Chapter 1361. Visit (11)

I couldn't help but feel anticipation at the sight before me.

It was a moment that couldn’t help but stir up anticipation. Kim Hyun-Sung was feeling shaken mentally, but he could definitely dodge Rafael’s punches.

The fact that he got hit meant that he allowed himself to get hit.

Without a doubt, if Kim Hyun-Sung wanted to dodge those punches, he could’ve done so with his eyes closed.

There were plenty of reasons behind why he had decided not to dodge, but in most teen dramas, taking a punch like that was practically a rule, so it was fair to assume that he was simply abiding by that rule.

Even at a glance, he looked like his head was full of thoughts. It wasn’t as if Rafael’s heartfelt punch would blow them all away, but surely, he had to be feeling

something.

For a moment, he gazed blankly up at the sky, and then he slowly got up to his feet.

Having thrown a solid punch, Rafael seemed like he just couldn't walk away; his face burned with fierceness as he looked at Kim Hyun-Sung. It looked like he wasn't going to calm down any time soon.

‘Is Rafael going to hit him again?’

"You bastard. Fix that rotten mind of yours..."

‘I thought that was all you had to say? I thought you were going to leave after that?’

Kim Hyun-Sung barely managed to stand up.

Rafael swung his fist once more.

With a loud

thud

, Kim Hyun-Sung was knocked down. Like a roly-poly doll, he got back up again, and Rafael threw another punch at him.

At this point, it seemed like he wanted to hit Kim Hyun-Sung, and I felt like it was payback for having his wings torn off before.

The way he only went for the face made it seem as if he was jealous of Kim Hyun-Sung.

‘Still... he’s really only going for the face.’

Thud! Crash!

"Get up, you bastard!"

By now, one would think that Kim Hyun-Sung would react, but he remained silent. He simply wiped away the blood on the corner of his mouth.

"And you call yourself—"

Just then, Kim Hyun-Sung suddenly swung his fist at Rafael.

Crack! Booooom!

With a deafening sound, Rafael was slammed into the ground.

"You don’t have the right to talk."

"Cough! What? You..."

"You know nothing... What gives you the right to say things like that... You don’t know a damn thing..."

The air suddenly felt tense, and my face flushed—out of embarrassment—without realizing it.

I couldn’t bring myself to keep watching.

‘Why are these grown men acting out a teenage drama?’

They weren't teenagers; they were in their twenties. No, honestly, even teenagers these days wouldn't do stuff like this. I felt like Rafael had some kind of talent for making everyone feel nervous and tense.

It felt like I’d finally discovered a hidden talent in the useless gray pigeon, but unfortunately, it wasn’t the kind of talent I wanted.

Honestly, I felt like turning off the telescope.

The absurd part was that the two of them were trading punches one by one. Why were these two people, perfectly capable of fighting each other, taking turns hitting each other?

Why were they taking hits to the face when they could easily dodge those attacks? To make matters worse, they would return the same attack right afterward?

Why the hell had things gotten so heated?

Could it be that they really couldn't care less about how ridiculous they looked from a third-person's perspective?

Why were they sealing away their flashy combat skills and slugging it out like some back-alley thugs?

Rafael was originally from the continent, so I felt like his overly dramatic temperament could be explained by his origins. Unfortunately, the guy had no idea that what he was doing looked like a scene straight out of a teen drama.

‘Well... that is a part of his charm.’

"Nothing, you know nothing!"

Whack!

𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

"Don’t be ridiculous!"

‘I really can’t listen to them.’

I felt I should monitor the sudden drama, but there was no way I could listen to their heated voices. If those two men were to shed hot, lava-like tears, I wouldn't be able to look directly at them.

‘I need to mute this.’

Sure enough, Rafael’s emotions snowballed and grew as he shared a heated conversation and exchange of moves with Kim Hyun-Sung.

The problem was that his legs were trembling. Even ignoring the difference in stats, there was no way that kid could match Kim Hyun-Sung. He gnashed his teeth out of pride and traded blows with Kim Hyun-Sung as if he were in some teen drama.

Regardless of the anger boiling inside him, his legs still trembled like aspen trees. The gap between him and the still-sound Kim Hyun-Sung was unmistakable.

Blasted away by a punch, Rafael sprawled on the ground, and it looked like he couldn’t even get up anymore. Still, he stood up and rushed at Kim Hyun-Sung, stammering.

His pride stopped him from falling, and his indomitable will supported him. However, his legs were already feeling weak, and his punches weren’t enough to bring Kim Hyun-Sung down.

Despite that, the guy refused to give up.

‘You’re pathetic... Fael. You're really pathetic. Stop it...’

He hauled himself up again and threw another desperate punch.

‘Damn it. Maybe I should listen in for a second.’

"Get up! Get up, you bastard! I will never forgive you. Kim Hyun-Sung, I will never forgive you!"

‘Actually, I’m not going to listen.’

To anyone watching, it looked like Rafael was beating him up, but unlike Kim Hyun-Sung, who was coolly wiping the blood from his split lip, Rafael's face wa all puffy, and one of his eyes was barely open due to the swelling. Despite that, he still got up and raised his hand.

He was even flailing as if to show off every last bit of his outdated sentimentality, and I could swear that even a 90s romance novel wouldn't have a scene like this.

How about I bring Lee Ki-Yeon in to break them up?

Would shouting “Both of you, stop! Don’t fight over me!” satisfy these idiots?

Even I couldn’t bring myself to make that kind of scene. It was painful to admit, but I felt the same emotions Commander Jin felt at the Blue Guild’s Youth Center.

I felt uneasy, but I had to make a move here.

‘He’s going to get himself killed if he keeps this up.’

It wasn’t because I genuinely feared for Rafael’s life; the original plan had veered off course, but I realized that this situation could be useful.

I was worried that the embarrassing spectacle would end before I got there, but they were still trading blows when I finally reached them.

I had no idea if it was because of their fury and hatred for each other, or if they were simply too engrossed in the moment, but it seemed like they hadn't noticed my approach.

As soon as they appeared before me, I shouted, “Mr. Rafael!”

Of course, this was the moment to check on our pitiful Fael rather than the Oh-so-amazing Hyun-Sung. Normally, I wouldn’t make that choice, of course.

“H-hyung?” Rafael said.

“...”

Rafael looked startled, while Kim Hyun-Sung awkwardly avoided my gaze.

“What do you think you’re doing?!” I shouted.

‘This story is awful, damn it.’

I wanted to punch Kim Hyun-Sung, but I just couldn’t bring myself to commit to this corny, old-school drama vibe.

Still, I knew it had to be done.

‘His eyes are shaking.... They’re actually shaking.’

“...”

“...”

‘It hasn’t even been a week, and he already looks like he’s regretting it.’

We were in the middle of a confusing situation, and our connection through the

Regressor Instruction Manual

was fading away, so I couldn't help but wonder about how I looked in his eyes.

He couldn’t even meet my gaze, and I felt like it was because our last conversation ended badly.

‘If it’s that hard for you, just come back already. Why are you being so damned stubborn?’

“H-hyung... I’m sorry. I...” Rafael stuttered.

‘Yeah. Damn right, you should be sorry.’

This wasn’t how things were supposed to go. I hadn’t planned to even see his face until this whole mess was over, but Rafael went and made me come all the way here.

Even with the warp gate, it was exhausting. Normally, I’d be glaring at Rafael in disappointment, but right now, the real target of this whole ridiculous scene was Kim Hyun-Sung.

“Mr. Rafael, are you okay?” I asked.

‘I’ll also fix his face.’

“I-I’m fine, hyung. Really, I’m fine. It’s nothing,” Rafael answered.

‘He’s pretending he’s fine out of pride.’

“...”

“...”

‘Time to yell a little.’

“Mr. Hyun-Sung. What on earth is going on here?!”

Anyone could see that Rafael looked like the aggressor, but the sight before me told me that Rafael was the one who urgently needed a doctor's attention instead of Kim Hyun-Sung.

Kim Hyun-Sung’s madness didn’t even feel real anymore. It all looked like an act to me.

‘Rafael really went crazy.’

It was oddly satisfying, but still... he stormed into Kim Hyun-Sung's cabin and started punching him out of nowhere. Even if his arm ended up getting severed, there wouldn’t be much he could say in defense.

However, rules were rules. In a situation like this, one ought to side with the one who was more injured rather than the one who started it all.

And if that person happened to be the tragic supporting lead in a melodramatic romance? Then, it was practically one's duty to defend him blindly.

The situation turned strange, sure, but it could be used, so I had to use it. I never really had any intention of defending Kim Hyun-Sung. Kindhearted Ki-Young could never ignore poor Rafael’s wounds.

‘I’ve been treating him too harshly, haven’t I?’

Rafael had to have expected to get scolded, and I could see that because he squeezed his eyes shut. I caught sight of his face lighting up as soon as he was hit by the sudden wave of sympathy and attention, even though he looked like a dumpling that had burst in the steamer.

Rafael stood tall, while Kim Hyun-Sung trembled with his fists shaking in frustration.

“Hyung, stop it. I-it’s my fault. I was the one who—”

‘Just stay still for once. Damn it. You didn’t do anything wrong. Nothing at all.’

“What were you doing?! How could you... beat someone’s face like this?!” I shouted.

“...”

“Have you not changed at all?! Weren’t you supposed to be hiding here to change?! So what exactly did change?! Where in the hell... is the change?!” I complained.

“...”

‘Yeah. Even you have to admit that this is ridiculous, right?’

He went through all that chaos trying to fix his own troubled head, and what ended up happening? A straight-up fight. Damn it. It’s a little pitiful that he got hit first, but he could’ve handled it without doing anything. One punch, and he could’ve just stayed down. But no, he tried to vent his own anger, and this mess happened.

‘Damn it. I need to cry a little.’

A look that says

I just don’t understand

—that’s the kind of expression. Even in this anger, it’s clear I was trying to care for and worry about Kim Hyun-Sung. These tears are for him.

“What changed?! Have you looked in the mirror? Don’t you see that you look even stranger now? You’re far from the person I knew,” I told him.

“...”

‘Wow, he’s really stubborn. Still won’t give up, huh?’

“Do you... feel better now?” I asked.

‘Feel better now?’

“You got everything you wanted, so you must be feeling relieved. You’ve got your original eye color back, and you can live life however you want. You can just follow your own heart from now on. You must be happy now, huh?” I said sarcastically.

‘Damn it, this stubborn jerk. Still not giving in?’

He couldn’t say a word, but I felt like this was the kind of situation that would make just about anyone question themselves.

Moreover, he was already aware that there was something wrong with him, and he would probably think that all the treatment he had had so far was meaningless after this fistfight.

I was sure he was thinking that he was back to square one.

‘He’ll be up all night tonight and end up opening a bottle of rum.’

'Yeah, just drink and come back. Just have a drink.'

“I-I... don’t even know what changed. I don’t know if this even matters, or if it’s worth anything....” I said.

Kim Hyun-Sung was silent, drowning in embarrassment and self-hatred. Naturally, there was no need for me to talk any further. Rather than arguing with him, it was far more effective to support Rafael and get ready to head back.

“Good....” I trailed off and said, “...bye."

‘Don’t look back, Ki-Young. That was damned cool. Seriously!’