The video depicted Baek Hyung-won and Kim Yoo-jung telling their eldest son, Baek Seo-jun, to die for the sake of their younger son, Baek Seo-jin.

Although she had already heard about it, seeing it unfold in the video was far more shocking than hearing the story.

The footage showed Baek Hyung-won and Kim Yoo-jung treating Baek Seo-jun’s sacrifice for Baek Seo-jin as something obvious, while Seo-jun himself spoke about the discrimination he had suffered.

Even the villains in the video murmured amongst themselves, making it clear how atrociously he had been treated.

What followed was even worse. The video transitioned to show what had been done to him after he was handed over to the villains.

[Aaaarghhhh!]

The young Baek Seo-jun screamed in agony, his body writhing as he endured the sensation of his insides tearing apart and his flesh burning, all while being forcibly kept in a state of mental clarity that prevented him from losing his mind.

Tears streamed down Seomun Ye-jin’s cheeks as she watched, her eyes glued to the screen, her body trembling in shock.

Yet she didn’t stop the video or look away.

Instead, she focused intensely, as if determined to etch every scene into her memory.

She watched everything, including the moment Seo-jun was thrown into the dimensional rift. Even after the video ended, she couldn’t tear her gaze away from the blank TV screen.

“That wasn’t an easy watch, was it?” Baek Seo-jun asked.

Seomun Ye-jin didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she turned to face him, her head lowered.

“Um… Seo-jun…”

“What is it, Miss?”

“Could you… could you move that snake on your shoulder for a moment?”

“Sure. Ramisa, mind moving for a bit?”

The black snake coiled around Baek Seo-jun’s shoulder—Ramisa—slithered down without hesitation at his command.

Then, without warning, Seomun Ye-jin lunged forward and wrapped her arms around his neck.

“Miss?”

“Hngh! Wahhhhhh!”

And just like that, she burst into loud sobs.

Although he seemed momentarily taken aback by her sudden embrace and tears, Baek Seo-jun didn’t push her away.

Instead, he returned her hug, holding her close.

“If a pretty girl like you hugs me like this… Hmm, it’s hard for me to resist, you know?”

Despite the weight of the moment, Seo-jun spoke lightly, even patting her back gently as she cried.

“Hic… sniff…”

His calming touch seemed to help her gradually regain her composure.

To someone as emotionally sensitive as Seomun Ye-jin, the tragedy Seo-jun had endured felt overwhelmingly sorrowful.

“It must have been… so hard for you…”

“It was. It was absolutely horrible.”

His blunt honesty made her realize that she couldn’t even begin to imagine the extent of his pain and suffering.

“If there’s anything I can do… anything at all, I’ll help you,” she said earnestly.

He had rescued her from the hellish grip of villains, but he himself had survived an even worse hell, with no one to save him.

The thought of him enduring such torment alone only made her emotions surge further.

“‘Anything’ is a dangerous word to throw around,” Seo-jun replied, his tone teasing as he gently brushed a hand through her light purple, almost indigo hair.

“What… do you mean?”

He smirked. “If I told you what I wanted, you might be so shocked that you’d fall over backward.”

“Pfft, what is it?”

Having calmed down somewhat, Ye-jin responded to his teasing with a lighter tone, though curiosity flickered in her voice.

“Well, let’s think about the situation. A pretty girl is clinging to me, sobbing in my arms. And here I am, holding her close. I can smell your scent, we’re pressed together… Hmm. In this kind of situation, what do you think is going through my mind?”

“Ah…”

Her brain froze for a moment.

Only now did she become fully aware of her position—hugging him tightly, her body pressed against his.

“Miss?” Seo-jun called out to her, but she couldn’t bring herself to respond.

I’m so embarrassed.

The overwhelming urge to faint and escape the situation consumed her.

Yet, even in her mortified state, she stayed right where she was—in Baek Seo-jun’s arms, unmoving.

***

"This is something else."

Seomun Ye-jin, the heroine of the original story.

Saving her wasn’t out of any particular goodwill but simply because there was no reason not to.

Showing her what I had gone through, however, had a clear purpose: to ensure she never truly got close to Baek Seo-jin.

Even the thought of it disgusts me.

The idea of someone like Baek Seo-jin laying a hand on Seomun Ye-jin was revolting to the extreme.

"This sensation… I want it all to myself."

The feel of Seomun Ye-jin’s well-developed body in my embrace was undeniable. Her soft skin and the sweet fragrance emanating from her were overwhelmingly stimulating.

If I were to be completely honest, my body, being very much functional, reacted to the point where I had to swallow back saliva.

Still, beyond that, I wanted this innocent young woman to stay by my side, our bond growing stronger.

Her genuine sadness over my suffering, her empathic tears, and her bashful reaction to my teasing—everything about her was endearing.

"It’s been so long since I’ve felt someone’s warmth."

In this life, it was the first time I had hugged another person.

Especially someone like Seomun Ye-jin.

At just fifteen, her beauty was already radiant enough to draw attention wherever she went—enough that villains had tried to kidnap and sell her as a slave.

Now, with her in my arms, it was impossible not to think various things.

"Come to think of it, Kim Yoo-jung never hugged me like this."

Not even when I was a baby. She didn’t bother to nurse me herself but instead handed me off to someone else.

It was a wonder I hadn’t starved to death back then.

Sure, Kim Yoo-jung, as the mother of the story’s protagonist, was a stunningly beautiful woman.

"But this girl is far prettier."

Not just her appearance, but her heart as well.

“U-um… How much longer are we going to stay like this?”

Still nestled in my arms, Seomun Ye-jin asked with a trembling voice.

“I don’t know.”

“Pardon?”

“Holding you feels so nice, I don’t know when I’ll want to let go.”

“W-what are you saying?!”

Her face turned beet red as she protested, lightly tapping my back with her fist.

I laughed softly at her adorable reaction and finally released her.

“Ugh, seriously… So embarrassing…”

She gave me a glare that was equal parts annoyed and shy, but I only chuckled.

“Sorry, sorry. This is my first time holding someone so close. Especially a beautiful girl like you. It’s something I never thought would happen, honestly.”

“Ah…”

Her expression shifted again, and I could see the pity returning as she empathized with my words.

“Um… Would you like to… go out to buy some things?”

“Outside?”

“Yes, outside! If you change your appearance a bit, we can even get you an alias ID! In the former North Korean region, there are still plenty of undocumented people.”

“An alias ID…”

What should I go by?

As I pondered, I lightly drew upon my power.

To Seomun Ye-jin, my appearance remained unchanged, but to others, I would look like a man with black hair and black eyes—completely different from my usual appearance.

“What did you just do?”

Although she sensed me drawing on my power, she couldn’t perceive any change, as her eyes still saw my true form.

“I made it so others will see me differently.”

“Huh? But you look the same to me.”

Seomun Ye-jin tilted her head in confusion, scanning me from head to toe.

“That’s because I made it so you’d still see my real appearance.”

I stood up as I spoke, and Seomun Ye-jin followed suit. Naturally, my gaze fell on her.

She was dressed casually in dolphin shorts and a thin T-shirt, her outfit slightly unguarded in its simplicity.

“How do others see you, then?”

Without any hesitation, she stepped closer and asked, her lack of caution evident. Instead of answering, I let her see the illusion I had created.

“Like this.”

“Oh my! No one would recognize you like this!”

“Exactly.”

I returned her perception to my true form and said, “I’ve already decided on a name for the alias.”

“A name?”

“Kim Ho-jun. It should work.”

It was a combination of my previous life’s name and my current one.

“Kim Ho-jun… Not bad for an alias.”

She smiled at the name, but her face was still streaked with tear marks.

Seeing how much she had cried earlier, I pulled a handkerchief from my subspace and approached her to gently wipe the streaks from her cheeks.

“Huh?”

I couldn’t let her walk around with a tear-streaked face when we were about to go out together.

No, that’s not it.

Even if she was going to change her clothes soon, she would have cleaned her face herself.

It was simply that this was the first time anyone in this life had cried for me, and it felt… novel.