Chapter 73: Thunder God (3)
Chapter 73: Thunder God (3)
An unfamiliar ceiling.
A brightly glowing bulb, a metallic ceiling.
It was a sight strangely similar to that basement.
However, seeing as the Thunder God—whose trauma was far worse than mine—was living here perfectly fine, it was likely just my oversensitivity.
As that thought crossed my mind, I turned my head. My consciousness slowly returned, and my thoughts began to sharpen.
It had been a bizarre day.
A strange day where everyone except Baek Si-hyun looked at me with contempt, whittling away at my mental fortitude.
And then, I met the Thunder God.
I tried to recall it again.
Her fist, her radiant smile, her fluttering, translucent hair.
Her image. Once more.
Thump.
My heart raced.
Emotions began to consume my body.
From the ashes that had once burned out, feelings I thought I had buried deep began to surge.
A bitter smile played on my lips.
How ridiculous.
To think the emotions I thought I’d forgotten would return so easily.
It felt as if I had been transported back to the day I first let her go.
Ten years. Three thousand six hundred and fifty days spent counting down, one by one.
The feelings that had faded after meeting Linshua.
The feelings that had dimmed after letting my daughter go.
They had all come back.
With just one of her smiles.
Everything.
Honestly, that’s cheating.
In the past, I had used the nickname "Kid" to shield myself from her, but now, that shield no longer worked.
When I told her I couldn't call her "Kid" anymore, it was a sincere confession born from those feelings.
Thinking back, I suppose it was my fault; I hadn't realized she still cared so much about being called a kid.
The way her face turned beet red before she bolted out of the room was likely because I’d touched a nerve.
Tick. Tock.
The sound of a clock reached my ears.
I looked toward the sound and checked the time. 10:00 PM.
I had only fainted for a moment, yet it was already this late.
She did say she would come, didn't she?
I glanced around the room. Noticing a few things that bothered me, I began to tidy up.
I found a small vacuum cleaner in a cabinet and sucked up the dust in the corners, then smoothed out the wrinkles in the blankets caused by my tossing and turning. I used my flames to purify the shower drain, which was emitting a faint odor, and just in case she was thirsty, I borrowed a water bottle from the nearby Dining Hall and put it in the fridge.
Was I overdoing it?
Hadn't she been angry with me? Would she even come to my room?
The only guarantee I had was a single message I’d left with Prohibition. Her mind might have changed; she might not come at all.
I knew that was a possibility, but I didn't stop.
If she didn't come, it would be because I was in the wrong.
With that thought, I finished cleaning and threw myself onto the bed to rest.
Tick. Tock.
The clock chimed. My emotions remained unsettled. The only thing different from usual was the fact that she might show up.
Tick. Tap. Tick. Tap.
A new sound mixed in with the ticking of the clock. The sound of flesh tapping against metal. I could have just told her to come in, but I deliberately sat up.
Click.
The door opened, and she came into view. She stood there hesitantly, dressed in light clothing that looked like pajamas.
"..."
"..."
No words came out.
We stared at each other in silence for about ten seconds. I slowly moved to the side to let her in, and she walked into the room with awkward movements, her head bowed.
Click.
The door closed. I sat on the bed.
The room remained silent.
As if she didn't know what to do even after entering, she continued to fidget, sparks of static electricity flickering around her. Then, with stiff movements, she turned her head, pulled out the chair by the desk, and sat down.
"..."
"..."
She turned her head toward me, her unfocused eyes meeting mine.
Though her eyes could no longer hold light, there was a radiance dwelling within them as they looked at me. A light called emotion. And most likely, that emotion was anxiety.
What was she anxious about?
The time that had passed?
The me who had changed?
The her who had changed?
I couldn't know the answer. However, I could at least soothe that anxiety.
The Thunder God was always lively; she was never one to be this hesitant.
I decided to break the ice first.
"Your power."
"Huh?"
"What happened to it?"
I brought it up to change the atmosphere, but it might have been the wrong choice. She might get angry and ask why I had to bring that up...
"Ah. This? How should I put it..."
Contrary to my worries, it seemed I had made the right choice. Her face brightened, and she began to choose her words.
"Actually, it wasn't like this at first. It was uncomfortable that my detection range had narrowed, and my body felt so light that even moving was a struggle."
As she told her story, a shadow of sadness crossed her face.
It was only for a moment, but I didn't miss it, carving that expression deep into my heart.
"Fortunately, I didn't need to eat and could just absorb electricity. I could even use electronic equipment like computers without moving my hands... but I was lonely."
As she said those words, she looked faint, as if she might disappear at any moment.
Like a small spark jumping from a wire, like a fragile existence that would vanish in an instant.
"Still, my mind was at peace. I didn't have to suffer because of people anymore, and there was... an end to those ten years."
The way she trailed off at the end was likely a reference to me and our comrades.
Only now did I understand why she was angry.
Ten years of solitude.
She had waited day after day, so it was only natural to be angry when no one came.
"I'm sorry."
"Why so suddenly?"
A bright smile. Intense like a bolt of lightning from the heavens, it was a smile of radiant light that seemed like it would never fade.
I accepted it without looking away and opened my mouth to give her my answer.
"I should have come exactly at the ten-year mark."
"Oh? And why is that?"
A playful smile turned toward me, and her eyes narrowed.
The image of her younger self—the one who used to tease me in the past—overlapped with her current form.
"Because I know how hard that kind of solitude is."
A memory dredged up from the past.
A past I had also experienced, counting down the days one by one.
She had gone through that.
While I had thrown everything away and turned my back on the world.
"And yet, I only thought about myself. That's what I'm sorry for."
I put my honest feelings into my words.
A fragile heart that I had never revealed to anyone, a heart that had no one to listen.
I didn't know why, but I felt like it was okay to show it to her.
As if finding my vulnerable side interesting, the Thunder God stood up from her chair and approached me.
She sat down beside me and grabbed my head, turning it toward her.
She also turned her head toward me, and as we sat facing each other, the distance between us closed...
Thud.
The Thunder God headbutted my forehead.
"60 points. Well, you did okay for Ha-ram."
"60 points? There's still 40 points missing?"
No, what more could there be?
"It's because you don't know the answer to that that you haven't grown any taller, Mr. Ha-ram."
She began to tease me while stroking her own reddened forehead.
What was the point of headbutting me if she was the one who took more damage?
Her actions were one thing, but her teasing—as if she were bragging about how much she had grown—made me feel a bit disgruntled.
"Fine, whatever. I wasted my breath being sincere. You were just planning to tease me all along."
I was certain. The Thunder God had set this whole stage just to mock me...
Thump.
In an instant, a shock ran through my body.
The blankets flew up, and she, having turned into yellow lightning, blocked my vision. Before I knew it, I was lying on the bed, looking up at the Thunder God who had pinned me down.
I couldn't understand what had happened for a moment, but I soon realized.
The Thunder God had slammed me onto the bed with a speed that surpassed my perception.
"I'm being serious, though?"
Serious about what? The words reached my throat, but they wouldn't come out, suppressed by her overwhelming presence. It was that pressure I had felt several times today—the feeling that I could never win against her.
Even if I used force to win, my instincts screamed that I would regret it forever.
My thoughts began to race. If this atmosphere continued, something irreversible was going to happen.
"...You didn't answer my question, Thunder God."
The solution my small brain came up with. This was the best move to break the tension.
"Question? What question?"
Perhaps not expecting this reaction, the pressure surrounding her began to dissipate.
"What you just said was about your power getting weaker. Not about it getting stronger."
"Ah. Right."
The hands that had been pinning my shoulders let go.
Having released her hold, she lay down right next to me and spoke.
"How long has it been since I slept with you?"
"I don't know. We slept together often during the war. Maybe fourteen years?"
Since she had the form of a small child back then, we always shared a bed if there wasn't enough space.
More importantly.
"Don't try to sleep. Answer the question."
Why did she keep trying to change the subject? It didn't feel like it was just out of whim; it felt like she had some strange goal in mind.
Perhaps that goal was a terrifying trap I couldn't even fathom...
"I heard from your disciples that you're going to stay for a long time. So, can't we just sleep together tonight and talk about it slowly?"
The Thunder God said this and curled the corners of her mouth into a wicked smile.
Is she a snake or something instead of the Thunder God? I feel like she's laying a trap.
"No. As long as there are uncomfortable feelings about the past between us, it'll keep bothering me. So let's just get it all out now and spend the rest of our time happily."
It wasn't my style to agonize over the right timing to ask; I'd rather just spill everything at once and then go back to joking around.
"Not bad for Ha-ram. That was a pretty good persuasion. 'Spend time happily' with me, huh? I'll let it slide for that."
Saying so, the Thunder God reached out, grabbed my body, and pulled me into a full-body hug.
Her slender but soft body pressed against my back.
"What are you doing?"
"Why? You hate it?"
"..."
Actually, I didn't really hate it. Sharing warm body heat wasn't so bad. Especially if it was the warmth of an old comrade-in-arms.
Chong So-rim had hugged me too, so what was the difference? Her embrace had only felt like the sounds of gunfire, pain, and tragedy.
Well, putting that aside. Something similar had definitely happened recently...
"First Oxymoron, and now you. Am I some kind of doll? Why does everyone want to hug me the moment they see me?"
"...Oxymoron?"
A voice filled with murderous intent whispered right into my ear.
Since she was hugging me, I could even feel her warm breath as she spoke.
"Yeah. That Oxymoron fellow also hugged me in bed..."
Creeeak.
My internal organs twisted.
The Thunder God, suddenly exerting immense strength, began to squeeze my waist.
"While I... was wandering around... with those Mutants... you were doing... that... with Oxymoron?"
Mutants? That? More importantly, how was she crushing my body like this? I thought her strength hadn't fully recovered!
"Mutants? Hey, wait, Mutants? And I only did that with Oxymoron once—"
Snap.
An ominous sound rang out. To be specific, the sound of a bone cracking.
"Once...?"
"Treatment! It was for treatment! I almost died from burns and fractures..."
It was an excuse. My wounds had mostly healed by then. It was likely a form of communion to heal my heart...
"Is that the truth?"
"The truth! I swear on my hammer!"
I'm sorry, Hammer!
"I can check with Oxymoron, right?"
"Of course! Do whatever you want!"
Oxymoron would surely come up with a suitable excuse. I had to believe that.
I didn't know why I had to make such excuses, but they came out automatically from deep within me.
Did the excuse work? The force crushing my stomach weakened, and I was able to calm down.
Compared to before, her hold on me was even tighter, but it was better than passing out from suffocation while spending the night with her.
While I caught my breath.
"Mutants, you said? Everyone here is a Mutant. I knew it the moment the Volunteer Corps moved in."
Mutants? How did she know that?
Before my confusion could turn into a question, she continued her story.
"And my power... it's a bit of a long story, but I crossed The Wall because they asked me to volunteer with them."
Crossed The Wall? What on earth...
"When I took a breath beyond The Wall, my body suddenly felt at ease. The Mutants said it was because my body had become half-Otherworldly, and I hadn't been absorbing Otherworldly Power. They said I need to breathe it in like that every now and then."
Hmm? An Otherworldly Being? Wait, that sounds like some important information...
"After repeating that, the Hero’s power that had vanished began to accumulate inside me, and by learning to control it, I recovered my strength to this level. End of story."
The end? Didn't she just spit it all out in an instant? That's important information for the Bureau, too.
"Since the story's over, it's my turn to ask a question. How have you been for the last eleven years?"
Wait, I have things to ask too...
However, during the time my body was held captive by her that night, there was no time for my questions to follow.
* * *
Drip. Drip.
Shadows dripped from her body.
Hiding in a dark place, Linshua watched the man who was her father.
Without being noticed by anyone, she watched her father making skin contact with another woman...
"Get lost."
【Beep—.】