Ch.172IF. Those Unworthy Even of Death (4)

His son had returned.

The son he had searched for so desperately despite all the criticism had finally returned.

In a form so different from before.

…

“Heejin.”

Former Suwon High Prosecutor Gwon Jungman quietly called out to his son lying in the hospital bed. His voice carried no particular emotion.

There was, of course, no response.

His son was critically injured and still heavily sedated.

Even on the rare occasions when he regained consciousness, he only muttered incomprehensible words before breaking into sobs—completely delirious.

And honestly, recovery seemed unlikely.

Gwon Heejin was essentially just a piece of flesh.

Right hand amputated, left thumb amputated, and several toes lost from both feet. His cervical spine was in serious condition, and he had burns scattered across his body.

With extremely successful rehabilitation, he might walk again. But he would likely never be able to do anything independently.

And the most devastating injury of all was…

No. He couldn’t bring himself to think about it. Just the thought of genital mutilation made everything go dark before his eyes.

Gwon Jungman sighed and slowly began to speak.

He had something to tell his son during the limited visiting hours.

There would be no response, but perhaps he could still hear. No, it didn’t matter if he couldn’t.

“Heejin. Let me tell you something that might give you some comfort. …You probably won’t face any punishment.”

In truth, the crimes his son had committed were too numerous and varied to list.

It wasn’t just about planning a scam coin fraud by recruiting BJs and active entertainers. His past, forcibly unearthed because of the coin gate scandal, was equally colorful.

All those numerous actions proving his son was human garbage.

Some of them were cases Gwon Jungman himself had covered up with his influence, but there were many incidents even he, as a father, knew nothing about.

“…Under normal circumstances, public pressure alone would have forced a formal investigation. Actually, some crew or other once put up a 100 million won bounty to find you. Did you know that?”

However, his son had almost no chance of properly paying for his crimes. Thanks to becoming disabled.

There wasn’t even a need to try for recognition of mental and physical disability. The entire nation knew how miserable Gwon Heejin’s condition was when he was found ten days ago in an empty house (where his family once lived).

Even now, various theories were being proposed.

Some said he had fled abroad and was tortured by local gangs; others claimed he was captured and tortured by victims (or partners) of his coin pre-sale scam.

The evidence of severe torture—amputations, beatings, and burns—was so clear that it was easy to create stories. The strange gold coin found in his mouth only deepened suspicions.

‘Yes. He probably won’t be detained. …Though plenty of reporters will swarm him for comments as soon as he regains consciousness.’

It seemed he wouldn’t have to see his son go to prison.

A situation where one would normally feel relief amid misfortune.

Yet somehow, he felt not even a trace of relief.

‘It’s truly strange.’

When his second son was missing, he never stopped searching for him, even while being dragged through the mud with accusations of “helping his son flee abroad.”

He couldn’t believe his son had suddenly disappeared when he thought he was just pretending to sleep behind closed doors.

During the search, he had suffered many humiliating experiences.

But now, as he looked at his son, his gaze was cold.

Not a single tear fell, and he didn’t even feel pity. Gwon Jungman knew the reason better than anyone.

“…I suppose this father is finally exhausted, Heejin.”

“I never looked back at how much my life was ruined while focusing on finding you… Now I can finally see things with a clear eye. Until now, I forced myself to look away, but I can’t do that anymore.”

“I don’t know if you heard, but I was called to a parliamentary audit I had no business attending. Some lawmaker with a gold badge threatened me, insisting I confess to hiding you somewhere in Nevada using connections I made while working as a legal attaché in the US.”

That was hardly the only humiliation.

After being forced to resign because of his son, life became a continuous twist of internal pain.

He was treated as a pariah in Seocho-dong, and his attorney registration was rejected. With his income temporarily cut off, he had to sell his apartment in Gangnam-gu and move to a smaller place.

But what truly broke his heart was something else.

His eldest son, who had graduated from medical school and was serving in the military.

Somehow, he had passed the medical licensing exam despite the family being torn apart because of his brother, but amid the pressure from all sides, he too had collapsed. He declared that after completing his military service, he would move to the countryside where his maternal family lived.

“Of course, he might change his mind after discharge. I hope so too. …But from what I can see, he’s unlikely to change his mind. Seeing you lying there in that state has probably only strengthened his resolve.”

The eldest son had declared he would live as an on-call physician at a rural nursing home.

Of course, that wasn’t a wrong path in life.

But watching his son, who had dreamed of becoming a forensic pathologist since childhood, who unlike his second son had never caused any trouble, cynically say, “I’ll just work casually and write death certificates,” with the expression of someone who had lived a full life—it was painful.

Everything he had worked so hard to achieve had collapsed in vain. Though it was a disaster of his own making, it was honestly unbearable.

It might be a vile thought, but he felt it wasn’t just because of wrong parenting.

Looking back now, his second son had always been that kind of person.

– Father, I didn’t approach them first—they came to me. How could I flatly refuse when BJs who make money just by breathing on stream wanted to be friends? I was dragged into it against my will.

Telling obvious lies with such a nonchalant expression.

– Secondhand trading fraud… what? No, that happened in middle school—how long are you going to bring that up? Besides, that was when you briefly slipped to being a high prosecutor because of a botched investigation. I made a mistake trying to earn some pocket money because I was anxious about that. Why do you keep bringing it up?

He never admitted his wrongdoings.

– Could you just talk to this friend of mine once? You can just exchange greetings and hang up right away.

And his attitude of causing trouble for his family without a second thought.

Until now, he hadn’t admitted it, but his second son was a psychopath.

Some might say he should have recognized it earlier and cut ties, but it wasn’t easy to abandon a young son who hadn’t even completed his military service. He truly couldn’t imagine that at such a young age, his son had masterminded such massive fraud.

‘Who knows what he might have done if left unchecked.’

Though he couldn’t say it was fortunate, he couldn’t deny his son’s harmfulness either.

Lost in these thoughts, he realized the visiting hours had ended. Gwon Jungman rose without lingering attachment and informed his son:

“Heejin. Dad’s leaving.”

“It’ll be hard for me to visit often from now on. It’s a bit funny, but since you returned in that state, many people have been reaching out to me. The very people who claimed I helped you escape are now suffering.”

“I won’t hesitate to use you if necessary.”

How else would he pay for your hospital bills?

He made this dry announcement and looked down at his second son.

It wasn’t really about earning money for hospital bills. He wanted to somehow reclaim his life that had been devastated because of his son. He felt he wouldn’t be able to rest in peace if he spent the rest of his life supporting a severely disabled son.

Though the chances were slim, he had to claw his way back up. Gwon Jungman reaffirmed his determination as he left the hospital room.

In the intensive care unit, after the wounded former high prosecutor had left.

Gwon Heejin, left alone, stared at the ceiling with hazy eyes.

A moment later, his eyes grew moist, but there was no one to wipe away his tears.

***

I tried my best to avoid heavy responsibilities, but how did it come to this?

After sending Gwon Heejin away and returning to the Imperial Capital, a title conferment ceremony awaited me.

…

“Erick Wellesley is hereby appointed as a viscount.

“Furthermore, you are appointed as a special envoy in charge of diplomatic relations with the Papal State. As a symbol of the bond between the Empire and the Papal State, you are entrusted with full authority over diplomatic affairs between the two countries.”

“Lord Wellesley, receive this imperial command.”

They want me to be a diplomat?

The Empire did have diplomats like ambassadors and special envoys. However, in reality, these positions were often nominal seats given to collateral imperial family members with nothing to do. The Empire rarely needed to coordinate interests with other countries.

In such a situation, the Imperial Family had appointed me, a knight who had reached the level of Master, as a special envoy.

Of course, they weren’t really giving me this position to handle actual diplomacy. They probably wanted to embrace the fervent support I was receiving from the Papal State.

Currently, I was being treated as a benefactor of the Papal State.

Things had gotten complicated because I had transported Gwon Heejin to the Papal State to satisfy the clergy’s grudge, and on top of that, helped resolve their financial crisis. Even the Imperial Family, which was at odds with the Cordana investors, was desperate to make use of me.

And this was the result.

“Lord Wellesley. It seems many young clergy look up to you. I hear the term ‘Saint’ is being openly mentioned, especially in smaller dioceses… Should we suppress this?”

“The movements of the lords are concerning. I’m sorry to burden you with such heavy responsibility, but you’ll face opposition from the nobility anyway.”

“Let’s overcome this crisis together.”

Ministers approached me freely with words of encouragement, and even Prince Simon, who had reportedly been hit with eggs recently, came over with a gloomy expression to encourage me. The very actions I had taken to avoid burden had instead brought me heavy responsibility.

‘Should I have brought Gwon Heejin to the Imperial Capital instead?’

If I had chosen that path, what situation would have unfolded? Perhaps it might have been better than the current one—the thought flashed through my mind.

It’s pointless to regret it now. I felt a rapid bitterness in my mouth as I left the Imperial Palace.

It was an unnecessarily clear day.