Chapter 34: Lightning

We walked straight through Garak Market until we reached the entrance of the seafood market.

Just as expected, there were people standing at the entrance holding sharp knives like sashimi chefs.

About a dozen of them were wandering around while keeping watch.

They looked less like they were going to slice fish and more like they were ready to slice people.

“They’ve got quite the look.”

I said casually, pretending not to care, while quietly hiding behind Han Jun’s back.

Then I whispered into his ear in a tiny voice.

“Han Jun-mon, go.”

“You’re going to get me killed, seriously.”

Han Jun grimaced, but he immediately used his power anyway.

With telekinesis, he lifted a kitchen knife lying on the ground and slammed it into the pavement right at their feet.

Bold right from the start.

When I saw the knife fly toward them, I gasped.

“What the hell?!”

“Which bastard did that?!”

Their reaction came immediately.

They jumped in shock when they saw the knife stuck deeply into the ground at their feet.

As they looked around, the Dogani Gang members quickly spotted us.

“You f*cking brats, what is this?! Huh?! Do you know where you are messing around?!”

One of the Dogani members puffed up his chest and stomped toward us threateningly.

The combination of thick fat and muscle wasn’t exactly pleasing to look at, but it was perfect for intimidation.

His booming voice alone made my body shrink back.

“J-Jun… aren’t we seriously outnumbered?”

“So this is what one versus ten looks like.”

Han Jun made a ridiculous joke in the middle of this situation.

Seriously, joking right now?

“Let me join too. Let’s make it two versus ten.”

“What are you even going to do? Stop showing off and just stay behind me.”

The level of disregard was impressive.

He was getting more and more skilled at ignoring me.

But the sad part was I had no real argument against it.

I secretly glared at the back of Han Jun’s head instead.

At first, I had run around doing everything I could to help him, working hard to support him.

But somehow I had ended up like an old man stuck in the background.

It was because Han Jun suddenly awakened his powers and his abilities skyrocketed.

So much that he no longer needed my help even though I knew what events were coming in the future.

Just wait.

I’ll become the strongest someday too.

I looked at my empty palm and made that silent vow.

Meanwhile, Han Jun had already crushed three of the Dogani members with telekinesis, pinning them down and disabling them.

He then hurled a truck in front of three others who tried to run away, blocking their escape route.

The remaining four had already been knocked unconscious by objects he threw earlier.

“Wow.”

Isn’t this way too easy?

Where’s the tension in this fight?

After fighting monsters so often and building up his strength, dealing with normal people must feel like child’s play to him.

“Ha! Acting tough when you’re nothing special.”

Seeing the enemies completely wiped out, I quickly shook off my fear and stepped forward.

Then I shouted loudly at the trembling Dogani members.

“You fools! Do you even know who this great man is?!”

“Hyung, I told you not to show off.”

Han Jun tried to stop me.

“This is a greeeaaat person, you idiots! Call your boss out here!!”

The moment I placed my hands on my hips and shouted proudly—

BOOM!!

Lightning struck.

Right in front of me.

It was so bright I thought I might go blind for a moment.

“Hyung!”

Han Jun immediately pulled me back, and I returned to my cowardly self, trembling.

“What… was that?”

Why was lightning suddenly falling from a clear sky?

My heart pounded violently.

The place where the lightning struck was charred black, and smoke slowly rose from it.

If it had hit me, I’d probably be rowing a boat across the River Styx by now.

Han Jun’s grip on my shoulder tightened.

“Hyung, get behind me.”

His expression had darkened as if he sensed danger.

“Okay.”

I didn’t argue and quickly moved behind him.

Right then, a man walked out slowly from inside the seafood market with his hands behind his back.

Despite the early winter weather, he was wearing a tight white sleeveless shirt.

His shaved head shone like a glossy piece of bone marrow in broth.

Colorful tattoos covered his arms.

“What’s this? A couple of brats who haven’t even dried the blood on their heads yet?”

The moment I saw him, I knew.

That Dogani guy was the psychic who had summoned the lightning.

I wanted to tell him that if the blood on your head dries, you’re dead.

But since Han Jun told me not to show off, I kept my mouth shut.

“Do you know where you are messing around? Huh? Cute little kids.”

The Dogani boss widened his eyes and moved his hand again.

“Jun! That red one! The barrel!”

Before another lightning strike could fall, I pointed to a red rubber barrel lying nearby.

Han Jun quickly lifted the barrel above our heads.

Then lightning struck again.

BOOM!!

A blinding flash exploded with a deafening sound.

I squeezed my eyes shut from the brightness.

But thanks to the rubber barrel acting like a lightning-proof helmet, we weren’t hurt.

My quick thinking in spotting that barrel was truly impressive.

“So the little brats can think, huh? You seem to be using some kind of power too. Aren’t you?”

Wrinkles formed on the Dogani boss’s face.

His face scrunched up like a Shar-Pei dog as he tilted his head side to side threateningly.

I didn’t know exactly how much electricity he could control, but as long as we had the rubber barrel, I believed we’d be safe.

I tried to calm my racing heart.

“Jun, just smash that octopus head already.”

Han Jun glared at the boss and focused his strength.

Objects around us began floating into the air.

He could easily slice the enemy in half with telekinesis if he wanted.

But that would kill him, so it seemed he didn’t want to go that far.

Honestly, I didn’t want to see something like that either.

“Well, look at that. Where are you from? I don’t recognize your faces, so you’re not administrators. Just subordinates maybe. Who’s your boss?”

The Dogani boss pretended to stay relaxed, but it was obvious he was nervous.

The fact that he kept talking so much proved it.

The boss tensed his body and called down lightning again.

At the same moment, Han Jun hurled the floating objects forward.

BOOM!!

The lightning struck two steps in front of us.

We dodged backward and avoided it, but the Dogani boss—

“Ugh…!”

He seemed to deflect some of the flying junk with electricity, but he couldn’t avoid everything.

He staggered while clutching his side.

Just as Han Jun was about to attack again—

SPLAAASH—

Water suddenly sprayed down over our heads.

Members of the Dogani Gang who had been watching from afar fired a hose at us.

It looked like the thick hose used to fill the fish tanks in the seafood market.

The water pressure was so strong it nearly twisted our bodies.

“Ah!”

At that moment, the Dogani boss smiled wickedly as if he had never been losing.

Then sparks began flashing across the ground like electricity was running through it.

Our clothes and shoes were soaked as a tingling sensation crawled up our bodies.

In an instant, the situation reversed.

The strong electric current ran through our bodies, making even Han Jun lose concentration.

“You little brats… getting cocky…”

Now that the ground was flooded, another lightning strike would be extremely dangerous.

Han Jun must have thought the same thing.

He suddenly lifted me up and threw me far away.

He was trying to get me out of the lightning strike zone.

“Huh? Hey—Jun! Han Jun!”

I shouted in panic while flying through the air, but Han Jun didn’t even look at me.

He kept staring only at the Dogani boss.

In an instant I was over 100 meters away.

Seeing his back from that distance made my heart pound.

I was anxious he might get hurt.

I was worried.

And I was angry that he threw me away like that.

“Hey!!”

After sending me somewhere safe, Han Jun tried to dodge as well.

But electricity surged across the wet ground and ran through his body.

Even from far away I could see yellow sparks flickering around his feet.

The powerful current made him stagger.

If necessary he could have simply cut the boss’s throat with his power.

But the electric shock running through his body prevented him from using his strength properly.

“N-no!”

Meanwhile, the Dogani boss prepared to summon an even bigger lightning strike.

The thought of Han Jun being struck and roasted alive made every hair on my body stand on end.

My vision swam.

No… this can’t happen…

If he gets hurt already, the whole scenario will change.

“Huh?”

The moment that thought crossed my mind, my eyes widened in shock.

It had clearly come from my mind—

But it didn’t feel like my own thought.

A chilling sensation ran down my spine.

Something that had been buried deep within my unconscious began rising up.

Just like how Han Jun had unconsciously used his powers for the first time, something hidden deep inside me began bubbling up violently.

My body staggered and my vision shook.

Holding my dizzy head, I collapsed to the ground.

I needed to help Jun quickly…

But I couldn’t regain my senses.

“Ha—”

Suddenly it felt as if a blocked airway had opened.

Air rushed into my lungs like a broken dam.

Everything I could see disappeared, leaving only strange sensations behind.

Cold air.

The smell of water.

Pain tightening around my entire body.

As if I were meditating, all my focus concentrated on that tightening sensation.

Then—

An image appeared in my mind.

It was like looking down into a deep well whose bottom couldn’t be seen.

In the middle of that well, a thin white rope flickered.

Just like someone grabbing a rope and pulling it endlessly, I began pulling something.

Driven by an inexplicable urge to see what lay at the bottom of the well.

It was clearly me pulling the rope—

Yet it didn’t feel entirely like my own will.

My rational mind faded away.

Only my unconscious desire for that unknown thing remained.

I was terrified of what might come out at the end of that rope.

But I couldn’t stop pulling.

I dragged the rope out of the well recklessly.

Pulling and pulling, determined to reach the end no matter what.

Like a madman.

The rope in my hands writhed like a living snake, slippery and heavy.

It was so precarious that if I lost focus for even a moment, I might lose my grip.

“Ah.”

At some point, the writhing sensation in my hands suddenly stopped.

And the strength drained from my body.