Chapter 79: Concerns (1)
‘……Hmm.’
Ji-hwan hesitated considerably at Hyeon-yul’s direct words.
Was this right?
Was it okay to do this?
Such thoughts swirled endlessly in his mind.
“…Brother.”
“Yes.”
“This is really……”
As a student suddenly rushed forward, Ji-hwan flinched.
Even knowing that the student couldn't move forward, not only being choked by darkness but also having their body bound, the student moved their body forward.
Feeling a shimmering sensation around the student’s body, Hyeon-yul narrowed his eyes.
It was a mental-type power.
“Step back.”
He immediately told Ji-hwan.
This had to be handled carefully.
“Die, die, Black Eagle!”
The student’s eyes flashed as they commanded forcefully.
He didn't know for sure, but he had heard that the more intense the feelings towards the opponent, the stronger the mental-type power became.
He didn't know how much stronger it would become, but Hyeon-yul felt his skin tingle.
‘It must be quite strong, right?’
Wouldn't this be about the level of facing an enemy, or even more?
Why could they use that much power?
Hyeon-yul glanced at Ji-hwan.
Other than being surprised, he seemed fine.
“Is it a mental type?”
Hyeon-yul spoke as if he knew nothing.
He saw the student flinch.
Soon, their face contorted.
“Why are you so angry?”
“……It’s not working?”
It was the student who was surprised by Hyeon-yul’s composure.
It really wasn't working?
They looked at Hyeon-yul as if something unexpected had happened.
“Do you have some feelings towards Black Eagle? You’re not brainwashed, are you? I hope you don’t act foolish.”
“…Because of you, my family died.”
“Are you saying Black Eagle killed your family, student?”
Hyeon-yul tilted his head.
It was an incomprehensible statement.
Shouldn't the word ‘villain’ be substituted for ‘Black Eagle’?
Perhaps they weren't perceiving it correctly?
‘By the way, is it time to take medicine?’
Seeing his thoughts multiply, it seemed like it was about time.
Hyeon-yul leisurely took out his medicine.
“Why couldn’t you save my family? Why… Do I have to suffer because of you? If you had done your job properly, I wouldn’t be like this!”
The student’s voice, who was scowling with all their might, rose higher and higher until it was on the verge of exploding.
“…Ah. Is it that?”
Hyeon-yul, after swallowing the medicine, reacted nonchalantly.
He had no desire to listen further.
Simply put, it was blaming others.
In the past, if one just pointed a finger, they would know to be ashamed and stop, or be conscious of others and keep their mouths shut, but not now.
What would happen when those who blamed others gathered, and gathered again to form a group like this?
This kind of place was bound to be created.
He didn't know what to call this.
It was a new type.
“That…?”
He didn't know what had provoked them, but the student’s lips trembled.
Hyeon-yul stared blankly.
“Do you know how many people died because you guys were running around trying to catch villains? My friend is limping because he was hit by shrapnel from the aftermath of your antics!”
“Isn’t that the hospital’s fault? Black Eagle isn’t responsible for treatment.”
“If you had just stayed still, would villains have grown this big? A group that would have disappeared on its own grew bigger because of you! They became smarter and more cruel! You, bastards like you, raised the villains!”
At the ensuing words, Hyeon-yul blinked.
It could only be seen as something said in earnest.
“Did you hear? Ah, listen from there. Don’t come closer.”
Asking Ji-hwan, Hyeon-yul stopped him from approaching.
“I finally understand why you attacked me earlier. It was simply because I was Black Eagle, a target for attack. Just as the student said, they believe that villains becoming smarter and crueler is all because of Black Eagle.”
It couldn't be called complete sophistry.
In a way, they might have grown like rivals.
“But student. If Black Eagle disappears, who will stop the villains?”
“If Black Eagle disappears, villains will disappear too. What kind of foolish thing are you spouting?”
“How do you mean villains will disappear? If Black Eagle disappears, villains will regret what they’ve done until now. Are you saying they’ll voluntarily disband like this?”
Villains?
Hyeon-yul’s mind was filled with question marks.
Rather, they were the type to rush to devour the Empire, rejoicing that Black Eagle had disappeared.
“At least they wouldn’t act like they do now! Stop running your mouth and die! Die! Just die!”
“Without thought, judgment, or reason, do you just believe that villains will disappear if Black Eagle disappears?”
“When villains first appeared, it wasn’t like this. They didn’t kill people…! Villains became vicious because you appeared! Why can’t you understand? Do you have no intelligence?”
“Have you never considered that Black Eagle was created because villains were vicious in the first place?”
“You’re laughing at me, aren’t you? You think I’m strange, don’t you? No! You’ll also feel that the group you belong to is strange, won’t you? You keep defeating villains, but the number of villains doesn’t decrease!”
“Yes. I understand perfectly.”
Hyeon-yul cleanly cut off the conversation.
There was no need to listen further.
Arguing those words would be endless.
Criminals are cultivated because of the police.
Therefore, if the police are eliminated, criminals will disappear.
How could one think of only one thing, see only one thing.
‘To say it’s because they’re students, it was adults who taught them.’
Former Black Eagle.
If they were Black Eagle, why did they instill such nonsensical things in them?
Hyeon-yul looked behind him.
“Please knock them out.”
As Ji-hwan used his magic, the student fainted.
He walked slowly.
His complexion was dark.
“…You’re saying there isn’t just one or two people here who think like this, right?”
“That’s correct. If only individuals held such thoughts, it could be ignored, but it’s no longer individuals. It has become a group.”
“I don’t know if I should say this, but honestly, it’s disgusting.”
Ji-hwan frowned.
Black Eagle was a place where people worked with a sense of mission.
What would happen if that was shattered?
“The fact that the one who made them believe this is true was Black Eagle… I can’t believe it.”
Why?
That question kept lingering.
Why attack fellow Black Eagles?
“Whether they were Black Eagle, that itself is doubtful. If they really were Black Eagle, wouldn’t they be Black Eagles who were kicked out for some reason?”
“That must be it. It has to be.”
Ji-hwan smiled again at Hyeon-yul’s comfort.
The Black Eagle that saved him.
He admired that place.
The moment he heard that everything he had done so far was in vain, he felt like all strength would drain from his body.
What would become of the colleagues who had died?
“Mr. Ye Ji-hwan. I was a villain. I am the first. Seeing this, wouldn’t you know?”
If Black Eagle was truly evil, then villains should come this way.
Villains were inevitably drawn to evil.
If he was the first former villain to become Black Eagle, didn't that show that Black Eagle’s definition of justice was not wrong?
Ji-hwan didn't say anything and just smiled.
He briefly looked around and let out a long sigh.
“Now we just need to sort out the situation. Brother, sit down for a moment. I’ll do it quickly.”
Hyeon-yul stared intently at Ji-hwan.
His expression was strange.
This kind of wavering was not good.
The seeds of doubt not only grew very quickly but also contaminated.
Such a situation was not good for him either.
“Don’t waver. Believe what you saw directly. Even if those words are true, just cut out that part. Just as there is good and evil, there is no place that is completely clean.”
“Exactly. We can’t waver. This might be what those guys want.”
“They will use whatever it is. It’s the Empire that villains want. They might have turned their attention because struggling and whining didn’t work.”
The shield of the Empire, Black Eagle.
They must first pierce that steadfast shield.
“If you’re still bothered, ask the team leader. She’ll answer you.”
Hyeon-yul gave a faint smile.
“…Team Leader, we’re here.”
Ji-hwan smiled brightly as soon as he saw Hae-ryeon.
“You worked hard, Mr. Ji-hwan. Mr. Hyeon-yul. Is your hand okay?”
Hae-ryeon, who had stood up from her seat, approached them.
“It’s fine.”
Hyeon-yul hid his bandaged hand behind his back.
He had gotten an earful from Jeong-min, but what could he do about what was already pierced?
“You have something you want to ask me, right?”
At Hae-ryeon’s question, Ji-hwan nodded.
“Yes. I do.”
“To get straight to the point, it’s true that an unfortunate incident occurred.”
Hae-ryeon clearly stated the fact.
As soon as she received the report that a former Black Eagle was involved in this incident, she first worried about how surprised the two of them would be.
“You remember why the Team 5 leader was kicked out, right?”
“I remember. He joined hands with villains.”
Ji-hwan answered.
His gaze towards Hae-ryeon was full of strong trust.
“That’s right. I can’t say such things didn’t happen within Black Eagle. It happened before, and it happened this time too. But those actions don’t make what we did meaningless.”
Hae-ryeon calmly explained.
She hadn't known an attack would come this way.
She had thought it was just a small part, but it seemed to have grown larger than expected.
“Black Eagle was created because those who were called criminals back then launched indiscriminate attacks on citizens. That day, a city disappeared, and tens of thousands of citizens died.”
“Then, why didn’t the Empire declare war?”
Hyeon-yul asked, as if he couldn't understand.
Back then, couldn't they have just wiped them out with the Empire’s military power?
“The Empire had already experienced several wars. Peace had barely arrived, and if it experienced a civil war, it was clear it would split again. The timing wasn’t good either.”
“Was that incident buried?”
“No. It wasn’t buried. Mr. Ji-hwan would know.”
Hae-ryeon shook her head and pointed at Ji-hwan.
“This… um, I learned it during history education. The emperor who had hidden this truth for a short while admitted it, mentioned his mistake, and stepped down from his position. I learned it as the Empire’s fault.”
“Is that so?”
Hyeon-yul thought it was unexpected.
For an emperor to step down so easily.
“The former emperor tried to create a place called Black Eagle, and the current emperor inherited that will, so Black Eagle was created.”
Hae-ryeon continued to explain.
Black Eagle was created by the current emperor.
He had heard it during theory education, so Hyeon-yul also knew that fact.
“Anyway, whatever they said over there, it’s someone who joined hands with villains and took profit.”
For a very brief moment, Hyeon-yul’s eyes moved.
Puppet boss Lee Seung-yoo.
He came to mind.
‘There was no profit taken.’
Nothing had come into his possession.
He was just using it for himself, for Black Eagle.
“We’re excluding cases where they joined hands to eliminate villains. We’re covering a wide range. For example, if they bribed a villain to find out a certain fact, and that information saved many people, they can’t be punished. In other words, don’t take personal profit.”
Hae-ryeon explained in more detail for Hyeon-yul’s sake.
He would have learned it in education, but it might not have been explicitly mentioned.
This was usually a fact that one gradually learned after the probationary period ended.
“Those who killed citizens who were not villains, those who harmed citizens who were not villains, those who used Black Eagle’s power like authority. Most are filtered out here. The one Mr. Ji-hwan and Mr. Hyeon-yul saw today will be one filtered out here.”
“But he said Black Eagle creates villains. Rather than making things up, it seemed like he had seen something.”
Hyeon-yul raised a question.
This part had to be accurately addressed.
―Do you know what Black Eagle did? They made a deal with villains! They were actually cultivating villains for their own safety! Our teammates died, other Black Eagles died, and we only believed in that one thing, that we were for the Empire and the citizens, we only believed that and silently moved forward, but it wasn’t true…!
The former Black Eagle too.
―…Black Eagle won’t be able to give you what you want. That place, unlike what you think, is not a just place.
Poison King too.
Why did they all care so much about justice?
“He saw something…?”
“Yes. I don’t know what he saw. His assertion was almost identical to Poison King’s. Black Eagle is not a just place. Why do they say such things?”
“……Hmm.”
Hae-ryeon’s expression also became serious.
Her expression was so natural that one could assume she really knew nothing.
“Even thinking about what I know, there’s really nothing like that. …Kicked out Black Eagles? They exist even now. However, it’s because there’s no reason to mention it specifically. Announcing it one by one only serves to increase anxiety. It’s also what we team leaders are most wary of.”
Anxiety was contagious, and that contagious emotion gnawed at everyone, contributing to an increase in the death rate.
“Anyway, to say it again, Black Eagle’s purpose is one. A world without villains. So don’t waver.”
“Understood, Team Leader.”
Ji-hwan smiled at Hae-ryeon with a relieved face.
“And Mr. Hyeon-yul.”
“Yes.”
“I heard the report today. Mr. Ji-hwan excluded Mr. Hyeon-yul from the mission due to his injury, and Mr. Hyeon-yul refused to comply. Is that right?”
“That’s correct. I thought the mission was the priority. And indeed, the mission ended quickly.”
“It’s fortunate that the mission ended quickly. But I won’t tolerate this part in the future.”
‘Won’t tolerate it?’
As Hyeon-yul looked at her as if asking what she meant, Hae-ryeon held out her finger.
“One, if you get injured, you are completely excluded from the mission. Two, if you get injured, you return to the mission after treatment. Which one will you choose?”
“……Yes?”
Hae-ryeon was firm, and Hyeon-yul doubted his ears.