rae A > os BS iod oa Ce) <€ Thread a ] Cy eer Te)-1 7 ad Ch4pter 14: Why Us? "A Scanned with CamScannerCein started to follow Zeha and the others as though he was drawn by something. What was that... a while ago? Did I see something strange? Cein clutched the beom's eyebrow in his hand. How could it be the same? He had carefully studied Zeha, Do-geon, Jooan, and Haru. None of them looked like one another. They were checking out the vendors and looked like they wanted to buy a weapon. They would converse and joke among themselves before breaking out into laughter. Their brightness drew a stark contrast to the noisy and chaotic place. Cein hastily shook off the envy that was growing in his heart for some reason. He refused to admit that he yearned to feel wanted and be cherished by other people. Cein frowned as he gazed down at the beom's eyebrow that was resting on his palm. There were dark stripes on its gray strands. For some reason, Cein had found it in his hand after he had regained consciousness from the incident that had almost taken his life. ga Is this broken? Scanned with CamScannerThe beom's brow possessed a special power. It showed the past lives of people. All Cein needed to do was to bring the wad of gray hair to his eyebrow. It played out the past lives of people like a movie, no, like a hologram, in his eyes. Cein thought he was going insane when he first tried it. He thought it was the result of trauma after having undergone a near-death experience. The brow played various clips of people's past lives. "Your Majesty, please restore the composure in your disturbed spirit." Cein once saw an official kneeling before the king. "N, Not my daughter. No, please..." On another occasion, Cein witnessed a farmer despairing over his daughter being taken away by mountain thieves. There was one of a princess, and another of a slave. There was also one of a warrior on a battlefield. It had only been a few days since Cein had come to the conclusion that these clips were the past lives of people. / think that it's better to believe that this ball of hair grants mea glimpse into their past lives rather than to think that I've gone mad. Scanned with CamScannerCein found peace as soon as he rested his case. The eyebrow had become a temporary shelter ever since, giving Cein an escape from a world that has been ravaged by the beom that had almost killed him. Cein traveled around and observed the past lives of people through the lens of this brow. It was his way of escaping from the terrors of the world. Watching the lives that people had lived in the past was just like watching movies. An ordinary-looking middle-aged man turned out to be a king that conquered the world. A man doused in alcohol was once a beauty who had won the heart of a king. A child who had gotten scolded by her mother was once a strong woman who bore and raised five kids single-handedly. Cein was able to seek solace from the stories of these past lives. He yearned to learn about his past life one day. Cein recalled getting a glimpse into the clip that had played when he was assaulted by a beom. Was that my past life? But | can't remember it clearly though... Maybe this will help me see it in full. (5 And so, he stood in front of the mirror and brought the brow to his eyebrow. Scanned with CamScanner"I'll take the front." Cein saw. "I'll slay the beom with this sword." He saw the man boldly proclaim as he held a black sword in his hand. The man had a firm muscular build and looked quick and agile. His ashen hair tickled his shoulders as his brown eyes shone like an apex predator. He had round ears like a gom and sharp eyes like a beom. Cein couldn't tell if he was a human or not. Nevertheless, sadness lingered slightly in his eyes as he made this bold declaration. And now, Cein was seeing the man again from Zeha and his crew in the market. For some mysterious reason, all of them seemed to share Cein's past life. ga That explained why Cein asked if the brow was broken. It's impossible for people to share the same past life. This must be broken. Scanned with CamScannerCein checked again, only for it to be the same. The same man in all four of them. The man with disheveled ashen hair and broad shoulders. His brown eyes crept under his dark eyebrows as he exuded a sad aura. Cein turned his head and looked at another person passing by just to make sure. "Where are you going? Don't leave meeee." Acrying girl clung onto the leg of aman who was going off to war. It's working properly... Once again, Cein looked at Zeha and the others. Still the same. What's going on? Are you saying that they have the same past life as me? How is that possible? Or... Am 1 going crazy? | am seeing things. What if all of these are just in my head, and there's actually no such thing as a past life? When he looked at them once again, Cein could not help but feel envious of how close they seemed. He did not want to admit it, but he yearned to be a part of their group. Scanned with CamScannerCein reasoned that that probably explained why he saw them having the same past life as himself. Cein convinced himself that he had projected the same past life onto theirs so he would believe that he was one of them. It couldn't have been any more convenient. Yes. Past life, my ass. It's impossible for such a thing to exist! Cein was about to throw the beom's eyebrow onto the ground in annoyance when he suddenly changed his mind. No. But they were just so real... There were just too many details for me to simply dismiss them as my imagination. I'm not a creative person, and | suck at history. The clips gave Cein his first glimpse into many types of clothes, mannerisms, hairstyles, and buildings. No, this is real. | mean, it can't possibly be fake, especially since | found it after that. Yeah, | mean the beom are literally out there killing people now. It's not out of the ordinary for things like this to exist. Scanned with CamScannerCein had ashen hair in his past life. The other four had ashen hair in their past lives as well. Cein did not know why, but he somehow did not dislike the idea of having the same past life as them. Cein had never felt like he truly belonged anywhere. This was the case, even for his family. It was always as though he lived in another world. So it was comforting to know that others had the same past life as him. Cein felt like he belonged somewhere for once. Scanned with CamScannerThe weapons on display were wickedly expensive. Zeha was embarrassed as he remembered how he had leaped for joy over 1.2 billion won. "Isn't this too expensive for a normal gun?" Scanned with CamScannerDo-geon murmured to himself as he tested the weapon. This made the vendor retort sourly. "Easy, then don't buy it. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to get a gun these days? You can see hundreds of hunters gathering these days, but guns are rare. It's purely a supply and demand imbalance." "What about the sword?" Zeha asked. The vendor scoffed at Zeha. "A sword? Ah, | see. You're a swordsman. Let me ask you something. Do you think you can kill a beom with a sword? Beom are so quick and fast that you can barely catch them. Well, there are people like you who carry it around, but it's solely for contingencies. No one uses it as their main weapon. Guns are the preferred main weapons, I'm telling you. If you want to live, buy a gun." The vendor then picked up one of the guns from the display. "This one. It's made by a skilled craftsman. It has a nice grip and aim. You see, I've never fired a gun in my life. But with this, | was able to shoot a beer can from afar. I'm sure you know. Weapons these days come with mysterious powers. This is one of them. Scanned with CamScannerThe pitch piqued Do-geon's interest. And so, he took it. Do-geon was studying it and was about to put his finger on the trigger to fire it when the vendor quickly grabbed him by the wrist. "Nuh-uh. You gotta pay up first." "Now, you're acting cheap." "We're living in a difficult world. You should know what | mean... right?" Do-geon smiled bitterly as he returned the gun. Zeha whispered to him. "Do-geon, is it really that good? How's the grip?" "I've got to fire it to know it for sure, but the grip's pretty good. It's lighter than it looks." "Then, you can-" "No, my weapon can wait. | can use this." Do-geon tapped the gun that was holstered to his waist as he pointed at Jooan. "He should get one first." Jooan was sorrowfully looking down at the weapons on display. While his dark eyes were resting on the guns, he was seeing something else. Could I have managed to save you if! had these weapons on me? red with CamScannerHad | been stronger... She had flashed a big smile at Jooan even as her vision blurred. I'msorry... but I'll be taking my leave first... Jooan smiled back, wanting the image of him smiling to be the last thing that she saw before she passed on. He wanted her to die in peace. His heart felt like it was being shredded into millions of tiny pieces. Nevertheless, Jooan still smiled. Why you? Why me? Why us? Why were we there at that hour, on that day? Jooan questioned himself countless times, only to find that he had no answers. After all, she was gone. And Jooan's world had collapsed. He did not care what would become of a world without her. He did not care that the beom were going on a rampage and killing people as they pleased. You know, | wish that we were like any other couple. But Jooan could not remain and stop caring just like that. She would not have wanted that. Scanned with CamScannerYou'll live a good life, right? Right...? Promise that you will... even without me... okay...?" That was her dying wish. And so, Jooan decided to live on. "Jooan." Jooan was stirred out of his trance by Zeha's call. Jooan slowly closed his eyes before opening them again. Just then, something in the corner drew his attention. Jooan turned toward it. It was a long spear. Jooan was drawn to that worn-out spear, although he had no idea why. Just then, an image of a lady wielding the long spear as her fair hair danced in the air flashed in his mind. Narae. Jooan grabbed the spear as he recalled the name that he would no longer answer to. Jooan. He seemed to have heard her call out to him. The strength that she had left for him drummed in reverberation as though it resonated with the weapon. Although he knew that its length and weight could be disadvantageous in the hunt, Jooan set his mind on the spear. Scanned with CamScanner"I'll go with this." Everyone knew that it wasn't the best one to fight against the fast beom. But no one came forward to dissuade him because they saw the conviction flickering in Jooan's mournful eyes over the weapon. "Ah, that one. Very well. It's an excellent weapon." The vendor remarked, completely failing to read the atmosphere. The vendor simply wanted to get rid of it as quickly as possible as it was taking up space. "Your hand fits perfectly around its grip, right? Plus, it's pretty light for its length. Many people want to buy spears like this, but they just come so rarely. | just wish that | could get more of them. But, sure. I'll give you a special discount. You can take it home for 1.5 billion won." Scanned with CamScanner