I stared at the outstretched hand and glanced at him.
Then Lee Jae-Joon pulled back his outstretched hand as if embarrassed and muttered.
"Um, I was a bit hasty, wasn't I?"
"More than that, why are you here… . Did you follow or sothing?"
"No, no. No way! There's no reason for to commit such a cri as following a minor."
Lee Jae-Joon shook his hands widely and said jokingly, Don't say such scary things.Then he replied, smiling as affectionately as he had when I first saw him.
"Honestly, I don't know if you'll believe , but I just found you sohow. So I followed you."
"Sohow? You want to believe that?"
"Yeah, that's what I'm… ."
He suddenly stuck his right arm out at .Wearing thick long sleeves, he surreptitiously tugged at the sleeve, and sothing familiar appeared from his wrist.It was a branch of the World Tree.
"I'm not bragging, but I have one, too. It's a pretty old relationship."
He said so and covered his sleeves.I could feel the branch of the World Tree shaking violently but differently than usual.It was so violent that I had to put a lot of effort to prevent him from coming out right now.
"Ohh, he's quite a belligerent one. My one is dull and boring no matter what I do."
Lee Jae-Joon looked at with a small smile as if he knew it.
"The branches of the World Tree are drawn to each other as if they were resonating. It's the sa for people whose branches have taken root in their bodies."
He shrugged his shoulders.
"Now that we've t and recognized its existence, no matter where I go, you'll know roughly where I am. Oh, of course, the sa would be true in the opposite case."
"… That's really unpleasant to hear."
He gave a slightly perplexed look at my words.
"Uh… . I guess that's acceptable. I'm sorry. I and my brother are the only people who have a branch of the World Tree, so I never really thought about it that way."
He nodded.
"Lee Je-Seok, who's currently the head of the World Tree clan, is my older brother."
He calmly spat out the facts that were confidential, muttering to as if he were complaining.My older brother is Je-Seok, but I use the na Jae-Joon, because I thought it would have been better to choose and use one middle-na, whether it was Je or Jae.
"Anyway, as soon as we beca adults, my brother and I embraced the branches of the World Tree, and thanks to that, we were appreciated for leading another heyday. And because we've been together for a long ti, we were able to exchange each other's positions and feelings."
He mumbled, still smiling.
"So I thought that if I just racked my brother's brain a bit, no one would be able to track down, but here I am, eting soone I never thought I would."
Unlike Henir's shadow, which was waiting silently, the branch of the World Tree shook again at those words.I made him still again and looked at him.
It was because if he's the person I knew, he would never touch at this point.Now was the ti to listen and gather as much information as possible.
"So, you ca in person to rack my head too?"
"Oh, did it sound like that? I didn't an it like that."
He shook his hand once.
"I'm just curious. How in the world did soone other than us brothers co out with the branch of the World Tree who isn't also Ye-Eun…. I'm sorry, but is it possible that you're my brother's hidden child?"
"Well. Wouldn't it be quicker to ask your brother?"
"Um… . Well, that wasn't the point."
He nodded.Then he said, looking at as if this was the main point.
"Would you like to hold hands with ?"
"…… ."
I looked at him without a word.It was ridiculous.
"You know I killed a couple of those apostles or sothing, right?"
"Oh, yes. Of course, I know. Things like that don't matter."
He waved his hand as if to say don't worry about it.
"I'll just have to choose them again anyway. In the first place, I had told them not to touch academy students like you, awakened people, heroes, and hunters, but... . Kids these days have a habit of unnecessarily distorting and exaggerating others' intentions. To be honest, I was thinking about cutting them out."
As he mumbled this, he began to look up at softly.It was a burdenso gaze.
"Actually, I only have the thought that it would be more convenient if we're on the sa side. But, as well as having the branch of the World Tree... . You have the sa Seven Evil's factor."
He smiled grinningly.
"I can't believe you have two of them! No, I have to believe it. There's a living witness right in front of ! One energy... the one you share with is weaker than mine, but the other is more powerful than the one I have...… . I can't believe it! How can a single human with the two factors of the Seven Evils, and even with such powerful energy be alive and well... !"
He moved up and down as if he were genuinely excited.
"Do you know how many years, and how many people I have wasted for that? The orchard, well…. It happened in the past when I had gone astray, but... . Anyway, I've never had any aningful results. But like this... ."
As he said this, he suddenly began to unbutton his long-sleeved clothes one by one.Each ti he unbuttoned, a disgusting sll wafted out, along with the sll of perfu so strong it hurt my nose.
"In order to build trust with another person, you have to talk and strengthen your relationship. It's my personal theory, but I think it's good to tell each other's secrets. Because by telling your big secret, you can give the other person a strange sense of responsibility and homogeneity, which can also give a sense of guilt and debt depending on the person."
After saying that, he slightly lifted up his clothes as if he wanted to see it.It slled like rotting flesh and a strong perfu.
"What kind of side effects do you have? Look, compared to you, I'm nothing but a drop in the bucket... ."
Part of his body was rotting.
Even though the branch of the World Tree in my body shook, the reason his branch of the World Tree remained silent was not significant.It was because his World Tree had a hard ti just constantly repairing and maintaining his body.
Even though I knew about it, when I saw it in person, it was even worse than I had imagined.As I stared at his abdon, lost what to say, he smiled and said.
"It's incredible, right? The pain is painful, but I'm suffering from hallucinations and auditory hallucinations that I can't even sleep at night. It's a good thing I'm a mber of the World Tree clan because if I were a normal human, I'd be long dead from taking sleeping pills that could literally kill a person to barely fall asleep."
He blinked as if tired.
"Is it the punishnt for committing a taboo? It's terrible. But it was necessary."
"…… ."
He was right.As he said, in the Clouds on the Horizon, if you commit a taboo act, your karma value will accumulate.
And the fastest way to accumulate that karma value was to be associated with the Seven Evils.Such as, accepting their factors or ingesting parts of their bodies.
In the original story, the accumulation of karma values starts with trivial things such as a permanent drop in status or a random status abnormality or debuff when entering a battle.And then, gradually being ostracized by the people around you, or having a monster nad Evil Spirit twist things around at all tis and places, and eventually taking damage just by sitting still.
… If it had reached that level, it ant that it had co to an irreversible degree.I looked at him, who was staring at with twinkling eyes.
"If you're done talking, can you get lost now? Stop slling so rotten. It makes want to vomit."
"Hmmm… That's too bad. I guess it wasn't possible for us to get close from our first eting, after all."
He got up from his seat saying so.Then he said to in a voice that still had a hint of regret in it.
"If you have any thoughts, please co to anyti. I'm really and sincerely willing to welco you."
"You haven't gone yet?"
"Um, that's… . Actually, there was another reason I ca here. Actually, there's going to be a terrorist attack here in a little bit... ."
Kwaaang!
As he was speaking, I heard an explosion in the distance.He glanced back, not surprised.He seed unconcerned, despite the fact that a pandemonic situation had unfolded in an instant.
"Whoops, I'm late. I'm always too talkative."
He shrugged his shoulders.
"Anyway, I'll see you soon. By nature, those who possess the branch of the World Tree are drawn to each other even if they don't want to... !!!"
I had just moved my mana to attack him at any ti, just in case the situation arose.Right in front of , he made a strange noise and flew off into the distance.
‘Eug ah ah… .'
As he flew away with that faint sound, he fell straight into the breeding ground full of polar bears.And Jin Ye-Seul, the one who kicked him in the neck with all her might and sent him flying, was looking at with the most urgent face I've ever seen.
"Ji-Hyuk, are you okay!?"
With a click, the blood-stained blade was sucked into her shoe.Jin Ye-Seul began to look around, touching my face with trembling hands.
"He didn't do sothing strange to you earlier, right? Right? Let see!"
Jin Ye-Seul, who was looking around in an urgent manner, suddenly paused and looked at .Then she sniffed , frowned excessively, and muttered in a voice that sounded like it was coming from inside her heart.
"I'm going to tear him apart to death… !"
Jin Ye-Seul, who muttered like that in a chewing manner, suddenly pulled sothing from her inner pocket.Even before I realized that it was perfu, she started spraying it on heavily.
"Oh, hey, what are… !"
She sprayed with perfu, almost to the point of pouring it on rather than spraying.When I waved my hand reflexively at the sll that hit my nose, she desperately shouted.
"Stay still! The disgusting sll is still there... !"
Jin Ye-Seul, who almost poured perfu on , threw away the perfu bottle and imdiately ran toward the breeding ground where he had fallen.I also moved with her.Smoke was still rising from the building that looked like a research facility in the distance.
"This is… ."
"…… ."
The inside of the breeding ground was a ss of blood and flesh.
And in it, Lee Jae-Joon was nowhere, and the remaining polar bears, wounded and bloodied all over, were fighting like crazy, biting each other and smashing each other with their front paws.
"What."
Jin Ye-Seul muttered quietly, as if her mood was spoiled.Then, as soon as she found a man wearing a robe raising his weapon in the crowd of fleeing people, she ran as if it had just worked out.
With a sound like cracking rocks, the man who had been kicked by Jin Ye-Seul fell to the floor.
Then, those who appeared to be mbers of the Thorns Cross Society, covered in robes, ca pouring in from everywhere, as if they were targeting Jin Ye-Seul.It was when I pulled out the only remaining Yado's dagger to join her.
"Don't worry, Ji-Hyuk."
Jin Ye-Seul said that and stepped forward as if blocking .
"I'm going to destroy everything who tries to do anything to you."
After saying that, Jin Ye-Seul threw herself at them without hesitation.
* * *
"Driver, please step on it faster! Hurry up!"
Han Soo-Young grilled the taxi driver with an urgent voice.Then Choi Hyun-Woo, who was sitting next to her, put his hand on her shoulder as if to say, calm down a little.
"Soo-Young, calm down. You're too agitated."
"Do you think I can be calm now!?"
She yelled at Choi Hyun-Woo nervously.Then she imdiately shook her head and apologized to him.
"I'm, I'm sorry. Hyun-Woo. I didn't an to be angry... ."
"I know. it's okay."
He smiled softly as if to tell her not to worry.Then he began to gently pat her on the shoulder, as if to tell her not to worry.
"Is Ji-Hyuk a normal kid? And Ye-Seul is also there with him. You don't have to worry too much."
"No. Hyun-Woo, you don't know... ."
When Han Soo-Young heard about the appearance of the Thorns Cross Society, which had been silent for a while, at the zoo they were eting, she felt a pang of dismay.Again.It's Thorns Cross Society again.Han Soo-Young could feel the deep murderous intention of those who appeared as if they were waiting.
How much more do you want to tornt him to feel better?She felt like her heart was breaking when she thought about how much pain he was in and the fact that he was keeping a secret that he couldn't tell anyone.
"Ji-Hyuk looks so good on the outside, but he is delicate on the inside… . how much pain he must be in right now…."
Han Soo-Young muttered in a low voice as if her heart was aching.Han Soo-Young continued to mutter as if she was sorry, whether or now she knew that Choi Hyun-Woo was making a slightly incomprehensible expression next to her.
"Every ti I see him, I feel like I'm looking at a little puppy, so I'm always anxious… . He's so kind and compassionate that I'm worried about him... ."
"Oh, I see… ."
Choi Hyun-Woo just nodded quietly.A puppy?I think he's more than a puppy... . Yeah, he's more like a snake.Of course, this ti too, he didn't say it out loud, he just thought so.
Soon they arrived right in front of the zoo.Han Soo-Young imdiately kicked the door and left, while Choi Hyun-Woo apologized to the driver, paid the fare, and followed her.
"Ji-Hyuk!"
And they could find Yoo Ji-Hyuk talking to the police outside the zoo.Han Soo-Young rushed over, calling his na, and perhaps hearing that he looked at Han Soo-Young and Choi Hyun-Woo with a surprised expression.
"Ji-Hyuk, are you okay…!"
Han Soo-Young, who stuck to Yoo Ji-Hyuk without anyone stopping her, tilted her head while speaking in an urgent voice.
"…… ."
A few monts later.Slling the perfu on his body, she silently pulled out her handkerchief from her inner pocket.
* * *
"What are you all doing here instead of practicing?"
"Oh, vice president."
After practicing, Lee Ye-Eun asked the mbers who were sitting in a circle and looking at sothing.Then one of the club mbers answered, waving the cell phone.
"It's the Cross of Thorns Society, This ti, they attacked a monster research facility."
"What do you think they're really up to?"
"Who knows."
Lee Ye-Eun's eyes beca cold when she heard the na.Those insects again... .Thinking so, she quietly took out her cell phone.It was at the mont when she was about to call soone to track them down and clean up.
"Uh, what? Isn't that a mber of our club?"
"Who? Oh, it's true! That guy, him. I think that's Yoo Ji-Hyuk."
"Who?!"
Surprised by the na she shouldn't have heard, Lee Ye-Eun ran to them.And when she saw Yoo Ji-Hyuk on the screen of the cell phone she had snatched, she felt as if her breath was being choked.
"…… ."
"Um, vice president… ?"
"Are you okay?"
She nodded silently at the club mber's question.Then she went outside with staggering steps and imdiately called her henchman.
"… The attack that took place this ti. Don't hand over all of the Cross Society b*stards you'll catch there to the Association, and no matter what it takes, make sure we secure them."
― What? What do you suddenly... .
"Did you even eat your ears? Catch them all and secure them."
Lee Ye-Eun muttered, looking down at the floor with unfocused eyes.
"I'll interrogate them directly."
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