Ilay nodded and said - "Ah." - as if a forgotten memory had just resurfaced, putting on a face
as if it was entirely someone else's business. No matter how many times Jeong Taeui looked
at him, he felt this man had no conscience at all.
As Jeong Taeui clicked his tongue and turned towards the forest again, Ilay suddenly spoke
with a low chuckle.
"I guess you've been thinking about things too simply. There's no way you don't realize
Christoph's true nature, but it seems like you're being deceived by his appearance without
even realizing it, right?"
Jeong Taeui frowned slightly and looked at Ilay. However, despite the look, Ilay continued
speaking.
"There are people like that sometimes. They know everything in their heads but still get
fooled by what they see in front of them. Think about it. Christoph Tarten was always highly
regarded, even when he was with T&R's special unit. In other words, it means he has taken
on and accomplished many extremely difficult tasks. Do you really not understand what that
means?"
Of course, he did.
Killing people was not a big deal to him.
"Let me make it simpler for you. The incident in Kosovo happened when he was very young,
just over 20 years old. And at that age, he killed so many people that he was called the creator
of the European version of the Killing Fields."
Jeong Taeui had also heard about that. The story of Christoph standing alone among the
mountains of corpses was often mentioned by others during meals as a side dish.
"Rick. That's not it."
Jeong Taeui spoke up.
What Ilay was saying was entirely different from his own thoughts.
"This world still has places where killing people isn't considered illegal. Killing in such
special environments means no one is charged, no matter how many people are killed, unless
it involves crimes against humanity. Whether others think he's a murderer or not, no one can
comment on it. Whether it's Kosovo or another battlefield where he was called to as a
mercenary, I have no opinion on that, and I don't think that way either."
"It also means he could be held accountable for the murders happening here, right?" (Because
Tarten isn't a 'special place' like Kosovo or other battlefields.)Ilay immediately replied. Jeong Taeui fell silent. Ilay's cold smile gleamed in his eyes.
"You don't want to question Christoph's responsibility in this situation, but your mind thinks
otherwise, doesn't it? It's a headache, right? You want to see everything positively, but reality
and your values don't allow it. Like when your brother touched a weapon."
Ilay's voice lowered as he spoke the last words. He leaned in close, whispering softly into
Jeong Taeui's ear, causing his entire body to tense up. For a moment, Jeong Taeui faltered
upon hearing those words.
Ilay laughed loudly, then straightened up and put his hands in his pockets. He continued with
a mocking smile.
"The problem here is simple. It's not as complicated as you think. Christoph's normal life and
other people's normal lives are entirely different. If things here continue to get more
complicated and worse, it means he's not in the place he should be. Don't you think so?"
"... ―."
"I... maybe I know more about him than you do—so I can tell you the exact answer. This is
not a place where Christoph can stay."
Jeong Taeui looked at Ilay in silence, unable to say anything. He couldn't think of anything to
say or what he wanted to say. All he could do was listen to Ilay's irrefutable words.
Ilay took a step forward. With the children gathered around, he walked over to Richard, who
was assembling the disassembled gun and showing it to the kids. Jeong Taeui stood there in
silence for a moment before following him.
The children were closely watching Richard's fingers. As he attached the spring to the gun
and adjusted the sights, the kids watched intently, not wanting to miss a single detail.
The disassembled gun was slowly put back together, then taken apart again. Richard asked
the children, "Can you do it?" The children nodded vaguely, saying, "I think I can do it."
Hearing this, Richard disassembled and reassembled the gun again, this time a bit faster.
Then all the children nodded without exception.
They were smart kids.
Just seeing a real gun for the first time, they understood where the unfamiliar parts went and
how they were structured.
Among these smart children, only one would be chosen. It would be about 20 years later.
"Hm... What's this, practicing with toys?"
Ilay muttered as he looked at the gun parts from behind the children fumbling with the
components they were given. Richard, observing the busy fingers of the children, looked up."It's not a toy. It's made exactly like the real thing. Although its power is significantly
reduced, its structure and size are identical to the real thing." - Richard
"There's no ammunition anyway, so what's the difference from the real thing?"
Ilay sneered and glanced at the children.
"Five.... It seems this time no one has given up from the start."
Ilay seemed to evaluate the numbers for a moment, then suddenly asked. Richard, observing
the children, turned and looked curiously at Ilay. After a second, he seemed to understand
what Ilay was saying and replied - "Oh."
"No. All five of these children have accepted the challenge."
"Back then, someone gave up right from the start."
"Yes. That was Johan. He's very smart, so I don't know why he gave up."
"Because he was smart, he gave up from the beginning."
Richard laughed heartily. "Maybe," he said, nodding and glancing at Ilay with a lingering
smile.
"Why did you suddenly bring that up?"
"We were discussing the importance of recognizing suitable and unsuitable positions one can
take."
"Huh... ?"
This time Richard looked puzzled, as if what Ilay was saying was hard to understand. Then
he looked at Jeong Taeui as if expecting an explanation.
However, Jeong Taeui couldn't answer. He couldn't respond to something he didn't
understand.
"Does giving up the right of succession... have different meanings depending on the
timing?"
Jeong Taeui asked Ilay. Ilay laughed loudly. Richard, curious about what was being discussed
between them, quickly answered on behalf of Ilay.
"Yes. Giving up the right of succession means either giving up being a candidate from the
start or giving up halfway."
"What's the difference?"
"Whether or not one has to bear the responsibility for their choice. That's the difference."Jeong Taeui silently looked at Richard for a while. Then he looked at Ilay and finally at the
children assembling the gun in front of him and said,
"So, giving up the right of succession from the start is fine, but giving up halfway means
paying a reasonable price?"
Richard nodded. Jeong Taeui thought for a moment and then asked again.
"Do the children know that?"
Since all the children were listening to their conversation, he wondered how much they knew
and understood.
Richard smiled and said - "Of course."
"Because these children's lives will always be in a state of threat after that choice, it would be
fairer if they had the right to choose. In the first selection, they are told everything they need
to know. Do they want to participate in the race to inherit Tarten or not? If a child refuses to
participate from the start, everything ends without any problem. That child will not have the
chance to inherit Tarten, and they will not have to pay any price. That child can live a normal,
free life, blending in with others without any disadvantage."
Jeong Taeui looked down at the children.
The nimble ones had almost completed assembling the gun. Only one child was fumbling
with clumsy fingers.
However, in other areas, the nimble ones now could be left behind, and the one lagging might
advance to the forefront.
There couldn't be someone excelling in all areas, so the overall superiority of these children
needed to be determined through competition. The results wouldn't only accumulate in a
short time; the superiority wouldn't just be temporary but would be objectively evaluated
over a long process.
Currently, based on today's lesson alone, it couldn't be determined which child was better or
worse. This was because the child lagging now might develop at an astonishing rate. So, as
they grew up and completed each given task, one outstanding candidate would emerge, one
that everyone – even the children themselves – would have to acknowledge.
At the moment, everyone seemed to consider Richard the most outstanding candidate.
"So, it means if they give up halfway, they will face trouble?"
When Jeong Taeui asked that question, he thought of Christoph. According to what he
remembered, Christoph had said he gave up halfway.
Richard looked at the almost completely assembled gun of the slowest child, then glanced
around the yard. He picked up a spring that had fallen below and handed it to the child. Thechild started crying and began to disassemble the gun again. Richard smiled and gently told
the child to try again slowly. With a smiling face, he calmly said,
"From the first time a child decides to compete until they grow up, they can experience
everything they want with Tarten's full support. They can receive support for everything they
want to learn, write, hear, see, or feel... Whether you believe it or not, providing a perfect
environment for a child costs a lot. It's an amount of money that an ordinary person might not
reach in a lifetime. And all the best can be provided to these children."
Jeong Taeui uttered an - "Ah..." - and quietly waited for Richard to continue.
"Well... But what if, in the middle of everything, a child gives up the race for succession?
All efforts until then become futile. Not only the child's own time and effort but also the time,
effort, and money of those who did their best to provide everything for that child become
meaningless. So, if a child gives up halfway and is punished, it's only fair they face
corresponding penalties."
"...."
Penalty.
The child must repay what they received.
As Christoph said, what a child receives from others is time, effort, and money.
Among these, the child can only repay one.
"Tarten will reclaim the investments made in that child?"
"Exactly, they must repay that amount."
"But I heard that's an amount that an ordinary person might not earn in a lifetime."
"Yes, in the usual way."
When Jeong Taeui asked, Richard calmly nodded. Jeong Taeui looked at him with a puzzled
expression.
"But there are ways other than the usual to earn money. Whatever. All the costs must be
repaid."
"That's their responsibility."
Simply and clearly. The words ended so succinctly that Jeong Taeui was momentarily
speechless.
"Similarly, time and effort must also be repaid as part of the cost to receive initial support...
In simple terms, all the child has to do is repay the entire amount."Jeong Taeui's throat felt tight. 'What kind of wretched family is this?' A feeling of anger
welled up from deep inside.