Chapter 140

If Jaeha were to look into the orb, he would see the scenes contained within it and hear the sounds as well. But he didn’t have the courage to peer inside. To be honest, he was a little scared.

“……”

In the end, Jaeha shoved it into his pocket and walked out of the room. His eyes fell on the Espers, each resting in their own way. He gave a slight bow to the team leader, who was watching him from afar, and then absentmindedly trudged back toward the spot where he had been earlier.

“Jaeha?”

“……”

“Are you okay?”

Naturally, the only person focusing on him and speaking to him was Aiden. Jaeha unconsciously clenched the orb inside his pocket. It wouldn’t burst just because he gripped it tightly, but still, he consciously loosened his hold on it and silently nodded as his lips parted slightly.

“You don’t seem okay… Did something happen?”

Aiden jumped to his feet and approached him. He stretched out his arms and carefully tugged at Jaeha’s clothes, as if urging him to kneel down so he could see. His hands, so small that they barely reached Jaeha’s chest, pulled downward, and Jaeha obediently crouched. Then Aiden cupped his cheeks with his tiny hands, making a soft clap sound as he pressed them. Jaeha’s cheeks squished inward.

“Did someone bully you? Should I go beat them up?”

“……I’m oway.”

His pronunciation came out muffled because of his squished cheeks. The sight of those round, determined eyes glaring up at him made Jaeha let out something between a laugh and a sigh, and the fear that had gripped him slowly dissipated. Only then could Jaeha muster a small smile.

“Aiden.”

“Yes, Jaeha.”

Jaeha hesitated, but finally asked:

“……Could you help me with something?”

He suddenly realized that much of the resentment he had held toward Aiden had melted away.

“Of course.”

Aiden’s answer came without the slightest hesitation.

“Anything?”

“Anything.”

“……”

In the end, Jaeha decided to trust him one more time.

“Actually, Lucas……”

Just once more.

“Checked—no one’s around.”

“Thanks, Aiden.”

“Alright, let’s see what this bastard kept in his head. He’s a freak, so I doubt it’ll be normal.”

“Haha……”

Plopping down beside Jaeha, Aiden scooted close. Jaeha debated whether to take the orb from his pocket, then slowly pulled it out. Yet he still couldn’t bring himself to look into it. Seeing that, Aiden patted him lightly.

“If it’s too much, should I look first?”

“……No. Let’s look together.”

Yeah. It would be fine. After taking a deep breath, Jaeha lowered his gaze to the orb. Scattered with faint smoke and shimmering light, it was beautiful. Small enough that they had to bow their heads to see, the orb lay between them as Jaeha finally peered inside.

The orb, as if eager for him to see, immediately began to play the memory.

Creaaak.

The video began with the sound of a door opening.

The room was dark. Judging by the low viewpoint, it seemed to be a memory from when Baek Beomwoo was young. But he was tall enough to reach the wardrobe handle. Jaeha recognized this place. He’d seen this very room before—when he’d read Seo Taegun’s memory.

So it wasn’t hard to realize—

This was that day.

The day he killed Jaeha’s parents.

“You gonna watch for yourself?”

“……”

“Still silent? Still as annoyingly smug as ever.”

Muttering something behind Beomwoo, Seo Taegun was ignored. Beomwoo’s hand slowly reached for the wardrobe handle.

“……”

The wardrobe door creaked open. The room was dark, but moonlight filtered through the window, and that thin shaft of light widened, illuminating the child hiding inside. The first thing visible were transparent eyes brimming with tears.

“Wow, really young.”

“H-hiccup.”

Hiding in the wardrobe was a child just a couple years older than he appeared in the family photo Jaeha had once seen. Seven years old, maybe?

The young Jaeha was smeared with tears and snot, desperately holding his mouth shut to stifle sobs. But whether because of the limits of self-control or the sight of blood-splattered figures before him, tears soon rolled down his cheeks as he let out stifled whimpers.

“Hhk, hhrrk……”

“What do we do with him? Kill him?”

“……”

As always, Beomwoo gave no reply. He simply stared intently at the boy’s face.

A beloved child, clearly showered with parental affection. His hair was fine, and his bright teal eyes brimmed with unmistakable terror and sorrow. He must have pieced together what had happened outside.

And perhaps having read something from the boy’s mind, Beomwoo spoke:

“It’s because of you.”

“……”

“So it was you.”

Because of what? Before Jaeha could ask, the younger version of himself clamped his trembling lips shut, eyes closing as though guilty. Tears pooled in his lashes and spilled down his cheeks, dripping onto the floor.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

The question came not from Jaeha, but from Seo Taegun behind them. Beomwoo glanced back at him, then looked down at Jaeha and replied flatly:

“Their source of information.”

“Huh? Source of information? What source?”

“The person who exposed the corruption—how the association chairman struck a deal with Halla¹—was this kid.”

“This brat? How?”

With every exchange, young Jaeha flinched. Beomwoo never missed a single reaction, observing him closely.

“Two years ago, after awakening as a mental-type, he visited the association with his parents and accidentally read the chairman’s memories.”

“Hhk, hhrk……”

“He told his parents, and they began preparing to expose it publicly.”

“Wow… All that just from one kid’s word? Ridiculously righteous parents, huh… So they died because of him?”

“N-no! No…… no……!”

The frightened boy, trembling and holding his breath, finally screamed in desperate denial upon hearing them say your parents died because of you. But even at such a young age, he seemed to grasp the cause-and-effect of his actions; despair saturated his voice.

“Hhng, hhhnghh……”

At last, young Jaeha broke into loud sobs, crying as though his breath would give out. Unfazed, Seo Taegun spoke casually from behind.

“Guess we kill him, then. You wanna do it?”

“M-mom, dad……”

“……”

Even hearing he might be killed, the boy did nothing but cry. Whether frozen with fear or resigned to fate, Beomwoo couldn’t tell.

“If you won’t, I will.”

Then—

“No.”

“—Khhk!”

Thud.

Without a word, Beomwoo shot Seo Taegun a glance, knocking him unconscious. Taegun collapsed with a heavy thump.

“……!”

Startled by the loud sound, young Jaeha flinched, shoulders stiffening. His sobbing ceased abruptly; though still trembling, he made no sound.

“……”

Ignoring the fallen Taegun, Beomwoo gazed quietly at Jaeha, then slowly crouched before him.

“Hi.”

“……Hhk, sniff……”

“You’ve got three choices. Sorry, but you have to pick one now.”

“……W-what… what are they?”

Perhaps thinking Beomwoo might not kill him, the boy timidly asked, edging backward into the wardrobe corner.

“First, you die. You know too much.”

“Hhk……”

The child’s face paled. Beomwoo observed it closely.

“Second, you come with me to the association and survive. Your ability is rare. But you’ll end up killing a lot of people, like today.”

“N-no… I don’t… I don’t want to be… an Esper… Hhngh, mom……”

“Yeah, I get that it feels awful.”

Perhaps realizing his ability was what caused his parents’ deaths, the boy cried harder. Unexpectedly, Beomwoo reached out and gently wiped the tear-streaked face. His touch was detached yet slow, almost kind.

“Third, come with me.”

His words, though plain, carried utter conviction—as if to prove it wasn’t impulsive.

“Come with you…?”

“I’ll make it so you’re not an Esper anymore.”

“……R-really…?”

The boy sniffled. Though he recognized that the man before him had killed his parents, the guilt of having caused their deaths weighed heavier, making the offer sound less terrible than it should have.

“And……”

“……”

“If you listen to me well, I might even be able to bring your parents back.”

“……My mom and dad…?”

“……”

“H-how…?”

The boy’s trembling voice posed the question, but Beomwoo offered no further explanation. He merely extended his hand.

“Will you come with me?”

“……”

Young Jaeha looked at Beomwoo’s impassive face—still stained with his parents’ blood—and at the hand extended toward him.

But in this moment, when his parents had died because of his ability, there was no seven-year-old in the world who could reject the offer to have them revived if he obeyed.

Slowly, his small, warm hand reached out and clasped Beomwoo’s.

Having seen the memory to the end, Jaeha felt sick and could do nothing but hurl the orb away in disgust.

¹ Halla: Likely referring to a specific organization or entity in this world, notorious for corruption or illicit dealings with the association. Contextually, it seems to be a proper noun tied to criminal activity.