Identity (1)

I shook my hands up and down.

The small handcuffs connected by chains jingled.

…It’s frustrating.

“I don’t like having my freedom suppressed.”

[You should have just listened well.]

“I don’t want to.”

It would be a lie to say I didn’t want stimulating violence, but the tantalizing restraint really just remained tantalizing.

That’s right.

I don’t like it.

“I’d rather be punched.”

[How many people in the world would actually hit you when you ask to be hit?]

But I did get slapped on the cheek.

Being hit by a palm hurt more than being stabbed by a sword.

I shook my arms up and down again. When my right hand went up, my left hand followed.

It’s uncomfortable.

“It hurts.”

The feeling of having my daily life restricted by Erica isn’t bad, but that’s that, and my wrists really hurt.

“And it’s cold.”

[It’s a fitting punishment. How good would the result have been if you had just obediently embraced that girl.]

“Is it my fault? Well, I guess every moment of mine is a mistake anyway.”

The night wind was cold as I left the store.

“I said I was fine, but it’s wrong to forcefully approach me.”

[It’s natural since you showed weakness. Think back to the times when you were embraced by that girl several times.]

I recalled the memories. It certainly wasn’t just once or twice.

[See?]

“That was then, and this is now. If she said not to do it, I shouldn’t have done it.”

[Don’t you think it’s bad?]

“Well, I’m a child after all.”

Throwing tantrums is basic for an existence that’s inherently contradictory.

After walking a bit, I saw a building with flickering lights at the end of the dim road. Light poured out of the windows and then disappeared.

I entered the first floor and took the stairs. The metallic sound of the jingling handcuffs was buried under the explosion sounds filling the building.

“Die! Just die! If you can’t understand me, you have no choice but to explode!”

When I reached the second floor, I saw several corpses in a wide space where everything had collapsed.

Green hair fluttered.

Green eyes met mine.

“Ah! Aureli-nim! I’m so touched that you came to find me yourself!”

“It’s not that touching.”

I tried to greet her as she approached with her white sleeves fluttering over her hands… but I couldn’t because of the handcuffs.

Jekyll tilted her head.

“Eck. Did something bad happen to you?”

“No? Why?”

“You look depressed…”

“I’ve always been like this.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“It doesn’t seem true.”

“It might be.”

The green eyes turned towards me and then moved behind.

Following her gaze, I saw a blood-covered man staggering to his feet.

When our eyes met, his rough face rapidly turned pale.

“Fuck! Fuck…! Why! Why is this happening!”

“I don’t like people with foul mouths.”

Jekyll shouldered a small rocket launcher.

“I don’t want to die! I don’t want to die!”

[Help a little!]

I was about to twist my hair but stopped because of the handcuffs.

I approached the man. Seeing his face turning bewildered, I smiled slightly.

“Do you like hostage situations by any chance?”

“Wh-what…?”

I kicked his side with my foot, and the man fell flat.

“Seems like you do.”

“Aureli-nim! If you stay there, you’ll get hit by the trajectory! Please move aside!”

I turned my head. Jekyll was flailing her arms and jumping up and down in place.

“Good children don’t stand by and watch murder scenes.”

I’m just trying for a glorious end.

“What are you saying! Aureli-nim is not a good child!”

“…I’m trying to be one.”

“You don’t need to try! Aureli-nim is already a perfect being! A being to blow up the world with me!”

“Am I such a being?”

“Of course!”

“Your throat seems to hurt, come over here.”

Jekyll flinched and then trotted over to stand in front of me.

“You’re kind.”

“I think I’ve been contaminated by someone.”

“That’s not good.”

When I smiled slightly, Jekyll hesitated.

“You weren’t like this originally. You used to get excited more easily, and you were cool.”

“Good children don’t get excited. And they’re not cool at all.”

“Uwuu…”

Jekyll pouted and then looked down.

The fallen man groaned.

“I need to kill that too.”

“Good children…”

Jekyll covered her ears and shook her head vigorously as if further preaching was too much.

As I blinked, her ears opened again.

“The true villain of this era, Jekyll! I’m just doing my job.”

Her finger pointed at the man.

“My goal is to defeat the last remnants of the Awakened group that came to catch me and get a wanted poster with a bigger amount written on it.”

“Uh, um. Was your usual goal a wanted poster?”

“That’s not what I meant!”

“I see. Sorry for teasing you.”

“You were teasing…”

Jekyll rubbed her tired eyes and looked out the window. Explosion sounds were heard and flames burst out here and there.

“I absolutely hate this world.”

“Really?”

“Yes. You do too, right, Aureli-nim?”

A memory from the past flashed by briefly.

“I’m really wronged, you know. I’m just acting according to my character’s instincts. I’m just listening to the voice in my head telling me to kill people to gain stats and obtain overwhelming power!”

Rough breathing echoed. Jekyll panted and clutched her chest.

“The media was busy badmouthing me. Calling me crazy, saying I should be torn limb from limb.”

“I see. That hurts my heart.”

“So when I tracked down and caught some of those bitches who spewed such stinking words, they actually begged for their lives in a filthy manner. It was the first time I’ve been so dumbfounded.”

Suddenly, a door burst open from a corner of the quiet interior. Several men wearing devices on their heads dragged in a few corpses, and when they saw us, their faces lit up.

“Jekyll-nim! We caught them! We caught those rat bastards who dared to try to assassinate us and Jekyll-nim! We did! Kyahaha!”

Jekyll turned towards them with a distant look in her eyes.

“So when I gave them a little power to see how they’d do, they seem to be jumping around even more than me. Like that.”

With giggling laughter, the corpses rolled on the ground. Swords stabbed and tore through the bodies of the corpses.

“I absolutely hate this world. Living among hypocrites, an environment where people run away with terrified eyes just by seeing me. Only the Rankers who forcibly reject their body’s instincts suffer in that place.”

“I see…”

“So I picked up a sword. I started killing people and floating in the sky. For the grand plan to execute! And there, there…! I believe Aureli-nim will lead the way with me!”

“Me?”

“Of course!”

Jekyll raised both arms.

Our gazes met.

“But I’m weak.”

“You’re strong!”

I smiled slightly.

“I wonder.”

A dumbfounded expression returned.

“Why! But… but Aureli-nim too! You, you’re experiencing a hard life too! More… more than me! In this world where more trash people point swords at Aureli-nim!”

“That’s right.”

“Then! Then let’s destroy this entire world together…!”

“And then what?”

“Huh?”

“After we destroy it, what’s next?”

Silence fell.

“After that. Well.”

“I’m just living a life to die.”

The value of life doesn’t change just because a dark alley where you stand alone turns into burning ruins.

I knew all too well that I couldn’t expect anything at the end of a broken life.

Because there’s no cure that can dramatically change this life.

“I can’t understand.”

The green eyes flashed.

Windows all around shattered, scattering glass shards.

“Why you don’t pick up a sword when you have such overwhelming power.”

“You said before that we were of the same kind. It’s natural that we can’t understand each other when even humans of the same race can’t understand each other.”

“No!”

All the walls between the broken windows crumbled. The wind blew and the night sky was visible.

“Surely we can walk the same path.”

Jekyll slowly walked towards the collapsed floor.

“See you again next time.”

The girl relaxed her body. Her green hair fluttered. As soon as she fell below the building, a huge missile appeared, carrying her and soaring into the sky.

The sound of destruction was heard all around.

“Stay here.”

I laid the blood-covered man on a corridor chair. He seems to have fainted with his eyes closed.

I stood in front of the office door.

The handcuffs jingled. It was hard to even grab the handle with both hands tied.

“It’s hard. It’s hard.”

I deliberately raised my voice as I entered the office. As soon as I stepped in, I collapsed.

“It’s too hard with my hands tied.”

I blinked at the interior that was noisier than usual.

I heard a presence beside me.

I hurriedly got up and pretended to be in pain.

“It hurts so much. My wrists…”

Erica passed by me coldly without even looking at me for a moment.

I feel depressed…

“Oh no. She must be really angry.”

[Hurry and go apologize.]

“I don’t want to.”

[Gyaak!]

Anyway, the seat next to Erica is my seat.

I took small steps forward. As I peeked next to her, I glanced at the monitor and saw a report about the Uijeongbu terror attack.

“Wow. Erica works well…”

Only the sound of typing keys echoed.

“Fast typing, um, neat report, pretty face too.”

“Give it here.”

My heart fluttered for a moment at her voice.

A bundle of documents passed by. Erica took it and focused on the monitor again.

“The higher-ups say it seems to be Jekyll’s doing based on the magical engineering debris.”

“It’s almost a confirmed fact.”

“My wrists hurt. The handcuffs are too cold.”

An employee glanced at me and then quietly returned to their seat.

“I wish they’d take them off…”

[As if that would work!]

I stepped out into the corridor with dragging feet.

“There’s a second method.”

I grabbed the nape of the slumped man’s neck with both hands and dragged him, pushing the office door open with my body and entered again.

“It’s an emergency patient.”

My eyes met Erica’s. I smiled slightly at her widened pupils.

“It’s a survivor from the Awakened group that was annihilated while trying to stop Jekyll.”

I pointed a knife at Erica.

“If you don’t indulge my whims from now on, I’m going to hold this person hostage.”