Chapter 348

At that time, Koo Hui-seo, reading my countenance, opened his mouth, “So, Moon Issak-ssi seemed to know Lee-kyung-ssi quite well...”

“Yes.”

“I was a little...angry, so I cursed him a little...”Diiscover new stories at novelhall.com

“What?” I asked, a bit flabbergasted. Koo Hui-seo blinked before suddenly opening his mouth. When he stuck out his tongue slightly, a black-bordered magic circle appeared on his previously clean, pink tongue.

Startled, I asked, “What... is that?”

“Mm... the ‘protection’ magic Mother cast on me...? Actually, it’s more akin to a curse... If someone tries to harm me, the curse retaliates, right? This... I learned how to control it a little” Koo Hui-seo reached for a single stem from the flower vase bouquet, as if he were going to show me first-hand the effect he talked about.

[Wither.]

He said something with his unusual, black-dyed tongue; the flower quickly wilted and dried up, as if it was reduced to black charcoal. I was fascinated by what I had seen. “Wow... That’s amazing.”

Koo Hui-seo lowered his eyes at my sincere admiration while fiddling with the now-crispy flower. Perhaps he was feeling a bit bashful.

Looking at it, I wondered what kind of curse Koo Hui-seo cast upon Moon Issak. I voiced my question out loud.

Koo Hui-seo rolled his eyes around before shyly saying, “Mm... That’s... Well, he pretended to be intimate with Lee-kyung-ssi... Stuff like... If he just voiced his desires, you’ll get married to him soon... And he said that Lee-kyung-ssi was clinging to him willingly...”

“Is he crazy?” I frowned. I was concerned about what bullshit Moon Issak may have spouted.

However, Koo Hui-seo soon smiled and shook his head, “So... I wished that [it wouldn’t come true].”

“What?”

“Ah, I just wished for his desires to ‘become unfulfilled’... Moon Issak-ssi said that Lee-kyung-ssi was in love with him. But, no matter how I thought about it, something seemed off... My curse made it so that whatever he wanted did not come to pass.”

I thought for a moment–did Koo Hui-seo’s powerful curse somehow influence Moon Issak’s deterioration? ‘Judging by the timing, I don’t think those two are totally disconnected...’

If Koo Hui-seo’s curse truly had such a strong effect, I should be careful going forwards. Even if he doesn’t become hostile towards me, I can’t be sure how the interplay of his curses may unfold.

So, I asked him for further details about the curse. “Koo Hui-seo-ssi. That curse... Does it take effect immediately? Or, is there a delay?”

“The time the curse takes depends on the target’s resistance.. Also, the curse’s activation condition is that my blood should touch or smear onto the target...”

I frowned once more. That meant that Koo Hui-seo’s blood somehow found its way onto Moon Issak. “Did you fight with him?”

“Well... As soon as we were left alone, he suddenly hit me...” Koo Hui-seo said. He resembled a child tattling to an adult. “If it weren’t for the other Hui-seo... It might have been a disaster..”

“Were you hurt a lot?”

“Just a hole in my abdomen? But, I’m okay now.”

“That’s not a small injury!” If his fragmented personality had resurfaced, there was no way that was a minor injury.

Koo Hui-seo only blushed slightly in response to my concerned expression. I sighed deeply when I looked at him. He grinned like a dog wagging its tail whenever it saw its owner.

Just as he opened his mouth to speak–

I stared blankly as those tentacles wrapped around the rounded, swollen stomach... When, suddenly, Kim Sangyoon gripped my arm with his clammy hand. I managed to tear my eyes off the bed and look at the Warrior.

Kim Sangyoon whispered, lowering his voice, while sweeping back his cold, sweat-soaked bangs. “Then... Did Koo Hui-seo turn Koo Kyungman into that...thing?”

“......”

“That’s... That’s seriously not something any human being should do. I almost threw up when I opened the curtain. I thought I was pretty immune to creepy and grotesque things, but...”

“......”

“Wouldn’t it be better to kill him? Koo Hui-seo is... Koo Hui-seo is insane. Lee-kyung-nim... I truly don’t think this is right.”

I carefully examined Kim Sang-yoon’s repulsed face. He didn’t take his eyes off the bed across from us, and, with each passing moment, his emotions seemed to shift from disgust to something closer to hostility.

Of course, what he just saw was enough to elicit those feelings. The memory of when Koo Hui-seo had first ruined Koo Kyungman’s body had made me suffer from nightmares for quite a long while. But time had passed since then; I wager that Koo Kyungman probably didn’t even resemble a human being by this point.

But...

“The reason why Koo Hui-seo is cooperating with us is... because we’ve thrown Koo Kyungman into his care,” I said.

“...What?”

“And Koo Kyungman brought about his own death for what he’s done to Seo Dawon and the other Red Lotus guild members. Koo Hui-seo’s life was horrid because of him as well.”

“But...!” Kim Sangyoon grabbed me by the shoulders, slightly frustrated. He probably wanted to maintain a general baseline of decency afforded to all human beings...Well, something like that, I suppose.

However, I couldn’t say anything to console the Warrior. Since...When was it? I had long thought that Bae Jaemin and the remaining HaHae members needed to be dealt with as brutally (or more) as Koo Kyungman.

After sighing, I told him, “Sangyoon-ssi also needs to kill Ahn Joo-sung.”

“That’s...”

Kim Sangyoon’s protest dwindled off. Though he aimed to kill Ahn Joo-sung, he probably had no intention of making him live through torture like that.

‘Sangyoon-ssi is... more compassionate–a better human–than I had thought...’

He used to be a real punk, but there was a line in his heart the Warrior was loath to cross.

And strangely, my heart hurt as I faced Sangyoon-ssi’s dislike. Even though I knew that those feelings were directed towards Koo Hui-seo rather than me, I was a bit sorrowful at his abhorrence.

I used to believe the same thing as Kim Sangyoon–that there were lines a human being should not cross. And, I lived according to my conscience as well. But... People who live like me will get beaten and injured by those more morally corrupt.

I recalled what Koo Kyungman had done to Koo Hui-seo.

I also recalled what Moon Issak tried to do with me.

And, I even recalled that Bae Jaemin’s current revered position in society originally belonged to Seo Dawon. Therefore, I was determined to make my thoughts clear to the Warrior.

—-

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TL: ahaha... T_T For all ya’ll who had forgotten about what had happened to Koo Kyungman... I guess we’re getting reminders this arc. Also, ngl ya’ll, Kim Sangyoon is slowly shooting up my fave character list. What a good boi. Lee-kyung also shows signs of trauma from what had happened with Moon Issak. He’s hardened in reaction to Moon Issak’s attempts to overpower and, quite frankly, rape him. As a victim, I think he’s blaming himself for not being stronger.