Now what could Dohun have possibly asked from Director Jin? Something he’s done before…
Burying the evidence of a murder?
Hmm maybe related to continuing the family line; impregnating a woman and passing it off as Dohun’s son? But Dohun talks so well, what a charmer.
We also do not know what Dohun had planned for Hanseob before the name-carving(that’s what I’m calling it from now on) happened.
He didn’t seem agressive at all, on the phone in the car back then, so I figure it was more of a ´the guy will cause his own death through drugs anyway’ let time do its thing type of approach.
But it really was luck that allowed Dohun and Yuwon to meet again!!!! I thought the father had given him a reward.
Dohun has a right to call it destiny. This loverboy has gone all in on Yuwon. I’d guessed because he killed for him, and he’s literally told us this whole time. Yuwon is his DESTINY. No wonder he didn’t want to let him go, he’d prefer to die than for that to happen. A recipe for an extremely unhealthy and codependent relationship~
Now what was up with those texts he sent Yuwon about coming home early?
Deputy manager has taken the bait~ For what I don’t think we’ve seen yet. He was still well when the fight happened.
I think for Yuwon, Kim Seongmin was his last hope. When he was younger he mentioned he wanted to believe that good people existed, and he could still see the beauty of people around him.
But day in and day out, I wonder if he was contemplating suicide at the time, staring at the ground from the roof, smoking. Seongmin still stuck by him even when he was getting bullied, and if Dohun hadn’t shown up I think he would’ve clung onto him to heal. I think to Yuwon, Seongmin was the “last good person” (Yuwon knows Dohun isn’t good, and can’t trust him; he’s killed people after all), which he was why he was so desperate when he disappeared with no notice.
So I think the face Yuwon showed Dohun when he was accusing Seongmin was “utter despair”, losing hope.
The insecurity Dohun felt afterwards was most likely that Dohun realized Yuwon still has expectations in others and people, he has needs outside of the ones Dohun can provide, he was shaken by the fact he might not know Yuwon and his greater good as well as he thought he did.
I feel like Yuwon’s behaviour of banging his head against the wall made Dohun realize 1. How close he was to the edge when he met him. 2. That he suffered badly alone during the years he was gone.
Dohun self-comforts with illusions, so he was able and happy to maintain the semblance of a functioning relationship while Yuwon was kind of spiraling, feeling alone while Dohun disengaged.
I’m very curious if, as Dohun feels Yuwon slipping he pushes more on the sex to be able to artificially pretend he’s “happy”, maybe that’s where it started to get violent and rough? Or Dohun realizes the resentment Yuwon’s held for everything and tries to take it on?
I want to see what Dohun actually did when he met his dad while Yuwon snuck out.
Gahhhhhh i love it so much!!!! Can’t wait for the next chapter~~
I’d waited for a while to read all the chapters at once and wow, so satisfying…
Ohhhh so Dohun admitting he’d killed them was something Yuwon erased from his memory. Subconsciously though, Yuwon must’ve remembered. “He really will do anything to get what he wants”; he’s must’ve been on edge.
I wonder if the father was the one who arranged for both of them to meet again, as a reward for Dohun’s compliance. It’s way too convenient for Dohun to be transferred to Yuwon’s branch.
I can just imagine the word “destiny” echoing again and again inside Dohun’s head when he smirks at Yuwon after meeting again.
Indeed, Dohun is so blind to Yuwon’s emotional realm. He thinks simply ensuring his survival and comfort is enough. There’s this thickness, and the intensity of wanting to make up for lost time. Yuwon meanwhile is incredibly paranoid bc why now? He’s happy but cmon, you couldn’t explain your circumstances to him? You tell him you waited, it’s all for him but you don’t trust with the truth.
Dohun, whether he realizes it or not, still sees Yuwon as a bit below him, someone that can’t be trusted to define or manage themselves bc to him they’re meant to revolve around each other anyway, why won’t Yuwon stick to the script?? Yuwon also has that tendency to keep everything inside until it explodes, but honestly there’s so much pressure built up i don’t even think talking civilly would have relieved it. And omg Yuwon bangs his head on the wall even alone…He’s been miserable so long it’s a habit now;;;; I wonder if Seongmin ever caught him??
Maybe I should write a fic about that…
It’s truly lucky they didn’t kill each other when Yuwon tried to leave.
Although now…there is definitely absolutely no way he is getting away. He marked them both…will it be Dohun acting pathetic and telling him everything he went through to meet him again?
I’m so curious to see how they resolve this; maybe they’ll elope or something and Dohun will embezzle as much money as he can get away with to escape and marry Yuwon in like Bali or Thailand or something. Could his backup be to fake his death??
Ahhhhhh I need to reread the first chapters again to contrast the information!!!
Dude. Geonwoo is seriously the first breath of fresh air that Seonho has had since the start. Bro wants nothing sexually from him and is just his friend, which is exactly what he needed after being seen like a piece of meat from EVERYONE (even the zombies). I hope this guy makes it; it really would be nice to have straight up just a decent guy around to ground Seonho and his sanity.
The problem with good guys is they die early in apocalypse movies, bc others lives are more important than theirs;;;;;
YEAH YOU TELL HIM SOUN!! He’s nothing but a coward that slinks around; but
don’t get yourself killed plssssss;;;;;
Your husband’s coming to save you;;;
It hit me that the hidden camera in the office tree is like his dad’s; to be able to tell who’s twofaced about yuwon.
My poor baby Yuwon;;;;;
You really endured so much shit; he’s so mentally strong, handling all that by himself.
That tired weary look when you’re at the end of your rope…you don’t even need to see his face to tell.
It’s no wonder he ended up paranoid in the future. No one has ever done these kinds of things with no ulterior motive for him, ever. They really crushed Yuwon with the « no free lunches ».
Dohoon must feel bad, that he’s seen as this ‘person that must be taken care of’ in Yuwon’s eyes.
Even when Yuwon is being ‘weak’ by submitting to everyone, he’s still protecting him.
This entire episode Dohoon is always looking at Yuwon’s back, relying on him.
He must have started wanting to be able to help and could no longer stay put. So he most likely left so he could become a protector.
It’s interesting how he dreamed of it before, Yuwon protecting him and then realized Yuwon was the one needing protection, not just in school, but through everything.
Yuwon isn’t willing to hurt others to get what he needs.
So Dohoon will find a way.
Yuwon feels like a mom, not just Dohoon’s mom, but this selfless sacrifice out of love really hits hard.
To Yuwon, Dohoon is family.
Poor Yuwon…
I love him so much…
The new word of the day is Apostasy!!
an act of refusing to continue to follow, obey, or recognize a religious faith. Or defection.
Apostasy!
I think it’s one of the first times I’ve seen a work take it past the mindbreak lol
Was not expecting the kids to be furry too, also thought it was a dream sequence.
Kinda funny for him to negotiate release, and then go hunt them down again. He says it wasn’t revenge but I bet he made the same amount of children as the knights lol Petty Leon.
But gotta admit I love me some old man hole.
Yum, ‘twas a good meal!
Damn, Xinlu really doesn’t give a shit about Tae, does he?
He could have turned Tae deaf by shooting right next to his ear like that.
I guess he’d find it darkly funny though: “Look, Taeui, we match!”
All of this is defo just to give the middle finger to Ilay. Especially with such a serious injury.
To Xinlu, Tae is a prize to be won.
Poor Ilay, so close you almost touched him. He’s gotta be stewing in hatred right about now.
Taeui feeling so conflicted…I love itttt
At the same time, I was always really curious about Xinlu’s home territory, ever since we heard about his past;
since we’ve only ever seen Riegrow’s so far: the base, brother’s home, etc.
I hope we get to explore what made Xinlu the man he is today, and that Jaeui doesn’t find himself in another weaponmaker’s hands (bc lbh he defo survives).
Dohoon…I have to apologize to you.
I thought you were some stereotypical toxic seme, some sort of mastermind and we were going to see what formed you, but it turns out you were also manipulated this whole time.
It really was your upbringing.
You really see how the blocks that formed his worldview fall into place. Transactional relationships.
Writing your name, sex makes one happy, give back.
You were just doing what you could with what you had at your disposal.
They were just kids, man.
Gu dohun’s brainwashing being the thing that convinced yuwon they were on the same side. Kinda bittersweet.
Some sort of link/parallel from Yuwon to his mother. So far not much, but most likely because they were the only two he ever cared about.
Did he forget her face? Or did she ultimately also not matter to him?
The teacher and Yuwon are the only people whose faces are visible.
Also how does his childhood book end?
It was burned, but if it’s directing his actions until now he must have read it over and over again. His obsession with a happy home must come from there. Is it a happy ending? Or do the elk and tree die together? You can’t really beat humans.
Give back what you receive. I thought that meant Dohoon really was the one who executed them, but maybe it really was his father; btw Dohoon’s dad is missing a part of his ear, wonder what happened?
…was Dohoon referring to Hanseob when he was telling Yuwon that he shakes when he wants sex? Implying that he had withdrawal symptoms?
Just gotta make sure Juyeon doesn’t allow him to choke himself to death. But I think MC at this point is too impulsive. He’s gonna run -.-
Anyway, see yall next shift!
OMG IT SHAPPENING!!!
WHAT THE FUCK THEY’RE SO GORGEOUS!!!
I LOVE THEM BOTH SO MUCH AHHHHHH
Shuraka is so cute!!! He’s doing his best to keep eye contact with Tei the whole time *heart melts*
AND TEI OMG. THOSE EXPRESSIONS.
THE BEAUTY MARKS!?!? EXCUSE ME!??
Hhe has one on his boob, his armpit, right next to his bush and one right next to his hole. Damn, so fucking lewdddddd ;-;;;;;;
Hella iconic. Shuraka is 100% gonna go on a treasure hunt someday.
These two are gonna have SUCH a good time omg they’re so compatible. And like this author does such a good job with the atmosphere, I keep feeling like I’m intruding on them ⁄(⁄ ⁄·⁄ω⁄·⁄ ⁄)⁄
But that was hella satisfying!!
Love the profound development of Ricky; you can feel the author’s curiosity about his psychology through the exploration of his various reactions and facets. Hojoong IS kinda straightforward…
I can’t wait to see what other works she comes up with after this one!
I straightup enjoyed the sidestory more than the main lol
Also feel sad for all the deleted scenes;-;;;;
I would’ve loved to see the basement torture scene…and all the other sex scenes…
Gahhhh I love itttt.
So it WAS Dohoon who caught that mf’s wrist to stop them humiliating Yuwon.
(I was starting to think Yuwon mixed up when he first defended a bullied kid vs when “Dohoon” was bullied. Also,
Rereading previous chapters; it’s interesting that Yuwon saw himself the way Dohoon wanted him to act (“saving” him from the bullies)
Was Yuwon talking about himself when he wondered why “Dohoon” was so unbothered by the bullying? Was the “i’m perfectly fine” Yuwon’s words?)
Bc Dohoon has such an analytical mind mixed with childish sentiments, he couldn’t help but test the pattern.
If Yuwon really hasn’t changed, then surely he’ll react the same.
It’s a desperate “Please remember, all means are ok if you remember”.
And he was so disappointed, when he didn’t.
Meanwhile to Yuwon…i imagine the pressure of not causing trouble for the group home was what was stopping him from acting out. It does make me wonder if the erasure of his memories happened after or in the moment?
(I.e was he seen as weird bc he truly was perceiving the bullies as something else? Derealization?)
I think, in this case, the murders coming after must have been that he determined that alone, Yuwon is unchanged. The bullies changed his programming, so to get the OG Yuwon back they have to disappear? Maybe the house change was also bc they were stopping Yuwon from contacting him. Dohoon really is a bulldozer, huh?
So maybe, to Dohoon the isolation of Yuwon wasn’t possessiveness (though there definitely is some), but more so that he wants the honest, unfiltered Yuwon to come through?
Maybe he’s also enabling the strangling and acts of anger in the future bc he sees that as Yuwon “being true to himself”?
I wonder what Dohoon’s definition of Yuwon’s happiness is?
Then…maybe Dohoon also hasn’t changed at all; it’s just that Yuwon is slightly better at catching it in the future??
(He’s still quite biased though, and feels lost but can tell this isn’t normal.)
I really really really want to reread everything with this new lens now…
Okay so both of them showed up to extract him.
I expected them to work together though, so I was wrong on that.
Hmmm…Xinlu is very very angry here.
I don’t exactly think he was ready to give up on Tae yet, but Ilay’s interrogation + inflicted injuries must have changed the motive of getting him back.
From being able to “save and secure” Tae, to using Tae as a pawn to torture Ilay with. There’s no affection anymore, it’s purely possession.
He knows it’ll hurt Ilay to have Tae choose him, of his own will. After all, Ilay never heard the speech Tae gave Xinlu at the market. And all the means are good for it.
He’s betting Tae’s love towards Jae for it.
And just look at our boys Tae and Ilay’s faces just at seeing each other!! :(((
Tae was really looking forward to seeing Ilay again, while Ilay was running around like a chicken with its head cut off in desperation!!
Now the question is: how much does Tae trust Jaeui’s luck? And how much does he trust Ilay to get him out of this?
I don’t think Taeui is one to choose love over family, and I worry about Jaeui’s feelings if even his brother will dismiss him as simply a manifestation of luck and not a person to get worried over. Maybe Taeui will let Ilay know Xinlu has his brother and try going along while planning escape??
I guess we’ll see.
Interesting that the brother, as despicable as he is, was just as lonely, so much so that he has the gall to ask for comfort from someone he sees as a threat, as a better version of him. I wonder if they got rid of his mom too.
If he’d been smart, he’d have treated him well due to their shared plight all this time and reaped the benefits. Hanseob is too short-sighted, but then again, he’s an addict.
He’s pathetic in a way that makes me curious about him.
Dohoon’s resort to summon Yuwon makes me sad…Since Yuwon was his tree, if he gets hurt, he can’t help but hope Yuwon will appear to come to his rescue once again. It’s a surprisingly childish wish in such a stoic character.
I wonder if he’s planning to become a bully victim so that Yuwon finds a reason to involve himself, and that’s when it gets flipped, or if Yuwon was already being targeted at that stage (I think more likely), and Dohoon stepped in as a way to get Yuwon to feel grateful….
In any case!! Very excited to have the objective viewpoint of what actually went down!!
SO GOOD. We’re getting spoiled with these chapters man!!! I’m most likely gonna go back and reread the start to add the context of this perspective switch.
No wonder Yuwon kept minimizing the bullying at work; his last experience had Dohoon kill the abusers, so he kept waiting for the other shoe to fall, and when Seongmin disappeared…I thought he was just overly paranoid at the time.
Something must have happened to the brother; in the future he seems really pathetic, so the dad must have put Dohoon in charge.
To Dohoon, Yuwon’s destiny seems to constantly become a martyr, the embodiment of the saying “No Good Deed goes Unpunished”; he keeps standing up for those who can’t and taking their place. Even in the future, he admits to Seongmin he stood up for a bullied coworker…I guess Dohoon’s smirk is because Yuwon hadn’t changed at all.
I wonder if the title is a name that Dohoon gives him or Yuwon gives himself. I also don’t blame Yuwon for forgetting everything, poor guy went through a lot of shit; actually they both did. What tragic characters…
Funnily enough Dohoon looks like he’s copying even that from Yuwon, the same way he learned to be “human” from living in the same house:
He wants to become a martyr for Yuwon only. To take in all his pain and his misery. It’s why he wants him to strangle him and be honest with himself.
“You saved me, so you can blame me all you want if it’ll help you be less unhappy”.
All Yuwon wanted as adults was genuine and honest communication,
Dohoon managed it as a teenager, even brainwashed, so I’m wondering what stopped him as an adult. Was he waiting for Yuwon to remember?
I have no clue if this can be resolved, since to Dohoon, taking on Yuwon’s “misery” is his self-created responsibility, his destiny and role in the bond to Yuwon, to an obsessive degree.
Yuwon himself doesn’t acknowledge it at all, to him it’s his responsibility to manage, he learned to carry it on his own; he just wanted a loving partner.
Yuwon I think really just wanted to be spoiled with love for once, and treated as a loveable person.
Very simple desires, that Seongmin managed to catch onto.
But if there is no misery, then what is Dohoon’s role? Dohoon will create it, so Yuwon only thinks of him.
This got really long, but omg i love this manhwaaaaaaaaa!!!!! Best manhwa ever since No Home and the Beast Must Die. The psychology is so good dudee!!
(Ps. I highly doubt SA is in the cards for Dohoon. If he truly is an acknowledged heir; they’re more likely to treat him as a robot and a machine than a toy.)
Love this! Tei is defo gonna try and be his own knight lolol
I was also wondering if we’ll ever get Tei with long hair, since it seems to be common in Arnata…
Maybe not, it’d be hard to fight…but i’d love to see it.
Maybe as he settles into the role of empress?
It really seems that both of them had their own misunderstandings, huh. Jaeui has been trying to distance himself as far as possible to give Taeui a normal life, seeing himself as unlucky. Taeui is not just his lucky charm but it seems also his morality chain.
The founding principles of Jae’s behaviour is how Jaeui perceived Tae as a child. A good, pure person. The ideal of good.
But Tae isn’t. He’s just a person, the way Tae’s the only person to treat Jae as a person.
You only have to look at the people Tae surrounds himself with; Xinlu and Riegrow have committed numerous crimes, and are by no means innocent, but Tae has forgiven them just the same. Tae is not a good measure for what is good and pure bc he’s biased by who he loves. He’ll never be able to hate Jaeui no matter what he does bc he’s his brother.
I wonder if Jaeui is disappointed…he has nothing to ground himself with anymore, but now he also has no shackles and can do as he wishes…
The pondering on whether Tae would’ve made a weapon to get out…Tae’s pretty crafty though, if he could i think he would’ve designed a flaw into the weapon, and only offered to fix it if he was let out.
Darn Rahman…Jaeui is too op, his designs are addictive apparently…
There’s something…vaguely gojo-esque about Ricky. The well-hidden insanity? The mask of being carefree? The sadistic tendencies?
This feeling of being a detached being separate frim the world…