Just finished this series, and man was it a great ride. I scrolled through the comments and saw some differing opinions on which part of himself took over: the darkness/monster, or the one who faced his actions and guilt. I think it ultimately depends on your beliefs about human nature, but I wanted to provide a framework to determine for yourself who won.
Let's start off with a real life example that's more relatable. Let's say someone who has a temper tells themselves "I'm just honest" or "People are too sensitive." They blow up at others and justify it as authenticity. Since they haven't confronted the real reason behind their actions, it hides as justifications and unconsciously controls them. This is like the MC, who never saw himself as a monster. Every killing had a "reason."
They deserved it. They disrespected him. It was an accident.
Back to the example: then they realize that they like the feeling of domination in social situations. Do they give in or resist? They are now aware of that inner monster... and this is really hard, as illustrated by 80% of the entire manhwa staying in this part. However, once you are aware, you can now face the monster. Becoming aware doesn't automatically mean you'll win the fistfight. It just means that you can now stand in the ring rather than letting the monster run the show.
So how do we determine who wins the fistfight? If you believe MC's "acceptance" was just a selfish desire to free himself of guilt and to be "forgiven," then his homicidal instincts would win. Standing in the ring was just a one-time thing brought by wanting to escape guilt, and he won't get back up. On the other hand, if you believe in MC's resolve to accept the consequences of his own actions and to stand by it, then the MC would win.
The question isn’t whether he FEELS guilty. The question is WHY he accepts guilt. If he accepts it to escape suffering, the monster still controls him. If he accepts it knowing it may destroy him, then he has taken back agency.
I personally believe in MC. I believe him when he says he will accept whatever consequences come his way in the real world. So I think that MC wins. At the same time, it's largely a reflection of my optimism in humanity. I can totally see people being a little more doubtful towards MC given his past actions, which in that case, means the monster wins.
Just finished this series, and man was it a great ride. I scrolled through the comments and saw some differing opinions on which part of himself took over: the darkness/monster, or the one who faced his actions and guilt. I think it ultimately depends on your beliefs about human nature, but I wanted to provide a framework to determine for yourself who won.
Let's start off with a real life example that's more relatable. Let's say someone who has a temper tells themselves "I'm just honest" or "People are too sensitive." They blow up at others and justify it as authenticity. Since they haven't confronted the real reason behind their actions, it hides as justifications and unconsciously controls them. This is like the MC, who never saw himself as a monster. Every killing had a "reason."
They deserved it.
They disrespected him.
It was an accident.
Back to the example: then they realize that they like the feeling of domination in social situations. Do they give in or resist? They are now aware of that inner monster... and this is really hard, as illustrated by 80% of the entire manhwa staying in this part. However, once you are aware, you can now face the monster. Becoming aware doesn't automatically mean you'll win the fistfight. It just means that you can now stand in the ring rather than letting the monster run the show.
So how do we determine who wins the fistfight? If you believe MC's "acceptance" was just a selfish desire to free himself of guilt and to be "forgiven," then his homicidal instincts would win. Standing in the ring was just a one-time thing brought by wanting to escape guilt, and he won't get back up. On the other hand, if you believe in MC's resolve to accept the consequences of his own actions and to stand by it, then the MC would win.
The question isn’t whether he FEELS guilty.
The question is WHY he accepts guilt.
If he accepts it to escape suffering, the monster still controls him.
If he accepts it knowing it may destroy him, then he has taken back agency.
I personally believe in MC. I believe him when he says he will accept whatever consequences come his way in the real world. So I think that MC wins. At the same time, it's largely a reflection of my optimism in humanity. I can totally see people being a little more doubtful towards MC given his past actions, which in that case, means the monster wins.
So... who wins for you?