Chapter 940. Gen (19)
‘I think Gen is still useful.’
He knew the dungeon’s location, he had a direct connection to the Mole Saint’s Cozy Sanctuary, and he'd be helpful in clearing it.
In addition, I needed a culprit to show to the public.
I needed someone to take responsibility for this incident.
Actually, Gen's survival didn't really matter to me, but the public would think otherwise. I also just couldn't announce that the guy who was supposed to appear in public had died under mysterious circumstances.
Gen had committed a worldwide felony, which meant that anyone had the license to kill him on the spot. I was sure that no one would complain even if Hyun-Sung ended up sending Gen to Benigoa's side, but if possible, it would be more effective to let the law handle him.
‘He did commit a crime worthy of death...’
However, a miserable death under Kim Hyun-Sung's fists in a random deserted building was just a bit too much, which was why I decided to stop Kim Hyun-Sun.
I didn't do that out of the bond, friendship, and brotherhood between Gen and me. I was simply worried that Kim Hyun-Sung's anger would consume him. Thankfully, Kim Hyun-Sung stood up and looked down at the guy that he had beaten to a pulp.
Gen looked startled by the sudden respite, and his fists trembled upon realizing that I had saved him. He felt overwhelmingly helpless. Although he had suggested that we travel the world and look at the beautiful sceneries of the continent, we hadn't really done any of that.
Of course, it was all because I was dying, but it wouldn't change the fact that we had yet to do any of what he had suggested to me.
Now that I thought about it, he had never really done anything for me.
I couldn’t choose anything for myself even in my final moments. If the Guild Master of the Blue Guild were to drag me away, I'd be locked up in a birdcage again, and I would never get to spread my wings until the day I die.
The Honorary Cardinal of the Sacred Democratic Country, who'd laugh even at the smallest thing, would choose to live as the God of Sacrifice of Revival.
Gen couldn’t just stand by and let that happen; he’d rather die than let that happen.
With that in mind, he got up and swung his fist.
A criminal's cowardly sucker punch would never hit its mark, and Gen’s fist didn’t even reach our hero.
Kim Hyun-Sung’s basic defense stance was enough to stop Gen's powerful fist.
Gen seemed to have thought that he had a chance because he lashed out with his leg, but Kim Hyun-Sung's thick arms easily withstood his kick.
Even if Gen were in perfect health, there was no guarantee that his kick just now would hit Kim Hyun-Sung.
“Damn it... damn it!” Gen shouted. He cursed with everything he had, but his attacks couldn't reach Kim Hyun-Sung at all. There was a clear difference in their strength, and Gen couldn't do anything other than make the city restoration efforts become even more expensive and complex.
In the end, Gen collapsed first. He was so immersed in this role that I wouldn’t be surprised if he cried.
As expected, he started crawling toward me while crying.
“I’m sorry... I’m... sorry,” Gen said while crying.
“Please stop, Mr. Hyun-Sung,” I begged.
“...”
“Please stop,” I repeated.
“...”
“Please stop, Mr. Hyun-Sung!” I shouted.
Kim Hyun-Sung wasn't planning on stopping, but he ended up stopping and cast a confused gaze at me.
“But... why?” Kim Hyun-Sung asked.
‘What do you mean why? Is he out of his mind? Is it okay to beat someone to death when we’re not even at war? Really? I mean, you can, but you should still hold it in.’
“It’s not his fault,” I answered.
“Mr. Lee Ki-Young...” Gen muttered.
“It’s not his fault. I asked him... to leave with me. He was simply fulfilling my wishes,” I added.
It didn’t actually happen, but I needed to build up the story.
Obviously, Kim Hyun-Sung looked utterly confused. He also couldn’t accept the idea that I wanted to leave the Sacred Democratic Country and the Blue Guild. Of course, I didn’t think Kim Hyun-Sung was going to easily accept that story.
My trembling voice seemed to have told him that I was lying, but of course, I made my voice tremble on purpose.
I looked so bedraggled that there was no way I'd go out there and show myself to the public, much less ask someone to leave with me.
The idea was so absurd that it couldn't even be considered a joke.
There weren’t any variables, but Kim Hyun-Sung seemed to have recalled a certain psychological response, and he looked like he couldn't accept the possibility that his assumption was correct.
“Mr. Ki-Young, have you ever...” Kim Hyun-Sung trailed off.
“...”
“Have you ever heard of Stockholm syndrome?” Kim Hyun-Sung asked.
“...”
“...”
'Of course, I've heard of that.'
“What?” I asked.
"Apparently, Stockholm syndrome describes the psychological condition of a victim who begins to identify and empathize with their captor. Maybe you—”
“That’s not the case,” I interrupted him.
Our time was short, but our friendship was real.
I wasn’t experiencing that kind of psychological response.
'And even if I'm experiencing that syndrome, did he really think I'd say yes and acknowledge it? He should consider the possibility of me becoming hostile toward him. He needs to be more cautious when dealing with the mentally ill.
“It’s nothing like that. I just...” I trailed off.
“If you’re going to punish Mr. Gen, you’ll have to punish me as well,” I added.
Gen had actually committed a crime, but...
“This man is a criminal,” Kim Hyun-Sung said.
‘Hey, don’t listen to me.’
“He made you suffer,” Kim Hyun-Sung added.
'I know you always say yes, but don’t say yes this time. You have to be assertive. Am I really in the condition to make a reasonable judgement here? I mean, come on. Just look at me.
'I look like I'll collapse to the ground at any moment, so do you really think that someone like that can think properly? You've got to learn how to be blunt when necessary, man.'
“It’s my fault, Mr. Hyun-Sung. He did nothing wro—”
"You look like skin and bones, and it's this man's fault!” Kim Hyun-Sung exclaimed.
'Yeah, get angry. Keep shouting.'
“You’re not in the condition to make any reasonable decision. Even if you don’t agree with my actions right now, you’ll eventually understand that I was right. It doesn’t matter if you resent me right now, as you will eventually...” Kim Hyun-Sung trailed off.
Templar Gen was poison, and I was sure Kim Hyun-Sung believed that he wasn't supposed to exist.
On the other hand, Gen looked touched. Templar Gen was crying, but was he crying because I was protecting him, or was he crying because he was in a hopeless situation?
His crying was so good that he could win the Best Actor Award.
Furious Kim Hyun-Sung didn’t look so bad either, but Gen’s face was filled with complicated emotions such as—regret, gratitude, and pain, along with other emotions that I couldn't really deduce.
“R-Run, Mr. Lee Ki-Young!” Gen exclaimed.
“...”
“I’ll hold him back. Run as far as you can!” Gen shouted.
He was really cool right now, but I was too weak to do that.
He was skilled at talking as well. I was really impressed by his confidence when he said something along the lines of showing me the beautiful sceneries of the continent.
The results of his efforts were disappointing, though, like the pig porridge and that moldy deserted building.
I was sure this time wouldn't be any different.
“Kgh! Hurry up and run!” Gen repeated.
'Hey, how can I run from Kim Hyun-Sung? Stop talking nonsense. That’s impossible.'
“Don’t worry about me... Hurry!” Gen yelled.
He was putting on a one-man show.
“Come at me!” Gen provoked.
'You’ll die if Kim Hyun-Sung goes to you. You should tell him not to come to you.'
Kim Hyun-Sung was shocked and angry. He was also filled with pure malice because he couldn’t understand why I had decided to take Gen’s side, even though Gen was the one who had reduced me to mere skin and bones.
Kim Hyun-Sung was so angry that he was struggling to suppress his fury.
Kim Hyun-Sung was right; he had always been making the wrong choices, but he finally made the right choice this time.
The right choice here was to kill Gen and set me free.
Kim Hyun-Sung was silent while Gen got ready to fight—thinking that this was going to be his final battle.
When Kim Hyun-Sung unsheathed his sword with the mindset to kill Gen with one strike, I got goosebumps all over my back.
“Don’t do it!” I shouted.
'Don’t kill him!'
Kim Hyun-Sung was really scary whenever he was full of killing intent.
I was trembling unconsciously like an aspen tree, but I gathered my strength and shouted, “That’s right, Mr. Hyun-Sung! You’re right.”
“What?” Kim Hyun-Sung questioned.
“He really did kidnap me,” I added.
“...”
“It’s also true that he kidnapped me and brought me here. I won’t deny it anymore,” I added.
Gen didn't look like I had betrayed him. Perhaps it was because he had realized that I was doing this for him and that I had no choice but to do this to save him from Kim Hyun-Sung.
“Don’t use your powers like this,” I begged.
“...”
“He has the right to a fair trial, Mr. Hyun-Sung,” I told him.
'Yeah, this is the build-up I was talking about.'
“Even if his crime is unforgivable, he still deserved a fair trial and a chance to defend himself. You’re about to do something controversial under continental law. If Mr. Gen really deserves punishment, we must go through the correct procedure,” I explained.
“...”
I was too weak right now, but I stepped forward with dignity and spread my arms dramatically. It was like I was telling him that I was going to defend Gen and that I couldn’t let him die like this. The production value was truly great and excellent.
“Ah... uh? Ah... uh...”
'He looks strange now...'
“Uh... ah...”
'What’s wrong, Kim Hyun-sung? You’re not broken, are you? You’re okay, right?'
“The Sacred Democratic Country and the Vatican must be the ones to punish him, Mr. Hyun-Sung,” I added.
“Ah...”
Kim Hyun-Sung didn’t say anything. Perhaps because he was too shocked, but he seemed like he was denying reality.
His face was distorted, and he was mumbling strange things to himself. It was like someone precious to him had been taken away by a bunch of thugs, and he couldn't do anything about it.
“Uh...?”
“Mr. Hyun-Sung, I’m sorry, but this isn’t right,” I said and ran over to Gen.
“...”
I crouched and whispered to Gen, “This is the only way, Mr. Gen.”
“There’s no need to... You don’t need to fight for me, Mr. Lee Ki-Young. What I want... is for you to be free...” Gen said.
“I’m already free thanks to you, Mr. Gen. It’s now my turn to protect you,” I told him.
'What a cliche.'
“I’m going to defend you,” I added.
'Yeah, I’m not.'
“I’ll protect you,” I said.
'Yeah, I won’t.'
“So...” I paused.
'You have to tell me everything you know. You have to do that for you to win the upcoming trial.
'You need to tell me everything, including how you obtained your wings, the location of the Mole Saint’s Cozy Sanctuary, the dungeon's clear requirements, Simon's true identity, and the location of the other Templars.’
I bit my lips while staring at Gen.
“We’ll overcome this crisis together,” I said.
'Actually, I don’t think I will.'