Do you know what shame is? (4)

The red earth piled high. With the last scoop of dirt covering the grave mound, the elder, now covered in dirt, wiped away the tears welling in his eyes with his earth-stained hands.

“Where does it say that a child should go before their father… This cruel fate.”

Elder Hyeong knew too. It wasn’t Hyeong Wook’s fault. But he couldn’t bear to say it aloud.

To witness his child endure such brutal torture and eventually succumb to death was unbearable.

It wasn’t out of disregard for his son’s remaining days. Was a few remaining breaths more precious than the life of a child in the prime of his years?

If the elder couldn’t contain his grief and lashed out at the evildoers, the consequences would have been dire. Not only for him but for the villagers, his daughter-in-law, and his young grandchildren, all of whom would have suffered the same fate as Hyeong Wook.

This is why those without power eventually have to turn their heads. Even though the commoners have eyes, they cannot see, and though they have mouths, they cannot speak.

“I know… That’s right, I…”

Elder Hyeong couldn’t continue his words, only sobbing helplessly. As the villagers approached him, offering words of consolation.

“Village chief… Hyeong Wook left like a true man.”

“He won’t have any regrets.”

But those words provided little solace. Instead, they seemed to exacerbate the elder’s grief even further.

He erupted, spitting out saliva as he shouted.

“What’s the meaning of that, huh? What! When death ends everything! Honor, grace… accepting such empty notions led to this, didn’t it!”

The elder slammed his thigh repeatedly. His eyes were bloodshot, and words of resentment poured incessantly from his mouth.

“Live kindly? Who doesn’t know that’s the right thing to do? We’re just turning a blind eye because we know living kindly leads to this! Are we a lot without conscience or shame?! You scoundrel! The worst scoundrel in the world!”

The cries of a grieving wife and orphaned children echoed continuously.

“Righteous masters, esteemed warriors! Where were those who were passing by and claimed they’d help? And then? And then what changed? Where were they when we were in this mess!”

Silence fell over everyone.

“That’s why we should’ve turned a blind eye… I kept saying not to go too far, but he wouldn’t listen…”

Elder Hyeong collapsed as if crumbling, wailing inconsolably. Everyone watched the scene, unable to untangle their complicated emotions.

It’s undeniable that they escaped the threat of death thanks to Hwasan’s people. But those who tried to repay that kindness ended up in a worse situation, buried under the earth, facing a fate more perilous than death itself.

What was the right thing to do?

“Still, isn’t it true that we owe our lives to them, at least?”

“How can you be so sure? Even if they hadn’t helped, things might have turned out fine by chance!”

“What are you saying? To those who helped us with good intentions…”

“Good intentions? Then why are we in this mess? The village chief is right. While we were trembling surrounded by those evil bastards, what were they doing? They just ran off to save their own skins!”

Surrounded the burial mound, voices rose in discord.

Although it is not something they should show in front of a deceased person, their emotions were still inflamed by yesterday’s events.

“If they weren’t going to take responsibility to the end, they shouldn’t have offered help in the first place!”

“What good does a little help do? Aren’t those who didn’t even offer help just as guilty?”

“And because of them, we’re in this mess? We shouldn’t have relied on false hope! If Hyeong Wook didn’t know where they went, he wouldn’t have gone through so much!”

At that moment, the elder, who had been lost in thought, turned his bloodshot eyes to the crowd.

“And who’s to blame for that?”

“…Village chief?”

“If everyone had just kept their mouths shut, everything would have blown over without a fuss! But in the midst of it all, who was the one who sold out Hyeong Wook?”

Elder Hyeong’s contorted face was now gruesome to behold.

He saw it clearly, heard it clearly. The villagers, whom he had trusted as family, betraying his son.

If only they had kept their mouths shut, Hyeong Wook might not have died. Or at least, he wouldn’t have died so miserably, consumed by agony.

Anger surged within him at the sight of those who had pushed his precious son into suffering, now shamelessly brushing aside their involvement as if it never happened.

“How could you do such a thing, how! How well my son treated you, how much he cared for you! Wasn’t it my son who begged to spare your lives even as he faced the blade? Yet, how… how could you…”

The elder screamed as if his throat was being torn apart.

“If you have mouths, then speak up! Huh?”

Some bowed their heads deeply, while others quickly averted their gaze as if claiming innocence. The old man sharpened his gaze.

“You damned souls…”

“Why should we be blamed for that?”

But someone couldn’t bear to just listen.

“…What?”

The elder glared. Then, a face filled with dissatisfaction spoke up bluntly.

“Why should we be blamed for that?”

“…You heartless…”

“Yes! I am heartless and shameless. But didn’t you tell us to be that way, village chief?”

The elder’s eyes widened as if he had been struck.

“Me?”

“Isn’t it? Didn’t you tell us ignorant folks to think about how to survive, rather than worrying about gratitude and kindness? You said things like gratitude, righteousness and kindness are for those who have the luxury to think about them. You said that to everyone just two days ago.”

Elder Hyeong looked at the man as if he had received an unexpected punch.

It wasn’t a lie. It was clearly something he had said. But it wasn’t what he had meant.

The elder blinked and said.

“But… Is Hyeong Wook an outsider? Is he someone strong? Shouldn’t people like us help each other…?”

“But shouldn’t we survive first?!”

The man shouted in fury. As his voice grew louder, those around him began to glance nervously at the elder, gesturing for him to stop.

“What’s gotten into you, challenging the Village Chief like this?”

“Can’t you just stop?”

“No! Did I say something wrong?”

But the man wouldn’t be silenced.

“You were ignoring the warriors who saved our lives and tried to figure out a way for us to survive, so am I supposed to risk my life to protect Hyeong Wook as if he’s some great hero? I have to look out for myself! Me!”

“…”

“Weren’t you all thinking the same thing? Wasn’t I the only one who mentioned him knowing where those Just Sects went when Hyeong Wook claimed he did? Weren’t we all on the same page?”

“Hey, you! No matter what, we just buried Hyeong Wook! Was this the right time to argue about…”

“Damn it, don’t act like a saint now! Do you think I didn’t hear you shouting ‘Hyeong Wook’?”

“When did I…”

The man’s throat was pulsing with rage.

“If we had kept quiet, we would all be dead! So, just to save that guy, we should all have died?”

The man glared fiercely at the elder.

“What’s so different now? We did as the Village Chief said! He told us not to think about morals or principles! What did I do wrong? Tell me!”

The man, exhausted to his last bit of strength, finally collapsed to the ground as if his legs gave out.

“What do you want me to do, huh? What!”

He pounded the ground with his fist, howling like a beast.

As the sound echoed, elder Hyeong felt all strength drain from his body.

Who could he blame? There wasn’t a single flaw in that statement. It was him who had emphasized the need to survive to them.

That statement had killed his son in his prime and brought the village to this state.

‘Yeah. Just survive.’

Wasn’t that enough if he just kept on living?

Even if it meant betraying the benefactor who had shown kindness and pushing away the one he had lived with for decades under the blade of enemies, wasn’t it still living if he staked his own life on it?

Wasn’t that the right thing to do?

“Hehe…”

For a moment, a bitter laugh escaped from the elder’s lips.

“Hehehehe…”

However, everyone knew it wasn’t laughter. That sound was the lament and cry of someone who had lost their way.

The villagers couldn’t bear to look him in the eye and averted their gaze.

After a while of sobbing or laughing – it was hard to tell – elder Hyeong’s voice, slightly firmer, came out of his mouth.

“…Prepare to leave.”

“Yes?”

Everyone looked at elder Hyeong in confusion at his sudden remark.

“Village Chief, what do you mean…”

“I’m not telling you to leave the village. Do you think I have the power to command you to go or stay?”

Some people pursed their lips at those words.

“I’m simply saying we can’t continue living here.”

“We can’t live here anymore?”

“Will they just leave us alone?”

“…Then, should we just leave?”

It was an innocent question. Elder Hyeong chuckled weakly and replied.

“If life were so easy, we wouldn’t have endured this suffering. Even if Hyeong Wook is buried in the ground, the fact that we resisted them remains unchanged. Sooner or later, trouble will come to the village, whether it’s now or later.”

The villagers, who hadn’t dared to consider such a possibility, looked at each other in confusion.

It was a valid point. The village had already caught the attention of Sapaeryeon. Even if they managed to get through this incident unscathed, any small slip-up would result in relentless persecution that they couldn’t compare to anything else.

“We should leave… We can’t live on land where death awaits.”

“Wait a moment, Village Chief. We’ve lived here all our lives. Where exactly are we supposed to go?”

“Do you all understand?”

“But… Our homes and fields are all here…”

He chuckled at their reluctance.

“Then you can stay.”

There was no response. Despite speaking realistically, elder Hyeong’s eyes were empty.

“We must live… Even if life is harsh and unforgiving, we must somehow survive. Even if it means going to an unknown place and facing the consequences, we must live…”

The faces of everyone present grew increasingly somber as they realized the harsh reality of the life ahead of them.

Elder Hyeong stared blankly at the mound of earth covering his son. His heart felt hollow.

What had he lived for? In the end, all he saw was this miserable sight… What had he struggled so fiercely to survive for?

Knowing that by abandoning someone, others could also abandon him in the end, why had he insisted on acting so smart and selfishly alone?

In the end, he knew nothing at all.

“Prepare yourselves immediately.”

“Yes? R-Right away?”

“Can you guarantee that those who left for now won’t send others back because of their pride?”

“…”

“If it were me, I’d sweep the village clean and report to the authorities that the village suffered a disaster unrelated to them. We must live, my people. We must somehow continue this harsh life. So, prepare yourselves.”

The villagers bowed their heads deeply.

Where did it all go wrong? Where did things become so twisted? They hadn’t done anything wrong, so why were they suffering like this?

“Don’t hesitate, move. Leave before they lay their hands on us.”

“V… Village Chief?”

“That’s not it, I mean, over there!”

A man pointed frantically in the distance. The elder weakly turned to look.

“Ahaha…”

At the village entrance, a group of men approached, with cold expressions and large swords at their waists. Elder Hyeong chuckled bitterly.

“It seems it’s too late…”

Perhaps this was the fitting end for this village. With that thought, the old man closed his eyes quietly.