AAGULT Ch 102

Chapter 102

To Aiden, matters like the disappearance or death of Espers and Guides, trials, or the Association’s stance—none of it really mattered.

However, since death itself often served as a form of absolution, whatever sins a person had committed before would inevitably be romanticized once they died.

In other words, kind-hearted and soft-natured Song Jaeha wouldn’t be able to bear the death of someone who, despite gaslighting and abusing him, had spent a long time with him and once cherished him.

He’d forgive him. He might even miss him. Everything Aiden had worked so hard for could be rendered pointless.

“Hah.”

At Aiden’s blatant reaction, the man let out a faint semblance of a laugh. He lightly brushed his forehead and raised one eyebrow. Then, he tilted his head slightly.

“You’ve got something inside you that doesn’t match that pretty face.”

“Then why did you even stay behind to talk to me?”

Not just him—most Guides could sense the psychic waves of Espers. The fact that Beomwoo had been nearby was the same as saying, “Notice me.” The fact that he didn’t appear directly in front of Jaeha but let his presence be known was no different from requesting a one-on-one meeting.

Aiden had caught him because he felt there was a need to talk, but did the other man have a reason too?

“You weren’t part of the plan.”

“Ah.”

But with that succinct reply, Aiden understood immediately. Well, from the man’s point of view, it was understandable that he couldn’t comprehend why Aiden was doing all of this. Aiden himself hadn’t expected that deciding to seduce Song Jaeha would lead him to care so much—to the point of giving up his Pair slot.

“Because I love him.”

Aiden concluded, blushing bashfully as he answered. He tilted his head and cupped his cheek in his hand to appear as pitiful and adorable as possible. To a third party unaware of the context, he would’ve looked like a lovely young man shyly lowering his gaze with delicate charm. Of course, it had no effect on Baek Beomwoo.

“Yeah. I get it. There are more variables than I expected.”

“I really do love him.”

Aiden lightly protested.

This had to be love. What else could love possibly be? What could be more than this? He casually contemplated regret as if it meant nothing and dropped his eyebrows, causing the other man to let out a short laugh.

“Then that makes things more complicated for me.”

“Why?”

“Because I have to kill you.”

“Ah.”

He accepted it easily. If he truly loved Jaeha, then for the sake of whatever plan he had, he’d have to eliminate Aiden, the massive variable in the equation. And if that were to happen, Jaeha would never forget him.

“Hm.”

“……”

“Doesn’t sound too bad, actually.”

At that deranged remark, Baek Beomwoo raised an eyebrow once again.

Aiden pointed the loaded gun straight at him. But Beomwoo calmly clenched and unclenched his now noticeably slower-moving hand. Sensing instinctively that a confrontation was inevitable, Aiden spoke first.

“Ah, before we fight, can I ask you something?”

He was still part of the Association, after all, and would need something to report. Although no affirmative answer came, Aiden was not the kind of man to stop just because of that. He opened his mouth.

“You’re trying to make the suppressant because of your illness, right?”

Hematocrystallization syndrome—an incurable disease found in Espers. It wasn’t hard to guess. If the unique psychic wavelength of Espers could somehow be removed, perhaps the disease could be treated. Aiden wasn’t an expert, but it was a solid enough hypothesis.

“You’ve probably already finished testing it on B-rank and higher combat and anomaly types, but there haven’t been many psychic-type subjects, right? You can’t just apply it directly, so it must’ve been a pain. Isn’t that right?”

Now, the basis for the disappearance and death cases of Espers and Guides was finally beginning to take shape. If that were the case, everything up until now could be explained. At the very least, it provided an acceptable motive for an ‘official announcement’ to close the incident and bring about a trial. Any further digging would only make things disadvantageous for the Association. Baek Beomwoo was a criminal, but once a victim, and society always softened toward villains with tragic backstories.

“So, with that in mind…”

And if Aiden’s read on Baek Beomwoo was accurate, then regardless of the truth, he wouldn’t be able to deny this question.

“Was Song Jaeha, by any chance, a necessary ingredient for curing your illness?”

It was infuriating, but Aiden had already formed a fairly complete understanding of who Baek Beomwoo was.

“……”

As expected, Baek Beomwoo gave no reply.

Aiden thought his hypothesis might be right—or it might not be. That didn’t matter. It was essentially a way of saying, “This is the motive for your crimes that’s going to be officially revealed. Just stick to this story at the trial.” And judging from the fact that Beomwoo hadn’t responded, it seemed he might have been struck by guilt.

Given that the visible symptoms of hematocrystallization syndrome had so far only appeared on his hands, it likely hadn’t been that long since they had “manifested” on the surface. At least not long enough for Song Jaeha to have noticed—probably sometime after Jaeha’s rescue. So when had he contracted it? Around the time Jaeha became an adult, maybe?

From there, Aiden formed yet another hypothesis. One that was unnecessary, unhelpful, and only succeeded in ruining his mood.

‘Could it be that one of the reasons he handed Jaeha over to the Association was to hide that he was sick?’

Of course, Baek Beomwoo had plenty of other valid reasons to send Jaeha to the Association, so this probably wasn’t the main one. But the thought that a soft spot in his heart might have played a part made Aiden’s stomach churn. It was an unconscious jealousy toward a rival.

He didn’t bother voicing that suspicion. There was no point in stirring things up for no reason, and he didn’t want to taint his ears by rebranding that creepy emotion as some form of twisted affection.

“Ugh, whatever. Let’s just fight.”

“Trying to arrest me?”

“Want me to recite your Miranda rights? You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in court, yadda yadda yadda… Enough? I’m coming.”

With a dry response, he raised his gun. The man let out a faint laugh.

Bang!

Aiden fired a light shot. Even as he did, he didn’t expect the man to get hit. No matter how much he couldn’t feel pain, he wasn’t stupid enough to take a bullet he could easily dodge.

As expected, the man easily avoided the shot and shifted to a diagonal stance. He took a languid breath, tilted his head, and relaxed his body—and in the blink of an eye, he was suddenly right in front of Aiden.

“Hah…!”

The sound of the bullet embedding itself in the wrong patch of cement rang out belatedly. Thud. The floor cracked slightly, shattering into fragments. Aiden grinned wickedly and threw the gun aside. It should’ve been frustrating, but for some reason, he felt exhilarated.

Yes. Aiden was thoroughly enjoying this. It was rare to get a chance to beat the crap out of someone you hated—especially when it was legal. And deep down, Aiden had known it would come to this.

If he ever ended up fighting this bastard,

“Getting all worked up already? In a rush?”

“Shut the hell up.”

It would be a filthy, brutal fistfight.

He reflexively rolled backward. At the same time, a punch cut through the air, grazing his nose. The beast’s punch packed no mercy. If just stomping the ground was enough to break it, then a punch from him would surely cause a concussion or worse.

Aiden shifted his center of gravity by stepping back with his right foot to widen the distance. But he had no time to scan for an opening. The man had kicked up a storm of fragments as he smashed the ground, forcing Aiden to shut his eyes. Worse, the foot was aimed at his head, so Aiden reflexively winced and raised a defensive posture. Crossing his forearms to guard his head, he braced for the expected trajectory of the kick.

Thud!

The impact rattled down to his bones. Both feet, which had been planted on the ground, were pushed back. Aiden steadied himself again. Debris grazed his face, leaving small cuts that stung.

“Shit, always aiming for the face. Jaeha likes this face, you know.”

“……”

No reply. But that irritated and bothered expression on the man’s face was enough to offer a touch of satisfaction.

The man moved again.

This time it was a knee. Aiden twisted his body to dodge, but the follow-up elbow struck him in the ribs. The unfamiliar pain made him freeze momentarily. He considered retreating for a second but instead dove in and rammed his head directly into the man’s chin.

“……!”

Thwack!

Both of them staggered. Aiden, who had recklessly headbutted an Esper’s chin, was bleeding profusely from his forehead, and the man’s jaw turned faintly red, with a bead of blood forming. A shard of debris caught in Aiden’s hair had likely scraped him.

Baek Beomwoo furrowed his brow and turned his head to spit to the side. It was laced with blood. Seeing it, Aiden’s head throbbed, but he couldn’t help grinning. Blood streamed down his face as he laughed wildly, the expression not matching his delicate features in the slightest. If anything, it might’ve looked terrifying. Not that Baek Beomwoo would care.

“Hurts a little, doesn’t it?”

“…That pretty face you cherish just got messed up.”

“Yeah, it’s fine. I’ll just go whining to Jaeha and tell him you did it.”

“……”