Chapter 36: I guess I’m still a kid

Initially, I’d planned to hand the giant over to the Wang family.

Despite Wang Wei’s consciousness being gone, the body was originally his.

But that wasn’t possible.

The giant could only maintain its sanity near me; if it strayed too far, it would lose control and go on a rampage.

[I can only maintain my sanity near my progenitor.]

How could I send him to the Wang family in that state? So I negotiated.

I offered to relinquish all claims to the giant, effectively giving it to them, if they deleted the footage of Wang Wei provoking me.

It was a win-win situation.

With Wang Wei gone, there was no need to antagonize the Wang family further.

And gaining control of a giant with mid-S-rank power, freshly transformed?

It would be a tremendous asset.

We recorded our agreement, and I deleted the footage in front of Wang Mei.

With the pro-Japan Wang Wei gone, replaced by the pro-China Wang Mei, there was no reason for further conflict between us. Or so I hoped.

Now, I needed the Taming skill to control the giant.

As if reading my mind, Wang Mei approached me.

“Do you need a Taming skill stone?”

She seemed more respectful than before the match.

I didn’t care; the skill stone was my priority.

“Yeah. You probably already know this from your research, but I’m a penniless orphan. 5 billion won is a bit out of my reach right now.”

I started with the orphan card.

It was surprisingly effective, despite the difficult upbringing.

A perfect shield.

Of course, only I could say that, having been an orphan five times.

Anyone else would get beaten up.

“I… knew that, but hearing it from you is… unsettling. Is that why Jin Baek-ryong looked so flustered before your fight?”

She was sharp, deducing that much from a single conversation.

“Yeah. He started by talking about his family, so I told him about mine.”

The Kim Yu-won family, with me as its sole member and head.

I now had three wives, but that was classified information.

“You said that knowing what I was going to offer.”

I hadn’t declared my orphan status for fun.

“It’s obvious. Either your family would provide the skill stone, or you’d use your personal wealth to sponsor me. One of the two.”

Why else would she bring up a 5-billion-won Taming skill stone? To flaunt her wealth?

‘That would have been interesting too.’

A rich girl appearing out of nowhere, flaunting her wealth, then vanishing.

Like the beginning of a romance novel.

“You’re right. But sponsoring someone who just antagonized the most likely successor to the head of the family would be difficult, even for my family.

It might generate positive publicity, but my brother wouldn’t like it.”

She saw right through me.

If the Wang family was trying to use me for good PR, I wouldn’t accept their skill stone.

I might be poor and orphaned, but I wasn’t without pride.

Of course, I could lower myself for close friends.

I’d rather borrow from Shin-woo or Baek-ryong than be indebted to the Wang family.

“You seem to have me figured out.”

She smiled.

“I wouldn’t be fit to lead a top 10 family if I couldn’t even do that.”

“Wang Wei couldn’t.”

If he’d been able to read me, he wouldn’t have provoked me.

She shrugged.

“Exactly. I don’t understand why the elders wanted to make him the head of the family just because he was born earlier and was slightly stronger. The Wang family would have entered a dark age under his leadership.”

I agreed. The family wouldn’t prosper under his rule.

“So you’re investing in me personally? What do you want in return?”

She was offering support as Wang Mei, not as a representative of the Wang family.

She gained nothing officially.

She wanted something I could provide personally.

And as long as her request wasn’t outrageous, I was willing to consider it.

Earning 5 billion won in my current situation was difficult, and I didn’t want to resort to illegal activities, especially with all the attention I was receiving.

“What I want…”

She paused, then spoke with a determined expression. What difficult request required such a dramatic buildup?

“Is for you to see me for who I am.”

‘Huh…?’

What kind of request was that?

“I’ve always been perceptive, sensitive to others’ emotions.

And I sensed it. From the moment we met, you were uncomfortable around me, trying to distance yourself.”

True.

She was the type of person I disliked.

“Why? What did I do wrong? We’d just met; I hadn’t done anything to offend you. I came to you with a mutually beneficial proposition.”

She was right.

She hadn’t done anything wrong.

We’d just met.

“And you weren’t uncomfortable when we spoke on the phone, even though I’m Wang Wei’s sister.”

That was also true.

“Which means our conversation made you uncomfortable. Because I wanted my brother to be crippled? Because I’m smiling even though he’s turned into a monster?”

As expected of a sharp mind, she arrived at the correct answer. Having confirmed her suspicions, she continued.

“You said you’ve never had a family. Do you know what the Wang family is like?”

I shook my head.

“It’s a living hell where people die every day. Where killing servants for the slightest offense is justified. No one outside knows what happens within those walls, so it continues unchecked.”

‘Is it okay for her to tell me this?’

Even though we were alone, away from the arena, this seemed like classified information.

“It’s not a family… It’s a den of vipers, constantly scheming and backstabbing for power. To survive, I had to become ruthless and strong.”

It was a world beyond my comprehension. A family devouring itself from within.

“There’s more, but it’s not something to discuss with someone I just met.”

The fact that there were even worse stories surprised me.

I’d imagined it to be like the noble families I’d seen in my past lives, or like Jin Baek-ryong’s family.

But the Wang family seemed more like a separate kingdom with its own twisted laws.

“Do you know why I’m telling you this? Because you’re the first.”

The first what?

“The first person who reacted more strongly to insults against his loved ones than against himself. The first person willing to sacrifice so much to protect those he cares about. You seem willing to do anything for those within your circle.”

She was right.

I would do anything for them. For them, I could forget all about restraint.

“It’s not fair. I haven’t done anything wrong. I finally found someone special, but because of your preconceived notions, I can’t even try to enter your circle.”

She looked at me intently.

“To be seen for who I am, without prejudice. That’s all I want in exchange for the Taming skill stone. Is that too much to ask? A chance to get to know you.”

I’d made a mistake.

My 137 years of life had ingrained certain biases in me.

I’d judged her prematurely, unfairly labeling her as a bad person.

‘What kind of adult makes a child reveal her traumatic past?’

Even at 137, I was still a child. I’d forced her to reveal her painful family history.

“I can’t fulfill that request.”

Her face fell.

“It’s too small a price to pay for 5 billion won. I can do that for free.”

“You mean…”

Her face lit up.

“I’ll do that for free. Think carefully about your 5-billion-won request and tell me later.”

Something I could actually provide.