“Is it a shame?”
“There were three left….”
“How many were originally in there?”
“Twenty.”
“Isn’t this a complete criminal bastard? I should tell the police to arrest you. If a refugee commits a crime, isn’t it deportation?”
Evil chuckled and poked Cheche’s cheek softly so it wouldn’t hurt. He didn’t want to remove his hand from the soft and squishy texture, but he had no choice but to let go when Cheche turned his head to express refusal.
That was the end of the bag’s contents. Cheche listlessly received the crossbody bag.
A sulking refugee.
Evil was careful not to smile too broadly. The refugee who had seemed like an emotionless doll when they first met now showed emotions like this. Though the reason was that he’d thrown away drug-like substances, which was awkward, he thought this was something.
Evil sneakily stretched his arm toward the backrest Cheche was leaning against. Cheche didn’t pay attention. Evil had to bring up a topic Cheche would dislike. There was something he definitely had to talk about.
“Hey, today.”
“…….”
“You must be disappointed you didn’t get to use Soul Aura today.”
Coming to Armal also had the purpose of letting Cheche experience disaster victim psychological healing. However, this time, thanks to Evil’s overwhelming ability, no disaster victims occurred, so he didn’t get the opportunity for psychological healing. When he spoke as if fully understanding his regretful feelings, Cheche unusually put on a serious face.
“What are you saying? I’m glad I didn’t have to use it.”
“Right. Honestly… who heals whom? Your psychology is more unstable than the disaster victims. You should be thrown into a mental hospital right now.”
“…….”
“A chain smoker who does nothing but self-harm.”
Cheche lowered his eyes without answering.
Crackle crackle, the sound of firewood burning could be heard. The villa’s fireplace image even implemented the sound. Cheche’s dark brown skin was dyed yellow, then dyed crimson.
It was the same earlier too. When he was held in his arms above the sea watching the sunset. Cheche’s dark brown cheeks shone beautifully in the sunset light. He thought he would hate being held, but unexpectedly he stayed obediently in his arms, grabbed his chest with his hands, and even rested his forehead on his shoulder.
Well, he probably didn’t think such a thing was possible. Thinking about part of his abilities being exposed gave him a headache, but the refugee’s admiring gaze was enough compensation.
“Really not regretful? You’ve never done it even once since becoming a Soul Aura User.”
Cheche raised his head. Rarely, it contained emotion—a question of not knowing why he kept asking.
“I’m fortunate there was no opportunity. Because Director-nim resolved it.”
“Now you understand a bit how amazing I am.”
“Yes.”
“Then you also understand how foolish you were earlier?”
“……”
“I’m not scolding you. Listen carefully to what I say.”
At the lowered voice, Cheche listened quietly.
“You need to realize for yourself how pathetic it was to say you’d go even alone. It’ll be troublesome if you think you’re a real hero just because you’re an S-rank Souler.”
“……”
“You can’t do anything. You wouldn’t be any help anyway even if someone like you went. In the end, you have to cling to capable people, yet just because you became a Soul Aura User, you act recklessly thinking you can do something alone? When you yourself are in an unstable state. If something happens, only you’ll get hurt and only you’ll suffer losses.”
“Then should powerless people just wait quietly until capable people come to save them?”
“I’m speaking from the position of someone who saves.”
“You’ve always been that way.”
Cheche answered calmly toward Evil’s red eyes.
“Until now, the people who saved me were all people without abilities.”
“That’s because there were no Aura Users in Tar… so…”
Even as Evil answered indignantly, he realized why his words weren’t reaching Cheche.
Powerless people helping each other and receiving help. It must have been very natural in Tar.
Cheche continued dryly.
“It can’t be left only to capable people. They’re not free from danger either, and not all of them come to save. Even Director-nim has left many to die.”
“…Even if you say that, it doesn’t prick me. Helping weak people isn’t a natural duty.”
“That’s right. So there are times when even people without abilities must move.”
Evil knew too.
Cheche had saved a Daleo soldier on a battlefield raining with bullets.
He had infiltrated the government military alone to save kidnapped children.
He had stood in front of an Alcity war correspondent being aimed at by artillery.
Even while being tortured until that small body was packed with scars, continuously…
Even when he wasn’t an S-rank Souler, even when he wasn’t Evil Endem’s secretary. When he was just a boy who was nothing, when he was just a foolish child with a small frame from not eating properly and knowing nothing, Cheche had headed to places that needed help.
When he acted so recklessly, there was no hero.
“Hey… refugee.”
“……”
“Weren’t you even scared? You knew no one would come to help.”
“I was always scared.”
“……”
“There was never a time I wasn’t scared. However, Director-nim’s words are wrong.”
Cheche slightly bit his lip and spoke in a breaking voice.
“Because I knew someone would surely come to help.”
“……”
“There were always people who came to help me. Even places that were too dangerous to enter, if I was captured, they came to save me.”
“……”
“Even though the people who came to save me were all powerless people like me. I… always survived thanks to their help. They must have been more afraid. Always, those people were more.”
That quiet voice contained passion he couldn’t quite hide. At that moment, Evil realized Cheche wasn’t indifferent or emotionless at all right now. The golden eyes weren’t here. They were just blurred enough to seem emotionless because they were groping at a very, very distant place.
Evil couldn’t endure any longer. He let out a deep sigh and distorted his face painfully.
He came to understand a bit about why Cheche considered himself a sinner and punished himself.
If those words were true, it meant the refugee had deliberately thrown his body into dangerous places. It meant that after being called Tar’s young hero, Cheche had jumped into enemy territory expecting allies to come save him. To more and more dangerous places, to places no one would go to save. Because if he jumped in, people would surely move.
Today was the same. Cheche had acted as if being reckless and ultimately made Evil move…
Evil wouldn’t be sacrificed, but in Tar, there must have been large and small sacrifices in each of those processes. Cheche fully expected that sacrifices would follow each choice he made, and therefore those sacrifices remained completely with Cheche.
Whether done deliberately or unconsciously, it was a very dangerous habit. Putting himself in danger, having someone come to save him, and when sacrifices occurred in the process, getting soaked in guilt again. A very bad habit.
“……”
Cheche lowered his head like a sinner awaiting judgment. Evil reached out his hand to Cheche.
This was probably the first time he had brought it out like this. The truth he wanted to hide most.
“…I’ll take back what I said.”
Cheche seemed to want to reveal he was a sinner, but it didn’t sound like that to Evil at all.
Because…
First came jumping into dangerous places even knowing no one would come to save him.
Before being called the ‘young hero.’
There was a child who threw his body into a place without any hope, knowing no one would help, and that came first…
“You are…”
Cheche didn’t avoid the approaching fingertips. Evil’s hand smoothly settled on Cheche’s cheek. Cheche didn’t avoid Evil cupping his small face and lowering his face close either.
The eyes that had been looking far away returned to Evil.
Crackle crackle, firewood burned in the video and the night sea endlessly pushed waves toward land. Even when their noses touched and they were close enough to feel each other’s breath, Cheche didn’t avoid it.
“You are…”
Evil brought his lips to Cheche’s ear. The soft touch of his earlobe touched his lips.
‘You are a hero.’
The person who saved millions of people today was Evil. However, there was only one real hero in this place.
Tar’s young hero.
Evil no longer had any intention of denying that fact.
That is beauty incarnate.