Chapter 84
Chapter 84
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Translator : M.N 1391
Chapter: 84
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In truth, nothing had vanished. It had merely been fused into the all-encompassing web that Kyung-wan created, using the telepath’s ‘channel’ as a medium.
And that all-encompassing web would act as a kind of trigger, seeking out someone who met the conditions and passing on the old man’s supernatural power. To the person whose thoughts most closely resembled the old man’s grudge sealed within the ‘seed.’
The moment the black smoke disappeared, the old man’s body collapsed as well. The only reason he had been able to remain standing after suffering such a fatal wound to his frail body, already on its last legs, was thanks to his telekinetic powers.
“Is it… done?”
“Yes.”
Kyung-wan laid the old man flat. His eyes were glazing over; it looked like he didn’t have long before crossing the final river.
“Do you have anything else you want to say?”
At Kyung-wan’s kindness, the old man gave a faint, sorrowful smile and moved his lips.
“Dear… Hansu…”
As the regret-filled gaze faded, a single tear slid down from the corner of his eye. Hansu must have been the name of the child he had lost.
Kyung-wan gently closed the old man’s half-lidded eyes. They wouldn’t close all the way, perhaps there was still too much resentment left behind.
“Namu Amitabha. Amen.”
Hands clasped together, Kyung-wan prayed for the repose of the old man’s soul.
He didn’t know what religion the old man followed, but surely Buddha or Jesus would take him in. It wasn’t as if the old man were a Muslim or a Hindu, right?
And you couldn’t exactly offer Confucian rites to someone whose family line had ended after losing his child.
Thunk!
As Kyung-wan finished praying and rose, his eyes narrowed. One of the hitmen had plunged a dagger into the old man’s chest.
A finishing blow. From a contractor’s perspective, it was perfectly reasonable.
But the important point was that Kyung-wan wasn’t a contractor, and the body receiving that finishing blow was the very person he had just prayed for.
The hitman bent down to pull the dagger out, acting as if Kyung-wan didn’t even exist.
Kyung-wan’s hand snapped up and grabbed the man by the crown of the head. As if by reflex, the hitman slashed Kyung-wan’s wrist with his knife, but Kyung-wan’s other hand caught the man’s wrist.
Tap-tap-tap!
Hands moved too fast for the eye to follow.
In an instant, Kyung-wan tilted his head back. A razor-sharp blade sliced through the air just above him.
But the initiative had already shifted to Kyung-wan. The hitman lost his balance under the brute grip and pulling force. He tried to unleash his monstrous strength to shake free of Kyung-wan’s grasp, never imagining that the very force he relied on would instead shatter his balance and twist his shoulder.
His shin was kicked out from under him, his lower body twisted, and his balance crumbled. Kyung-wan’s movements linked that twist straight into the upper body. Having wasted his strength, the hitman couldn’t control his own spinning body.
Sensing danger, he yanked his knife back and aimed for Kyung-wan’s wrist. But Kyung-wan struck the knife-holding wrist at just the right moment, forcing the upper body to twist again.
“Gaaah!”
Kyung-wan stomped on the man’s knee pit and wrenched the arm he’d grabbed. Pain exploded through the shoulder, drawing a scream as Kyung-wan perfectly took position behind the kneeling man.
It didn’t end there. He seized the man by the crown of the head and stomped down hard on his lower back.
“Gyaaaaaaah!”
Feeling the man’s spine, or at least a disc, give way under his sole, Kyung-wan brushed off his hands.
“These fucking bastards really know how to ruin the mood at the end.”
He kicked the screaming hitman’s jaw, knocking him out, then picked up the fallen knife.
And he flicked the blade toward the three remaining hitmen.
Come on. Come on.
Contrary to Kyung-wan’s expectations, the hitmen didn’t charge him. Since they were people who moved for money rather than pride, it seemed they’d decided that going after Kyung-wan wasn’t cost-effective.
Do only as much as you’re paid for.
Admirable professionalism, but it pissed Kyung-wan off.
“Hey! You assholes! You just gonna ditch your buddy?!”
No matter how he shouted, it seemed they weren’t really comrades. The masked hitmen abandoned the writhing man with the broken back and vanished to avoid the approaching police.
Thinking he’d deal with them next time, Kyung-wan tossed the knife away. Then he spoke to the guard approaching him.
“Move me to a decent room.”
= = = = =
Heuknoya was dead. No matter how powerful a telekinetic he was, it was clear he was no match for multiple awakened hitmen who were experts in killing techniques. Heuknoya had lived as a nobody who couldn’t even dream of revenge, why would someone like that ever have learned combat skills?
In any case, with his death the incident seemed close to being wrapped up, but Kyung-wan was summoned to an interrogation room to face the investigators.
“Mr. Lee Kyung-wan. What did you say to Heuknoya at the end?”
“I just listened to his final wishes and last words, and prayed for his soul.”
“Final wishes? Last words?”
“A final wish is the intention someone leaves behind when they die without fulfilling it in life, and last words are what they say before death.”
Who asked for a dictionary definition?
The investigator frowned and asked again.
“What did he say?”
“His final wish was for someone to finish what he couldn’t, and his last words were calling out the names of his wife and child.”
“...”
A brief silence followed. The investigator across from Kyung-wan exchanged looks with a colleague, then spoke.
“So, Mr. Kyung-wan, are you going to carry on that final wish?”
“No. Why would I? It’s probably already been passed on to someone who will.”
“... What?”
Up until the “No. Why would I?” the investigator had been visibly relieved. Now he blinked in confusion at Kyung-wan’s follow-up.
“To, to whom did you pass it?!”
“I don’t know that either. Someone lucky will pick it up.”
“Sir, we’re having trouble understanding. Could you explain in more detail?”
Kyung-wan used an analogy they could grasp.
“So, that old man’s supernatural power became a kind of seed and was scattered somewhere in South Korea. That seed will seek out someone to inherit his will and sprout.”
Naturally, he left out the part about his own central role. Why? Because they’d lose their minds if they knew.
At his explanation, the investigator hesitated, then asked in a suppressed voice.
“S-so… someone like Heuknoya could appear again?”
Kyung-wan tilted his head, then nodded casually.
“Similar, maybe. But not exactly the same. Do you think they’d just go around killing people like that old man did?”
“What if they do?”
“Come on. You think the person inheriting his will would be that thoughtless?”
“T-then what exactly was Heuknoya’s final wish?”
“Obviously, an apology and repentance from the person who ordered soldiers to make sure he couldn’t even find his child’s body.”
There aren’t just one or two people in this country who think that way. Kyung-wan smiled lightly, and to the investigators it looked like the grin of a demon.
The investigators exchanged grim looks. They knew all too well the massive chaos that would erupt in South Korean society if Kyung-wan’s words got out.
Modern Korean history was like nuclear waste, piled up, covered over in one place, with everyone hoping no one would look at it. Anyone who tried to handle it was bound to suffer damage, like radiation exposure.
While the investigators agonized over how to report this situation, Kyung-wan kept talking.
“You don’t seriously think they’d kill the kids, right? If they did, what would they use to threaten that old man?”
Not killing them, but threatening them? The investigators’ expressions worsened.
That was even worse. It was obvious what would happen between someone trying to protect and someone trying to coerce.
The investigator studied Kyung-wan’s face, then spoke.
“Then how do you think Heuknoya’s successor would act?”
“If it were me, I’d start by finding the grandkids and beating the crap out of them. While telling them they’re not getting hit because they did something wrong, but because their grandpa did.”
“... There is no guilt by association in this country.”
Kyung-wan nodded.
“That’s common sense here. But in today’s reality, where people seized power by killing innocents and then let even their grandkids live in luxury off that ‘merit,’ I’m not sure those who harbor deep resentment will find that easy to accept. If the family had fallen into ruin, maybe they could console themselves that justice still existed. But this is capitalism, rich stay rich, poor stay poor, right?”
If you gained the power to take revenge while knowing the descendants of your enemy would continue to live well?
For someone who had lived a lifetime with nothing but resentment, that temptation was stronger than any devil’s whisper. Give in, and you end up like Heuknoya.
As worry deepened on the investigators’ faces, Kyung-wan’s insight became reality.
“Hey. Your grandpa, he’s ○○○, right?”
“Step back!”
A young man appeared squarely in front of the former coup commander’s grandson.
He seemed young from his build and voice, but his face was hidden behind black smoke.
The ominous fog spread around him, evoking Heuknoya.
“Run, young master!”
The guards rushed in, but where could they run? Black smoke surged like a monster’s tongue, and the vehicle’s tires were already shredded into rags.
The guards even drew their guns, but the black smoke blocked the bullets.
Thud!
“Ugh!”
When the black smoke lashed out, the guards were flung aside like they’d been hit by a car, losing consciousness.
As the smoke-shrouded youth approached, the young master screamed.
“Why do I have to suffer like this?! What did I ever do wrong?!”
The youth of black smoke replied.
“You enjoy the wealth your grandpa gave you, did you ever once beg him to live so his grandchild wouldn’t be cursed by people, so you could live with dignity?”
“...”
“Figures. Thanks. You leave me no room for sympathy.”
People spit out what’s bitter and swallow what’s sweet. If your ancestors’ dirty deeds put luxury in your mouth, how many people would really spit it out as filthy instead of swallowing it as sweet?
When right and wrong don’t favor you, people look away, or twist logic to justify their ancestors’ sins and protect themselves. That’s human nature.
But if you enjoy the benefits of your ancestors, isn’t it only right to bear their karma too?
You want the inheritance, but not the karma…
Selective inheritance, selective outrage, double standards by any other name. Humans are filthy creatures like that, after all.
The youth raised his fist.
Wrapped in black smoke, it slammed into the face of the once-powerful man’s grandson. The smoke-shielded fist was as hard as stone.
Pow!
“Ghk!”
Pow! Pow! Pow!
“Ugh! H-ugh!”
The punches kept coming. The carefully maintained looks of a third-generation heir were soon bruised and swollen. The beating ended only when the villain-like bastard cried and begged.
“W-waaaah! P-please! St-stop! P-please!”