* * *
“What? Who did you see?”
“Well… I’m not completely sure yet, so I can’t say for certain right now… but they’re a significant figure. It’s just a guess, but it seems like they came because of something related to you.”
“Me?”
“Yes, you. Honestly, I don’t want to get involved in your affairs, but I’m worried Heewoon won’t let things slide.”
Who could it possibly be?
He might be an annoying guy, but his feelings for Yang Heewoon were likely genuine.
He probably said that out of genuine concern for him.
Just as White Hair, who was lost in thought, was about to speak again, a loud noise came from his pocket.
“Ah, damn it, always at times like this…!”
White Hair clicked his tongue, ruffling his neatly arranged hair as he fumbled with his device.
“Anyway, you should get to Heewoon quickly. And tell his this: if anything happens, he shouldn’t worry alone and should contact me. Got it?”
It was infuriating to follow his suggestion, but his expression was serious. It didn’t seem like he was speaking without reason.
Ye Eunsoo turned around immediately.
He needed to get to Yang Heewoon’s side as soon as possible—every second counted.
“Make Ye Eunsoo confess.”
I thought I had already tasted the worst.
I thought I had reached the peak of nonsense, but no.
I realized there’s always a deeper low.
“Young Ye Eunsoo unknowingly used his special abilities to enthrall Jake, causing Jake to kidnap him. Subsequently, Ye Eunsoo used Jake to maintain his peaceful life. However, as his adulthood approached, he developed a desire to explore the outside world and attempted to kill Jake. The result was this incident. How’s that for a plausible scenario?”
‘Is this man insane?’
I wished my ears were playing tricks on me.
How can someone be this shameless?
His smiling face was disturbingly grotesque.
“Don’t worry. After all, Ye Eunsoo is a minor, and given his poor upbringing, all of this will be taken into account. He won’t have to serve any sentence. We’ll make sure to handle things on our end. Your name won’t come up as the perpetrator, and you’ll receive ample compensation. You’ll be able to live comfortably for the rest of your life. Not a bad deal, right? For both you and Ye Eunsoo.”
“Ha…”
I was so appalled that I couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh.
‘Polwel’ was clearly the most influential Esper group and family in this world.
And they intended to use their influence and power like this?
To cover up crimes committed by their own? Aren’t they ashamed?
‘In the original work, they weren’t such a trashy group…’
Was this a difference between the original story and the world I found myself in?
Or… was it because of my existence?
…What did I even do?
“You think you can persuade Ye Eunsoo to confess, right? I heard he follows Yang Heewoon very well.”
“Are you serious about this?”
“Of course. This concerns the family’s honor.”
Honor.
To a kidnapper who ruined a child’s life, honor.
I felt my blood boiling with rage.
In the end, I couldn’t hold back any longer.
I slammed the desk with both hands and sprang to my feet.
The chair clattered loudly against the floor as I shoved it back. I reached out without hesitation, aiming to grab Maria Polwel by the collar.
“You want to pin everything on an innocent kid for the sake of some criminal’s honor? And you…!”
But I couldn’t finish my sentence.
—Thud!
Before my hand could reach Maria Polwel, my body was violently flung backward.
When I regained my senses, I found myself sprawled on the floor after crashing hard against a wall.
“Ah, ugh, aaah…”
Yang Heewoon’s frail body shattered against the wall on impact.
My heart, startled by the sudden blow that went beyond breaking bones to the point of crushing them, beat frantically as if it was about to fail.
The fear that I might die soon overpowered the pain.
I was even afraid to breathe. I was terrified that a broken rib might pierce my lungs.
That I might die like this.
I feared more than anything leaving Eunsoo alone in this cruel world.
The man who had just entered the interrogation room, the very one who had thrown me against the wall, shouted at me.
“Yang Heewoon, do you even know what you were about to do? Trying to use violence against a member of the Polwel family?”
I knew exactly who the man who suddenly burst into the interrogation room and tossed me aside like a rag was.
Cha Junseong’s uncle. A telekinetic Esper. Cha Younghwan.
Damn it, that cursed Cha family.
Every single one of them, except for Cha Junseong… they’re all irredeemable scum.
“Cha Younghwan. What do you think you’re doing?”
Maria Polwel rushed toward me, sprawled out on the floor.
He shot back at him in a voice laced with murderous intent.
“Who told you to do something like this? Yang Heewoon is a Guide. Practically no different from an ordinary person. And here you are, an Esper, using offensive abilities on a civilian! Are you out of your mind?”
“Huff…! Huff!”
Maria Polwel quickly assessed my injuries as I gasped for air, then placed his hand on my chest.
A warm energy flowed from his to me.
My broken bones returned to their original positions and began to knit back together.
“Ugh, ah, ha…”
“It’s going to hurt. I’m sorry.”
Even if it was a form of healing, broken bones moving inside the body couldn’t help but cause more damage.
It was like reconstructing the skeletal structure inside my body without any anesthesia.
Tears streamed down my face from the pain. At some point, all that came out of my mouth was a wheezing sound.
Meanwhile, Cha Younghwan, feeling wronged after being reprimanded by Maria Polwel, muttered under his breath, his face turning pale.
“No, I was doing it for your sake…”
“I never authorized your involvement. Let alone violence. Shut up and get out.”
“Ha… You shouldn’t treat me this way. How much have we accommodated your needs? Even just this…”
“…You damn bastard. Get out of my sight before I crush your shameless face!”
Maria Polwel, who had just spewed fluent curses that were hard to believe came from someone who had spoken so gently, looked down at me with a face as pained as mine.
“Just a little more. Hang in there…”
No matter how accustomed I was to pain, it was always related to sickness and emotions. I wasn’t particularly good at enduring physical beatings.
“Ugh, ah…”
“Ahjussi!”
Amidst the overwhelming pain engulfing my whole body, I subconsciously wished for death, and then I heard Eunsoo’s voice, as if scolding me for such thoughts.
I held my breath. I didn’t want Eunsoo to see me in pain, so I tried to cover my face quickly.
But I couldn’t manage it.
Cha Younghwan’s voice, who was kicked out of the interrogation room by Maria Polwel, lodged itself into my ears.
“Ugh, disgusting bastard…”
There was no way I didn’t know who Cha Younghwan was spewing such vile words at.
Anger sparked in my eyes. I wanted to get up and punch his face right then and there.
But my body wouldn’t cooperate. Forcing myself up felt like my barely mended bones would shatter again.
Despite that, I couldn’t suppress my rage. If I let that bastard go…
“Ahjussi, Ahjussi. It’s okay. I’m fine, really…”
Before I could force myself up, Eunsoo hugged me tightly.
He called out to me repeatedly in a tearful voice, holding me firmly with both arms.
“I’m not hurt by words like that. I just need you, Ahjussi…”
Listening to the frantic beating of his heart from his small chest, I lost consciousness without uttering a word.
Yang Heewoon stopped moving in his embrace. It seemed he had lost consciousness.
He placed a finger under his nose. Although very faint, he was indeed still breathing.
As soon as Ye Eunsoo confirmed that Yang Heewoon was alive but completely unconscious, the desperate expression on his face disappeared.
His cold, blue eyes swept over the people around them.
Yang Heewoon, the blonde who had been with him, those who had followed to prevent his from forcing his way into the interrogation room, and the spectators who had come to see what the commotion was about.
And then, outside the interrogation room, keeping a distance but watching them, was a middle-aged man in a suit.
Though the man showed no sign of guilt on his face as he looked at the collapsed Yang Heewoon, it was clear.
The traces left on Yang Heewoon’s body were pointing unmistakably at him as the culprit of what had just occurred.
‘Should I just kill him?’
Slowly, he lowered the unconscious Yang Heewoon to the floor from his tight embrace.
Five minutes. If Ye Eunsoo decided to kill the man, he was confident he could make him run wild within two minutes and end his life in five.
Even if he failed, he would never be able to use his powers again. He would become a cripple, unable to eat without someone else’s help.
He would never be able to do this kind of thing to Yang Heewoon again.
“If you do that, Heewoon will be sad.”
Someone pressed down on Ye Eunsoo’s shoulder as he tried to stand up while keeping his gaze fixed on the man.
* * *
Who?
Hrmm, I don’t think he’ll be that sad
wait now i dont know how to feel about maria AOERUHAWER
Wow what a piece of shit the cha uncle is
I’m angry ugh
Junseong???
whos cha younghwa again tf
I want to give them a punch 🥊
Thanks
Yooo idk man
F**k