(Breakdown pt.2)

Why would you die? In-woo frowned at the incomprehensibly exaggerated flow, and Raseti frowned back as if asking why he would question something so obvious.

“Of course Radel-nim won’t let me live after I made such a huge mistake.”

“Radel will kill you?”

“Yes.”

“But… aren’t you two close?”

When a confused In-woo asked, Raseti nodded.

“Radel-nim and I have known each other for hundreds of years. Radel-nim is my benefactor…”

“Then he wouldn’t kill you.”

Even as he responded, In-woo felt somewhat annoyed with Raseti. Were they bragging about knowing each other for hundreds of years or what… It was petty jealousy. The emotion passed so quickly that In-woo himself didn’t even realize it.

Raseti quietly lowered their gaze.

“You’re the exception, Kim In-woo-ssi. Well, even if Radel-nim doesn’t deal with me, I probably won’t be able to bear it…”

“Then just die.”

“Don’t say things like that.”

“What does it matter to you, after you deceived me so much?”

“You’ll feel guilty if I really die. Why say unnecessary things when you don’t mean them? Tell me not to die. Since I won’t be convinced by Kim In-woo-ssi’s words anyway, if you want peace of mind even after I die…”

“Enough. Is life a joke to you?”

Why were they responding so seriously to something said as a joke? Though he knew Radel was a warmonger who had killed enormous numbers, he wasn’t someone who would kill a close person over one mistake. The Lee Sun-ho he had known until now was closer to being a pushover…

“…”

In-woo, who was about to argue back, laughed weakly. What trust could he have in a con man to say ‘he’s not that kind of person’? No wonder that guy had played with him for 5 years when he was this naive.

He was tired. He wanted to go rest quickly. He wanted to rest deeply and forget about Radel or Lee Sun-ho. He wished all this would be resolved and Radel or Raseti would disappear from his sight forever.

“What are you going to do now?”

“What should we do…”

Raseti, who was usually precise in handling matters, still lingered in their chair. In-woo, typically impatient, felt frustrated by Raseti’s uncharacteristically sluggish behavior.

“You said there were circumstances that made it impossible to kill Ezel. What are they?”

“Well… Ezel-nim is…”

Raseti, who had muttered softly, fell silent for a moment. Their closed mouth and eyes flashed golden. For a moment, In-woo felt a chilling fear as if Raseti might kill him. Though it was the second time he’d experienced it, it wasn’t something he could get used to. When In-woo unconsciously flinched, Raseti sighed and rubbed their face.

“I’m sorry. I got angry for a moment.”

“Never mind that, just explain.”

“…Ezel-nim is Arkea’s last remaining royal family member. And the royal family possesses mental manipulation abilities that are extremely effective on us Arkeans.”

“Mental manipulation?”

“Yes. While we’re quite resistant to physical shock, we’re weak to mental shock… when we receive it, we die easily.”

In-woo was somewhat taken aback by Raseti’s serious face.

“You mean actually dying, not metaphorically?”

“Yes. We just waste away and then suddenly collapse and die.”

This was ridiculous, they’re not even sunfish… In-woo was about to grumble but recalled Raseti rolling on the floor earlier. Their unusually lifeless appearance and listless way of speaking, so different from usual… Could this be the very symptom Raseti was talking about?

In-woo studied their mask-like expressionless face. Though he was angry at Raseti, his anger toward them wasn’t great. After all, Raseti had only followed Radel’s orders. Above all, Kim In-woo hadn’t expected anything from Raseti, so there wasn’t much built-up resentment.

“…Sorry about earlier.”

“It’s fine. You didn’t know when you said it.”

Raseti smiled faintly. It felt less like genuine acceptance and more like indifference.

“Anyway. The royal family’s ability can instantly recover Arkeans who have fallen into such crisis situations. The memory of the mental shock remains, but it prevents that shock from leading to death.”

“…That’s possible?”

“Yes. Depression… ah, it’s different from human depression, but we call it that… Anyway, this depression is more fatal to us than anything else. Once the condition suddenly becomes serious, we completely lose consciousness so it’s difficult to do anything. But the royal family can both awaken consciousness and temporarily alleviate this depression. With the royal family’s ability, they can keep us from dying immediately and allow time for various treatments.”

“…”

“Actually, we’ve managed to recreate about 80 percent of the royal family’s ability. But it’s a matter of life and death, right? We can’t just throw away that 20 percent.”

In-woo couldn’t help but snicker at Raseti’s words. It was amusing to see these beings who had repeated war for over a thousand years treating a 20 percent probability as precious in a life-or-death matter. Well, they said Ezel only hated other species, so they must treat their own species well enough, so what did it matter?

“I can guess what you’re thinking.”

Seeing In-woo’s expression, Raseti smiled bitterly.

“Well, if I were in a position to go all out, I’d just kill them, but in a situation where many Arkeans are hanging onto that 20 percent, if I carelessly killed Ezel-nim, I’d probably be executed for treason. This probably sounds like an excuse to you too…”

“You don’t need to explain. I know your personality.”

“Thank you. Anyway, because of that situation, we can’t easily kill them. It’s an ability inherited through bloodline, but Ezel-nim is sterile… Ah, by the way, this is top secret.”

Raseti, who had casually revealed their opponent’s weakness, sighed deeply.

“We could have tried various things like creating a clone of Ezel-nim, but they showed strong resistance to that. We’re trying secretly, but there are limits.”

“Can’t that bastard do it too? Or control Ezel to use their ability?”

“Mental-related abilities are delicate. They won’t work under control. Besides, Radel-nim’s method always leaves traces in the brain somehow. But Ezel-nim’s method is different. You know how even someone who wants to die will hesitate a little at the very end? It amplifies those tiny parts.”

“…Amplification?”

“Yes. You know what I mean, don’t you?”

“What…”

“You felt an unnaturally strong impulse before stabbing Radel-nim, didn’t you? The urge to kill.”

He couldn’t deny it. That strange impulse he felt while looking at Radel. The voice in his head whispering to kill. His anger toward Radel had swollen irrationally in an instant, and he had lunged forward unable to control himself.

Even though he had a history of killing, it had been chilling how he hadn’t hesitated at all to kill someone… To think it was because someone had tampered with his mind.