Chapter 126: Lesson One: Discipline (1)
YuWon only learned about what happened to the others. But it started with Yeji and Min-Ji arguing about something trivial. It should've been nothing, just the usual back-and-forth between family.
But something inside Yeji snapped. Min-Ji did not know what happened, but Yeji struck her. When her hand connected with Min-Ji's face, she let out a bloodcurdling scream.
Yeji's slap had ripped a portion of Min-Ji's skin off. Blood gushed out of one side of her face as she fell to her knees. The Awakeners rushed in to protect Min-Ji, but Yeji wasn't herself anymore.
She tore through them with ease. Her eyes never left Min-Ji's face as she continued towards her.
Two awakeners were unfortunate to stand in Yeji's way and got their hearts ripped out. Their blood was all over her face, but she looked happier with all the blood around her.
The rest of the camp erupted into chaos. Meanwhile, YuWon and Anna were having an intimate time. It wasn't until they heard the shouts did they ran out to see what was going on.
When they got there, YuWon was stunned to see the sight. Min-Ji was on the ground while some awakeners helped her, throwing disgusting glances at Yeji.
Thankfully, Lucifer had arrived to get her under control. But even then, he wasn't uninjured. Blood poured from a deep gash across Lucifer's chest as he pinned Yeji to the ground.
Even so, Yeji kept struggling, and it wasn't until Lucifer knocked her out that she stopped.
As expected, the awakeners were furious with Yeji. They gathered for a meeting and insisted on punishing Yeji, either by death or exile. Their anger was just. After all, Yeji had killed two innocent people.
Asmodeus agreed and made his way towards the makeshift cell where Yeji was held to carry out the punishment. But YuWon stopped him. That moment was the first time he saw the true strength of Asmodeus as he flung him away with no effort.
To YuWon's surprise, Lucifer stood up, refusing to let Asmodeus leave. It looked like the fallen angels could erupt at any moment. But YuWon appealed to the crowd to give Yeji another chance.
They were baffled and refused immediately. It wasn't until YuWon bowed before them, did they heard him out.
"I won't make excuses for her, or for what she did," he told them. "But asking for another chance is all I can do. I give you my word. If she loses control again, I will deliver whatever punishment you see fit."
Anna chimed in, bowing before them as well. Suddenly, the room fell silent. The Awakeners weren't pleased, but they couldn't ignore their saviors.
After all, if it wasn't for YuWon and Anna, they would still live under the Disaster Mole's fear. Reluctantly, they agreed to give Yeji another chance. But they didn't view her the same after that and even kept their distance.
***
Yeji hadn't lost control since that night. Still, they kept a close eye on her. No matter where she went, Lucifer, Anna, Gina, or YuWon kept watch on her. As for Min-Ji, she still had the scars from that night, but her relationship with Yeji deepened after that incident.
Maybe it was all for good.
A sudden scream brought him back to reality. Fearing the worst, YuWon's eyes immediately went towards Yeji's group. But they were fine. But they were looking behind them.
"It's not them," Asmodeus commented. "It has to be Yuna's group. They were bringing the second group of awakeners."
"Who else is there?" YuWon asked.
"Hojin and... Min-Ji," Lucifer replied.
Without wasting another second, YuWon and Lucifer jumped down from the enormous root of the World Tree. The other entrance wasn't far, but as they got closer, the sounds of struggle and shouting became louder.
When they got there, the scene was worse than they expected. A man, tall and muscular, had Hojin by the throat, lifting him off the ground like he weighed nothing.
Hojin's face had turned red as he kicked the man desperately to free himself. His head split open, and blood soaked his shirt. At some distance, Yuna was being restrained by two people, probably the other guy's lackey.
Meanwhile, Min-Ji was between them. She screamed while wrapping her arms around her head. The sight of Hojin's blood must have triggered her trauma from being hit by Yeji.
That sight alone enraged YuWon, but what the man said next sealed his fate.
"You've got so much luck, don't you?" The man holding Hojin sneered, holding a crystal in his other hand. "How about you share some with me? Before I hurt someone else. What the—?"
Before the man could say anything else, YuWon appeared before him. He snatched Hojin away from him before backhanding the man across the face and sending him crashing into the nearest tree.
At the same time, Lucifer dealt with the lackeys restraining Yuna. Once freed, Yuna rushed to Hojin, who was coughing violently as YuWon set him down.
"Feed him a fruit to stop the bleeding," YuWon instructed her. "Yeji can heal him later."
Meanwhile, the awakeners who had arrived with the man stood frozen. YuWon had just tossed aside the strongest member of their group like he was nothing.
They were worried he might retaliate against them. But YuWon didn't care. He didn't even glance at them as he walked over to Min-Ji, who was still curled up on the ground.
He squatted beside her and gently pried her arms away from her head. The moment Min-Ji saw him, she wrapped her arms tightly around YuWon's waist, burying her face in his chest.
By then, the rest of them had arrived. Lysandra kneeled beside Min-Ji and gently pulled her away from YuWon's embrace.
"I'll take care of her," she told him before walking away.
YuWon looked at Asmodeus, and he nodded, silently saying he would deal with the mess. But before he could, the man YuWon had flung away before stood back up.
"Why are you acting up?" he laughed. "The angel warned us, saying you lot were strong, so I had to see for myself. It's not my fault if your people aren't as strong as they claim to be."
"Is that so?" YuWon turned around, his eyes glowing like embers.