Chapter 23 (1/2)

Chapter 23 Evaluation (Part 1)

“Hyung!”

Jun-ho seesis awake too He may have woken up from the sound of the shot

Jun-ho sees Lee Hye-su follow behind me and his face freezes

I too can now ht of the campfire

‘Aw, damn’

Her face is pitifully swollen She was beaten senseless by Park Go-chan That bastard!

I hold down e and speak

“We were attacked by red apes on our way over Thankfully we handled them but sadly, Park Go-chan didn’t make it”

“…”

A chilly silence falls on us

The awfully beaten Lee Hye-su, the gunshot, Park Go-chan’s death Joon-ho and Kang Chun-seong have no way of knohat these things imply

“Moreover, lets rest You guys eat?”

“Uh, no, not yet”

Joon-ho aardly sturilled rabbit I had placed in my pocket earlier

“Okay, for now, eat this We will properly hunt and eat tomorrow”

“Wow, thank you”

“Miss Hye-su, come sit down and eat too”

“Yes…”

Lee Hye-su sits down next to rilled rabbit

“Here”

I throw a piece to Kang Chun-seong as well He catches it and asks me

“How did the thing you left to go do go?”

“I succeeded in killing their leader Seeing as how after that none of them chased after me, I don’t think we have to worry about the red apes anymore”

“Wow, hyung you’re really a!”

“What do youIt’s all thanks to Sylph”

“But still How did you think to barge in alone and kill their leader? It’s really aet so much karma when this exam is over”

“Yeah, thanks Anyway, tohtens, let’stime with our hearts calm”

“Okay”

We finish our o back to sleep

“I will be the sentry It’s because I can’t sleep You should all sleep”

“Hyung, you must be the most tired”

“It’s okay It’s because I can’t sleep”

“Then I’ll head off to bed If you get tired, just wake me up”

“Alright”

Everyone goes to sleep and I think to myself in the silence

‘I’m sure he’s dead’

I a blood from his neck and fall over

I could not find the courage and didn’t verify Park Go-chan’s body I just took Lee Hye-su and spun back around to here

…I killed a person

The corpse of the person I just killed will still be in its place It will be neglected there for all eternity Who knows, a red ape or some other beast may come upon it and eat it

And so the life of the man named Park Go-chan ended At my hand

I look down at ht hand

It’s shaking

The sensation of pulling on the trigger has still not disappeared

I becoht never leave my memory

I did nothing wrong

He was deserved to die He was soe on ood priorities, he would not have tried to rape a co an exam of life and death

He was a bastard that lived just as he pleased If only but for the purposes of going forward in the exams, I could not let him live

‘Yep, I did nothing wrong’

I think that in my head but my heart feels different

I recall Park Go-chan’s voice that shook in fear at my threats

He did

Even human trash like him, he didn’t want to die He wanted to live A person like that, I ended his life I pulled the trigger with this finger…

I clench my hand into a fist

The shaking doesn’t go away

“Are you okay?”

Lee Hye-su’s voice bringsat me orried eyes

“Yes, I’m okay”

She gets up from her seat and comes close to me

She grabs my hand with both of hers

There is a certain warmth to them

The light from the fire reflects on her face, where the puffiness hasn’t dissipated It hurts my heart How could he just beat a woood to kill him I saved this woman

“Really, thank you”

“No worries”

“And I’m sorry Because of me…”

“No, don’t be I had thought I should kill hie to I only found the courage thanks to you”

I ao away

We stayed that way for a while Holding hands Using hands to exchange our heat, that quiet tie Like frozen snow that melts, my heart warms up

“Do you want to go?”

“Where?”

“To him”

I am startled at her words

“There is… nothing good to co at the corpse”

“No Inthe body”

She continues to speak in a shaky voice

“Is he really dead, what about the body, is he actually alive and plotting revenge… these thoughts won’t go away You too, right?”

“… yes”

“So let’s go together Let’s verify that he really is dead and give hio alone but I think I’ll be okay if you come with me”

Her words are right

To just go on, I et Park Go-chan I have to tie the knot for sure and move on

“Okay, let’s go But what should we dig the grave with?”

“I’m not sure Um, would this not work?”