The Returnee Wants to Live Comfortably

Chapter 168 : There Are No Bad Kids in the World (2)

There Are No Bad Kids in the World (2)Choi Seungcheol began to move as if he had become a different person.

The timid appearance he had shown upon entering the mansion had disappeared without a trace.

Even his eyes had changed, and the moment he saw the blueprint, his actions became quicker.

"Seongjin. Why is he acting like that all of a sudden?"

Eunseol was just as bewildered, having sensed the same incongruity.

But I had somewhat expected it.

"That's basically his true self."

"His true self?"

"He's not consciously aware of it, but it's the original persona that was hidden within his soul."

I had learned a few things from Jade.

It was a well-established fact that those born as vessels of the gods possessed special power.

However, what that power would manifest as was always a matter of chance.

'In Ai Hoon's case, since she's Jade's child, it was inevitable for her to be born as a vessel of the gods.'

What about those who became vessels of the gods by natural birth, not by descent?

Jade had explained that as well.

It was reincarnation.

'Or, to be precise, you could see it as the soul of a being who achieved great exploits dwelling within.'

It was fair to say, then, that those people were chosen.

For whatever reason, an incredible soul had come to inhabit their body.

There are those who hold the soul of a great person, and others—like Ai Hoon—who inherit the blood of the gods.

It seemed vessels of the gods were categorized into these two types.

As for Ah-rin or Eunseol, I still wasn't sure, but Choi Seungcheol could be seen as the former.

'And those eyes...'

Choi Seungcheol, who had started to immerse himself in crafting, was passionate.

The moment I saw his face, I felt a strong sense of déjà vu.

Those blue eyes—I'd definitely seen them somewhere before.

Soon enough, I was able to recall from memory.

'As I thought, my hunch wasn't wrong.'

The soul dwelling within him was Heimos, called the god of blacksmiths.

He'd been Mewzealand's greatest blacksmith, and I still remembered his gaze.

And I also knew what his expression looked like when he worked.

Choi Seungcheol's face now matched that expression 99.8%.

'He was the only one who crafted equipment capable of rivaling the gods.'

The blueprint Choi Seungcheol just saw belonged to that very equipment.

The blueprint I'd seen in Mewzealand had been burned away, but I still remembered it in my mind.

'It's so complex that it'd be hard for the average person to recall, but...'

Thanks to my numerous "Demon King's Soul" skills, I was able to leave the blueprint imprinted in my memory.

And when Choi Seungcheol saw that blueprint, his eyes suddenly flashed.

Just as Heimos had been obsessed with crafting, that same instinct had been awakened in Choi Seungcheol.

'Of course, he ended up being killed by the guardian deities, having been deemed a dangerous figure.'

It was no surprise, considering he could create weapons capable of threatening the gods.

Still, Heimos's final words, passed down by his disciples after he was murdered, were:

—I have no regrets, even if I die.

... Or so they said.

"Excuse me."

At that moment, Choi Seungcheol spoke up while looking in our direction.

"Would you mind not coming into this room for a while?"

He was basically telling us to get out so as not to disturb his work.

It was the complete opposite boldness compared to the Seungcheol who used to be overlooked due to severe feelings of alienation.

But he wasn't wrong, so we decided to obediently comply.

"How long will it take to finish?"

"About a week."

The timing for finishing the work was reasonable.

The original Heimos had always completed his craft in good time.

"We'll be outside, then."

"If you need anything, just let us know."

As we left the room, Choi Seungcheol started to focus even more on his work.

Yet the more he thought, the stranger it seemed.

Why was he so fired up about a craft he was trying for the first time?

He'd definitely felt a change in himself after seeing the blueprint.

And yet, strangely, he felt no aversion at all.

Rather, he felt like he was born for this.

'At the very least, it's much better than being at home.'

Though the exterior of the famed lawyer's mansion was splendid, inside it was chilling.

The cold atmosphere fostered by his father could never feel like home.

He had no one on his side.

Even when bullied by the class delinquents, he was only met with indifference.

Of course, his father knew it was wrong—he was a lawyer, after all.

But he always looked at resistance to that wrong as a bad thing.

The more he thought about those self-justifying, baseless words from his father, the more revulsed he felt.

'But here...'

With each moment he immersed himself in his craft, that revulsion seemed to dissipate.

This must be what people meant when they said relieving stress brought joy.

Still, he was grateful to Seongjin, the friend who had given him this opportunity.

'Yeah, if I can just make this...'

—He would have no regrets, even in death.

****

"I'm sorry, grandpa. We finally managed to get those materials with some luck..."

"It's all right. They were meant for equipment in the first place; there's no reason to regret it."

Eunseol entered the Guildmaster's office and told Baek Suhyuk about what had just happened.

The materials Choi Seungcheol was using included spirit stones that the Angel guild had been accumulating.

And that wasn't all.

There were also plenty of phantom spirit corpses obtained during the Hand Rift incident.

The corpses were supposed to be used in various places, but they'd end up being largely used for this.

"That Choi Seungcheol kid you mentioned—Seongjin said he's also a vessel of the gods, right? So there's no reason to refuse, if it's for his protection."

"Still, I'm really grateful you're supplying them. If you hadn't..."

"Hahaha, there's no need for such formality between us."

Baek Suhyuk replied with an affable laugh to my thanks.

I had told him beforehand about Choi Seungcheol.

That made it easy for him to accept and provide the materials.

Of course, this fellow's role played a big part, too.

"Uuuugh."

The moaning of a dazed person next to me could be heard.

Baek Suhyuk could only click his tongue at the sight.

"To think that person would turn out to be the leader of the Sura guild."

It was his first time seeing Jade's true face.

Even more shocking was Jade's current behavior.

"Jade, Hand."

"Hand..."

"Good boy! Well done."

When I extended my hand, Jade crouched down like a dog and placed his hand in mine.

I patted his head in response.

It must have been a shocking scene for Eunseol and Baek Suhyuk to witness.

"To think the infamous leader of the Sura guild would end up like this."

"He only had a bad reputation. He wasn't actually that strong. It's just..."

—He was only protected by authority.

The way he was able to found the Sura guild wasn't due to overwhelming might.

He'd enjoyed the gods' protection, which was utterly beyond human interference.

Even if you brought a truckload of the strongest hunters, they'd never break through divine protection.

Unless, of course, they were also of divine origin—or wielded Demon King's Power.

"At any rate, now that Choi Seungcheol is a vessel of the gods, the Holy Church won't stay idle."

Currently, their rival, the Sura guild, had been swallowed up by The World.

Although the Sura guild hadn't collapsed completely, it was enough to boost the Holy Church's morale.

"But they still have a hard time operating in Korea."

"That's true. The Poison guild hasn't started moving in earnest yet."

The Holy Church is a globally notorious crime syndicate.

Looking at the recent inactivity of the Poison guild, which was known to be associated with them, gives you the answer.

So for the Holy Church, the need to operate quietly grew all the more important.

"But... what if they're trying to move in order to establish a new foothold?"

That seemed plausible.

They couldn't rely on the Poison guild in Korea forever.

That thought could be inferred from Baek Suhyuk's tone.

"Sounds like you've learned something."

"When you told me about Choi Seungcheol, I did a bit of personal investigation. It turns out the Holy Church had indeed marked him as a vessel of the gods."

Inevitably, that meant he'd become a target.

The Holy Church would have tried to approach Choi Seungcheol in some way.

"I also checked into the boy's father, lawyer Choi Seungjin..."

Apparently, it was Choi Seungjin the Holy Church was targeting, not Seungcheol himself.

They must have threatened him to give up his child, but what father would submit easily to that?

That's why they approached with caution.

"There's no hard evidence yet. But judging from his call records and movements, it's almost certain."

"..."

"Lawyer Choi Seungjin is making intentional contact with the Holy Church."

If this came out, his career as a lawyer would be over.

And not just his own life—his son Seungcheol's life would be ruined as well.

Baek Suhyuk explained why Seungjin would risk such danger.

"He probably received their help to become a congressman. Even after, he'll want to keep borrowing their power."

"How could he... work with people who target his own child?"

Eunseol was shocked by Baek Suhyuk's investigation results.

For the Holy Church, helping Seungjin was beneficial—their goal was to get to his son, a vessel of the gods.

But Eunseol could not fathom why Seungjin would partner with those monsters.

"They could be keeping it secret. If they just said, 'I'll take your son because he's a vessel of the gods!' their relationship would fall apart."

"Their aim is to get a foothold through congressman Seungjin. So mutual trust is critical."

But Seungcheol had never once been treated as a son by his father.

Up until now, Seungcheol had always perceived his father as an object of fear.

If Seungjin found out his son was a vessel of the gods, he'd probably just be pleased.

By using his son, he could build even better ties.

"That's beyond cruel."

Eunseol clenched her heart in anger.

Her research had shown that Seungcheol was regularly bullied at school.

But not once had his father intervened.

—Even delinquent students deserve a chance.

That was Seungjin's motto, apparently.

Would anyone who spouted such nonsense actually stand up for his victimized son?

"Besides, anyone working with the Holy Church isn't worthy of mercy."

"So, what do we do?"

"He has an inauguration ceremony coming up, right?"

"That's right. He's gained so many supporters these days that big crowds will gather."

Due to a recently released film called "Kind Gangster," people sympathizing with Seungjin's views had skyrocketed.

Everybody seemed to be enthralled by the romantic image conjured by the movie.

But there was a way to shatter that romance.

"If Seungjin fails to be inaugurated, the Holy Church will lose their foothold again, right?"

"It's not set in stone yet, but realistically, yes."

We'd finally cut off the Holy Church's activities in Korea.

No way could I look the other way when I saw their new plans firsthand.

"Are you planning to wreck the inauguration?"

"When pests start building a nest, of course you have to exterminate them."

Starting today, I had decided to take a page from those 'insect-killing' heroes.

Aren't they the real heroes of mankind, not hunters?

"But it won't be easy. So many people who agree with Seungjin will show up. There'll be high-ranking officials, too."

"Of course."

I didn't plan to recklessly try to sway the crowd alone.

Would a single drop of ink really blacken the entire sea?

But those people support Seungjin's juvenile education policy.

Such beliefs were bound to have their weaknesses.

"That's why we need to use what they like against them."

I glanced over at Jade, who had been summoned at my side.

When I met his eyes, Jade trembled with anxiety.

"What are you planning to do?"

Instead of replying, I slowly curled my lips into a smile.

Because Jade was going to play an important role.

****

A training camp somewhere deep in the mountains as dusk settled.

Its only trainees, Ah-rin and Sang-ah, were wrapped in blankets and drifting to sleep.

Unlike usual, when they'd fall asleep mulling over various thoughts, tonight they plummeted into sleep the moment they closed their eyes.

"No... no snow..."

Ah-rin muttered in her sleep, eyes closed.

Of all things, there'd been a heavy snowfall in the area, and they'd had to shovel it away.

In the army, it's called a snow-clearing operation, but they couldn't care less about such terminology.

It was just mindless, repetitive labor.

And it had lasted for days on end.

"Go away, snow... I said don't fall... Go away!! Aaagh!!"

The ever-falling snow had turned into a trauma for Ah-rin, who now suffered nightmares.

She finally sprang awake, trembling.

"Damn it..."

Now she was having nightmares just because of some stupid snow.

Would she start having nightmares about the rain next?

This place was hell.

She wanted to leave immediately.

But if she tried to leave without finishing her days, her time here would only be extended.

She'd already pushed it to the 25th because of herself.

Thirteen days left.

She should've listened to Sang-ah's warning and kept her head down.

"Huh?"

In that instant, Ah-rin sensed something was missing.

There should only be two people in this quarters—her and one other.

Yet the other's scent was gone.

"Sang-ah?"

Her unease soon proved justified.

Sang-ah, who should've been sleeping by her side, was gone.

The window was open.

"Sang-ah!!"

Where on earth had she gone?

She constantly nagged about following the rules, but she was the first to attempt an escape?

But Ah-rin could track her down easily enough.

Just as she thought, looking out the window, she saw Sang-ah walking barefoot through the snowy field.

"Hey! Kwon Sang-ah!! Where are you going!!"

Ah-rin shrieked and leaped out the window, landing-nimbly in front of Sang-ah like an animal.

"Are you crazy? Get back here! I'll have to stay here longer because of you!"

At Ah-rin's shout, Sang-ah didn't react at all.

She kept walking like a zombie, her eyes vacant.

"Kwon Sang-ah, you..."

Only belatedly did Ah-rin realize something was amiss and began to feel uneasy.

And then Sang-ah slowly parted her lips.

"Food..."

Ah-rin had no idea she was sleepwalking.