Chapter 240

‘That’s not what I meant.’

I could tell he didn’t quite understand what I was saying.

I had felt it before when eavesdropping on a conversation with Hong Ki-jun, but this guy was even more clueless than Son Jin-hyeok.

[I was ready to listen to anything. But it was you who told me not to tell you anything, not to help you with anything, and not to interfere in any way. You probably don’t remember.]

‘Then why did you interfere today? Why did you show up to my subordinates? What kind of restriction did you place on the chairman?’

Under Jin-hyeok, who was curled up and asleep, a small coiled shadow swayed for a moment.

[As expected… I thought your ego would have eavesdropped on the conversation with the old man. Still, it’s surprising that you noticed what was going on with your subordinates. Let’s just say that everything today, and all the other days, was a small consideration for you.]

‘Even if it’s consideration, isn’t it against the promise we made?’

[I admit it.]

‘Let them go.’

[The old man is impossible.]

‘Why?’

[The old man’s restriction was due to his repeated petitions and pleas, and the conditions for his release have not been met.]

‘What conditions?’

[You’re human too. Even though you already know, are you testing me? With your intelligence, I believe you could have figured it out.]

Jin-hyeok’s shoulder twitched.

The tone was flat and even, but there was a force that pressed down even on the unconscious.

‘I really don’t know. You said you know me well? You should know that I’m not the type to obsess over wealth or vanity like a company that I can’t even take with me when I die.’

[Just because it’s nothing to you doesn’t mean it’s not important to others.]

It sounded plausible.

When I was young, Jang Gun-i would drop bones he had hidden in the field in front of Jin-hyeok. Even though it was something he loved and obsessed over. These days, he still sometimes brings over dog treats he’s hidden so his dog friends can’t find them, and then turns away. It wasn’t hard to guess what message the cool vibe of Jang Gun-i’s backside was sending.

‘Are you perhaps a part of my unconscious?’

[You’ve become quite human. You’re better at delusions and jokes than I am.]

I’m not sure if that’s a compliment or an insult.

Well, if you’re not part of my unconscious, then whatever.

If it’s another ego of Jin-hyeok, it’s creepy.

Jin-hyeok had thought that maybe he had gone crazy and this absurd situation was happening. Although coming back to the past itself was absurd. Anyway, it’s a relief that it’s not.

‘How do you appear?’

[If you wish for it desperately.]

‘Is my understanding of desperation different from your judgment of desperation?’

[Not much different.]

‘Then why didn’t you appear before?’

[I was hiding in your shadow, watching the situation. I just didn’t reveal myself.]

‘Why?’

[There was nothing to help with. Didn’t you solve it yourself? As you’ve experienced, if our egos coexist, your mind could be destroyed.]

‘So you didn’t step in because I told you not to interfere in my life.’

[Exactly, that’s it.]

This guy is pretty inconsistent. Drool dripped from Jin-hyeok’s open mouth as he slept.

He said he didn’t interfere, but then he made an exception to consider me…

‘Thanks for today. For saving my friend.’

[Your will called me, so that’s also your merit. Your body has become a great vessel, so I could exercise the power of resurrection, and that’s also your merit.]

It was a deep sleep, but even in it, I was glad that Jo Seol-chan was safe.

‘You wouldn’t know what that guy means to me.’

[He’s the one who makes you human.]

The corner of Jin-hyeok’s mouth twitched up.

[I said I’m the one who knows you better than anyone, and even if I can’t read your emotions, I can guess. I’ve also satisfied my curiosity about this world. Every time you slept, I left you and wandered the world. A trivial and small world…]

Hum hum hum.

The shadow calmly told the story of wandering the Earth.

Regardless of the content, it was as comforting as a lullaby from a friend.

Like when I returned to the past and fell asleep holding little Hong Soo-jung, a deeply comforting feeling.

‘I think I might know you. You don’t feel unfamiliar.’

[What you think and feel is just the intuitive psychological action of a human intelligence, not the truth. You may or may not know me.]

What kind of nonsense is this, like Jang Gun-i tasting seawater?

‘So you mean you don’t know.’

[As expected, you’re clever.]

The intonation was so strange, like a foreigner speaking Korean, that I really couldn’t tell if it was a compliment or an insult.

‘You…’

I couldn’t ask the most important thing.

‘Who are you? And what is the identity of the power that has accumulated in my body? What is that strange language?’

[You seem to have finally calmed down. Even if I told you the question of who you were, you wouldn’t understand because of the restriction. It’s more important to be curious about my identity.]

‘Answer me.’

[I am…]

***

Moon Seok-il, who had arrived at the hospital corridor, drew his dagger. The movement was as fast as lightning, so even his colleagues couldn’t see it clearly.

His limbs trembled with fear, and his mouth wouldn’t close.

He had no plan of what to do.

He just saw the black silhouettes filling the VIP ward corridor and Jin-hyeok slumped like a dead man in front of them, and he lost his mind.

“Do, do you guys see that too?”

Jeong Sang-tae, Kang Heon-chang, and Kim In-rang nodded with pale faces.

As if ice water had been injected into their hearts and brains, the fear of that day caused their teeth to chatter.

The silhouette turned towards Moon Seok-il at an eerily slow speed.

“What, what are you doing to Jin-hyeok-.”

[You are free.]

“Huh?”

The silhouette’s eyes, or rather the void where eyes should be, curved at the corners towards Moon Seok-il, who was dumbfounded. There were no pupils, but he could feel it. The silhouette was looking alternately at the dagger Moon Seok-il had drawn and the group.

[Interesting world, interesting people. It seems I didn’t need to step in.]

“What-.”

As if there was nothing more to say or hear, the silhouette disappeared into Jin-hyeok’s shadow.

The corridor, which had darkened with the silhouette’s appearance, regained its light.

“Ugh-!”

Kang Heon-chang, whose legs gave out, let out a single sigh and plopped down.

“I’ve been living like a slave because of that bastard-.”

“Was it really because of him that you stuck around, man?”

Jeong Sang-tae scolded Kim In-rang, who was spewing curses.

“Ah…, that.”

Kim In-rang, who helped Kang Heon-chang up, scratched his head.

The reason they stayed around Son Kwang-yeon and Jin-hyeok. In any case, it wasn’t a situation where they could make other choices, and after some discussion, they had made the best choice. Thanks to that, Kim In-rang also met Hwang Ga-yun.

“Your life turned out the best, man. A guy who couldn’t even date once met a college-educated sister-in-law-.”

“And you get a good salary too.”

Kang Heon-chang shook his head vigorously, as if trying to regain his senses. Then he slapped his own cheeks.

“Is that all? It’s the safest.”

Jeong Sang-tae’s words were agreed upon by Kang Heon-chang and Kim In-rang.

If soldiers and civilians are together on the battlefield, who is safer?

It was a question their instructor had posed during their training days.

Opinions were divided, but they concluded that the soldier with a gun alongside his comrades was the safest. Both soldiers and civilians are in danger, but soldiers can defend themselves and decide the life and death of themselves and others. And with comrades, that safety increases even more. Both civilians and soldiers are equally at risk from blind bombs.

“You have the backing of SsS, comrades in SsS, and with this badge, you can go anywhere for free.”

Jeong Sang-tae touched the badge with the sSs emblem engraved on it, pinned to the left lapel of his jacket.

“In the region, just mentioning your name keeps troublemakers away.”

Even without Jeong Sang-tae’s explanation, they all thought the same.

They had lived under the intention of hiding and protecting Jin-hyeok’s family, but in the end, they were the ones who were protected.

“Freedom? Safety? Can you be freer than now? Is there a safer place than here?”

Jeong Sang-tae spread his arms and twisted his waist like a presenter.

A world where you can live with your family, not be tense, eat well, and sleep warmly.

“There isn’t-. Hey, hey! Seok-il hyung! Put that knife down!”

At Kang Heon-chang’s shout, the group’s eyes quickly turned to Moon Seok-il.

In Moon Seok-il’s right hand, held in a reverse grip, was a dagger. The blade, reflecting the light, was eerie.

To anyone watching, it was a situation where Jin-hyeok’s life was hanging by a thread.

“Oh? Look at me. I scared you.”

Moon Seok-il, looking at his comrades, awkwardly smiled and quickly put the dagger away.

So deeply asleep, Jin-hyeok’s drool stretched like a nylon fishing line down the corridor.

“Is this kid skipping school again? What kind of trouble did he get into this time?”

Jeong Sang-tae let out a hollow laugh.

Even though he had heard the explanation from Moon Seok-il on the way, it was a pointless remark.

After Moon Seok-il shook him several times, Jin-hyeok woke up and rubbed his eyes hard.

“Ugh-. My back.”

“It’d be weird if your spine didn’t hurt sleeping like that.”

Moon Seok-il laughed, patting Jin-hyeok’s back.

In many ways, he’s a remarkable guy. How did he know his friend was in danger and think to run there at that moment?

“Thank you for coming.”

“Are you okay? Didn’t see anything strange?”

“Strange?”

Jin-hyeok looked at Moon Seok-il with a completely clueless expression.

It seemed okay to pretend not to know one of their secrets.

That was also the way to protect Jin-hyeok’s secret.

“Never mind. Sleeping here, you must have been really tired from being scared for your friend.”

Nodding, Jin-hyeok tapped his buttocks and looked into the hospital room.

There was still over an hour left before the oxygen treatment would end.

Jo Seol-chan and the grandmother seemed to be asleep, not moving, but the vital signs on the panel looked no different from a normal person’s.

“Come with me somewhere. I’ll buy you lunch.”

“Lunch? What should we eat?”

Jin-hyeok, who was walking towards the exit, chuckled without turning around at Jeong Sang-tae’s question.

“It’s cold outside, how about some hot soft tofu?”

When you’re released and find freedom, they say you eat tofu, right?

***

I thought about handing it over to the police. Son Jin-hyeok was someone who respected the system.

‘I can’t trust it.’

No matter how well-structured the framework, no matter how well-made the machine, it’s ultimately operated by people. Unfortunately, Jin-hyeok’s distrust of people he doesn’t know runs deep and long.

Arriving at Jo Seol-chan’s house, I slowly retraced my steps.

The field, turned white by the poured snow, had nothing worth examining. Only the footprints of the emergency responders from Saein Medical Center and Jin-hyeok’s messy footprints remained, and the snow piled up where Jo Seol-chan and the grandmother had lain, hiding what had happened here.

‘The gate was open.’

I doubted, observed the suspicious points, and deduced based on the observations.

In order, then in reverse order.

I could have asked the shadow for help, but I was told not to interfere, to live an ordinary life. By the past Son Jin-hyeok. Stupid guy. What’s wrong with living a little comfortably?

Creak-.

Opening the gate, before stepping in, I looked back.

At the people chatting in the distance on the ridge.

‘Uncles must be talking about that.’

The shadow disappeared without answering Jin-hyeok’s question.

– [As the warden of the great prison… they’ve come. Our meeting will have to wait for another time.]

It was a sneaky escape.

Even with the ability to stop time, he just ran away, which seemed to mean he didn’t want to talk.

But I did learn one thing.

– [Emptying your power was a choice worthy of you, who wished to live as a human. I don’t know why you came to wield it, but it’s a dangerous power.]

– ‘Dangerous? What about my sister?’

– [You can ignore it. It’s the power of creation I gave in response to your wish to save the baby.]

– ‘Creation? I couldn’t create anything.’

– [Another name for creation is life. What the child has is a trivial power that would have disappeared long ago, but she holds onto it with her innate cleverness. I never imagined she could use it outwardly, but it seems a part of my power has transferred. Underestimating the fetus’s infinite potential was a mistake.]

– ‘You were stupid.’

– […]

I could feel the shadow twitch.

After going through the trouble of saving my sister and mother, all I got was being called stupid, so I felt a bit sorry.

– [Please be careful. It’s a power that repeatedly conflicts with the human mind and eventually destroys the ego.]

The mysterious power seemed to have guided the body to become stronger and grow the vessel. I could guess why it acted as an inexhaustible stamina.

That’s not all.

If I tried to use it for running, it would suddenly reach speeds beyond human limits, and if I tried to run using only physical ability, it would shackle me and tempt me to use it. That’s probably why it wasn’t under my control.

‘If I had used it more, I might have been consumed.’

Finishing my thoughts, I saw them walking towards me.

Moon Seok-il, Jeong Sang-tae, Kang Heon-chang, Kim In-rang.

After realizing the existence that used my shadow as a passage, there was a time when I thought the power filling my chest was a gift from a transcendent being.

But the gift was different.

No matter what kind of connections are made intentionally, if I had to choose the people who suddenly jumped into Jin-hyeok’s life, it would definitely be them. Even Hong Ki-jun probably didn’t consider their existence.

I raised my hand towards the gift left by the shadow’s consideration.

‘Wait for me there.’

“Stop!”

Damn, my words and thoughts changed again.

It’s all because of carbon monoxide.