Chapter 248  

"You've changed so much that I hardly recognize you," Woo-Jae said.

"Or is it that you tried to erase me from your memory?" Do-Jin responded.

"I can't deny that. After all, I didn't always carry that thought in my mind.”

With a disdainful snort, Do-Jin said, "You're shameless.”

"Still, I did think about you once a year or so."

"...Are you trying to make me even angrier?"

"Because I regretted it. If I'd been a bit stronger, I wouldn't have let your father die like that."

"Choi Woo-Jae!" Do-Jin yelled out and struggled to rise from his bed.

However, his body, drained of strength, didn't move so easily.

"Listen. Don't you want to know the truth?" Woo-Jae continued.

"The truth! If you mean the truth about how you ruined our family and plunged us into the abyss, I know it better than anyone else!" Do-Jin shouted.

"I admit I made mistakes. But why is it my fault that your family ended up a mess?"

"Is that what you're saying?! Because of you, my father committed suicide."

"Suicide? Right. Let's start from there. Your father, Kim Woo-Sung, was murdered," Woo-Jae said calmly.

"What...?" Do-Jin's eyes widened.

"I don't mean murder in the sense that I killed him. Although it was presented as a suicide at the time and subsequently buried, the incident was clearly a murder."

"What do you mean…?"

"An order came down from a very high place to kill Kim Woo-Sung. I might challenge it now, but at that time, I didn't have the strength to defy that absolute power. I had no choice but to turn a blind eye," Woo-Jae continued with a bitter smile on his face. "Your father, Kim Woo-Sung, was an exceptional man. I also sought the favor of the high authority man and made multiple attempts to persuade him."

"That's nonsense…" Do-Jin cried.

Confronted with a situation far different from the truth he had known, Do-Jin began to deny all of Woo-Jae's words.

"So, the truth is this: Your father, Kim Woo-Sung, was extraordinary but not smart. He tried to live outside the rules set by the world, and those above us do not like such people."

"But... If you had not ruined the company..." Do-Jin said.

"On the surface, that's what it seemed like. However, that was a merger agreed upon by Kim Woo-Sung and I," Woo-Jae explained.

"What...?"

"Let me reiterate, Kim Woo-Sung was an extraordinary man. The moment things went wrong, he realized he could not protect Do-Jin Hynix to the end. He called me, who had been seeking him for years, and asked me to merge the company with Comet instead."

"But why…?"

"In return for giving me the company, he asked me to take care of his family. He already knew he was going to die," Woo-Jae said.

"..." Do-Jin remained silent for a very long time.

Were Woo-Jae's words a lie to deceive him? Or were they, as they sounded, the truth? Either way, there was clearly a problem.

"If what you're saying is true, then why...didn't you honor your promise?"

"You might find it hard to believe, but I only remembered that promise less than six months ago."

"What kind of nonsense is that?"

"More precisely, I had forgotten that Kim Woo-Sung had a family. Something had been implanted in my mind. I only managed to resolve this issue after entering the Tower of Heaven and meeting a deity."

Do-Jin, who kept widening his eyes without rest, clenched his fist. Noticing his reaction, Woo-Jae said, "It might be hard for you to believe. I'll leave now, so take some time to think about it. I am not done with telling you the truth yet. Don't you also need to know who the real enemy is?"

With that, Woo-Jae started leaving the hospital room slowly.

"Choi Woo-Jae!" Do-Jin, who had been staring at Woo-Jae's retreating figure with burning eyes, yelled out.

Just as Woo-Jae turned to meet Do-Jin's gaze, Do-Jin found himself recalling his childhood and the past. He remembered the face of a young Woo-Jae who had rushed toward him amidst a collapsing building and roaring flames. What was the desperate emotion that had surfaced on Woo-Jae’s face then?

'I only thought it was an unpleasant dream.'?

The idea that Woo-Jae, of all people, would risk his life to save Do-Jin was unbelievable. That was why Do-Jin had regarded it as a dream. Even in his dream, he had been blaming Woo-Jae with a voice filled with resentment and anger.

However, now, it was a little different. In the dream, there was someone else behind Woo-Jae. It was a monster with purple eyes, wrapped in darkness. The figure Do-Jin had been yelling at wasn't Woo-Jae, but that strange entity.

'Who are you? Just who are you…?'

Despite feeling a throbbing headache, Do-Jin said to Woo-Jae through gritted teeth, "If what you've said is a lie, I'll never forgive you."

Woo-Jae laughed derisively at the threat, which sounded like a fierce beast roaring. He then asked, "Well, do you intend to forgive me if what I speak is truth?"

"That's..."

"Even forgetting is a sin. Oh, I realize I haven't said the most important thing yet," Woo-Jae said.

While standing still, he bent his waist toward Do-Jin.

'What...?'?

Woo-Jae bowed deeply before saying, "I'm sorry for forgetting."

It was indeed a brief phrase and a simple bow. However, these were actions Do-Jin had never expected from someone like Woo-Jae.

Woo-Jae, appearing to not care about Do-Jin's surprised expression, turned around and opened the door to the ward. As he moved toward the pouring light while fully opening the door, another figure appeared. It was a middle-aged lady with gray hair and deep wrinkles across her face. She gave a slight bow as she hurriedly approached.

Seeing the lady, Do-Jin’s eyes bulged out in surprise. He hadn’t seen her face in so long, but he had neither forgotten her nor found this encounter awkward. She was, after all, the only family he had left in this world.

"Mom...?"

"Do-Jin."

His mother, who had been bedridden in the ward with a terminal illness and had been unable to be helped even by Do-Jin himself, was standing in front of him. She appeared to be healthy and smiling.

"How did this...?"

The moment he spat out the question, Do-Jin's face, which had always been cool and cold, distorted and crumbled like that of a child. He hadn't even imagined his mother, who had been unconscious in the ward, could walk on her own feet.

"Do-Jin...!"

Seeing his expression, his mother, Park Hye-Jung, couldn't help but burst into tears and rushed forward with open arms.

Do-Jin, who had been lying on the bed, could only stare blankly at his approaching mother. The moment he was in her arms, he couldn't help but cry.

'It's warm...'?

An incredible warmth wrapped around his whole body and heart. Before, he had thought all hope in this world had vanished. He had thought the only emotions left in his heart were revenge and resentment. However, that wasn't the case.

Longing, joy, gladness, happiness—all these emotions that were too overwhelming to be put into words filled Do-Jin's heart. They washed away the malice that had frozen him with their tears.

'I too... I too...'?

He also deserved to be happy. He could be happy.

'Never...'?

He didn't want to lose any of this ever again.

***

Outside the ward, Yu-Seong was leaning against the wall. His eyes widened at the sudden sound of crying. Then, a bright smile spread across his face.

'So, that guy knows how to cry.'?

Yu-Seong hadn't known because Do-Jin always wore a face that seemed like he wouldn't shed a drop of blood even if stabbed with a knife every day. Thus, he found this sight to be a relief.

'Now it's your turn to be happy.'?

Do-Jin was a man with exceptional mental strength. Therefore, making him fall, even if it was due to the extraordinary mind control of Eveheim, wouldn't have been easy.

In fact, Do-Jin had pushed back even the ritual of the Demon King, recognizing his own existence. Still, the reason he had been tainted by darkness and engulfed by malice was because there had been too much darkness deep inside Do-Jin's heart. 'There won't be a problem from now on.'?

Now, a relatively small light had taken a place in Do-Jin's heart. Of course, the darkness was still greater than the light, since the pain and anger over what he had lost over time could not completely disappear. However, light, by its nature, asserted its existence powerfully even in complete darkness. No matter how deep the darkness, it was not easy to cover even a small light.

'And the light will gradually grow.'?

As time passed, much was bound to change. Yu-Seong also intended to assist with this transformation.

'Just as you did for me.'

If it was true what Gabriel had said, that Yu-Seong, who had been a total fool, had just brought back memories from another world, then it was indisputable that it was Do-Jin who had saved him from his downfall.

'I've come this far because of that novel, after all.'?

He might have lived a life that would have ended in misery, being continuously labeled a rascal until the very end. Yu-Seong had only made it this far because of Do-Jin's tale. Therefore, Yu-Seong decided to be another source of light for Do-Jin, who was still full of darkness. The reason for this?

"Do friends need reasons for such things?" Yu-Seong chuckled, muttering to himself as he cast a noise-cancellation spell in front of Do-Jin's hospital room.

Considering Do-Jin's personality, he probably wouldn't be pleased if anyone heard him crying.

'This way, he won't be disturbed unnecessarily.'?

Just as Yu-Seong leaned against the wall once again, on the verge of getting lost in thought, his cell phone in his pocket vibrated loudly. He blinked. "Huh?"

His eyes sparkled as he checked the cell phone.

'Jin Yu-Ri.'?

Finally, the few friends who had stood by the side of rascal Yu-Seong were coming back.

***

Yu-Ri, Do-Yoon, Ye-Ryeong, and Jin-Hyuk had all completed their promotion evaluation on the same day and came back. It was as if they had coordinated with one another.

Upon returning home, Yu-Seong greeted the familiar faces he hadn't seen in a while with a bright smile. He said, "We're finally all back together. Hunting Team 8.”

He also couldn't help but be amazed.

"What happened…? How did all four of you become SS-rank?"

There were four SS-rank players standing before him. It was surprising as, in the world, SS-rank players were highly esteemed and held great value. No, to speak accurately, it seemed as though two of them had even surpassed SS-rank.

"Are Ye-Ryeong and Jin-Hyuk...EX-rank?"

At the sensation of their immense strength, the four of them stared at one another with wide eyes. Their heads shook from side to side.

"I didn't say anything," Yu-Ri refuted.

Jin-Hyuk then responded, "But you arrived first, didn't you, noona?"

"Are you doubting me?" Yu-Ri asked.

"Well, not exactly..."

Jin-Hyuk’s gaze naturally shifted from Yu-Ri to Ye-Ryeong, who had contacted Yu-Seong right after Yu-Ri. He asked, "Hey shortie, did you say it?"

"I might just end up killing you. Who are you calling a shortie again? And why would I even say that? I was also looking forward to surprising the boss," Ye-Ryeong said firmly.

Naturally, the gazes of the three people turned to Do-Yoon, who until then had remained silent, arms folded.

"...It wasn't me," said Do-Yoon as he shook his head.

Once again, the three nodded at him and remained in silent denial.

"Of course, Do-Yoon oppa wouldn't do that," Yu-Ryeong said.

"Oppa does have tight lips," Yu-Ri said.

"So, a guilty conscience needs no accuser. Shortie, you're the culprit, aren’t you?" Jin-Hyuk said.

"All of you, enough." Yu-Seong, who had been enjoying the back-and-forth of the four, stepped in to mediate. He added, "It seemed like everyone wanted to surprise me with their growth without letting me know, but unfortunately, there was no culprit. I simply discovered it on my own."

"But how did you do that?" Yu-Ri asked, her eyes wide with surprise.

As far as they knew, Yu-Seong had been sealed with the Demon King for the past three years. Thus, it was difficult for them to accept this as truth. However, the reason was very simple.

"Because I am just above EX-rank. You'll understand when you see it."

Observing the flustered expressions on the four individuals’ faces, Yu-Seong confidently shrugged his shoulders. He sat arrogantly in the center of the sofa.