The man standing before him right now was like a ticking time bomb.
It was old and worn, rusted and covered in moss, yet because of this, it seemed ready to explode without mercy at the slightest provocation.
Next to Cha Taeyang, who was frozen in surprise, Im Taehwan slowly ran both hands down his face.
“No, that’s not right. I was the one who dragged Jaehee in there in the first place. It’s not my parents’ fault…”
Although he was better than before, Im Taehwan still seemed unstable.
No, one could even say his condition had worsened the moment he turned the arrow of blame from his parents toward himself.
“Stop beating around the bush and tell me exactly what’s going on. Why are you acting like this? Hey. You like Jaehee. She likes you, and you like her, so what’s the problem?”
Cha Taeyang couldn’t understand the situation at all.
Isn’t this just a matter of the two of them dating?
They were two people who had gone through painful and difficult experiences together but overcame them.
They remained the closest of friends, and Jaehee’s body had already completely healed.
“Are you saying you can’t be lovers because you’ve been friends with Jaehee for a long time? Don’t mess things up for no reason, just be honest.”
“I’ve liked her since she was in elementary school. I realized it in middle school.”
“Huh. You’ve liked her for a really long time, then. You’re a surprisingly devoted, pure-hearted guy. So, what? What’s the problem?”
Im Taehwan looked up, bewildered.
“…What’s the problem? Hey, think about it.”
“Think about what?”
“Jaehee handed over her body, completely unaware, to a guy who had been watching her with gloomy eyes for ten years.”
“…”
“I also told too many lies. I was arrogant, thinking she wouldn’t even doubt a single word I said.”
He did lie a lot.
It was incredible that Jung Jaehee fell for all of it, considering they saw each other every day.
Cha Taeyang scratched his head.
“Haa…, that much… I don’t have much to say since I’m not the person involved, but I don’t think it’s completely incomprehensible. If you hadn’t liked her in the first place, how could you have endured that long time together?”
He said he had nursed her for a whopping thirteen years.
That’s a difficult thing to do, even for a financially comfortable family.
Moreover, he did it himself, not just assigning the task to someone else.
On top of that, he had no friends other than Jung Jaehee, despite his looks.
The fact that he hadn’t stood out in terms of ability since his days at the training center was also likely intentional.
He had to pour all his time, effort, and devotion into Jung Jaehee.
“You only lied for her sake. So, just be completely honest with Jaehee and…”
“No. I can’t.”
A surge of annoyance instantly rose up. Was this guy always this unreasonable?
‘He was an unreasonable jerk, come to think of it.’
Wasn’t this precisely why Cha Taeyang had initially suspected Im Taehwan?
He was airtight, not even leaving room for a simple conversation.
If they’d had a chance to talk, however briefly, he wouldn’t have taken such an extreme action.
He was momentarily convinced, but he knew there was a bit of self-justification included.
Cha Taeyang sighed, considering what to say, but Im Taehwan spoke first.
“…Jaehee is afraid of the dark.”
“Huh?”
“Not just simply afraid. It’s on the level of a trauma.”
His voice was trembling.
While talking about Jung Jaehee’s trauma, his face looked as if he himself was confronting a trauma.
Cha Taeyang hurriedly spoke up.
“Oh, no. It was dark during Wind Hole, but she didn’t seem very scared?”
“There were lights then. She must only react to complete darkness.”
“Complete darkness?”
“The Gate we were dragged into together was like that. Pitch black, where no one was visible, and you could only sense malice and the presence of monsters.”
“Ah…”
“Before, when Jaehee disappeared at the camping ground, that was why she couldn’t get out of the mountain alone. She was afraid of the dark. She couldn’t even remember what she had been doing after she woke up.”
Now he understood why Im Taehwan couldn’t even enter the hospital room that day and was inflicting self-harm instead.
So, that was it.
He glanced around.
He understood why Im Taehwan was saying and doing these things, but at the same time, he didn’t.
What should he say to make this jerk listen?
“Well, you can overcome that together…”
“She begged me that day. She asked me not to leave her.”
“…”
“In fact, Jaehee knew it too. That she ended up like that because I left her that day. Not only did I drag her in, but she couldn’t get out because of me. I am the biggest villain in her life.”
“What kind of ‘villain’…”
“I know that, but there was only me by Jaehee’s side. Because she couldn’t see, couldn’t walk, couldn’t touch electronic devices, and couldn’t leave the hospital, she was trapped in a very small world.”
“…”
“The fact that she fell in love with me was simply… Jaehee had no other option.”
Twisting the cap off a bottle of strong vodka, Im Taehwan let out a hollow laugh.
“If that incident hadn’t happened that day, Jaehee would have continued going to school, made more friends, and had various experiences. I limited her human connections to only me, so she only saw me, and that’s why she fell in love with me… I know all that, and you want me to happily say, ‘Yes, let’s date,’ without any conscience?”
“…”
“I don’t deserve it. I should be thankful just to be her friend.”
“Ha…”
Cha Taeyang let out a deep sigh and scratched his head.
As the Guild Leader of ‘Sun,’ he prided himself on having become adept at counseling, having advised guild members, other Hunters he met in the field, and even civilians sometimes… but this was the first time he had encountered such a tough opponent.
After much thought, he finally found something he could say.
It was a statement that sent shivers down his entire body just thinking about it, but Cha Taeyang decided to just blurt it out.
He had committed a sin, so he had to do at least this much.
“Im Taehwan. You are a good person.”
“…What nonsense are you talking about all of a sudden?”
“I have really good instincts, and I guarantee it. You’re a good person. You don’t need to put yourself down like that.”
“When were you calling me the evil axis committing all the world’s conspiracies? Now that I look pitiful, I’m a ‘good person’?”
“T-that…! That was because of the crazy look in your eyes back at the training center! Was that the day something happened to Jaehee? You seriously looked like you were going to kill someone back then!”
“…”
“Plus, it was obvious you were holding back during the sparring match. I thought, ‘This guy is definitely hiding his rank.’ But when I thought about why the Director’s son would hide his rank, I could only come up with that one answer. How was I supposed to know about this complicated situation? It was an inevitable conclusion.”
“…”
“But now I know it was because of Jaehee. Now that I know the full story, I see you differently. You are a good person. I guarantee it.”
“Ha.”
Im Taehwan, who had been drinking straight from the bottle, burst into a hollow laugh when the words ‘good person’ came up again.
His face showed he had much to say about what bothered him, but instead of opening his mouth, he banged his head against the bar table.
“I miss Jaehee…”
“…”
“I miss her so much…”
“Crazy bastard.”
Cha Taeyang muttered, glaring at the mumbling Im Taehwan, and threw his own share of alcohol into his mouth.
Just looking at the recent actions of ‘Gray Coat,’ it didn’t seem like the guy wallowing in self-pity could live without Jung Jaehee.
No matter how much guilt he felt, he would ultimately not be able to stray from Jaehee’s side.
Like the moon that consistently orbits the Earth.
‘…That’s why he can’t be more honest.’
Adding ‘Jung Jaehee’ to the mysterious ‘Im Taehwan’ made him surprisingly simple.
He was literally the living proof of the saying, ‘Love makes a person foolish.’
But intervening beyond this point made him a third party.
Having only watched the two people’s relationship—thirteen years or more—for a mere few months, he could only be someone to help one of them release the pent-up frustration in their heart, but he couldn’t be the link between them.
Ultimately, it was a problem the two of them had to solve.
Whether it was ‘love’ or not, they were two people who were solidly connected—no, bound—by ‘friendship.’
They wouldn’t break easily or end in disaster.
If left alone, it would somehow be resolved.
Furthermore, his ‘instinct’ told him that this complicated relationship would be sorted out one way or another, and soon.
Though he couldn’t be sure it would flow in a purely positive direction.
‘Jaehee will probably manage.’
Cha Taeyang believed that his proud mentee would overcome any adversity.
