Encounter (4)
I unconsciously clenched the silver locket hanging around my neck. In that instant, a rage so intense it bleached my mind white surged up from within. It had been a long time since I had torn those detestable creatures apart, one by one, and killed them. A witch was a being that should never appear in Sa Jaehyuk's life again. Yet here it was, showing its face before him once more without the slightest shame.
Sa Jaehyuk instinctively shot the boy a gaze brimming with killing intent. Perhaps sensing it, the boy's trembling grew even more violent. His face turned deathly pale, as white as a corpse. Even so, the fact that he refused to avert his eyes only fueled the commander's anger further. Sa Jaehyuk's hand shot out and seized the hilt of the blade he had sheathed earlier. He was about to draw it and hack the boy's head to pieces when Ye Jin suddenly stepped in front of him.
"..."
At Ye Jin's intervention, Sa Jaehyuk paused. He looked at the boy again. Those eyes were still filled with fear, yet they stared straight back at him without flinching.
The boy finally spoke, his voice trembling. It was the hollow tone of someone who had given up on everything. The moment he heard those words, Sa Jaehyuk felt the tension that had gripped his entire body loosen just a little. He regained some composure and could think rationally again.
The one standing before him was nothing more than a boy who had let go of the thread of life. Not even a trace remained of the mocking, destructive behavior typical of witches. Moreover, while the boy was quite beautiful, it was unmistakably clear he was not a girl.
"...What? What's going on...?"
Yoon Chaewon, who had returned, wore a bewildered expression. She looked back and forth between Sa Jaehyuk and the boy, trying to read the atmosphere.
Only then did Sa Jaehyuk push the blade back into its sheath and turn toward her.
"It's nothing. More importantly, the interrogation?"
"...Sorry. The bastard was tighter-lipped than I expected."
Yoon Chaewon continued her report in a low, almost whispering voice. The captured dark mage had groveled and begged for his life, but he had clamped his mouth shut on every other question. Criminals of this sort sometimes displayed pointless loyalty in the most unexpected areas. It seemed this was exactly one of those cases.
"Still, it wasn't a complete waste. I confirmed a three-leafed hellebore tattoo on his body. His magic was incredibly toxic too. He's definitely a member of the Night Theater."
"...The Night Theater? Not just some wandering looter?"
The Night Theater was one of the criminal organizations rapidly expanding its influence lately. Their main clients were not small-time nobodies but several powerful mage families. The group had earned its reputation for cleanly handling all manner of dirty work for them, and "dirty work" usually meant contract killings.
At first, Sa Jaehyuk had assumed the boy, who had run away from the hospital out of homesickness, had simply run into looters scavenging the ruins by bad luck. But the Night Theater was an organization that only accepted those with real skill even among the worst criminals. There was no way their well-compensated members would be looting ruins in a remote border area.
When all the circumstances were considered, only one conclusion could be drawn. Someone with enough influence to commission the Night Theater had plotted the boy's elimination.
"Hmm..."
Sa Jaehyuk let out a low groan. A headache seemed to throb in his skull. The commotion had ended, but nothing had been cleanly resolved. Although there were suspicious points, on the surface the boy was nothing more or less than the sole survivor of an unfortunate border settlement. He couldn't think of any sharp reason why influential figures would commission the elimination of such a pitiful boy. They were the sort of people who already lacked the time to waste on purging political rivals or fighting over interests.
After pondering for a long time, Sa Jaehyuk turned back toward the boy. The boy was still staring at him with empty eyes. Seeing that, Sa Jaehyuk gave a bitter smile and offered an apology.
"That's right. We have no reason to harm you. On the contrary, we've come to help. You can relax now."
At Sa Jaehyuk's softened tone, the boy eased his wariness a little. Not missing the change, Sa Jaehyuk continued.
"...I see."
Before he could even finish speaking, the boy shook his head. His gloomy gaze drifted toward the ruins of the village spread out behind Sa Jaehyuk.
Sa Jaehyuk thought to himself. If he wanted to find answers to this series of suspicious events, the boy's survival had to be the premise. The best option in the current situation was to keep him under his own protection. That way, he could continue investigating both the causal link involving the witch's authority within the boy and the mastermind who had ordered his death.
...And if, by some chance, things went wrong, he would be right there to dispose of him quickly.
Of course, he also felt genuine sympathy for the boy. On one hand, he sensed a strange kinship. The boy's current appearance made it obvious he had been swept up in an unwanted, massive wave.
But if his survival became known, he would surely be targeted again. No criminal organization wanted to damage its reputation by failing a commission.
"Kid. What's your name?"
Having finally reached a decision, Sa Jaehyuk approached the boy. After a brief hesitation at the question, the boy opened his mouth.
"Not a bad name at all."
At Sa Jaehyuk's praise, Lee Hyun hung his head low. Sa Jaehyuk briefly resented himself for lacking that kind of delicacy.
"...I see. Then how old are you?"
Hearing Lee Hyun's answer, Sa Jaehyuk felt somewhat relieved. At sixteen, he would legally become an adult in a year. He had worried because the boy's frail build made him look much younger, but a single year was something his own abilities could cover.
"Let me ask first—do you have any plans for the future?"
"..."
Lee Hyun silently shook his head. At the same time, he subtly hid one hand behind his back. But Sa Jaehyuk caught the glint of a glass shard slipping between the boy's fingers. That alone was enough to understand the situation.
"..."
At Sa Jaehyuk's words, Lee Hyun flinched and hung his head even lower. A couple of small teardrops fell in succession beneath it. The sharp glares of the unit members pricked at Sa Jaehyuk's back for deliberately touching the boy's painful wounds. But this persuasion was absolutely necessary for his purpose. Sa Jaehyuk deliberately ignored their stares and spoke to the boy again.
"Yes. A proposal."
At Lee Hyun's echo, Sa Jaehyuk nodded.
"..."
Sa Jaehyuk unconsciously fiddled with the silver locket around his neck.
The moment Sa Jaehyuk finished speaking, Lee Hyun's body twitched. Unhidden regret and longing were thickly evident on his face. Of course that would be the case. Observing the boy's reaction, Sa Jaehyuk continued.
"Yes. I'll help you overcome your powerlessness. I'll help you cultivate the strength to resist those absurd waves. I swear on my life that I will pour every ounce of my knowledge and power into it."
"..."
Each of Sa Jaehyuk's words pierced deep into Lee Hyun's heart. They dragged out the weakest part hidden in the deepest corner of his chest without any filter. After listening silently for a long time, Lee Hyun finally spoke.
"That's right. Both me and my comrades."
Sa Jaehyuk nodded.
"Correct. It's a bit embarrassing to say with my own mouth, but I belong to the considerably powerful side among mages. The same goes for my comrades."
"What?"
At Lee Hyun's words, a flash of surprise crossed Sa Jaehyuk's face. A complete non-sensitive—he had heard of the theory during his academy days, but to think such a being truly existed. He noticed the boy had suddenly become completely dejected. Judging by his reaction, it was clear the boy knew nothing about the authority he possessed, let alone about witches.
"..."
At Sa Jaehyuk's bold declaration, Lee Hyun's eyes widened into perfect circles.
"What?"
He tried to stay calm, but the longing he couldn't hide seeped through his trembling voice. Convinced that his persuasion had worked, Sa Jaehyuk finally let out a light laugh.
"..."
"..."
After listening to Sa Jaehyuk, Lee Hyun fell into thought. If they were plotting something sinister, there would have been no need for such persuasion. With the skill to subdue dark mages without a single wound, they could have simply dragged him away. Besides, although the man had a rather fierce appearance, he didn't seem like someone who would lie. He still didn't understand what this "incredible ability" meant. Above all, after hearing Sa Jaehyuk's earlier words, he had completely abandoned any thought of ending his own life.
Being left alone was still painful and agonizing. But when he thought of how his mother and friends would grieve again, he simply couldn't do it.
After a long silence, Lee Hyun finally opened his mouth.
"Good. The deal is sealed, then..."
Upon hearing the answer, Sa Jaehyuk let out a sigh of relief. But every matter needed a proper conclusion. Sa Jaehyuk turned and walked toward the unit members who had been watching.
"...Commander. What the hell is this all of a sudden? And what ability?"
"It looks like an explanation will be necessary..."
"Sorry. I'll explain everything later. For now, let's clean up the scene first. Se-hwa. What about that guy from earlier?"
"I've only subdued him for now. It didn't seem like more would come out even if we interrogated him."
"Go with Chaewon and bring him over. We've found a use for him."
"...You have to explain it to us later, okay?"
Though Se-hwa and Chaewon wore displeased expressions, they left to fetch the dark mage. In any case, he had no intention of hiding anything. They already knew all about his circumstances.
"...Commander. You don't mean...?"
However, Ye Jin, who had experienced the mysterious phenomenon with him earlier, was quicker on the uptake. She made a serious face, then this time turned her wary gaze toward Lee Hyun.
Sa Jaehyuk gave her a bitter smile and said,
"But..."
"...Alright."
While they were talking, Chaewon and Se-hwa returned, dragging the dark mage with them. His condition was far more wretched than before. The dark mage was covered in blood, his entire body bound. Blisters had formed all over his exposed skin, and the faint smell of burning flesh wafted everywhere.
"...You really went to town on him."
Seeing the traces of torture, Sa Jaehyuk slightly furrowed his brow. Then he turned to Lee Hyun and asked,
"Something... a token..."
At Sa Jaehyuk's question, Lee Hyun began to shake his head, but then suddenly stopped and looked down at his left hand. Following the boy's gaze, Sa Jaehyuk soon noticed the ring on his left ring finger.
Seeing the boy's extreme hesitation, Sa Jaehyuk said,
"Hm?"
At Sa Jaehyuk's words, Lee Hyun shook his head. Then, with trembling hands, he removed the ring and held it out to him. His voice was thick with moisture.
"I see. Understood."
Sa Jaehyuk asked no further. If the boy had chosen, that was the end of it. Accepting the ring, Sa Jaehyuk walked over to the bound dark mage and crouched down in front of him. Seeing Sa Jaehyuk's actions, the dark mage—Rang—asked in terror.
At Sa Jaehyuk's words, Rang fell into shock, his mouth opening and closing wordlessly. Ignoring him, Sa Jaehyuk adjusted Rang's posture, pulled out his left hand, and tried to slip the ring Lee Hyun had given him onto the fourth finger. But there was no way a ring that fit a boy's finger would fit an adult.
"Ah, it won't go on. Then what..."
After struggling for a while, Sa Jaehyuk let out a deep sigh. It looked as if he had given up, but then he put strength into his hand and simply shoved the ring deep inside.
-Crack!
The skin, already weakened by burns, was pushed inward by the ring. The dark mage rolled on the ground, screaming in agony.
"Understood."
Though Sa Jaehyuk's actions seemed strange at first glance, the unit members who had already grasped his intent raised no objections. Sa Jaehyuk was trying to fake the boy's death. The others stepped back, and only Chaewon remained, preparing to draw a magic circle.
"Wait, Commander."
"Why?"
"In front of that... child..."
However, Se-hwa briefly stopped Chaewon. Sa Jaehyuk reminded himself once again that he was quite dull when it came to that kind of sensitivity.
"...I suppose that's true. Then it's a bit of a hassle, but let's drag him back over there..."
"No."
At the voice coming from behind, all the unit members turned their heads. At some point, Lee Hyun had stood up and was watching them.
"Hey. What good will come from watching something like this? Just wait here for a bit..."
"Honestly..."
At Lee Hyun's stubbornness, the unit members looked troubled. But Sa Jaehyuk, who had been observing the situation, instead supported the boy.
"Commander. But..."
"...Sigh. Understood."
At Sa Jaehyuk's words, the unit members reluctantly stepped back. Chaewon prepared the magic circle again. Burning lines were drawn on the ground around the dark mage, gradually forming a circle. Rang, who had barely regained his senses after writhing in the pain of his curled, blistered skin, shouted desperately upon seeing her.
Chaewon didn't even look at Rang as she answered in an icy voice.
Before the dark mage could finish, the circle completed and a pillar of fire erupted, engulfing him completely.
Just before the pillar of fire surged upward, Lee Hyun felt as if his eyes had met the dark mage's for a moment. Now the man was trapped within the magical flames, endlessly screaming in a hoarse voice.
"Ah, he's really noisy..."
"Should've ripped his tongue out beforehand..."
A strange scene unfolded before Lee Hyun. A person was burning to death, yet the women in front of him were having a casual conversation as if they were simply grilling meat. Strangely, however, Lee Hyun himself felt no human pity while watching the screaming dark mage. Instead, he even felt a small sense of satisfaction in his heart.
Lee Hyun thought, Even a wicked bastard like him calls for his mother when he dies.
Before long, the screams cut off. Only the pillar of fire burned fiercely toward the sky. After a long while, even the pillar of fire died down. All that remained where the dark mage had been was a pile of ashes. At its edge, the ring that had once been on Lee Hyun's finger sparkled brightly.
While Lee Hyun was staring blankly at the ashes, the man called Commander suddenly stood before him again. He reached out his hand and said,
Welcome to the 66th Raven Brigade.