He’s telling the truth, Hana.
It was hard to tell what angered Hana more, the constant stream of lies or the fact that after all this time he was able to fool her so easily.
Her hands shook so much she was forced to ball them into fists until her knuckles turned white. And even then, she was still shaking.
The others waited in silence. There were five people in the room, but it was obvious to everyone that there were only two people in this conversation.
“You goddamned bastard.”
“Hana,” Youngho said calmly. “We should hear him out, you came all this way-”
“For what?! More lies?!”
Hana could still remember the day she had woken up to find her father seated next to her. The world outside had sung her praises and was busy building the legend of the Shield Knight of the Blade, while away from the prying eyes of the world she had grieved.
The loss of two young lives on her conscience had been more than she could bear. The guilt grew until it overwhelmed her and she thought of little else. At her lowest moment, she reached out for Seunghyo only to realize he was gone.
Even now, she didn’t know how long she stayed in that room. It had taken weeks before she had stepped outside and weeks more before she spoke to anyone but her father.
“You know,” she whispered. “There was a moment when I needed you, Seunghyo. More than anyone or anything else in this world.”
Hana’s voice grew louder as she tried to keep it steady.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“You weren’t there,” she said, choking back a laugh. “The worst part was for years after, I wondered if I had done something or maybe I just needed to be stronger. I blamed myself.
“And then I realized it wasn’t me. It was you.”
Hana walked closer and until they were so close she could reach out and grab him.
Seunghyo kept his expression firm as his ex-wife leaned her face close to his.
“You’re a coward.”
Willow held her breath, trying not to make a sound as the drama played out before her. For a moment, it looked like Hana might reach out and strike Seunghyo but the moment thankfully passed. Instead, Hana quietly turned around and walked out of the room.
She moved so swiftly that it took a moment before Jinyoung realized she had no plans to return. When he turned to follow, Seunghyo caught his arm.
“Give her a second.”
Jinyoung pulled his arm away and clenched his fist.
“Just because I’m willing to hear you out doesn’t mean you should feel safe standing this close to me.
“Willow, keep an eye on him. I’ll be right back-”
Seunghyo interrupted him before he could finish. “Before you go, you need to understand the stakes here. There are a horde of Frostbitten outside and an open gate guarded by sin wraiths, just one of which nearly killed the four of us we fought it in a contained area.”
Something in his expression made Jinyoung flinch. “That’s not all, is it?”
Seunghyo’s expressions darkened. “The research the scientists were doing here was… disturbing. I’ve only heard rumors, but they were developing weapons. Biological agents designed to kill monsters faster or make players stronger except… all it did was turn people into monsters.”
“Jesus, this gets worse and worse.”
“I know,” Seunghyo replied. “And we have a chance to stop it.”
Realization dawned on Jinyoung. “The other guy. Henry.”
“Just so. We were all sent in by the Cha Bell Corporation and tasked with rescuing any survivors along with any research.”
“You goddamned-”
Firm hands gripped Jinyoung’s shoulders before he could strike Seunghyo. “We’re not just going to help the survivors out there, we’re going to destroy every goddamn shred of research down there.”