The Returner Chapter 232

(TL: Unedited)
Going overboard?
Who went overboard where?
Were they trying to say that Kwok Myung-Hoon should laugh and let it slide even when someone bite his legs and tear off his flesh?
"I mean, he’s an ability user, so he can solve this trouble-free. Was there a reason for him to go that far here?"
"He probably wanted to hit that man."
"Seriously, these b*stards called the ability users."
Kwok Myung-Hoon lowered his head and looked at the drunkard that bit his leg.
While looking at the moaning drunkard bleeding from the back of his head as if suffering from a grievous wound, he also wondered whether he was too heavy-handed just now or not. However, the drunkard wouldn’t have let go of his leg if he didn’t go that far.
Why were these people not understanding that part?
"For the time being, call the cops. An ability user did beat up a regular civilian, after all."
"But, wasn’t that self defence?"
"No, it was excessive. There was no reason to go that far, you know."
Kwok Myung-Hoon’s face hardened even further.
They saw what happened, yet this was their reaction. Of course he knew that the unfavourable impression of the ability users was the main culprit for the crowd’s poor reaction towards him. Even then, he found it hard to swallow his sorrow.
Just what wrong did the ability users do to these people?
Sure, there had been criminals that used their powers during their crime spree, but the percentage of criminals within ability users were incomparably lower than that of the regular people.
Well, it wasn’t all that easy for the ability users to commit a crime anyway, since they would be handed heavier sentences if they were convicted of the same crime as regular criminals - not to mention, they were strictly being managed and overseen by the government, too.
"Whew…." (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
Kwok Myung-Hoon shook his head.
In any case, it was an undeniable fact that trouble had indeed occurred today, and he wouldn’t be able to escape from the ensuing punishment. It was incredibly offensive and he thought it was rather unfair, but… What could he do?
That was the law, and that was the regulation.
"Bloody hell." (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
Kwok Myung-Hoon spat out a helpless sigh and scanned his surroundings.
He had to stay here and wait for the cops to show up, but the glares being shot in his direction looked somewhat ominous. Indeed, their hostility-filled eyes were making him feel quite uncomfortable.
Was there a reason why he should be subjected to such eyes, anyway?
Kwok Myung-Hoon gritted his teeth.
This was his reward for working his a*s off for this country.
All the hard work he and his colleagues put in wasn’t even recognised, but there were plenty of as*holes forming at the mouths and pouncing on them just because of the perceived small favour the government showed towards them.
And Kwok Myung-Hoon had been risking his life to protect these b*stards until now. That realisation left him so hollow and bitter that he could barely hold himself back.
‘To protect these worthless people, I….’ (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
What was the point of protecting them in the first place? They didn’t even look at him as a fellow human being, anyway.
If he wasn’t an ability user today, then they would’ve extended helping hands by now. A few might have even said some consoling words such as, you must be really angry that a crazy person bit you, etc., etc.
However, just because he was an ability user, they were looking at him with such hostile eyes, even though he was clearly the victim here.
Just because of that one single reason.
Kwok Myung-Hoon heard the sounds of the distant sirens and covered his face.
He wasn’t scared of the punishment. No, he was fearful of the reality.
Even if he was punished, how long would that last? He’d probably be put under probation for a week or so, no more than that. He could accept punishment like that without a problem.
What he was really fearful of was the fact that, after his punishment was over, he had to return to fight against monsters in order to protect these people.
Kwok Myung-Hoon wasn’t confident of doing that anymore.
If he hadn’t know, fine. But now that he knew the reality, he wasn’t sure if he could risk his life for these people’s sake.
"What happened here?" (Cop 1)
Uniformed police officers answering the dispatch call arrived and entered among the crowd. These folks usually would take ages before showing up, but today, they came really fast for some reason.
"It’s an act of violence. That guy is an ability user."
The cops surveyed the situation for a bit before staring at Kwok Myung-Hoon with troubled expression on their faces.
Arresting an ability user was going to be a migraine-inducing affair for these guys, actually. Seriously now, it wasn’t for nothing that there was a special unit within the National Police dedicated to handling ability users.
However, they had been dispatched to this place already so they simply couldn’t back out at this point.
One of the cops began checking out the status of the drunkard on the ground, while the other cautiously approached Kwok Myung-Hoon and addressed him.
"It seems that you must accompany us to the station." (Cop 1)
"Alright." (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
Kwok Myung-Hoon nodded his head. Although he wasn’t happy about this situation, he thought this was for the best. If he went with these cops, at least he’d not have to look at this despicable bunch of idiots anymore.
‘I made a mistake, coming out to shop like this.’ (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
He’d never be able to forget today’s events for the rest of his life. Kwok Myung-Hoon forcibly suppressed this thick, pervading sense of doubt tormenting him and asked the cop.
"Where should I go?" (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
The cop carried this troubled expression while looking at him, but then, pulled out a pair of handcuffs. Kwok Myung-Hoon’s eyes grew even colder than before.
"You want me to put that on? But, I didn’t resist you in any shape or form, did I?" (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
"I ask you for your cooperation, sir." (Cop 1)
"….I don’t think this is the right situation for that." (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
Not only was this a simple physical scuffle, he was not an instigator but a victim in this case. However, this cop didn’t even bother to listen to the facts and tried to slap these cuffs on him, instead.
Veins bulged on Kwok Myung-Hoon’s forehead.
"I’m the victim here, so why should I put those on?" (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
The cop couldn’t even form a proper answer to his angry question.
"Please, sir. I ask you for your cooperation." (Cop 1)
‘You aren’t even a parrot, so why….’ (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
Just as he was about to lodge another complaint, a rather sharp criticising voice flew in his direction.
"He said put the d*mn thing on, so why is he yapping on so much?"
With dismayed eyes, Kwok Myung-Hoon searched for the source of that voice. However, now that the dam had burst, there was no longer the need to search for the source anymore.
Because, criticising voices began pouring out from all corners now.
"You could’ve resolved this quietly and easily, yet why did you hurt an older man who’s clearly drunk to that extent?!"
"He must’ve done that deliberately, you know?"
"Look at his eyes, will ya? He might even kill someone at this rate."
Kwok Myung-Hoon formed a miserable face while closing his eyes.
Even if the crowd became emboldened by the arrival of the cops, their current behaviour simply couldn’t be explained away. This was already far beyond the level of arguing who was right or wrong anymore.
No, these people were…. not right in the head.
‘How did things come to be like this?’ (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
It hadn’t been that long that ability users were treated like heroes when one turned on the TV to watch the news. Not only that, ability users were indeed objects of envy and respect in everyday lives, too.
But now, these people were reacting as if they were looking at a disgusting alien or something. He just couldn’t understand how could the public’s perception change so much within a span of a few months like this.
‘Getting out of here as soon as possible is for the best.’ (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
Forget about handcuffs, if he stayed here for a minute longer, he thought that he’d lose his mind and go crazy. Kwok Myung-Hoon extended his hands to the cop, his expression hard and stiff.
Slap those cuffs or whatever. Hurry.
I don’t want to see these people and their despicable mugs anymore. (Kwok Myung-Hoon’s inner monologue)
Maybe the cop understood how Kwok Myung-Hoon felt, he quickly placed the cuffs on the offered wrist.
Click.
Meanwhile, the other cop supported the drunkard on the floor and helped him up to stand.
"Shouldn’t we take him to a hospital first? He doesn’t look so good." (Cop 1)
"I think he had too much to drink and that’s why he looks like this. He’s wounded externally, but it’s not a big one." (Cop 2)
"Even then, we should let a doctor take a look at him first. We can always write up the testimonies later." (Cop 1)
"Should we do that?" (Cop 2)
Kwok Myung-Hoon then followed the cop’s guidance and walked towards the patrol car.
What a terrible day this was turning out to be. He didn’t do anything wrong, yet it felt like he’d been made into a villain somehow.
"Please, step aside. Move aside, everyone." (Cop 1)
The cops tried to create a path out of the crowd. Kwok Myung-Hoon walked on that path they had created.
Unfortunately, that was his mistake. He felt something get in the way of his legs, lost his balance, and tripped forward.
"D*mn!" (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
"What are you doing, sir?" (Cop 1)
Kwok Myung-Hoon gritted his teeth and looked around him. Not one tried to meet his glare. However, one of these people definitely tripped his legs, without a doubt.
"I asked you what you’re doing, sir." (Cop 1)
The cop didn’t even realise what happened, yet he kept harassing Kwok Myung-Hoon, instead. A hollow, bitter sigh escaped from his lips.
"Please, stand up. If you keep insisting on resisting us, then things will get troublesome later." (Cop 1)
Resisting?
Kwok Myung-Hoon’s glared sharpened up a notch. Just why was this dumb cop thinking that he was resisting anything? What more should he do to make them say that he was being cooperative?
Should he run towards the police station and slide into the holding cell by himself?
The cop flinched greatly when Kwok Myung-Hoon glared at him with a deeply unhappy eyes, and hurriedly coughed to clear his throat.
"Keu-heum. Please, stand back up. Let us continue in the police station." (Cop 1)
"God d*mn it." (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
He stood back up while grunting out in anger. It happened, then.
"Stop resisting against public authority!"
"Look at him glaring at the police officers."
"I’m telling you, those b*stards don’t give a d*mn about cops. You see now?"
Kwok Myung-Hoon looked around him in a fluster. Why were they insisting on being like this when he hadn’t done anything wrong here?
His anger finally boiled over.
"Shut up, you f*ckers!!" (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
If one could call it a mistake, then it surely was.
He knew logically that he shouldn’t get angry under the circumstances. There really was no need to get carried away by his emotions and sink to the same level as these stupid idiots criticising him like this.
The thing was, though, things he could’ve let it slide in any other circumstances got on his nerves for some reason today.
"F*ckers?"
The overall atmosphere rapidly became chilly rather quickly.
Kwok Myung-Hoon’s anger kept growing. He was angry that he fought for the sake of these despicable b*stards, and that anger grew into fury.
Just why did he sacrifice so much of himself until now? For what purpose?
Clang!
It was right at that moment something fell in front of his feet. A half-empty soda can bounced off on the ground and soaked his pants with its contents.
"………"
Kwok Myung-Hoon wordlessly looked down on the can.
So, this was his reward?
How many ability users were sacrificed to protect people like these so far?
Yet, the only reward was this sort of treatment?
Kwok Myung-Hoon gritted his teeth.
"Tax thieves!"
"F*ck me. B*stards like him should just get ripped to shreds by monsters."
"As*holes trying to pretend like humans when they aren’t even one."
Kwok Myung-Hoon’s eyes became bloodshot in an instant.
"What did I do wrong, ah?!" (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
He knew he shouldn’t fight, but…
"What the hell? He’s trying to fight civilians now?! Go and fight monsters, instead!"
"B*stards who are good for nothing besides that, stop showing up in places where normal people hang out, will ya?!"
The atmosphere was boiling over in a bizarre situation.
Normally, these people wouldn’t have openly said those things in front of an ability user. But now, the situation had devolved into something so twisted that they were unhesitantly pouring out those insults and jeerings.
Perhaps, their cautious nature had been forgotten due to the fact that he was handcuffed and the police was in charge of the situation.
"You…." (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
"What you looking at, you criminal scum!!"
"You don’t do anything important but waste our tax money, anyway! It’s us that pays your salary, you b*stard!"
"I’m telling you, the special laws should be tightened even more. How can I keep carrying on when it’s so scary like this?"
Kwok Myung-Hoon gradually began losing his reasoning altogether. He felt wronged. So wronged that he couldn’t hold it back.
"You sons of b*tches!! What did we ever do to you?! Is risking our necks for you a d*mn crime?!" (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
Too bad, it’d been better for him not to hear the replies coming in his way next. Because, rather than rational, reasonable verbal replies, all sorts of missiles were thrown at his feet, such as cigarette packs and other trash.
"…….."
"Ah, ah. Everyone, stop throwing things. You shouldn’t do that, people." (Cop 2)
The cops only pretended to stop the incited crowd.
Jeerings and booing and things kept flying in Kwok Myung-Hoon’s direction. Something that logic couldn’t explain away was happening right now.
Kwok Myung-Hoon chuckled bitterly next.
These as*holes, they were really putting on a crazy show.
"Fine. You all despise me, is that it?" (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
Crackle.
Suddenly, sparks of electricity buzzed ominously in front of Kwok Myung-Hoon’s forehead.
"In that case, let me give you a proper reason to really despise me, you sons of b*tches!!" (Kwok Myung-Hoon)
His eyes grew even more murderous and electricity crackled all around him.
Fin.
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