Chapter 127.

My body felt heavy and dizziness swept through my head .

In this situation where I could barely hold on to my sanity, a strange suspicion rose up inside me .

Was this world a novel or reality?

Suddenly, the sentences I wrote in my novel popped up in my head . The contents of my novel came to life, and Chae Jinyoon’s heroic tales flashed before my eyes . The Tower of Wish, artifact scrambles, and the Tower of Miracle…

However, these things could no longer happen .

For the first time, I was overcome with the realization that I killed a person . I could hear the sound of something breaking inside me .

This world was just a novel…

It was the sound of that subconscious belief shattering .

Tsss .

Black boots descended on the sleet covering the ground . I raised my head in a daze . Boss’ dark pupils entered my sight . Her body was fluttering on the snowy field .

“Take care of the corpse . ”

Boss muttered . I stared at Chae Jinyoon, who was lying tragically with half of his head blown up .

He had partially transformed into a devil . Demonic energy still remained in his body, which would soon combust into a huge explosion .

Boss helped me up . In that instant, I noticed that my body was half-burnt . The thin clothes I was wearing for Jain’s Disguise had burned up when I fired my gun .

Although my feet were on the ground, I couldn’t stay standing . Staggering, my head fell on Boss’ shoulder . Boss stood still and accepted me .

Soon, a Portal appeared nearby . Jain and Khalifa walked out from inside, and when they saw what happened, their expressions turned grave .

At that moment, demonic energy shot up from Chae Jinyoon’s corpse .

That was where my memory ended .

**

January 3rd, a particularly cold, dark night .

KWANG!

Chae Shinhyuk threw the door open .

Inside a resting place of corpses, he met a familiar face .

“…Hello, Chae Shinhyuk-ssi . ”

Forensic scientist, Kim Joongho .

They were united 11 years after the death of Chae Shinhyuk’s wife .

“… . ”

Without sparing any time to offer a greeting, Chae Shinhyuk approached the corpse lying next to Kim Joongho .

When he saw the corpse, he clenched his teeth .

A cold corpse of a man whose face was half blown up . It was his son, Chae Jinyoon .

“Do you have any leads on the suspect?”

Chae Shinhyuk maintained his composure as much as possible .

“Not yet . An isolation barrier must have been around the scene of the crime . There isn’t a single trace of the incident remaining . ”

Investigators nowadays had all sorts of supernatural Gifts: psychometry, cold reading, etc… However, not even the most competent investigators of Korea could find any evidence .

“Was it the Djinns?”

“…We aren’t sure . ”

“But there’s demonic energy right here . ”

Chae Shinhyuk pointed at the black energy coalesced around Chae Jinyoon’s right arm .

“Do I look like a fool?”

From Chae Shinhyuk’s reddened eyes, tears began to flow .

“…Chae Shinhyuk-ssi . ”

Kim Joongho sighed softly .

He had no choice but to say what he didn’t want to say .

“This demonic energy… came from Chae Jinyoon’s body . ”

“…What?”

Chae Shinhyuk’s face contorted frighteningly .

Kim Joongho stared at him with downcast eyes .

“This demonic energy came from his body, but was stopped in the middle of traveling through his veins . And that must be because he died . ”

“… . ”

Chae Shinhyuk was unable to understand Kim Joongho’s words .

No, he refused to accept it .

Demonic energy came from his body? That was impossible… unless Chae Jinyoon was a Djinn .

“If it is you, it should be easy to find the accursed murderer who killed your son . ”

Kim Joongho continued to speak as Chae Shinhyuk stared at him with widened eyes and rough breathing .

“With Daehyun’s power, with Chae Joochul’s power, even rampaging through Pandemonium shouldn’t be difficult . However, we are no longer living in the 80s . ”

Kim Joongho’s gaze fell on Chae Jinyoon’s right arm .

“…Jinyoon became a Djinn . No, this is the first time I’ve seen such an arm . This is even more elaborate than the Djinns’ Devil Transformation . You can see that it’s persisting even after his death . ”

Chae Shinhyuk’s breathing became even more disheveled . Killing intent could be felt from his eyes looking at Kim Joongho .

“I can only surmise that something happened four years ago during the Djinn suppression operation… . To discover the exact reason and search for the culprit, an autopsy will be necessary . However, an autopsy will reveal Jinyoon’s true state . ”

Chae Shinhyuk looked down at his son .

The gaze of the father scrutinized the body of the son .

A face half blown up, an eye forever closed, a frail boney body, and… a right arm devoured by a mysterious existence .

Chae Shinhyuk slowly closed his eyes .

An emotion flowing from the depth of his heart ate away at him .

“This right arm . ”

After a momentary silence, Chae Shinhyuk spoke up .

“Are you the only one who knows about it?”

Kim Joongho maintained his silence and nodded .

“Are you certain?”

“…Yes, but it is something we will have to reveal one day . For humanity . ”

“… . ”

Chae Shinhyuk placed his hand on his son’s cheek . His skin was already cold and dry .

Caressing what felt no different than a fish, Chae Shinhyuk muttered with a somber tone .

“…I never thought I’d see the day where my son woke up . ”

He thought Chae Jinyoon had died four years ago .

He was pained by the debt he couldn’t pay .

But two weeks ago, when his son miraculously woke up, he felt like he was on the top of the world .

“Today, I lost my son a second time . ”

His son passed away too quickly, almost as though he woke up to say a final goodbye .

That was enough of a heart-wrenching pain, one that Chae Shinhyuk would bear for the rest of his life .

“…But I don’t want to lose him a third time . For Nayun, I want to bury him peacefully . ”

Chae Shinhyuk spoke, looking at Kim Joongho . Because of the deep sorrow in his voice, Kim Joongho couldn’t say anything .

Tears flowed down from Chae Shinhyuk’s eyes .

Kim Joongho bowed with a sigh .

“…I will do my best . I will take my leave now . ”

With that, Kim Joongho gave Chae Shinhyuk some time alone with his son .

“… . ”

In an empty room with only the coldness of steel and a corpse, Chae Shinhyuk caressed his son’s face with his trembling hand .

Because of the tears clogging up his throat, he was unable to say anything .

He only had one wish .

‘Son… my son… I hope you have a better father in your next life… . ’

**

It was a memory from the past .

Although lacking color and missing several bits and pieces, it was a piece of memory I dreamed often .

—Nayun .

After watching me practice archery for a long time, Oppa called my name .

—Un?

—…You can take a break if it’s too hard .

He walked up to me carefully and held up my hand . When he saw my hand bleeding with blisters and cuts, he put on a sad expression, but I shook my head .

—I’m going to try even harder . I want to become an even greater Hero than Oppa .

Hearing my arrogant and daring remark, Oppa smiled and stroked my hair .

His hands were warm and reliable .

—I hope you do too . By the way, you didn’t forget about next week, right? We’re going to an amusement park .

A trip to Korea’s most famous amusement park, Foreverland . Instead of being happy, the me in my memory shook my head with a troubled face .

—Um, I can’t go . I’m going somewhere else with my friends .

—…Really?

Although he looked disappointed, he quickly grinned .

—Then I guess we’ll have to go some other time . Oppa is going to work now, so don’t overwork yourself . You won’t grow taller if you do .

—Un~ see you later, Oppa~

This morning remained so vivid in my memory for one reason .

That night, Oppa came back in a coma .

“…Ah . ”

Tears flowed down from my eyes the moment I woke up . Dazzling sunlight shone through the window and poked my eyes .

Baekdu Mountain’s morning had arrived . The air of Yoo Sihyuk’s martial art school was clear and refreshing . Mana phenomenon like fog and barrier were nowhere to be seen today .

I shot up and looked beside my bed .

The precious pictures I took with Oppa were lined up in frames .

“…Huhu . ”

A smile emerged on my face .

After looking around the room to make sure no one was here, I took out a picture I kept hidden below them . It was the picture of me and Kim Hajin .

“It came out so well . ”

I wasn’t looking at this picture for any particular reason .

It was just because it came out really well .

It definitely wasn’t because Kim Hajin was in it .

“Auu~”

After putting the picture back, I stretched . Smiling at the warm sunlight outside the window, I headed to the bath .

“You’re here, Unni?”

As soon as I entered the bath, a small 10-year-old girl greeted me .

“Oh hey, you’re up early too . ”

“It’s Jihae . ”

“Right, Jihae . ”

Yoo Sihyuk had 16 official disciples, eight male and eight female .

They received training under Yoo Sihyuk and five others .

However, Kim Suho, me, and the 10 other ‘camp members’ weren’t included among the official disciples . We would only stay here for the winter break and disappear afterwards .

“Auu, so good . ”

After taking a shower, I hopped in the hot spring . Nothing could go wrong with staying in a mana-rich hot spring .

I came out after about 20 minutes of resting .

Switching into my uniform, I went out to the front yard where morning training was held .

“Yo, Chae Nayun . ”

Shin Jonghak and Kim Suho came up . They seemed to have taken a bath too .

I snickered and spoke .

“Isn’t it a beautiful morning?”

“Yeah, it is . ”

“I feel like I can beat you up today, so you better watch out . ”

Was it because of the clear sky? I felt particularly good today .

Kim Suho looked at me dumbfoundedly and laughed .

“Why are you so energetic today? Is it because today’s the letter day?”

“Eh?”

January 3rd .

It was their tenth day here .

There was one special event in today’s schedule .

“N-No, that has nothing to do with it . ”

Electronics didn’t work on Baekdu Mountain, so it was impossible to communicate with the rest of the world . Although this problem could be circumvented, Master Yoo Sihyuk left things the way they were .

However, today was the day where it was possible to communicate with the outside world .

Today’s ‘letter time’ was exactly that .

“She’s right, Kim Suho, the only one she’d want to write a letter to is here, so cut the nonsense . ”

“You shut up… geez . ”

I smacked Shin Jonghak’s shoulder . He kept making me curse when I was in the middle of trying to fix my way of talking .

“He’s coming . ”

Yoo Sihyuk was walking towards us with his hands behind his back .

“Get ready . ”

We stood straight in a line .

How long would today’s training be?

10 hours? 12 hours?

**

…14 hours later .

The sun had long set and the hellish training had finally ended .

Currently, Chae Nayun was lying on her bed, staring at a piece of paper .

[Hi, I’m in Baekdu Mountain . ]

“…That doesn’t sound right . ”

She already wrote the letter to send to Chae Jinyoon .

Following her heart, 30 minutes was enough . However, she needed more time with this particular letter .

[I’m in Baekdu Mountain ㅋㅋ Training is so easy ㅋㅋ;; What are you doing? ㅋㅋㅋ]

“No, that’s not any better… . ”

In the end, Chae Nayun ruffled her hair and threw her pen down .

‘I should have read some books . I don’t know how to write at all!’

Chae Nayun sighed . But unwilling to give up on this chance that came once every ten days, she picked her pen back up .

While Chae Nayun was deep in thought…

Tok, tok—

Someone knocked on her door, and the door burst open .

“W-What!?”

Startled, Chae Nayun hid the letter with her body . When she raised her head slowly, she saw Yoo Sihyuk looking down at her .

“…Chae Nayun . ”

His voice was low and somber .

Chae Nayun put the letter in her pocket and slowly got up .

“Yes, Master . Um, you should really knock before entering a lady’s room . ”

“…Come outside for a minute . ”

Yoo Sihyuk was uncharacteristically serious .

“Yes?”

“…Just come outside . ”

He sounded kind, unlike his usual self .

As Chae Nayun followed him out, she racked her brain to remember if she did something wrong .

**

January 5th .

The day tragic news was announced was a clear day . After receiving the news from her father and mother, Yoo Yeonha quickly ended a meeting and got in her car .

Chae Jinyoon died .

Her parents didn’t tell her anything else .

Yoo Yeonha felt her head turn blank as she sat on the car seat .

Suddenly, she thought of Chae Nayun .

It was only a couple of weeks ago that she was exhilarated at her brother waking up… .

When she remembered this, she felt her heart sink . Even though it wasn’t her business or something she experienced, she felt her heart tighten .

“…Let’s get off . ”

Yoo Jinwoong spoke softly .

Yoo Yeonha followed her parents out of the car .

No reporters dared to besiege Daehyun’s funeral home, making the venue quiet and lonely .

“…Eh?”

Yoo Yeonha stopped while trudging up to the entrance .

Under the shade of a nearby tree, she could see a familiar person .

Kim Hajin .

He was smoking a cigarette and staring at the funeral home with a complicated expression .

“Why isn’t he going in? …And he’s smoking?”

“Yeonha, what are you doing?”

At that moment, her mother called her .

“Ah, yes, I’m coming . ”

For now, Yoo Yeonha followed her mother inside .

As soon as she entered the small funeral home, she looked for Chae Nayun .

Chae Nayun was sitting in a daze . Her hollow eyes were filled with despair . To her, Chae Nayun was always bright and cheerful . It was the first time she was seeing this side of Chae Nayun .

Swallowing her sigh, Yoo Yeonha stood in front of the family of the deceased .

“Nayun . ”

“…Ah, Yeonha… you came . ”

Chae Nayun greeted Yoo Yeonha . She tried to smile cheerfully, but that made her look all the more pitiful . Her lifeless eyes seemed to ready to burst into tears . However, she was holding herself back desperately .

Yoo Yeonha understood .

That was the kind of girl Chae Nayun was .

“Yeah, wait just a minute . ”

After adjusting her dress, Yoo Yeonha stood in front of Chae Jinyoon’s portrait and bowed with her family .

“Chae Shinhyuk-ssi . ”

“…Oh, you’re here . ”

While the two fathers talked, Yoo Yeonha walked back to Chae Nayun . She looked into her eyes and held her hands softly .

“Um, Nayun… where are the others?”

“…I didn’t tell them . I didn’t tell them, so don’t call them here . ”

Chae Nayun sounded desperate . However, Yoo Yeonha thought of Kim Hajin, who was waiting outside smoking a cigarette .

“Even if you say that… that person is already outside . ”

“…That person?”

Chae Nayun asked meekly .

“Kim Hajin . ”

Hearing the name Yoo Yeonha mentioned, Chae Nayun fell into a daze .

She sat motionless, as though she was struck with great shock .

“I, I’ll be back soon . ”

Then, she walked out of the funeral home .

“… . ”

Chae Nayun couldn’t even walk properly . Her legs were trembling .

The way Chae Nayun staggered forward was too different from her usual energetic self .

Yoo Yeonha could only feel sorry .

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