The Way to Save the Crazy Returnees Chapter 75 - The Butterfly Effect (2)

 

 

‘He’s going to die soon?’

 

“What do you mean by that?”

 

“Exactly what it sounds like.”

 

Han Yeong-won began explaining in a calm voice.

 

“There was a time when even the top masters of the Demonic Sect were dying without being able to resist.”

 

She narrowed one eye slightly, recalling the days when an unknown plague had spread. It looked like she was remembering something unpleasant.

 

“That’s what illness is like.”

 

Even a top-tier martial artist—someone who could wield sword energy freely, far beyond the level of ordinary people—could be killed without ever getting the chance to fight back.

 

“So… you’re saying the children’s father caught a disease?”

 

Han Yeong-won nodded.

 

“I didn’t see the kids’ mother, so I can’t speak for her. But their father—he’s sick. For sure.”

 

And not just sick. It was a disease he would definitely die from.

 

Han Yeong-won emphasized it again.

 

“He cannot live.”

 

“Even if he gets treatment?”

 

“Yes.”

 

From the start, it was already beyond curing.

 

…Just what kind of illness could make Han Yeong-won so certain of his death?

 

I was curious, but I didn’t ask.

 

After repeating 365 regressions, I finally understood why I had never once seen Lee Man-deuk’s father.

 

‘So that’s why… he was already dead.’

 

By the time I met Lee Man-deuk, his father had already passed away. Lee Deok-soon and Lee Soon-deuk, who used to volunteer to visit him, must have stopped coming to the soup kitchen after his death.

 

‘That’s why I never heard anything about him.’

 

But what about their mother?

 

Lee Deok-soon and Lee Soon-deuk said they had met their mother at the soup kitchen too. Even if their father had died, they should still have gone to see her.

 

‘Could it be… their mother also died around the same time?’

 

When I couldn’t find an answer, Seo Do-hwan spoke up.

 

“Want to go?”

 

“Huh?”

 

“To look for the kids’ parents.”

 

He unwrapped a piece of candy as he said it.

 

“It’s bothering you, isn’t it?”

 

“It’s not like that.”

 

“Don’t lie.”

 

Seo Do-hwan smirked.

 

“Do you think I don’t know you, boss? It’s written all over your face.”

 

I thought I was hiding it well, but apparently not.

 

“Then… will you go with me?”

 

“Of course.” Seo Do-hwan got to his feet and added, “Don’t tell me you were planning to go alone?”

 

“…Maybe?”

 

If he hadn’t called me out, I probably would have.

 

“Hey.”

 

His face twisted in frustration.

 

“Don’t even think about wandering around with that injured body.”

 

“You’re the one who did this to me, Seo Do-hwan.”

 

“Ahem.”

 

At a loss for words, he cleared his throat and hurriedly changed the subject.

 

“Lee Yoo-seong, you stay here and guard the house.”

 

“Huh? Why me?!”

 

“Then what—are you going to leave Lee Deok-soon and Lee Soon-deuk here alone?”

 

“But Noona’s here too!”

 

Lee Yoo-seong pointed at Han Yeong-won. She let out a small laugh.

 

“I was actually thinking of going with you bastards.”

 

“What?”

 

The words slipped out before I could stop myself.

 

“You’re coming with us?”

 

I was sure she’d want to rest, but Han Yeong-won gave a light nod and stood.

 

“Sounds fun.”

 

Of course. There was no way Han Yeong-won was stepping in out of pure goodwill.

 

“If you don’t like it, I can stay behind.”

 

As she said that, Han Yeong-won shot a sharp look at Lee Yoo-seong.

 

“Instead, I’ll have a nice little spar with that young brat—”

 

“Please come with us.”

 

I couldn’t risk another building getting destroyed. So we headed to Seoul Station, where the free soup kitchen was.

 

***

 

The heart of South Korea’s railway system—that’s what people often called Seoul Station. And it was full of homeless people.

 

“How are we supposed to find Man-deuk’s parents here?”

 

Exactly.

 

What’s more, based on what Lee Deok-sun and Lee Soon-deuk had said, it seemed neither parent knew the other was here. But amid this vast crowd, there was one person who moved forward without a hint of hesitation.

 

“Follow me, you bastards.”

 

It was Han Yeong-won.

 

As if she already knew where Lee Man-deuk’s parents were, she took the lead without a second thought.

 

“…Boss, is it really okay to follow her?”

 

“For now, let’s trust her and see.”

 

She had instantly figured out that Lee Deok-sun and Lee Soon-deuk were Lee Man-deuk’s younger siblings. She had also recognized at a glance that the man threatening them was their father.

 

So I chose to trust Han Yeong-won. Thankfully, she didn’t betray that trust.

 

“Here, bastard. You see him? He’s over there.”

 

Where Han Yeong-won pointed stood Lee Man-deuk’s father.

 

“Cough!”

 

He kept coughing violently—he looked in terrible shape. As I approached cautiously, the man noticed me and suddenly widened his eyes.

 

“You! You, you thief!”

 

Lee Man-deuk’s father recognized me and lurched to his feet, clutching a bottle of alcohol.

 

“Where are my kids?! Where did you take them?!”

 

“Sir, please calm down.”

 

“Where did you take them, you son of a b***h?!”

 

He was obviously drunk. The way he swung the bottle wildly was extremely threatening—or at least, it felt that way to me.

 

“Mister.”

 

Seo Do-hwan looked completely unfazed. He casually caught the hand holding the bottle and spoke in a calm voice.

 

“Maybe don’t run your mouth so freely, yeah?”

 

“W-what?! Who are you?!”

 

“Me?”

 

Seo Do-hwan wrenched the bottle from his hand, crushed it to pieces, and said,

 

“My boss’s bodyguard.”

 

Considering he was the one who’d broken my wrist and put me in a cast, he said that with impressive confidence.

 

Anyway—

 

‘I’ll leave this guy to Seo Do-hwan.’

 

That was my thought when—

 

“Coincidentally, the kids’ mother is over there too, you piece of shit.”

 

“Seo Do-hwan, hold him for a bit.”

 

“Where are you going?”

 

“Han Yeong-won found their mother too. So… I’m counting on you.”

 

Seo Do-hwan nodded with an annoyed look. The man in his grip, however, didn’t want to let me go.

 

“Hey, you thief! Where do you think you’re going?! Give me back my kids before you go! Hey—! Agh!”

 

Of course, his wishes didn’t matter. Seo Do-hwan lightly twisted the man’s arm mid-shout.

 

“This bastard’s trying to kill me! I’m—cough…!”

 

Ignoring his hoarse cries, I followed Han Yeong-won toward where Lee Man-deuk’s mother stood.

 

“She’s over there.”

 

Where Han Yeong-won pointed stood a woman who looked just as filthy and worn down as her husband.

 

“…Master, grant us grace and mercy and save us. Without you, there is no salvation. There is no sun. Save us. Save me. It hurts. It hurts. It’s all my fault…”

 

With her hands clasped, the woman muttered incoherent words. No matter how you looked at her, she clearly wasn’t in her right mind.

 

“There’s something wrong with her head.”

 

Han Yeong-won clicked her tongue.

 

“Someone with a broken mind is more troublesome than someone who’s about to die.”

 

Ignoring her, I spoke gently.

 

“Ma’am.”

 

Her unfocused eyes turned toward me.

 

“…Hello?”

 

She blinked a few times, then suddenly grabbed my hand.

 

“Man-deuk?!”

 

She hurried on.

 

“Where are Deok-sun and Soon-deuk—the siblings?”

 

Her face lit up with wild joy.

 

“Our master has shown mercy! Yes, mercy! All good people die. They die and go to hell. People want to go to heaven, right? Yes, they do. I want to go too. Master, grant us grace and mercy—”

 

“She’s completely insane.”

 

Han Yeong-won clicked her tongue again.

 

I gently pulled my hand from Lee Man-deuk’s mother’s grip.

 

The reason Lee Deok-sun and Lee Soon-deuk had met her at the soup kitchen was probably coincidence. She seemed to call out her children’s names to anyone around their age.

 

‘Still… she must roughly know how old her kids are.’

 

She had sent them to an orphanage when they were young. If she truly didn’t care at all, she wouldn’t even know their ages.

 

Which meant she wouldn’t have grabbed me like this and called out Man-deuk’s name.

 

“You piece of shit.”

 

Han Yeong-won muttered.

 

“It’s best to abandon the crazy one.”

 

“That might’ve worked where you’re from, Ms. Han Yeong-won.”

 

This wasn’t the martial world where she’d been the Heavenly Demon.

 

“Ma’am… can you stand up?”

 

Just as I helped Lee Man-deuk’s mother to her feet—

 

“Boss!”

 

Seo Do-hwan came running over, the man slung over his back.

 

“This guy’s not right!”

 

Lee Man-deuk’s father was coughing up blood. He looked like he could stop breathing at any second, so we rushed him to the hospital.

 

***

 

Just as Han Yeong-won had said, Lee Man-deuk’s father was dying. More precisely—

 

“He’s in a state where it wouldn’t be strange if he died at any moment.”

 

He was now on the verge of death.

 

“Stage-four lung cancer. The cancer has already spread to his respiratory tissues and even to the brain. I don’t think he has much time left.”

 

The doctor added that if they hadn’t brought him to the hospital immediately after he started coughing up blood, he likely would have died today or tomorrow.

 

“Does the patient have a guardian? If there’s someone who should be at his bedside when the time comes, it would be best to call them.”

 

“…I’ll try to contact someone.”

 

Lee Man-deuk’s mother was suffering from schizophrenia. On top of that, she had a delusional disorder. The doctor said she’d need to stay hospitalized for a long time, and her prognosis wasn’t very good.

 

“Full recovery will be difficult.”

 

The doctor in charge spoke carefully.

 

“This is a complete mess,” Seo Do-hwan said bluntly. “The father’s one step away from death, and the mother’s lost her mind.”

 

He let out a bitter laugh.

 

“Man-deuk’s going to feel pretty bitter when he finds out.”

 

“Will he, though?”

 

Even though I had unconsciously brought his parents to the hospital, I didn’t feel like it was the right decision. Lee Man-deuk was different from his siblings. Hadn’t Lee Deok-sun and Lee Soon-deuk said it themselves?

 

They hadn’t told Lee Man-deuk that they’d met their parents because they were afraid he’d “kill the parents who abandoned them at the orphanage if anyone ever found out.”

 

“Still, shouldn’t we at least tell Lee Deok-sun and Lee Soon-deuk about these people?”

 

That was true.

 

Lee Deok-sun and Lee Soon-deuk had kept volunteering at the soup kitchen just to see their parents one more time.

 

“Call Yoo-seong and have him bring Deok-sun and Soon-deuk to the hospital.”

 

“You could call them yourself, boss.”

 

“I have someone else I need to contact first.”

 

Just as I stepped aside to call Lee Man-deuk—

 

“Doesn’t seem like a great idea to inform that sapa bastard.”

 

For once, Han Yeong-won was making sense. I didn’t even notice when she came up behind me, but I calmly agreed.

 

“I wasn’t planning to tell Mr. Lee Man-deuk anyway.”

 

“Then why are you trying to contact that sapa bastard?”

 

“How did you know?”

 

“It’s obvious.”

 

She laughed as if it were ridiculous.

 

“Other than that red-haired bastard and the little one, the only person you’d bother contacting is that sapa bastard, isn’t it?”

 

Did my social circle really look that small?

 

‘Says the one who doesn’t even have anyone to call her own.’

 

I shot Han Yeong-won a dissatisfied look and picked up my phone again. I was just about to call Lee Man-deuk when—

 

[Lee Man-deuk]

 

He called me first.