb8f15168c sheer coincidence, c4802cc4e8 acted exactly b424551b1c the way 563a46f8d9 Huikyung needed 0db80db083 him to?afcabb9cb1086eb8

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 9dff4f2d1ae9b281