Chapter 359: Chapter 359

“Why are you here in front of me again?”

Exactly one month after Andy’s return to the family. His father, Cain Jastick, passed away. As the eldest son, Andy would inherit the family name and rule the estate. But late at night, after Cain’s funeral, Andy heard a voice.

“Didn’t I tell you, I have two commissions?”

Jeffrey stood before him. Seated at Andy’s bedside, he tossed his dagger in the air and caught it.

“One is from Count Jastick. As you know, it was to bring you back into the family, and the reward was very generous. What do you think the other one is?”

“…….”

“Your younger brother’s commission. He thinks his father is going to bring you in to take over the family name, and he wants you dead before that happens. He says that the master of the house should be the man who has devoted his life to it…….”

Andy’s expression turned to shock at Jeffrey’s words, as if he had never imagined that his family would harm him, and he was greatly agitated by the fact that his younger brother had asked Jeffrey to do it.

“I’m not some kind of contract killer. I don’t have to pick and choose which jobs pay the best. My first client’s life seemed to be in danger, so I figured if I timed it right, I could make a lot of money, and I was right.”

“……I’ll pay you double what my brother said if you keep me alive.”

“Not bad. But your brother will die instead, are you okay with that?”

“What?”

“In this business, the price of betrayal is harsh. If you’re going to abandon a job and go after someone who’s been targeted, you have to kill the first one to keep your name from being tarnished.”

“So what…….”

“Anyway, wasn’t he the brother who tried to kill you? I don’t think you’d feel guilty about killing someone like that.”

Jeffrey’s words were cruel, but in a way, justified. This was the brother who tried to kill his older brother. Even if Andy survived this, his life could be threatened at any moment as long as his younger brother was around. But Andy couldn’t make that easy decision.

“……Would you accept my commission?”

“……Commission?”

“I’ll make sure my younger brother’s commission is successful, but don’t touch that kid out there. No matter who you take on, you have to protect him.”

At the sound of Andy’s voice, barely above a whisper, Jeffrey turned his head slightly, his gaze darting to the small opening in the doorway, where Yozen stood, pressed against the wall, listening, ready to pounce at any moment.

Jeffrey seemed to think for a moment, then nodded, accepting Andy’s offer.

“I’ll take the money, the documents, anything, and I’ll take care of the commission as soon as you pay me.”

Andy grinned broadly. He didn’t want Yozen outside, confused by their air currents, to act rashly.

He drew up the documents to give Jeffrey a piece of the estate. As Jeffrey pored over the contract, he sometimes stared blankly out the window at the night sky.

And as soon as he was satisfied that everything was in order.

“Uncle!”

Andy’s heart skipped a beat, as did Helena’s, and Yozen, who hadn’t gotten his way, burst through the door.

Yozen didn’t bother to tend to the fallen Andy; he lunged straight for Jeffrey, dagger raised. Yozen’s eyes were filled with nothing but vengeance for the man who had so relentlessly crushed the brief happiness he had tasted.

Yozen was faster than the others, and he had a natural talent for detecting and manipulating body movements. But that wasn’t enough to win a fight against an adult with an overwhelming power differential.

“Die! Die! Die!”

“…….This is why I hate children.”

Jeffrey overpowered Yozen with painful simplicity. He snatched the dagger out of the wide-eyed, lunging child’s hand and stunned him with a blow to the nape of the neck.

Yozen was helpless in the face of Helena’s death, helpless in the face of Andy’s death; there was no one left by his side now. Beyond his rapidly closing eyelids, he could see Andy’s face, already dead.

* * *

Jeffrey carried the collapsed Yozen into town and dumped him on a random street corner, and when Yozen came to his senses, he didn’t return to Andy’s family either.

Instead, he sold the clothes he was wearing, bought some old rags, and used the money to do a background check on Jeffrey Holiven. Living on the streets was no problem for a person who had spent his entire life begging.

When he found out who Jeffrey Holiven was and where he lived, Yozen didn’t go looking for him. Instead, he spent his days training.

Cadel watched as Yozen’s melancholy deepened as the fast-paced scene unfolded. He would roam the streets at night, checking in on the results of his training, usually against the weak and those who harassed animals. Yozen didn’t mind seeing their blood.

As the days passed, his physical skills grew more proficient, and his emotions dulled. The day came when Yozen finally took someone’s life. Ramp, the mercenary commander who foresaw him growing up to be a monster.

“I…… Gasp……. I knew that one day you would become a monster like this…….”

Ramp collapsed, panting, but still glaring at Yozen with fierceness. His red, bloodshot eyes threatened to burst into blood tears at any moment, and a trickle of blood stained his lips and chin red.

Crouching before him, Yozen’s expression showed no sign of amusement, even though he had abused him and brought Ramp to the brink of death. Instead, he frowned, as if he were uncomfortable, and asked.

“Why do you have that look on your face?”

Ramp never took his eyes off Yozen as if he were looking at his mortal enemy. The young boy he had bullied had come back for revenge and he had finally seen blood. But there was no sign of guilt or regret in his eyes. Instead, he acted as if he was the victim.

“It’s annoying.”

“You…… son of a…… b*tch……!”

“People like you offend people until they die. You spend your whole life doing things to offend people, and when you die, you blame others. ……I don’t want to live with the memory of your offenses.”

Yozen’s tone grew harsher as he grabbed Ramp’s stiff head in one hand and slammed it to the floor. With a heavy thud, Ramp’s body twitched briefly, then went limp.

He was dead.

“I don’t want to remember the last of you guys.”

But Yozen didn’t stop and continued to strike Ramp’s head. A murderous look crossed his rigid face, blood splattering with each violent movement. His rapid breathing proved Yozen’s agitation.

“Good people can’t be happy when you’re around. Not Helena, not Andy. If it weren’t for bastards like you……. I have to protect them. I’m the only one who’s unhappy, so…….”

The grip on Ramp’s head loosened. Yozen blinked briefly through blood-spattered eyelids, drew the dagger from Ramp’s back, and without hesitation, stabbed himself in the eye.

He stabbed himself in the left eye and then went for the right. Blood poured out with a gurgle. Yozen’s shoulders hunched in pain, and a boiling groan escaped his mouth.

“Don’t let me see, don’t let me see, don’t let me see…….”

It was a begging mumble, and even as he watched it all from his side, Cadel couldn’t muster any emotion. It was too much. Yozen’s first murder, which had been so exhilarating, like removing a layer of filthy grease from the world, was this horrible.

Yozen’s reason for gouging out his own eyes wasn’t simply to be stronger. He couldn’t bear the resentful stares of those he’d killed. And he realized instinctively. If he could not endure their resentment, he could not fulfill his purpose.

It was an extreme choice. But that was why Yozen’s desperation was so palpable. He would slay the wicked, even if it meant giving up his sight. Not for his own sake. It was to honor the memory of the young couple who had first shown him kindness. To remember them, to believe in the ‘goodness’ of humanity that they had told him.

By killing the wicked, he hoped that people like Andy and Helena would live and not die. That was the only reason Yozen had for living.

‘That’s too lonely.’

A lifetime of solitary darkness, clutching at fleeting goodwill. It was too much. Not for himself, not for those who loved him.

You couldn’t force a man to abandon his life’s purpose on a whim. But Cadel wanted Yozen to live his life. He wanted Yozen to let go of his painful past, to remember only happiness, and to reach for greater happiness.

Your happiness could be someone else’s greatest joy, so open your heart and stop hiding from your pain. He wanted to say that, but he couldn’t reach the Yozen of the past.

Crouching down, Yozen rubbed at his scarred eyelids and let out a sobbing moan. It was a lonely, forlorn sound, like the howl of a lonely beast, and with that, the last of Yozen’s figure faded away.

「You have completed watching Yozen Vardikta’s Memories – Past Story (Favorability over 70).」

「Fatigue recovery rate is reduced by 50%. Be mindful of physical fatigue.」

The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!