The golden flames around him slowly faded away. His eyes, burning bright just a moment ago, turned back to plain black. Just normal eyes again.
Then the system's voice started inside his head.
[ Tutorial Case Completed ]
[ Special Authority Granted by Will of Themisar ]
[ Authority Reverted: Starting Tier Assigned ]
[ Current Rank: Petty Judge ]
[ Authority Weight: 10 ]
[ Crime Jurisdiction: Bullying, theft, assault… (read more) ]
[ Kang Jin-ho and his friends were judged under special exception. ]
[ Reason: Tutorial — First Chains of Justice ]
[ From now on, verdicts will follow the true scale of law. ]
The system's voice explained inside his head.
Every person carried sin. That sin had weight. If the weight was too heavy, Hyun Woo's chains would not move. The verdict would fail.
To pass judgement, there were two rules.
First, the crime had to be inside his rank. A petty judge could only cover small things — bullying, theft, assaults.
Second, the sinner's weight had to be lighter than his own authority weight. Right now it was ten.
If the sinner carried more, the system would not deliver the verdict.
The core skills that brought judgement — the Chains of Justice and the Judgement Strike — would not activate.
Other skills could still work – things that didn't give a verdict. Like Judge Eyes, which let him see lies and the sins inside people. But without the weight match, true judgement could not fall.
The voice went on.
Authority weight was the limit of sins he could bear. Rank was the type of crimes he could judge. Skills came with rank, each one stronger, each one costing more.
The Justice System flashed a screen in front of his eyes, like a popup window.
[ Justice Points: 400 ]
[ JP can be spent to shape your authority. ]
[1. Increase Authority Sin Weight (Cost: 500 JP per +1)]
[2. Increase Rank (Cost: 10,000 JP)]
[3. Unlock New Skill.(Cost: Depends on Rank — higher ranks need more JP)]
Hyun Woo stared at the glowing text. His finger moved left to right in the air, scrolling through the choices — raise weight, increase rank, unlock skill.
But the numbers were too high. He didn't even have enough for one.
He let out a long sigh and pushed the screen away. It faded out.
Still, he had learnt enough. At least now he understood what the system was. What kind of power it gave him.
Then the real thought hit him.
His eyes blinked and looked down at the ground, where he saw patches of blood spread across the dirt, the soil turning darker bit by bit, and the four bodies lying there with their eyes still open, staring.
"Shit…" The word slipped out before he could stop it. "I need to run. If anyone sees this, I'm dead."
It was like his mind snapped back all at once. His heart beat faster, and his breath stuck, like he inhaled once and it just stopped.
Only for the moment. Then his heart beat normally, and he caught his breath.
He rushed out, running as fast as he could while turning his head left and right, checking if anyone was there.
When he reached his place, he slammed the door shut hard, the sound echoing inside. He pressed his back against it, chest rising and falling.
Then it hit him again. The blood. The faces of the dead. A sight that should have broken him inside.
But his mind stayed calm. His body didn't even shake.
If it was the old Hyun Woo — the weak Hyun Woo — he would have fainted right there. His heart would have gone wild just from seeing death.
But now… he was steady.
Hyun Woo pressed his back harder against the door, breathing out slowly.
He looked at his arms. They weren't shaking. His hands were steady.
He pressed his palm to his chest. His heartbeat was normal, not racing.
He pressed the back of his hand to his forehead. He didn't feel sweat. He didn't feel any heat rising in his body.
He spread his palms open in front of his face and whispered, his voice small:
"…Why am I so calm?"
He should be screaming. He should be puking. His head should be spinning with terror.
But instead, he was steady. Like a mountain that doesn't move even when a river crashes against it. The river was his emotions, rushing wild, but his mind was the mountain, unmoved.
The System answered inside his head.
[ Innate Skill Acquired: Heart of Themisar ]
[Effect: Emotions are placed on the scales of law.
Fear will not cripple you. Panic will not shake you. Rage will not blind you.
The judge can feel pain, grief, and sorrow but will not tremble when giving judgement.
[Note: The judge is still human. Emotions are not erased, only balanced.
[This skill cannot be removed. It is the mark of Themisar's chosen vessel.
[ You now carry the will of Themisar. ]
[ When you accepted it, your heart changed. ]
[You are no longer only a victim. You are Judge.
[A judge does not tremble. A judge hears all cries, then delivers the verdict.
Hyun Woo leaned on the door for a while. Then he ran his hand through his hair, fingers dragging back like he was trying to clear his head.
"Judge… huh." The word circled in his mind.
He didn't fight what the system had said either. His mind accepted it — the new reality, his new role in this world.
He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. Calm. Silence.
He walked into his room and dropped on the bed. His eyes went up to the clock hanging above in front of him. The thin red hand ticked. It was past 1 A.M.
"...Late," he muttered, yawning. His body felt heavy all of a sudden. Too much had happened in one day.
The System's voice came again, steady in his head.
[ Rest. ]
[ You carry new weight. ]
[ Tomorrow, judgement continues. ]
Hyun Woo shut his eyes. He didn't argue. He didn't even think. His body sank into the mattress, his breathing slow and even.
For the first time, he wasn't going to sleep as a victim. He just felt… different.
The curtain by the window was still half open. He had forgotten to close it.
Morning light slipped through the gap, falling across the floor and crawling up the wall.
But Hyun Woo didn't move. He was already deep asleep, the blanket pulled over his face, his breaths quiet.
The world outside was starting to wake. He stayed lost in sleep.
The night passed without him knowing, and morning came. At the construction site, it was no longer quiet.
Police cars lined up outside, red and blue lights flashing again and again.
Yellow tape stretched around the entrance of the construction building, fluttering in the wind.
Reporters crowded behind it, holding mics, shoving for space, their vans parked on the side with big logos of news stations. Cameras clicked nonstop, the flashes cutting through the morning light.
Police officers formed a line, pushing the crowd back, keeping them behind the tape.
A few stood guard near the cars, their hands up, telling people to stay out.
Still, people from the crowd leaned forward, cell phones raised, snapping pictures over shoulders.
Some whispered, some gasped, and some just wanted the photo to post.
Inside the tape, the ground was dried with their blood. White sheets covered the bodies.
The smell of the bodies was in the air, heavy and rotten. The rookie inspector officers felt it first. Their hands went to their mouths like they wanted to puke, their noses twitching from the stench.
But the senior officers stood still. They smelt the same smell, but their faces didn't change at all.
Outside, reporters shouted, trying to talk over each other.
"Breaking news! Four high school students found dead inside this construction site!"
"The victims have been identified as Kang Jin-ho and his close friends!"
"Sources say their families are powerful—this case will not be easy for police!"
The noises of reporters rose louder when another car pulled in. Not a patrol car. A black sedan, clean and shiny, stopping right in front of the tape.
The back door opened.
A man in uniform stepped out from the car. Even before anyone said it, you could tell from the way he carried himself… The Chief of Police himself.
The reporters went wild.
"It's the Chief! The Chief is here himself!"
"Chief! Chief, is it true Kang Jin-ho is among the dead?"
"Chief, will this case be handled directly by headquarters?"
Cameras flashed nonstop, everyone rushing to get closer. Microphones shoved out like spears.
The police officers at the tape tightened the line, holding the reporters back, arms wide. Some shouted, "Stay back! Stay behind the line!"
But the reporters didn't care. They pushed forward, voices overlapping each other, throwing question after question.
The Chief didn't answer at first. His face was stiff, eyes sharp, and jaw locked. He only nodded once to the officers, and they hurried to clear a path for him inside.
Still, the shouting followed behind him, echoing across the whole site.
"Chief! Who did it?"
"Chief! Is this revenge killing?"
"Chief! Was it gang-related?"
The yellow tape shook as the crowd of reporters pressed harder, everyone hungry for a headline.