Chapter 4
Chapter 4
"This way."
The staff flanking me on both sides led me upward, higher still. Their final destination was the old Joseon-style mansion at the very top of the clan estate. Seeing that familiar sight draw closer filled me with the urge to vomit up everything inside me right then and there.
'The air here is already shit.'
This was the residence of the direct bloodline of the yangban elite. And at the same time, the very place where I'd once buried my head in the dirt, begging for my life.
How long had I stood there in the empty courtyard, waiting?
"You're here."
A cold voice rang out, and a man stepped forward. A white hanbok leaking that signature blue glow. Aura so potent it made my entire body tingle with just the sound of his footsteps. And hanging off him like ornaments, followers from other clans, as if to flaunt his position.
My half-brother, Kim Hyun-woo. The eldest son of the Andong Kim Clan, the undisputed heir to this household.
"Young master, you've arrived."
"As per your orders, we've brought Young Master Chang-un. Our investigation shows that the one who touched the clan's funds was..."
"Enough."
He silenced the staff with a raised hand, then said nothing more. He simply stared at me with eyes like my father's—cold and unreadable.
But that didn't last.
"Unbelievable. A powerless wretch like you, still daring to meet my eyes with that look."
With those icy words, a massive wave of aura crushed down on me.
Boom—!
"Urk...!"
The pain was like my shoulders were about to shatter. A human like me, without a scrap of aura, couldn't hold out long.
Thud—!
I buckled, one knee hitting the ground under the overwhelming pressure. Only then did he seem ready to speak, his arrogant expression twisting as he spat out his piece.
"I've heard the news. Aura reading: zero. The first powerless birth in our Andong Kim Clan."
"..."
As if I'd be summoned here over money issues. Kim Hyun-woo finished, but I didn't reply. No point—what would be the use when he wasn't listening anyway?
Seeing no reaction even after "powerless," he narrowed his eyes and kept ranting.
"Our Andong Kim Clan is a prestigious house that upholds the legacy of King Gwangjo. We received the royal decree to seal the rifts ravaging the North and the islands, to save Joseon in its hour of crisis."
I snorted inwardly as he droned on.
'Yeah, back when I was a kid, that voice really scared me.'
That tone, as if my birth was some personal failing of mine. That voice preaching as if existing was a sin in itself. In my past life, it filled me with terror. Not anymore.
What I felt now was simple. Thick, seething disgust.
'Upholding King Gwangjo's legacy? Sealing rifts and protecting Joseon? Bullshit has its limits.'
An old fart like Father—no, Lord Kim Jung-heon—might buy that crap, but not this guy. I knew better. I knew the ambitions swirling in that arrogant skull of Kim Hyun-woo's. And I knew exactly what that ambition-crazed idiot would do down the line.
"A powerless piece of trash born from the blood of such a noble house. And yet Father still shows you mercy..."
But whatever. Even as I thought that, Kim Hyun-woo pressed on.
"You're bringing in outsiders for no reason, treating the clan's funds like your own pocket money."
"..."
"If a powerless nobody like you thinks he can run wild without knowing his place..."
He paused, scanning me with indifferent eyes.
"Then you have no place in this clan."
Rumble...
His solemn voice rang like a death sentence, and the pressure on my shoulders intensified. Pain wracked my body like it was being crushed. It dragged up echoes from my past life, like unrolling a faded portrait.
'I'm sorry for being born powerless... Sorry for betraying the clan's expectations...!'
'Please, just once... just give me one chance! I'll do anything for the clan! I'll devote my life to it! So please...!'
'Fuck that.'
Gritting my teeth, I forced myself back up against the crushing aura. I wouldn't bow to those idiots again. Not to those pathetic Sedao scum, who'd crumble like sandcastles at the first whiff of revolution. I wouldn't cower like a frightened dog.
"Kneel right now and beg the clan's forgiveness. Cancel everything you tried to do and live like you're dead, or...!"
"Then kill me."
The moment I cut him off, the aura pinning me down vanished. I glanced up. What do you know—Kim Hyun-woo stared back, eyes wide like he'd seen a ghost.
"...What did you say?"
"I said, kill me if you're going to. If the blood of a bastard born between a commoner's legs stains the ancestral mansion with its 200-year history, Lord Kim Jung-heon will be thrilled. Isn't that right, young master?"
Insolent words, scraping at his nerves. He probably never imagined such defiance from my mouth. Stunned for a beat, Kim Hyun-woo narrowed his eyes in boiling rage.
"...You've truly lost your mind, haven't you?"
His fury sharpened, and the aura dominating the area thickened even more.
"Urk...!"
"Young master Hyun-woo, compose yourself! In the middle of the ancestral mansion...!"
Even the servants lined up around us trembled at the aura. At the same time, a sword hissed from the scabbard at Kim Hyun-woo's waist. Step by step, he closed in until he loomed right before me, exuding godlike authority.
"This is your last chance. Bow your head and beg for your life, or right here...!"
"But isn't it strange?"
Too bad. Compared to the killers I'd faced in my past life—the heroes who'd lop off heads without blinking—this aura was nothing. Compared to their murderous intent, this pain was a joke.
"I know best that I'm lowly trash. And that I'm powerless."
"What?"
"But doesn't the authority to dispose of that trash belong to the clan head, Lord Kim Jung-heon—not you, young master?"
"...!"
For the first time, something besides rage and disgust crossed Kim Hyun-woo's face. Bewilderment. I seized it, prodding further.
"Yet here you are, personally ordering the finance team—clan's workers—to drag me here. Talking about spilling lowly blood in the ancestral mansion. Even unleashing your aura recklessly in this place. Isn't that odd?"
Dragging out the truth he desperately hid.
"It almost makes you look like the head of the Andong Kim Clan, young master."
"Young Master Chang-un!"
"What insolence...!"
"Is there anything wrong with what I said? Correct me if so. Being born of lowly blood, I can't always tell heaven from earth."
Taunting him like that, I watched Kim Hyun-woo fumble for words, lips twitching. But no sound came out.
Of course not. He never dreamed the bootlicking wretch at the bottom would push back like this. Especially not me. Especially not dragging out the dark secrets in his head.
'Trying to make me kneel with clan law? Fine, I'll throw clan law right back at you.'
After a brief silence, Kim Hyun-woo opened his mouth to retort. I cut him off, pressing with clear intent.
"Summoning a clan member. Commanding those in important positions for personal whims. All that falls under the authority of the clan head, Lord Kim Jung-heon."
I straightened, meeting his eyes levelly. Staring straight into his gaze, I defied the crashing waves of aura.
"So for you to summon me like this... with all due respect, it's against propriety."
Act like the heir you are—or stop playing house head already. Who's the one who doesn't know his place?
Kim Hyun-woo's eyes bulged with bloodshot fury as he caught my meaning.
"Shut your mouth."
Gotcha. His temper snapped at my jab. Teeth grinding, he unleashed even more aura. Dark clouds gathered from the sheer force. They called it the highest-output aura in Joseon history—no exaggeration.
"I asked if you wanted your blood splattered here? No need."
Crash—!
Thunder shook the courtyard, and the surging aura flashed like it would incinerate me on the spot.
"What'll be left of you is just a charred lump anyway."
"Oh, really? Then stop yapping and kill me already."
Swinging at a kid not even twenty? Piece of cake for you. Even as my hair stood on end, I kept smirking, grinding his nerves.
"What, can't muster that fancy aura unless I shut up?"
"...!"
The instant Kim Hyun-woo looked ready to explode at my final barb—
"Noisy."
Boom—!
A heavy storm of aura overwhelmed the area, forcing everyone—including me—to drop to one knee. Lower output than Kim Hyun-woo's, but precision beyond compare. As his own aura vanished in an instant, Kim Hyun-woo whipped around, eyes widening.
"Father...!"
Where he looked stood the head of the Andong Kim Clan. Kim Jung-heon.
"...!"
"......"
Silence blanketed the courtyard. Kim Hyun-woo's raging aura, his fury, my taunts—all gone. Dead stillness. Everyone froze, holding their breath, gauging his mood.
"Utterly disappointing."
His voice finally broke the quiet. With that, Kim Jung-heon slowly approached me and Kim Hyun-woo.
Slap!
In the next instant, he backhanded Kim Hyun-woo across the face.
"Ah, Father. Let me explain...!"
Undeterred even by his furious father, Kim Hyun-woo tried to speak.
Slap!
Slap!
Crack!
Three strikes in a row left him bowing his head in silence.
"Immature, frivolous, utterly vulgar."
Lord Kim Jung-heon's voice cut like a blade.
"Kim Hyun-woo. The foes you'll face are old monsters who've clung to Joseon's pinnacle for decades, and their disciples. The world you'll enter is a demon realm of smiles hiding blades, every word and gesture a dagger."
"..."
"And you can't even control your petty emotions, unleashing aura in the clan mansion? You think you can play the eldest son of the Andong Kim Clan like that?"
"My thinking was shortsighted. Father, punish me."
"Manage your expressions when spouting empty words. A man destined for court, unable to control his own face..."
"I apologize... deeply."
After unleashing his tirade, Kim Jung-heon turned to me. Or so I thought. No—a lie. His gaze fell not on me, but on the staff who'd brought me, and Kim Hyun-woo's tag-alongs.
"All of you, leave. This racket is unbearable."
"Y-yes!"
"M-my apologies, my lord."
As the staff shuffled toward me, I had to get permission now that I'd come this far.
"My lord!"
I called out to Kim Jung-heon cheerfully.
"The new bodyguard and a bit of pocket money—that much should be fine to use freely, right?"
"..."
He turned only his head to look at me, back still to the mansion. After staring for a moment, he said nothing and walked away.
Not interested, do as you please. The funds I'd dipped into, the pay for a bodyguard—chump change, less than tossing coins to a beggar.
Step.
As Lord Kim Jung-heon vanished, Kim Hyun-woo approached, face twisted.
"You trash dare humiliate me in front of Father? One day, I won't let you—"
"Best heed the lord's words, young master. Aren't you managing that expression?"
"Urk...!"
Realizing more talk would only hurt him, Kim Hyun-woo turned away. Our brotherly chat ended there.
And shortly after.
Back in my room under the staff's guidance—
Thud—!
The aftereffects of the aura exposure hit late. My rigid body relaxed, and I collapsed right there.
"Hah... hah...! Heuk...!"
"Young Master Chang-un!"
"I'm fine! Just for a moment... really, I'm fine...!"
No. Far from it. The terror of defying my brother for the first time in my life. That immense aura. The pressure like it would tear me apart.
'I thought a second life meant I'd be fine, but I'm shaking this bad...!'
Yet even as my body trembled uncontrollably, a strange refreshment settled in one corner of my mind.
"Ha, haha...! Hahaha...!"
I could do it. Even alone. Even in this powerless body, I could stand tall and snap back at those aura-wielding scum!
"Kim Hyun-woo."
Next came the image of him with Lord Kim Jung-heon. Taking slaps and scoldings.
"You're doing well. Finally getting an earful from Dad."
Raising means he plans to nurture. Scolding means he acknowledges you as his own. Either way, sights I'd never witnessed.
"...Tch."
No time for self-pity now. I shook my head, shedding the tangle of anger, fear, joy, and sorrow.
What was this—bipolar or something?
"Tae-woong."
"Yes."
"Sorry, but get me a glass of water, and... one favor."
"A favor, you say?"
"Yeah. A favor."
Forcing my slack body upright, tension draining away.
"Take some of the pocket money I gave you and procure something for me. As fast as possible."
I'd scraped his nerves raw this time. With Kim Hyun-woo's personality, retaliation was guaranteed. Especially considering what he'd done to me in my last life...
"Time's not on our side."