TTOA Chapter 111

#111

In the urgent situation, Chief Choi Yul’s fragmented words sounded ominous.

Kwon Jae-jin abruptly raised his head, staring at the area where Chief Choi’s hologram had been. Overturned tables, chairs flung aside, a blank hologram. Chief Choi Yul’s presence was nowhere to be seen, but his voice, though faint and crackling, was still being transmitted intermittently.

“Fam…”

Jae-jin parted his lips for a moment, then closed them again. His eyes stung. His tongue felt as hard as a stone.

“Did he just… say family…?”

…Family?

Kwon Jae-jin’s family?

Coming to his senses, he realized the blood in his fingertips had turned ice-cold. A tremor traveled through the hem of Seo Eui-woo’s clothes that he was clutching. Seeing Kwon Jae-jin freeze, Seo Eui-woo faltered.

“…”

The power gathered for coordinate teleportation subsided, and the light that had bloomed so brightly as to engulf the world in white vanished.

From the trailing ends of the scattered immense power, the overturned transceiver struggled to emit Chief Choi’s voice.

“…We will provide compensation… to your family.”

“…”

“We acknowledged the special case… Upon passing the grade test… If confirmed as S-rank, the corresponding welfare benefits…”

Compensation. It was money paid as a pension to the parents who gave birth to an Esper.

No matter how much Espers were envied by the general public, no parents would willingly give up a child they carried for ten months. That’s why the state provided compensation. Additional welfare benefits were also available. Naturally, there were differences depending on the Esper’s rank.

If he received an S-rank, how much compensation would go to Kwon Jae-jin’s family?

The precarious communication finally cut off, and a parched, dry laughter erupted in the silent headquarters.

“…Puh-ha.”

In the messy headquarters, Jae-jin laughed aimlessly, looking at the half-tilted flag of the new government. His eyelids slowly opened and closed, eventually stopping, forgetting even to blink.

Kwon Jae-jin had completely forgotten his family and didn’t even know who they were.

But Chief Choi Yul could know. He was authorized to access Kwon Jae-jin’s resident registration and could easily find information about Jae-jin’s birth and overall growth process.

Chief Choi Yul, a complete stranger, naturally knew blood relations that Kwon Jae-jin himself didn’t know. Wasn’t it ironic?

“…”

Swallowing the dark, suffocating emotion churning in his stomach, Seo Eui-woo slowly lowered his ferocious eyes.

Now it was a negotiation to give compensation, but if Chief Choi’s mind changed, the situation would be reversed.

Just as Seo Eui-woo had taken the generals hostage, what if Chief Choi took Kwon Jae-jin’s family hostage…?

Just as Seo Eui-woo was about to kidnap the generals, what if Chief Choi kidnapped Kwon Jae-jin’s family…?

Then…

… .

Clicking his tongue sharply, Seo Eui-woo released the generals. The unconscious mass of humans rolled down pathetically. Fortunately, Chief Choi Yul was still friendly. He didn’t even know that Kwon Jae-jin had forgotten his family. Leaving the sprawled-out people behind, Seo Eui-woo impatiently swept back his hair.

It was a temporary truce.

*

A desolate wasteland covered in a thick layer of gray dust. Cold air from the continent lowered the temperature below freezing. The air was piercingly dry and carried a brackish smell.

It was a barren season, a time when not a single blade of grass grew, but the landscape of the wasteland was particularly eerie. The ridges of the ground were uneven and jagged, with black branches visible in places. They looked like trees covered in icicles, but they were actually protruding steel frames.

Collapsed buildings and scrap metal, broken windows and crushed asphalt. Pieces of cement were scattered everywhere, and abandoned cars lined the cracked roads. These were traces of civilization left by the old human race before the Gate Impact.

Beyond the outer perimeter wall of the residential district, even further than the expanding frontier district.

Land stolen by creatures. Land to be reclaimed.

This was the area designated as the Uncharted Territory.

A place where no trace of life could be felt, filled with undying garbage.

A rustling sound came from inside a tilted building.

Dark, grotesque shapes were visible through the decaying plastic blinds. Covered in hedgehog-like spikes, they were creatures gnawing at the concrete wall. As if proving themselves to be demons, they were chewing and swallowing concrete that no living thing could digest.

Brrr, brrr, brrr!

No matter how much concrete they ate, their hunger was not satisfied.

Suddenly, those with gleaming yellow eyes surged out of the building. Tearing through the passage that was once a window with their front paws, they moved in one direction. Their running steps were swift.

Kieeeeeee-!

And above them, the shadow of another group of creatures loomed. Flying with its black wings spread wide, it was a demonic beast resembling a giant eagle. Its thick beak, curved like a hook, and sharp claws were grotesque.

Creatures of different forms mixed together like a single species and moved far away.

A fierce wind was blowing towards the place they were heading.

*

After that, a brief cleanup followed. The fallen generals were transported to the medical room, the S-rank Mutant Kwon Jae-jin Capture mission was officially withdrawn, and the search units were ordered to disband.

Creature Waves, system reorganization, Chief Choi, forgotten family, etc… Even though unresolved problems were lined up one after another, at least one worry of being recklessly attacked like before had disappeared.

For now, they had gained a semblance of half-peace.

It was insufficient to say that Kwon Jae-jin’s fate as a mutant had been overturned, but if you consider it as taking the first step, it wasn’t bad.

Most of all, it was fortunate that neither Seo Eui-woo nor Kwon Jae-jin were seriously injured and were safe.

Kwon Jae-jin was scheduled to formally receive a rank test, which meant that he would be affiliated with the Center as a regular Esper.

And if Jae-jin was proven to be an S-rank Guide, it was natural for him to be matched with Seo Eui-woo, the only S-rank Esper.

Espers are strictly divided and classified according to a rank system. A-rank Espers with A-rank Espers, B-rank Espers with B-rank Espers. It was that kind of system.

‘It’s completely different from what was originally planned… but I guess there’s no other way for the time being.’

After setting the schedule for the rank test, the two returned to the ruined seaside mansion.

Even after completing the coordinate teleportation and entering the house, Seo Eui-woo did not release the shield surrounding Kwon Jae-jin.

In fact, the state of the house was not reassuring.

The walls and floors were torn and cracked, a complete mess, and even the electricity was cut off, so the sensor lights didn’t turn on. It was a mess on a different level than when Kwon Jae-jin had slightly burned the first-floor living room.

“…Can’t we claim damages for this?”

Jae-jin muttered listlessly, but there was no response from Seo Eui-woo.

He was just standing still in the dark hallway where the lights didn’t even turn on. Gusts of wind incessantly blew in through the exploded walls. Seo Eui-woo’s black hair fluttered in the cold wind.

“I’m sorry…”

He whispered miserably. His rough voice sounded like a wounded beast. It wasn’t his fault, he had no reason to apologize.

“Jae-jin-ssi’s family, I’m sorry.”

“Well… it’s okay. There’s nothing we can do about it.”

Kwon Jae-jin passed Seo Eui-woo and entered the bathroom at the end of the hallway. Here too, the sensor lights didn’t respond, and the lights didn’t turn on. Feeling around in the dark bathroom, Jae-jin turned on the faucet in the sink. Fortunately, hot water came out.

“Isn’t now not the time to worry about a family I don’t even remember?”

“…”

“It’s actually a relief. That I forgot everything. I think I can be calm now.”

“No… don’t do that. Don’t lie to me.”

Seo Eui-woo followed him into the bathroom. Kwon Jae-jin hadn’t even said anything, but Seo Eui-woo turned on the shower, saying, “I’ll wash you.” Hot water poured down from the showerhead high on the ceiling.

“It’s not a lie…”

Jae-jin stood under the shower without even taking off his clothes. They both knew that Seo Eui-woo would take them off anyway.

Seo Eui-woo carefully took off the waterlogged clothes one by one. He had been wandering around all day in indoor clothes that were too thin to go out in the winter weather. Even barefoot. It was natural for his body to shiver and feel tired.

“If I had remembered everything, I would be quite shaken now. But I don’t remember… and the conclusion is that they will pay compensation, right? That’s a good thing, isn’t it?”

Seo Eui-woo took off Kwon Jae-jin’s clothes very carefully, but he tore off his own clothes as if snatching them away. He threw off the crumpled turtleneck and pants and hugged Jae-jin tightly as if imprisoning him in his arms. They stood together under the pouring hot water for a long time.

“Chief Choi didn’t seem like someone who would harm civilians. Rather, he seemed to take pride in protecting civilians. That’s why I agreed to the negotiation. At least he seemed to have a belief.”

“…”

“If he tries to harm my family, it means that even that belief has been broken. Then… he deserves to die.”