A week passed.
Sanctuary City still believed its hero was alive.
No one knew the truth.
Only Commander Rourke
and Jason.
Before rumors could spread, Rourke handled everything quietly.
No press.
No reports.
No leaks.
If people found out Knuckle was dead, the city would fall into chaos.
The dark clouds would rise again over Sanctuary.
Rourke went back to the hospital, hoping to stop Jason before he did something reckless.
But when he arrived—
The bed was empty.
The window slightly open.
The sheets disturbed.
Rourke clenched his jaw.
"He ran away last night…" That boy's leg isn't even healed properly.
He pressed his palm to his forehead.
"These children… they never listen. If he gets into trouble now… God, what am I supposed to do?"
JASON POV
From birth till today…
nothing good ever stayed with me.
When I was seven, my mother left.
My father broke after that.
I tried to light his hope, telling him I'd become a great boxer.
But I failed.
When I turned eighteen, he died in an accident.
All I had left was my little brother.
And now…
even he is gone.
Maybe I was the curse.
If I was never born,
maybe they would have lived peacefully.
Now I sit here…
half dead…
inside my father's old house.
Jason reached Jake's room quietly.
He searched every corner of the room.
Drawers.
Shelves.
Cupboards.
Nothing.
Rourke had already been here.
Jason sat down slowly, exhausted.
That's when he noticed the photo frame.
Himself.
His father.
And Jake.
A family that no longer existed.
Jason stood and gently lifted the frame.
He stared at it for a long moment…
Then placed it back.
Like he didn't belong in that picture anymore.
He turned away—
A sudden gust of wind rushed in through the open window.
(WHOOOSH)
The frame fell.
(GLASS SHATTERING)
Jason turned back, startled.
He bent down to pick it up—
And noticed something behind it.
A small sound recorder, taped carefully inside the frame.
His hands trembled as he pulled it out.
He pressed play.
Recorder — Jake's Voice
"Hello, big brother.
It's Jake."
Jason's breath caught.
"I'm making this recording to tell you things I couldn't say in person.
I hope… you hear this someday."
A pause.
"I want you to know…
I am KNUCKLE."
"I know you would have stopped me if I told you.
That's why I didn't."
"It all started before I joined college.
There was an incident…
I couldn't protect someone important to me."
"I was broken.
I wanted to die."
"But I couldn't even kill myself."
Another pause.
"Then I thought of you."
"You would never give up in my place.
You are my idol."
"I couldn't disrespect my idol by sitting and waiting to die."
"So I trained."
"It felt impossible at first…
But you don't give up, so neither did I."
"For months…
I trained our family technique too.
From memories of watching you."
"One year later… I took my revenge."
"But that wasn't the end."
"There were too many people who needed help."
"I couldn't stop."
"I helped everyone I could.
I made new friends.
I hope someday… you meet them."
"One day, I took on a big mission.
I barely survived."
"I was hospitalized for months."
"But that incident showed me the truth."
"The real mastermind 'Liar'."
"He was the boss of the underworld.
He disappeared one day."
"Now his subordinate… 'Kid'… rules everything."
"But my gut tells me…
Liar is coming back."
"I found out they kidnap orphans…
turn them into tools."
"I couldn't just watch."
"So I went after every gang…
one by one."
"No clues.
Only anger."
"I became more ruthless."
"I almost killed people."
"That's when you came out of jail."
"You showed me how to control my anger."
"You gave me hope again."
"But I realized something…"
"You and I live in opposite worlds."
"You aren't wrong."
"But if you have power…
why not help even an ant?"
"You remember what Father used to say…"
'It doesn't matter if the sun rises again or not…
a "SCHIZOR" will.'
"So did I."