Chapter 141
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 142
Chapter Title: Eternal Flame of Atonement
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“......”
Die if you want to die.
Upon hearing Lee Se-hun's words, Kim In-cheol stared at him with a look of surprise.
Some might call it abusive language, but to Kim In-cheol, it felt like a purely sincere invitation, devoid of any malice.
“There are people for whom living is pure torment. If all they want is release from that, we shouldn't blindly try to stop them.”
“......Is that so.”
“Yes. That's what I think.”
Was it really okay to just end it all like this? Just as Kim In-cheol's thoughts were about to take another step forward...
“But if you think that's atonement, then forget it.”
Lee Se-hun fixed him with a sharp gaze.
“......”
It pierced straight to the heart, as if he'd seen right through Kim In-cheol's innermost thoughts. Kim In-cheol stared at him, forgetting even to breathe.
Though younger than him and weakened by injury, there was an indescribable pressure emanating from the boy.
He wanted to look away, but it was as if he were pinned in place, unable to move. Seeing this, Lee Se-hun continued.
“You mentioned earlier that you were part of the group behind this incident.”
Kim In-cheol had been an exceptional researcher, even acknowledged within the Offering. Naturally, his hands were stained with much blood.
He had claimed they only used volunteers back then, but could there truly have been not a single innocent among them? Both men knew that wasn't the case.
“Dying to pay for those sins... well, it's not a bad idea. The victims would find it loathsome just seeing you alive and well.”
“......”
“But is that really what they want? For you to choose your own death?”
The perpetrators had taken their own lives, so they might think it settles the score. But from the true victims' perspective, it would only feel like cowardice—like running away.
Of course, people vary, but Lee Se-hun at least believed that.
'That's how it was for me.'
He had prayed every night before bed that the mine who killed his family would live on fat and happy until he could exact his revenge.
That way, his vengeance would leave the bastard utterly wretched.
“So if you truly want atonement, go to the victims yourself and beg them to kill you. That might actually mean something.”
“......”
Kim In-cheol listened in a daze, then bowed his head weakly. His trembling hands gripped his knees with all their might.
“There are none......”
“......”
“No one left who wants to kill me......”
The Watchers valued secrecy above all and left no loose ends. Thus, those selected as materials were always loners.
Family, lovers, friends—anyone who might rage over their death or disappearance was eliminated by the Offering's schemes, driving the survivors to offer their souls to paradise out of unbearable emptiness.
That was the 'persuasion' the Offering spoke of.
“The only ones who want me dead are those trying to hide their secrets. But dying by their hands—what meaning would that have?”
“What about fighting back?”
“That...... feels like an excuse to me.”
Some might fight to atone for their wrongs, but Kim In-cheol couldn't accept that path.
From long ago, the moment he'd realized his mistakes, he'd wanted no more of this life. Yet he'd clung on for one reason alone.
To free the souls trapped eternally in torment within the shattered flames of the Hwacheon Blade.
'It doesn't matter anymore......'
The Hwacheon Blade, completed by the Flame Blade Hunter, was destroyed beyond repair. He couldn't know if their souls were freed, but with no options left, perhaps it was enough.
As Kim In-cheol muttered listlessly, having let everything go...
“Then you should live.”
Lee Se-hun, watching him calmly, spoke up.
“......What?”
“I can't know what the dead want from you, but at least, I think they wish for your suffering to the very end.”
Atonement wasn't so simply paid with death. It was about receiving back even a fraction of the pain they'd inflicted.
“So live. A life without peace or happiness, one so horrific you'll wish for death every single day......”
“......”
“Isn't that how you can pay even a little for your sins?”
As if he weren't entirely certain himself, Lee Se-hun spoke matter-of-factly.
With those words, a heavy silence filled the hospital room. Kim In-cheol stared down at his hands without a word.
After a torrent of thoughts, he lifted his head, a bitter expression on his face.
“I've felt it before, but...... you're quite cold-blooded.”
“Disappointed?”
Kim In-cheol shook his head at the question.
“Quite the opposite—relieved. With a temperament like yours...... you won't be swayed by them.”
“Never. Rest easy.”
The moment they allied with the Myriad Demons' Mire and treated humanity as materials, the Watchers had crossed an irreversible river.
On this point, at least, he would never compromise—before his regression or now. Lee Se-hun stated it firmly.
“Good.”
Kim In-cheol nodded briefly and rose from his seat.
“Sorry for the late hour. Rest well and take care from now on.”
“Yes. You too......”
Lee Se-hun paused mid-reply. Telling him to take care here might be awkward.
After a moment's thought, he offered a suitable response.
“I wish you achieve what you desire.”
“......Thank you.”
Kim In-cheol turned and left the room. Watching his back, Lee Se-hun let out a sigh.
'Wonder how it'll turn out......'
He'd said a lot, but he couldn't predict how Kim In-cheol would live from here.
He might follow the advice and live for atonement, or simply end it alone as planned.
Which was right?
Lee Se-hun pondered, then shook his head.
'As long as there's no regret, either way.'
That alone would be fortunate. With that thought, he lay back down and fell asleep.
A night with the moon shining brightly.
An antique yet worn lamp on the desk cast a faint glow over the academy president's office.
Ludwig, immersed in reading documents, asked without lifting his eyes.
“So, have you made your decision?”
Kim In-cheol, standing across the desk, nodded with resolute determination.
“Yes.”
“Good. Then tell me where you'd like to go. With your skills, any top research institute would—”
“Somewhere the most agonizing.”
Ludwig's hand paused mid-page at the unexpected reply. He looked up at Kim In-cheol.
Leaning back slightly in his chair, he asked gravely.
“Must it be that?”
“I believe it's the only path I can choose.”
Ludwig pondered briefly at Kim In-cheol's unwavering response, then nodded.
“Very well. If that's your choice......”
Whoosh.
With a light wave of Ludwig's hand, their surroundings shifted entirely.
A vast space with only a single ancient brazier standing alone. Kim In-cheol looked around.
“This is......”
“A facility for researching the Sacred Flame Artisan's power. That's the brazier he used before becoming a Summit Climber.”
Following Ludwig's explanation, Kim In-cheol eyed the brazier inside.
Crackle—
A faint flame flickered weakly. Overwhelmed by the immense presence within, Kim In-cheol felt himself drawn in—
Whoosh!
The flame began to grow.
It filled the space above the brazier, gradually taking the form of a massive bird that looked down upon them.
“Vermilion Bird......”
The S-grade beast revived by the Offering and captured thanks to Lee Se-hun and Louise's efforts.
After Ludwig claimed he'd handle it, the beast had vanished—only to emerge now from the Sacred Flame Artisan's brazier.
“We've had the brazier for ages, but the remaining embers were too weak for proper research. So we're using the Vermilion Bird's revival power to nurture it gradually.”
“......Is it safe entrusting that to a beast?”
A creature born in the Myriad Demons' Mire, instinctively hostile to humanity—could they hand it the Sacred Flame Artisan's embers?
Ludwig dismissed Kim In-cheol's concern casually.
“No issue. I've neutralized its heart and vital organs.”
One gesture, and every organ sustaining the Vermilion Bird would be ripped into subspace, reducing it back to a handful of flames.
At Ludwig's relaxed reply, Kim In-cheol gazed at the brazier a moment longer before asking.
“So, what do you need me to do here?”
“......Do you know why the Vermilion Bird possesses superior intelligence compared to other beasts?”
Was there a special reason for its exceptional intellect? Kim In-cheol, who'd assumed it mere individual variation, shook his head.
“No idea.”
“It draws power from the firewood it burns. In other words......”
Ludwig looked at Kim In-cheol evenly.
“It absorbs the egos of the lifeforms it incinerates, using them as fuel to gain higher intelligence.”
“......”
Not just humans, but other beasts, monsters, mines—every life it burned contributed to its evolution through absorbed egos.
Hearing the Vermilion Bird's power for the first time, Kim In-cheol dimly grasped what Ludwig intended.
“You'll use me as firewood.”
“Precisely. We'll contract you to the Vermilion Bird, then repeatedly revive and burn you with its power. Everything you are will transfer fully to it.”
Endlessly regenerated, only for the ego to burn away.
Having glimpsed that agony in his battle with the Flame Blade Hunter, Kim In-cheol's eyes darkened deeply.
“Better to experience it than hear it.”
Ludwig glanced at the Vermilion Bird. A single feather floated gently, embedding itself in Kim In-cheol's body.
“───!”
Flames from the feather raced through his veins, scorching the inside of his skull. The dizzying sensation toppled him; he collapsed, retching dryly.
“Gah...... cough......”
It felt like burns ravaging his insides and entire body.
The mental torment disrupted his nervous system, vividly recreating the pain of being engulfed in flames.
“That same agony will assail you ceaselessly, every second of every day. Immortal, forever trapped in suffering.”
Ludwig turned indifferently from the kneeling Kim In-cheol, looking down at him.
“Do you still wish to proceed?”
“......”
Regaining his breath, Kim In-cheol stared at the brazier. Slowly rising on trembling legs, he forced out words.
“Can you promise, on the Ascendant Emperor's name, to use this power for humanity...... so the innocent won't be sacrificed?”
Ludwig regarded him, then nodded slowly.
“I swear it upon the Ascendant Emperor.”
“......Thank you.”
With final confirmation, Kim In-cheol stepped toward the brazier. As the flames neared, his body shook like a leaf, pains resurfacing.
That brief taste had instilled fear of the flames he'd cherished lifelong, but he bit his lip until it bled and pressed on.
Finally, he extended a hand toward the faint blaze within.
Whoosh!
As if awaiting, the Sacred Flame Artisan's fire surged up his arm, engulfing his body.
Excruciating pain left him immobile. Silently watching, the Vermilion Bird enveloped him with its vast wings.
Hummm—!
A contract sigil etched onto Kim In-cheol's chest. The Vermilion Bird's flames mingled with the Sacred Flame, burrowing deep into his mind.
Decades of memories. Derived thoughts. Even the landscape of his mental image—all burned away, melting his body.
Fwoosh!
Yet the liquefying form regenerated under the Vermilion Bird's fire, the crumbling ego faintly reforming, vivid in his mind.
Traitor.
His first and last love's final words.
I'm scared......
The child he couldn't save.
Scenes from countless experiments he'd joined, those sinful moments, looped endlessly—burning and regenerating his ego.
'I see...... This is...... paying for one's sins......'
Kim In-cheol shifted to perch on the brazier's edge. As he surrendered to the infinite torment...
Whoosh.
Space parted, dropping an object into his hand.
A charred sword hilt—the Hwacheon Blade. Recognizing it, Kim In-cheol's eyes widened in shock, forgetting pain. The Vermilion Bird's flames naturally seeped inside.
Whoosh.
Faint flames flickered from cracks throughout. Simultaneously, a soft murmur echoed from within.
Finally......
A wisp of smoke drifted out. The Hwacheon Blade's flames dimmed slightly.
As Kim In-cheol stared blankly, the Vermilion Bird's voice resounded in his ear.
"One demonstration suffices. Clean up your own mess."
“......”
As if compelled, Kim In-cheol placed a hand on the Hwacheon Blade, pushing the flames encircling him inside.
The moment he burned the tightest-bound knot within...
Thank you.
A familiar child's voice brushed his ear, rising like smoke and vanishing.
“Ah......”
Witnessing it, Kim In-cheol's repeatedly crumbling ego sharpened anew.
The numbing pain surged back fiercely, but undeterred, he freed the bound souls one by one.
Fwoosh!
An opportunity met only by rejecting escape in death. Naturally, a certain youth came to mind.
'Thank you...... truly......'
Tears streaming endlessly, he offered silent gratitude.
The bond level with target 'Kim In-cheol' has risen to Lv. 2.
A relationship has been established due to the bond level increase. Your relationship with target 'Kim In-cheol' is 'Reformation'.
Relationship: Reformation 更生
A sense of guilt is an emotion powerful enough to upend a person's entire life, like an inescapable shadow.
How one accepts it shapes their fate, making this landmark relationship endure deeply.
* Bond Stones are generated each time the target reforms.
* Bond Stone maturation accelerates while the target atones.
* Currently generated Bond Stones: None.
“......”
The brazier's flames continued to burn.
Ludwig watched silently a moment, then turned and vanished.
Fwoosh.
The flames enveloping Kim In-cheol burned on ceaselessly, intertwined eternally with his guilt.