Chapter 131
Hero Preparatory School, the Principal’s Office.
Kim Shinwoo stood by the window, gazing down with a relaxed expression.
‘It is quiet.’
The construction that had gone on for twenty days had concluded without incident.
Most of the cadets had already returned, and the seasonal term would begin soon.
Once the short seasonal term ended, the second sester would quickly follow, and the cadets who had taken a leave of absence would return.
As the fervor for study burned brightly once more, winter would arrive again, and new freshn would step into Hero Prep.
‘Ti flows on without fail….’
He had never truly been acquainted with the passage of ti.
Though he was of a similar age to An Hwigom, he looked far too young to be called middle-aged.
That did not an he did not age.
He rely lived within a current of ti that moved more slowly than that of others.
BZZZZ—.
As he enjoyed the mont of leisure, his smartphone vibrated.
The caller ID was blocked.
Even so, Kim Shinwoo already knew who was calling.
“……”
He waited for the call to end.
For several dozen seconds, he stared down at the screen without reacting.
In the end, however, he answered with a heavy heart.
“……Aileen.”
─You must be busy?
“Well, I always am.”
The caller was Aileen.
It was only natural that the two of them knew each other.
Ever since the Great Rift, the young Aileen had followed Kim Shinwoo around as though he were a parent.
It had been his suggestion in the first place that Aileen leave the country with Do Minyeong.
Do Minyeong still had not realized that.
That was how long the two of them had shared a close bond.
So much ti had passed that only a handful of people still knew of their relationship.
─Just as I ntioned before, Minyeong brought a friend with her. His na is Ji Seokhyeon.
“Yes, I rember.”
─When Minyeong is with that child, she makes the most delightful expressions. A bright face befitting her age. I have spent years with her, but I never knew she could smile like that.
“It is a relief that she has found soone she can rely on.”
─By the way, do you rember what Uncle Yuseong once said?
“What about?”
─That if any man dared to flirt with Minyeong, he would cut him down imdiately.
“If they are a source of strength to each other, is there any need for that?”
─Hmm, I thought as much… So placing that child by Minyeong’s side was your intention, was it not?
“……”
Kim Shinwoo neither confird nor denied it.
It had always been impossible to deceive Aileen’s intuition.
─You always cherish Minyeong so dearly.
“I am sorry I did not tell you in advance.”
─Still, seeing how well the two of them get along, I believe it was not a bad choice.
“Is that so?”
After his short reply, silence lingered between them.
Yet neither of them ended the call.
It was as though they were savoring the silence itself.
Aileen spoke first.
─Co visit soti. I will be waiting.
“Aileen, we already made a promise back then.”
─I know. I do. But… I cannot help wanting to see you.
“……”
Her voice trembled with tears, unlike her usual carefree tone.
From the mont Aileen had declared herself Do Minyeong’s guardian, the two of them had resolved to carry the truth of their acquaintance to their graves.
It had been a suffocating decision, but to protect Do Minyeong from the Demonic Being, it had been necessary.
Only by maintaining the appearance of ‘a niece despised by her only blood-related granduncle’ could they avoid suspicion.
The fact that Kim Shinwoo had been supporting their life in hiding from the shadows could never be revealed.
Even if sothing irreversible were to happen.
Even if he were to lant it with bitter regret later.
At last, Kim Shinwoo parted his heavy lips.
“I have matters to attend to. I will hang up now.”
***
A few days later, an opportunity arose to conclude the investigation into the Saintess Society.
An invitation to a special assembly had arrived for Probationary Investigator Yun Jeongseop.
According to the rumors, those invited would be recognized as official believers at the special assembly.
In other words, they would undergo a ceremony in which they were granted a forced awakening potion.
Therefore, this ti, I decided to attend the assembly in Yun Jeongseop’s stead.
“The leader will certainly appear. There is a high probability that the leader is a Demonic Being. If we are to raid the scene, it would be best for to infiltrate it.”
We were at Yun Jeongseop’s ho in Seoul’s District 5.
Under normal circumstances, we would have t in the lounge of Seoul’s District 2.
However, Park Chaeshin and Yun Jeongseop had strongly insisted on eting here, and the reason was…
“Hic! So what if you infiltrate alone? Who is stopping you?”
“What? Infiltration? As a cadet, you lack the basics. Cadet Ji Seokhyeon, minus one point.”
It was so they could turn the place into a drinking den.
It was an obvious ploy aid at , since I always avoided drinking gatherings.
“Ha….”
At first, we had simply torn into so fried chicken while drinking beer.
Then, without warning, Yun Jeongseop began pulling out bottles of liquor from various corners of the house, and now both of them were thoroughly drunk.
If I had known it would co to this, would I ever have brought the two of them together?
“What? Do you have a complaint? Investigator, he is looking at us like we are pathetic.”
“Tut, tut! This is all my fault. As an instructor, I failed to guide him onto the proper path.”
“This will not do! We need to properly teach him the hierarchy between seniors and juniors!”
“Calm down, Park Chaeshin! If beating him would solve it, things would not have co this far!”
The ti was only seven in the evening.
As I absentmindedly watched their pitiful display, two hours had already been wasted.
I drained my glass in one gulp and spoke.
“Then I will take that as settled and head out. See you at the assembly.”
“What? You are leaving already?”
“What an insolent cadet!”
“Ha…. If you do not like it, co out to the playground right in front. I will take you on myself.”
“Hmph, sorry, but I have no intention of sparring with a junior.”
“I have my dignity as an instructor. Even if a cadet is rude, I do not wish to resort to violence.”
“Then be quiet and continue drinking.”
When I responded sharply, the two of them began whispering to each other and badmouthing .
It was childish behavior, painful to watch.
As I finally rose from my seat, Yun Jeongseop called out to .
“Ah, wait a mont.”
“What now?”
“I almost forgot, but this bracelet will not co off. You will need it for infiltration, will you not?”
As he said, the bracelet did not budge.
It appeared to be bound by a specific curse.
Without hesitation, I restricted the mana within the bracelet.
As though there had never been an issue, it slipped off imdiately.
Hooking the bracelet around my finger and spinning it idly, I muttered,
“That settles it. I am leaving.”
Just then—
BZZZ—.
My smartphone vibrated.
The caller was Do Minyeong.
I moved my thumb to answer without thinking, then stopped.
Why would Do Minyeong be calling at this hour?
She would not contact without a particular reason…
In an instant, an unspoken pressure seized my entire body.
My heart dropped as though I had co face to face with fear itself, and just as the ringing was about to cease, I finally answered.
What ca through the line was a wailing voice.
─Ji Seokhyeon! A–Aileen! Aileen…!
“……”
Her ssage was simple.
Aileen had ultimately passed away from a chronic illness.
As Do Minyeong’s sobs continued, I could not utter a single word.
It was I, the original author, who had killed Aileen.
It had been a developnt ant to propel the fragile Do Minyeong one step further forward…
Only after hearing her cries did I truly realize.
My choice had been foolish beyond asure, and unbearably cruel to her.
***
That night, in the principal’s office of Hero Preparatory School.
Kim Shinwoo let out a low groan at the sight of the uninvited guest who had co at such a late hour.
“So, what is it that you wish to say?”
Standing before him was Ji Seokhyeon.
His expression was more serious and heavy than ever before.
“A short while ago, Aileen passed away.”
“……”
“Ah, perhaps that does not clarify things. The elderly woman known as Do Minyeong’s guardian has died from a chronic illness.”
“…Why are you telling this?”
“I thought you ought to know. It does not seem entirely unrelated to you.”
“I see. If you have no other business, then leave. I am rather weary today.”
“Yes. …Then I will take my leave.”
Even after answering, Ji Seokhyeon stared at Kim Shinwoo for a long mont.
When he finally left the office, Kim Shinwoo leaned back in his chair.
‘That child is gone….’
He had known that she would depart this world sooner rather than later.
The life of a non-awakened person was always fleeting.
Although their official eting had been six years ago, before she left the country, Kim Shinwoo had secretly visited Seoul’s Outskirts District 30 from ti to ti to watch over Aileen.
Up until yesterday.
Had Aileen known that he had always been watching?
Until he could ask her, he would never know.
Still, she must have known that he had stood by her side throughout her life.
That had been her happiness and her hope.
He quietly closed his eyes.
Unbidden, the years began to flicker past like a lantern show.
Seventy-three years ago.
After the seven-year-long battles of the Great Rift had finally ended, he had encountered Aileen in the ruins, crying her heart out.
Before the corpses of her dead parents, she had pleaded with him.
“I will do everything you tell ! I will not throw tantrums! I will not be a burden! So please, take with you!”
The desperation of a three-year-old child stirred the compassion of a man who had walked through slaughter.
“What is your na?”
“Aileen.”
That had been their first eting.
Another mory surfaced.
Sixty-three years ago.
In an era of chaos, when Seoul was expanding its territory toward the outskirts.
“Aileen, how many tis have I told you not to go to the outskirts?”
“But I do not like the inner-city children. They are all so stuck-up.”
“Stuck-up?”
“The way they speak and act is so irritating. The children in the outskirts are kind and nice.”
“I understand that. But the outskirts are not as safe as you think.”
“Hmph, you will protect anyway! You are the second strongest person in the world after Uncle Yuseong!”
“…Aileen, you truly…”
“Bleh!”
Another mory seeped in.
Fifty-six years ago.
The day Aileen turned twenty and got drunk for the first ti.
“Ugh, you reek of alcohol. What would you have done if so stranger had tried to take advantage of you?”
“Uncle! Hic! Ah….”
“If you vomit, I will kill you.”
“No! Uncle, I am going to beco a jazz artist! Hic!”
“What? You cannot even study properly, and now music?”
“There is a trio from New Orleans at that jazz bar over there! If you sit and listen quietly, the taste of the alcohol… Hic! Ugh!”
“Hey!”
Another mory burst forth.
Fifty years ago.
Aileen, as always drunk, being carried ho on his back.
“Uncle, I think I might quit music.”
“Oh? Then do.”
“The head of the label says I have no talent. That orc-like bastard! Uncle, what if a singer cannot sing very well? Is not having a pretty face a talent too?”
“No.”
“Tsk, you are always like that. Would it hurt to say sothing nice?”
“You were already indulged enough.”
“Waaah! I wish I had awakened too!”
Another mory ca.
Forty-six years ago.
Aileen, past the typical marriageable age, listless from repeated heartbreak.
“Uncle, why do you not get married?”
“I have no interest in such things.”
“Hm? You are not unattractive, and you look young… No, you have not aged at all compared to before. What is your secret? Do awakened people normally stay so youthful?”
“Do not try to find out. You will get hurt.”
“Co to think of it, Uncle Yuseong looked incredibly young too. Oh! That man from back then was the sa. The one who is the head of Hyeonseong Group, that pretty-boy sort.”
“Cha Jaehee?”
“Yes. From what I heard, he was around the sa age as Uncle Yuseong. How does he look younger than ?”
“Do not try to find that out either.”
“Yes, yes, of course. You always say it is a matter for adults and never explain properly. But do you know sothing? I am thirty now!”
“Then before it is too late, marry a decent man.”
“It does not work that way. And I do not want to hear that from soone who has not married either.”
“What? I told you, I have no interest.”
“Forget it! Unless you are going to live with forever, do not bring up marriage!”
“I already am living with you.”
“That is not what I ant!”
Another mory appeared.
Twenty years ago.
The day Kim Yuseong brought the newborn Do Minyeong.
“Uncle! Did you know Uncle Yuseong had a granddaughter?”
“Well… so it seems….”
“Do not tell you did not know either? Honestly, the quiet ones are always the first to surprise you. Who would have thought that Uncle Yuseong, the most steadfast romantic in humanity, would betray us like this?”
“Betray? If you had married when I told you to, would it not have been better?”
“That is exactly my point. This is all because of you. If I had not been so infatuated, my child would already be attending the 4th Scholastic District by now. My standards rose for no reason, and look at now.”
The final mory surfaced.
Six years ago.
The day before Aileen left the country with Do Minyeong.
“It is not too late to reconsider.”
“Have you forgotten what Uncle Yuseong said? That if we do not protect that child, a calamity like the Great Rift will descend again.”
“There must be another way. Do not act in haste….”
“You always followed Uncle Yuseong. Whether there was a pit of fire before you or a thicket of thorns. I have followed you all my life. So Uncle Yuseong’s words cannot be wrong this ti either.”
“Aileen….”
“Do you rember? When we first t.”
“Yes.”
“I am glad. It feels as though I can finally keep my promise. At last… I can stop being a burden to you.”
“……”
“I will be going now!”
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