Where Revenge Ends
Watching Minah stare at her reflection in the mirror, tears streaming down her face, Dohyung felt a profound warmth swell in his chest. He had known she would be happy if he healed her scars, but seeing her genuine joy in person brought an unexpected surge of happiness to his own heart.
"My face... Thank you so much!"
Minah scrutinized her face in the mirror, tracing the skin where the burn scars had completely vanished, before turning to Dohyung with a look of profound, heartfelt gratitude. Seeing her look at him like that, Dohyung let out a warm, genuine smile. She looked so different now compared to when they had first reunited at the convenience store.
Back then, she had been a picture of dejection. Her anxious, darting eyes had radiated a total lack of confidence, and she had hidden her face behind a curtain of hair—a look that could never leave a good impression on anyone. On top of that, with those severe burn scars marring her face, it was likely no one had ever shown her any warmth.
Minah had been painfully aware of it too, desperately trying to hide her face without ever daring to smile. Her voice had been a barely audible mumble, her words halting and stuttered. It was a state of being that made it impossible for others to view her favorably. But now, her entire aura had undergone a complete, hundred-and-eighty-degree transformation.
First and foremost, the horrific burn scars she had desperately wished to hide from the world were gone. She no longer had any reason to shroud herself in her hair; she could finally look people in the eye with confidence. The timid, anxious look in her eyes had vanished, replaced by a radiant, breathtaking smile. Even her voice seemed to have reverted to the bright, clear tone Dohyung remembered from their high school days.
"Don't thank me. Those scars only happened because you got caught up with me in the first place. It's only right that I heal them."
"Still, thank you so much! The doctors at the hospital told me it would be impossible to ever restore my skin... I can't believe they're completely gone. Is this... is this really magic?"
Dohyung nodded in response to her question.
"I never imagined I'd ever see them disappear... It feels like a dream..."
Minah smiled through her tears. To Dohyung, she looked blindingly beautiful. Just restoring her to her original self made it seem as though a soft, radiant light was emanating from her body.
Objectively speaking, Minah might not have possessed the kind of jaw-dropping beauty that rivaled a celebrity's. She might even have been considered slightly less conventionally attractive than Zia or Eunji, the girls he currently held captive. But none of that mattered to Dohyung. No matter how others might judge her, in his eyes, she was more beautiful than any woman he had ever laid eyes on—across both this world and Adria.
If only he had lived a normal life, free from the torment of school violence... If Minah, too, had lived a life untouched by tragedy, and he had gathered the courage to confess his feelings to her... Just briefly imagining a reality where they were happily dating filled him with an overwhelming sense of peace. If there truly were infinite universes out there, and one existed where he and Minah were lovers, he would have gladly traded places with that version of himself in a heartbeat.
Well, a world like that is probably...
Dohyung shook his head, pulling himself out of the useless daydream.
"Now, let's take care of the scars on your arms and legs. Come over here."
"Ah, thank you."
Minah reached to roll up her long sleeves, but Dohyung gently stopped her.
"You don't need to show me. I can perceive exactly where they are using magic."
"Oh, I see. Okay."
Dohyung concentrated his mana into his hands once more, gently guiding the energy over her arms and legs to dissolve the hidden scars.
"By the way... did you find out about the scars on my arms and legs through magic too?"
"Yeah. Your outfit at the convenience store was just too out of place. Summer is right around the corner, so wearing long sleeves and pants made no sense, even if you were someone who easily got cold."
"I suppose..."
"And once I caught a glimpse of the scar on your face, it was only logical to assume you had similar injuries on your limbs. And... there! All done. Now you won't have to suffer through the sweltering summer heat in long sleeves anymore."
At his words, Minah pulled back her sleeves and cuffs slightly to check. Seeing her skin restored to a flawless, smooth texture—with no trace of the horrific burns ever existing—she was struck once again by the sheer wonder of magic.
She had visited a hospital in the past to see if she could get them removed, but the astronomical cost was far beyond what her family could ever afford. She had been forced to give up. Since then, she had never even dared to dream of a future where her body would be free of those hideous marks.
She had convinced herself that it was better to use whatever money they had to support her struggling family rather than wasting it on her own vanity, and she had endured it all this time. But today, thanks to Dohyung, a massive, suffocating burden had been lifted from her soul. She had been saved. She had no idea how she could ever repay such a debt, but she felt, with absolute certainty, that she had to do whatever it took—even if it meant offering her very life.
"Dohyung... thank you so much. I will never, ever forget what you've done for me."
Hearing Minah speak his name sent another wave of emotion through Dohyung's chest. Since returning to this world, she was the very first person to speak his name with such warmth.
The bastards he had kidnapped had screamed his name, of course, but those were merely desperate pleas to escape their well-deserved torment—cries from people who had forgotten his very existence until he dragged them to hell. But hearing his name fall from Minah's lips made him feel as though the very world he inhabited had shifted. It was as if a brand-new world was opening up before him.
"I'm the one who should be thanking you. Back then, when everyone else just stood by and watched, you were the only one who stepped forward to help me. Because of that, you got dragged into my nightmare and ended up with those scars. Healing them is the bare minimum I should do."
"Still, thank you. If it weren't for you... I would have had to live with those scars carved into my flesh until the day I died..." Minah murmured, still staring in wonder at the pristine skin where her scars used to be.
"Well... shall we finish our food? It's going to get cold if we keep waiting."
"Ah! You're right. Let's eat."
Dohyung and Minah returned to their seats and began to dig back into their meal.
Now that she no longer had to worry about hiding her scars, Minah could finally focus on the taste of the food. Even though it was the exact same dish, it tasted entirely different from the bites she had taken earlier.
"It's delicious. It's so good, Dohyung."
Minah began to eat with a ferocious, joyful appetite, and Dohyung watched her with a fond smile. Though he had his own plate in front of him, just watching her eat so happily made him feel full and content.
Mid-bite, Minah suddenly realized she was the only one vacuuming up the food.
"Ah, sorry. I got carried away and ate too much by myself."
"No, go ahead and eat as much as you want. Just watching you makes me feel full."
Dohyung thought to himself that if Minah gained just a little bit of weight, she would look even more beautiful.
Blushing at his words, Minah continued to eat. Perhaps because it had been so long since she had tasted anything this delicious, her stomach felt like a bottomless pit.
Bathed in a warmth they hadn't felt in years, the two kept up a lively, harmonious conversation. They talked about the food, the mundane details of their daily lives, and eventually, their conversation drifted to the one thing they truly had in common: high school.
"Do you remember that one guy? I forgot his name, but... he was in our class and always talked so much. Didn't he say his dream was to be a comedian? He was so funny..."
Unlike Minah, who was smiling as she spoke, Dohyung's heart instantly sank.
Minah quickly noticed the sudden shift in his demeanor the moment she brought up their high school class.
"What's wrong? Did I say something wrong?"
Dohyung silently shook his head.
"Then... do you hate talking about high school? I guess... you wouldn't have many good memories of that time..."
Dohyung shook his head again. That wasn't what he was thinking about at all.
"Then why...? Is it something hard to talk about?"
"...I killed..."
"Huh? What did you say? I couldn't hear you, Dohyung."
"I killed them."
The words registered in Minah's ears, but her brain failed to process them immediately.
"W-what? What do you mean?"
"The classmate you just mentioned... I killed him. And not just him. I killed everyone who was in our class."
Minah froze, utterly stunned by his horrific confession. She could understand his vengeance against the people he had kidnapped; they were the ones who had torn his life apart, so she could comprehend why he would seek their ruin. But slaughtering their entire class was something she couldn't fathom.
"...Why? They... they didn't do anything wrong..."
"Because they just stood there and watched. Unlike you, they never reached out a hand to help. They just spectated. Some of them even laughed at me... and the guy you just mentioned was one of them."
Minah was left speechless. Dohyung continued, his voice flat.
"You could say they were just bystanders, that they were innocent. But I... I couldn't forgive them either. They were nothing but cowards who watched my suffering and did nothing."
As he spoke, Dohyung watched her reaction closely. He didn't expect her to understand. He went on to confess not just the slaughter of their classmates, but also the murders of their high school teachers, and even his own father, who had abandoned his family. With every word that left his mouth, Minah's expression grew darker and more troubled.
"That's how it is. And I don't regret a single thing I did."
With those final words, a heavy, suffocating silence descended upon them.
"Are you... serious?"
Minah was the first to break the silence.
"You don't regret it? That can't be true. If it's you... the Dohyung I know could never commit such merciless acts and feel absolutely no regret!"
Her words struck a chord. Dohyung was suddenly reminded of the ghosts of his victims that haunted him before he fell asleep, and the auditory hallucinations of his younger self. He had told her he didn't regret it, but perhaps, deep down in some dark corner of his heart, he did.
"Whether I regret it or not doesn't matter anymore. I've already... killed them all..."
Looking at his hollow eyes and hearing his lifeless voice, a sudden realization washed over Minah. She felt as though she finally understood what was truly going on inside his head.
"Are you... going to continue your revenge even after we part ways today?"
"...Yes."
"Then where does it end? Your revenge... when will it finally be over?"
Dohyung couldn't answer immediately. What he envisioned was Zia, Jiseon, Taehyun, and Eunji suffering in agony until the very moment they drew their last breaths. To him, granting them a swift death was far too merciful, which was why he had kept them alive, tormenting them day after day.
"Once the people in those videos are all dead... will your revenge be over then?"
Dohyung silently nodded.
"I don't know when that will be, but... what happens after that? Eventually, those people will all die. What happens to you then?"
Even as she asked, Minah already knew the answer. She only desperately hoped she was wrong.
"...I don't think a happy ending is meant for someone who has done the things I've done."
At his reply, Minah's worst fears were confirmed. She knew exactly what kind of end Dohyung was planning for himself.
Once his revenge was complete, he intended to end his own life.