"Did you think the weight of sin was the same until now?"
At Hong Nan-hee's question, Do Chae-hee's shoulders slumped.
"Perhaps in that heaven up there, the weight of sin might be the same, but unfortunately, in this world we live in, that's not the case."
Do Chae-hee unconsciously nodded at those words. She understood why Jeong Ho-san desperately sought help for this child.
Kim Hyun-ki really wasn't a child who wanted to choose this situation for himself.
He was a child driven to this point by everyone's indifference and neglect.
Of course, saying this doesn't bring back the victim. The fact that he committed a crime isn't erased either. But...
Isn't it too cruel to measure this child's punishment while ignoring that fact?
"You mean someone who willingly committed a crime and someone who had no choice but to commit a crime are different?"
At Do Chae-hee's words, Hong Nan-hee tilted her head.
"Well, that's right too. But that's too much like a fairy tale..."
"Is there another meaning?"
"So-called people with means, their sins are all gathered up by others reaching out their hands. A powerful friend, the best defense team, and this corrupt judiciary. The weight of sin that remains after that is ridiculously light."
Hong Nan-hee had faced such situations several times. How the sins of those with means become lighter. She couldn't help but know, as she too was once one of those people who willingly gathered up their sins.
"But no one gathers up the sins of those without means. At best, there's only the public defender matched by the state. Of course, not all public defenders lack sincerity. But there's no one zealous enough to willingly share the weight of sin."
The sin that remains as a result...
"That's why the sins of the poor are always heavy. Because no one gathered them up. It's the same for Kim Hyun-ki. If he hadn't coincidentally met a kind-hearted police officer, if that police officer didn't have an idle police friend, if that friend hadn't thought to willingly work under a lawyer with a nasty temper..."
Kim Hyun-ki's sin would have remained heavy too. And Kim Hyun-ki would have had to bear that heavy sin alone.
Hong Nan-hee smiled seeing Do Chae-hee's expression and said:
"Doing this job makes your temper nasty, I tell you."
* * *
I admired the living room. The touch of a professional(?) is certainly different.
The black wallpaper was changed to gray, and wooden furniture and plants were added here and there. With plant lights placed above each plant, it became incredibly bright.
Even though there's no natural light at all, it gives the illusion of having great natural lighting.
"I'm not sure if it's okay for a villain's base to sparkle like a model house like this. Huh? And what's with all these plants? They're unnecessarily full of life. With an undead laboratory right next door, having such a fresh living room is, well, not very harmonious..."
Of course, I was the only one grumbling like that.
"I-is this our house?"
Even Han Seo-hyeon said this, Cha Song-jin was giving thumbs up repeatedly, and Kim Jae-ho...
"Hey, that's not for eating."
"I'm not eating. I know this isn't for eating."
He was burying his nose in the flower pots, examining the plants as if they were fascinating. Everyone's reaction is so good except for mine.
Ugh, should I try to accept this with a broad mind now that it's come to this?
—You're saying that well, considering you were criticizing the living room with a mind as narrow as a soy sauce dish just a moment ago.
'Ugh! I admit I was a bit narrow-minded, but, well, wasn't there some truth to what I said?'
—Do you really think that?
'Still, it's a shame. I had affection for it since it was the first place I decorated as I liked.'
—What do you mean first? Didn't you live alone before too?
'Ah, are you talking about the house I lived in in my previous life? That was entirely Seol Rok-jin's taste from start to finish.'
Of course. It was a house under Seol Rok-jin's name, managed by people Seol Rok-jin sent in the first place. They did ask how I wanted the interior, but in the end, Seol Rok-jin was involved in all the details.
'Seol Rok-jin was quite serious about decorating the doghouse.'
Though it was too splendid to be called a doghouse. Back then, I really couldn't live as I wanted in anything.
'I'm still angry that he wouldn't let me buy a massage chair saying it would ruin the interior. He did give me a membership to a massage shop saying if I really wanted a massage I should just go there, but I didn't have time to leisurely get a massage because I was being called here and there.'
—...You even went to massage shops?
'I said I couldn't go!'
I wonder if he's properly listening to what I'm saying or not.
Ignoring Ray's words, I continued examining the house. The various nameplates I had attached to the door were all removed, unfortunately, for ruining the interior.
Cha Song-jin's room, which only had minimal furniture before, now smelled like someone actually lived there.
—It's not just that level, it's better than your room.
'That's right.'
It was certainly different, perhaps because it was decorated after consulting with Edward. The room, basically decorated in purple and blue tones, was neat like Cha Song-jin's personality.
Red stood out in Edward's room. And green too. It was a combination of colors that looked chaotic just by looking, but it matched surprisingly well.
Is this what you call talent?
[You did well.]
"Yes, yes!"
Did he just answer in Korean now! My heart is touc... No, that's not it.
"'Yes' is informal speech, you punk!"
At my words, Han Seo-hyeon said as if wronged:
"He pretends not to understand polite speech strangely, don't you think he's actually understanding and doing this on purpose?"
Cha Song-jin, who had been quietly listening to our conversation, said:
"And if we're being strict, Edward is older than you, so doesn't he not need to use polite speech?"
At Cha Song-jin's words, I realized. If there was someone who should use polite speech between the two of us, it was me. Right, that's true. Somehow he felt much younger than me.
Ahem, anyway, changing the interior is done. I've also checked on Jeong Ho-san's recent situation.
Now it was time to return to Weltschmerz's business.
Several things I needed to do came to mind immediately, but the most urgent was probably...
Checking our side's combat power.
"Tell everyone to gather in the training room."
"T-training room?"
Cha Song-jin trembled at my words.
"Yeah, it's been a while since we properly trained in the training room."
"Do I have to go too?"
I glared at Cha Song-jin's words.
"You're the one who needs training the most! You're the weakest!"
"...Can't I just live like this? Ah, I think I could just stay tucked away somewhere safe."
"No way! We have so many enemies. What if someone attacks you when we can't protect you? Are you just going to get caught?"
At my words, Cha Song-jin shook his head slightly with a deflated face.
Even if he's not part of the combat team, he needed to have at least one means to protect himself. Even if we attach artifacts all over him, it's meaningless in the end if the person using them is inadequate.
"You should at least be able to do basic self-defense. And to do that self-defense, you need minimal stamina and strength."
Tsk, I clicked my tongue looking at Cha Song-jin's thin arms. How does he expect to survive this harsh world with arms like that?
First, Cha Song-jin is booked for basic strength training.
I also needed to accurately check the abilities of the three people who passed the trial of deception, and think about how to use Edward's ability.
If we don't properly check like this from time to time, problems always arise later.
—Are you thinking of looking at Edward's ability too?
'Of course. He's accompanying us for now, even if it's temporary, right?'
We should always check the forces we can mobilize in case of emergency.
'Besides, looking at his movements, it doesn't seem like he received proper training.'
Though I didn't see him fight properly, people who received training usually show it in their movements. Compared to Jeong Ho-san's or Yoo Seon-je's movements, Edward's movements had many gaps.
It could be because of his relaxed appearance in normal times, but considering Edward's life trajectory, it's more plausible that he didn't receive proper hunter training.
I approached Edward:
[I was thinking of properly testing your ability, is that okay?]
Edward opened his eyes wide at my question.
[Test my ability? Why?]
[Well, I don't know exactly what your ability is. Besides, isn't it a waste of time to just rest while we're training?]
[Even if you test it, what are you planning to do?]
[First, we need to accurately understand what your ability is.]
For now, I didn't know exactly what Edward's ability was. He might have been quite a famous mercenary in the western US, but it was natural since we had never properly worked together.
With just the vague explanation that he absorbs and uses the opponent's energy, I couldn't know exactly how Edward's ability worked or how to apply it.
[We need to find out exactly what kind of energy you can absorb, what your limit is, if the type of magic power you absorb matters... We also need to see how you can use that absorbed energy. Can you only release cold energy if you absorb cold, or can you convert it to other magic power?]
Fortunately, I was a universal magic power converter in front of Edward, so it was a perfect situation for testing.
[Ah, if you know anything, you can tell me in advance.]
At my words, Edward blinked as if a bit flustered, then said:
[No, I don't know exactly about my ability either. I couldn't do any training alone. And I didn't have anyone close enough to help with my training.]
[Weren't you in a mercenary group?]
[...I've never been close with the mercenary groups people.]
Hmm, he didn't have friends either. It's not so surprising anymore. Yeah, actually having no friends is normal and making friends is abnormal.
I did think that even if they weren't friends, they could at least help each other train, but considering how he moved around like a migratory bird...
'He must have lived being quite hated, this guy too.'
—No one wants to spend their time helping train someone who's about to leave soon.
'Ahem.'
I patted Edward's shoulder and said:
[Then that's even better. Let's find out together while you're here. Exactly what kind of abilities you can use, I mean.]
Edward's eyes shone at my words and he said:
"Good!"
"Try saying 'That's good.'"
"That's! GOOD!"
I narrowed my eyes at those words with a strange accent somewhere. I couldn't shake off the suspicion that he was doing this on purpose, as Han Seo-hyeon said. Cha Song-jin whispered behind me:
"So Edward isn't someone who needs to use polite speech after all."
"...Let's start today's training with you first."
"Why!"
Why? It's because you spoke the truth!
And so, Weltschmerz's training began.