EP.102 Deepen, Deepen
Returning as Song Jihyuk, I took a portal to the house in Uijeongbu, checking my neck with a cold expression.
Seems fine. It was grabbed hard, but I don’t need to go to a medical device.
If I’ve fallen to the point of strangling my father, it’s about time to start the final process…
Should I show how far humans like Sehwa can turn evil?
‘No. That won’t work.’
Yuria has already labeled humans as evil.
No matter what evil bastards do, she’ll think they deserve it.
The same method as Sehwa won’t work.
Earlier, Yuria got excited while strangling Kim Taegon.
To corrupt Yuria, who has assimilated with my tyranny… unleashing her violent tendencies is the answer.
But if I just let her slaughter humans indiscriminately, it might trigger an instinctive rejection.
She could just become a blood-crazed murderer.
That’s not bad either, but Yuria must maintain her rationality and pledge loyalty to me.
Let’s deepen the Demon Realm a bit more and then start the process.
After sitting on the sofa with a relaxed expression for a while, Yuria came in with a clattering sound.
“Ah… Jihyuk-ssi…”
Seeing her swollen eyes, it seems she cried a lot on the way.
Well, using violence on her father must have been sad. I understand that feeling.
I was in a lot of pain too.
“Did you cry? What happened?”
“Jihyuk-ssi… I… Sniff!”
As she was about to cry again, I spread my arms.
Yuria ran over and hugged me.
While stroking the back of her neck to calm her down, I said,
“You fought with Kim Taegon, huh?”
“Yes… that’s right… Waaah!”
Yuria started sobbing loudly.
Tears streaming from her eyes quickly soaked my T-shirt.
Sorry, but I can’t cry with you.
I’m in a really good mood right now.
I silently picked Yuria up and carried her to the bedroom, laying her down.
Then, I pulled up the blanket and comforted her for a while.
Yuria, who had been crying pitifully until sunset, calmed down and explained everything that happened with Kim Taegon without holding back.
“It’s so hard… Sniff… Jihyuk-ssi… Did I do something wrong…?”
I silently listened to her story and shook my head.
“You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Sniff…! I hate my dad so much…! He deceived me without batting an eye…”
“It’s horrifying that you’ve lived with such a bastard until now.”
Yuria, wiping her eyes while sniffling, nodded.
“That’s right… I hate it so much… It’s horrifying… And lately, he’s been acting so weird. He’s been getting dumber and dumber, to the point where he can’t make rational decisions.”
Why do you think that is? It’s because of me.
“No. His true nature is just starting to show.”
“Is… that so?”
“Yes. True nature can’t be hidden. Until now, he’s been mimicking the outstanding nobles of the kingdom… but now it’s different. He thinks it’s his world now, so his true nature is showing. It’s dangerous to stay with someone like that. Don’t go home from today on, stay here. I’ll be with you too.”
“Really? You’ll do that for me…?”
“Of course.”
“What about Sehwa…”
“I won’t leave you for a second. Let’s forget about Sehwa for now.”
Yuria was very happy.
She must have been moved by being prioritized over Sehwa.
Yuria, who was beaming and acting cute, suddenly turned serious.
“Dad said he’s going to sue you… What should we do?”
“A lawsuit can be withdrawn at my discretion. If Kim Taegon makes a fuss, I’ll just have him arrested.”
“Yes… That’s a relief. And I’m sorry…”
“For what?”
“Dad made you feel bad… I even got him to promise not to bother you…”
Even though she was going to use the lab’s technology privately and even use violence against her father if necessary, Yuria had no hesitation.
Instead, she was only eager to please me.
“It’s okay. If anything, I should apologize to you.”
“Why?”
“I hit Kim Taegon, didn’t I?”
“Ah, I want to thank you for that too. Thank you for sparing my dad…”
She hasn’t completely cut ties yet.
Even though he’s a lousy father, he’s still family, huh?
“Is Kim Taegon precious to you?”
“Yes… Honestly, yes. He’s my father…”
“And you almost strangled him and knocked him out?”
At that, Yuria flinched.
Pouting her lips, she made an excuse.
“Jihyuk-ssi… That was me in a fit of anger… I suddenly lost my rationality…”
“Is that so?”
“Yes…?”
I smirked and slipped my hand into Yuria’s pants.
At the sudden action, Yuria let out a small “Ah!”
But as my hand moved around inside her panties, her eyes soon softened.
“Huuu…”
After caressing her thighs for a while, I pulled my hand out and showed it to Yuria.
“Look at this.”
Yuria’s eyes widened as she looked at the sticky, transparent fluid on my hand.
“That’s… because Jihyuk-ssi touched me…”
“You were like that before, weren’t you? You got excited while strangling Kim Taegon.”
“Th-that’s impossible…”
“Why is it impossible? You said it yourself earlier. It felt thrilling when Kim Taegon got scared.”
“…..”
She pursed her lips.
She probably doesn’t think I’m wrong.
Don’t deny it. Just go along with it. It’ll make you feel better.
Maybe inducing some empathy will help.
“If it were me, I’d feel pleasure while hitting him too.”
“R-really…?”
“Of course. Among the weak, there are rat-like bastards. Kim Taegon is exactly that type. Catching and beating such a guy is always thrilling.”
“But my dad…”
“With his foolish decisions, he led the kingdom to ruin and shifted the blame to Tairat. If that’s not a rat, what is? If it were me, I’d have sewn his mouth shut so he couldn’t even speak. So he couldn’t incite people.”
Yuria’s eyes sharpened.
Her eyebrows raised high.
As Yuria empathized with my opinion, a purple aura slowly rose from the center of her blue irises, changing her eye color before disappearing again.
Even after falling this far… the remaining morality was the problem.
The reason she hesitated while strangling Kim Taegon was because of that last bit of morality.
Even though I started the Yuria strategy in a very advantageous situation, she still had considerable potential.
That’s what makes her a Beast Slayer.
The pleasure of bringing her down will be that much greater.
Anyway, if I suddenly push her to cross the line here, that morality will kick in and stop her.
That’s why I’m planning to deepen the Demon Realm one more step.
The preparations for the final process are already done by Marcella… Let’s focus.
“Shall we go out for a bit? Want to cool your head?”
“I… would like that.”
“Alright. Change your clothes.”
“W-wait… Can I take a shower first…? Can we go out a bit later?”
“Why?”
“My face is swollen… I’m embarrassed…”
Yuria slightly covered her eyes with her hands.
Cute. Makes me want to devour her right now.
I chuckled low and shook my head.
“Do that.”
**
We took a flying taxi and arrived in Seoul.
Even though it was late at night, the streets were lively, and many bars were bustling.
I took Yuria to a billiard hall, taught her pocket ball, played crane games, and spent time like any ordinary couple.
And today, I decided to indulge all of Yuria’s whims.
It’s special. She committed patricide and made me feel really good.
“Jihyuk-ssi! What’s that?”
Yuria pointed to a street vendor.
I chuckled when I saw the food there.
“Silkworm pupae. Didn’t expect to see that here.”
“Si… silkworm pupae? The ones I’m thinking of?”
“Yes.”
“Eww…”
She clung to my arm, scrunching her face as much as possible.
She even buried her face in my chest.
She’s being extra cute today.
“Want to try it?”
“…..”
Yuria fell into deep thought, glancing at me.
She was trying to gauge if I wanted to see her eat it or not.
“Just be honest. I said you can do whatever you want today.”
“Mmm… I don’t want to. I really don’t want to eat it.”
“Alright.”
At my simple answer, Yuria brightened up, and as a commotion started in the distance, she pulled my hand.
As we got closer, the commotion grew louder.
Standing on tiptoe behind the crowd, I saw some hot-blooded young guys, heavily drunk, fighting.
Yuria also peeked out and watched the two men exchanging punches.
After watching the fight for a while, she asked,
“Why are they doing that?”
“They might have gotten into an argument on the street, or one of them hit on a girl who had a boyfriend… There could be many reasons. Want to see more?”
“Yes. I want to see more.”
I pushed through the crowd that had formed a circle and got to the front row.
A man in a checkered shirt was pounding on a guy in a T-shirt, and since he had already gained the upper hand, it seemed boring.
As expected, the fight ended quickly with the checkered shirt guy winning.
As he kicked the unconscious guy’s head and spat, a loud siren sounded, and a police car approached.
“Let’s go before we get caught up in the mess.”
“Okay.”
Yuria, who had been watching the fight with interest, took my hand, and we slipped away with the dispersing crowd.
Walking slowly down the street, matching my pace, Yuria glanced at me.
“Jihyuk-ssi, the reason those people are disrupting the peace… is because the leader is incompetent, right?”
“You think so?”
“Yes. If they were ruled by strength, they wouldn’t dare cause trouble.”
“That’s right. You’re figuring it out on your own now… You’re doing well.”
Yuria’s cheeks turned red, and her grip on my hand tightened.
Seeing her reversed values proven, I felt good too.
“Let’s walk a bit more.”
“Okay.”
As we continued walking, we saw various people.
Con artists, medicine sellers that seemed straight out of the Joseon era, people arguing and tearing each other apart, couples fighting, middle-aged men urinating in public…
Among the many human scenes, most of the noticeable ones were people Yuria would view negatively.
After observing them closely, Yuria expressed her opinion.
“People are just adding to the chaos. The police seem to have limited manpower, so they don’t even try to catch those kinds of people. It’s worse than the kingdom I lived in.”
“I see.”
“And the more I think about it, the more pathetic my dad seems. An absolute monarch has all the ruling power, right? Yet accidents happened, and the kingdom that had been stable for so long fell… That means there’s a significant problem.”
“Right. Just looking at his attitude shows how incompetent he is.”
“If it weren’t for my dad, my mom wouldn’t have died… The more I think about it, the more unfair it feels… If… Jihyuk-ssi had ruled the kingdom, the outcome would have been different.”
Yuria revealed her inner thoughts.
This was her firm resolve.
A resolve she reached on her own, in a sound state of mind.
It’s something we’ve been saying all along, but today, there was complete sincerity.
I smiled.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. I’m sure.”
I’m sure too.
Soon, I’ll execute the final plan, and the moment it’s over, Yuria will completely fall.
Whoosh-!
As we passed through the commercial district of an alley, a foreigner who seemed like a tourist catcalled Yuria, making us stop.
Perfect timing. While deepening Yuria’s Demon Realm, I can see how violently she’s changed.
Looking around, it was an alley, so there weren’t many people.
Well, even if there were, I could handle it.
I slightly raised the corner of my mouth and asked Yuria,
“Does it feel bad?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because insignificant things are climbing up without knowing their place.”
A very satisfying answer.
I nodded once.
Meaning, don’t worry about the aftermath, just do as you please.
Yuria, who firmly understood my gesture, trembled like a child nervous before a presentation.
To be continued―――――――――――――――――――――