Chapter 22
Unlike the manager, who exaggeratedly warned us like we were dealing with something terrifying, Director Lee seemed moved.
“My, our little lady is so considerate…”
The praise was embarrassing. His attitude changed so fast I couldn’t adjust.
Uncle Shin-jae deliberately ignored Director Lee and asked,
“Hey, Il-won. Do you have parents?”
“……”
Seo Il-won shook his head instead of answering. His expressionless face somehow looked sad—maybe because he just naturally looked melancholic—so I spoke without thinking.
“Na-do boyu-gone-e it-sut-dut. U-i ttok-kat-da.
(I was at an orphanage too. We’re the same.)”
It was a plan to build connection by revealing that I also had no parents.
“Il-won-i-neun myeot ssal-iya? Na-neun se ssal-in-de.
(How old are you, Il-won? I’m three.)”
I wiggled three fingers. Il-won took a moment, then answered.
“…Ten.”
“Wow, so much oppa. (So much older than me.)”
Hearing his age, Uncle Shin-jae muttered,
“Younger than I thought…”
“Alright, age aside. Do you have any relatives you know of?”
Again, Il-won only shook his head.
Uncle Shin-jae’s expression hardened. He asked,
“Do you remember how old you were when they started dragging you through those dungeons?”
“…Since I was seven…”
Uncle Shin-jae clenched his jaw. A shadow fell diagonally across his cheek.
He must be furious.
“From my guess…”
Director Lee explained the strange situation we had witnessed earlier in the boss room.
“If that ability belongs to this boy, that explains why they would drag a child into a dungeon.”
“The world is really…”
Uncle Shin-jae stopped himself. He shook his head and quietly whispered that if this were true, they might not even be able to hand the boy over to the authorities.
I glanced at Il-won with worry.
The boy just sat there, expressionless, as if the conversation wasn’t about him at all.
“For now… Il-won.”
“……”
His shoulders twitched slightly.
“How about staying at my house for the time being?”
“……”
His guard didn’t drop at all. Still, knowing he had no real alternative, he eventually gave a small nod.
[system] The manager sighs, saying this situation is escalating out of control.
[system] He warns again: that boy is “the real deal.”
Not that we can just leave him.
If we did, the story would proceed exactly the way it originally was meant to.
If I had left him to die, maybe—but I saved him, so now I needed to intervene.
When I explained that, the manager sniped back that I should’ve listened to him from the beginning.
But…
I stared at Il-won’s black eyes.
The boy in front of me wasn’t just a character in a story—he was a living person.
I couldn’t knowingly leave him to die.
I worked hard to persuade the manager.
‘Don’t worry. I’ll make sure this doesn’t interfere with fulfilling our contract.’
[system] The manager snaps back that that’s not the issue.
[system] He yells at the system not to repeat every word so literally.
If that’s not the issue, then what is?
Rumble—
My stomach growled loudly at that exact moment.
I pouted deliberately.
“I’m hungry…”
Director Lee immediately responded.
“Of course you are, you haven’t even eaten lunch today.”
“Right.”
Uncle Shin-jae shrugged.
“Let’s go eat first.”
Ignoring the manager complaining that this is not the time to be eating, I happily answered,
“Okay!”
Warm steam rose from bowls of soup. Il-won blinked quietly.
He didn’t feel like crying.
Just that unlike the place he came from, here… they gave you food.
“Ang meogeo? (Aren’t you eating?)”
The little child next to him asked with cheeks stuffed full. Il-won shook his head and picked up the spoon.
“Here, A-yoon, eat some meat.”
“Yeee!”
The man named Kim Shin-jae placed a piece of meat on the child’s rice.
Il-won thought silently.
Earlier, that Director said the kid had made a “magical achievement.”
That meant the little girl was definitely awakened.
Il-won knew how easy it was to exploit awakened children.
His previous captors used violence and abuse.
Maybe these people were just using better treatment as bait to exploit her.
Different method, same purpose.
That was how Il-won’s world worked.
Nothing was ever given freely.
Especially not kindness from adults.
The little kid, happily stuffing her cheeks, clearly didn’t know that yet.
Il-won could tell—he had been fooled countless times before.
But he had no choice.
Leaving might put both him and the child somewhere even worse.
In that case…
He could accept their kindness while pretending not to know—
and grow strong enough to no longer need adults.
And when that time came…
He remembered the warmth of the small hand that pulled him out of a collapsing world.
At least that was real.
That small hand helped him realize he truly escaped that nightmare.
“Is the food not tasty?”
The child asked, sensing his stare.
Il-won shook his head.
At least… the world hadn’t treated this child the same way it treated him.
And that was enough.
After they finished eating, Shin-jae gave Il-won a room.
Il-won didn’t care that it was clean or fully furnished.
What mattered was that it was close to A-yoon’s room.
Left alone that night, he focused his senses, making sure A-yoon was safe.
Hearing her calm breathing, he finally fell asleep.
The next day.
Knock knock knock knock!
Il-won opened the door.
“You’re up?”
Il-won nodded.
“Tehmton-i today tests. (Uncle said he’ll run tests today.)”
“Okay.”
He expected as much.
They needed to evaluate how useful he was.
He needed them to think he was valuable.
That was the only way he’d be allowed to stay.
“Why look sad?”
Il-won shook his head quickly.
A-yoon blinked a few times, then grabbed his hand.
“Then let’s eat first.”
After breakfast, Il-won was taken to the training room in the basement.
“Like A-yoon told you, we’ll run a simple test.”
Il-won nodded.
“We just want to understand your ability. Afterward, we’ll explain what comes next. Is that okay?”
“Yes.”
Whatever reason they gave didn’t matter.
“Can you explain your ability?”
“I can control shadows.”
He remembered the men who yelled at him for whining too much. He answered stiffly.
“Shadows?”
“The shadow connected to mine is called the field.”
“They taught you that?”
“Yes.”
“So… in that field, others can’t use their abilities?”
“Correct.”
“Alright. Then let’s test it.”
Shin-jae tapped the floor lightly.
Structures rose, casting shadows.
“Like this?”
Il-won’s shadow overlapped with the others. Shin-jae summoned aura experimentally—
“Whoa, it really stops.”
The aura fizzled.
Il-won gritted his teeth.
His power wasn’t fully developed.
If Shin-jae used his full strength, Il-won sensed that the result would be different.
He couldn’t let them realize his weakness.
Don’t let them find out I’m not strong enough.
