Chapter 6

6====================

System

"Can you stop that?"

"You need to know how strong I am. That way, you can make better judgments in other situations."

Sehyun infused his sword with power. A faint blue light ran along the blade, then turned purple and began to burn.

Kwaahaaa-!!

The unidentified monstrous bird, which had appeared as a dot, quickly approached. As it got closer, its enormous size became apparent, and Hyejin nearly panicked.

Its scaly wings were as large as a truck, and its legs, attached to its body, were strong enough to easily snatch a person.

"Run, run! We need to get away!"

She barely regained her composure and tried to lead her brother to the rooftop entrance to escape. However, Sehyun wouldn't budge no matter how hard she pulled.

He stood rooted to the ground like a statue, and spoke calmly.

"Don't look away. Watch carefully."

"Kyaahaaa!"

The monstrous bird's eyes, now close, quickly scanned the two on the rooftop. Its eerie, bright yellow eyes made Hyejin freeze. She could only think that it was too late.

At that moment, Sehyun moved his sword.

The technique he had practiced to the point of tearing the flesh on his hands after becoming a master of the Huashan Sect was unleashed.

Zaha, the third form, Ten Thousand Flowers (萬花).

A line was drawn in the air, followed by an explosion and a burst.

With a brilliant explosion of light, thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of purple flower petals were hurled and swirled. The scene was so fantastical that Hyejin, who had been in extreme fear, was momentarily mesmerized.

The storm of flower petals, swirling at an incredible speed, quickly enveloped the approaching monster and tore it to pieces.

In just a second, the creature's form was completely obliterated, and its flesh and blood were scattered in all directions. A few seconds later, the countless flower petals disappeared as if they had melted into the air.

All that remained were the thick clouds of blood and the chunks of the monster's flesh falling to the ground.

"…Huh."

Hyejin belatedly gasped.

How could such a result come from a human wielding a sword? And it was her brother who had done it, tearing apart the monster that had been fiercely charging at them, leaving no trace of its form.

Her common sense shattered.

Despite the great confusion, she understood perfectly.

Her brother Sehyun was not at all, not even a little, ordinary, just as he sometimes joked.

@

They stayed on the rooftop for a while longer.

It wasn't a long time, but during that period, explosions and fires broke out in other apartment buildings, and the screams of people could be heard, followed by eerie roars that gradually faded.

A fighter jet was also slowly flying at a low altitude in the sky. Hyejin, who spotted it first, opened her eyes wide and momentarily expressed joy. A fighter jet was one of the most advanced weapons of humanity! It might be able to control this situation somehow.

But before her joy could fade, a long, thin tentacle shot up from below like lightning and easily destroyed the fighter jet. Hyejin gasped in horror as the jet disintegrated into pieces and fell, engulfed in flames.

Sehyun, watching the scene, was convinced.

This situation would not calm down quickly. In fact, it would only get worse.

If this hellish scene was not limited to this place, it was certain that there would be no intact countries in South Korea or the world.

After calming themselves, they decided to return home.

Since it wasn't a long distance, they didn't take long to get back.

"Shall we eat first?"

Sehyun said calmly as he opened the refrigerator. The power was still on despite the chaos outside.

Glancing at Hyejin, who was sitting silently on the living room sofa, he chose some easy-to-digest foods and headed to the microwave.

A short while later, Sehyun sat in front of Hyejin with the warm food.

"Eat. Your mind won't work if you don't."

"…Okay."

She started eating in a dejected tone.

After they finished their meal and even emptied the canned drinks, Sehyun spoke. There were things he wanted to say now that the world had changed.

"I lived in another world for 60 years."

"Huh?"

"Almost no one has had a life as tumultuous as mine."

"…"

What was he trying to say? Hyejin remained silent.

"From what you can see, the reality we will face will be quite different. Right?"

"Right. Probably…"

"We might have to leave our home and move. What should we be most careful about then?"

"Monsters?"

"And?"

"Be careful of people?"

Sehyun nodded.

As Hyejin guessed, it might have been an obvious point, but it was questionable whether she truly understood the meaning of "be careful of people."

She probably didn't. The world had been too peaceful and kind.

Of course, there were certainly ugly and dirty crimes in this world, but at least she had never directly encountered them.

In contrast, the martial world Sehyun had lived in was a brutal, savage world filled with the primitive desires and disgusting instincts of humans, a world of violence and cruelty, a world of the strong preying on the weak.

Hyejin suddenly felt the atmosphere change and became slightly uncomfortable.

Sehyun's eyes, which had been staring at her unwaveringly, intensified the sense of alienation she had felt before.

Her brother had changed since he returned from his disappearance.

She had never felt this clearly before. Even when he had just destroyed the large monster with a single sword, it hadn't felt this way.

What was he trying to say by setting this atmosphere?

"Hmm."

For a moment, Sehyun stopped staring at her and changed his posture. He sank deeper into the sofa and began to speak in a quiet voice.

"There was a woman I knew. Her name was Namgung Seol. We met in the martial world, and she was my first love."

@

She was beautiful, intelligent, and full of vitality. Just being around her could brighten the atmosphere. Even Sehyun, who had been thrown into the brutal world of the martial arts and had witnessed and experienced countless human evils, couldn't help but fall in love with her.

She was a member of the Namgung family. The status of the Five Great Families in the martial world was very high. Because of this, Sehyun didn't dare to reveal his feelings and just lingered around her.

One day, she committed suicide.

The reason was continuous rape and abuse, which led to her mental and physical deterioration and eventual poisoning.

When Sehyun first met her, she was on her way to the Namgung family. She was a distant relative and was not born in Anhui, where the Namgung family was located. This was her first time stepping onto the Namgung family's land.

At that time, she was very bright and charming, to the point where Sehyun couldn't resist falling for her.

He became friends with her after fixing a broken wheel on her carriage. They spent about a month together and had to part ways when they finally reached their destination. Sehyun couldn't bear to leave her and stayed at a nearby inn.

Sometimes, Namgung Seol would go out. Sehyun would wait and meet her outside the inn. He was there solely to meet her.

Even as her expression gradually darkened, he didn't take it too seriously. He couldn't imagine the extent of the tragedy she was facing, seeing her happy to meet him. Even when she committed suicide, he didn't realize the full extent of her suffering.

She was a proud and dignified woman. She was also intelligent and radiant, which paradoxically made her more naive. She couldn't ask for help until she was completely broken.

One of the direct descendants of the Namgung family, Namgung Minjung, had been continuously abusing her.

Even though they were distant relatives, incest was impossible. However, Namgung Minjung didn't consider this. He just found Namgung Seol attractive and acted on his desires.

He treated her as a tool to satisfy his lust, and when he got tired of her, he would discard her. There was no reason to consider incest.

That's how she died.

"What I want to say is all in this story. What do you think it is?"

Hyejin couldn't answer immediately. She was just in shock from the vivid story Sehyun had told.

"First, you are a woman."

"…"

"One of the risks you will face. You will be a target just because you are a woman, from the many men you will encounter. If you can't protect yourself, you will suffer more than you can imagine. When social order breaks down, primitive crimes will run rampant."

It's not just that the criminals are evil. They have given up hope for the future and become demons falling into hell together.

His voice was calm, but there was a heavy weight in it.

The weight of an uncertain future.

For a moment, she imagined herself in such a situation and swallowed hard. In a world without order, no law or state would protect her from whatever happened.

"Second, violence has no limits. A simple punch can completely destroy a person, physically or mentally."

He sighed briefly.

"Let's assume I'm not here. A man you know is with you, and he suddenly turns on you and tries to attack you. What would you do?"

"…I would resist."

"If he starts punching, would you still be able to resist? Could you struggle to get away?"

"I can't just let it happen."

Hyejin raised her voice slightly, slightly agitated.

"I don't want to die. I have to resist."

"Most rape victims would probably answer similarly. People usually value themselves."

"…Yeah, I guess."

"But many actual rape victims couldn't resist until the end. Why do you think that is?"

"Because the man is stronger than expected?"

"No, because they are afraid."

Humans exposed to brutal and merciless violence are terrified.

Sehyun knows what that fear is. He even had an experience of being on the verge of rape by another man.

In such a situation, proper judgment is impossible.

"Whatever the situation, don't trust anyone easily. Think about the problems that could arise from trusting someone you shouldn't. This is something you need to think about and make a habit of, no matter what situation you are in."

============================ Afterword ============================

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