In the Name of God - Chapter 29.1
As soon as I left the hallway after delivering the rules to Seong Do‑wan, Echo, who had been quiet until now, spoke up as if amused.
-Your acting is really good.-
“I used to have to act quite a lot back in the day.”
Being a combat mercenary didn’t mean participating only in wars.
If you want to end a battle quickly, it is far more efficient to approach a commander and take them out rather than killing indiscriminately. That’s why I sometimes had to act, whether I wanted to or not.
-But… is this okay? The Seong Do‑yoon I know seems very different.
“It’s fine.”
I knew exactly what Seong Do‑yoon had muttered in his dying voice, what actions he had taken and abandoned repeatedly. I thought this was well within the range of what could be expressed.
“Seong Do‑yoon’s dark turn is partly because he died and came back, but the root cause is Seong Do‑wan. The things he did ‘for his younger brother’ were far too selfish.”
-Dark turn?
Echo, perched on my shoulder, tilted his head and asked, pointing at me confidently with his finger.
“Haven’t I told you? I’m the dark version of Seong Do‑yoon.”
I hadn’t agreed with Seong Do‑yoon, but it had turned out that way anyway.
There was already enough basis for this dark turn.
Misunderstandings caused by his older brother’s selfish overprotection, accumulated mental suffering, and personality changes caused by facing death.
With all that groundwork laid, he certainly would not suspect that I am not Seong Do‑yoon, but someone completely different.
“He’ll have to think about it too. If he keeps acting the same way under the guise of protecting, only Seong Do‑yoon will get more broken. The results of his protection haven’t been very good.”
-So that’s one of the reasons for the dark turn?
I nodded and stepped into the lounge connected to the hallway. With no one around, I leisurely picked a drink and continued speaking.
“It’s too late to do nothing now. Seong Do‑wan’s overprotective nature won’t just disappear. He probably feels guilty that Seong Do‑yoon was being ruined because of him.”
-You’re going to use that?
I did not deny it.
By the time I judged Seong Do‑wan, I had already been paying close attention to his overprotective trait.
Clunk, clunk.
Without hesitation, I grabbed two cans of refreshing soda. I left one for Lee Sunho and opened the other, bringing it to my lips.
“They say he loves his younger brother to death. From now on, he’s going to have to openly accept some of that love, right?”
The cool soda filled my mouth pleasantly.
From now on, my older brother will be my joker card and my tool.
***
Seong Do‑wan, who had stopped alone in the hallway, only moved after a long while.
He pulled out his phone as he heard the announcement, ‘Team evaluation will begin shortly.’
A moment later:
“Clan leader. May I exercise some authority?”
Seong Do‑wan spoke to the leader of Horizon Clan directly in a heavy voice.
-What’s that all of a sudden?
“There’s someone I want to bring into the clan.”
A cheerful voice came through the phone from the clan leader.
-What? Is it a lover? A fiancée?
“No, it’s my younger brother.”
The clan leader’s voice changed instantly upon hearing this. The playful tone disappeared, replaced by a completely serious one.
“Wasn’t he supposed to shed his awakener title eventually? Wasn’t today’s promotion test supposed to make him give up?”
“My thinking has changed.”
Seong Do‑wan’s voice deepened. He was sincerely reflecting on his past, selfish cowardice.
“There isn’t just one or two things I need to atone for.”
Only after seeing his changed younger brother today did he realize that all the things he had done ‘for him’ were slowly killing him day by day.
What he had been doing wasn’t protection—it was abuse.
No matter what he said, the child had always bowed his head and said he understood, so he thought it was fine.
The child had been naturally obedient and gentle. No matter how harsh he was, he would understand.
Since the child was so fragile that even a breeze could wound him, he believed that if he gave a big wound once, the child might stop getting hurt.
‘There’s such a thing as being too stupid.’
To think he had so completely ruined a child with such clear eyes because of his selfishness and narrow judgment.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
