The Villain's Sister - Chapter 27

*This episode contains depictions of domestic violence and psychological trauma. Please use discretion.

“Is it yours?”

“I’m sure it is.”

I quickly turned my head to check Johan.

Raphael grabbed my shoulders, directing my gaze back to him.

“That bastard tried to investigate without your knowledge, but I caught on fast. That’s the only reason we’re here now.”

“Did you kill him?”

“There were dozens of your pictures in his room. All taken secretly.”

“So you did kill him?”

“He was the waiter at the restaurant we often visited.”

“Can’t you just say you didn’t kill him?”

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner? There was no need for you to suffer alone for two years.”

“This is exactly why I didn’t say anything.”

I shook off Raphael’s hand from my shoulder.

My head throbbed. I should’ve taken the painkillers earlier.

I grabbed the water bottle from the table and gulped it down.

The water dribbled down from the corner of my mouth and ran along my chin.

Clack.

I slammed the bottle down roughly and saw Raphael, who had driven me to the edge.

Someone had died because of me.

I didn’t know the details about him, but the next time I visited that restaurant, the one who’d be missing would be him.

No matter how angry or hateful I’d felt, it wasn’t right.

“I’m not fourteen.”

“Right. You’re a twenty-one-year-old young lady.”

“Exactly. I’m already twenty-one. I’m an adult who doesn’t need your protection. I can drink, sleep with men, and even do drugs if I choose to—and I’ll take full responsibility.”

“Deva. The world isn’t that simple.”

“You think I don’t know that?”

“I’m sorry about this. But—”

“There’s no ‘but’! Raphael, there’s no ‘but’ when it comes to human life! Taking someone’s life is a completely different matter!”

The heat that started in my chest spread to my shoulders and surged up to my head.

Every time I saw Raphael’s sense of responsibility, his guilt and indebtedness toward me expressed in such a twisted way, I felt like I’d lose my mind.

“If not me, who’s going to protect you? I wanted to protect you. That guy… he was dangerous. Extremely dangerous. I can’t explain in detail, but…”

“Why can’t you explain? Say it.”

“……”

“You just found it easier to kill. I wanted to leave it to the police. If you hadn’t been leading Death Adder, it would’ve been handled legally.”

“The police? Deva. Do you really believe the police would’ve protected you?”

Fire lit in Raphael’s eyes.

He ran a rough hand through his neatly pomaded blond hair, making a few strands fall onto his forehead.

“This is why I had to step in! The world is dirtier and harsher than you think!”

“No. It’s because you live in such a world. You spend every day with criminals—of course that’s all you see.”

“Hoo. Deva. Let’s stop. I don’t want to fight with you.”

“Stop what? Want to know what I’m thinking right now?”

“Deva, please stop.”

There were bloodstains on Raphael’s suit.

Suddenly, this reality became unbearable.

It’s all my fault. It’s my fault…

“I should’ve died that day.”

“Giselle—Deva—Moltke!”

Raphael shouted at the top of his lungs.

I sniffled and let the tears fall.

“Then you wouldn’t have fallen into crime. If I had died—”

“Even if you died, I still would’ve killed Andrew! Even if I went back to that day, I would’ve killed him again, and if I could turn back time, I would’ve killed him even earlier!”

“Please, Raphael, don’t say things like that. There’s always the option to just run far away. Leave everything behind and run… It’s not too late even now. Let’s just go far—”

“Run away? Ha! Did you say run away?”

This time, Raphael opened the water bottle and took a swig.

The discarded cap rolled all the way to Johan’s feet.

Bang!

As he slammed the bottle down on the marble table, a crack ran through the glass.

Raphael shouted, fuming, “What did the police do? When I was getting my bones broken by that damned bastard, what were they doing? No one helped me! And what about you!”

His bloodshot eyes were full of sorrow and grief.

His tearful voice made my heart feel like it was being torn apart.

Being born from the same womb and sharing the same experiences growing up creates a bond deeper than imagined.

I felt helpless, unable to do anything for Raphael.

“You have no idea what I felt in the military! You’ll never know what it’s like to hear that your only sibling has fallen into a coma!”

I crouched down and buried my face in my hands.

My hands were soaked with tears.

My nose was blocked, and I couldn’t breathe.

Why did it have to be us?

I knew questions like that were meaningless, but why did it have to be us who were burdened with Andrew?

I cried silently, sobbing hard.

“I’ve regretted it all along. From the moment I heard you were in a coma until now. Not once have I not regretted it. I ignored you, didn’t care enough, ran away from that hellish house alone—and you nearly died because of that.”

“It’s not your fault. Why would it be your fault? Raphael, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

Raphael confessed in a choked voice.

Seeing my brother, who had always shown me his strong side, crying was a huge shock to me.

“That bastard deserved to die. I don’t regret killing him or creating Death Adder. I never have, and I never will.”

Raphael’s hands were trembling.

It was clear that the trauma of that day and our hellish childhood had come rushing back.

As I regretted bringing it up, Raphael rubbed his face with his palms and gradually calmed down.

“I know you hate what I do. So it’s fine if you report my whereabouts to the police. I don’t care if you uncover corruption in a company Death Adder invested in and report it. But I won’t compromise when it comes to your safety.”

“……”

“I absolutely won’t allow you to hide if you’re in danger. Deva. Let me be clear, that one thing—I can never, ever permit it. I don’t care if you rip off Death Adder or burn down our house, but I will never trade your safety for anything. Got it?”

“I’m sorry, Raphael…”

I’d touched Raphael’s wound.

Just as Andrew was a trauma for me, my safety was a trauma for Raphael, and I hadn’t realized it.

I’ll never know what it’s like to hear that your younger sibling was beaten to death by your parents.

I can never understand that guilt, that sense of debt, the shock that must’ve pierced his heart.

“Stay at Maria’s or a hotel for a few days. You have to move anyway, so it’ll be good to calm down somewhere else.”

Raphael went outside to smoke, and even with Johan present, I sobbed like I was vomiting.

If I didn’t, life felt too heavy to endure.

***

While Giselle went upstairs to rest, Johan, stuffing pizza into his mouth, went to check on the low-spirited Raphael.

“Did you really kill him?”

“Why do you think I didn’t?”

Johan didn’t feel the need to explain.

Raphael checked the stairs leading to the second floor before opening his mouth.

“You should strengthen security.”

“Why?”

“That bastard was under some weird spell. Something must’ve gone wrong while decoding it—his head exploded. Looks like something nasty is involved.”

“Was it black magic?”

“I brought in a magical resonance expert. He said it wasn’t black magic.”

“Are you not going to tell your sister?”

“Why burden someone who’s already cautious because of me?”

Raphael, having set down the pizza he was eating, wiped his hands and said, “Deva was always gentle, unlike me. She loved dance and music, and looked at small, weak things with warmth. It must’ve been hard for her when I started working with the organization. That’s why I don’t want to scare her with things like this.”

“Then why did you create Death Adder? Even breaking out of prison to do it.”

“The facility Deva was supposed to go to was a total dump. There wasn’t a single decent place. So what else could I do? As her brother, I had to do whatever it took to raise her.”

Raphael shrugged like it was nothing and focused on the remaining food.

Just like the phone call between Giselle and Maria earlier, he finished off three boxes of pizza by himself before ending the meal.