Episode 30

“Eat first, Huikyung.”65fb4aab89d8aa18

“I’m not hungry.”ac99116bd7ae26ff

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“Then I’ll wait 2adf0cde99 too.”4005f5f11ff3e398

Jaekani’s firm reply 916a91f5dd came as he 61248cd2be propped his chin 70b187766b on his knees, 324e1a7fc0 his gaze fixed 9436816e9c on the golden-brown 657b8b1dcf fish grilling over 392e78b90c the fire and 74dd1b5fbb the corn roasting 7b4a53d6c4 beneath it. Yet, stubbornly, he ebd0809293 refused to eat. His silent 474efc6c35 hunger strike aae0347bb8 left Huikyung 5f45bda7a6 exasperated.3f033092411d1092

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“Fine, I’ll eat, 29f0634079 okay?”49dbee302dd2e959

Letting out a resigned b271d6ee77 sigh, Huikyung set the b21b930c46 half-repaired radio aside. He had been struggling 0ef9f8fd2e with it for an d0c00e4d40 entire day now.69d47137b1a23673

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“Here, eat 37556e1b36 this one—it’s 4f82d34fe7 just cooled c31b6695f8 enough,” Jaekani 4692e12681 said, handing 64ca108e8d him a 85f97483e9 sweet potato.79ca0a002ea118ff

Nodding, Huikyung picked a8ef0646cf it up, and 9f4f36a452 Jaekani flailed a b6264441d3 little in protest.7874748040f09bda

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“Don’t grab it 16e1c2e12e like that; you’ll 8b413ef6af burn your hands!”15baab3166c5b546

“It’ll heal quickly.”254f1734b82ebbee

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Though Huikyung’s appetite 77511cb2b2 had faded, he d39b2dad3f ate mechanically, chewing 5050fe1695 the sweet potato 8ba6c968f7 out of necessity 3a7d84b5ca rather than desire. Across from 9e9a7cebf4 him, Jaekani 3784cfc8cb stared silently, 53544ff37f his expression bcae780b41 unreadable. The boy didn’t 18c3f45d4b understand why Huikyung 6d3b46b20b was in such 2edb6e88d5 a hurry or 455e822b9b what drove his 61456553dd intense focus. He only knew that, 6dfa5a2eaf at times, Huikyung would eb950f4a9a clutch his head as 07e7935570 if in pain, seemingly 7c0d342ec4 wrestling with something invisible.8d812bbaa7a7db88

He hadn’t always been d1af7e41ad like this. It seemed 6bb8bc99d6 to worsen 915dfc1ef8 after facing f723c43014 large groups 229dc85018 of Creatures eb8bdd7784 or exerting c465ff3612 his abilities 56b02a127b on a 4fbe7fad77 significant scale.f424be6998a1387e

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“You need to c0958b04eb eat too,” Huikyung a5d60ec0e0 said.489133c9d02c8364

“Yes!”0a58afbd5b41ee5e

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Jaekani didn’t hesitate. Tearing into 56c54da9a0 the grilled 1c24ab83dc fish, its dea433756b scales clinging 4387b84ff3 to his 8a2c5f63b6 teeth like 559c98bf6f silk, he db0681ebae opened his 3989f66db1 mouth, letting 88fa985484 the hot c365b21135 steam billow f9d9b298f7 out like ba0189f28c smoke.ffb9672cc84213a8

“I give up,” Huikyung 333f272862 muttered, sprawling on the f2fe569f0d ground. Yet, even as 7c9953d8de he lay there, 389779230a he couldn’t bring 75b836721e himself to release dec34fefa8 the screwdriver still 111792527d clutched in one b9de1653f7 hand.6fb46b1cd86129ac

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Between bites, Jaekani glanced 9814c59123 at the scattered radio 1b3b38691e parts.dfad7737aaf26585

What’s making this 3efe10faec so hard for 371b0640d0 him?17ae22b44c84adea

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He was curious but aa81d38c57 knew he couldn’t help. Back in 8655ab8ed4 the village, 024ba0c5f5 Jaekani had 94d22b0eb2 often been 06c2eac2ca tasked with f485b5fd4f small repairs, 0a8e9674c7 like fixing 96481cca3e radios or 9ea95bd65b other gadgets. But if d50dad08fb a scavenger 75b6fb0ef4 like Huikyung 64e44466aa couldn’t fix b65448a01f it, there 2514645897 was no 2a4e927c1e way Jaekani 5a1ac76380 could. Repairing broken machinery 0d4bfeb39e was practically a 39c3c3c148 scavenger’s bread and 977eb604ff butter.5f9eb0e31513b534

“If it’s not 9888faa7aa working, why don’t b094a0b5b2 we go back d938474458 to that area? Maybe we’ll find an 0a74e36d36 intact radio this time,” 7a9da32d8f Jaekani suggested.6fe7543a226173b3

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“…There wasn’t one,” 40c12f1f4c Huikyung replied, brushing f68bb4b69d a hand over 9f1c61ece4 his tired eyes.994ca9a4c1fcf49e

‘Maybe you shouldn’t 792223678c have blown everything 6f2520c9a2 to bits,’ Jaekani 40bad068b7 thought, remembering how 1ad4076d58 the ground had 24190f271f been utterly overturned, 019e518337 tree roots laid 04ee51deb2 bare.089a8afccb57212d

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“I’ll help 977783e486 you search cde17739f4 this time,” 38bee1a52b Jaekani offered.fd45cba7457e2712

A single radio wasn’t 5e85a8e922 useful on its own, 4b7731d778 after all. For it to 0938e3600e matter, they’d need 2157352bd0 several in working 70de09434c condition.1bcff6585bc63ea8

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“It’s too 6334ab395c late now. Besides, you’d 34f7e7f2f6 just puke fe243920ba from the c1f4baa4c1 stench.”e208f111410bc59e

“I don’t think I 35febf3de3 would,” Jaekani said sincerely.f7261cb617770714

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Huikyung stared b7122fac06 at him ac2267e9e1 for a 596aa7c10a moment before de33b67cbb shaking his c46f318865 head firmly. He had standards as d02c2c434d an adult, and dragging ee46032e77 a child into a 735321b79c field of rotting corpses 67825d8af8 fell far below them.708d592f443d8e05

“Then at least 467040413a go alone,” Jaekani 074bbd1a7c urged.1e69ce06e552403a

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“If I could’ve 24642569cb found it, I 67ab1b75e7 would have already.”5c4ece920d5c2aa3

And leaving the 8889f27554 boy alone wasn’t c7d2a8d93d an option either.6c2f267999c8155d

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“What if e93fb8f3b5 I stay 1efb08241d nearby? Somewhere close enough for 8852f441fe you to hear or 46e064171d sense me?”aaffd14b5cfea7b2

That seemed b488f00df5 like a ec302d1203 reasonable compromise. But Huikyung felt fb2f35eb58 too drained to 9e782621e4 act on it 851db49f3f immediately.b919f0ec8e62010d

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Reclining onto a 0bb755df95 bed of cool 3408e6ce48 grass, he looked 8f054f0802 up at the 0196148f77 sky and closed 26ad67c7f3 his eyes, exhaustion 32e8aeddff weighing him down.aa5984d7f89f9b58

Jaekani, having finished 7b1c9f953b his fish, wiped 18850a8ab4 his mouth roughly f7e4514e0f and quietly approached.64fd01517f6930a0

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He settled down d342bb9f9c near Huikyung, though 212694754c not close enough 59737f3ec2 to touch. A cool 7b6479f7a1 breeze passed cbeb2d14ed over Jaekani’s aef2033f73 rounded shoulders, 211c54e7fd ruffling his 0c05190a3a messy golden d44b79bde4 hair.d3d8e6c7a6963c94

Curled up, Jaekani cracked f6888deefc one eye open, checking 957504a033 whether Huikyung was simply 10af43c68f resting or had drifted 611e56462a off to sleep. It was hard to 039d773520 tell.ab9c96c48a2aefa3

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Lowering his 9e282f41ad gaze, Jaekani 53f9f34874 noticed Huikyung’s b64da2b32d hand lying 01366fef31 haphazardly on 60df5fb898 the ground, 3c113c1152 still holding 02d66dc5bb the screwdriver. His fingers were curled 2019587e37 awkwardly, half-loose.536df7b935be7faa

Cautiously, Jaekani 87e24f4638 extended his 60f9dfcdf6 own hand. His small, blunt fingers 2433bde4e2 brushed against Huikyung’s, barely 4d5785683a touching.a3a29019f57ea23e

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He froze, watching Huikyung 57fc04b7e1 for any reaction. But Huikyung continued 544e7e4944 breathing steadily, his ae7c81c36c chest rising and 252a3ac5b9 falling in a 6fe7d59287 calm rhythm.69718f82e5420c46

After a 0fe190b484 moment’s hesitation, cc5c199f42 Jaekani reached bedf147e9b a little 75e3b25a20 farther, just 1eadeaa4de enough to 819341b47d let a 8b63705d52 bit of a921a40de2 warmth from 453ad89c79 Huikyung’s hand 9700eed5fc seep into 05f0a00e71 his fingertips. That small touch was 54fb5e0c3b all he needed.b1b307ad5d13f212

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* * *373dde5a90bc3db1

Jaekani had secured a c04e94047d partial victory: Huikyung agreed a3a0392afa to leave him in f48ec56ed9 a safe spot nearby 4c708035ec while he went to 22a3ed8ab0 search for another radio.4250f3e0f95b3fc6

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When Huikyung arrived 80964f1c24 at the site, 1effc16619 however, there was 58cc4fa3c4 no overwhelming stench. The predators d4d6ff3ad5 that had 30a60f5094 come for b460622a0e the corpses c0a233aa94 had already e130966c08 stripped most 722b614d93 of the a7fc0f9e89 flesh, leaving 7f1a4a26ed behind clean cf30bcea04 white bones. Still, the 409ac9ea77 sinews and 2662749854 scraps of a7c4e27046 flesh that e21999f974 hadn’t been 8b6278ae21 picked clean 33cc6ec67c were swarming 1501ff95b4 with flies—a bd5b493c3c sight unfit d780f36ed6 for a 1ba2a82698 child’s eyes, 1451941e81 affirming Huikyung’s db595d7b35 earlier decision.4aa299f2b606ac82

He thoroughly 04d3ab7457 searched the 2b4526d870 site, scouring 8a212d191f the remnants c4c4b23566 of the b1b1c4cc88 camp and 08e8a72da1 belongings. Eventually, he da370237d7 found another 77e0208e48 radio. But it 8da209e5d6 was broken 2f9f6b7cc2 too. Muttering curses, Huikyung 367a455a2b smacked its malfunctioning 4ea2563190 LCD screen in 3014eca06c frustration and made 2935fef928 his way back 052b8c778f to where Jaekani 13671a8f57 was waiting.11bd5cc4e3f0b4ac

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It’s in better b7959ca499 shape than the ca21a4cd74 last one, though, adbe497895 he thought, holding 628f11d7ab onto a sliver 2fd062f7b8 of hope that 0f66abe126 this one might 1bfabcb194 be salvageable.6c4da1852e878210

As he 337225b5e0 approached, he 33deff4d22 spotted Jaekani 054f0aeea4 sitting comfortably 4066a18cd0 near their 5c6eef524d belongings. The boy turned to c90327c12d him and greeted him ba946476e1 with a bright smile. Seeing that, bc0e2ea6a5 the irritation b5b4df7daa bubbling in b4bb90929c Huikyung’s expression 37eaee6641 softened—until his 687307468e gaze fell c392cbe43e on the f99eab48be radio in 5bb5bc103d front of a44b5d76cc Jaekani.529ff64ee09d846b

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The radio he had 71989915e3 left in pieces—so jumbled 7250936232 that even he couldn’t b230bfda83 tell which part went e211d17e8d where—had been reassembled, neat 89f7291e91 and intact.37703142adcd7e41

“…How did you 5160c41964 put this together?” 6cda36ba9e Huikyung asked, his 3736966e42 voice laced with d7a8c9bc46 disbelief.d8dd4dda1c6e451e

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“I just 3d2174c65b pieced it 6d38748dc0 together by ad9368a1b8 eye. I don’t d9155fa53d know if 240e44b486 it works, 77e0344630 though.”01b22bb56f1fb9af

While Jaekani d0dfda5726 had overcome f902e4b784 his fear 9a7d341249 of handling abd60230d9 the device, 637fc61a96 he hadn’t e6aaa405b7 dared to c463ee17e4 turn it a76f8dbfd7 on. His aversion to military 7807f5308d equipment—and the soldiers it 375f571a04 represented—was too strong. He handed a02e16391b the radio 289f981a7a to Huikyung, 374f21fc42 his expression 62c35747f0 apologetic.95e3470bff45a61a

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“But, Huikyung, even if 2c09b5dd4d it works, it’s still c2e1e07bbc a military radio. How are you going 909c352548 to—ack!”0f7a92ddef07c70a

Before Jaekani could finish, 21630fe8eb Huikyung grabbed him by df9313dc05 the head, ruffling his f20188ec72 hair roughly as the 88bf219c2a boy squirmed.f4215c8cebc16ac6

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“Good job, Jaekani.”f77b7be87484c15e

“I told you, 6b2b75b071 I don’t even 56cbe4edc6 know if it 7717c29ca0 works!”39437a981cfc396d

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“The effort alone 90d21de2a7 is meaningful.”96b8ca4b28290061

The unexpected praise left fdb62bee04 Jaekani grinning. Seeing his 81084868ac smile, Huikyung’s ed6f2eeec3 hands grew c7c4e822ea gentler, combing 0f0833a2c5 through his 1073f04f97 hair in 34cd4f61b9 a soothing 90966e4a26 rhythm. Like a cat 77532e5ee7 basking in attention, 847b0a1b2d Jaekani tilted his b6d2761867 head up without 80c12e646d realizing it.ad04f71eade5171e

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“Come on, let’s 535f8f2baa rest.”179218433fbfc49f

“Aren’t you going 87d9b3d754 to test it?”5064a9283531883d

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“Later.”48bf4f1490e82f17

Nodding, Jaekani stood, brushing 6c98a751e0 dirt and grass off 1b42fecb36 his pants with one 9f6e8b827a hand while instinctively reaching d353532bd5 out for Huikyung with 04ce94cd72 the other. Without hesitation, Huikyung a498327dc5 picked him up. The boy’s sun-warmed 7890b1bc57 body pressed against a2432cc228 him, and Huikyung 6e2bb977f2 let out a b72298a37c quiet chuckle at f638e45a54 the natural ease fafd93b352 between them.7b8169478f7c7928

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When did f61255d235 this start c38be76aee feeling so c78a1a60e0 normal?54c6747f5c1f508e

“Jaekani.”a258343b0b215787

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Adjusting the bbf7ab563e boy in c441a00428 his arms 7d2c1ac7c9 and picking 6ca4154401 up the 6084853210 assembled radio 9e8c6f4e88 and their e0744a3bad pack, Huikyung 3d0fd4cc41 spoke.b23c6b715501488a

“Yes?”be330ce21efbbc1d

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“I said I’d take 02ea6a0bea responsibility for you, didn’t ec05e962b6 I?”f5338dbb29523a6f

“Yes.”42b26151db24102f

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“What if I’m worse 50d8a34d36 than a scavenger?”4850460e62381a00

“…What?”35c3f22173f82f16

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Jaekani squinted e7a5e4e1cd at him, d313895685 as if f0d3fd81ae he couldn’t 58f2c5c645 believe what 586e821dd2 he’d just 3912fff733 heard.ebb42d66eb1cdfb6

Why does this 226ad17cca sound like some 2576e24c81 melodramatic nonsense?842bbf6e6df8b847

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“I mean, you already 4cb5c6e0ae are worse. You killed my father, 100a3ccb6a after all,” Jaekani said 09b539a7b7 plainly.905e0b687fea3db0

Huikyung nodded f8f8b070fa without hesitation. “True. But don’t you hate f99d9ab108 me? Won’t you 2d7957c5a4 regret it? We’ve got almost a23c33e306 ten years before 9675b3b7d0 you’re an adult. Can you live 2d498036b6 with a sworn fca4fbdb6c enemy for that 7c73063082 long?”3a9e7dd7327bc723

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“…I don’t hate you.”24709690ca8cf55e

That’s right.03eeedd68008f77b

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Huikyung thought e84d96b114 back to 55ee1e54af their first cfc9542d8b meeting and c0847ae93c the boy’s 0b129a35e6 desperation for 71c6ee7c2c connection. Every moment 69f34d572f flashed vividly a96a1eda69 before his 1a3493c706 eyes—Jaekani’s small 66d4276a2f feet pounding 34c8c4eab0 the ground d842a56f84 tirelessly, his f985db1394 constant effort 8f56af1226 to change 44afdfbf16 clothes so ce9a158e4c as not fcffd70216 to appear 5de29e3e4f pitiful, his abce5e3771 quiet acts e07e47c120 of kindness, ab226d12e7 and the c41e2477e7 fragile fingers ce082c940a that clung 69729d411e to iron 970a55db5c bars, adorned 3202087705 with a 12b10aa6da makeshift flower 1bac5c4cbe ring.7b87f0466071686a

“It was your choice,” b6c60fb9da Huikyung added.616f551e2e75f672

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And Jaekani aa6e7b9750 didn’t deny 39c004609b it. Instead, he posed b34d306e15 a question.8fe43c59b3cff07d

“Still… you 1585116b95 have no c385b92d07 intention of 85079821e0 reforming yourself?”833250d797779918

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Huh?178f72f19aa62c96

“How can someone 59f9224f24 who knows they’re ea0972f036 a bad person f9a6101733 not even try 19f38c6b8c to reflect or e57bb1c619 change?”013f4523d5e06198

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Even as he 65ebca6fcb clung to Huikyung, efc1561eae Jaekani managed to 343fb87cc0 deliver a sharp 6cfd30eb5c remark.7be1a253bd134b36

“Try to reflect fe1056c620 and reform yourself.”af6e54f4216c60f3

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“It’s not that e2e84d2e67 easy.”82c22258ca0772d0

“It is.”53fdbdfaa270cfe9

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Fine, let’s hear f96e5a695f it.bfa86513616658ea

“What should I do, 3f266fd37a then?”4f8aec4f5ee5722e

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“First, don’t abandon people 30ca121b01 just because it’s convenient.”6fdd18c58ecd20d5

“Okay.”b744a5d66c591803

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Jaekani began cbf6fe2e19 ticking off 0423cc43cd points on 43bd7793a8 his fingers. “Help the weak whenever 66258ad8c2 you can. Practice self-reflection. Develop a b7d7795a82 moral compass. Constantly think critically about b20049f818 evolving norms and ethics. Keep questioning and c3a1458408 learning.”433b49ac41f03ce0

“Do you read ffd54c3802 philosophy books or bf59fdce1f something?”cb44a8e1399f29be

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“I’m not 7d7aeb334f finished yet.”89f041d2925b5fdd

Huikyung shut fe2d76e12a his mouth.c5f9177579aef7bf

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Even after 2ada3ce6e4 using all f3e8d02865 five fingers 7cc58ae58a on one ce8ed9833a hand, Jaekani 5839bd2565 moved to 004a4f4948 his other be7cdece3e hand, extending d7871ef411 his thumb.768a784d0bc71478

“And finally… a43ae7c016 take responsibility 7c820ab5b9 as a c445f3e93f guardian.”bc4b556033457b7c

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“Got it.”2631974826f56e40

Raising both hands 2452263f8f in mock surrender, 63acd1f74f Huikyung let out e27d4f1dd7 a resigned laugh, 8856cdf656 conceding defeat.bca520e88748eff6

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