episode_0214

A long time after Seoyeon left.

“Haam… ”

Suddenly, someone’s footsteps were heard behind the man who was still sitting in his seat, absorbed in thought.

What appeared next was a woman wearing only a thin gown.

“I’m tired… My throat is sore… ”

A stunning appearance, and a captivating and sweet voice to match.

“I don’t know why humans like singing or something so much. Maybe it’s because they haven’t evolved yet… It’s kind of fun, though… ”

She sat down on the sofa and let out a slight complaint. She showed no hesitation even though she was standing right in front of the absolute ruler of the underworld.

After grumbling for a while, she spoke to Baek Il-yong.

“Hey, do you have any more apples or something? Those sweet ones taste pretty good… ”

“I will tell the employees to prepare.”

The man answered without moving an inch.

“By the way, what about confirmation from Haewolhwa?”

“Oh my, I told you he really died… ”

The woman answered, her body stretching lazily.

“Sadalmelik even used self-destruct. The possibility of organic life surviving within that radius is… close to zero.”

Then he muttered in a voice filled with deep regret.

“Poor Sadalmelik. If only the nest had been completed, he could have been resurrected. Unfortunately, right before that… ”

“Stop being a public figure. It’s so ugly to try to imitate sadness that you can’t even feel.”

“Oh my, did you get caught?”

The woman with her eyes wide open covered her mouth as if to say, “When did that happen?” and smiled bashfully.

“Oh my, I’m so embarrassed… ”

“What’s going on with the cradle?”

“… It’s going smoothly.”

The woman shrugged her shoulders at his dry attempt to change the subject.

“More than anything, Regulus is personally taking action.”

And then he recited it again, this time without thinking.

“Poor Speaker. That’s why you should have been more conscious like me. If you had been, you wouldn’t have lost your body to Regulus… ”

Then, she looked at the man and smiled faintly.

“Chaam… That’s amazing… ”

All that could be felt from his empty eyes was the desire to explore the unknown.

“A creature that kills its own kind without any hesitation… ”

“… ”

“That too in a crisis situation. Even with the help of wolves trying to eat them… ”

The corners of her mouth quirked in a grotesque way.

“This is really… At this rate, I can’t tell who’s human and who’s a monster, huh?”

“What this country needs is one strong leader, not a ragtag bunch of disunited and disintegrating people. And now is a great time to create that system.”

The man got up from his seat and scolded the woman.

“Rather, it’s a choice that can be made because you’re human. Even if you’re dead, you won’t understand.”

“Yes~Yes~Will you be able to do it~”

The woman covered her ears as if she had heard some annoying nagging.

The man walked towards the display case in the corner.

He stared silently at someone’s badge covered in blood, then spoke to the woman who was rolling around on the sofa, buried in her body.

“You didn’t forget the promise, did you?”

“You get the power, and I get to satisfy my curiosity.”

The woman answered immediately.

“I know. Don’t worry. I told you. I’m the leader… I think a little differently from Regulus.”

Then he went to the window and looked down.

She checked the faces of people busily moving about the city and smiled faintly.

“… It would take at least several decades to completely dye this land anyway. But if we wipe out all these sights, we’ll just have to suck our thumbs until we go back to hibernation. ”

She stretched out her arms as if stretching.

“In that case, wouldn’t it be okay to leave one? Well, it would be fun to see them struggling to survive.”

“You see humans as nothing more than water. You’re a group that was defeated once 15 years ago.”

“Oh well, I told you. We are qualitatively different from our sisters.”

The woman waved her hands as if it was nonsense.

“We are the ones who become several times stronger with each generation. You could say we are perfect creatures. But how can you, who are not even evolved yet, defeat us?”

It was a tone of voice that seemed to suggest that it was an obvious way of life.

“The number of people is decreasing day by day… The opponents are not like before… Internal chaos… Oh, Polaris is actually alive… And he suddenly loses his mind and betrays us and takes your side…? If that’s the case, then I don’t know. But it’s impossible to begin with… ”

The woman, who had been mumbling something unintelligible, asked a question as if something had occurred to her.

“But… is that okay?”

“What are you talking about?”

“That’s what he said earlier.”

I was talking about Baek Seo-yeon.

“Is that your daughter? She goes to Cradle Academy.”

“But?”

“The overload of the core will end in two days at the latest. But that’s when your daughter will be there? Don’t you have to tell her? Well, since she doesn’t even know about my existence… ”

The woman smiled faintly. Baek Il-yong closed his eyes.

Beautiful appearance, skillful worldly skills, and magical skills of unprecedented excellence.

A strong desire for power that was developed because of living in marginalization all his life, and obedience to his father, the only person who could give him what he wanted.

It could be said that Baek Seo-yeon was the perfect successor he was looking for.

It’s already been 15 years since the humiliation I received from Heukryeon.

A success story that finally appears after producing countless failures.

I definitely thought so.

Because I doubted my own insight that allowed me to not properly recognize the existence of such a masterpiece and leave it in a remote corner.

But he shook his head.

“… No.”

Baek Seo-yeon couldn’t get past a single step. She was blinded by the vain fever called love.

And he was so absorbed in it that he dared to lie, more than in the glory of his family.

In the end, she too was a defective product.

Delivering her call-up order to the Northern Army was the last thing Baek Seo-yeon had to do in this life. After that, as a martyr who died in an unjust accident, she would become the justification for Baek Il-yong to overthrow the incompetent power.

“Just have another child.”

“Hmm… ”

Baek Il-yong said nonchalantly. At this, the woman who had been drooling burst into laughter, her mouth splitting open in a strange way.

“As expected… It’s fun.”

***

Baek Seo-yeon, who was about to return to the dormitory and take off her shoes, flinched for a moment.

It was because there was a rare sense of presence in a place that was mostly empty.

The presence of someone familiar yet very small.

“Yum…Yum… ”

The next thing you see is someone lying on the living room floor with their stomach down, eating snacks and reading a book.

A small girl who at first glance looked to be about four years old. Her hair and facial features were exactly like Seo-yeon’s, but somehow the color of her hazy eyes was exactly like Lee Hyeon’s.

“Kong-ah?”

“Mom!”

As soon as her mouth fell open, the girl who noticed the presence immediately jumped up and ran towards her.

Then he clung to my leg and rubbed his face against it.

“Oh my… Mom told me not to disappear without saying anything. Right? ”

Seoyeon sighed as she brushed away the fallen leaves stuck to the girl’s hair.

“Where have you been?”

“Walk!”

I wanted to scold him for going on walks for weeks at a time, but I knew it was useless. He had already done it several times.

If you think about the child’s identity… it actually felt like a natural act.

“Kongi, I was studying…!”

Peanut proudly shouted without knowing Seoyeon’s speed.

“What are you studying?”

“This… !”

Peanut, who had run away, brought a book and showed it to her. It was a children’s storybook with the theme of expressing various emotions.

“Kongi has learned to smile now. Look!”

As soon as he finished speaking, Peanut smiled bashfully. A bright smile that melted away all worries and concerns without a trace.

It was truly a huge step forward, considering the days when we would distort our faces in grotesque ways without even realizing the concept of laughter.

“… Good job.”

“Hehehe… ”

Peanut, who was trembling at the pleasant compliment, asked Seoyeon as if he had been waiting.

“Kongi, then can I go see dad like this?”

“… ”

For a moment, a feeling of sadness passed through Seo-yeon’s eyes. However, Seo-yeon soon calmed down and said with a smile.

“… Well, I guess I still need to practice more to hide my ears and tail?”

“Huh?”

Then Peanut fumbled with his head as if he was embarrassed.

Suddenly, two fluffy cat ears were standing up.

Peanut, who had been touching him, started to cry loudly.

“Ah, that’s not it… I was definitely hiding it well… Hehe… ”

“Let’s practice a little more. Okay?”

“Huh… ”

Peanut nodded. He was basically a stubborn kid, but when it came to things related to Lee Hyun, he was strangely obedient.

Suddenly, Seo-yeon recalled her past with the being in front of her.

Finding a kitten on the verge of death was a coincidence, but bringing it home and showing it to Lee Hyeon was clearly a calculated move.

At first glance, it seemed like a cat with no hope at all. It was just a tool to stimulate his sympathy and make him realize his own good humanity.

But somehow, the squirming kitten came back to life in just one night.

And growing it was… of course, her job.

It was as if, while I was trying to make a joke, an annoying lump suddenly appeared.

That’s understandable, because whenever she tried to spend time alone with Lee Hyun, the cat would appear like a ghost and get between them.

It was truly a shame that locking him in the room and locking him didn’t help at all.

Since Lee Hyun loved cats so much, I couldn’t bring myself to kill them.

We spent time together like that.

Even during the happy days with Lee Hyeon.

Even on that terrible day when I thought I had lost him forever.

And after that.

And it was exactly one year ago that the absurd thing happened where a cat turned into a human. It was right when she was about to enter the academy.

There was still no way to know its identity.

It could be a mutant cat, or an unknown demon in cat skin.

There is only a vague guess that he became like that because he received half of the blood from both of them.

Originally, it was something that should have been reported to the purification unit. Or, he could have taken care of it himself.

The closer a demonic species is to human form, the more dangerous it becomes.

But Seoyeon didn’t do that.

It would be more accurate to say that it couldn’t be done.

When he lost Lee Hyun, the cat was one of the few things that connected him to himself.

When I saw that the child had turned into something that resembled the two of them, my heart pounded so hard.

Maybe he did it because he thought it looked more like him.

Compared to their brilliant minds, children have a very difficult time understanding the abstract concept of emotions.

Just like before meeting Lee Hyeon.

“Mom… ?”

Peanut tilted his head as he watched Seoyeon, who had suddenly become lonely.

“… It’s nothing.”

Seoyeon smiled as if it was nothing and gently stroked Peanut’s head.

After confirming his survival, there were times when I dreamed of the three of them spending time together like a married couple.

but…

“Shall we eat dinner together today? Mom will cook meat.”

“Meat? Kong likes meat…!”

Peanut nods his head up and down enthusiastically.

Seoyeon went into the bedroom to change clothes, and Peanut, who was left alone, sat down in front of the storybook again.

But soon he lost interest and closed the book, thinking of someone.

“… Kongi misses her dad.”

The little girl stuck out her cheeks and muttered sadly.

“No, no. Kongi is angry now.”

But soon he shook his head fiercely.

“Dad, you’re an idiot. You always come home hurt… and I told you that you’d really die… Hehe… ”

Then he grumbled with a face that seemed to be a mixture of sadness and anger.

“It’s better because Kongi kisses me every day… But Dad doesn’t even know that… ”

Peanut ran away from home, avoiding his new mom and dad, hoping that he would realize how precious he was.

He chuckled as he thought of his father, who must be looking for him with a tearful face right now.

But soon Peanut started to droop his ears and look sullen.

“Still… Kong-i needs to be here… What if Dad gets hurt again…?”

Peanut stared alternately at the bedroom and the window where Baek Seo-yeon had just entered.

And he muttered in a voice full of worry.

“Han, just once… Should I take a quick look…?”