Chapter 328
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Alec sniffed, and it was the first almost-haughty sign that the System had shown to Sekai, who had no idea there was this side of the System at all.
Alec was mildly appeased at the petty revenge he got by scaring Sekai – it was the main reason why he'd taken extra care so that the Main Character didn't realize he was coming, after all.
Sekai rubbed his aching head, having accidentally smacked himself when he saw Alec suddenly appear. He'd just been shocked out of his wits, and his heart was beating all too fast in his chest.
Why was his own arm so fucking hard? The Sin made himself speechless at times. Wasn't this what one meant when they talked about hurting themselves?
"The fuck?" Sekai swore, eyeing Alec, having sat up. "What are you doing here?"
Alec raised a brow and it was so snooty that Sekai made a disgruntled sound at the back of his throat. "Well, I've made a breakthrough regarding your brand. If you're fine with me not finding you in the wake of this news, that's fine too."
Sekai's mouth, that had been opened to make a retort at his first sentence, dropped open. "What?" he squeaked, his voice cracking.
Alec's lips twitched, and his eyes showed some mirth.
"Ah, shut up!" Sekai snapped, his face a little pink, before returning back to the topic. "You really managed to crack it?"
Sekai sounded more excited and much more alive than he had in ages, and he didn't even care.
He felt like he was back to being an innocent schoolboy that hadn't seen the multitude of harsh attitudes and cold, unfeeling sides of the world.
He was almost giddy with elation. It was a whole different type of drug called happiness and hope.
If he'd thought that the previous contentment he'd felt when lying on the grass without any worries was strong, what he was feeling now was a heady mix of hope, apprehension and glee that blew everything he felt earlier out of the water.
It was a cocktail of conflicting emotions, but it was a heck of a lot stronger than the almost muted feeling of contentment.
Emotions burned through his veins, and there was an almost desperate clawing at the back of his throat.
He didn't even blink, wondering if he'd heard wrong.
Alec's eyes softened the minutest amount, which Sekai selectively ignored for the time being. "I did. At least, that's what I believe. Of course, it's probably not safe to just use it on you, but-"
Sekai cut him off. "I don't care. I want it done, and it want it gone. Now!"
Alec shot him a withering look. "If you'd allowed me to continue, I'd have said that I know you wouldn't accept waiting any longer, which was why I took the liberty to test it out on a few animals and monsters that I came across while searching for you."
Sekai was all too happy to react as he normally did to Alec's tone – which was to challenge him to a fight – but it didn't even matter that Alec had tested it on other animals and monsters instead of it being a human.
He wouldn't with that damn brand on anyone else – wait. That was a lie. He still hated that bitch Xin Yi enough to wish it on her, but not on anyone else!
Alec let out a sigh. He'd much rather that Sekai would let him catch a criminal or whatnot to use the damn brand on them to see whether or not his removal of the brand would cause any damage.
He'd already spent so much time studying the runes that made up Sekai's brand that Alec was certain he'd be able to paint it in his sleep. Similarly, he removal of the brand was also just as familiar to him.
As much as he'd tested it extensively, a human's brain compared to that of a monster or animal was completely different, and there was always a chance that something would go wrong.
However, Alec's gut feeling was urging him on, as if this would be helpful to both him and Sekai.
In what way, he didn't know, but he wasn't one to ignore his gut instinct.
If it wasn't for that, Alec wouldn't have allowed Sekai to rush him no matter what. Regardless of whether or not he'd already tested it on animals and monsters.
Alec let out a huff, kicking Sekai's feet out from under him again.
Comically, the Sin didn't make any moves to dodge it whatsoever, tumbling to the ground and landing on his back with a comically stunned expression on his face.
Alec cracked a smile at the sheer dazed and almost betrayed expression that was painted on Sekai's face.
"Flip over, would you?"
Sekai silently obeyed, but not without grumbling in his heart.
He was *not* pouting, no matter what the System said.
-Author only posts on w.e.b.n.o.v.e.l.-
Sekai stared at the sky with a blank expression on his face, feeling almost like he was floating in the clouds.
His mind was even clearer than just a few hours ago.
He already thought that it was clear then, but compared to now, he might as well have been looking out through muddied glass.
The difference in his clarity of thinking now was night and day.
Unfortunately, he seemed to have retained the side-effects of his unstable temper, and his recklessness, but that wasn't anything bad if he had to trade it off with being able to get the brand off him.
Sekai almost felt like crying out of sheer gratefulness, and he was only holding it together because he didn't want to shame himself in front of his benefactor.
Though Alec had been the damn System that he'd hated since he sent him down here without so much of a warning, he now knew that Alec hadn't really cursed *cursed* him, if that made sense.
He'd just been commenting on his personality.
Sekai's face started burning when he thought about that again.
To think that he'd been putting his anger in the wrong place for more than a decade.
It was a whole different level of fucked up that apparently the brand had been consciously erasing things from his memory that would leave him less angry.
And that… well. That made him *pissed*.
Alec had just tested again whether or not the brand was still affecting him, and the System gave him a clean pass, his face pleased.
Sekai's impression of the System had been changing slowly after the time they spent together, but it was only now that he realized that the brand had been wreaking havoc on his ability to connect with other people.
And wasn't that a damning realization?
To think that he probably wouldn't have had such a hated relationship with that bitch Xin Yi if it wasn't for the brand that was affecting his mind.
Sekai sat up. He was more than ready to spill all the beans about the damn company to his benefactor.
The Main Character realized that Alec had been patiently waiting for him to get his bearings, and Sekai was once again hit with the realization that the other man wasn't as impatient nor as brash as he was.
He felt embarrassed. Hindsight was a *bitch*.
He was hit with the crystal clear memory of the two of them shouting at each other, which was something that he remembered even before this, but he also now remembered that the System had at least tried to reason with him before he went off the rails.
Sekai shoved away the urge to do something maidenly like *blush*.
Even if he was embarrassed or contrite, he sure as fuck wouldn't be showing it so openly!
Sekai sniffed but felt grateful for the reprieve he got from Alec.
As much as he hated how all-knowing Alec seemed right now, he had a feeling that the System already knew just how grateful he felt.
But that was beside the point.
Right now, he was going to get and plot his sweet revenge on the fucking company that he'd been forced into.
Sekai opened his mouth, really to spill all the company's dirty secrets.
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Alec sniffed, and it was the first almost-haughty sign that the System had shown to Sekai, who had no idea there was this side of the System at all.
Alec was mildly appeased at the petty revenge he got by scaring Sekai – it was the main reason why he'd taken extra care so that the Main Character didn't realize he was coming, after all.
Sekai rubbed his aching head, having accidentally smacked himself when he saw Alec suddenly appear. He'd just been shocked out of his wits, and his heart was beating all too fast in his chest.
Why was his own arm so fucking hard? The Sin made himself speechless at times. Wasn't this what one meant when they talked about hurting themselves?
"The fuck?" Sekai swore, eyeing Alec, having sat up. "What are you doing here?"
Alec raised a brow and it was so snooty that Sekai made a disgruntled sound at the back of his throat. "Well, I've made a breakthrough regarding your brand. If you're fine with me not finding you in the wake of this news, that's fine too."
Sekai's mouth, that had been opened to make a retort at his first sentence, dropped open. "What?" he squeaked, his voice cracking.
Alec's lips twitched, and his eyes showed some mirth.
"Ah, shut up!" Sekai snapped, his face a little pink, before returning back to the topic. "You really managed to crack it?"
Sekai sounded more excited and much more alive than he had in ages, and he didn't even care.
He felt like he was back to being an innocent schoolboy that hadn't seen the multitude of harsh attitudes and cold, unfeeling sides of the world.
He was almost giddy with elation. It was a whole different type of drug called happiness and hope.
If he'd thought that the previous contentment he'd felt when lying on the grass without any worries was strong, what he was feeling now was a heady mix of hope, apprehension and glee that blew everything he felt earlier out of the water.
It was a cocktail of conflicting emotions, but it was a heck of a lot stronger than the almost muted feeling of contentment.
Emotions burned through his veins, and there was an almost desperate clawing at the back of his throat.
He didn't even blink, wondering if he'd heard wrong.
Alec's eyes softened the minutest amount, which Sekai selectively ignored for the time being. "I did. At least, that's what I believe. Of course, it's probably not safe to just use it on you, but-"
Sekai cut him off. "I don't care. I want it done, and it want it gone. Now!"
Alec shot him a withering look. "If you'd allowed me to continue, I'd have said that I know you wouldn't accept waiting any longer, which was why I took the liberty to test it out on a few animals and monsters that I came across while searching for you."
Sekai was all too happy to react as he normally did to Alec's tone – which was to challenge him to a fight – but it didn't even matter that Alec had tested it on other animals and monsters instead of it being a human.
He wouldn't with that damn brand on anyone else – wait. That was a lie. He still hated that bitch Xin Yi enough to wish it on her, but not on anyone else!
Alec let out a sigh. He'd much rather that Sekai would let him catch a criminal or whatnot to use the damn brand on them to see whether or not his removal of the brand would cause any damage.
He'd already spent so much time studying the runes that made up Sekai's brand that Alec was certain he'd be able to paint it in his sleep. Similarly, he removal of the brand was also just as familiar to him.
As much as he'd tested it extensively, a human's brain compared to that of a monster or animal was completely different, and there was always a chance that something would go wrong.
However, Alec's gut feeling was urging him on, as if this would be helpful to both him and Sekai.
In what way, he didn't know, but he wasn't one to ignore his gut instinct.
If it wasn't for that, Alec wouldn't have allowed Sekai to rush him no matter what. Regardless of whether or not he'd already tested it on animals and monsters.
Alec let out a huff, kicking Sekai's feet out from under him again.
Comically, the Sin didn't make any moves to dodge it whatsoever, tumbling to the ground and landing on his back with a comically stunned expression on his face.
Alec cracked a smile at the sheer dazed and almost betrayed expression that was painted on Sekai's face.
"Flip over, would you?"
Sekai silently obeyed, but not without grumbling in his heart.
He was *not* pouting, no matter what the System said.
-Author only posts on w.e.b.n.o.v.e.l.-
Sekai stared at the sky with a blank expression on his face, feeling almost like he was floating in the clouds.
His mind was even clearer than just a few hours ago.
He already thought that it was clear then, but compared to now, he might as well have been looking out through muddied glass.
The difference in his clarity of thinking now was night and day.
Unfortunately, he seemed to have retained the side-effects of his unstable temper, and his recklessness, but that wasn't anything bad if he had to trade it off with being able to get the brand off him.
Sekai almost felt like crying out of sheer gratefulness, and he was only holding it together because he didn't want to shame himself in front of his benefactor.
Though Alec had been the damn System that he'd hated since he sent him down here without so much of a warning, he now knew that Alec hadn't really cursed *cursed* him, if that made sense.
He'd just been commenting on his personality.
Sekai's face started burning when he thought about that again.
To think that he'd been putting his anger in the wrong place for more than a decade.
It was a whole different level of fucked up that apparently the brand had been consciously erasing things from his memory that would leave him less angry.
And that… well. That made him *pissed*.
Alec had just tested again whether or not the brand was still affecting him, and the System gave him a clean pass, his face pleased.
Sekai's impression of the System had been changing slowly after the time they spent together, but it was only now that he realized that the brand had been wreaking havoc on his ability to connect with other people.
And wasn't that a damning realization?
To think that he probably wouldn't have had such a hated relationship with that bitch Xin Yi if it wasn't for the brand that was affecting his mind.
Sekai sat up. He was more than ready to spill all the beans about the damn company to his benefactor.
The Main Character realized that Alec had been patiently waiting for him to get his bearings, and Sekai was once again hit with the realization that the other man wasn't as impatient nor as brash as he was.
He felt embarrassed. Hindsight was a *bitch*.
He was hit with the crystal clear memory of the two of them shouting at each other, which was something that he remembered even before this, but he also now remembered that the System had at least tried to reason with him before he went off the rails.
Sekai shoved away the urge to do something maidenly like *blush*.
Even if he was embarrassed or contrite, he sure as fuck wouldn't be showing it so openly!
Sekai sniffed but felt grateful for the reprieve he got from Alec.
As much as he hated how all-knowing Alec seemed right now, he had a feeling that the System already knew just how grateful he felt.
But that was beside the point.
Right now, he was going to get and plot his sweet revenge on the fucking company that he'd been forced into.
Sekai opened his mouth, really to spill all the company's dirty secrets.
Alec sniffed, and it was the first almost-haughty sign that the System had shown to Sekai, who had no idea there was this side of the System at all.Alec was mildly appeased at the petty revenge he got by scaring Sekai it was the main reason why he'd taken extra care so that the Main Character didn't realize he was coming, after all.Sekai rubbed his aching head, having accidentally smacked himself when he saw Alec suddenly appear. He'd just been shocked out of his wits, and his heart was beating all too fast in his chest.Why was his own arm so fucking hard? The Sin made himself speechless at times. Wasn't this what one meant when they talked about hurting themselves?"The fuck?" Sekai swore, eyeing Alec, having sat up. "What are you doing here?"Alec raised a brow and it was so snooty that Sekai made a disgruntled sound at the back of his throat. "Well, I've made a breakthrough regarding your brand. If you're fine with me not finding you in the wake of this news, that's fine too."Sekai's mouth, that had been opened to make a retort at his first sentence, dropped open. "What?" he squeaked, his voice cracking.Alec's lips twitched, and his eyes showed some mirth."Ah, shut up!" Sekai snapped, his face a little pink, before returning back to the topic. "You really managed to crack it?"Sekai sounded more excited and much more alive than he had in ages, and he didn't even care.He felt like he was back to being an innocent schoolboy that hadn't seen the multitude of harsh attitudes and cold, unfeeling sides of the world.He was almost giddy with elation. It was a whole different type of drug called happiness and hope.If he'd thought that the previous contentment he'd felt when lying on the grass without any worries was strong, what he was feeling now was a heady mix of hope, apprehension and glee that blew everything he felt earlier out of the water.It was a cocktail of conflicting emotions, but it was a heck of a lot stronger than the almost muted feeling of contentment.Emotions burned through his veins, and there was an almost desperate clawing at the back of his throat.He didn't even blink, wondering if he'd heard wrong.Alec's eyes softened the minutest amount, which Sekai selectively ignored for the time being. "I did. At least, that's what I believe. Of course, it's probably not safe to just use it on you, but-"Sekai cut him off. "I don't care. I want it done, and it want it gone. Now!"Alec shot him a withering look. "If you'd allowed me to continue, I'd have said that I know you wouldn't accept waiting any longer, which was why I took the liberty to test it out on a few animals and monsters that I came across while searching for you."Sekai was all too happy to react as he normally did to Alec's tone which was to challenge him to a fight but it didn't even matter that Alec had tested it on other animals and monsters instead of it being a human.He wouldn't with that damn brand on anyone else wait. That was a lie. He still hated that bitch Xin Yi enough to wish it on her, but not on anyone else!Alec let out a sigh. He'd much rather that Sekai would let him catch a criminal or whatnot to use the damn brand on them to see whether or not his removal of the brand would cause any damage.He'd already spent so much time studying the runes that made up Sekai's brand that Alec was certain he'd be able to paint it in his sleep. Similarly, he removal of the brand was also just as familiar to him.As much as he'd tested it extensively, a human's brain compared to that of a monster or animal was completely different, and there was always a chance that something would go wrong.However, Alec's gut feeling was urging him on, as if this would be helpful to both him and Sekai.In what way, he didn't know, but he wasn't one to ignore his gut instinct.If it wasn't for that, Alec wouldn't have allowed Sekai to rush him no matter what. Regardless of whether or not he'd already tested it on animals and monsters.Alec let out a huff, kicking Sekai's feet out from under him again.Comically, the Sin didn't make any moves to dodge it whatsoever, tumbling to the ground and landing on his back with a comically stunned expression on his face.Alec cracked a smile at the sheer dazed and almost betrayed expression that was painted on Sekai's face."Flip over, would you?"Sekai silently obeyed, but not without grumbling in his heart.He was *not* pouting, no matter what the System said.-Author only posts on w.e.b.n.o.v.e.l.-Sekai stared at the sky with a blank expression on his face, feeling almost like he was floating in the clouds.His mind was even clearer than just a few hours ago.He already thought that it was clear then, but compared to now, he might as well have been looking out through muddied glass.The difference in his clarity of thinking now was night and day.Unfortunately, he seemed to have retained the side-effects of his unstable temper, and his recklessness, but that wasn't anything bad if he had to trade it off with being able to get the brand off him.Sekai almost felt like crying out of sheer gratefulness, and he was only holding it together because he didn't want to shame himself in front of his benefactor.Though Alec had been the damn System that he'd hated since he sent him down here without so much of a warning, he now knew that Alec hadn't really cursed *cursed* him, if that made sense.He'd just been commenting on his personality.Sekai's face started burning when he thought about that again.To think that he'd been putting his anger in the wrong place for more than a decade.It was a whole different level of fucked up that apparently the brand had been consciously erasing things from his memory that would leave him less angry.And that well. That made him *pissed*.Alec had just tested again whether or not the brand was still affecting him, and the System gave him a clean pass, his face pleased.Sekai's impression of the System had been changing slowly after the time they spent together, but it was only now that he realized that the brand had been wreaking havoc on his ability to connect with other people.And wasn't that a damning realization?To think that he probably wouldn't have had such a hated relationship with that bitch Xin Yi if it wasn't for the brand that was affecting his mind.Sekai sat up. He was more than ready to spill all the beans about the damn company to his benefactor.The Main Character realized that Alec had been patiently waiting for him to get his bearings, and Sekai was once again hit with the realization that the other man wasn't as impatient nor as brash as he was.He felt embarrassed. Hindsight was a *bitch*.He was hit with the crystal clear memory of the two of them shouting at each other, which was something that he remembered even before this, but he also now remembered that the System had at least tried to reason with him before he went off the rails.Sekai shoved away the urge to do something maidenly like *blush*.Even if he was embarrassed or contrite, he sure as fuck wouldn't be showing it so openly!Sekai sniffed but felt grateful for the reprieve he got from Alec.As much as he hated how all-knowing Alec seemed right now, he had a feeling that the System already knew just how grateful he felt.But that was beside the point.Right now, he was going to get and plot his sweet revenge on the fucking company that he'd been forced into.Sekai opened his mouth, really to spill all the company's dirty secrets.
